The Church

MEMORY VERSES: Matthew 16:18; Acts 2:40-42; 1 Timothy 3:15; Hebrews

10:25

 

The Importance of the Church

 

1.   Jesus established the church; it is His institution for this present age to carry out the Great Commission (Matthew 16:18; 28:18-20).

 

2.   The church is the house of God, the pillar and ground of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15). The truth is what this dark world needs, and Jesus created the church to be the foundation of the truth and to lift it up so the world can see it. It is the church’s job to guard the truth, to train God’s people in it, and to proclaim it throughout the earth.

 

3.   From Acts to Revelation, the church is a central theme. It is mentioned 110 times. In the book of Acts we see the establishment of the first churches. Most of the New Testament is addressed to specific churches, such as the church at Rome and the church at Corinth. The book of Revelation is addressed to seven specific churches (Rev. 1:4). And even those epistles that are not addressed to a specific church, have the church in view. For example, the book of Hebrews is addressed to Jewish believers in general, but it contains some of the most powerful exhortations about church life (Heb. 10:25; 13:7, 17). The same is true for James (e.g. James 5:14), Peter (1 Pet 5:1-4), and for John’s epistles (3 John 9-11).

 

The example in Scripture is for Christians to be committed to the church and to be faithful to its services and functions. This is God’s will. Every believer needs the church, and the church needs every believer.

The Autonomy of the Church: The Church and the Churches

 

The Bible does not use the term church, singular, when addressing a group of churches in a region. In such cases, it always uses the term churches, plural--the churches of Galatia (1 Cor. 16:1), the churches of Macedonia (2 Cor. 8:1), the churches of Judea (Gal. 1:22), the churches of Asia (Rev. 1:4). It is not Scriptural to speak of the church in Nepal or the church in America. This use of the term “church” was devised by the Roman Catholic Church and was kept by the Protestants when they left Rome.

 

The apostles established the church as an autonomous institution with its one Head, Christ. Each church has its own leaders and its own business. This pattern began on Paul’s first missionary journey (Acts 14:23).

 

The church that is called the house of God in 1 Timothy 3:15 is the church that has elders and deacons (1 Timothy 3:1-14).

 

We see this in Revelation 1:4, where each church was addressed individually. In Revelation 1:12-13 Jesus is standing in the midst of the churches, which are signified by the golden candlesticks. In the Old Testament there was one candlestick in the Tabernacle, but in the New Testament dispensation there are many candlesticks, as each church is a light. Each church is “the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15).

 

Membership in the Church

 

The doctrine of church membership is found in the book of Acts, beginning with the first church. In Acts 1:15 we see that the names of the members were kept. In Acts 2:41, those that were saved on the day of Pentecost were “added unto them.” This means that they were added to those already mentioned in verse 15. Those who were saved and baptized were added to the church. That is church membership.

Membership is taught in the examples of Phebe of the church of Cenchrea (Romans 16:1) and Onesimus and Epaphras of the church of Colosse (Col. 4:9, 12). Even when these brethren were on missions to other places, they retained their identity with their home churches.

 

Four reasons why we need church membership

 

Church membership is a matter of practicality, like many other things in the assembly. If a church does not have membership, how can it know who is in the church and who is out?

 

1.  We need church membership because each church is a body and family.

 

Though there is the larger family of God, each church is also a family and has its own business. In the New Testament each separate church is also a spiritual body with its own members. Paul said to the church at Corinth, “And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it. Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular” (1 Cor. 12:26-27). In this present world, the “body of Christ” has its greatest practicality in the local church.

 

2.  We need church membership to keep unity in truth.

 

The Bible requires that believers have one mind in doctrine and practice (1 Corinthians 1:10). For this reason our church has a lengthy statement of faith and we require that every member agree with it, whether he is joining by baptism or by letter from another church. Without membership, we have no way to keep out false teachers and maintain our unity in truth as God requires.

 

3.  We need church membership for discipline (1 Corinthians 5:11-13).

1   Corinthians 5 deals with church discipline, and in verse 12 we see that there are those who are in the church and those who are without. How can a congregation know who is in and who is out, who is under discipline and who is not, unless it has some form of membership? As we have stated, it is a matter of practicality. Parents can’t discipline other people’s children, and the church can’t discipline those who are not a part of its own family. Also verse 11 says those under discipline cannot eat, which refers both to personal fellowship and to the Lord’s Supper. The church has the obligation before God to exercise discipline over its members and those who are under discipline cannot partake of Communion. Thus there must be a way for the church to know who is a part of the family and who is outside.

 

4.  We need church membership for authority.

 

Three times the New Testament refers to those who “rule over” us in the church (1 Thessalonians 5:12; Hebrews 13:7, 17).

 

According to these Scriptures, each believer is to be under the authority of church rulers. How can the church leaders know who they are ruling if there is no membership? Do pastors have the rule over anyone who visits the church? Of course not; there must be some sort of membership, which involves a standard by which the church accepts members and a commitment on the part of those seeking membership.

 

Through the years some believers have disagreed with me about church membership. They are convinced the only membership they need is to be a part of Christ through salvation, and they often have a bad attitude toward pastoral authority. I once asked a church hopper, “Who has the rule over you?” He replied, “Christ.” I said, “But Hebrews 13:7 and 17 are not talking about Christ Himself but about church leaders.” He had no answer.

 

There are places where there is no sound New Testament church, and in such situations the believer has to do the best he can under God’s guidance, but this is

the exception and not the rule. If I found myself in such a situation, I would do everything possible either to start a good church or to move to a place where I could be a faithful member of such a church. I also know many believers who commute one hour and more to attend a good church. I even know one couple who commute three hours (six hours round trip) because they have not been able to find a good church closer to their home and they are not presently in a position to relocate.

 

Faithfulness to the Church

 

The following are some of the reasons why faithfulness to the church is important for every believer:

 

1.   The believer needs the teaching and preaching (Acts 2:42; Colossians 1:28). The church is the divinely-ordained Bible Institute for training and discipling the believers. God gives ministry-gifted men to the churches to build up the flock and protect it from error (Ephesians 4:12-15).

 

2.      The believer needs the fellowship with other Christians (Acts 2:42). Fellowship with likeminded brethren who love the Lord is a necessary part of Christian growth and protection from error.

 

3.   The believer needs the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:42). The “breaking of bread” refers to the Lord’s Supper as well as to fellowship over meals. The Lord’s Supper is a church ordinance. In the New Testament it is always a church function (1 Cor. 11:20-34). Some “radio pastors” such as J. Vernon McGee conduct the Lord’s Supper for their radio congregations, but this is not Scriptural. A radio program is not a church, and a preacher I listen to on radio or television or via the Internet is not my pastor.

 

4.   The believer needs the prayers (Acts 2:42). Prayer is one of the four essential spiritual activities mentioned in connection with the first church. This refers to

corporate prayer.

 

5.     The believer needs the ministry of exhortation from the other brethren (Hebrews 10:24-25). The church services are not something to attend to merely sit and watch, like a spectator sport. Every believer should attend church prayerfully, asking God how he can be a help and a blessing to the brethren. We are to provoke one another to good works and exhort one another in the Lord.

 

6.  The believer needs spiritual protection (“and so much the more as you see the day approaching,” Hebrews 10:25). The church is like a family; it is a place of nurture and protection for the children of God. The Bible warns that there are many powerful spiritual enemies, and these will grow stronger as the time of Christ’s return grows nearer. Those who are careless about church attendance and who are not as committed as they should be, are in danger of being devoured by the world, the flesh, and the devil (1 Peter 5:8).

 

7.    The believer needs the ministry of discipline (1 Cor. 5). We have already mentioned church discipline, but each believer needs to be accountable to church authority. The child doesn’t like discipline, but he needs it, and the same is true for the Christian.

 

8.  The believer needs to contribute his spiritual gifts and ministry (1 Corinthians 12:12-27; 1 Peter 4:10). The church is a body made up of many members who have different gifts and ministries that God gives them. If a believer neglects the church and refuses to get involved as he should, the church is weakened and God’s work in this needy world is not fully accomplished. Every believer needs to ask, “What ministry can I get involved in? How can I serve the Lord in the church? What is my part?” He should seek to grow stronger and gain more wisdom from God’s Word so that he can find his place and ministry and calling.

 

9.   The believer needs to contribute his tithes and offerings (Mal. 3:10). In the Mosaic dispensation the tithes and offerings were brought into the Temple, but tithing was a practice that began in ancient times before Moses. Abraham gave

tithes to Melchizedek, God’s priest in that day (Gen. 14:18-20). We believe tithing is a good starting point for New Testament believers. If God’s people faithfully tithe, the needs of the church will be met. Tithing is a wise, equitable plan; those who have more give more. But we should not think that the tithe is all that we should give to God. In fact, under the Law of Moses, the tithe was at least 20% of one’s income. The Israelites were required to give 10% of all of their increase (Num. 18:24-28; Neh. 10:38), plus they were required to bring offerings to the annual feasts (called the second or festival tithe). They were also to give to the poor. The pattern in the first church was for the believers to bring their offerings to the church and place them before the leaders (Acts 4:34-37). This particular example did not involve the tithe, but it does show that the believers gave in and through the church and that the offerings were under the oversight of their leaders.

 

 

REVIEW QUESTIONS ON THE CHURCH

 

1.  What are three ways that we know the church is important?

 

2.  What verse says the church is the pillar and ground of the truth?

 

3.  What does this mean?

 

4.  How many times is the church mentioned in the New Testament?

 

5.  To whom is the book of Revelation addressed?

 

6.  Why is it not right to speak of the church in America or the church of Nepal?

 

7.  What church was Phebe a member of?

 

8.  What are four reasons why we need church membership?

 

9.  What verse says the church is to have one mind?

 

10.  What book and chapter describes church discipline?

 

11.  How does a church know who is under its discipline?

 

12.  What three passages speak of those who "rule over" us in the church?

 

13.  What are nine reasons why faithfulness to the church is important for every believer?

 

14.  What verse says the believer must not forsake the assembly?