"How about looking to God, not to churches, for your liberty. That works better!"
I have to agree to the idea of looking to God for your liberty. "Trust not in princes, in men in whom there is no salvation."
But you really can't separate Christ from His Church. The Church is His body --- or, in another sense, His Bride. This is the strongest of bonds: un-divcorceable.
I think we’re saying the same thing in two different ways.
It certainly benefits a church — any earthly part of the church — to reflect the Lord the best it knows how. And it shares the blessings of God to do that. As one of those pesky permanent salvationists, I affirm the betrothal of the Body of Christ very strongly. God does not welsh on promises, and engagement promises are among them. So in a sense people who complain about how the church acts have a point. A misbehaving bride is a scandal. However they still need to put their foot in the stirrup provided by God, so to speak, if they expect to actually ride that victorious horse.