The Church
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· 2 viewsThe church is God's people, called out of sin, out of darkness, into His light and holiness. We are filled with the Holy Spirit to continue the work of Christ, Who seeks and to saves the lost.
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We are moving into a new section of the Belgic Confession. We’ve finished examining the person and work of Jesus Christ. We are now going to look at the church, her members and her structure.
Just as there are countless books written about all manner of things pertaining to Christian living, there are also countless books on the church. From poll-driven theories given by George Barna to thoughtful critique from a Reformed perspective by Michael Horton, it can be difficult and confusing to wade through all the opinions. Add to it all the reports in the media and you can hardly keep up.
It is good then, for us to examine the 6 articles in the Belgic Confession defining the church. As we study, we should keep in mind that when the Belgic Confession was written, church membership, that is, membership in a local congregation was assumed. That is no longer the case today. Many people believe they can be faithful Christians and not be members or regular attendees of a local congregation. The New Testament really makes no room for such a position. As we saw at the end of our NT lesson, “and in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” The Spirit works to bring people together, building them together to be the visible body of Christ.
Another thing worth keeping in mind is that when the confession was written, there were few church choices. There was the Roman Catholic Church, the association of Anabaptist churches, Lutheran and Reformed churches. The Roman Catholic Church believed that a rejection of the Roman Church’s authority would lead to anarchy and rebellion against all God-given authority. They had good reason to think this way.
Extremes
Whenever someone, or something, challenges an established authority, there are those who take it to the extreme, some people go too far. Some Anabaptists decided to be like Isaiah and prophesied by running naked through the streets. Others tried putting live coals against their lips. While those were strange and disruptive, a tragic example of anarchy happened under John of Leyden, an Anabaptist leader who led a bunch of radicals in taking over the city of Munster in 1534-1535. They confiscated churches, desecrated altars, burned books, practised polygamy and ended up executing anyone in the city who challenged John’s leadership.
So, in this section of the confession, Guido De Bres distinguishes the Reformed churches from the Anabaptists. Also, remember, this confession was written as a two-pronged apologetic, first, it was a defence of the Reformed church’s orthodoxy. Second it tried to reform Roman Catholic doctrine.
So, now setting forth the doctrine of the church, on the one hand, De Bres is writing against the entrenched mentality that the Roman Catholic Church which says the RCC is the only body of Christ. On the other hand, he’s refuting the prophecy-led, spiritualist Anabaptists who believe that only a special revelation from God to Spirit-filled prophets marks the true church. Many Anabaptists appreciated Luther’s reforming efforts, but they thought he didn’t go far enough. They considered infant baptism wrong, considered civil government at odds with God’s law and disagreed with the Reformed and Lutheran church structure. “If Christians are led by the same Holy Spirit, why do we need rules?” they’d say.
The Spirit does lead Christians; Christ is in us. However, church governance and structure is not at odds with the Spirit. We will examine that a bit more closely when we study the confession’s teaching on structure and organisation.
The People of God
When we first read article 27, were you surprised to see the church as having existed from the beginning of the world? Did you, as many Christians do, suppose that the church began at Pentecost? Many Christians believe in a distinction between Israel and the Church. But De Bres and other Reformers see the church and growing out of Israel, of becoming more like what God planned Israel to be. The church is the people of God, throughout all time and history.
God promised to bless all nations through Abraham. Paul understood this to mean that, all who believe in Christ are children of Abraham and are heirs to God’s promise. There’s a distinction worth noting here, which flies in the face of modern Christian piety. God doesn’t say, “I’m your God and I’ll give you a personal relationship with me.” Rather, God says, “I will be your God and you (you and your family and descendants after you) will be my people.” At the heart of this is God making a promise, God keeping that promise, God saving a people, not several, isolated, independent, individuals.
Consider the great commission Jesus gave before ascending into heaven, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely, I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28.19-20). Jesus refers to nations, not individuals. Indeed, the OT is conspicuous in its identification with people, not persons.
When one person sinned, as with King David, the whole nation suffered. After he ordered the census, God punished David by asking what form his punishment should take. He chose punishment from God’s own hand, because he knew God was merciful and he would rather subject himself to God than to three years of famine, three months of fleeing from his enemies. So he chose 3 days of plague. But the plague was on all the people. 70,000 men died in the plague. But God was indeed merciful and stopped the angel from destroying all Jerusalem.
Later, David prayed, saying, “Was it not I who ordered the fighting men to be counted? I am the one who has sinned and done wrong. These are but sheep. What have they done? O Lord my God, let your hand fall upon me and my family, but do not let this plague remain on your people” (1 Ch. 21.17). Though David was the one who sinned, because he was a member of Israel, all Israel suffered. God doesn’t differentiate between individuals and people. This is good, for just as one man’s sin brought death (Adam), one man’s righteousness brings life (Jesus). Modern individualism misses this deep connection.
The mystery, that was hidden for long ages, the mystery is Christ in you, the hope of glory. This mystery was progressively revealed, first with the family (Adam & Eve) then with the clan (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, etc.) then with the nation (Israel) and finally, the mystical body of Christ. Pentecost doesn’t mark the beginning of the church, but rather the age of the Spirit dwelling in all believers, not just select individuals. We all, together, are the temple, living stones, built by the Spirit for God’s indwelling. This fulfils the promise in Isaiah, “I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.”
Consider 2nd Chronicles 6:12-42, it is fascinating to read Solomon’s prayer at the consecration of the temple. I encourage you to read it, read it this evening, read it with the understanding from 1 Cor. 6.19, “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; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.” Look for similarities and differences, consider how Solomon’s prayer is fulfilled in the church, the body of believers.
One Body
In Christ, God enfolded all believers into one body. There is no longer a separation between Israel and all the rest. Thus the church is and always has been God’s people, members of God’s household, citizens of God, built on the prophets and the apostles, with Christ the cornerstone.
This church is built in Him, in Christ. If we or any other group of people try to build the church in ourselves, or under our own rules and regulations, it will fail. We are built in Christ, joined together in Him, becoming a dwelling in which God lives by the Spirit. Yes, the Spirit lives in us individually, and also corporately, as a body of believers.
The church is holy because we have had our sins forgiven and Christ’s perfect righteousness covers us. We are not yet perfect, but rather the Holy Spirit is sanctifying us. Just as Paul explains in Eph. 5.25, “husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” The church’s holiness comes from Christ, his merits. God is preparing his people for the wedding feast.
The confession says the church is made up of true Christian believers. This means that there are also false Christian believers. For this reason, we distinguish between the visible and invisible church. The visible church is the body of Christ who profess faith in Christ, who are baptised into membership and who desire to worship as God’s word commands. It is a gathering of people like us, who make up the Edson-Peers CRC.
The invisible church is the church God sees, made up of those who are truly elect. The implication then is that there are people who profess faith in Christ, who undergo baptism, but who do not believe the gospel and thus are not of the elect. This is why Peter says we need to make our calling and election sure!
The invisible church, made up of the truly elect, gathers in a visible form, such as the Edson-Peers CRC. This means then that true believers will join the visible church and that the church is filled with sinners, unbelievers and is imperfect in all kinds of ways. And just as there are false Christians in the church, there are also true Christians outside it.
Now, we are called to examine ourselves. We must not go on a witch hunt, looking for false Christians among us. Rather, we guard against false teaching, and people who demonstrate by their behaviour that they are not true followers of Christ—that is, they live like pagans, unrepentantly. We must not confuse these with people who are repentant and who really struggle against sin.
The church is a gathering of believers. Hebrews encourages Christians to “not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Heb. 10.25). Membership in a church isn’t optional. We are obligated to demonstrate the visible church, the visible body of Christ by joining with like-minded people.
We do recognise that, at times, the church behaves poorly. Some people are so hurt by other Christians; they need to be away from Church for a while. This in no way suggests that everyone should just do whatever they want; God obligates us to join a local congregation. Finding a true church can be hard, but the marks of a true church are described in art. 29.
Church attendance isn’t just about us, what we do, what God does and teaches us. It is a witness, a testimony to the world. We boldly proclaim that we are not all that, but we are totally dependent upon Christ and what he’s done. We have no hope apart from Christ’s death and resurrection. Peter puts it well, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy” (1 Peter 2.9-10).
The Foundation Is Christ
The church is formed around the facts of what Christ has done, the foundation is Christ. It isn’t built around perceived felt-needs, or marketing research, or consumer principles. The church unites all people, from every nation, race, social level, wealthy and poor. We are united on the foundation, who is Christ; he’s our righteousness, our confession, our Saviour who does the work of uniting people.
God not only brings people together, calling individuals, families, generations, entire nations, he also keeps and preserves his people. We all are influenced by the numbers of people in attendance. I’m glad that we don’t take a census every Sunday. But I must confess that I judge myself based on the number of people in the pews. I want to see this place filled with people. There are many things we could do to guarantee it, but God isn’t interested in numbers, he’s interested in faithfulness. This faithfulness comes, not by our efforts, but by Christ, who rules over his people, over the whole world.
Because Christ cannot be a king without subjects, he preserves for himself a people called by his name. Elijah lamented the state of faith in Israel under Ahab. We might be tempted to think as he did, that we’re among the only ones left. But God’s answer to Elijah is our answer too, he keeps people for himself, even if we can’t see or recognise them.
I love how Pastor Kim Riddlebarger put it in his message on this article of the confession, “It is clear that God has his people, and that he will preserve them to the end despite our efforts to help him out.”
Paul encourages us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling. This involves examining our hearts, searching our minds to ensure that we truly believe the revelation of God concerning his Son, who was sent to seek and to save the lost. We also acknowledge that we are members of something far greater and larger than we are. It means that we must be continually examining not just us as individuals, but also the church we attend. That the local, visible church conforms to God’s revelation, that she isn’t following some spiritual, self-stylised prophet, nor descending into man-made rules and regulations. So we trust in God’s providence—Christ in us, the hope of glory, in individuals, and in the church! Amen.