Whenever you talk about church, it isn’t long before people begin wondering how their various practices will be viewed by outsiders. What would a visitor think? Would the average unbeliever checking us out be unduly put off by this?

I don’t think these are wrong questions to ask. There is absolutely no credit in being weird and odd for its own sake. All things being equal, we probably should have an eye on how we might be perceived. We can’t expect people to feel welcome or like we actually want them there if we don’t even ask the question!

But it does bear saying that the views of outsiders really isn’t ultimate. There are lots of things that churches might do which an outsider may find odd. Just think about communion or baptism. Both would quite understandably be completely alien to the unseasoned, unchurched, unbeliever who has never seen the inside of a church building. As things in and of themselves, were we to just assume complete familiarity, they are entirely odd. It’s dipping fully clothed people in a pool of water and eating a little scrap of bread and thimble of wine which we imply is related to the flesh and blood of Jesus. There’s no pretending otherwise; it’s weird.

But that weirdness and unfamiliarity is not a reason to jettison them. Sure, an outsider would find them a bit mad, but when Jesus has given them to us to do, what the outsider thinks about them becomes irrelevant. Jesus tells us to do these things so we do them. We might well want to explain these rites for understanding, giving some context and helping outsiders understand what we are actually aiming to do and what we aren’t doing, but in the end they will still find it a bit odd. But the command of Christ should nevertheless overrule.

But there are countless examples of slightly less significant things. Take our singing, for example. Singing isn’t competely alien to outsiders. People sing at the football, at open mic nights, at karaoke bars and in all sorts of different contexts. Communal singing isn’t inherently weird. But it is plausible that some of the songs we sing, and their particular style, are a little alien. It also bears saying Jesus doesn’t give us specific instructions in his word on the specific style of music. So, isn’t there more credit here in concerning ourselves with what outsiders might find particularly odd and alien?

Again, it’s not a wrong question to ask. All things being equal, yes, maybe what an outsider finds odd to sing might be a factor. But surely what builds up the body of believers is a more important consideration? If a song would build up the body but is alien to an outsider in its style, these things are not equal considerations. Both are considerations, but the former is far more important and ought to overrule the latter. And I don’t think these are the only considerations when it comes to what we might sing, almost all of which would presumably overrule the weirdness to outsiders factor.

Whilst I am very glad for outsiders to come into our meetings, and I am always pleased to present the gospel to them, the reality is that the church meeting is not for outsiders. We are inviting outsiders into a meeting of Christian corporate worship. The meeting is for the believers, not the outsiders. They may look in, they may see what true worship is, they may hear the Christian gospel and how it is applied to the church.

At the end of the day, what happens in church is for the believers not the outsider. Which means what is alien or offputting to the outsider is not ultimate. It may be a consideration, but it is neither ultimate nor takes priority over other considerations that serve the upbuilding of God’s people.