Ecclesiology
by Cliff Pash
While many topics make up the subject called Ecclesiology,
a narrowing of the topic is necessary for a paper
of this length to do any justice to any topic. Therefore,
this paper will study the attitudes necessary for
unity to come among the people who make up the Community
of Faith, if that community will ever fulfil the
purposes given to it by the Creator. If the works
predestined before the foundations of the earth
to be done by a community are ever going to be accomplished,
there must be a godly community reflecting the power
and holiness of the Living God.
The process of becoming a people of God is designed
to be achieved through a Community of Believers.
From the very beginning, God took a group of slaves
out of Egypt with the express purpose of creating
a Community, a chosen people through whom He could
reveal Himself to the world. As individuals accustomed
to being slaves, the process did not go smoothly,
despite the "Sovereignty" issue of God.
The people could not give up the control they exercised
over their lives. After forty years, the community
became the best they could become and great miracles
occurred because of their obedience and the power
of all that operated to the extent that it operated
in that people.
It is only through trusting other members of a community
that a fullness of trust can be brought about towards
what it is that God wants to do with our lives individually
and corporately. No man is an island, and the ones
that try to do Kingdom work as an island normally
fail because there is no prayer support, emotional
support, teaching support or any other kind of support.
The individual is continually hindered in becoming
all that God has preordained us to do outside of
the community.
Secondly, the community itself becomes an expression
of God in His task of revealing Himself to the Gentiles.
The primary piece of the Smithton Outpouring that
drew Julie and I was that we saw a people of God
who were transformed by the Power of God and who
operated as a Community of God. To see a people
of God inspired us to drive 2-1/2 hours each way
to come at least weekly. Our goal, at that time,
was to find out what it was that those people had
because we wanted it. It was the Community that
drew us. Gradually, the preaching took root and
opened up the bible to us in ways that are so exciting
and revealing and life changing. The prayer imparted
the very Presence of the Living God into us each
and every time we attended the services. And now,
for the first time in my life, I am beginning to
believe that God has a calling on my life.
"And God placed all things under his feet and
appointed him to be head over everything for the
church, which is his body, the fullness of him who
fills everything in every way." (Eph 1:22-23)
'His intent was that now, through the church, the
manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the
rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according
to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in
Christ Jesus our Lord." (Eph 3:10-11)
The book of Acts outlines the steps by which a
grass roots movement within the Jewish Religion
gradually grew in numbers and power, finally breaking
with the Jews and becoming an independent movement.
The story of the rise of the church is one of beginning
as one of many Jewish sects, rising out of two thousand
years of Jewish history and gradually becoming a
Gentile church with primarily a Greek philosophical
emphasis and with virtually all Jewish roots and
practices severed.1
Thousands of books have been written in order to
attempt to define what the church is, what its role
should be in society, what is the proper form of
government the church should have and what is the
role of the parishioner or congregational member
within the church. In the end, perhaps there is
no theory of church government that will stand the
test of time. Each one has been tried in the past
two thousand years and each of them has proven to
be a mixture of good and bad. Even the Apostolic
church that resulted from the ministry of Paul and
John was filled with many of the major problems
that still plague the church today.
Ephesians is a book of community relationships.
Perhaps, in the end, what type of church government
exists is not nearly so important as what will be
done with it. If the church produces a community
of believers functioning as God intended the Hebrew
children, wandering in the wilderness to function,
it will be through that community that the ultimate
prophetic vision will be fulfilled; every nation,
tribe and tongue will "acknowledge Him as the
Lord and there is no other" (1 Kgs 8:60)2 and
the purposes of God will be fulfilled in the earth.
The government of that community was designed by
God Himself, however, the people did not follow
God's design very well. After forty years of obedience
training, Moses told the people:
"Understand, then, that it is not because of
your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving
you this good land to possess, for you are a stiff-necked
people."
If the "initial conversion experience"
is only the entry ticket into the community of faith,
and if it is only through the community of faith
that the individual believer can work out his salvation
with fear and trembling, interacting with other
believers and learning to love one another in an
unconditional fashion3, then ecclesiology should
then concentrate upon the community of believers
and not the perfect government that theologians
agree "should" be the right one to develop
a godly community.
In Paul's letter to the Ephesians, the apostle makes
specific reference to Psalm 68 when he appears to
misquote the Psalm, Vs 19, as follows:
"After He went up into the heights, He led
captivity captive and he gave gifts to mankind."
Commentators wonder why Paul appears to misquote
Psalm 68 and therefore many interpretations are
made of the verses in Ephesians that may be good
lessons, yet, Paul was trying to say something about
community and the attitudes Ephesians should have
towards each other rather than concentrating on
selecting a gift that God has given to us. Most
Old Testament quotes found in the New Testament
are a summation of an idea more fully presented
in the complete passage found in the Old Testament.
Therefore, the full meaning of Psalm 68 might be
presented in Ephesians even though the exact verse
is not quoted properly. Proper exegesis requires
an understanding of the quoted material and entire
passage from the Old Testament before a better understanding
can be found from a passage in the New Testament.
Many have found a theme in Psalm 68 that better
fits with Ephesians 4:1-16 than most modern commentaries
might suggest.4
Because of our changing culture, modern readers
will look at Psalm 68 and conclude understand the
following:
"After you went up into the heights, you led
captivity captive, you took gifts among mankind
yes, even among the rebels, so that Yah, God, might
live there." (Ps 68:19)
The Psalm is a song of praise in reference to when
King David divided the spoils or war booty among
all the peoples, even those who stayed behind and
cleaned the toilets (1 Sam 30:24). We are prisoners
of a God who shares the spoils of war with the people
of His Kingdom. Throughout Antiquity, the greatest
booty and treasure from the battles fought were
the captives. The captives became the slaves. In
a modern culture, this idea is seldom understood.
We cannot conceive of a culture where there are
no machines or tools to make our work easier. As
recently as one hundred and fifty years ago, people
worked from sunup to sundown just to keep alive.
The culture of this time was extremely labor intensive.
To consider cooking a meal involved killing a chicken,
plucking its feathers, cleaning its guts, chopping
the firewood, starting a fire, then finally cooking
the chicken. The same is true for the washing of
clothes, building a fence, storing up food for the
winter and for every other area of human existence.
Slaves, then, were a very vital and necessary part
of any culture. War was not always about conquering
territory, it was the seizing of supplies and the
taking of captives so that the workload of the people
could be made manageable. War was especially necessary
during times of famine or other natural disaster
in order to sustain life itself. If an area experienced
severe drought, the food supplies of a neighboring
area were targeted in order that the people of the
kingdom could live. Whenever possible, prisoners
were taken for a variety of purposes, chief among
them was to lessen the grueling physical work load
among the community.
The King in Psalm 68, then, loved his people so
greatly that he gave the gifts of slaves to the
subjects of his kingdom. The gifts of slaves were
given by the king in order that they might serve
the subjects and to help them with the workload.
The food and other materials society had gathered
helped the community to survive another year. The
King so loved his people that everything was shared
with the people of his kingdom. The idea of community
is portrayed by a King who could have kept everything
for himself, yet shared it all with the people.
Psalm 68 glorifies the king. This king, is, of course,
the King of King and the Lord of Lords.
At one time, each of us lived in the Land of Sin
and Death. The King came and did battle in this
sun scorched land and took prisoners. In the Land
of Sin and Death, each one of us was held captive
by the sinful state of our lives. Hence, the wording
is used, "He took captivity captive"
Now, it is us who were taken prisoners by the King.
We were the captives who were taken prisoner from
the Land of Sin and Death. We are now prisoners
of the Lord. It was God, himself, who fought the
battles resulting in our being brought out of the
Land of Sin and Death. While most prisoner trains
were forced to march to the victorious king's kingdom,
we are prisoners who are singing with joy at being
taken captive by this king. Psalm 68 describes this
prisoner train as being joyful. Notice, however,
nowhere does it say we are now set free. No, this
king distributes the captives to the various communities
throughout the kingdom.
The Prisoners of this war are the sick, the drunks,
the broken hearted and those broken down by the
trials of life. The Prisoners of this war are the
booty. We are the treasure that was captured by
the King. We are the Prisoners. In his letter to
the Ephesians, Paul refers to himself as one of
these prisoners. He recognizes himself as one of
those held captive in the Land of Sin and death
who became a prisoner of the Lord Jesus Christ.
He recognized himself as a captive who was taken
prisoner by our victorious king.
If God, himself, fought the war for each one of
us, no matter how long we have been a prisoner of
this king, we are still a prisoner, held captive
by the King and distributed to the various communities
of prisoners throughout the land. Each of us must
never forget that we are the captives of the King,
no matter how long ago we were taken prisoner. We
must never forget that each prisoner was distributed
by the King to the communities he desired us to
place us in. Each placement had a purpose in the
eyes of the king. Each community of prisoners, then,
should reached out and joyfully and gratefully accept
new prisoners as a gift from this king. Each one
who is given to the community of faith was once
held captive in the Land of Sin and Death. Each
one now becomes a Prisoner of the King and placed
in a community for His purposes. Each one of us
remains a prisoner, even Paul as he writes to the
Ephesians. A more accurate translation of Ephesians
4:8 then is "He gave gifts of men to men"
Psalm 68: 25-28 tells the story from the point of
view of the Community of Faith. Those prisoners
who were captured long ago run out to meet the king
and to celebrate His latest victories. How great
is our King!! As newly captured prisoners are then
distributed, each community is so thankful that
the booty of the latest battles (the newly captured
slaves/prisoners) will, once again, be shared by
this king. Each community of former prisoners recognizes
this latest battle could only have been fought by
the King, but this king shares his treasures with
all.
Each of the prisoners from previous wars recognizes
this new batch of prisoners is no different from
themselves. Nobody can claim any right to belong
to the community, or even to be seized as a prisoner
of this king. Therefore, each new prisoner is viewed
as a gift from the King.
The king would never give one community too many
people with the same skills. Each community must
be given prisoners with giftings that will help
the community to accomplish the tasks the King charged
them with doing. Each newly captured prisoner has,
within them, some gifting that the community needs
in order to function properly. The prisoners who
have been held captive for a longer period by this
king are exceedingly joyful at the arrival of this
new batch of prisoners. The needs of the community
are being met by a king who loves his prisoner population.
There should be anticipation and excitement; "What
will this new group of Prisoners bring to our Community?"
is the question that should be asked.
Remember, however, the prisoners are the sick, the
drunks, the broken hearted. The new group of prisoners
are joyful at being taken captive by this king,
however, they are not ready to bring any giftings
to this new community. It is up to the Community
of Faith to nurture healing and to help bring out
the giftings that are dormant within the person
of each new prisoner. It was the King Himself who
placed this new prisoner within the existing community.
How dare any of the members of the Community of
Faith devalue that which was given to them by the
King!!!
Therefore, the question must be asked continually,
"Do we value that which He paid the price for?"
We become the servants to the new batch of prisoners
taken captive from the latest war in the sun scorched
land of sin and death. Do we remember the joy we
felt when we were first taken captive? Do we remember
the battle fatigue we felt while we were fighting
in the Land of Sin and Death? Are we grateful enough
for being taken captive to have enough mercy for
the latest batch of captives? Are we grateful enough
that we can truly become "administrators of
God's grace in its various forms"? (1 Peter
4:10)
"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ
laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down
our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material
possessions and sees his brother in need but has
no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?
Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue
but with actions and in truth. This then, is how
we know that we belong to the truth, and how we
set our hearts at rest in his presence whenever
our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our
hearts, and he knows everything." (1 Jn 3:16-20)
When a Community of Believers share the attitudes
towards each other expressed above, that Community
will be showing forth the Holiness of God in all
they say and do. A community with such attitudes
of humility and service will bring forth the glory
of God to the earth, complete with signs and wonders.
The actual government of this ideal church may not
always be of the same form, however, the type of
government should be considered secondarily to the
"fruits" of the community:
"We have discovered earlier that the Kingdom
of God means first of all the redemptive activity
and rule of God working among men; and it is secondly
the realm in which men experience the blessings
of His rule."5
Paul acknowledges that he is a prisoner and recognizes
that the attitudes of a prisoner will always keep
him humble and seeking God for his daily sustenance.
In a group of slaves, one seldom views himself as
better than another; the whole group is in slavery
or has an equal prisoner status. To decide a person
is not a prisoner or slave when it is obvious that
the whole group has been taken captive borders on
nonsense. In a Prisoner of War camp, all are prisoners.
Each person must do what he can to encourage other
prisoners to survive until the end of their confinement.
Scripturally, the attitude of prisoners must be
appropriated for each of us.
"The church is a kingdom because it shares
Christ's rule....The church, therefore, is not the
Kingdom of God; God's Kingdom creates the church
and works in the world through the Church."6
There have been so many models of church organization.
The early church began with the Apostles, those
who walked with Jesus. One hundred years later,
the leadership either walked with the Presence of
God or possessed such leadership skills that each
church seems to have clearly recognized the leadership.
After Constantine legitimized the church, the authority
of the Religious Institution carried with it an
institutional authority. One thousand years later,
the thousands upon thousands were slaughtered by
the church in order to maintain that authority.
The Reformation brought many new models of church
government. The Elders ruled or the Board ruled
the day to day affairs of the church. The Society
of Friends (Quakers) had no established leadership
and no appointed pastor. There are as many forms
of church government as there are movements and
denominations.
Each Denomination determined the style of leadership
that best suited them. Most of the denominations
had a Holy Spirit fire in its people when the denomination
started. Most denomination began with a Holy Spirit
Outpouring upon a group or upon a single individual.
The generation that formed the denomination often
sought the Lord with all their heart, soul, mind
and strength, consequently, they were the agents
through which God did a powerful work among His
people. Within fifty to one hundred years, however,
the Outpouring degenerated into a form of Religion,
increasingly devoid of power.
This author cannot find a pattern through which
the church should be organized. Beginning with the
first Community of Believers in the wilderness,
one could conclude that none of them seem to work
over an extended period of time. Each individual
and community must seek the Lord, and He promises
that those that seek Him will find Him.
"We cannot sufficiently know what the biblical
writings mean until they are appropriated and lived
in the way they expected to be; that is, until we
are involved in their performance and in the transformation
they enable when appropriated in performance."7
May each of us remember where we were when Jesus
revealed Himself to us. May each of remember that
it is only in Him and through Him that this Christian
walk is anything more than a religion. May we eagerly
seek to find the best in each of those He has brought
and placed into our Communities of Faith. May we
find the Fullness of Life that has been promised
to us.
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ladd, George Eldon; A Theology of the New Testament;
Wm B. Erdmans Publishing Co.; Grand Rapids, MI @1974
Wilson, Marvin R.; Our Father Abraham; Jewish Roots
of the Christian Faith; Wm Erdmans Publishing Company;
Grand Rapids, MI; @1989
Ladd, George Eldon; TheGospel of Kingdom, Popular
Expositions on the Kingdom of God; The Paternoster
Press; @1959
Bauckham, Richard; Wisdom of James, Disciple of
Jesus the Sage; Routledge, London, England; @1999
Lapide, Pinchas; The Sermon on the Mount; Utopia
or Program for Action?; Orbis Books; @1986
Williams, Walter R.; TheRich Heritage of Quakerism;
Barclay Press; @1962
