Chapter 5 - What is the Church?
The Bible clearly defines the church as, “The Body of Christ.” While we accept that phrase as being true, it is nonetheless a bit cryptic. The Apostle Paul compares the Body of Christ with a human body metaphorically in the sense that just like there are many different body parts that make up one body, the church consists of many believers, each with different gifts and capabilities (Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31; Ephesians 4:4-16). Paul also clearly points out that the head of the body is Jesus (Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18). The church being the “Body of Christ” implies that all Christians, regardless if together, in a different Christian church or a different Christian denomination, are indeed an inseparable part of God (John 3:33-34; 6:27; Romans 8:16; 2 Corinthians 1:21-22; Ephesians 1:13-14).
In history, especially the history of Christianity, there have been a number of varied definitions and categorizations for the word ‘church’; including the universal church, the invisible church, the visible church, the local church and a whole lot of denominational church designations and classifications. However, the Bible only recognizes two types, the Body of Christ, which is made up from all believers (past, present and future) and Christians in a group (also typically referred to as the local or visible church), any other delineation is unnecessary. In the Bible, local churches were essentially individual groups of believers located in various cities that did nearly everything together (Acts 2:42-47), meeting in people’s homes or local synagogues, they were not like the organized or affiliated church groups we see today. Jesus blesses these local churches as these believers are all part of the one Body of Christ.
The Apostle Paul had the privilege to reveal several ‘mysteries’ that were considered hidden in the Old Testament. One of those mysteries was the concept of the church (Ephesians 3:1-13; Colossians 1:24-29). The church was not some “last minute thought” by God, but instead something that was concealed in the Old Testament and revealed in the New Testament by Paul after Jesus returned to heaven. The church, the Body of Christ, represents God on Earth, all Christians are to be representatives for Jesus here and now (see 2 Corinthians 5:20).
Even with these definitions and concepts, they really don’t answer the question of what is the church. Perhaps it would be easier for us to say what it is not. The church is not a building or a specific location, the church is about the people. The church is not defined by man-made rules or structure; the church is ruled by Jesus and only His instruction matters. The church is not a mechanism to access God through, the church is to help people find Jesus for themselves. The church is not something that changes as mankind changes, the church is rooted in God’s Word that never changes. The church is not to be a place where one comes to be comfortable, the church is a place where believers come to encourage and build each other up. The church is not a place where holy or perfect people meet, the church is for those broken by their own sin. The church is not a political institution; the church is an influencer of people through the teachings of Jesus. The church is not a place to feel good about yourself, the church is a place to hear the truth. The church is not an exclusive club; the church is open for all who accept Jesus as their personal Savior.
Another way to explore what the church is, would be to investigate its purpose. The church is God’s service delivery system; He chose the church as the way to teach and encourage believers so they can tell others about Jesus Christ. Paul wrote in his epistle (the Greek word referring to a written letter) to the church in Ephesus, “Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. This will continue until we all come to such unity in our faith and knowledge of God’s Son that we will be mature in the Lord, measuring up to the full and complete standard of Christ. Then we will no longer be immature like children. We won’t be tossed and blown about by every wind of new teaching. We will not be influenced when people try to trick us with lies so clever they sound like the truth. Instead, we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.” (Ephesians 4:11-16, NLT) Let’s take a closer look at these verses.
We read that the church was given apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds and teachers. We discussed the word ‘apostle’ in the previous chapter, referring to a person that was given instructions from someone in authority. The Bible consistently uses this term to refer to those taught directly from Jesus. Those apostles heard from Jesus and taught others and their students in turn taught others, all the way to us today, this process is often referred to as the apostolic movement. John, Peter and Paul are examples of being apostles even though Paul came much later. The prophets were people God spoke to, sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly. While there is no limit on how God uses prophets, most are recorded in the Old Testament. It is often debated whether God has continued to speak to His people, however, there is strong evidence to indicate that God has never stopped communicating through prophets. Next is the word ‘evangelists’ and here in Ephesians it is referring to those that have received the gift of evangelism and should not be confused with the task every Christian has been given to evangelize (remember the Great Commission, more on evangelism in the next chapter). A shepherd is a Christian leader; a church is often blessed to have several shepherds (in some Bible translations the Latin word ‘pastors’ is used instead of ‘shepherds’). Then finally teachers, these are Christians that have been gifted by God to understand and teach His Word, the whole counsel of God.
Paul next identifies the purpose of the church, the purpose of bringing all these people together, was to, “Equip the saints for the work of ministry.” The goal is for all believers to be equipped for the work of ministry. The word translated here as ‘ministry’ comes from the Greek word ‘diakonia’, meaning to be of service to those giving the instructions (and of course, that would be Jesus), through the work and words of the apostles. The words, “work of ministry” implies that ‘effort’ would be applied by Christians to do the work of God, in other words, Christian disciples are essentially employed by God as ambassadors for Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:20), namely to be “as Christ” to those people He has placed around us. Jesus built the church on the gospel message given to apostles and prophets and then communicated to others through evangelists. As people accept Jesus as their Savior they are guided by shepherds and continuously taught by teachers to be used in and outside the church by God.
The purpose is clear, the minimum requirement for any local church would be to equip people so they can be effective and active for God. Equip to what end? Paul uses an interesting, although horrific, visual to describe what will happen if the church does not perform this task. Paul refers to those who are not fully mature Christians as children, since the Greek word implies small children, some Bible translators use the word ‘infants’. He compares their lack of Christian understanding and growth to that of a child being tossed around by waves on water back and forth in any direction other than toward God, listening to fanciful and deceptive explanations or follow blindly some form of tradition. There is no end to the number of incorrect doctrines or human scheming, how else is a believer to learn about Jesus and the Word of God, if not guided, taught and equipped? (See Acts 8:26-40) Paul then identifies the most important element a church should have an overabundance of, and that is love. The church is supposed to speak the truth (God’s Word) in love, continue to grow in love, with each person doing their part in love, until the church is healthy and matured in love. This simple idea may shock many current-day church-going Christians.
In the last chapter we mentioned how different viewpoints have led to division between believers, perhaps one of the greatest causes of polarization and division is the subject of worship. Churches today, for varied reasons, focus most of their efforts on what is popularly called, a “worship service.” Sadly, many church groups, denominations and organized so-called Christian churches (even large, well-established entities) have embraced man’s interpretations regarding worship, not God’s point of view. In regard to worship, what does God want? Let’s begin by first looking at the English word. Most dictionaries would define ‘worship’ something like, “the feeling or expression of reverence and adoration.” Both the early Middle English and Old English words were derived from two other words, ‘worth’, referring to something of value or importance, and ‘ship’, an English suffix denoting condition, character, office or skill, constructing such words as ‘friendship’. The English word ‘worship’ implies giving or doing something that has value.
Now, before continuing, I want to make it clear that I am not attacking the concept of worship here, but we do need to be aware that the only instruction that matters is from the Word of God. I apologize up front for using and referring to the Greek words so often, but since much is lost in translation, especially with such an explicit language such as Greek, it is necessary to look closely at the original language. I will try to keep it brief, so bear with me once again.
In the Bible, there are a number of Greek words used in the New Testament that are translated as ‘worship’, ‘worshiping’ or ‘worshiper’. Two such words, ‘latreía’ and ‘latreúō’ are from the Greek word ‘latris’ (a word that is not found in the Bible) which captures the idea of being hired. Latreía conveys being of service for hire or as a slave, while latreúō means to serve, in a religious sense, conveying the concept of offering sacrifice (like what is described in the Old Testament worship processes). Both of these words can be translated as ‘serve’. It is interesting to note that the concept of ‘religion’ or being ‘religious’ implied in both the English and the Greek (‘thrēskos’) refer to following ceremonial procedure or ritual. In every case where the Bible uses either the adjective or noun of this word, it is in regard to false worship. Modern English often adds the concept of ceremonial and ritualistic following of God, to the definition of the word ‘religion’, but true Christianity is not a religion of protocol, it is about a loving relationship. One might define the people Paul listed in Ephesians 4:11 (see above) referring to those being apostles, prophets, evangelists, shepherds, and teachers as clergy, people ordained for religious duties. However, that would only be true if everyone understood that these people referred to were gifted and selected by God, not ordained by man. Many churches today have paid clergy, some even use the Latin word for ‘shepherd’, namely ‘pastor’, as a title for that position. Christians that attend these churches often feel that all they need to do is support their pastor financially and that covers everything in order to be a good Christian, clergy in that sense, is not a Biblical concept.
In the Bible, we also see the Greek word ‘proskyneō’ (and noun ‘proskynētēs’), which can also be translated as ‘worship’ or ‘worshiped’, the word literally means, “to kiss,” it conveys action to show respect, obeisance or to fall prostrate before. The word is often translated as ‘knelt’ and ‘bow’. Some other related words that we should look at include: The Greek word ‘theosebous’ only appears once in the New Testament (generally translated ‘worshiper’), it conveys a devout reverence to God. The Greek word ‘eusebeō’ means “to be reverent” or “to be godly,” usually in an external sense (things seen by others). It only appears twice (only once as ‘worship’), both times it is used in relationship with objects (not God) being worshiped. The word ‘sebo’ conveys the idea of worship or reverence (we see four out of the ten times the word appears in the New Testament, it is translated ‘devout’ in the ESV). The Greek word ‘leitourgeō’ is derived from ‘leitourgos’ meaning “public servant” and the word ‘latreia’, mentioned earlier, meaning to “lead service,” when combined essentially means “to lead a public service.” It later became a reference to perform priestly or ministerial duties. This word only appears three times and is usually translated as ‘service’ (only once translated as ‘worshiping’ in the ESV). Also from ‘leitourgos’ is the word ‘leitouria’ meaning either a “public service” or “public office.” Prior to the beginning of churches, this word was used to describe any system administered by citizens at their own expense, in the New Testament ‘leitouria’ relates to the duties of the priests and later used of the ministry of the Christian teacher in bringing people to faith. The word can be found six times in the New Testament (three times translated as ‘service’, once as ‘offering’, once as ‘ministry’ and one more as ‘worship’ in the ESV), the English word ‘liturgy’ is derived from this word.
Regarding the idea of assembling believers, Paul does offer some instruction, he writes, “when you come together,” using the Greek word ‘synerchomai’ meaning to “meet together” in 1 Corinthians chapter 11 five times, each with an admonishment to the church. Later in chapter 14, Paul uses the same word twice with some instructions, including 1) speaking in tongues (1 Corinthians 14:22-25, 27-28); 2) making sure that everything that is done is performed in a way that encourages each other (1 Corinthians 14:26); 3) how to handle prophecy when someone speaks prophetically (1 Corinthians 14:29-33); 4) who should and who should not speak during assemblies (1 Corinthians 14:34-35); and 5) that everything be done with discipline (1 Corinthians 14:36-40). Sorry for all those Greek words, you will see shortly why the review.
None of these Greek words or any of Paul’s instructions point to or refer to any form of instruction regarding what we call today worship. Even though there are no instructions in the New Testament on how to worship or even when to worship, the Sunday morning worship service and the passionate defense of worship style has become the priority of many churches today. While it is true that in the Old Testament God gave the Israelites instructions on how to worship through sacrifice and participation in various festivals, in the New Testament Jesus never specified or requested corporate worship. Perhaps the reason why is that the concept of worship truly begins with us as individuals. Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well that true worshipers will worship (proskyneō) God in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). Jesus is saying that instead of a specified location as decreed in the Old Testament, worship can be at any location where there are believers (John 4:21-22). As Christians, we worship God through submission to Jesus, in spirit and truth consistent with the new covenant as recorded in the New Testament.
For example in the book of Romans, Paul clarifies for us how God views worship in light of what Jesus did for us, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” (Romans 12:1-2, ESV) The phrase, “bodies as living sacrifice” helps us see that our worship to God is through our individual obedience to Jesus. Without our loving obedience to Jesus (remember that all authority has been given to Him, see Matthew 28:18) with a heart to serve Him, everything else, including corporate or any other kind of worship would be a waste of time since you cannot fool God!
Many churches get involved in what has become known as “worship wars.” People of these churches vehemently defend their opinion of what they believe to be the proper way to worship. Many would deny that it is their opinion as they believe they are defending God’s true and acceptable way. They will even insult and put down anyone else that has a different point of view, often in fits of emotional rage and rude outbursts. That is unfortunate as these people have accepted a lie that is masquerading as truth, undoubtedly perpetrated by some church official. It is during these times when tradition (be it actual or perceived) can adversely affect a church, as the traditional protocols become more important than the reason they were started, or worse, being more important than a relationship with God. One could ask, is this an example of Christian behavior? When believers fight fellow believers or when a ritual becomes more important that following God, the church may no longer be able to equip believers and thus no longer be of any value to God. At minimum one could further ask, where is God’s love? If someone is so inwardly focused on a worship style, how can they love the lost? There is nothing wrong with disliking a certain style of worship, they need to own up to the fact that it is an opinion, something that is liked or disliked and stop cursing and insulting those that disagree. This is only a difference in preference, nothing more. God loves diversity, including style of praise, as long as we have a heart for Him.
When Jesus was asked “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” (See Matthew 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-33) He did not quote any of the Ten Commandments, He responded with, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matthew 22:37, ESV) a quote from Deuteronomy 6:5. Jesus is telling us that we are to essentially worship Him at all times. When we love someone with all our heart, soul and mind, nearly everything we do and think about is done with that person in mind, that would be the definition of full-time worship. Even though we cannot do anything to earn our salvation, we need to remember what the Word of God teaches, that Jesus did all the work and that we belong to Him (Remember He bought us with His blood, Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 6:20; 7:23; 1 Peter 1:18-19) and in response to His love for us, we return that love through our worship of obedience.
Obedience? How Do We Obey? Is the Word of God important? As believers, we might think we already know everything a Christian needs to know. After all, some were brought up in a church-going family and heard just about every story in the Bible from Sunday School. Think about that for a moment, when you tell a story now as an adult to a young person, do you always include the details, especially those things that could potentially be misunderstood? No, why? Because they may not know enough about God and the world to clearly understand. Besides, much of the Bible would be considered rated for mature audiences only. So, no, Sunday School did not teach us what we as adults need to know about God’s Word. Remember what Paul wrote in Ephesians, “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,” (Ephesians 4:13, ESV) this process is referred to as ‘sanctification’ (the Greek word ‘hagiazō’ can be found 28 times in the New Testament, the word refers to a process to be made clean and holy for service to God). For us, it involves maturing in our relationship with Jesus, becoming more like Him (loving, forgiving, compassionate, patient, etc.) and growing in the Word of God. As children of God (Romans 8:16-17) we should have a burning desire to know more about God, and that hunger can only be quenched through the Word of God. Not just the New Testament, but the whole counsel of God, information and instructions from God found from Genesis to Revelation. In the simplest of terms, without knowing the Word of God, we cannot know what truly pleases Him.
It is important to note that there is only one source of truth and that is the Bible. Throughout church history there have been many books published, some written to help people to understand the theology of the Bible better and others to provide a guideline for life and worship. While many of these documents were written with the best of intentions, we need to understand that they were written from a human’s perspective and as such, should never be elevated higher than the Bible. Many Christian organizations, including churches, denominations and parachurch ministries, often promote or teach exclusively their literature or those documents that support their own thinking and avoid teaching the Bible or at least the whole counsel of God. In the simplest of terms, when we die the only book that matters will be the Bible.
To understand why having different viewpoints may not be a good thing, we need to go back to the Bible and listen carefully to Jesus praying in the garden, just prior to His arrest and crucifixion. His prayer contained three different elements: First, for Him to be glorified by the Father (John 17:1-5); Second, for the guidance, protection and blessing of His disciples, soon to be apostles (John 17:6-19); and Third, for those that will hear the gospel message through those apostles, namely the church (John 17:20-26). It is during this third element we read Jesus praying, “That they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21, ESV) Jesus was praying that the church would have unity, He knew that there would be religious arguments, dogma debates and theological differences. Just as Jesus pointed out regarding Satan’s domain, “If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.” (Mark 3:24-25, ESV) we know that the best way to cause a disruption or minimize any effort in serving God is to confuse and scatter. When we read the various epistles in the New Testament we see how almost all the churches that were written to in a short period o time had problems, even five of the seven churches listed in Revelation chapters 2-3, had serious issues. Can you imagine what has happened over the last 2,000 years? The church has been victim of doctrinal deficiencies, corruption and loss of unity.
Another way to explore the question, “What is the church?” is to “flip the equation inside out” and ask, “What is the purpose of a believer?” Why would God use people? Doesn’t make any sense, does it? We are still sinners, we are all deeply flawed, we may at times be rude or cut someone off while driving! We certainly are not perfect; wouldn’t it be easier to evangelize if we became perfect after accepting Jesus? Even though many unbelievers already think Christians consider themselves to be perfect, we aren’t, so it is very difficult to represent someone who is perfect. We may never fully understand why God chose people to be His ambassadors. If we have been given the responsibility to spread the gospel and represent God on Earth, as we have been given, can we do that effectively on our own? That’s easy, no! What would we need? We would need to learn everything God gave us. To begin we would certainly need some encouragement. We would need to learn how to evangelize. Plus, we would need to help fellow believers during difficult times. Do you now see what the church is? We were never designed to be individual ambassadors; God wants us to work in teams. He will provide the right people, the right talent, everything. We can be on God’s team or attempt to do everything our way using our power. Remember, to God belongs the glory!
We all have different professions, livelihoods, hobbies and occupations as well as live in different locations. Regardless of whether we get paid for these activities, the things we regularly do in life could be considered our vocation. We need to remember that all our vocations and locations have been ordained by God, meaning, we are not where we are by mistake. Our vocations, whether sacred or secular, should be considered as callings by God to represent Him and assist in His care for all people here on Earth, 24 hours a day. This is what Paul meant when he wrote, “equip the saints for the works of ministry.” (Ephesians 4:12, ESV) Our employer, if you will, is Jesus, regardless of our ‘vocation’, we work for Him (Philippians 2:1-4). The church should not be considered the corporate office for God, but as a training facility.
Local churches, especially those that have a long history or affiliation with a denomination that have been around for a while, should regularly review how they are doing in relationship to God’s definition of a church. The history of the church demonstrates just how easy it is for a church, or for that fact, a Christian, to wander from the truth of God’s Word. Whenever a church follows rigidly guidelines from an affiliation or denomination, they run the risk of not doing what God wants them to do. Churches need to listen to the Holy Spirit and be willing to comply, even if it requires giving up long-held traditions. Local churches need to be where God wants them and doing what He has called them to do, which will always be in alignment with the Word of God.