DAY SEVEN
The Church
God has a clear definition and direction for His church all throughout Scripture! By reading His Word, we can gain confidence and genuine love for His church. To get us started, here are some Scriptures to build a biblical foundation for how God views the church…
How does God define the church?
A body (1 Corinthians 10:17)
A gathering of believers (1 Corinthians 1)
His people (Romans 9:25-26)
His children (Galatians 3:26)
His bride (Ephesians 5:25-27)
A house (Hebrews 3:3-6)
A priesthood (Revelation 1:5-6)
What is the church called to do?
Represent Him and display His glory among creation (Matthew 28:18-20)
Be unified in our calling as a church (Ephesians 4:4-6)
Spread and proclaim the Gospel (Acts 1:8)
Equip and teach one another (Colossians 3:16)
Love one another within the church (John 13:34-35)
Serve one another (Romans 12:3-8)
Worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24)
Devote themselves to prayer (Acts 1:14)
Multiply (Acts 9:31)
Good. Stuff. And that’s just the start!
God loves and cherishes the church, and so should we. He established the church and will return for her. He has chosen the church to work through, to redeem the world, to bring heaven to earth, and to save the lost. If you haven’t noticed, the church has a HIGH, high calling to show Jesus to the world. As a Christian, this can feel like an overwhelming responsibility. And if it depended on us, it would be impossible! Our humanity and sinfulness get in the way, and sometimes we do misrepresent Jesus and we fall short. But God is well aware of our imperfections and brokenness. Yet He chooses us as his representatives anyways. This was no mistake.
As His church, we are imperfect people meant to represent His perfect love. Thankfully, He doesn’t call us to represent Him through our own perfection. Instead, He asks us to be His church through FULL dependence on Him. We cannot be the church without Him. As believers, we depend on His power, on His Word, on His Holy Spirit, on His provision, and ultimately on His grace. His grace covers all. Our failures are only meant to draw us into deeper worship and reverence of Him. Nothing will prevail against His church—even our own shortcomings!
How does God define the church?
A body (1 Corinthians 10:17)
A gathering of believers (1 Corinthians 1)
His people (Romans 9:25-26)
His children (Galatians 3:26)
His bride (Ephesians 5:25-27)
A house (Hebrews 3:3-6)
A priesthood (Revelation 1:5-6)
What is the church called to do?
Represent Him and display His glory among creation (Matthew 28:18-20)
Be unified in our calling as a church (Ephesians 4:4-6)
Spread and proclaim the Gospel (Acts 1:8)
Equip and teach one another (Colossians 3:16)
Love one another within the church (John 13:34-35)
Serve one another (Romans 12:3-8)
Worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24)
Devote themselves to prayer (Acts 1:14)
Multiply (Acts 9:31)
Good. Stuff. And that’s just the start!
God loves and cherishes the church, and so should we. He established the church and will return for her. He has chosen the church to work through, to redeem the world, to bring heaven to earth, and to save the lost. If you haven’t noticed, the church has a HIGH, high calling to show Jesus to the world. As a Christian, this can feel like an overwhelming responsibility. And if it depended on us, it would be impossible! Our humanity and sinfulness get in the way, and sometimes we do misrepresent Jesus and we fall short. But God is well aware of our imperfections and brokenness. Yet He chooses us as his representatives anyways. This was no mistake.
As His church, we are imperfect people meant to represent His perfect love. Thankfully, He doesn’t call us to represent Him through our own perfection. Instead, He asks us to be His church through FULL dependence on Him. We cannot be the church without Him. As believers, we depend on His power, on His Word, on His Holy Spirit, on His provision, and ultimately on His grace. His grace covers all. Our failures are only meant to draw us into deeper worship and reverence of Him. Nothing will prevail against His church—even our own shortcomings!