Getting Job-ed
It’s so easy to overlook what the purpose is for the Church. Its purpose is wrapped up in its mission and task. The following is a paper that was written in 2023 for Belhaven University. This is part 1 of 2:
In Matthew 16:18 English Standard Version, Jesus states, “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” This is a fantastic truth because God is sovereignly overseeing that His Bride, that is, His Church, will not fail in the mission and task it has been set apart to do, no matter the opposition. The purpose of this paper is to define what the church is, to state what the Bible teaches about the mission and task of the church (Evangelize, Nurture, and Worship), to discuss the importance of this doctrine, and mention how the understanding of the Church shapes my life and ministry.
What is the Church?
To define what the Church is may seem elementary, however, this distinction is important to make if we are to understand the task and mission of the Church. Frame discusses that both what the Church is and what the Church does (mission/task) are very closely related.(1) Therefore, what the church is as an entity relates to the action that it performs in its existence. Grudem defines the church as, “the community of all true believers for all time.”(2) The Greek word for church is “ecclesia” (gathering), and the English word “church” derives from the Greek word “kuriakos” (belonging to the Lord).(3) In a sense, the Church is a group of people (gathering) that belong to the Lord.
The Church is not synonymous with the Kingdom of God, as the Kingdom of God is related to God’s rule over His people.(4) However, the Church is nonetheless a part of the Kingdom of God and its mission for all of creation. In our culture, the term “church” involves both the visible church (the group of people we see that go to church and profess belief in God) and also the invisible Church (the true group of believers that have saving faith in Christ).(5) The discussion of this address is concerned with the task that is given to the true Church－ the true believers, the children of God.
The Mission of the Church
The historical mission of mankind is closely related to the mission and task of the church. The cultural mandate for mankind is seen in Genesis 1:28 ESV which states,
“And God blessed them. And God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Whether explicitly or implicitly, the divine blessing, command to subdue, and the command to fill recur in the major covenants to Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, and Jesus (New Covenant).(6) This concept is present throughout the Old Testament and in the New Covenant era (the Great Commission). For instance, in the Covenant with Abraham in Genesis 12:2-3, God promises to bless Abraham and his offspring and that through him and his seed the whole world would be blessed. In Matthew 28:18-20 ESV (emphasis added), the Great Commission given by Jesus to His followers states,
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
As Frame observed, the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20) is the Cultural Mandate (Genesis 1:28) applied in the post-fall world.(7) Throughout Scripture, there appears to be a concept of God’s people taking His image into the world in order to create other image bearers (disciples) that will worship God and rule over His creation. This concept of God’s people taking the light of the revelation of Christ into the darkness of the world appears to be at the heart of the Church (Isaiah 42:5-9), which has been present since the writing of Genesis. God always intended to have a people for Himself in order to display His character through His people to the world.(8) God’s plan for the mission of the church has been eternal－this was not God’s figurative “plan B” after the fall of mankind.(9)
Throughout Scripture, the tasks given to the church include evangelism, nurturing believers, and worship.(10) Attention will be given to each in the next article.
Footnotes
- John Frame, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief, (New Jersey, P&R
Publishing Company, 2013), 1032.
2. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, 2nd ed., (Michigan, Zondervan, 2020), 1047.
3. R.C. Sproul, “R.C. Sproul: One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church,” accessed July 23, 2023,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QmeBPHOXLY
4. Vaughn Roberts, God’s Big Picture, (Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2002), 22.
5. Frame, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief, 1019-1020.
6. Frame, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief, 1034.
7. Frame, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief, 1035.
8. Mark Dever, “The Church and Evangelism,” accessed July 20, 2023, https://www.desiringgod.org/messages/the-church-and-evangelism
9. R.C. Sproul, “The Mission of the Church is Eternal,” accessed July 29, 2023, https://www.
ligonier.org/learn/articles/mission-church-eternal
10. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine, 1064.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QmeBPHOXLY
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