With today’s growing concern for our nation’s economy, the term upside down mortgage is all too familiar. An upside down mortgage describes a real estate condition where the amount owed on a home is more than its worth. As a result, homeowners are saddled with the limitations imposed by shrinking value in an increasingly difficult economy. What if we applied this concept to the church?

Is it possible to have an upside down church? Is it possible to have a church that has lost its spiritual value and relevance in God’s economy? Jesus admonishes Christians against losing their saltiness: “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men” (Matthew 5:13, NIV).

Is it possible for a local congregation to devalue the price Christ paid in establishing the Church? At what price was the Church purchased? What did it cost Christ to establish the Church? What price did our early founders pay to establish the Church of the Nazarene? What motivated our founders to be present among the urban poor, immigrants, women, and those neglected by society? How does the Church lose its value? I am not referring to real estate values, but the value of the “true Church,” which is the people of God, entrusted with the gospel, that are called to bear witness to the transforming power of Christ, and be the hands and feet of Jesus to a dying world.

As the coordinator for Compassionate Ministries in the U.S. and Canada, I have the rare privilege of traveling and seeing the church at work in local communities. I am excited when I see communities impacted by the love of Christ shown through modern day disciples. Equally so, I am saddened to come across hurting communities, struggling for hope, that have no idea that Christ cares because the neighborhood church has lost its saltiness. Failure to reach hurting people diminishes the church’s Kingdom value. A greater tragedy is when the church is seen only as a place of refuge and escape rather than an agent of hope and community transformation. We can’t put a price on failing to understand or refusing to live up to God’s intent for the Church.

One of the ways in which Christ preached salvation and demonstrated the signs of the Kingdom was through meeting felt needs where people were hurting. Consider these biblical examples:

The woman at the well desired water, or so she thought, and Jesus offered her the water that would quench her lifelong thirst (John 4:10).

The blind man at the side of the road desired to see and Jesus gave him sight both physically and spiritually (Mark 10:46-52).

Jesus healed the crippled man and liberated him from a life of physical and spiritual paralysis (John 5:1-16).

The woman with the issue of blood believed so much in what she had heard about Jesus that shedesperately reached to touch the hem of His garment and was healed (Matthew 9:20-22).

The centurion whose strong faith in Jesus enabled his dying servant, whom he highly valued, to regain his health (Luke 7:1-10).

Compassion ministries are a means by which the church becomes an expression of God at work in the world. We give of ourselves and our resources in response to Christ’s overwhelming love towards us and our communities experience the grace of God. When we meet people where they are experiencing their deepest hurts and neglect, we open their hearts toward heaven so that they may come to know the healing Christ and become part of His Kingdom.

Our Wesleyan heritage reminds us that “there is no holiness without social holiness.” Yet, how do we keep this important value alive in our churches? How do we retain our commitment to raising social consciousness and meeting needs where we work and live? As believers, our circle of influence is often limited to those within the church, not outside it. We lose contact with our non- Christian friends and associates.

One of the ways our churches can counteract this tendency is to deliberately engage and embrace those who do not know Christ and who are often forgotten by the world. In so doing, we open opportunities for the light of Christ to shine in our communities and our churches retain their value for the Kingdom of God.

God has not left himself without a witness. In my travels, I have observed Compassionate Ministry Centers (faith-based non-profits) and congregations in partnership where the full value of the Church is retained, the power of the gospel is evident, and they are participating in God’s establishment of His Kingdom here on earth by reaching communities with the love of Christ. Here are some examples:

The Lamb House of Hampton, Virginia, in partnership with Hampton Church of the Nazarene, is touching and transforming the lives of their community by meeting the temporal needs of the forgotten ones.

Neighbor 2 Neighbor Outreach in Raleigh, North Carolina, along with Raleigh Tapestry Church of the Nazarene, is impacting the lives of inner city youth through activities that redefine their self image and bring empowerment.

Miami Bethany Services in partnership with Miami Bethany Church of the Nazarene is impacting the lives of a largely immigrant community by caring for the strangers within our gates.

Time and space do not allow me to name every place I have visited, but these are just a few of the many compassionate ministry centers and churches who are committed partners in reaching those who are hurting and creating greater opportunities to make Christlike disciples in the nations for the glory of God. Fortunately, there is no need to fear an upside down church with partnerships like these!

by Althea C. Taylor
Coordinator, Nazarene Compassionate Ministries USA/Canada