THE Church

Matthew 16:18
....And on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not prevail.....

Maybe I should have written the title for today "Who is the church?" Or "Why is there church?"
Being Southern Born, our view of church is firmly cemented into the collective conscience of our society. After all, being Southern, we are all up into church going.

You will get standard answers if you ask others what is church.
You will get the definition taken from the Greek word "Ekklesia"...That means "The called out "..those collected under a common thought or ideology.
You will hear others speak about buildings and structures uniquely created that automatically point that a church meets here. Building with tall steeples and spires that reach to the heavens. Buildings filled with pews (Unless you're a modernist and want to be contemporary, then you have padded seats), a choir loft and a pulpit.

Churches are defined by several criteria.
Now days, it is all about the extent of the programs and events that are offered by the church. Nothing wrong with programs...they bring a sense of order to the church. Nothing wrong with agenda's, unless of course God's agenda has been jettisoned to make way for man's. Now no one in the right mind would ever actually state that God's plans have been replaced, but in some ways that is exactly what happens. There is a lot of running around-busyness that was not implemented by God, hoping that God will validate their efforts with his heavenly seal of approval.

Am I on a church rant this morning?
No, in fact I love the church.
Sunday night when I attended the Michael Card concert at Rainbow Presbyterian, it felt like going home when I entered the sanctuary. There was a warmth and a presence of God in that room that let me know that this was a place that truly loved and honored God.
It was church....

To me every time a group of believers gather to be the church there are some things that should always be remembered.

1.) Church is for the King (God)

2.) Church is where the Kingdom rule of God is discovered.

3.) The discovery of the Kingdom rule of God is to be carried out into the

daily lives of those who make up the church.

4.) Those who are a part of the church must realize that they have been

created for the pleasure of God.

Just as a parent takes pleasure watching their children grow and mature,

God likewise enjoys watching His children grow and mature.

To me, the verses we find in Matthew 28:16-20 sum up the purpose and order for the church.

V.16 - Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.

 A.) The church must be where God has appointed them to be. There is a set time for them to gather.

V.17- When they saw Him, they worshiped Him, but some doubted.

A.) The ultimate goal, as a community of believers, is to worship and "See" God.

To worship and experience the presence of God through the teaching of the Word. Through our giving of praise and tithes and offerings. 

B.) Like the man who brought his son to Jesus to be freed from the demonic spirits, we took must be honest before God and cry out, "I believe, help my unbelief!"

An honest statement that revealed that the man truly believed that Jesus could free his son, yet there were still areas where doubt persisted.

Would anyone dare stand up in your church on a Sunday morning during the service and cry out "I believe, but there are things about God that I doubt" ?

Church should be a place where honesty and transparency trumps religion and looking righteous.

V.18 -  And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth."

A.) The ultimate goal of any church....
To gather to hear GOD speak.

In this from Matthew, Jesus is making a declaration to His disciples that things are going to be different. He has been given the right to implement the Kingdom of God by passing over to them the right and the power to take it out to others who do not yet know Him.

V.19 - Go, therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

A.) The kingdom dynamic has been given and it begins with the simple instruction of "GO!"

The church is not to hide behind the walls like the last survivors of the Alamo.
We are to be about our Father's business as we move through the workplace, school, the market place.
B.) No where does this proclamation of Jesus declare to us that we are to make Church converts.
We are in the disciple making business.

I know this is going to sound weird and maybe offend someone, but hear me when I say that the only way to make disciples is to become intimate with God.

Sexual intimacy between a married couple will result in the creation of new life.
Spiritual intimacy between us and God will also produce new life.

That life has to be held responsible by someone, and that someone is us, the church.
We must train, equip and nourish those disciples that are birthed through our church.

V.20 - Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you, and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen

A.) How can I teach someone else if I am not observing (doing, practicing and applying to my own life) what God has commanded me to do?

B) And the final kicker----God is with us always. Twenty four hours a day...seven days a week.....365 days a year. IF that be the case, then maybe I should go about practicing the presence of God. Learning to hear Him as I move through my day. Resting in the knowledge that He truly is always there with me.

Now, lets go be the church....
Class dismissed.

God on you...

mb