What the Local Church Provides for the Believer, Part 2: Fellowship

After a very long hiatus, here is the next part of my paper on the church.

The next practical necessity for a believer to grow spiritually is fellowship with other believers. Turning again to the example of the first believers in Acts 2 This is perhaps one of the most wonderful things about aligning with a local body of believers. But what is the basis for fellowship? Is it a common race, or a common interest? No! Rather, it is the new life we have been given in Christ when we were born again, with new desires and a new drive to please God. In this we can share sweet fellowship with people who may be our polar opposites or even former enemies, just as we have fellowship with God who reconciled us through Christ to Himself when were His enemies. It is this fellowship which we have in Christ that is the ultimate basis for our fellowship with other believers. John MacArthur writes: 

Anybody in fellowship with Jesus Christ is also in fellowship with anybody else in fellowship with Jesus Christ. This is our common ground. It is not social, economic, intellectual, cosmetic, or anything else superficial. Our common ground is that which is pulsing through the life of every Christian--the heartbeat of God (Whitney 149).

It is important here to distinguish fellowship from socializing. Fellowship is when we move past

the commonalities of everyday life in this world to speak of spiritual things, to talk about the 

things of God, perhaps discussing a matter of theology or even praying for one another. This 

fellowship is a means by which God richly blesses the life of a believer, giving him a unique joy 

and stirring up within him a love for his brothers and sisters in Christ. This fellowship which he 

shares with his brethren leads him into deeper fellowship with his Lord, building him up in

Christ.

A Window into Depravity

Throughout history, you can readily find examples which illustrate the absolute depravity of the human heart. The most obvious examples are Hitler, Nero, and many other genocidal world leaders. But in England the last several days, there have been loosely connected incidents which, though they may not have resulted in the number of deaths that the aforementioned examples have, are still a stark picture of the depravity of the human heart. What started as a peaceful protest on Saturday escalated into mindless violence and looting which continues to plague England even now. The culprits, who range in age but are mostly younger people, have been looting and burning down shops as well as attacking police and burning cars. The reason? As one young woman put it, “showing the police we can do what we want.” The same person at the time of the interview was drinking and recounting a night of fun when she and many others did what they wanted with no regard for anyone else. Many, including the rioters and looters themselves, are attempting to shift blame to others, like society or the government. To be sure, there is some blame to be laid on a culture and government that promotes a kind of moral relativism. Some blame must be assigned to the culture of entitlement that these kids have been immersed in. But, ultimately, Christians know that the real reason for this debacle lies in the heart. To put it simply, these youths did what they did because they wanted what they wanted. They looted because they wanted the stuff. They burned because they wanted the thrill of destruction. And the havoc that they wreaked because they blindly followed the desires of their hearts is staggering to see. But though the doctrine of total depravity is graphically illustrated by these events, this must not be an occasion where we marvel at the destruction and lack of inhibition that those involved display, but rather when we turn inward and see our own hearts, how we so often blindly follow them into sin. I know personally that “there but for the grace of God go I.” Do not mistake me, it is right to read about this and be angry, especially when you read about the violence done to anyone who got in the way of the wanton destruction. But it is also an occasion to be saddened by the darkness that so pervades the culture in Great Britain, all of Europe, and increasingly in America. It is an occasion to pray for missionaries to go into this darkness with the light of the gospel, and to pray for the youth in America who are growing up with some of the same attitudes that these British youth are. Total depravity is not just a doctrine formulated in the 17th century with no value for today. It is real, and is seen everywhere in the world. But that is why we need a Savior! We are all more depraved than we know, but if we are believers, then we put no confidence in our depraved flesh, instead putting it in a great Savior.

References:
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2011/08/09/scott-stinson-if-the-london-rioters-were-protestors-they-wouldnt-look-so-gleeful/

Another helpful article from someone in England:
http://oakhill.ac.uk/commentary/11_summer/looters_them_or_us.html

What the Local Church Provides for the Believer, Part 1: Instruction

Here is the next installment of my series on the importance of the local church. This post signals a shift from theological to practical, from laying the biblical foundation of the importance of the church to why it is important for the individual believer to be a part of it.



There are three things that are necessities for the believer according to the Scriptures: instruction, fellowship, and accountability, and these are prescribed in the context of the local church. The first of these is instruction. Christianity is not anti-intellectual, instruction holds an important place in the life of a believer. The primary way that believers are instructed is through the faithful preaching of the Word of God. Preaching is an essential mark of a true church. When we see the first believers meeting after the events of Pentecost in Acts 2, we find that “they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching” (v. 42). And when Paul is giving Timothy some final instructions before he dies, he emphasizes one thing: “preach the word” (2 Tim. 4:2). Preaching is the number one mark of a healthy local church, according to Mark Dever, and specifically expositional preaching, that is, “preaching whose object is to expound what is said in a particular passage of Scripture, carefully explaining its meaning and applying it to the congregation” (Nine Marks 11). Embedded in this definition is the idea that the Scriptures are where believers primarily receive their instruction. 2 Timothy 3:16 says that “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” The Bible is inspired, literally “breathed out,” by God, and as such it contains the very words of the Creator of the universe, telling us about Himself and what He has done, and instructing us in the way we are to live. We are not merely saved by the preaching of the gospel from the Word of God, we base our entire lives as believers on the Word of God, and we gain what we need to do this from hearing the Word of God preached and applying what we learn to our lives. Preaching is under attack in our society. It is considered arrogant for one man to stand behind a pulpit and declare what he believes to be true from the Bible, and thereby exclude all other viewpoints. Leaders in the post-modern Emergent Church movement, who question the existence of absolute truth and doubt whether the Bible can really tell us anything definite about who God is using human language, encourage “conversation” rather than preaching. But the sufficiency of preaching is bound up with the idea that God can and does communicate truth through human language. What is the aim of instruction for the Christian? Is it just so that we can know more for the sake of knowledge? Decidedly not! Though believers are justified, declared righteous by God on the basis of the righteousness of Christ, God still commands believers to pursue holiness. 1 Peter 1:15 tells believers that “as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct.” However, many evangelical teachers today attempt to emphasize this point, while putting down the necessity of proper theology. The motto that these leaders consistently put forth is “deeds, not creeds.” This is an absurd notion, and one foreign to the Bible, especially the writings of Paul. Michael Horton writes: "Paul would have considered it inconceivable that a church might have its doctrine right but be uninterested in missions, evangelism, prayer, and works of service and charity to those in need-or, conversely, that a church might be faithful in life apart from sound doctrine." Orthodoxy and orthopraxy were inseparable and mutually dependent elements of Paul's message.

On Victory

After watching the Dallas Mavericks defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder to earn a trip to the NBA Finals, I started thinking about what I was feeling at that time and how I could turn my thoughts to Christ without completely renouncing what I had just done as a worldly activity. My thoughts turned to why human beings love sports. One word came into my mind: victory. Human beings love what has been called "the thrill of victory." We love to be a part of the winning side, and sometimes survival rests on being on the winning side, as in a battle. But there is always another side, the one that loses. Despite what many post-modern people say, not everyone wins. If there is a winner, there must by definition be a loser. But how does this aspect of sports, which almost all people connect with at some level, point to Christ? Ever since the Fall in Genesis 3, there has been a war going on, with conflict at multiple levels. On the cosmic level, there is Satan, always trying (and failing) to frustrate the divine plan of God. On the human level, the people of God war against their own idolatrous hearts. These conflicts must ultimately have a clear winner and loser. And this is where the gospel finds its way into this musing, because Jesus has defeated both Satan and sin conclusively through His death on the cross! And because of this, the Bible speaks of Him overcoming the world and believers overcoming the world through faith in Him. As I was watching the closely fought game tonight, I felt the tension that every sports fan feels when the outcome is in doubt. But there is no uncertainty with Christ! Victory is a complete certainty, and all who are in Christ are on the winning side! So watch sports, whatever it is, and feel the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. But let us remember as we do, that we will never have to feel the literal agony of final defeat and judgment, and let us exult in the sure victory that is ours in Christ!

The Nature of the Church, Part 3: The Building of God

I'm back! With school out, I shall hopefully be blogging again, with new content, but first I want to finish up this series on the nature and importance of the church, especially the local church. May God be glorified and the Church edified! Here it is:

The third important New Testament metaphor for the church is the building of God. Jesus uses this metaphor in Matthew 16:18, where He promises to “build [His] church.” The second place where it is mentioned is by Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:9-17, where he talks to the leaders in the church in Corinth about building using the proper foundation, which is Jesus Christ. There are three key concepts that undergird the building metaphor: foundation, cornerstone, and edification. The first is the idea of a foundation. In 1 Corinthians 3:11, Paul says that “no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” In other words, the gospel of Jesus Christ is the basis for the existence of the church, and if a church is not founded on the biblical gospel, it cannot be a true church. The second concept is related, that is, the idea of a cornerstone. The cornerstone is the “stone laid at the corner to bind two walls together and to strengthen them” (Logan 349). In the Bible, it is “used symbolically as a symbol of strength and prominence” (Ibid.).  All of the synoptic gospels quote Psalm 118:22, which says “the stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and interpret it as pointing to Christ, who the leaders of Israel, the “builders” responsible for God’s people, rejected. Peter takes this concept and calls Christ a “living stone” which is “in the sight of God chosen and precious.” He also calls believers “living stones” which are being “built up as a spiritual house.” This leads into the last key concept present in this metaphor, that is, edification. To edify simply means to build up, and it is used to describe the growth of believers. Believers are commanded all over the New Testament to pursue the edification of their brothers and sisters in Christ. Romans 15:2 says “Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up,” a very straightforward command to encourage and exhort other believers for their joy and for the glory of God. Edification must be the primary goal of Christian fellowship and communication in the church. Ephesians 4:29 makes this clear in saying that we must consider whether a word is going to edify the other person before we speak. This edification, this building up, is essential if the building of God is going to stand strong on the foundation of Christ and His gospel. The building metaphor in Scripture is important because it points to Christ as the foundation on which every minister builds.

The Nature of the Church, Pt. 2: The Family of God

Here is the next installment in my series on the importance of the local church.

The second important metaphor that the New Testament uses to describe the church is the family of God. This is a pervasive concept in the New Testament, and it can be argued that this is the concept that best defines how the members of the church relate to God the Father and to the other members of the body. There is no one definitive text that describes this concept in depth, but rather there are two explicitly biblical concepts that come together to give us this idea of the church as the family of God. The first is the concept of adoption, that is, God’s adoption of those who believe. Perhaps the most glorious text which describes this reality is Ephesians 1:4b-6, which declares that “In love [God] predestined us for adoption through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.” This magnificent truth, declared in many places elsewhere in the New Testament, is a rich one which could take up a paper in itself, even a book! The truth that believers are children of God is one that professing believers in the visible church in the West today embrace, but they are loathe to  embrace in the same fashion the truth that because of God’s adoption, they are part of the family of God along with other believers. But this is a truth that is foundational to the concept of the family of God, and to the life of the local church. In every New Testament letter, the concept that true believers are brothers and sisters in Christ, with one Father, is assumed. This truth implies a special relationship and a special love which goes deeper than even the love between a traditional family. It is even considered by John to be a mark of a true believer in 1 John, that he loves the brethren, and John is merely echoing Jesus, who said that the love that believers had for one another would define them to the world (John 13:35). The truth that the church is the family of God is a beautiful one, but it is also a hard one, because it defines the relationship believers ought to have with all of their fellow believers, regardless of who they are.

"God, the Gospel, and Glenn Beck."

I have observed with dismay the American equating of Christianity with right wing political conservatism, and this blog article by Dr. Russell Moore, the Dean of the School of Theology at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary really hits the nail on the head.