WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

WHAT IS THE CHURCH?

There are “churches” all over the world. No doubt there are “churches” where you live. The primary definition for “church” in the dictionary is “a building used for public Christian worship”. In this brief article we will attempt to show that this definition is wrong and does not come from the Bible. The church is the bride of Christ (Eph. 5:22-33), it is the pillar and foundation of truth (1 Tim. 3:15), it is the Body of which Christ is the Head (Col. 1:18), but it is not a building used for public Christian worship.

In this brief study we will attempt to focus our attention on how the word “church” is used in the Bible. We will try to describe the ideas of God by using the words of God. Peter said: “If anyone speaks he should do it as one speaking the very words of God” (1 Pet. 4:11). Peter was right! We need to be diligent to use Bible words correctly for words represent ideas. If we use a word incorrectly this may indicate that we have an incorrect idea. Remember, the very essence of Christianity is to totally surrender to God. Our goal should be for His mind to become our mind. We therefore ought to strive to think as God thinks, and to use words as He uses them. Understanding the church is important for Christ is building His church to last forever (Matt. 16:18).

Another reason for correctly identifying the church involves Christian unity. Not understanding one another creates division as it did at the tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9). The unity of believers is of supreme importance for it is the foundation for world evangelism. On the night before Jesus died He prayed for His apostles, and then for all believers. While believers need many things, the primary concern of Jesus is that believers be united. He said: “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray for those who will believe in me though their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (Jn. 17:20-21). The “message” of the apostles is inspired. What they said about the church is true because they were guided by the Holy Spirit (Jn. 16:13). Remember! “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

Let us therefore focus our attention on how the word “church” is used in the Bible.

THE WORD “CHURCH” IN THE BIBLE

As you probably know, the New Testament Scriptures were originally written in the Greek language. The Greek word for “church” is “ekklesia”. It comes from the word: “ek” which means “out of” and “kaleo” which means “to call”. The word “ekklesia” or “church” therefore refers to an assembly of the “called out people”. Since the ancient Greeks didn’t have radios or other means of mass communication, they “called out” people to an assembly to receive some important message. This “assembly” of people was called an “ekklesia” or “church”. In the Bible it never refers to a building, but only to an “assembly” of people.

The word “ekklesia” is found 115 times in the New Testament Scriptures. While this word is usually translated as “church” it always refers to an assembly of people and never to a building.

Take, for example, this Scripture: “This is that Moses who told the Israelites, ‘God will send you a prophet like me from your own people’. He was in the “assembly” in the desert, with the

angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai . . .” (Acts 7:37-38). The word translated as “assembly” in this verse is “ekklesia”. As you know, there was no building in the wilderness large enough to accommodate the entire nation of Israel. So, even though the Israelites assembled without a building they were correctly called an “ekklesia”.

The word “ekklesia” was not originally religious. It merely referred to an “assembly” of people. In the book of Acts, for example, it is used two times to describe a riotous mob of pagans in Ephesus. So many people were abandoning idolatry that the silversmiths who made idols feared they would go out of business. So they created a riot and the whole city rushed as one man into the theater. The Scriptures call this assembly of pagans an “ekklesia” which is our word for “church” (See Acts 19:23-41). Note that this “assembly” of pagans was called an “ekklesia”.

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“The assembly (ekklesia) was in confusion. Some were shouting one thing, some another. Most of the people did not even know why they were there” (Acts 19:32).

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The city clerk warned them: “As it is we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of today’s events. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it. After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly (ekklesia)” (Acts 19:40-41).

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This warning came because their “assembly” was not lawful. The city clerk, however, urged them to press charges in a “legal assembly” (ekklesia) (Acts 19:39).

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Note again that the word “ekklesia” refers to an assembly of people and not to a building.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY

Christianity is dramatically different from Judaism. The two cannot be combined. Jesus warned about this by saying: “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wine skins will be ruined. No, he pours new wine into new wineskins” (Mark 2:21-22). Christianity is the “new cloth” and the “new wine”. As we have said, Christianity is dramatically different from Judaism and cannot be combined with it.

Jesus pointed out one major difference to the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well. She said to Jesus: “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem” (Jn. 4:20). Note that she was thinking about “places” to worship!

Please pay special attention to the answer of Jesus: “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is Spirit and his worshipers must worship him in spirit and in truth” (Jn. 4:21-24).

THE JEWS EMPHASIZED A HOLY PLACE

The Law of Moses required people to worship at a holy “place” that was designated by God. In the wilderness that holy “place” was the tabernacle. “This is what the Lord has commanded: Any

Israelite who sacrifices an ox, a lamb, or a goat in the camp or outside of it instead of bringing it to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting to present it as an offering to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord – that man shall be considered guilty of bloodshed; he has shed blood and must be cut off from his people. This is so the Israelites will bring to the Lord their sacrifices they are now making in the open fields. They must bring them to the priest, that is, to the Lord at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and sacrifice them as fellowship offerings.” (Lev. 17:2-5)

Note that the Israelites could only worship at the tabernacle. Anyone who worshiped elsewhere was “cut off from his people”.

When the Israelites came into the Promised Land they found that the pagans also had “places” of worship. God, however, commanded them to break down, smash, and burn all pagan altars and to destroy all pagan “places” of worship (Deut. 12:1-3). Soon the Israelites would be worshiping at the temple instead of the tabernacle.

As we have said, there was only one “place” for the Israelites to worship and that was in Jerusalem. This was the “place” God chose to put His name. Jerusalem was the “place” where God commanded Solomon to build the Temple. So the Scriptures continue: “You must not worship the Lord your God in their way. But you are to seek the place the Lord your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his name there for his dwelling. To that place you must go; there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. There, in the presence of the Lord your God, your and your families shall eat and rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the Lord your God has blessed you”. (Deut. 12:4-7).

The next four verses repeat and emphasize again that the people of God can only worship in the “one place” where He chose to put his name. Then, to further emphasize this, Moses repeats again: “Be careful not to sacrifice your burnt offerings anywhere you please. Offer them only at the place the Lord will choose in one of your tribes, and there observe everything I have commanded you” (Deut. 12:13-14).

This is why when the church began in Jerusalem there were devout Jews there from all over the world. That’s because the Jews were forbidden to worship anywhere but Jerusalem. The Scriptures state: “there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven” (Acts 2:5) As we have said, Jews from all over the world had come to Jerusalem for this was the only “place” on earth where they were permitted to worship. Some 16 different nationalities are mentioned in verses in Acts 2:7-11, and they all came to this “one place” to worship. Some of these devout Jews came from as far away as Africa, Rome, and Mesopotamia. This “one place” was an integral part of Jewish worship.

CHRISTIANITY EMPHASIZES HOLY PEOPLE

While the Jews emphasized a holy place, Christianity emphasizes a holy people. The temple of God today is not a physical building built of physical stones, it is a spiritual house composed of spiritual people. We “like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Pet. 2:5). Wherever and whenever the people of God assemble they compose the “ekklesia” and this is the temple

where God lives. “Don’t you know that you yourselves are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit lives in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple” (1 Cor. 3:16-17).

As we just mentioned in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17, the “assembly” of believers is designated as a temple where God lives. Later Paul pointed out to the Corinthians that our “bodies” are also temples of the Holy Spirit. He wrote: “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a man commits are outside of his body but he who sins sexually sins against his own body. 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 with a price. Therefore honor God with your body” (1 Cor. 6:18-20).

In the Christian dispensation God doesn’t dwell in holy “buildings”, He dwells in holy “people”. God not only dwells in us as individuals, but in some mysterious way He also dwells in an assembly. Jesus said: “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matt. 18:20). It is important to remember that God has chosen to dwell in an “assembly” of people and not in a “building”.

THE CONTRAST BETWEEN JUDAISM AND CHRISTIANITY

The letter to the Hebrews clarifies the contrast between Judaism and Christianity. The Christians were told: “You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; to a trumpet blast or such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, because they could not bear what was commanded: ‘If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned’. The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, ‘I am trembling with fear’ (Heb. 12:18-21).

Mt. Sinai is a “place”. It is a physical mountain that can be touched. The fire on the mountain could be seen, the earthquake could be felt, and the sound of the trumpet could be heard. It was a gloomy and frightening physical experience that resulted in the death of 3,000 people (Ex. 32:28). The worship at Mt. Sinai involved physical reality.

Christianity, by contrast, does not emphasize a “place”, it emphasizes “spiritual reality”. The early Christians did not worship in beautiful temples, or ornate church buildings embellished with gold and silver. They worshiped in homes, or any other facilities that provided protection from the weather. The “place” where they worshiped was not important. In times of persecution the Christians in Rome even worshiped in the catacombs beneath the city. The catacombs were an underground cemetery where they buried their dead. So the Hebrew letter continues with this contrast between Jewish and Christian worship:

“But you have come to Mount Zion, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly; to the church of the firstborn whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God the judge of all men, to the spirits of righteous men made perfect, to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel” (Heb. 12:22-24).

While Mount Sinai was a “place” that could be seen with physical eyes, Mount Zion and the heavenly Jerusalem were not physical “places”. The Christians could only see these spiritual realities

by faith. The presence of God, Jesus, thousands of angels, and the spirits of righteous men made perfect were also invisible to unbelievers. While the introduction of Jewish worship was a frightening experience resulting in the death of 3,000 people, the introduction of Christian worship was a joyful experience that resulted in 3,000 people being saved (Acts 2:41).

No matter where you assemble as a church to worship these spiritual realities are present!

WHY DO WE “ASSEMBLE” TO WORSHIP?

If we are individual temples of the Holy Spirit, and if we can worship God anywhere and at any time, why do we need to assemble as a church?

The shortest and best answer is that God commands us to do so. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit the church in Jerusalem assembled and “devoted themselves to the apostle’s teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). We need to do the same. We do not assemble only for our own benefit, however, but in obedience to Christ we assemble that we might minister to others. The Hebrews were told to assemble because of their concern for others: “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us 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. 10:24-25).

Yes! You can worship God all by yourself, but you obviously cannot “encourage one another” by yourself. We need to meet together to provoke one another to love and good deeds. We need to meet together to exhort one another to be faithful for the day of Christ’s return is drawing near. Solomon said: “If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up!” (Eccl. 4:10). When we assemble each week we can help one another. In fact, the words “one another” run like a unifying thread throughout the Scriptures binding us together into One Body. It is God working in us that enables us to help “one another”.

Every believer, as you know, is a member of Christ’s Body “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body” (1 Cor. 12:13). The body is not one member, but many, and we need “one another” to properly function. “The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I don’t need you!’ And the head cannot say to the feet, ‘I don’t need you!’ On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem weaker are indispensable . . .” (1 Cor. 12:21-22). When one member of the Body does not show up at the assembly, or does not function as Christ intended, then the Body of Christ is to a certain extent handicapped. Please do not forsake the assembly!

Every living thing must have an environment to survive. It doesn’t matter whether you are a fish or a flower, an animal or a tree, a bird or a butterfly, you must have a proper environment in order to survive. If you take a fish out of water it will die. If you pull a flower out of the ground it will die. Those who are born again also need an environment to survive and that environment is the church. A burning coal removed from the fire will soon grow cold. The same is true of Christians who do not meet regularly with one another.

CHRISTIANITY IS GOOD NEWS

Imagine how inconvenient and expensive it was for a Jew to worship God. The distance in a straight line from Rome to Jerusalem is 1,434 miles (2307 km). By highway it is 2,511 miles (4,041 km). To worship God in Jerusalem was not convenient. It required many days of travel, and it cost a lot of money in lost wages and other expenses.

Because of the revolutionary nature of Christianity the believers in Rome could worship God from right where they were. In fact, they did so with such success that their faith was being reported all over the world (Rom. 1:8). You too can be like the believers in Rome. You too can worship God “in spirit and in truth” from right where you are. Who knows? Perhaps your faith can also be reported all over the world.

It doesn’t really matter where you assemble. You can assemble under a tree, in a home, or in a church building. It is important, however, to remember that “people” compose the church and not the “place” where you worship.

“To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy – to the only God our Savior be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen” (Jude 1:24-25)