Episode 391: Church and State, Part Five--Multinational Church

As we keep thinking through the value of having a separation between church and state in the United States, pastors Sarah, Erica, and Steve spend some time looking at the biblical picture of the church as a multi-national community.  From the time of Paul's letters (the earliest documents of the New Testament!) onward, we see the early church choosing to include people from other nationalities, cultures, and languages without making them "assimilate" into the practices of ancient Judaism first. That is, Gentiles were welcome as Gentiles!  And running through the Bible, from prophets like Isaiah through to the end of Revelation is a picture of many nations all gathered as God's beloved community.  We'll look at the ways it can be both a challenge and also a blessing that the church is always bigger than one nation, government, or territory, and some of what we have learned by listening intentionally to people whose background, culture, and nationality are different from our own.  Join the conversation here on Crazy Faith Talk!