The Functional Church
When Mary and the half-brothers of Jesus came to see Him, He used the occasion to teach a spiritual lesson. Turning to His disciples He said, “Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother” (Mt. 12:49-50). That statement contains the seed of a thought that is later developed into a beautiful flower, namely the church is a spiritual family.
As in human families, we enter the family of God by birth (Jn. 1:12-13). The will of the Father for obtaining eternal life is to believe on His Son (Jn. 6:39-40). That means realizing that Jesus died to pay for your sins and arose from the dead, you trust Him to get you to heaven.
When we trust Christ for eternal life, we are spiritual brothers and sisters with all others who have trusted Christ. Paul told Timothy, “Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger as sisters, with all purity” (1 Tim. 5:1-2).
A properly functioning church family is described in Acts. “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). They studied the Word together. They fellowshipped together. They shared meals together. They prayed together. The church is a spiritual family where you go to nurture and be nurtured. The church is a spiritual family where you can be loved like a brother or sister. The healthy church is a spiritual family where you can have fellowship, like no other place. The church should be a family, a caring body of believers who love one another because of their relationship to the Lord. John Calvin said, “The church is the gathering of God’s children, where they can be helped and fed like babies and then, guided by her motherly care, grow up to manhood in maturity of faith.”
A functional church is a family. It has elders who exercise godly oversight, a pastor who feeds the flock, and sheep who eat, fellowship with one another, and reproduce. Others are attracted by the love among the sheep. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn. 13:34-35).
Unfortunately, a church can be nothing more than a collection of individuals, a collection of traditions, preferences, or worse, prejudices. It is no wonder that such unbiblical collections are characterized by power plays and petty feuds.
Some dysfunctional churches act like corporations. They have a board of directors. The pastors function as a CEO. They have a marketing plan to attract new customers. The stockholders sit in the pews each week passing judgment on the performance of the board and CEO. The Lord weeps as a Father, who yearns for His children to be a loving family.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 3/30/2007
As in human families, we enter the family of God by birth (Jn. 1:12-13). The will of the Father for obtaining eternal life is to believe on His Son (Jn. 6:39-40). That means realizing that Jesus died to pay for your sins and arose from the dead, you trust Him to get you to heaven.
When we trust Christ for eternal life, we are spiritual brothers and sisters with all others who have trusted Christ. Paul told Timothy, “Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger as sisters, with all purity” (1 Tim. 5:1-2).
A properly functioning church family is described in Acts. “And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42). They studied the Word together. They fellowshipped together. They shared meals together. They prayed together. The church is a spiritual family where you go to nurture and be nurtured. The church is a spiritual family where you can be loved like a brother or sister. The healthy church is a spiritual family where you can have fellowship, like no other place. The church should be a family, a caring body of believers who love one another because of their relationship to the Lord. John Calvin said, “The church is the gathering of God’s children, where they can be helped and fed like babies and then, guided by her motherly care, grow up to manhood in maturity of faith.”
A functional church is a family. It has elders who exercise godly oversight, a pastor who feeds the flock, and sheep who eat, fellowship with one another, and reproduce. Others are attracted by the love among the sheep. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jn. 13:34-35).
Unfortunately, a church can be nothing more than a collection of individuals, a collection of traditions, preferences, or worse, prejudices. It is no wonder that such unbiblical collections are characterized by power plays and petty feuds.
Some dysfunctional churches act like corporations. They have a board of directors. The pastors function as a CEO. They have a marketing plan to attract new customers. The stockholders sit in the pews each week passing judgment on the performance of the board and CEO. The Lord weeps as a Father, who yearns for His children to be a loving family.
© G. Michael Cocoris, 3/30/2007