Clearer Claims about Church
In my last post I discussed the church, albeit briefly and just off the cuff. I addressed a huge subject with just a few words and so realize that I may have left much unsaid and also where I was silent, may imply things which I did not intend to communicate. I've come across several things since posting that have helped to fuller express what I was intending to say more clearly than I wrote. I am in full agreement with all the statements below:
From Aaron Menikoff of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist in Louisville, Ky:
When the members of Third Avenue Baptist Church gather together, we know that something tremendous is happening. We approach God aware that however imperfect our union may be, it is an affirmation that Christ’s promise to Peter holds—the gates of Hell shall not win. There is the church—she remains and will persevere.
Please know that our church is not a building; we are not a schedule of events; we are neither the latest program; nor the coolest hangout. We are a church of men and women united in, by, and for Christ. We seek to live every day with a quiet confidence before our Father in heaven; confessing that His glory is more important than our comfort and the authority of His Word supersedes our will.
More than anything, know we are well aware that our wisdom—the cross of Christ—is foolishness to our world. Who really believes Christ died for the ungodly and that eternal salvation is found through faith in Him? By the grace of God, we do. This is our story, our song. Every good gift is from above, but some gifts are better than others. The best gift of all is the church for which Christ died.
What do you care about? What are you devoted to? In a world chock full of passing delights, tasty but never satisfying, may your heart find rest in Christ and His church.
From Greg Gilbert of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist:
I applaud the emphasis many people are putting on community in the church these days. It has been far too long that the church has been seen as less a congregation of God’s blood-bought people and more a once-a-week theatre production. But community can never be emphasized at the expense of God’s Word. In fact, true Christian community cannot exist unless the Bible is at its center. There are many communities in the world, but the Christian church’s distinctive, godly character comes from its members’ unflagging commitment to hearing, preaching, and reading the Word of God. That is where its strength, its life, its vibrancy, and its attractiveness come from. Displace the Word of God from its central position in the church, and you destroy the very foundation of the community God intended to exist. from -Gilbert's book review of Banks' book, Paul's Idea of Community
Also from Greg Gilbert of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist:
I don’t have anything against a church meeting in a house. Sometimes that’s a simple necessity, and besides, the building isn’t the important thing anyway. So go ahead and meet in a house if you want—just don’t fool yourself into thinking that will change the world. The only thing that will change the world is the gospel of Jesus Christ lived out by loving, passionate, Spirit-filled churches—no matter where they meet. -Gilbert's book review of Simpson's book, Houses that Change the World
From Aaron Menikoff of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist in Louisville, Ky:
When the members of Third Avenue Baptist Church gather together, we know that something tremendous is happening. We approach God aware that however imperfect our union may be, it is an affirmation that Christ’s promise to Peter holds—the gates of Hell shall not win. There is the church—she remains and will persevere.
Please know that our church is not a building; we are not a schedule of events; we are neither the latest program; nor the coolest hangout. We are a church of men and women united in, by, and for Christ. We seek to live every day with a quiet confidence before our Father in heaven; confessing that His glory is more important than our comfort and the authority of His Word supersedes our will.
More than anything, know we are well aware that our wisdom—the cross of Christ—is foolishness to our world. Who really believes Christ died for the ungodly and that eternal salvation is found through faith in Him? By the grace of God, we do. This is our story, our song. Every good gift is from above, but some gifts are better than others. The best gift of all is the church for which Christ died.
What do you care about? What are you devoted to? In a world chock full of passing delights, tasty but never satisfying, may your heart find rest in Christ and His church.
From Greg Gilbert of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist:
I applaud the emphasis many people are putting on community in the church these days. It has been far too long that the church has been seen as less a congregation of God’s blood-bought people and more a once-a-week theatre production. But community can never be emphasized at the expense of God’s Word. In fact, true Christian community cannot exist unless the Bible is at its center. There are many communities in the world, but the Christian church’s distinctive, godly character comes from its members’ unflagging commitment to hearing, preaching, and reading the Word of God. That is where its strength, its life, its vibrancy, and its attractiveness come from. Displace the Word of God from its central position in the church, and you destroy the very foundation of the community God intended to exist. from -Gilbert's book review of Banks' book, Paul's Idea of Community
Also from Greg Gilbert of 9Marks and Third Avenue Baptist:
I don’t have anything against a church meeting in a house. Sometimes that’s a simple necessity, and besides, the building isn’t the important thing anyway. So go ahead and meet in a house if you want—just don’t fool yourself into thinking that will change the world. The only thing that will change the world is the gospel of Jesus Christ lived out by loving, passionate, Spirit-filled churches—no matter where they meet. -Gilbert's book review of Simpson's book, Houses that Change the World
