People’s first impression of - Christians - ­followers of Jesus ­Christ—­is the church. Let’s face it: That impression can often leave people not wanting to be part of that body. Why? Because we are not completely perfect yet. All of us who follow Christ, from the pastors to the elders to the kids running around during worship time, are works in progress. This means that we are all still growing to become like Jesus Christ, the perfect example of a sinless, loving human being. We’re not there yet.

However, we can rest assured that Christ is helping us to grow more and more like Him (Ephesians 4:15). Therefore, even though the church body is not perfect yet, we are a body with hope! We know that as we grow in love as children of God, He will draw more people to His body to know Him. We are a diverse body of people whom only the ­head—­Jesus—­can grow and unify. As we read in Ephesians, “This is God’s plan: Both Gentiles and Jews who believe the Good News share equally in the riches inherited by God’s children. Both are part of the same body, and both enjoy the promise of blessings because they belong to Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 3:6).