Introduction: A Church Is Not An Audience
A sharp distinction ought to be made between a church and an audience.
· An audience is a group of unrelated people drawn together by a short-lived attraction. A church is a group of born again believers drawn together by a Savior.
· An audience is a crowd. A church is a family.
· An audience is a gathering. A church is a fellowship.
· An audience is a heap of stones. A church is a temple.
Preachers are ordained, not to attract an audience, but to build a church. Coarse and worldly men, if richly gifted, can draw audiences, but only a man who is given to the Lord Jesus Christ can build a church. (Charles E. Jefferson. Leadership, Vol. 11, no. 4.)
I. THE CHURCH WAS FOUNDED ON THE KNOWLEDGE OF JESUS CHRIST. Matthew 16:13-16
Note: Son of Man was Jesus’ most common designation of Himself and is used of Him some eighty times in the New Testament. It was clearly recognized by Jews as a title of the Messiah (see Dan 7:13); but because it emphasized His humanness, many Jews preferred not to use it. No doubt it was for that reason that Jesus did prefer it--to focus on the humiliation and submission of His first coming and His work of sacrificial, substitutionary atonement.
Jesus’ priority ministry in the world was to reveal Himself, to teach and to demonstrate who He was. He therefore began the examination by asking His disciples, ..."Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" (The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, (c) Moody Press and John MacArthur, Jr., 1983-2002.)
Illustration: The Preeminence of Christ
Someone has said that Jesus Christ came from the bosom of the Father to the bosom of a woman. He put on humanity that we might put on divinity. He became Son of Man that we might become sons of God. He was born contrary to the laws of nature, lived in poverty, was reared in obscurity, and only once crossed the boundary of the land in which He was born - and that in His childhood. He had no wealth or influence and had neither training nor education in the world’s schools. His relatives were inconspicuous and uninfluencial. In infancy He startled a king. In boyhood He puzzled the learned doctors. In manhood He ruled the course of nature. He walked upon the billows and hushed the sea to sleep. He healed the multitudes without medicine and made no charge for His services. He never wrote a book and yet all the libraries of the world could not hold the books about Him. He never wrote a song, yet He has furnished the theme for more songs than all songwriters together. He never founded a college, yet all the schools together cannot boast of as many students as He has. He never practiced medicine and yet He has healed more broken hearts than all the doctors have healed broken bodies. This Jesus Christ is the star of astronomy, the rock of geology, the lion and the lamb of zoology, the harmonizer of all discords, and the healer of all diseases. Throughout history great men have come and gone, yet He lives on. Herod could not kill Him. Satan could not seduce Him. Death could not destroy Him and the grace could not hold Him. (John MacArthur. The MacArthur Commentary Series: Hebrews. p. 9-10.)
A. Jesus Christ Was Extraordinarily Human.
Illustration: The Real Miracle
Meaning no disrespect to the religious convictions of others, I still can’t help wondering how we can explain away what to me is the greatest miracle of all and which is recorded in history. No one denies there was such a man, that he lived and that he was put to death by crucifixion. Where...is the miracle I spoke of? Well consider this and let your imagination translate the story into our own time -- possibly to your own home town. A young man whose father is a carpenter grows up working in his father’s shop. One day he puts down his tools and walks out of his father’s shop. He starts preaching on street corners and in the nearby countryside, walking from place to place, preaching all the while, even though he is not an ordained minister. He does this for three years. Then he is arrested, tried and convicted. There is no court of appeal, so he is executed at age 33 along with two common thieves. Those in charge of his execution roll dice to see who gets his clothing -- the only possessions he has. His family cannot afford a burial place for him so he is interred in a borrowed tomb. End of story? No, this uneducated, propertyless young man who...left no written word has, for 2000 years, had a greater effect on the world than all the rulers, kings, emperors; all the conquerors, generals and admirals, all the scholars, scientists and philosophers who have ever lived -- all of them put together. How do we explain that?...unless he really was who he said he was." (Ronald Reagan. http://www.christianglobe.com)
Galatians 4:4
1. He was more than just a man; He was the Son of Man.
2. He exemplified the life God wants us to live.
B. Jesus Christ Was Absolutely Sinless.
Illustration: The Bridge Won’t Break
As the Union Pacific Railroad was being constructed, an elaborate trestle bridge was built across a large canyon in the West. Wanting to test the bridge, the builder loaded a train with enough extra cars and equipment to double its normal payload. The train was then driven to the middle of the bridge, where it stayed an entire day.
One worker asked, "Are you trying to break this bridge?"
"No," the builder replied, "I’m trying to prove that the bridge won’t break."
In the same way, the temptations Jesus faced weren’t designed to see if He would sin, but to prove that He couldn’t. (Today in the Word, March 14, 1991.)
1. Jesus knew no sin. 2 Corinthians 5:21
2. He was separate from sinners. Hebrews 7:26
3. There is no sin in Him. 1 John 3:5
4. Satan has no claim on Him. John 14:30
a. Satan brings men into bondage through sin.
b. Since Jesus was sinless, Satan was powerless.
c. Not only was Jesus victorious, He was unbeatable.
d. Not only was He successful, He was incapable of failure.
e. Not only was He sinless, He was incapable of sin.
C. Jesus Christ Was Uniquely Divine.
1. The doctrine of the deity of Christ is crucial to the Christian faith.
a. “Who do you say that I am?” is the paramount question of life.
b. Surely Jesus Christ is the greatest of all men, but he is infinitely more than mere man.
2. He possesses the attributes of deity.
a. He is eternal. Revelation 1:8
i. He is not only before John, Abraham, and before the world came into being, but He is the firstborn of all creation. Colossians 1:15
ii. As to the future, He continues forever. Hebrews 13:8
b. He is omnipresent.
i. He was in heaven while on earth. John 3:13
ii. He is on earth while He is in heaven. Matthew 18:20
c. He is omniscient.
i. Jesus knows all things. John 21:17; John 2:24; John 4:29
ii. In fact, in him “are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Colossians 2:3
d. He is omnipotent. John 5:19
i. He is the mighty God.
ii. He upholds all things by the word of His power.
iii. All authority is given to Him.
iv. He has power over demons, disease, death, and the elements of nature.
e. He is immutable. Hebrews 13:8
II. THE CHURCH IS SUBJECT TO THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS CHRIST. Matthew 16:17-18a
Note: The foundation of the church is the revelation of God given through His apostles, and the Lord of the church is the cornerstone of that foundation. Because it is His Word that the apostles taught and that the faithful church has always taught, Jesus Christ Himself is the true foundation, the living Word to whom the written Word bears witness (John 5:39). And "No man," Paul says--not even an apostle--"can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 3:11). The Lord builds the church on the truth of Himself, and because His people are inseparable from Him they are inseparable from His truth. And because the apostles were endowed with His truth in a unique way, by their preaching of that truth they were the foundation of His church in a unique way. (The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, (c) Moody Press and John MacArthur, Jr., 1983-2002.)
A. Jesus Redeemed The Church With His Own Blood. Acts 20:28
B. Jesus Rules The Church As Its Head. Ephesians 5:23; Colossians 1:18
C. Jesus Reigns In The Church As Lord. Revelation 1:12-13
1. He has the power to remove the local church. Revelation 2:5
2. He has the authority to judge those in it. Revelation 2:16
III. THE CHURCH IS SECURE IN THE POWER OF JESUS CHRIST. Matthew 16:18b
A. The Church Of Jesus Christ Is Invincible.
1. We are inclined to think that the gates of Hades are the evil forces of Satan.
2. A gate, however, is not an instrument of warfare.
3. Since Hades, which corresponds to the Hebrew Sheol, refers to the abode of the dead, it is more likely that this phrase refers to the power of death.
4. Even death, as witnessed by the blood of the martyrs, has no power over the church.
B. The Church Of Jesus Christ Is Alive. Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 2:13
1. Jesus fills the church with those who have been given new life.
2. All living things reproduce, therefore our work on earth, in fulfilling the Great Commission, is to constantly be about the business of bringing new life into the church.
Conclusion: One Generation Away From Extinction
It has been pointed out that the Church is always one generation from extinction. If we don’t spread the Gospel, it will be just one generation away from disappearing from the face of the earth. It’s a compelling idea, isn’t it? It enhances our sense of Christian responsibility. We need to get out there and work for the Gospel or the Church could fade into history.
Perhaps you have heard the old story about Jesus appearing in heaven just after his resurrection. Jesus is giving a progress report on all that has happened while he was on earth. Moses is there and he asks him, "Well Jesus, did you leave things in capable hands?"
Jesus responds, "I did. I have left behind Mary and Martha and Peter and the other disciples."
Moses said, "What if they fail?"
Jesus said, "Well, I have established the Church and filled it with the Holy Spirit and they will carry on."
And Moses said, "What if they fail?"
Came the reply, "I have no other plan."
There’s a great tension there. God is at work here in our church but we’ve been given the keys of the Kingdom. We have work to do and Christ calls us to it. The prophet Micah put it this way: "Do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with thy God." (Brett Blair, www.eSermons.com, August 2002. http://www.esermons.com.)
