The
Origin of the Church
Lesson
I
September 14, 2006
Introduction
Ecclesiology is the study of the
Bible doctrine relative to the Church.
Are
you a member of the Church? Are you sure
that you are? Then these lessons should
be of keen interest to you.
The
New Testament word, “Church”, is derived from the Greek word “Ecclesia”. It means a “called out assembly segregated
from the mass into that which is a distinct group in itself.” The Church is a segregated group. A member of the Church no longer belongs to
the masses of people. Jesus spoke of his
people as being a “little flock”. So in
comparison to the people of the world, the Church is small.
L.S. Chafer says: “As to the general meaning the word means:
1)
A called out company;
2)
A congregation as in Acts 7:38;
3)
The Church in the wilderness.
Acts
7:38
(38)
This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake
to him in the mount Sina, and [with] our fathers: who received the lively
oracles to give unto us:
Speaking
of Israel as a separated, called out, different people than the Egyptians (Exodus
11:7), it is God who makes and sees the difference in both Israel and the
Church.
Thus
Exodus
11:7
(7)
But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue,
against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference
between the Egyptians and Israel.
As
to the deeper meaning:
1) A company called out into a union with Christ;
2) Only during this special
age of grace;
3) The outward form touches
one generation in one locality. It may
include unsaved with the saved.
4) The True Church
comprises all generations since the Church began and includes only the saved.”
The
outward form of the Church that which the world sees, may call itself “The
Church of Latter Day Saints” “The Church
of God” “The Church of Christ” but the
Invisible form is made up only of those who have been born again by the Spirit.
It
will be our purpose to endeavour to point out from Scripture, that the teaching
we receive regarding the Church will have a great bearing on our study of
Eschatology.
Eschatology
is the study of future things. Ezekiel,
Daniel, Revelation are basically books of eschatology.
In
fact, what we finally believe about the Church will determine, to a great
extent, what we will believe in the study of Eschatology. One must not ignore Ecclesiology in the study
of Eschatology and one must not ignore Eschatology in the study of Ecclesiology. They are linked together. And it is our opinion that the study of
Ecclesiology is of greater importance at this present time than ever before in
our lifetime. Most false teaching of our
day is caused by a neglect of Paul’s Epistles, in which are found the bulk of
Church truth.
John
Wimber has been quoted by one of our students as having said: “The Church has been too occupied with
Paul. The time has come to return to the
words of Jesus.” The trend is back to the gospels but that takes us
away from the gospel as revealed to
Paul. Church history proves that to
neglect Paul has always led to wrong doctrine in the Churches. It seems that in the Churches of our day, the
emphasis is placed on the words of Jesus in Matthew, Mark and Luke while He was
here in flesh. But Paul claims he
received his revelation from the resurrected Christ in glory.
I - The first mention of the Church
in Scripture
Matthew
16:18
(18) And I say also unto thee, That thou art
Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall
not prevail against it.
We
believe this to be the proper starting point.
Regarding every doctrine ‘first mention’ is always most important. It seems to lay the foundation on which to
build.
Jesus
did not say, “I have built my Church”. He did not say, “I have been building my Church.”
Nor did He say, “I have been gathering
material to build my Church”.
He
did say: “I will build”. Here we must
pause and consider. Did He mean what He
said? Do these words belong in the
Bible? What do these words imply?
We
answer:
These
words can mean only one thing and one thing only. At the time the words were spoken, He had not been building the Church. At that time, the Church was still something
future. If these words do not mean that,
then what do they mean?
Furthermore,
we observe the fact that the verse teaches that Jesus will do the building.
1
Corinthians 3:6
(6)
I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase.
Man
may plant, man may water, but only God can give the increase. What farmer can thank himself for the kind of
crop he has to harvest? And in the
spiritual matters, what man can thank himself for the salvation of one
soul? The increase is of the Lord. He is doing the building.
And
when the Church is completed it will be His
Church. He said, “I” will build “my” Church. No man can call the Church “my” Church. No man can take any credit for its building. It does not belong to men, it belongs to
Him. It is His possession.
When
one is saved, one is part of the Church and precious to the Lord. You become His.
1
Corinthians 6:19-20
(19)
What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost [which is] in
you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
(20)
For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your
spirit, which are God's.
O
to see clearly that when one believes, one belongs to Jesus Christ.
“Now I belong to Jesus. Jesus belongs to me. Not for the years of time alone, but for
eternity.” When one feels that no
one else cares, He does! He will never change His mind regarding you. 2 Corinthians
8:9 “… though he was rich, yet for your
sakes he became poor…” He
invested all in you and in human language, cannot afford to lose you.
2
Corinthians 8:9
(9)
For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet
for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might be rich.
Acts
“
The Lord added to the Church daily.” We believe this is the first direct reference
to the Church in the book of Acts. So
when we come to the book of Acts whenever or where ever the Church began, it is
now in existence. For the “Lord added to
the Church.” He said He would build it,
and now, it is no longer future, but present tense. He is building as He said He would. What was future
in Matthew is present fact in the
book of Acts.
What
was prophecy in Matthew, in Acts has
become fulfilled prophecy (history).
Only
the Lord can put one into His Church. If
you are in it, it is because He has put you in!
Acts
2:47
(47)
Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the
church daily such as should be saved.
1
Corinthians 12:28
“He
hath set some in the Church first, [and mark
that word, first,] the Apostles.”
That seems to be plain enough. If
the Apostles are first, then there
was no Church existing before the Apostles.
So if we consider this to be the revealed Word of the Lord, then it
excludes Old Testament Saints from the Church.
None of them is part of the New Testament Church.
1
Corinthians 12:28
(28)
And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets,
thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps,
governments, diversities of tongues.
What
does Ephesians 2:20 say? “… built upon the foundation of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob…No it
doesn’t say that. “….are
built upon the foundation of the Apostles and prophets…”
Not
Old Testament prophets, but New Testament prophets. Why do we say that? Because the Apostles are named first. If the verse were making reference to Old
Testament prophets they would be named before the Apostles, not after. Being built upon the foundation laid by the
Apostles, Old Testament saints are excluded.
Ephesians
2:20
(20)
And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ
himself being the chief corner [stone];
An Important Question:
A
most important question to ask today, one that demands an answer is this: Does God have an earthly people who have
received earthly promises, distinct and separate from His heavenly
people who have been given heavenly promises? What does the Bible say about these matters?
To
ask the same question in other words:
“Is the Church a body of believers in this age distinct and separate
from Old Testament Saints? These are
serious questions and must be answered in a study of Ecclesiology.
The
very fact that both are God’s People will involve many similarities but because
there are similarities, does that mean they are or does that make them
identical? In these lessons, these
questions we shall endeavour to answer from Scripture.
II - When did the Church Begin?
Some
years ago, we would have asked when was the Church born? We now believe that language is, to say the
least, misleading. Rather than use the
word “born” we now ask when was the Church “conceived”? As in the natural there is
conception before birth, and also the forming of a body before birth, so it is
in the spiritual.
We
now believe that the Church will be born at the time of the Rapture. Today it is like a baby in the womb. Members of the body are being added and when
all have been added
with
no members missing, a body without blemish or spot will be born.
So
now we add a word to our question: When
did the Church begin historically?
We
have used the word ‘historically’ because we are to discover that the Church
began in the mind of God “before the foundation of the world”. That fact we
will consider later.
So
historically, in time, when did the Church begin?
If
it began with the Apostles, then certainly, it did not begin before the
Apostles.
Colossians
1:15-18 gives us the answer. At the resurrection Jesus became “head of his body, the Church. He is the firstborn from the dead”.
1
Timothy
This
was written after Lazarus was raised.
All before Jesus were resuscitated, they were not resurrected. Consider Matthew 27:51-53. These people who came out of their graves
after the resurrection must have been those who had died just before Jesus
died. Jesus alone has immortality, so
these must not have been resurrected as He was, but must have been like Lazarus
restored to physical life.
Colossians
1:15-18
(15)
Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
(16)
For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth,
visible and invisible, whether [they be] thrones, or dominions, or
principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
(17)
And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
(18)
And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn
from the dead; that in all [things] he might have the preeminence.
1
Timothy 6:16
(16)
Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach
unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom [be] honour and power
everlasting. Amen.
Matthew
27: 51-53
(51)
And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the
bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;
(52)
And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
(53)
And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city,
and appeared unto many.
1
Corinthians 15:53-54
(53) For
this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal [must] put on
immortality.
When
the Lord comes, those who will be resurrected will also take on immortality.
As the
firstborn from the dead, Jesus entered a new realm. And from that new realm or position he began
a New
Creation. And it was from His
place now in glory, he came to his disciples
(cf John
20:19-22) and said: “as my Father hath sent me, so send I you.`` Then
He breathed on them, as He had breathed on Adam to begin the human race, now He
breathes on the Apostles to begin a new race.
This event was after the resurrection but before the day of Pentecost. And we are led to believe that when Jesus
breathed on the Apostles, the Church was at that moment conceived.
John
20:19-22
(19)
Then the same day at evening, being the first [day] of the week, when the doors
were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus
and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace [be] unto you.
(20)
And when he had so said, he shewed unto them [his] hands and his side. Then
were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord.
(21)
Then said Jesus to them again, Peace [be] unto you: as [my] Father hath sent
me, even so send I you.
(22)
And when he had said this, he breathed on [them], and saith unto them, Receive
ye the Holy Ghost:
Why
did Jesus say, “…as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.”?
We
are to learn the answer from Paul.
2
Corinthians 5:20 “Now then we are ambassadors for Christ…”
Think
of those words. Ambassadors are sent
from their country to a foreign land.
As
Christ was sent by the Father from Heaven to earth, so we, like him, who have
been raised and seated together with Christ, already in God’s sight glorified (Romans
8:30) are sent into this world as ambassadors from Heaven and are here because
He wants us here. And before the war of
the tribulation begins, He will call His ambassadors home.
Think
about it!
2
Corinthians 5:20
(20)
Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech [you] by us:
we pray [you] in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
Romans
8:30
(30)
Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called,
them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.
When
the Rapture takes place, the last member of the Church will have been added,
and then the Church will be born. Keep
in mind, the Church is having members added to this day and so it is not yet
complete. When it is complete, our
Ambassadorship will have ended and we will go to the place where we belong.
Philippians
3:20
(20)
For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ:
Our
conversation, our manner of life or citizenship is in Heaven, and when we are
taken there, we will be going home!