Gospel Infrastructure – Local Churches

Introduction

Let me start at the end. This is how the history of this world will conclude according to John’s inspired testimony:

Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude … crying out, “Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns. Let us rejoice and exult and give him the glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and his Bride has made herself ready” (Rev 19:6-7 ESV).

We learn from other passages that these singing saints are men and women from “every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev 5:9; 7:9; 14:6). So this era will finish with Christ’s church, the bride of the Lamb, living with him in perfect union and fullness of joy. Forever.

But before that magnificent marriage, what must happen for the bride to make herself ready? In other words, how will God call and adorn the wife he chose for his Son? God’s plan, laid out in his word, is to use local churches.

The Apostle Paul wrote that he was called “to preach to Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ … so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places” (Eph 3:8, 10, emphasis added).

Thus, the primary task of missions is to cross linguistic, geographical, or cultural barriers to establish churches. This means local churches are both the source and the purpose of missions, since churches send qualified workers (source) with the goal of planting churches (purpose). God desires to fill the earth with the knowledge of his glory “through the church” (Eph 3:10).

Why a Church?

For a house to endure winds and storms, it needs to be on a firm foundation. It requires a structure below it to support its weight and guarantee it won’t fall down. Likewise, when we think about missions, we need a foundation for the work to stand throughout generations. We need a set of elements underneath that will make the gospel endure in that place. And one of the key pieces of this gospel infrastructure is a local church.

The path believers walk to behold the King on his throne is a difficult and dangerous one. It is a path filled with the devil’s relentless attacks, the world’s alluring words, and our flesh’s deceiving desires, and they are all pulling us away from that glorious destination. Storms of persecution and strong winds of false teaching are not uncommon. In order to be ready to complete such journey, Christ’s bride must follow God’s program of perseverance: a life of discipleship in the context of a local church, where believers grow spiritually under godly leadership, weekly worship, and loving fellowship.

Maybe you have heard people saying, “Christ sent us to make disciples, not to plant churches.” The Bible’s answer to that claim is a “Yes, but ….” Yes, the Lord Jesus sent us to make disciples of all nations but… if we continue to read his commission, this making of disciples is done by baptizing and teaching, both meant to take place under the authority of a local church. This is how the apostles understood their Lord’s command in Matthew 28.

Take the book of Acts. What are Peter and Paul doing? They are preaching and praying so that churches are started and strengthened (Acts 4:32-35; 6:4; 9:31; 13:1-3; 14:23). Paul’s famous words to the elders in Ephesus show the centrality of the church: “‘Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood’” (Acts 20:28, emphasis added).

Consider the Epistles. Almost all of them are addressing a specific congregation with its specific situation. The Pastoral Epistles, though written to individuals, had the same goal. Paul charges Timothy: “If I delay, you may know how one ought to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, a pillar and buttress of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15, emphasis added).

Two people meeting at a park or a coffee shop to discuss a book might be a great idea, but it lacks other necessary nutrients God designed for us to grow in godliness. We don’t need to guess how God wants us to fulfill the task of making disciples and helping them persevere. God will sovereignly use the means of preaching (2 Tim 4:2), praying (1 Tim 2:1), singing (Col 3:16), reading (1 Tim 4:13), and practicing the ordinances (Matt 28:19; 1 Cor 11:26) — all governed by his word.

And as we share life together, we will show our faith in loving service to one another (Gal 5:6; 6:10). As a matter of fact, the one another commands in the Bible can only be meaningfully obeyed in a local community that gathers regularly under God’s word. Although there are many good things missionaries can do on the field, establishing a local church is our priority.

What Kind of Church?

But what characteristics are we hoping to see in this key piece of the gospel infrastructure called church? Our aim is to see a biblical, communal, physical, national, and healthy local church. Let’s look at each of these terms briefly.

• Biblical: The church should order their service on Sunday by the Bible and govern their lives during the week by the Bible. The five means of nurturing Christ’s sheep mentioned above must be present, for both salvation (Rom 10:17) and sanctification (John 17:17) come by the word.
• Communal: This word simply means a group of people. Saving faith is personal, but not private. The Christian life is a not solitary endeavor, but a community project, where people with different gifts and roles serve one another in love. One-on-one discipleship should be a supplement, but not a replacement of the whole assembly gathering. When we were saved, we were united to Christ and united to each other in God’s family (Eph 2:13-18; 4:1-6; 1 Tim 3:15; 1 Pet 2:9).
• Physical: Members must meet in a real location. Online meetings are certainly not sinful, but they are not an alternative (see Heb 10:24-25). Certainly, we need wisdom on where Christians should meet in places where persecution is stronger, but there is no substitute for the physical gathering of God’s people. As the Apostle John reminds us, being present with each other is essential for deep fellowship: “Though I have much to write to you, I would rather not use paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and talk face to face, so that our joy may be complete” (2 John 12, emphasis added).
• National: A church holds the service in the local language and is rooted in the local culture. A church in Mozambique will look quite different from a church in England, though we all preach the same message of the same cross of the same savior. International churches can be great partners in the formation of a native church, but the end goal is to have a self-supporting congregation led by local Christians—so that the local population can have lasting access to the gospel of Christ.
• Healthy: The preaching is expositional and centered on Christ crucified. The leadership is a plurality of biblically qualified men (or is moving in that direction). The membership is regenerate. Church discipline is practiced. The polity is congregational. And there is a growing culture of evangelism and discipleship. A healthy church is not a perfect church — there aren’t any on earth! But it is a place where these characteristics are imperfectly yet genuinely lived out. There is no other way for the gospel witness in that region to be lasting and effective.

Notice I have used in the title the phrase local churches (plural) instead of local church. Ideally, that one church will replicate its healthy DNA by starting other churches. In time, that second generation of local congregations will themselves start a third generation, and so on.

Hopefully, after some years there will be a network of healthy national churches working together in a variety of ways to plant and revitalize churches and to train the next generation of leaders. In this way, Christ’s gospel is being proclaimed in that region in a sustainable and durable manner.

The Missionary and the National Church

And how should a gospel worker think about his or her relationship to the existing national church? An African proverb says, “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.” It can be tempting to quickly put our hand to the plow because of the urgency of the missionary task. But we would do well to investigate what’s already taking place in terms of gospel work in that area of the globe. Are there any gospel-proclaiming churches? If so, are they healthy? Is some type of pastoral training happening? Is there a seminary coming alongside the church to prepare future pastors?

The percentage of Christians in a certain location is definitely an important metric for us to consider when praying and evaluating where we should send missionaries. But it shouldn’t be the only one. The number of healthy churches and where they are on the map is also essential information in the process of thinking wisely about our missions efforts. We must not forget the urgency while also having a long-term perspective. In terms of gospel presence, we want to go far. So, the missionary and the national church should partner together whenever it’s possible.

Besides learning about the current state of Christianity in that region, it is also important for the missionary to come with a Christlike spirit of a servant. Often missionaries will have more Bible knowledge and spiritual maturity than most local leaders. Because we are so prone to pride, those entering that new territory must cultivate humble hearts. Otherwise, they won’t have the patience and the perseverance needed for the job. People change, but it’s usually slow, with ups and downs. Churches change, but it’s a long process, not a single event. Without humility, the result will likely be conflict, burnout, or even leaving the field.

This kind of meekness will also aid the missionary in discerning what is a matter of faithfulness and what is simply a difference in culture. Much damage has been done by well-intentioned people who were unable to see that styles of clothing and musical preference, for instance, were not synonymous with biblical fidelity. Wearing a suit and tie at every worship service should not be equated with godliness. Here the regulative principle with its categories of element, form, and circumstance can be very helpful.

We trust in God’s Spirit alone to give life to the dead, in God’s Son alone to save the lost, and in God’s word alone to transform the sinner. But God calls us to effectively steward the resources he has given us. We have limited time, money, gifts, and people. May we seek wisdom from the Lord to understand how we can better utilize what he has put in our hands to see vibrant and faithful churches around the globe until Christ’s return.

Conclusion

As it is not possible for a house to stand firm over time without a solid foundation, so it is with gospel work. God has given us in his word the structure he wants to use to build his everlasting kingdom. One of the key elements in that gospel infrastructure is a biblical, communal, physical, national, healthy local church.

So let us labor in faith, for Christ has promised, “‘I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it’” (Matt 16:18). Christ is adorning his bride to meet him at the supper of the Lamb. What a glorious day that will be. And what a glorious task we have now before us: to prepare singing saints by establishing local churches from every tribe and language and people and nation. “‘Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns’” (Rev 19:6).