Latest / Chapel Talks / The Four Marks of the Church (Part 1) | Acts 2:41–47 | Thomas Renz

Transcript

The Four Marks of the Church (Part 1) | Acts 2:41–47 | Thomas Renz · Chapel Talks

0:00
Hello and welcome to this episode of Chapel Talks.
0:02
Just to say, the audio didn't turn out how we
0:05
wanted it for the first minute of this recording.
0:07
The audio gets fixed at around the minute mark.
0:10
Please persevere and enjoy the rest of the talk.
0:12
When asked in a doctrine exam what are the four
0:15
marks of the Church, you are likely meant to
0:19
channel the Nicene Creed, in which we confess
0:23
that we believe in one holy Catholic and apostolic
0:27
Church. Four key traits, one, holy, catholic,
0:32
and apostolic. What does it mean to say that
0:36
the essential features of the church are unity,
0:40
holiness, catholicity, and apostolicity? And
0:46
what does it mean for us? I hinted at yesterday
0:50
that how we understand church is actually quite
0:53
complex. In one sense, The church is the body
0:58
of Christ, and therefore there can only be one
1:00
body. Back in Acts 2, there was already more
1:04
than three thousand people. By now, it's billions
1:08
of people all over the globe, all through history.
1:13
One church. And in that sense, we are never the
1:17
church. We are just a tiny part of the church.
1:24
And yet, what did Jesus mean when he promised,
1:28
when two or three are gathered in my name, I
1:31
will be among them? Did he mean to imply that
1:37
when you're on your own, you're really on your
1:40
own, I won't be with you? Of course not. Christ
1:44
is with us when we are alone in our study, in
1:48
our bedroom. He lives through his Spirit in us.
1:51
What does it mean to say that he is with us,
1:53
among us, in that special sense, when two or
1:56
three are gathered in my name? I think if we
1:59
look at Matthew 18, 10 in context, we might say
2:04
it means in another sense, wherever two or three
2:08
are gathered in the name of Christ, there is
2:11
the church, head and body. Not only, in some
2:18
sense, a part of the church, but the church participating
2:22
in that reality. To explain that more fully would
2:25
need a doctrine lecture probably and some philosophy,
2:28
and I won't do that. I think I've said enough
2:31
to suggest that we are not the local church here,
2:34
but we are in some sense church because we are
2:38
local Christians, brothers and sisters, meeting
2:40
together. Not a full sense of church in the accountability
2:44
structures, but in such a way that one... holy,
2:48
Catholic, and apostolic might have something
2:51
to say to us too. Because these four traits do
2:56
not just come from the Nicene Creed. I think
3:00
we find hints of them here in Acts 2 .42. In
3:07
a different order. The order in the Creed is,
3:09
I think, to do with what sounds best, which is,
3:12
after all, very important because the Creed has
3:13
been said billions of times. So it better rolls
3:16
off the tongue. But here is the order in Acts
3:20
2 .42. They devoted themselves to the apostles'
3:24
teaching. Apostolic means being devoted to the
3:31
apostles' teaching. Secondly, they devoted themselves
3:36
to fellowship. Here we have the unity, sharing
3:42
with one another in one fellowship. They devoted
3:48
themselves to the breaking of bread. It's now
3:52
very widely agreed that this is the term that
3:55
Luke probably adopts from the early church for
3:58
the Lord's Supper. There are all sorts of names.
4:01
We tend to use the Lord's Supper, Holy Communion,
4:03
the Eucharist. The breaking of bread was another
4:05
early term. So it does seem to refer to not just
4:09
having a meal, but having the Lord's Supper.
4:14
Sharing in one bread because we are all one body.
4:18
And so that speaks of the unity that goes beyond
4:21
the gathered group. We participate in the unity
4:25
that is not quite yet universal in Acts 2. They
4:30
would struggle to meet in a temple courts if
4:31
there are too many Gentiles around. And they're
4:35
still large in Jerusalem. But already beginning
4:38
to be in such a big way, such big size that...
4:43
The small gathering needs to remember we are
4:46
participating in the one big unity. That's what
4:51
Catholicity means, belonging to the whole. And
4:57
hopefully they were devoted to prayer. This is
5:00
where we see the holiness of the church, I think.
5:04
What I noticed as I was reading this in the summer
5:07
is that those four marks seem to be repeated.
5:12
filled with Jerusalem specifics in the next few
5:15
verses. I then notice I'm not the first one,
5:18
obviously, to notice that, and not every commentator
5:21
agrees. But I see those four things being repeated
5:24
from verse 43. Everyone was filled with awe at
5:29
the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.
5:33
Here you have apostolic. Apostolic doesn't just
5:39
mean... right apostolic teaching. When we listen
5:44
to the apostles, we listen to Jesus. That's,
5:46
of course, the heart of it. But the word of Jesus,
5:49
and therefore the word of the apostles, is powerful.
5:51
And therefore, to be apostolic means to know
5:55
the power of the apostolic word as well. As Paul
6:00
expresses it in one of his very early letters,
6:03
1 Thessalonians 1 .5, because our gospel came
6:06
to you not simply with words, but also with power,
6:11
with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction. This,
6:17
of course, already one of the areas of disagreement
6:18
among Christians. To what extent should we see
6:21
signs and miracles and wonders in today's church?
6:25
Briefly, my view is that we do still see wonders
6:28
and signs, but we do not see them in the multitude
6:31
that are characteristic of the early church.
6:34
And that's not only to do with lack of faith
6:37
in the Western church. So I think there's a Jerusalem
6:41
specific here, but the power of the apostolic
6:45
word needs to be visible in our community as
6:48
well. And one of the things that I remember from
6:51
last year's chapel sermons, which impressed itself
6:55
on my mind, is one of our guest preachers telling
6:59
a story about how he, as a young boy, expressed
7:02
regret that he didn't have this wonderful conversion
7:06
story, like in the cross and the switchblade,
7:08
out of a life of violence and crime to be converted
7:13
to Christ. And he was severely rebuked by his
7:17
dad for it. And he was grateful to his dad for
7:20
that. Is that something like, do you think that
7:24
you were such a good and godly man already that
7:27
for you to be in the kingdom of Christ, it just
7:29
needed a little bit of help? It didn't need this
7:31
big miracle. No, no, every conversion to Christ
7:36
is a huge miracle. And so being apostolic means
7:42
to see that miracle happening in our lives because
7:46
conversion isn't just the one -off thing, I think.
7:49
We get converted again and again to Christ, growing
7:52
in Christlikeness and to see it in the lives
7:54
of others. So apostolic in word and deed. Then
8:00
what does it mean to be one? All the believers
8:02
were together and had everything in common. They
8:07
sold property and possessions to give to anyone
8:10
who had need. Another one of those features where
8:13
in Churches 3 there were some groups who said,
8:16
well, we need to be like the early church. and
8:18
have everything in common. And then you realize
8:21
in Acts 4 and 5, it's a little bit more complicated
8:23
than that. And you realize that maybe this was
8:26
another Jerusalem specific. One expression of
8:32
being there for one another. A later expression
8:35
of that is when Paul collects offerings from
8:39
the Gentile churches to support a Jerusalem church
8:41
at a time of famine. Oneness is expressed in
8:46
mutual support. for one another. Every day they
8:52
continue to meet together in the temple courts,
8:55
as I hinted yesterday, the early church and revival
8:58
churches meet daily. They met together in the
9:02
temple courts and they broke bread in their homes.
9:05
I see the Catholicity here not only in the reference
9:08
to breaking bread, but in the reference to big
9:11
gatherings where you try to squeeze in your 3
9:14
,000 plus in the temple courts. And in the houses,
9:20
breaking bread in their homes and eating together
9:24
with glad and sincere hearts. This is another
9:27
thing where Christians disagree. What are the
9:30
right conditions for celebrating the Lord's Supper?
9:33
Can we celebrate the Lord's Supper only in the
9:36
local church under the authorized eldership?
9:40
Or can a home group decide? Tonight we're celebrating
9:45
the Lord's Supper together, or a group of friends
9:47
coming together. The Church of England takes
9:52
today something of a middle position, I guess.
9:56
The Lord's Supper is celebrated under authorised
9:59
ministers. The authorised ministers ensure the
10:02
link to the wider Church, but it doesn't have
10:05
to be just the one -off gathering of all the
10:07
Christians in the local community. The Lord's
10:10
Supper can be celebrated in smaller gatherings
10:12
as well. as long as there's this link to the
10:15
authorized ministers, which is why we celebrate
10:18
the Lord's Supper fortnightly here. And Anglicans
10:22
invite non -Anglicans warmly to participate.
10:25
But if you have different views on that, you're
10:29
also welcome to participate without partaking.
10:32
So they broke bread in their homes and ate together
10:34
with glad and sincere hearts, an expression of
10:37
the Catholicity. And they were praising God.
10:41
So see the expression of the holiness of the
10:43
church. And what I find so intriguing is their
10:46
holiness, their praising God, their devotion
10:49
to God was attractive and enjoying the favor
10:54
of all the people. Think of that. Today, when
11:00
you think of the holiness of the church, it's
11:01
often, oh, that's the off -putting part. That's
11:04
what people don't like. And in fact, this holy
11:09
huddle, that carefully excludes all those who
11:13
don't properly belong is not actually holiness
11:16
in the biblical sense of the word. Why? Because
11:21
holiness is about being a special instrument
11:23
for God and about reflecting God's character.
11:28
Now, God is love and his agenda is mission. So
11:36
growth in holiness looks like growth in love.
11:40
and participating in his mission, reaching outsiders.
11:44
So holiness can never be a matter of just being
11:47
a holy huddle, excluding others. Holiness is
11:51
reaching out, and by God's grace, seeing that
11:54
the Lord continues to add daily to the number
11:57
of being saved. What does this mean for us at
12:03
Oak Hill? How might these four commitments translate
12:07
into... Our life together. One, I take it in
12:12
the order of the apostolic, of the Nicene Creed
12:15
now. One, we come from different backgrounds,
12:18
have different roles at college. Our students
12:21
are on different programs. They have different
12:22
modes of study. There are class differences,
12:25
ethnic differences. There are singles and married
12:28
people with and without children. What does it
12:31
mean for us to be one in our fellowship? I think
12:35
it means that we meet each other, first of all,
12:39
as brothers and sisters in Christ. And that we
12:43
do not just congregate amongst and with those
12:47
that are similar to us. Of course, we will seek
12:50
special fellowship with those in a similar life
12:52
and stage. There are Anglican ordinance that
12:55
have to talk about Anglican things and FIC people
12:57
that talk about FIC things and married people
13:00
with young children that talk about bringing
13:01
up young children. But devotion to fellowship
13:05
means that we... transgress and transcend those
13:09
natural boundaries and meet each other in all
13:12
our differences as brothers and sisters in Christ
13:15
and are ready to support one another. Holy, we
13:24
recognize that we are all set apart for a special
13:26
purpose by God, not just those training specifically
13:29
for full -time pastoral ministry, every one of
13:32
us. And we depend on God, not on our own strength.
13:37
And we express that dependence in prayer and
13:41
praise. And we keep in mind mission, God's mission,
13:47
for which we continue to perform. And so we keep
13:50
evangelism on the agenda. More on that on Monday.
13:57
Catholic. We remember that in an important sense,
14:00
the church is much, much more. than our small
14:03
fellowship. It embraces all kinds of people everywhere
14:07
through all the ages. And in some sense, the
14:11
church's wholeness can only be found universally.
14:15
We need each other for the fullness of the church.
14:20
One writer defined Catholicity as an awareness
14:24
of the whole that moves one to act towards wholeness
14:29
or unity. We often, when we say the creed, gloss,
14:35
certainly in my church, Catholic as universal.
14:38
And that is not entirely wrong, but Catholic
14:41
doesn't mean universal just. It means being a
14:44
whole, a unity in that universality, reaching
14:48
out, moving towards one another. At Oak Hill,
14:52
we glimpse different aspects of the church, of
14:57
the whole church in our different traditions,
14:59
and we should welcome that. a means for us to
15:03
grow into greater wholeness individually and
15:07
as a fellowship. And finally, apostolic. I assume
15:12
that one key reason for all of us being at Oak
15:16
Hill is that commitment to theological training
15:19
that is faithful to the original teaching of
15:22
the apostles. So let me just underline again
15:25
that faithfulness must not be a matter of right
15:29
thinking only. Or even of trying to put right
15:33
thinking into right practice. But of living out
15:38
of the powerful grace of God that is at work
15:42
in the apostolic world. Being converted by Christ
15:45
again and again until we conform more fully to
15:49
his image. So may God keep us in the apostolic
15:55
faith. Grant us to taste unity. holiness and
16:00
catholicity even here at Oak Hill.