not in fear, but in perfect love, enjoying with Christ the same
kind of intimacy and closeness shared by a groom and his
bride. And it reminds us that we are sojourners in a foreign
land who wait expectantly and eagerly for the day when Jesus
returns for us.
Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his
Bride has made herself ready; it was granted her
to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure—
for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the
saints. Revelation 19:7-8 (ESV)
This is the Church: the body and the bride of Christ. Christian
life was never meant to be lived alone. During Jesus’s ministry
on earth, he always sent out his disciples in pairs (Mark
6:7). Gospel-centered community is sweet and a tremendous
blessing. But God’s church is more than a group of nice people
doing nice things so people can feel nice about themselves:
His church is the primary hands and feet through which He
is glorified and made known in the world. Belonging to this
church is a far greater calling than simply going to a building
on Sunday mornings to sing praise songs and listen to a sermon.
It’s a calling to be the church to each other—“stir[ring]
up one another to love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24)—
and to be the church to a world that so desperately needs to
hear of the truth and beauty of the gospel.
At a university where the vast majority of students are from
out of state, the sentiment of a home church—perhaps the
one people grew up in or that their families attend—is particularly
common. Also popular is the phrase “church home”;
for example, when I went home for winter break after my
first semester, I found myself saying, “Oh yeah at my church
home in Providence...” Imbued in both of these phrases is the
concept of home, of shared sense of belonging and familiarity.
Without hesitation, I can say that my local church in
Providence is my home for the eight or so months that I live
here. I belong to them, and they to me.
in collective unity before His
throne. But in the meantime,
while we are foreigners in a
land that we know is not
our home, we seek solace
and community in the
church that God has
provided us out of His
grace. What glory that
the intimacy of profound,
late-night conversations
about faith,
the unrelenting intercessory
prayers for overseas
missions, the gleeful
breaking of bread
are all only momentary
glimpses of the eternal
home that is coming.
So we press on together
in faith, serving and
loving each other and
the world. We praise
God for this home away
from home He has so
graciously granted to
us. And of course, the
church is imperfect because
it is made up of
imperfect people. But
much like the rays of
light that beam through
mosaics of stained glass
in old cathedrals, His
glory shines through
our brokenness, and the
Church—His Church
—is being made beautiful.
The Church is ultimately a picture of the eternal home that
we anticipate in heaven, where all God’s people will worship
Chaelin Jung is a freshman at Brown studying Economics and International & Public Affairs.
Illustrated by Grace Kim '23
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