Introduction

“A study released last week by the Survey Center on American Life shows the number of both men and women who claim to have "no close friends" increasing five-fold over the past 30 years. For men, the rate of friendlessness has gone from 3 percent in 1990 to 15 percent in 2021, and for women from 2 percent to 10 percent today. The pattern is the same on the high end, with the percentage of men saying they have 10 or more friends dropping from 40 to 15 percent and the percentage of women saying the same falling from 28 to 11 percent.

“It's bad for the lonely, isolated individuals themselves, because having close ties to other people is strongly correlated with various markers of physical and mental health. Without such ties, individuals tend to grow unhappy and unhealthy and can even sink into depression.

“But it's also a bad sign for our country and our society, culture, and economy, since it could mean that we're developing in a direction that will make more of us lonelier and more isolated. That is bound to lead to deep and increasingly widespread discontent with our way of life.” The politics of loneliness is totalitarian | The Week

God responds with a church and its ministry.

Getting connected

1. What good can we do around here?

2. Last week we were asked, “what tells you you believe in Jesus?” and “how well is your faith”? What reflections did you have on those two questions this week?

Teaching

Today we focus on the biblical teaching of the church as well as its ministry.

3. Here are two statements that tell us what the church is:

  • The church is “the assembly of believers brought together by the Holy Spirit through the means of grace.” (Lange, God So Loved the World, pg 535).

  • “All those who have this faith [believe that Jesus Christ, the virgin-born Son of God who suffered and died in payment for our sins and who has risen from the dead and ascended into heaven, is their one and only Savior] are members of the invisible church in which alone forgiveness, life, and eternal salvation are to be found.” (Deutschlander, Grace Abounds, pg 445)

What stands out to you or surprises you from these sentences about the church?

4. The Bible doesn't use the word “church” very often. When it does, it refers to the people - never to the building or the organization. The Bible refers to the group of believers in all kinds of ways:

  • elect

  • flock

  • remnant

  • body of Christ

  • Israel

  • royal priesthood

  • holy nation

Choose one way the Bible describes the people of God, tell what it means (what is the particular emphasis of the term), and why you like it.

5. The real church can be difficult to identify. The Bible tells us how we can find it with certain distinguishing features we call the marks of the church. Christians generally agree that there are things that identify a real group of believers. I offer a few options below for what people call the marks of the church. Which do you find the most helpful?

  • “where the gospel is proclaimed, where the sacraments are administered, there we are assured we will find believers” (Lange, God So Loved, pg 540)

  • “Those four adjectives - one, holy, catholic, and apostolic - have traditionally been known as the marks of the church by which you can know that you have the true church.” (Bird, What Christians Ought to Believe, pg 197)

  • “faithful preaching of the Word, faithful administration of the sacraments, and faithful exercise of discipline” (Godfrey The Marks of the Church by W. Robert Godfrey (ligonier.org))

6. One of the most difficult teachings in the Bible to both understand and apply in the 21st century is the teaching on fellowship. Paul stated the negative aspect when he said, “I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.” (Romans 16:17) Based on Paul’s words, what is the teaching of fellowship? Have you experienced it done well?

Bible study

Read the following introductory paragraph, then read Ephesians 2:11-22

“In the first century, Gentiles were only allowed to enter the outer parts of the Jerusalem temple. A five-foot-high wall separated the outer court known as the court of the Gentiles from the inner sanctuary. Tablets hanging on pillars warned in both Greek and Latin that no Gentile could enter in the inner courts (see Josephus, Jewish Wars 6.2.4). One such inscription declares, “No foreigner is to enter within the forecourt and the balustrade around the sanctuary. Whoever is caught will have himself to blame for his subsequent death”. These laws directly influenced Paul. The Jews who arrested Paul in Jerusalem falsely accused him of defiling the temple by bringing Gentiles into it (Acts 21:27–29). While the physical wall remained in place in the temple until it was destroyed in ad 70, Christ’s sacrifice removed all barriers between Gentiles and God (see Eph 2:11–13). (Derek Brown,

Please read Ephesians 2:11-22.

7. In verse 11 and 12, Paul referred to the uncircumcised and the circumcision. He is referring to the physical separation between Jews and Gentiles. In your own words, describe the division between Jews and Gentiles. It is this division that Jesus has overcome and “made the two groups one”.

8. In verse 15, Paul said Jesus set aside the law with its command and regulations. We might think that is the end of the matter, but in verse 16 he reconciled both of them to God. This is what God calls the communion of saints. There is a communion that exists horizontally among Christians who live upon the earth and vertically with the departed members who are alive with Christ in heaven. Which aspect - the horizontal or the vertical - means more to you at this point?

Application

9. I have heard there are 59 “one another” Bible passages. The Bible intends us to act in certain ways toward other people - not just within our own bodies. In other words Christianity is more interpersonal than personal. Scripture is full of practices to build up the people of God. Read through the list, then complete the question.

Practice 1: affirming one another’s strengths, abilities and gifts

  • Romans 12:10 “Honor one another”

  • James 5:9 “Don’t grumble against each other”

  • Romans 12:3-8 “Confirm the gifts of one another”

Practice 2: affirming one another’s equal importance in Christ

  • Romans 15:7 “Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you”

  • 1 Corinthians 12:25 “Have equal concern for each other”

  • 1 Peter 5:5 “Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another”

  • James 2:1 “Don’t show favoritism”

Practice 3: affirming one another through concern and affection

  • Romans 16:16 “Greet one another with a holy kiss”

  • James 1:19 “Be quick to listen, slow to speak”

  • Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind and compassionate to one another”

  • 1 Thessalonians 3:12 “your love increase and overflow for each other”

Practice 4: sharing one another’s space, goods, and time

  • Romans 12:10 “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love”

  • 1 Peter 4:9 “Offer hospitality to one another”

  • Galatians 6;10 “As we have opportunity let us do good”

Practice 5: sharing one another’s needs and problems

  • Galatians 6:2 “Carry each other’s burdens”

  • 1 Thessalonians 5:11 “Encourage one another”

  • Hebrews 3:13 “Encourage one another daily”

Practice 6: sharing one another’s beliefs, thinking and spirituality

  • Colossians 3:16 “Teach and admonish one another”

  • Ephesians 5:19 “Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs”

  • Romans 12:16 “Live in harmony with one another”

  • 1 Corinthians 1:10 “Agree with one another”

Practice 7: serving one another through accountability

  • James 5:16 “confess your sins to each other and pray for each other”

  • Romans 15:14 “Instruct one another”

  • Ephesians 4:25 “Speak truthfully”

Practice 8: serving one another through forgiveness and reconciliation

  • Ephesians 4:2 “Be completely humble and gentle, be patient, bearing with one another in love”

  • Colossians 3:13 “Forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another”

  • Galatians 5:26 “Don’t provoke or envy one another”

  • James 4:11 “Do not slander one another”

  • Matthew 5:23-24, 18:15 Reestablish broken relationships with one another

I’m sure that someone could come up with a longer list of practices drawn from the Scripture or disagree with a few of them. In general, this is a good list. Which of these are you the best at? Which could you do better at? Which would you say our congregation is the best at? Which could we do better at? Any suggestions to help us?