Category Archives: Church

Letter to Diognetus (AD 125): “Although they live in Greek and barbarian cities alike, as each man’s lot has been cast, and follow the customs of the country in clothing and food and other matters of daily living, at the same time (Christians) give proof of the remarkable and admittedly extraordinary constitution of their own commonwealth. They live in their own countries, but only as aliens…they busy themselves on earth, but their citizenship is in heaven. They obey the established laws, but in their own lives they go beyond what the laws require. They love all man, and by all men are persecuted…

Letter to Hadrian (AD 125): “The Christians know and trust their God…If any of them have bondwomen or children, they persuade them to become Christians for the love they have toward them; and when they become so, they call them “brother” without distinction. They love one another…If they see a stranger, they take him into their dwellings and rejoice over him as a real brother; for they do not call each other brother after the flesh, but after the Spirit of “”God. If any among them is poor and needy, and they do not have food to spare, they fast two or three days that they may supply him with necessary food. But, the deeds which they do, they do not proclaim to the ears of the multitude, but they take care that no man shall perceive them. Thus they labor to become righteous. Truly, this is a new people and there is something divine in them.”

(Mark 3:32-35)  “A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you.” {33} “Who are my mother and my brothers?” he asked. {34} Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! {35} Whoever does God’s will is my brother and sister and mother.””

 When the first Christians were made part of the New Testament church, begun on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, they knew hardly anything of Jesus and nothing at all of the “church.” Yet, immediately, they were thrust into a fellowship of other believers – a radical, consuming community which supplanted every other loyalty.

 What did the church look like? They “devoted themselves” to meeting with a relative strangers (Acts 2:42). They sold their possessions to support one another (Acts 4). They met daily with their new friends to worship and commune in each other’s homes (Acts 2:46). They even rejoiced together when suffering persecution and ridicule!

 All this had a revolutionary impact on the families, businesses, and friendships of these first Christians. Old loyalties were exchanged for new ones. The church became almost overnight the primary “reference group” for its members.

In the New Testament, the church commanded the primary allegiance of disciples. No other group of people was allowed to take precedence over God’s people. Even family ties were subordinated to the family of God. Families of origin were put at risk and even broken:

(Mark 10:29-30)  “”I tell you the truth,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel {30} will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age (homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields–and with them, persecutions) and in the age to come, eternal life.”

This radical sense of community was true of the first century church. Is it true of the church today? Is it true that many other loyalties compete with our devotion to the body of Christ?

 Leaders served and elders focused efforts on the good of others: Matthew 20:25-28 (NIV)
²⁵  Jesus called them together and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them.
²⁶  Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant,
²⁷  and whoever wants to be first must be your slave–
²⁸  just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” 

We have an opportunity in this place at this time to rediscover what a radical community the church of Jesus can be. Are we willing to place as much importance on being together and serving each other as the early church? Can we adopt a new ethic for living life in this community? Perhaps we need to realize that the church is God’s means of saving us, and that we cannot make it alone!

Unity demanded at Corinth by Paul.

(1 Cor 1:10-16)  “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. {11} My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. {12} What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas “; still another, “I follow Christ.” {13} Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? {14} I am thankful that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, {15} so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. {16} (Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I don’t remember if I baptized anyone else.)”

 (1 Cor 3:1-3)  “Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly–mere infants in Christ. {2} I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. {3} You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?”

Some evil effects of division

1. Division among believers is wrong because it is directly opposed to the prayer of Jesus.
2. Division among believers is wrong because it is contrary to the Scriptures.
3. Division among God’s people is wrong because it results in a waste of time, means, and energy. Just imagine how powerful God’s cause would be if all believers worked in harmony!
4. Division is wrong because it retards the salvation of lost souls. Several have told me that they are going to “try” every church until they find the right one.“ Sinners are confused by the conflicting doctrines and practices of various religious groups. Each denomination is striving to uphold its particular doctrines rather than the New Testament.

To preserve its undenominational character the church must have:

1. No denominational name.
2. No denominational creed, recognizing no authority but Christ.
3. No denominational organization.
4. Uncorrupted worship, following the N.T. plan.
5. No denominational requirements for membership.

Unity an individual obligation to Christians

(Eph 4:3)  “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”

 The Divine Standard of Unity

(Eph 4:4-6)  “There is one body and one Spirit– just as you were called to one hope when you were called– {5} one Lord, one faith, one baptism; {6} one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all.”

Our Authority in Religion
Every thinking person realizes that authority plays a very significant role in the life of all of us. We must have adequate authorization for everything we do. The vital place which authority plays in every phase of our lives is seen no matter in which direction we may look.

 Before we drive a car we must have the authority of a license. Before we write a check we must have the authority which comes from having made a previous deposit in a bank. Even to get married, we must have a license from the County court clerk.

 We can’t even attend a football game until we are authorized to do so through the purchase of a ticket. Authority comes from many sources and is of many kinds, but there is little we can do in life without proper authority.

 Is it not reasonable to think this principle would also be in place in regard to religious conduct? Christianity is essentially a personal relationship with God, found in Christ, and based upon a person’s surrender of obedience.

 Late in the earthly ministry of Jesus the chief priest and the elders came to him and asked: (Matthew 21:23)  “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you this authority?”

 Jesus answered their question in a variety of ways:

1. The fulfillment of the many prophecies concerning His life
2. The miracles which He performed
3. The superior quality of His teaching
4. The perfection of His life
5. His resurrection from the dead was the absolute proof!

 The question asked by the religious leaders of Jesus day needs to be asked/answered often in our day! God is not the author of confusion. Jeremiah 10:23: “I know, O LORD, that a man’s life is not his own; it is not for man to direct his steps.”

I suggest that the answer — The Bible, the inspired of word of God

The only dependable authority in religious matters is the Word of God. And isn’t it obvious that God, the creator but also the object of our worship, should be the one to determine what He wants done in our worship and service to Him?

 (Matt. 11:27)  “”All things have been committed to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

 (John 1:17)  “For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.”

 (John 5:26-27)  “For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. {27} And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.”

 (Hebrews 1:1-2)  “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, {2} but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.”

 Christ’s authority was executed through His apostles

(Matt. 16:17-19)  “Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. {18} And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. {19} I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.””

(Matt. 19:27-28)  “Peter answered him, “We have left everything to follow you! What then will there be for us?” {28} Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

(Mat 28:18-20)  “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. {19} Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, {20} and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.””

(2 Cor 5:18-20)  “All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: {19} that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. {20} We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.”

Our relationship to God through Christ is the most important things in the world. We ought to be absolutely certain about everything that we believe and practice!

(Gal 1:8-9)  “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! {9} As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! 

There is a great deal of confusion in our world about the church:
· some thing of it as only a building…brick and mortar with no identity to a particular group of Christians
· some see it as a gathering place for an increasingly marginalized segment of our society
· they identify ‘church’ with rituals and altar calls
· they equate it with the bizarre and irrational conduct of the TV ministers

But it’s also becoming clear that even among those who call themselves ‘religious’ there are many who want fellowship with Christ but want nothing to do with the church!

We are a nation made up of rugged individuals…we’re becoming more self-sufficient and are very suspicious when it relates to giving groups authority over our lives.
· Can one be a Christian who is pleasing to God without having a significant commitment to a church?
· Does the statement: “I am my own church” describe you?

Let’s begin right now with an affirmation that is needed: THE CHURCH IS GOD’S IDEA!
· With all its flaws and faults, God intends for the church to be the living incarnation of Christ in the world today! If the world sees Christ, it will have to see Him through each of us, who wear His name.
· The church is God’s instrument to reconcile the world to Himself

The church can not become “an option” that one can “take it or leave it.” It must not be treat casually or with apathy. Our goal as we begin this year-long study today is to:
· reevaluate our understanding of the church
· reaffirm its place both in the plan of God and in our own lives

Someone might say: “Ahhhh, that’s all your opinion. It doesn’t surprise me to hear a minister say that we need to treat the church more seriously.” (Let’s spend our time today answering three questions or comments that usually come our way).

1. WHO’S CHURCH IS THIS?
   “I’ve been part of one church or another for a long time now, and I don’t see many churches involved in spiritual business. They seem more concerned with budgets and buildings, power and prestige, programs and creeds. I look at the church and it looks like a man-made institution, pursuing human agendas, worried about worldly things.”There is no doubt that many churches have lost their calling and sense of mission…that many have “changed management.”A church that does not respond to the direction and leadership of Christ and that does not further the kingdom of God HAS become peripheral to God’s plans! Some do spend more time at business meetings worried more about brick and mortar instead of souls.

But that is not what God wants! When the church behaves as God intends:
· it is His instrument to accomplish His will upon earth
· the church is not just God’s idea…it’s His possession
· Jesus came “to build my church” (Matthew 16:18)
· Christ is the head of church, which is His body (Eph. 5:23)
· God established His church at Pentecost and adds believers to it (Acts 2:47)
· Ephesians 2:19: “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household…”

If the church you see around you “has changed management,” it is something we have allowed and it is something we can change.

2. “THE” CHURCH OR “A” CHURCH?
   “All Christians are part of the church—that great, universal community of believers which transcends time and space. The church is made up of those who believe and respond by faith to Jesus, no matter when or where they lived. I am the church whether I go to church on Sunday or worship on a lonely mountain top. You don’t have to belong to a church to belong to a church.”Of course, every believer is part of the universal church if he/she has responded to the gospel that is preached in the New Testament.

But for any Christian who has a choice in the matter, failure to cleave to a particular ‘congregation’ is failure to obey Christ…for it is only through a confessing, local body of believers that we carry out the work of the church in the world:
· it is within a congregation structure that we commit ourselves to intimate relationships (IF we are to “love the brethern” we must worship somewhere so we can know “some brethern”)
· it is in a congregational structure that we submit to accountability, duties, and responsibilities
· our Christian character is both shaped and practiced ‘first’ among ‘church family’
· this is the context in which our spiritual gifts are developed and exercised
· it is the ‘training ground’ that disciples and equips Christians to be God’s people against the world system

Look at the New Testament and you see a pattern:
· they confessed faith in Jesus
· they were baptized for remission of sins
· they received the gift of the Holy Spirit
· they became part of local congregations which met in Galatia, Philippi, Ephesus, etc.

The visible, tangible church was not an option for them…it was something they wanted, needed, and desired. It was seen to be at the very heart of what it meant to be part of God’s kingdom.

3. YOU DON’T KNOW MY CHURCH!
“That all sounds very good…but you don’t know my church! Faulty people, flawed preacher, flailing leadership. We can’t get people to participate; some don’t attend more than once a week and some once a month. I know some are encouraged, but I often leave feeling lonely and isolated…I always have a hard time finding a parking spot…decisions are made I don’t agree with.”

There IS a great tension between the ‘church of faith’ and the ‘church of fact.’
We see the shining, pure, beautiful, faithful bride of Christ…loving, harmonious, humble, and hard working…on the other hand, there is the cantankerous bunch of stubborn people who belong to the church where we attend!

It’s the same tension we experience in our personal walk with God:
· the tension between the ideal and reality
· between what we should be and what we are
· between perfection and actuality

Some has said that the “church is like Noah’s ark. The stench inside would be unbearable if it weren’t for the storm outside.”

There will always be problems with the ‘church of fact’ because the church is made up of fallen but redeemed people
· We are imperfect and flawed
· But at some point, we must come to realize that in spite of ourselves, God is using us to proclaim His wisdom and show His glory in this community!

We must not withdraw ourselves from the process simply because the church we are a part of is not the paragon of virtue we (and God) would like it to be!

If this were a place of perfect people, rather than ‘perfected people,’ would any of us fit in?

The truth is, we’re a lot alike and we’re in this together…our goal is to one day be like Christ, and that won’t happen in our lifetime!

There is an old legend that says when Jesus arrived in heaven after his search-and-rescue mission among humankind, all the heavenly host was assembled to greet him. There were choruses of praise the like of which had never been sung in heaven:
· He was praised as the one who had brought redemption’s plan to fulfillment.
· He was proclaimed worthy to receive honor and glory and praise.
· Torrents of love swept over him as Michael and Gabriel led the angelic welcome.

Then the angels stepped back to witness the reception given the risen and exalted Christ by God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. There has never been nor will there ever be again such a reunion:
· The empty place in heaven had been filled.
· The Word was with God and was God.
· Everything was returned to its maximal degree of perfection.

With the welcome complete and the exalted Christ seated at the right hand of the Father, the angels asked him who he had left behind on Earth to finish the work he had begun. “Just a tiny group of men and women who love me,” replied Jesus.

“That’s all?” asked the angels. “What if that tiny group should fail?” And Jesus said, “I have no other plan.”

The Importance of the Church
Although apocryphal, this story underscores the importance of the church in God’s scheme of things. “The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence” (Eph. 1:22-23, The Message).

· If the church of God is ineffective, Christ is denied glory that belongs to him.
· If churches focus on themselves, they become far more interested in maintaining comfort zones than in raiding enemy territory to free Satan’s captives.
· If our churches remain divided and see one another as “the enemy,” the real enemy will continue to be the Prince of this world.
· If the church is not effective, it cannot fill everything with the presence of Christ.

Numbers, nails, and nickels are the quantitative measurements people use to assess a church. How many members do you have? What size facility do you own? What is your annual budget? These may be appropriate criteria for success in business, but they can be terribly misleading about a church.

• Churches must learn to measure qualitatively in terms of wholesome relationships, unselfish service, and faithful witness.
  · The goals we set for ourselves must be larger than the self-serving ones related to a leader’s ego.
  · The habits we nurture ought to define an identity that will cause outsiders to see our churches as outposts of the kingdom of heaven right here among humankind.

  But what are those traits? And how can a church cultivate habitual behaviors that will develop them? What are the pitfalls to their cultivation?

  Highly effective churches have some common traits. Identifying them would help some churches that are struggling to focus their energies productively.
  · Instead of simply doing the same old things on the same old schedules in the same old way, perhaps they could try a few new things and get a better result.
  · After all, didn’t somebody say the definition of insanity is doing the same things in the same ways and expecting a different outcome?

  A church will be propelled either by precedent, personality, power, or purpose.
  · Precedent-driven churches have as their operative formula: This is the way we always do things here.

  · Personality-driven churches thrive on the dreams and creativity of a central leader who has special gifts. Assuming the purest of motives and a Christ-focused agenda, the obvious limitation in such churches is the unlikelihood that their growth and effectiveness will survive the death or move of that leader.

  · Power-driven churches are unhealthy places where the worldly game of win-lose is played out in the name of Jesus. Some person or family within the church pushes people around, coerces conformity, and drives it according to a human agenda.

  · A common phrase used in this setting: “We’ll leave if you do that…”

Most of these churches wind up having fights that lead to church splits – always masked as “doctrinal divisions” in order to justify the abusive things the disputants say about and do to one another.

· A purpose-driven church, on the other hand, can survive the pitfalls just identified.: “Because it looks forward rather than backward, the fact that “we’ve never done it that way before” need not hamstring justifiable innovations. Because its vision is larger than any one person’s genius, it can not only survive a death or move but continue forging ahead to the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Because it has embraced a kingdom mentality in which the willingness to wash feet supersedes anyone’s desire to be a church boss, power plays of the sort people witness in the world are altogether out of place.”

Highly Effective Churches?
For the purpose of these sermons, a highly effective church should be understood in terms of two essential traits.

First, it provides a healthy environment for the spiritual lives of its members.

Second, it penetrates the larger community around it through relationship-building and seed-planting.

· Effective churches are skilled at communication and conflict resolution.
· They encourage creativity.
· They know how to celebrate Christ in ways that are faithful to the Word of God without stifling the freshness of the Holy Spirit in their midst.
· They are safe places for dealing with woundedness and pain.
· Yet they are celebrative and joyous churches.
· Such churches are nurturing places for their members.
· The transformation of saved people from one level of faith to a deeper, richer one is witnessed daily.”

Yet a highly effective church does not exist just for itself. It looks outward for the sake of service and witness. Its presence in a community parallels the personal presence of Jesus during his ministry.

He blessed people wherever he went, brought light into darkness, and introduced people to his Father.

A church that understands its role as the spiritual body of Christ in the world incarnates those same kingdom abilities:
· It offers hope, blessing, and opportunity to people.
· It is a beacon of light to everyone who knows it because of the value it attaches to righteousness.
· It speaks not of itself but of Jesus for the sake of those who do not understand the reason for its positive outreach and in order to introduce them to him.
· Using its own credibility as part of its witness, such a church presents the gospel message of new life in Christ and calls lost people to salvation.

Centered on Jesus
The vision of the church must always be heavenward. Thus its worship must be Christ-exalting rather than creature-centered.

Its members must be challenged to march to the call of a heavenly cadence and not to the beat of this-worldly drummers who would divert their attention from the ultimate reality that centers in Jesus.

Kay Arthur relates a story a friend of hers shared about a deer-hunting trip his father made into the wilds of Oregon. With his rifle cradled in the crook of his arm, the man’s dad was following an old logging road that had been nearly reclaimed by the encroaching forest. It was almost evening, and he was thinking about going back to camp. Suddenly a noise exploded in the brush nearby. Before he had time to lift his rifle, a tiny blur of brown and white came darting up the road straight for him.
This is how her friend tells the story . . .
“It all happened so fast, Dad hardly had time to think. He looked down and there was a little brown cottontail — utterly spent — crowded up against his legs between his boots. The little thing was trembling all over, but it just sat there and didn’t budge.

“Now this was really strange. Wild rabbits are frightened of people, and it’s not that often you’d ever actually see one — let alone have one come and sit at your feet.

“While Dad was puzzling over this, another player entered the scene. Down the road — maybe twenty yards away — a weasel burst out of the brush. When it saw my Dad — and its intended prey sitting at his feet — the predator froze in its tracks, its mouth panting, its eyes glowing red.

“It was then that Dad understood he had stepped into a little life-and-death drama of the forest. The cottontail, exhausted by the chase, was only moments from death. Dad was its last hope of refuge. Forgetting its natural fear and caution, the little animal instinctively
crowded up against him for protection from the sharp teeth of its relentless enemy.”

And the deer hunter who had become a shelter didn’t disappoint his helpless ward. He raised his powerful rifle and shot into the ground just in front of the weasel. The animal sprang straight up into the air and darted back into the forest. He didn’t want rabbit for dinner anymore. He was more interested in saving his own skin. “Where did it go, little
one?” asked the hunter to the wild rabbit still huddled at his feet. “I don’t think he’ll be bothering you for a while. Looks like you’re off the hook tonight.”

· With all our intellectual attainments, technology, and busyness, we human beings are still basically scared rabbits in the cosmic forest.
· The twin predators of guilt and shame pursue us.
· Worry, heartache, and fear take peace from our hearts. Satan is a roaring lion whose intention is to have us for dinner!
· It is the business of the church to point the world to the one person in all of human experience who is capable of rescuing us from moral bankruptcy, spiritual barrenness, and hell.

· The world doesn’t need any more spectacles of fallen shepherds and scattered sheep. Felix Shepherd shared with me an article in our local newspaper which told of a youth minister at a church of Christ in Dallas a few days ago that was arrested for using the internet to send pornographic materials to a 14-year old.

It needs a clear vision of the Good Shepherd and dependable directions as to how to find him. The business of the church is not to formulate doctrines about Jesus in absentia but to be his incarnational presence in the world.

Our commission is first to be Jesus in the lives of broken, hurting people and then to speak the truth about Jesus to them so they can have a personal relationship with him as their Savior.

To allow anyone other than Jesus or anything other than the gospel to become the focus of a church’s life is to elevate that person or issue to greater prominence than Christ himself and to veer off into idolatry.

Go back and reread the sermons in Acts. You will be impressed anew with the Christ-theme of each one. Depending on whether the audience was Jewish or Gentiles, the evangelist might choose to quote Scripture or a Greek poet.
· While adapting the method pf presentation to the hearers, the message remained the same. “God has made this Jesus . . . both Lord and Christ” (2:36).
· “They never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ” (5:42).
· “Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus” (8:35).
· “Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection” (17:18).

The essence of the kingdom of God is righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom. 14:17-18). And these blessings come as gifts from Christ rather than as fruits of our own spiritual achievements.

The central issue of the Christian faith is still Jesus’ question: “Who do you say I am?” (Matt. 16:15). Unless everything focuses on and finds its meaning in the person and work of Jesus Christ, a church dooms itself to ineffectual striving after the wind.

Highly effective churches have some common traits. Identifying them would help some churches that are struggling to focus their energies productively.  Instead of simply doing the same old things on the same old schedules in the same old way, perhaps they could try a few new things and get a better result.

After all, didn’t somebody say the definition of insanity is doing the same things in the same ways and expecting a  different outcome?

A church will be propelled either by precedent, personality, power, or purpose.
Precedent-driven churches have as their operative formula: This is the way we always do things here.

Personality-driven churches thrive on the dreams and creativity of a central leader who has special gifts. Assuming the purest of motives and a Christ-focused agenda, the obvious limitation in such churches is the unlikelihood that their growth and effectiveness will survive the death or move of that leader.

Power-driven churches are unhealthy places where the worldly game of win-lose is played out in the name of Jesus. Some person or family within the church pushes people around, coerces conformity, and drives it according to a human agenda.  A common phrase used in this setting: “We’ll leave if you do that…”

Most of these churches wind up having fights that lead to church splits – always masked as “doctrinal divisions” in order to justify the abusive things the disputants say about and do to one another.

A purpose-driven church, on the other hand, can survive the pitfalls just identified.: “Because it looks forward rather than backward, the fact that “we’ve never done it that way before” need not hamstring justifiable innovations. Because its vision is larger than any one person’s genius, it can not only survive a death or move but continue forging ahead to the glory of God and the salvation of souls. Because it has embraced a kingdom mentality in which the willingness to wash feet supersedes anyone’s desire to be a church boss, power plays of the sort people witness in the world are altogether out of place.”

The following anonymous statement sums up what I owe my local congregation: “To the church of my Lord in every locality, I am under solemn obligation to the extent of my ability; but unto my home congregation, I am under special obligation. I want my home congregation to radiate a wholesome influence in the community. Therefore, I owe it the example of a good life. For I must “live soberly, righteously, and godly.”

“I want the strangers who enter the door of the meeting house to feel at home, to learn to love us, to return from time to time. They are our guest: I must entertain them. I owe it to them, and to the church to show myself friendly. I must not stand back and wait for others to greet them: this I must do. No congregation can make progress without faithful and efficient leaders. To the end that our leaders may be stronger and more efficient, I must give my support, my prayers. As long as they are true men, I must not embarrass them in the work.

“My home congregation has financial obligations, which are due at regular intervals. Whether I give or do not give, these obligations must be paid. If it is right for my congregation to pay its obligations each week, it is right for me to give each week. Though circumstances may force me to be absent at times, my contributions should find their way to the treasury of the church. I should “give as I have prospered” and not give as it relates to ‘perceived needs.’

“I know that the very existence of my congregation depends upon the attendance of its members. In fact, the attendance is the life of the church. For this reason, I must attend the services…all service, if I can. For all that I have, I would not have it said my congregation perished because I would not attend the meetings.

“I want my home congregation to grow, to multiply in members. Therefore, I must set to the work of winning souls for Christ. This I do by preaching and persuading; this I can do by persistent effort; this I can do by bringing them to our assemblies.”

Accountability is one of the means God uses to bring about solid growth and maturity with the freedom to be what God has created us to be. Read some of his ‘accountability passages’ as we ponder this idea:

(Matthew 9:12-13)  On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. {13} But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

(Matthew 11:28-30)  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. {29} Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. {30} For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Christ is more than a tradition, or belief. He is a Person who knows our needs, feels our pain, and sympathizes with our weaknesses. In exchange for our trust, He offers to forgive our sins, to intercede for us, and to bring us to the Father. He cried for us, died for us, and rose from the dead to show that He was all He claimed to be. Conquering death, He showed us that He can save us from our sins, and bring us safely to heaven.

Matthew 10:28-31  “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. [29]  Are not two sparrows sold for a penny ? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. [30]  And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. [31]  So don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

(Luke 12:6)  Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies ? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God.

The apostle Paul warns the Christian community against the evil of judging one another concerning certain doubtful or debatable practices where one Christian holds one opinion and another a different opinion. He then concludes this portion of his argument with a reminder of every Christian’s accountability at the Judgment Seat of God. He writes: But why do you judge your brother or sister? Or again, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.  11 For it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” 12 Therefore, each of us will give an account of himself to God (Rom 14:10-12)..

The stark reality of Scripture is that every person, Christian and non-Christian, is accountable before a sovereign God (see Rom. 3:9-19) and will one day have to bow before Christ (Phil. 2:9-11). Jesus said, “From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, even more will be asked” (Luke 12:48b).

Play a word game with me. What comes to your mind when you read the word church?  Do you picture a steepled building, dark wooden pews, crosses, offering plates? Do you hear hearty singing? Or does church trigger childhood memories of wiggling through sermons, playing tag on the parking lot, and Sunday school teachers telling stories about Samson and David and Daniel and, of course, Jesus.

Or do you experience again the flat taste of the bread and the sweet taste of grape juice at communion? Do you remember a particular Sunday morning when a sermon gripped you as though you were the only one in the crowd, or the day you became a Christian through baptism? Or does church sketch other pictures on your mind? A wedding, funerals, evangelistic services, going forward, committee meetings, suppers served in Tupperware dishes, that time at camp when you determined God would have all of you.

When you read the word church, do you have good feelings? Like laughter? Warmth? A quietness? Acceptance? Happiness? Awe? Love? Closeness to God? Or are your feelings negative? Like boredom? Anger? Confusion? Guilt? Rejection? Does church remind you of arrogance, hostility, manipulation, anger, or irrelevance? Do you think of it as a poor substitute for a picnic or a ball game?

Church dredges up memories and emotions from deep within you, doesn’t it? Some are healthy, some painful, most somewhere in between. Have you noticed that when Christians think negatively about church, they think of “them” not “me”? Church is an institution out there, a group apart from them.

But we are the church, aren’t we? You and me. We may have a personal faith, but we can’t have an individual faith. We can’t be Christians by ourselves. Every Christian, to be complete, must be a member of a body of men and women who are followers of Christ. Therefore, whether we are part of a vital, growing, glowing assembly of believers depends in some measure upon us.

If we hope to make a difference in our churches, we need to know what a healthy church looks like. More important, we need to know how sick churches can be made well.  What would you say constitutes the foundation of a healthy church ministry? Many slogans suggest ideas, but wouldn’t you agree that the Word of God and prayer are fundamental? They are two of God’s greatest gifts to us. In them we find comfort, direction, and hope. In them we discover God through his Spirit. In them we grow in our relationship with our Savior. In them we learn about where we have come from and who we are to become today.

Scripture and Prayer Are Essential  — Yes, the Scriptures and prayer are the bedrock of our existence as Christ’s followers, yesterday, today, and forever. Both the study of  reflection on, and obedience to the Word of God and the cultivation of our relationship with the Almighty One in prayer are to permeate our experience and expression as Christians.

In a recent survey of 1,899 Christians, most people strongly agreed that local churches should “be prayerful in all aspects of church life and ministry” as well as be “reliant upon God’s power and the authority of his Word.” With nine points being the highest, prayerfulness got a mean score of 8.71, and God’s power and Word got a mean score of 8.84. Strangely, though Scripture and prayer are highly valued, they are more often promoted than practiced. We not only need to reinvigorate our congregations toward greater biblical literacy, but we must reevaluate our traditional view of prayer meetings and introduce prayer into every context of the ministry.

Biblical Analogy of Health — Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.  I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mk. 2.17) People in rebellion to the basics of God’s laws are spiritually unhealthy. Churches that ignore God’s fundamental laws are spiritually unhealthy. But what are those fundamental laws?

Paul wrote to Titus, “You must teach what is in accord with sound (hygiainõ) doctrine.  Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound (hygiainõ)  in faith, in love and in endurance.” (Tit. 2.1-2 ). Paul implies that the teaching that produces spiritual health is indicated by several moral characteristics. Paul then illustrates how this spiritual health could be seen among individual Christians.

But what are we looking for in healthy churches today?

1. Loving Relationships

“People feel included.”                                           “People spend lots of time together.”

“People have a sense of being a family.”            “A healthy church is where you feel loved.”

“People put each other first.”                                “People hug each other.”

“There is a sense of connectedness.”

2. People spend time in God’s Word

“They are given biblical instructions.”                “They read their Bibles daily.”

“Biblically focused.”                                                “Bible based.”

3. Exemplary and Equipping Leaders

Role Models                                                 Knowledgeable in the Scriptures

Spiritual or Spirit-filled                             Empowers, delegates, or encourages participation

Approachable 

Other Definitions of Church Health — by Peter Steinke, Healthy Congregations: A Systems Approach

A Sense of Purpose                                  Effective Conflict Management

Clear and Direct Communication        A Mood of Energy and Optimism

Mature Interaction between Leaders and Members

Patience for Healing                               Focus on Healing Resources

Leadership Principles from Jesus (Matthew 23)

Knowledgeable in the Scriptures (v. 1)       Personal integrity (v. 3)

Sensitivity to others’ weaknesses in obedience (v. 4)

Humility (vs. 5-10, 12)                                     Servant-minded (v. 11)

Just, merciful and faithful (vs. 23, 24)

Leadership in Healthy Churches

Unhealthy                              Healthy

Either/Or Thinking               Takes a stand

Tries for “quick fixes”         Increases self-awareness

Resists insights                     Changes self

No self –awareness             Tolerates differences

Looks for blame                  Sets clear goals

Coerces/Manipulates         Accepts challenges

Seeks to eliminate those who cause him anxiety

The Health Challenge

Our challenge isn’t to make Christ’s church healthy.  It must be remembered that first and foremost, the heavenly body of Christ is healthy. Paul told the Ephesians, “In him the whole building (i.e. the heavenly church) is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  (Eph. 2:21)

Our challenge is to urge churches and her Christian leaders to recognize that Christ is working to build her up…live obediently to Christ’s teaching…live as a Spirit indwelt community.

Again Paul told the Ephesians, “And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” (Eph. 2:22)

We often talk about the ‘doubt’ of John the Baptist and Thomas. Lest we speak too harshly, it would be better to think what we would want our ‘life response’ to be: faithful to the end! The apostles were promised they would be persecuted, and some would have to drink the cup of death (Matthew 10:25; 20:23; Mark 14:31, 36; John 13:37; 15:20, 17:1); history and tradition also tell us that the apostles gave their lives for Christ.

• James the son of Zebedee (James the Great) felt Herod’s sword in 44 A.D., the first apostle to die (Acts 12).
• Philip, after preaching in upper Asia, was scourged, thrown in prison, and then crucified in 54 A.D. at Heliopolis in Phrygia.
• Matthew, after preaching in Parthia and in Ethiopia, was slain in A.D. 60 by a halberd at Nadabah, Ethiopia.
• James the Less, at 94 years, after being beaten and stoned by the Jews, “finally had his brains dashed out with a fuller’s club.”
• As to Peter, “Jerome saith that he was crucified, his head being down and his feet upward, himself so requiring, because he was [he said] unworthy to be crucified after the same form and ”
• Jude (Thaddeus), brother of James the Less, was crucified at Edessa, 72 A.D.
• Bartholomew, after preaching in India, was “cruelly beaten and then crucified by the impatient idolaters.”
• Thomas’ ministry in Parthia and India was ended with a spear thrust.
• Simon Zelotes evangelized in Mauritania, Africa, and Britain before his crucifixion in 74 A.D.
• Matthias was stoned at Jerusalem and then beheaded.
• Andrew’s service was in Asia; at Edessa he was baptized in suffering, being “crucified on a cross, the two ends of which were fixed transversely in the ground.”
• The beloved John, at the command of anti-christ Domitian, was exiled “in the isle that is called Revelation 1:9). After being 23).
• After Paul had been stoned, left for dead, beaten with rods, jailed for years, he still aspired to “fill up . . . that which is lacking of the afflictions of Christ” in his flesh (Colossians 1 :24). He is said to have been beheaded by Nero in Rome. (by Hugo McCord, The Beatitudes)

The Restoration Plea has been taught in our land for two centuries now, yet many in this generation have not heard it. It says:

Let us speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where the Bible is silent. Let us call Bible things by Bible names and do Bible things in Bible ways. Let’s restore the church as it was in the days of the apostles.

When one speaks of a restoration plea, four things are implied.

1. The restoration plea implies that God had a plan for the church.

In the basement of America’s largest home, the Biltmore mansion in Asheville, North Carolina, there is a model of the structure. The model was completed first as a guide to build the home. In Barcelona, Spain, you can visit the still unfinished Sagrada Familia Church. Construction began in 1882, so they have been working on it for over 100 years. They have a model of what the building will look like when it is finished.

The restoration plea implies that God had a plan for the church, which He revealed to man (Isaiah 2:2-4; Daniel 2:44; Ephesians 3:10-11).

• Noah’s ark (Genesis 6:22; Genesis 7:5);
• Tabernacle (Exodus 25:8-9);
• Temple (1 Chronicles 28:11-19);
• Jericho’s walls (Joshua 6; Hebrews 11:30);
• Naaman’s cleansing (2 Kings 5:1-14).

Isaiah prophesied of the coming kingdom, showing that God was already making plans for the church seven centuries before it came to be (Isaiah 2:2-4). Isaiah said God would “teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths.” Jesus sent out the apostles to teach those paths Mark 16:15-16). Since the early church “continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42; Acts 4:32), we know God’s messengers got His plan for the church delivered to the early Christians. Just as the fullness of God is in Christ (Colossians 1:19; Colossians 2:9) and God has no plans for salvation for the world outside of Christ (John 14:6; Acts 4:12), so the church is the fullness of Christ, and Christ has no plans for the world outside of His church (Ephesians 3:21).

2. The restoration plea implies that God expects us to continue to follow his plan.

The restoration plea implies that God expects us to continue to follow His plan in each succeeding generation. Paul wrote, “The things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2). God wanted His pattern followed century after century.

The Bible emphasizes patterns. 

In constructing the tabernacle, Moses was warned by God that he must “make all things according to the pattern” (Exodus 25:40; Hebrews 8:5). Paul spoke of the “pattern of sound words” (2 Timothy 1:13 asv) which early Christians were taught and in which they were to abide (2 Timothy 3:14). These Christians obeyed a “form” of doctrine (Romans 6:17-18) and “marked” (were on the lookout for) those who departed from that pattern (Romans 16:17). When it came to the doctrine of the New Testament, they earnestly contended for the faith (Jude 3), were warned about falling away from the faith (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:3; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 2 Timothy 4:1-4), and not to go “beyond the things which are written” (1 Corinthians 4:6 asv). Each generation was charged not to teach a “different doctrine” (1 Timothy 1:3 ASV).

Warnings not to go beyond the teaching of Christ abound in the New Testament (Galatians 1:6-9; Matthew 15:13; 2 Corinthians 11:3; Revelation 22:18-19). John said explicitly:

Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: for he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds (2 John 1:9-11).

3. The restoration plea implies that man left God’s pattern.

By becoming too well known, a product can lose its distinctiveness. The Trademark Association calls this problem “genericide.” Marlin Connelly gives some examples:

• All facial tissue is called Kleenex,
• Any gelatin dessert is Jello,
• Any clear, sticky tape is Scotch Tape,
• Any carbonated drink is a Coke (at least in the South),
• Any adhesive bandage is a Band-Aid.

This has happened to the words Christian and Christianity. Once brand names for a definite product, they are now used for any kind of vague religiosity connected loosely with the historical Christ. In the minds of some, the rigid New Testament ethical code is now fluid and accommodating. Doctrines that in Bible times were black and white are now gray and faded. Practices that were then commanded are now optional. For instance, the creed book of the largest Protestant denomination states:

It is most likely that in the Apostolic age when there was but “one Lord, one faith, and one baptism,” and no differing denominations existed, the baptism of a convert by that very act constituted him a member of the church, and at once endowed him with all the rights and privileges of full membership. In that sense, “baptism was the door into the church.” Now, it is different.²

God has not changed His mind.

Why is it different today? God has not changed His mind. Men have usurped authority not belonging to them and changed God’s church into something different from what He intended. Surely God wants us to return to His original vision for the church.

4. The restoration plea implies that God wants his people to restore his original pattern today.

In the long ago, God’s prophet urged, as we do today, “Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls” (Jeremiah 6:16). Let’s go out among our neighbors with an open Bible and call them back to these old paths.

Endnotes:

¹These points are not original, but I do not know from whom I first heard or read them.

²Hiscox, Edward T. 1890. The Standard Manual for Baptist Churches. Philadelphia, PA: The American Baptist Publication Society, page 22.