The question that the title of this book asks is a question asked by many Christians and non-Christians alike. Sometimes, people fail to find a satisfactory answer to this question and leave the Church altogether, never to return. I have personally struggled with this question as well in my younger years. There are so many better things I could be doing with my Sunday morning instead of listening to a crusty old preacher talk for an hour. Now I know the true value of
fellowshipping with other believers. Additionally, I learned that Church is much more than a Sunday gathering in a building, it is the Body of Christ, the living representation of God on earth, and so much more. No Church is perfect, but if done according to Christ's blueprints, the Church has much to offer to the world.
OVERVIEW
Church: Why Bother? Is an entry in a series of books on Christian living. This is a very short and easy read. It deals with exactly what it asks: Why bother with Church? First, Yancey makes an argument for why we should not give up on the Church due to its many failures and imperfections. Then, Yancey offers insightful observations on how valuable the Church can be if done according to what the New Testament intended her to be. Lastly, Yancey explores the role of those ministering in the Church and the potential difficulties that may come with it. This book is also Yancey's personal pilgrimage of the Church experience. Yancey came out of a hyper-fundamental Church, and like many, he came out disillusioned. However, Yancey was able to find glances of the true beauty of the Christian Church over his life and now he shares that with us.
WHY READ THIS?
As mentioned before, it can be difficult to answer the question: Why bother with the Church? I have heard too many stories of Church hurt, abuse, and general disillusionment. People are leaving the Church in exponential numbers today, especially young people. However, the butchering of Beethoven's 5th Symphony by a middle school band does not entail that we must give up on Beethoven as a composer. Likewise, just because some Christians butcher the execution of Christ's vision for His Church, doesn't mean we should give up on that vision altogether. Yancey offers so many amazing things that the Church accomplishes (or at least, has the potential to accomplish). Yancey delivers his message using lived experiences and excellent metaphors, which makes this book all the more convincing and real. Much of this book's content was very convicting to me as I see the shortcomings of my home assembly.
If you are someone who is thinking about giving up on Churchgoing, I would suggest you read this book and discover the grand vision that the New Testament offers us first. Just because your corner of the Body of Christ caused you to feel disillusioned doesn't mean the entire thing has ceased to function.
This book will also be very valuable to Church leaders and members alike who are convicted about improving their local assembly.
POTENTIAL PITFALLS
Since the writing of this book, the climate of Christian Churches has shifted quite a bit. Much of the issues the book brings up still exist, but new issues have been raised. Before, the Churches may have suffered from a lack of compassion and an overabundance of legalistic convictions. Now, in my observation, Churches are severely lacking in conviction to the Word of God and are far too lenient and showing too much acceptance to sin. Yancey does not, unfortunately, address this aspect of the Church enough: discipline. Most of this book was about service, love, and acceptance, which is extremely important, don't get me wrong. However, one other important aspect of the Church is to proclaim the truth as well. Truth comes from God's word, and sometimes that means telling people that they are wrong, or correcting them for sinful behavior. The Church must have both compassion and conviction, if one is missing, then there will be problems.
Additionally, I have found a common theme in Yancey's works (at least, the ones I have read so far): a clear Gospel message seems to be missing. This has always been something I take as a red flag, but I will be slow to judge, but please keep your guard up.
Lastly, Yancey oftentimes quotes a wide range of people. From Catholics, and Orthodox, to even progressive Christians. In this book, he quoted Progressive Christian Richard Rohr. That's a yikes from me.
Overall, though, the messages in this book are sound.
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