Have I ever told you about a church I read about one time? Man they had their problems!
• They had had a succession of different preachers who had come through and worked with them… each one with pretty different and very strong personalities. One was pretty well known and respected across the brotherhood… one of those high-profile, “big name” preachers, you know. His presentation was always fiery, very “black & white” and could always be counted on to deliver one of those fire & brimstone lessons. Another one had been pretty controversial. At one time, he had been a part of a real conservative, traditional religious group, and was sort of mean-spirited about it. He had even spent some time putting this church down… preaching against them, writing them up, etc. But like happens a lot of times, he hit a huge bump in the road and underwent major re-orientation in life and in recent years had made some changes in his theology. He became much more grace-oriented in his preaching. Because of this, some people weren’t so sure about him. It wasn’t the kind of preaching they had grown up with, so they eyed him with skepticism. The other preacher had been very successful in his preaching, but had been preaching stuff that was just plain wrong. When confronted about it, he realized his mistake, he had repented and gone about his ministry… but you can imagine the wariness with which many of the church members now heard him… just not sure about his soundness. Well, the church began splintering around these different personalities. Some really liked the preaching of the dynamic “big name” guy. Others liked the more grace-oriented fellow. Others really appreciated hearing from the guy who had come out of doctrinal error—he had some good things to say. And there started all kinds of bickering going on amongst the different groups. Name calling, gossiping, and this went on. It got so bad at one point that the church almost blew apart… some members wanted to move out and start another congregation.
• Can you believe it? That this kind of thing would go on within the church? A church with problems? Who ever heard of such a thing?
• The Apostle Paul did… and he even wrote them a letter… our 1 Corinthians 1:10-13
10 I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. 11 My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. 12 What I mean is this: One of you says, "I follow Paul"; another, "I follow Apollos"; another, "I follow Cephas"; still another, "I follow Christ."
13 Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? NIV
Why is the church (of all people) notorious for this kind of thing?
• I’ve told you about the church where I grew up. It would split every 10 years (like clockwork) whether they had an issue to fight over or not.
• We just about can’t hardly escape it can we? Believers have been trying to figure out how to get along for over 2,000 years (and we’re not a whole closer than we were in Corinth!)
• That ‘divisive’ and ‘denominational’ spirit that Paul addressed there at Corinth has been a part of the church’s history ever since!
Now, understand what I mean when I say, “denominational.”
• To “denominate” simply means to “separate by a name.”
• That’s what was going on in Corinth. Some wanted to be Apollos Christians… some Paul Christians… others Peter Christians… etc.
• But doesn’t that idea of ‘separation’ go against the idea of ‘unity’ that Jesus prayed for about his church?
Yet, this ‘labeling’ is an undeniable part of our history.
We would all agree that there were a lot of problems with the church of Martin Luther’s day… which prompted him to nail his 95 theses to the door of the Wittenburg Cathedral in 1517. They were his objections against the Roman Catholic Church and their twisting of the Bible for their own financial gain. Thus began the Protestant Reformation. Today more than 5.5 million believers wear the name “Lutheran.”
Many believed that Luther’s reforms didn’t go nearly far enough and urged the Protestant church to take Protestantism “to its logical conclusion.” One of the principles which they believed didn’t get near enough attention was baptism. Beginning in the mid 1600s in America, small, independent churches began to spring up everywhere with this same emphasis on baptism and on mission work. In 1814 these churches held a convention and joined forces to form a new denomination. Today, an estimated 100 million folks wear the label “Baptist.”
Over in England in the mid 1700s there were also new thinkers who became interested in piety and a more “methodical” religion. Two brothers, John and Charles Wesley, students at Oxford University, gathered like-minded students for a group calling themselves “Oxford Methodists.” When they immigrated to America, they brought their methodology with them and today many wear the name “Methodist” or describe themselves as a part of the “Wesleyan” tradition.
In the early-mid 1800s, some folks began to rail against this denominationalism, crying “I just follow Christ.” Folks like Thomas & Alexander Campbell sparked a new Restoration Movement which by emphasizing the authority of Scripture alone, they hoped would restore Christian unity. The reality, though is that these “Campbellites” as they were called, eventually splintered into at least three separate entities (the independent Christian Church, the Disciples of Christ, and Churches of Christ.) I’m not sure how well we did towards unity!
Now, lest we become too judgmental of all this splintering… let’s remember, we don’t have a crystal clear reputation here at Washington Street for maintaining Christian unity, do we?
• I’m so thankful to have seen a tremendous degree of unity in the short time I’ve been here… but I know that hasn’t always been the case.
• Many of the surrounding congregations got their start because we couldn’t get along… and people left. Why is it that the church is more known for its INABILITY to get along sometimes?
I wonder if its because we’ve forgotten one of Christianity’s most basic & fundamental principles: The Church Belongs to God!
• As we continue our look at 1st principles this morning… “First Things First”… I want us to look at the church.
• If the church belongs to God, that means it DOESN’T belong to you or I!
Let’s look at what Jesus said about the church in Read Matthew 16:13-20
Now, to really envision the church that Jesus is talking about here, we’ve got to rewind a bit & go back to the first century… erase those 2,000 years of history and tradition from our minds.
• We’ve got to think back to the church in those early days… the church in its purest form… before Corinth, before Roman Catholicism, before denominationalism,
• The church in those days didn’t own property, or buildings (and wouldn’t for more than 300 years.) It had no headquarters. No membership dues. No colleges or Universities.
• From what we can tell of the N.T. writings, there would be one church in a city. Believers met regularly together and in small groups.
• And they were known for their love for one another. In Jerusalem…
44 And all the believers met together constantly and shared everything they had. 45 They sold their possessions and shared the proceeds with those in need. 46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity — 47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their group those who were being saved. Acts 2:44-47 NLT
• That’s a remarkable picture! Is that the church you grew up in?
That’s the church I want to be a part of… God’s church… the church that belongs to Christ! Let’s zero in on what Jesus says about this church…
The Church belongs to God… He set the foundation! “On this rock…”
Peter’s nickname is ‘rock’, but Jesus isn’t talking about Peter here.
• He’s playing off of Peter’s name to say that its on that great confession of Jesus being the “Christ the Son of God” that his church would be built upon.
• Peter was a great and powerful leader, but he was never understood to be THE leader of the church in the 1st century. Jesus wasn’t making Peter “pope” here.
• Jesus is the foundation, the “chief cornerstone”…
Now, when we forget that and start thinking a little too highly of ourselves… we get ourselves into trouble.
• Paul warns against that in 1 Corinthians 3:10-11
10 By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as an expert builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should be careful how he builds. 11 For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. NIV
• He’s saying, “Don’t forget that Jesus is the foundation… the main thing, the heart & core of what you are to be about!”
• The church without Jesus is empty, powerless and pointless.
Have you ever wondered how the church has survived down through the ages?
• Despite all of the scandal, and false teaching, internal power struggles… how is it that the church is still here at all?
• Jesus Christ is the foundation! As long as the foundation is solid… the church will be all right… despite whatever forces may rail against it!
The church belongs to God… He built it. “I will build my church…”
He is the architect & designer…He designed this thing from the very beginning...
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5 he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will- Ephesians 1:4-5NIV
• It was his plan all along that the church would be His.
He is the builder… he constructed it himself. Paul uses this metaphor of building a number of times to talk about the church. I love what he says in Ephesians 2:19-22
19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God’s people and members of God’s household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit. NIV
• Remember, he’s not talking about a physical structure here, but a spiritual one… a group of people who are being built into a place for God to dwell and to work.
• We, the church, are being built for God’s purpose! Isn’t that a wonderful thought?
And He is the owner… it is HIS church! He has bought and paid for it ALL himself!
• He didn’t have to go the bank and beg for money. He paid the price himself!
• It was a huge price… but he was willing to pay it for us! We meant that much to him.
Now, if it is HIS church… that means that it isn’t mine.
• I may want this for it, or prefer to do it that way, or I may think a little differently on something… but ultimately it doesn’t matter what I want… because it belongs to Christ, not me.
• It isn’t mine to do with what I want… it belongs to Jesus!
• Isn’t that what the sign on our building should mean?
• I don’t think of “church of Christ” as our name so much as I think of it as a description of whose we are or at least who we are trying to be. We are the church that belongs to Christ.
If the church belongs to God… He’s going to protect it. “Not even the gates of Hades will overcome it!”
Some people today say that the church is in trouble… they look to declining numbers, lack of cooperation, infighting, etc.
• I don’t share their same pessimism because I know that God is watching out for his church. It will be okay not because I’m here, but because God is here!
• And He’s not going to let anything happen to his church. Now, it may look different in some ways in the future just as it looks different today from the way it looked 2,000 years ago, but it will continue.
• So when I get a little uptight and worried about attendance, or growth or contribution (all things we ought to be concerned about) …but I need to remember that the success of the church doesn’t depend on me… its in God’s hands!
• And everybody should be glad of that! Not even Satan himself can defeat us!
The church belongs to God, but he hands us the keys! “I will give you the keys of the kingdom…” vs. 19
Do you remember when your Dad handed you over the keys to the family car for the very first time?
• What did he say to you? How did you feel? What did you do? Where was the first place you went? How fast did you drive?
• What a privilege! You’ve been waiting all your life to get the keys to the car, right? You’ve studied up on how you’re supposed to handle it. You’ve anticipated that great day… and finally it arrives. The keys are yours and you find yourself sitting behind the wheel all of a sudden with tons of new-found independence… There’s probably nothing in our culture that is more a rite of passage for teenagers than that! Where will you take it? What will you do?
• But it also comes with TONS of responsibility, right? How are you going to treat it? Will you bring it back intact?
• What would Dad say if you brought it back with a big dent or scratch down the side? Or with a new paint job or a spoiler on the back?
It is both a profound privilege and an awesome responsibility that God has made us a part of something so much bigger than any one of us… His church… and that he’s handed over the keys!
The important question is: What are we going to do with the keys?
Some say that we’re not effectively reaching this new world we live in for Christ. I agree.
• People today are turned off by denominational labels… yet we insist on dividing ourselves by them.
• People today are interested in finding a fellowship of people who truly embody the Spirit of God and yet we too often let petty differences divide us.
• Some say that what we ought to do is just go back to the way that we used to do church… I agree.
o But not back to the way we did it in the 1940’s & 50’s… what we need to do is go back to the way we did it in the 40’s & 50’s AD. Back to the 1st century!
o We need to rediscover that fellowship that they experienced… that zeal for evangelism that led to thousands of conversions… we need to work harder at getting along with each other and less about competing with each other.
• What are we going to do with the keys that we’ve been handed?
The church belongs to God… but do you? Are you a part of his church this morning?
• I realize that we’ve been speaking in the abstract… about the ideal church and I know none of us experience the ideal church in this life. Maybe you’ve been turned off by some less than ideal churches.
• I wish I could tell you that we were perfect here at Washington Street… I can’t. We’re full of imperfect people (myself included) just like every other church and we don’t always do just the right thing.
• But I can tell you that we’re trying. We’re trying to be the church that Jesus died for… and if you’ll commit your life to HIM… make HIM Lord of your life; to make HIM the foundation of your life… then you can join us on this journey and maybe help us get a little closer to that goal…
