Category Archives: Church

 The term “Christian” is found three times in the New Testament. It is employed initially in conjunction with the ministry of Barnabas and Saul in Antioch of Syria. ”… the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch” (Acts 11:26).

Later, when pressed with evidence for the validity of the Christian system, Herod Agrippa II said: “Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian” (26:28). The King James Version suggests a man who is wrestling with his conscience. Others feel that the ruler’s remark is cynical: “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?” (NIV). Perhaps the truth is somewhere between the two. The king’s comment may reflect a respectful evasion.

Finally, Peter writes: ”… if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name” (1 Pet. 4:16).

Some—especially those who are enamored with humanly devised religious titles—contend that the name Christian was initially given in derision. Moffatt suggested that it was “coined by the pagan slang” of the citizens of Antioch (p. 316), and countless others have echoed that sentiment, including some of the restoration heritage (Campbell, p. 95).

We reject this assertion for the following reasons:

1. The Old Testament spoke of a new and everlasting name to be bestowed upon the people of God in the gospel age (Isa. 56:5,6; 62:2; 65:14,15). If this was not the name “Christian,” then what was the new name?
2. Isaiah especially associated the reception of the new name with the call of the Gentiles (62:2); the name Christian was not given until the Gentiles were admitted into the church (cf. Acts 10; 11:26).
3. The term chrematizo (translated “were called” – Acts 11:26) is employed nine times in the New Testament. It is, without exception, used in contexts wherein the calling is of God. Some suggest that the grammatical construction of this passage indicates that the name was bestowed by Barnabas and Saul (Woods, p. 67).
4. It is inconceivable that Peter would have encouraged the early saints to “glorify God” (1 Pet. 4:16) by the use of a paganistically bestowed “slang” term. The early disciples did not adopt other pejorative titles (cf. Acts 24:5,14).
5. Paul rebuked the Corinthian brothers for wearing human names, e.g., Paul, Apollos, and Cephas, because, he said, these men were not crucified for you, nor were you immersed into their names (1 Cor. 1:12,13). The implication clearly is that since Christ was crucified for them, and as they had been baptized into His name, they had the right to wear His name. What would that have been if not “Christian?”
6. There is another indication that the Christian name was divinely bestowed. James wrote concerning that “honorable name” which the Christians had “called upon” (passive voice form) them (5:7). “This expression clearly reveals its OT background (Deut. 28:10; 2 Chron. 7:14; Amos 9:12). A man was dedicated to God by calling God’s name over him. The act indicated that he belonged to God. So Christians bear the worthy name of Christ as indication that they are his people” (Burdick, p. 179).

Granted, then, the term was divinely imposed, and thus is to be worn with honor and dignity—precisely who is a Christian?

False Criteria for Identifying the Christian

Before addressing this theme positively, let us consider some false standards by which some are perceived as Christians.

An American
A few might reason thusly. America is a Christian nation. But I am a citizen of this nation. Thus, I am a Christian. The major premise of the argument is false. America is not a Christian nation. No nation (except that spiritual nation, the church – Mt. 21:43; 1 Pet. 2:9) is Christian. One is not a Christian by virtue of residence.

A Moralist
Others would suggest that if one lives by high moral principles, he or she is surely a Christian person. If one is a providing father, loving mother, or benevolent neighbor, then the individual is perceived as a Christian.

But what of the Jew who attempts to live an ethical life? Is he a Christian? He certainly would repudiate the designation!

Or consider the case of Bertrand Russell. The British philosopher was once asked this question: “Can an agnostic be a Christian?” He replied: “If you mean by a ‘Christian’ a man who loves his neighbor, who has wide sympathy with suffering, and who ardently desires a world freed from the cruelties and abominations which at present disfigure it, then, certainly, you will be justified in calling me a Christian” (1975, p. 289).

Was Russell a Christian—in any sense of the term? Far from it. He once gave a lecture, which was later printed and widely distributed, titled: “Why I am not a Christian” (1967).

One is not a Christian merely because he endorses certain moral principles that are taught in the Scriptures.

 A Theist
Some would argue perhaps that one who merely believes in God is a Christian. Certainly all Christians believe in God, but not everyone who believes in God is a Christian. Jews believe in God, and so do Moslems, but neither are Christians—nor do they profess to be.

We must remember that belief in God, without a corresponding faith in Christ, is worthless. Jesus declared: ”… he that rejects me, rejects him that sent me” (Lk. 10:16). The Lord was unyielding in His declaration: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one comes unto the Father, but by me” (Jn. 14:6).

 A “Faith Only” Believer in Christ
There is a vast body of people that endorses the concept that anyone who believes in Christ, i.e., he subscribes to the truth that Jesus is the Son of God, is a Christian person. That simply is not the case.

Note this principle. During the personal ministry of Jesus, there were Jews who observed His miracles and who believed the message He proclaimed; yet, they were still identified as children of Satan.

Consider the case detailed in John 8. The record indicates that as the Lord taught, “many believed on him” (8:30). Christ thus spoke to those who “had believed him” (8:31). As the dialog heated up, Jesus charged: “You are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do” (8:44).

They were believers in a sense, yet still unregenerate. Or reflect further upon the episode of chapter 12.

“Nevertheless even of the rulers many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess it, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: for they loved the glory that is of men more than the glory that is of God” (12:42).

Will anyone be so reckless as to contend that these “believers” were right with God? It takes more than mere mental belief in the Lord to bring about one’s salvation.

 A Church Member

Some feel that so long as one is a member of some church he or she must be a Christian. What of those who are members of the Unitarian Universalist Church? These folks do not even believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. Are they Christians simply because they are members in a “church”?

Hundreds of churches populate our land of which God is not the author. All Christians are in the church of Jesus Christ, but not all “church members” are Christians.

Baptized People
Many doubtless believe that anyone who has submitted to any form of “Christian baptism” is obviously a Christian. The problem with that is this. Not every person who has surrendered to “baptism” has yielded to the genuine rite, as the ordinance is set forth in the New Testament.

For example, some have had water sprinkled upon them, believing this was baptism, when, in fact, sprinkling (or pouring) is not baptism at all. Baptism is an immersion in water (Balz & Schneider, pp. 192ff), and nothing short of that is in harmony with the will of God.

Aside from that, it is possible to be immersed and still not be a Christian, provided the teaching received prior to the act was either incomplete or inaccurate. The case in Acts 19 demonstrates this.

When Paul arrived in Ephesus he encountered twelve men who had been immersed with the baptism that had been operative during the ministry of John the Baptizer. Obviously, however, they had submitted to John’s baptism after it had already become obsolete.

Accordingly, even though the form (i.e., immersion) was correct, their understanding of other matters was deficient. These men were thus not Christians. However, they became such when they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus (19:5; cf. 2:38; 22:16).

It is imperative that one have accurate teaching and a proper comprehension (e.g., the purpose of the ordinance) before submitting to baptism, if he expects to be recognized by God as a Christian.

 Becoming a Christian
How does one become a Christian? The answer to this important question is not dependent upon idle speculation. Clear and compelling biblical evidence reveals the truth of this matter.

Consider Matthew’s record of the Great Commission.
“Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (28:19,20).

The verb matheteusate (“make disciples”) is in the imperative mood (a command), and is followed by a participle (“baptizing”) which sets forth “the manner in which the given action was performed” (Green, p. 332). Thus a person is made a “disciple” (in this specialized use of the term) by being immersed into a relationship with the sacred Trinity.

Later disciples become known as “Christians” (Acts 11:26). Thus one becomes a Christian initially when he or she is immersed into Christ.

Those who refuse immersion, as that ordinance is precisely described in the New Testament, are simply not Christians—no matter how sincere they may be. An emotional inclination toward the Son of God is no substitute for genuine obedience.

Paul made it clear that wearing the name of Christ (i.e., being a Christian) was dependent upon accepting the fact that the Lord was crucified on one’s behalf, and being immersed into His name (1 Cor. 1:13). Anyone who neglects either of these components cannot be recognized as a Christian.

An analysis of 1 Peter 4:16,17 further clarifies this issue. We reproduce the passage as follows, emphasizing certain key expressions.

But if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this name. For the time is come for judgment to begin at the house of God: and if it begin first at us, what shall be the end of them that obey not the gospel of God?”

There are several equivalent terms as the foregoing emphases reveal. To be a Christian is the same as being in the house of God. But the house of God is the church (1 Tim. 3:15). Thus, it is clear that Christians are in the church.

But membership in the church is the same as membership in the body (Col. 1:18,24). Therefore, Christians are those who are in the body of Christ. However, one is baptized into the body (1 Cor. 12:13).

We are thus driven to the conclusion that only those who have been biblically immersed are Christians.

Note also, as suggested above, that the Christian is set in vivid contrast to those who have not obeyed the gospel.

The foregoing considerations make it apparent that there are strict scriptural conditions for becoming a Christian. The loose way in which the term “Christian” is employed today is not at all consistent with the biblical use of this sacred designation.

(Colossians 1:13)  “For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves,”

Someone has said, “The ocean is deep enough for an elephant to swim in but shallow enough for a child to wade on its shores.”  Likewise the church of the New Testament has numerous features.

When we think of our unity of function and our unity with Christ, we see the church as the body of Christ (Romans 12:5):

(Romans 12:5)  “so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”

When we think of the warmth, support, and companionship that we receive as his church, we view it as the family of God:

(Ephesians 2:19)  “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,”

The rule and reign of God make us think of the church as the kingdom of God on earth:

(Matthew 16:18-19)  “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.””

These different descriptions do not conflict, but blend together to illustrate the composite nature of the divine organism we call the church. The glory of the N.T. church is that inherent within it is a multitude of holy traits that Christ provided through the cross.

No question, the Holy Spirit wants us to view the church as a kingdom (Col. 1:13).  Conversion is described as entrance into the body of Christ:

(Romans 6:3)  “Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?”

Since the body of Christ is spoken of as the church (Eph. 1:22-23). It follows that the Holy Spirit intends for us to see the church, the body of Christ, and the kingdom of Christ as the same spiritual organism.

The word kingdom is used in at least six contexts in scripture:

• Earthly, secular, governmental rule (Matt. 4:8).
• To convey the rule of God in the O.T.  God identified Israel as His Kingdom (Ex. 19:5-6).
• Used regarding the rule or power of God (Matt. 12:28). When the will of God is obeyed, the reign of God or the kingdom of God exists
• God’s reign in heaven (2 Peter 1:11).

It applies to the church.  The church is God’s earthly manifestation of His heavenly Kingdom (Matt. 16:18-19; John 3:5; Col. 1:13).

The dominion of Satan:(Matthew 12:26)  “If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?”

THE KINGDOM IS A SPIRITUAL KINGDOM!

In it basic nature, the church is a spiritual kingdom, not a physical or material one:

(John 18:33-36)  “Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, “Are you the king of the Jews?” {34} “Is that your own idea,” Jesus asked, “or did others talk to you about me?” {35} “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?” {36} Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.””

The spiritual nature of the kingdom introduces vital truths regarding the church. The headquarters of the church are in heaven. Christ, our sovereign King, sits at God’s right hand in heaven:

(Acts 2:33)  “Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.”

He will reign until he delivers the kingdom back to the Father:

(1 Corinthians 15:24)  “Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority and power.”

Thus, Christians are people who have entered the rule of God by submitting to the Lordship of  Jesus:

(Philippians 2:9-11)  “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, {10} that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, {11} and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Christians’ life, work, and worship centers on the spiritual, not the physical:

• We wage a spiritual warfare (Eph. 6:12).
• Offer up spiritual sacrifices to God (1 Peter 2:5)
• Live on spiritual food (Heb. 5:12-14)
• Live in this world as pilgrims whose citizenship is in heaven (Phil. 3:20; 1 Pet. 2:11).

Our relationship with material realities of this world, are governed by our spiritual citizenship in the kingdom of heaven.  We see the worthlessness of the tinsel of this life when we view it through the lens of eternity. Being a member of God’s spiritual kingdom puts this world and its temptations in different light:

(1 John 2:17)  “The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.”

Christians do not view this world as others. They are in the world, but not of the world. We are in a spiritual kingdom, not an earthly one. Our devotion is spiritual, not secular. Christians pursue, above all other interests, the spiritual salvation of each person we meet.

A KINGDOM OF RIGHTEOUSNESS!

The church is a Kingdom of righteousness. Citizens of the kingdom of heaven do not live as they lived formerly:

(Ephesians 5:8-10)  “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light {9} (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) {10} and find out what pleases the Lord.”

New Testament speaks of two kings of righteousness.  An “extended righteousness” that we receive through Jesus Christ:

(Romans 3:24)  “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”

“An exhibited righteousness” Christians are to walk in and manifest in life:

(1 John 1:7)  “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

It is unthinkable for Christians to walk in sin:

(1 John 3:8-9)  “He who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work. {9} No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God.”

Righteousness is extended to those who enter the kingdom and exhibit righteousness in their lives. Righteousness is exhibited by those who live as true citizens of the kingdom. God’s reign in one’s heart manifests itself in righteousness of life.  Citizenship in this kingdom means recognition of the sovereignty of God and a submission to His will in our daily lives.

AN ETERNAL KINGDOM!

The church is the manifestation of God’s eternal kingdom on earth. It is not fleeting, or temporary, but stable, unshakable and everlasting:

• Daniel foretold its coming: (Daniel 2:44)  “”In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever.”
• Gabriel revealed to Mary she would be the mother of the Messiah who would reign over the eternal kingdom (Luke 1:32-33)  “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, {33} and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.””
• Jesus promised that death could not overpower him and the kingdom would be established (Matthew 16:18)  “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.”

The Hebrew writer described God’s kingdom as one that could not be shaken:

(Hebrews 12:28)  “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,”

As citizens of the kingdom of heaven, Christians possess eternal life. This life is both “an experience now” & “an expectation for the future.” 

All who possess Christ have eternal life now, for he is the very embodiment of eternal life:

(1 John 1:2)  “The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and has appeared to us.”

If we live in sin, we do not have eternal life living in us:

(1 John 3:15)  “Anyone who hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life in him.”

The eternal nature of the kingdom of God expresses itself in the quality of life that we experience now as Christians and in the eternal life that we expect to receive in eternity. As Christians we continue to grow in love, righteousness, fellowship while in this life. After death, we enter that place of heavenly fellowship, inexpressible joy, and eternal service. Christians are part of an eternal kingdom that is not affected by time or physical dimensions.

As long as we stay in the sphere of God protection by faithfulness to His word, we are part of a kingdom that cannot be destroyed and will never end.

CONCLUSION

With God ruling and reigning in the hearts of Christians, the church of the N.T. is the kingdom of God possessing traits of spirituality, righteousness and eternality. Its citizens live in this world, but their hearts and citizenship belong to another world, the eternal kingdom of God (Col. 3:1-2; Phil. 3:20). We enter the kingdom through the “new birth” (John 3:1-5). 

Citizenship in the kingdom of God brings a spiritual center to life, a reign of God, which radiates to every prong and dimension of life, providing stability, guidance, understanding and wholeness. In this world of the temporary, the kingdom of God brings eternal life into our lives for today and for all our tomorrows.

“A happy family is but an earlier heaven.”

The family you come from isn’t as important as the family you’re going to have.”

“A family is a unit composed not only of children but of men, women, an occasional animal, and the common cold.”

A dad is a fellow who has replaced the currency in his wallet with snapshots of his family.

Being one of nine children, I’m used to hearing remarks about the size of our family. Once when my father had taken four of us to the grocery store, a woman asked him, “Are these all your children?”  “Oh, no,” he innocently replied.  Seeing the look of relief on her face, Dad said with a twinkle in his eye, “The other five are at home.”

Herbert Prochnow tells of a little girl who wrote in an essay on PARENTS: “We get our parents at so late an age that it’s impossible to change their habits.”

A family is more than a collection of human beings who are blood kin.  A family is more than the sum of its parts.  It is a living, shaping, powerful unit that teaches us our most important lessons in life.  It teaches us who we are, how to act, whom to relate to, and what is important in life.

A healthy family

1. communicates and listens

2. affirms and supports one another

3. teaches respect for others

4. develops a sense of trust

5. has a sense of play and humor

6. exhibits a sense of shared responsibility

7. teaches a sense of right and wrong

8. has a strong sense of family in which rituals and traditions abound

9. has a balance of interaction among members

10. has a shared religious core

11. respects the privacy of one another

12. values service to others

13. fosters family table time and conversation

14. shares leisure time

15. admits to and seeks help with problems.

In her best-seller, What Is a Family?, Edith Schaeffer devotes her longest chapter to the idea that a family is a perpetual relay of truth.  A place where principles are hammered and honed on the anvil of everyday living.  Where character traits are sculptured under the watchful eyes of moms and dads.  Where steel-strong fibers are woven into the fabric of inner constitution. The relay place.  A race with a hundred batons.

• Determination.  “Stick with it, regardless.”      
• Honesty.  “Speak and live the truth – always.”            
• Responsibility.  “Be dependable, be trustworthy.”      
• Thoughtfulness.  “Think of others before yourself.”  
• Confidentiality.  “Don’t tell secrets.  Seal your lips.”   
• Punctuality.  “Be on time.”      
• Self-control.  “When under stress, stay calm.”            
• Patience.  “Fight irriatability.  Be willing to wait.”       
• Purity.  “Reject anything that lowers your standards.”
• Compassion.  “When another hurts, feel it with him.”            
• Diligence.  “Work hard.  Tough it out.”

And how is this done?  Over the long haul, believe me.  This race is not a sprint, it’s a marathon.  There are no 50-yard dash courses on character building.  Relays require right timing and smooth handoffs – practiced around the track hour after hour when nobody is looking.  And where is this practice track? Where is this place where rough edges cannot remain hidden, must not be left untouched?  Inside your own front door.  The home is God’s built-in training facility.

People are blind to what they really need. They need family, and they need religion. Period. There is such an incredible strength in family, and religion gives you respectability, responsibility and a reverence for life.

During a visit to the children’s Bible class, my preacher friend looked into their serious faces and asked, “Why do you love God?” After a moment a small voice came from the back: “I guess it just runs in the family.”

The Church: A Radical Community

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.

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  commands the primary allegiance of disciples. No other group of people is 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.”

(1 Cor 7:12-15)  “To the rest I say this (I, not the Lord): If any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live with him, he must not divorce her. {13} And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to live with her, she must not divorce him. {14} For the unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy. {15} But if the unbeliever leaves, let him do so. A believing man or woman is not bound in such circumstances; God has called us to live in peace.”

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?

Old-school way of thinking:

John Donne, 1633, Holy Sonnets: “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main; if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less…Any man’s death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.”

Modern way of thinking:

“I have no need of friendship, friendship causes pain; its laughter and its loving I disdain…If I never loved I never would have cried…I have my books and my poetry to protect me; I am shielded in my armor. Hiding in my room, safe within my womb, I touch no one and no one touches me. I am a rock, I am an island; and a rock feels no pain, and an island never cries.” (Paul Simon, 1965, I Am A Rock).

All that mattered in 1^st Century was being in Christ

(Gal. 3:26-29)  “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, {27} for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. {28} There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. {29} If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

Years ago, every married couple reading this has stood in front of a group of people very similar to this one and made some statements we call “vows” to each other: “Do you take this woman to be your wife? Do you promise to love her, honor her, and submit to her? Do you promise to stay with her and stand by her for as long as you both shall live?”……

There were differences in the details of the vows, in the styles of  weddings, etc., but we each were in circumstances that presented a strong potential:
· we repeated the right words and said “I do” in the right place
· we heard ourselves promise love, honor, obedience, respect, and faithfulness
· every one of us fully believed we’d keep to promises made
· we believed our marriage would be better than any we had ever seen

Many times, the reality and the ideal don’t match. It hasn’t surprised us this week to find that the ‘marriage’ of God and the church has its ‘ups and downs,’ too.

(Isa 62:5) “As a young man marries a maiden, so will your sons marry you; as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.”

(Hosea 2:16-20) “”In that day,” declares the LORD, “you will call me ‘my husband’; you will no longer call me ‘my master.’ {17} I will remove the names of the Baals from her lips; no longer will their names be invoked. {18} In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air and the creatures that move along the ground. Bow and sword and battle I will abolish from the land, so that all may lie down in safety.  {19} I will betroth you to me forever; I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion. {20} I will betroth you in faithfulness, and you will acknowledge the LORD.”

(2 Cor 11:2) “I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to him.”

(Rev 21:2) “I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.”

What are some things that makes for a successful marriage? (Must happen in our earthly marriages and also in our marriage to Christ).
· Communication
· Accent the positive
· Don’t rundown in front of others
· Don’t make a list for him..make it for yourself
· Faithfulness (discuss sexual purity here and what God has set in place for those who are married).

Reliving the church’s vows: “Do you, church, take Jesus to be your husband? Do you promise to love him, honor him, and submit to him? Do you promise to stay with him and stand by him for as long as you live?”….

Christians have made similar vows in principle for over 2,000 years and meant every word they said. They believed Jesus was the Son of God. They wanted to make Him both their Master and Lord. They spoke with sincerity, conviction, and hope.

But, like Israel, the faithfulness hasn’t always followed:
(Jer 3:8) “I gave faithless Israel her certificate of divorce and sent her away because of all her adulteries. Yet I saw that her unfaithful sister Judah had no fear; she also went out and committed adultery.”

(Hosea 2:2-4) “”Rebuke your mother, rebuke her, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her remove the adulterous look from her face and the unfaithfulness from between her breasts. {3} Otherwise I will strip her naked and make her as bare as on the day she was born; I will make her like a desert, turn her into a parched land, and slay her with thirst. {4} I will not show my love to her children, because they are the children of adultery.

James 4:4: “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”

The Medium, Measure and Means of Loyalty

(Eph 5:24-27) “Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything. {25} Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her, {26} that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word, {27} that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.”

If the husband makes Christ’s love for the church the pattern for loving his wife, then he will love her sacrificially. Christ gave himself for the church; so the husband, in love, gives himself for his wife.

The husband’s love will also be a sanctifying love. The word sanctify means “to set apart.” In the marriage ceremony, the husband is set apart to belong to the wife, and the wife is set apart to belong to the husband. Any interference with this God-given arrangement is sin.

Our Christian homes are to be pictures of Christ’s relationship to His church. Each believer is a member of Christ’s body, and each believer is to help nourish the body in love

We are one with Christ. The church is His body and His bride, and the Christian home is a divinely ordained illustration of this relationship. This certainly makes marriage a serious matter. The root of most marital problems is sin, and the root of all sin is selfishness.

Submission to Christ and to one another is the only way to overcome selfishness, for when we submit, the Holy Spirit can fill us and enable us to love one another in a sacrificial, sanctifying, satisfying way—the way Christ loves the church.

An All-Inclusive Message
The message of the church is inclusive:
· it is a message of salvation for all souls
· of enlightenment for all minds
· of comfort for all hearts
· of relief for all needs
· of challenge for every life.

It has a message from God and stands for a Redeemer with a message of liberty and a dispensation of grace. It is the guardian of human rights, the hope of humanity and of peace.

It has not come without a high price The cost of the church has been faithfulness and loyalty under persecution. The price has been paid in blood, from that of Christ and the first century Christians to hundreds martyred since.

We have a sacred obligation
The church is God’s tool for proclaiming Christ’s ideals and principles for life. It is founded on sacrifice and maintained by sacrifice. It appeals to the highest instincts of the human heart.

THE MEASURE OF LOYALTY
If our supreme loyalty is to Christ, then self and others will find their rightful place. Christ demands and deserves first place in our life.  (Mat 10:32-42) “”Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. {33} “But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.  {34} “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. {35} “For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; {36} “and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ {37} “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy  of Me. {38} “And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. {39} “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.  {40} “He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me. {41} “He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. {42} “And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.””

The real peril is from within:
“The compelling need of our churches is neither larger numbers, more money, nor different programs, but a fuller consecration of the lives of individual church members to Jesus Christ.  “Carelessness, prayerlessness, indifference, lowering of ideals, and open inconsistency of professed Christians within the church constitutes a greater menace to the cause of our Lord than indifference, opposition, infidelity, atheism, or other issues without the church. “The neglect of the devotional life brings flabbiness, indifference and unhappiness. Church discipline seems to have been largely discarded. The standard of Christ is the demand of the times.”

THE MEANS OF EXPRESSING LOYALTY
1. By our priority allegiance
If I truly belong as a husband and wife belong to each, or as children belong to parents, the church will have a real claim upon my personality, my powers, and my possessions.

We ought to be ashamed of ourselves when we put our children’s sports, homework, or recreation activities ahead of our worship and Bible classes!  We ought to be ashamed of ourselves when we work all week no matter how we feel and use it as an excuse to miss worship!

1. By uplifting influence
Jesus demands from each of us a high standard of moral and ethical  conduct. He demands personal purity…” Eph 5:3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.”

“It is very possible that our churches are suffering a greater loss to the influence for good through the social activities of the individual members than at any other point.  “If we are as loyal and as earnest as we should be about this business of Christianity, we will not go places and do things that are  calculated to retard the progress of the church to which we belong. Uncompromising loyalty to Christ wherever we are placed is one of the inescapable obligations and privileges of the Christian life.”

2. By Christ-like deeds
We might not see ourselves as flattering pictures of Christ, but in the things we say and do, we remind people that Christ dwells upon earth.

“Christianity is more than a vision…it is a life, a power, a mission for God. It is going somewhere; it is accomplishing something; it is increasing the forces of righteousness; it is translating routine into duty; it is making drudgery divine; it is finding out God and cooperating with Him in everyday life.

I want to discuss very candidly today the place, the plan, the purpose, and the power of the church.

Jesus established and loved the church. He commanded his people to be loyal to it and to always give it priority affection and faithful support.

Loyalty has a martial ring to it. We think of our country and the nation’s flag. Loyalty stirs within us something high and holy. We like to think of ourselves as loyal, stalwart, and true.

In Nashville is a statue of one of the Confederacy’s heroes, Sam Davis, who uttered some immortal words: “I would die a thousand deaths, before I would betray a friend.”

The Place of Loyalty
Loyalty is the willing, practical devotion of self and substance to a person or a cause that is believed to be supremely worthwhile. It carries with it faithfulness, trust and confidence.

I would suggest that church loyalty runs much deeper: it calls for devoted allegiance to a Person and a cause. It involves decision, devotion, faithfulness, trustworthiness, and sacrifice.

Josiah Royce called loyalty “the chief of all virtues, the center of all beauty, the fulfillment of the moral law, and the very heart of religion.”

An individual without loyalty is like a ship without a compass. There may be much activity and much “going about” but it will often have little purpose and be unprofitable. Loyalty gives purpose, direction and drive to life.

In any list of Christian virtues, loyalty ranks high…we recognize it in scripture as faithfulness:

(Mat 23:23) “”Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law–justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”

(Rom 3:3) “What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God’s faithfulness?”

(Gal 5:22) “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,”

(3 John 1:3) “It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth.”

(Rev 13:10) “If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will bekilled. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.”

In our daily lives, there are numerous ‘loyalties’ clamoring for devotion and interest. We must stand firm in our efforts to be loyal to God, to the faith, to the church, to friends and family, and to self!

“Lord,” I said, “I want to be your man, not my own. So to you I give my money, my car—even my home.”
Then, smug and content, I relaxed with a smile…and whispered to God, “I’ll bet it’s been a while since anyone has given so much, so freely?” His answer surprised me. He replied, “Not really. “Not a day has gone by since the beginning of time, that someone hasn’t offered meager nickels and dimes, golden altars and crosses, contributions and penance, stone monuments and steeples; but why not repentance?

“The money, the statues, the cathedrals you’ve built, do you really think I need your offerings of guilt? What good is money that’s meant only to salve the hurting conscience that so many of you have. “Your lips know no prayers. Your eyes, no compassion. But you will go to church (when churchgoing is in fashion).

“Just give me a tear—a heart ready to mold. And I’ll give you a mission, a message so bold—that a fire will be stirred where there was only death. And your heart will be flamed by my life and my breath.” I stuck my hands in my pockets and kicked at the dirt. It’s tough to be corrected…I guess my feelings were hurt. But it was worth the struggle to realize the though: that the cross isn’t for sale and Christ’s blood can’t be bought.”

(Ephesians 2:19-22)  “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, {20} built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. {21} In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. {22} And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.”

Today’s church has fallen on hard times. Of course, times are always ‘difficult’ for the people of God in one way or another:

• In the 1^st century there were persecutions and the challenges of paganism
• In the 2^nd, the church fought off perverse heresies
• In the 3^rd, institutionalism undermined personal commitment

In every age, the church has faced strenuous and often brutal opposition. Our ‘hard times’ are different. We live in an increasingly ‘post-Christian’ culture, where Christ’s ethic and world-view command less respect and less toleration. The ‘me generation’ seeks to ‘live and let live’ so anyone or anything that lives by a motto ‘die to self and live for the Lord’ is distasteful.

We’re likely facing an identity crisis in today’s church; it’s a struggle with who we are and what we should be about. It threatens to undo us! It certainly wants to neutralize us in regard to our influence in this world!

We’re even having trouble ‘among ourselves’ to determine what the word ‘church means.’ That’s why we’re spend time on subjects related to the church on Sunday mornings here at Mentor.

The greatest building enterprise in the O.T. was no doubt the construction of God’s temple by Solomon.

David had wanted to build the temple, but God said no because he was a man of  war, “But God said to me, You shall not build a house for My name, because you have been a man of war and have shed blood.” (1 Chron. 28:3)

However. David was permitted to gather material for the building of the temple.        The temple was built of the finest and most expensive materials, with greatest care and craftsmanship:

• Built of stone
• Paneled with cedar
• Overlaid with gold.
• Was twice the size of the tabernacle.
• Took seven and one-half years to build.
• Located on  Mt Moriah, perhaps near the place where Abraham came to offer Isaac.
• 30,000 Israelites were drafted to work on the temple, working in shifts of 10,000 per month.
• There were 150,000 non-Israelites.
• The supervisors of all these laborers numbered 3,850.
• Counting 10,000 Israelites each month, it means 163,850 men worked continuously to construct the temple.

Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple is one of the most beautiful prayers in scripture: (2 Chronicles 6:3-42) .

At the close of the prayer he offered 22,000 oxen and 120,000 sheep in sacrifice to God.    God sent fire to consume the sacrifice – “Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices; and the glory of the Lord filled the house.  And the priests could not enter into the house of the Lord, because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house” (2 Chron. 7:1-2).

The temple stood until destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C.

Christ has built an even greater house for God, called by the N.T. writers, “the church.” It is the most glorious and unique structure ever built for God in the history of the world. In Ephesians 2 Paul shows the progress of the sinner from his lost state to that of salvation through God’s grace.

He closes that chapter by showing that though they had been foreigners and strangers, they were now a part of God’s great building, the church (vs. 19-22). In picturesque, figurative language, the Holy Spirit called the church God’s building.

THE CHURCH IS A “HUMAN” BUILDING!

Unlike the O.T. temple, the church, God’s N.T. building is made out of people. Each Christian provides the material out of which this building is composed. In religious circles when “the church” is spoken of, most are referring to a physical structure. When someone says, “we are going to build a new church,” it’s a building.

The comment, “you have a beautiful church”, it’s the building. When people know the real Mentor church, do they think it is beautiful?

The question, “where is your church?” it’s the building.  (address) People want to get married in the church, somehow feeling it will make for a better marriage than if they got married in a corn field.  (You would be as married, the surroundings would not be as nice.) Some feel they must be in the church to pray.  (You must be in the church to pray as a child of God, but this is not a building)

In our text, Paul said the gentiles were no longer strangers and aliens, but were part of this building. Peter made a similar analogy (1 Peter 2:4-5): “As you come to him, the living Stone–rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him– {5} you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.”

The church is a building, but a spiritual building. Each Christian is a spiritual stone in the building. They are joined or cemented together by God’s Spirit.

Paul’s picture is not that of hundreds of little organizations being grouped together to make one building. The N.T. does not describe the universal church as being made up of all the denominations of the world. It describes each congregation of Christ’s church as being complete within itself. The universal church is made up of Christians from all over the world, each serving as living stones in this spiritual structure, the church.

We must never confuse the church with a physical building. The N.T. does not have one line about a church building.

The church is commanded to assemble to worship (Heb. 10:25). This command would imply a place of assembly. It is left up to the church as to where it assembles.

According to Paul, Christians are to see themselves as God’s house, and each Christian to see himself as an important part of that house. The world will judge God’s church by Christians, not by the building or place of assembly. Let us make sure that we live as God’s building, that we live in harmony with our position as Christ’s church.

THE CHURCH IS A “LIVING” BUILDING!

A “human” building is a “living” building. Solomon’s temple was made of inanimate material. God’s building today is made up of living stones.

Paul never referred to the church as an institution. Paul saw the church as an organism, a spiritual, living building made of people. It is a living, growing, vibrant entity, not simply a group of people drawn together by common interests. This building is continually added to.

Christ is the foundation and cornerstone to hold the building together. As people are converted, they are added to the structure and it grows, but the building will never be complete.

From the beginning of the church, God adds the saved daily (Acts 2:47). The church will grow until Christ returns. Everything about the building is living:

• God is referred to as “the living God” (Heb. 4:12) “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
• Jesus is called the “living stone” (1 Peter 2:4).  “Coming to him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious.”
• Christians have a “living hope” (1 Peter 1:3).  “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

The way Christians travel is called the “a new and living way” (Heb. 10:20). Jesus, as the eternal Christ, our mediator, “always lives” to make intercession for us (Heb. 7:25).  A Christian is not a part of an organization, but is a living stone in a living, growing, spiritual house.

THE CHURCH IS A “SPIRIT-INDWELT” BUILDING!

As houses are built to live in, so is God’s building, the church (Eph. 2:21-22). God’s dwelling place on earth is the church. He meets with and dwells among his family through the Spirit.

The church is the visible part of God on earth; God daily lives in and works through his building, the church. A house that is empty with no life within, is sad. If the church uninhabited, like any old empty house it would become worthless. But the true church is not empty, but is full of life and energy because the Spirit of God lives there.

Paganism had its temples throughout the Roman empire. Judaism had its temple in Jerusalem and its synagogues scattered throughout the Roman world where its members tried to keep the law of Moses alive.

However, the most beautiful and elaborate temple in the world, is God’s temple (1 Cor. 3:16-17):

(1 Corinthians 3:16-17)  “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? {17} If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.”

Not a temple made with hands, but by God himself. Built upon the foundation taught by the apostles and prophets. Christ is the chief cornerstone.  God places each new Christian, as a living stone, in the building. Matters not where in the world these new stones are located – USA, Russia, Africa, Asia, etc. Because this is true, let us live with wisdom and holiness, obedience and faith.

CONCLUSION

The building of God is “human”, “living”, and “Spirit-indwelt.” If we do not build this building as instructed, we are cheating ourselves. (Story of the builder who took shortcuts on building a fine house only to learn the builder was giving him the house).

We have not only been commissioned to build a building – we have been commissioned “to be” a building. We are to be not just any house, but the very house of God. Those who fail to come into the house cheat themselves. Those who come into the house but fail to live an obedient life, cheat themselves. We cannot build a house for God as Solomon did. However, we can allow ourselves to become a part of God’s house by allowing God to add us to the house of living stones.

If God brings you to it, He will also bring you through it. The power of God has no limit.

The flood. Did not just happen but was planned and announced to Noah at least 120 years before it happened. God controlled the rain and the fountains of the earth. His hatred of sin was shown in His power. This was not to hurt man but to preserve mankind from the destruction of sin. We still see His power today by the rainbow as a continuing covenant with man that He will not destroy the world with water.

Jonah within the big fish. Jonah thought he could run away from God, but he was wrong, for there is no hiding place. He learned how to pray from the belly of a fish in the covering of deep water, and God heard.

God caused the sun to stand still for Joshua (Joshua 10:12-14): “On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: ‘O sun, stand still over Gibeon, O moon, over the valley of Aijalon.’ So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the book of Jashar.” The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a man. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!”

The Power of God works within us. God’s power is at work through us. The channel of our life must be spiritually clear so His power can flow through us. As individual Christians and as a church body we limit ourselves and truly believe that we cannot do anything. With God’s awesome power at our disposal there is no limit as to what can be done. “The one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Jesus made a promise that we have never dared to explore.“I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do even greater things than these” (John 14:12). Jesus dealt with all kinds of sickness, but we have the power through His resurrection to deal with the souls of men and make them alive in Christ forever.

The God-fearing church that is open to the indwelling power of God can try the impossible. Gideon with 300 men accomplished the impossible. David accomplished the impossible against Goliath in the name of the Lord. We can take risk, be bold and sometimes impractical and unreasonable by human standards. When you try something big, just make sure that there is no way it can happen except by the power of God. Following the resurrection of Jesus, God has chosen to work His power through us.

God is Able. Here is where our faith must take over. He is able to make 9/10ths of our money go further than 10/10ths if we will faithfully bring our tithe to His storehouse. He is able to change totally a life of sin into a beautiful life of righteousness. Peter, a rough fisherman, to the fearless spokesman of God. Paul, the persecutor, to the preacher, church planter and Bible writer.

Spend time in prayer during the next few weeks asking God to help us reach out to those with whom we have an influence…ask them to come be part of that day.

  With all the uncertainly in our world today about the individual need for “the church” as compared to a person simply “believing at home,” I want to begin with a statement of conviction that I hope can receive a hearty “Amen” from most.

What is needed is a ringing affirmation that the church is God’s idea, that it is the living incarnation of Christ in the world, that – for all its flaws and faults – it is now God’s instrument to reconcile the world to Himself.

There is a serious need for those of us who call ourselves Christians “according to the New Testament pattern” to reaffirm the church’s place in the plan of God and in our own lives.

1. There is no doubt that many congregations have lost their calling and sense of mission. But if that has occurred, we have allowed it to occur and we are partly to blame. At least, it is something we can change.
2. We should respond to the leadership of Jesus Christ, and keep our attention to people’s hearts and souls and away from brick/mortar, and personalities and politics.
3. While every member is part of the universal church, failure to be part of a particular congregation is failure to obey Christ as a member of a local body that carries out the work of the church in the world.

THE LOCAL CHURCH

If the relationship of the individual Christian to Christ is primary or fundamental, then what place does the local church have in God’s plan?

Why Have the Local Congregation?

Some religious teachers see no reason for a local church. Even some individual Christians apparently see no need for the local church since they do not place membership with one or refuse to participate actively in one. Nevertheless, it is better for Christians to gather together into local churches than for them to try to “go it alone” as Christians. How do we know that? Because the local church was a part of God’s plan!

Ephesians 3:9–11 says, And to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things; in order that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord.

If someone says, “I can get along without the church just as well as I can get along with it,” he is really saying that he is smarter than God! Why did God make the local church a part of His plan? In general, to help nurture the relationship between each Christian and Christ, and to help bring more people into that relationship.

To be specific, the local church plays an important role in God’s plan in that:

(1) It is easier to be a Christian, to remain a Christian, and to grow spiritually, in a loving, caring group than by oneself.

(2) Christians joined together in a local church can accomplish works of edification, evangelism, and benevolence that it would be impossible for them to accomplish individually

(3) God is glorified in a special way by the corporate worship of a group of His children.

It’s in the context of a congregation that we commit ourselves to intimate relationships with fellow Christians and submit ourselves to accountability, duties,  responsibilities.

Remember from our studies in Acts:

1. Individuals confessed faith in Jesus, were immersed in water for remission of sins, and became part of a local congregation.
2. It is at the very heart of what it meant to be part of God’s kingdom.

My church?!#

It is typically said by some: “Faulty people, flawed preacher, flailing leadership, sinning saints. We can’t get people to participate in ministry. I often feel lonely and isolated when I come to church. I always have a hard time finding a good parking place. Decisions are made I don’t agree with….”

There is a great tension between the church of faith and the church of fact.

There is a cantankerous bunch of stubborn, non-working people who attend some of our congregations. There are people who don’t live as they should. Some ministries need some talent and enthusiasm added to them…but…there is the shining, pure, beautiful, faithful bride of Jesus…loving, harmonious, humble, and hard working! And then there is all of us!

Two sayings that apply?

To live above with those we love, O that will be glory! But to dwell below with those we know..well, that’s another story.

“The church is like Noah’s ark. The stench inside is sometimes unbearable except for the storm that is always outside.”

The Nature of the church

1. The “called out” (2) body of Christ.

(1 Peter 2:9 NIV)  “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”

I Cor. 12 and Romans 12 develop physical body contrasted to the spiritual body, the church.

1. The “household of God.”

(Ephesians 2:19 NIV)  “Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household,”

 (1 Timothy 3:15 NIV)  “if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”

1. The kingdom of God.

Kingdom preached at hand.

(Matthew 3:2 NIV)  “and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near.””

Parables set forth the church as the kingdom.

(Matthew 13:24 NIV)  “Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field.”

(Matthew 13:44-45 NIV)  “”The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. {45} “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls.”

(Matthew 13:47 NIV)  “”Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish.”

After the day of Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the kingdom is spoken of as ‘past tense’..in existence.

(Acts 8:12 NIV)  “But when they believed Philip as he preached the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.”

(Acts 20:25 NIV)  “”Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.”

(Acts 28:23 NIV)  “They arranged to meet Paul on a certain day, and came in even larger numbers to the place where he was staying. From morning till evening he explained and declared to them the kingdom of God and tried to convince them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets.”

1. The temple of God.

 (1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NIV)  “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? {17} If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple.”

A temple is a place where God meets those who worship Him…and it is a place where the Spirit of God lives. It must be built according to God’s plan (Christ and the apostles are the foundation).

5. The vineyard of God.

 (Philippians 2:15-16 NIV)  “…so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe {16} as you hold out the word of life–in order that I may boast on the day of Christ that I did not run or labor for nothing.”