A Church That Isn't Ours

One mild October afternoon in 2020, Mercy Village Church was still an idea. My wife and I were talking with our bedroom windows open, trying to discern whether we should help plant a church in Barboursville. I said it felt as though God was inviting us into His work, like a train we could board or watch leave the station.

At that exact moment, a train whistle sounded across the hills.

That moment still reminds me whose work this is. Six years later, following an initial gathering of nine people, the most important truth remains: this church belongs to Jesus.

And the question of belonging concerns every human life.

Because we belong-body and soul-to Jesus, we are free to joyfully give our whole selves back to Him and become a church that reflects His goodness and glory through all our years.

A Coin, an Image, and a Bigger Question

In Matthew 22:15-22, religious leaders and supporters of Herod approach Jesus with a question about paying taxes to Caesar. They hope His answer will turn either the people or the authorities against Him.

Instead, Jesus asks to see the coin used for the tax. Whose image is on it? Caesar's. Jesus recognizes earthly obligations, then calls people to give God what belongs to God.

The coin bears Caesar's image. But what bears God's image?

Jesus doesn't explicitly answer that question in this exchange. Yet Genesis 1:26-27 gives us a remarkable connection: human beings are made in God's image. Psalm 24:1 reminds us that the earth and its inhabitants belong to the Lord.

We belong to the God who made us, whether we acknowledge His authority or not.

But Scripture tells an even more beautiful story of belonging. Through faith in Jesus, people who were separated from God by sin are welcomed as beloved children. John 1:12-13 speaks of receiving the right to become God's children, and Romans 8:15-17 describes the security and inheritance of those adopted into His family.

In Christ, we are children welcomed into a Father's care.

Belonging to Jesus means we can stop trying to prove that our lives are ours to control.

The Exhaustion of Living as Our Own Kings

Consider the people questioning Jesus. They form an unlikely alliance to protect their influence. They flatter Him with words they don't believe. They approach Him not as a neighbor to love or a teacher to hear, but as an opponent to defeat.

Their behavior reveals the cost of pretending we belong to ourselves.

The same instinct appears in our relationships and churches. We defend our reputation before listening, recruit allies rather than seek understanding, and mistake control for security.

If peace depends on always being right or getting our way, our little kingdoms demand constant protection.

There is a different way to live.

Belonging Sets Us Free

The Christian hope is not simply that God has the right to rule us, but that the One who rules us loves us. Jesus gave Himself for us, died for our sins, and rose again. Those who trust Him are received by grace, not rewarded for having everything together.

That changes how we hold our lives.

We can acknowledge failure without protecting a spotless image. We can speak honestly without manipulating people. We can hold our money, time, abilities, and plans with open hands because they are gifts to steward, not treasures that can secure our future.

We can obey God even when obedience is costly, trusting the goodness of the Father who has claimed us in Christ.

These freedoms do not earn belonging; they flow from grace.

A Church That Remembers Whose It Is

Now imagine this truth shaping an entire church family.

Imagine a church that values the mission of Jesus above personal preferences, where people are quick to repent and generous with grace. A church that chooses family over factions, service over status, and genuine spiritual fruit over impressive appearances. A church with open arms for neighbors and open hands with everything entrusted to it.

That is the kind of church Mercy Village is called to become.

We have not always gotten things right. At times, our decisions have helped people flourish; at other times, we have wounded or overlooked people. We should be honest about both. Yet God remains remarkably faithful.

Giving Back What Already Belongs to God

So begin with two questions. Whose am I? And am I living as though that is true?

Remember the security of belonging to Jesus. Then consider where you are resisting His claim: a relationship, an ambition, a decision, your finances, or a need to be in control. Entrust it to Him.

And remember that this kind of belonging begins with grace. Jesus has made a way for sinners to become God's children through His death and resurrection. He invites us to receive Him by faith.

Our lives bear God's image. Through Jesus, we can know the joy of belonging to Him as Father.

What a foundation for a life-and for a church-to build upon.