ECCLESIOLOGY Part 2 - ECCLESIOLOGY HAS A PURPOSE

I have pioneered a church (Williamstown, Victoria). I 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 pastors who take on an established church. This 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.