As we have worked our way through some deep theological
questions on Sunday mornings recently, we have seen that our theology has practical
implications for how we live our lives.
What we believe determines how we act. The doctrine of God’s sovereignty and the related doctrines
of grace impact us on many levels, from how we regard suffering in our lives to
how we go about sharing our faith.
Theological study should not be an extra-curricular activity for saints. It is inherently practical.
One often overlooked area of theology that affects the
way that we live is ecclesiology.
Ecclesiology is the doctrine of the church, or the branch of theology
concerned with the nature, constitution, and function of the church. The Bible gives us remarkably detailed
teaching regarding what the church is and what the church is to do. Just as remarkable is that in spite of
this clear teaching many local bodies do not closely resemble what the New
Testament prescribes. Perhaps
because of unfamiliarity with the Bible, some of us believe we have an
abundance of freedom regarding who should lead the church, who should be in the
church, what the church should do, etc., when in reality God has given us
precise instruction on these matters.
We would do well to periodically measure ourselves against the plumb
line of Scripture to see if we are conforming to God’s design.
For this reason, we are going to begin a study on
ecclesiology during our Wednesday night teaching time, beginning on September
4. If your children are involved
in AWANA and you are not an AWANA worker, why not spend your Wednesday evenings
with us next door at Partners in Prime?
Over the course of the Fall and early Winter, we will answer such questions
as:
- How
does the church fit into the big story of the Bible?
- What
is baptism, who should be baptized, and who is qualified to baptize others?
- Is
there anything magical, mystical, or mysterious about the Lord’s Supper?
- Why
is church membership such a big deal?
- Why
should we thank God for church discipline?
- What
are the spiritual gifts and how do I know what my gift is?
- What
are the offices of the church and how should they function?
- In
what capacities should men and women serve in the church?
- What
does Paul mean when he writes, “women should keep silent in the churches”?
- What
is the place of “mercy ministries” and “social justice” in the church?
- What
kinds of decisions should the church vote on?
- Why
does it matter how we “do church”?
While these may seem like curious or unimportant
questions, they actually lead to very consequential things like:
- How
I may be damaging the church by not confronting a brother’s sin
- How
the exercise of my spiritual gift serves to build unity in the church
- Why
it is unloving to neglect the gathering of the saints
- What
are and are not good reasons to leave a church
- Why
I should carefully examine the life of an elder or deacon candidate
- Why
submission to authority in the church exalts Christ
- Why
I should consider “difficult people” in the church to be gifts of God to me
- Why
I should seek to differentiate between my convictions and preferences and how
this benefits the church
Ecclesiology is intensely practical. Like any other area of theology, if God
has given us teaching on these things, He has a good reason for it. It is in some way “profitable for
teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that
the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim 3:16-17). Join us this Fall as we seek to answer
all these questions and discover how ecclesiology matters in our day-to-day
lives.
Posted by Greg Birdwell
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