In the last article, we discussed the Church of Christ as it is an organism, the body of Christ, holy in Him. But now we have to come down from those lofty heights of faith wherein we saw the Church as inexpressibly beautiful, radiating with the beauty of God’s grace as a clear brilliant diamond. We behold the Church as organism by faith alone. She is what Scripture declares her to be in Christ — holy, obedient, and faithful, enduring all things in the hope of glory. But as such, the Church is the object of faith.
The church we see with our physical eyes is not always so beautiful. We see the organism of the Church as she becomes manifest as the instituted church in a rebellious world. Do not misunderstand, the institutional church is beautiful, necessary and wondrously beneficial. But the institutional church in Grand Rapids, Philadelphia and Doon has many ugly warts. Sin often reigns in her midst. At times she appears anything but holy. Sinful believers constitute part of her membership. Lying, deceit, fornication and every sin known to mankind mars her complexion. The church in a sinful world is not always so beautiful to our physical eyes. Repentance ever remains an unfinished task because sin cleaves to us.
But this sinful, not-always-so-beautiful church is Christ’s Church nonetheless. The institutional church is the local manifestation of the one organic Church of Christ. There are not two separate churches, but one Church with two aspects. The instituted church is the manifestation of the organism which is visible only to faith.
What is meant by the Church as an institution? We have discussed the idea of the Church as an organism in the December 1976 issue of Beacon Lights. But what is the nature of the instituted church? The church as institute is the gathering of believers in any one locality under the office of Christ, that is, under the ministry of the Word, the rule of elders, and the office of mercy vested in deacons. If believers do not gather under the office of Christ, they do not in such gatherings manifest the Church. Only when believers gather under the threefold office of Christ do they constitute the institution of the Church. Believers gathered where Christ feeds, rules, and bestows His mercy are the instituted church of Christ.
We must not overlook the meaning of the term under in this connection. By under is meant spiritual, willing, and thankful submission to the threefold office of Christ. Willingly, not by constraint, believers submit to Christ’s rule, answering with a resounding “Yes” the question: “Will you submit to church government, and in case you should become delinquent (which may God graciously forbid) to church discipline?” This “yes” must be daily uttered. Also, thankfully and humbly believers gather under the office of Christ. Thankful because every believer rejoices in the loving care and guiding light of the Word which Christ sheds (Acts 2:33) through His threefold office. Once again, wherever believers are gathered under the threefold office of Christ, there is to be found the Church as instituted in the world…whether or not she be gathered in a barn, house, or beautiful church edifice.
The purpose for this threefold office in the church is that through it Christ feeds and strengthens the life He has imparted to His own. The believer’s life is the life of Christ given in regeneration, and Christ feeds and strengthens this life by irresistibly distributing the Word as the bread of life. Secondly, Christ rules and cares for the physical needs of the poor through this threefold office in the church. This work, performed by office bearers in Christ’s name, is the means by which God causes the church to prosper and blossom in grateful worship and thankful obedience.
The Church is instituted by God through Christ. The offices of elder, deacon and minister are only and always alone Christ’s office. To be an office bearer is to represent or speak and act in Christ’s name. Christ gives to the church office bearers. Christ calls, sends, and ordains men through whom He performs His work as the Almighty Shepherd. Office bearers are only instruments.
The only authority of office bearers is the authority of the Word.
The Church is the body of Christ. The one threefold office is Christ’s. The Word is His. The work is His. The authority is His. All the blessings of heaven unto salvation are of Him, who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption. But Christ is pleased to exercise His Lordship through men whom He calls to occupy the office of minister of the Word, elder, and deacon. Thus, the office is instituted by Christ. To hold this office, one must be called of God in Christ.
In the instituted church are to be found not only sinful repentant believers, but also unbelieving impenitent reprobate persons. (II Peter 2:1, Galatians 1:7, Jude 4). This is simply the testimony of Scripture, which is forcibly confirmed by the testimony of experience. In the organism of the Church, there are no reprobate persons. But there are reprobate members in the instituted church. Of course, the reprobate hides under cloaks of hypocrisy. These persons who are devoid of God’s grace struggle to gain a reputation for piety. They often achieve this reputation among men. The impenitent never see their own sin, but only that of others. They hold their heads and names high in self-righteousness. These are a source of unending grief and sorrow, and strife for the church. Among the members of the instituted church, i.e., believers gathered under the office of Christ, are the reprobated wicked whose damnation slumbereth not (II Peter 2:3).
How is that instituted church formed? How does she come into existence?
As we said earlier, the institution of the Church arises out of the organism of the Church. Regenerated and called believers seek one another and love each other as those who have a common hope, faith, and life, the life of Christ. Principally, the instituted church is always called into existence by God through His Son. Thus, in the Old Dispensation Abraham is called directly and personally by God to be the church of the Old Dispensation in the land of Canaan (Genesis 12:1). Already in the Old Dispensation the church, Israel, was under the typical office of Christ as typified in king, prophet, and priest. Through these offices Christ spoke, was heard and obeyed. At the beginning of the New Dispensation, the Son of God in our flesh personally called men to follow Him and to unite under Him as the church over against the Jews. In Matthew 16:18 and 18:17 Christ himself refers to His disciples as the church. They were elect sinners, called out from among the apostate Jews, separated unto Christ and, thus, called the church, which literally means in the New Testament “the called-out ones.”
It can also easily be demonstrated from the Acts of the Apostles and the epistles of Paul that persons who have been regenerated, called, and upon whom the gifts of repentance and faith in Christ have been bestowed…seek one another and in obedience to Christ organize as the instituted church, where before no church institution had been. Paul preached in Thessalonica on his second missionary journey for possibly not much longer than three weeks and, after having been forced to flee from Thessalonica, wrote the first epistle to the church of Thessalonica from Corinth. In this letter Paul mentions the fact that the Thessalonians were under office ,bearers (5:13). This is what happened there — the word was faithfully preached, blessed by God and a congregation was formed in a heathen city. The instituted church of Christ was established, submissive to Him in contrast to the Jews of Thessalonica and all heathendom. So also the churches of Ephesus, Philippi and the seven churches of Asia Minor were formed (Rev. 1:20-3:22). In all these instances, the Scriptures use the term “church” to signify the institutional church.
Why do believers always and everywhere unite in the exclusive institution of the church? Why this separation from the world? Why occasion hostility, scorn and ridicule? Why do believers subject themselves to hour long (years ago to two and three hours long) sermons? Why do they subject themselves to the discipline and rigor of regular church attendance? Why this ubiquitous institution…found among all peoples and in all ages? The church instituted in the world …why? How do you explain this phenomenon?
There are several obvious reasons. First and ultimately, to worship God, our covenant God. Secondly, to be fed by the living Christ through the preaching of His Word. Thirdly, for the fellowship of believers, to promote the cause of missions, to be ruled by Christ, etc.
But the all-inclusive reason is to worship God! God’s children always have and always will desire to stand in the same spiritual relation that the only begotten Son has ever stood. John tells us that the eternal Son of God personally, as the Word, “was with God.” (John 1:1). The expression “with God” could be better translated “toward God,” or “face to face with God.” Thus, the only begotten Son eternally stood face to face with the Father, as the ever-blessed covenant God, in perfect knowledge, love, and fellowship. So also, God’s children desire to behold with the eye of faith God’s face. These are children who have been regenerated, who have been restored to the image of God, and who have been conformed unto the image of the Son of God in principle. (Romans 8:29) “For whom he did foreknow he also did predestinate to be conformed unto the image of His Son….” That work of God whereby the elect are ‘‘to be conformed…” is principally accomplished in regeneration and calling.
Scripture uses the expression ‘‘face of God” figuratively. As such, the expression serves to portray the expression of God’s love and grace and goodness to His own in Christ. Through one’s face the attitude of one’s heart towards another is revealed. The face and especially the eyes reveal what lives in one’s soul. Consequently, Scripture speaks of God’s face and eyes as the manifestation of His attitude of love and grace towards His people.
The Son of God stood face to face with the Father eternally in covenant fellowship (John 1:1). In the Christ, the Son of God in our flesh, the words of Psalm 42:1 are fulfilled: “As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so my soul panteth after thee.” Or again, “When thou saidst, Seek ye my face: my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.” (Psalm 27:9). In God’s face is to be found the expression of God’s love, grace, and goodness towards His people. Thus, Noah found grace in God’s eyes (Genesis 6:9). Saints in all ages, who are in principle conformed unto the image of Christ, seek God’s face!
Now the question is, in concrete terms how is this seeking of God’s face accomplished? By holing up in some darkened room to attempt mentally and mystically to reach out to God? No. By gathering with fellow believers in your home in preference to maintaining membership in the instituted church? No. How then, concretely do we come to stand face to face with our covenant God?
We behold God face to face only through the preaching of the gospel by one who stands in the service of Christ in the instituted church. There Christ speaks God’s Word of self-revelation to us through the ministry of the Word (Acts 3:26), through the instrumentality, therefore, of the instituted church. Believers in humble, thankful, submission to the one threefold office of Christ of elder, deacon, and minister behold with the eye of faith God! Where the gospel is preached, there God’s children behold Him face to face. Why organize? The answer is to praise God for the gracious blessings of Him, who causes His face to shine upon us!
The existence, perpetuity, and resilience of the wondrous institution of the church is inevitably a resultant reality wherever God raises the dead to life and calls them irresistibly into the fellowship of His dear Son (I Cor. 1:9). All the scorn and ridicule of the world, all the wicked persecution suffered, all the loss of property, all the bloodshed and death which believers have had to bear throughout the ages notwithstanding: God’s people ever have and ever will joyfully place themselves under the office of Christ as represented in minister, elder and deacon.