The Gospel & the Church

Do all churches preach the Gospel? If not, then what purpose does a church serve?

WHAT IS A CHURCH?

We should begin by looking at what a church is.

Interestingly, not everyone’s definition of a church will be the same. Many would say that it’s just a building that houses a congregation of people.  Others would say a church is a sacred building or temple.

Generally, among Christians, church isn’t a building but a body of believers, or the body of Christ.

And He (Jesus) is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. – Colossians 1:18

For we are the temple of the living God. – 2 Corinthians 6:16.

As children of God, we are His temple because His Holy Spirit dwells in us.

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit. – Ephesian 2:19-22

The church isn’t a building but a people – specifically, believers of the faith who are indwelled by the Holy Spirit. We are of one citizenship, one holy family, with the Gospel that is Jesus Christ as the cornerstone upon which everything is built.

TODAY’S CHURCH

The church today is filled with divisions and many forms of theologies and doctrines.  Its true purpose is muddled causing confusion, especially among the new believers and those who are not strongly rooted in the Scripture.

Here are some headlines as examples:

Poll: Most Preteens Reject the Bible as God’s Word; It’s the ‘Existential Challenge Facing the Church’

U.S. Church Membership Falls Below Majority for First Time

Survey: Majority of American Christians Don’t Believe the Gospel

Study: Majority of Self-Identified Christians Don’t Believe the Holy Spirit Is Real

‘Jesus was Created; God Not Perfect’ – Sobering New Study: Americans Hold Many More Biblically Inaccurate Views

WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE CHURCH?

In Matthew 28, Jesus gives us a clear purpose for the Church:

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

As followers, we are called to share the Gospel with others – not only making converts but disciples of them.

Essentially, we are a missional church. Meaning, that we are to be actively living out the commandments set forth by Him.

 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-5)

This passage is quite clear that Jesus is not a created being, but eternal of which all things through and in Him were created.

And what about the Holy Spirit? Is it real? How important is the Holy Spirit to the believers?

In Act 2, on the day of Pentecost, the advocate promised by Jesus came and filled Peter and the disciples. Through the Holy Spirit, the Church Age began.

With the Holy Spirit, the Christian church was born.

Each child of God is dwelled by the Holy Spirit to not only give us the ability and gift to spread the Gospel but to be our eternal seal as proof that we are His and secured our place in Heaven.

C.S. LEWIS SAID IT BEST

“The church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ.” – C.S. Lewis