Gospel Prism

And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. 15 Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
Ephesians 4:11-14

Introduction

What are you looking for in a church? If you’ve been here at Wellspring for a while, why are you at this church? What criteria do you use to ascertain whether a church is for you? Do you assess a church by the teaching? Do you assess it by the programs it offers? Do you evaluate it by the small groups? Are you attracted to it by the number of people who are like you, whether that is by age, ethnicity, life-stage, socio-economic class? Are you looking for a church that is unlike you perhaps, one that is diverse in all of those categories? Perhaps, you are looking for a church that is missions-minded or community-oriented. Some of you might be looking for a church that has the right music, or at least decent music. Or are you looking for a particular characteristic, a welcoming church, a zealous church, a cerebral church, a focused church, a purpose-driven church, a kid-friendly church, a youth-groupy church, etc.?

As you can see, there are so many factors that can be evaluated in determining whether a church is right for you or not. But as we learned last week, such factors, while they might have their place, should not and cannot be the determining factors or we risk being tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine as our text tells us. The church you choose to grow in is a matter of spiritual life and death. Pick the wrong church and you could have your itches scratched, but you would be merely accumulating teachers for yourself. What you base your decision on could drastically impact you and your family’s continual pursuit of God and His Gospel.

Since Wellspring began, many people have come and gone for all sorts of reasons. Some have moved out of the area and have asked me to help them find a local church to attend. An interesting phenomenon that I’ve observed over the years is the number of people who have actually taken me up on my suggestions, one person. Most people don’t even bother to ask me for suggestions. And those who have asked simply do not find my suggestions agreeable to them. In reflecting on this happening, I have a few questions that I’d like to address today regarding the local church: 1) What factors do most people use in selecting a church?, 2) Why does selecting carefully a local church to attend matter?, 3) What factors should we use in selecting a church?

What Factors Do Most People Use in Selecting a Church?

So what factors do most people use in selecting a church? I would say there are five C’s that most people use to choose a church: Church Programs, Convenience, Congeniality, Conglomeration, and Camaraderie. Again, in themselves, these factors are not bad things. Healthy churches will have a combination of all of these factors. However, a healthy church will not base its foundation on any one of these characteristics. And a healthy church member would not seek to attend a church solely on the basis of one of these factors.

Far too often, people are mesmerized by the allure of church programs. There are some churches that will offer small groups of every ilk, from the hip-hop small group to the mountain climbing small group. Parents will be drawn far too readily by a flashy children’s program than by what that children’s program actually teaches. Again, this is not to say that a church should not do things excellently, and it is not to say that Christians should not consider church programs (what the church offers programmatically) as a part of the decision-making process. But sadly, too many people make their decision to attend a church based on one program of the church.

Another major factor for people to choose a church is convenience. Because a church is in our driving radius, and is convenient for the Sunday schedule, people will readily pick that church to attend. However, often what is not taken into account is the church’s stance on the Bible or the atoning work of Christ. So long as the church ‘sort of’ teaches what we believe, we are quick to accept such teaching as generally good.

The third factor is congeniality. When you walk through the doors, you’re greeted with a smile and a hearty handshake. People seem warm and friendly. You are treated well and you get a good feeling. How many of us are either convinced or dissuaded by a first impression of a church. No one here would marry a person based on the first impression he or she has of a person. And yet, we do this so readily with a church. Cults lure people into their fold through love-bombing, a quick burst of effusive love, smiles, warmth, only to be led astray through false teaching. Again, churches should be warm and friendly. But it has to flow from a Gospel love that flows from sound doctrine. To choose such a church might give you the warm fuzzies, but there the deadly virus of false teaching readily lurks under the appearance of smiling face.

The fourth factor is conglomeration. This is a relatively new factor that is shaping people’s determination of which church to choose. People are choosing a church based on the church’s conglomeration of different social groups, from age, cultures, and socio-economic class. The thinking goes, if a church is socially diverse, it must be a good church to attend. But this criteria is more befitting of the post-modern view of our society in general than the Bible. The church is sometimes culturally diverse in the Bible, but never for diversity’s sake. What is fundamental to the church is not diversity but God’s Word and His Gospel that flows from His Word.

And the fifth factor is camaraderie. This factor is probably the most appealing feature for people looking for a church to attend. In our day, ‘community’ is the buzz word. Community is identity. Community not only shapes values and thinking, but it actually represents truth. So what a community believes to be true suddenly morphs to actually be truth. And so we look for a small group that we can belong to even though we might disagree with the church’s teachings. It is a sign of the times when people don’t care about the worship on Sundays, but they care deeply about a good small group. People want to hang out, to socialize, to make friends, to be able to find a mate, and will choose a church where this is a possibility, regardless of what the church teaches and preaches. Again, I am certainly not saying small groups are unimportant, nor the camaraderie and community that a church provides in light of sound doctrine in accordance with the Gospel. But these are not foundational criteria that should be used to assess whether one should attend a particular church. So before I go into what factors do matter in selecting a church, let me address the more fundamental question, “Why does selecting a local church so carefully matter so much?”

Why Selecting Carefully Matters

It matters because without a sound doctrine church, there is no maturity in Christ. Look at verses 11-13: “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, 12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” In the local church, there are those who are gifted with certain gifts for the purpose of equipping people to build up the church. And what is the goal of such gifts? It is to attain unity and the ‘knowledge of the Son of God’ which leads to maturity in Christ. The church is rooted on pastors (shepherds), teachers, prophets, and leaders presenting and teaching the knowledge of the Son of God (the Gospel) so that we will be mature in Christ. Notice another byproduct of such teaching, that we are united in faith. What faith? We are united in the faith in the Son of God.

So when you go to a church, any church, you are receiving the doctrine of the teachers and pastors of the church. If a church says it has no doctrine, that is its doctrine. If a church says it is a church that is built on mutli-ethnicity as its goal, that is its doctrine. If a church says that it is founded on a cell-group system, that is its doctrine. If a church says it is purpose-driven and seeker-friendly, that is its doctrine. And according to this text, what a church’s teachers teach will profoundly and fundamentally affect whether you mature in Christ or whether you remain stunted in your growth and remain as a child.

Selecting a church carefully also matters because false teaching abounds. Look at Paul’s warning in v. 14, “…so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.” One of the hallmarks of the Bible’s warnings against false teaching is the stark language that is often used. Jesus described false teachers as ravenous wolves in sheep’s clothing (Matt 7:15) and the Pharisees who were false teachers as ‘whitewashed tombs’ (Matt 23:27). In Philippians 3:18, they’re called enemies of the cross. In Galatians 1, Paul says that false teachers are God’s curse (anathema). This is an impending danger that simply cannot be shrugged off as of no import.

So we know false teaching is absolutely deadly. But where does it come from? According to verse 14, they come “by every wind of doctrine.” They can come from any direction, and even sound tantalizingly good. They sound moralistic. According to 2 Thessalonians 2:9, such teaching has the power to produce signs and wonders. People will be clamoring for such teaching with itching ears as we learned last week in 2 Tim 4:3-4. Paul tells us in Galatians 1, that even one who appears as an angel can bring such teaching. This teaching can sound relevant, cool, theological, intellectual, artistic, compassionate, socially active, biblical-sounding (but not biblically sound), kind, loving. And according to verse 14, it comes in every direction, from friends, family, churches, radio programs, Christian bookstores, pamphlets, visitors at the door, in the media, on the web. False teaching my friend is all around us.

And again we need to note that it comes with ‘craftiness’ and ‘cunning.’ False teachers do not wear nametags with the name “False Teacher.” The word ‘human cunning’ in the Greek is the word ‘dice.’ It refers to a game that used dice as a gambling game. And Paul’s using the word as if to say, ‘Be careful because while you are playing this game of chance with your soul, a false teacher with a sleight of hand will trick you into believing what he wants you to believe.” By not being concerned at all with false teaching and its influences in your life, you are risking your eternal soul.

So when you choose a church merely on the basis of those 5 C’s, you risk your eternal soul and the souls of your loved ones because false teachers lurk in all sectors of our world, both in the non-Christian and Christian arena.

What Factors Should We Use

So what factors should we use in selecting a church? The first factor is a church that is rooted on sound doctrine. Paul tells us in verse 15: “Rather, speaking the truth in love…” We must seek after churches that are eager to speak the truth. I spent all of last week explaining how sound doctrine is founded on the truth of God’s inerrant Word, the Bible. So if a church is not fixed on sound doctrine, it is not a church that can speak truth.

Practically speaking then, the first place in selecting a church is to look at its statement of faith. If a church doesn’t have a statement of faith, that is a red-flag. Usually a church that leaves out such a statement does so with the idea that they do not hold to any type of confessional standard. The idea behind this is to avoid divisions. But the reality is, their non-doctrinal statement is itself a statement.

There are certain points in a statement of faith that should receive particular attention. What is their view on Scripture? If a church in its statement on the Bible does not specifically use the word ‘inerrant’ or the phrase ‘without error’, usually that means the church does not hold to biblical inerrancy. If a church uses the word ‘infallible’ or ‘Scripture is authoritative for rule and practice,’ it often means that they have a lesser view on Scripture. I would have to spend another message explaining why this is so, but let me say this, a lessening on Scripture’s inerrancy is a slippery slope to eventual relativism on all things related to the Bible. This is the crack that most false teachers need to utilize their craftiness and cunning to lead people astray.

Does the church hold to an orthodox view of the Trinity, in particular the person of Christ? What is its view of the atonement? Does it hold to a substitutionary view of the atonement, which is a central tenet of the Gospel? The reason why this is such a central tenet of sound doctrine is that once you lessen the necessity for Christ to have been our substitute to pay for our sins, you lessen the very need for Christ to have even died on the cross at all. And without such a death and ransom payment for our sins, even our acceptance before a holy God is no longer secure. Jerry Bridges adds: “Our entire confidence in our acceptance before God is based solely upon the fact that Jesus was our legal representative in His sinless life and obedient death.” (Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace (Colorado Springs, Co: NavPress, 1994), 68.)

Usually by assessing a church’s view on Scripture, on the Trinity, and on the person and work of Christ can give you a good idea as to how solidly a church stands on sound doctrine.

The second factor we should use in selecting a church is that a church should speak the truth in love. Listen to how Paul describes love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-5: “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” Sound doctrine apart from such love is simply not sound. It is the knowledge that only seeks to puff up one’s pride (1 Cor 8:1). Sound doctrine is inherently humble and gracious because it is fixated on the Gospel of Christ that exalts our reputation and righteousness not on our own merit, but on Christ’s alone. And so we strive to express the love of 1 Corinthians 13, even though we never waver from sound doctrine.

This means that a church is willing to accept people of all types if it is a church built on sound doctrine. Because a sound doctrine church believes NO ONE is righteous, no not one (Rom 3:10, 23), but is saved by grace alone through faith alone (Eph 2:8-9), it is quick to receive anyone with gracious, humble, loving truth. A sound doctrine church is very patient with people because such a church trusts in God’s providential work to sanctify His people. A sound doctrine church is warm and welcoming because it longs to see people grow in the fullness of Christ. A sound doctrine church is united because its foundations and moorings are fixed on the same truths.

So does the church express genuine truth in love by caring for one another even when it is inconvenient or costly? We’re sending a team to Africa. Just because you or your family is not going, will you be supporting the team financially, or with your prayers, or with your volunteerism? Are you welcoming to visitors, even visitors and newcomers who are very different from you? When you speak words of truth, in teaching, in relationship, is it with prayerful care and humility? These are just a few ways you can actually speak and live in truth and in love.

The third factor we should use in selecting a church is its growth in the Gospel of Christ. Paul writes in verses 15-16: “Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” The ultimate hope is that we grow up into Him into Christ. This is the standard by which we can say this church is working properly and building itself up in love. Notice, the measuring stick is not how many programs we have, whether we are a friendly church, whether we are a numerically large church, whether the pastor has multiple degrees, how people are dressed, the size of the budget, whether the youth program is relevant to culture, etc. It is growing in Christ.

And what does it mean to be growing in Christ? John Piper describes so beautifully what growth IN Christ looks like:

Our only hope for living the radical demands of the Christian life is that God is totally for us now and forever. Therefore, God has not ordained that living the Christian life should be the basis of our hope that God is for us. That basis is the death and righteousness of Christ, counted as ours through faith alone. On the cross Christ endured for us all the punishment required of us because of our sin. And in order that God, as our Father, might be completely for us and not against us forever, Christ has performed for us, in his perfect obedience to God, all that God required of us as the ground of his being totally for us forever. (John Piper, The Future of Justification (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2007), 184.)

A church that recognizes the reality, that Jesus satisfies God’s wrath forever, and gives us His perfect record forever, and mediates on our behalf forever, will be a church that is growing in joy, in grace, in zeal, in excitement, in sound doctrine, in evangelism, in missions, and in love. It will be growth in Christ that can lead to many things rather than a growth in many things (programs, numbers, camaraderie, building size, etc.) in the hopes of growing in Christ.

How is the church growing in the Gospel? Is Christ exalted in the preaching and teaching? Is there an emphasis on the doctrines of grace, where sin is directly addressed, but where grace abounds more? Is the Gospel of Christ of first importance in the teaching, life, and ministry of the church?

Conclusion

Please remember, church matters. It is a matter of your spiritual life and death. For most of you, you have chosen a church already. But I hope that if you have already chosen this church, you will ask yourself why? Why this church? Did you choose it for the church programs, the congeniality, the camaraderie? I know one thing for sure. No one chose this church out of convenience (a 1:30pm worship in San Leandro). If you are visiting churches, please consider what I have shared today? The church you choose matters perhaps much more than you realize. Choosing a church without taking into account whether it teaches sound doctrine is tantamount to driving your car through a mine field. You might get through alive, but the dangers are terrible and the consequences of a lack of wisdom and discernment are eternally treacherous. As Paul says, false teachers are playing dice games with your spiritual lives and they are fixing the games to their favor.

Instead, consider healthy churches. Members, if you ever move away from this church, please come and talk to me about possible churches to attend. My goal is to guard you so that you will one day see the Lord face to face. I am not out there to gain some sort of finder’s fee from another church. I am here to remind you of the sound doctrine in accordance with the Gospel. When you are visiting churches on vacation, why choose a church to visit that has no appreciation for sound doctrine? If possible, even if inconvenient, please visit a church that loves God’s Word and wants to live by it. If you need help, again, our staff and our LT are here to serve you to choose a good church to visit.

I love what Mark Dever says about healthy churches:

Healthy churches, churches, that increasingly reflect the character of God as it’s been revealed in His Word, are not always the easiest places to be. The sermons might be long. The expectations might be high. The talk of sin will probably feel overdone to many. The fellowship might even feel, at least sometimes intrusive. But the key is that word increasingly. If we increasingly reflect God’s character, then it stands to reason that aspects of our lives, individually and corporately, don’t reflect his character—there must be smudges on the mirror that need to be polished out, curves in the glass that need to be flattened. That takes work. (Mark Dever, What Is a Healthy Church?, 122)

And we certainly are a church that needs to grow and must grow. But may we grow in light of God’s Word. May we grow to realize just how deeply sinful we are, but how gracious Christ has been to us. And so, may we grow ever more in our appreciation for our great Savior together as a church that is thriving and growing because of sound doctrine.