5 - Purposes of the Church & NOW Kingdom - Part 1 - The Church

We open with the question: “Are the Church and the Kingdom the same thing?” The answer is, sort of, and no. So, let’s take a look at both and draw some biblical conclusions. In this section we will look specifically at the Church and will followup in Part 2 with the Purpose and Value of the NOW Kingdom.

THE EARLY CHURCH

The Purpose of the Early Church

The Church, even in its infancy, had many responsibilities to the Christians in their towns. Paul breaks it down for us, not so we would be able to see how the ancient Church functions, but so we would have it as a model. Some theologians believe Paul embellishes as he tells of the early church to impress upon his readers the fullness of the Churches potential – even suggesting that this model was not expected to be a lasting one. I personally cannot find any unnecessary or extreme acts in his description.

Let’s break this passage from Acts 2 down to see the whole intention of the Church, so we can get a grip on the Church’s purpose as presented by the Apostle Paul.  According to Paul, the church did . . .

• conduct public baptism in the name of Jesus for the repentant converts.

• teach to their group the true doctrine of God given them by the apostles.

• break-bread daily together in obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ.

• pray in fellowship together with the Lord.

• work to maintain a shared culture of reverence for the Lord.

• display the power of the church of Jesus Christ by letting His miraculous nature be seen through the work of the Apostles (then). And later shared the same as witnesses to these things.

• maintain a creed of fellowship whereby they could remain associated with those things on which it was necessary to agree, such as:

  • That Christians be unified together in the worship of the Lord Jesus Christ,

  • That Christians understand the need to follow for life all the instructions of God,

  • That Christians seek together to love God,

  • That Christians serve each other in their mutual struggles and victories,

  • That Christians collectively live for the purpose for glorifying God,

  • And that Christians joyfully work together to take the Good News of Christ to all the world.

Although the landscape of the Church has changed as it spread into many cultures and increased in size, I see no flaws that need be corrected in this model for it to fit today. Also notice that everything the church was about was the collective fellowship of the people of God.

The first thing that was necessary was to grow the Church and make members of the converts. We are told in Matthew 28:19 to: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,”

Accepting Jesus Christ as one’s Lord and Savior is a very personal thing between a person and God. Getting a person to the place where a relationship with the Lord is understood as possible is the job of the Church. Therefore, the church is responsible for setting people into action so they will carry the Good News to the lost. But the relationship that inspires the fruit of salvation in another is the act of an individual member or members of the kingdom.

Remember that the Holy Spirit enters a Christian upon their acceptance of the free gift of salvation. As the Holy Spirit enters, He brings with Him the power, joy, and peace that only He can provide. With that power, man carries the message and the Holy Spirit to the next man or women who will accept it. In this schema we can start to see how the church and the kingdom work together.

The next necessary act of the Church is to encourage and conduct baptism. The Church is directed by Christ to conduct believer’s baptism, which accomplishes three things. By conducting the baptism, the church is being obedient to Jesus, by receiving baptism the new Christian is modeling the life of Jesus in their life, and by doing so they make a public profession of faith to the church body, whereby becoming unified with the church’s collective mission to spread the Gospel. This is the process Paul describes in Acts 2:41, which results in the new Christian committing to the church. and being granted by God membership to His kingdom.

Acts 2:42 identifies the need for fellowship. The benefits of fellowship are identified throughout Acts 2:40-47 as:

• Generosity

• The becoming of one heart

• Benevolence

• and Sharing

Hebrews 10:25 helps us see one of the best benefits of fellowship:

Hebrews 10:25 (ESV)

…not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.

Through fellowship, the members of the Church will become reliable companions faithful in lifting each other up through encouragement. Hebrews 10:25 also collaborates with Acts 2, the idea of gathering together. Acts 2:46 tells of these early Christians joining together in the temple and together in all of their homes daily. Of course, Hebrews 10:25 does not mention any particular meeting places like Acts2, but it does represent the necessity to meet together.

Consider for a moment how dedicated to the idea of meeting together the people of the early church were. Today, we might assert that this original behavior represents a need or expectation of being in the church every time the doors are open, but I believe such a mandate falls short of the Bibles message of gathering.

Notice that Acts 2:46 does not say that they met in the temple and broke bread. No, they met in the temple and broke bread in their homes. This is significant for two reasons. It identifies that fellowship is not only to be experienced in church, and that some Christian ceremonies were not conducted in the temple (church). Be careful that you do not hear me saying church is not necessary. As we take a look at the conduct of the early church regarding their desire to do all that they were instructed, you may find yourself a bit convicted.

The place of the Early Church

Acts 2:42-47 provides a snapshot of the startup of the established Church. We can see that the church of which Paul writes is not necessarily one of a particular type of building, but is a place or places where Christians meet. Acts 2:46 identifies the temple as well as homes as the places where the people would meet. It seems that people met at the temple for the things of the temple and in homes and other places to fellowship and worship in the name of the Lord, teach and receive instruction, and do other specifically Christian religious activities.

One of those rituals that would have necessarily been done in a home would have been The Eucharist. Both Acts 2:42 and :46 identify the breaking of bread. :42 identifies it as a doctrinal responsibility along with prayer and fellowship, while :46 identifies bread breaking and other things as daily activities everyone performed. Notice that in :46 the whole congregation met daily in the temple, but only broke bread in homes.

Act 2:46 (KJV)

Also continuing daily with one accord in the temple, also breaking bread at every house, they were partaking of food in gladness and simplicity of heart, 

Breaking of Bread and the Early Church

It seems common for some theologians to express a belief that the “breaking of bread” spoken of in this Acts 2 strictly refers to the formal celebration of the Eucharist, but it is more likely that it is a reference to eating in fellowship with each other in the name of the Lord. A simple home gathering of like-hearted people joining together to eat what the Lord had provided, and while doing so shoring appreciation to the Lord.

As it relates to the formal Eucharist, it was common for homes to have a worship room, so it is possible that the Lord’s Supper was performed in a formal way in a home, just as it might be done today in a church. The early Christians in Judea would likely not have been able to openly celebrate the Eucharist in the Synagogue, so they would have had to do it is secret.

Now, please don’t think me a heretic when I say it is more likely that the breaking of bread was a formal act related to an actual meal that included an intentional acknowledgement of Christ. That the breaking of bread spoken of in Acts 2 identifies a fellowship of believers rather than a formal religious ceremony. Jesus said to remember Him when the bread is shared around the table and when the wine is drunk at the end of the meal. Nothing about the meal process was any different from the normal meal, only the basic elements of the meal were specifically designated as the articles of remembrance. In this way, the Lord may have made a way for He and His message to be acknowledged every day.

Luke 22:19-20 (KJV) And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. 

To Jews, bread and wine are symbols acknowledged at every meal. Bread represents the provisions of God, while wine represents Joy in obedience to God. Both were common elements to be found on the Jewish dinner table, before, in the times of Christ’s life, and after. Even before Jesus’ arrival on earth, breaking bread at the dinner table had meaning.

At the beginning of the meal, the head of the table would take the bread, break it open, and say: "Blessed are You, O LORD our God, King of the Universe, Who has brought forth bread from the earth." Traditionally, it is understood that the ritual of “Breaking the Bread” is only done as a part of a meal. Its purpose was to acknowledge God as God and give thanks for the meal.

I believe we can understand that in the time of Paul’s writing of Acts, the tradition of the blessing of “Breaking Bread”, and the religious practice of the Lord’s Supper both existed. It is believable that at every meal of the Jews and Christians, the bread was broken as a blessing and thanksgiving for the meal, that doing so represented faith, and that the wine that was served at the end of the meal would be acknowledged still as a symbol of joy.

What is different for Christians is that the bread represents Christ’s body as the bringer of a New Covenant and the wine represents the saving blood of Jesus Christ and the joy that follows the awareness of salvation.

Imagine what it must have been like for a now new Christian Jew to enter a Temple in Judea. This is where they had traditionally met with God, so nothing would have to change in that respect, but what about other activities?  What they were not able to do in the temple was worship and teach on Jesus Christ. Jesus did teach in various synagogues in Galilee and Paul is notorious for having preached first in the synagogues of the towns to which he would minister – and for both of them, doing so was dangerous.

Today we, in USA, are allowed to assemble in the name of the Lord in any place we like, whether it be a church or a home, daily if we choose – DO WE DO AS PAUL’S MODEL SUGGESTS and eat in groups for the purpose of honoring God? (conviction?)

Prayer and Learning in the Early Church

Acts 2 tells of how these new Christians devoted themselves also to prayer and the learning of the doctrine of the disciples. Most biblical historians believe Christians did pray in the temples (synagogues) alongside non-Christian Jews but met outside of the temple on the temple grounds and secretly in homes for open Christian fellowship, worship, and other religious practices such as teaching. It is not thought that there existed a managing authority over the local synagogue that could exclude Christians from using it, but that it could be dangerous for Christians to use the temple to worship Christ and openly teach of Him. Therefore, it seems logical that any formal Christian worship, teaching, or celebration of the Eucharist would only be performed in home-churches.

We can see that in the earliest times of the Church, people assembled and did whatever was necessary to worship, pray, and teach of Jesus Christ. Those things they could not do openly were still done in gatherings of men and women, just not in the temple. Overall – Christians congregated together as directed in by God in the temple and whatever place was appropriate. Although the temple was one place God intended for them to meet, meeting in other places together was encouraged.

Even in Hebrews 10:25, which we give credit for telling us how important it is to meet together, we see some commonality with Acts 2:40-47. The Church is all about the people of Christ. It was the intention of the Lord that the Church would be a place of Christians, for Christians, and would facilitate action by Christians. Acts 2:47 tells us that the Lord was actively adding to the Church all those who would believe. He was growing the kingdom so the church would have the manpower to do as He created it to do.

THE NOW CHURCH

There is no profound shift or more modern definition of what constitutes the modern church. The purpose of the church today is no different than the purpose of the church in the first century.

Acts1:8 (KJV)

But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Matthew 28:18 (KJV) And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

As to the purpose of the church, C.S Lewis said “the Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs, . .”  This sums up these 2 passages perfectly. The people of the church are collectively responsible for taking the Good News of Jesus Christ to everyone and creating healthy, well informed, and capable duplicates of themselves, so they can intern do the same.

I like the simplicity of Rick Warren's, "5 things God wants Christians to do": He identifies them as :

• Worship – whereby surrendering my life purpose to His will and glory.

• Fellowship – in such a way that I fall in love with all the people of His family.

• Discipleship – a process of making new Christians mature and ready to serve.

• Ministry – by using my gifts & blessings to serve and help the fellowship and the lost.

• Witnessing – to bring more people into the church who will be baptized in the name of God.

  
  

Now, go back to how we got started on this discussion about the Church?

Acts 2:40-47 (KJV)

Also with many more other words he was testifying and exhorting, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation”; then those, indeed, who gladly received his word were immersed, and there were added on that day, as it were, three thousand souls,  and they were continuing steadfastly in the teaching of the apostles, and the fellowship, and the breaking of the bread, and the prayers.  And fear came on every soul, also many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles, and all those believing were at the same place, and had all things common, and they were selling the possessions and the goods, and were parting them to all, according as anyone had need.  Also continuing daily with one accord in the temple, also breaking bread at every house, they were partaking of food in gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people, and the LORD was adding those being saved every day to the Assembly. 

This passage represents the Church as it was then, and identifies what the purpose of the Church is expected to be NOW.

AMEN!