“I’m spiritual but I don’t believe in organized worship.” Those are the words or thoughts of many Americans today. They have embraced the term “believer” but have rejected the notion of the church. But what message are they really sending? Can one have God without the church?
When the majority of people hear the word church they instantly picture a building. Our culture has redefined church to mean a building or a place where people go to worship. Many young people rebel against the idea of coming into a building for a formal worship service, as they believe that term holds a tremendous amount of baggage. However, a “building” is not the original definition of the word church.
In Acts 19:32 we read “Some therefore cried one thing and some another, for the assembly was confused, and most of them did not know why they had come together.” The word “assembly” in this passage comes from the Greek word ekklesia. It is a derivative of the root words ek kaleo and means literally “the called out.” The word ekklesia is the church. This is the same word we find in Acts 8:1 after the stoning of the first Christian martyr, Stephen: “Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church (ekklesia) which was at Jerusalem; and they were scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.” Rather than a cold building made of bricks and mortar the church is a body of people. A church is who we are, not where we go!
Is the concept of the church a matter of choice or was it foreordained in the mind of God before the creation of the world? In this special issue of Think magazine we invite you to consider the Intelligent Design of the Church. One would be hard pressed, given logic and reasoning, to look at the human eye or the universe and not see layers of incredible design. It quickly becomes obvious that God had a plan and He carefully constructed the eye for a purpose. The same can be said for the church. An honest observation reveals that His fingerprints and handiwork are clearly seen in preparing the bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-30).
A scientific approach to the matter of the church reveals that indeed it was planned prior to creation. There is a tremendous body of evidence for the church in prophecy. But it doesn’t stop there. For instance, who founded the church and where was it founded? Furthermore, what is the correct recipe for the church? Through study and observation individuals today are able to discern the church found in the New Testament.
It has been called many things. For instance in 1 Corinthians 1:2 Paul refers to it as the “church of God.” In Ephesians 4:12 it is referred to as “the body of Christ.” In Acts 20:28 it is referred to as “the church of the Lord.” In 1 Peter 5:3 the writer calls it the “flock of God.” In Romans 16:16 Paul denotes it as “The churches of Christ.” One of the most important designations can be found in Matthew 16:18 where Jesus refers to it as “My church.” If you look through the Bible you will notice that all of the terms used for the church are possessive—with Christ being the owner. Simply put the church belongs to Christ—members then are the church of Christ!
As more and more surveys show Americans moving away from “organized” religion we want to take a moment and remind our readers Who organized religion and why. We hope that you will find this study refreshing and informative. The writer of the book of Hebrews admonished, “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching.” Part of God’s plan was that you would not have to endure the trials of this world alone (e.g., James 1:2). Instead we have a family that we can lean on in good times and bad. Since the beginning of the church in Acts 2 we find the fellowship of Christians to be of the utmost importance. That is what the church should look like today—a body of people who care for one another and believe the same Truths about Jesus Christ and His beautiful Gospel.
We would ask you to study this topic and pass this issue along. Part of our job is to plant seeds and teach others about Him. Part of that job is to teach them about the church found in the New Testament. Are you a member of that intelligently designed church? As always we hope you will Think on these things.
