Uncertainty⤒🔗

It is evident from the way in which some members talk and various churches act that there still remains a good deal of uncertainty about the role and place of evangelism in the life of the local church. There are members who hesitate when it comes to getting involved in local evangelism efforts. There are churches that are not sure as to exactly how much emphasis this work should receive and how it should be organized, supported and funded. Does evangelism really belong? Is it legitimate? Is it necessary? Is it really vital for the life of the church?

Back to Basics←⤒🔗

In order to answer these kinds of questions, we need to go back to the basics. We need to ask ourselves fundamental questions like: what is the calling of the church? Why did God call His church into being in the first place? What is its task and mission? Quite simply, we need a more focused theology of the church.

Of course, some may protest that we already have a rather worked out theology. Look at our confessional documents. We have the Heidelberg Catechism which stresses that the church is the work of the Son of God who "gathers, defends and preserves" His church. (LD. 21, Q & A. 54) We have the Belgic Confession which devotes nine articles to the church dealing with definition, membership, marks, government, officers, discipline, and sacraments. (Articles 27 -35) What more do we need?

It is my contention that we need further clarity when it comes to the "what?" of the church. We need to do more thinking and talking about what it means to be a church.

A Challenge←⤒🔗

To drive that point home, I would challenge you to ask yourself and some of your fellow members basic questions like: what is the purpose of the church? Why did God establish it? What does He expect from it? In other words, it's time to move beyond questions of definition and demarcation to questions of intent and direction.

Three Directions, Three Ends, Three Duties←⤒🔗

In finding answers to these questions, we need to start with the fact that the church operates in three directions. There is an upward, an inward and an outward direction.

Having said that we need to realize that each of these directions has a certain end in view. The upward direction ends with God. The inward direction ends with the members of the church. The outward direction ends with the world.

Yet as the church moves in these three directions and towards these three ends, there are also three tasks that need to be stressed.

• In the first place, as the church directs its life upward to God, its chief duty is the worship of God.

• In the second place, as the church directs its life inward towards its members, its chief duty has to do with furthering the welfare of the saints.

• In the third place, as the church directs its life outward towards the world, its chief duty is one of witness.

So what do we have? We have three directions: upward, inward and outward. We have three ends: God, congregation and world. We have three duties: worship, welfare and witness.

GOD
   ↑
worship
   │
church — welfare → CONGREGATION
   │
witness
   ↓
WORLD

Of course, it is one thing to come up with this kind of a scheme, it is another to prove its correctness. Hence, let us turn to what Scripture says in order to ascertain whether this approach is sound.

The Church's Duty of Worshipping God←⤒🔗

The Westminster Shorter Catechism opens with a gem when it asks the question: "What is the chief end of man?" and answers it with the words: "Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever." What is applied here to man applies no less to the church as a whole. The chief end of the church has everything to do with glorifying God.

In saying this we are stressing that the church does not exist for its own sake. It has not come into being simply to perpetuate itself, to increase its power and expand its influence. No, the church is a creation of God. Specifically, it is a creation of the Son of God, Jesus Christ our Lord, who has called it into existence and keeps it in existence. He does this not for its own sake, but for the sake of God the Father.

To see that very clearly turn to Ephesians 1. In that chapter we are introduced to God's electing and choosing work. We are told about "who" does the choosing, namely "the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." We are told about the "when" of this choosing, namely "before the creation of the world." We are told about the "why" of this choosing, namely that God desires a people who are "holy and blameless in his sight." We are told about the "whom" of this choosing, namely that it is in Jesus Christ. We are told about the "how" of this choosing, namely "in love." Finally, we are also told about the "what" for of this choosing, namely that it is all for "the praise of his glorious grace."

So what is the church's chief end? It has been brought into existence in order to praise God. As a matter of fact, the apostle Paul in Ephesians 1 uses this phrase "to the praise of his glory" in verse 6, 12 and 14. Thereby he wants his readers to be convinced that the church exists for God, for his praise, his glory, his worship.

A further testimony to this fact lies in all of the doxologies that are sprinkled so liberally throughout the Bible. It begins with the words of Melchizedek in Genesis 14:19-20, it moves on to the book of Psalms in Psalms 41, 68, 72, 93, 96-99, 103, 124, 135, 145, 150, and it continues in the New Testament with Romans 11 (33-36), Ephesians 3 (20,21), Revelation 1 (5b-6), 5 (13).

Why does the church exist? Fundamentally, it exists to glorify its Maker. How does it do this? Especially through its worship - its daily worship and its Lord's day worship. It does it through its praise, prayers, and preaching. It does it through the words and works of its members. In short, the church exists for God.

The Church's Duty of Looking after the Wellbeing of its Members←⤒🔗

Nevertheless, we cannot say that the church exists solely for God. The Scriptures also reveal that God sees the church not just as an instrument for His praise but also as an instrument which looks after the needs and welfare of the saints.

This fact becomes apparent already in the Old Testament when we consider the kind of institutions and ceremonies that God ordained for Israel. He gives her the priesthood. Why? Solely to direct the worship and praise of God's people? No, its work includes the education of the people in the Word of God. He gives her ceremonies relating to cleansing and purification. He gives her laws dealing with criminal and social justice. He gives her feast days on which to worship, rest and celebrate. He gives her statutes and ordinances that have a bearing on agricultural life, on business dealings, on moral standards. All in all, there can be no doubt that the Lord wants His people to be more than just a community dedicated to worship. He is concerned about her total welfare.

Yes, and the same can be said as we turn our attention to His New Testament community, the church. After Pentecost we are specifically told that the believers came together and devoted themselves to a number of things. They devoted themselves "to the apostles' teaching" which means to instruction, to "fellowship" which means to sharing and caring for each other, to "the breaking of bread" which means to the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, to "prayer." (Acts 2:42) In addition, they were also concerned about each other's economic needs, with the result that some sold their possessions and goods and distributed the proceeds to those who were in need. (Acts 2:45)

If one wants further proof about the church's concern about its internal workings, one has only to consider such chapters as Romans 12, 14, 15, 1 Corinthians 12-14, Galatians 6 and many others. Together the glory of God and the needs of the saints constitute the business of the church.

The Church's Duty of Witnessing to the World←⤒🔗

Yet if the church needs to look up to God and inward to itself and its needs, it also needs to look outward to the world. On what is this based?

Again, a cursory look at the Scriptures bears this out. In the Old Testament, we are introduced to God as the Creator of all things indicating that this world owes its existence and life to God. He has made the world and He loves the world enough to send to it His one and only begotten Son (John 3:16). In that same Testament, we meet Abram who is told by God that "all peoples on earth will be blessed through you." (Genesis 12:3) We encounter Psalms that tell us to "proclaim among the nations what he has done" and to "declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous deeds among all peoples." (Psalm 9:11; 96:3) We come across prophets who tell us that God's "justice will become a light to the nations" and that God's "arm will bring justice to the nations." (Isaiah 51:4, 5)

What these references indicate is that God is not only concerned about how His church relates to Him and to itself, but also to how it relates to the world in which He has placed it. That this is so is obvious in the New Testament too. Who can ignore the words of the Lord Jesus in which the church is told "you are the salt of the earth" and "you are the light of the world?" (Matthew 5:13, 14) Who can ignore the fact that the apostles were committed to the task of bringing the gospel of Jesus Christ to the nations? Who can ignore the fact that Peter tells his readers that they have been chosen and elevated for a purpose,  

you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light?1 Peter 2:9

A Healthy Church←⤒🔗

So where does all of this leave us? It leaves us with the understanding that for the church of Jesus Christ to be healthy and true it needs to be committed to worship, welfare and witness. Furthermore, this means that those local churches which ignore or hamper the call to witness and evangelize are ignoring a basic reason for their existence.