ECCLESIOLOGY, Part 4 - THE NEED FOR ASSEMBLING

When most people think of ‘church’, I suspect they either think of a building with a steeple, or, the people in a Sunday meeting of a congregation. In this post, I’m addressing the latter understanding of church. Christ has ordained that His church meets together regularly. The original history of the Church (the Book of Acts) reveals that the first Church met in the Jerusalem where thousands gathered in the Temple’s outdoor precinct; and, in one another’s homes around Jerusalem. As the Church grew around the Mediterranean world, local churches initially met in the large homes of wealthy householders. These Greco-Roman households provided a ready-made structure to these new churches. It wasn’t too long before problems arose in many of the local churches. This is something that we should all be very thankful for, because the result of these church problems were the New Testament epistles. Within these epistles we find the biblically ordained liturgy (how a church service is conducted) for when a church assembles. Let’s consider what this is...

1. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO ASSEMBLE TOGETHER

When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus

FIRST CORINTHIANS 5:4

I grew up going to a Primary School where the Principal held an outdoor “assembly” every week. I think Mr. Blackie was ex-military, at least that’s what one of the other students said when we had to standard to attention, salute the flag, then stand at ease. It was during this weekly assembly that important announcements were made, special achievements were mentioned, and the school’s rules were reinforced. At the conclusion of the assembly we were all given a small glass bottle of milk and an al’foil lid to drink (which was no fun on a hot summer’s day after these bottles of milk had gone-off in the outdoors full-sun!) This weekly assembly gave me a fuller understanding of what the apostle Paul was referring to when he wrote to the Corinthians. When the church gathered on the Lord’s Day each week, they were to assemble. They were, in a way, to ‘stand’ to attention, give God honour, pay attention to what said, then have a time of fellowship. This was not a mere optional obligation for believers. The writer to the Hebrews exhorts all believers to not to neglect the gathering (assembling) together - as is the habit os some! (Heb. 10:25). 

A Christian is one who (i) believes (in the saving work of Jesus Christ); (ii) belongs in a local church family; and, (iii) behaves in accord with the teaching of Christ. Each church family is called to assemble each week - that is, every believer is called to join with his or her church family and praise God together, participate in the ordinance of Holy Communion together, give heed to preaching and exposition of God’s Word, worship the Lord with their giving, and minister the grace of fellowship to one another. To consider more about the theology of the assembling of the church, I suggest The Community of the King by Howard A. Snyder. 

2. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO PRAISE TOGETHER

Christianity is one of the few religions in which singing is a vital component of its worship of God. When a church praises God together with singing, it helps to refocus the worshipers onto the greatness of God. Congregational praise can be a positive distraction from the cares and worries of life. Singing our praise to God can be prayerful, meditative, and uplifting.  Praising God together can also be an effective witness to outsiders:

And in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy. As it is written,

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,

and sing to your name.”

ROMANS 15:9

Praising God should be thoughtful so that it engages the mind and the heart of a believer. The Church has a long tradition of producing thoughtful hymns that enable this. There some denominations of churches which will only use the Psalms as the songs of their congregational praise - but, Colossians 3:16 encourages the use of much more than Psalms as the basis for church praises:

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

COLOSSIANS 3:16

This act of worship—singing—by a congregation is not dependent on whether someone is a good singer, because singing praise is a matter of heart, not talent! This is why every believer who attends their church family’s worship service is obliged to join in singing. 

3. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO CONDUCT THE ORDINANCE OF HOLY COMMUNION TOGETHER

Jesus established certain ordinances (also identified as sacraments by some Church traditions) for His Church. These are universally acknowledged as holy communion (eucharist), water baptism (some denominations also refer to this as christening), and marriage. Each of these involve the interaction of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Communion - Christ, on the night He was betrayed, instigated the Lord’s Supper where He took unleavened bread, gave it to His disciples, and said “This is My body, take and eat.” Then He took the cup of unfermented fruit of the vine, and gave it to His disciples, and said, “This is My blood, drink this in remembrance of Me.”

¶ Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

MATTHEW 26:26-29

Holy Communion is a sacred ordinance of the Church. The earliest Christians came to recognise this ordinance as a significant aspect of their Sunday worship service. They understood Christ’s emphatic statement that the bread and wine - the elements (also referred to as 'accidents' by some church traditions) - were “My body” and “My blood” meant that when believers celebrated Holy Communion in faith that Christ Himself was present by His Spirit. That is, when the early believers ate and drank the communion elements in faith, they were actually nourishing their souls on Christ. Perhaps churches today might need to recapture some of this reverence for this sacred ordinance. At the very least, celebrating Holy Communion as a church congregation is one of the sacred things which constitutes an assembling of believers as a church.

4. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO GIVE HEED TO THE PREACHING AND TEACHING OF GOD’S WORD

The apostle Paul told Timothy, his lieutenant, that his role at Ephesus was to preach the Word (2Tim. 4:2). The preaching and teaching of God’s Word was instigated by the apostles from the Church’s outset (note Acts 15:35; 1Peter 1:25). This demands two important things. Firstly, preachers and teachers of God’s Word are responsible for developing their skill and expertise to fulfil their ministry. I would strongly encourage preachers to learn how to preach the Word of God expositionally, rather than reading or reciting a sermon from a script. Do not read your sermon - preach it! For any preacher who would like to begin to hone their craft, I suggest, The Preacher’s Portrait, some New Testament Word Studies, by John R. W. Stott. Preachers should remember that the aim of a sermon was for a congregation not merely to hear a sermon, but to apply its lessons by heeding it.

Secondly, believers must learn how to listen and heed the preaching and teaching of God’s Word. Believers should bring their bibles to church and come prepared to take notes of what is preached and taught. This is an important component of what Christ has ordained for His church when they assemble.

5. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO WORSHIP GOD THROUGH ITS GIVING

The Mosaic Law prescribed in the Old Testament including the bringing animals to be sacrificed, offerings of gold and silver (money), and the concept of regular giving in support of the Levites and priests referred to as tithes. Jesus told His hearers that they should tithe (Matt. 23:23). This was said in the context of the Mosaic Law still being current - despite the general corruption of the Levites and priests. It might then be tempting to dismiss to dismiss such a comment from Christ with a wave of the hand and a “But we’re now in the New Covenant” exclamation. However, before you do so, consider that much of what Christ taught about New Covenant ethics went higher - not lower - than Old Covenant ethics. Consider what Christ said about such things like murder, or adultery. In the case of murder, Jesus raised the standard to hating being equivalent to the sin of murder (Matt. 5:21-22), and for adultery He raised it to lusting after a woman being equivalent to adultery (Matt. 5:27-28)! 

In the early chapters of the Book of Acts we see how the early Church understood what Christ was teaching about giving - and it was certainly not a lower standard than the Old Covenant.

And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

ACTS 4:33-37

The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians that as they met each Sunday (“the first day of the week”) to also receive a special offering to support the impoverished Jerusalem believers (1Cor. 16:2). In writing to the Ephesians via Timothy, Paul stated that the church was to support those who dedicated themselves to the preaching and teaching of God’s Word (1Tim 5:17). Today, giving continues to be an act of worship by New Covenant believers who give as God has blessed them.

As the Church expanded around the Empire and beyond, and churches grew where it was impracticable to continue meeting in homes of even wealthy householders, funds were raised to build houses of worship and teaching. Yet, the primary need for believers to give financially to their local church was to support the ministry of those who shepherded the local church congregation. Today, this same purpose remains and is supplemented when wealthier churches give to missions projects beyond their immediate locality as well.

6. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO MINISTER THE GRACE OF GOD ONE TO ANOTHER THROUGH FELLOWSHIP

When the church assembles it is also called to fellowship. This is a spiritual discipline which seeks to be commune through Christ with a brother or sister in Christ. It involves listening, caring, responding, and sharing. It is an important part of what happens when a church assembles. Done well, it is a blessing. Done effectively, it results in prayer. Done habitually it leads to closeness with another brother or sister in Christ. While it has a place in the time that a church family has met for weekly worship, it also takes place outside of this time.

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 cleanses us from all sin.

FIRST JOHN 1:7

We have seen that the New Testament describes and prescribes the components of a liturgy for when a local church assembles. This includes: prayers together, the singing of praise together, partaking of Holy Communion together, hearing and heeding the teaching and preaching of God's Word, bringing our financial gifts, and prayerful/caring/thoughtful fellowship one with another. Sadly, it seems that today, many believers have come to see weekly church assembling as an optional thing. I would encourage all believers to make assembling each week with their church family one of their highest priorities. I would also strongly urge all believers to contribute their willing participation in each of the aspects of their church's liturgy outlined above. In doing so, we may once again begin to see what the apostle wrote about about in Ephesians 3:8-10. If you are interested in exploring the theology of Christian fellowship, I suggest Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Amen.

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ECCLESIOLOGY Part 3 - STRUCTURE

 Ecclesiology is the study of the Church. There are three vital sources from which we can draw to do ecclesiology: (i) the Scriptures; (ii) theology; and, (iii) the history of the Church. In referencing the universal Church of all ages, locations, and distinctions, a first letter capital is used: Church. In referencing a particular church in a particular location at a particular time, no capital letter is used. Thus, I have served as a pastor, I have served four churches, but Jesus the Christ is the Chief Shepherd over the Church (1Pet. 5:4). Because a local church is an expression of the Church, and it is biblically described metaphorically as a human body (1Cor. 12), the body of Christ (Eph. 5:23), a family (“household” Eph. 2:19), and a building (Eph. 2:20-22), it is necessarily structured. This structure, like its metaphors, means that its composite is greater than the sum of its parts. Structure therefore means that it is organised, and ordered. This has two profound implications for any church: firstly, a local church is to be structured so that it has orderly leadership (Titus 1:5); and, secondly, that every local church should be in relationship with the Church as represented by leaders outside of itself (as evidenced in Acts 15 for example). Here is a reflection on church structure for your consideration and profit.  

THE ROLE OF A SHEPHERD

The language of the New Testament to describe a leader of a local church is drawn upon the writings of the prophets in the Old Testament. The prophets described GOD as a ‘shepherd’ who leads and cares for His people as it they were His flock (Isa. 40:10-11). GOD expected His priests and princes to similarly care for His people on His behalf as they too were shepherds. By the time of  Jeremiah, these leaders were denounced as not being true shepherds (Jer. 6:3; 10:11; 12:10; 23:1-2). God then declared that the day would come (when the New Covenant was instigated) that He would send true shepherds to truly care for His people-

¶ “ ‘And I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

JEREMIAH 3:15

"I will set shepherds over them who will care for them, and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be missing, declares the LORD."

 JEREMIAH 23:4

A shepherd “watches over” his sheep. In a similar way, GOD the Son has appointed shepherds to watch over those who gather as a local community of believers. The description of a church as a ‘household’ gives us an understanding the that earliest apostles understood that a church bore some resemblance to the structure of a Greco-Roman household, where the householder served as the overseer. 

The householder provided for, protected, accommodated, and gave identity to each member of the household. This presents a beautiful and challenging picture to pastor, elders, ministers, today of their enormous responsibility within a local church.

A wise pastor will lead his pastoral charge by setting the direction of the church, developing other leaders, guarding doctrine so that it accords with Scripture, and bringing various levels of corrective discipline as required (2Tim. 4:1-2). 

While a local church may have a plurality of leaders, but it is biblical and appropriate for them to recognise a first among equals which exhibits humility, accountability, and authority. Such a recognition should be supported by an obvious sense of God’s call upon, and gifting of, that person.

ECCLESIOLOGY Part 2 - ECCLESIOLOGY HAS A PURPOSE

I have pioneered a church (Williamstown, Victoria). I have also served as a state church-planting director for the Tasmanian Assemblies of God. But over time I became increasingly concerned with helping existing churches. My last pastorate, where I was a senior pastor for twenty-nine years, had had two previous senior pastors. I finished up my time there with the intention of making sure it was ready for its fourth senior pastor. Since concluding my charge at Legana, I am now doing what I can to help other pastors who take on an established church. This is something I have been concerned about for some time. While there are challenges in pioneering a church, there are different challenges involved in taking on an established church — both for its new pastor, and its congregation (and especially for its staff). I admire church-planters; but, I really admire pastors who succeed another pastor and lead that church into sustained growth. After years of observing pastors who have successfully taken on an established church, I have noticed that there is always certain things they do which make it even more successful. While some denominational leaders are calling for increased church-planting, I’m calling for church-regeneration!

This is why ecclesiology is important because if someone is going to attempt to pastor and lead an established church, it is important to have an understanding of biblical ecclesiology. That is, it is important to understand what the church is - based on how the bible describes it. Here are the foundational points of ecclesiology that are essential for revitalising an established church:

Priority #1.  Refocus the church’s existence to give God glory. It does this through gathering together to offer worship together, to give heed to the preaching and teaching of God’s Word - the Bible. (Eph. 3:21)

Priority #2. Restructure the church as a body so that each part of the body functions accordingly. This requires that it be led by those who are gifted to do so. Just as a body is organised with each organ connected appropriately to function together as a whole, so it is with a church. Some believers are gifted to lead. Other believers are gifted to teach, or serve, or give, or encourage, or administrate, or show hospitality. Every believer should be able to contribute their gift or serve in some capacity (Eph. 1:22-23; 5:23; 1Peter 2:5).  

Priority #3. Re-envisage the church as a functional family. The pastor has a fatherly duty to accept responsibility for creating a community of believers where people are known to each other, enabled to offer care to each other, and, to pray for and with each other. This necessarily involves having meals together in each others homes, and, together as a church family. When it meets together, children are safe, women are protected, and men are encouraged to be virtuous. Paul told Timothy that he should teach people how to treat older men and women, and younger women in particular - all with the respect (1Tim. 5:2; James 2:15). That is, people within a church should treat each other as family — as if they were brothers and sisters. The result of this re-envisaging will increasingly make the church attractive to people outside of the church who have no experience of family. This feeds into Priority #4. 

Priority #4,  Re-open hearts, minds, and hands, for the benefit of those outside of their church.  In 1944, Archbishop William Temple, famously said, “The church is the only institution that exists primarily for the benefit of those who are not its members.” Archbishop Temple was only partly correct. The first three priorities are for the benefit of a local church. This fourth priority will be the most challenging for any church a new pastor is attempting to revitalise. It will take the greatest amount of time to achieve - especially if the first three higher priorities are ignored. A wise new pastor will lovingly exercise his shepherd’s authority to gently broadcast to his congregation that together, they should pray for God to bring new attendees into their church. And when God answers their prayers, and visitors begin to come to their church, they should warmly welcome them. Similarly, a wise pastor will describe what a warm welcome looks like - and doesn't look like. 

One of the challenges that a new pastor and an established church will inevitably face in welcoming visitors to their church will be their self-perception. Many churches are comprised of friends. The challenge for such churches is to recognise that a church of friends is not necessarily a friendly church. Perhaps the best way for those who attend a church, where everyone is a friend, to recognise this, is for them to go and visit another church and experience what it is like to be a visitor to a church.

THE PURPOSES OF A LOCAL CHURCH

I have written here about the purposes of a local church [READ]. In the meantime, I trust that you can see from these 4 turn-around priorities for a church, that it is not simply to: “evangelise the lost”. But it certainly does include this, yet it may not be the sole purpose for a church every time they gather each Sunday. A great place to start in developing a biblically solid ecclesiology is Paul's Epistle to the Ephesians. It is divided into six chapters and addresses six key relationships (one for each chapter) that are important for any local church. Over the next few instalments of this blog I will continue to expound on the implications of developing a such a sound ecclesiology by every senior pastor, and every congregation.

Dr. Andrew Corbett.

SOME SAY CHURCH, BUT I SAY ECCLESIOLOGY

WE NEED TO TALK MORE ABOUT ECCLESIOLOGY 

Ecclesiology is the study of the Church. The reason we need to talk more about ecclesiology is that many people are involved in a church - or even leading a church - and yet they don’t know what GOD intends for a church to be. In the next few posts I will discuss the purpose of a church, the structure of a church, the importance of the assembling of a church, the mission of the church, the ministries of the church, and the propagation of the church. 

I am a student of the Church. Some of my earliest memories involve being in church. In fact, I have no recollection of never going to church on a Sunday. But, before I was a teenager, I knew that I was increasingly bored during the church services. On one occasion, I came up with an ingenious idea on how to get out of going to church. The idea came to me when I realised that if a car's battery went flat, the car could not start. I then reasoned, that if, on a Saturday, if I went to our family car and opened the car’s glove box - so that the little glovebox light would stay on, then, by Sunday morning, the car’s battery would probably become flat by then! The result would be that I wouldn’t have to go to church that Sunday. The next day, my younger brother and sister and I got into the family car to go off to church as usual. Only I knew that the car would not be able to start. But alas. It did start! And off to church we went. My plan had been foiled. Never again would I attempt such a less than genius plan. In fact, it wouldn’t be too long before going to church became one of my greatest delights.  

THE DAY CHAPPO TURNED UP

Before I was fifteen years of age, my church experience involved going into an old, dark building with a huge timber cathedral ceiling held together by hundreds of massive metal bolts. In the duller moments of the church service I would attempt to count the number of these bolts, but never successfully. Then one day, my world changed. The minister, Rev. Peter Payne, invited Canon John Chapman, from Sydney, to be the guest speaker. He spoke in a way that I had never heard anyone speak. He had my attention. Even though I had been going to church all of my life, I had never heard anyone speak like John Chapman. He obviously also had an impact on my parents too because, from that moment, my parents, and that means “we”, all went to church Sunday morning and evening services! 

When I turned 15 after the visit of Canon John Chapman, I went through the preparation for Confirmation. I met with Rev. Payne one-on-one as he unpacked the implications of the gospel. He asked me read Paul's Epistle to the Romans. I did so using the Living Bible, a recent paraphrase by Kenneth Taylor. By the time I finished reading Romans, my heart was transformed and my eyes were opened. Perhaps it was the seeds sown by John Chapman's recent visit, or the pastoral care and discipleship by the prayerful Peter Payne, or the careful reading of Paul's Epistle to the Romans, but the process of preparing for Confirmation was turning point in my life. In the ensuing years I was to have several more turning points, and with each turning point, I was to grow in my understanding of what a ‘Church’ was. The next turning point for me, and for my parents, was how the church seemed to force Peter Payne to leave our church.

WHO IS THAT PREACHER?

I was  probably too young to understand what had happened to Rev. Peter Payne after I was Confirmed. As far as I can recall, he was apparently “too evangelical”. At the time, I didn’t know what evangelical meant, but whatever it meant, it had apparently upset some of the members of the vestry to the extent that they wanted Rev. Payne to leave.

I cannot recall any message that Peter Payne preached. As I said earlier, I do recall Rev. Payne speaking to me during the Confirmation preparation. I also recall him coming around to our home to see my parents who were facing some challenges. Interestingly, it was a few years later, after I had begun the voracious habit of listening to audio cassettes from Bible teachers from the Christian Cassette Lending Library (New South Wales), that I found another cassette in our lounge room that I couldn't identify. I listened to it and was very impressed with the calibre of preacher. In fact, he was amazing. I wanted to hear more from this incredible preacher. I took the cassette out to have a closer look at it for any identification of who this preacher might be. To my astonishment, it was the Reverend Peter Payne! All those years of Sundays that I sat in the church when he was preaching there, and I couldn’t hear him! But after listening to him on that cassette, I realised what I must have actually been missing out on while I sat there during his sermons. Instead of listening, I had been trying to count wooden truss bolts! As a preacher this discovery has taught me the importance of ‘demanding’ that people listen to what I have prepared for the good of their soul in what I am preaching. This is one of the reasons why I have never read my notes during the sermon.

Murray Harkness

CONFIRMATION TO PENTECOST

The first time I visited a Pentecostal church was a Sunday night down the Bellarine Peninsular. My dad had been introduced to a Christian businessman, Murray Harkness, who was also a lay pastor of a small Pentecostal church. I was only 16-years old. My earliest memories of church was the church that I was confirmed in. Therefore, for most of my 16-years, I had only experienced a liturgical church. But this  little Ocean Grove Pentecostal church had no organ, no prayer book, no priest, no choir, and no order of service! I was well and truly out of my comfort zone. I suspect that Murray must have suggested to my parents that if they wanted to go to a Pentecostal church, there was one in downtown Geelong (instead driving all the way out to Ocean Grove). And this is how we came to become a part of the oddly named, Apostolic Church. The contrast between the church I grew up compared with the church that I fell into for nearly 5 years, contributed to my later fascination with what the bible prescribed for what constituted a church. This eventually led to a quest - a quest to understand as much as I could about Christ's plan for His Church. This is how I became a student of the Church and therefore the study of ecclesiology. If you're interested, I have things to share about what constitutes ‘a church’ in the next few posts. 

And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

MATTHEW 16:17-19