Acts 2:42-47

Yesterday I had a conversation with friends who are not fans of the church or religion. I am usually confident answering “what” and “how” questions, that’s what they train us in seminary to do after all. But the one question that was hard for me to answer was the “why” question.

For someone who has only seen the bad side of the church in history, or who felt abused due to certain beliefs which they were told are the only way to be, why would they ever want to go to or be part of the church?

If you know me, you know that church was very significant in my life as a teenager, but I was also harmed by the church, like many. So if I was to answer the question “why the church?” it would be a little hard for me to come up with convincing arguments. I confess that I am less proud of the church history and more into the Jesus of Nazareth story. So why Jesus?

We are still reflecting on the mystery of the resurrection. If we were to answer the question why would Jesus ever come back? Why would God resurrect him? How would we answer that?

Why would Jesus come back if not for his followers to walk the path he walked? Has the church always been all about feeding the hungry, healing the sick, visiting the imprisoned, prioritizing the marginalized, confronting injustice, and walking all the way to the cross to stand for its beliefs? Have we lived the resurrection?

Friends, what if today was the day to start correcting the mistakes that we as the church have done in the past? How do we answer the question: Why are we believers in the resurrection?