A True Church. What Does That Look Like?

Back only a few years ago you could open up the Yellow Pages and find all the churches within your given area. Now you can open up Google Maps and find all the churches in your city. If you are “church shopping” you have a plethora of choices within any populated place in the United States. The problem arises when you happen to be discerning about which church to attend. We live in a situation when any group of people can open its doors to the public, and can call itself a “church.” But are all churches the same, and does it matter which one you should attach yourself to? Quick answers: are all churches the same? No; Does it matter which one you attend, Yes.

Back in the time of the Reformation in Europe (mid 1500s) the choices were very limited: The Church of Rome, Protestants (Reformed and Lutheran), or Anabaptists. Granted there were differences in all three groups, but if you were a Protestant walking around a city it was easy to figure out which church to attend. As long as the church wasn’t Roman or Anabaptist, you were in all likelihood okay! Since that time the Protestant Tradition has splintered into thousands and thousands of denominations, and the Anabaptist and Roman churches are still around as well, which makes our discernment much more difficult.

One of the ways that the Reformed tradition has talked about this discernment is to use the category of true/false churches or the later Reformed categories of pure/less pure. The Belgic Confession uses the former language in Article 29 when it gives the “three marks of a true church.” If a church bears these three marks, then it can be considered a “true church.” In today’s world these marks need to be explored in greater depth as to their proper meaning because the distinction isn’t as black and white as it was at the time of the confession’s writing in 1561.

I hope to, in the next week or so, explore these three marks of a true church and how a URC church plant in Gig Harbor would seek to bear faithfully those three marks. There is more in Article 29 than just these “three marks of a true church,” which I hope to also talk about in our discussion. If you have any questions and would like to get the conversation started, then please leave a comment!

To lay the groundwork here are the “three marks”: 1) the pure preaching of the Holy Gospel, 2) the pure administration of the Sacraments, and 3) the exercise of church discipline. Stay tuned as we flesh out these marks.

Finally, here is the text of Article 29 of The Belgic Confession:

We believe that we ought to discern diligently and very carefully, by the Word of God, what is the true church– for all sects in the world today claim for themselves the name of “the church.”

We are not speaking here of the company of hypocrites who are mixed among the good in the church and who nonetheless are not part of it, even though they are physically there.
But we are speaking of distinguishing the body and fellowship of the true church from all sects that call themselves “the church.”

The true church can be recognized if it has the following marks: The church engages in the pure preaching of the gospel; it makes use of the pure administration of the sacraments as Christ instituted them; it practices church discipline for correcting faults. In short, it governs itself according to the pure Word of God, rejecting all things contrary to it and holding Jesus Christ as the only Head. By these marks one can be assured of recognizing the true church– and no one ought to be separated from it.

As for those who can belong to the church, we can recognize them by the distinguishing marks of Christians: namely by faith, and by their fleeing from sin and pursuing righteousness, once they have received the one and only Savior, Jesus Christ.

They love the true God and their neighbors, They love the true God and their neighbors, without turning to the right or left, and they crucify the flesh and its works.

Though great weakness remains in them, they fight against it by the Spirit all the days of their lives, appealing constantly to the blood, suffering, death, and obedience of the Lord Jesus, in whom they have forgiveness of their sins, through faith in him.

As for the false church, it assigns more authority to itself and its ordinances than to the Word of God; it does not want to subject itself to the yoke of Christ; it does not administer the sacraments as Christ commanded in his Word; it rather adds to them or subtracts from them as it pleases; it bases itself on men, more than on Jesus Christ; it persecutes those who live holy lives according to the Word of God and who rebuke it for its faults, greed, and idolatry.

These two churches are easy to recognize and thus to distinguish from each other.

 

Reformation Conference TONIGHT!!

Come and join us if you can!!
http://gigharborreformed.wordpress.com/reformation-day-conference/

 

Really? That’s Blasphemy?

This Lord’s Day I am preaching a sermon on Exodus 20:7 – the third commandment. Quick… what is it?

“You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes his name in vain.”

As I was studying for and writing this sermon it was fascinating to unpack all that this seemingly short commandment tells us as children of God. One of the areas that I was most fascinated with was how this commandment speaks of our salvation. How in the heck can “not taking the Lord’s name in vain” lead to talking about our salvation?

Blasphemy is the direct or the indirect detracting from the glory and honor of God. Doing anything to take away from the glory and the honor that is due the Triune God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) alone is blasphemous.

There are many preachers today who are telling believers that they can lose their election and their salvation if they are not righteous enough, if they are not faithful enough. When Christ comes again, in that final judgment these teachers say that when you are standing before God the Judge he will look at your obedience and render a verdict based on what you have done. To put it another way some would have us believe that God’s favor and acceptance of us ultimately depends on our obedience. This has taken root in many churches across the world (unfortunately) under the heading of “Federal Vision Theology.” It is amazing that the Reformed Confessions (both the Westminster Standards and the Three Forms of Unity) speak so clearly against this errant theology, but yet somehow they are tolerated even in so-called Reformed churches.

Teaching such as this takes away from the finished and completed work of Christ! Christ’s active obedience is our obedience and righteousness before God. Anybody that teaches or believes otherwise is diminishing the finished work of Christ and making our acceptance before God based, at least partly on our own work. Put simply, this is blasphemy!

Maybe you think that this is too strong. Really? Blasphemy? If you think that then listen to what The Belgic Confession says in article 22:

We believe that for us to acquire the true knowledge of this great mystery [what Christ has done for us] the Holy Spirit kindles in our hearts a true faith that embraces Jesus Christ, with all his merits, and makes him its own, and no longer looks for anything apart from him. (Not even looking at ourselves.)

For it must necessarily follow that either all that is required for our salvation is not in Christ or, if all is in him, then he who has Christ by faith has his salvation entirely. (Its one or the other. Either completely not in Christ, or entirely in Christ)

Therefore, to say that Christ is not enough but that something else is needed as well is a most enormous blasphemy against God– for it then would follow that Jesus Christ is only half a Savior.

This is serious! “A most enormous blasphemy against God.” If this is misusing the name of God, then what does the commandment say? “… And the Lord will not hold him guiltless.” This blasphemy means that you will stand before God still clothed in your own filthy rags trying to impress him. God is not going to look on these blasphemers and see the perfect righteousness of Christ, but their own pitiful merits which the Heidelberg Catechism says in Q&A 114 “even the holiest have only a small beginning of this obedience.” The name of God and of his Christ is the basis of our salvation. Looking to anything or anybody else means that we are misusing the Name of God and breaking the Third Commandment.

I hope and pray that if you believe in teaching such as this that you will seriously consider the ramifications of holding that position. The Federal Vision is not just a benign, innocent interpretation of Scripture and the Reformed Confessions and the only difference is just a misunderstanding. This theology is breaking one of the Ten Commandments, and one of the commandments that speaks of God’s just punishment for those who break it – “you will not be held guiltless.” Not quite the position that one wants to be in when they are standing before God. I am thankful everyday that I am standing before God guiltless, not because of anything I have done, but because I have been clothed in the pure garments of Christ and that he is my righteousness before God.

 

Classis Meeting

Today and tomorrow (10.20-21.09) the Pacific Northwest Classis of the United Reformed Churches in North America is meeting in Bellingham, WA. For those of you not familiar with the Reformed structure of church government, classis is simply a meeting of URC churches within a particular area. If you are familiar with Presbyterian government, classis is similar to presbytery. The classis has a full plate of business to attend to including an examination of a minister to be the welcomed into the URC from a different denomination. This minister could then be officially called as the pastor of Grace Church in West Linn, OR which is a church plant of Immanuel’s Reformed Church in Salem, OR.

Also on the agenda is supposed to be discussion about our church plant in Gig Harbor! So please keep this meeting in your prayers and may the Lord’s will be done in all matters.

 

Inside the camp

This morning I was reading article 12 of the Belgic Confession. This article deals with the creation of the world and of the angels. The article goes onto state that some of the angels have fallen and that even now “devils and evil spirits are watching to ruin the church and every member thereof, and by their wicked stratagems to destroy all.” This is a sobering thought, and precisely the reason why God has ordained the office of elder to protect the church and her sheep during this present evil age.

Throughout the New Testament we are told to be on watch for false prophets inside the church. Think about Galatians 1:6-9; 1 Timothy 4:1-3; 6:3-5; 2 Timothy 4:3-5; 1 John 2:18-25; 4:1-6; 2 John 7. Whenever false prophets come into the church they are going to be well disguised and will even say some true things and use the right words. But they are going to twist the meanings of those words, and ultimately depart from the singular truth of the Gospel and lead people to look to something or someone other than Christ.

J. Greshem Machen early in the 20th century wrote this, “The enemy has not really been changed into a friend merely because he has been received within the camp” (Christianity & Liberalism, p.19). It is not hard to see that Machen’s words have not been heeded and that throughout the church the enemy has been considered a friend. We need to constantly pray that God will give us (and especially our elders) the wisdom to discern these false prophets, antichrists, deceivers, evil spirits, who are within our midst even in good and solid Reformed churches.

No church is immune and the history of the Reformed churches in America shows how slowly and quietly the devil works in the church seemingly benign until the church has strayed so far from the Biblical faith thinking it is still faithful when, in fact, it has abandoned everything of value. May the Lord continue to raise up courageous men who will lead his church with conviction, resting only on the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Reformation Day Conference

The Gig Harbor Reformed Bible Study will be sponsoring a FREE Reformation Day Conference on October 30, 2009 at 7:00pm in the Peninsula Meeting Room at the Pierce County Library in Gig Harbor (address below). The conference will look at the life of John Calvin who had a very profound impact on Western culture as we know it today, and whose birth was 500 years ago this year.

The speaker will be Douglas Bond, a prolific author and leader of Reformation Tours around central Europe focusing on the life and times of the Genevan Reformer. Mr. Bond will be giving away five signed copies of his latest book The Betrayal, a novel on the life of John Calvin, to the first five families that arrive.

This will be a great opportunity for those in Gig Harbor, Bremerton, Port Orchard, Tacoma, and the surrounding areas to join in fellowship and to discuss the truths of the Christian faith that stem from the Reformation.

Seating is limited so please arrive early! Refreshments and activities for children will be provided.
The Address is:
4424 Point Fosdick Road NW
Gig Harbor, WA
Click here for a Google Map of the location

If you would like a poster for this event, click here (750kB jpeg).

If you are interested in being on our mailing list, have any quesions about this event, or are interested in who we are, please e-mail us at gigharborreformed *at* gmail.com.

 

An Over-Realized What?

Martin Luther coined the terms “Theology of Glory” and “Theology of the Cross” after seeing in his own day (the mid 1500s) the church’s striving to obtain things that were only promised of believers and the church once we enter into the glory of heaven. Luther pointed people to a “Theology of the Cross” which is the Biblical approach that pilgrims in this present evil, passing age are to understand our current situation awaiting the second advent of Christ.

Today, many people have gone back to a “Theology of Glory” as the recent post of Joel Osteen’s new book points out. They expect God to bless them right now with blessings that really are only promised to us once we are in heaven. This is what is called an “over-realized eschatology.” Let me explain. “Eschatology” is simply the study of the end times. Usually in popular theology this centers around the events that will take place when Christ comes again and when those particular events will happen. However, eschatology really encompases everything concerning not only Christ’s return, but the eternity that comes after! It is in the New Heavens and the New Earth where we are going to be blessed by God beyond imagination. When one has an “over-realized eschatology” then they are pulling out of the future (so to speak) events and blessings and expecting them right now.

It is true that we live in a weird time in redemptive history, the kingdom of God has been inaugurated (with the coming of Christ), but it has not yet been consummated. Christians are living in a time of already and not-yet. We already do experience some of the blessings of God (we do have a realized eschatology!), but those blessings are centered around the church as the visible manifestation of the kingdom of God here on earth. These blessings include the Holy Spirit regenerating and empowering us, the Word and Sacrament creating and sustaining faith, and the providential care of God over all creation. But as Christians there is a not-yet element to our lives as well. We are pilgrims wandering through this age looking for that place where we can settle down, fully and finally. We live in bodies that sin, see decay, and fail us constantly. We aren’t living in our permanent home, and times can be very tough for us here on earth (as Christ told us they would).

A Theology of Glory and an over-realized eschatology takes a Christian’s eyes off of the cross of Christ and looks to one’s own situation as the measure of what God has done and is doing for us. What if things go horribly wrong in your life? What if you loose your job and have to declare bankruptcy? If these things happen to you as a Christian with an overly-realized eschatology then you are going to determine that either your faith isn’t strong enough or that God is not the all-powerful deity that you were led to believe. If it is the former then what despair you will be under as you try to constantly build your faith on a false foundation? If you determine the latter, then why wouldn’t you go to Buddism, Islam, or atheism to try and obtain the life that you want?

An overly-realized eschatology can also lead one to expect that their complete sanctification will be a reality in this life. We will expect to conquer all sins in our life and stand before God holding out our own obtained sanctification as the grounds of our being justified and one of the elect. Being fully sanctified is not something we will ever be able to achieve here on earth in non-glorified mortal bodies. Every part of our being: body, mind, and soul is tainted with sin, and will be so until we die. When we are given glorified bodies on that great and final day, only then we will be fully sanctified.

Looking to the cross of Christ constantly in a Theology of the Cross keeps our faith properly grounded in the life and work of Christ. We realize that we cannot keep any of the commands of God, but we also realize that Christ has kept all the laws of God perfectly for us!. We thank God for his condescension to us in Word and Sacrament every Lord’s Day and we long for that day when our faith will be made sight and the ordinary means of grace will be made obsolete. Let us remember that we do have “realized eschatology” but one that is grounded in the already and not-yet where we are not trying to pull heaven down to make an overly-realized eschatology in this present evil age.

 

Reformation Rally in the Yakima Valley

The Reformation Association of the Yakima Valley will be hosting the second annual Reformation Rally at the United Reformed Church of Sunnyside on Friday, November 6. The topics for the two lectures will concern justification and sanctification and their proper Biblical support (and rediscovery) by the 16th century Reformers Martin Luther and John Calvin.

For more information check out the site: http://yakimavalleyreformation.blogspot.com/

 

The Reformation in Poland

For a fanscinating (but largely forgotten) look at Poland’s contribution to the 16th Century Protestant Reformation take a look at the first answer on the White Horse Inn Blog’s “Five for Friday” post on Sept. 18. The following Q&As focus on more recent history which are great to read as well.

Keep Dr. Brycko and his colleagues in your prayers as they try to bring the Reformation back to Poland!

 

This just makes me angry

So Joel Osteen is coming out with a new book on November 3. The title of the book is It’s Your Time, which considering the current economic depression a title like that is bound to sell millions. Obviously I am not angry with Joel for writing a book–he can write whatever he wants–but he cannot call this a “Christian” book. Why do I say that? Well, Joel is offering an excerpt from his book that contains an introduction and the first chapter. All in all this selection is 14 pages long and not once, NOT ONCE, does he pen the words “Jesus” or “Christ”. How can you write a whole chapter of a book without mentioning the central character of our faith? This is just another sad case of American Evangelicalism reducing its message to nothing more than platitudes that narcissistic man can’t get enough of.

Joel does talk a lot about “faith”, but he never gives that faith an object. It is just generic faith, at least what I read here. Faith has to have an object and that object is Christ and all he accomplished. From what I can tell, faith for Joel is a belief in blessings from God, material and physical blessings right here and now. Sure we can trust in God to provide for our needs, but our faith is in Christ and Christ alone. What Joel is giving is what Martin Luther called a “Theology of Glory” instead of the proper “Theology of the Cross.”

There is a lot more I could say, and I might use this popular form of Evangelicalism to springboard into the truth of the Bible concerning Christ and our redemption through him. In the mean time I want to point you to two resources that are invaluable in evaluating the theology of Joel Osteen. The first is a “Case Study” on Joel Osteen and the Glory Story which can be found here. This essay discusses the “Prosperity Gospel” and the need for a proper understanding of the Law of God especially as it relates to our sin. The second is a review of Joel’s last book, Become a Better You, which gives a really great insight into the “theology” of Joel and how it works itself out. That great review can be found here. If you know people who are enamored with the message of Joel Osteen then please pass along these documents to them.