THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH.
"See that thou make all things according to the pattern that was showed
thee."--Heb. 8: 5.
Introduction. My early ideas of the church, its doctrines, and of the
teachings of Christ as revealed in the New Testament, were rather
general and vague. As is usual, it was chiefly a matter of hereditary
traditions. After I found my way back to Christ and to belief in the
Word of God, the question naturally arose, which church shall I join,
if any? Sectarian divisions had a hand in driving me into infidelity
and confusion, and I was now compelled to investigate more closely this
strange puzzle. As I have already intimated, what I learned at
Meadville about baptism and the teachings of the various religious
bodies, had directed my attention to the people generally known as
"Disciples of Christ" or "Christians," who are working for Christian
union through the restoration of the primitive church. I will now give
the result of my study of the model church as revealed in the New
Testament.
NOTE.--Most of this and the following chapter are taken from my booklet
on "The Church of Christ: What It Is, and Why It Exists."
THE CHURCH OF CHRIST.
The primary meaning of the word _church_ is a local body of Christians
organized for work and worship (Acts 14:27). From this its meaning
enlarged so as to apply to the members of all the churches (Eph. 3:10),
and finally to all the saints in heaven and on earth (Heb. 12:23).
_Of Christ_ expresses the church's relationship to Christ. It is
Christ's church. He bought it (Eph. 5:25), built it (Matt. 16:18), and
is its foundation (1 Cor. 3:11). It is his body (Rom. 12:5), of which
he is head (Col. 1:18) and which is so identified with him that it is
called Christ (1 Cor. 12:12); it is his kingdom over which he is king
(Matt. 16:19); it is a fold of which he is the shepherd (John 10:16);
he is a vine of which the members are branches (John 15:5); it is his
house (Heb. 3:6); it is his dearly beloved wife (Eph. 5:25; 2 Cor.
11:2). Christ so loves the church and identifies himself with it
because of the sweet, loving, spiritual fellowship there is between
himself and it; and because it is his visible representative here on
earth, and the instrument through which the Holy Spirit's work in the
conversion of the world and the sanctification of believers, is carried
on.
Other names given to the church are "church of God" (I Cor. 1:2),
"churches of God" (I Thess. 2:14), "churches of saints" (I Cor. 14:
33), "temple of God and of the Holy Spirit" (I Cor. 3:16), and "the
pillar and ground of the truth" (I Tim. 3:15). All these names are
Scriptural and proper when used in the proper way.
Church-members.
The members of the church or churches of Christ are called "Christians"
(Acts 11:26; I Pet. 4:14, 16), "disciples" (Acts 9:1), "saints" (Rom.
1:7), "brethren" (I Cor. 15:6), "members" (Rom. 12:5), etc., all of
which names are right when used to express the proper idea or
relationship.
The Greek word for church is _ekkleesia_ and comes from _ekkaleoo_,
which means _to call out_ or _summon forth_; and members of the church
are the ones who have been called of God (2 Tim. 1:9) through the
gospel (2 Thess. 2:14) from a life of sin to a life of holy service
(Acts 26:16-18). Church-members or Christians are said to be "saved,"
"elected," "washed," "sanctified," "redeemed," "recreated,"
"regenerated," "translated," "espoused," "converted," "reconciled,"
"adopted," "quickened," "resurrected," etc. This gives us an idea of
the radical change that must take place before a person can become a
true church-member. It will be noticed that the change expressed by
these terms is twofold. The one is subjective, and the other objective.
The one is a change of heart or character, and the other is a change of
state or relationship to God. The heart is changed by the Holy Spirit
(John 3:5), through the preached gospel (1 Pet. 1:23), which leads to
faith (Rom. 10:17; Acts 15:9) and repentance (Acts 2:38); while the
attitude toward God is changed by confession (Rom. 10:9), obedience in
baptism (Acts 2:38) and by God's pardon to the sinner (Acts 2:38). The
necessity of this twofold change is manifest from Christ's teaching
when he says, "Make disciples of all nations, baptizing them" (Matt.
28:19), "Preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is
baptized shall be saved" (Mark 16:16), and "Except a man be born of
water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John
3:5). Also by the teaching of the Apostles when they say, "Repent, and
be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost"
(Acts 2:38), "And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and
wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord" (Acts 22:16), "Not
by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his
mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration and the renewing of
the Holy Ghost" (Tit. 3: 5), "For ye are all the children of God by
faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into
Christ have put on Christ" (Gal. 3:26, 27), "For by one Spirit we are
all baptized into one body...and have been all made to drink into one
Spirit" (1 Cor. 12:13), "The like figure whereunto even baptism doth
also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but
the answer of a good conscience toward God), by the resurrection of
Jesus Christ" (1 Pet. 3:21), "Know ye not, that so many of us as were
baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we
are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was
raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also
should walk in newness of life" (Rom. 6:3, 4).
If it were God's purpose to simply save individuals, privately and
without human agency, the subjective change of heart is all that would
be necessary. But a home must be provided for the nurture of the
new-born spiritual babes and a church organized to herald the gospel to
every creature; therefore, a definite act of open committal or
enlistment is required in baptism. When this becomes thoroughly
understood, the emphasis the New Testament puts on baptism will be
appreciated, and people will no longer avoid the passages that refer to
it, or try to explain them away. Neither faith, repentance nor baptism
have any saving virtue in themselves. They are important only because
of their relation to Christ and the sinner. As Christ has made them
conditions of salvation to those who have heard the gospel, they must
either obey or be rejected because of a rebellious heart (Luke 7:29,
30).
We learn that to be qualified for membership in Christ's church a
person must know the Lord (Heb. 8:11), must believe in him (Acts 8:37),
must repent of his sins (Acts 2:38), must confess him as Christ (Rom.
10:9), and must obey him from the heart in baptism (Rom. 6:17). All
these are conscious, personal acts that must be performed by the person
becoming a member. No one can become a member by purchase, fleshly
birth, or the obedience of parents or other persons. It will also be
noticed that according to the teaching of the New Testament the
conditions of salvation and church membership are the same. The New
Testament never speaks of persons as saved or Christians who are not
members of the church of Christ where they live.
Church Officers.
On the divine side the church of Christ is a kingdom with a
constitution and an absolute ruler. But the administration of this
kingdom, as it comes in contact with the varying conditions that
confront it in the world, is left to the local church with its
officers. Officers are elected to increase the efficiency of the church
in service (Acts 6:1-7). In Eph. 4:11, 12, we learn what the officers
of the church of Christ are and why they are appointed. "And he gave
some apostles; and some prophets; and some evangelists; and some
pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of
the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ." Deacons were
also appointed to serve tables and assist in other ways (Acts 6:1-7;
Phil, 1:1). The Apostles were personally commissioned by Christ (John
20:21-23; Acts 26: 16), miraculously inspired to teach (1 Cor. 2:12,
13; 1 Pet. 1:12) and endowed to perform miracles (2 Cor. 12: 12) and to
confer miracle-working power on others (Acts 8:17, 18). After the
church was thoroughly established and the New Testament written the
apostolic office with its miraculous accompaniments ceased (Heb. 2:3,
4; 1 Cor. 13:8). Prophets were appointed by miraculous endowment and
ended with the same. Evangelists, elders and deacons are the permanent
officers of the church of Christ. The special work of evangelists or
preachers is to make disciples and to organize and strengthen churches.
Elders, or bishops, or pastors are local church officers, a plurality
of which was appointed in each church (Acts 14:23). Their function is
concerned with the spiritual welfare of the church. The work of deacons
has already been indicated. The qualifications of evangelists, elders
or bishops and deacons are given in the epistles to Timothy and Titus.
The church officers are selected by the members (Acts 6: 1-7), and
important matters of discipline are decided by a majority vote of the
church (2 Cor. 2:6, see Greek). The local church government then is
administered by a majority vote of its members and by the officers
authorized by such a majority. Outside of Christ and the Apostles the
New Testament does not recognize any authority higher than that vested
in the local churches. General ecclesiastical organizations and church
dignitaries with high-sounding titles are human inventions that were
added later. Where there is no organized church to act, individual
Christians have authority to administer the affairs of the church or
kingdom (Acts 8: 4; 9: 10-18; ii: 19-21). The only apostolic succession
endorsed in the Bible is that which results from following the example
of the Apostles in teaching and practice.
A Christian's work in the local church is obligatory under Christ. In
addition to the local church work, early Christians co-operated in work
covering a large territory and scope; and formed a simple organization
for this purpose (1 Cor. 16:3; 2 Cor. 8:18, 19, 23). This example shows
that voluntary organization of individual Christians for general
co-operative work is proper and Scriptural. Of this nature are
missionary societies and benevolent associations which are formed to
carry on general work, but have no ecclesiastical authority.
_The Mission of the Church._
The mission of the church is to perpetuate and perfect itself and to
add to its membership, through evangelization, the entire world as far
and as fast as possible. The fundamental means adopted to carry out
this mission is the church service. Our word _church_ is not derived
from the New Testament word used in speaking of the body of believers,
and it has a tendency to hide the real idea of the New Testament. It
primarily refers to a church building, then to the body of believers
worshiping in the building, and finally to believers in general. The
inspired writers use the word _ekkleesia_, which means a gathering of
people called from their homes into some public place. A correct
translation would be _"assembly"_ or _"congregation,"_ as it has
reference primarily to a local body of Christians assembled for work
and worship. If this primary idea were restored, it would make mightily
for the strengthening of Christ's kingdom. We usually put the emphasis
on the church _in general, universal_ and _invisible,_ while the Holy
Spirit puts the emphasis on the _local, visible_ and _tangible_ church.
Our practical duties are connected almost entirely with the local
church to which we belong and through which we chiefly help to build up
the general and invisible church. The church is the assembled
Christians first of all, and the first duty of Christians is to
assemble (Heb. 10:25). For people to say that they belong to the church
(assembly), who do not assemble or attend the church services, is an
anomaly, strictly speaking.
The purpose of the assembly or church services is revealed to us in
Acts 2:42, where we have a record of the practice of the first church
of Christ. We read, "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles'
teaching and in fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."
Here are four things mentioned as belonging to the service of the
church. The first has reference to teaching the Word of God or, more
especially, the teachings of Christ as revealed through his Apostles in
the New Testament. The Apostles received their teaching through the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit who revealed in the New Testament all
things necessary for our guidance and edification (2 Pet. 1:3; Jude 3).
Christ gave his Apostles commandments before his ascension (Acts 1:2),
which they were to teach to the church (Matt. 28:20), and the church is
exhorted to give heed to these commandments (2 Pet. 3:2). Not all the
commandments that Christ gave while on earth are for the church, but
only those he instructed the Apostles to teach after the descent of the
Holy Spirit and the establishment of the church on Pentecost. Paul
exhorts Timothy to commit unto faithful men, who are able to teach
others, the things he had heard from him (2 Tim. 2:2), and further
exhorts him, "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Tim.
2:15); "I charge thee therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ,
who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his
kingdom; preach the word, be instant in season and out of season;
reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long-suffering and doctrine" (2 Tim.
4:1, 2). Alas! how often this last solemn charge of Paul goes unheeded.
We preach in season and out of season, but do we preach the Word of God
as we ought? The emphasis the New Testament puts on the Word of God can
scarcely be overestimated. It is the incorruptible seed (1 Pet. 1:23)
employed by the Holy Spirit to beget the Christian (Jas. 1:18; 1 Cor.
4:15); it is the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:17) by which he pierces
the sinner's hard heart (Heb. 4:12) and brings conviction to his soul
(John 16:8,9); it is the nourishment for the new-born spiritual babe (1
Pet. 2:2); it is the means used by the Spirit to strengthen, sanctify
and build up the members of the church (1 Thess. 2:13; John 17:17; Acts
20:32); it "is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction,
for instruction in righteousness; that the man of God may be perfect,
thoroughly furnished unto all good works" (2 Tim. 3:16,17). No other
books were used in the early church as authoritative and all efforts to
replace it or to supplement it with human creeds, catechisms or
disciplines is an unwarranted effort to steady the ark of the Lord.
The second item of the public services is _fellowship_. The original
word here is _koinoonia_, which, according to Dr. Thayer, means "joint
participation," "a benefaction jointly contributed, a collection." The
word sometimes refers to joint participation in religious privileges
and sometimes to joint collections or contributions made for gospel
work. It seems to have the latter meaning here, as spiritual communion
is embodied in the next item. That this was a feature of the public
service is apparent from the words of Paul in I Cor. 16:2, "Upon the
first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God
hath prospered him." The Emphatic Diaglott translates thus, "Every
first day of the week let each of you lay something by itself,
depositing as he may be prospered." While Paul gives these directions
in reference to a particular collection taken for the poor saints in
Judea, it is evidently given because it embodies the divine wisdom as
to the best way of raising church money. It teaches that _each_
church-member is to give _weekly, according to his ability_. When this
precept is practiced and we restore the liberality of the primitive
church (Acts 2:44, 45; 4:32, 35), there will be no financial problem in
the church.
The third item in church worship, according to Acts 2: 42, is the
"breaking of bread," or the Lord's Supper. This was the most important
thing in the early church service. It was to commemorate the death of
Christ and to point forward to his second coming (I Cor. 11:26). Every
Christian is under obligation to partake of the Lord's Supper (I Cor.
11:24), but each must examine himself before eating lest he eat
condemnation to his soul (I Cor. 11:28, 29). The greatest thing in the
Lord's Supper is a spiritual eating or communion (John 6:32-58), and
this is needed frequently. The primitive churches of Christ observed
the Lord's Supper whenever they met for worship (I Cor. 11:20), and
this we learn was every first day of the week. "Upon the first day of
the week when the disciples came together to break bread" (Acts 20:7).
The Greek article "tee" here indicates that it was on _every_ first day
of the week that they met to break bread and this is confirmed by I
Cor. 16:2. The early churches never met for worship on the seventh day
of the week or on the Sabbath, but always on the first day of the week,
or on the Lord's Day, in commemoration of Christ's resurrection from
the dead. It was the practice at first to have a meal in connection
with the Lord's Supper, but as this led to abuse it was abolished by
Paul (1 Cor. 11:20-22, 34). The feet-washing which is commonly supposed
to have taken place at the time Christ first broke bread with his
disciples, was simply a custom in vogue in that country, which Christ
used to teach a lesson on humility. We have no record that the Apostles
ever washed feet as a church ordinance or desired others to do so. When
Christ washed feet it was not at a public church meeting, but at a
private feast.
The fourth item in church worship, as mentioned in Acts 2:42, is
"prayers." The primitive church believed profoundly in prayer. In fact,
the entire New Testament is the record of a prolonged prayer-meeting.
Paul, in writing to Timothy, says, "I exhort therefore that, first of
all, supplications, prayers, intercessions and giving of thanks be made
for all men" (1 Tim. 2:1), and Christ admonishes his disciples to
"watch and pray" (Matt. 26:41).
Self-preservation is the first duty, upon which all our helpfulness to
others depends. So it is with the church. Its first duty is to
perpetuate and strengthen itself through the means of grace God has
provided; but it will become sick and soon die, if it does not reach
out in loving services to others. It is commissioned to "make disciples
of all nations" (Matt. 28:18), but it cannot do this by merely
proclaiming the gospel to all people. Paul preached the gospel in many
lands, and a few missionaries could soon evangelize the entire world if
this were all that is necessary. God spent thousands of years to
prepare the soil for Paul's preaching and confirmed his message with
miracles. We cannot evangelize the world by giving a few dollars to
send a few missionaries to preach a few sermons. Most of the work of
missionaries is educational and philanthropic, or, in other words,
preparatory. It will require the best and united efforts of all
Christians to entirely open the door of faith among the heathen. Christ
says, "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father which is in heaven" (Matt. 5:16). Peter
exhorts Christians, "Having your behavior seemly among the Gentiles,
that, wherein they speak against you as evil-doers, they may by your
good works which they behold, glorify God" (I Pet. 2: 12). The churches
need the miracle of good works, through the power of the Holy Spirit,
to confirm the message of our missionaries. The acts that emanate from
so-called Christian nations and people do more to hinder than to help
the missionaries. If Christians will, by the power of the Spirit, live
the life of Christ in the home, in business, in politics and
everywhere, the heathen will soon glorify God in Christ because of the
good works which they behold. "Herein is my Father glorified, that ye
bear much fruit" (John 15:8).
It is the mission of the church to bring heaven down to earth. If this
is the high and holy calling of the church, is it a wonder that Christ
so loved it as to give his life for it? The church is the "pillar and
ground of the truth" or the material organization through which heaven
is bearing its message of love to this sin-cursed world. Speaking of
the church, Paul says, "If any man destroyeth the temple of God, him
shall God destroy" (1 Cor. 3:17). All who attain unto the mind of
Christ will love the church and give themselves for it.
_The Unity of the Church._
It was God's eternal purpose to unite all things in Christ (Eph. 1:9,
10). Christ declared that he would establish but one fold (John 10:
16); he prayed that all his followers might be perfectly united and put
that union as a necessary condition for the conversion of the world
(John 17:20-23); he died to unite all in one body (Eph. 2: 14-16), of
which he is the head (Col. 1: 18).
If we turn to the book of Acts, we discover that the Holy Spirit,
through the Apostles, did establish but one church, and that it was
thoroughly united in love, teaching and practice.
If there ever was an excuse for different Christian denominations, it
was for a Jewish Christian denomination and a Gentile Christian
denomination; but the Holy Spirit did not establish such denominations
and Paul put forth the effort of his life to prevent such a breach.
Where in all history can you find twelve men more radically different
mentally and temperamentally than the Apostles? Yet the Holy Spirit did
not establish separate churches to cater to and further develop these
temperamental eccentricities. All were united in one church so they
could counterbalance and complement each other and thus perfect their
own character and give greater symmetry to the church. "And when the
day of Pentecost was fully come they were all with _one accord in one
place_" (Acts 2:1). After three thousand were added unto them we read,
"They continued daily with _one accord_ in the temple" (Acts 2: 46),
while farther on we read, "And the multitude of them that believed were
of _one heart_ and of _one soul_" (Acts 4: 32). From the Epistles of
Paul we learn that there was but one church in each community. Christ's
relation to the church makes it impossible for Christians to be loyal
to him and at the same time divided. All must be perfectly united in
allegiance to him as king, lie is the head of the body of which his
followers are members. All the members of the body are perfectly united
to each other and to the head; and, although the members may differ in
function, they are all directed by the same commandments, motives and
purposes. As soon as a tendency toward division became manifest it was
severely rebuked and ascribed to the carnal nature. Paul, in writing to
the Corinthians, says, "Now, I beseech you, brethren, by the name of
our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same things, and that
there be no division among you; but that ye be perfectly joined
together in the same mind and in the same judgment" ... "For ye are yet
carnal; for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and
divisions, are ye not carnal and walk as men?" (I Cor. 1: 10; 3:3).
The seven landmarks of Christian union are revealed by Paul in the
first six verses of the fourth chapter of Ephesians: "I therefore, the
prisoner in the Lord, beseech you to walk worthily of the calling
wherewith you were called, with all lowliness and meekness, with
longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; giving diligence to keep
the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and
one Spirit, even as also ye were called in one hope of your calling;
one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is
over all, and through all, and in all."
As long as these seven unities--one body, one Spirit, one hope, one
Lord, one faith, one baptism and one Father--are maintained, it will be
impossible for a divided church to exist.
On the other hand, divisions will speedily disappear as soon as these
seven unities are restored.
I add the following chart of the New Testament church, which will serve
as a summary and as a guide in the further study of this important
subject:
[Illustration: THE CHURCH THAT JESUS ESTABLISHED]