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Yesterday I wrote that Jesus didn’t die so we could go to church. He died so we could be the church. And we looked at one description of that in Ephesians 4.1 – 3, which basically tells us how to treat fellow believers.

But, of course, we can’t just stay in our holy huddles and relate to each other; God has put us in the world: our neighborhoods, our work, our schools, our families. And God expects us to be the church there also.

Through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master. Be ready to speak up and tell anyone who asks why you’re living the way you are, and always with the utmost courtesy. Keep a clear conscience before God so that when people throw mud at you, none of it will stick. They’ll end up realizing that they’re the ones who need a bath. (1 Peter 3.15, 16, MSG)

These commands are directly related to the events of Holy Week:

It’s better to suffer for doing good, if that’s what God wants, than to be punished for doing bad. That’s what Christ did definitively: suffered because of others’ sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones. He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God. (1 Peter 3.17, 18, MSG)