Sunday, May 19, 2019

Building the Church

Today, we are going to ordain and install a new elder and a new deacon. As I thought about this and prayed about it, it seemed good to take some time to talk to you about what that means. What are we going to be doing, and why are we doing it? Those are important questions that need to be asked in many areas of life. And they certainly apply to the Church. It’s when people do things just because that’s the way it’s always been done that there will be problems. So, when we ordain and install Dave and Aaron, we need to understand what’s going on.

For us to do a good job answering those questions, we need to understand the big picture. Many errors can be avoided if you do that. So, in terms of the big picture, what will be happening with Dave and Aaron? Here’s something that Jesus teaches that answers that question.

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16.18


Jesus is in the process of building His Church. That is a project that will take Him the rest of history as we know it to complete. Ordaining Dave and Aaron is a part of His project. Seeing that in this way puts a different spin on things, an important spin. So, with that in mind, let’s take a look at what Jesus is saying here.

First, it’s important to be clear about what Jesus means by this word ‘build’. It includes two dimensions. The first has to do with Jesus’ plans for how large His Church is to be. And the fact is that He intends it to be very large. He wants His Church to be filled with many, many people. But that has to be connected with the other dimension here: depth. It is also Jesus’ intention to build a Church that continually goes deeper. It goes deeper first and foremost in its understanding of who God is. The Church needs to grow in its understanding of how God is faithful to all His promises, how He rules, how He loves and how He hates. It is as the Church grows in its understand of the wonder of God and lives out that understanding that it will be filled with lots of people. So, breadth and depth, two dimensions to Jesus’ plan to build His Church.

Another key word here is the word Church. What’s that? What is Jesus referring to? Some say that Jesus is talking about people who are His disciples. That’s clear. However, these also say that these disciples don’t necessarily form a group that you can point to. The Church is simply those people who are truly following Jesus. In a way, according to these folk, one can say that the Church is invisible. Oh, there are these groups of people that meet together but, according to these folk, that’s not what Jesus is talking about in this passage.

Well, obviously we need to be clear on this. And we need to do that so that we will understand what Jesus is saying. What is He promising to build?

What do the Scriptures teach about this? What is the Church? What I will show you is that, according to Scripture, the Church is a very visible group of people. And it can be made quite clear who is part of that group and who is not. And it is this group, this institution, that Jesus is set on building.

Those who hold to the idea of the Church as an invisible group rely, in part, on the history of the Greek word that is translated ‘church’. I think many of you have heard this word, ‘ekklesia’. It is said that this word is about those who are called out. That’s literally what ‘ekklesia’ originally meant. So, the Church is those whom Jesus has called out of the world to follow Him.

Now, it may be true that at one time the word ‘ekklesia’ had the sense of ‘called out ones’, but words don’t stay put. They change their meanings over time. So, what you need to do is not to understand how a word had been used at some point in its history but rather how it is used at the particular time in question.

Take the simple word ‘want’. What does that mean? When we say, ‘I want that’, we are saying that we have a desire for something. But how does that meaning fit with the first line of the familiar Psalm 23 as it is commonly translated following the KJV’s lead?

The Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.

Is this saying that we are not to have desires? Obviously not. No, it’s about not experiencing a lack, which is what that word meant when the KJV was translated. But it doesn’t mean that today. There are a couple of new translations that take the bold move to translate that in ways that we actually speak today. Here’s one example.

The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I lack. Psalms 23:1 [HCSB]

The meaning of words changes.

Whether the Greek word for ‘church’ originally had something to do with people being called out is not that important for our understanding of what Jesus was referring to in our text. What we want to know is how is it used when Jesus’ words were being written down. How is it used when the New Testament was being written? In the New Testament, that Greek word is always used to refer to a clearly defined group of people. In fact, there are a couple of times when it is not even translated as ‘church’. Here are just a few examples of that.

This is about Israel in the desert.

This is the one who was in the congregation in the wilderness with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and with our fathers. Acts 7.38

This is about the riotous mob in Ephesus.

Now some cried out one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. Acts 19.32

We see the same thing in Hebrews where one of the Psalms is quoted.

I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise. Hebrews 2:12

Then, of course, there are the times when it is very clear that certain local churches are being referred to.

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace. 1 Thessalonians 1.1

John to the seven churches that are in Asia… Revelation 1:4

Jesus is not promising to build up some individuals as they follow Him. No, He is set on building an institution. This is an institution made up of people who are mystically connected to Him and each other by the Spirit and who are organized into smaller groups called local congregations or churches.

All of this becomes important when you ask how Jesus will do this. He will use means. That is, He will use people like elders and deacons as they lead these local churches. Understanding what Jesus means by His Church helps to make clear what He wants elders and deacons to do.

Now, where do I get that from? Where do the Scriptures talk about elders and deacons in this way? One place is our text.

Many Protestants struggle with a part of our text. Let me read it again to you.

And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16.18

To many Protestants, that just sounds Catholic, with Peter as the first pope. That would be a misunderstanding of what Jesus is saying. But one thing that is clear is that Jesus is going to use people to build this institution, His Church, people like Peter.

And Peter wasn’t alone in this calling. Jesus makes that clear in other places. Listen to Jesus in Matthew 18 as He instructs His Church on how to deal with an unrepentant member.

If he pays no attention to them, tell the church. But if he doesn’t pay attention even to the church, let him be like an unbeliever and a tax collector to you. I assure you: Whatever you bind on earth is already bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth is already loosed in heaven. Again, I assure you: If two of you on earth agree about any matter that you pray for, it will be done for you by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there among them. Matthew 18:17-20 [HCSB]

First thing to note is that Jesus’ Church, as an institution, has a role to play here in the care of the saints. The last step of Matthew 18 has to do with the Church.

And next, we need to ask about who Jesus is talking to. Who’s the ‘you’? It’s not just Peter. It’s all of the Twelve. And He tells them that when His Church, which they will be leading, is dealing with someone who simply refuses to repent of some sin, then they, as leaders of His Church, are to declare that person an unbeliever. And that decision, what Jesus calls binding, is approved in heaven. And as they come to that conclusion, Jesus is among them, guiding them. There needs to be the two or three witnesses to what is happening, a principle rooted in other Scriptures, but as long as that requirement is met, Jesus stands behind the decision. In this He is building His Church, here especially in terms of depth, through the means of these leaders.

Now, it’s important to remember that Jesus’ comments were made to the Apostles. You always need to remember the original audience of any Bible passage. That does raise a question. Does this have anything to say to us who live when there are no Apostles? The answer is a clear, ‘Yes’. First of all, it would be odd for Jesus to organize His Church with such leaders only intending it to last as long as the Twelve were living. What happens after they die? A Church without leaders? No, Jesus intends this to be the way that His Church is to function throughout the time that He is building it, that is, until He returns.

So, who gets to lead the Church in these things after the Apostles are gone? That would be the elders of the Church. How do I know that?

Consider Acts 15. Here, we see elders joining the Apostles in leading the Church at the first Church council. This assembly had to deal with whether aspects of the Mosaic law were to continue. Listen to how Luke begins his account.

The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. Acts 15:6

There is some overlap here before the Apostles died. The elders of the Church join them in caring for and leading the Church, something that they would do alone once there would be no Apostles.

Next let’s consider the manner by which elders and deacons are placed in their positions of leadership. Here, I want to talk about the laying on of hands, an important symbolic act. We see one instance of this in Acts 6 when some men were appointed by the Apostles to oversee the distribution of food to the widows.

These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. Acts 6:6

The same sort of thing happened in Acts 13.

While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off. Acts 13:2-3

The laying on of hands is a physical act that pictures a spiritual reality. It can, as a result, be understood as a sacramental act. This can be easily understood by something in Leviticus.

If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. He shall bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the Lord. He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him. Leviticus 1:3-4

The laying on of hands is about the transference of something. In this passage from Leviticus, it’s about the transference of sin from the person making the offering to the animal he is offering up. In so doing, the sacrifice ‘shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him’.

When it comes to elders and deacons, what is being transferred is authority. So, in Acts 6 that I just read, when the Apostles laid their hands on those seven men, they gave them a measure of the authority that they had received from Jesus. Or to say that more clearly, Jesus gave those seven men a measure of His own authority. He did that through the Apostles who had also received a measure of Jesus’ authority. And Jesus did that so that the members of the Church would know to submit to them as they cared for the widows.

Paul instructs Timothy about laying on of hands in a few passages.

Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. 1 Timothy 4.14

For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands… 2 Timothy 1.6

In a few moments, Ray and I will lay hands on Dave and Aaron. As we do that, we will be giving them a measure of the authority Jesus gave us when hands were laid on us. Or, again, to say that clearly, Jesus will be granting them authority, through Ray and me, so that you will know to submit to them as they work to fulfill their callings. And in this way Jesus will build His Church.

Now, what does it mean for them to fulfill their callings? What is an elder and a deacon to do?

Let’s start with a deacon. There is actually almost nothing in the Scriptures to define the work of a deacon. If we take what was going on in Acts 6 with the distribution of the food to the widows as the ordination of the first deacons, that will give us something, though it never calls those men deacons. If we do that, then what a deacon is to do is to care for the physical well-being of the saints. And that can cover a lot of territory, including things like making sure that you have enough to eat. The goal here is to care for the flock.

And what is an elder to do? There’s much more available here for us to consider. So, Paul says to the elders at the church of Ephesus,

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood. Acts 20:28

Peter adds this,

So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you… 1 Peter 5:1-2

Elders are to care for the flock, to shepherd the flock. So, what does that cover? What areas of life are included in shepherding the flock of God? It covers everything. And that’s clear because Jesus’ Lordship covers everything. So, again, the goal is to care for the flock.

Elders and deacons are to care for the flock. That’s clear, but it leads to another question. Who is included in the particular flock that an elder or a deacon is commanded to care for? That question becomes more pointed when you consider this bit of Scripture.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Hebrews 13.17

The leaders of a local church, the elders and deacons, are to care for their flock. And they will have to give an account to Jesus, the Chief Shepherd of the Church, about how well they did that. So, who are they accountable for?

Listen to how Jesus describes a good shepherd who cares for his flock.

But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. … I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10:2-3,14–15

What Jesus is describing is a relationship between Him and His sheep. He knows them, and they know Him. And that’s why when He calls them, they follow Him. And that’s why He is willing to lay down His life for them. A good shepherd knows who’s in the flock that he is to care for, and the sheep know who their shepherd is and they depend on him to care for them.

It’s when the relationship between elder and flock is seen in this way that membership, as intend by Scripture, makes sense. Membership is a solemn bond between the leaders and the members of a local church. It’s the leaders saying to the members of their church, ‘I am responsible for you. So, I will care for you. If that means laying down my life for you, I will do that. It’s what a good shepherd does’. There’s more to membership than that, but not less.

Now, two last questions.

Here’s the first. Why is this important? It’s about understanding what Dave and Aaron and Raleigh and Ray and I are to be doing. There are too many churches where the roles of elders and deacons have been watered down. In these cases, the church is viewed as merely a social institution, a religious Elks Club. And every social institution needs certain things to happen. It needs people to make business decisions, and it needs people to maintain the property. And that is what elders and deacons have become in too many churches.

But Jesus’ Church isn’t some social institution. It is a spiritual institution. It is something that Jesus is busy, even now, building. And that means changing people’s lives by applying the Gospel to them by word and deed. That is what elders and deacons are really about. And to opt for what is too common these days is to betray Jesus and His plans for His Church and this world. This is why I started out with the big picture. This is why what I’ve talked about this morning is important.

Last question. What are you to do with all of this? What I have been talking about is how you are to be cared for. That has to do with things like how well you are praying, meditating on the Scriptures and growing in grace, as well as things like how well you are doing at paying your bills. That’s what elders and deacons are for. So, here’s what you do with all of this. Let them care for you.  Be open to them as they work at fulfilling their callings. They want to be sure that all is well with you. Let them do that. Help them do that. Remember the goal of all of this: Jesus building His Church.