Ecclesiology is a category of Systematic Theology that refers to the Church, who it is composed of, its history, its authority, and its commission by Jesus Christ.
Definition
I believe that the Church is made up of those who are called of God, receive the special revelation of God that Jesus Christ is the messiah, and learn of who they are as sons and daughters of God in Christ Jesus (Mat 16:15-19). I believe we need to be more specific when referring to the place in which we worship as the Church building.[1] The reason is because Christ’s Church is not one made of human hands (Mar 14:58), but is made up of the redeemed in any place.[2] I enjoyed how Erickson articulated that the Church is not a sum of each individual part, but “the whole is found in each place.”[3] The Church is made up of many parts; yet, is one whole or one body of believers (Eph 1:22-23).
Identification
I believe that who makes up the Church needs to include the cloud of witnesses before the coming of Christ (Heb 12:1). At minimum the Church is compose of the people of God (2Co 6:16). Grudem agrees with this idea that the Church includes those believers in the Old Testament.[4] More specifically the Church is now composed of the body of Christ (Eph 1:22-23). The Church is invisible in that it is a spiritual reality of the fellowship of those who are called of God and belong to Christ (2Ti 2:19). The Church is visible in that one can view physical manifestations of this spiritual reality such as how the assembly joins in the worship of God (Heb 12:23).
This is different than how the Roman Catholics believe: the true Church is a “visible organization.”[5] This is also different than Geisler who doesn’t view those in the Old Testament as belonging to the Church as we understand it today since the phenomena occurred later (Pentecost), but in his conclusion Geisler seems to attribute this to the mystery of how God would unite his people.[6] I believe the Church did assemble in the Old Testament differently, but still included the common denominator throughout: believers.
In answering the question regarding the role of women in pastoral or elder roles in the church, I believe that context plays a critical role. I believe that without intimate knowledge of a situation, abuse in inevitable. One example is the appearance of contradiction in answering a fool in his folly against not answering a fool in his folly (Pro 26:4-5). I believe as others do in that we are expected to discern whether a passage of Scripture is “relevant for a certain situation.”[7] It is clear that women did serve and teach in some contexts and at home Churches (1Tim 1:3). Where there is a larger Church body, the headship should be governed by men (1Tim 3:1-7). I believe this is due to the “order of creation which God established between men and women.”[8] This leads me to believe that the terminology could be the discerning factor. Women certainly serve in types of pastoral roles as deacons in that they share responsibility for the instruction and edification of the Church through their respective ministries. However, the role of a Church elder or senior pastor is clearly expected to be filled by men (Rev 21:14, Tit 1:5-9). I agree with positions such as Grudem’s in that women certainly have calls to serve in ministry leadership capacities (Joe 2:28), but should not be in the role of headship over a Church.
Composition
I believe that the Church includes those who have been called and included in God’s plan, but also those who have not fully accepted the gospel or have not fully believed in it. These are those spoken of when Jesus uses the parable of the sower to illustrate that both wheat and tares grow together until the harvester separates them (Mat 13:30). Thus, the Church is not the kingdom of God, but rather a witness to it. I enjoyed Erickson’s outline that the church is used as an instrument of the operating of the Holy Spirit and the Church is a sort of temporary steward of the kingdom.[9]
Evangelism then is an identifiable trait of the Church. The communication of the gospel message to the world was instructed by Christ (Act 1:18). This is certainly one purpose and function of the Church. Grudem agrees that his is an important component of a Church and one that seemed appropriate to Luther and Calvin.[10] Grudem includes one other mark, which is the administration of sacraments. We know these do not bring about salvation on their own, but they are present as activities believers engage in to demonstrate their faith convictions.
Another identifiable trait of the Church is the edification of its believers or members. Jesus demonstrated importance of this work by commissioning the disciples to teach the things he commanded them (Mat 28:20). The Apostle Paul focused on the importance of the edifying of the body by rebuking the idea that one should be concerned with his or her own edification alone (1Co 14:4-5). The equipping of the Saints to maturity was an active and passionate ministry of the Apostle Paul (Col 1:28).
The people of God will also be found worshiping. Thus, a trait of the Church will also be the presence of the worship of God (Col 3:16). The Apostle Paul says that we live for this purpose (Eph 1:12). It is not only songs and prayers as expressions of worship, but also the setting of aside or financial resources for the work of the Church (1Co 16:2).
Christ’s Church will exhibit social concern. I heed Erickson’s warning that we don’t’ define the Church based on its social interaction.[11] I also agree that Jesus clearly expects believers to live the role exemplified in his parable of the Good Samaritan (Luk 10:25-27). Many have undertaken this commission seriously, such as John H. Armstrong, to unite the Church in its efforts in social ministry.[12] Halter and Smay, pastors of Adullam Communities out of Colorado, introduce this subject by stressing the importance of the “AND” component in Church structure.[13] There are benefits to both “tradition AND innovation” in ministry. We can have a vision for a mega church “AND” still find and build personal community within it. Geisler articulated this well when he said, “Hence, there is no one visible church: There are many visible churches-with one invisible head, Christ-that are to be based on the teachings of his infallible word.”[14]
[1] The Apostle Paul uses the word ὲκκλεσία to refer to the Churches in Galatia, Thessalonica, and Jerusalem which shows that the Church is a larger believing community though it may assemble in a fixed location such as a city or a house (Rom 16:5, Col 4:15).
[2] Part of this understanding is based upon the use of the word κυριακός in the NT, which means “belonging to the Lord” (Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1998), 1042.
[3] Ibid., 1043.
[4] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994), 854.
[5] Ibid., 854.
[6] Norman L. Geisler, Systematic Theology (4vols.; Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2002), vol. 4, 26.
[7] Peter Enns, Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and the Problem of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2005), 74.
[8] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994), 939.
[9] Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1998), 1052.
[10] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994), 865.
[11] Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1998), 1038-1040.
[12] John H. Armstrong, Your Church is Too Small: Why Unity in Christ’s Mission is Vital to the Future of the Church (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010).
[13] Hugh Halter and Matt Smay, AND: The Gathered and Scattered Church (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010).
[14] Wayne A. Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994), vol. 4, 101.