There
is no more glorious institution in the world than the Lord's church. For
it was in God's mind before the world even came into existence; "To
the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might
be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal
purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:" (Eph 3:10,
11).
Furthermore, it is in the church that God is glorified, "Unto
him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without
end. Amen." (Eph.
3:21). What a wonderful privilege it
is for one to be a part of that church! For the next few weeks, it will be
our goal to study the three-fold mission of the church.
MISSION
ONE - Saving The Lost
While this is one of the most clearly stated missions
of the church in the Scriptures it is also one of the least obeyed. We
know that this was the Lord's mission while He was on the earth for He stated, "For
the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." (Luke
19:10). As the Lord was praying to the Father in John
17:4 he said, "I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work
which thou gavest me to do." Christ has finished his
work in saving man. He finished it when He purchased the church with His
own blood (Acts
20:28).
Today, salvation is found only in the church, "And
the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." (Acts
2:47b).
One can only enter the church by obedience to the Gospel, "For
I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of god unto
salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the
Greek." (Rom
1:16).
Before Christ ascended
into heaven, He told us to spread the gospel throughout the whole world, "Go
ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." (Mark
16:15). These words were the Apostles marching orders. One
might say that this command was given to the Apostles only and is not meant for
us today. This is not true for Christ said that part of this preaching
was: "Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever
I have commanded you..." (Matt
28:20). Yes, the command to go
into all the world was meant for us also.
And what an important mission
this is because
obedience to the gospel is the only thing that will cause one to
be saved.
One might say that it is not possible for us to spread the
gospel to the whole world. Well, the Apostles did: "But
I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the
earth, and their words unto the ends of the world." (Rom
10:18).
If the Apostles could spread the gospel through all the earth in their day and
time, why can't we do it today in view of all of the technological advances we
possess?
Of course, this does not mean we will save the whole world.
The parable of the sower teaches us that not all will obey the gospel and that
many of those who do obey will not remain faithful (Matt
13:18-23). Our
task is to teach and exhort men to obey the gospel. In doing this we save
ourselves by obeying our command to preach the gospel.
MISSION
TWO - Edifying The Saved
Not only are we to save those who are lost but we are to
build up those who have obeyed the gospel. We see this brought out in
several places in the New Testament. "Let no corrupt
communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of
edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers" (Eph
4:29).
Paul tells us that rather than letting evil words, that can do great damage,
come out of our mouths, we ought to build one another up with our words. "Again, think ye that we excuse ourselves unto you?
We speak before God in
Christ: but we do all things, dearly beloved, for your edifying" (2
Cor 12:19). Here, Paul told the Corinthians that everything that he did was
for their edification.
In Romans 14:12-15:3, Paul is dealing
with being scrupulous. A "scruple" is one's personal belief about a given
subject based on his understanding of the Scriptures. Paul was dealing
with the matter of eating meats that had been offered to idols. Some
people felt that it was wrong to eat it and some (including Paul) did not.
However, Paul said that rather than exercise his right to eat that meat he would
honor his brother's wishes so that he did not cast a stumbling block in front of
him. He says in Romans
14:19; "Let us therefore
follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify
another."
What are some practical ways that
we can help to edify the saved?
First, we can attend all of the
services of the church. "Not forsaking the
assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one
another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Heb
10:25). By assembling together as a group of believers, we build
one another up and encourage one another. For myself, I can say that it
discourages me when I see some who find other things more important than
worshiping God. That person is not putting the kingdom of God first (Matt
6:33) and is not edifying the saved.
Second, we can pray for one
another. Paul was one who practiced this often; "For
God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of his Son, that
without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers;" (Rom
1:9).
Prayer works; and by praying for one another, we can build each other up.
Third, we can support the work of the church. There are some people who
are just impossible to please. Rather than supporting the work of the
church, they are bitter and complain about every little thing. Some criticism is necessary, and
helpful at times, but when
it is all that comes out of one's mouth, it becomes sin.
I feel that
this congregation is very good at edifying one another and you are to be
commended for it. However, let us always strive to be better.
Now we
have seen that the two of the duties of the church are Saving the Lost and
Edifying the Saved.
MISSION
THREE - Benevolence
The third major mission of the church is benevolence, or
rendering assistance to those who are in need. God has always had
compassion for those who are unable to provide for themselves. "Pure
religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the
fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from
the world." (James
1:27). God is not suggesting that we simply
go and visit a widow or orphan and render no aid.
Actually, the word
"visit" in James 1:27 means to render aid. Go through your Old
Testament sometime and see how many times God made provisions for widows and
orphans. Here are a few: Exodus
22:22; Deuteronomy 10:18;
14:29; 24:19-21;
26:12.
We
are clearly commanded to do good unto all men.
"As we
have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them
who are of the household of faith." (Gal
6:10). This does not
say that we can only help Christians, as some teach, but that we are to
help all men. Notice also that Galatians 6:10 says that we should do good
as we have opportunity. It will not always be possible for us to help
everyone we meet who is in need. However, there are certain opportunities
which we are all presented with every day of which we should take
advantage.
You've probably all heard the saying, "People don't care
how much you know until they know how much you care." By helping
those who are in need we will also open the door to fulfill our command to save
the lost.
--
Ralph Price --
