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