How the Church Shapes Us on Our Faith Journey

In your private, quiet moments before the Lord, do you ever reflect on how you’re doing on the journey of faith? Do you ever consider if the way you live aligns with what you profess to believe? Do you ever wonder if when people see your daily practices, they catch even the slightest glimmer of Jesus?

These are essential questions for every Christ follower to consider because living out our faith with consistency is unlike almost anything else we experience. There are no report cards with a grade at the end of a semester. No annual review is provided by the boss. And there is no annual check-up with a doctor.

In these moments of spiritual introspection, we are left to wonder: How am I doing? Is my faith in Christ strong enough to navigate the storms of life? Will I persevere in faith to the end? These are the sort of honest, authentic questions we, as people of faith, should regularly be asking ourselves. This kind of quiet self-reflection is a good and right practice for humble followers of Jesus as it can bring us to a place of joy-filled worship for the goodness of God in our lives. It can also bring us to our knees in heartfelt confession as we seek a renewed measure of God’s grace for our lack of Christlike faithfulness. 

Yet, there is so much more available for those of us who pursue godliness and seek to practice holiness than mere introspection. It’s found in a place that many view as little more than a weekly religious event—the local church. Sadly, since the turn of the millennium, there has been a strong downward trend in the number of people who regularly engage with the ministry of a local church on a weekly basis yet profess faith in Christ. A Pew Research study, for example, shows a steady decline in the number of Americans who attend church weekly from nearly 35% in 2000 to around 20% in 2023.

For many of us, the dynamic journey of faith has been reduced to a visit to church every other weekend, occasionally serving when asked, and privately reading a few verses of the Bible when the intensity of life is pressing in. That’s it. Just a few religious activities over the course of a month with little intentionality and a lack of community.

This is why we need to pause and take the pulse of our own spiritual heartbeat. Has our faith grown stagnant and stale, or are we living spiritually vibrant lives, centered around the power and hope of the gospel? These are powerful personal questions that are best pondered not in the isolation of our own minds and perspectives but within a Christ-centered community—God’s church.

It Takes God’s People

In a world where we are bombarded with media vying for our attention—seeking to entertain us, distract us, and numb our senses to the things of God—we need the gospel, and gospel-centered people, more than ever before. We need faithful fellow believers—men, women, and children—to demonstrate the love of God in Christ, help us experience the grace of Christ in our daily lives, and direct us toward the still, small voice of God amidst the roar of our culture.

Recently, I had the privilege of having a conversation with a man in my church office who had experienced the power of the community of faith in ways that I had not seen before. He was a middle-aged father who had lived vicariously through the athletic achievements of his teenage son—the trophy case in his house proudly displayed “their” victories. But, rather than following his dad’s dream and continuing his baseball path to stardom, his son had chosen to go to college instead. As the disappointed dad wrestled with his son’s decision, his wife expressed a desire to attend church more consistently, where there happened to be a sermon series being preached on the importance and power of confession. At the same time, this man was also participating in a Bible reading experience that had him reading and discussing the prophetic books of the Old Testament with fellow believers each Wednesday evening. Clearly, God was bringing him to a point of action in the midst of his struggle.

The combination of his son’s choice, his wife’s spiritual longing, his church’s Bible teaching, and his faith community’s wrestling with hard truths brought this man to the door of something powerful—repentance and faith. Around 8:45 p.m., in the solitude of my office, this man repented of his sin and placed his faith in Jesus!

This experience reminds of the powerful words of Christian martyr, Dietrich Bonhoeffer: “The Christian needs another Christian who speaks God’s Word to him. He needs him again and again when he becomes uncertain and discouraged . . . He needs his brother man as a bearer and proclaimer of the divine word of salvation. He needs his brother solely because of Jesus Christ. The Christ in his own heart is weaker than the Christ in the word of his brother; his own heart is uncertain, his brother’s is sure” (Life Together [San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1954] 23).

In this situation, God used his people to bring about spiritual change in this man’s life—a change that may not have happened if he had wrestled with his questions, doubts, dreams, and struggles in the privacy of his own home. He needed the church of God to bring him to the throne of God. That’s the beauty and power of the church at work.

A Foundation for the Family of God

In the first letter he penned to his understudy, Timothy, the Apostle Paul wrote of the power of community—built on the foundation of gospel truth: “If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come . . . to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God” (1 Tim. 4:6–9).

Paul’s emphasis here is on the public reading and sharing of the Scriptures and engaging with sound doctrine. God’s people are trained in gospel truth. The training isn’t passive. It’s never nonchalant, and it rarely lacks rhythm. Paul wants his mentee Timothy and all who hear this message to view spiritual growth as an athlete perceives competition—with intentionality, intensity, and rigor, their eyes fixed on the prize: the Risen Christ.

At the church where I serve, we gather each week to participate in many of the same rhythms and practices that God’s people have been doing for generations. Each Sunday, we preach the Word of God in our sermons; sing the Word of God in our worship; proclaim the Word of God in our times of responsive reading; teach the Word of God to our kids and students and adults in their respective classes; and encourage all of our small groups to be consistent in gathering together—not simply for relational connection (although that is important) but to have time rooted in the Word of God.

We do these things because we believe that everything God calls his people to be and to experience is found in his Word. And nothing on the list is done in private.

Read through the Scriptures and you’ll see a very clear pattern—walking in faith is not a solo endeavor. In the Old Testament, God’s covenants are established with individuals (Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, etc.) who represent and carry the message to God’s people. In the New Testament, Jesus interrupts the lives of individuals and then welcomes them into his small group of followers. Practicing authentic faith and experiencing spiritual vitality has always been—and will always be—a communal experience.

Show Your Progress

Just as Paul wrote to Timothy and gave him guidance for how to lead the church, he also gave Timothy wise counsel for his own faith journey. Concerning the spiritual disciplines—worshipping, giving, and serving regularly in God’s church—he wrote, “Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress” (1 Tim. 4:15).

The same things that are good for the church are good for you.

Consider the three actions that Paul urged Timothy to undertake: practice, immerse, and progress. We are to immerse ourselves in God’s Word—not just occasionally or when life gets particularly heavy, but faithfully and consistently. Why? So that God’s people will see how we have progressed on our faith journey because of the way the gospel has shaped our lives.

As believers, it is good and right for us to consider these million-dollar faith questions. It is healthy for followers of Christ to ponder if our personal desires align with gospel truth. And the best place to wrestle with this is in a gospel-centered, Christ-pursuing community called God’s church.

As you strive to honor Jesus with your life, invite the church of God to encourage you, challenge you, and exhort you as you walk in faith.