The Church As The Body Of Christ
Matthew 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Jesus speaking to Peter about the establishment of the church, was not talking about a building or a location of property that people congregate in on Sunday. He was not talking about an organization but rather a living organism. He was talking about the church as a people, as the body of Christ.
Romans 12:4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.
Ephesians 1:22 And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.
Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.
The Greek word for church is ekklēsia, called out ones, or a called-out assembly. We can say that the church is all believers from all time who make up the body of Christ. To build on this further we can say that the church is a body of called out ones, who are baptized believers, assembling together for worship, growth, fellowship, service, and to carry out the great commission given by Jesus Christ.
Matthew 28:18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
The Church Assembling
The church is the body of Christ specifically but is also identified in a local setting visibly. The church in Jerusalem Acts 11:22, the church in Corinth 1 Corinthians 1:2, the church in Thessalonica 1 Thessalonians 1:1, the churches in Asia 1 Corinthians 16:19, a church meeting in a house Colossians 4:15. A local church is described as a distinct local identifiable assembly or gathering of the body of Christ. It is a body of believers who gather at a specific location to worship, serve, and fulfill the Great Commission. They reproduce what I call Matthew 28 and Ephesians 4 ministry together in a local church setting.
1 Corinthians 4:17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.
2 Corinthians 11:8 I robbed other churches by accepting support from them in order to serve you.
Galatians 1:1 Paul, an apostle—not from men nor through man, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2 and all the brothers who are with me, To the churches of Galatia:
1 Thessalonians 2:14 For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews,
2 Thessalonians 1:1 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
In the first century church when believers gathered, they sometimes met in temple courts, people’s homes, and even in fields and wooded areas. At some point the church began to meet in public buildings and then built places of their own to gather. Today we gather in buildings that are called churches, and although the building is identified as a church, we understand that it is God’s people who are the church. But as you can see in the verses above, Paul used the term church to identify local church assemblies. We might say, the church in Apple Grove or something like, the churches that are in Greenville County. There is nothing wrong with calling a location of God’s people assembling a church. We understand that the church is made up of believers who are the body of Christ but identify themselves as a church specifically in Greenville County, or some other location.
“That’s OK, so long as we understand that every time we encounter “church” in the New Testament, it designates the people (ekklēsia), not a building. Edmund Clowney writes, “According to the Bible, the church is the people of God, the assembly and body of Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.”2 Various biblical metaphors for the church—the family, the body, the temple, the flock (“congregation” originally meant “gathered flock”), and the nation—all serve to connect our understanding of “the church” to God’s people.” https://tabletalkmagazine.com/posts/is-the-church-a-people-or-a-place-2020-04/
Acts 2:46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
The Church Leaders
The church always has had leaders, under shepherds that God gave to the church to oversee, build, and to spiritually feed the flock of God so that it might grow and mature in Christ. They are used by God to equip us for doing ministry. The church leaders equip the saints and then the church, which is the body of Christ, enriches each other, we grow stronger together. God gave us a a plurality of elders, pastors, or overseers, to lead and feed the flock of God. The words pastor, elder, and overseer, can be used interchangeably. Men specifically given to this office are held accountable by the church and are given specific qualifications as outlined in Scripture. To become an elder is a great responsibility that imparts great accountability before the Lord and His people. Being a leader of God’s people is a privilege.
Acts 20:17 Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him……….. 28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be alert, remembering that for three years I did not cease night or day to admonish every one with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.
Ephesians 4:11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
1 Timothy 3:1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task. 2 Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own household well, with all dignity keeping his children submissive, 5 for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how will he care for God’s church? 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. 7 Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.
Titus 1:5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you— 6 if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. 7 For an overseer, as God’s steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain, 8 but hospitable, a lover of good, self-controlled, upright, holy, and disciplined. 9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
1 Peter 5:1 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: 2 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly;
The Church Growing Together
The church is only as strong as each individual and each individual family that is growing into Christlikeness. So, we have among many in the church, an individual, who as an individual is made strong by many. We encourage, love, urge, and build one another up in the faith. We make it a habit to meet together so that we might continue “to stir up one another to love and good works”. We grow together in Christ as a church for His glory.
1 Thessalonians 3:12 and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, 13 so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.
4:1 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. 12 We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, 13 and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. 14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all.
Hebrews 10:24 And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, 25 not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
2 Peter 3:18 But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.
I encourage you to be a part of a local assembly and serve and grow in the “grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”.