I Just Became a Christian, Now What? – Relationship with the Church

In the previous article, I stated that our relationships with God, the church, and the world are inextricably intertwined. My purpose in this article is to help you understand your relationship with the church. There are many descriptions of the church in the New Testament and many indications of its purpose. All these are important for you, the new believer, and you will continue to discover them as you grow. I will briefly touch on what the church is and its purposes with plenty of Scripture references for you to explore. I will focus on one description and how you live as a part of the church. Finally, I will mention one way people limit our understanding of the church.

The church is described in various ways in the New Testament. The Greek word translated church in the New Testament is ekklesia, which typically means assembly. When you think of church, the building and gathering of people may be the first thing that comes to mind. The apostles’ letters sometimes referred to a local group of believers meeting in someone’s house.[1] It is appropriate to think of church this way. We are an assembly of believers or saints, and we must gather together.[2] However, the church is much more than the assembly of God’s people.

The church is further defined in several powerful ways. The New Testament refers to the church as the temple of God.[3] We are also called a holy nation, a royal priesthood, and a people for “God’s own possession.”[4] Probably the most compelling is the church as the body of Christ.[5]

Each of these descriptions of the church would require an article or more to discuss. Please read the Scripture references to get more insight into the church. In this article, I will focus on being a member of the body of Christ and what that means. You are in Christ and part of the church when you are born from above.

As a body, we are intimately connected with God and each other. Every member of the church is your brother or sister. In a way, you are more a family with the church than with your biological family.[6] You have a deep connection through the unity of the Holy Spirit. This unity is more vital than mere human blood ties. In Jesus’ prayer in John 17, he talks to the Father about our unity. After explicitly praying for the eleven apostles, here is part of what he prayed for the church:

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.[7]

As we see from Jesus’ prayer, unity is a critical characteristic of the church. We are unified in Christ by his Spirit. His prayer is not one of hopeful optimism. It is reality. Jesus has given us his glory so that we are one. Jesus is in us, so we are wholly unified in him. We don’t need to try to be unified; it is finished. However, like other aspects of our identity, we need to lead lives worthy of our calling.[8] Sadly, we can act in ways to disrupt unity.

There are many ways we can create conflict and disharmony in the church: arguing over unimportant matters;[9] showing favoritism;[10] and being divisive, which is usually connected with false teaching.[11] Divisiveness is so corrosive that the apostle Paul warns that you should have nothing to do with people who continue this behavior.[12] The way we avoid disunity is summed up in what has often been termed “the golden rule:”

So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.[13]

You may be thinking, it seems impossible to do what Jesus expects in this command. It can seem like the Christian life is a list of things we must do. It is essential to understand that expectations of good behavior are consistent with your new nature. But how do you do it when sin and selfishness seem so easy? Thankfully, the apostle’s letters in the New Testament are primarily intended to help the church understand who we are in Christ and how to live in him. I believe the best place to start is this: you are born from above in spirit, but you need to renew your mind.[14] Part of that renewal is believing what the Holy Spirit has done in you. You have been set free from sin and are a under compulsion to righteousness.[15] While you participate by believing and focusing on what is good and true, [16] God is with you, and you are renewed by him.

I often emphasize that we are complete in Christ,[17] but we need to grow in our understanding and behavior. So, while we are unified in the Spirit, we need to act from that unity. While we love God and one another, we need to act lovingly. When we behave according to Jesus’ expectations, we are not acting contrary to who we are, as many would believe. We are functioning as our new self[18] and in unity with Jesus. When we truly understand this, it makes all the difference in approaching life.

Another specific part of our unity is how we help each other mature in Christ. Just as the physical body has parts that function differently but in harmony, so does the church. Each member serves a purpose and is gifted by the Holy Spirit to achieve that purpose.

And He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.[19]

Even as a new believer, you are equipped to help the church. You have talents, abilities, perspectives, and gifts of the Spirit to build up the body.[20] As seen in the Bible references, the gifts are intended to help us grow in the knowledge of God and his desires for us. They also help us avoid false messages that could lead us astray.

For example, you may hear people refer to the church’s “mission.”[21] While the descriptions are often of good things that the church does, such as telling people about Jesus or social justice, they do not describe the entire purpose of the church. They may even limit or narrow it. For example, the most common mission espoused is Jesus’ command to the eleven apostles to go and make disciples.[22] This emphasis is often focused on the world at the expense of building the church. The problem is that this mission restricts the scope of the church, and other vital aspects of building each other up are minimized or neglected.

Reaching unbelievers is done through our unity, demonstrating that we are Jesus’ disciples[23] and God sent him to the world. In other words, the best way for us to show that Jesus came to save people is for the world to see the church love and care for each other.[24] Individually, we can show and talk about the love of God in Jesus, but the beauty of the body of Christ is seen as we build each other up. We are to do good to all people but especially to other saints.[25]

Finally, using your spiritual gift is not just an activity connected to your local assembly. In other words, our service is not just what we do at church, such as help in childcare, playing music, direct traffic, etc. These are good things to do as we gather together. However, you are a member of the body at all times. Everything you do is service to the church and the Lord. You are connected to the church or body of Christ wherever you are and in whatever you are doing. We don’t leave our gifts at the door when we leave our church building. We serve the church through prayer for other believers. This may even be prayer and support for saints in other parts of the world, especially those who are suffering. We build each other up with an encouraging phone call. When we let other saints into our lives to help and be helped, we demonstrate Jesus’ love.

I must confess I fear I haven’t captured the miracle that is the church in this article. The church is not an organization but an organism (I’m sure I didn’t coin those words, so I apologize if I have plagiarized someone). It is not a cause to rally around and participate with to the extent of how much time or money you want to donate. You are part of the body of Jesus Christ! You are connected to every other believer through his life-giving Spirit. Your purpose is to help build up the church to achieve full maturity in Jesus. When you encourage other saints and show love to them, the world sees Jesus.

My intent in these articles is to help you mature. As you grow in understanding of who you are in Christ and learn all that he has for you, you will shine like a bright light in a dark place.[26] The world will not always respond favorably to the light, but God will be glorified no matter what.

There is more to discuss concerning your relationship with God and the church. We will continue to explore those relationships. However, In the next article, we will introduce the enigma of your connection to the world. I hope these articles are helpful. If you have questions or comments, please don’t hesitate to contact me at gtdavisblog@gmail.com or through the contact page of this website. God bless you as you grow in the faith.

[1] Romans 16:3-5, 1 Corinthians 16:19-20, Colossians 4:15, Philemon 1-2
[2] Hebrews 10:19-25
[3] 1 Corinthians 3, 1 Corinthians 6, Ephesians 2. Also, see Solomon’s dedication of the temple in Israel in 2 Chronicles 6.
[4] 1 Peter 2
[5] Romans 12:3-5
[6] Mark 3:31-34
[7] John 17:20-23, NIV
[8] Ephesians 4, Philippians 1
[9] 2 Timothy 2,
[10] 1 Corinthians 11, 1 Timothy 5, James 2
[11] Romans 16:17-19
[12] Titus 3
[13] Matthew 7:12
[14] Romans 12
[15] Romans 6
[16] Philippians 4, Colossians 3
[17] Hebrews 10
[18] Colossians 3
[19] Ephesians 4:11-13, NASB
[20] Romans 12:6-13, 1 Corinthians 12, Ephesians 4:7-13
[21] I hesitate to use the word mission in regard to the church. Part of the reason is that it has connotations that are culturally imbued with more business significance. When organizations use a mission statement it often focuses on the narrow purpose of that specific corporation.
[22] Matthew 28:16-20
[23] John 13:34-35
[24] I Corinthians 12-13
[25] Galatians 6
[26] Philippians 2