Richard

The past two issues of Equip to Disciple have focused on the church and the important role it must continue to play in growing and expanding the kingdom of God. In this particular article, I want to focus your attention on the theme expressed in the title above; the church as a believing community learning to live in communion. As our Westminster Confession of Faith says in 26-1, “All saints that are united to Jesus Christ their head by his Spirit, and by faith, have fellowship with him in his graces, sufferings, death, resurrection, and glory: and, being united to one another in love, they have communion in each other’s gifts and graces.”

A CONNECTED COMMUNITY

In the last issue of 2007, Dr.Charles Dunahoo stated in the editor’s section that the church is more and more being marginalized. In this connection he referred to J.I. Packer and John R.W. Stott’s descriptive term the “stunted ecclesiology” of the church. Some of the reasons for the church’s being pushed from the center of life are the lack of focus on community, the emphasis on individualism, and self-interest. Phil Ryken describes in his book The City on a Hill the problem of our culture as twofold: relativism and narcissism.¹ The postmodern society rejects absolute truth; the only truth is what you discover for yourself; you have your story and I have mine. Self-love and instant gratification are driving forces in this day of radical individualism. These are the types of issues that fly in the face of the theology of the Communion of the Saints as stated in the Westminster Confession of Faith Chapter 26. Ryken points out in another chapter, “Christianity has never been a private religion. It is personal of course, because it involves a personal relationship with Jesus Christ… But in coming to Christ…every single Christian gets connected to every other Christian. Our union with Christ brings us into communion with His church as members of a local congregation.”²

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In a book entitled A Peculiar People, Rodney Clapp writes, “It is important for the church in each time and place to embody and communicate the life of Christ exactly where it is. Christianity is not about compartmentalization or withdrawal: it is radically and relentlessly life encompassing. Christianity understood as culture is about a living tradition, a continuing argument, a still unfolding history.”³

In a similar vein Dr. Edmund Clowney in his book The Church writes, “When Peter describes the impact of Christian righteous deeds in a pagan world, he is thinking not of isolated saints, but of the people of God, called out of darkness into God’s light. Christian witness that is limited to private religious experience cannot challenge secularism. Christians in community must again show the world, not merely family values, but the bond of the love of Christ.”⁴ In other words it is not about “me and Jesus” or “you and Jesus,” but it is about us as a community of believers united to Jesus and to one another. The church is in need of continually being reminded of the connectedness it has both to Jesus Christ and to each other. Some in the church have failed to understand the meaning of community, and consequently have failed to experience the benefits of their salvation. There are others in this post-modern world looking for a place to connect and belong that will give meaning to their lives. The church today needs to demonstrate to the world what our Confession says.

In the article “Keeping the Church Front and Center” Dunahoo wrote, “The PCA has a great opportunity to make a difference for Christ and His kingdom but only if we practice our theory… We must come together with a working connectionalism that enables us to be all that God would have us to be.”⁵ This is where the Westminster Confession of Faith in Chapter 26,”Of the Communion of Saints,” teaches the church the practicality of a “working connectionalism.” Paragraph one states that saints are “obliged to the performance of such duties, public and private, as do conduce to their mutual good, both in the inward and outward man.” In verse 7 of I Cor. 12, Paul writes of the “varieties of gifts given by the Spirit and to each given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good, Paul then refers to the church as one body with many members. He says that “God has composed it [the church] that there be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another.” In verse 27 Paul writes, “Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” How often do leaders ask themselves and the church how they are doing in the public and private caring for one another for the common good of the community of believers? How well connected are the saints in the local church? Who are those on the fringe, the seemingly friendless? What should the church be doing to correct conflict that may cause division and lack of care for its members?

LEARNING TO LIVE IN COMMUNION

In the Westminster Confession of Faith 26-2 “Saints by profession are bound to maintain an holy fellowship and communion in the worship of God, and in performing such other spiritual services as tend to their mutual edification; as also in relieving each other in outward things, according to their several abilities and necessities. Which communion, as God offereth opportunity, is to be extended unto all those who, in every place, call upon the name of the Lord Jesus.” In an age which demeans authority and devalues accountability, it behooves the church to instruct the congregation in the responsibility of being “obliged to the performance of duties,” and “bound to maintain a holy fellowship and communion” because of profession in Christ. The “profession” is the public profession of faith in Jesus Christ as Savior and the commitment to live a life of holiness, as well as to support the work and ministry of the body and be subject to the authority and government of the church. In an age of post-modernism, individualism, and privatization of faith, such profession as described is quickly forgotten as members settle into their life in the church. Any obligations and binding as had been vowed seem to fall by the wayside as time moves forward. Maintaining a holy fellowship and communion in worship can often get squeezed as priorities change. Weekend schedules of work and entertainment become excuses for not participating in fellowship and communion. Sundays become a time of personal relaxation and pleasure.

Mutual edification is lost as believers only think about their personal feelings of self-gratification. The shift from spiritual services (what can I do for others) to a consumer mentality (what has the church done or not done for me) begins to seep into the hearts and minds of those who have not been assimilated and taught what it means to be a part of the Body of Christ and family of God. Where does a “working connectionalism” come into play? How does the church bring such a connectionalism back into focus?

In Ephesians 4:15 the church is instructed by these words, “Speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” Reformed Presbyterians are known for their knowledge and systemizing of truth. We are after all a creedal church. However, we must question where the love is as we proclaim the “doctrines of grace.” This love should be manifested as a self-sacrificing love where one looks not upon his own interests, but upon the interests of others. Encouragement of others in spiritual growth is the goal for the building up of the body in love.

Such speaking is not always easy when believers do not see themselves as needing instruction, correction, or reproof. Sometimes it takes on the character of “tough love.” The apostle Paul instructs Timothy in his pastoral epistles in this manner in II Timothy 2:24-26.”And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.” Our obligations and commitments should have growing in maturity in Christ as their goal.

The local church has a wider arena in which to practice its communion. In the PCA, there is a structural foundation in place to help local churches to demonstrate in a visible manner what it means to live in communion by sharing with one another the gifts and graces given by the Holy Spirit. “Communion as God offereth opportunity, is to be extended unto all those who, in every place, call upon the name of the Lord Jesus.”⁶ This structure is of course the presbytery and general assembly. Calling the PCA a connectional church means the Communion of the Saints should be manifest for all the world to see. Churches should not just be interested in building their own congregations, but should be interested in displaying a concern for the wider metro and state communities by planting new congregations, joining in united worship services, pooling resources to minister to the needs of the poor and needy, and evangelizing and discipling people with the gospel. With the multi-ethnic society in communities growing so rapidly, the gospel speaks to breaking down the walls of hostility and bringing into existence the manifestation of the Communion of Saints as a foretaste of the glories of heaven.

Finally, the ministries of the General Assembly can aid and assist local congregations to experience the worldwide Communion of the Saints as they send missionaries out to the nations of the world. Today it is even more a reality for both young and old to experience the Communion of Saints as many groups travel for short term ministries to believers in other countries. Phil Ryken edited a book called The Communion of Saints: Living in Fellowship with the People of God, one of the best and most comprehensive studies on the subject. Ryken says, “A Christian can go anywhere in the world and immediately experience the love and embrace of brothers and sisters whom he or she has never met. Stronger than the bonds of blood relationships are the ties that bind one Christian to another, even when they cannot speak the same language. “Further along there is this statement regarding Revelation 7:9-10, “This is the culmination, the end toward which God is moving all human history-the worldwide community of saints worshiping before his heavenly throne… The history of the church is the story of the progress of the communion of saints.”⁷

Today, the church and the PCA have not been able to experience fully what it means to be in the Communion of Saints. Our challenge is to continue to pray and strive to bring it to fullness through the gifts and graces of the Lord Jesus Christ. A “working connectionalism” is hopefully the goal of every congregation in the PCA, so that Paul’s words in Ephesians 4:15,”we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ,” provides impetus toward corporate maturing in true communion.

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1 Philip Rykin, City on a Hill: Reclaiming the Biblical Pattern for the Church in the 21st
Century (Wheaton, IL: Moody Publishers, 2003), 18.

2 Ibid., 77.

3 Rodney Clapp, A Peculiar People: The Church As Culture in a Post-Christian Society
(Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1996), 188.

4 Edmund Clowney, The Church: Contours of Christian Theology (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1995), 16.

5 Charles Dunahoo, “Keeping the Church Front and Center,” Equip to Disciple, issue 4
(2007): 11.

6 Westminster Confession of Faith and Catechisms, (Lawrenceville, GA: Christian Education
and Publications, 2007), 26-2.

7 The Communion of Saints: Living in Fellowship with the People of God, Philip Ryken, ed.
(Phillipsburg: NJ: P&R Publishing, 2001), 154-155.

If you have ever done a woodworking project you know that getting it square is vitally important. You can have all the measurements right (theology), but if you do not make them square and level they will not fit together perfectly and be as functional as they should be (lifestyle). A Christian/biblical worldview is foundational to building a lifestyle that is a glory to God, and stewardship is what you build upon that foundation, whether it is gold, silver, precious stones, or wood, hay, and straw. Each one’s work will be manifest by fire in that Day (II Cor.3:10ff.).

It is interesting that some of Jesus’ last teachings before going to the cross concerned His second coming and the judgment to follow. He also taught in this context about what was expected of those who were servants and stewards in the Kingdom of God. “As were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the son of Man…Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect” (Mt.24:37,44).

There is one special story Jesus told about a servant whom the Master set over his household and asked the question as to whether the servant was wise or wicked. Here we find some lessons about stewardship that will help our lifestyle fit with our theology. First, it teaches us that stewardship is about identity, namely that we must see ourselves as stewards/servants who belong to the Master. If we get this wrong then our whole lifestyle of stewardship will not be perfectly square. The Creator/owner of all creation is the Sovereign Lord. This is seen in such familiar texts as Psalms 24:1; 50: All mankind is a servant/steward in the Kingdom of God with a creation mandate as image bearers to rule and oversee all that the Lord has put in our care (Psa.8:4-9).

Since we live in a prosperous and materialistic culture, the question Jesus poses is very pertinent for Christians today. “Who is a faithful and wise servant whom his Master made ruler over his household?” The vain philosophies of this world blur the lines of distinction between ownership and stewardship. How often do Christians fall into thinking they are owners of all they possess and manage in their lives? Are they more concerned about being image-bearers or image-makers? The more possessions one is able to gain and control, the more important that person begins to feel, and the greater he sees his self-image as being successful. Thoughts of ownership tend to creep into one’s thinking the more a person accumulates.

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The danger of this misperception of identity leads to a materialistic and hedonistic lifestyle. The Lord teaches about these dangers in other parables such as the rich farmer who had such a bumper crop that he sought to build bigger and better barns, and eat, drink, and be merry. Are you more interested in building the servant-image of Christ in yourself, or making an image of worldly success? The late missionary Jim Elliot said, “He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep in order to gain what he cannot lose.”

A second aspect of stewardship is about character and its impact on the servant’s involvement in carrying out his duties. The traits that the Master is looking for in his servants are faithfulness and wisdom.

The Lord sees these as two essential characteristics of a servant. When a person understands and accepts his role as a servant of the Lord then he will understand how important these two traits are. Stewardship is about responsibility and accountability.

What responsibilities does a servant manage? There are several that come to mind. One is time, another is things.

The servant in the parable in Mt.24:45-51 has an assignment for that interval of time when the Master is away. As Christians today that means we are to be managing the time between the Lord’s ascension and his coming again. Time is an un-renewable resource available to us; it is important to manage it well by setting priorities for what we are called to do. The parable specified that the servant over the household of the Master was to give to the other members of the household their food at the proper time. He was to faithfully carry out this duty on a daily basis. As stewards in the Kingdom of God, Paul admonishes us to redeem the time in these evil days. Time and watchfulness are the essence of stewardship effectiveness.

The steward needed to be wise in the manner in which he carried out this task. (You will find that in Acts 6 those who were the prototype of deacons were to be men full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.) You might think a diaconal task seemed to be rather mundane, and not requiring much wisdom, but it is little things that the wise do not leave unattended, and the Lord says that if this servant is found to be faithful in even a small task that he would be rewarded with greater responsibility upon the Master’s return. A wise steward builds on the foundation of his faith, gold, silver, and precious stones.

The servant was using the resources the Master had given him for the good of those in the household, and so should it be in the household of faith. Stewardship is about managing resources, and giving to the needs of other members in the body of Christ. It is also about sharing the treasure of the gospel with those who have not yet heard the good news, as Paul says in I Cor.4:1-2,”This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.”

The problem today with so many Christians is they have cut their theological planks straight, but they have not been faithful and wise in the discharge of their duties as assigned by the Master. Some look like the wicked servant in Mt. 24:48. What are some of the common excuses Christians give? They are too busy with their own households to be able to give time to ministry in the church. Others are prone to laziness, not interested in going to the fields to reap the harvest. Procrastination grips the minds of others because there is not a sense of urgency to carry out the mission given by the Lord. It is the syndrome of the wicked servant who thinks that the Master has delayed his coming, and therefore he will quench his own desires first. Leaders particularly need to watch themselves against making such excuses, and thus failing in their stewardship.

When you look at a faithful and wise servant you will see he manages well because he knows there will come a time when he will be held accountable. He is looking and watching for that day. “Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes” (Mt. 24:46). Remember the words of Jesus, “Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect,” followed by “the master of the servant (wicked) will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know.” Christians today need to take heed to the warnings by the Lord to evaluate their stewardship responsibilities. The character of a steward is to be diligent, watchful, trustworthy, and responsible.

Stewardship is also about investing.This is not about the “name it, claim it” prosperity gospel that is being preached in some circles. The kind of investing that Jesus is teaching is investing in heaven, which involves giving here on earth to provide for Kingdom work and meeting the needs of others. A good example is seen in the early church in Acts 2 and 4.The generosity of the believers was a testimony of the power of the gospel. Their theology and lifestyle were in square. They preached and they gave, and the Lord added to the church those who were being saved.

James the brother of Jesus writes a warning to those whose interests are purely selfish, “You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions… Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?” (James 4:3, 4).

Then he follows in chapter 5:1-3:”Come now, you rich weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.”

James goes on to tell about their failure (in stewardship) to care for the needs of those who were their responsibility. What a lesson this ought to be for Christians today. Jesus’ words about laying up treasure in heaven rather than upon this earth need to be proclaimed with great urgency.

Pay attention to the following missionary’s story about a businessman traveling in Korea. The businessman saw a young man pulling a plow with an elderly man following. “May I take a picture of them?” he asks the missionary.

“Yes,” was the quiet reply, “those two men happen to be Christians. When their church was being built they wanted to give something, they had no money so they sold their one ox. This spring they are pulling the plow themselves.”

The businessman said, “That must have been a real sacrifice.”

“They did not call it that, they thought of themselves fortunate they had an ox to sell,” said the missionary.

When the businessman returned home he showed the picture to his pastor. Then he said, “I want to double my giving to the church and do some plow work.”

According to most surveys of Christians today, if they were to double their giving it still would not amount to ten percent. As a steward, are you building a lifestyle that squares with your theology?