Biblically Based, Christ Centered, Caring Community in Annapolis, MD
This 11-week series talk about how the Church is the Body, Bride, and Temple of Christ, the community of all true believers for all time, and all Christians are called to be part of local churches where they worship, care for one another, and serve God’s purposes in the world together.
Question 71: Are Christians only called to be part of the universal Church?
The Church has been given the Spirit to empower us to be on mission together, taking the Gospel forth and displaying the love of God to others from our location to the ends of the earth.
Luke 4:16-19; Luke 24:45-49
Question 71: Are Christians only called to be part of the universal Church?
The local church community is where we are taught humble servanthood as a virtue, where we practice acts of servanthood, and where our souls are shaped so that our whole life becomes characterized by the attitude and practices of servanthood.
Galatians 5:13-15
The Church is the community of those who are God’s people through faith in Christ and are therefore exiles in this world. Consequently, they must persevere through suffering and persecution, knowing God is worth far more than this passing age.
Hebrews 11
The Church is God’s Nation in the world today, comprised of believers from every earthly nation, scattered throughout every earthly nation, and with ultimate loyalty and affection reserved for God and His kingdom.
1 Peter 5:1-2; 2:9-12; 5:13-14
Question 71: Are Christians only called to be part of the universal Church?
Worship is the assembly of the local church where God speaks to us through His Word, meets and strengthens us in the sacraments, and we respond as a community in spoken and sung prayers.
Acts 2:42; Colossians 3:16
Question 71: Are Christians only called to be part of the universal Church?
Each local church must have a group of elders who shepherd the flock by God’s Word, are servant leaders for those under their care, set a godly example in character and conduct, and point people to Jesus, the Chief Shepherd.
1 Peter 5:1–7
Question 71: Are Christians only called to be part of the universal Church?
All Christians are called to be part of local churches where they are led and cared for by elders, worship God, learn the Scripture, receive the sacraments, pray together, serve one another, and carry out the Great Commission together.
1 Corinthians 1:1-2; Acts 14:23
Christ is the all-sufficient Savior, Lord and King to all his people. He is a King who has done wondrous things for us, and as a result we ought to give him our allegiance, obedience and love.
Colossians 1:9-23 (ESV)
Question 70: What is the Church?
The Church is the communion of the saints, all of those in every age who have been united to Christ in faith and draw their life from Him and who are therefore spiritually united with one another now and in eternity.
John 10:16; Hebrews 12:22-24
Question 70: What is the Church?
The Church is God’s Temple, where He dwells by His Spirit as His people gather to worship and live in holiness and unity.
1 Corinthians 3:16-17 NIV2011
Question 70: What is the Church?
The Church is the Bride of Christ, Whom He loves and for Whom He gives Himself that she might be glorious, full of the beauty of holiness.
Ephesians 5:22-33
Question 70: What is the Church?
The Church is the Body of Christ, in which believers are united with one another and with Jesus Christ, their Head and source of life.
1 Corinthians 12:12–13
Question 69: Does God call you to live the Christian life by yourself?
The Church is the community of those who have personally responded to the Gospel, gather for worship, and care for one another.
Acts 2:36-47
All Christians are blessed by God to be a blessing to others.
Luke 5:1-11
The fundamental reality is that God exists and He is speaking to us through creation and the Scriptures, and we are called to respond in prayer and personal relationship with Him.
Psalm 19
The Church is the beautiful community of those blessed by the Trinity and sent forth to spread the blessing of God throughout the earth.
John 20:21–23
The Church is the community of blessing, where those who are in Christ and walking in unity receive every spiritual blessing promised by God.
Ephesians 1:3-14
To express the love of the Trinity, the Church must be a beautiful community where the forgiveness offered in the Gospel is celebrated, received, and given.
Ephesians 4:29–5:2
Man and nature are vicious and brutal, but Isaiah tells us a great cosmic reversal is coming and it will be led by a little child.
Isaiah 11:6
If the Church is to be a beautiful community of unity and diversity, we must walk in humility, being willing to sacrifice our own rights in order to serve our brothers and sisters.
Philippians2:1-11
The Church becomes a beautiful community of diversity as we embrace each other with our different gifts, experiences, ethnicities, and backgrounds and submit to God’s Word together.
1 Corinthians 12:4-7
All humans are descended from Adam and are the image of God, but there The Church has been given a unity that flows from the life of the Trinity, but we must work to maintain this unity in practice.
Ephesians 4
All humans are descended from Adam and are the image of God, but there God has reconciled us to Himself and one another through the work of Jesus on the cross, creating the Church as the beautiful community of reconciliation in which He lives by His Spirit.
Ephesians 2:11-12
All humans are descended from Adam and are the image of God, but there are many different ethnic groups, and God is calling us to overcome the sinful tendency to separate and to come together so that the Gospel might flourish in our area.
Acts 17:26-28