From the heart of King David, in Psalm 22:22-26, we read: “I will declare Thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise Thee. Ye that fear the Lord, praise Him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify Him; and fear Him, all ye the seed of Israel. For He hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath He hid His face from him; but when he cried unto Him, He heard. My praise shall be of Thee in the great congregation. I will pay my vows before them that fear Him. The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the Lord that seek Him: your heart shall live for ever.” The congregation is the gathered people of God.

In this writing we will be discussing the purpose and practice of the gathered New Testament church. Many people want to know what constitutes a true New Testament church. Because there is such confusion over what the church really is, we all need to be very careful to understand what the Lord calls His church. Therefore we desire to give a few practical lines of thought and reasoning, using the Scriptures as our basis.

Why do we need to be gathered or rightly attached to a people known as a local church? First, we will examine the Scriptures on this subject, developing a few points that will answer this question.

Those Who Love

“And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment [discernment]; that ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense until the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.”—Philippians 1:9-11

Brethren, here is a description of what we need, of what we are being called to now and throughout the rest of our risen life with Christ: love abounding, in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ and in all discernment. (see also 2 Peter 3:18) The life of Christ, when we become truly born again, awakened to the Spirit of Christ, is a dynamic life. It is full of love, seeking, discerning and growing in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior.

Those Who are Faithful

“ Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.”—2 Timothy 2:1-2

Faithful men are those who are faithful to the Scriptures of Almighty God. They are not just doing and saying their own thing! They are relating all to the Word of God, the Bible.

“For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which He hath purchased with His own blood.”—Acts 20:27-28

The faithful are those men who will be able to teach, protect and pass it along to others, beginning with their own spouses and families.

Those Who Prepare, Fight and Endure

“Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please Him who hath chosen him to be a soldier. And if a man also strive for masteries, yet is he not crowned, except he strive lawfully.”—2 Timothy 2:3-5

A true soldier is not one who is along just for the ride! He is one who has been prepared, who understands that there will be hard battles to face, and he knows that he must be able to endure through them. The army of God, the congregation of God is built for battle, NOT defeat! But the one who desires to master that for which he strives must play by the rules. There must be preparation! There must be endurance! The Bible teaches that being a Christian is not mere easy-believism. It is a life of love, preparation, diligence, growth, discernment, and endurance through hardships and battles. It is a life work that will go on and on … unto the soon second return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Those Who Abide and Bear Fruit

In John 15, Jesus establishes that He is the Vine and the Father is the Vinedresser. He makes it very clear that we are to abide in Him, to be rightly attached to the Vine! He also teaches that the Father prunes the Vine and cuts off dead branches. These branches were once rightly attached, receiving the pure milk of the Word flowing through them! The Husbandman expected that these branches (you and I) would be producing fruit. But when He finds no fruit, He cuts them off. (John 15:2, 6)

Those Who Are Steadfast

“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers … And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God and having favour with all the people.”—Acts 2:42, 46-47a

“And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.”—Acts 5:42

This is the gathered New Testament church. They preached Jesus as Christ, Jesus the Atonement, Jesus the Sanctifier, Jesus the Bread of Life. Notice the word daily in the last two texts. It is a daily life! It is a life of enduring hardness. And though there are battles, with all the armor of Christ, the grace of Christ and the mercy of Christ in place, we can persevere! (see also Romans 8:28, 31, 35)

Those Who Manifest the Wisdom of God

The book of Ephesians is a discourse concerning the exposition of the church. We see Paul’s love for the church all the way through this letter.

“… I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of His power. Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ; and to make all men see what is the fellowship [koinonia] of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: to the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God, according to the eternal purpose which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord: in whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of Him.”—Ephesians 3:7-12

Brethren, that is one of our tasks: to make known, to represent the manifold wisdom of God as the locally gathered people “according to the eternal purpose.” This is that for which we were created! It is the eternal purpose “which He purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Our faith is drawn upon the fact that He was faithful and is faithful! Even when we face the hardest battles, we can call upon His name, drawing down His grace and favor, engaging His strength, knowing that we have direct access to Him. We are to go to Him and ask for the grace in times of need that we might prove our walk of faith, trusting Him, being victorious, boldly and confidently.

“Wherefore I desire that ye faint not … ”—Ephesians 3:13a

Those Who Do the Work of the Ministry

Here, in Ephesians 4, is one of the clearest places in Scripture that teaches the unity of the local church:

“I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, with all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. Wherefore He saith, When He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. (… He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that He might fill all things.) And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers [equipping gifts]; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry [that the Church might do the work of the ministry], for the edifying of the body of Christ [the gathered people]: until we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: that we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the Head, even Christ: from whom the whole body [the gathered church, the people of God, the great congregation] fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth [every one has a duty, a part to play, everyone works together as one corporate body], according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”—Ephesians 4:1-8, 10-16

The gathered people of the body of Christ, the local church, is a place where those who are born again can grow up “unto a perfect man.” They can be edified together, work together, attain the unity of the faith and the knowledge of Christ together. They speak the truth in love, growing together as a body, being edified in love. When does this happen? It happens when all the individual gifts are working effectually! It happens when they are congregated together. This is good news for those who are interested in rightly attaching themselves to the body of Christ!

Those Who Fellowship Together

“I speak as to wise men … The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.” —1 Corinthians 10:15-17

Brethren, to be part of the gathered people of God, the church, we must be participating in the one bread and the one blood of Christ Jesus. The bread is what He did for us and the blood is His Atonement. We participate in that. He is continually conveying that salvation to us day by day, moment by moment. It is always available to us. It is not just a one-time thing. It is a steady stream of current. It is like the plug in the wall socket drawing fresh power to be more in Him than we ever thought possible—moment by moment!

“Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of a harlot? God forbid! What? know ye not that he which is joined to a harlot is one body? For two, saith He, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.”—1 Corinthians 6:15-17

There are not many spirits by which we are joined. There is only one holy, consecrating Spirit that joins us together with Him and in Him. Being drawn together in the body of Christ is a spiritual thing. There is a spiritual poise that comes only by the Spirit of God! Each local body must be gathered for His spiritual purposes, in holiness, prayerfulness and carefulness. Who is sufficient for these things? Only by the Spirit of God do we have any sufficiency. The truth of God, the grace of God, and the power of God are ministered to us by the Holy Spirit of God indwelling us. These things are not possible without the indwelling of God’s own Holy Spirit.

Those Who Pray For One Another

“I thank my God upon every remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy, for your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; being confident of this very thing, that He which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ.”—Philippians 1:3-6

Is this how we pray for each other? Brethren, this is an awesome promise, a great blessing that we may share together! It is worthy of praise! It is worthy of exalting the Lord!

Those Who Praise and Communicate

“For here have we no continuing city, but we seek one to come. By Him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to His name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”—Hebrews 13:14-16

We must continually keep it uppermost in our minds that we are praisers of Yahweh. We are to do this continually, brethren! It is the fruit of our lips giving thanks to Him, to His name (what He stands for), His purposes, His cares, His commandments, and His provision. And we are instructed not to forget to communicate, to give and to share, to be community-minded. We must not forget to be that gathered people, for in this (and He calls it a sacrifice) God is well pleased … to give up personal gain, for corporate shared meaning.

“Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you. Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.”—Hebrews 13:17-18

The Apostle Paul

The Apostle Paul had to learn the importance of what it means to be rightly attached to the body of Christ. He was a Pharisee of Pharisees, proud to be who he was, “driven,” blameless under the law, zealously persecuting the Church! Then he had his day of judgment, you might say. He was on his way to Damascus, breathing murders and threatenings, going there to do more persecuting. He was after that renegade group who had turned away from the Law and Jewish customs and called themselves “The Way,” following that man they called Jesus, the Christ! Then, in a blinding flash, he met this Jesus on that road to Damascus. He fell to the earth and heard …

“Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?”—Acts 9:4

… and realized that this Jesus was the One who had been crucified, the same One for whom Stephen, with Saul’s consent, had been put to death. For the first time in his life, Paul (Saul) was seized; he was taken aback and realized he had been wrong all along! He acknowledged the Lord and could have said something like this: “Lord, what must I do? I’m ready to repent. I can deal with this. This is truth, and I’m ready to take it on.” And the Lord could have responded with something like, “Well, Paul, you’ve been a pretty diligent fellow. You’ve kind of messed up before, but now we have that straightened out. So, why don’t you go start about 25 churches, disciple 45 men, and write 14 epistles?”

But, no! The Lord did not say anything like that! Saul was asking, “What do you want me to do? Give me the words from heaven! Just put them on a piece of paper and make it real easy for me.” He may have had that pietistic view of this relationship being “just me and Jesus.” But the Lord made it very clear— “Saul, I want to introduce you to what I call My body, the gathered people of God. They gather intentionally! They want to be called out for My name’s sake, for My purposes. They love Me, and I love them. I love them so much that I normally speak to people through them! That is, My body, My gathered people, My representative organ upon the face of the earth. And, Saul, you should be part of that!”

What did the Lord literally say to Saul?

“Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told you what you MUST do!” —Acts 9:6

And that was the end of the conversation! The vision disappeared, and Saul was left blinded! He could not really see things straight. His companions had to lead him by the hand into Damascus. After three days of being blind, going without any food or drink, Saul received a visit from Ananias, one of the local leaders of the gathered church in Damascus.

“The Lord said unto him [Ananias], Go thy way: for he [Saul] is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel: for I will show him how great things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”—Acts 9:15-16

Having seen this vision from the Lord, Ananias came to Saul. He let Saul know that he had been sent by the Lord Jesus, that he might receive his sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. When Ananias put his hands upon Saul, he was immediately healed of his blindness, was baptized, ate a meal, and spent the next few days with the disciples in Damascus.

Who did Jesus use to speak to Saul, to heal and baptize him? Did He just appear to Saul and send him out then and there? No. He worked through the gathered church in Damascus!

First, Saul was sent into the city of Damascus. Second, the Lord sent a member of the local church in Damascus to him. Third, Saul’s healing came through the local church. They also called Saul “brother” and baptized him into the body of Christ.

Saul then began to preach Christ in the synagogues in Damascus. He confounded the Jews who dwelt there, proving that Jesus was the Messiah. After many days of that, the Jews sought to kill him, laying in wait day and night near the gates of the city. These Orthodox Jews wanted to kill Saul because he had become a turncoat to his mission. They had been looking forward to Saul cleaning up the mess in Damascus, and now he was promoting it! So once again the Lord used the local church to minister to Saul. They lowered him in a basket out of the city so that he might continue with his mission of promoting the gospel! This same gospel he had once persecuted, he began to give to others! The Kingdom of God had come into Paul’s life.

This Saul became the apostle Paul, the writer of most of the epistles in the New Testament. He had learned his first “Christian” lesson from the Lord Jesus: that He speaks through His gathered people, His church!

Some may say, “All I have to do is just stay before God.” But it is too easy to be deceived if you have not entrusted yourself to Christ by being connected to His church, His local body. Jesus and His Bride are not separate, brethren! We do not see anyone walking around as a head without a body. In the same way, Jesus Christ is the head of His church, and He is connected to the rest of His body. This is our privilege! When we hear from Almighty God in a local fellowship, we should be praising God! We do not have to look any further. There are so many people who are hungering and thirsting to death, and in much confusion. Why? Because they do not have a sound, local fellowship through which to hear the gospel of Christ, to gain instruction, and to rejoice with when they hear Jesus Christ. Instead, what do you see? Strewn about the landscape everywhere are many half-built watchtowers!

The Church: Orderly, Prayerful, Sending Out

“Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, ‘Separate Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.’ And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed … ”—Acts 13:1-4

Here we see, as recorded in the Bible, how the church functioned—what right order was, what they thought, how they prayed, how they sent brothers out, etc. We see also in this narrative that a plurality of eldership was in place—some prophets, some teachers. Notice how they were being spoken to. It was by the Holy Spirit through the gathered people. We must not miss that part. It was not Barnabas in his closet or Saul over there on his face, with God speaking to each of them privately. No, it was in the midst of the gathered body of Christ! They had committed themselves to be a part of that local body, and they had been there for a year. (Acts 11:25-27) They were there, not knowing they would go on mission trips! They just attached themselves to a local church. “And they fasted and they prayed and they laid their hands on them and sent them away.” That was the ordination. “So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed.” That was the church in the action of “sending.” (Romans 10:14-15) They all heard the same Spirit of God in their normal task of fasting and praying from time to time … ministering to the Lord!

The Church: Exhorting, Preaching, Teaching, Ordaining

“And when they [Barnabas and Paul] had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. [This takes us back to being a soldier and enduring hardness. It is a battle to stay in Christ in a world that is against Him.] And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed. And after they had passed through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia. And when they had preached the Word in Perga, they went down into Attalia: and thence sailed to Antioch, from whence they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled. And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, [Isn’t it great that it does not say, “They went to church?” They gathered the church together!] they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how He had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. And there they abode long time with the disciples.”—Acts 14:21-28

Here we learn about what Barnabas and Paul did on the road as they neared the end of the first mission. Barnabas, being the older and wiser, was discipling Paul. During that time, Paul learned and was released to teach. It is the mission of the gathered church—to be a place where disciples are accountable, and as we see in the above verses, a place where they relayed all that God had done with them and how He had opened wide, effectual doors so that the gospel could go forth … it was their home church! It is a place where each saint’s gifting can be discovered, encouraging those who are faithful to Scripture, those who are able to teach and reproduce the Gospel, to give it to others. As they mature, they are released to go forward in their gifts and calling so that much more may be accomplished. This is one of the functions of the church, the gathered people of God.

Four Reasons Why It is Important to Join a Local Church Body

Now, having laid a Scriptural foundation, we would like to suggest four reasons why anyone who desires to walk with the Lord should join a local fellowship, why they should assemble, why they should gather together and commit themselves to the local body of Christ.

1) The Church is the Bride of Christ

Christ Jesus is the Head, the church is His many-membered body, His Bride. He loved this church and gave Himself for her on the cross.

“…Christ also loved the church, and gave Himself for it; that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the Word, that He might present it to Himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”—Ephesians 5:25b-27

This is a good reason to attach ourselves to a local church body! We want to be married to Christ as His Bride. The Bride is made up of all those who have a love and desire for Him which overrides all other desires! The Bride is not an independent individual. She is a gathered, many-membered body!

“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints … Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb … These are the true sayings of God.”—Revelation 19:7-9

The Bride is making herself ready! She is called to be ready. (Revelation 19:7-9) In Revelation, chapters 2 and 3, we read about seven churches to whom John wrote, relaying messages from the Spirit of God. They were written to gathered churches, not individuals! Jesus the Lord primarily, normally, and personally interacts with “local churches.” These letters are exhortations to deal with what yet remained unready and unholy in the churches. They were letters full of encouragements, incentives and warnings to the churches to listen, repent, overcome and be ready! This is true in our day as well. Why?

2) “The Day” is Approaching

“Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; for He is faithful that promised: and let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as you see the day approaching.”—Hebrews 10:23-25

Even now, we see the day approaching! This requires of us that we attach more often, more meaningfully to each other. It does not mean that all the times of assembly are going to be the same for the whole corporate body. But our closest brothers and sisters are going to be right next to each other, talking to each other, building each other up, receiving from each other as often as possible. That is the communion of saints, whether at the regularly organized scheduled times or whenever two or three of them are gathered together locally, in His name.

3) We Have the Apostolic Example and Practice

A third reason that we should rightly attach ourselves together is the apostolic example and practice we read about from the historical record. Acts 13 and 14 give us clear examples of the first century church—that church that Jesus built upon solid rock, that will not change, and that even the gates of hell cannot prevail against! (Note: The church at Antioch was the first to be called “Christian” … a derogatory term mocking a Holy Spirit led church!) Functioning saints must be connected to a local church, with ordained elders and regular corporate times of fasting and prayer. That is where Jesus and His grace are—where two or three are gathered in His name. Intimacy is in view here. There are places where we may not have all those things—but we must start with the ideal as our aim.

There are several minimum needs for a locally constituted body. First, ideally, at least two elders are needed—pastoral and prophetic. A pastoral elder would be one who knows how to feed the flock. A pastor/shepherd, pastor/teacher will be able to break the Word open and with that, feed the flock. He will have an appetite to do that! He will be able to listen to the bleating of sheep day and night and never get tired of it. An elder with a prophetic type of gifting will complement the pastoral gift very well. A true prophet is one who brings you into the immediate presence of God! The fear of God crawls all over you and you feel like, “Oh, God, I just don’t measure up! I need more of Jesus.” You feel a hunger and thirst for righteousness because this man brings you right into the presence of God! You realize that you stand at a distance because of how the Spirit of God comes through what he is speaking … the Holy Spirit bearing witness … showing individuals the next two to three steps of obedience which will draw them closer to the master.

So, it is better to have the two—one that feeds, blesses, and washes—and one that encourages you to come right into the presence of God, helping you to see that there are still areas of your life that need improvement. With the two, there will be a solid, functioning eldership team. If there are not two, then have at least one—one who functions as either pastoral or prophetic along the terms we have just expressed. This man must be grounded in the Word of God, already experienced in building a local work, he must have been discipled! He must have a well-rounded, full constitution of the Word of God, able to give the full counsel of God, a full gospel properly declared in a full Christ—Prophet, Priest and King. If they do no more, it is enough.

Second, a minimum of three families are needed, who work together to come to one mind and one accord, to unify their doctrine over a period of time. It may take one to three years of expository Bible study before they can all come to unity about important doctrinal issues pertaining to salvation, baptism, grace, mercy, sanctification, justification, and what the church is. During that time, each one’s gifting will be revealed. Gifts are revealed, matured, and can then be released! In such a group, you will begin to see strong men. You will begin to see the pastoral gift or the prophetic gift. You are able to grow together, to function as a body, because you can see by the instruction manual (the Bible) how and what to do.

“Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.”—Psalm 119:105

If you do not have these two minimum things, brethren—a good prophetic or pastoral gift and people willing to mine things out of the Word of God over a period of time, checking and unifying their doctrine of Christ so they can speak and live only what the Bible says—then you are better off going to a fellowship that is already in progress. To start something new without the minimum necessary requirements will cause confusion. There are many devastated people out there. If you want God’s grace, you must do things His way!

Third, today there is a vast and a startling spirit of unbiblical individualism amongst those who have professed to be Christians. It is a spirit of independence. Most fail to recognize that the bulk of the New Testament is written to the church! It is not just written to individuals. Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, and Revelation are all written to churches. For example:

“I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last and, what thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.” —Revelation 1:11

1 and 2 Timothy, Titus and Philemon are written to leaders of congregations so that they might better shepherd their congregation. They were disciples of Paul. The books of Hebrews, James and John give reason for the local assemblies, and instruction in love and discipling, for the faith of the saints. Brethren, this is to whom the New Testament is written. Today we have much ungodly and unbiblical individualism! It could also be called pietism—“I’m OK with God, but forget the church!” These people have reacted to all the stuff that is going on today, and they have said, “No thank you. I’m just going to be with God and that’s good enough for me. The church doesn’t count.” Remember brethren, Paul had to learn that that is not true; we do need the church-local! If we did not need the church, Jesus would not have made the church! To be independent is to reflect more of the mood and the spirit of the world in this age of independence! By ourselves, we do not constitute a church. A father, a mother and children, is not a Biblical church; it is a portion of the church. A family is one flesh, one part of the full body … all under the one covenant of one father.

A fellowship group without some clear structure or government, without authority, will be hard pressed to deal with sin, or church discipline. If there is no structure or authority, some may say, “Well, what makes you right? I think it is this way or that way.” It becomes easy to enter into a contest, and it only causes the hearers to stumble. Without structure or authority a group will find it very difficult to deal with sin; or to implement church discipline; instruct in marital or family order; or to correct doctrine. The brothers will not prosper spiritually as they should. An army has direction, order and authority! We even see it in nature’s light—ants, bees, herds and flocks. They congregate for the same reasons: for protection, efficiency, unity, and coordination so that they might be strong. The church must be strong—strong in the Lord and in the power of His might!

“The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea, all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time: casting all your care upon Him; for He careth for you. Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you. To Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”—1 Peter 5:1-11

The God of all grace, all enablement, and all provision has called us to reflect His manifold wisdom in this earth. And we will suffer a while for the name of Christ. But He will work to make us perfect, to establish, strengthen and settle us. It happens through suffering, by learning through hardness, and by enduring through the business of being the army of Christ within the family of Christ. Nothing ever goes smoothly in a war or in an extended family; there are always issues to be worked out. Yet in the end, as Peter did, we are to bring everything to praise and worship! Refining fires and trials only purify!

4) There are Benefits That Cannot Be Received Any Other Way

As we mentioned before, the Apostle Paul, when he first became a Christian, had to learn that there were benefits that he was not going to receive from the Lord any way other than by first attaching himself to the local church in Damascus. Yes, we can hear from God through prayer and by reading and meditating upon His Word. But there are certain things that only come through the body of Christ—where God normally speaks! There are benefits that we receive no other way! Some of these benefits include adult, mature accountability, brotherly counseling, balance, direction, and oversight by seasoned shepherds—those who have studied and shown themselves approved unto God. They are not interested in pleasing their culture, their background, a movement, or their friends! They seek to please God, that they might rightly divide the Word of God for the flock of God. They will be faithful men, able to teach, as 2 Timothy 2:2 encourages them to be. They will be balanced and have an appetite for sustaining Christ’s righteousness in order to avoid apostasy, compromise, and confusion.

Another benefit of being in a local body is the opportunity for expository Bible study where all the gifts have something to give. It is the church dwelling together in unity, with the Lord speaking through His body. If we do not deliberately join ourselves with others to do these things, seeing Christ in it, then we are going to miss whole parts of being God’s gathered people—“His church,” in this earth, in this time!

There will also be the discovery of individual gifts. This will not happen outside the body. It is your local fellowship that can tell if you are gifted in certain areas and can begin to help you mature in your gifting. Once a person is ready to be released to operate in their gifting then the body can lay hands on him and affirm what God has given. We read earlier that the church in Antioch did this for Barnabas and Paul. (1 Corinthians 12:11)

Isn’t it better that the body of Christ establish you than you yourself? Does not the Bible make it clear that it is better for others to speak to you about who you are than for you to boast of it yourself? That way, you know it is real and obvious to others. Every word is established in the mouth of two or three. The devil can never tempt you with doubt about your gifting because you know that the local body to which you attached yourself has sent you out by the Spirit of God! They see the gift there and know it is the Lord, and they are praying for you! They establish whether it is a mobile gift or a gift for the local fellowship. Whether it is the gift of helps, giving, evangelist, pastor, etc.—all these are gifts of the Lord. (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4) All gifts are equal at the foot of the cross, because it is what God has given! To each one are gifts given for the common good. God gives each one a peculiar grace to be an effective part, that when “all gifts are working properly together, we build each other up in love and make increase for the ministry of God.” You cannot easily discover your gift without the New Testament local body of Christ. (Ephesians 4:15-16)

You will also reap the benefit of constant prayer support from your spiritual family. Your local body will get to know everything about you! It brings out the best and the worst in all of us, but in that setting we can more surely pursue holiness—a holiness without which no man, no woman, no boy, and no girl will see the Lord. Any remaining flesh within the heart cannot hide in the New Testament church which promotes perpetual sanctification! For we are called to be a bright light, yea, a city set upon a hill! We are to be a gathered people that others can see and that they can hear. Jesus has incarnated Himself through the multi-membered body. While He walked the earth, Jesus did that all by Himself. But He told His disciples that when He left the earth, they would “be the light of the world!” We are co-inheritors of His Kingdom, co-laboring together with Him. We are to be like Ananias (a member and leader of the church in Damascus) who worked directly with the Spirit of God to carry to Paul the answers he was privately asking of Jesus.

Matthew 6:33 says, “Seek first the Kingdom of God …” Seek the King and His Kingdom. You cannot separate the King from His Kingdom, which includes His people!

In Closing …

Those who bypass the New Testament church, who neglect needful assembly, begin to backslide, and then begin a slow departure. They miss a week here, two weeks there and then they just disappear. (You may have seen that, you may have even done that in the past!) Then they begin to have trouble and sorrow and those things begin to set into their own hearts and perhaps in their own family. It becomes hard for them to walk by faith when trials come or when difficult circumstances begin to pile up in their lives. Spiritually, they begin floundering. They risk running their faith shipwreck on the rocks of rebellion, reprobation and being irresponsible!

Saints in Christ, this can be avoided!! It can be avoided by rightly attaching yourself to a local branch of the corporate church who worships the Lord out of a pure heart. It’s your responsibility!

“Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity [agape love], peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. But foolish and unlearned questions avoid, knowing that they do gender strifes. And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient, in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; and that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.”—2 Timothy 2:22-26

What are youthful lusts? Impulsiveness, impatience, bending the rules, novelty, disputing, independence. Brethren, we hurt ourselves when we are not doing things the way the Bible tells us to do them. We hurt ourselves and others, especially those closest to us! That is the danger of tolerating remaining flesh in our life!

“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth [being the gathered people of God is part of obeying the truth] through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.”—1 Peter 1:22-23

We must not just do this sometimes but all the time. This will take work, brethren! Flesh definitely has to die!

“And the Lord make you to increase and abound in love one toward another, and toward all men, even as we do toward you: to the end He may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness before God, even our Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.”—1 Thessalonians 3:12-13