What is the church?
Several passages in this week’s reading stand out when asking myself this question. Additionally, I believe these passages will be helpful when answering the following question as well.
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)
The church is devoted to discipleship, fellowship, communion, and prayer. (2:42)
There is unity in the church. (2:44)
The church comes together and provides for those in need. (2:45)
The church worships together and does life together. (2:46-47)
When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, who through the mouth of our father David, your servant, said by the Holy Spirit,
“‘Why did the Gentiles rage,
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers were gathered together,
against the Lord and against his Anointed’—
for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness, while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:23-31)
The church supports and prays for one another and is committed to evangelism. (4:23-31)
Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. (Acts 4:32-37)
There is unity in the church. (2:44, 4:32)
The church evangelizes. (4:33)
The church provides for those in need. (4: 34-35)
Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It 0is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.
And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. (Acts 6:1-7)
The church serves one another. (6:1-7)
The church uses gifts wisely. (6:2-4)
Does Gateway look like the church, why or why not?
I think that by looking at Gateway, in light of the things seen of the church in Acts shown above, we can get a pretty good idea as to whether or not Gateway looks like the church.
Discipleship
I see discipleship taking place at Gateway in several ways. Lifegroups are a big one, and of course, then there is 23 Ministry. Sunday morning discipleship classes have also been a big step in this area. To be honest, up until the discipleship classes began last fall, I always felt that Gateway was missing an opportunity, so I was excited when they were added. I’m also aware of various classes and other opportunities that have been offered at the church office from time to time.
In addition to these Gateway provided discipleship opportunities, I also see several people in Gateway meeting together, either one on one or in groups, for discipleship.
Fellowship
I’ve always felt that fellowship and discipleship have sort of overlapped. That said, most of what I said for discipleship can also be said here. So overall, I do feel that we do fellowship fairly well. However, I also think we could do better.
As I recall, there was a time when we had a lot more fellowships at Gateway. If my memory serves, it was pretty much every month. We would have an intergenerational service that was immediately followed by a fellowship lunch in the small gym. At some point, this got away from us. I know that recently there has been an effort to revive some of this. Of course, covid-19 has made that difficult, but I would still like to see more of these fellowship opportunities as things return to normal.
Communion
I believe Gateway holds communion every couple months, or perhaps quarterly. I’m not real sure how it is determined how often or on which Sundays we take communion. It does seem that we have fewer communion Sundays than other churches I’ve attended. Although, I can’t say I have too many to compare. Regardless, I also can’t say that I’ve ever felt that Gateway lacked in this area.
Prayer
We pray corporately during service on Sunday, and at LifeGroups and fellowships. There have also been a couple of times I can recall when the church was asked to pray in unison, usually accompanied by fasting, and at certain times of day, when going through particularly difficult times. Then there have been other times when I’ve been asked to join a small group and pray for a particular person or issue, and I’m certain that there have been other small groups that gather to pray for similar reasons as well.
I can’t say that I’ve ever really thought about how Gateway does in terms of prayer. Honestly, it feels challenging to gauge in that prayer can be done corporately or it can be deeply personal and private, and everywhere in between.
All this considered, I don’t think we are doing too bad in this area.
Unity
Similar to prayer, this feels difficult to gauge. It is difficult to say that we are “of one heart and soul” because it is difficult to know what is on each person’s heart. It’s no secret that Gateway has gone through some tough times in recent years. Some issues have come up in the past that have undoubtedly caused some division between certain church members. Some have left Gateway, and others have stayed. During these times, it wasn’t uncommon to hear whispers and mummers of division. However, that said, I cannot say that I have heard any such whispers or mummers in quite some time.
Meeting the Needs of Others
When I think of Gateway and meeting the needs of others, I immediately think of Mercy Ministry. From housing to the food pantry and close closet to walking in covenant to help families get back on their feet, helping others in times of need is what Mercy Ministry does.
Treasured Ministry also comes to mind here. I am less familiar with everything that Treasured does, but what better way to help others in need than to help children find loving homes.
Scripture says about the church in Acts that “no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common” and “they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need”. I’m not sure we see very much of this at Gateway, but I’m also not sure we see very much of this anywhere else either. That’s not to say that we shouldn’t, but I think it just looks different now than it did then. The world we live in is quite a bit different than the world the church in Acts lived in. That said, the spirit of what was going on can still be found today and can still be found at Gateway. It’s a spirit of generosity and one that puts others before oneself.
A great example of this at Gateway would be just a few months ago when there was a fire in my sister’s house. Gateway was on the scene before the firemen even left. My sister’s family was put in a hotel and then in one of the Mercy Ministry houses where their needs were met until their insurance kicked in.
These types of things don’t happen all the time, and I can’t say 100% that all of the needs among us have been met. But I do believe this spirit of generosity is present within Gateway.
Worship
One of the best decisions Gateway has made in the 14ish years I have been there has been to add a second service to allow volunteers the same opportunity to worship with their families and with the rest of the church. Not only that, but the second service also allows others, who might have scheduling issues, to join the church in worship.
Life Together
For me, LifeGroups are described in 2:46-47. Getting together in homes, breaking bread, and praising God are all things that take place in the LifeGroups that I have attended. Additionally, from my perspective, I know my family has been invited out to enjoy a meal with other members of Gateway, whether it be in their homes or elsewhere, several times over the years.
Evangelism
Mission trips are the first thing that comes to mind for evangelism. I know Gateway tries to offer at least two opportunities each year for people to travel to Jamaica and Peru to serve and share the gospel. Then there is also Full Life Ministry taking the gospel to local prisons. And last year’s faith walk at the Fall Fun Festival was also a good opportunity.
Service
Gateway is driven by service. If a person comes to Gateway and cannot find a place to serve, they aren’t looking very hard. Volunteers run 95 % of any given Sunday, plus Mercy Ministry often has places people can get plugged in to serve. And then there is always serve week where we spend an entire week serving the community.
Gifts
Gifts go right in line with some of the other points on this list. For example, if your gift is administration, service, or teaching, then it should be easy for you to find a place in a church that is ran 95% by volunteers. If your gift is encouragement, helps, or mercy, then I am sure Mercy Ministry has a place for you. If your gift is evangelism or discipleship, then see my comments above on those topics.
So does Gateway look like the church? I think so. Could we do some of these things better? I think so. But I believe Gateway as a whole is hitting on each of them to at least some degree. Sadly not everyone in attendance on Sunday morning always takes advantage of these opportunities, but the church certainly does provide them and encourage them.
What should be the church’s relation to the governing authorities?
Several passages of scripture come to mind when considering the church’s relation to the governing authorities.
Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to entangle him in his words. And they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why put me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard it, they marveled. And they left him and went away. (Matthew 22:15-22)
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. (Romans 13:1)
Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. (1 Peter 2:13-17)
And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, saying, “We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.” But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men. (Acts 5:27-29)
Based on these passages, I believe the church must submit to the wishes of the government as long as the government does not contradict God. This is precisely what we see in Acts chapter 5 when Peter and John were flogged for disobeying their authorities.