What's in our church's name?

We recognize the importance of a name when we are given the responsibility to come up with one.

That is why soon-to-be parents struggle with what to name their child. Start up businesses spend money and enormous amounts of time brainstorming in search of the perfect name. Toymakers see the importance of giving the proper names to toys, games, and dolls. Even street names within a community have purpose and meaning.

As God breathed life into our church eight years ago, our core group of 14 people wrestled with what to call it.

This was a very important decision.

For us, the name needed to fulfill a combination of things. It needed to reflect our heart, our hopes, our vision, and the community of believers who we believed would one day make up our church. This name needed to reflect more than present vision--it needed to be a tool to further God's vision through the church.

Julie and I spent much time praying, discussing and seeking what God would want to call this church. Our core group who helped us start the church also spent time seeking God for the right name.

As time wore on, our discussions revolved around what we believed a community of believers should look like, our church's purpose, and the impact our church should make in our community and around the world. We also examined Biblical reasons for the name we would give the church. We were desperate to know God's heart because we believed that even our church's name mattered to God.

In time, our search for a name came down to this question, "What makes church, church?"

Scripture describes church as people united in Christ and joined together by the Holy Spirit. We walk together toward Christ, we encourage each other to grow into spiritual maturity, build community, and fulfill God's mission together to reach our community and world with the Gospel.

Matthew 18:20

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them."

Romans 12:4-5

"⁴ For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, ⁵ so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another."

Ephesians 2:19-21

"¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, ²¹ in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord."

Ephesians 4:4-6

"⁴ There is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call— ⁵ one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶ one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all."

Ephesians 4:11-13

"¹¹ And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, ¹² to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, ¹³ until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ..."

A common theme kept popping up--The Gathering.

In addition to the Bible, we examined the Greek word EKKLESIA, which means "the gathering of the called out ones." Every follower of Jesus is called out from the world to walk with Him.

We belong to the body of Christ--Jesus' church. But when we come together, we gather as "The Gathering" of the called out ones. Whether we are one, two, 10, 1,000, 10,000, we all belong to Jesus' church.

"The Gathering" must reflect more than Sunday worship, our weekly small groups, and ministries in or out of our church. Our name must exemplify to the world that we are individual followers of Jesus united to His church by the Holy Spirit. Our name reflects who and what we belong to and not a place or activities we participate in.

Saying all this, we must always remind our people that the church does not gather to come and stay. We gather to go.