Slideshow image

            Over the next several weeks, I will be doing a series of studies entitled “The Church” in which we will be looking at the biblical doctrine and model of the church and its importance for us today. This first blog will be a brief introduction to the definition of the church. What is the church? It is natural for us to think about church in terms of the building or place we go to on Sunday mornings. But the church is so much more than simply this. The church is comprised of 2 elements: The Universal church and the Local church. The universal church is all the people of God throughout the entire world and throughout all of history who have been saved and redeemed by Jesus and adopted into God’s family. This is an important definition because we often think of the church starting with the early church in the New Testament, but God’s people have always been “the church.” We see this all the way back in the story of Adam and Eve, as God created mankind to worship and enjoy him forever. We also see this in the formation of the nation of Israel through Abraham, as God called Abraham out and promised to make him into a great nation. The Israelites were to be a holy people and to live set apart from other nations. Though the word “church” doesn’t arrive until the New Testament, we can still see how God has always called on his people to worship him together in community.

            The Local Church is a group of people who gather together in a local community to worship together, encourage one another, and testify to the good news of the Gospel. One author wrote this about the connection between the local and the universal church: “…membership in the heavenly assembly must “show up” on earth, which Christians do by gathering together in the name of Christ through the preaching of the gospel and mutually affirming one another as belonging to him through the ordinances.” The gathering of the local church is extremely important because it is in this community that we proclaim our membership to the universal church.  The word “church” in the Greek is the word “ekklesia,” which means “a called-out assembly.” What sets the church apart is that it is not simply an “assembly,” but it is a “called-out” assembly. God has chosen a people for himself and set them apart. The local church is different from any other type of gathered group, because it is the gathering of the people of God, who come together under the common goal of seeking Jesus and to worship and praise Him.

            The church was established by Jesus. Jesus says in response to Peter’s confession of him as the Messiah “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 (Matthew 16:18).” We are not the ones who build the church, but Jesus Christ builds His church by drawing people to himself and calling on them to follow Him. The church is not a human organization. If it was simply a human organization, it would have faded away and not have lasted this long. But the church was built and established by Jesus Christ. In Acts 5 when the Apostles were arrested, the Pharisee Gamaliel spoke up and said: “So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them (Acts 5:38-39.)” Because Christ has built the church, no power of hell can stand against it or defeat it. So let us remember that the church is much broader than simply the building we go to. The building is the place we gather but it does not define the church. The church is the people of God who have been set apart to be used by him to accomplish his mission and purposes on earth.