Inward Looking and Loving Churches

Go to any conference focused on missions an they will tell you that one of the keys to being missional is to stop being inward focused.  The claim is always that taking care of the people already in the Church thwarts the mission of Christ of reaching those outside of it.  But then there is Jesus saying,

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

He says that people will see Christ’s love as we take care of one another. Surprisingly, throughout the scriptures, the talk of caring for needs almost always focuses on those already inside the Church.  And I will admit that that seems counterintuitive.  It seems that if you want to draw people into the church, you should focus on meeting their needs.  But that is not the message of Scripture generally.  It says to focus on meeting the needs of those inside the Church. 

Why?  I think I have come to understand it.  You see when we help those outside of the Church, it is very easy for people to remain outside the Church and just receive help from the Church.  In this way, they receive only a taste of the kingdom rather than the fullness of it.

When we focus on meeting needs inside the Church, people see the love of Christ operating within the kingdom.  And therefore, they are drawn to be part of the Church rather than just receiving help from it.

The real trouble is not being inwardly focused.  The real trouble is being selfish within the Church, not truly loving on another.  How many times do we have one members of the Church struggling with bills and another flush with money?  How many times do we see someone with a tangible need like a car and yet have other in the congregation with so many cars they could never drive?  How many times do we see a member in need of true community and yet find people in the church unwilling to welcome them into the community that gives them support be it a group of family or friends?  Too often.

Too often when people look inside the Church they see a group of individuals not loving one another in real and tangible ways.  And when you add to that the fact that they can often receive the help they need better by remaining outside the Church rather than being inside of it, why would they ever want to become part of it at all?

If an inward looking church is also an inward loving church, it is not an impediment to mission but an asset to it.  People are drawn to life inside the Church instead of seeking help outside of it.