ecclesiology ecclesiology refers to the doctrinal study of the church we will look at some structure...
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Ecclesiology
Ecclesiology refers to the doctrinal study of the Church
We will look at some structure the Bible lays out for the church, why we need the church, what the church is, when the church began, and more
When does the Church begin (Birthday)?
There are multiple ideas of when the church may have started
One idea is in the Garden of Eden
with Adam and Eve because it was the
first time man had a relationship
with God
Others put emphasis on faith and say the beginning of the Church was when
God called Abraham
There is an idea and position that says the Church is throughout the Old Testament
Hebrews 11:8: “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance.
And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and
Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has
foundations, whose builder and maker is God. By faith Sarah herself also received strength to
conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful
who had promised. Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born as many as the
stars of the sky in multitude—innumerable as the sand which is by the seashore.”
It is an interesting idea, but “faith” was expressed by people before Abraham
Hebrews 11:4-7: “By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain,
through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see
death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”;
for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it
is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a reward of those who diligently seek Him. By
faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared
an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became
heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
Others put the date after the resurrection
when Jesus had defeated death
and salvation was available to all
While there would be nothing wrong with any of those views being right, most people put the birthday of the church on Pentecost
Some reasons for this include:
1. Our Lord said: “I will build My church”
(Matt. 16:18). He did not say that He would
continue to add to something already in existence, but that He would do something
not yet begun.
(2) The church could have no functioning Head until after the resurrection of Christ; therefore, it could not exist until sometime after He rose from the dead (Eph. 1:20-23 connects His resurrection, ascension, and session to His headship over the church).
(3) The church could not have been an operating entity with functioning spiritual gifts until after Christ’s ascension and the
giving of the Holy Spirit
Pentecost is the Trinitarian fulfillment of God himself
We knew who God the Father was from the
OT, we knew who God the Son (Jesus Christ)
was wrong his life here on earth, and because of Pentecost we now know God the Spirit
When we say “Church” What are we talking about?
The term ekklesia in the NT can refer to the “church of God” meeting in a home (Rom
16:5), in a particular city (1 Cor 1:2; 1 Thess 1:1), in a region (Acts 9:31) or a larger area
such as Asia itself (1 Cor 16:19).
We can see that there are many local churches, but they are all part of the
universal Church
Metaphorical Expressions in Reference to the Church
First, in 1 Corinthians 12:12-27 she is corporately referred to as the body of Christ, and in Ephesians 1:22-23 she is the body and
Christ is the head.
Second, she is also referred to as God’s family; we are all sons and daughters of the
Lord (2 Cor 6:18).
Third, her intimate and dependent relationship to her Lord is likened to a vine
and its branches (John 15:1-11).
Fourth, in her relationship to the world she is referred to as the pillar and ground of the
truth (1 Tim 3:15).
Fifth, she is corporately referred to as a building (1 Cor 3:9), a living temple that actually grows (Eph 2:20-21) and a holy
temple in which God dwells (1 Cor 3:16).
Sixth, in her service before God and in her relationship to him as His People she is referred to as a “holy nation,” a “royal
priesthood” (1 Pet 2:9) and each member is likened to a living stone, built around the
chosen and precious cornerstone of Christ
Seventh, she is referred to by the Lord as the salt and light of the world (Matt 5:13-15; Acts
13:47; Col 4:5-6).
https://bible.org/seriespage/8-ecclesiology-church
Given all these pictures of the church who is the church? All believers
Who’s supposed to go to church?
“Do 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.” - Hebrews 10:25
The church (universally and locally) have a mission given to them by God
The purpose and mission of the universal and local church is to continue the work of
Christ in proclaiming the gospel and being a light to the world (John 14:13-14; Acts
1:8; Acts 13:47).
The gospel should remain the center focus of every church. If preaching the gospel and making life long disciples and followers of
Jesus Christ is not the mission of the church, there is a problem
While there is some differences on exactly how it should work, the Bible is clear that
the local church should have structure and order to it
It is Biblical to have Pastors, Elders, etc.
Titus 1:5: “This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town
as I directed you”
1 Timothy 3:8-13: “Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to
much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first;
then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Their wives likewise must
be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.
Not just anyone can be an elder or a deacon in the church, there are qualifications
12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own
households well. 13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves
and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.” (See Titus 1 for Elders regulations)
We will not go into detail discussing and debating the different forms of Church
government (Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Congregational) just understand that the
Bible support order in the local Church
Who is the head of the church?The head of the church for Christians would
be Jesus Christ Himself (for the universal church) and individual pastors and deacons
(for local churches and denominations)
We do not believe in a single individual (Human being) as being the head of the
universal church on planet earth
That stands in contrast to the Catholics
Catholics believe that there is a head to the universal church here on earth, the Pope
They believe the Pope and Church counsels can define doctrines and tradition (which is
just as important for the Roman Catholic Church) universally for the church
They believe Jesus established the Papacy (office of Pope) and that the Apostle Peter was the first head of the universal church
Matthew 16:13-18: “When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His
disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” So they said,
“Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He
said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You
are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Where do they get the idea of the Pope? Same place we get our teaching
Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood
has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My
church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.”
What is the “rock” that the church is founded on? Is it Peter (the first Pope) as the
Roman Catholic Church would say?
The most basic objection is based on the original language and the words used
When Jesus said “I tell you that you are Peter” he used to Greek term petros, which means a
stone of small rock
When Jesus said “On this rock I will build my church” The word “rock” is expressed in the
Greek as petra
Peter and the “rock” that Jesus refers to are different words, how could it be Peter?
The typical answer you will get from a catholic apologist is that Jesus and the
disciples spoke Aramaic, not Greek & that the gospels were originally written in
Aramaic not Greek.
Problems: First off, there is no historical
evidence (At all) that the gospels were written in
Aramaic
But what if they spoke Aramaic?
Even if that were true (can’t know) the Holy Spirit inspired the Greek text, and made
that distinction!
What does the rock refer to then? Historically, there are three popular
interpretations
There are reasons why God would want them written in Greek (detailed Language, plus its
by far the most popular language)
What does the rock refer to then? Historically, there are three interpretations
Peter being the rock Jesus being the rock
Peter’s confession of faith being the rock
Textually there is no reason to believe that Peter is the rock, especially considering the
difference in words. It is possible that his confession is the rock, but most likely is that
Jesus is being referred to.
How did the early church interpret this passage?
One survey of early church writings on this passage found the following views:
Peter being the rock (17 supporters)
Jesus being the rock (16 supporters)
Peter’s confession of faith being the rock (44!)
Later on in church history the idea of Jesus being the rock became the dominant idea
1 Corinthians 10:4“And did all drink the same
spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that
followed them: and that Rock was Christ.”
Over 35 times in the Old Testament the term “rock” refers either to God or to the
coming Messiah
There are good Biblical reasons to support Jesus, (and/or) the confession being correct
As Christians, we believe that the Bible is the only infallible rule of faith
Because the church is made up of humans, and humans make mistakes, we believe the
church is able to make mistakes in it’s interpretation and application of scripture
At the same time, we do believe that the church is an authority in the lives of
Christians, and that all Christians should be under the authority of a local church body
Why are there so many denominations if the Protestants are correct?
This is often raised as evidence in favor of the Roman Catholic Church, they all agree and are uniform while us Protestants are not!
Doesn’t that show they are correct?
First off they are not all unified, there are many differences in the Catholic Church, and there are many denominational equivalents
also inside the Catholic belief
That being said, how do we explain these different denominations? Why so many?
There are many factors that play a role in the denominational differences
Some are non-essential doctrines (Eschatology, Free Will, Eternal Security,
Spiritual Gifts, Church Government, etc.)
But remember, almost every Protestant denomination would agree these are not
Salvation issues
With few exceptions, a good Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal etc. All
still believe the other is saved
We would all accept each other (in general) as being part of the Universal Church (that
doesn’t mean every member of those denominations is a true believer)
Those are not the only reasons though for different denominations, they don’t all have
to do with doctrine
Some churches start in different cultures, and there are traditions/cultural preferences
that make them different than other churches (worship styles, etc.)
Determining who is part of the universal church really comes down to what a
denomination/individual/local church believe
I can get together and do mission trips with Baptists, Methodists, etc. But I can’t do that
with Mormons
What’s the standard for being part of the universal church for a denomination or individual? Here are some examples:
The Monotheistic Trinitarian God
Mormons, Jehovah Witnesses, Oneness Pentecostals all reject this doctrine
Biblical Salvation (By Grace and Faith alone)
This is the main reason for the split with the Roman Catholic Church
Memory Verse
“Do 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.” - Hebrews 10:25
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