Why Church?: Critical Elements

June 19th, 2022/Casey Middle School

Story: I Love Church!

Question: What is your story with church? What shaped your view of church? What role has the bible played in your “why” of the local church?

Ecclesiology - In Christian theology, ecclesiology is the study of the Church.

The roots of the word ecclesiology come from the Greek ἐκκλησία, ekklēsia (Latin: ecclesia) meaning church and -λογία, -logia, meaning knowledge or study of. These two words combined give us the study of or knowledge of the church.

Why Church? Understanding this question outside of the knowledge of God’s Word and the Gospel is a dangerous thing. If your understanding is not rooted in God’s Word and the person of Jesus, then the foundation is going to be built on your experience, feelings, and often your desires.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to live according to God’s Word. He is passionate about His Church! He has a lot to say about His Church. That’s why over the next several weeks we are going to take a deep dive into Scripture and give you a biblical foundation on a subject that is often and highly misunderstood.

Passages:

“And he subjected everything under his feet and appointed him as head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of the one who fills all things in every way.” Ephesians 1:22-23 CSB

“built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building, being put together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord.” - Ephesians 2:20-21 CSB

“And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” - Matthew 16:18 CSB

Pray:

Title: Critical Elements

Intro:

The Bible defines the church as the body of Christ in the gathering and not the act of the gathering itself. The word “church” is used in a variety of different ways among both believers and non-believers. The Church becomes increasingly misunderstood when individual context overshadows biblical ecclesiology. When you search Scripture you clearly see how the church was started, how it grew, and how it functioned in different contexts. You quickly find that it’s less like what and more like whom. We will look at the critical elements of what it takes to be considered a church, not by man’s standards, but by God’s.

The words we use to describe the world around us help give identity and purpose. For example, If every time I corrected my 3 year old I referred to him as Mr. Disobedient then he would consider himself a disobedient child, but if instead I referred to him as Zion, my son that I love and that I’m proud of, then he gets to maintain his true identity and recognize that there is a course correction happening. Words matter because they either give life to our true identity or they distort who God intended us to be. If you’re not reinforcing the church’s true identity then you are robbing it.

I believe people in the church aren’t living out their true identity as the church because they see themselves as simply members of the church and not the church in the flesh.

Main Points: As the church, we are called to…

1. Be The Church

   1. “Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it.” - 1 Corinthians 12:27 CSB

   2. Say this with me “I am the church”

      1. Now say “We are the church”

         3. Before discussing the nature and purpose of the church I believe it’s important to first understand the meaning of the word itself. In the New Testament we see the word church used over a hundred times and its name in Greek is ekklesia, which means a public gathering or assembly.

      2. Therefore when we speak of the word church let’s not get distracted with the idea that it is a thing, but more that it is an assembly of people that have certain characteristics and that are living out a specific mission.

      3. The local church exists to gather, serve, equip, and send the body of Christ to intentionally multiply disciples that love people, share the gospel, help the hurting, and plant churches for His honor and glory.
      4. The ultimate goal of the church is to reduce lostness and advance the Kingdom of God through obedience to the great commission and commandment! Love God, love people, and make disciples of all nations!

      5. In Purpose Driven Church Rick Warren writes that “Nothing discourages a church more than not knowing why it exists. On the other hand, the quickest way to reinvigorate a plateaued or declining church is to reclaim God’s purpose for it and help the members understand the great tasks the church has been given by Christ.”

         4. In Acts 2:42-47 we see the church devoting themselves to teaching, fellowship, eating together, and prayer. There was unity in the Spirit and they were performing signs and wonders. They worshiped in the temple, ate together in each other’s homes, and distributed all their possessions as others had need. They were engaged in the community and found favor with all people. The last verse sums up the impact a church can have when they are united in the Spirit. It says "And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved."

      6. This was not an inward focused church, but they were intentionally engaging the culture and people around them with the Gospel. The church exists because it is the primary tool God uses for equipping the body for the advancement of His Kingdom!

         5. The church is about making disciples who make disciples who make disciples. Making disciples is not a ministry in the church; it’s the ministry of the church.

      7. Jesus' final words were a charge to the body of Christ to do as He did. I’ve heard it said that “Jesus’ final words are to be our first work!”

      8. Jesus' life was the example of how we, the church, are to live on mission today. The goal of church planting should not be to plant a building, but to engage culture, make disciples, and plant more churches.
      9. The Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) has become The Great Option. We’ve reduced disciple making to a gathering of believers for the purpose of a greater understanding of the Word, when in reality, very rarely does that understood knowledge turn into obedience. Pastor Gus Hernandez says, “Knowledge without obedience is useless information.”
      10. We’re not here to say “That’s interesting.”, but “That’s life changing!” We’re not gathered for a transfer of information, but for training in formation!

2. Gather The Church

   1. “And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, 25 not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.” - Hebrews 10:24-25 CSB

   2. The local church is not a building, humanitarian non-profit, social club, or concert. It is the body of Christ assembled together!

      1. There are certainly attributes and physical manifestations of the local body, but it is manifested in the gathering of the church and not simply going to a building. It is a radical shift in thinking for many. When the church building is the center of attention for all activity, then you have lost what it means to be and gather the church.

         3. We see a beautiful picture of fellowship in Acts 2:46 when Luke writes “And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,”

      2. This passage speaks so highly to the importance of fellowship, intimacy, and relationships. Meeting together in the temple and their houses. It’s so easy to become isolated from your friends and church family. Life gets busy with work, school, house projects, hobbies, etc. that we sometimes lose the feeling of intimate community.

      3. Hebrews 10:25 says, “not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some”

      4. In Acts 2:45 the church was selling their belongings and meeting community needs, and in verse 47 they were praising God and had favor with all people. They were not neglecting to meet, they were stirring each other towards love and good works.

         4. Some descriptions of the church gathering are more specific while others are very broad. Throughout the Word we see the church referenced in homes (Romans 16:5), cities (1 Corinthians 1:2, 1 Thessalonians 1:1), regions (Acts 9:31), provinces (1 Corinthians 16:19), and world (Ephesians 5:25).

      5. If there were a church building that sits empty would we still call it a church? Absolutely not! It’s nothing more than brick, wood, and mortar sitting on a plot of land.

      6. The church is flesh and blood not brick and mortar. The gathering of the church is not to draw a crowd, but rather to assemble the disciple makers together for spiritual growth, fellowship, prayer, and corporate worship.

         5. Story: Family Huddle

      7. A family that huddles together can score touchdowns together. Run the play! Make disciples on 3!!!

3. Serve The Church

   1. “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” - Galatians 6:10

   2. The mission of the church is to make disciples, but there is much said in Scripture about the church family serving one another and building one another up in the Spirit.

      1. “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace:” - 1 Peter 4:10.

         3. Jesus tells His disciples “I give you a new command: Love one another. Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” - John 13:34-35.

      2. By this! If you don’t have love for one another, if you aren’t serving one another, if you aren’t forgiving one another, HOW WILL THEY KNOW that you love Me?

         4. We see Paul challenge the church to give honor to one another in Romans 12:10 when he says “Love one another deeply as brothers and sisters. Take the lead in honoring one another.”

      3. Honor is not an option, it’s a competition! Take the lead in honor! Honor first! Outdo one another in showing honor!

      4. At Pinewood, one of our values is “Honor is our commitment”. We are called to demonstrate Christ's love to the world by serving, loving, and honoring one another.
         5. Application: If everyone in the church served the church like you, then would the church be better? If the church loved like you love, then would it be an example unto the world of Christ’s love? If everyone in the church gave honor like you, then would the church have an honor culture?

      5. Equip The Church

         1. “And he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.” - Ephesians 4:11-13 CSB
         2. Church leaders and pastors are called to equip the body for the work of ministry, not DO all of the ministry.

      6. Too often in the local church, pastors and ministry leaders take on the role of the player and not the coach. It’s not that pastors can’t “get in the game” they are very much in the game as both a player and coach. They are leading out by making disciples and reaching lost people, but at the same time they are responsible for equipping the local church to do the same.

      7. Jerry Trousdale expounds on this principle when he says “We will always need godly people whose training and biblical integrity will provide leadership, training, coaching, and mentoring for ordinary people doing impossible things by the power of God.”

         3. Peter Drucker is known for saying, “Efficiency is doing the thing right. Effectiveness is doing the right thing.”

      8. Question: If we are going to be effective as the body of Christ, then what are we commanded to do? This essential question can be found in Jesus' final words in Matthew 28:18-20 when He says, “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

      9. A leader in the realm of Disciple Making Movements, David Watson, says “Making disciples is about having a relationship with Christ that results in a lifestyle of obedience to Christ’s commands, which requires disciples to make more disciples.” As the body of Christ we are called to equip other believers in how to make disciples that obey the commands of God and reproduce in generations of disciple makers.

         4. Equipping the church to make and multiply disciples is a strategy that in theory is broadly accepted as truth, yet in reality is generally denied for the sake of quality control and measurable success.

      10. Ed Stetzer writes “With ‘disciples multiplying church,’ you are inviting the unknown. It is the place where the person in the pew, chair, or theater seat is given permission – or, better stated, given marching orders – to go and change the world by starting a new church. When you allow this idea to invade your congregation God will raise up leaders from corners of the congregation that you never expected and who will do more than you ever imagine.”

      11. In God’s economy it’s always the ordinary that God uses to do the most extraordinary. He takes the unlikely and does the unimaginable.

      12. Send The Church

          1. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” - Acts 1:8
          2. The idea of receiving the power of the Holy Spirit is pretty overwhelming. That God gives us the power of the Holy Spirit should be all the confidence we need to be bold witnesses of the Gospel.

      13. The same God that raised Lazarus from the dead (John 11:38-44) and calms the stormy seas (Matthew 8:23-27) is the same God that gives us the power to be His witness. I believe that the lack of growth in many churches is not a lack of competence or effort, but in a lack of surrender and obedience to the Holy Spirit.

          3. Dhati Lewis says, “When polled, the majority of believers revealed that they don’t actually plan to share their faith with anyone. Our faithful believers have turned God’s Great Commission into a mere suggestion.”

      14. In Luke 10 we see that the harvest isn’t the problem, it’s the lack of laborers, verse 2 and 3 say “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.”

      15. You cannot influence a people you avoid; therefore if we aren’t living with gospel intentionality with those that are lost we will not influence the harvest.

          4. We are called to go, but you have permission to stay.

      16. Have you ever told God “I’ll go.” “Send me.” God is not looking for the able, but available.

      17. Pinewood is a sending church. We believe in sending capacity, not just seating capacity.

Walking Points:

1. Be the church
2. Gather the church
3. Serve the church
4. Equip the church
5. Send the church

I believe that when we get a revelation on who God has called us to be as a church, we are going to see a releasing like we’ve never experienced before in the history of Pinewood.