UNDERSTANDING THE FIVE PURPOSES OF THE CHURCH

"And He put all things under His Feet and gave Him to be Head over all things to the Church." Ephesians 1:22(NKJV)

BIBLE READING: PSALM 144:11-15; ACTS 2:41-47; HEBREWS 12:23; 1PETER 5:6; 1TIMOTHY 3:15

There is so much more to the Church of our Lord Jesus Christ than meets the eye or can be comprehended by unbelievers. Simply put, the Church is not just His Own Body but actually has a Multi-Dimensional Structure to It. Viewing the Body of Christ from a Total Perspective, the Church can be understood to be the following:

The Church is an Army.

The Church is a School.

The Church is a Family.

The Church is a Hospital.

The Church is an Organization.

In other words, the Church of Jesus Christ our Lord is essentially a Structured and Systematic Living Organism, which is inherently self-sustainable (1Tim. 3:15).

There are Five Major Purposes of the Church of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour. Each of these Purposes covers Five Fundamental Functions, which we will examine:

(1.) Worship: This is the Engine Room and Livewire of the Church through which Communion with the Godhead becomes enhanced. The focus here is Upreach, which consists of both Prayer and Worship (Jn. 4:23-24). Put in a different way, "the Church of Jesus Christ grows STRONGER through Worship."

(2.) Missions: This refers to the Heartbeat of the Lord God Almighty Himself involving all of His lost sheep being intentionally gathered into His House through the means of Evangelism and Outreach (Lk. 19:10). Simply put, "the Church of Jesus Christ grows LARGER through Missions."

(3.) Membership: This involves the Process of Consolidation or Integration whereby New Christian believers or converts are given a sense of belonging within the Church Family, fostering Fellowship amongst one another (Ps. 92:13). In other words, "the Church of Jesus Christ grows WARMER through Membership."

(4.) Maturity: This is the Process of the Mass-production and replication of the Image of Christ in every Christian believer through the means of Quality Discipleship (Matt. 28:19). Simply put, "the Church of Jesus Christ grows DEEPER through Discipleship."

(5.) Ministry: This is the Process of Commissioning, Releasing or Deploying trained Obedient Disciples of Jesus into the world to become His Authentic Ambassadors sent to represent Him in each of the Seven Mountains or Spheres of Society/Culture (Revelations 11:15). In other words, "the Church of Jesus Christ grows BROADER through Ministry."

PRAYER:

Heavenly Father, we glorify Your Holy Name. O Lord, we thank You for granting us Unfettered Access to the New Wine and the New Wine Skins, which we need for Exponential Growth as a Church. We give You all the Glory, Honour and Praise in Jesus' Mighty Name. Amen.