The Church and Its Mission

Macro View: Doctrinal Progression & Need for Power

• The instructor zooms out to illustrate the chronological progression of doctrines in a believer’s life, emphasizing that theological understanding is built step-by-step.

• Humanity innately needs supernatural power not merely human effort, to overcome inherent limitations, fulfill divine purposes, and effectively spread the Gospel. This need explains Jesus’ command to His disciples to “wait in Jerusalem” until they received power from on high (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4).

  • The day of Pentecost (Acts 2) marks the pivotal moment when this promised power is supplied. Believers are not only filled with the Holy Spirit but also immediately begin engaging in Spirit-empowered outreach, demonstrating a direct correlation between Spirit-filling and evangelism.

• The New-Testament writings, penned roughly between $60\text{–}90\,\text{AD}$, comprehensively record the emergence and solidification of local congregations throughout the Roman world, establishing the pattern for the Church.

  • Many New Testament scholars identify $\text{Acts }2:42$ – which describes the early believers’ devotion to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer – as the formal beginning of “the Church” as a distinct, divinely constituted entity.

Nature & Definition of the Church

• “The Church” is biblically defined as the Body of Christ (Col 1:18) and the habitation of God through the Spirit (Eph 2:22). As the Body, Christ is the head, and believers are individual members, each uniquely gifted and essential for the whole to function. As God's habitation, the Church is a spiritual temple where God dwells by His Spirit.

• The Church is uniquely entrusted with “divine appointments” – specific mandates and supernatural enabling – for accomplishing the Great Commission, which is its primary mission.

• Every believer who is born of the Spirit is inherently an integral part of “the general assembly and Church of the firstborn” (Heb 12:23), signifying their inclusion in the universal, heavenly Church comprised of all true believers across time and space.

Orthodoxy & Inclusivity of the Church

• The Orthodoxy test establishes the minimum doctrinal confession required for inclusion within the universal Church, focusing on core Christological truths:

  • Jesus is the Son of God: Acknowledging His divine nature and unique relationship with the Father (John 3:16).

  • Virgin birth: Belief in His miraculous conception by the Holy Spirit, preserving His sinlessness and divine origin (Matt 1:18-25).

  • Sinless life: Understanding that He lived a perfect life, free from sin, qualifying Him as the spotless lamb (Heb 4:15).

  • Substitutionary atonement on the cross: Acceptance that His death on the cross was a vicarious sacrifice, atoning for humanity’s sins (2 Cor 5:21).

  • Bodily resurrection: Belief in His literal, physical resurrection from the dead, demonstrating victory over sin and death (1 Cor 15:3-4).

  • Ascension to the Father’s right hand: Recognizing His enthronement as Lord and King, from where He intercedes for believers (Acts 1:9-11; Eph 1:20).

  • Literal second coming: Expectation of His future physical return to establish His kingdom (Acts 1:11; Rev 1:7).

• Therefore, the universal Church, broadly defined by these core tenets, includes a wide spectrum of Christian traditions and denominations:

  • Greek Orthodox

  • Roman Catholic

  • All Protestant denominations (e.g., Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Lutherans)

  • Nondenominational groups

• The Assemblies of God (AG) denomination expressly claims no exclusivity regarding salvation or being the sole true church; rather, it views itself as merely “part of the big thing.” This perspective fosters interdenominational cooperation and mutual respect, as seen with examples like Baptist or Episcopalian chaplains who may have studied at the same college and share these fundamental beliefs.

Purposes of God & Corresponding Mission of the Church

• God’s threefold eternal purpose toward humanity (as cited from Fundamental Truth #10 of the AG Statement of Faith) directly informs the Church's mission:

  1. Seek & save the lost: God's redemptive purpose, which the Church fulfills through evangelism and missions.

  2. Be worshiped by humankind: God's desire for intimate communion and glorification, fulfilled by the Church through corporate and individual worship.

  3. Build a body of believers conformed to Christ’s image: God's sanctifying purpose, achieved through discipleship, spiritual formation, and the equipping of the saints.

• The Church’s mission statements flow directly and logically from these overarching divine purposes. The “Reach, Build, Send” poster anecdote illustrates how this profound biblical mission can be articulated with striking simplicity and enduring relevance.

Scriptural Mandate for Evangelism (Great Commission)

• $\text{Matthew }28:19\text{–}20$ – The primary imperative given by Jesus is “make disciples of all nations,” which is far more comprehensive than merely “go.” This command encompasses going to people, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything Christ commanded, implying a holistic process of evangelism and discipleship.

• $\text{Mark }16:15\text{–}16$ – Jesus commands believers to “go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” He clearly states that “whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned,” underscoring the urgency and definitive eternal consequences of the message.

• $\text{Acts }1:8$ – This passage outlines the Spirit-empowered strategy for global evangelism in concentric circles: beginning in Jerusalem (local), extending to Judea (regional) and Samaria (cross-cultural, nearby), and finally reaching the ends of the earth (global), all enabled by the power of the Holy Spirit descending upon witnesses.

Corporate Worship Function

• $\text{1 Cor }12:13$ emphatically states, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” This verse highlights that the Holy Spirit unites all believers into a single spiritual entity, fostering communal worship and ensuring a shared spiritual experience through His presence and indwelling.

Building & Equipping the Body

• The various gifts and ministries listed in passages like 1 Cor 12:28 and 14:12 unveil God’s intricate “construction plan” for His Church, designed for its edification, growth, and effective service within the world. These are not merely for individual benefit but for the collective good of the body.

• A key passage, $\text{Ephesians }4:11\text{–}16$, is recommended as the foundational backbone for any church-vision document due to its comprehensive outline of God's strategy for building the Church:

  • Christ Himself bestows specific leadership gifts upon the Church: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. These are not exhaustive but representative of roles designed to serve the body.

  • Their overarching purpose is to “equip the saints for the work of ministry,” meaning leadership's role is not to do all the ministry, but to train and empower every believer to participate in the Church's mission.

  • The ultimate end-goal of this equipping process is multifaceted: achieving unity of the faith, reaching maturity in Christ, attaining Christ-likeness in character and conduct; it also serves for the prevention of doctrinal drift (being tossed by every wave of false teaching); and it ensures corporate growth of the entire body, which builds itself up in love “by every supporting ligament,” implying interconnectedness and mutual support among members.

• A practical warning arises: When a congregation or its leadership drifts from the principles and purposes outlined in this Ephesians 4 passage, it has, arguably, “lost the plot” of God’s ordained structure and function for the Church. Leadership books and management models can be helpful but must always remain subordinate to and aligned with Scripture, never replacing its authority or blueprint.

Assemblies of God Self-Identification & Unique Emphases

• The Assemblies of God denomination exists “expressly” to uphold and perpetuate New-Testament apostolic priorities in contemporary ministry by:

  • Actively encouraging believers to seek and be baptized in the Holy Spirit as a distinct experience subsequent to salvation, understood as an endowment of power for service.

  • Promoting continual Spirit-filled living as the dynamic source of empowerment for evangelism, heartfelt worship, and compassionate service to others.

Role of the Holy Spirit in Mission & Worship

• The Holy Spirit provides essential empowerment for evangelism through supernatural signs that validate the gospel message:

  • Mark 16:17-20 promises that those who believe will be accompanied by signs such as speaking in new tongues, driving out demons, being protected from harm, and laying hands on the sick to heal them. These signs serve to confirm the word proclaimed.

  • Acts 4:29-31 illustrates this empowerment: when the persecuted church prayed for boldness, the place where they were meeting was shaken, and “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.” This immediate refilling indicates fresh empowerment for proclamation in the face of opposition.

  • Heb 2:3-4 confirms that God Himself “testified to it by signs, wonders, various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will,” showing divine confirmation of the salvation message.

• The Holy Spirit also profoundly enriches worship and facilitates divine revelation:

  • 1 Cor 2:10-16 explains that “the Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God,” and grants believers “the mind of Christ,” enabling them to understand spiritual truths that the natural mind cannot grasp, leading to deeper worship and discernment.

• Daily application of Spirit-filled living is crucial:

  • Believers are encouraged to continually seek fresh infilling of the Spirit, not as a one-time event, but as a daily, moment-by-moment reliance—“today, tomorrow, and at bedtime”—recognizing their ongoing need for divine power.

  • All ministries within the church, regardless of perceived spiritual intensity (e.g., worship leaders, office workers, Sunday school teachers), require the Spirit’s power to be effective, not only formal evangelists or preachers.

Practical Ministry Applications & Leadership Insights

• Vision Questions: When a church board or leadership asks, “What’s our mission?” the leader should consistently direct them back to the foundational biblical mandates found in $\text{Matthew }28$ (the Great Commission) and $\text{Ephesians }4$ (the equipping of the saints). These scriptures provide the unchanging blueprint for the Church’s purpose.

• The “Reach, Build, Send” framework remains eternally valid and biblically sound; leaders must resist the temptation to neglect it in favor of trendy corporate models or fads that lack scriptural depth.

• Healthy church indicators are evident when:

  • People are genuinely being saved and added to the church.

  • The congregation consistently experiences the manifest presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

  • The Gospel is proclaimed clearly and regularly, maintaining its central place in all communication.

• Burnout antidote in ministry is found not in increased self-effort but in complete reliance on the Holy Spirit’s power. Attempting ministry in self-sufficiency inevitably leads to boredom, fatigue, and ineffectiveness.

• Pastoral responsibility encompasses key duties: continuously teaching on the baptism in the Spirit and encouraging believers to pursue it; training and empowering the laity for active participation in ministry; and actively avoiding any form of exclusivism or sectarianism that would diminish the universal nature of the Body of Christ.