Saved by the Church
Some time ago I read an article about the increasing number of Christians leaving the institutional church. The writer suggested there was an indisputable link between salvation, and belonging to the institution of the Church. He considered the idea of claiming to be a Christian without belonging to a church was an oxymoron. Ironically, the general theme of the article was attempting to address why people were leaving, but the writer's prejudice tended to manipulate his conclusion. He shifted from clarifying the link to justifying the institution's eschatological authority without comparing it to the biblical definition and function in his argument. The writer stated without the Church, Christianity is reduced to an ideology, but an ideology, is an institution with guiding rules and dictates. The claim exposes a very subjective interpretation of the word Church, which is somewhat contradictory because, without Christ, denominational institutions are left with nothing but the religious dogma of an ideology. The writer’s definition opens a dangerous impasse, insomuch as the Church becomes the definer of salvation, instead of Christ. He failed to acknowledge that fellowship and spiritual growth are the functions of the Church, not salvation, which has no support from the scriptures.
First and foremost, being a Christian is not determined by the Church or other Christians. It’s defined by faith in, and acceptance by God, through Jesus Christ. Disagreement, about matters of fellowship, does not replace Christ as the only basis for salvation. The article reduced Christianity to religious academics, where belonging becomes a conditional precept for acceptance by God.
In saying this, it would concern me if professing Christians rejected other Christians, or displayed indifference to fellowship itself, but, underlying reasons for people leaving won’t be addressed by claiming the religious high ground in the first place. It must be said that the rejection of the institution of the Church, and the rejection of other believers, are entirely different matters. Without a doubt, this article promotes the very thing it’s trying to resolve, by creating disharmony and encouraging the decline in Church attendance. Rejection of the institutional Church does not imply a rejection of God, and it certainly doesn’t reduce faith to an ideology. Attendance isn’t a conditional precept for salvation. It’s also not the task of those in, or outside the institutional Church, to judge salvation based on Church attendance. So what is the Church, the Body, and the Community?
The Church (Ecclesia) is the name first used in the book of Acts, to define the group of people who were understood as disciples of Jesus Christ, and constitutes a company of many, united into one, with its headship in Christ Jesus.
The Body is a word that symbolizes a unity of many parts that function without partiality, as one body, in the ministry of Jesus Christ.
Community is the demonstration of love, joy, peace, patience, etc, between all parts of the Church.
To be clear the word Ecclesia is a definition of people, not buildings, denominations, or institutions. Unfortunately, the latter has become the definition we subconsciously identify with.
Today the church is recognized under denominational terms such as Baptist, Apostolic, Presbyterian, or Catholic. It conveys the impression of something concrete and structural, rather than something fluid and alive. This abstract impersonal impression is not what scripture defines as the Church, and is not exemplified or implied as that which holds sway over the reins of orthodoxy. The Church is better defined as any group of believers, or in fact the entire Christian community who share a common faith, whether at home or otherwise. The size, structure, and regularity also, do not determine orthodoxy. Orthodoxy is defined by its relationship to scripture.
God called us to himself, and we’re saved into a divinely inspired relationship, through Jesus Christ, which is testified by the spiritual fruit it produces. God does not call the Church as such, he calls individuals. The Church is no more or less than a name describing those understood to be Disciples of Christ.
Is salvation decided by the church, the body, or the community? The answer is clearly no! Scripture offers no support for any theology that suggests believers must be part of an established institution, to determine their salvation. However, individuals or groups who consciously reject the institutional church can also be guilty of making the same judgments as those I confront here.
In finishing, I want to suggest that all Christians are subject to varying degrees of institutionalism, and as such tend to lose sight of the basic relational tenets of Christianity. Our interactions don't always suggest we view each other as equals in Christ, just ask anyone who challenges the institutional authorities. In many respects the head does say to the foot, I don’t need you. If we’re brutally honest, many people have experienced the toxic nature of religion but we tend to ignore the instruction of scripture for the sake of this religion. For example, we prefer judgment by a set of rules rather than the fruit of the spirit, as the basis of relational acceptance. Why don’t we practice mutual submission, instead of perpetuating the poverty of decline? I’m yet to hear any reasoned or thoughtful exegesis in support of why the institutional Church should assume this intermediary authority, but I do believe the Church could be so much more than we currently exhibit.
