The Church, Part 7

There are no clear references to any particular individual as pastor/elder of any church in the New Testament. There are instructions on qualifications, duties, warnings, and so forth, but no one pastor/elder is specifically singled out for who he was or what he accomplished. Some have argued that the exception was James, the half-brother of Jesus and pastor of the church at Jerusalem. Was he? He is never called a pastor. He was a leader in that church and spoke with authority in the council of Acts 15. His authority was more likely due to his being an apostle (Galatians 1:19, possibly replacing James, the brother of John martyred by Herod in Acts 12).

Paul responded somewhat negatively to the hierarchy of authority in Jerusalem (Galatians 2:6, 9). He does so to show that his ministry is not subject to the Jewish apostles or to any order coming out of the Jewish church. On the contrary, Paul shows that these “leaders” recognized and celebrated the authority of Paul’s apostleship to the Gentiles by the grace of God (Galatians 2:7–10).

This information is given to show that the contemporary church has strayed from the New Testament standard, exalting the leadership of individuals. It is true that God calls certain to be leaders, gifting them for ministry to feed and shepherd His people. However, the emphasis is not on their personality but on their example of humble service to the body for Christ. The tendency in the culture is to glorify persons as per the Hollywood entertainment industry. Modern Christianity loves celebrating celebrity pastors, and this practice is wrong.

Jim Elliff gives the following reasons why he believes that no church in the New Testament is notable for its pastor:

1. There were multiple pastors in the local churches making up a team of elders.

2. Others within the body of believers shared in the verbal ministry that was designed to strengthen the believers, though elders were to be skilled in teaching with a main responsibility to shepherd the believers as exemplary designated leaders.

3. The churches were subdivided into homes or apartments (insula) so that no one elder became known for being the church’s primary teacher and leader for the whole.

Elliff followed up by commenting:

These patterns eventually changed, and the churches became more institutionalized so that single leaders became prominent above the others.

As far as I can tell, how the churches today structure their lives together is not mandated in the New Testament though the precedent is well-defined. God has used both. It is up to the churches to determine the way they will proceed. I am explaining the reasons why I believe early New Testament believers didn’t designate their churches by the name of a pastor as we do. (They attend ———’s Church.) *

God has used the pastor-led model for many years; however, that model is fraught with many dangers to both church and pastor. Would not the church be better served by returning to the early church practice of anonymous pastoral servanthood, glorifying Christ and not men?

*Jim Elliff, Christian Communicator’s Worldwide (https://www.ccwtoday.org), Facebook post, August 7, 2018.

The Church, Part 6

When I was young, I had the privilege of hearing many “men of God” who were very popular. I confess that I wanted to be like them, however, it did not take long before I realized that I lacked the personality suitable for such notoriety. Also, God graciously allowed me to see that such elevation of personality is both unbiblical and dangerous.

Over the years, I have witnessed several of these powerful men fail morally to some degree. One pastor, seeking to cover himself, knowing that he was about to be exposed, preached in a conference that God would overlook sin in a preacher’s life to the degree that his success in ministry outweighed his failure. There was no Biblical proof-text cited but he used Samson to support the claim.

The Scripture never commands the followers of Jesus to follow anyone who says that he was “called of God” to build his own following. Yes, Paul did admonish the Corinthians to “Be imitators of me” (1 Corinthians 10:11). However, Paul qualified the charge, “as I am of Christ.” The Corinthians were to follow Paul only to the degree that he followed Christ. That is the only biblical standard, but, sadly, many are led to believe that the Bible demands that the laity are to yield unquestioning compliance to some just because they are in the clergy. This error is a holdover from the Romanist church and its Judaistic corruption. John warned, “For many deceivers have gone out into the world . . . Such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist” (2 John 7). Because of this fact, the apostle warned them, “Watch yourselves, so that you do not lose what we have worked for but may win a full reward” (v. 8).

Satan’s plan is to destroy the church. Paul warned, “As the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). This occurs when false teachers insist that their followers give unquestioning submission to them, using "proof texts" to support their own agenda (2 Peter 3:16). Micah 3 denounces Israel’s leadership, exposing them for serving only for personal advantage but failing the needs of the people. Sadly, many churches are in the grips of such teachers who use people to their own advantage. Paul warned Timothy, “Evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13).

We may learn a great deal from Peter. Jesus called him away from his nets to follow Him and to learn to “catch men” (Luke 5:10). When Jesus queried the disciples about who He was, Peter rightly confessed, “You are the Christ” (Matthew 16:16), to which Jesus responded, “Blessed are you” (v. 17). However, just minutes later, as Jesus revealed God’s plan (v. 21), Peter, who had another agenda, rebuked Him, to which Jesus responded, “Get behind me, Satan” (v. 23). In the end, Peter, with all his faults, was used of the Lord to feed and guide the sheep as a true servant of Christ (John 21:15–19). True servants simply follow Jesus. 

The Church, part 5

Jesus said, “I will build my church” (Matthew 16:18). Modern church leaders say, “We will build our church.” The modern church is preoccupied with what it can do for Christ. The Bible focuses on what He does through His followers. So, we must each ask, “Am I a Christ-follower, or am I seeking to serve for Him on my terms?”

If Jesus is building His church, what does it look like? What are its characteristics? Christ’s kingdom is “not of this world” (John 18:36) but is spiritual in nature and only when He returns does His kingdom come to earth (Revelation 21:1–4). Believers are “called out” of the world and joined in His mystical body, the church (Romans 1:6, 7). This spiritual kingdom is expressed by local congregations on earth as governed by King Jesus seated at the right hand of Majesty. This spiritual kingdom is administrated through the Holy Spirit and the Word of God.

There are seven defining elements of a New Testament church. (1) The true church is made up of a regenerate membership, partakers of the grace of Christ, forming His body (Galatians 3:28). (2) This invisible body is represented by a local physical organization—e.g., the church at Antioch (Acts 13:1). All regenerate persons should be active in such a local church organization to grow in spiritual maturity by hearing the Word preached and obeying it (Acts 2:42–47; 2 Timothy 4:1–4). However, it is possible for one to be a member of such an organization and not be a true believer in Christ (Matthew 7:21–23).

 (3) All truly regenerate church members are separated from the world in fact—saints, sanctified in Christ (e.g., 1 Corinthians 1:2) and must thus strive to make it so in practice (Hebrews 12:14). (4) These saints observe the ordinances of Christ (baptism and the Lord’s supper, each of which speaks of Christ’s death and resurrection and the believer’s participation in them). The ordinances consist of Christ in Word and Spirit and are intended to mark death to self in full surrender and obedience to Christ. They are the fruit of faith and are obeyed for neither merit nor approval.

(5) All members are to exercise mutual watch-care over each other in Christian love. Four things characterize this love: exhortation, encouragement, correction, and discipline (Hebrews 10:23–27). Loving is often wrongly perceived as protecting the dignity of others and thus care must be exercised not to offend those who do wrong. What is an offence? Why is telling someone the truth about themselves with the motive of helping their walk with Jesus offensive? The church suffers because there is more concern for preserving feelings than promoting holiness. 

(6) The church is governed by Christ and His Spirit through the gift offices of elders and deacons who provide leadership to the flock as examples and not overlords (Ephesians 4:11–16; 1 Peter 5:2, 3). Finally, (7) The purpose of the assembly is to carry out Christ’s will, to fulfill the great commission in the earth and to glorify Him, watching, praying, and waiting for His return (Matthew 28:16-18).

The Church, Part 4

This process of preparing the church for her eternal state will require much purging. This is a “must be” because His bride will be holy and without blemish before Him (Ephesians 5:27). Jesus purchased her with His own blood (Acts 20:28) in order for her to be like Him. Sadly, the world seems to have too strong a hold on many believers.

Scripture defines “world” as a system of beliefs and practices that opposes God and righteousness (1 John 2:15–17; James 4:4).  Many professed Christians want Jesus and the world too. However, Scripture plainly commands believers: “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to the elemental spirits of the world and not according to Christ” (Colossians 2:8). Elemental spirits are demonic entities that rule the world under Satanic authority. These spirits use deceit to further their agenda.

The goal of demonic deceit is to convince people that the world is spiritually neutral. The lie goes something like this: “True, there is evil in the world, but the world is not evil. One can follow Christ and still enjoy much in the world.” Paul countered this notion: “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above . . . not on things that are on earth” (Colossian 3:1, 2). This admonition rests on the fact that “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations” (Colossians 2:20).

What is even more significant is that Paul was defining the deceitful spirits’ efforts against the Colossian believers as Jewish regulations (Colossians 2:16, 17). Paul uses the term philosophy in a specialized sense—Jewish ascetics, corrupted by Babylonian mysticism, promoted doctrines relating to angels (v. 18). These doctrines required observing Jewish practices, which Paul acknowledged but demonstrated to be but shadows of the real substance, Christ. So, how did these Jewish practices become so corrupted? 

In Ezekiel 8, the prophet was taken by an angel to the temple to see something that “provokes to jealously,” “great abominations” committed to drive Yahweh from His sanctuary (vv. 3, 5, 6). Ezekiel saw “the vile abominations that they are committing” (v. 8), every form of idolatrous practice, worshipping the sun, and weeping for Tammuz. Yahweh declared, “Therefore I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare” (v. 18).

The judgment of the captivity did wean Israel from idols; however, the false doctrines of the pagan worship were incorporated into Judaism through demonic influence. These doctrines were prevalent in Jewish practices when Jesus arrived on the scene. His ministry often confronted and rebuked these false practices, such as Sabbath regulations (Matthew 12:1–7).

Will the Lord begin to deal with His professed church in the same manner? In Ezekiel 9, the angel summons the executioners. Before these acted, however, a man with a writing case was commanded to pass through the city and mark all who groaned in lament over these abominations (see Revelation 7:1–4). These were spared His wrath. This purging will be repeated in the church age before Jesus returns.

The Church, Part 3

Revelation 19:7 informs us that Christ’s intention is to present His bride to Himself “in splendor, without spot or wrinkle . . . holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27). Such work can only be accomplished by the Holy Spirit, but what does that work look like?

Paul wrote, “Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery hidden for ages and generations but now revealed to his saints” (Colossians 1:24–26).

Observe three powerful truths in this statement: (1) Paul was Christ’s instrument for the sake of His body. This service involved suffering, which one can easily determine about Paul from reading Acts and his letters. Nevertheless, Paul rejoiced in his hardships because he recognized that his service was Christ’s means to advance His goals for the church.

(2) Advancing these goals was seen as “filling up” what was “lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body.” This must not be regarded as an insufficiency in Christ’s cross work; there was nothing lacking in His substitutionary suffering for His own. This lacking refers to what believers understood of their participation—what they would endure until Christ’s return. This was how the church’s claims would be fully vindicated. They would suffer, not to contribute anything to their redemption, but because of it. This transformational process (becoming holy and without blemish) requires this. Sufferings complete what is lacking in the sense that Christ’s body shares His suffering (2 Corinthians 1:5; note also 4:10).

(3) Paul saw himself as a minister (diaconos, a royal servant, an errand boy) with a stewardship to be fulfilled in behalf of the King. To be effective, Paul gave up everything he previously valued (Philippians 3:8–9) so that “I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:10, 11). Again, Paul was not worried about his spot in the resurrection. Rather, he understood that suffering like Christ now in His service was the spiritual evidence that he would be raised like Christ at His coming.

Paul informed the church that his suffering and service was God’s means to benefit them. They would understand the glorious mystery of the ages, “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). In this way, understanding and evidencing this truth, the church would be presented mature in Christ. That is goal of Christ’s suffering, as noted above. For this goal, Paul states “I toil [laboring to exhaustion] with all his energy that he powerfully works with me” (v. 29). Again, it was not Paul but the Spirit working through him. He did not tell them his experience to brag, but to illustrate what they also would experience, if they truly belonged to Christ.

The Church, Part 2

     We are looking at how the New Testament defines what a church is and comparing that with what we find in our church and other churches that exist in our generation. In Part One we focused on Paul’s descriptive in Colossians 1:21–23, which emphasizes the Lord’s purpose to “reconcile to himself all things” (v. 20). God, through Christ, has reconciled a host of alienated sinners into His body, the church (see v. 18) in order to present them holy and blameless before Him. That is what a church is supposed to look like—a body of redeemed rebels, blood-bought, Spirit-filled, and spiritually growing people being sanctified to look like their head and Savior, Jesus Christ, whom they devotedly follow (Romans 8:29, 30).

     The average church in the culture looks nothing like this. Every community has several religious organizations that claim to be Christ’s church. Each asserts to represent exclusively and accurately the truth of Scripture but in his own particular denominational twist. Although, often these churches will suppress the denominational identification, opting for general nondenominational names, such as Triumphant Outreach, Agape Fellowship, Living Waters, or other similar appellations. They are, however, corporate entities (businesses) organized with officers, by-laws, and objectives and will do whatever is expedient to promote growth and revenue. These entities are, in turn, measured by humanistic standards such as attendance size, popularity of the pastoral staff and programs, and the nature and size of buildings and property. Indeed, most people identify a church with a location and building.

     The only eyes with which the church is to be occupied belong to the One described in Revelation as having eyes “like a flame of fire” in a face “like the sun shining in full strength” (Revelation 1:14, 16). He is “the first and the last, the living one” (v. 17; see Isaiah 41:4). He has the keys of Death and Hell (v. 18). It must never matter what any man thinks of a particular congregation, but only what the Sovereign One thinks.

     It is significant to notice that John, the “disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 21:7, 20), “fell at His feet as though dead” (Revelation 1:17) when He saw His Lord in this glorious vision. Is it not ironic that most church members presume that Jesus is only lovingly tolerant and indulgent with them when it comes to their distracted and half-hearted devotion and service to Him? Such people cannot endure the truth and will hop from one congregation to another in an effort to satisfy their egos with self-gratifying entertainment posing as worship.

     Before the Lord returns for His bride, Revelation 19:7 declares that “His bride has made herself ready.” If Jesus is to present His church to Himself “in splendor, without spot or wrinkle . . . holy and without blemish” (Ephesians 5:27), His bride needs some radical alterations.  It is time for those whom the Lord has reconciled to Himself to pursue this course of preparation through holiness and godliness by separating from the world, uniting in loving and singular devotion to Christ, obediently serving Him as a true people of God, and shining forth as His lights in the world.

The Church, Part 1

Most people identify a church with a location and building. How does the Bible identify a church? Read Colossians 1:21–23 and carefully notice who Paul is addressing: “And you” (pronoun second person plural) refers to the collective—the believers in Colossae, the church, a particular congregation (ecclesia, an assembly), not individuals and not a building. This collective is identified by the former, present, and future condition of its members. They “once were alienated [from God] and hostile in mind [toward the things of God], doing evil deeds [in disobedience to God]” (v. 21). However, through the gospel, these are “now reconciled in [Christ’s] body of flesh [the church] by his death.” (Note 1:20 where Paul states that Christ is to reconcile all things, making peace by the blood of His cross.) His goal is to present the church “holy and blameless and above reproach before him” (v. 22; Ephesians 5:26, 27). However, there is a condition: “if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard” (v. 23). Is this a warning to individual believers? That would be a mistake, for it is a church thing. Here is where one must focus if he is to understand the current church problem.

If Christ saves a person, it is forever (John 10:27–30). He cannot fall away. Churches, however, can fall away, as evidenced in Revelation 2 and 3. Congregations can be overrun by false believers, deceived through false doctrine, and infiltrated by false teachers. This has been the problem since the church began. For example, Paul admonished the elders from Ephesus: “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears. And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (Acts 20:28–32).

The church is compared to a flock needing care and protection, not a corporation that uses people in order to prosper. The church is a collective of redeemed and reconciled people struggling against sin and rebellion in the slow and painful process of sanctification. The church is a body of people sharing the same burdens in their joint pursuit of holiness. The church is an army of spiritual warriors standing shoulder to shoulder against principalities and powers, striving together and persevering in prayer. The church’s condition depends on God and His grace, not human programs and means. Read again Colossians 1:21–23 and study this passage and learn to think of the church in biblical terms.