Godly Traits of a Christ-centered Church

Acts 2:41-47

(Let me encourage us--always—but specifically in this moment to be spiritually transparant as we enter our talk this morning)

(FIRST)

I want to ask each of you to close your eyes. In a second, I am going to say a word and I want you to record the first three thoughts, impressions, or even words which come to your mind. It doesn’t need to be audible, but I want you to hold on to these thoughts/impressions, and words and during our time together—balance what you think about this, with what God’s Word speaks about it.

Good? Ok, the word we are using is-church (give a few moments). Again, nothing audible, but hopefully your mind has a few things in mind.

A lot of the ways we “define” church come from through different lenses

The lens of how we were raised.

Maybe church is/was part of your family’s rhythm and is a rhythm you’ve adopted

Maybe church is/was not a big part of your family’s rhythm and you find yourself struggling to find your rhythm

Maybe church isn’t even a part of a person’s vocabulary—so the only perspective they have is what they read, see, or hear about it

The lens of how church has been “experienced.”

Maybe, instead of feeling like part of a family—you’ve felt more like part of a system

Maybe, instead of being greeted with love heart and purpose, you’ve been greeted with someone holding what amounts to a “pitch counter”

Maybe, instead the Word being upheld as immutable, infallible, and “alive and active,” it was merely presented as something that tickled your ears

The lens of our own excuses:

“Church for me is the woods.”

“Church works for me so long as I get out in time for lunch or the big game.”

“Church works for me so long as the pastor doesn’t talk about sin—(which translated means, “my sin”)

“Church works for me so long as _____________

While the list goes on an on—and maybe you’ve got some excuses or “lenses” not mentioned here, the Bible is very clear about what we’ve come to call, “church” and what it’s supposed to look like:

In a broad stroke view, the Bible lays out and teaches

The church is to bear the identity of Christ, teaching others to walk worthy in this identity.

A church’s identity must not be rooted in the “whats”

Programs/mission statements, orders of service,

Religious activities

Attendence

Pastor

A church’s identity must be rooted in the Who

Jesus Christ and His finished work on the cross

Colossians 1:12–18 “...He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.”

The message the church is to preach

Jesus Christ and Him crucified

1 Corinthians 1:23 “but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness,”

1 Corinthians 2:1–2 “And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.”

The means the church is to use in reaching the lost and training believers to “work out their salvation with fear and trembling”

God’s Word

Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Psalm 1:3 “He shall be like a tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he does shall prosper.”

Psalm 119:105 “Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.”

The mode by which believer’s grow

Discipleship

Luke 9:23 “Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.”

Philippians 2:12 “Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;”

David Jeremiah--”…those who call themselves Christians must practice the same discipline that Christ exercised when He obeyed His Father—The call to discipleship is costly

2 Timothy 2:1–2“You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

David Jeremiah—”Disciples are made when you new believers are taught the Word, led by example, and then trained to transfer the faith to others”

In order that a church (in order that our church) might better step into what God has called the church to be, we must cast aside our feelings/emotions/thoughts. We must hang our assumptions, experiences, and feelings at the door and look through the lens of Scripture to how church is “defined”

(READ ACTS 2:41-47)

I. (v.41) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who gladly receive God’s Word

Acts 2:41 “Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them.”

***This is the basic, fundamental, and first trait of a true church—it’s what defines a church***

(FIRST) Church can be rightly be defined this way:

A group of people who have surrendered their lives to Christ for salvation and submitted their lives to Christ for sanctification

A people, not given to

A set of ideas

A man’s thoughts

Worldly defintions of love, marriage, and life

A set of rules/principles

Human philosophy or reason

Position or religion

Rather, a people who given to

The absolute and inerrant truths found in God’s Word

The centrality of the Bible’s message of Jesus Christ and Him crucified

Secondly—when it comes to God’s Word

We must place God’s Word in it’s rightful place

Nehemiah 8 (Ezra)

The Bible must not be treated as

Platonic, stoic, and static,” in our lives, rather

The Bible must be (1) revered, (2) upheld, (3) taught, (4) obeyed, and (5) seen as

Hebrews 4:12 “...living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

A true church (as it was in Acts 2) are people who “receive”

“Receive”—as used here and in other parts of Scripture refer to those who don’t merely

Hear and listen to the Word, or who are

Present to join the crowd and see what is going, or

Sit with wandering minds and closed hearts

“Receive” as it refers to those in the early church and believers today, illicits and an understanding that true bodies of believers

Welcome God’s Word

Believe in God’s Word

Take in God’s Word

Practice God’s Word (obedience)

Experience God’s Word (see the fruits of obedience)

Hold onto and hunger for God’s Word

See the joy and rejoice in God’s Word

Share God’s Word

Even more, a true church should be comprised of a body of believers who receive God’s Word with gladness—what does this mean?

While the Greek for gladness/gladly (“asmenos”) give us some perspective:

“With delight, delightedly, gladly”

The Hebrew word (chephets—pronounced “khay-fets”) draws this out and we find this word used of God’s Word in Psalm 1:2 “But his delight is in the law of the Lord...”)

While meaning “pleasure, delight it also is not “what someone simply takes pleasure in or what gives someone delight,” but reflects a person’s “wish or desire”

Scripture teaches us that to gladly receive God’s Word is to possess a heart that so desires God’s Word, they wish for it.

How then, is this gladness—this “wish or desire” for God’s Word manifested in our lives?

There were those present who did not receive God’s Word, “They that received it...” alludes to this. There were some who

Were there for the wrong reasons

Were closed-off and disinterested

Simply rejected and refused to believe God’s Word

However, when we grasp what God’s Word does and we receive it—something happens (the same thing that happened to those in Acts 2)---TWO ESSENTIAL TRUTHS OF GOD’S WORD

God’s Word introduces us to Jesus and the message of salvation He delivered and secured for us…in other words, God’s Word “makes (a person) wise for salvation”

We ought to delight in this—b/c apart from God acting on our behalf—we would be lost

John 3:16–17 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”

2 Timothy 3:15 “and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.”

God’s Word teaches us to “work out our salvation with fear and trembling,” (Philippians 2:12) engaging in spiritual disciplines of discipleship

We ought to delight in this—b/c as we do, we become more like Jesus Christ

Galatians 5:22–23 teaches about devoping spiritual fruits

1 Timothy 6:11–14 teaches us that Christians should be known, not just for what we flee from, but what and Who we p

2 Peter 1:5–8 teaches what disciplines must foster in our faith

The result in receiving with gladness God’s Word…as those in Acts 2 were born again and matured in their fiath, is this:

When God’s Word gets a hold of a person--as they, in yielding to the work of the Holy Spirit, experience salvation and grow in sanctification, as they see their lives transformed more and more into the image of Christ—as they give themselves to obedience—what ought to be produced is an unparallelled delight and craving (wish) to hear more and more of God’s Word

II.(v.42) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who are devoted

Acts 2:42 “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”

(CONTEXT):

First—note what is meant by “continued steadfastly”—

This means (GRK)

To continue & persevere

To endure & to stick to it

To persist and be persistent

This reflects the discipline not to

Quit/back off,

Fade away/slip back and

In sincerity, possess the discipline to continue in patient steadfastness (James 1)

With this—what must the true church (true believers be consistently steadfast in? (FOUR THINGS)

Sound Doctrine

(Early church)

There was no NT which had been written at this time—

The early church was taught with the O/T and what the Apostles learned directly from Christ during His earthly minstry

The apostles didn’t teach a different doctrine, they taught the same doctrine that saved them:

The doctrine of salvation—the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ

There is only one message, one Word which saves/roots/grounds people in the Lord—the Word of God Himself

Sound Doctrine (church today): while we possess the entire cannon of God’s Word—the doctrine of salvation remains the same

Just as sound doctrine rooted the early church—so to can abiding in sound doctrine root and ground us

Just as sound doctrine brought salvation to the early church—so to can sound doctrin bring about salvation to man today

Just as sound doctrine brought growth and maturity to the early church—so too can sound doctrine bring growth and maturity to believers and the church today

Just as sound doctrine brought about an intimacy in the relationship b/t the early believers and the Lord—so too can sound doctrine bring about and foster an intimate relationship with believers today

Practical understanding of knowing a true church holds to sound doctrine

We must test the origin

Sound doctrine originates with God, while false doctrine originates with man or something else

Galatians 1:11–12 “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ.”

We test the authority

Sound doctrine grounds it’s authority in the Bible, while false doctrine grounds it’s authority elsewhere

Acts 17:11 “These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.” (speaking of the Bereans)

We test the consistency

Sound doctrine is consistent with the whole of Scripture, while false doctrine is inconsistent with some parts of Scripture

Hebrews 13:9 “Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines. For it is good that the heart be established by grace, not with foods which have not profited those who have been occupied with them.”

1 Timothy 1:3 “As I urged you when I went into Macedonia—remain in Ephesus that you may charge some that they teach no other doctrine,”

1 Timothy 6:3–4 “If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions,” (False doctrine creates sinful living)

We assess (test) spiritual growth

Sound doctrine focuses on spiritual growth, where false doctrine leads to spiritual weakness

In other words—where’s the fruit/what’s the fruit?

We assess (test) godly living

Right doctrine ALWAYS leads to right living (godly living), in other word

Sound doctrine has value for godly living, as false doctrine leads to ungodly living

Titus 3:8 “This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.”

Titus 2:1 “But as for you, speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine:”

In fellowship: there is a VAST difference b/t what the Bible calls fellowship and the world calls fellowship

This distinctive difference?

The Holy Spirt

The Holy Spirit creates a spiritual union by molding and connecting the hearts of believers with one another

The Holy Spirit attaches the life of one believer to the lives of other believers

The Holy Spirit forms believer’s lives into one life and one purpose

The distinctive result? Believers have a joint life sharing their blessings/needs/and gifts together (note the following)

Fellowship is experienced by new believers b/c they join other believers in learning the Scriptures

Fellowship forbids an unattached Christian life, which is maintained b/c they “continued steadfastly” in Scripture and in worship

The distinctive nature of Christian fellowship is this: It is impossible to live an unattached Christian life

Christianity is first an individual matter, first becoming attached to Christ but also attached other believers, walking with them

Christianity makes the true believer a saint (one set apart to God) but Christianity is also made up of saints (plural).

Christianity is not just one person, but many (saints—a word often used in the NT but never in the singular)

Christianity is Christianity b/c the saints study and worship together.

Christianity demand we personally live out Christian virtues—but we do this in association with others

Christianity means a person is indwelt with the Holy Spirit—but He also places us into the corporate body who He also indells

In the Lord’s Supper

“Breaking of bread” means

We observe and remember the Lord’s death

We set aside time to observe what is called, “communion,” or the Lord’s Supper

Why such an emphasis? Why did the early church do this, “daily”

It was the one ordinance Christ gave to symbolize His death—b/c it His death that saved them, His death

Reconciles us to God

Brings us into fellowship with God

Makes us new creatures in God

Fills us with the Holy Spirit (without His death, there’s no resurrection, without His resurrection, there is no ascension)

The Lord commanded believers (those who followed Him) to observe the Lord’s Supper often

Prayer:

The idea behind this is corporate prayer—praying as whole body of believers

The discipline needed in this is the spiritual discipline of prayer that

Perseveres

Persists

Desperately seeks a deeper, more intimate fellowship with God

The reality of this says:

We can get no closer to God than when we are drawing close to God in prayer

While the steadfastness of fellowship and the Lord’s Supper are vital, according to Vance Pittman (president of the Send Relief—a branch, “the two wings of the plane of the activity of God in and throughout the local church,” are prayer and God’s Word.

Acts 6:4 “but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.””

Yet—sadly, prayer is the one discipline which individuals and churches struggle with the most (at times)

Individually, we struggle in prayer b/c of distractions, constraints, hidden sin, and a myriad of other things

Corporately, we’ve become comfortable with prayers that simply serve a transitional prayers in our order of servic

Vance Pittman went on to say this, “Call it a conference we will pack it out, call it a concert, we will double pack it out, call it prayer meeting....”

In the scope of the church’s role in evangelism, note again this quote:

“When lost people come to a church service, they expect us to talk with God, not only that most of them showed up hoping we’d show them how they could talk with God.”

In the scopt of the church’s responsibility to discipleship and spiritual growth

While God’s Word is the vehicle, persistent & prevailing prayer is the engine

III.(v.43) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who stirred others with godly fear

Acts 2:43 “Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.”

(CONTEXT)

The early believers lived out their faith in such as way that it stirred souls with “godly fear”

The early believers lived out their faith in such a way, that it stirred others to be aware of God

(BIBLICAL APPLICATION)

Paul, in speaking to the church in Corinth—says this about how the church (the body of believers) out to be living out it’s faith. 2 Corinthians 2:15–17

“For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things? For we are not, as so many, peddling the word of God; but as of sincerity, but as from God, we speak in the sight of God in Christ.”

Jesus says in Luke 8:16, ““No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.”

“The light of a lamp serves to illuminate that which would otherwise remain in darkness.” (David Jeremiah). Jesus’ teachings (and all of God’s Word) serve the same function. Those lost to this world—to the enemy—need to be illuminated with the light (the truth) of God’s Word

What this and other parts of Scripture teach us is this:

(FIRST) In how the local church lives out it’s faith and within the scope and realm of our local community:

The local church exists as a means to help reduce the lostness within it’s community

We have been given and we have received the greatest message that any person could receive—the message of salvation—we bear a message that says

You don’t have to live in despair—you can live in hope

You don’t have to live in addictions—you can live set free

You don’t have to live lost in your sin—you can live redeemed in liberty

You don’t have to walk through this life in defeat—you can walk through this life in victory

(SECOND) The way a local church lives out their faith should effect the means and mode of its discipleship

2 Timothy 2:1–2 “You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.”

Colossians 1:28–29 “Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.”

IV.(v.44-45) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who shared in ministry together

Acts 2:44–45 “Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.”

(CONTEXT)

Early church (those early believers) were “together and shared in ministry,” (something we must play close attention to)

Professing believers were true believers

Meaning their faith was not “head knowledge” or “mental conviction” but heart and soul conviction

Meaning their faith was believing in Jesus, in Who He is and what He accomplished

Meaning their faith reflects the giving of themselves completely (Luke 9:23) on Christ,

Meaning their faith was a faith of committment—a committment of one’s total being and life

Professing believers were together (esan epito auto)

This is not just in the same physical place, they were togehther b/c of the same spirit, and the

Same call

Same mind

Same purpose

Professing believers sold their possessions and goods, using the money to minister to the poor and needy

This was not flippant—this was obedience b/c Christ commanded it

(BIBLICAL APPLICATION—YOU and ME)

The manner in which the local church today, lives out her faith—is to be the same as those in the early church. (I think the church does “ok” with understanding the first two, but the third is often denied and ignored by the church)

Our profession must be the same

Our being together must be the same

Our giving must be the same (again, the church often denies and ignores this, but denial and the claim of ignorance doesn’t do away with the truth). (REFERENCE). Matthew 19:16-22, Matthew 19:23-26, and Matthew 19:27-30)

A rich person is anyone who has more than what others have—more that what the vast majority of the world has

A rich person is anyone who has anything to put back beyond meeting the true needs of his own family (REFERENCE AGAIN: Maark 12:41-44; Luke 21:1-4; Acts 4:34-35)

Our giving must come with some understanding

The believer’s giving should be grace giving—giving in response to God’s grace (2 Cor 8:1-15), meaning

It’s sacrificial

It’s spontaneous

It’s selfless

Is systematic

Is spiritual

Is sincere

Is steadfast

Is sharing with others

The believer’s giving is an act of worship from the heart of a cheerful giver

2 Corinthians 9:7 “So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.”

“The greatest motivation to give is the desire to be involved in what God is doing. Christians experience joy as they participate in the lofty and profound work of ministry and the abundant good workds of God.” (David Jeremiah)

The believer understands that no one can out-give God

2 Corinthians 9:8 “And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.”

Our giving is also in serving the church

Serving the church is serving the Lord

The aim which we as a church operate under these core, fundamental truths is this: That our lives as believers at Connection Church desire nothing more than to make most of Christ; that our existence to bring (1) glory to the Lord and to operate in such a way that it speaks nothing of “our kingdom,” but of God’s kingdom

V. (v.46) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who are unified

Acts 2:46 “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart,”

Acts 1:14 gives us our context for this (“These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.”)

Unit must be possessed

Believers possess the oneness of mind and heart—to be one in spirit and purpose

Believers are to be after the same thing—focusing and concentrating their thoughts and energies upon seeking God

Believers are to be on in accord

In prayer

In one place

In daily worship and the Lord’s Supper

In obedience

In their meetings

Unity must be protected

Ephesians 4:1–6“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

VI.(v.46-47) Scripture defines “the church” as a people who worship and praise God daily

Acts 2:46–47 “So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.”

(CONTEXT)—Note 5 things:

The believers were worshipping in the temple, praying and attending the regular hours of worship and prayers

The believers were worshipping in their homes, moving from home to home—sharing meals and observing the Lord’s Supper

The believers were worshipping with gladness and singleness of heart

“Singleness” means w/out hardness or callousness—rather with sincerity and a contrite and clear heart (nothing hindered their worship and the repented of things that would

The believers were worshipping with no selfish ambition or withholding—where there was need—they gave

(BIBLICAL APPLICATION—YOU and ME)

We must worship together—corporately

Hebrews 10:25 “not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Hebrews 10:25 is not a legalistic verse where we check the box off each—it speaks to the spiritual necessity believers have to worship together in song and prayer; to sit under and listen to the Word of God being preached & taught; a place to bear burdens, surrender sins, and push us to desire discipleship (corporate worship and discipleship go hand in hand—one cannot exist without the other—Christ said, “Go and make disciples,” not build a church void of discipleship)

We must NOT—as a body of believers—relegate our worship of God, our praise of God, our singing to God, our prayers to God, our reading of God Word, our repentance to God, our confessions to God—these acts and demonstrations of our worship must engage every aspect of our everyday lives!

We must worship

With un-hindered hearts—meaning we must grab ahold of godly sorrow, seeing the conviction of the Holy Spirit as God’s grace and His fighting for you

2 Corinthians 7:10–11 “For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. For observe this very thing, that you sorrowed in a godly manner: What diligence it produced in you, what clearing of yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what vehement desire, what zeal, what vindication! In all things you proved yourselves to be clear in this matter.”

Apart from selfishness or holding anything back—we must worship with reckless abandon, giving of our money, time, and talents, to see God’s kingdom expand—not building our own empires

--CLOSING/WORSHIP

Those who became part of this “first-church” this “first-body” experienced something never experienced before (outside the 12 Apostles) but had been promised since the O/T. The indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

How were the people indwelt? Acts 2:38–39 “Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you and to your children, and to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.””

The people listening to Peter’s sermon recognized something different among the Apostles (and they were not knew to them, they were amidst them all the time), something had changed. They looked, acted, and taught with a “different Spirit.”

This, along with Peter’s message stirred them to ask the question, “Men and brethren, what shall we do?”

What must set us apart---what must set any local church apart—is the presence of the Holy Spirit, both individually and corporately. The presence of the Holy Spirit stirs us individually b/c we live knowing He is in us b/c of what Christ accomplished for us

The presence of the Holy Spirit stirs and directs us corporately, because as a body we know and rejoice for this

And this is what captures the attention of those in our community and those who walk in our family.

In the roots of salvation,

We must be a body of believers who “gladly receive God’s Word”

We must be a body of believers who are devoted, continually steadfast teaching, trusting, and partaking of

Sound doctrine

Fellowship

Breaking of Bread

Prayer

We must be a body of believers who stir others to God by how we live out our faith

We must be a body of believers who are “together,” sharing in the work of ministry

We must be a body of believers who are unified and guard this unity

We must be a body of believers who worship and praise God daily

Note what’s not here:

There’s not hint of what I call, “extravagant ministry”

There’s not hint of pomp and circumstance, no hint of props and performances, no hint overwhelming of church calendars, no hint of making church---about the church

What is a church that possesses godly traits? What is a true church?

A body of believers which divests of itself—which counts itself as dead to itself and alive in Christ and a church which possess and pursues the traits mentioned today, is just that church

No matter your past experiences with church—no matter you upbringing and how that influenced your thoughts on church, no matter how someone (even the pastor) made you feel, you must always measure what “church” is supposed to be against God’s Word:

Now—close your eyes again, this time prayerfully inquiring of God to help you be a part of His true church.

God’s purpose for the church (taken from Vance Pittman from Send Relief—based of Philippians 4:15 and following verses)

“When God births a church—it’s always meant for something bigger”

The church is never meant to stay as it is—it’s purpose is attach itself to the mission of God

“When God births a church—He invites the church to join in His Kingdom activity

The goal is never to be a church about itself---the goal is to be a church with kingdom focus

“When God births a church—It’s for His glory”

The church is to be reflective of God’s love/grace/mercy—so that as He moves—He is glorified