CHURCH: SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF A SPIRITUAL REALITY
Church historian, Gregory Elder, tells the story of when he was a child, growing up near a beach on the Atlantic Ocean. He spent endless hours of his summers working on elaborately detailed sand castles. Unfortunately, his intricate creations were repeatedly destroyed by local bullies who took great pleasure in kicking and stomping his kingdoms of sand into oblivion. One day, he thought of a brilliant idea to permanently deter these hooligans. He said, “I placed cinder blocks, rocks, and chunks of concrete in the base of my castles. Then I built the sand kingdoms on top of the rocks. When the local thugs appeared (and I disappeared), their bare feet suddenly met their match. (Elder)”
Such is the case with the Church established upon the rock of Jesus Christ. For it is far too simple a task, to perceive the weaknesses and human frailties inherent within the social construction of the Church, no matter how intricate and detailed they might be, and begin to kick at and stomp upon them, in our arrogance and self-righteousness. We must never forget the spiritual reality of this Church being built, “…upon a Rock… (NKJV Mat 16:16)”, over which the gates of hell itself shall never prevail.
At the same time, we should also be careful not to build up the human structure of the Church in our hearts and minds into something it was never meant to be either. After all, it is a weak and frail vessel to begin with, a castle made of sand, and as Detrick Bonhoeffer so aptly noted:
"…disillusionment with the church [is] a step in the right direction. …the sooner this shock of disillusionment comes to an individual in a community, the better it is for both. Every human wish dream that is injected into the Christian community is a hindrance to genuine community and must be banished if genuine community is to survive… He who loves his dream of a community more than the Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter, even though his personal intentions may be ever so honest, and earnest, and sacrificial. (Koessler 2)"
New Testament Scripture reveals this duel nature of the Church, in context with both the social construction of it, as well as the spiritual reality of the Church, and it is helpful to study the distinctions of each. Consider the following verses in the Book of Acts, “…when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution. (Acts 6:1)” This situation obviously depicts one of the social aspects within the church, when basic human needs are requiring the practical application of Christian faith within the body of believers.
However, the occasion quickly escalates into a spiritual reality when, “Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, "It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business… (Acts 6:2-4)" So, we see very early on in the life of the Church, that the spiritual reality and priority of, “…prayer and the ministry of the word. (Acts 6:2-4)”, took precedence over the social construct of serving the physical needs of man.
Still, it also emphasizes that the social nature of the Church was entirely dependent upon it’s spiritual reality; indeed, the two go hand in hand with each other. The implications of these two natures working so closely with each other is staggering of course. because it requires the individual members of the body to work closely with each other in order to be effective as a local church body. John Koessler has observed that, “God has knit the church together this way so that all the various members would have the same concern for one another. We do not all have the same gifts. We are not all engaged in the same ministries but we are empowered by the same Spirit and we share the same concerns. (Koessler 1)”
While it isn’t rare to see the two natures of the Church showcased side by side each other like this in the Bible, usually we just see one or the other. Consider this verse that highlights primarily the social construct of the Church:
"…speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine: that the older men be sober, reverent, temperate, sound in faith, in love, in patience; the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things—that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed. Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you. (Tit 2:1-8)"
Even though these verses have heavy spiritual implications, since they depend greatly upon the condition of our hearts, (i.e. spiritual maturity, yielding to the Holy Spirit, etc.), they are mainly directed toward the human behavior of the individual members within the social structure of the local church body, and its impact upon the surrounding community. Again, the implications for the local congregation are readily apparent; if they do not attend to their own spiritual health and vitality by yielding themselves to the Holy Spirit and His convictions, they will not mature spiritually, and therefore they will see no need to adhere to these verses and sense an obligation to change their behaviors. As a result, the community around them will see no need to join them, observing that they are no different from themselves.
Looking to another passage of Scripture now, which reflects more of the spiritual dimension of the Church, we find the Apostle Paul using very descriptive human terms to illustrate the realities of a very spiritual edifice. He says of the Church that it was, “…built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. (Eph 4:20-22)”
Paul’s profound understanding of this, “…great mystery, …Christ and the church. (Eph 5:32)”, of which we are all equally dumbfounded by at times, is quite helpful when trying to determine how the church exists both as a spiritual reality and as a social construct. In this passage we see our frail, temporal organization described in terms that don’t quite seem to fit our present reality, when viewed through human eyes, but when viewed through the spiritual reality of faith in Christ, the chief cornerstone, the picture rapidly comes into focus. Nevertheless, God has chosen to use this broken clay pot, as feeble as it may seem, and so once again, the two natures are entirely dependent upon each other; God’s spiritual dwelling place will be built with living stones!
Once again we are required to view this within the context of our own local congregations and ask the difficult questions concerning the manner in which we are helping to build His Church and with what materials we are using to build it. The eminent 20th century pastor and preacher, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, borrows from the Apostle Paul’s analogy of the spiritual church building when he states that:
"We may be very active and busy; but that is not of necessity doing His work. The Apostle Paul warns preachers in particular… that some people, in putting up a building, use “…wood, hay and stubble (1 Cor 3:12)”. It may have all the appearance of a good building, but when it comes to be tested by fire, it will be entirely burned and destroyed. The work that is of value, work that lasts, is the work that He, and He alone, enables us to do in His way and using the materials He provides."
This quote from, “The Doctor”, as he was affectionately known, is a great summation of this subject. The social construct of the Body of Christ is nothing without the spiritual reality of Christ Himself.
Works Cited:
Elder, Gregory. Chronic Vigour: Darwin, Anglicans, Catholics, and the Development of a Doctrine of Providential Evolution. UPA Publishing. Print. 1996.
Koessler, John. The Church and the Churches. Moody Bible Institute. Chicago, IL. Video.
Lloyd-Jones, D. Martyn. The Church Which is His Body. God’s Ultimate Purpose: An Exposition of Ephesians One. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker. Print. 1978.
NKJV New King James Version. Holy Bible. Thomas Nelson. Nashville, TN: 2000. Print.
