Be the Hands and Feet of Jesus?

It sounds nice and it is trendy. But is it true? Is the church's mission to be the hands and feet of Jesus and thereby do the things Jesus would do if he were here? The priority of the church is not doing the works of Jesus, but proclaiming the good news of what Jesus HAS ALREADY DONE in securing redemption for all who trust in Him. When we forget that this is of first importance (1 Cor. 2:2; 15:3ff), the church loses its authenticity as the church. The hands and feet of Jesus were nailed to a cross so that the just wrath of God would be satisfied and redemption made sure. If we are going to call ourselves Christians and the church, we need to prioritize our calling to herald the good news about what has been done and the sure hope that it brings.

Here's a thought provoking observation that relates to the church authentically being the church...or not: "The choice before the American Protestant churches is plain. They must choose the [ultimate] frame of reference or the frame of reference supplied by American culture. If they choose the latter they will forfeit their right to speak in the name of the Christian faith. In so far as they continue to use that name they will be false witnesses who have betrayed their trust and are misleading people." -- Francis P. Miller (1935). Quoted by D.G. Hart’s Defending the Faith: J. Gresham Machen and the Crisis of Conservative Protestantism in Modern America (133).