Church A place to BECOME - Part 3

The View From Above: Thoughts to Help With Everyday Life

August 21, 2026

Guest Contributor: Pastor Harold Warner — Part 5

Church: A Place to BECOME — Part III

In the book The Human Church, Paul O. Bischoff begins with a powerful thought:

“The Word did not become religion, God became flesh.”

This is why we will never escape the human element in the “living stones” that God is building into His spiritual temple.

Yes, we have tasted and experienced newness of life.

But we are still under construction.

We live in the profound tension between the “already/not yet”—between what God has already accomplished and what remains incomplete.

Grasping this reality is essential to understanding biblical grace, the church, and most importantly, Jesus Himself.

Consider just a few examples:

We are sanctified, yet we are being sanctified.

We are new creations, yet we still await resurrection.

We are children of God, yet we are exhorted to endure to the end.

This “already/not yet” reality has been summarized this way:

“God calls us to become what He declares we already are.”

This is why growth in grace and conformity to Christ’s image isn’t optional. It is the Spirit’s ongoing work within us.

Yet we will never attain perfection in this age.

Can this be stressful at times?

Most certainly.

Do we sometimes become frustrated at our slow progress?

Yes, we can all relate.

But can we know that our sins are forgiven, that victory is ours, and have confidence that God will complete what He has begun in us?

Yes! Amen and Amen!

Where Our Theology Becomes Flesh

Remember, we’re talking about the lived reality of the church.

This is where our theology becomes flesh.

The church is composed of broken human beings who are the temple of the Holy Spirit—with the Holy Spirit as the invisible common denominator among a diverse yet unified people.

Scripture Focus

1 Corinthians 12:13

“For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”

Someone has described the church as a:

“COMMUNITY OF WOUNDED HEALERS.”

Think about that.

If we weren’t in need of God’s grace and transformation, the church would be empty.

Yet, warts and all, the church remains the preeminent sign of God’s Kingdom, with mutual love manifesting our identity as followers of Jesus.

A Symphony From Broken Instruments

In Philadelphia in 2017, something remarkable happened called the “Symphony for a Broken Orchestra.”

Organizers had discovered that Philadelphia public schools possessed hundreds of damaged musical instruments that students couldn’t use because the district lacked the funds necessary to repair them.

Composer David Lang was commissioned to write a unique musical piece specifically for those broken instruments.

At its premiere, approximately 400 musicians played instruments that were damaged—many missing strings, keys, mouthpieces, or other parts.

And together, those broken instruments made music.

The event was both an artistic statement and a fundraiser for the school district.

On our final trip to God’s house under construction, that story reminds me of something important about the church.

The church is a place to become.

Every one of us has something that still needs work.

Every one of us has weaknesses.

Every one of us bears wounds and imperfections.

None of us has arrived.

But God takes imperfect people and joins us together into His Body.

And then something beautiful can happen.

Today’s View From Above

Perhaps you look at yourself and see all the areas that are still “under construction.”

Don’t become discouraged.

God isn’t finished.

And when you look around the church and see the imperfections of other people, remember:

God isn’t finished with them either.

We’re being built together.

We’re growing together.

We’re learning to love together.

We’re becoming more like Jesus together.

And just as hundreds of broken instruments once came together to produce a symphony—

even broken things can create beauty when people work together.

That’s the church.

That’s God’s construction project.

And we’re all still becoming.

— Pastor Harold Warner