Sunday, August 24, 2008

Why we call the church the Gate

Things have been really busy lately, lots of things we're working through as we get closer to the launch date of the church. We are planning on our first public service on September 7th, and so I woud like to take this opportunity to explain why we call the church the Gate.
I'm a big believer that a church's name says a lot about it. I once saw a church called New Energy Baptist Church. Right next to it sat the New Energy Cemetery. Good name for a church, questionable name for a cemetery.
A church's name can convey things overtly, such as denomination (Something Baptist/Methodist/Bible?Etc. Church), or things more subtly (like a more traditional approach when named a common name like a first First Church or church named after the town). Nothing wrong with this, but in a town like College Station, who needs a First Church of Aggieland?
So, why the Gate? Lots of things played into the name. For one, 'gates are common around here, like Northgate. Gates get a lot of play in Scripture as well. Jacob has his vision of heaven and says "Surely this is the gate of heaven." A bold assertion, but we can hope, right? The entrances to the city of Jerusalem were gates, with names like Lion's Gate, New Gate, and even a Dung Gate, but we didn't want to go there. Jesus says he is the Gate, and since we're pointing to Him, we figured it would be okay.
Despite all this, we are the Gate for something else. While not excluding anyone, we are actively seeking people between the ages of 18 and 30ish. Think about those twelve or so years. People leave home, go to college, start jobs, start families, establish homes of their own, and begin the journey toward the rest of their life. It is a time of constant transition, things always change. Its not really a place of permanence, but a place between childhood and adulthood (Yes, you're an adult at 18, but most of us are not fully settled into adulthood until our thirties. Wasn't that the premise of the show Friends- people making the choices that will shape the rest of their lives?) A gate is not a place, it is a place between.
As the Gate, we desire to walk with people in this 'place between.' We are all learning, growing and making decisions that shape our lives, not just for the next 60+ years , but for eternity. Each choice you make takes you through another gate, closer to or further from God.
But as we say, "Faith is a journey that starts with one choice."
Our church is not that first choice , but we know the Man who is.