A Redemptive Society

W. Carl Ketcherside

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     The word "church" was hallowed as a translation of ekklesia by the revisionists appointed by King James to see that "there should be one more exact translation of the holy Scriptures into the English tongue." In order to insure that it would not be too exact, the monarch issued orders in advance that they were not to use the word "congregation" as had preceding translators. Since James was authorizing a Bible to be read in the Church of England, of which he claimed to be the titular head, he did not want men to conclude that he was merely the ruler of a congregation.

     The word "church" is actually not a translation of the original at all. There is nothing about it which signifies response to a call. It came to us from a wholly different source and has a quite different meaning in its origin. But long use has bred familiarity with it and any attempt to substitute a better word would create a general furore. Men ordinarily have their emotions entwined with their religion and by the time you cut through the jungle growth of tradition in an attempt to rescue them from a misplaced vocabulary they resent it as if you were trying to destroy God's word. Inadequate or not, it appears that "church" is here to stay!

     We are not so much concerned about it as we are the idea which it purports to convey and which the Holy Spirit wrapped up in the word ekklesia. If we are mistaken about that we will have a warped view of our relationship to God and each other. It is very important that we understand the nature and purpose of the church. We can begin by pointing out that it is a community of persons united to a person, and united with each other because they are united to him. These persons are in him because they have been called. This implies a summons by the one who calls and a proper response by those who are called.

     The called ones are those who were alienated from God by sin. The summons consists of a message to be proclaimed which is designated good news. It consists of facts and not speculative matters. These facts relate primarily to what God has done for us in our weakness and helplessness while under the tyranny of sin. The proper response to these glad tidings is faith and obedience. Those who act upon the basis of the good news to reform their lives and change their state are said to have "obeyed the gospel." The church is simply the congregation of obedient penitent believers. All such persons on earth are in it. No saved person in the world is out of it.

     No man can call another out of sin and remit his transgressions. Therefore, no man can create a church. The church is a divine organism. It can never be a human organization. Only God can call men out of sin, so only God can create a church. Since all whom God calls out of sin constitute the church, there can never be but

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one church. There can he no rival to the church with divine sanction for this would pit God against himself.

     Just as the church is not composed of sects, so it is not composed of congregations. It is a fallacy to think that unity of the Spirit consists of getting all of the congregations of a given order to doing everything in exactly the same meticulous fashion. In its ultimate this would always amount to reducing every congregation to the status of the most reactionary one under a plea of false charity, and they would compare themselves among themselves, and measure themselves by themselves, a procedure which the apostle declares is unwise. Such a course is blind conformity and is not unity at all!

     The church is the body of Christ and there is but one body. It is composed of individuals who are joined to each other only because they are joined to the same head. "Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it" (1 Cor. 12:27). The church does not consist of those who interpret every point of doctrine alike, nor of those who agree in every matter of opinion. Parties exist on such a basis, but these are formed by men, and exist in contradiction to the will and authority of Jesus. The body is formed of members who are indwelt by the Holy Spirit, but parties are formed by those who are filled with the party spirit.

     It is ridiculous to talk about the church losing its identity. This is a "scare tactic" used by factional leaders to hold their adherents "in line" and to assure that they do not learn from any other source and never grow beyond their present spiritual stature. My body can never lose its identity as long as it is joined to my head. If you can identify the head you can certainly know whose body is attached to it. Parties may lose their identity and all of them ought to. They should never have established a partisan identity to begin with. They can lose their identity simply because they have created a synthetic fellowship consisting of those who agree upon a certain thing, or even a method of doing a thing. The party exists to propagate that thing or method. If enough of the members learn better their defection will eradicate the body.

     The body of Christ was created through the blood of Christ. Those who compose it are blood-brothers--his blood, not theirs! By physical blood we are related to every son of Adam, by the blood of Christ to every person who is in the last Adam, the Lord from heaven. I sustain a fleshly kinship with every one who is born of woman; I sustain a spiritual kinship with every one who is born of the water and of the Spirit. "As was the man of the dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are

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of heaven" (1 Cor. 15:47,48). Jesus did not die to form a party for the defence of particular or peculiar views within the family of God. He is not the head of any such party. He is Lord of the whole church, not of a faction within it. Factions must always choose their own heads and generally these are their creators or benefactors.

     There is no danger the church will ever die. So long as the head lives the body must live. Even the grave could not retain the head. Because "he ever liveth to make intercession for us," the body is indestructible. It is true that parties and sects will rise and wane and will even die and disappear. If they all departed it would not affect the church. Scraping the barnacles from a ship does not lessen its power but may increase its ability to move more rapidly and freely on its way. Parties die because they are launched by dying men; the church lives because it is the creation of the living God. When you hear men speculate as to the fate of the church after their death you can be sure they are simply members of a faction while they are alive. No man can kill the church unless he can first destroy the Son of God who is its head.

     Our witness is not to consist of "the wonderful deeds" we have done. We are simply to "declare the wonderful deeds of him who called us out of darkness." When we begin to tell of our accomplishments we always end up in partisan pride. The church is not to glorify itself but its creator. When the church worships itself it becomes its own god. When we parade what we have done we inevitably compare it favorably or unfavorably with what others are doing! We fail to realize that we are merely a group of "unprofitable servants" comparing ourselves with other unprofitable servants" and there can certainly be no profit in such a procedure. While there is no profit, there is a reward. Jesus says that those who parade their piety before men to be seen by them "have their reward." It is amazing how much time and effort is expended on declaring our wonderful deeds, our growth and our accomplishments. All such display is vanity and vexation of spirit.

     Much of our modern "machinery" which was wholly unknown to the church in its age of greatest triumph, has been devised to pump life into the members. But one does not use a pulmotor unless he thinks a person is dying. Artificial respiration is not administered to a healthy body. It follows, then, that what we point to as an indication of our strength is merely a symbol of our weakness. Nor does frantic activity always denote real accomplishment. The world will not be saved by our own fluttering about from one meeting to another. Some people attend so many meetings they have no time in which to really serve God. Certainly they have all too little time in which to meditate in quietude and solitude and contemplate "the wonderful deeds of him who called us." Even spare moments must be given over to compiling statistics, drawing charts or making graphs to show our progress for the fiscal year. The artificial stimulants which we administer to keep those coming whom we can never get going, and which we prize and advertise so highly, are but tokens of our nearness to collapse. They may have betrayed us into forsaking the world of the Spirit for the spirit of the world.

     The church is a redemptive fellowship, first of all, because it is a fellowship of those who have been redeemed. Those who compose it are not in it because of their superior character, knowledge, or attainment. No one is in the church except sinners saved by grace. Not one of these

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came in by pleading his own righteousness but by trust in the righteousness of Jesus which caused him to renounce every other claim upon his life and to pledge allegiance to the Son of God. All were equal before they crossed the frontier from death unto life and all are equal since. They had nothing to boast of then, they have nothing to boast of now. In their former state they were dead and the life they now have is a gift.

     We do not enter into Christ en masse, or as a faction or party. We come into him as individuals. Every man who is born again is in Christ Jesus. No other person can add him to Christ, no other can remove him from Christ. Only God can introduce one into the one body and only God can discharge him from it. Men may "separate you from their company" (Luke 6:22) but they cannot destroy your relationship with God. Only the one who has power to include you in the community of saved ones can ever exclude you from it. The redemptive fellowship with one another grows out of the mutual fellowship or joint participation with the Father and the Son, through the Holy Spirit.

     Though we enter into Christ as individuals we come into a fellowship. We are not detached members but members one of another. So close is our relationship that "if one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together." Our factional alignments have obscured the breadth of meaning in this statement. It does not mean that we are to suffer or rejoice only when an adherent of our faction or sect suffers or is honored. We are joined by the invisible bond of spiritual love to every saved person in the whole world. I cannot be unaffected by the suffering of an African or Chinese brother in the Lord even though our color differs and we live thousands of miles apart. Nor can I be unconcerned if such a brother is a member of another religious party than myself. The nerve that is struck when a brother suffers is not a partisan nerve, but one that runs from his heart to my heart through the person of Jesus, our head. "For it is from the head, that the whole body, as a harmonious structure knit together by the joints with which it is provided, grows by the proper functioning of individual parts to its full maturity in love" (Eph. 4:16).

     God made us and knows our basic needs. Sin brought disharmony into the world and into the life of each of us. It marred all of the basic and finer relationships of life. By separating us from God it deadened our sensibilities until "we all lived our lives in sensuality, and obeyed the promptings of our own instincts and notions. In our natural condition, we like the rest, lay under the dreadful judgment of God" (Eph. 2:3). In order to "transfigure us into his likeness, from splendor to splendor" (2 Cor. 3:18) we had to be introduced into a new environment where our selfish instincts could be transformed into social interests. This necessitated a fellowship in which each person was free and yet a servant of all others.

     The Christian concept is one which is designed to deliver us from the effects of sin upon our personality and enable each of us to develop to his highest potential. Man is a social being. He is destined to share in an unbroken association with God and with the redeemed of all ages. The church of which he is an integral part or vital member makes possible the inauguration of this fellowship on the divine and human level. The fellowship provides an arena in which each participant can strive toward that perfect harmony which, while it can never be achieved on earth, must be sought as eagerly as if it could be attained. We must always re-

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joice in hope even while we labor in faith. The apostle writes to those in the fellowship at Rome, "May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom. 15:5,6). He blazes the trail toward such harmony in the immediate context. We must learn to "shoulder the burden of the doubts and qualms of others" (verse 11). "Each of us must consider his neighbor and think what is for his good and will build up the common life" (verse 2). We must "accept one another as Christ accepted us to the glory of God" (verse 7). Fellowship can only accomplish its divine purpose when a brother is valued above what he thinks. Jesus did not die just for brilliant men and the church is not a fraternity for philosophers nor an institute for the intellectually elite.

     As a redemptive fellowship we are to be primarily concerned with persons. Jesus died for men. He did not die for a code of laws, a set of dogmas, or a compilation of doctrines. He did not shed his blood for us because we were worthy or deserving. "Christ died for us while we were yet sinners, and that is God's own proof of his love for us" (Romans 5:8). We prove our love for each other when we do not extend it purely on the basis of worthiness but on the basis of need, even as God did. The purpose of God's revelation through the apostles is, and that of our lives should be, the upbuilding of all who are in Christ Jesus. We dare not interpret the word of God or inject our lives into those of our brethren in such a way as to destroy them. Jesus died for these men. "Do not by your eating bring disaster to a man for whom Christ died" (Rom. 14:15). We need always be concerned that men may despise the doctrine of God, but we need also to be concerned that men may interpret the doctrine of God in such a manner as to divide or destroy brethren.

     1. The church is an authoritarian structure for the defining of faith and morals, with the divine right to demand absolute obedience to her commands and unqualified subservience to her demands, under threat of condemnation.

     2. The church is the repository of the doctrine of God and is the authorized interpreter of the same with power to determine what is orthodox and must be taught as the accepted and infallible word of truth, and with the power to condemn as heretics and excommunicate all who do not conform to such orthodoxy.

     3. The church is simply a social welfare organization delegated by God to relieve inequities and adjust inequalities in the economic and political structure, and possessing the right to employ any legal means to accomplish this purpose throughout the earth.

     Much of Christendom accepts one or the other of these, or a combination or modification of them, as the basis of relationship in the church. In so doing the groundwork has been laid for fracturing those who profess to be children of God into several hundred rival camps and tribes.

     As to the first, the church possesses no authority. It is simply the body of Christ and all of the authority is vested in the head. In order to become an authoritarian structure the church would need to have an infallible interpreter on earth to whom all questions could be relayed and whose judgment would be final. Such an interpreter would require perfect knowledge or an unction of the Spirit without measure.

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That no man possesses such knowledge is evident from 1 Corinthians 8:2, and that no man is authorized by the Spirit to "dictate the terms of faith" is evident from the apostle's disavowal of any such intent (2 Cor. 1:24). As to the second, it must be observed that the doctrine of God belongs to each child of God and not to a corporate structure which can dole it out to him at will and control his consumption of it. The sword of the Spirit belongs to every soldier from the moment of his enlistment. He need not secure permission to check it out of an arsenal when he wishes to use it. The bread of life has not been placed in a basket to be dispensed under centralized control or supervision. There is no "official interpretation" any more than there is an "official interpreter." It is as ridiculous to assume that men can create an infallible interpretation as to suppose they can elect an infallible interpreter.

     Certainly the word of God requires interpretation as does every communication employing human speech or words. Those who say it does not are always the most dogmatic in demanding that you concur with their viewpoints. The Constitution of the United States is interpreted by the Supreme Court. When so interpreted that interpretation becomes the law of the land. Whether you agree with it or not it becomes the standard by which you will be judged. What is the supreme tribunal for interpretation of divine principles? Is it the church? If so, is it the church universal or the local congregation? If it is the church universal, how will the decision be reached and how will it be enforced? If it is the local congregation what will be the result if congregations differ in their findings? Will we have the ludicrous spectacle of those who have no jurisdiction over others seeking to bind their will upon them as God's will? Will we be subjected to the absurdity of one "autonomous" congregation "withdrawing" from another which will not be coerced into acceptance of its decretals?

     The answer lies in the fact that the church in its local or universal aspect was never intended to be the official interpreter of apostolic doctrine, and its usurpation of this prerogative has involved the Christian realm in constant turmoil and strife. It will continue to do so until we correct our thinking. Who is the supreme court for determining what constitutes "matters of faith" and "matters of opinion" for every child of God on earth? My reply is that the individual conscience is the sole monitor for every true saint. No one has the right to bind upon a fellow-disciple that which does not commend itself to him as correct. We are all "disciples" and there are no "masters." The minds of men cannot be forced or coerced by other human minds.

     There is a difference between the faith in Christ which justifies and which all of us must hold in common, and the personal faith or conviction of those who are in Christ, which must be altered or amended with increasing knowledge and understanding. In this realm one stands or falls to his own Master. No one else has the right to pass judgment upon him. How can unity be maintained under such circumstances? The apostle replies, "Accept life with humility and patience, making allowances for each other because you love each other. Make it your aim to be at one in the Spirit, and you will inevitably be at peace with one another" (Eph. 4:2,3). Because no human mind is infallible God did not commit the interpretation to any one, but allowed it to be the right of every one.

     Will this not breed anarchy? Will it not create a state of chaos in which every man does that which is right in his own sight? God has wisely provided against this very thing by placing an effective restriction against exercising even that which we deem to be our right. But will not such a restraint need enforcement, and if so, does this not bring us back to the place of the external authority of the church? Not at all, for the regulation is not placed in the hands of others but in the hearts of each of us. It is not external and arbitrary but internal and voluntary. The restraining force is the only absolute quality in the Christian system, the epitome of all law, the golden chain which binds all

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of the other virtues in perfect harmony--brotherly love.

     It is important that I understand doctrinal matters but it is just as important that I understand my brothers--their motivations, needs and fears. The very purpose of the doctrine is to teach me how to be at peace with them, how to live in harmony with them, how to avoid divisions and schisms. If I can quote every passage in the sacred scriptures and if I use them to promote or defend division, I have missed the whole purpose of the doctrine. To study doctrine for doctrine's sake may make of me a legalistic disputant but it can never make me a peacemaker. It is only as doctrine changes life and conduct for the better, only as it enhances brotherly love, that it is lifted from the pages of a book and translated into a godly life. The apostle Paul only once became a philosopher when he wrote, "The aim and object of this command is the love which springs from a clean heart, from a good conscience, and from faith that is genuine"(1 Tim. 1:5).

     The church was not created to be a monolithic structure with authoritarian claims. It was not brought into existence to be the guardian of orthodoxy, or a social welfare agency. The church is a redemptive society composed of those who are "the people of God" and it has a task which no other institution in the world can imitate or duplicate. It is the exponent of the only power in the universe which can transform the world. Its very existence is proof of the reality of that power for nothing else could have created it.

     This force can change the vilest criminals into the most useful servants of humanity. It can move men whose lives are sterile and futile to sell their earthly possessions and live in stinking jungles for the sole purpose of sharing their greatest treasure with naked, uncivilized savages, whom they covet as brethren. It can drive others with a consuming passion to feed the hungry, clothe the naked and minister to the sick and never ask a word of thanks in return. The church is the divine organism ordained by God to furnish an undeniable example of what that power can accomplish.

     The world has to be shown. Men are conditioned to see power at work. They are accustomed to judging energy by its practical demonstration. Electricity is appreciated only as it lights homes, operates appliances and furnishes motive power. Magnetic force is best understood as it lifts huge loads of iron for transfer to train or ship. Atomic energy is comprehended in its fueling of submarines or in the firing of rockets which launch space vehicles into orbit. God understands human nature and he has furnished the whole world a clear demonstration of power at work in a timeless and ageless organism.

     The church is a redemptive fellowship created to prove the transforming power of love. Jesus said to those who were to become the foundation of the church, "This is how all men will know that you are my disciples, because you have such love for one another" (John 13:35). All men will know! It is for this reason our souls are

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purified by obeying the truth and we are born again. "Now that you have, by obeying the truth, made your souls clean enough for a genuine love of your fellows, see that you do love each other, fervently and from the heart" (1 Peter 1:22). Love satisfies every claim of law and sums up all law (Romans 13:8,10). It is the royal law, the king of all laws (James 2:8).

     Now is the time for us to recapture the real nature and purpose of the one body. In it we are all joined to the Lord who loved us and gave himself for us. Through him we are joined to every brother on earth. All of these are frail, faulty and feeble. None are perfect. They are all "brothers in error" but they are also, and this is more important, "brothers in Christ." If he can receive them in spite of their error we can do the same. We no more endorse their error in receiving them than he does. Let our love for the brethren triumph over our differences. Let us not allow the things upon which we disagree to cancel the effect of his blood that makes us all one.

     Let us not be stubborn and adamant, seeking and searching for flaws and failures upon which we can harp and harangue. Let us give all who love God credit for honesty and integrity in their sincere attempts to serve him. The world is weary and worn with our wars and janglings. They are sick and tired of debates and strife. Brotherhood is based upon fatherhood, fraternity is based upon paternity, fellowship results from sonship. Factionalism can never present a perfect image of the church. We cannot divide ourselves into effective influence nor fracture ourselves into unity.

     We are one body! Let us treat each other as members of the same body and not regard each other as allied with alien tribes or foreign clans. Our disregard for others of God's children is a reflection against him who is their father as well as ours. If he has bestowed such love upon them as to call them sons of God, let us bestow such love upon them as to call them "brothers in Christ." Wherever God has a child I have a brother. I shall love all of my brothers because of his love for all of us. "Consequently I will most gladly spend and be spent for your good, even though it means that the more I love you the less you love me" (2 Cor. 12:15).