What Is "The Church"? - (and What Isn't It?)

by Jim Wies

church as it has been, is neither satisfactory to God nor adequate to

the task before us in these closing days of this present dispensation.

Meanwhile, world population is presenting the possibility for a larger

harvest of souls than has even been seen in the cumulative total of

the previous 2,000 years. Advances in technology, communications,

travel, education, etc., are pressing us to radically change our

entire approach to spreading the Gospel and the way we do "church".

At the same time, since so many are becoming discontented with

the status quo and recognizing the need to change, we also find

ourselves at a place of unique vulnerability to changing things in a

wrong direction. In many cases the traditional church has become dead

and lifeless; yet the reaction is often just as disconcerting, as

people leave the traditional churches and spin off into maverick

expressions of disorganized independence, hardly useful to the Lord's

overall Kingdom purposes.

It is my opinion that both the traditional ecclesiology and some

of the consequent reactions that are emerging in many quarters are

both wrong. I propose that we entertain the possibility that some of

what is being called the church is in fact not the church, when held

to the plumb line of Scripture. A return to the scriptural blueprint

is what is needed. It is important to state at this point that does

not imply a return to a first century pattern but rather a fresh

examination of the Scripture for that which is universal and timeless

and can be pragmatically applied to this present hour. We need a 21st

century pattern rooted in the universal truths of Scripture concerning

the Biblical definition of Church.

So how does the Scripture define this wondrous thing called the

Church? Some would define it as the universal collective membership

of all true believers in Jesus. In fact Jesus implied that when He

stated He would build His church, (singular). Matt. 16:18. We need to

see all true believers as part of God's family. The fact is however,

Jesus only mentioned the church one other place in the gospels

(Matt.18) and the implication in this case was that it was a definable

local group of believers; so much so that there was a clearly

definable ex-communication. He then very clearly states a plural

version "churches" in His words to John in the book of Revelation

(Chapters 2&3).

The Epistles then develop the theme of the church, where we find

either "church" or "churches" mentioned over 100 times. So, while

there is one dimension of truth to the universal church concept, there

is just as strong an implication that there are just as clearly

singular local expressions of the church that are independent, stand

alone churches. These are defined in Scripture in terms of

geographically configured, local churches. (Acts 9:31 Then the

churches throughout all Judea,.... 1 Cor 16:19 The churches of Asia

greet you... etc.)

Now the question is, "Does every gathering of Christians

constitute a Church according to God's definition of things?" Some who

have discarded the organized church, claim for themselves the

Scripture from Matt. 18:20 stating "For where two or three are

gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." It is

important to note, however, that scripture was not meant to be a

teaching about the nature of the church, and in fact it is

specifically in the context of instructions about praying. However,

from this has come an entire movement of people supposing that their

small home meetings are actually a church. They may be, but again they

may not be. We must be cautious to not over simplify something that an

examination of Scripture reveals as a bit more complex. I propose

there are other factors (factors that are quite apart from the

numbers) by which we determine if a gathering is, in fact, a church

according to the Scripture, or not.

Let's look specifically at some scriptural descriptions of the

church. The following are 7 analogies commonly portrayed in Scripture

that give us insight into the nature of the church. - A

sheepfold - A Family - A Vine - A Bride - An Army - A

Spiritual Building - A Body.

The church as a SHEEPFOLD... With Jesus as the door to the sheepfold

and the shepherd of the sheep. (John 10:1-18) Relational focus:

toward God and the personal nature of our relationship with Him. This

analogy speaks to us of belonging and protection. Scripture teaches a

very clear membership to the church. You are clearly in or clearly

out. To be in is a place of protection and safety.

The church as a FAMILY... With God as our Father, Jesus our elder

brother, and we as brothers and sisters. "But as many as received Him,

to them He gave the right to become children of God," John 1:12 (also

Matt 6:9; Eph 2:19; 3:14-15; Heb. 12:5-9 etc..) Relational focus:

Primarily toward God the Father and our relationship with Him;

secondarily one another. This speaks to issues of relationship,

fatherhood, and discipline.

The church as a VINE... With Jesus as the vine and we as the branches.

(John 15:1-17)

Relational focus: toward Jesus and our relationship with Him on an

ongoing basis. This speaks of fruitfulness through being connected

(and staying connected) to Him.

The church as a BRIDE.. with Jesus as the bridegroom. (Eph. 5:22-32;

Rev. 19:7,8)

Relational focus: toward Jesus and our corporate relationship with

Him. This speaks of love, affection, devotion, loyalty and covenant.

The church as an ARMY... With God as the Captain of the Hosts. (2 Tim.

2:3-7; 2 Cor. 10:3&4; Eph. 6:10-18; Lk. 10:18&19; Rev.12:9-12 etc..)

Relational focus: our adversary. This picture speaks of spiritual

objectives, order, rank and authority.

The first four pictures of the church primarily focus on our

relationship with God. The Church as an army deals primarily with our

relationship to our adversary. The last two primarily focus on our

relationships with one another. These remaining two give us insight

into how the church ought to be connected to one another. These are

the areas I want to expand a little deeper into in the remainder of

this chapter.

The church as a spiritual BUILDING... With Jesus as the Cornerstone;

the key frame of reference; the plumb line from which the rest of the

building is constructed. Relational focus: toward one another and

toward the foundation of the building. This picture speaks to issues

of the connectedness and structure of the building, and the unique

worship experience that is found there.

"Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but

fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,

having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets,

Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone, in Whom the whole

building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord,

in Whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God

in the Spirit." Eph 2:19-22

"Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men, but

chosen by God and precious, you also, as living stones, are being

built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual

sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. Therefore it is

also contained in the Scripture, "Behold, I lay in Zion a chief

cornerstone, elect, precious, and he who believes on Him will by no

means be put to shame." 1 Pet 2:4-6

Being "joined together" and "built together" into a dwelling of

God simply means we are "connected" by relationship with one another.

And God insists that we be rightly related to one another. The

Scriptures such as 1 John 2:9-11 imply that if we want to stay in

right relationship with God, we must be about the work of maintaining

a right relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. This

means the task of building and maintaining right relationships is not

an optional sideline but rather an essential ingredient of our

Christian life. In fact, God is so concerned that we be rightly

related to one another that He has inextricably connected His dealings

with us to our dealings with one another. For instance, if we don't

forgive others, He will not forgive us (Mk. 11:25,26). The entire law

and prophets are summarized in Matthew 22:37-40 as our being rightly

related to God and to one another.

When we are gathered together in right relationship to one another

there is a setting for worship that is pleasing to the Lord according

to 1 Pet. 2:5. When we get the pattern right, there dwells a unique or

special manifestation of God's presence. (note: Ex. 29:43-46)

So in order for a building to be built, each brick must fit into

its proper place and "connect" to the other bricks. The mortar is love

and commitment. It also necessitates a proper foundation. Being

rightly related speaks as well to the issue of proper structure and

government within the Church. Being rightly fitted and held together

includes understanding how to relate to spiritual authority and how to

properly exercise spiritual authority.

Since Scripture states that the Church is built on the foundation

of apostles and prophets, (Eph.2:20) we are wise to recognize their

value and place in relation to the local Church. Any builder knows you

are foolish to build a great edifice on a faulty or nonexistent

foundation. It will eventually sag and fall. Scripture plainly states

apostles and prophets are that foundation.

Now I would not argue for a moment with anyone who points to that

statement as a reference to the prophetically and apostolically

originated Scriptures. The Holy Scripture certainly holds a unique

place for us and serves as an apostolic blueprint for the building. I

do however, believe that apostolic and prophetic foundations ALSO

include present day apostolic and prophetic people who themselves are

foundational in the building - who's contribution serves to insure the

blueprint is followed and proper foundations are laid for the kind of

church God wants.

You may by now be realizing where I'm going with this analogy. How

many faulty "buildings" do we have, due to the lack of apostolic and

prophetic input either resident within or fed trans-locally into local

churches? Many of the existing "structures" were build on the

foundation of a strong teaching ministry, or a strong evangelistic

ministry, or even a strong pastoral ministry.

But if we want to experience a fully functioning New Testament Church

as we turn the corner into the 21st century, we will have to fully

embrace the entire "five-fold" leadership team of apostles, prophets,

evangelists, pastors and teachers. One of the vital issues of the

Church in this hour is destined to be how to properly build fully

functioning team ministry and/or relate to trans-local government

within the Body of Christ.

The Church as a BODY.... with Jesus as the Head. Relational focus:

toward one another - our connectedness and our function.

" And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over

all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who

fills all in all. Eph 1:22-23

"For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not

have the same function, so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and

individually members of one another. Rom 12:4-5

"For in fact the body is not one member but many. If the foot should

say, "Because I am not a hand, I am not of the body," is it therefore

not of the body? And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye,

I am not of the body," is it therefore not of the body?... If the

whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole were

hearing, where would be the smelling? But now God has set the members,

each one of them, in the body just as He pleased....

"And the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you"; nor

again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you. No, much rather,

those members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary." 1

Cor 12:14-18,21,22

"Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. And God has

appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets...

etc., " 1 Cor 12:27-28

"And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some

evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the

saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of

Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the

knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the

stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be

children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of

doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of

deceitful plotting, but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in

all things into Him who is the head-- Christ-- from whom the whole

body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according

to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes

growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. Eph 4:11-16

We know that God is raising an entire generation of saints who will

volunteer freely in the day of His power to do the work of the

ministry. If the Church is a Body, every member is meant to have a

function. No longer will the work be left to a few "professional"

ministers, but rather, God wants a leadership who will be busy about

the task of equipping the saints to do the work of the ministry. Most

of the people I've known who want to de-emphasis "official leadership"

in the church, or some how "blur" the demarcation between "leaders"

and "members", seem to be doing it out of a commendable and valid

motive to press the emphasis toward every member as a minister. God

does want every member to be equipped, activated and functioning. But

if this is true, then someone has to train them. <grin> Actually we

need both; saints who will be ministers, and leaders who will train

them.

Now lets look at another angle of this analogy and go back to the

initial question of "What is 'the Church' -- and what isn't?" If we

can be-labor the "body parts" analogy as Paul does, let's think for a

moment about what makes a living, viable body. There are quite a few

functional body parts and a few vital body parts. God himself put the

five-fold ministry "body parts" in the body and they are the vital

organs.

This creates a series of questions for me. "Can a body be missing

body parts and still live?" "Will it be hindered in its functionality

but still be a living body?" "Which body parts are valuable to have

but not necessary for survival?" "Are there certain body parts like

vital organs, without which it is not a living body.. or will swiftly

die? "Can you pile a few arms, feet and a leg or two together and call

it a living body?" Of course a body can be missing a foot and it will

be handicapped but still live. But it cannot survive without a heart..

or a liver, etc. And of course not every "pile" of "body parts" is the

church.

Here is what we have begun to see. Not only has the eye said to the

hand... "I have no need of you"; but all kinds of body parts have been

saying "I have no need of you" to the very vital organs God Himself

has set in the Body. The reality is, independence and isolation are

sure signs of unhealthiness or immaturity. Prov. 18:1 states "He who

separates himself is seeking his own desire and is quarreling against

sound wisdom." Instead we are to "Grow up in all aspects into...

Christ... from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by

that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of

each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building

up of itself in love (Eph.4:15,16).

Let me get more specific. Having been part of and around the home

cell movement for over twenty years, I have noted that cells that

either have within them or are connected to "five-fold ministry" vital

organs, live and are fruitful. Those who are not will either drift

apart or worse; degenerate into a sick, introspective, unproductive

cancer cells. Strong words.

I also believe that as we see the culmination of the ages and the

glorious church emerging, it will be a church that is moving in

apostolic power and structure, prophetic clarity, evangelistic fervor,

pastoral care and nurture, and be fed on insight and understanding

from the teaching ministries in the church. It must be corporate or it

just won't happen.

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