SPIRITUALLY SPEAKING

By Fern Underwood

 

THE CHURCH

 The word "church" is an English translation of the Greek word ekklesia which means "the called-out ones," or an assembly of people. The supposition might be that Jesus originated the Christian church, but technically he did not do this - at least not during his time on earth. In all the words the gospel writers attribute to him, he mentioned the word translated "church" only twice. In Matthew he addressed Peter, calling him the rock on which he would build his church 1 and in a teaching to the disciples he directed what they were to do, "If another member of the church sins against you..."2

     

According to the Bible, Jesus came as a Jew, in the genealogical line of Abraham, was born to a Jewish couple, was brought up in the Jewish tradition, and was himself faithful to the law, the prophets, and the holy days.3  He left with the comforting words, "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?...A new commandment I give you, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another...If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever...It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you...John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now...You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you...Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. You will be my witnesses (beginning in Jerusalem - right here, in the place of greatest resistance)...and to the ends of the earth."4

Although the church has taken this as its directive, the actual birth of the church took place when the "promise of the Father" was realized. 5  It happened on a day designated as a Jewish festival, Pentecost, 50 days after Passover. Devout Jews from every nation were gathered in one place when suddenly there was the sound of a violent wind. The appearance of tongues of fire rested on each person. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit! The power caused Peter, who had so recently denied knowing Jesus and hid in a locked room for fear of the Jews, to stand before the assembly and deliver the first "sermon" of what would become the Christian church.6

Scholars have said that Luke's record entitled "The Acts of the Apostles" could have been called "The Acts of the Holy Spirit," for it was the Spirit of Jesus who directed the apostles' activities, changed uneducated, ordinary men to such fervent witnesses that their testimony could not be refuted; changed the most zealous enemy to the most ardent evangelist; gifted the

1 Matt. 16:18

2 Matt. 18:15-17

3 Matt. ch.1; Luke 2:1-7, 22-24; Matt. 5:17; John 12:1

4 John 14:1-2; 13:34; 14:15-16; 17:7; Acts 1:5,8; Matt. 28:19; Acts 1:8b

5 Acts 1:4

6 Acts 1:8b, 2:1-4; Matt. 26:69-'74; John 20:19; Acts 2:14-36

followers with abilities to "do all that (Jesus) did and even more."7 In the beginning, the followers were called "The Way," and the name was changed to "Christian," meaning "Little Christs" when Barnabas and Saul (Paul) ,spent a year in Antioch. 8

Opposition and persecution began immediately. Paul, whose mission in three journeys was to take the "good news" to the Gentiles, aroused such ire from the Jews that his life was in danger more than once. The persecution is reported throughout the book of Acts, as told by Luke, who traveled with Paul, and in the letters Paul wrote to the churches. Some of the letters addressed specific problems reported to him and some were general. Those letters were gathered and read in the various communities as directives for the conduct of churches, which in many cases were simply a gathering of a few people in someone's home. Interestingly the letters are not arranged in the Bible chronologically but from the longest to the shortest. 9

Persecution did not stop with the first century. The entire area was part of the Roman Empire which didn't care who or what their subjects worshipped as long as once a year they took "a pinch of incense, threw it into a fire publicly, and declared 'Caesar is Lord.'" This the Christians simply could not do, which limited their opportunities for employment and education as well as subjecting them to more severe personal persecution. There were an additional five accusations against Christians:

On the basis of the words of the sacrament, "This is my body and blood," they were thought to be cannibals. Because they called their common meal "Agape," meaning "Love Feast" it was rumored that it was a gathering for orgies of lust. Because individuals rather than families accepted Christianity, they were accused of purposely destroying familial relationships. Because people of that day could not understand how anyone could worship without images, they were thought to be atheists, and arsonists because they foretold the end of the world in flames. 10

 In the Catholic Church, "Tradition" as illustrated by the writings of the early church fathers, is considered to be evidence of continuing inspiration by the Holy Spirit and therefore an extension of the Bible. According to tradition, with the exception of Judas who took his life, John who was exiled to the island of Patmos, Philip and "James the Less" whose records are unclear on this point, each of the original twelve disciples was martyred. Peter was crucified head down by the Emperor Nero in 64 A.D.; James, son of Zebedee, was decapitated by Herod 11 Andrew was crucified in 60 A.D. on a cross built in the form of an X; Bartholomew was martyred in Armenia; Matthew may have been martyred in Ethiopia; Thomas is said to have gone to India in 52 A.D., established seven churches and was martyred in Madras in 72 A.D. when a Brahman ran him through with a lance as he knelt in prayer. Jude was executed in Persia where he had gone to preach, Simon became a missionary to Britain and was martyred there. 12  Jesus

     

7 Gal. 4:6; Acts 13:1-2,4:13, 6:9-10, 9:1-19; 1 Cor. 12:4--11; John 14:12

8 Acts 22:4, 11:25-26

9Acts 9:15. "We" passages Acts 16:11 and other. 2 Cor. 1:8-9; 1 Cor. 5:1; Rom. 16:3-5

10 Information from The Seven Churches by Carl Lawrence, Haven of Rest Ministries, P.O. Box 2031, Hollywood CA, 90078. John 6:31-35; Matt 10:34-36; 2 Pet. 3:10-12

11 Acts 1:15-18; Rev. 1:9; Acts 12:2

12 Information from "Together" magazine, October, 1957

 

 

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Last Revised August 23, 2012