SERMON: "What is Church?" (Hebrews 10:23–25)

What is Church?

Series:               Questioning the Church #1              Text:                 Hebrews 10:23–25

By:                    Shaun Marksbury                         Date:                December 29, 2022

Venue:              Living Water Baptist Church            Occasion:             AM Service

 

I.              Introduction

There’s a church right around the corner from where I lived when I was in seminary, and one of the seminary professors was hired as the senior pastor.  We started attending, and he was teaching series of introductory messages as he was settling in.  He called it his “unpacking boxes” period, and he believed it was important for he and the church to do so together.  He had an old overhead projector next to him in the pulpit, exactly like the ones we had in schools a few decades ago, and he was drawing out what he saw as important principles for the church.  

I taught a similar series once I arrived here as pastor a couple years ago.  I taught it on Sunday nights because I also wanted to be in the Gospels on Sunday mornings, because as John MacArthur once said, it’s important for churches to learn about Jesus together with their new pastors.  Yet, it was also important that the church understand what the new pastor saw as foundational truth around which we can rally.

Unfortunately, not as many people come on Sunday evenings.  Moreover, I’ve received many questions that indicate that either not everybody has heard those messages or that I haven’t communicated some of those principles well (probably some of both).  We’ve also had some of the people who were here at the time leave, as happens in church life, and we’ve had others join us recently.  With the new year upon us, it seems like a good time to revisit many of those messages on a Sunday morning.  (We’re at a good pausing point in the Book of John, and I plan on returning to it after this series.)

So, this morning, I want to begin a topical series as I’m unpacking boxes and seek to answer the most pressing questions we have about church.  Much of this will be review, I’m sure, but it’s a chance for you to get to know my heart better and what to expect from leadership here.  I’m hoping that this will edify you and build unity in the body as we take our times to walk through this series.

These are the points I’m planning on hitting in the series:

1. What is the church?
2. What purpose does the local church fulfill?
3. What standard should hold the local church together?
4. What is the point behind a statement of faith?
5. What is the standard for worship in the local church?
6. What kind of music should the church sing?
7. What are pastors and deacons?
8. What does the Bible say about church membership?
9. What is church discipline?
10. What makes a good local church?

That’s quite a range of topics, and I still may tweak a couple points.  You might find yourself wishing I would dig deeper into certain aspects of this, but in trying to maintain a bird’s-eye view, I am trying to avoid the temptation to dig too deeply.  I recommend my current Sunday School class for those wanting to dig deeper, and I’m usually available through the week for questions.

So, let’s begin with the most basic question, “What is ‘church?’ ”  To answer that, we often think in terms of buildings and church services, which are important.  It’s vital that Christians remain in the fellowship, not forsaking the assembly.  We need a place where we can have fellowship and stimulate growth in one another.  We need a place to gather for encouragement to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering.”  We need the reminder that Christ is faithful, even when we are not.

Yet, the meaning of “church” is broader than this in Scripture, something that encompasses all true believers in Jesus Christ throughout time and place.  The historic position of the church is expressed in The Apostles’ Creed, which confesses belief in the “holy catholic church, the communion of the saints.”  That first expression that irks many believers today, because those who came to Christ as a result of the Protestant Reformation hold to the biblical standard that the gospel “is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” and “the righteous man shall live by faith” (Rom. 1:16–17).  Yet, the Roman Catholic Church anathematizes those who believe justification comes through faith alone.

Yet, that’s an anachronistic reading of holy catholic church.  The Vatican might claim to be the true catholic church, but it departed from it by rejecting biblical teaching.  Catholic simply means ‘universal’ church, the true church in all times and places.  This simple definition includes our church as well as any other congregation following Scripture throughout time.

This is reflective of biblical teaching.  There is a true universal church, and then there are numerous local expressions of it.  The true church is both universal and local.  That’s what we’re examining this evening.

II.           First, the True Church is Universal

The church is the work of Christ alone.  Consider Hebrews 10:23: “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.”  Jesus Christ made promises and He will keep them.  For instance, He says, “I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand” (John 10:28).  We can trust that this is true for each of us.

We read something similar in Romans 8:29–30, which says, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.”  There is a lot of debate around this passage, but note, for now, that there is no loss in the movement of believers here.  Just as Jesus promised eternal life that cannot be lost, the Spirit promises in this passage that those who are called and are justified will one day be glorified.  And we can believe such promises, “for He who promised is faithful.” 

So, let us hold on to this confession!

Notice something else in both examples, though.  In both passages, the Lord deals with individual believers as a single group.  We read, “I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”  Similarly, in Romans, we read, “For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined … and these … He also called; and these … He also justified; and these … He also glorified.”  Believers comprise a group, which is why we read in Hebrews 10:23, “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope.”  The Lord made promises to this great gathering.

This gathering transcends location and time and is called the church (ecclesia, means “assembly” or “gathering”).  Again, the historic Apostles’ Creed says, “holy catholic church,” but to view it as the Roman Catholic Church which exists today is anachronistic.  The word catholic simply means “universal,” meaning here the true church in all times and places — the biblical church.  This simple definition includes our church as well as any other congregation following Scripture throughout time, whether the early church, the churches missionaries have planted, or any other church holding to the teaching of the New Testament apostles.  That’s what makes a church “catholic” or universal.

Jesus said He will build His church, singular (Matt. 16:18), which is exactly what He’s done.  We read that He also sanctifies the church as a whole, “having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless” (Eph. 5:25–27).  This is one unit, one gathering — His church.

Christ’s work on behalf of His church gives us our great hope.  Consider what we read of ourselves in 1 Peter 2:9–10. 

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; for you once were not a people, but now you are the people of God; you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

John later affirms this truth when he writes, “He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever.  Amen” (Rev. 1:6).  The confession of His kingdom unifies us a single people, regardless of where or when we came from as individuals.

This is why we call this a universal or catholic church.  Incidentally, this means Roman Catholics are half right when they say there’s no salvation outside of the church — they just apply it incorrectly to their church alone.  There is no salvation, rather, outside of the true, universal body of Christ, as defined in Scripture.  The biblical universal church is indeed sola ecclesia, the only true church.  That’s the church that Christ is building for Himself.

Now, we can’t see this in any single denomination of Christians on earth.  In fact, we can’t see this even within that single denomination — there are false converts, tares among the wheat.  So, another term for the universal church is the invisible church.  Thus, the London Baptist Confession of 1689 says, in Chapter 26,

The catholic or universal church, which (with respect to the internal work of the Spirit and truth of grace) may be called invisible, consists of the whole number of the elect, that have been, are, or shall be gathered into one, under Christ, the head thereof; and is the spouse, the body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

We can’t see this church yet, but Scripture affirms its movement driven by the invisible Spirit of God.

Those holding to these truths hold to the “catholic” church, little-c.  This is difficult for many believers today.  They don’t always recognize that they are part of a history, a tradition, arising from generations of Christians who lived before them.  I’ve met Christians who are willing to read the latest book by a Christian author, or watch a video, but they are unwilling to pick up something that has the dust of time upon it.  It was C. S. Lewis who condemned what he saw as “chronological snobbery,” but many Christians today still don’t want to read something that is more than a couple decades old.  We forget our history, ignoring the spirit-filled believers before us who lived and thought and wrote and who might still benefit us today.

In the Nicene Creed, we also read about the “apostolic” faith.  The Roman Catholics raise their hands, claiming an apostolic faith by trying to present an unbroken line of popes going all the back to the apostles (an impossible task for the intellectually and historically honest).  Yet, we can claim to have the true apostolic, catholic faith by following the apostles’ teachings in Scripture — teachings about hope in Christ’s faithfulness, His finished work, about His salvation that comes apart from any works on the part of the sinner.  We in Fruita, Colorado, hold to the true universal faith along with every true believer everywhere else throughout church history.

So, of course, there is local church application to all of this.  “We” must hold to this and strive to do so without wavering.  That brings us to the next point:

III.        Second, the True Church is Also Local

There are certain realities that the universal church provides only in its local expression.  Consider Hebrews 10:24–25, which tells us to “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”  Part of holding to the confession of Christ is to live it out with other Christians.  We must gather locally and fellowship with one another in order to reap all the benefits of the church of Christ.

In fact, one of the most dangerous times for a professed believer is to stop attending church, as the world comes crashing in and threatens to destroy the soul.  I’ve seen it in jail ministry, in the church ministries, and even in our own family.  Christian vitality can wane as one forsakes the assembly.  Believers need a place where we can have fellowship and stimulate growth in one another.  We need a place to gather for encouragement to “hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering.”  We need the reminder that Christ is faithful, even when we are not.

Earlier, I mentioned what Christians in the past have identified as the invisible church.  Well, if there is an invisible church, it stands to reason that there’s a visible one, as well — a “communion of the saints.”  As the next section of the 1689 London Baptist Confession says,

All persons throughout the world, professing the faith of the gospel, and obedience unto God by Christ according unto it, not destroying their own profession by any errors everting the foundation, or unholiness of conversation, are and may be called visible saints; and of such ought all particular congregations to be constituted.

In other words, you as individual believers are visible expressions of the church, and a local congregation such as ours should only accept true Christians into our membership if we want our church to also be considered a visible expression of the invisible church.

Consider Ephesians 4:3–6.  There, we read just that you should be “diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”  We don’t create the unity — Christ has already accomplished this through the Holy Spirit.  Still, we hold to that confession, understanding that, “There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you 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.”  We come together and affirm the faith together.

Unfortunately, individualism, particularly in our culture, corrupts this concept.  Because modern Christians understand they can affirm their membership in the universal church, they avoid committing to and joining a local, visible church.  Perhaps they go to a coffee shop with other Christians occasionally as they tout a Jesus-and-me faith, but they are forsaking the kind of fellowship He commands.  They twist what Jesus said in Matthew 18:20 to say, “Well, we have our two or three and therefore have Jesus.” 

Christian fellowship outside the local church gatherings is important, but it isn’t a substitute for being part of the gathered community.  In fact, there’s a sinful part of us that does not want to join a local church or to skip services when we’re a part of it.  The church is a tool the Lord uses to maintain the purity of believers.  Christ alone makes us blameless (1 Cor. 1:8), but in 1 Corinthians 5, we read that the church must be pure, so it must practice church discipline.  (Incidentally, I’m introducing subjects that we will examine in the future, such as the importance of church membership and church discipline.)

The unfortunate reality of the local assembly is that it is a mixture of believers and unbelievers, all of which may appear to be Christian.  Jesus spoke of this when He gave us the parable of the wheat and the tares (Matt. 13:24–30).  On the one hand, it may seem to be advantageous to have unbelievers in the fellowship to hear the gospel, but that assumes we (and they) know they are lost and in need of the gospel; some unbelievers can speak and look like believers, like tares can look like wheat.  These are false converts, wrongly assured of salvation.  Church membership helps weed out tares, as it were, and church discipline identifies tares with the aim of conversion.  Indeed, such false converts may never come to know the truth if not for the process of holiness God works through the local church.

We can also come to know the love of God through the local church.  We read in 1 John 3:16, “We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”  When we develop deep relationships with one another, built around the gospel, then our good works for one another causes us to know God’s love in a deeper way.  That is true fellowship.

Consider again that we’re affirming something here called the communion of the saints.  This is, perhaps, an oft-ignored aspect of the Lord’s Supper.  We understand that we proclaim “the Lord’s death until He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26).  Yet, we don’t always consider the “we” there — we are together in this holy activity.  In fact, this was an issue that some of the Corinthians ignored when they abused the communion for their own end.  Believers share in the proclamation as a local expression of the Lord’s body.

Consider the description of the early church: “Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved” (Acts 2:46–47).  The Lord wants us experiencing fellowship built around truth, and this is true communion. 

IV.        Conclusion

There’s more to say about these verses from Hebrews, but note for now that it really isn’t just about you!  Whether we consider the universal church or the local expression of it, we are considering a gathering that the Lord commands.  Each of us simply find our place in it, as He leads.  We don’t adopt an individualistic attitude, hopping between churches that meet some felt need on our terms, and we don’t skip thinking that church isn’t a priority.

We need the local church.  We read in Proverbs 11:14, “Where there is no guidance the people fall, but in abundance of counselors there is victory.”  Where can we get that except the church?  In the local church we receive communion; John writes under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “[W]hat we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1 John 1:3).  We are privileged to be part of this holy communion.

As we close, consider briefly Question 54 of the Heidelberg Catechism, which asks, “What do you believe concerning the ‘Holy Catholic Church’?”  It answers:

That, out of the whole human race, from the beginning to the end of the world, the Son of God, by His Spirit and Word, gathers, defends and preserves for Himself to everlasting life a chosen communion in the unity of the true faith; and that I am and forever shall remain a living member of the same.

Do you understand that the Lord has gathered you from the world?  That He is willing to defend you from the forces of darkness?  That He will preserve you for the rest of your life for the eternal life He promises?  May we all live as those who have the true communion He’s created, knowing that we are forever His, as members of the body of Christ.