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When a person visits a local church on a Sunday morning, how much of the “Sunday Big Show” is the design of its Founder? The fog machine, the Jumbotrons, the worship band or choir, singing, praying, preaching, the giving money, and all the cradle to the grave programming have come to define the experience of the modern church. Is all of this what Jesus had in mind when he said; “I will build my church.”? In this series, I am peeling off the layers of Churchianity, and taking us all back to where it started so that we can understand the original design, and stop conflating the Church of scripture with church buildings.

As someone who is deeply invested in the life and ministry of the true Church, my criticisms of the modern church may come off as though I’m negative toward it, but I assure you, I’m critical because I seek its reform and healing. So much of what we experience “at church” is primarily the business of church…or all the transactional exchanges rather than the transformative inner experience. For example, consider the sheer volume of community churches and all of the people attending and paying for them every week. If this large collective of people is called to be imbued with the Spirit and power of God, then I think it is fair to ask why our world hasn’t experienced more transformation than it has.

Instead of transforming our cosmos, which is groaning in anticipation for the freedom of the children of God (Romans 8:21), the cultural church, has not led people to freedom, and has become a stumbling block of captivity, not to mention, one of the single greatest causes of unbelief. The skeptical world watches in disbelief as the church’s trajectory is increasingly toward an exclusive, tribal evacuation rather than an inclusive restoration. Where do we see Jesus or the early Church fathers deriving their incomes, some even becoming wealthy, based upon the design of their ministries? (1 Corinthians 9:15) Was this not Jesus’ own critique of his religious leaders? (Matthew 12:38, 23:6) Where in scripture does Jesus say his will is for the church to plunder resources from a city and pay nothing back in the form of taxes? These kinds of questions open up a sobering examination of what we’ve grown up calling “Church” and my work is to see the true “Ecclesia“, re-emerge from its captivity so it can repatriate its place as the undeniable, living, breathing, body of Christ and power of God in a world that desperately needs to see it.

Clearly the church of today is NOT what Jesus had in mind when he said, “I will build my church.” So let’s look at his words in their context and see if we can recapture the original blueprint.

“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. 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. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.” (Matthew 16:13-20)

We discussed last week the importance of Jesus’ two ontological questions and how the first leads us into either an objective religion based on public opinion, or toward a subjective discovery that is deeply personal and transformative.

When Jesus say “I will build my church” it is clearly written in the future tense. This doesn’t necessarily mean that some version of church did not yet exist, but that his work of “building” it was yet to be done. To modern ears, this sounds like Jesus is starting a capital campaign to construct a fellowship hall, because we’ve been conditioned to think of church buildings when they think of the word “church.” That confusion alone should give us pause.

Now the Greek word for church is “ecclesia.” It means gathering, congregation, or assembly. The etymology of the word ecclesia which claims it means “called out” (ek-kaléo) is not very well substantiated, nor good scholarship. The biblical word or definition refers to the people and this a is really important point. A building isn’t being built...we are. Religion has for centuries called its’ buildings “churches” and even refer to them as the “house of God”. Culturally we say things like “go to church” and because the building has become coextensive with the gathering of people, we find it really hard to consider something as a “church” outside of the Sunday context. Textually, what Jesus is saying is that he is going to do something with those people who just like Peter, have a deeply personal experience with Christ.

So what exactly is he going to do?

The Greek word “oikodoméo” is a compound word which literally means “dwelling build” or “house build” or to construct a building. Now you understand why Catholics are adamant that Peter is the first pope since the bones of Peter are said to be buried in the walls of the Basilica. They embrace a literal translation that Jesus is building a literal building upon Peter.

Most scholars agree that this term “oikodoméo” is figurative just as it is when Jesus uses the word in Matthew 7:24 to describe those who “build their house” on the rock or sand: “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” As a figurative expression, this term refers to a “strengthening, a building up, encouraging, or making something more able.” We know, that Jesus is not talking about a literal structure, but one’s life.

Everyone who argues for a literal translation of the Bible immediately loses credibility with me if they have both eyes and both arms. “If your hand causes you to sin, cut if off.” Contextually, Jesus has just explained how taking things literally causes them to miss the point. “How is it that you fail to understand that I did not speak about bread?” (v.11). In the same way, focusing on a building also misses the point. And we are still missing the point two thousand years later.

Therefore, what Jesus is actually saying to his disciples is this: “On the foundation (rock) that Peter just confessed…namely that I am the Christ, the son of the living God, I will “build up” or “make more able” those who gather around or assemble around this confession.” In short, if something inside you inspires you to follow Christ, God will gather you with others who are also following Christ, and he will “build you up” or “make you more able” or “empower” you.

This podcast and ministry is one such gathering.

The ecclesia, then is any group of Christ followers. Jesus tells his disciples shortly after this: “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” (Matthew 18:21). Church then is not a building, or a denomination, and it is definitely not a religion, but any place two or more Christ followers gather with the shared confession. Remember, Christ followers in the Bible were from every walk of life, religion, and part of the world.

Let this truth shape your definition of the Church.

The implications of this BIBLICAL definition, if truly applied, will free the Christ follower from institutional overreach, where pastors, priests and imams, insist on our attendance every weekend. It frees us from giving our money away to silly building funds, or capital campaigns, or any situation where the followers of Christ are pressured to pay for building, insurance, pastoral staff salaries, parking lots, and the list goes on. The business of church has coopted the scripture and guilted people into compliance and captivity. How many of us would be better off having fellowship at a coffee shop, than being entertained with overly loud praise music, and a sermon outlining the three “F’s” of faith?

WE ARE free in Christ to NOT go. If it’s not in our heart to go, it’s not required. We must not let pastors, church leaders, or family members guilt us into attending if we’d prefer something else. We are the building that is important, not going to “a building.” We are built up in a million different ways. When Christ finally freed me from this, I felt weird on Sundays when I’d go mountain biking instead of to the big show. Institutional overreach is real, but so is the voice that frees us. Remember the freedom isn’t to just get us out, the freedom is to allow us to truly be in if we so desire. Freedom is having the integrity to do either in faith, without the institutional power plays affecting your heart. Many of us who came from a mormon or catholic or fundamental framework know just how much social pressure, even threat, fear mongering, the system can put on us. Many will shun us or worse if we leave. This ministry is here to prove to you that you can be found in God, built up in Christ, and be free from religion….That was in fact, Jesus’ main message.

We can thrive in our Exile.

If on the other hand, you really like all the pomp and process, then keep going so long as you understand it isn’t required. If the music lifts your soul, if the sermons inspire you, if the corporate worship helps you, then you are free in Christ to go, but if you do, go with the heart to serve, to divest yourself, not just to plunder and receive. Make yourself available to be used of God for the ministry to others. If our posture is from this place of heart, then we are not “going” to church, we are “being” the church and that makes all the difference in the world. That kind of attender will have the maturity to understand that the Sunday event contains the true Church but isn’t coextensive with it, and will be an extension of this true church in every strata of life throughout the rest of the week too. That would be an improvement.

Remember…we are being built up, we are the church buildings.

Here is the test to see if you truly possess freedom in Christ. Stop going to the Sunday show for a couple of months and pay attention to the state of your soul and all the messages that pop up in your head. If your spiritual progress stalls out, if you are not able to find God in silence, and serve all others in your sphere, nor fellowship with those at work, or whom you live next to, then I’m afraid you are not following Christ, but institutional power. Or if you heart never desires the community of others who are also following Christ, then neither are you following Christ, but instead a delusion. In the same way that Jesus would not sit on the board of a modern church, nor attend every week, nor support all it does, he would also not completely forsake those who sincerely gathered together in fidelity to his presence. Our faith must be able to discern the Contents from the container.

Once we sort out our Christian freedom for ourself, we will be of more value to the larger body of believers, and can become instrumental in the Church’s reform. Until then, institutional overreach will control our lives.

Next week we will build on this definition and we unpack what Jesus meant when he said: “…the gates of Hell will not prevail against his assembly”