Introduction
Do you remember this finger play?
Here’s the Church,
Here’s the steeple,
Open the doors
to see all the people
In years gone by, this finger play was a tool that teachers used to teach children the importance of attending church? I certainly believe that it holds value for this reason. But as I have matured, I think the finger play is a bit simplistic. I am not so sure it quite hits the mark. Why am I saying this? Because I think it gives the wrong impression of what the church is.
We continue our series of messages, From Castle to Community. But in order to make this move from castle to community, we have to properly define what the church is. So how do we define “church”?
Is the church the building and structure? Does the church consist of walls, and pews, and pulpits, and communion tables? Is that the church? Is the church God’s house? Do we treat the building with reverent awe because God lives here? Is the church the music? “My church is contemporary. We have a band and sing praise choruses.” “My church is traditional. We sing hymns to an organ.”
Is the church the traditions we remember? Is it the ministries and programs we offer?
Is it the people? What is the church?
How we answer this question will determine at the core what or who we are.. How we answer this question will determine how we use our resources, time, and money. It will determine what activities we offer and our involvement in these activities. It will be seen in the things we cherish and the things we can live without.
And how we answer the question will affect how those standing on the outside will view those who are sitting on the inside. Outsiders and insiders. Our church is not immune to it. And I believe that there are some people here in this auditorium right now who feel like you are camped right in the middle of that gap; you don’t know where you belong. I may even be that have been burned by past church experiences -- like touching a hot stove, you are reluctant to touch it again. You haven’t decided if church is right for you. You haven’t decided if THIS church is right for you? You want to know, “What is this church all about anyway?” If’ that you, I want to invite YOU to JOIN us in the conversation as we explore the how Scripture defines “Church.”
Today’s Texts
Acts 17:22-25
1 Corinthians 6:19-20
1 Corinthians 12:27
I want to start with Acts 17:22.
In this passage....
Paul has reached the city of Athens, Greece on a missionary journey. And as he walks around the city, he sees it is full of pagan idols. He is greatly disturbed by this so he enters the market place and begins to debate philosophy with those who are there. This would have been an accepted practice of the day. Philosophy was widely discussed in Greece.
However, Paul’s discussions spark public debate in the marketplace. In order to solve the conflict before trouble starts, Paul is dragged before the people of the city into their public meeting place. It was called the Areopagus. And Paul seizes the opportunity to share with them his faith.
Acts 17:22-23a (NIV)
22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: "Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD…
Textual Notes:
These people had idols set up for every god imaginable. The Greek pantheon included dozens of gods, goddesses, and even demigods. There were so many gods that apparently the Athenians feared they might have missed one. Rather than incurring the wrath of a missed god, they set up an idol to him as well. It was an altar to any unknown god.
Paul latches on to this and he says,
Acts 17:23b-25 (NIV)
23 …Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 24 "The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.
God does not dwell in temples built by hands. Underline that statement in vs 24. It is vital to our discussion.
Illustration:
Correct me if I am wrong, but wasn’t this building built by human hands? I think some of your hands participated in the construction. Some of you remember the day the doors were opened and the day the first worship service was held here. But if Paul is correct in his message to the people in Athens, we have to assume that the
I. The church is not the building
The church is different than carpet and doors and paint colors and offices. Church is different than pews, and pulpits, and communion tables and all the memories those things hold. The church might have opinions about colors and carpet, pews and pulpits, but the items themselves are NOT the church. The church might use those, but those are not the church.
Application:
If we define the building as “the church,” then everything we do will be for the purpose of maintaining and keeping the building. Our budget will reflect a focus on the building. Our purpose will be to keep the building above everything else. Past memories will haunt the church rather than enhance it.
Principle One: Folks, God wants to build something greater in us and through us than any building.
Don’t get me wrong today. I am grateful we have this building (most of the time). We have a great facility to meet in on a weekly basis. We’d like to see this building filled with believers who worship together. But at times, it seems like it would be easier to build God’s church if the the ghosts of past memories within this building and the costs with maintaining it weren’t in the way.
Along the same lines, we can conclude that
II. The church is not God’s house.
Let me define that more clearly. We do not come to "where God lives" when we come to the building. When we make the building the address where God lives, what we effectively do is put God in a Sunday box. We visit Him at "his house" on Sunday. God becomes a Sunday god and a Wednesday night god. And a Sunday god or Wednesday night god is far too small to handle the worries, stresses, and even the guidance of my life the rest of the week.
Illustration
I have met many different kinds of people during weddings and funerals in my ministries. Every once in a while one of them will accidentally say something that isn’t exactly Godly. And what usually follows is this. 1. They apologize to ME or 2. if they don’t some well meaning family member will look at them and say, “You should not say that (or do that) in God’s house!”
Do you hear the idea behind that? You don’t swear where God lives. It almost seems like they are suggesting that cussing or smoking should not happen in the building because God is so close he might hear or see. But God does not dwell in temples made by human hands. God hears and see regardless.
If the person has indicated they are a believer in Jesus, I tell them the 6:19 Principle.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV)
19 Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
In the midst of talking about sexual purity, Paul gives a principle to believers. WE are God’s temple. WE are the place where his Holy Spirit dwells. When sin happens it is not worse because it takes place in this building (pointing outward), but because it takes place in (pointing inward) us where the Holy Spirit dwells. Believers should not cuss in the church building not because we are defiling the building, but because we defile God’s temple, ourselves.
Principle Two: In God’s view, the address where we sin makes no difference in the magnitude of the sin.
God is not more offended when we sin INSIDE the building where we meet. It is JUST A BUILDING. I’m not suggesting that we shouldn’t care for the building or take care when we are around other believers who often meet in the building. I am saying that we are God’s temple that happens to meet inside the building. The church is not God’s building. The church is not God’s primary residence.
Transition
So according to these principles it seems that “What is the church” is impossible to answer. Maybe starting with "What is the church" is the wrong question. What if instead of a "what", the church is a "who". Is it possible then that the better question may be “Who is the church?”
It’s certainly reflected in the language of the New Testament. Did you know that every single time the word “church” or “congregation” appears in the New Testament the word that is being translated is “Ekklesia.” The Greek word we see translated as “church” means “a gathering of people.”
Clearly the reference to the church as a building was never intended by the New Testament writers. The better definition to begin with for the church is "you and me."
Heart Principle
The church is you and me gathered for a purpose.
The church is made of people / not steeples
The church is made of me and you’s / not pews
Illustration:
When the old church building downtown was demolished, did First Christian Church cease to exist? If this church building burned down tomorrow, would First Christian Church cease to exist? No! Because you and I are still around. WE are the church. The church describes those who are gathered.
So does that make the church an organization? Are we like a company? A social club? Is it a gathering like a concert? What’s the difference?
Listen to what Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12. Paul writes to a church in Corinth that is having disputes and he uses an illustration to help them understand WHO they are.
He tells them (vs 12)
1 Corinthians 12:12-13 (NIV)
12 The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
Summary
He goes on to write that different parts of the body have different roles and abilities, they have their strengths and they have their weaknesses, but they are still part of the same body. The parts of the body should have equal concern for one another. Then he summarizes with this. Underline verse 27 in your Bible.
1 Corinthinas 12:27 (NIV)
27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
The church is more than the gathering of individual people. The church is different than an organization. We are not like the Boy Scouts or the chamber of commerce or some inc. We are different because according to this passage we have the same spirit (capital “S”). We have the holy Spirit indwelling in us bonding us together. We are a living organism -- a body; not simply an organization of parts.
Definition: The church is a living organism intended to be the body of Christ
According to Paul we are a group of people who have the same spiritual makeup - Jesus. Our purpose is the reflect the heart of Jesus. The church cannot be defined like a social club where members on the inside receive benefits of membership (Voting privileges, monthly newsletter, etc.)
And Frankly, I don’t want my obituary to read I was “associated” with the church as if the church was some kind of club. It is the entirely wrong picture. Instead, I am a MEMBER of the BODY of CHRIST. I want to belong to the church as part of the body of Christ! That is WHAT the church is!
We are the embodiment of Jesus CHRIST himself -
Church, that is an amazing statement! Our church should reflect the heart of Jesus. Our church should reflect the ministry of Jesus; our church should reflect the misssion of Jesus. Are WE the body of Christ? Are we the body of CHRIST? Or have we defined church as something much different?
It may require repentance today. I am far from guiltless. It may mean that we should quit squabbling on the inside because we realize we are dividing the body of Christ and we are pulling apart the bonds of the Holy Spirit and defiling his temple IN us with dissension.
It may mean that we have to repent from the social club view of church. I’ll be part of the club as long as I’m happy. There may be some who will have to repent from using money, or power, or family ties, or length of "membership" (called tenure) to gain benefits and to control the body.
It may mean accepting that God wants to build something greater in us and through us than any building (no matter how much we love it!). Pews and pulpits, carpet and walls; flowers and types of music seem to pale in comparison when we see it that way don’t they? They lose their value in the grand scheme of being part of the body of Christ.
Will we allow Christ to build his body and His kingdom here?
Conclusion:
Maybe we need to invent a new finger play to remind ourselves.
Here’s the Church,
Of imperfect people
We don’t have pews
And we don’t have steeples
WE are the church
The body of Christ,
We should have his heart.
We were bought with a price.
Next weeks message: The heart of Christ.
