The Church: You Can't Beat the Real Thing

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.    -Rev. 12:1-2

 

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters…” And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast…The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: “Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.” And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.  -Rev. 17:1-6

 

In 1991 Coca-Cola released a new slogan, “can’t beat the real thing.” The implication was that other colas are nothing more than a poor counterfeit of the product they sell. They were telling us that we wouldn’t want to drink and inferior copy of their product, and that anything other than what they produced would not bring us the satisfaction of drinking Coke.

 

Coke is not the only thing that others have copied. There is a counterfeit for almost everything. The job of the Secret Service is to keep money from being counterfeited. We get patents and copyrights on our work so that others cannot claim the work we’ve done. In school, and especially in college, students are continually reminded of the dangers of plagiarizing, which is to steal the intellectual property of someone else and portray it as your own. It seems as though there is nothing that someone has not tried to copy, and this is even true within the church.

 

From its establishment, the church has dealt with various claims as to what kinds of doctrine and teaching carry with them the authority of God. Over the course of Christian history we’ve seen the rise of various cults and religious groups, and just as many have faded into oblivion when people came to the realization that they were nothing more than a copy of the real thing. We wonder today as we look around the countless thousands of denominations within the church, “What could possibly be real?” With all the varying views and beliefs is it possible that anyone really has it right? There are countless thousands of people today claiming to be the church.  Many want the benefits of Christianity without the commitment or hardship that comes along with serving Christ. They want to be wealthy and prosperous without having to give of themselves at the altar of God. The apostle Paul told us that in the last days there would be people like this, who love the things of the world and having the appearance of godliness deny its power. Despite their claims. This can never be the real church.

 

There are some who would have us believe that the church is simply an institutional organization. That it is defined by some type of human standards put in place in our manuals and policies within man’s  organizations. They tell us that we have the right to define what membership is in the church and to decide what doctrine we will teach and what standards we uphold. Some even claim that the church is what we make it. They tell us that the activities and functions of the church rise and fall of what we decide to do and how we carry out the ministry.

 

The truth is, it doesn’t matter how we define the church. It doesn’t matter how denominational leaders define the church, or even what society tells us the church is supposed to be. Jesus told us in the 16^th chapter of Matthew and he would build his church. And that church, built by Jesus Christ, is what Scripture reveals to us. The church is not something created by man, but something established within the hearts of men by Jesus Christ through his redeeming work. We look around us today and see great leaders within the church fall, we see congregations close their doors for the final time each week, and we have to wonder, in this society, what can we really believed in?

 

In the Church of God, we used to ask the question, “have you seen the church?” We were not asking if people saw buildings on a street, if they understood the intricacies of denominational structure, or if they were familiar with the writings of the newest and most popular Christian leaders. We were asking if they understood the church as Scripture reveals it; if they had seen a church that transcends all of the denominational structures of the world and all of the organizational schemes of man. We were asking if they were familiar with something far greater than any institutional organization that has ever been created in the history of Christianity. It is this kind of church that Scripture reveals to us, it is this type of church that God intended to create in the 21^st century, just as in the first century. The church you can believe in was planned in heaven, ordained by God through the blood of Christ, empowered by the Spirit at Pentecost, predestined for every good work, prepared and empowered for victory. It is when we leave behind man-made organization that we find this divine institution. This is when we understand what it means to be a part of the church that we can believe that; what we understand what it means to be the real thing.

 

The book of Revelation provides for us in contrast between the real church and all those counterfeits that we’ve seen over the course of history. Let us consider the characteristics of the authentic church:

 

Authenticity is Defined by Apparel

I know it sounds ridiculous to claim that the church is defined by apparel, but the clothing to which I refer is not the worldly things that we buy our local department store. It is not the earthly garments we wear that define us, but the heavenly garments. The 12^th chapter of Revelation tells us that John saw a woman in heaven. He goes on to tell us that she was standing on the moon and she was clothed in the light of the sun. Scripture teaches us that this sun in which she was clothed is Jesus Christ himself. Malachi 4:2 says, “but for you who fear my name, the Son of Righteousness shall rise.”  John tells us in his gospel, “in him was life, and the life was the light of man.”

 

The church is defined by the light which she wears. When we are clothed in the character and witness of Jesus Christ it becomes obvious to the world who we are, and whose we are. It is not for us to decide what the church looks like, or what she wears because the church belongs to God. D.S. Warner and his associates used to travel the country proclaiming the message over and over again that it’s God’s church. It does not belong to man, and is not organized by man. Arlo Newell explains, “while history gives recognition to the prophets of old, John the baptizer, and later reformers in the Christian faith, Christ alone is the true foundation upon which the church ultimately stands.” We do a lot of things to try and control the witness that we portray in the world, but ultimately it is up to God to clothe the church with the witness that he wants her to maintain this world. His desire is to present to Christ a spotless bride dressed in the perfection of beauty - a bride who has no blemish, wrinkle or any such thing.

 

Though we know the adornment of this spotless bride to be the will of God  scripture also provides a contrast. The bride is adorned in what comes from God; in light that only he can create. But on the other hand the 17^th chapter Revelation shows us a great harlot clothed in all the things that the world finds important. John tells us that she was wearing purple and fine linen, dressed in some of the greatest clothes that the world could produce in that day. But the real church is never clothed in things that are valued by the world. She is recognized only by that which comes from heaven. The church you can believe in is a church that does not look like the world. We can offer things that may entice the world, we can do everything that we can to make ourselves appealing, but that does not make us the church that will change the world. There is only one church that can change the world. There is only one that is empowered by the Spirit of God. There is only one that carries the full authority of heaven into the societies around us. That is the real thing. It is the church of God – not one singular movement or group, but the church of the Bible.

 

Authenticity is Defined by Location

Though Scripture teaches us to clothe ourselves in heavenly garments, there is more to the authentic church than apparel. The real church is one that lives and works in the location where God places her. That’s where John saw the church in Revelation 12. The woman is protected from her adversary by fleeing to “a place prepared by God.”

 

The church is the ecclesia of God, or those whom He has called out of the world. We are not simply called away from sin, but to a place where we can be nourished and cared for by God. In the midst of the chaos and turmoil of the world, we are called to a place where God will provide for our needs. We do not need the favor of political institutions because Jesus Christ will provide for His Bride. The church was never intended to wander aimlessly through this world hoping to find the Light of God, but was called to a specific ministry, and a place that was provided by God. It is a place where the church can not only survive, but thrive. It is when we place ourselves before God that we see His power at work within our ranks, and the difficulties of the world are overcome. The church you can believe in is a church that flees the things of the world for the holiness of God. She is clothed in His garments and lives in His presence.

 

John tells us of a contrasting vision of a harlot seated on a beast. Daniel 7 teaches us that this beast represents political institutions and systems. John gives us a description of the origin of this beast in Revelation 13:1: “And I saw the beast rising out of the sea…” He also tells us what this sea represents: “And the angel said to me, ‘The waters that you saw, where the prostitute is seated, are peoples and multitudes and nations and languages.’” These descriptions would lead us to the conclusion that the beast is man-made – it came from his conceptions and institutions.

 

The real church is never a denominational structure. It can never be confined to the thoughts and ideas of man. Though God works through us and uses us we cannot be the church without His power. Though denominations have many who are members of God’s real church, that church cannot be contained by the structures of man. In fact, these structures only serve to hinder the work of God, eventually quenching the Spirit to the point that the work is overcome as the organization grows. R.T. Kendall reminds us, “While some see an emergence of a new denomination as what began in revival, the truth is that the new denomination being formed is more likely the end of the revival. Once people try to organize themselves around a new movement of the Spirit they unwittingly render that movement yesterday’s anointing.”

 

Kenneth Jones explains, “It is not truly helpful to think of the church as an institution, but rather dangerous. It puts the focus on obedience to the human leaders, and detracts from the concentration on the relationship with the triune God.” The purpose of the church is not – and has never been – to maintain some type of organization. Its purpose and mission is always to draw men and women to God. This happens when we live in the place of God’s provision, not something of our own design.

 

Authenticity is Defined by Action

The woman in heaven is prepared to give birth to a male child. This woman represents the Bride of Christ. She has a male child because a male carries on the work of the father. The church you can believe in carries on God’s work in this world. This church represents its Father’s name, and reveals Him to the world around us. Though this witness and work may bring us pain (much like the woman preparing for labor in the vision) God’s work is carried forward nonetheless. Scripture makes no pretense about the idea that God’s people will be persecuted, and will find great difficulty in this life. Jesus said, “Blessed are you when you are persecuted for righteousness sake…” The authentic church realizes that there is a price to be paid if we are to be victorious.

 

By contrast, the harlot is not involved in work or labor. She is seated on a beast, drunk with the blood of the saints. The harlot works only to eliminate that which confines and exposes her immorality. The false church rejects the truth of God’s Word for a life of comfort, ease, and pleasure. This church does what feels good and will be accepted by the society. It rejects the work and mission to which God has called us for leisure and enjoyment in the sinfulness that has crept into her midst. This church has forgotten what Bill Konstantopoulos reminded us, “The greatest bondage in life is not being physically captive to someone, but to be free to do as you please and in your freedom you reject truth, God, His Word and His will.” When we place man’s preferences above God’s truth we sacrifice doctrine and righteousness on the altar of the ever-changing whims of pop culture and the fickle penchants of society.

 

The authenticity of the church is defined by the work she carries out.

 

Authenticity is Defined by Children

The woman in heaven gives birth to a male child who is “caught up to God.” The home of this child is the throne room of God. This child walks daily in the presence of the Almighty, and finds rest in the shadow of His wings. These are the children who realize that they are pilgrims and travelers passing through this world looking for a more permanent home. “If this earth were our eternal portion, then our treasure should be laid up here. But since it is temporal, we are commanded to lay up our treasures in heaven. Though we may be poor in this world’s goods, yet if we serve God we ‘shall have treasure in heaven.’”

 

The focus of the harlots offspring is directed entirely to earth. The counterfeit church knows nothing greater than what will take place on this earth. It denies the miraculous and seeks what will bring fleeting feelings of happiness in this life. It teaches us that God wants us to have great wealth and prosperity while never having to face persecution or difficulty. If chooses only the passages of Scripture that make us feel good about ourselves accept the sin of the world.

 

The authentic church has a completely contrary focus when compared with the counterfeit. Anything that tells you that we must look like this world is not the church. Anything that tells you that God’s desire is simply your happiness and wealth, or that Christianity is easy is not the real thing. The church is not structured and directed by man, but is always the creation of God. Prepared before time in His heavenly plan, ushered into the world in the power of Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, and anticipating the coming of her Groom, Jesus Christ. This is the church.

 

“Those people whom God has used throughout the centuries have had a great and glorious conception of the Christian church. She is not just a human institution. She is a spiritual society, a church of the firstborn. And it grieves their hearts to see her in rags and in worldliness and in utter confusion. Do we have this concern for the honor and the name of the Christian church? And do we long to see her functioning as a church, uttering no uncertain sound but the certain sound of the gospel and clothed with might and power and honor and glory?”