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Part I
The First
Phase of the Church
The Spiritual Family Concept
Chapter
1
Winds of Change Blowing in the Church
Many Christians today are coming to believe that there must be a
better way to "do church" than to organize some hierarchal structure we have
devised in our minds, or copied from religious tradition that ends up being
building-bound and clergy-centered. The
tendency these days is for disillusioned Christians to say, "The church
turns me off." Could it be that they really
mean they have not found a
sense of belonging or a vision beyond themselves within their local
assembly of believers? Do they feel lost in the crowd, uninvolved
in church life because there is no place
for their gifts to be utilized or no sense of a greater mission to be
accomplished? (You can have only so many Sunday School teachers, youth and
children's workers, ushers, etc. in a traditional church structure).
People, too, are
disappointed in their leaders. The highly visible shortcomings of several
American televangelists and their demise caused many of God's people, not only
in America, but worldwide, to newly realize
the necessity to function as a priesthood of believers (I Peter 2:9)
rather than to place leaders
on pedestals. Spiritual
priesthood means all believers have direct access to God (Hebrews 4:16) and as a
part of the priesthood, we commit ourselves to a local body of believers who can
pray with us and hold us accountable to what God is saying to us.
We desperately need other believers to surround us with care and
concern, and help us get trained so that we can go out and make
disciples, according to Matthew 28:19, "Go
therefore and make
d i s c i p l e s of all the
nations ... "
Notice that the Bible does
not tell us to go out and make Christians;
it tells us to go out and make
disciples.
The concept involves practical
training, just as Jesus trained His disciples.
But how can we do this?
Old structures and methods in the church rarely get the job done. However, with
the resurgence of people meeting in small groups as they did in the early
church, I believe God is providing us with a solution for today's dilemma.
Small groups provide the setting for
Christians to join spiritual families so they can grow and mature in
their faith.
God wants us to be a
community of believers who are like a city on a hill, an example of a community
that loves and serves one another. Before
we discuss the value of small family groups, however, it is important to
realize that it is Jesus Christ who will build the church. No method or person
can do it, but Jesus can!
I Will Build My Church
Church is
first mentioned in Matthew, where our Lord Jesus responded
to Simon Peter's confession, "You are the Christ, the son of the living
God," by saying, "And I also say to you, that you are Peter,
and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not
prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Although this was a prediction of something
not yet in existence, a new age began with
this tremendous confession of faith. When the church came into existence
(by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ), the wall separating
sinners from God was broken down.
Until this day, supernaturally, through an amazing mystery, God
reaches out and immediately brings those who
trust in Him as their Savior and Lord into a relationship with Him so
that they can be a company of people, one
body, the church. As soon as a believer makes this confession of faith,
he is part of the church or body of Christ
through this supernatural birth. Jesus Christ will build His church among
those who name Him as Lord and seek to follow the direction
of the Holy Spirit who will lead, guide and direct a believer into all
truth.
Scripture then goes on
to tell us that "where two or three are
gathered together in My name, there I will be in the midst of them."
How is Jesus building His church today?
Within His people as they gather together.
The "church" Jesus
speaks of is not a building or a denomination.
It is comprised of all who have been united inseparably to Jesus Christ
and have His life in them as they meet together. The Lord wants a relationship
with His people who are being built together into a "building" which He can
inhabit for eternity. "The Most High does not dwell in houses made by human
hands ... " (Acts 7:48).
After the incredible
Day of Pentecost, when 3,000 people were converted, the believers "praised God,
and had favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such
as should be saved" (Acts
2:47). Were these 3,000 new
Christians gathered into a temple and taught
weekly by a pastor until they matured in their faith? Not according to the
Scriptures. Then how did they do it? The next chapter holds the key.
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