What is the universal church?

 

Welcome again to my blog. Thank you for visiting. 

 

This blog series is describing what happens, as taught in the Bible, to individuals at the time of their salvation. We started last week with the fantastic promise of spiritual baptism, resulting in a steadfast new and wonderful position of a believer. This week let us overview our membership in Christ’s church.

 

At salvation the Holy Spirit places each of us into the church of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13). This is a great promise and is a part of the results of our belief in salvation by faith alone in Christ. 

 

The form of the church into which we are placed by the Spirit can be called, in theological terms, the church universal, and can roughly be described as the following:

·       It is the union of all believers worldwide who form the complete body of Christ.

·       Its head is Christ who sits at the right hand of God the Father and currently leads His church (Colossians 1:17-18; Hebrews 8:1; Ephesians 1:20-23).

·       Scripture does not indicate that our membership can be revoked from the church universal. 

·       Although we are each instructed to be holy as God is holy (1 Peter 1:16), we each have different functions within the church (1 Corinthians 12:13-27; Romans 12:4-5).

 

The practical outworking of the church universal is multiple organized bodies of believers often called the local church, but in our current age might be virtual (online) as well. Para-church organizations (e.g. independent missions or college ministries) function within the church universal, but similarly to the local church. Scripture gives broad definition to how churches are organized which allows great flexibility to serve Christ in various times and cultures.

 

These concepts of the church I've tried to base on scripture without cultural overlays of expectations and definitions. Regardless, the concept of the universal church is controversial. For example, some denominations may not accept the concept of a ‘universal church’. However, as the Apostle Paul states, we do what we do in faith using what we need to serve God, filtered by prayer and God's word (1 Timothy 4:4-5; Romans 14:23).

 

In this series so far, we have covered that at our salvation through faith in Christ’s death on the cross we have a spiritual baptism that identifies us as resurrected to a new life and places by the Spirit in Christ’s church.

 

Praise be to God for such wonderful promises and positions resulting from such a great salvation. Stay tuned next week as we continue our discussion of the results of salvation. Thank you for joining me today.

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

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Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

 

 

Spiritual Baptism

 

 

Welcome again to my blog. Thank you for visiting. The next several blogs will talk about what happens, as described in the Bible, at the time of salvation resulting in a steadfast new and wonderful position of a believer. The blogs are based on the list presented last week.

 

At salvation we receive:

• Spiritual baptism 
• Membership in the church
• The Holy Spirit 
• Adoption 
• Justification 
• Possession

 

Let's start with spiritual baptism. This important biblical truth is vital in understanding who we are as Christians. Our knowledge about baptism will transform the way we think!

 

First, let's consider the word itself. Although controversial, in the Epistles when baptism is mentioned it speaks generally of spiritual baptism. It does not mean dunking or sprinkling primarily; water baptism might be considered as an external ritual to signify the internal event. The word is βαπτιζω (baptizoo) in the Greek (this is the language in which the New Testament originally was written), and was an old term borrowed from the dye trade. It meant that a piece of cloth immersed in the dye became identified with the new color.

 

Secondly then, what does being identified with Christ have to do with us as Christians? Fortunately, a lot! When we become a Christian, we are identified with Christ’s gracious death and His resurrection. Otherwise, at salvation our old self died and was buried with Christ. We are raised now to new life with Him and we sit with Him on the right hand of God the Father (Romans 6:2-12; Ephesians 2:4-7; Colossians 2:12-13).

 

Why is this concept so important? Similar concepts in Scripture that also appear to speak probably to spiritual baptism are: regeneration (Titus 3:5), born again (John 3: 5) and a new man (Ephesians 4:24; Colossians 3:10):

• Believer’s sin - Although every believer sins we can say ‘no’ to sin because as a new person in Christ we have the power to live a victorious life. 
• The reason for the resurrection - Baptism teaches us the importance of the resurrection because we are raised with Christ to new life without which we would still be dead in our sins (1 Corinthians 15:17).
• Eternal security - Baptism helps prove we cannot lose our salvation. because scripture does not indicate that if we commit sin that our new self can be killed, and the old dead self resurrected like some bad re-make of the ‘Night of the Living Dead’!  

 In other words, you are transformed permanently to a new life, resurrected with Christ and sitting with Him in heaven. These changes cannot be reversed. What a great comfort we have in truth of scripture. Therefore, as a new person, we are liberated from sin and are free to serve Christ. We cannot be defeated by the misdeeds of our old self.

 

Christ is a fantastic and true savior! The nature of our salvation is so important that we will address each of the individual promises. Come back next week as we continue this exciting journey.

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

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Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

Wow, what a great salvation!

 

Welcome again to my blog. Thank you for visiting. We've been discussing in recent weeks the church, God's chosen method of administration for our time before Christ returns, and that all members should be productive believers, born-again through faith alone. This is important so the church may advance the gospel and positively affect its community. However, it is also important for the individual believer. Why is this? This question is multi-leveled, complicated, but wonderful. As understanding our salvation is transformative. Let's spend the next few blogs discussing it.

 

Teleios Research has found that knowledge of salvation and eternal security enhances our wellbeing. What are the biblical reasons why? Today’s blog will talk about what happens, as described in the Bible, at the time of our salvation which results in a new and wonderful position for the believer.

 

We know from scripture that our merciful God chose us (Ephesians 1:4,5,11; Romans 8:29-30), convicted us by his Spirit (John 16:8), and dragged us to Himself (John 6:44) that we might believe in Christ’s forgiveness.  All this by grace through the Christ’s sacrifice on the cross to grant us salvation by faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9). Indeed, God is worthy of praise for such a great salvation! However, it is vital for us to know exactly what happens at salvation as it enhances our wellbeing and confidence, and certainly our praise to God.

 

At salvation we receive:

·       Spiritual baptism - We are regenerated by the Spirit into a new person and our old self dies (Romans 6:2-9). We become identified (the meaning of the word ‘baptism’) with Christ's death and resurrection. This marvelous spiritual truth speaks to the importance of the resurrection because it is the vehicle for our new life in Christ and eternity (Romans 6:9; 10:9-10). Indeed, we are a new person, and the old sinful self is gone forever.

·       Membership in the church (1 Corinthians 12:13) - The Spirit places each believer in the church universal (the fellowship of all believers under the headship of Christ [Colossians 1:17-18]).  We serve others, and God, typically through a local church assembly.

·       The Holy Spirit - He is given in part as a down payment to our salvation (Ephesians 1:13-14, 2 Corinthians 1:21) that we cannot lose (Romans 8:28-39; 1 Peter 1:4-5). He maintains us until the day of our redemption when Christ comes again (Ephesians 1:13-14; 2:10).

·       Adoption - Each believer is a child of God, adopted into his family. As generally in first world cultures today, when a child was adopted in the ancient Greek and Roman world, it was a legal right that could not be overturned. In other words, the adopted child received all the rights and privileges of a natural-born child; so with a believer as a child of God (Ephesians 1:5).

·       Justification - Before we believed we were guilty of sin for which Christ died on the cross to provide his forgiveness and to declare us innocent (Romans 3:24-25). The word for justified in Greek (δικαιος, dikaios) means legally found innocent as in court of law. In other words, there is no double jeopardy: οnce found innocent no one can bring a charge against us (Romans 8:33).

·       Possession- We are the possession of Christ and God (Ephesians 1:13-14; 2:10). No one can take us out of their hand (John 10:27-30). 

 

Christ is a fantastic and true Savior! The nature of our salvation is so important we will speak to each of these topics individually and how they might enhance a believer's wellbeing. Come back again next week as we start this exciting journey to discover the nature of our great salvation.

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/c/TeleiosVideos

X - https://x.com/TeleiosTweets

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@teleiostiktok

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/teleiosresearch

 

Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

How to help an unbeliever

 

Welcome back to my blog. I am honored you can visit. We have been discussing that the church is God's plan to implement His purposes for this time before Christ’s return. It should function efficiently with love and act consistently with God's word. In the last few weeks, we covered scriptural methods to recognize true and unbelievers (tares) in the church. 

 

This week, let’s think about how we might help the church-attending unbeliever. It can be a tough sell! How can we bring an unbeliever’s attention to their own unbelief? Next week, we’ll provide a few suggestions about how to share your faith with an unbeliever.

 

What makes helping an unbeliever difficult is if you ask an unbeliever if they are a Christian, they most always will respond “yes.” Are they being dishonest? Consider that there are several levels of Christianity accepted in our culture.

 

·      Christian Seeker - These are typically new church attendees who may not recognize that they are not true believers because they are interested in learning about Christianity. Generally, they are comfortable in the social setting of the church (which often is designed expressly for that purpose). A seeker may say they are a Christian. However, they may be more willing to admit they do not yet believe, as their motivation for church attendance may be to seek a solution to their needs, which might be spiritual.

·      Social Christian - These are individuals, most likely church members or attendees, perhaps longstanding, who would readily indicate they are Christians. However, when asked to explain their Christian beliefs in specific terms, they might be unable to express the gospel, even with prompting. Unfortunately, since they typically are tied to the church and its social structure, they would be embarrassed to admit they are not truly a believing Christian; this would likely affect their self-esteem and social standing. Non-believers would fall into this group.

·      Evangelical, born-again Christian - These Christians identify as saved by grace, by faith alone in the forgiveness provided by Jesus Christ‘s death on the cross (Ephesians 2:8-9).

 

What’s the problem?  The first two groups are accepted socially and are comfortable within the typical evangelical church setting. Consequently, to confront them regarding salvation may (almost assuredly) produce a defensive posture and perhaps a damaged friendship.

 

How then can we bring these important church members to be willing to evaluate their own salvation in an objective way? Good question! We don’t yet know from research how to best approach them. Further, the method will likely differ per the individual. Consequently, we must cling to scripture where God reminds us to try to bring the gospel to all people. How to do this? We will discuss this interesting topic in the next blog! 

 

Thanks for joining me today. I look forward to seeing you again next week!

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/c/TeleiosVideos

X - https://x.com/TeleiosTweets

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@teleiostiktok

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/teleiosresearch

 

Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.

 

 

Why is helping unbelievers important?

 

Welcome back to my blog. I am so glad you can visit today. 

 

Over the past few weeks, we have reviewed scriptural methods to recognize true and untrue believers within the church.  Why is helping an unbeliever towards salvation so important? Bringing them lovingly to Christ is vital for the church for two reasons:

Ø  Salvation in Christ is essential for the individual for eternal life.

Ø  Salvation for the unbelieving church member is important for the local church. A congregation needs active members to be effective, so they help and don’t hinder the advance of the gospel and affecting society for good.

 

We'll deal with salvation in upcoming blogs, but let's consider today the influence of the unbelieving church member inside the local church.

 

Scripture stresses the importance of unity in the church (Ephesians 4:1-7). Unfortunately, churches sometimes can be a place of discord with angry splits between groups. No one knows all the reasons for disunity in churches, either on the personal or global level. The causes are probably multiple.  

 

However, an unbelieving church member may pursue an agenda that can be distracting to church unity either by wasting people's time for their disruptive purposes or a deeper discord leading potentially to division. Although I don’t know that this question has been researched specifically, I believe generally an unbeliever could negatively influence the church in several ways, by:

Ø  Building a power base by which they can control a portion of the church ministry

Ø  Seeking attention for their emotional pain or desires - While appropriate biblically (Galatians 6:2) this situation can become draining if the unbeliever is not willing to change to conform to scriptural wisdom, or is solely interested in soaking up people's attention.

Ø  Living a passive Christian life - Even if the unbeliever is not overtly disruptive, they can have a negative influence by merely talking continuously about subjects that are non-biblical or not encouraging others to seek scripture or act in godly ways. Otherwise, they hide the truth by their words and actions.

 

For the church to function productively and for individual Christians to attain the greatest benefit from body life, the effect of unbelievers and other unbiblical agendas must be limited. How to do this?

Ø  Recognize who unbelievers are.

Ø  As we discussed before, bringing them salvation is the best solution!

Ø  Expect unbelievers to conform their life to the Bible. If they do not, then members and leadership should consider:

o   Limiting social and fellowship time with them. 

o   Refraining from giving them spiritual or non-spiritual leadership positions from which they might build their expectations that they could influence the church.

o   Consider corrective biblical action (by the church leaders) if the unbeliever is clearly disruptive to body life (e.g., Matthew 18:15-20, 2 Corinthians 2:5-11).

 

The health of the modern church is vital! Each member should be a functioning, growing Christian who facilitates fruitful and positive teaching, praise, prayer and fellowship and enables the church to have a positive impact on their community. Don’t allow the agenda of a limited few, who refuse to come to Christ or be obedient to Scripture, to diminish the progress of Christ’s church!

 

Next week we will begin talking about methods to bring salvation to unbelievers. Please come back and join us then.

 

William C. Stewart, MD

 

Email – info@teleiosresearch.com

Website – http://teleiosresearch.com

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TeleiosResearch

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/TeleiosResearch

YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/c/TeleiosVideos

X - https://x.com/TeleiosTweets

TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@teleiostiktok

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/teleiosresearch

 

Disclaimer – This blog and its content are provided only as information and are intended for visitors 18 and older. No content on the website should be taken as advice or recommendation to any personal or institutional situation. The views expressed are those of the author alone and not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Teleios. Both the blog and the contents are subject to change at any time without notice. Although I endeavor to ensure that the blog and the content are current and accurate, it may contain errors. I do not represent that the blog or the content is current, accurate or complete, or appropriate for your specific requirements. I do not accept any liability from any person for the blog, the content or any other information (or the use of such information) I provide. I do not have a seminary degree, but I have trained myself in the scriptures to teach and provide this information. For any specific question, I suggest you contact experts in that field and/or do your own research into the scriptures.