MINISTRY AND THE CELL MODEL

MINISTRY AND THE CELL MODEL Selected Scriptures Aug 6, 2000 Given by: Pastor Rich Bersett [Index of Past Messages] In last week's message we studied the church as God's New Community. We learned that community was established by God to prefigure heaven. We learned that the church is not a building, a worship service or an institution-it is the people of God. The church is those who are saved by grace through Jesus and are the "called out" ones-called out of the world and into a living, dynamic relationship with God and one another. What we left behind last week was a quick look at the metaphors used in the New Testament to describe the church. Let's pick up there and then, with the time remaining we'll look at the book of Acts and draw some implications about how the church operated in the first century. There are three primary metaphors the Holy Spirit inspired in the New Testament to describe the church. The first is NATION. In 1 Peter 2:9 - "you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. This means that the church is a "consecrated group," or a people set apart for God's special purposes. In the Old Testament, the political nation of Israel, the Jews, were always called the "chosen people." This meant that God had sovereignty decided to us this nation to reach the rest of the world with the message of His love and righteousness. But God's plan was to broaden this nation into a non-political, non-geographic nation. He told Abraham, the Father of the nation, that he would make him a blessing to all the nations of the earth, and that his spiritual descendants would be more numerous than the stars of the heavens or the sands of the seas. Through Jesus, who was born a Jew, the privilege of being God's people has been opened to all people. Today, anyone who trusts in Christ is brought into the holy nation of God's people. The apostle Paul said it this way, in Ephesians 2:17-20 - "He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access to the Father by one Spirit. Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. So God's plan was to bring together people from all nations (politically speaking) into one spiritual nation. The church of Christ is a melting pot of different races, languages and origins-people who now have one thing in common-the Lordship of Christ in their lives. Today, we who are gathered in this room are the church of Jesus Christ. So are the Arab people in Jericho who began to gather in the Jesus House of Prayer a few hours ago and talk about what it means to them that they have accepted Christ as their Savior and Lord. Also a few hours ago some Wodaabe people gathered somewhere on the sandy ground of the sub-Sahara in Niger to worship the Lord with songs that, when translated, are amazingly similar to the ones we sang this morning. This morning, believers along the Amazon tributaries in Brazil who are being reached through the PAZ Ministry we support are gathering for worship and time in the Word. They, too, are part of this nation. So, too, people in Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Russia, France, Saudi Arabia, Kosova. and these are just a few of the areas of the world the Lord has privileged us to be involved in. Folks, this week, from Mexico to Siberia, from New Zealand to New England, from Okinawa to the Hawaiian islands, the people of God are meeting this week to worship and grow in their service to the Lord of the church. You are a part of a holy nation-one without geographical, political or linguistic boundaries, but a people belonging to God that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light. We are an international nation, a fellowship of diverse believers in Jesus. And one day, not too far off, we will be part of that massive group that John glimpsed in his vision of heaven, whom Jesus purchased with his blood "from every tribe and language and people and nation." The second metaphor is that of a TEMPLE. This picture derives from the Old Testament, too. In ancient Israel the Temple served as God's earthly dwelling place. Though the prophets continually insisted that God could not be contained in any one place, nevertheless God allowed one specific location as the place where He was specially present. He did this as a prophetic picture, because once Christ came and fulfilled His reconciling ministry, the focus of God's presence would no longer be a golden tabernacle in a building called a Temple, but His presence would be within a special people-the church. Back in Ephesians 2:21-22, where we saw the metaphor of nation, Paul dovetailed into another metaphor for the church-a building, a temple. "In Him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. And in Him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by His Spirit."" God declares that He no longer occupies a special building, but He lives by His Spirit in anyone who is a believer in Christ! We, the church, are the new Temple of God's presence in this world! 1 Corinthians 3:16 - "Don't you know that you yourselves (plural) are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is sacred, and you are that temple." Paul was addressing the issue of divisions and disunity in the church when he spoke of destroying the temple. This is apparently a very important issue! This metaphor is even more far-reaching. The New Testament goes on to teach that each believer is also a temple of the Holy Spirit. Our bodies are actually temples of the Holy Spirit's presence. The implications of this idea are significant in terms of lives of holiness. But that's another lesson. The one thing I think we should take note of is that God's people are the Temple of His presence in this world. He has chosen to be present in His church. As rag-tag as the we the church may sometimes feel, it is God's sovereign choice to live in this Temple we call His church. The third metaphor for the church is a BODY. Specifically, the church is mentioned in at least three passages as the "Body of Christ." Colossians 1:18 -"He is the head of the body, the church." Ephesians 1:22-23 - "And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way." And then there are these pointed words at 1 Corinthians 12:27, which identify believers are a vital part of this body -Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. The Holy Spirit deliberately chose this picture to describe the church to show us that the church, like a body, is a unit made up of a diverse group of parts, all working together under one head. Not all members of a body have the same task to fulfill. But all of them have the same goal. Likewise, all members are to be concerned for the others and to use their gifts in service to the others and to the whole. And, again, together we carry on Christ's ministry in the world as his physical presence in the world. CONCLUSIONS The conclusions we should draw from these metaphors are clear. As part of the church of Jesus Christ we are a people in relationship, not only with God, but also with each other. We are dynamically linked with others who are also part of the church. We are fellow members of God's kingdom/nation, His family, His Temple and even His body. But what about the practical question: where is the church? In what identifiable form does it appear in the world? To answer that question we need to consider the elastic nature of the term "church." We've already seen this, but did you notice that the "church" is as broad as the whole world and is also as narrowly defined as two or three gathered in the name of Jesus? The church is any amalgamation of believers in Jesus, no matter how diverse the individuals are, no matter where they meet. When in Niger, there was an occasion when some 15 of us went to pray on a mountain top at the south edge of Niamey. Among us were Americans, French, native Fulani, Hausa people and others from various other nations in Africa. But as we gathered for prayer on that mountain, we were the church of Jesus, doing His ministry. All distinctives between us dropped, even the variety of languages in which we prayed aloud were unimportant because we were addressing the One who understood all of us. How is the church identified in the New Testament? In most practical terms. Most of the time the term "church" is used, not in some universal, nebulous generality, but as referring to a local congregation of believers. If we use only the New Testament as our guide we will conclude that whatever else it may mean, "church" is the visible fellowship of Christ's disciples in a given location. "Church" is any time a group of two or more join together with the purpose of walking with one another as God's people, under Christ's authority and under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Let's take our remaining time and look at the early church as presented in the book of Acts and the epistles, and get a glimpse of how the church made its appearance. Acts 2:42, 46-7 Acts 5:42 Acts 12:12 Acts 16:40 Acts 20:20 Romans 16:5 Colossians 4:15 Philemon 2 What do we learn from this cursory picture of the practical church of the earliest New Testament era? We learn at least that the "church" met as groups in two different fashions-both as a larger group gathered for the teaching and preaching of the word, and presumably for worship, but also in smaller, more intimate fellowship groupings in homes. I want to go a little deeper into this study in the next week or two and study the practical dynamics of small groups and the use of homes. For now we can conclude at least this-it was important to the Holy Spirit that believers meet in a context where they would find healthy and close relationships with each other, as well as with God. Apparently that was normally in their homes, although we don't need to conclude that is the only place they met. There is no mention of any other meetings places for these small groups. The only other things we know is that they met in larger group contexts in borrowed courtyards like the temple courts. When they met together they experienced a dynamic of unity and mutual encouragement that helped them survive as Christians in a their day-to-day lives in a culture that was growing increasingly hostile to Christianity in many cases. What they found in those small meetings was a courage and inspiration to keep on living for Christ, drawing on the power of His Spirit, being His witnesses and His agents of reconciliation in the world around them. And apparently it worked. When we look at the very earliest days of the church we are getting a peek at the days of the most explosive growth in the history of the church on earth. What stimulated and encouraged these people who had been called out of darkness and into the light of the Lord to keep on keeping on was something they found in these fellowship groups. What they found there, in close relationship with others of like precious faith, inspired them to be the Nation of God's people that God intended them to be,  to be the Temple of His presence in a world of need, and to be the Body of Christ serving the Lord through serving one another and those around them in the love of Christ. Let me ask you, Christian. Do you have such a group? I encourage you in the Name of the Christ you serve, whose nation you have joined, whose Temple you are and whose Body you are an integral part of, find one. In that context you can find the level Christian relationship that will help you carry on your life of faith in the healthy, productive manner the Lord intended for you. There you can find a place to learn, to grow, to serve, to be encouraged when discouraged, directed when confused, corrected when wrong and challenged when lethargic in your faith. Dr. F. Eppling Reinartz, the late President of Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary in Columbia, SC, used to say that people would often speak to him about their church. They would point out to him how they had a tireless pastor or an outstanding preacher; they would point to their new impressive facilities; in some instances they liked to brag about the fact that they had the largest budget in the church'' history and it was being overpaid. But Dr. Reinartz said that the most moving word he ever heard said about the church came from an elderly lady who told him, "I love this church. When a person joins it, from that moment on they never have to bear another burden alone."     [Back to Top]