This blog is part of what I read and discussed on The Mind of Miz Podcast Episode: #7 The Social Role of The Church available here.
The Foundation, Christ
“You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” This dramatic revelation received by the Apostle Peter from God is the foundation of the Church. The revelation is true. The man named Jesus of Nazareth who preached and healed throughout Judea is truly the Son of God. A claim so specific and radical that if proven to be false would singularly dismantle Christianity. The truth revealed is not about a thing, but about a living person, Jesus.
Similarly, the Church is not about a thing, but it’s about living people, God’s chosen. Not so similar is the fact that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is eternal whereas the Church boasts living member that at one time were not so alive. In fact, they were dead in sins and trespasses. We should understand that the Church is not an institution but rather an organism; a living breathing entity that takes all of its orders from God and does all of its work for God.
The Church in the Old Testament
Jesus is the Christ, that is, the anointed one. Jesus was the promised messiah and for centuries the Church waited for Him to come, the faithful members of which passed from this life believing one day they would see Him. Yet, thinking of Old Testament saints like Abraham, Jacob and Moses as part of the Church can be confusing since we think of the Church as a New Testament idea. However, the Greek word we translate church in our Bibles is “ekklēsia,” best described as a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place or an assembly. (Thayer’s Greek Lexicon) While the word is Greek, we can still find a reference to this idea of the calling out of citizens from their homes in the Old Testament Hebrew, in particular when referencing an assembly for religious purposes. In fact, the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible) uses the word “ekklēsia” in several passages in the Old Testament. We can understand then, that God has always referenced those believers who gather together, called from their homes, as a gathering or as the English modern word translates it, the church.
Called by God
This is important, because in Biblical language, the Church is always called by God. There is a reverence in this gathering. But there is also a particular unity. The Church is not made up of individuals with “individuals’ identities” but of individuals that have died to themselves and now Christ lives in them. (And in a world that is in the midst of an identity crisis the believer should remind themselves of their distinct identity with Christ.) All those in the history of the world that have died believing in Christ, are alive in Him, and are members of the Church, those that are believing today and are physically alive, are dead to themselves and are alive in Christ. Therefore, the Church is not about the kinds of people. It’s not a diverse group of people with different beliefs, the church is one body connected to Christ uniquely. That is to say, that the believer’s identity is with Christ.
Bound to Scripture Alone
I realize that not all Christians believe the same exact things about the Bible in the exact same way. The plethora of denominations make this clear. But this does not disqualify the unity of the Church since the Church is not one that lives in a perfect heaven but in a fallen secular world. All things being equal however, the Church does only the work of God and has no other sovereign authority than God’s word and individual members of the Church are not all hearing a unique word from God (that would make it nearly impossible to know what God ever said), but are bound to scripture alone. And scripture does not change and is infallible and inerrant. scripture is God’s revelation to His Church and we should be careful to be obedient to it.
Doers of God’s Will
The Church is exclusively the doer of God’s will on this earth and I contend that any deviance from that is a misalignment from God’s purpose. Since God chooses those that will believe, then only He can determine who belongs to the Church and since He determines this than the Church has no other authority than God. The Bible teaches us that within the body, the Church, there are many members and each has their function with diverse working of diverse gifts and this is true, however, the aim of each gift working, is to glorify God and anytime the gifts are used outside of these purposes’ correction should be applied.
I labor this point because churches, when planted today, many times are started by men who do not even qualify according to scripture to be Pastors and the trajectory of the work that gets done within the church is one that does not align with scripture. This inevitably plays out socially and, in many instances, maligns the name of Christ. My task here, is to speak to the facts the Bible gives us regarding the work of the Church, its scope and final aim. But not without first underscoring the point that the Church belongs to God. The Church’s primary function is not social but spiritual. The Church’s primary focus is not to uplift society from its varying states of physical ill, but to be a light in the spiritually darkened world we live in so that those that are chosen by God can see the light of Christ.
All Glory Goes to God
God in being God, and in being perfect, and in being all powerful and all-knowing makes it a point throughout scripture that it is to Him that all glory should be given. This has made many accuse God of being self-centered or arrogant, but God is the only one who deserves all glory and for Him to seek it and demand it from us is not only not self-centered, it is right. We, even by suggesting any self-centeredness in God, rob Him of the glory only He deserves. If all glory does not go to God, who would you suggest it goes to? Satan, thought he could sit upon the throne of God and was cast out of heaven. Anyone who seeks to take from God His glory (not that such a thing could be done) beware, for God’s wrath is not light upon those who seek to take what is His alone.
Accountable Only to God, Not Needy People
This doctrine of God, of His sovereignty, makes the Church responsible to Him and none other. We should never think that the work we do, which certainly effects society, is the sole reason for our existence. But in many parts of America, the works have become the aim. Automatically the Church is expected to give to the community and feed the hungry and help the homeless, all magnificent works and one that should always be done, but far from God’s call for the Church. The call is to preach the gospel, that those God chooses may hear the word of faith and this faith, a gift of God, deposited in us, produces the good works which God has separated for us to do since before the foundation of the world.
Obedience to God Leads to Doing Social Works of the Needed Kind, Not the Wanted Kind
Seeing the injustices of society have always been of concern. Even to the disciples this meant a lot, in particular because the Jews were under the harsh grip of the Romans. “Lord” they asked Jesus after His resurrection, “is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” A poignant, honest and yet selfish question. The question was not, “Lord, what do you want us to do next?” No, they wanted to know if Jesus would now crush the Romans and bring about the restoration of Israel. We, in our time make a similar mistake. We think that if we can fix the social problems, all things would be well. Jesus’ response is classic, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority.” How God will handle the injustices of the world is up to Him and according to His timing and authority.
We forget that God assigns King’s and this makes them accountable to God and how King’s act (not the only factor) towards God brings either God’s wrath or blessings upon the nations. The Church is not to concern itself with this as a primary function. “It is not for you to know.” Jesus goes on, “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witness both in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” The mandate to the Apostles and by extension, the Church is to be a witness of Jesus. To preach the gospel throughout the world. Not feed the hungry, clothes the naked, house the homeless.
While this may sound heartless, it is not. If we can understand the primary focus, the preaching of the gospel, then our works flow from this position of mercy and compassion for the world. We cannot kid ourselves to think that we can be compassionate for someone’s physical being meanwhile not caring about whether they will live in hell for eternity. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his soul? What does it profit a man to have a meal and no hope of eternity? Yet the Church has done this in particular when we look at how in America, the less fortunate are helped. The focus is mainly in the outer problems, leaving nothing for the changing of hearts for the sake of Christ. How easy it can be to set-up a 501 C-3 non-profit church organization but not first set-up as part of the body of believers that seeks to first spread the witness of Christ.
None of the apostles, after this talk with Jesus, sought to be social changers. The Apostles were not social-justice warriors, nor activists; but preachers. They did nothing but spread the gospel of Christ and as a secondary function focused on meeting the needs of this newly formed body of believers, by which doing showed the world how much love they had and in so proved they were of Christ. Why? Because the world of that time, was not one that equated all people. To see such unity among a diverse group of Christians was strange at that time, but diversity was not what united them, the unity they had in Christ, the blood of Jesus that covered them all was what united them.
But today the world has taken for granted the fact that the gospel has permeated so much of western culture, that ideas like equality and justice seem to people to be human developments and not truths of God’s nature. Local churches across America have fallen into this trap. Changing their stand on central truths of the gospel in order to be socially just. This must be addressed inside of the Church and the Church must again put the priority in becoming witnesses of Jesus.
The Beginning of The Church
The inception of the Church started with Jewish men and the preacher’s audience was primarily Jewish. It was Jewish men to whom Peter first addressed with the Gospel, after the infilling of the Holy Spirit. These men we are told were devout Jews. This made it necessary that the preaching be done from a Jewish perspective. In his first sermon, Peter continually quotes from the Torah*, so that his hearers would have no confusion as to what he was talking about. The preaching was also in some way a direct charge at the Jews. “Therefore, let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ; this Jesus whom you crucified.”
But the Jews that heard him speak this way “were pierced to the heart” and they asked Peter “what shall we do?” The response was plain. “Repent and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” That day alone “about three thousand souls” were added to the Church. So here we see the Church, preaching the gospel, not concerned with social norms, but preaching the gospel under the anointing of the Holy Spirit and a massive number of people came to be part of the Church in one day.
The Fellowship of The Church
The question then arises, what was this newly formed Church like? We know they “were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching…” because what the Apostles were teaching was the word of God. The Apostles preaching (in part) became the New Testament we have today. And the church has no other authority but scripture. For the Church to continually be devoted to what the word of God said was natural, but, as we can see from Church history, this natural course was not always the one the Church took. The new Church was also continually devoted to fellowship, the Greek word is “koinonia” and refers to association. Like any association, members share a common thing that makes them unite. For the Church the unity was in Christ. This association and fellowship however, for them was not one that came with a club-member mindset that said, “it’s us and no one else!” Rather the Church’s mindset was to live their Christian lives openly, which often cost them everything including life.
We learn later from scripture that believers are “called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” The fellowship of the Church is not only with one another, but is founded on Christ. The Church shared its brotherhood with Christ who is the first born among brethren. To understand this is to know that when you see a fellow Christian you are most grateful for this unique gift God has given to you both, to share in the knowledge of Himself and salvation while the world remains in utter darkness. Seeing this moves the Church to preach the gospel; “how many more brethren are lost?” should be the question that drives us. The Church’s concern is first and foremost spiritual and not in regards to the physical condition alone. And until the Church returns to this absolute first priority it will wallow in the secular world, giving of all its resources and time to the world and not the work of God.
The Use of Breaking Bread and Prayer
The early Church was also devoted to the breaking of bread, which was and remains the constant reminder that the blood of Christ was shed for our sins and that His body was crushed for our inequities. And lastly, prayer. The means by which we communicate with our Father in heaven. How many of these things does the Church do today as primary functions?
What Early Church Believers Actually Did
What happens next in early Church history is so special that it deserves being quoted directly and at length. I will simply point out to the reader to pay attention to who this passage is talking about, and notice how the members of the Church are “believers.” Notice also the shift, how “those” are defined and then referenced as “they.” This shows us who was doing what.
“Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all the believers (those devoted to the apostles teaching, devoted to the breaking of bread and prayer) were together and had all things in common; and they (the believers) would sell their property and possessions and share them with all, to the extent that anyone had need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
Preaching is Not Meant to Make Society Happy
What the early Church was preaching was not something that made Jewish society happy. In fact, early Christians were seen as a Jewish sect, not a good thing. Look how they spoke about Paul when he was presented before the Governor of Caesarea due to charges drawn against him. “For we have found this man a real pest and a fellow who stirs up dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes.”
The early Church did not seek to cozy up to society. It spoke the truth of the gospel and dealt with consequences as they came. Today we avoid being called “pests” or “stirrers of dissension” and certainly do not want to be labeled a sect. But these were things the world around Paul labeled him while he preached the true gospel. This first initial period of the Church was one that received persecution from the Jews because it hit hard against standard beliefs of the time. It culminated in the martyrdom of Stephen, a leader of the early Church. This event precipitated a “great persecution” against the Church in Jerusalem.
The Church became scattered “throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” A man named Saul who Jesus Christ would radically transform, and later would be better known as Paul, “began ravaging the Church, entering house after house, and dragging off men and women, he would put them in prison.” (To the reader, I am aware of the modern-day persecution the church is under in places like Nigeria and China and across the globe and understand that persecution has never left the Church.)
What can we say however about the people that were scattered? They, “went about preaching the word.” In this way God’s sovereignty allowed for the word of Jesus to be true, that they were to preach the gospel to the remotest places in the world. This was a Church that did not lose sight of its primary purpose, can we say the same?