A healthy church is not one where offenses never take place but rather one in which offenses are dealt with Biblically. As we began to examine in our last study, Jesus Christ himself gave us very clear instruction as to how to deal with offenses in the church. The end goal of this process is that sin be forsaken, offenders be forgiven and relationships be reconciled. This is the ideal and is quite possible if both the offended party and the offender are sensitive to the Holy Spirit. If this is … [Read more...]
Membership Matters – Unity with the Church
In our last lesson we learned that being a member of the church means loving the church. We learned that we should love the church because; Christ loves the church, the church is being built by Christ, the church is Christ made visible, the church is the source of spiritual unity, and the church is the source of Christ’s truth. We also learned that Christ and his church can’t be separated. For this reason, one could never love Christ and reject the church. In fact, Jesus himself said that it is … [Read more...]
Attitudes of the Heart – Unity
Unity is not technically an “attitude” but the desire for, and pursuit of unity can certainly be classified as an attitude of the heart. God’s desire for the church is perfect unity. Jesus prayed that the church “may be one” (John 17) and for this reason, much of the Spirit’s internal work has the purpose of producing spiritual unity in the church (Eph 4). 1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 2 Corinthians 13:11 … [Read more...]