I can't go to church with people like that,
Said the self-righteous man with a sneer,
Judging others for their beliefs and their hats,
Never realizing his own pride and fear.
He seeks a perfect church, without a flaw,
Where everyone thinks just like him,
But little does he know, it's all a mirage,
For the perfect church is but a dream.
Jesus himself dined with a betrayer,
Offered him bread and wine at the feast,
And yet, we still judge others in our favor,
Ignoring Christ's example, to say the least.
In Corinth, there were those with drinking problems,
But Paul didn't say to abandon the church,
And in Galatia, legalism was a symptom,
But no one was told to leave in a lurch.
We are a family of sinners saved by grace,
Broken and flawed, yet loved by the Lord,
In this place, we pray to seek His face,
To worship and praise, with one accord.
So let us drop our pride and arrogance,
And come together, as one family in Christ,
For in His love, there is no pretense,
Only grace, mercy, and eternal life.
Brandan, a software developer by trade, was raised in the Missouri Ozarks town of Potosi and started the Pristine Grace website around 2001. Brandan and his family live in Ashland Kentucky where they attend as members of Thirteenth Street Baptist Church.