As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
As we enter into Palm Sunday and Passion Week, it is appropriate that we focus our attention on the discourse that Jesus gave His disciples in the Upper Room—most of it after Judas left (John 13:30)—on the night before His death.
I asserted in the previous installment that Jesus took this opportunity to reveal many new truths associated with the church age to His apostles.
Evangelistic outreach and missions is of prime importance to the church. But neither the Westminster Confession (WCF) nor the Second London Baptist Confession (2LCF) gives much expression or emphasis to the church’s responsibility to take the gospel to all the nations. The chapter “Of the church” (WCF, ch. 25; 2LCF, ch.
“On one page, Jesus says that he will build his church, and that the gates of hell will not prevail against it (Matt. 16:18)…. a couple pages later, the young believer encounters Jesus telling the disciples they should address unresolved sin by telling it ‘to the church’ (Matt. 18:17).” - 9 Marks
What is the church’s mission? How does the mission of the church relate to the mission of God? Are they the same, or different?
I want to talk about what “the church” is. This will be a high-level discussion, not a defense of a particular kind of church (Baptists v. Methodists, etc.). I want to talk about this because I fear we forget just how important it is to get this right. As sectarian battles light up social media and the news (with no end in sight), this deceptively simple issue deserves some consideration.
There are different ways we use the word “church:”
“We’re supposed to be controlled by the truth—to recognize, believe, accept, practice, and, yes, speak it.” - Olinger
“My goal here is … to offer four lessons that I think are a little more timeless, and lessons that point to the worst inevitabilities of bad ecclesiology. 1. We’re too easily seduced by numbers and giftedness.” - 9 Marks
“Perhaps the most potent passage I sometimes take people to when discussing the need for church membership is Hebrews 13:17 which reads: Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls…” - Ref21
“Saddleback Church, the California-based megachurch headed by Pastor Rick Warren, announced that they ordained their first three female pastors, despite being affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, which prohibits female ordination.” - C.Post
Discussion