Chapter 86 - From House to House: the Real New Testament Church

Vertical Divider

Vertical Divider

The New Testament church exists in the darkness of this world but is not of this world. It was created in eternity before the foundation of this world.

The New Testament church in this world is eternal and organic. It was made to be a “dwelling of God in the Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:22)

The New Testament church in this world was intended to accommodate both eternal and the temporal life. Consequently, it was an instrument through which God and mankind could dwell together in harmony and enjoy the intimacy of shared life.

The eternal New Testament church is not the only church that exists in the darkness of this world. There is also a church that is temporal and inorganic. Developed in time by fallen human beings, it not only exists in this world but is of this world.

The temporal, inorganic church cannot accommodate the eternal or spiritual. Therefore, it is not suitable for the living God.

The temporal, inorganic church is accommodative of the temporal and physical alone. Consequently, it is fit only for mankind without God.
The temporal, inorganic church was designed by fallen mankind to facilitate religious performance for God. In contrast to the eternal church of the New Testament, it is lifeless (zoe).

Light and Darkness

Light and darkness are contrary to one another. They cannot be blended or mixed.

Darkness is frequently characteristic of divine judgment in the bible. (Genesis 1:2; Deuteronomy 28:29; 1 Samuel 2:9; Job 15:17-35; Psalm 105:28; Proverbs 20:20; Jeremiah 16:13; Ezekiel 32:8; Joel 2:2; Amos 5:20; Matthew 8:12; 22:13; etc.) For example, the fall of both the rebellious angels and mankind led to darkness. (Genesis 1:1; 3:17; Romans 1:21; cf. Romans 8:20-21)

In contrast, light is often characteristic of divine blessing. (Genesis 1:4; Psalm 18:28; 112:4; Isaiah 58:10; Micah 7:8; John 1:5; Acts 26:18; Ephesians 5:8; etc.) For example, Isaiah prophesied the Christ would be accompanied by great light. (Isaiah 9:2)

The incarnate Christ stated, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12; cf. John 1:4a) During the Church Age, the light of the indwelling life (zoe) of Jesus would illuminate the world. It would occur through instrumentality of the eternal, organic New Testament church.

In contrast, the temporal, inorganic church of this world does not illuminate the world. Unredeemed, its originators were darkened in mind, will, and emotion. Consequently, they misunderstood the divine purpose and mission of the church and ignorantly attempted to blend the light of Christ with the darkness of this fallen world.

Recognizing the incongruity of light and darkness, the Apostle John proclaimed, “God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.” (1 John 1:5) Light is an attribute of the divine nature. Therefore, light is an inherent part of God and an essential expression of His personhood. Thus, He does not merely choose to exercise light. He is light.

Congruent with His nature, God illuminates the darkness. As a result, He cannot co-exist with darkness.

By nature, God cannot fellowship with mankind in darkness. The Apostle John explained, “If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (1 John 1:6-7)

Believer and Unbeliever

Too often, it is presumed that the Apostle John discussed two theoretical types of believers existing in the eternal, organic New Testament church. (1 John 1:6-7) The first type of believer says he has fellowship with God, yet walks in darkness and does not practice the truth. (1 John 1:6) Further, it is implied that he remains uncleansed of sin. (1 John 1:7) The other type of believer walks in the light with God, enjoys fellowship with Him, and has confidence that his sin is being cleansed by the blood of Jesus. (1 John 1:7)

At this point, it should be becoming clear that John was not distinguishing between two types of believers. Instead, like the Apostle Paul in Romans 8:1-17, he was differentiating between believer and unbeliever.

To restate, the believer is characterized by walking in the light with God, enjoying fellowship with Him, practicing the truth, and having his sin cleansed by the blood of Jesus. Biblically, he is never described as walking in the darkness apart from God and not practicing the truth or being cleansed from sin.

Conversely, the Bible never indicates the unbeliever walks in the light with God, has fellowship with Him, or practices the truth. Moreover, it never specifies he has been cleansed of sin.

Eternal and Temporal

The temporal, inorganic church is of this world. The eternal, organic church is heavenly. It is not of this world.

The temporal, inorganic church is not accommodative of God, walks in the darkness, does not fellowship with God, does not practice the truth, and has not been cleansed by the blood of Jesus. In contrast, the eternal, organic church walks in the light with God, enjoys fellowship with Him, practices the truth, and has been cleansed from sin by the blood of Jesus.

The New Testament church is very different from the church of this world. Rather than temporal, it is an eternal entity. Consequently, its fundamental attributes are eternal. Therefore, it is clearly distinguishable from the temporal church in doctrine and practice.

Vertical Divider

Forever positioned in the eternal life (zoe) and light of God, the doctrine of the eternal New Testament church was characterized by an eternal design, covenant, description, headship, body, animation, cultivation, legality, life, citizenship, security, doctrine, and growth.

Vertical Divider

	Eternal Doctrine
Eternal Design:	The New Testament church was designed as an eternal, living (zoe) organism suitable for intimate shared life fellowship between God and mankind. Therefore, rather than characterized by organizational complexity, its design was simple and organic. God provided the eternal New Testament church with eternal function and form. The eternal function of the New Testament church was to facilitate intimate, shared life fellowship with God. The corresponding, eternal form of the New Testament church was designed to support and follow its function. Therefore, God provided it with the form of spiritual head and body.
Eternal Covenant:	The New Testament church was critically important to the eternal plan of God. Therefore, it was secured before the foundation of the world by the unconditional benefit of a gracious, redemptive covenant of life (zoe), the Eternal Covenant. The Eternal Covenant was initiated between the members of the Godhead in eternity and fulfilled in time. The Eternal Covenant was redemptive in nature. Its stipulations included mediation by the Son through His willing death and resurrection, His resurrection by the Father, and the application of its benefit to the New Testament church by the Spirit. The fundamental benefit of the Eternal Covenant was new law and new life. The new law of the Eternal Covenant was the “law of Christ” or the “rule of life (zoe).” The new life of the Eternal Covenant was life shared with the mediator of the covenant, Jesus Christ. By gracious benefit of the Eternal Covenant, the New Testament church enjoyed heavenly position and privilege beyond compare. Graciously obligated to God by covenantal law and life, it was “blessed … with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 1:3)
Eternal Emphasis:	The New Testament church had a singular emphasis; Jesus Christ. He is the “Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”
Eternal Description:	The eternal New Testament church is the ecclesia or “assembly” of God. It was described as “desired” (Ephesus), the bride of Christ, the body of Christ, the pillar and support of the truth, a holy priesthood, chosen race, a “holy temple of the Lord”, a “dwelling of God in the Spirit,” the eternal church, etc.
Eternal Headship:	The resurrected Christ was the perfect fulfillment of the office of headship for the eternal New Testament church. By the new covenantal law of the Eternal Covenant, it was legally positioned under His representative headship. Through its new covenantal life, the church was organically positioned under His representational headship. Consequently, it was both representative of divine righteousness and representational of divine life (zoe) on earth.
Eternal Body:	Under the mediatorial, covenantal headship of Jesus Christ, the eternal New Testament church was one covenantal body comprised of a spiritual assembly of redeemed people privileged to enjoy life shared with God. They were co-equal brothers, sisters, elders, and deacons united to God and one another in one spiritual body by His indwelling, eternal life (zoe).
Eternal Calling:	The eternal New Testament church body was effectively called by God before the foundation of the world. It was called out from His condemnation and wrath and called together to enjoy His gracious blessings through intimate, shared life community.
Eternal Assembly:	The eternal New Testament church body was assembled in eternity by the baptism and sealing of the Spirit. Throughout church history, each individual member of the church body was intentionally and purposefully chosen by God. They were eternally positioned in the body of Christ by the baptism of the Spirit and eternally secured by His sealing.
Eternal Cultivation:	The eternal New Testament church body was cultivated in time according to the fullness of the indwelling Spirit of Christ.
Eternal Legality:	Concordant with the divine application of the Eternal Covenant, the eternal New Testament church body was fully justified from sin. It first necessitated the satisfaction of divine justice by the fulfillment of the righteous requirement of the rule of law. It was satisfied by Christ’s lifetime of perfect obedience. In addition, the full justification of the church body from sin required the forgiveness of all sin; past, present, and future, a divine imputation of righteousness, and the presentation of a divine, eternally binding, legal declaration of righteousness. Therefore, the righteous requirement of the rule of law was fulfilled within the eternal church body. Justified from all sin, the eternal New Testament church body was blessed to be legally adopted into the family of God. As a result, it was given the full legal privileges of an adult in the family of God. Additionally, according to the standard of divine law, the church was provided with a new legal status. It was made “holy and blameless and beyond reproach.”
Eternal Life (zoe):	Fully justified from sin, the eternal New Testament church body was made legally suitable to share life with God. Through the act of regeneration, God made the church body compatible with His shared life (zoe). He imparted His life (zoe) to the eternal New Testament church by spiritual birth. Sharing life with Christ, the mediator of the Eternal Covenant, the eternal New Testament church was organically birthed into the family of God. As a result, it was blessed with a future inheritance. It became “heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.” In addition, by sharing life with Christ the eternal New Testament church was made “obedient from the heart.” As a result, it was released from the jurisdiction of the old rule of law and obligated to God by the new law of the Eternal Covenant, the “law of the Spirit of life (zoe) in Christ Jesus,” the gracious rule of indwelling life (zoe).
Eternal Citizenship:	The eternal church was granted citizenship that was heavenly and eternal. Thus, the church is comprised of citizens of heaven (kingdom of God).
Eternal Security:	The eternal church was secured in eternity and time by a perfect sacrifice and consequently, the indwelling presence of indestructible life (zoe). Ascended and seated with Christ at the right hand of the Father in heaven and sealed by His Spirit, it was secured by divine hope, intercession, purpose, benevolence, love, and choice. (Romans 8:18-25; 26-27; 28-30; 31-34; 35-39; 9:1-11:36) The eternal security of the eternal church was irrevocable. Therefore, regardless of how well obscured by deception and darkness, it cannot be separated from the living (zoe) presence and loving purpose of God.
Eternal Doctrine:	The doctrine of the eternal New Testament church originated from God. Therefore, it was eternal, objective, and absolute. The doctrine of the eternal church was delivered to earth from the heavenly Father through the incarnate Son. The eternal doctrine of the New Testament Church was then taught to the apostles by the incarnate Son. By the Spirit, the original doctrine of the early church was eventually communicated to faithful men who taught it to the brothers and sisters of the ecclesia. Doctrinal purity in the small group communities of the eternal New Testament church was protected and preserved by God through the collective submission of the church body to divine headship, the fullness of the Spirit, the mutual counsel of brothers and sisters, and the support of servant eldership.
Eternal Growth:	The growth of the eternal New Testament church was heavenly, eternal, and spiritual and therefore, organic, progressive, cooperative, and exponential. It occurred through the faithful, interactive, intentional cooperation of the eternal church with God. Thus, the growth of the eternal church resulted in the divine, exponential multiplication of shared life community around the world.

Vertical Divider

In the life (zoe) and light of God, the practice of the eternal church of the New Testament is characterized by an eternal manifestation, purpose, mission, governance, leadership, gathering, ministry, works, giving, measure of success, fruit, and destiny.

	Eternal Practice
Eternal Manifestation:	In the fullness of time, the eternal New Testament church was manifested on earth as an eternal “dwelling of God in the Spirit” (AD 33). Permitting shared life fellowship between God and mankind, it accommodated divine, eternal life (zoe) on earth. The eternal New Testament church was predominantly manifested in dynamic, intimate, interactive, intergenerational small group communities that move from house to house. They were inviting, flexible, mobile, inexpensive, able to traverse cultural boundaries, and survive persecution. Consequently, the eternal church could expand around the world in unlimited fashion. Although it was not common, the eternal church sometimes manifested in large group, life-based (zoe) gatherings for a specific purpose or occasion.
Eternal Animation:	The practice of the eternal New Testament church was eternally animated in time by the living (zoe), indwelling Spirit of Christ. More specifically, it was animated through His work of regeneration, indwelling, and leading. Human cooperation occurred by faith alone. As a result, church practice was demonstrative of the attributes of the divine nature and thus, instrumental for His vindication from angelic accusation.
Eternal Purpose:	The purpose of the eternal New Testament church was to enjoy the practice of intimate, shared life fellowship with God.
Eternal Mission:	The mission of the eternal New Testament church was to cultivate and protect its practice of shared life fellowship. As a result, God promised to build His church by making disciples from all nations.
Eternal Governance:	The governance of the eternal New Testament church was theocratic. It was fulfilled through the representative and representational headship of Christ and the ordered equality of its Spirit-filled body, made “obedient from the heart,” and faithfully submitted to Christ and one another. The theocratic governance of the eternal church was not accomplished by the rule of law, but the intimate rule of indwelling life (zoe) and lavish, unmerited favor.
Eternal Leadership:	The leadership of the eternal church was satisfied by the co-equal, Spirit-filled brothers and sisters of the church body in faithful cooperation with the immediate, gracious, governing headship of Jesus Christ. The scripturally qualified elders of the church, having no more authority than any other brother in the body, provided support and counsel only when the faithful, Spirit-filled collective body found it difficult to achieve consensus. It is critical to note that the elders did not rule the church “under compulsion” and therefore, according to law. (1 Peter 5:2) The scripturally qualified elders were supported by scripturally qualified, Spirit-filled deacons. Thus, decision-making occurred by the faithful, Spirit-filled, prayerful consensus of the entire church body. Consequently, there was no clergy/laity distinction.
Eternal Gatherings:	By grace through faith alone, the gatherings of the eternal New Testament church were a celebration of life shared with Jesus Christ. Christ-centered and Spirit-filled, they were directed by the fullness, manifestation, and ministry of the indwelling “Spirit of life (zoe) in Christ Jesus.” Consequently, the gatherings of the New Testament church were characterized by His interactive ministry of eternal life (zoe) through the spiritually gifted involvement of every member of the body. It was demonstrated through life-based (zoe) activities such as purposeful prayer; intentional community interaction; the Lord’s Supper as a full, celebratory meal; participatory praise and worship in song; the fellowship of the Spirit; reading and discussing scripture; spiritually-gifted interactive ministry to one another; the joyful giving of material goods and finances to meet the needs of the body; corrective spiritual discipline; mutual discipleship; and team-oriented outreach.
Eternal Works:	The works of the eternal church were divine in origin, “prepared beforehand” by God in eternity. They were living (zoe) works that could only be satisfied by the Spirit. The members of the New Testament church cooperated with the indwelling God by grace through faith alone.
Eternal Giving:	The giving of the eternal church was supportive only of life-based (zoe) ministry. Consequently, it necessitated cooperation with Christ by grace through faith alone. The life-based (zoe) giving of the eternal church was provided to support local need that contributed to the cultivation of life-based (zoe) community. The choice of who to give money, material goods, or services offered to the eternal church was collectively decided with Christ and the faithful, prayerful consensus of the co-equal brothers and sisters of the church body. Giving did not occur if and when prayerful consensus could not be reached.
Eternal Measure of Success:	The measure of success for the eternal church was intimacy of fellowship with God and the organic multiplication of life-based (zoe) community.
Eternal Fruit:	The reproduction of shared life, small group community in New Testament quality and quantity.
Eternal Destiny:	The eternal destiny of the New Testament church is heavenly, unrestricted fellowship with God in Christ. It is glorious beyond description.

Vertical Divider

Eternal and Organic

Regardless of satanic schemes to destroy both the eternal, organic function and form of the New Testament church, God has never failed to preserve and protect a remnant of the eternal New Testament church on earth. No amount of persecution or deceptive scheming has been able to destroy its eternal, organic function and form. No lifeless (zoe) simulation, characterized by cathedral, religious accoutrement, or pompous ceremony, can extinguish its eternal, organic form.

The presence of the eternal, organic New Testament church on earth was assured by the perfect sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the indwelling presence of His indestructible, eternal life (zoe). Its continuation “... does not depend on forms, ceremonies, cathedrals, churches, chapels, pulpits, fonts, vestments, organs, endowments, money, kings, governments, magistrates, or any act of favor whatsoever from the hand of man. It has often lived on and continued when all these things have been taken from it; it has often been driven into the wilderness, or into dens and caves of the earth, by those who ought to have been its friends. Its existence depends on nothing but the presence of Christ and His Spirit; and they being ever with it, the Church cannot die. This is the church to which the Scriptural titles of present honor and privilege, and the promises of future glory, especially belong; this is the body of Christ; this is the flock of Christ; this is the household of the faith and the family of God; this is God’s building, God’s foundation, and the temple of the Holy Ghost. This is the Church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven; this is the royal priesthood, the chosen generation, the peculiar people, the purchased possession, the habitation of God, the light of the world; the salt and the wheat of the earth; … this is that Church to which the Lord Jesus promises, ‘the gates of hades shall not prevail against it,’ and to which He says, ‘I am with you always, even to the end of the age’.”[1] (Matthew 16:18, 28:20)

“…we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose. For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren; and these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, ‘For your sake we are being put to death all day long, we were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’ But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:28-39)

Vertical Divider