What makes a Church a Church? Part 2: Who Are the Church?

continued from Part 1… The title of this post may sound wierd: “Who are the Church?” What kind of grammar is that??! But this is because we are conditioned to thinking of the word church as meaning a building instead of a collective group of “called out ones.” The more I examine the scriptures, the …

Did Paul claim to be Authoritative?

How many times have you heard someone quote 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness…” and thought to yourself, “Did Paul really mean for us to consider the very words he was penning to Timothy Scripture as well?” It’s an interesting question and got …

To whom did Paul write his letters?

A question I’ve had recently is, “Were Paul’s letters written to me or others?” I’ve wondered, “Am I reading someone else’s mail or are Paul’s writings general information relevant to all believers?” Let’s start with who Paul himself said his letters were written to: Romans 1:7 To all in Rome who are loved by God …

What makes a Church a Church? Part 1 – Ekklesia

Recently there has been discussion among my friends as to what makes a Christian gathering an official “church meeting.” What makes a church, church? A bit tongue-in-cheek, the following quote may be a good place to start: “The image of much of contemporary Christianity can be summarized, a bit euphemistically, as holy people coming regularly …