“The lack of evidence does not mean a person at the time didn’t exist. Moreover, the Apostle here refers to the scriptures which Timothy was taught in his infancy. May your church be made up of people who, above all, obey Your orders. He is making the case that every church must discover the Biblical purpose(s) for existence and maintain clarity and focus on those purposes! Paul on the road to Damascus) to hold the office. He writes, "If you ask typical church members why their… The Bible tells us why and for how long the ministry gifts were given to the Church. Kyle Norman - Read more about spiritual life growth, Christian living, and faith. God forbid! 1) it worships the past, 2) it is inflexible and resistant to change, and 3) it often has lazy leadership. If you are right with the Lord, then you will be full of courage at Christ’s return. When I look around and see all of the opinions of what is right and what is wrong I am encouraged that “blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! Maybe the answer to the question does the bible explain why God allows suffering is found here in the person of Jesus Christ. He wrote: “It is quite evident that this passage furnishes no argument whatever that the sacred Scripture, without Tradition, is the sole rule of faith; for, although sacred Scripture is profitable for these four ends, still it is not said to be sufficient. Website © 2021 by Ray Stedman Ministries. We can sing our worship songs perfectly. A dispensation is defined by Webster as, “a general state or ordering of things” (1). Let's begin by considering a few Scriptures that discuss church division. To help you get started, we would love to send you a free Bible and other resources to help you grow in your faith. They can rationalize every decision they have made, even when those decisions are wrong. We need to be in the present. The apostle John gives us two potential reactions to Christ’s return: “And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame” (1 John 2:28 NLT). If you have known me, you will know my Father too. The church is not an independent organization existing by means of its own strength. People who are dying spiritually usually are the last to know. Should we surrender the greatest revolutionary message the world has ever heard, which can come to it from no other source, and content ourselves with doing what any worldling can do? The Bible does not leave us uninformed when it comes to the purpose and the centrality of the local church. “You are Peter and on this rock I will build my church.” Matthew 16:18 The aim of this series is to help you share the passion of Jesus Christ for His church. If you are not right with the Lord, then you will be shrinking back from him in shame. This is why Christ Community Church exists. The church was created to bring pleasure to God and bring glory to his name. The church also exists for the edification, or building up, of the saints. Welcome to Man in the Mirror’s Men’s Bible Study, where we always have room for one more guy! And not only does the edification of the saints include Bible study, but it also consists of encouraging one another, building up one another and serving one another. All rights reserved. 17 Now I urge you, brethren, note those who cause divisions and offenses, contrary to the doctrine which you learned, and avoid them. The Bible does not owe its existence to the Catholic Church, but to the authority, power and providence of God. Charles Bridges says, “The Church is 2:15). The church was created to bring pleasure to God and bring glory to his name. Whatever Christians do, they should be able to bring glory to God – in their careers, in their marriages and in the choices they make in life. Is it to provide programs for us to be involved in? Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. If all Christians have the same Bible, and the same Holy Spirit, should not Christians be able to agree?" John 3:30. They think everything is fine. Recently, I wrote this piece, encouraging people who love God but who for any number of reasons find themselves outside of a traditional church.. A number of Fundamentalist Christians objected. Another important detail we should notice is that Scripture does not say that the giants originated from the unions described in Genesis 6; rather, the giants already existed at that time . We should be inflexible on the essentials, which are the teaching of the Word of God, the worship and glorification of God, and evangelism. The church is a temple for the exclusive habitation and use of a Person who dwells within, who has the right to do with that habitation as He wills. Repent and turn to me again. Don’t give up now.”. The church is on this earth for three reasons: 1) the glorification of God, 2) the edification of the saints, and 3) the evangelization of the world. The purpose of the church is to join people of different backgrounds and talents and provide them training and opportunities for God's work. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God” (Revelation 3:1–2 NLT). Churches exist to strengthen, challenge, and encourage us in our personal walk with God. Because it was his suffering that brought about our salvation. Father, help me to see that the only impact I can have in this world is by being faithful to You and to the message that has been given to me. It is a spiritual organism with a history going right back to Jesus Christ and the apostles. Good morning, men! It means that she or he, like 99.99% of the rest of the world at the time, made no impact on the archaeological record.” This Daily Devotion was Inspired by one of Ray's Messages. We could sum it up this way: upward, inward, outward. The ‘church age’ is seen as a parenthesis, or a pause, in God’s dealings with His chosen covenant people. And from now on you do know him and have seen him.” To help you search and find thes… This passage emphasizes the unity that should exist in the body of … In the […] Think of the figures the apostle uses for the church in this letter: The church is an army under the command of a King, and an army that will not obey its leader is useless as a fighting force. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. The church is a body under the control of the Head, and what a tragedy it is when the human body refuses to respond to the direction of the head. The separation of church and state is not only misunderstood, it is also exceedingly important. My Life’s Purpose in Scripture Arranged and Paraphrased by Kevin Hamm From the New American Standard Version. Our phone operators are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to serve you: Unedited Transcript. 2Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. They had a name, a name that was known far and wide. Take your direction from the Head of the church. How does each of us allow our Lord within us to continue His ministry on earth? “Now, a good part of the New Testament was not written in his boyhood: Some of the Catholic epistles were not writt… Let’s go ahead and greet a couple of groups that we have not talked about before. Apostles were men who were appointed by Christ through a personal appearing (e.g. So I thought I’d take a few moments to share why the Church as a building was never the point to Jesus and the early Church: Shall we become nothing more than another political action group or succumb to the fallacy that change, any kind of change, represents progress? First, we need to wake up. We can do all the right things outwardly and still be spiritually dying. This whole page is a condensed summary of the reason the church exists and statement of what its function should be. Answer: Scripture says there is “one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5). This is not to say that comfort, evangelism, learning the There was no shortage of money or talent or manpower. You don’t have to be crippled by your past. The church exists to bring glory to God. Purpose: Why Do I Exist? Do the offices of apostle and prophet still exist in the church today? Will you help reach the lost? The church is not expected to devise its own strategy or to set its own goal. But there can be a spiritual deadness about it all. We’ve got a great resource to put in your hands for just such a purpose. In his excellent book on Revelation, Chuck Swindoll outlined the marks of a dead church, including the following: The church, they say, belongs in the vanguard of the struggle for social justice and the reason Christianity is shunned by the world is because Christians will not dirty their hands or risk their reputations. People get hung up on styles of music, embracing new technology and all kinds of things along those lines. Subject to permission policy, all rights reserved. - III. The hurricane winds of change are blowing everywhere in our world. We need to be inflexible there. The church that glorifies God makes it their passion to know Him, manifests its priority to live Him, and maximizes its purpose to share Him. It is a church that has no other "holy books" or church "traditions" that take the place of the Bible on anything. For we are God's fellow workers. 3Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. In other words, we need to recognize something is seriously wrong. That is not only true of us in a worship service, but it is also true of us in life. Then we need to strengthen the things that remain. We will send you a copy when you donate to Harvest Ministries today. 1As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. In the Bible we find the words of Jesus to a sick church that wasn’t fulfilling its purpose. The race seethes with unrest and lawless rebellion. The church is to both promote the gospel and prepare its members to proclaim the gospel (1 Peter 3:15). Romans 15:5-6, 1 Cor 6:19-20, 1 Cor 10:31, 2 Thess. He means, Obey your orders! One of the realities about the church of today is that there are a large number of believers that are very confused. The book that best helped me understand why there are so many different denominations is Sacred Pathways by Gary Thomas. This wasn’t a lazy or inactive church. Follow the goal that has been set before you by your Leader. In preparation for the church that I will be starting, I am reading, again, Rick Warren's classic work, The Purpose Driven Church. We always need to be planning for the future. Donate to Harvest today and we will thank you with a copy of A Rush of Hope on DVD. While it is generally agreed that the ‘church age’ does exist, it is not agreed upon as to its exact nature. Daily Devotion © 2006 by Ray Stedman Ministries. You are God's field, God's … So this is the word of the apostle to us: Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. That is not only true of us in a worship service, but it is also true of us in life. I am not speaking about the false doctrines and sects; I am speaking about the confusion that there is reference the purpose of the church. Why Does God Allow Trials in the Life of the Believer? What does Paul say the church should do in the face of the desperate demands of human need? God became human for no other purpose.” That is a bold statement. No one comes to the Father except through me. This church is not a building or a corporation or an invention of human beings. I am all for reflecting on what God has done, but I refuse to live in the past. They weren’t slackers. Jesus told the church of Sardis they were dying, but they didn’t realize it. Follow the divine strategy, not the obvious shallow counsel of people. They were sick and dying, and they didn’t even know it. We can dutifully take notes on sermons that we hear and even know our Bibles quite well. What does he mean? It does caution people to read it with a solid background knowledge of the rest of Scripture, especially the New Testament, and with a basic understanding of the times which produced Revelation. At the same time, the Orthodox Church does not accept the notion that everyone can properly interpret the Bible … We have always done that, and we always will do that. It is translated from the Greek term ekklesia which is formed from two Greek words meaning "an assembly" and "to call out" or "the called out ones." What the apostle desires is that we heed our calling; that we renew our commitment to the Lord, who is behind all things, to become individually responsible to tell this radical, revolutionary, life—transforming good news throughout society; that we should invade commercial and industrial life, education and learning, the arts and family life, morals and government with this tremendous, unequaled message. In this passage, Jesus brings His disciples outside Jerusalem and asks them who they think He is (v. 15). Don’t change the essentials, but be flexible with the way they are expressed. We are a nondenominational Bible based site that exists to freely share the good news from God to the entire world so you can KNOW the Truth about life and eternity. Finally, there is the evangelization of the world, which is really the outgrowth of the first two. Jesus is, in effect, saying, “Stay with me, church. He said, “The Church exists for nothing else but to draw people into Christ. It was not written to explain denominations, but it does so in a backdoor way. If these marks of spiritual deadness are evident in a church or an individual’s life, here is Jesus’ prescription for spiritual renewal: “Wake up! It took 200 years to build and 700 years later work continues to be done to correct the errors in construction. This Truth comes from Knowing GOD and having a relationship with Jesus Christ as it says in John 14:6-7 Jesus replied, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. These are the essentials. Jesus Christ will give you a future that’s worth living. Here’s what Jesus said about the problems that were developing: “I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive – but you are dead. We can never understand this body that exists in human society unless we view it as more than an organization. MAKING IT OUR PASSION TO KNOW HIM If God is to be glorified in our lives … I say this because when we ask a believer: why does the church exist? But we also need to be flexible with nonessentials, and by that I mean style. It is possible to be in the church and not really believe. The church exists to bring glory to God. But a problem was developing that only Jesus could see: they were not fulfilling their purpose. Matthew 22:36-40, Genesis 1:27-28, Matthew 28:18-20, Philippians 2:12-13, Ephesians 2:10. The church is a body under the control of the Head, and what a tragedy it is when the human body refuses to respond to the direction of the head. And in effect, Sardis was a non-believing church. Church Definition in the New Testament . The word "church" is mentioned more than 100 times in the New Testament. Why On Earth Does The Church Exist ? How does this fit into the purpose and function of the church of whom Christ is the Head? The first mention of the word church in the entire Bible is in Matthew 16. Part 1 of 5. In the eyes of the world the church is weak, ineffective, out of touch, the enemy of progress—and the list goes on. The word strengthen means to stabilize that which is frail. Notice that Jesus said, “If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief.” I think how people react to the imminent return of Christ is a true spiritual barometer of where they are with God. It’s our cinematic crusade film, A Rush of Hope. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief” (verses 2, 3 NLT). Scripture does not tell us specifically, but many Bible scholars believe they could be the godly seed of Seth. The Apostle [Paul] requires the aid of Tradition (2 Thess. The title "apostle" means one sent with a message, and it is a special office in the history of the church. The church is called to be faithful in sharing the gospel through word and deed. 18 For those who are such do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly, and by smooth words and flattering speech deceive the hearts of the simple. Wake up! That is probably one of the few points on which everyone on all sides of the debate can readily agree upon — their reasons for agreeing may differ, but they do concur that the separation of church and state is one of the key constitutional principles in American history. Next – and this is very important – we need to be watching for the return of Jesus Christ. This is a revolutionary age. As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. His answer is, Live a life worthy of the calling you have received. 1:11-12. For permission to use this content, please review RayStedman.org/permissions. … Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. They say they are doing fine when, in reality, they are dying. Let’s be flexible where we can be flexible. The church is a temple for the exclusive habitation and use of a Person who dwells within, who has the right to do with that habitation as He wills. We have small groups, Bible studies, entire ministries dedicated to teaching and equipping believers. This church probably was humming with activity. Is it to babysit the kids on Sunday morning while parents catch up on their sleep? Whatever Christians do, they should be able to bring glory to God – in their careers, in their marriages and in the choices they make in life. We can pray eloquently. Jesus tells Peter that he received this revelation from God. Strengthen what little remains. Church begins, “We exist to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things.” The only reason we exist, the onlyreason the worldwide church exists, is to magnify God’s worth. They think they are doing just great. As believers are glorifying God and being built up in the church, they evangelize the world and fulfill the Great Commission (see Matthew 28:18–20). The Catholics are wrong, therefore, in their assumption that the Bible is authoritative only because of the Catholic Church. This church, the church of Sardis, had a great reputation, but no reality. Peter responds by declaring, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (v. 16). The problem in the church today is that sometimes we are flexible where we need to be inflexible, and we are inflexible when we should be flexible. It accomplishes this both internally, within the body, and externally, in the world. All Rights Reserved Harvest Ministries 2021. That is why we give such a prominent place to Bible study at the church where I pastor. 1 Corinthians 3:9 ESV / 10 helpful votes. What are Christians to do in this hour? (800) 821-3300. 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This daily Devotion was Inspired by one of the apostle here refers to the church is to be a organism.