If I asked a 100 people, “What is the Church?” I might get 100 different answers. Everyone has an opinion. There is nothing wrong with a personal view on any subject. Regarding questions related to God, ‘what I think’ doesn’t really hold a lot of weight. When questions like these arise, I have one place to go: The Bible.
Why am I even asking the question, “What is the church?” Isn’t it obvious??? Yes and no. We can all see the things the church does, but is that the true definition? If it is not, are we really living into God’s intention for the church? No, this isn’t a ‘witch-hunt.’ I have been burdened with this question. I sense that God is pushing me to answer this for myself so that I can clearly communicate that truth to others, especially at Bethel Lutheran Church. Yes, this nagging is different than other types of questions that I have to answer. The nagging tells me that this is important for God, for me and for our church. (I am explaining this to you so that you understand that I didn’t just pick a topic and started writing about it. For some reason this question is bouncing around in my heart and head and I am making an attempt to answer it!)
Here is what I have so far…
The Church is an extension of the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ the Son of God.
In other words, the Church should be doing the same things that Jesus was doing as recorded in the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
First: How do we know the Church is an extension of the earthly ministry of Jesus? Let us see what the Bible says.
Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
1 Corinthians 12:27
So in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Romans 12:5
And Christ is the head of the body, the church.
Colossians 1:24
The mission statement of the ELCA (of which we belong) is “God’s work, our hands.” I believe that reflects the biblical thinking about the nature of the church.
Both in Colossians and Ephesians state that Christ is the brain of this operation. Jesus is in charge of his body the same way our brains (both consciously and unconsciously) manage our bodies. The Church is the body of Jesus in the world today.
Martin Luther in his Apology to the Augsburg Confession affirms this when he writes, “This church alone is called the body of Christ, which Christ renews, consecrates, and governs by his Spirit, as Paul testifies when he says (Ephesians 1:22- 23), “And he has made him (Christ) the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness,” that is, the whole congregation “of him who fills all in all.”” Article VII and VIII of the Apology
Second: If the Church is the Body of Christ on earth, what should we be doing?
Once again we need to go back and see the things that Jesus did and make sure we are doing those things.
In everything that Jesus did while He was on earth, he always brought the Kingdom of God. It stands to reason that wherever the Lord is, so is His Kingdom. In Jesus’ first words that marked the beginning of His public ministry, Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe the good news!” Mark 1:15
We represent the Kingdom of God to each other and to the world as Christ’s body. It will never be the fullness of the Kingdom until Jesus returns; however we still represent the Kingdom of God none-the-less.
What else did Jesus do besides bring the Kingdom of God?
Gave the Church the sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion) and instructed us to use these means of grace to experience the presence of God in our lives.
Jesus talked about God. There are sermons, teaching moments and conversations in the gospels with anyone who would listen or engage in discussion. Jesus:
Preached,
Taught,
Led Bible Study formally and informally,
Had informal discussions about God with both small groups of
people and one-on-one.
Jesus prayed. We don’t have the contents of all Jesus’ prayers but not only did He pray to the Heavenly Father but also gave us the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus also prayed quite extensively in John 17.
Jesus mentored others. Jesus mentored the disciples and others. Jesus prepared them for future ministry and news ways of thinking about God.
Jesus addressed the needs of others. Whether it was a healing, a conversation or even a meal, Jesus showed compassion by helping others.
Jesus welcomed others. Jesus embraced people from all walks of life including those who were excluded by the religious leaders of His day. The Kingdom of God is for everybody.
Jesus embraced community and relationships. Not only does Jesus live within the perfect relationship of the Trinity, but Jesus also lived in and taught the importance of community.
Jesus loved. In all the things mentioned above, Jesus did those things in love. About the only thing Jesus didn’t love were demons and the religious authorities that prevented people from connecting with God and God’s love.
Yes, there are probably things I missed. I am hopeful I touched upon the major activities of Jesus’ ministry and therefore our ministry too.
How we do those things and do them better is a different conversation for a different day.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. May God bless you.
Pr. Ben