{"id":471,"date":"2008-06-23T01:01:15","date_gmt":"2008-06-23T01:01:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/markdroberts\/2008\/06\/choosing-a-church-final-comments.html"},"modified":"2008-06-23T01:01:15","modified_gmt":"2008-06-23T01:01:15","slug":"choosing-a-church-final-comments","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/2008\/06\/choosing-a-church-final-comments.html","title":{"rendered":"Choosing a Church: Final Comments"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part 16 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations
\n<\/em>Permalink for this post<\/a> \/ Permalink for this series<\/a>
\nThis will be my final post in this series on choosing a church. Of course I could always say more about this subject, but I think I’ve said what needs to be said, more or less.
\nHere, in summary, are my eleven specific recommendations if you’re in the process of looking for a new church:<\/p>\n

Recommendation #1: Clarify what you value most in a church, though with an open mind and heart.
\nRecommendation #2: Look for a church that is essentially orthodox, unless . . . .
\nRecommendation #3: Use the Internet.
\nRecommendation #4: Meet with the Pastor.
\nRecommendation #5: Choose a church that proclaims and embodies the gospel of Jesus Christ
\nRecommendation #6: Choose a church that encourages you in your worship.
\nRecommendation #7: Choose a church where you can experience genuine Christian fellowship.
\nRecommendation #8: Choose a church where you will be equipped and encouraged to live out your life as a minister of Christ.
\nRecommendation #9: Choose a church where you will grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ.
\nRecommendation #10: Choose a church that sees itself and seeks to live as an outpost of the mission of God in the world.
\nRecommendation #11: Choose a church that values the Bible as God’s uniquely inspired and authoritative Word.
\nRecommendation #12: If you have children, choose a church that will help them to know Christ and to grow as his disciples.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"bodieBefore I finish, I want to remind you of a couple things I said at the beginning of this series. One is that there is no perfect church. Not in this age, at least. Every church has strengths and every church has weaknesses. So when you’re looking for a church, don’t expect perfection that can’t be found. (Photo: The church in Bodie, California, a ghost town. No, this is not a perfect church, though there are no disagreements or problems in this church, since there are no people.)
\nMoreover, I want to emphasize again that the most important issue when you’re looking for a church is recognizing that the question before is really: What church has God chosen for me? When you put it this way, you realize that choosing a church isn’t simply a matter of figuring out what you value and looking for it. Rather, choosing a church is greatly a matter of prayer in which you seek the Lord’s guidance. He might lead you to a church that fits your expectations quite nicely. Or God might have different things in mind for you. In the end, you’ll want to know that you’re in the church God has chosen for you. This will be especially important when you run into the inevitable discouragements all Christian experience with their church. Knowing that God has led you where you are will help you to stay put and work things through in a way that will help both you and your church to grow into greater maturity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part 16 of series: Choosing a Church: Some Recommendations Permalink for this post \/ Permalink for this series This will be my final post in this series on choosing a church. Of course I could always say more about this subject, but I think I’ve said what needs to be said, more or less. Here,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":214,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[47],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-471","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-choosing-a-church"],"yoast_head":"\nChoosing a Church: Final Comments - Mark D. 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Roberts","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-content\/wphb-cache\/gravatar\/f2d\/f2ddf5f080861f66ea230384f9d1bab2x96.jpg","caption":"Mark D. Roberts"},"description":"The Rev. Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a pastor, author, retreat leader, speaker, and blogger. Since October 2007 he has been the Senior Director and Scholar-in-Residence for Laity Lodge, a multifaceted ministry in the Hill Country of Texas. Before coming to Laity Lodge, he was for sixteen years the Senior Pastor of Irvine Presbyterian Church in Irvine, California (a city in Orange County about forty miles south of Los Angeles). Before his time at Irvine Pres, Mark served on the staff of the First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood as Associate Pastor of Education. (Thanks to Janel Pahl for taking the photo to the right.) Mark studied at Harvard University, receiving a B.A. in Philosophy, an M.A. in the Study of Religion, and a Ph.D. in New Testament and Christian Origins. He has taught classes in New Testament for Fuller Theological Seminary and San Francisco Theological Seminary. Mark has written several books, including No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer (WaterBrook, 2005), Dare to Be True (WaterBrook, 2003), Jesus Revealed (WaterBrook, 2002), After \"I Believe\" (Baker, 2002), and Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (Word, 1993). His most recent book is Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John (Crossway, 2007). He is currently working on a commentary on Ephesians that will be published by Zondervan in 2014. Mark writes a devotional for The High Calling of Our Daily Work, a website associated with Laity Lodge. His \"Daily Reflections\" can be viewed online or sent as a daily email. If you wish to receive this email, just visit TheHighCalling.org and sign up. Mark serves on the editorial board of Worship Leader magazine, where he publishes articles and reviews, including his regular column \"Lyrical Poetry.\" Additionally, he has published dozens of articles in leading magazines and journals. He often speaks for churches and other Christian groups, and has been interviewed on over seventy-five radio programs nationwide. Mark is married to Linda, who is a Marriage and Family Therapist, a Spiritual Director, and a retreat speaker. They have two children, Nathan and Kara.For Publicity Photos and Bio Statements for Mark, please check here. Mark's Dossier Professional History: Senior Director and Scholar-in Residence, Laity Lodge, October 2007 to present. Senior Pastor Irvine Presbyterian Church, June 1991 to September 2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Fuller Theological Seminary, 1994 to 2007. Courses: New Testament Theology and Exegesis. Adjunct Instructor San Francisco Theological Seminary, 1995 to 2001. Courses: New Testament Greek and Exegesis Associate Pastor of Education First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood, 1987-1991 Teaching Fellow Harvard University, 1980-1983 Education: Ph.D. in the Study of Religion. Harvard University, 1992. Area: New Testament and Christian Origins M.A. in the Study of Religion Harvard University, 1984. A.B. magna cum laude in Philosophy Harvard University, 1979. Phi Beta Kappa; Danforth Fellowship Books: Can We Trust the Gospels? Investigating the Reliability of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Crossway, 2007 No Holds Barred: Wrestling with God in Prayer. WaterBrook, 2005 Dare to Be True: Living in the Freedom of Complete Honesty. WaterBrook, 2003. Jesus Revealed: Know Him Better to Love Him Better. WaterBrook, 2002. After \"I Believe\": Experiencing Authentic Christian Living. Baker, 2002. Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther in the Communicator's Commentary Series. Word, 1993. Contacting Mark: You can reach Mark at: E-mail: mark@markdroberts.com mroberts@laitylodge.org Phone: Laity Lodge: (830) 792-1216 Address: Laity Lodge 719 Earl Garrett Kerrville, TX 78028","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/author\/mroberts"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/471","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/214"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=471"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/471\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=471"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=471"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/markdroberts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=471"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}