The Upside-down Church
Sermon and summary by Chrismè Visagie
Church = Ekklesia = called out assembly or house of God
The church is not a building of stone but a community of believers being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Eph 2:21-22)
I love the church. I’m not sure it is something I can explain to others, I just love the church and I believe in church. And I’m saddened by the church…. There are so many churches today that are not following the biblical principles of what church is supposed to be like. Unfortunately, this had led to many people having a very negative connection to ‘church’. God showed me this shocking picture while I was praying about this message:
The church, upside down? In the hand of a jester?
Let me try and explain
The right side up
Before we can understand what an upside down church is, we have to understand what the right side up is.
Eph 2:18-21 For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father. Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone.
It is actually very straightforward. If the church’s foundation and cornerstone is in place it will remain “right side up”. If the foundation and the cornerstone is not in place, the church will topple.
In many churches the focus today is more on entertainment and events to draw people in, than on Jesus Christ and the teachings of the apostles. In the business world there are different types of marketing strategists. One of the is called ‘The Jester’. “THE JESTER is characterized by its playful, light-hearted, and irreverent nature. They prioritize entertainment and enjoyment over serious or traditional approaches.” (taken from The Jester – The Brand Archetype (thebrandarchetypes.com).
So what is the right church model,? There are so many models and examples out there. There are different models for starting churches different ones for the governance of churches, different growth models and we can go on and on. I believe, we should start by examining what Scriptures say about the church.
The first church
Acts 2:41-47 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.
In Chuck Smith’s verse by verse commentary he identifies four functions of the early church directly from the above scripture.
- Teaching doctrine
- Fellowship
- Breaking of bread
- Prayer
1. Teaching doctrine
Doctrine = didache = instruction / teaching
Acts 18:4 And he reasoned in the synagogue every Sabbath and persuaded both Jews and Greeks.
Acts 19:8-10 And he went into the synagogue and spoke boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading concerning the things of the kingdom of God. But when some were hardened and did not believe, but spoke evil of the Way before the multitude, he departed from them and withdrew the disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus. And this continued for two years, so that all who dwelt in Asia heard the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks.
When one reads Acts, it is easy to get the impression that Paul just rushed from one town to the next to reach as many people as possible, but this is simply not true. He spent a full 2 years in Ephesus, teaching daily at the school of Tyrannus! Understanding the Word of God is fundamental to our Christian walk, yet it is very often neglected in the modern church.
2 Thessalonians 2:15 (NIV) So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.
If Christians aren’t taught, they won’t be able to stand!
2. Fellowship
Fellowship = Koinonia = an intimate sharing of oneself with others
Heb 10:23-25 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
The bible commands us to not neglect the gathering of the saints! Watching a sermon on Youtube is not gathering with the saints. Popping in to church and running out as soon as possible after the last amen is not gathering with the saints.
The British poet, Steve Turner, wrote: The church humbles us. It is one of the few places in our societies today where we sit with rich and poor, young and old, black and white, educated and uneducated, and are focused on the same object. It is one of the few places where we share the problems and hopes of our lives with people we may not know. It is one of the few places where we sing as a crowd. Although the church needs its outsiders to prevent it from drifting into dull conformity, the outsiders need the church to stop them from drifting into individualized religion.
In church, and especially in homegroups, we have the opportunity to share our lives with others and to learn from others’ experiences. An opportunity for koinonia – an intimate sharing of oneself with others.
The same word, koinonia, is used in 1 Cor 1:9 to refer to the relationship we are to have with Christ! God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
3. Breaking Bread
Cor 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
The Greek word for communion is koinonia. Yes! The same word as for fellowship!
When we have communion we have fellowship with each other and fellowship with God. We are sharing the body of Christ with the body of Christ.
4. Prayer
Mat 21:13 And He said to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ”
Rom 12:10-13 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.
Prayer is an absolutely essential, uncompromisable part of church-life. John Bunyan said it this way: “You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed.”
In Acts 4:23-31 one of the first prayers that the new church in Jerusalem prayed together is recorded. Peter and John were seized and thrown in the jail overnight and brought before the rulers, elders and high priests and told not to teach in the name of Jesus. When they told their fellow believers what happened they prayed this prayer: So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
Four important things stood out to me in in this prayer.
- They were praying together with one accord
- They started by praising God and magnifying his Name
- They stated the problem in very simple terms
- They asked for boldness to preach the word, healings, signs and wonders
I wonder what our prayers would have looked like if we were in the same situation. Would we have asked for what they asked for? And how did Jesus answer their prayer? By baptism in the holy Spirit! And the Holy Spirit was the One who empowered them to preach the word with boldness and perform healings signs and wonders.
But what about…
We have looked now at the 4 functions of the early church as described in Acts 2, but doesn’t it feel like something is missing? In Acts 1, Jesus gives a direct commandment to his disciples.
Acts 1:8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
The church in Jerusalem loved church so much, they forgot about the rest Jesus’ instruction: “and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth”. So what happened?
Acts 8:1,4 At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.
It is interesting to note that it was initially the believers that went out and spread the gospel in Judea and Samaria. Only once a group of believers were formed did the apostles go there to encourage and teach them. It was only a few years later that Paul, the first real missionary, started his journeys. The other very important thing to note is that a ‘church’, in whatever form, was started wherever the gospel was preached. This is clear to see from all Paul’s letters and other references to churches in the bible. Just look at this map of all the churches already started by 70AD!
I love the church and I believe in the church. My prayer is that the church will turn back to the biblical principles described in the bible and become the powerful weapon that God has meant it to be. Will you pray with me for this? What will your role be in making this a reality?
