More than just silos…
Notes
Transcript
Putting the Pieces Together
Putting the Pieces Together
Introduction:
“The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”
While the origin of this quote is debated by some… it is thought by many that Aristotle first verbalized this statement.
What reality was he trying to teach his students?
One interpretation of that statement could be taken as meaning… when individual parts are connected together… forming one entity, they are worth more (stronger/ more effective) than if the parts were left separate in silos.
That is the thought I want to challenge you with today. As a born again believer in Christ, you were never meant to be a silo.
Silo’s typically stand in a field storing grain and are for the most part disconnected from other silos and structures. A silo can function independently from other silos… but, as a Christian… you cannot.
When you became a Christian… you were never intended to stumble through life as a heavenly citizen living in exile on earth with no support network or local embassy to care for you.
Last week we saw from Scripture that God has provided the church… the assembly… His embassy on earth… and He gave the church the authority to affirm and oversee the discipleship of each and every citizen of heaven.
This week we are going to continue that discussion by talking about the parts of a church.... its members and hopefully be able to put all the pieces of our discussion together.
Last week we saw that the church is not a religious service… or a voluntary organization to pick and choose from.... the local church is:
an assembly of born again believers who regularly gather together, who are loyal to King Jesus, charged with the responsibility to affirm and oversee each others discipleship, flying the flag of King Jesus each and every time we assemble… making the kingdom of God visible to a watching world.
Today, I want to challenge you with is this question: Is local church membership in the Bible?
If your view of church membership is the same as your Sam’s club membership, Planet Fitness membership, Rotary Club membership or if your understanding of Church membership is based on idea that church is a religious event… or voluntary organization to pick and choose from… then you are right. That type of membership is not found anywhere in the Bible.
But, if your view of Church membership is based on the understanding that the Church is Christ’s embassy of heaven on Earth, then I am going to challenge you to search the Scriptures yourself and prove me wrong today when I tell you that Church membership is actually found all over the New Testament and flows directly from the truths presented in the NT about the Church
One author said:
“Clubs begin with a point of common interest. Service providers begin with a common need or desire. Churches have all this, but they have something more: a king who requires the obedience of his people. The church begins with this fact: Jesus is Savior and Lord. He has died on the cross for the sins of everyone who would believe and follow him. The Bible talks about Church membership as God’s people gathering together under His supreme rule.” (Leeman, 26).
As we Study God’s Word today we will consider several realities about Church Membership. 1- Its is Historically Biblical. 2- It is Extremely Important. 3- It is Absolutely Exclusive.
Let’s start by opening our Bible’s to the book of Acts chapter 2.
Today’s message will be a little different in the fact that we will be looking at several passages of Scripture. Usually we pretty much just stay in the one passage we are studying. This week, in order to get a fuller picture of what the Bible says about being a member of a local church we will be looking at several passages together.
My goal is not to give you a list of my opinions… but to show you what God’s word says about membership…
The first reality about church membership is that it is historically biblical… and therefore is Not a new concept.
I. It is Historically Biblical
A. Not a new concept
The book of Acts begins with Jesus ascending into heaven saying that the disciples would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them and that they would be Christ’s witnesses.... His ambassadors near and far… to the ends of the earth.
The disciples go back to Jerusalem and about 120 of Jesus’ followers are in a room.. waiting to see what happens next.
The beginning of chapter 2 tells us that it is Pentecost, which was one of the most important holidays on the Jewish calendar. Devout Jews would have come to Jerusalem from all over the known world for this celebration. Acts 2:5 even tells us that “dwelling in [or visiting] Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven”.
Acts 2:9-11 tells us the variety of different regions that people have traveled from.
Then, all of a sudden there is a sound… like the blowing of a violent wind (2:2)… and the next thing you know the mob of people at the Pentecost celebration are rushing to see what that sound was… what do they see? The crowd is shocked when they see that the sound was directing them to a group of men, who were somehow preaching in the native languages of all of the different people groups present.
The crowd doesn’t know what to think or do.... then one of the men, Peter, stands up and directly challenges the crowd. He preaches a message about the gospel of Jesus Christ… and points out that the very Jesus that they had just crucified had been called “my Lord” by the great Kind David (2:25).
Then the words of Peter slap the people right in the face when he says in verse 36,
Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
From a crowd of devout Jews, you would have expected an angry outburst… demanding that Peter be punished as a traitor… but what happens, may have surprised even Peter.
Let’s look at verses 37-47 together and see what happens next...
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Verse 37 tells us that the crowd was “cut to the heart”and they ask Peter and the other apostles… “what shall we do?”
He says… go and start listening to worship music.... get some devotional CD’s… maybe even find a bible and skim through it…find some lit Tik Tok’s to help you in your journey... like our Facebook page… and you’ll be on your way!
No, in verse 38 Peter says,
And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Remember that Jesus had just been accused of engaging people in political rebellion.
But, here in broad daylight… Peter proclaims to this huge crowd of people that Jesus is King… and he even goes so far to say that King David and God Himself have verbalized this truth!
Then, Peter tells the crowd to identify with King Jesus through baptism.
As Peter preaches the Word to the crowd… and as the Holy Spirit works in the hearts of men.... God is establishing a marked-off people… a publically recognizable movement…
As we read, it was remarkable to see how the people responded. Verse 41 told us that they received his words, were baptized… and about 3000 souls were added to their number.
Then, as this 3000+ group of newly saved people live life together, gathering in people’s homes, attending the temple together, sitting under the apostles teaching, discipling one another, fellowshipping together, serving one another, worshiping together.... verse 47 says that day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
The Lord added to their number....
This is the birth of the church. This is where it all started....
In Acts 1:15, the Bible tells us that there was a group numbering about 120 followers of Christ. Then on one amazing day… more than 3000 souls are added to God’s Kingdom.... around 3000 names are added to their number. (Joseph… Pheobe.... Gimel.... Mark.... Ginny, Curt, Paul, Steve, Bubba, and a whole list of others...)
Let this reality sink in.... the church… the Assembly… the Ecclesia is born… and they are organized, they are counting heads and they are keeping records.
They know who are part of the assembly… and who is not.
Turn with me over to Acts 4:32. The church continues to grow and there would have been pockets of people regularly gathering together in homes and in various places throughout the city. It is interesting that as their numbers grow larger, the church body in Jerusalem was counted and the assembly, on occasion, was still able to gather together as one group.
Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.
The fact that the Bible says “the full number of those who believed” tells us that there was some kind of record keeping… where the assembly knew who was part of the assembly… who was a member and who was not.
Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women,
Again, records were kept or the phrase “they were all together” would not be an accurate statement.
Picture that… the whole assembly of 3000+ people are gathering together at the temple.
The phrase “none of the rest (meaning the people in Jerusalem who had not responded to faith in Christ) dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem” helps us to understand that each believer identified with the church in Jersualem.... and the community knew it… and the assembly of believers were gaining a good and godly reputation.
Look at Acts 6:1-3 with me.
Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
Here is another example of when the full number of believers in Jerusalem were called to gather together. The number of believers was growing so large that some felt as though people were being neglected and not cared for by the assembly.
Many of us know this passage, when the Apostles tell the assembly to elect 7 men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom to serve the physical needs of the body. Later in 1 Timothy, Paul would would refer to a group of men called “deacons” who are to help serve the church body’s physical needs so that the Elders can be freed to focus on prayer and the preaching of the Word.
As you read through the Bible, I would challenge you to see how Christ has established His church… and see from Scripture that church membership is not a new concept… it is historically biblical.
A Biblical understanding of membership has been described as part of the life of the assembly from the beginning. From its conception, the Church has been made up of identifiable members who have had their confession of faith affirmed by the assembly, and have committed to and submitted to the assembly to oversee their discipleship.
Next, I’d like to challenge you with the reality that Church membership is Extremely Important.... and I would go so far to say that it is Necessary for every believer.
II. It is Extremely Important (Necessary)
A. Church = Members
As we continue to walk through the history of the church in the book of Acts, let’s look at a few verses and see a common thread that runs throughout each passage.
And Saul approved of his execution.
And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.
By the time we get to Acts 8, the church.. the assembly located in Jerusalem (the only church at this point) had grown to at least 5000 members, were meeting in various homes throughout the city, but were also somehow able to still gather together corporately. We saw that in acts 5 and 6.
Now look at Acts 9:31.
So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
Persecution has now forced the mega church of 5000+ in Jerusalem to spread out and now this “church”… “the assembly” can be found and is thriving and multiplying in local bodies of believers spread throughout all of the regions of Judea, Galilee, and Samaria.
There is now an identifiable group of believers in each region.... they know who they are… they are doing exactly what Jesus charged them to do in Matthew 16 and 18… they are affirming and overseeing each others discipleship.... and they are multiplying… so they are engaged in a lifestyle of evangelism and discipleship.
Let’s move forward in history a bit to Acts 11:26,
Peter has been led by the Spirit to preach the gospel to the Gentiles… and by this point Saul the persecutor of the Church has now been converted and Barnabas is sent to find Paul…
and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.
Again… the local group of identifiable disciples in a specific place are called “the church”… the assembly.
The Church is spreading and disciples are being made.... local churches are being born from Jerusalem spiraling outwards throughout all Judea, Galilee, Samaria… and to the uttermost parts of the earth. The Great Commission is being lived out by the assembly…
Then, If you will turn over to Acts 13, in verse 1 again we find that the church… the local assembly in Antioch is gathering, identifying leaders, equipping them for ministry and then eventually as the Holy Spirit leads… they send those identified, equipped and empowered leaders out as missionaries.
“Now there were in the church at Antioch....” (Acts 13:1a)
Each of these passages are part of the history of the church … each time the “church”… the “assembly” is mentioned it is talking about a specific group of identifiable people in a specific location.
There are no silo’s.... the church is never referred to as an individual…
When the New Testament speaks of the church it speaks about its members.
You cannot separate the two. The local church is its members.
Let’s see how the Bible illustrates this. What is the word picture that the Bible often uses to illustrate the church?
Turn over to the book of 1 Corinthians chapter 12.
The image that the Bible often uses to describe the church/ assembly… is a body. A Body of Believers.
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.
For the body does not consist of one member but of many.
The body… is the assembly.... many members… one unified body.
If all were a single member, where would the body be?
Again.... no silo’s.
that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
Paul is expressing that the body.... the assembly is to be a unified group of believers who have committed to and submitted to one another… representing King Jesus... affirming their faith and overseeing each other’s discipleship.
If someone says… Yes, I am a believer.. I am a member of the body, but they have not submitted to and are actively involved in a local church then, what they are trying to do is live a life separated from the very body that Christ has given us as a source of life and strength.
Imagine you are walking down the street and all of sudden you start seeing body parts just laying around… severed from the body.... depending on how long ago they were cut off, they may show the initial appearance of life… but that body part is going quickly begin to decay and dry up.
That is like you and the Church. If you cut yourself off from the body.... you are going to become deceived… and begin to spiritually decay and dry up.
Maybe you would say… well all of these passages are talking about the universal church.
You would be right and wrong at the same time. ...
Remember last week, we talked about how the local church makes the universal church visible. So, if you want to say that the body imagery is that of the universal church… that’s fine… but, you also have to acknowledge that the universal church is made visible and tangible through the local church.
The invisible universal church cannot take on the responsibility of affirming and overseeing your discipleship. You need a local church for that.
When you decide to “join” a local church… its not a membership that you are signing up for… it is a body of believers that you are submitting to so that your confession of faith is affirmed, you are held accountable, and your discipleship is overseen.
Christians don’t join a church.... they submit to one.
Remember that is the local church body’s role and responsibility… to affirm and oversee your spiritual development so that you will not become deceived.... If you are in sin.. yes we are going to confront that sin..... not to embarrass you… not to shame you… but to demonstrated to you that we love you so much that we will not stand by and allow you to deceive yourself… we will not allow you to go on living life thinking that you are ok.
Christ’s glory is too great… and his love for you is too deep to allow you to continue in any level of sin and self-deception.
A Church cannot be separated from its members.... the Church.. the assembly is its members and membership in the assembly is not only biblical… but it is necessary.
I would like to wrap up our discussion by challenging you with one last reality… Church Membership is Absolutely Exclusive.
III. It is Absolutely Exclusive
At what point does a group of Christians become a church?
(Grocery store illustration)
(Bible Study illustration)
A church is born when a group of people commit.. or covenant to take on the responsibilities of an embassy (Affirm/ Oversee) and then begin observing the ordinances together.
When we look at the example of the early church… here is what we see in Scripture.
You are either in… or you are out.
Devoting themselves to one another (affirming & overseeing)
When they were baptized… each believer (with the exception of the Ethiopian eunuch), was baptized into an identifiable body of believers… into an assembly… into a church.
They knew who they were… and the assembly knew them.
In Acts 5 and 6, when the whole assembly was gathered together… they were able to assemble the whole group together…2 they knew exactly who was in… and who was not.
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How did they know? The Lord has provided the ordinances to encircle the members of His assemblies.
A. Encircled by the Ordinances (Baptism & Lord’s Supper)
Baptism:
A Church’s act of affirming a believer’s union with Christ by immersing him/her in water and thereby uniting a believer to the church and marking off him/her from the world.
Baptism is a sign of the gospel’s application.
Both the local church and the believer is involved. The church baptizes… but the believer gets baptized.
Think back to Acts 2 when 3000 souls were added to the Kingdom. Remember what Peter said? Repent and be baptized.... then that day 3000 were added to their number....
What happened when they were baptized? They identified with Christ… had their salvation testimonies affirmed by the body of believers (which at this time were the disciples/ apostles) and through the public profession… their baptisms… they were added to the assembly… they were added to the church…
And on that day the local church assembly of 120 grew to over 3000 members.
A figurative circle was drawn around each believer stating that they belonged to the assembly… they now were a member of the body.
Think of baptism as a helpful way that Christ has given you to declare your allegiance to Him as King! Through your public demonstration of allegiance to King Jesus… you become an active and essential part of one of His local embassy’s.
Through the act of baptism both the church and the individual makes a commitment...
The individual say… “I hereby pledge myself to Christ and to you.. His people to affirm and oversee my discipleship”.
The church says… “We hereby affirm your confession of faith and pledge ourselves to you, a member of Christ’s body.”
Through this commitment/ covenant the believer is united with the church and marked off from the world. .... the church shouts… “hey world… this one belongs to Jesus!”
Lord’s Supper:
“A Church’s act of communing with Christ and each other and of commemorating Christ’s death by partaking of bread and wine, and a believer’s act of receiving Christ’s benefits and renewing his/her commitment to Christ and his people, thereby making the church one body and marking it off from the world.” (Leeman/Jamieson, 25).
1 Cor. 10:17, 11:17-34,
Both ordinances are commanded by Jesus Himself (Matt.28:19; Luke 22:19).
Both of them are acts of both the church as a whole and an individual believers.
Both are a sign of the gospel. They both visibly and tangibly express our union with Christ and salvation in Christ.
Baptism is a one-time event that expresses an individual’s union with Christ and the entrance into the Church
Lord’s Supper is regularly repeated and highlights the whole church’s union with Christ and therefore with each other.
Baptism unites the believer with the Church… the Lord’s supper unites the Church as one body.
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Application/ Conclusion
The goal for today was to show what the Bible has to say regarding Church membership. While there is not one proof text for membership, you cannot read the NT without being confronted with the reality that membership in a local church is biblical, necessary and exclusive.
If you are a born again believer this morning, then you are part of the universal body of Christ. You have been placed into God’s family by the Holy Spirit and nothing can change that. But, if you are not officially committed to and submitting to a local church… a local assembly… a local body of believers that has the authority to affirm your confession of faith and oversee your discipleship, you are in a potentially dangerous place.
None of us are silo’s. None of us are strong enough on our own to fight self-deception… to wade through the wickedness of the world and remain unstained. We need one another… we need the assembly… and King Jesus has provided for us a local embassy. the local church, that functions under His authority and is responsible to affirm your salvation.. make sure it is real… hold you accountable, and oversee your growth, development, and discipleship.
Maybe you are here today and have never submitted to our assembly, you have never officially become a member. I would challenge you to do that. Until you are a committed member of our local church, then our assembly does not have the authority to affirm or oversee your discipleship.
If you cannot submit to our local assembly, then I would challenge and recommend that you find a local assembly that you can submit to… so that your confession of faith is affirmed and your discipleship can be overseen.
Christ’s church was never meant to be a bunch of sanctified silo’s.... but a unified body....
Over the last year we have gone through this series, surveying our doctrinal statement.... our faith foundations. Why did we do that?
They are all connected. What you believe about God affects what you believe about.... the Bible, Man, Christ, Worship, Holy Spirit, the Church and membership…
When I came I found that there were limited records concerning things like church membership and a record of those who had joined with our assembly. So, to help bring some clarity... on October 25th we are going to be having a special celebration of affirmation service.
A time when members can re-affirm their commitment to our assembly
A time when Non-members can take the opportunity to join
If you are a member I hope that on Oct. 25th you’ll stand up and affirm your commitment and submission to our local church assembly. If you are not a member… I hope that you will see the importance of it and decide to officially join with us.
As a believer in Christ… you were never meant to be a silo.... Christ has build His church… and we are here to stamp your passport as a citizen of heaven... affirming your confession of faith, becoming your accountability network and overseeing your discipleship.
Let’s Pray: