WHAT IS A CHURCH? Murungi Igweta

What comes to mind when ‘church’ is mentioned? Do you first think of people or the buildings? If you think of a building, then you need to change your perspective of what a church is. Others, who think of church as people, imagine a crowd of people clapping and dancing to the tune of blaring music, with a group of young people leading in singing from the platform. What attracted you to your current church? Music? Physical facilities? The popularity of the pastor? The promise of healing and prosperity? Have you bothered to find out how biblical is your church?
The church is not an institution of men by men. Rather, it is a family, belonging to God to showcase God and His glory on earth. God describes it this way:

“... so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 3:10)
“... if I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15, all emphasis added)

The church is a people called out by Christ through the Holy Spirit to worship God the Father in spirit and truth, with reverence and awe. He calls them to gather many more for the same purpose of rightly worshipping God. Christians as a body – the church, reveal the manifold wisdom of God to both the world and the spiritual realm!
The church is a family that belongs to the Living God. This means that God owns the church and is actively involved in its life so that the church remains His possession. It is His family for His glory. The church is the God-appointed instrument of upholding the truth on earth. Many mistakenly think that it is the Supreme Court or the state that upholds the truth! No! It is the church, which is the “pillar and buttress of the truth”. The church is built upon the Gospel truth from God, and exists to uphold this truth, as revealed by God through the Scriptures, which are able to make people wise for salvation. The Christian living ought to be a mirror of the truth that the church lives to showcase. This way God is honoured and glorified as the Great God and Saviour.
The church consists of all those who believe in Christ who have ever lived or will live. This is called the universal church. These are men and women boys and girls who have repented of their sins, trusting in Christ as their Lord and Saviour. They have experienced the saving mercy and grace of God in Christ. As a result, Christ adds them to a local church.
How do people become part of a local church? Many think that it is simply by attendance of a church. No! It is by being placed by Christ Himself by salvation. Then one is baptized both by the Spirit and in water. If one is transferring membership to another church, he/she has to obtain a recommendation from his previous church to the new church.

 What is the primary task of the church on earth?
1) Worship: To offer acceptable worship to God as prescribed in His word (John
4:23-24; Ephesians 3:10; Hebrews 12:28).
Worship means that the church is fully devoted to God, as He has revealed Himself in the Bible – this is worship in truth. The church is to be led only by the Spirit of God not an individuals’ own senses! Worship also involves fellowship with one another, to share the bread and cup in the Lord’s Supper, and prayer. They also share whatever material blessings God has given each one of them. This is what we see when the first church was constituted by Christ in Acts 2:42-47. Such worship by and large will remain in eternity, although a few elements of the present earthly worship might either be removed or changed. No wonder all the heavenly hosts described in the Bible are revealed to be fully immersed in the worship of God.
2) Gospel mission: To gather a community of those who will worship God (Matthew 28:18-20)
The church is required to make disciples for Christ from all nations. It invites sinners by the gospel; calling, inviting and drawing them by the power of the Spirit using the Word, to come to worship God. The great commission in Matthew 28:18-20, Christ especially commissioned His disciples to make disciples of all the nations, until He comes. They are not just to make converts and stop at that. They are to make disciples-making disciples until Christ comes for His church. This way the full number of both Jews and Gentiles – from every nation, language, tribe and race will ultimately bow before Him in worship for all eternity.
Are you actively involved in this work of testifying about the free salvation that there is in Christ? Are you inviting your spouse, your children, your relatives, your neighbours, your colleagues at school and at work to come by faith to Christ?

v What are the marks of a true church of God?
There are at least 5 marks of a genuine church:

1. The pure preaching of the word of God (Acts 2:42, 20:20,27, 1 Timothy 1:3-7,18-20, 4:16, 6:3-5,20, 2 Timothy 1:13, 2:1- 2,15, 3:14-17, 4:1-5).
What is preached must be the Christ-centred gospel. Pure preaching has to humble the pride of man by showing man to be a needy and helpless, poor and wretched sinner who needs God’s mercy and the grace of Christ to be saved. Pure preaching has to exalt the glory of God in Christ by showing Jesus to be the one and only hope for sinners from whom there is full pardon for sins and eternal life.

2. Biblical leadership (Acts 6:1-6; 1& 2Timothy and Titus)
There are only two officers prescribed in the bible for each church – the elders and the deacons (Philippians 1:1; 1Timothy 3:1-13). Elders also called pastors or overseers/bishops provide spiritual oversight to the church (preaching & prayer). Each church is also to appoint men who cater for their material needs called deacons. Both officers must be blameless in their character, family life and ministry, to qualify to serve in the church of Christ (1 Timothy 3:2, 10; Titus 1:7).

3. Genuine membership:
While everyone is welcome to attend church, only genuine Christians form the membership of the church. As Christians we are to be a family, committed to each other; to love, accept, and forgive each other until death or God’s call causes us to part.
We are to live in Jesus Christ and take his commands seriously. We are to help one another grow toward Christian maturity by: bearing one another’s burdens, encouraging one another, exhorting one another, praying for one another, confessing our sins to one another, speaking the truth in love to one another, admonishing one another, building up one another, teaching one another, comforting one another, submitting to one another, serving one another, patiently bearing with one another, being hospitable to one another, living in peace with one another, regarding one another as more significant than ourselves, caring for one another, exercising our spiritual gifts to serve one another, being kind and tender-hearted to one another, being devoted to one another, accepting one another, forgiving one another, loving one another and greeting one another.

4. Right administration of the ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
Baptism is only for true believers of any age. Whoever shows his/her faith by desiring to be fully committed to Christ and to the local church (Acts 2:41-42). Baptism must not be administered to a person because they were born of believing parents or went through a Bible class (therefore infant baptism is unacceptable). Baptism should be in the name of the Triune God (Matthew 28:19). Baptism should be performed by immersion in water because:

1. 1)  The Greek word for baptism means ‘plunge, dip, immerse’;
   
2. 2)  All the examples of baptism in the Bible show that it was by immersion (Mark 1:5
   “in”, 1:10 “out of”, John 3:23 “much water”, Acts 8:38-39 “down into” and ‘up
   out of”);
   
3. 3)  It is a symbolism of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection (Romans 6:3-4,
   Colossians 2:12).
   

The Lord’s Supper is for the members of a local church and saved visitors from other true local churches. It should be celebrated according to 1 Corinthians 11:17-34.
5. Right application of church discipline according to the word of God.
Church discipline is corrective and intended to keep members in the church. God’s church is holy and must be preserved as such, since a little leaven (sin) left undealt with in one person will affect the whole church (1 Corinthians 5:6). Therefore, those who indulge in sin must be purged from the church so that the church can remain in splendour, without spot or wrinkle or blemish (Ephesians 5:27). Christ is coming to His church as a bride that is holy in His own sight (not in the sight of men). The church prepares for His coming by rejecting sin and excommunicating unrepentant members.
When evaluating your church, please consider that your feelings must be subjugated to conform to the truth of God’s Word. You must not evaluate any church based on your feelings, tastes and preference.

 What are the modern trends and deviations witnessed in the church?
The situation right now in the church is appalling. Many churches are men-centred instead of being Christocentric. They pursue the pleasure of men rather than the glory of God. Their leaders are preoccupied with meeting people’s felt needs such as health and wealth, deviating from the task of the church. On the other hand many Christians go to churches where they will hear music that will make them feel ‘good.’ They hear preachers who will address their concerns, so that in effect they gather for themselves preachers who will tell them what they want to hear. Many have itching ears, but only few would admit it!
The following are characteristic of many churches:

A. Lack of truth

1. They do not preach the whole Bible (they preach only a few verses here and there)
   
2. Unbiblical leadership (The Bible is not applied when appointing leaders)
   
3. Unbiblical membership (all who attend are considered to be members!)
   
4. Over-emphasis on money and material prosperity instead of Christ
   
5. Devoting most of the church’s time to singing and physical healing
   

B. Lack of godliness
No genuine interest in the means of grace like:

1. Genuine desire for the knowledge of God in His Word
   
2. Sincere and biblical prayer (especially public prayer)
   
3. Fellowship of Christians
   
4. Right administration of baptism and the Lord’s Supper
   
5. Lack of correct application of church discipline
   

 Conclusion
Not every assembly that has a signboard by its gates reading ‘.... Church’ is a true church of God. The Bible says that there are those, although they look like churches are synagogues of Satan (Revelation 2:9)! Engage in a church that is committed to Christ and his Word.
Consequently you should find out whether your current church is truly biblical. What are its priorities – is the worship offered according to the Word of God or is it based upon pleasing men? Is your church gospel-centred and mission oriented? What are the distinguishing marks of your church? Is Christ central in the preaching, music, and lifestyle of the people?

You may check more on the subject at the author’s blog: www.pastormurungi.blogspot.com  

Why the Local Church?

Why the Local Church? Nelson Munyiri

hy the local church? What is this local church in meaning and practice? What are the marks of a true and healthy local church? Where is this local church to be found? These among many other questions arise when you think about this issue. These questions bear even more weight in our society which has been so intense-

ly but falsely ‘evangelized’ that it has become so familiar to the ‘gospel’ and, “the sound of its doctrines” and has insensibly become “dead to its power” (Ryle, 1879). The church, the body of Christ, the beautiful bride of Christ, is casually spoken and thought of, often with disdain from the world, and an increasing muddiness from professing Christians. The fear J.C Ryle had that religion would sink down into a little vague talk about our own weakness and corruption, and a few sentimental expressions about Christ, while real practical fighting on Christ’s side is altogether neglected, has become the norm. With this in mind I implore you to spare a thought on the issue of the life of the local church. This article seeks to offer insight to the question: why the local church?

To begin with, the local church is simply but profoundly to be understood as the im- mediate expression of the universal church/body of believers. ‘Gathered and fully organized according to the mind of Christ, consisting of officers (elders and deacons) and members’ (The Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689, 26/8 1975 ed.). There- fore, to handle the local church as separate from the universal church or the universal church separate from the local church would be erroneous. So why the local church?

Eph. 3:10-12 “...so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. 11 This was according to the eternal purpose that he has realized in Christ Jesus our Lord,12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.”

1.BECAUSE GOD.

God has bestowed it upon the church to make known His manifold wisdom. He has made plain His divine nature and eternal power ever since creation in the things that have been made, Paul the apostle wrote, and the Psalmist testified of the same saying, “The heavens declare the glory of God and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” But now, it is clear that of the many purposes that we may give for the existence of the church, the one most undeniable and necessary purpose would be, “to display God and his glorious gospel to His creation....to reflect the-out-of-this world and glorious character of God” (Dever, 2007). Anything other than the display of God is not in accordance to His eternal purpose, and this eternal purpose is not just a futuristic, yet-to-come, in-the-pipeline kind of purpose, but rather “it has been realized in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Eph.

3:11). Anything else is amiss. ‘Mixture in sacred things is like a dash in the 

wine, which though it gives it a colour, yet only adulterates it....Whatever is not of God’s own appointment in His worship He looks upon as ‘strange fire’ Lev. 10:1-2.’ (Watson, 1666). Nadab and Abihu were consumed by fire for offering an unauthorized fire, Saul was deserted by God for offering a sacrifice when obedience was required (1 Sam. 13), Ananias and Saphira slain for withholding part of their property (Acts 5), and need I mention the Pharisee who prayed with the tax collector (Luke 18)? “...No wonder God is so incensed at it (Nadab and Abihu’s offering) as if He were not wise enough to appoint the manner in which he will be served.” (Watson, 1666).

What are we displaying in our churches? Is it the manifold wisdom of God or the communal beliefs and personal values of some select few?

It is then of paramount importance for us who claim to be part of this church to pursue the will of Him who instituted it, His will to display Himself. Do our churches display God as Holy, Holy, Holy (Isaiah 6:3)? As a God of love, who without prejudice or condition has reconciled such wrath-deserving, depraved, helpless sinners such as us to Himself at a great cost to Himself. As the Supreme authority so that it is His word that is the final authority in teaching, reproof, correction, and training in right- eousness? This is not the logic of man, and definitely not history or culture.

What are we making known, we who call ourselves the church? What are we display- ing in our churches? Is it the manifold wisdom of God or the communal beliefs and personal values of some select few? Is it God’s holiness, love and authority or some fashionable spiritualism that makes one seem closer to God and heaven on account of how much you have been materially blessed. What are we displaying?

Has the wisdom of God in the cross of Christ been the very stronghold of our en- gagements as a church or has it been a means to an end? As we meditate on these questions let us keep in mind this sobering warning:

Heb. 10:29 “How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, andhas outraged the Spirit of grace?” (emphasis added)

2.BECAUSE MAN.

Men have sinned. We are all wretched sinners deserving no lesser punishment than the fullness of God’s wrath in Hell. And He would be just in doing so. But in His great love He chose to display through the church his manifold wisdom in saving man. Sadly, in this state of sinfulness we have destroyed this beautiful display so much so that the importance of it is put to question. The beautiful body of Christ, the bride of Christ, looks defaced and dismembered to factions and denominations and movements. This I say with all reverence to our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

How have we destroyed this display? ‘Men....try to direct Him (God), and as if the rules for his worship were defective, they will attempt to correct the copy and superadd their inventions.’ (Watson, 1666) Like the Israelites we have begged to have a king so that we may be like the nations, rejecting God, taking the unwise counsel of other men to be the standard for our engagements as a church. Instead of the infallible, unfailing word of God, we follow human precepts and teachings that have an appearance of wisdom commonly called ‘depth’, and all they do is promote a self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh (Col. 3:23).

If all this seems like an overstatement I ask that you meditate with me for a moment on a few matters. Are you a member of a local church? If so, is your answer based on convenience, fitting in, history, liking? (‘I’ve never liked how they do things,’ or ‘I like how they do,’ or ‘I’ve always been going to ....’)? Or is it a matter of Biblical truth? How much emphasis has been laid on denomination and practices over the word of God? How much do you know of your denomination? Have you ever read the state- ment of faith of your denomination and studied it against God’s word?

In our society, are we the church or do we go to church? Church is a place to go to on Sundays and if it is a people, it is limited to convenience and temperaments. Worse still some have turned to make the meeting of believers a place of trade, where the success- ful buyer is the one with the most faith measured in scale to your giving to this sales- man. The cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches have choked us and the zeal that consumes us is not for the house of God, but for an ease in this life, a security and comfort and laid-back-ness, in the thick of the greatest war. . The Great Commis- sion (Matt. 28:18-20) is no longer great and consuming in this war. Making disciples who are taught to observe all that God has commanded has become secondary to our vocations and dispositions. The thirst for ease and security, health and wealth, has put back that veil that was torn down when Christ died, so that our engagements as a church are an earnest seeking after God’s hand not heart. Oh, how much can be said of why we need to be taught, reproved, corrected and trained in righteousness (2 Tim. 3:16)!

For those honest with themselves it is clear very little attention is given to understand the purpose for which God established the church adnd how He intends it to be. But rather much more effort is on the more visible practices. How often do our congrega- tions suffer from the pretences and self-righteousness of its members, that the thought of confessing our sins one to another is unimaginable, because of the fear of being seen less righteous? How sad is it that we know so much about the manner in which services are conducted, and very little of sound theology upon the subject of the church. Finally I commend to you the words of Christ to Peter:

Matt. 16:22-23 “And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” 23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! 

You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (emphasis added)

3.BECAUSE CHRIST.

Why the local church? Because Christ has founded it. “Do we belong to the church which is built upon a rock? Are we members of the only church in which our souls can be saved? These are serious questions. They deserve serious consideration.” (Ryle, 1879) These questions posed more than a century ago, still plead today. In them one truth firmly stands, on Christ will the church be founded; by Christ will the church be sustained. How precious Christ is to the church.

1 Cor. 3:11 “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

Matt. 16:18 “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.”

This is the first time that Christ explicitly refers to the church, and he does speaks pur- posely to make clear on what the church will be founded on. In the 13th chapter of his book Holiness, J.C Ryle gives insight to understanding what Christ meant when he said “on this rock I will build my church” (Matt. 16:18). In context, it is clear that Christ wasn’t making reference to Peter as being the foundation but rather the good confes- sion which the apostle had just made in verse 17. “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” “It was not Peter, the erring, unstable man, but the mighty truth which the Father had revealed to Peter. It was the truth concerning Jesus Christ Himself which was the rock. It was Christ’s mediatorship, and Christ’s Messiahship. It was the blessed truth that Jesus was the promised Saviour, the true Surety, the real Intercessor between God and man. This was the rock, and this the foundation upon which the church of Christ was to be built .....No other foundation could have met the necessities of lost, guilty, corrupt, weak, helpless sinners.” (Ryle, 1879) All other ground is sinking sand. Hold this truth against the rest of Scripture and see how every bit of it is true, consist ent and inseparable.

Furthermore, the church not only has its foundation in Christ but its sustenance. The growth (in size and maturity) and the preservation of the church even under the great- est persecution, disease, disaster, false teaching and even death, is assured only in Christ. It is not anything of ourselves that holds the church together, gives it growth or pre- serves it; not our eloquences and methodologies, not our programs or skills, not our personalities or education even if all these have their place. A few verses to fan this flame of truth ablaze in our hearts:

Col. 1:17; 2:19 “And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.18 And he is the head of the body, the church. ....holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.” (emphasis added)

Eph. 1:15-16 “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (emphasis added)

John 15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” (emphasis added)

John 10:29-30 “My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.30 I and the Father are one.” (emphasis added)

John 6:39 “And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.” (emphasis added)

Bibliography

Dever, M. (2007). What is a Healthy Church? Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway Books. Ryle, J. (1879). Holiness. Evangelical Press.

The 1689 Confession of Faith. (1975 edition). Carey Publications Ltd.

Watson, T. (1666). The Godly Man’s Picture. The Banner Of Truth Trust.