A Church For the Modern World

Introduction

This study is important because churches must be contextualized in two ways:

Geographically

Historically

Consequently, the question we will answer tonight through our study is: How do we appropriate the church we read in the Bible to the world we currently live in?

Defining the Church:

Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible Church > Cc

A group or assembly of persons called together for a particular purpose.

The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, Revised I. Pre-Christian History of the Term

In the Greek world it was used of a public assembly summoned by a herald (< ek, “out,” and kaleín, “to call”; cf. Acts 19:32, 39f).

The Lexham Bible Dictionary Church

Followers of Christ who derived their identity and mission from Jesus and understood themselves to be the true eschatological community of God.

Dictionary of Bible Themes 7020 church, the

The community of faithful believers, of whom Jesus Christ is the head, called out from the world to serve God down the ages. Scripture emphazises that the church is the body of Christ whose members are intended to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Scriptural understanding of the church is corporate, rather than solitary or individual.

These four definitions may lead to the following definition:

A called assembly who embodies the identity of Christ and fulfills His mission and purpose in the earth.

William Temple said,

“If the gospel is true for anyone anywhere, it is true for all men everywhere, and the church is His church exactly in so far as it is carrying out its missionary task.” Stott, J. (2018). The Preacher’s Notebook: The Collected Quotes, Illustrations, and Prayers of John Stott (M. Meynell, Ed.). Lexham Press.

The most important part of this definition is identity and purpose. Too many churches exist with no purpose, which mean they are unable to fully resemble the identity of Christ. One of the greatest enemies to accomplishing this responsibility is our unfortunate habit of visiting a building as a means of fulfilling our responsibility to be the church.

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 7591 Church Buildings and Usages

Churches in the United States have about $80 billion invested in real estate, mostly in church and Sunday school buildings. This represents about 80% of total resources of religious bodies in this country.

It has been estimated that America’s nearly 400,000 churches show a facility utilization rate of only 1%. This means the average church makes full use of its property and equipment about one hour for every 168 hours in the week. No architectural structure is used so sparingly in the world.

If the church is not:

The place we go

The social activity we enjoy

The organization or institution to which we belong

Then, what is it?

The church is the organism [living system] that is alive in God’s creation for God’s purpose.

Misconceptions of the Church (Pagan Christianity, Viola & Barna)

The Church Building—First constructed under Constantine around AD 327. The earliest church buildings were patterned after the Roman basilicas, which were modeled after Greek temples.

The Sacred Space—Christians borrowed this idea from the pagans in the second and third centuries. The burial places of the martyrs were regarded as “sacred.” In the fourth century, church buildings were erected on these burial places, thus cre- ating “sacred” buildings.

The Steeple—Rooted in ancient Babylonian and Egyptian architecture and philosophy, the steeple was a medieval invention that was popularized and modernized by Sir Christopher Wren in London around 1666.

The Pulpit—Used in the Christian church as early as AD 250. It came from the Greek ambo, which was a pulpit used by both Greeks and Jews for delivering monologues.

Hierarchical Leadership—Brought into the church by Constantine in the fourth century. This was the leadership style of the Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and Romans.

Christians Wearing Their “Sunday Best” for Church—Began in the late-eighteenth century with the Industrial Revolution and became widespread in the mid- nineteenth century. The practice is rooted in the emerging middle-class effort to become like their wealthy aristocrat contemporaries.

Clergy Attire—Began in AD 330 when Christian clergy started wearing the garb of Roman officials. By the twelfth century, the clergy began wearing everyday street clothes that distinguished them from the people.

The Choir—Provoked by Constantine’s desire to mimic the professional music used in Roman imperial ceremonies. In the fourth century, the Christians borrowed the choir idea from the choirs used in Greek dramas and Greek temples.

The Worship Team—Calvary Chapel in 1965, patterned after the secular rock concert.

Tithing—Did not become a widespread Christian practice until the eighth century. The tithe was taken from the 10 percent rent charge used in the Roman Empire and later justified using the Old Testament.

Clergy Salaries—Instituted by Constantine in the fourth century.

The Collection Plate—The alms dish appeared in the fourteenth century. Passing a collection plate began in 1662.

The Usher—Began with Queen Elizabeth I (1533–1603). The predecessor of the usher is the church porter, a position that can be traced back to the third century.

Sermon Points

Since the church is a living system, organism [not organization], the question is how does this organism look in the modern world? The church must be the answer and solution to an eschatological issue. Meaning the church is God’s response to the end of a thing. The church is an eschatological community.

The church is properly understood in relation to the kingdom or reign of God. 'The doctrine of the Church", says Wolfhart Pannenberg, "begins not with the Church but with the Kingdom of God".

The church is a sign of the kingdom, an anticipatory sign, in which the salvific reality of the kingdom is already present. -Christian Mostert

Matthew 16:18 CSB

18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

This passage implies that the gates of hell will attempt to overthrow the church. Hell or death is the designated enemy of the church. Hell was seen as the grave or location that holds the human body prisoner at death. This is a way of saying inactive people will not overthrow the grave.

Inactivity is the greatest enemy of the church.

Four Practices of the Early Church

The primitive church had these four characteristics according to Acts 2:42:

Devotion to teaching

Teachings based on the life and words of Jesus.

A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, Volume 1 Commentary

The steady persistence in the apostles’ teaching means (a) that the Christians listened to the apostles whenever they taught and (b) that they assiduously practised what they heard.

See Luke 24:27

Fellowship

Communal form of life- The word means communion (com-union), close association, partnership: “used in the contemporary Greek world to describe various close relationships among persons, as well as the mode of common life lived by followers of Pythagoras (Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca historiae 10.8.2), whence it came to denote specifically a “communal manner of life,” as Luke uses it here.” Fitzmyer, J. A. (2008). The Acts of the Apostles: a new translation with introduction and commentary (Vol. 31, p. 270). Yale University Press.

Sharing

Life of close brotherhood live in communism

See Acts 2:42

Food

Entire meals and not just the opening rite of a sacred meal as in Jewish meals.

See Acts 2:46

Agape (Love) Feast

Table fellowship included discussions and lectures over a meal.

Prayer

Formal prayers of the temple based on the the article in front of prayers- “the” prayers.

Consider the Jewish hour of prayer (Acts 3:1).

Conclusion

We must be a group of people that are dedicated to learning, participating, eating, and praying. This is what happens when the church gathers.