1. A Real Beginning (Week 3)

Who is the head of the church?

Ephesians 5:23 NKJV

23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.

Colossians 1:18 NKJV

18 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.

Of whom is the local church comprised?

The church is comprised of saved Christians who have identified themselves with the church through believer’s baptism.

Read page 12. Warning to the church.

What is the purpose of the church?

To fulfill the Great Commission. Matthew 28:19-20, Mark 16:14-18, Luke 24:44-49, John 20:19-23, and Acts 1:4-8.

III. The Continuation of the Church

In this section we will answer 2 questions.

1. How did a group of 1st century believers grow and multiply churches to the point that 2,000 years later there are local churches all around the world?

2. How can we today continue Christ purpose for the church.

Read page 25.

A. Through Christ commission

Just before Jesus ascended to Heaven, He gave a sacred commission to His apostles. We call this the Great Commission.

Matthew 28:19–20 NKJV

19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

This commission was not for the apostles only. As we saw in our first study. The Apostles became the foundation upon which the churches were built because of the doctrine they received from Christ.

Ephesians 2:19–20 NKJV

19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone,

As the apostles went into all nations preaching, baptizing converts, and organizing churches, they transferred this commission to the local churches.

Today, it is our privilege and responsibility to make this last command of Christ our first priority in the church. This commission is the reason the church exists - to proclaim the Gospel of Christ in every part of the world. We will look more at this in the coming weeks.

The church that Christ has established continue as His people are obedient to His commission

B. Through believers obedience

It is amazing how many Christians in America will complain about the demise of our nation and the crumbling of Christian values, while they themselves have neglected Christ commands concerning the church.

Two men were out hunting on a Sunday morning when one said to the other, “You know, I really feel kind of guilty for skipping church this morning.” “Yeah, I know what you mean,” the other man replied. “But, I couldn’t have gone this morning anyway.” “Why is that”, the first man responded. “Because my wife is sick and she wasn’t going.”

It is amazing the excuses we will allow to keep us out of church, but not keep us from doing other things we want to do.

Faithful church attendance is not an option for the obedient child of God. Christ actually commands us to assemble with our church.

Hebrews 10:24–25 NKJV

24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 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.

We also must be obedient to stand for the faith and boldly proclaim the truth. The Bible tells us that the church itself is the pillar and ground of the truth.

1 Timothy 3:15 NKJV

15 but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

If the truth is not preached at the church and upheld by Christians, who will uphold it? God has designed the church to be both the guardian and the proclaimer of the truth.

Throughout the centuries, Christians have stood for the faith.

Ephesians 6:14 NKJV

14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

Think of the believers in the early centuries. The book of Acts records many who were persecuted for their faith in Christ.

Peter and John were arrested, threatened, and beaten (Acts 4, 5)

Stephen was stoned (Acts7)

Saul, who would later become Paul, imprisoned and tortured many Christians (Acts*).

King Herod beheaded James and imprisoned Peter (Acts 12).

Paul was imprisoned, beaten, stoned, and eventually martyred - all for the sake of the Gospel.

Then there was brutal persecution of believers durning the Dark Ages. As well there was great persecution during the Reformation.

New Testament churches have gone by different names in different periods of history and in different geographic areas. Regardless of the persecution through the years. Believers in the local New Testament churches have stood for the faith. Their heritage of courage and their commitment to truth is now our responsibility to continue.

Many Christians in America do not value truth highly enough. This is evidenced when they react when the church takes stands against cultural issues of sin and they themselves become angry when they hear biblical truth taught that goes against their lifestyle.

The truth is precious. It is worth living for and dying for. As members of this local church, we are responsible to stand for the truth.

2 Timothy 2:1–2 NKJV

1 You therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2 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.

It is through preaching, Sunday school classes, Bible Studies, discipleship, counseling that the church has been commissioned to pass on the faith.

The local church has been ordained by God as the pillar and the ground of the Truth. The church continues as we, who are believers, are obedient to Christ’s commands to assemble, to stand for the truth, and to teach the truth.

Conclusion:

The history of the local church begins with Jesus Christ. He is the founder, the head, and the owner of the church.

The church consists of a local assemblies of saved believers who have chosen to identify themselves with Christ and His church through biblical baptism.

The work of Christ is continued today through yielded Christians in the local churches who are obedient to the Great Commission and to teach the truth and assemble around it.

In coming lessons, we’ll learn more about authentic church life, as well as the privileges and responsibilities we have as members in a New Testament local church. Real Christians in real churches have been faithful through the centuries, and it is our privilege to be part of Christ’s institution on Earth!