The origin, agenda, and future of the Church (A few words on slogans, and governing documents)

Regardless if you are a part of a church plant, or a veteran with your own favorite "pew" and seat, questions about the purpose and nature of the church are always relevant. Nearly every church in the United States has some sort of statement whereby the nature and purposes of that particular church are defined. Some of these are grandiose, some are more simple. Churches adopt mottos, slogans, phrases, and quotes as their watchwords to guide them towards the future and remind them of where they have come from. While I'm not opposed to mottos, slogans, phrases, or other such helpful summarizations, it is both troubling and informative when churches speak about their purpose and nature with little or no reference to God's Word. 

God, through the revelation of his word, has provided the definitive authority on the church. As such, it is right and proper for God's Word to be the primary driving authority regarding the nature and purpose of the church. At the very outset of this discussion I can already hear many of my faithful supporters in prayer over the years of missions work saying things like "But Jacob, statements regarding the nature and purpose of a church communicate to unbelievers, as such, it would be grossly unhelpful to quote, cite, or allude to the Bible as unbelievers have no familiarity with it!" While that is a good consideration let's consider for a moment what omitting God's Word from churches governing documents communicates. 

If there was ever a fictional character who epitomizes "making it up as you go" - it'd be Kramer from Seinfeld.

1. Making it up as we go.

For an unbeliever who stumbles across your church's website, Facebook page, or displayed church documents during a visit, an absence of quotes, allusions, or reference to scripture will strongly state that you are making things up as you go. We live in a world of citations, whether in our personal conversations (like, "Did you hear how Maggie is doing? Shelly said she was....), online media (Such as quotes, hyperlinks, and formal references on Wikipedia), and in printed books and newspapers. Citing a source provides credibility to allow inquiring minds to follow a trail. When making statements about the nature and purpose of your church, failing to quote scripture means you fail to invite the unbeliever into learning more from God's Word. For those who are seeking to make disciples, failing to point others to Christ through God's Word is the epitome of failure. 

2. We are a new thing. 

While there is a great appeal to be "relevant" and "in-tune" with current lingo, leaving out references, quotes, and allusions to scripture tells an outsider that your group is rather new, your rules and guidelines for operation are of your own making and have no long standing position. In other words, you effectively communicate "we are new around here, and we don't have much experience". This is the exact opposite as members of God's covenant family! The church is nothing less than the regular gathering together of the family of God as established by Christ over two thousand years ago! Now that's a long history of operation! While a specific church may be a "new" thing in an area (for instance in an area that has previously been untaught regarding the things of God) the church itself is not new. The guidelines and rules for operation are not new. They are not the product of new breakthroughs in the latest realms of spiritual R&D. The nature and purpose of a church is spoken of in great detail and length in the scriptures of the Old and New Testament. The church isn't a new thing and we ought not communicate that we are a new thing by disregarding scripture in our governing documents. 

3. What we say isn't what we do. 

While the previous two concerns have focused on what leaving scripture out of governing documents communicates to unbelievers or visitors, this concern is focused on what is communicated to believers and regular attenders. I've seen it on hundreds of church descriptions, it's a phrase that comes out as "We believe the Bible to be the highest authority in this church" or "We believe Jesus is head of the church". While the attempt here is to earnestly and honestly submit to Christ as the head of the church and His word as the authority in the church, the reality check comes in when not a single word of Christ or a single word from God's Word is then referenced, quoted, or alluded to in the rest of the document! What this absence says is "we pay lip service to God, but our earthly leaders are the ones in charge of the day-to-day". This communicates a gross unfamiliarity with God's Word and God's Ways. If the Bible is such a high authority, why is it absent in the rest of the governing body? If Christ is the head of the church, why is there more detail about procedures for this or that than detail about Christ's ongoing work and His ongoing purpose as the head of the church? 

So, we come back to the original statement again, God, through the revelation of his word, has provided the definitive authority on the church. It is to God's Word that we look to as we seek to organize and be organized for God's purposes. It is God's Word that we look to for navigating challenging scenarios. It is to God himself that we look to when we lean on God's Word. There are a great many books, letters, sermons, and presentations that exist with good teaching regarding the church. So today I'll restrict myself to a few words on 3 truths which ought to come clear in every governing document of a church, be it a new church plant, or a long standing group of believers: God's word reveals absolute truth regarding the past of the church (it's origins), the present of the church (it's current purpose and operating agendas) and the future of the church (it's ultimate destination). 

1. The Church's origin 

As the hymn writer once wrote "The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord". The church has it's founding in the person and work of Christ. Christ Jesus established his church through his life, death, and resurrection. The promise of Christ's eventual life and work was made in the aftermath of Adam and Eve's sin in the garden (Genesis 3:15). The Old Testament family of God was the promised people to whom God had covenanted himself with (Genesis 15-18). God laid out his expectations for his people whom he had rescued from Egypt (The entire book of Exodus). All the expectations of God for his people would be fulfilled in the person and work of God's Messiah (The Christ and his fulfillment of God's Law - Matthew 5:18). Both God's Old Testament family and New Testament family were adopted by God through placing their trust in God (Hebrews 10 & 11 point this out clearly with numerous examples in the OT and encourages NT believers to follow the pattern set by OT believers - have faith in God). The origin of the church today, around the globe, regardless of denomination, tradition, sect, or culture, is found in the person and work of God's Son Jesus the Christ. 

2. The Church's purpose and operating agendas 

Christ gave the marching orders for the church notably in Matthew 28 and Acts 1. In both of these passages there are great "day to day" operational directives. The church is about the business of taking the good news of Christ's life, death, and resurrection to all lands and peoples. This gives the church a "mission". This is where "missions" comes from in the Christian tradition of evangelism. We take the good news of Christ to people who have yet to hear about him (Acts 1). Following Christ's directive regarding missions can take on many forms, such as: mercy ministry, street evangelism, door to door conversations, radio, print, and television evangelism, international evangelism, relational evangelism and more. Evangelistic work is work akin to the delivery doctor. Sometimes evangelists work with a "pregnant" unbeliever who is not yet ready to be born again. Sometimes we work with new believers in the delivery room, as they experience faith in Christ for the first time! And sometimes in evangelism we work with new believers as the delivery doctor handing the new believing baby into the arms of a caring parent who will protect, guide, train, and seek the best for this new little one. 

While evangelism and missions is the "Go" part of Matthew 28:19, instruction in Christian living is the "make disciples" part. This is another massive operational direction provided by Christ. While the delivery doctor does the work of the evangelist to bring new life into the arms of the parents, the church does the work of the pediatrician and personal physician. New believers must mature into veteran believers (notice I did not say "older" - there are a great many I know who are older and not mature in Christ, and some I know who are younger and are much more mature in Christ). The church facilitates learning to stimulate growth, that growth leads to maturity (Colossians 2-4). The work of the church is to make into disciples those who have placed their faith in Jesus and who continue to grow in that faith! The work of the church is to assist, support, encourage, and "fan into flame the gift of God" (2 Timothy 1:6) in the family of God. Christ made his disciples by calling them from the lives they were living, and living among them, day to day, praying with them, teaching them, instructing them, rebuking them, encouraging them, challenging them, feeding them, serving them, calling them to trust him more and more, and making plain the things of God. By these operational directives from Christ in Matthew 28 and Acts 1 we can say that the church has been given at least these two great directives - (1) to go and (2) to make disciples. There is much more that could be said, but for today these two will be where I end this point. 

3. The Future of the church. 

Organizations are stories. Families are stories. People are stories. We all have beginnings, middles, and ends. We all have a past, present, and future. We've discussed the origins of the church (Christ), the church's purpose and agendas (missions and disciple making), and now we close by way of looking towards the future of the church (eternal hope). The church is being prepared in the present for an eternity with Christ. Like a bride eagerly awaits for her groom (Mark 2:19-20) the church awaits for the return of Christ. In the end of all things the church will have eternal delight and will be itself the eternally delightful pleasure of Jesus (Revelation 21:9-27). Christ himself is the victor in the day of days and will invite his church to rest in complete and total fulfillment (Revelation 19:11-21). All the enemies of God shall be crushed, all the evils of the world will be thrown down for eternal departure from God and his church (Revelation 19:19-20). God's church will be gathered together at the largest banquet history has ever known (Revelation 19:6-9). The future of the church is nothing less than eternal satisfaction. 

You can view the story about the Guinness world record longest table by clicking here. I imagine the marriage supper of the lamb will feature even larger, more grand seating arrangements!

  

God is at Work

You might be discouraged after reading this, thinking: 

"that doesn't really sound like my church. My church is a social gathering place, but we don't do much learning. My church is a place for spiritual events, but not much challenge occurs. My church loves the people inside the building, but we really don't love new people well. My church loves new people, but really doesn't make much time for regulars. My church has slogans, mottos, and governing documents, but there isn't much (if any) scripture in them". 

Don't be discouraged! God is at work! I refrain from preaching a sermon from Esther here, but I'll simply allude to the reality that God accomplishes his purposes through eager and willing participants in his work, or through reluctant and ignorant participants in his work! It may be for a time that your church has been an eager and willing participant, and at other times a reluctant and ignorant participant. Be encouraged that God is at work and uses even the most dysfunctional of his people for his purposes and his glory! 

Don't let that encouragement turn you towards an apathetic mindset. God invites us to take part in what he is doing. Remember, the purpose of the church is to be the witnesses of Christ to the ends of the earth and make disciples! If you are a part of a group of believers then hold yourself and one another accountable to Christ's directive. Take hope that God has designed an eternally gratifying future for you and the rest of the family of God. As we take hope in the origin, agenda, and future of the church, let's then also take action as we seek to conform and inform our own church systems, mottos, slogans, phrases, and vision statements by the definitive and authoritative Word of God.