As we seek to fulfill the Great Commission
and share the gospel with our neighbors and the rest of the world, what is the
message that we should be communicating? On multiple occasions I have heard
statements like, “Just preach Jesus.” I have also heard the corresponding
sentiment, “Stop preaching the church and just tell people about Jesus!”
If one considers “the church” to be merely
a man-made denominational sect, then I certainly would not want to endorse or
promote such an institution either. But when I read what the Bible says about
the church and think about the church and teach others about the church, I see
something entirely different. The church of the New Testament is the body of
Christ and the community of the saved. How can we just preach “Jesus” without
including the church which he purchased with his own blood (Acts 20:28); the
body of which he is both head and savior (Ephesian 5:23)?
When Philip “preached Christ” to the
Samaritans (Acts 8:5), this included matters pertaining to the kingdom of God, the
authority of Christ, and baptism (vv. 12-13). Later, as he “preached Jesus” to
the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts 8:35), the teaching helped the eunuch understand
that he needed to obey the gospel by being baptized into Christ (vv. 36-39). Paul and his companions preached "the Son of God, Jesus Christ" at Corinth (2 Corinthians 1:19), which not only included Christ's death and resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23;
2:2; 15:1-4), but also baptism into Christ’s body (Acts 18:8; 1 Corinthians
12:13), not to mention all the other instructions he passed on to them (Acts
18:11). To teach “Jesus,” in the biblical sense, not only involves transmitting
the doctrine about Jesus but also the doctrine from Jesus (including that
communicated through his inspired agents), i.e. “the whole counsel of God”
(Acts 20:27). This is not merely “church doctrine,” it is the doctrine of
Christ (John 7:16-17; 2 John 9).
As we preach “Jesus,” we must never
neglect to inform people about the community of the saved to which the Lord
adds all who obey the gospel of Jesus (Acts 2:37-48; cf. Hebrews 5:8-9). What is a
bridegroom without a bride (Revelation 21:9)? Can there be a king without a
kingdom (Colossians 1:13)? What purpose does a foundation serve when there is no
building (1 Corinthians 3:9-11)? Will we sever Christ's head from his body (Colossians 1:18)? Jesus is “the Way” (John 14:6); the Christian community is
Jesus and his church are not mutually
exclusive, and to preach one without the other is both insufficient and detrimental
to the Lord’s cause. We are not in the business of persuading people to join
“our” church or submit to “our” doctrine, but we must diligently teach CHRIST’S
doctrine inclusive of HIS church and the necessity of being a faithful member
of it (Matthew 16:18; Ephesians 1:22-23; 4:4; 5:23). Congregations grow and
souls are saved when this task is prayerfully and earnestly undertaken. God
help us to be faithful to the task.
--Kevin L. Moore
Related
posts:
And with Many Other Words, The Doctrine of Christ, What Must I Do to Be Saved?, Where's the Church?
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