The Biblical Meaning of Church
This morning we started a series called Being Church, and it's in the book of 1 Corinthians. That's where we're going to be this morning, for the next few weeks, and into January as well, because we're going to spend some time here figuring out what it means to be the church.
I wonder what comes to your mind when you think about church. When you think about the word "church," perhaps you think about a building like the one we're in. This is a church. Perhaps you think about a church service. This is the 10:30 service. Perhaps you think about an organisation registered with the Charity Commission, or something like that. The word "church" can mean a lot of things in different contexts, can't it? You recognise that it can mean a number of different things.
For example, our church organisation has just spent a lot of money to buy this church, the building, in order to do this church, the service. It's confusing. So the word "church" means a lot of things, and I want us to look at what the Bible is talking about when it talks about church, because none of those things are what the Scripture is talking about.
What does it mean to be the church? And what does it mean to belong to the church of Jesus Christ? Because we're not just trying to get more people into a building. Do we know that? We're not just trying to get the attendance up, or do more cool things, or get more people to volunteer. That's not what the Scripture calls us to at all. The Scripture calls us to emulate Christ, to go from one degree of glory to the next, and to be a body of people who support one another on that journey, in that endeavour. Is that all right?
And so this is what we're setting out to do. Can I be honest? We're just not faffing about. Is that all right? We're just not faffing about. We've got a mission. We've got things to do. The Lord has called us to do things: to preach the gospel and to be the church of Jesus Christ. We've got no time for faffing about and playing around the edges. And so we need to interrogate what the Scripture is actually calling us to when it calls us to be his church.
So we're in the book of 1 Corinthians. Can I just tell you ahead of time that it's going to be a challenge? Is that all right? There are going to be some challenging concepts and challenging ideas as we explore what Paul, who wrote 1 Corinthians, lays out when he's speaking to the church. And so we're going to start with this question: how do we belong to the church?
Paul's Greeting to a Troubled Church
How to belong to the church. So Paul — the Apostle Paul — writes this letter. Have you heard of him? Yes. The Apostle Paul writes this letter to the church in Corinth.
It's the first letter to the church in Corinth, hence it's called First Corinthians. So let's begin in this book. But let's try to read this Scripture the way the original readers would have read it when they received it. Shall we?
Now, the church in Corinth that Paul is writing to is a church with some challenges. There are things going on in that church. There are behaviours, there are different things happening within the church that Paul is going to address.
So we might have to use our imagination — because who knows, perhaps we're a church with challenges too. I'd like you to use your imagination this morning. Could some of you in this place pretend that you are disgruntled? Could some of you pretend that you've fallen out with someone? Could others pretend that you struggle with sin? Just pretend.
Just pretend, as we try to read the Scripture as the Corinthians read it. So we're in First Corinthians chapter one, verses one to three, and we read this:
"Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be his holy people, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ — their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."
So who is Paul writing to? Well, he's obviously writing to the church. He uses this word "church" — the word we've been trying to figure out. It's the word ekklesia, or ecclesia, however you'd like to pronounce it in the Greek.
So immediately we see he's not talking to an organisation, or a building, or a church service. Paul is talking to an ekklesia, which is a gathering of people. It's a body of people. He's talking to a people. So what does Paul begin to say to this people?
Now, I really love how Paul starts his letters, how he begins his communication, because I think we can learn something from it — we can definitely learn something from how Paul begins. Because if you were in a church in the ancient Near East, you knew that if you received a letter from the Apostle Paul, you had some things that needed addressing. Yes, there were some challenges you needed to look at.
Belonging to Christ Before Belonging to the Church
And so there's some conversation to have. But before Paul gets into any of that, Paul reminds us of a few things. He reminds us that we are sanctified in Christ. Thank you, Lord. That we are separated for Christ. He reminds us that we are called to be his holy people. He reminds us that we are called together with a global body of believers. And he says to us, grace and peace be to us from God the Father.
So before Paul begins to address what he's got to address, he reminds us who we are. He reminds them who they are, and by extension, us who we are as well. And so the first thing we learn about this church, just through Paul's introduction, is that we belong to Christ. How do we belong to the church? We belong first to Christ. We are sanctified by Jesus. Did we read that in the Scripture? We are sanctified by Christ.
This introduction that Paul lays out, where he reminds us who we are and who we are in Christ, who we are as the body of Christ, as the church of Christ, this really is the foundation on which the entire letter is then written. Because as I say, there are things to discuss, there are things to talk about, there are challenges to address. But all of that is preceded by this introduction that Paul gives, where he reminds us who we are and whose we are, that we are called to be a holy people, that we belong to Christ.
But even in this introduction, which is affirmative and reminds us who we are, there is still challenge. We belong to Christ. Now, you might say, as I have said, "Well, I'm my own man." No, you're not. Or you might say, "Well, I'm a strong woman. I'm an independent woman." No, you're not. You belong to Christ. You're not your own.
In fact, Paul even writes later on in this letter that you are not your own, but rather that you were bought with a price. You are not your own. You belong to Christ. There is no modern individualism in the church, where we have this idea of belonging to ourselves. Instead, we are bought with a price. We belong to Christ. We're sanctified in Christ, as the Scripture says. So the first part of belonging to the church is acknowledging that we belong to Christ. Does that make sense?
Now, I find this a bit of a paradox in the church, because the church is, and is supposed to be, designed to be the most open, the most inclusive institution on the planet. Literally, anybody can come here. Nobody is excluded from this place, and nobody is excluded from the Church of Christ. At the same time, the Church of Christ is the most exclusive place, because in order to be part of the Church of Christ, you have to belong to Christ. Which kind of makes sense, doesn't it? Why would you want to be part of the Church of Christ if you don't want to belong to Christ? That just doesn't make any sense. So it all works out okay anyway.
But we belong to Christ first, sharing in his sanctification. And then Paul goes on: we've got some challenges and we need to chat. But first, let's remember who we are, whose we are, and let us call upon the grace of God as we discuss these challenging issues. Does that work? All right. So good.
The Call To Perfect Unity
So good. Let's move on then to verse 10.
In verses four to nine, Paul is giving thanks for the church and offering some encouragement. And then we get to verse 10, where Paul writes, "I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another in what you say, that there will be no divisions among you, but that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought."
Let's take a minute to think about what Paul is saying here, because this is wild. We need to agree with one another in what we say, that there will be no divisions among us, that there will be perfect unity in mind and thought. From our modern perspective, this is completely inconceivable. Paul, I don't even have perfect unity with myself. How am I supposed to have perfect unity with anybody else?
So what are we to make of this? How do we move forward with it? I've noticed two common pitfalls in the culture we exist in, and Paul speaks into both. The first, as we've mentioned, is full individualism — the total lone ranger. You do you, I'll do me. That's how we operate. The second is a total lack of critical thinking, an echo chamber mentality where you simply follow the herd. You don't really think about anything; you just go with whatever is said.
Paul here is warning against both. He says that all of you are to agree with one another in what you say.
So is he saying we all need to have the same favourite colour? Or the same favourite flavour of ice cream? Or perhaps that we all need to enjoy the same socks? Is that what Paul is saying? Thankfully, no. Sam likes the socks that go around your ankle — ankle socks. I prefer socks that cover your ankles. So it's a good job.
Paul says there would be no division among you. A different sock choice or a favourite ice cream flavour is not a dividing matter. No one is falling out over socks or ice cream flavours. Ideally, if you are — well, let's put that on pause; we've got some other things to talk about. But no one should be falling out over socks or ice cream choices.
There are, however, things that can cause division. And on the things that cause division, we must be of one mind. That's what the Scripture calls us to. All of us must agree with one another in what we say, that we will be perfectly united in mind and thought.
So if something comes up that is going to divide, the Scripture calls us to unify over it. The Scripture calls us to unify over that which divides, to be of one mind. Did I tell you this would be challenging? As these things come up — and they will, and they do — this is going to require a significant amount of spiritual maturity, and the rejection of everything the culture has taught us.
Because the culture says you are never wrong. Your opinion is yours and it is valid. And if it clashes with someone else's opinion, then you just part ways, or perhaps even make an enemy. But the Scripture doesn't say that. The Scripture says we are to pursue unity.
And who knows — as we do that, it's going to come at the expense of our opinions. It's going to come at the expense of our views. If I fall out with somebody, or disagree with somebody about something, we're called to unity. Which means one of us is going to have to lay down our view. One of us is going to have to lay down our opinion. There is a lot of humility required to be in the church, because in the pursuit of unity, we're called to lay down our opinions.
And so that begs the question: whose opinion do we go with then? When something comes up that is a dividing matter — and this is more than ice cream flavours — we're called to unity. We're called to be of one mind on that particular issue. How do we reconcile that?
Perhaps the older person wins. Perhaps the person with the most authority in the church hierarchy wins. Perhaps the strongest person wins. Perhaps the person who appears most holy and Spirit-filled wins.
Sharing in the Mind of Christ
Let's go a bit further. In this same letter to the Corinthians, Paul shares this with us. In chapter two, he says, "The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgment. For who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ."
We have the mind of Christ. We're called to share in this mind of Christ. This is the mind and thought that we are called to in the pursuit of unity. Not our own thoughts, but the thoughts of Christ, whose thoughts and ways are higher than our thoughts and ways. Do we know that?
And so, as we each individually pursue the mind of Christ, we allow our individual minds and opinions to become less significant. In fact, isn't it John the Baptist who shaped his ministry around this: more of him and less of me? He must become greater, and I must become lesser.
We are called to be united in mind and thought. By a show of hands, who knows that this is going to be a challenge? Yes, it is. There's no two ways about that. There's no fluff around it. It is going to be a challenge.
The Call to Refuse Division
But Paul lays out why. The third part of belonging to the Church, belonging to Christ — first, being of one mind and thought, and then, thirdly, we must refuse division. We must refuse division.
We can see an example of what Paul is talking about playing out in the church in Corinth, there in the Scripture. Everybody in the church in Corinth is getting their knickers in a twist about a particular issue, and it's causing division.
Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:11-13, "My brothers and sisters, some from Chloe's household have informed me that there are quarrels among you." Well, that's not us, is it? "What I mean is this: One of you says, 'I follow Paul'; another, 'I follow Apollos'; another, 'I follow Cephas'; still another, 'I follow Christ.' Is Christ divided?"
We must refuse division. This is where Christ is calling us. Now, we don't necessarily have this particular issue that Paul is challenging in the church in Corinth, but we can and will relate to other differences of opinion across our church, will we not? That just makes sense. They will come as we grow, because we are human. It's obvious that it will happen, because that's human nature.
So what are these guys saying? "I follow Paul. I follow Apollos. I follow Cephas. I follow Christ." There is a key issue here, and it's this word: I. The word "I" is doing quite a lot of heavy lifting, because "I" separates me from a brother in Christ. I don't agree with X. I don't agree with Y. I prefer Z. And even when "I" becomes "we," there's still a group separating themselves out from the church.
So this is what Paul is addressing. And this is what we have as well, isn't it? Two thousand years later — we'll round it up or down — human nature is the same, and the church still battles with the same things. Who'd have thought?
We have an opinion about something. Great, absolutely fine. But we're called to avoid division. That's our instruction from Paul.
So let's start by asking a few questions. The first question is this: is this a dividing issue? Are people going to be divided over this? Are people going to go separate ways because of this? Or is this perhaps just an ice cream flavour issue — something where we can carry on regardless while disagreeing? Those are the best kind, aren't they?
Salted caramel is the best ice cream flavour. It just is. But some people — Philistines — like banana. You are entitled to be wrong! But it's not a dividing issue, is it? We can continue disagreeing over which ice cream flavour is best. It's not a dividing issue.
But if it is a dividing issue, we need to find unity. We are called to find unity. So let's enter into a discussion, both acknowledging that we could be wrong and that we might need to lay down our view. We may need to lay down our opinion. We may need to submit something.
And how do we do that? As people in the church, we individually, but also together, pursue the mind of Christ. We're not pursuing the mind of Dom. We're not pursuing the mind of Alex. If I disagree with Alex, we're not pursuing our own minds, trying to formulate our own opinion. We're pursuing the mind of Christ.
And Paul asks this rhetorical question quite plainly: "Is Christ divided?" No, Christ is not divided. Christ will not tell one thing to me and another thing to you. So our pursuit in this instance is to seek the will of Christ in the matter arising that has the potential to cause division.
Are you ready, church? Are you ready to be the church that we're called to be? Come on. So let's pray, let's understand, and let's seek unity.
United by a Savior, Not Shared Tastes
Now it's true to say that there are many things we might make an issue out of on which the mind of Christ has no view. The mind of Christ has no view. That's true.
And why is that? Because we can make big deals out of things that aren't big deals. Can we not? I was thinking about this, about some of the things that have come up over the years and will come up again — and will continue to come up, I'm sure.
So I was thinking: does the mind of Christ have a view on whether or not we use drums and guitars in worship? Well, my Bible doesn't say. The mind of Christ has no view on drums and guitars in worship. Is his decree in the Scripture not that the Lord's people will worship together in spirit and truth? Is that not the Scripture's call to a people to worship the King of Kings and Lord of Lords?
There's no mention of how that is done. Everything else is preference. Everything else is ice cream flavours. And we can move forward whilst having different views on that, as long as we keep Jesus at the centre of what it is that we're doing.
The church is not a social club. It's not a collection of people who happen to like the same things. It's a people united by the same Savior. That's what the church is. And frankly, very little else matters.
In fact, many of us in this room don't like the same things. Many of us would not naturally be friends outside of church. And that's okay, because we're not united by the things of the world. We're united by Christ — pursuing unity, fighting against division, and seeking a shared thought and mind.
Maturity for the Mission of the Church
Now, Paul writes this letter to a church that is divided, and division will come in a variety of forms. We're called to be a church with a level of spiritual maturity so that when these divisions come, and the opportunity for division comes, we are equipped to address these challenges.
We can first determine whether we are simply talking about ice cream flavours, or whether we need to pursue the mind of Christ in a particular matter. So when we talk about being the church — the church we're called to be, the church that God needs — well, God doesn't need. That's not great language. But the church that God calls us to be. Because who knows? God has a mission in this town.
His will is that none may perish; that every person would have the opportunity to accept or reject Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour. And the way he chooses to do that is through the local church — through the church — and we're part of that. We need to be a strong church in order to do what God is calling us to do. So I don't mind having difficult discussions, interrogating the Bible, figuring out what it says.
That's actually going to build us as a church. Yes, as individuals, but also as a church. I don't mind us having these discussions. It would be fairly easy to get up and preach a nice sermon about how Jesus wants us to love everybody.
And that is true. That is very true. But we also need to have the conversations that teach us how to be with one another: how to interact with one another, how to disagree well, how to rebuke one another, how to call out sin in the church, how to disciple one another. These are going to be some hard conversations. Church, are you ready to have them?
Are you ready to have them? I'd like to invite the band up, because we're going to worship together. We're going to seal everything in worship.
Refusing Division and Pursuing Unity
So, how do we belong to the Church? Firstly, we belong to Christ. We acknowledge that we belong to him, that we are not our own, but that we have been bought with a price.
Secondly, we are to be united in thought and mind, to share in the mind of Christ, to pursue the mind of Christ in the very places where division threatens to come.
And thirdly, therefore, we refuse division. We refuse division. I think that's really important. I think that's really key to where we're going and who God is calling us to be. It means approaching every situation and every circumstance that comes up and saying, "Okay, we disagree on some significant things. Perhaps some theological things, perhaps some stylistic things, perhaps some programme-related things, perhaps even some personality-clash things. But I refuse division."
It's not even an option. Not an option. So what are we going to do about it? How are we going to move forward? We pursue the mind of Christ. We pursue the mind of Christ.
When Sam and I got married, we acknowledged that one day, in our darkest moments, we might possibly perhaps have a disagreement. No, seriously, we did. We acknowledged that disagreements happen, and that they would happen within our marriage. But one of the things we said to one another was this: that is going to happen, and we will see it happen. I don't want to speak this in a way that presumes upon your situation, but for us we said, we refuse division. There is no divorce. It's not an option. It doesn't matter how bad things get, or how much we disagree on a particular issue, divorce isn't an option. It's not happening. We'll pursue unity, we'll work things out, we'll get the help, we'll get whatever it is we need.
I think something happens when you settle that in advance. And it's never come up, you'll be glad to know. Thirteen years now, and it's never come up. Praise be to God. But I believe a big part of that is because we set out by saying it's never going to come up. It's not an option. It's not possible.
And I think if we are a church that says division is not an option, that we will pursue unity, that we will pursue the mind of Christ, because we are not called to division but to unity, then something will happen. I don't think it will come up.
I'm excited. I'm excited to be here. I'm excited to be in this building. I'm excited to have this opportunity to do what God is calling us to do in this town. And yes, I'm excited for what goes on outside the walls. But I'm also excited for what happens inside the walls of the church: that we would be built up individually to emulate Christ more and more, to go from one degree of glory to the next, as the Scripture calls us to, but also to build one another up. That's what Paul writes, isn't it? To build one another up, to encourage one another, to be a united people.
Let's stand. Let's pray for ourselves this morning, for this church in unity. In fact, if you're next to somebody, why don't you put your hand on their shoulder? And if you're not next to somebody, why don't you move so that you are? We're going to ask the Lord for his Spirit of unity over this church, for his Spirit of pursuing the mind of Christ.
Lord, we thank you. We thank you that you are good. We thank you that you have ordained your Church, that you have given us purpose and mission and direction, something to do, so that we are not here without purpose or reason, but that you invite us into your mission. And I thank you, Lord, that you invite us individually, yes, but you also invite your Church; that it is to your Church that you have given the mission to go and make disciples.
And Lord, we ask for your unity over this church, for your Spirit of unity and of pursuing the common mind of Christ. May we not seek our own opinions, our own views and judgments, but rather, in the moments where division may come, may we pursue your mind, Lord, and what it is you are speaking to your Church.
We thank you, Lord. We thank you for your blessing over this place, and over this people: over the families here, over the individuals here, over the friends here. Lord, may there be relationships that continue to grow from strength to strength, yes, because that will be great for us and great for them, but also so that out of those relationships you will be glorified. Out of those relationships, may ministries be born. Out of those relationships, may discipleship occur. Out of those relationships, may there be a call to pursue Christ even further in everything we do, in every situation and every circumstance. For your glory be all things that we do, Lord. Amen.
Amen. Let us worship together.
