DAY 10 IS IN PRODUCTION

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What is the church? The word church has different meanings depending on the context. We say things like, Where’s your church?, referring to location of a building. Or, What’s your church?, referring to a particular fellowship of believers. Or, What kind of church?, referring to the beliefs and practices of that fellowship. In Bible times, there were no churches as we know them today. The early Christians met in homes. No church buildings. No seminaries. No professional clergy. The word church is English for the Greek term ecclesia, formed from two Greek words meaning an assembly and called out ones. A person becomes a part of the church (universal) by exercising faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord, as explained in Day 5. The church (local) is an assembly of believers called out to live as followers of Jesus Christ, meeting together frequently for worship, prayer, teaching, fellowship, encouragement, family development, mutual help and group action. The Bible describes the church as the body of Christ – many parts (believers) working together with individual personalities, abilities and functions – to continue the work of Christ on earth, reaching out to the world in love. We ARE the church. Not we GO to church. What did the Apostles do? Our understanding of church comes primarily through two apostles – Peter and Paul – in the first century. Apostle means a first-hand witness and special messenger chosen by Jesus. Peter was one of the twelve apostles who spent three years with Jesus, witnessing his ministry and absorbing his teachings. He was an ordinary fisherman by trade, but emerged as leader of this group, in Jerusalem. Meanwhile, Paul was a Roman citizen and highly educated member of Israel’s Sanhedrin (comparable to U.S. Senate). In his government position, he persecuted the disciples of Jesus in and around Jerusalem. The Sanhedrin believed these disciples were becoming a threat to the practices of Judaism and to Israel’s political relationship with Rome. On the road from Jerusalem to Damascus, shortly after Jesus’ death, Paul had a dramatic conversion experience with Jesus (blinding light and voice), and for the next three years he was taught by Jesus through personal revelation. Paul and Peter became the most influential missionaries of the first century. Together with other disciples, they started churches throughout the Roman Empire. Luke, a physician, wrote the book of Acts, a chronological history of the growth of the early church. He detailed important events and conversations so we can understand what happened as this good news (called the gospel) began transforming lives around the world. 55% of the New Testament (Acts and Letters) are history from Luke and instructions from Paul, Peter, James and John to those new churches. That is how the books got their names. For example, Paul wrote the book of Romans to the church in Rome (Italy), Philippians to the church in Philippi (Greece), and Colossians to the church in Colosse (Turkey). All Christians believe that what these men taught and wrote to the early churches – the direct teachings of Jesus – are still instructions from God to us today. The early churches were basic and simple, with little resemblance to most churches today. Much has been added to the core beliefs, practices and facilities. How has the church changed? In 312 Emperor Constantine declared Christianity to be the religion of the entire Roman Empire. The church merged with the state and became institutionalized and corrupted, except for pockets of genuine Christians who continued to follow the Apostle’s teachings. In 1054, the catholic-state church split into Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox branches. In 1521-1610, the Reformation divided the Roman Catholic church into Catholic and Protestant branches. The Protestant reformers resisted central hierarchy and believed that salvation is by grace alone, apart from any works of the church. Since then, the Catholic church has undergone many internal reformations, even as recently as Vatican II in 1965, and is today much different from the Catholic church of earlier times. Today approximately 33% of all people in the world say they are Christian: Catholic 17%, Protestant 10%, Orthodox 6%. Within the United States, 79% say they are Christian: Evangelical 26%, Catholic 24%, Mainline Protestant 18%, Historic Black 7%, Other Christian 4%, Other religions 5%, No religion 16%. Each branch of Christianity has divided and splintered into so many parts that labels no longer tell what any particular congregation believes and practices. Within each branch and sub-branch, there are both genuine Christians (see Day 5) and cultural Christians (in name only). Why so many styles of worship? The gospel is for all people of all places, cultures, times and personalities. Therefore, the church is very diverse in its expressions. It is the central message that is important, not style or structure. Some churches sing old hymns, some modern choruses. Some pray from a prayer book, some pray extemporaneously. Some emphasize learning, some emphasize experiences. Some are large, some are small. The Bible does not prescribe any particular style of worship or organization. Each individual can find the local church that best fits his or her needs, beliefs and personality. What are sacraments? A sacrament is a special religious observance or ceremonial act. There are seven sacraments in Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches: Baptism, confirmation, holy communion, penance, anointing the sick, holy orders and marriage. Protestants avoid the word sacrament and instead use the word ordinance when referring to an outward sign of commitment ordained by Christ himself. Most protestants say there are three ordinances: baptism, communion and marriage. For the most part, these are differences in terminology and form, but there are substantive differences between Catholic/Orthodox churches and Protestant churches with regard to baptism and communion. What are differences in baptism? Generally speaking, Catholics (and some Protestants) believe that baptism confers salvation to a child through the church. Most protestants believe that salvation comes only from God himself, through personal faith in Jesus Christ, apart from any work of the church. In many respects, the two views eventually come together, in this way: > Those who believe in salvation through baptism usually also believe that when a child becomes old enough to understand spiritual matters, he or she must confirm the baptism, usually facilitated by a course of study in the church, so that parents’ choice then becomes personal choice by ratification. They believe an individual can lose the salvation by ignoring or disaffirming it. > Those who believe that salvation is by faith alone, apart from any work of the church, usually also believe that a child is automatically saved until old enough to understand God's offer of salvation, and then he or she either rejects it explicitly, rejects it by ignoring it, or accepts it by personal faith in Jesus Christ. They believe that baptism is essentially a public testimony of the decision to follow Christ. Different churches use different modes of baptism: Some sprinkle. Some pour. Some immerse. Most evangelicals immerse as adults, citing the way Jesus was baptized. What are differences in communion? Catholics call communion and accompanying liturgy the eucharist and celebrate it every Sunday as the central part of their worship service, called mass. Most Catholics believe the bread and wine miraculously turn into the actual flesh and blood of Jesus. Protestants typically celebrate communion once a month as a part of their worship service. They believe that the bread and wine are symbolic only. All Christians celebrate communion with the same objective: to commemorate Christ’s death and resurrection. What about hypocrites in the church? True, there are hypocrites found in the church, but hypocrites are everywhere. Hypocrisy is a part of the human condition, not an indictment of the church. Think of the church as a SPIRITUAL HOSPITAL ... caring for all kinds of people, wounded and frail because of sin. Though far from perfect, the church is the vehicle for Christian interaction, communicating the gospel to new generations, and extending the love of Christ throughout the world.

Clear and concise explanation of Christian faith for pass-along and discussion