Welcome to the InTouch podcast with Charles Stanley for Monday, August 17th. The church Jesus established extends far beyond any single location. Stay with us as we begin a series exploring what it means to be uniquely a people of God. Would you turn to Matthew chapter 16? And today I want to begin a series on the church.
And the 16th chapter of Matthew, you'll recall this is where Jesus asked his apostles, whom do men say that I am? And they began to give some answers about some said Elijah, some Jeremiah the prophets. Then he said to them, But whom say ye that I am? And in verse 16, we get Simon Peter's answer. And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed are you, Simon, Barjona. Because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
So, what I'd like to do in this message is just answer one question, and that is: what is the church? If you looked in a Greek New Testament and saw the word church, the word would be ecclesia. E-K-K-L-E-S-R-A. EK which means out of, kleiseia, called ones.
So that the New Testament word for church means those who have been called out of something. You say, well, what have they been called out of?
Well, I want you to look at a couple of verses here. First of all, in Colossians chapter 1, if you'll turn there to verse. 13. Because here he tells us what every single believer has been called out of. He says, for he delivered us.
From the domain of darkness. and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.
So that the church is made up of a group of people whose faith in the Lord Jesus Christ has resulted in their being baptized by the Holy Spirit into the Lord Jesus Christ and His having delivered them out of their previous abode, which was the kingdom of darkness, and God has now placed us into His kingdom, which is the kingdom of light. Therefore, Those who make up the church are a peculiar kind of people because they have been called out of something. They are not where they used to be. They are now in a different citizenship. For example, if you'll turn to 1 Peter chapter 2.
And notice there in the second chapter how he describes this. He says beginning in verse 9, but you are a chosen race, a holy priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession. That means that every single church member who has been born again. who is a saved person. Every single church member is a unique possession of God, and He has chosen to separate you from your previous inheritance.
And now you, He says you are a part of the kingdom of God. All right, with that in mind. I want you to understand what Almighty God says about the church. And he says it all in four words.
Well, the first word that describes the church is the word body. Just B-O-D-Y. And I want us to look at two passages of Scripture back to Colossians chapter 1 for a moment. Verse 18, listen to what he says. Paul is speaking, he is also The head.
of the body Comma, the church. And he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he himself might come to have place and preeminence in everything.
So Paul says that. The church is the body of Christ.
Now, let me explain what that means so you won't just repeat that without understanding. Let's go back to look at the church for a moment. In this particular passage in Matthew, this is the crucial point in Jesus' life when, at this point at Caesarea Philippi, he begins for the first time to warn his disciples that he's going to suffer death.
So he asked them, whom the men say that I am. They gave their answers, and when Peter gave the first answer, he said, Thou art the Christ, the Messiah, the Son of the living God. Jesus responded by saying, You didn't think that up. That was revealed to you by my father. And thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church.
That did not mean that he would build his church. church upon the person of Peter, but upon that confession that Peter made. that Jesus Christ the Messiah is the Son of God. Upon that truth and that truth alone is and would the church be built.
Now Jesus said, I will build my church. You'll recall in the 14th chapter of John before he left. He was up in the upper room talking with them, and some of the most precious things he said to them, he said to them in that discourse. He said to them, It is expedient for you that I go away. If I go not away, the comforter will not come.
But if I go away, I'll send him. He'll be in you, with you, and upon you. He says, Fear not, I will come unto you.
So the next day Jesus was crucified, gave his life for your sins and my sins, making it possible for us to be saved. Before this time, the Holy Spirit worked in people's lives in this manner. That is, he would come upon someone for a particular work and then he would depart. But at Pentecost, that is 50 days after the Passover, the Bible says in Acts chapter 2 that the Holy Spirit came upon the 120. The sound of a mighty rushing wind.
Cloven tongues of fire upon their heads, and they began to speak in tongues, which were, the tongue was not an indistinguishable utterance, but it was a different foreign language, so that the people who were there began to understand from one group of people all of their different languages, and therefore they understood the gospel of Jesus Christ. On that day, in that moment, the church of the Lord Jesus Christ was born. That is the day the church was born. During the Gospels, we still have the Old Testament age. If you look in 1 Corinthians 12, verse 13, for by one spirit, We were all baptized into one body.
Therefore, on the day that the Holy Spirit came upon that group of 120 and those who believed, the scripture says the Holy Spirit, listen now, baptized once and for all, not many times, but once and for all, he baptized that group into Christ. Every single person who accepts the Lord Jesus Christ as their personal Savior is at that moment baptized, grafted into, made a part of the body of Jesus Christ.
So that when we come to this passage to see what he says when he speaks of the body, he says that the church is the body of Christ.
Now when we think about body, what are we thinking about? Look, if you will, in 1 Corinthians chapter 12. He says in verse 12, for even as the body is one and yet has many members, like your body, body is one, we have hands, feet, eyes, ears, nose, lips, and so forth. He says, And all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so is Christ. For by one spirit.
We were all baptized into one body. And we saw in Colossians chapter 1, verse 18, that that body is Christ.
So See what he's saying here. That is that Jesus Christ, remember now, he ascended to the Father. He said to them, I'll go away, but I will come to you.
So that. The Holy Spirit's coming was Christ coming back through the Holy Spirit. He says the Holy Spirit would be in them, with them, and upon them.
So that the day the Holy Spirit baptized that group, He baptized them into the body of Christ. That is, they became the body of Christ.
Now what do we mean when we say the body of Christ? The body of Christ is this. It is the extension of the life of Christ on earth at this given time. Because Jesus has ascended the Father. He's seated at the Father's right hand.
The Bible says in Colossians that Jesus Christ is the head of the church. He's the head and we're the body. When you were saved, you by the power of the Holy Spirit were made a part of the body of Christ so that we are Jesus Christ, hands and feet and lips and eyes and ears here on this earth. That makes you and me very, very significant and important and unique in a world that is anti-God and anti-Christ. Listen, we are not church members.
We are the extension of the life of Christ on this earth because He has chosen to indwell each and every one of us.
So, first of all, He says we're the body of Christ. Turn, if you will, to Ephesians chapter 2. Here he uses another likeness. He says in Ephesians chapter 2, And you'll also want to turn back to Corinthians chapter, 1 Corinthians chapter 3 in just a moment. But in Ephesians chapter 2, listen to what he says.
Not only are we the body of Christ as the church, But he says in this particular chapter, verse 19, So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and of God's household, that is, God's building. having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone. In whom the whole building being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.
Now, what he's saying here is this. He says, first of all, we are the body of Christ, the living extension of Christ here on earth. Secondly, he says we are a building. And that is that you and I are like stones in the temple of God. The temple of God on this earth.
is the coming together of God's people. And the coming together of God's people, he says, you are that temple. If you are a baptized, born-again church member, you are a unique person who has been called out by God, out of the world, into the life of Jesus Christ, into a new kingdom, into a new citizenship, and God expects something different from you because you're not what you used to be. Therefore, he says, we are God's unique baptized, born-again possession. We are the building of God.
Your life and my life together is part of the temple of God here on earth. The body speaks of the extension of the life of Jesus Christ in heaven here on earth. The temple of God speaks of the presence of Almighty God in this world.
So when people criticize the church and mock the church and all those Christians this and those Christians that, remember this, my friend, they are doing nothing but attacking the person of Jesus Christ because he's living within you and me. They are violating and they are attacking the temple of God, which is made up of God's baptized believers.
So he says, first of all, we're the body of Christ, the extension of Christ on earth. We're the building of Christ. We are the temple of the living God here on earth. and therefore defile not that temple. He says in chapter 6 that we individually are temples of the Holy Spirit.
Together, all together we're the temple of Almighty God indwelt by the Holy Spirit. The third thing he says in John chapter 15, look there if you will. He says the church is the branches.
Now, look at this, if you will. Chapter 15, verse 1, Jesus says, I am the true vine. And my father is the vineyard keeper or the husbandman. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away, and every branch that bears fruit, he prunes it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
So he talks about that. Verse 5, look. Jesus said, I am the vine. Ye, that is, believers, are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him the same brings forth much fruit.
Apart from me, ye can do nothing.
Now watch this. When you and I received the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, the Bible says the Holy Spirit did what? He baptized us, or in the form here of vine and branch, he grafted us into the vine so that you and I have become a part of Jesus Christ.
So you see, each time he's speaking of Christ in us and us in Christ. He says, we are a part of the body of Christ. Here he says, we are a part of the vine. We are the branch.
Now, listen. A branch disconnected to the vine has no life. It is the sap that runs in the vine that runs in the branch that produces the fruit.
So, if the body of Christ, if the church is to produce fruit, if we're to be profitable for God, if there's to be anything that glorifies God, the branch must be Grafted into that vine so that the sap that runs in the vine runs in the branch, and the fruit out here is the overflow of the sap that runs in the vine.
So, that it is the life in the vine that runs in the branch that produces the fruit. Therefore, in the body of Christ, it is the Holy Spirit of the living God living in and through you and me, producing the fruit of the Spirit, and therefore causing the church of the Lord Jesus Christ to progress.
Now when you separate That branch from the vine. He says, Apart from me, ye can do nothing. He says, I am the vine, ye the branches. If a church attempts to carry on its own work, Apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, apart from depending upon him, he says you're going to fail. Apart from me, you can do nothing.
You can name the name of Jesus Christ, but if you've never been born again, and if you're part of a church where the gospel is not being preached, nobody cares whether you're saved or not, nobody's uplifting Jesus Christ, nobody talks about his blood, nobody talks about his lordship, that church can't produce because it is not a part of the vine. There has to be the living life of Jesus Christ permeating, saturating, filling, and overflowing in the life of those people. Because you see, each time he speaks of the intimacy of our relationship, then listen. We are the stones of the temple of God. We are the branches living in the vine that He intends to produce through you and me His very life.
So that the church is the life of Christ here on earth, functioning and coordinating together in a sense of interdependence with each other, in order that Jesus Christ might be glorified right before the ungodly and unbelievers that they can know that Jesus Christ has risen from the dead, that He's alive and that He's God. Then somebody tells me it doesn't make you a difference whether you belong to the church or not. I've never seen a soul winner who did not belong to some local body. I never met anybody who was doing anything worthwhile for God who had not linked themselves up with some local body somewhere in some way. Friend, the name isn't the issue.
It is who is my Lord? That is the issue. There's one other word that he describes the church when he calls the church the bride. Look, if you will, in 2 Corinthians chapter 11 here. 2 Corinthians chapter 11.
And notice what he says. Paul says the church is like the bride of Christ. Verse 1, I wish that you would bear with me a little foolishness, he says here, but indeed you are bearing with me, for I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I betrothed you. That is.
I've gotten you engaged, and a betrothal was as equal to our marriage today as far as how binding it was. I have betrothed you to one husband. that to Christ I may present you a pure virgin.
So that the church Is likened unto the bride, the church is the bride of Christ. If you'll turn to Revelation chapter 21. And verse 9. And notice here what he says. And one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, Come here.
I shall show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb. All right, Ephesians chapter 5, the most beautiful one that describes it all. Here's where Paul describes The church as the bride. Look, if you will, in verse 22: Wives, be subject to your own husbands as to the Lord, for the husband is the head of the wife as Christ. is the head of the church.
He himself being the Savior of the body, but as the church is subject to Christ, So, also, the wives ought to be subject to their own husbands. Husbands, love your wives like Christ loved the church. gave himself for her.
Now watch. that he might sanctify her. Having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word. That he may present to himself the church. In all of her glory.
Having no spot or wrinkle. or any such thing, but that she should be holy and blameless. He says the body of Christ is the bride of Christ. That when he comes as the bridegroom and raptures us out, he says that's like the bridegroom coming for the bride. And he says that he wants to present this body holy.
Sanctified without spot, cleansed, without blemish, without wrinkle, holy before the Lord. You know what that means? Think about that. He says, first of all, You're the body, the extension of the life of Christ. Secondly, he says, You're the building, you're the temple, you're a stone in the temple of God.
worshiping him. You are the branch in the vine, and it is from the branch that the grapes come. And the fruit is born. We are fruit bearers, bearers of the fruit of Christ within us. He says, You're the bride of Christ.
Why? Here we speak of the sacrificial love that he has for his church, that Jesus Christ so loved the church, he gave himself for it as a husband should love his wife and give himself for her.
So, what we see in the last part here is the sacrificial love that Jesus Christ has expressed toward you and me, having made us a part of the body of Christ.
Now, if to be a church member, that is a born again, having been called out of a life of darkness and sin into a life of righteousness with Him. Christ Jesus indwelling you. And you've become a part of some local body. Friend, you aren't just a church member, you are God's unique possession. Indwelt by Almighty God Himself.
And He says, when the Holy Spirit came into your life, Ephesians chapter 1, He sealed you as His body. As his temple, as his branch, and as his bride, forever and ever and ever and ever, we are the sealed children of God. That is the church according to the word of God. There's only one way to get into the church. You can join some organizations, but there's only one way to get into God's church.
And that is by faith and repentance of your sin, acknowledging Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord of your life. The moment you're willing to do that, Then You become a part. of the body of Christ. A local body. Where God leads you to join, and let God build up your life from the moment you're saved.
and you give your life to him. And if you've never trusted him as your savior, I want to encourage you, plead with you, beg of you, my friend. Give your life to Jesus Christ. Become a part of a local autonomous body of people who love Jesus Christ, who are growing in him, who are being built up, whose family has been sealed together by the word of God. And let him fulfill his perfect purpose and will for your life.
And you can only do that by being willing to surrender your life to Him, trusting Him as your Savior and your Lord. Thank you for listening to What is the Church? For more inspirational messages like this one, visit our online 24-7 station. And if you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or In Touch Ministries, stop by intouch.org. This podcast is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.
