Relevant?

Okay, I get it.  There is an attitude out there that church/the things of God can be...boring.  Stuffy.  Out of touch with culture.  Have no bearing on day-to-day life.  Impractical.  Irrelevant.  It seems that the worst thing a church can be these days is irrelevant.  How are you going to reach the lost people of the world if you aren't relevant to them?

I would suggest that we're chasing the wrong thing.

Now, admittedly, it is possible for a church to be irrelevant.  But not for the reasons that I think many may think they risk getting that label.  Last time I checked, the human condition for every single person on this planet by default began with being lost in sin.  Fortunately the church has been blessed as the conduit through which God spreads his Gospel message of redemption through His Son Jesus (Acts 1:8).  Likewise, following a person's redemption the Bible still contains the keys through which they come to a greater understanding of the things of God and the role they play in His plan (2 Tim. 3:16-17).  Sounds pretty relevant to everyone if you ask me.  So if a church wants to be irrelevant all they need to do is abandon the Gospel and the teachings of the Bible.

I think the word that churches are really looking for today is "relatable."  As creatures made to know and relate to God, the things of God are immediately relevant.  Unfortunately, sometimes it is hard for us to make the connection from the words of the Bible to the walks of our daily lives.  Despite being truly relevant we may not see it that way.  The challenge before us is to show how the things of God and the things of our lives are related.  When the connections are made the relevance becomes apparent.

So why quibble over the different terms?  Because when we strive to be "relevant" the baseline assumption is that if we don't seek it out then it won't be there.  And this just isn't the case.  Relevance is always present whether we recognize it or not.  By seeking to be "relevant" we deny a fundamental truth of Christianity - that the Gospel, the Good News of God is relevant to all men for both salvation and sanctification.  Let's not seek to be relevant, but rather seek to make connections that relate the Gospel to the lives of all around us.