Our Young Adult group had a great discussion about What is Church. See the full notes below.

What is the Church?

The church is the community of all true believers for all time. Those who have been, are now, and will be true believers in Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 5:25

Invisible yet visible church
Invisible church: God is the only one who knows the condition of people’s hearts in relation to His Son. If God is the only one who can see our hearts or know our hearts, then He is the only one who can really know who is in the church – so to us it’s invisible.
2 Timothy 2:19

The visible church will contain people who are truly followers of Jesus and some who are not really followers of his. They will do some things followers do, but they don’t truly KNOW Jesus in a salvific relationship.

What is the church in our sense of the word?
The NT shows a few different types of “churches”
A small house church: Romans 16:5, 1 Cor 16:19
An entire city church: 1 Cor 1:2, 2 Cor 1:1, 1 Thess 1:1
A church in a region: Acts 9:31
The entire world: Ephesians 5:25, 1 Cor 12:28
In this sense the church is a community of God’s people at any level or size.

How is the church described in scripture?
A Family: 1 Timothy 5:1-2, Eph 5:32, 2 Cor 11:2
A body: 1 Cor 12, Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:15-16
A new temple & a holy priesthood: 1 Peter 2:4-8
Branches on a vine: John 15:5
An Olive tree: Romans 11:17-24
A field of crops: 1 Cor 3:6-9
What do each of these metaphors tell you about the church?

What distinguishes a church from a gathering of believers meeting in a coffee shop?
2 main things that most scholars agree must be present to make a group of people a “church”.
First – correct preaching of the Bible – salvation in Christ alone through faith alone by someone who’s called specifically to serve that role in that place at that time.
Second – The correct administration of the sacraments – baptism and the Lord’s Supper – these two things serve as membership controls – people enter the church through baptism and show a continual growth through the Lord’s supper

Another mark of a church is that the “church” should be attempting to function as a church – example – a college ministry on a campus will say at some point, we want our students to find a local church to attend – that means they are not a church and don’t intend to be a church

Another distinction can also be made based on the NT – a church should be striving for:  Unity and Purity
Purity – Ephesians 5:26-27
Unity – John 17:21
What do these look like in our church or other churches in our area – state – country – world

What are churches supposed to do?
Minister to God – Colossians 3:16, Ephesians 1:12
Minister to its members – Colossians 1:28 – build them up and nurturing them Ephesians 4:12-13
Ministry to the World – Matthew 28:19, Acts 1:8

Other things we can do:
Ministry to poor and oppressed: Galatians 2:10, James 1:27
Physical needs – Acts 11:29, 2 Corinthians 8:4, 1 John 3:17
Do good to everyone – Galatians 6:10

What power do we have to fulfill the church’s mission?
The Holy Spirit – John 14:26, Acts 1:8
Spiritual gifts – Paul doesn’t seem to place one group as more important than the other – Rom 12:6-8, 1 Cor 7:7, 12:8-10, Eph 4:11
All gifts are to be used for the common good and building up the church – they come from the same place

What are some things you like about Glen Haven or your church?
What are some things you don’t like?
How can we do a better job?