Churching Together (1 Timothy 3:14-15)

Introduction

I didn’t begin trusting and following Christ until I was 19 years old.

I’d “grown up in church,” but sometime during the year of 2000… I’m pretty sure it was in the fall of that year when I first believed the gospel and really started wanting to live for Jesus… even when no one else could see me.

After I was converted, I started attending the same church where my mom and dad had been involved for years. It was an Assemblies of God church in Waxahachie, TX. The building had a distinct design with three domes that looked like three giant soccer balls from the highway that ran beside it (highway 287).

I have some fond memories of that church and the people who invested in me as a young Christian –

I remember one older lady giving me preaching tapes.

I shared an apartment with one of the pastors for a while.

And a few men invited me into their lives in different ways… around their dinner table… doing their hobbies… one guy even gave me a part-time job riding shotgun in his tractor truck to deliver materials all over DFW (we drove out of his warehouse at about 3 in the morning, and he taught me a lot driving around the metroplex in the dark).

When I was with that church on Sundays, I remember doing some of the same stuff we do here –

we prayed and sang songs,

a pastor or guest speaker would preach,

we passed offering plates at some point,

occasionally someone would get baptized,

and we observed the Lord’s Supper about four times a year.

I also remember some distinctive features of Sundays with that church –

sometimes people would act out physically (jumping, dancing, and sometimes running around the room),

often people would express some emotional outburst (shouting, crying, or moaning),

and almost no one stayed in their pew for the whole service (especially during the singing, some would stand or kneel in the aisle, and many would go to the front to dance or lay down or sing or pray).

Now, some people might say that the distinctive features of that charismatic church represent a kind of freedom that other churches don’t enjoy (e.g., churches like ours, that get a bit less exercise during the service).

On the contrary, all churches have expectations, forms, and order… what’s called a liturgy (or order of public service)… and that’s why it almost always feels a little uncomfortable to be a guest on a Sunday at any church – guests don’t know exactly what’s expected, guests sometimes aren’t sure what’s coming next, and guests don’t know if someone might put them on the spot to greet a stranger beside them with a hug or handshake.

Incidentally, extroverts love church greeting times, and introverts are mortified by them. We don’t have a greeting time during the service here, but we invite you to greet one another as you see fit before and/or after.

My point in telling some of my eclectic church background today is to help us begin to think about an important-but-often-assumed topic – churching together.

Whether a church is Assemblies of God, or Presbyterian, or Baptist, or non-denominational… what is a church to do when it comes together?

Does it really matter?

If it does not, then is anything out of bounds?

Can we sing love songs or party songs?

Can we drop the sermon or the singing for something else… like movies or concerts or story-times?

Can we make our church all about cowboy stuff or biker stuff… or something that especially appeals to women or singles or professionals or social outcasts?

And if what we do as a church does matter, then how do we decide… what we will do and what we won’t?

Are there any elements of a church service that distinctively make it a “church” – and not just a Christian meeting or conference?

Are there any commands or instructions in the Bible telling churches to do this and not that?

And if there are, what are they?

These are the sort of questions I want us to consider this morning… but not merely as an academic or mental exercise.

I believe that a thoughtful and biblical approach to this question (“What should churches do when they gather?”) will make us healthier, more mature, and more effective Christians in the world… I believe what we do together as a church will make us better Christians here… and better prepare us for the world to come.

Let’s read a short passage from Scripture this morning as we begin, and may God help us to better understand how we are to “behave” in His “household.”

Scripture Reading

1 Timothy 3:14–15 (ESV)

14 I hope to come to you soon, but I am writing these things to you so that, 15 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.

Main Idea:

Friends, I’ve got two premises and one conclusion this morning.

Here’s my argument in a nutshell – (1) Christ has established the purpose and strategy of churches, and (2) the Bible regulates what churches do when they come together; (conclusion) therefore, we should obey as a church.

Sermon

1. Christ Established Churches

These are my three points today: (1) Christ has established the purpose and strategy of churches, (2) the Bible regulates what churches do when they come together; (3) therefore, we should obey as a church.

Premise 1: Christ has established the purpose and strategy of churches.

Christ established churches.

The NT uses the word “church” in two different ways.

First, the universal church (or all believers everywhere from all time and geography).

“Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior” (Eph. 5:23).

“Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Eph. 5:25).

And in our main passage, “the church of the living God” is His “household” (1 Tim. 3:15).

Brothers and sisters, what a joy and fraternity we have!

If we are turning from sin and trusting in Jesus Christ today, then we have an innumerable family in Christ!

And on the last day, we shall be joined altogether in “a great multitude… from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb… crying out… ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne and to the Lamb!’” (Rev. 7:9-10).

But this gathering of a great multitude from every tribe and tongue is not how Christ’s people are made visible or assembled in the world today.

Today, we appear as localized, actual assemblies (or churches)… usually with a shared language and culture… who come together in Christ’s name.

Second, the other way the NT uses the word “church” is to refer to particular or local churches.

When Paul wrote to the Christians in the region of Galatia, he sent his letter to “the churches of Galatia” (Gal. 1:2).

When Paul wrote to the saints in Corinth, he called them “the church of God that is in Corinth… those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints…” (1 Cor. 1:2).

And when he wrote to the believers in Philippi, he addressed his letter “to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with [their] overseers and deacons” (Phil. 1:1).

Note the labels here of (1) “saints” (or church members), (2) “overseers,” and (3) “deacons” – the three roles the NT describes for Christians in a local church.

Indeed, this is the context of Paul’s writing to Timothy in the letter we’ve read from this morning.

Timothy was in “Ephesus,” pastoring a particular church of saints.

Paul wanted Timothy (as a pastor) to “pray” (1 Tim. 2:1) and to “command and teach” (1 Tim. 4:11).

Timothy was also to ensure that only qualified men would lead in “the office of overseer” (1 Tim. 3:1-7).

Friends, the way individual Christians join with Christ’s universal church right now (in any meaningful and tangible way) is by uniting with a particular, local church of the Lord Jesus Christ.

And one way we can know that Christ has established local churches is by considering that the Apostles set up local churches every time they (A) preached the gospel, (B) baptized new believers, and (C) organized them as groups.

The reason they did it is because Christ told them to do it!

Christ established the purpose and strategy of churches.

Probably the best-known commission-statement from Christ is found near the end of Matthew’s Gospel – Matthew 28:18-20.

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:18-20).

Let me note three things about this Great Commission.

First, the commission springs from Christ’s authority.

As we’ve already noted, Christ is the head (i.e., the king, the ruler) of His people (i.e., His body, His church).

Whatever we believe or do must come from Christ’s command and teaching – either directly or as a wise application – because Christ is our head.

Friends, we are not free to do Christianity (in private or in public) any old way we want, but we are bound (or obligated) to practice Christianity in the way our Head has prescribed.

I wonder if you think about Christianity this way.

Does your Christianity resemble Christ’s definition?

Second, the purpose or mission that Christ has given His people is to “make disciples” (Matt. 28:19).

Whatever else a local church might do, every local church must make it their aim to be disciple-making.

Christ’s people in the world are not merely do-gooders, or business-builders, or family-creators, or social justice warriors, or culture-reformers.

Christians certainly ought to live as witnesses for Christ in the world… in the way we do family, or business, or virtue, or civics.

But our essential mission (as gathered Christians among a church) is to “make disciples.”

Third, the strategy or method that Christ prescribed for His people to “make disciples” is by “baptizing them” and “teaching them to observe all that [Christ] has commanded” (Matt. 28:19-20).

There is a lot packed in here!

Baptism implies sharing the gospel and calling sinners to repent and to believe it.

Those who did repent and believe are to be baptized into fellowship with existing Christians.

And each fellowship of Christians is (A) to observe Christ’s commands together, (B) to teach one another what Christ has commanded, and (C) to keep on doing this for their mutual upbuilding.

The strategy or method of “upbuilding” or “edifying” one another is not explicit in Christ’s Great Commission, but it’s all over the NT.

The Bible teaches that “when” we “come together,” “all things” are to “be done for building up the church” (1 Cor. 14:5, 12, 26).

Indeed, one of the main analogies in the NT for the church is that of a building or temple.

Paul says that Christians in fellowship with one another are “members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure [or “building”], being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord” (Eph. 2:19-21).

And this metaphor is the same as our main passage.

The “church” is “the household of God” (a people being formed into a temple of God), and the Bible means for Christians to “behave” according to the regulations for God’s household (1 Tim. 3:15).

2. The Regulative Principle

Premise 1: Christ has established the purpose and strategy of churches.

The purpose is the make disciples.

And the strategy is baptism (which implies evangelism and conversion) and teaching/edification (which includes both instruction and example).

Premise 2: the Bible regulates what churches do when they come together.

The Bible regulates us individually and privately (when we’re scattered).

The Bible (because it is the word of God and the word of Christ) is where we hear the voice of Christ teaching and commanding and promising and comforting and rebuking – in a word, ruling His people.

What does Jesus want us to do or believe?

Well, He tells us in His word.

I think we might be helped to first think of the way the Bible regulates us as individual Christians – as men and women, husbands and wives, fathers and mothers… and every other distinctive role we might have.

I am not free to live in any way I might choose.

Rather, God has designed me as a man, and He’s instructed me to live in keeping with that design.

I have responsibilities as a husband and a father… and God has designed and defined marriage in such a way so as to give me commands and principles which I am obligated to apply.

Now, I have a lot of freedom in the particulars.

God did not tell me explicitly who I should marry, or how many children I should have, or what daily routine should order my family.

But my freedom is regulated by God’s design in creation and by God’s instructions and commands in Scripture.

God explicitly limits me to one wife (not many).

God intends marriage (normally) to produce children, not merely feed my own selfish desires.

And God commands me to order my family in ways that honor Christ, that encourage Christian belief and obedience, and that contribute to the well-being of all.

Friends, I think Ryan Sinni did such a good job last Sunday of highlighting this point (from the creation account of Genesis 1).

From the beginning, God has created the whole world with an order and various functions… and we would do well to live in keeping with God’s good design (not rebel against it).

The Bible regulates us corporately and publicly (when we’re gathered).

Just as the Bible regulates what we do and don’t do, what we say and don’t say, throughout the week when we’re scattered about in the world… the Bible also regulates us when we come together as a church.

Again, consider our main two verses.

The Apostle Paul says, “I am writing these things to you so that… you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God” (1 Tim. 3:14-15).

One practical question we ought to ask here is “What are the ‘things” which Paul wrote in order to regulate behavior in the household of God?”

Well, Paul wrote that some “doctrine” and “teachers” were approved, and others were not (1 Tim. 1:3-7).

Paul “charged” Timothy to “wage… warfare” for the life and substance of true “faith” (1 Tim. 1:18-19).

Paul “urged” that “prayer” would be a major feature of the church’s activity (1 Tim. 2:1).

He said that “men” (especially) “should pray” (1 Tim. 2:8).

Paul also limited the exercise of “authority” and the “office of overseer” to qualified men – men (A) of godly character, (B) good reputation, and (C) the ability to teach (1 Tim. 2:11-3:7).

Friends, these are just some of the ways the Bible commands and teaches local churches about what they must do and how they are to be organized – in other words, how we are to “behave” as God’s “household.”

Before we move on to some specifics, I’d just like to point out here how freeing and encouraging this is!

When the Bible (and not my preferences or yours) is what regulates what we do or don’t do (as a church when we gather), then neither of us will ever suffer the tyranny of the other.

You won’t have to suffer under my mere preferences, and I won’t have to suffer under yours.

So too, when the Bible is what regulates us as a church, we won’t be the kind of church that’s defined by our music style or ministry programs or our pet projects… some fad or fleeting interest.

In other words, we’ll be the kind of church that’s familiar to Christians from 100 years ago… and those who (God willing) live 100 years from now will recognize us too.

3. When We Come Together

Premise 1: Christ has established the purpose and strategy of churches.

The purpose is the make disciples.

And the strategy is baptism (which implies evangelism and conversion) and teaching/edifying (which includes both instruction and example).

Premise 2: the Bible regulates what churches do when they come together.

Which means Christ (through His word) is actually exercising His headship (or authority) over us, and we’re not just making it up as we go (by what works or what’s preferrable for me or you).

Conclusion: we ought to obey Christ (as our head) when we come together.

All that I’ve mentioned so far has HUGE implications for everything about us as a church – what we believe, how we are governed, and what we do.

But I’m going to limit our focus here to the stuff we do when we’re gathered… particularly in the main gathering (or assembly) each Lord’s day.

What do we do when we come together?

How ought we to behave as God’s household?

Let me list and (briefly) explain 7 elements of our activities each Sunday.

We read the Bible.

The Bible commands (esp. pastors) to “devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, [and] to teaching” (1 Tim. 4:13).

At the conclusions of Paul’s letters to the churches at Colossae and Thessalonica, he says, “when this letter has been read among you, have it also read in the church of the Laodiceans” (Col. 4:16) and “have this letter read to all the brothers” (1 Thess. 5:27).

Friends, the Bible teaches us who God is, what He’s like, and what He’s done… it teaches us what to believe and how to live… and it teaches us chiefly about Christ as our Savior and Lord.

When we gather as a church, we must read the Bible.

And the church that does this will be alive and growing!

We pray according to the Bible.

The Bible includes commands to pray, instructions on how to pray, and exemplary prayers from those who wrote it.

Jesus taught us to pray – “not [with] empty phrases,” but sincerity, respect, and confidence – in the Lord’s Prayer (Mt. 6:7-13).

In the Bible we learn about specific kinds of prayers.

Prayers of praise and thanks – praising God for who He is and what He’s done, and giving Him thanks for all His blessings (Eph. 1:3-14; Col. 3:15-17).

Prayers of confession – John tells us, “If we confess our sins, he [God] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 Jn. 1:9).

The promise here (i.e., that God forgives) is also why we regularly read some passage of assurance after our prayers of confession.

We are confessing sin, but we are also embracing God’s forgiveness in Christ as we do it.

Prayers of intercession or supplication (we call this the pastoral prayer, since pastors publicly lead this prayer).

And as the Bible teaches us, we pray for our own church (James 5:16), we pray for other churches and ministries (2 Thess. 3:1), and we pray for the world around us – especially those with civic authority over us (1 Tim. 2:1-2).

Friends, the Bible teaches us to pray, and we depend upon God for everything.

So, when we gather as a church, we must pray.

And the church that does this will know both her need for God and God’s trustworthiness and power.

We sing the truths of the Bible.

Singing has never been intended as a mere entertainment feature of church, but as a congregational activity, where we sing the truths of the Bible both to praise God and to build up one another.

The Bible says, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God” (Col. 3:16).

And again, “be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart…” (Eph. 5:18-19).

Friends, the Bible teaches us to sing the truths of the Bible – both for praise and also for mutual edification.

So, when we gather as a church, we must sing.

And the church that does this will have the truths of Scripture etched not only on their minds but also on their hearts.

We preach the Bible, and we attend to the preaching.

The preaching of God's word is giving an explanation of Scripture and aiming to help those listening apply it to themselves… It’s teaching with an authoritative imperative – “You must believe! You must do!”

Pastors are to “preach the word,” to “reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:2).

Pastors chiefly “proclaim” Christ from the Scriptures, “warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom,” so that “everyone” might “mature in Christ” (Col. 1:28).

So too, church members attend to the preaching of the Bible.

The Bible commands us, “Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith” (Heb. 13:7).

And, “blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written” (Rev. 1:3; cf. Lk. 11:28).

Friends, the Bible teaches us to preach and to attend to the preaching of God’s word… because this is the word of life.

So, when we gather as a church, we must preach and listen.

And the church that does this will grow in maturity, they’ll be built up as the Lord’s temple, and they’ll display the wisdom of God.

We see the Bible take shape in the practice of the ordinances.

Christ has given us two ordinances or sacraments – baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

These are the signs of the New Covenant, and the Bible instructs us to observe each of them as Christ has given them to us.

(I’ve preached on each of these (with a sermon all to themselves) this year, so if you’re interested in delving deeper, you can check out that audio or my sermon notes at our website.)

Friends, the Bible teaches us to observe these ordinances as Christ’s people in the world.

So, when we gather as a church, we must regularly observe the Lord’s Supper, and we must (as often as we can) baptize new believers into fellowship with us and with Christ.

And the church that does this will tangibly display our present hope and our union (with Christ and one another).

We give regularly and cheerfully according to the Bible.

The Bible teaches us that we are stewards of all that God gives us and that we are to use a portion of our resources to generously fund our own church… and (if we’re able) the broader mission of Christ in the world.

Our giving primarily goes to the word-ministry of our own church, those who “labor in preaching and teaching” (1 Tim. 5:17-18)… and to the practical necessities of our regular meeting together.

Our giving may also go toward the needs of “saints” among our own church, in other “churches” (1 Cor. 16:1; 2 Cor. 8:1-5), and to the missionary efforts of those who are preaching the gospel and establishing churches beyond our reach (3 Jn. 8).

Friends, the Bible teaches us to give generously and cheerfully, according to our means and prosperity (1 Cor. 16:2; 2 Cor. 9:7).

So, when we gather as a church, we must regularly contribute (as we are able) to the work of Christ here and in the world around.

And the church that does this will enjoy all the benefits of investing in something of eternal value and consequence.

We conclude with a benediction from the Bible.

At the conclusion of every service, we have a pastoral word.

Often, this includes a summary of the main focus of the day.

Usually, there’s a call (for both Christians and non-Christians) to respond.

And normally, there is a benediction (or “good word”) of blessing from Scripture.

This conclusion (of a summary, a response, and a benediction) follows an example we find in the Bible.

At the conclusion of the book of Hebrews (which is likely a transcript of a sermon), the author writes, “Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen” (Heb. 13:20-21).

Friends, the Bible teaches us to hear God’s covenantal blessings to us… on the basis of His word and our glad reception of it.

So, when we gather as a church, we must hear the promises of Scripture as God’s spoken blessings over us.

And the church that does this will regularly remember that what we’re doing here is not like anything else in the whole world.

Conclusion

I’ve argued today some of the main things I believe the Bible teaches about churching together. I really believe the Bible has more to teach us about church than many modern American Evangelicals seem to think.

I believe Christ has a big interest in what we do and how we do it, precisely because He means to work in and through His people in the world… and because Christ’s gathered people is an assembly unlike any other on the planet.

It can be so easy for some of us to think that what we’re doing each Sunday is far less significant or meaningful or productive or effective than other things… Just consider how many “Christians” and even “church members” put such a low priority on being at church on Sundays.

But, friends, when we do church the way Christ has taught us and commanded us, then we are stepping into a stream of biblical Christianity that is richer and deeper and more powerful than anything else.

When we church together like this, we hear the voice of God, we are built up in the faith, we are steadied in a world that never stops shaking, we are comforted amid the storms of fear and doubt and affliction, and we are tapping into the means of grace… whereby God brings salvation to sinners, assurance to saints, and perseverance to His people… those He will one day bring all the way to glory.