ECCLESIOLOGYECCLESIOLOGY (STUDY OF THE CHURCH)(STUDY OF THE
CHURCH) Part 1Part 1 By : Servant of the Cross The Living
Spring
ECCLESIOLOGYECCLESIOLOGY It comes from two words in Greek :
Ekkles - meaning "assembly Logo - meaning "word Combining to mean :
"the study of the church." Ecclesiology is the study of the church.
The Living Spring
ECCLESIOLOGYECCLESIOLOGY Church Establish the usage of the word
first. Purpose of it being established Today Study is about: 1. The
Nature of the Church 2. The Purpose of the Church The Living
Spring
ECCLESIOLOGYECCLESIOLOGY What is a Church? Is it a building? Is
it an institution? It is a Church Universal? Church What is the
Church? The Living Spring If you read the NT you will find that
every time the church is mention it is always in the context of a
local church. The concept of a universal church is very faint.
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? The
English dictionary reveals that the English word "church" which is
used in our English Bible is taken from the late Greek word
"kyridakon" not "ekklesia." The Greek word "kyridakon" is not found
in the New Testament and only came into being in the 16th Century
long after New Testament times. Thus the English word "church"
cannot be translated back into Greek because there is no word in
the New Testament Greek that is the equivalent of the understanding
of the English word. The early translators of the English Bible
mistranslated the word "ecclesia" using the English word "church"
instead of "assembly" or "congregation." The Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? 1. a
building for public Christian worship 2. a religious service in
such a building. 3. the world body of Christian believers;
Christendom 4. a Christian denomination or congregation. 5.
organized religion as distinguished from the state. Webster English
DictionaryWebster English Dictionary The Living Spring We need to
understand the modern use of the word it is of little significance
in understanding the use of the word the New Testament. It is
essential that we understand its original meaning as it was used in
New Testament times.
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? In
the English NT the Greek word, "ekklesia" is translated in most
places "church" . It is found in 115 places in the New Testament..
1.Church = 113 times. 2.Assembly = 2 times. In New Testament times
the word was exclusively used to represent a group of people
assembled together for a particular cause or purpose. It was never
used exclusively to refer to a religious meeting. English Bible :
Ekklesia = Church.English Bible : Ekklesia = Church. The Living
Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? In
the New Testament the word could refer to different kinds of
assemblies with the context of the word or the use of a word
modifier explaining who was meeting. For example, in Acts 2:47 the
context of the verse tells who was meeting, "Praising God, and
having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church
daily such as should be saved." Acts 2:41 specifically identifies
these people who were meeting as those who were saved on the day of
Pentecost. The Context is the key.The Context is the key. The
Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church?
Another example of a modifier being used to identify who was
assembling is Acts 8:1 "And Saul was consenting unto his death. And
at that time there was a great persecution against the church which
was at Jerusalem." The assembly in this case was the believers in
Jerusalem. The Context is the key.The Context is the key. The
Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? For
example, the word "ekklesia," is used in Acts 19:32,39,41 and
demonstrates this word was used to refer to a civil assembly of
local towns people of Ephesus which included idol makers. Acts
19:24-25 records that a man named Demetruis, a silversmith who made
idols, called all workman of like occupation together for a
meeting. The reason for the meeting was to discuss the problem that
they were having with people who were being saved and who were
abandoning their idols which was hindering their businesses. Verse
39 says, "the assembly was confused." The word "assembly" is the
Greek word "ekklesia" and is the same word that is translated
elsewhere in the New Testament as "church." Here the "ekklesia" was
a meeting of idol makers and the word is properly translated
"assembly." The Context is the key.The Context is the key. The
Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church?
Another example is found in Acts 7:38 which refers to the nation of
Israel that was congregated at Mt. Sinai as the "church in the
wilderness." The word translated "church" is the Greek word
"ekklesia." It is incorrect to refer to Israel as a church and the
word should be properly translated "assembly" or "congregation." It
is confusing to refer to the Nation of Israel as a church which
could be misunderstood to support Amillennialism. The Context is
the key.The Context is the key. The Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church? The
first English Bible translated from Greek did not translate the
word "ekklesia" as church. William Tyndale's translation (1526)
correctly used the term "congregation." Tyndale completed the
translation of the New Testament and part of the Old Testament
before he was martyred. John Rogers, an assistant and friend of
William Tyndale, completed the translation of the Old Testament
using some work from Coverdale and published the first entire
Tyndale Bible under the pen name "Thomas Matthew." This Bible was
called the Matthew's Bible (1537) and also used the term
"congregation." The next English Bible, the Great Bible (1539),
also used the term "congregation." However, in 1557 the Geneva New
Testament, produced by William Whittingham, was the first to
translate "ekklesia" as "church." It is important to note the
Protestant source of this translation. Bibles Translation of
Ekklesia.Bibles Translation of Ekklesia. The Living Spring
The Usage of the Word Church?The Usage of the Word Church?
Because the Geneva Bible was printed in Europe and not in England
the English people desired a Bible published in their native
country. This was the reason for the next English Bible, the
Bishops Bible (1568) which was a revision of the Geneva Bible and
this translation continued the use of the term "church" as has all
subsequence English translations including the King James Version.
This shows that the use of the word "church" instead of "assembly"
or "congregation" came from those who had a bias towards a
hierarchical and unscriptural form of church government. To have
translated the word "ekklesia" accurately into "assembly" or
congregation" would have exposed their form of church government as
being in error. Bibles Translation of Ekklesia.Bibles Translation
of Ekklesia. The Living Spring
The Church as an Organism.The Church as an Organism. The
Epistle to the Ephesians is a great exposition of the doctrine of
the church considered as a spiritual organism. In Ephesians the
Church is presented under three or four different figures, and it
is well to study these figures carefully. These figures are A Body,
1:22-23; 4:15,16; 5:23) A Bride , 5:30-32; (2 Corinthian 11:2-3, in
its local aspect) A Building, 2:20-22; A Family or Brotherhood 2:19
The Church has been called :The Church has been called : The Living
Spring