The "Called-Out" Ones
The church is comprised of individuals whom God has called out of the world and made his own. The word ‘church’ [Greek – ekklesia] literally means ‘called out’.
The modern day and western church has given way to this belief that the church is for those who are "seeking" God or are unsaved. The Bible states in Romans 3:10-12 that "no one seeks God". Why would anyone seek someone they do not know, especially if that Someone is Holy and you are not?
Yes, the church gathering welcomes in the lost, broken and sick (unsaved) - but never sways in their purpose of gathering. The gathering are of those who are believers, called into fellowship with Christ (1 Corinthians 1:9), coming to give worship to God the Father, in prayer and fellowship with one another (Acts 2:42).
What kind of fellowship? The Greek word that is used often to describe biblical fellowship is "koinonia". Koinonia’s primary meaning is “fellowship, sharing in common, communion.” What is it that we as those who are "called out" share in common and hold community for?
Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
So we must be mindful in altering and developing this fellowship and gathering for those who are still "of the world". Many churches today focus today on their services being culturally relevant and appealing to try to bring people to Christ (bring people in) THROUGH the gathering rather than "going out".
This contradicts much of what we are taught in the Bible.
Having fellowship in a way with the unsaved that alters the purpose and execution of the gathering is dangerous. Paul even reminds us that the church, when participating in communion, should evaluate themselves and not simply take communion, as we can make a mockery of the body of Christ by allowing those who are saved having sin in their hearts or those who are unsaved/non-believers (or do not know what to believe) to partake. This as he says brings about judgement on ourselves to the point of sickness and death (1 Corinthians 11:28-30)!
Yes, the gathering can have a person come in who is not saved and hear the Gospel and be forever transformed, but it is the message (Gospel) - not the means (environment, music, coffee, altar call, pastor, etc.) that brought about salvation (1 Corinthians 10:17).
I am not vilifying the means and saying they are "wrong", but we have to be careful to not exalt something maybe that is more a "tradition" to a level of "doctrine". If you think a church gathering is legitimate only by it possessing "traditional" yet non-Biblical means, that is a problem. This is to not say the traditional things are bad, but be careful as you will find yourself heaping unrighteous and incorrect judgment on others by a means of appearance (John7:24, John 8:15). You will claim someone is not "of God" because they do not adhere to a means of tradition, all while adhering to doctrine. The Pharisees did this with which brought them to a place of "we know best", even to the Son of God Himself!
Jesus rebuked them for putting man-made traditions above the Word of God (Mark7:8) because this can easily bring about or expose hypocrisy.
Please note that the contemporary church is establishing it's own "traditions" today, vilifying "religion" because of legalism. Sadly churches today that are "contemporary" in optics, possess their own form of spiritual legalism. Christianity is a religion - the TRUE religion.
A final issue that exalting the "means" in the gathering can bring about is the gathering now becomes its own primary means - rather than a supplemental means - of evangelizing (as noted before) because we are "bringing unsaved people in to get saved". Now the primary purpose of the gathering - to worship, grow, encourage and share in common our faith in Christ - is no longer the focus.
This than leads people to once again, "bring people in" to get saved rather than us "going out" and evangelizing as we were commissioned to by Christ Jesus Himself (Matthew 28:19).
We can lack actual fellowship with the brethren outside of Sunday because it becomes ALL ABOUT SUNDAY. We have all heard it, "Do they go to church?" If they do, they must be a Christian, right? This is when we show our "Jesus in us" the most.
Now the gathering on Sunday is a day we are called not to forsake because encouragement is needed amongst the saved as we see the day drawing near (Hebrews 10:25), but always remember why we gather! It is a means of God's grace in the lives of those who believe to come together in this manner, so why would you not want to be apart of it?!
We easily can make Sunday and the gathering's "validity" based around "people getting saved", rather than worship, growth and encouragement for fellow brothers and sisters in a time where our days are filled with evil.
When I decided to go back to college, I know I had an orientation day to go over the basics of my classes, an introduction of such. If the very next week I came back to class and the teacher noticed a new student who did not care to come the first week but felt compelled to change the day's class to go over the introduction (elementary) stuff, it would be frustrating. What if my professor changed the class to simply get more people in the chairs and did it by means of snacks, video games and coffee? And to make sure he kept kids in the chairs he watered down the expectations of the class and never moved past the introduction stuff? Many would agree that the students who were there to really learn the study because of the desire of the profession, would stay infantile in their learning.
This is the modern day, seeker-friendly "gatherings".
We are called to move on from the elementary level of teaching (Hebrews 6:1-3).
Now once again, I am not vilifying certain means, but I am vilifying exalting them to unbiblical places because in the end it keeps folks spiritually infantile in their faith, leaving them open to deception and struggle.
The preacher today has become a primary means to "save" through other means such as altar calls, which then exalts him to a level where pride can easily develop or inadequacy can develop in the Christian. We boast about the number of people "he lead to Christ".
How do we know how many? Does it matter?
Paul once again addresses the dangers of this in the opening chapter of 1 Corinthians.
We are not the growers nor the seed germinators.
We may feel unqualified to speak the Gospel because "that is the preacher's calling", but that is not so.
I say all of this because while we are busy putting "means" on high when it comes to the gathering, the message can be lost in translation. These "means" serve as a vehicle - like you and I- for the Gospel to be preached, but should never overshadow the message nor the doctrinal layout, structure and purpose of the gathering of the church.
I do not need fancy means, I just need the Bible.
It is not on us to "spruce up" the message of God through flashy and culturally relevant means and put this burden on us to "grow the Kingdom" (2 Corinthians 4:2).
We do not grow the Kingdom.
Why do I not care about being culturally relevant as a shepherd and elder of a ministry? Because culture changes all the time (as we all have witnessed within a short amount of time), but God's word never does. 1 Corinthians 1:18-20 reminds us of what the message of the cross does to the world and it's "culture" and even how this message is received.
Culture says:
I determine truth
God's word is "progressive" rather than never changing
Your "ethnicity" is what makes you set apart, not your adoption into sonship with God the Father through Jesus Christ
Christianity is tolerant of sin
Love is love
It is about being a good person
Jesus needs YOU
Love your neighbor with all your heart, mind and strength and love God as yourself
"Gifting" equals spiritual maturity
It all about numbers
God's word is open for interpretation
Church is a "judgement-free" zone
The church should change with the times
I think you get my point.
Folks, culture "talks all day but says nothing"!
Many folks through emotional experiences will have the name of Jesus on their lips, but their hearts will be far from Him (Isiah 29:13). The lifestyles they continue to live will be evident on what type of soil/ground (their hearts) the seed (the Word) that was sown landed on. Out of the four soil/ground types in the Parable of the Sower, only one type does the seed actually grow and develop roots in. The word works is those who have truly received it (1 Thessalonians 2:13).
Remember, we as the saved simply plant and water, God brings the increase (1 Corinthians 3:6).
We can easily get caught up in the growing part and think it is by our means that we lead people to salvation, but it simply by God's words and His means, and those means differ with individuals.
So if you are reading this and you are apart of the "called-out" but you are looking for that "right church", I simply ask you pray to the Lord to have the Holy Spirit reveal your heart and to remind you of why we gather and who it is that gathers.
What gospel is being preached in the pulpit?
Charles Spurgeon once said, "If you are looking for the perfect church and find it, it is no longer perfect because you walked into it".
Should our focus be on the unsaved who may be coming into the church, stifling the growth of the saved and giving an excuse (or burden) to the body to be lazy in going out and making disciples because "the preacher/gathering has it covered"?
Or is the spot light being pointed to Jesus Christ?
If you think about it, there is actually a difference in how this gathering should look on Sunday, and it should not look like the world looks, but "holy" (set apart). Not only in optics but also how it is carried out.
There is plenty of "world" out there for the world to get, and the devil has us 6 days a week - this is why the gathering and it's biblical purpose is essential to the Christian!
The biblical use of the gifts, the fellowship, the repenting, the discipline, the teaching, the prayer - THE WORSHIP!
The church is filled with saved folks who still wrestle with sin daily, but have the eyes to see that struggle so they have the Godly wisdom on Whom (Holy Spirit) to go to for that empowerment to extinguish it. This is why we no longer are slaves to sin, bound to it, but are wise to the ways of the world we were all apart of and able to call out the devil to flee because of our submission to God (James 4:7)!
This also means we are no longer at the doorstep of death which has no victory over you and I because Jesus took our punishment - OUR PUNISHMENT - on the cross. We deserved what He received.
We are the villains, He is the Hero.
The Hero died for the villain.
WE, THE CHURCH, GATHER TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE ACCEPTANCE OF THIS TRUTH AND LIVE IT OUT TO THE DYING WORLD AROUND US SO THAT THROUGH US, PEOPLE MAY SEE CHRIST AND THROUGH THE SPEAKING OF THE GOSPEL PEOPLE MAY SUBMIT AND HAVE THEIR EYES OPEN TO TRUTH (Romans 10:14-15).
I leave you with this:
"Assembly and congregational segregation from the world does not mean damnation to the world. Rather, it means salvation to The Church! In spite of 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1,
some will ask, “If the unsaved cannot be invited to Church, then how will they get saved!?” But the real question is, on the contrary, “How will The Church continue to be saved if they assemble and congregate with sinners!?” How will The Church continue to be nourished by God’s Divine-acceptance and Fatherly compassion if, alas, we defy the conditions of God’s inspired call to holiness!?" - The Church Realized
-Pastor Josh . Agape Center Ministries
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