Jim Elliot on the Church

Christian missionary and martyr Jim Elliot wrote, "The pivot point hangs on whether or not God has revealed a universal pattern for the church in the New Testament. If He has not, then anything will do so long as it works. But I am convinced that nothing so dear to the heart of Christ as His Bride should be left without explicit instructions as to her corporate conduct. I am further convinced that the 20th century has in no way simulated this pattern in its method of 'churching' a community.... it is incumbent upon me, if God has a pattern for the church, to find and establish that pattern, at all costs."

Elisabeth Elliot, Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testimony of Jim Elliot

(This is a re-post that seems appropriate for the beginning of a new year.)