Being the Church

Preached by Ps Jude Blayney

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Matthew 16:14-18

Matthew 9:35-38

The church is often called many things by people.

The house of God. The temple of the Holy Spirit.

	The Greek word for church in the New Testament is the word ‘Ecclesia’. It never means the building or the house of the assembly. It means an organised body whose unity does not depend on being in one place, or its meeting in a building but its members are in several places united under a common purpose and head Jesus Christ.
	When Jesus said ‘I will build my church’, He wasn’t just referring to buildings, good as thought they are, He was referring to a body that exists for a purpose. That purpose is to share and grow the kingdom of God through individuals. Through you and me.
	Building buildings is great. This building is just the outward symbol of what we think about Christ and the church, that’s the reason that we ‘rise and build’ and slowly, step by step, we are putting money into the buildings. I love nice buildings and property, but if that is all we do then we miss the point of the church. The church is not limited to its buildings. It’s limited by its’ people. You see, the church is people. It’s you and me. We are the church. Where ever we are, the church is. Where ever we go, the church goes. Whatever we do, the church does. What ever we think, the church thinks. When we speak, it’s the church speaking. How we act, it’s the church acting.
	Our understanding of the church is paramount. It’s so important. We don’t just do church on a Sunday or a Wednesday or a Friday. Church is every day. When you sit down with your family, you are being the church. When you go grocery shopping, you are the church.
	The church is what God said He was building. He wasn’t building ministries or outreaches. He said He would build the church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. He’s not building ministries, or groups, or committees or counselling services, or camp sites, or food distribution networks, He is building the church. All of these things exist for one purpose, to be part of the process of building the church. Whenever we come to a point, and I pray we are not there, that what we are doing becomes of so much importance that we loose sight of the purpose, it becomes time to consider ‘killing the sacred cow’.
	Church was never meant to be traditional. It was always meant to be contemporary. A growing, vibrant, changing organism that expands the kingdom where ever it goes through what ever it does.
	The church is not a social club.
	The church is not a ‘bless me’ club.
	We are the church. Being the church to a dying world is what we live for. Being the church to our neighbour, workmates, and every day contacts is what we exist for.
	It’s not a worship service – that’s just us corporately expressing ourselves to God.
	It’s not a time of communion.
	It’s not a fellowship time.
	What is the church? It's you.
Ephesians 4:11-15
	Every single one of you is an apostle. For simply, an apostle is a sent one.
	Every single one of you has a purpose to fulfil, a plan to be involved in.