I will build My Church (Selected Scriptures)

Welcome to Adult Sunday School. We're filling in for Jess. He called me this morning. He's not feeling well. So you could remember him in your prayers. And we will remember him as we pray and begin. So, our Father, we are grateful for the opportunity this morning to be here, to open the Word together.

And, Father, to hear what you have for us. We pray that our hearts would be receptive to the Word, that the Spirit would apply it where it need be in each of our lives. And, Lord, that we would be made through that as we embrace the truth in faith, ever more like the likeness of Christ, in whose image we are being recreated.

And, Father, we think about our brother and friend, Jess Wetzel, and ask you to strengthen him today in the inner man. Father, may he look to Christ and find there his hope and his consolation. We do pray for his body, Father, that you would take from him the affliction that he is presently enduring.

And, Lord, return him to us quickly, we ask in Christ's name.

Amen.

God Formed the Church According to His Plan

Well, when my children were small, their neighborhood friends formed what they called a guava club.

A guava club.

And the purpose of the club, at least as I remember it, was to collect guavas and hopefully sell them. That was at least the initial plan. But when that didn't work out, they changed their purpose into collecting guavas and making juice out of them.

And then when they tried the guava juice and decided they didn't really care for its flavor, they changed the purpose again to throwing guavas at each other. And then after that, they changed the purpose again, and I don't remember what they changed it to.

And the reason I tell you that is because there are churches like that. There are churches just like that. They are little more than human organizations involved in spiritual work, at least as they define it, adopting their own rules and establishing their own programs, electing leadership with little or no thought to what God requires.

So if you think it is your church, then you feel the freedom to operate it according to your desires. But if it's God's church, then we have to look to God to tell us how it's supposed to work. And that's what we are going to look at this morning.

Excellent.

We've entitled this, I Will Build My Church. So here's what I have for you for organizing principles here. I want to look with you this morning at four expressions of God's sovereignty, four expressions of God's sovereignty, so that we will be reminded that KCC is God's church.

So we will be reminded that KCC belongs to God. So here they are. First, number one. First expression. God formed the church according to his plan. God formed the church according to his plan. We're going to look at a lot of scriptures together.

We're not going to have time to look them all up. I'll give them to you. You can write them down, look them up on your own if you'd like. We will look at some of them. But we're beginning in Matthew 16 and verse 18.

Don't turn there. We won't stay long enough. But in Matthew chapter 16 and verse 18, Jesus says, I will build my church. I will build my church. Notice the future tense verb there, I will build my church.

It is his plan to build the church. The church didn't exist at that point. I will, future tense, build my church. Over in Ephesians chapter 3, verses 3 through 6, again, we won't turn. I'll tell you when to turn unless you're super fast.

In Ephesians chapter 3 and verses 3 through 6, Paul speaks of the mystery, mystery church. The mystery church is Jew and Gentile together in one body. Jew and Gentile together in one body. Now, it was long known in the Old Testament that God intended and would save Gentiles.

We can go to Genesis 12 and verse 3 and see it there. Or Isaiah 42, verses 6 and 7. And I will turn you there. So we'll go to Isaiah 42, verses 6 and 7, because that one is probably less familiar with you.

And I want you to just see that it has always been God's intent to save Gentiles. What was the mystery is not that Gentiles would be saved. What was the mystery, unknown in prior generations, was that it would be Jew-Gentile together in one body on the same footing before God.

So Isaiah chapter 42, verses 6 and 7. And notice, just let your eyes go up to verse 1. Behold my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one, in whom my soul delights. I have put my spirit upon him. He will bring forth justice to the nations.

This is talking about the servant of the Lord. This is Christ being spoken of here. Verse 6, I am the Lord. I have called you in righteousness, Christ. I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, and I will appoint you as a covenant to the people, as a light to the nations, to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon and those who dwell in darkness from the prison.

Christ was appointed by the Father to bring the light to the nations. God formed the church according to his plan. We see that evidenced in what is known as spirit baptism, classically found in 1 Corinthians 12, 13, as the means of entrance into this church, baptized by the spirit right into one body.

Again, something that was unseen in the past, and for that I will turn you to John 7, verse 39, which is a tantalizing verse. And its implications. John 7, 39, this is John's editorial comment. John 7, 39, he says, but this he, that is Christ, spoke of the spirit whom those who believed in him were, notice future tense, were to receive, for the spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified.

The spirit was not yet given because the spirit was the means of baptism into the one body of Christ, and Christ was not yet glorified. He had not accomplished what he had come to do yet. And so there is no church yet.

Oh, in Acts chapter 2 and verse 41, Acts 2, 41, Peter's preaching at Pentecost. Now the spirit has come because Christ has been glorified. So then those who had received his word were baptized, and that day there were added about 3 ,000 souls.

Okay?

Notice the language that's being communicated here. 3 ,000 were added to Christ's church that day at Pentecost. We find in Ephesians chapter 5 and verse 25 the statement that Christ gave himself up for the church.

Ephesians 5 .25.

Yes.

Yes. The question was, 3 ,000 were added. Were 3 ,000 saved? Yes. It was a massive harvest that day.

You bet.

So where are we? Ephesians 5 .25. Husbands, love your wives just as Christ also loved the church, here's the key expression, and gave himself up for her. Gave himself up for her. Why? Because the church is his body.

Let your eyes slip down to verse 30. Because we are members of his body. His body. So Christ gave himself up for the church. We are the body of Christ. God is forming the church according to his plan.

Acts 20 and verse 28. The church of God is purchased with his own blood, Paul says. 20 and 28. There in Ephesus, Paul says, Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which, here's the expression, he purchased with his own blood.

Purchased with his own blood. According to God's eternal plan, chapter 2, verses 23 and 24. Chapter 2, 23 and 24. Back to Peter's sermon. This man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put him to death.

But God raised him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for him to be held in its power. According to God's eternal plan. He formed a church. Gentile salvation was never in doubt.

Never in doubt. What was unknown, what is the mystery that is now revealed to us, it is Jew, Gentile together on the same footing, equal access to God through Jesus Christ. God formed the church according to his plan.

God Fills the Church According to His Pleasure

Secondly, God fills the church according to his pleasure. He formed the church according to his plan. He fills the church according to his pleasure. Oh, let's look at Ephesians 1. Ephesians chapter 1.

Verses 3 through 14, which in the Greek is one long sentence. That's a fun one, the diagram. But what I want you to see is the thrice repetition of a particular expression. It occurs in verse 6, verse 12, and verse 14.

And it is to the praise of his glory.

Do you see it?

To the praise of his glory. Verse 6, to the praise of the glory of his grace. Verse 12, to the praise of his glory. Verse 14, to the praise of his glory. God fills the church according to his pleasure.

It is to the praise of his glory. To the praise of his glory. God made us alive so that in the ages to come he might show us off as a trophy of his grace. Chapter 2 of Ephesians, verses 4 through 7. But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ.

By grace you have been saved and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus so that, purpose statement, so that in the ages to come he might show the surpassing riches of his grace and kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

He fills the church according to his pleasure so that we might be trophies of his grace on display for all eternity. Display for all eternity. Well, Acts 13, verse 48. Acts 13, verse 48. When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, key phrase, and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed.

He fills the church according to his pleasure as many as had been appointed. Appointed by whom? Appointed by God. Appointed by God to eternal life they believed. Now, we have the interesting conundrum of gospel preaching.

And what makes gospel preaching such an interesting conundrum is it doesn't always produce the same results. The same message in the same room to a crowd doesn't always produce the same results. And gospel preaching in one location doesn't produce the same results as gospel preaching in another location.

We see a classic example of that in Paul's preaching when you compare Athens and Corinth in his missionary journeys. His preaching at Athens and you, we're not going to turn there, but you could find it.

Well, we will turn there. Go ahead. We're in Acts anyways, aren't we? I think. Acts 17, verses 32 to 34. We don't have to turn very far. Verse 32, Acts 17. Now, this is in Athens. Now, when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some began to sneer, but others said, we shall hear you again concerning this.

So Paul went out of their midst. But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius, the Areopagite, that's easy for you to say, and a woman named Damaris and others with them. Should have practiced that.

So, small harvest. Powerful preaching. Powerful sermon, Acts 17. Small harvest. Compare it to Corinth. So all you have to do is roll over, well, a chapter to Acts 18. And the verse I want to draw your attention to is verse 10.

Well, pick it up in verse 9. Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent, purpose, for I am with you and no man will attack you in order to harm you, key expression, for I have many people in this city.

Isn't that interesting? I have many people in this city. In other words, God sovereignly determined that the preaching of the gospel in Corinth would produce a massive harvest of souls and that the gospel preaching in Athens would come back basically barren.

Same preacher, same powerful spirit-empowered preaching, and yet such dramatically opposite results. How can you explain that? The answer is that God fills the church according to His pleasure. God is the one who causes the church to grow.

1 Corinthians 3, verses 6 and 7. Paul writes, I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters does anything but God who causes the growth.

Who causes the growth of a church? It is God, because salvation belongs to the who?

To the Lord.

No, salvation belongs to the Lord. Notice, let your eyes go down to verse 9, that we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building. The church is God's field, God's building, not ours.

Not ours. So God fills the church according to His pleasure. He formed it according to His plan. He fills it according to His pleasure. Third, God fashions the church according to His prerogative. He fashions the church according to His prerogative.

Turn with me to Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 20, Ephesians 2 .20, where Paul speaks of the foundation ministries of apostles and prophets who spoke revelation from God, that is, Scripture. So here is the household of God, right, the church of the living God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the cornerstone.

He fashions the church according to His prerogative. His prerogative is that the church is fashioned according to the Scriptures, and the Scriptures are spoken forth by apostles and prophets. Beyond that, God gives spiritual gifts to all believers according to His prerogative for the common good.

1 Corinthians 12, verse 7. 1 Corinthians 12 and verse 7. Each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good, verse 11. But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually, notice it, just as He wills, just as He wills.

Go back to Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 7. God is the one who gives spiritual gifts to believers. It's done according to His prerogative, and it's for the common good. Ephesians verse 7 and chapter 4, verse 7.

But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift, okay? According to the measure of Christ's gift. So, spiritual gifts to all believers. Beyond that, God gives gifted men to the church.

Chapter 4, Ephesians chapter 4, verses 11 through 13. And He gave some as apostles and some as prophets, some as evangelists, and some as pastor-teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.

God gives gifts and gifted men. He gives gifts and gifted men, and He gives these gifted men to the church for the purpose of maturing the church, maturing the church. This is His prerogative, His prerogative.

Notice in Acts chapter 20 and verse 28, God's direct involvement in the raising up of those gifted leaders, those gifted men to lead the church. Acts 20 and verse 28, Be on God for yourselves and for all the flock, here it is, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.

So God raises up the gifted men to lead His church. Acts 20 and verse 28, according to His prerogative. That means that the church doesn't belong to those men. The church does not belong to them. The church does not belong to the pastor.

The church does not belong to the elders. The church does not belong to the leaders. The church does not belong to the people, the deacons, the women's ministry leaders, custodians, whatever. It doesn't belong to any of us.

The church belongs to God. The church belongs to God. But the care of the church is entrusted or assigned to the elders by God. 1 Peter chapter 5, 1 Peter chapter 5, verses 1 through 3. The church does not belong to the elders, does not belong to the pastor, but its care is assigned to them by Christ.

Verse 1. Therefore I exhort the elders among you, as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ and a partaker also of the glory that is to be revealed, shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion but voluntarily according to the will of God and not for assorted gain but with eagerness, nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge but proving to be examples to the flock.

So care for the flock of God who has been entrusted to your care. Turn with me to 1 Timothy chapter 3. We'll do a little biblical reasoning together here. 1 Timothy chapter 3 and verses 1 through 13, Paul lays out the qualifications, the requirements for elders and deacons, right?

It's a familiar passage with you. But what I want you to notice is that verse 15 follows that. That's my first observation, okay? That verse 15 follows verse 13, okay?

You see that?

You agree with me there? Okay, now we need to make a deduction from that.

And here it is.

Because Paul's instructions, look at verse 15. In case I'm delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

I'm writing this letter to tell you, in case I'm delayed in getting there, on how the church is to operate, how it's to be organized, how it's to operate. What I want you to observe here is that because Paul's instructions on how to conduct ourselves in the household of God falls immediately after the list of elder and deacon qualifications, that I think we can safely say it is essential for the maturity of each church that they develop their leaders internally.

That they develop their leadership internally, okay? Paul has given the criteria, and then he says, organize the church. Well, organize the church how? Organize the church and its leadership according to what I have just written to you.

What I've just written to you.

That doesn't mean you hold a beauty contest and look for a pastor from the outside. What it means is that you train your leadership internally. You do the hard work to train internally. We can see this, for example, in Acts 14 and verse 23.

In Paul's missionary journey here, he goes back, and he says, when they had appointed elders for them in every church, having prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

Appointed elders in every church. In other words, the elders were raised up from within the congregation of that church. Understand that point? They didn't come from the outside. They didn't bring along a whole team of leadership and deposit them there.

They trained leadership internally as they were there in their missionary church planting endeavors, raised up leadership, appointed them as elders,.

And then moved on.

That's the New Testament motif. Titus chapter 1 and verse 5.

Paul writing to Titus.

Titus 1 .5. For this reason I left you in Crete, that you would set in order what remains and, see it? Appoint elders in every city as I directed you. Appoint elders in every city. Well, according to what criteria?

Well, just read a little further, and you'll find it.

Right there.

Okay?

So, probably as good a place as any to maybe insert this. So, any confusions with regard to biblical terminology of what does it mean, elders and pastors, and all of that sort of thing. So, there are three terms that are used synonymously.

There is the elder, okay? Presbyteros is the Greek. And that speaks of the man. Presbyteros conveys the idea of dignity, notoriety, spiritual experience and understanding. The older man, the elder man, right?

Translated into the English as elder. Presbyteros comes across to the English as elder. Conveys the idea of maturity. There is the mission. For that we find the word episkopos, which is translated bishop or overseer in the English.

There it speaks of the mission. So, we have the man as an elder, a mature and older man. We have his mission as an episkopos. It conveys the idea of watching over or being a guardian or leading, okay?

So, we have the man's maturity. We have his mission to lead the church, to guard the church, to watch over the church. And then finally we have his ministry. And that word poimen is the Greek word. It's translated pastor, okay?

It comes from the Greek verb poimeno, which means to shepherd or to tend or to feed. And it speaks of his ministry. So, has to be a man of maturity who has a purpose for watching over, for guarding the flock, for leading the flock.

And how does he do it? He does it through shepherding, teaching, feeding. That kind of an idea, okay? So, that's God's means of maturing a church. 1 Peter 5, we'll go back there and you'll find it's worth it.

1 Peter 5, 1 to 3 again, you find all three words used interchangeably there. So, there is some confusion and has historically been confusion in church history over these three words. And are they three separate people?

And they are not.

They are the same man, depending what aspect of his ministry and life and so forth are being looked at. But here you find them used interchangeably. Therefore, I exert the elders, right? So, there's Presbyterus, among you as your fellow elder and witness of the sufferings of Christ and a partaker of the glory that is to be revealed to shepherd, for you mean, pastor of the church of God, among you exercising oversight, episkopos, not under a compulsion but voluntarily according to the will of God and not for sordid gain but with all eagerness, not yet alluring it over those allotted to you in charge, for example, to the flock.

The other thing I want you to notice is the plural in verse one, I exhort the elders, plural, elders, okay? So, there is a plurality of elders. That is God's established prerogative to fashion his church.

It is through a plurality of elders who meet the spiritual qualifications that God has laid out for them. Make sense?

All right.

Hey, we are cooking. So, we have, let's see, what do we have? We have that God formed the church according to his plan. He fills the church according to his pleasure. He fashions the church according to his prerogative and forth and finally, he focuses the church according to his.

God Focuses the Church According to His Priorities

Priorities, okay?

He focuses the church according to his priorities. Remember, we talked about the guava club and they kept changing priorities. But God focuses the church according to his priorities. So, churches can and do get involved in many different activities which, although good, are not essential.

Good but not essential, okay? So, this is not a criticism of a church's involvement in good things as long as they are doing the essential things. But when the good becomes the enemy of the essential and squeezes it out, then there's a problem.

So, sometimes the activities can lead to the abandonment of God's essential priorities for his church. So, what are the priorities? What should a church be about? Can we discern that from the New Testament?

And you already know the answer. Yes, we can. Yes, we can. So, what should a church be about? Prayer. It begins with prayer. Romans 12 .12, you don't need to turn there. I'll read them to you. Romans 12 .12, be devoted to prayer.

Be devoted to prayer. Colossians 4 and verse 2, devote yourself to prayer, keeping alert in it. Ephesians 6 .18, with all prayer and petition, pray at all times in the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5 .17, pray without ceasing.

Philippians chapter 4 and verse 6, be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplications with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God. Those are all very familiar statements on prayer, right, commands on prayer, exhortations to prayer.

But here's the point. I want you to think about this, a little biblical reasoning together. These prayer commands are all given in letters written to churches, to churches, and letters that are intended to be read publicly in the church.

Okay?

What's the point? The point is that these are first and foremost commands given to the church. There's individual application to be sure, but it is first and foremost spoken to the church.

All right?

What is a church to be about? A church is to be about prayer, prayer.

Okay?

That's a priority. That's a God-given priority. Second priority is proclamation, proclamation. First Timothy 4 .13, until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and to teaching.

Until I come, give attention, Timothy, to the public reading of Scripture. Private Scripture reading, helpful and important? You bet. Will you grow in the Christian life without reading the Scriptures on your own?

Not very well, but it's first and foremost about public proclamation, public. Second Timothy 4 .1 and 2, I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is the judge, the living and the dead.

And by his appearing in his kingdom, preach the word. Be ready in season and out of season. Reprove, rebuke, exhort with great patience and instruction. The proclamation of the word of God is a priority of God for his church.

He focuses the church on preaching. That's why the pulpit has always been center place in Bible teaching churches, biblical churches, okay? So, prayer, proclamation. Third, discipleship. Third priority, discipleship.

God focuses the church according to his priority. His priority is discipleship. Matthew 28, 19 and 20. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

Make disciples of the nations. The command is to make disciples.

The command is not to go, okay?

It's parsable. As you're going, make disciples. That's the command, is to make disciples.

What does that mean?

What does it mean?

Again, this is written to have a worldwide context, okay? Is there a place for personal discipleship, meaning together with somebody and opening the scriptures together and helping them to grow in the Christian faith?

Of course there is, absolutely. But that's not the focus of this command, right? The focus of this command is to both plant biblical churches and enfold converts into existing ones, right? Disciple the nations.

Teach them everything that I have commanded you, everything that I have commanded you. In fact, here I go. Now I'm going to climb out on a limb. If somebody would like to come behind me with a limb saw and think they can cut it off.

But I'm going to climb out here for you. I am convinced that any kind of evangelistic effort that fails to enfold new converts in Christ into a local assembly is an evangelism that is unknown in the New Testament, okay?

It is an evangelism that is unknown to the New Testament. The New Testament is about preaching the gospel and discipling or enfolding the converts into the body of Christ, a local expression of the body of Christ.

When Jesus told the 11 disciples that they were to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the furthest parts of the earth, he was giving them a mandate to plant churches. That was the mandate.

I mean, you can find it in the book of Acts. So let's just trace it really quick for you. You can see it. Acts, we'll begin in Acts chapter 2. Acts 2 verse 41, the end of the chapter. They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of the bread, and to prayer.

Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe, and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common. They began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all as anyone might have need, day by day, continuing with one mind in the temple and breaking bread from house to house.

They were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the.

People.

And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were.

Being saved.

You see that?

There's an evangelistic effort going on in Jerusalem, and as these Jews are turning to Messiah in repentance, they are being enfolded into the church of Jerusalem, which by the time we reach the book of Acts, it's very probable that that church numbered 20 ,000 converts by that time.

Okay?

If you trace through the book of Acts and the number of statements about how the church is growing and building. Yes, sir?

Yes.

You make every effort you can to find one for them, to contact somebody who can reach out to them in the same physical location. You encourage them to move so that they do find a local church to become part of.

I suppose last and finally, you could get on an airplane. So the notion that we just lead people to Christ and then we're done, we've done our job is foreign to the New Testament. Sure is. In the words of Cyprian, he hath not God as his father who hath not the church as his mother.

What did he mean by that statement? This is an advertisement, by the way, for the men's history of doctrine that begins on January 16th. I've just said something that's going to get me deeply in trouble because Cyprian was Catholic but not Roman Catholic.

Yes.

Yep. Right.

Yes.

Yes.

Yes.

It's interesting and completely agree with you and playing off of that, right? The idea of moving, okay? When you read the New Testament carefully, what you will see is people moved in the New Testament all the time.

Just read the greetings at the end of the book of Romans, okay? Paul has never been to Rome and yet he is calling out to them, so-and-so greets you and so-and-so greets you and so-and-so greets you.

Well, how do these people know each other? It's because they moved around.

They moved around.

Now, they moved for business.

Yes.

They moved for family purposes.

Yes.

They also moved to be close to a church, okay? Listen, this life is short. Like, it's the steam over a cup of coffee. That's how long it lasts. It's a vapor, James tells us. Eternity is forever. So, hanging on to that which we cannot hang on to, right?

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to get what he cannot lose. Jim Elliot, right? So, to try to hang on to our nice life in this world and to keep a foot in that and a foot in the world to come is foolhardy.

Yes.

Uh-huh.

Sell your house. Sell your house.

Take another job. All right, I'll take one more comment, maybe two. I've got to be done, though, don't I? I'm not done. I don't want to leave you hanging here, all right? So, it's got to be quick. Go ahead.