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 “(Matthew 12:49-50). Here Jesus identifies the church as a spiritual body, and that statement alone contains the mandate for functionality in the church. He planted a seed of a thought that is later developed into a beautiful fruit-bearing tree, namely the church, is a spiritual family, of which we are a part.
 
As in human families we enter the family of God by birth (John chapter 1:12:13). The will of the father for obtaining eternal life is to believe in His Son (John 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 eternal life.
 
When we trust Christ for eternal life, we are spiritual brothers and sisters, with all who have trusted Christ. Paul told Timothy, “do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger man as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women, as sisters, with all purity“(1 Timothy 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. They formed a spiritual bond. 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 loved 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.”
 
John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, described the church as a gathering of believers called by God, seeking to grow in Holiness. He viewed the church as both a visible community, like local congregations, and a broader, universal body of believers, both on earth and in heaven. Wesley emphasized the importance of personal holiness, love, and fellowship within the church, with a focus on practical piety and service to others.
 
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 loved one another; as I have loved you, that you also loved one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).
 
Unfortunately, a church can become 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, exposing fertile conditions for spiritual warfare against the foundations that Jesus built. Wherever these conditions exist, the body is no longer whole and regresses into dysfunctional practices; into places not appointed by God.
 
The apostle Paul in writing 1 Corinthians 3: 11:13 states “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. If anyone builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood hay, or straw, their work will be shown for what it is, because the day will bring it to light.
 
Jesus Christ is that foundation, and nobody else can put down any other foundation for the church. Put another way, the church will not stand on any other foundation besides Jesus Christ. The gospel, the good news from God about salvation from sin, starts and ends with faith in Jesus. The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord she is his new creation by water and the word from him.
 
As we end this devotional, let us sing one of the church’s most powerful hymnal affirmations.
 
The Church’s one foundation
Is Jesus Christ her Lord;
She is his new creation,
By water and the word;
From Heav’n He came and sought her
To be his only bride;
With his own blood, he bought her,
And for her life he died.
 
Elect from ev’ry nation,
Yet one o’er all the Earth,
Her charter of salvation
One Lord, one faith, one birth;
One holy name, she blesses,
Partakes one holy food,
And to one hope she presses,
With ev’ry grace endued.
 
‘Mid toil and tribulation
And tumult of her war,
She waits the consummation
Of peace forever more;
Till with the vision glorious
Her longing eyes are  blest,
And the great church victorious.
Shall be the church at rest.
 
O happy ones and holy!
Lord, give us grace, that we
Like them, the meek and lowly,
On high, may dwell with thee;
There, past the border mountains,
Where in sweet vales, the bride
With thee, by living fountains,
Forever shall abide!
 
Let us pray
Oh Lord, our God, our Father in heaven, we thank you for giving us so much that is good in all circumstances on earth. We thank you that we can have joy in life in spite of our shortcomings, mistakes, and worries. You bless us with heavenly gifts, so that rejoicing, we can walk on earth as if in heaven. Keep the gifts of your spirit alive in us. Keep alive in us everything that Jesus Christ was, everything He is, and everything he will be on earth for all people. Amen.

Written by Gregory Harewood