How the Church Provides Meaning for Your Life

Do you ever wonder what makes life meaningful? It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and forget what’s most important. But life is not about how much money you make, how successful you are, or how many vacations you take. When you are on your deathbed, the only thing you’ll be thinking about is your relationship with God and your relationship with your family, friends, and loved ones. You won’t care about your American Express bill, the price of gas, or who is in the White House. Life is all about your relationship with God and your relationship with people. And the Church is the only organization in the world that is committed to those two things.

The Church holds a distinct purpose and a specific assignment. It exists to help people know God and grow in their relationships so they can discover their purpose and impact their world. When you attach your purpose to an eternal God, your mission has eternal significance. 

Some people say, “I love Jesus, but I don’t like the Church,” but Jesus came to establish the Church—not a religion—as a family. Ephesians 5:25 tells us, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,” which tells us Christ loved the Church so much that He gave His life for her. If that’s Christ’s response to the Church, what should ours be? 

Some people say they don’t want to go to Church because it’s full of hypocrites. But we can’t confuse the imperfect people of the Church with the perfect, God-ordained purpose of the Church. We don’t commit to the Church because it’s perfect. There is no perfect church—it’s simply made up of a bunch of imperfect people trying their best to love Jesus a little better every day. 

Although the Church has many benefits for our life, the Church doesn’t exist for us—it exists for the world. We are on a mission. In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus said, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.”

God wants His Church to be a place of healing, hope, and restoration. In other words, it’s the perfect place for imperfect people. We are not keepers of an aquarium—we are fishers of men. 

2 Corinthians 5:20 says, “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.” Ambassadors are sent from one kingdom to another. We have been sent from God’s Kingdom to carry light into the darkness and hope into hopeless situations. And there are a lot of hopeless situations and people in our world today.

The purpose of the Church is both practical and spiritual. We take back territory when we expand and grow, but ultimately it’s about taking back hearts for God. And if there was ever a time for the Church to be taking territory, that time is now. If there was ever a time for the Church to be on mission, breaking ground, and moving forward in strength, it’s now. So, when you ask yourself what makes life meaningful, consider the opportunities all around you to be the Church—the hope of the world.