Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Statement Of Faith

The Church Part 3

INTRO: If we were to lose this building, could CBC still be a church? Yes, ask Calvary Chapel 4 Winds, they go from building to building as God provides.

     If I was to leave and you could not get another seminary trained pastor, could CBC still be a church? Yes, just ask the hundreds of churches all over the country in rural or inner city areas where there are no seminary trained pastors...God provides them with gifted lay people.

     If it were law and all Bibles were destroyed, could CBC still be a church? Yes, just talk to those in foreign countries where this has already happened and the church has thrived by the Spirit of God in their midst.

     Our Statement of Faith says that CBC is a local church. What does that mean? And what is it that we can't remove and still be a local church?  I believe it is our purpose and mission and that is what I want to look at this week and next.

Background
     We have already examined what the Universal Church is...does anyone remember? It is the invisible Body of Christ made up of all who have lived, now live and will live who are saved in Christ. The local church has many distinctions that make it different from the universal church so defining it is important. Here is the most complete, I think, taken from the Baptist Confession of Faith of 1689.

 'The Lord Jesus Christ collects out of the world to himself, through the ministry of His Word by his Spirit, those that are given to Him by the Father that they may walk before Him in all the ways of obedience, which he prescribes to them in his Word. Those he thus called he commanded them to walk together in particular societies or churches, for their mutual edification and the due performance of the public worship which he requires of them in the world, the members of these churches are saints by calling, visibly manifesting and evidencing their obedience to the call of Christ and do willingly consent to walk according to the appointment of Christ, giving up themselves to the Lord and to one another, by the will of God in professed subjection to the ordinances of the Gospel.'

    Notice nothing is said here about particular denominations being more the church than another. I think this is important to remember. The local church does not have to be Baptist to be part of the Kingdom of God.

Trans: OK, we have a handle on what the Local Church is. Let's take a look at it's purpose. Because by determining it's purpose, I believe we will determine it's direction.

ILL: Author and scholar A.W. Tozer once wrote 'God wants us to worship Him. He doesn't need us, for He couldn't be a self sufficient God and need anything or anybody, but He wants us. When Adam sinned it was not Adam who cried 'God, where art thou' It was God who cried 'Adam, where art thou.'

     And God has been continuing to call us to worship Him. It is that call that shows me that worship..not ministry or mission, is the first priority of the local church. Remember last week....God through the pen of the writer to the Hebrews calls us to 'Draw near to God'.  Christians are called to worship God.

I. The Purpose of the Local Church
    A. Biblical
 1. The Great Commandment (Matt. 22:36-40)
     We all know the story here. The Pharisees heard that Jesus had put the Saducees in their place so they quickly sent a representative, one who was well studied in the Law to question Jesus.

     This was a hotly debated question in Jesus' day, as it is today. Today, we would ask, what is primary: evangelism, instruction or social action? How you answer will determine the direction and heart of your local church.

     S. Baptist Churches focus typically on evangelism
         Reformed Churches focus typically on instruction.
             Salvation Army churches focus typically on social action.

     The question in Jesus' day was concerning the primacy of the Law. Which was the most important...the law of circumcision, the Sabbath laws or the dietary laws? The Jews were people of the Law and the Law was a topic that was constantly debated at the city gates as well as in the synagogues and temple. And for the Pharisee, the Law was their life.

     The text tells us a Lawyer came to question Jesus. A Lawyer was like a Scribe only more knowledgeable and a much better debater. BUT, understand, to this man, he was asking a question that was truly heavy on his heart. He was really asking, Jesus, what is the one thing I must do above all others? What is to be my #1 priority in life?

     And if we can relate this to the local church, what is our chief and primary purpose?

     Jesus didn't delay with an answer. He replied

    'You shall love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the greatest and foremost commandment. Ands the second is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole law and prophets.'

     Jesus took him back to the 1st tablet of the 10 Commandments which is about the command to worship God.

     'You shall love your neighbor as yourself' we will look at next week as I believe this is the call to mission in the Local Church and is closely related to the Great Commission found later in the book of Matthew.

     This Commandment isn't called The Great because it is one of the top two or three..It is #1 and it deals specifically with our worship of God.

 2. Biblical Development
       John MacArthur has written a book titled 'The Ultimate Priority' which states that Worship IS the first priority and purpose of the local church. Let me give you a few biblical examples.

     When Adam And Eve were placed in the Garden it was to worship God. Adam and Eve walked with God and spoke to Him. Life in the garden was based on a right worship of God. When worship of God turned to worship of self, they wee removed from the garden. (read Gen. 2-3)

    The first division between men came with Cain and Abel. The conflict had to do with right worship. Abels was accepted and Cains wasn't. (Gen. 4)

    In the OT, it is clear that people were redeemed to worship God. Moses went to Pharoah and told him to let God's people go so that they can evangelize the world...no, so that they could start a Hebrew school program, no..so that they could worship Him. (Ex. 7)

     The Israelites are to go into the Land flowing with milk and honey and offer the first fruits of the land to God as an offering of worship. (Deut. 26)

     King Hezekiah restored the public worship of God and God's presence returned to the land. (2 Chron. 29)

     In John 4 we find God seeks not hard workers but true worshippers.

     Rom. 12 we find the will of God for the Believer ..that he/she offers their body/life as a living sacrifice to God, holy and acceptable which is our reasonable service of worship. Worship comes first, then the rest of Rom. 12-16 tells us of our mission. Mission/ministry most effectively flows out of worship to God.

    In 1 Peter 1 we are called, chosen by God to be a royal priesthood, whose purpose is to offer worship to God.

    The Book of Psalms is the Book of Worship in the OT and Revelation is the book of worship in the New Testament. It is in Revelation that we see the universality of the Worship of God. Rev. 4,5,11,14,15,19,22 all tell of the priority and eternal nature of worship.

    Worship God, MacArthur says, is the everlasting gospel, the message that God has given from eternity to eternity. It is the theme of Scripture, the theme of eternity, the theme of redemptive history.

    We were created and called to worship the true and living and glorious God.

Trans: Worship then, is the purpose of the local church.
    B. Historical
ILL: John Fisher once wrote 'As the church today gets more and more hip, more and more needs oriented, responding to the buttons that all people push in their pews, I find myself longing for a more historical faith. I find myself not wanting to have everything explained to me in simple terms. I'm mot even sure I want all my needs met as much as I want to meet God. Like my dog who can't seem to get anywhere because he keeps having to stop and scratch his fleas, I wonder if we are so busy scratching where everybody itches that we aren't taking anyone anywhere significant.'

    A point here is one that many in this new post modern area are stating. They want church to be authentic and more than just a place where their needs are met. The churches purpose today tends to be ministry. There are divorced people in the church so we start a divorced recovery group. There are single parents in the church, so we start a single parent support group. I could go on and Willow Creek Church does. Listen to these ministries.

     It is not that these ministries are not important. It is not that I am saying we should not help to meet the pressing and personal needs of those who fellowship with us. But a church focused on these needs, I believe will eventually do more harm than good because they will miss the boat.

     Our greatest need, since we were created and called by God to worship Him is to bask in the presence of God..to worship Him. When we get that right..and regular, when we put worship as the #1 priority and purpose of the church, all other ministry will then flow from the blessings of being in God's presence in worship.

     Placing ministry before worship in the church has been true for about the last 100 yrs. But now there has been a change. Church movements like Calvary Chapel and the Vineyard have brought about a revival in the priority of worship in the church and for that we ought to thank them.

     Why are most churches today ministry oriented instead of worship oriented? Because it is easier to simply do ministry than to truly open our hearts to love and worship God. It is easier to give a part of ourselves to ministry than it is to give all of our selves to Worship God.

Conclusion
ILL: A.W. Tozer said 'We are called to an everlasting preoccupation with God.' That's worship. Not just Sunday morning once a week worship but everyday worship. Do you have an everlasting preoccupation with God? We deeply need that to be true for all of us.

     God is to be the first priority of the church...not  ministry, not growth and not even success. I believe the local church needs to reconsider it's top priority, it's purpose. To be honest, that is one of the reasons I have chosen to pursue a doctorate in worship studies.

     There is nothing more important I can teach you than to be true worshippers of the one true and living God. And in keeping with what John Fisher said There can be no more significant place I  can lead you as your pastor then to the throne of God.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to evangelize the lost...although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to get a more full understanding of the Scriptures, although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to be edified as individuals although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to use your spiritual gifts, although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to be in community with other believers, although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church is not to grow till we need a new building, although I pray that will happen.

 The purpose of Calvary Baptist Church as the local assembly of Believers in Jesus Christ is to honor God by right, regular and heartfelt worship. To the praise of His glory! For all eternity. Hallelujah and Amen.