(Matthew 18:15-20) There is much discussion today about what people think about church. Scripture tells us what Jesus thinks about the church, and how it should affect our thinking. Let's let the Founder speak for Himself... (0962250311) ----more---- Jesus: The Founder and Foundation of the Church If you want to know about any institution, perhaps the best place to start is listen to the words of the founder. Recently I read an interview with Dr. Cathy, the founder of Chick-fil-A. It was fascinating. Not just because of his business sense, but because of his dedication to Christ, his Christian testimony. But it was so intriguing to me just to hear from the founder's mouth, his own words the foundational principles that they'd built their company upon. If you want to know something about the church of the Lord, Jesus Christ, maybe it would be good if we asked the founder. In our world today, everybody has an opinion. Everybody wants to give their idea. This is what I think of church. Now this is what we want church to be. Wait a minute, let's get a word from the Founder today. What does He say about His church? Jesus' Vision for His Church And we began this study in Matthew chapter 16, verse 18, where Jesus said, "And I say also unto thee that thou Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my church.And the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." So we know it's his church. We know he's building his church. We know he is building his church upon himself. It's not upon Peter that the church is being built. As a matter of fact, there's a little divine humor here. Peter's name literally means a little pebble, a little rock. And then he goes on to say, but I'm gonna build my church upon this rock. In other words, upon a great rock, a great truth, what is that great truth? Oh, it is the great truth of who Jesus is. Paul would later say, of the foundation, can no man lay then that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. So this is where the Founder begins talking about His church. But if you go two chapters later in the gospel, according to Matthew chapter 18, He continues. Remember, He's laying foundational principles in the hearts and minds of His first followers, the original disciples. I believe it's my conviction that the church started with Christ and His disciples. Now, there's some people that believe the church didn't start until the Book of Acts. I believe from my study of scripture that the Lord Jesus who is the Founder of the church, was the first pastor, and I believe the original disciples that little group of 12, that was the first called out assembly, that was the first church, and that then that church was empowered by the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost in the Book of Acts. In Acts, you see the advancement of the church. It's the book of the Continuing Christ. But if you want to know something about the beginning of the church, then you have to go back and see what the Lord Jesus said to His disciples. And so in Matthew chapter 18, beginning in verse 15, Jesus is teaching something about discipline within the church. Christ's Purpose and Principles for His Church Listen to what he says. "Moreover, if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone. If he shall hear thee, thou is gain thy brother. But if you will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more that in the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word may be established." That's not my purpose to get into all the implications here, but there's a great principle. And the great principle is this, that when you have a problem with another brother or sister in Christ that should be dealt with personally, and then it should be dealt with privately within the local church. This is a day and age, especially with social media where everything gets aired. The Lord Jesus said. There's some things that ought to be dealt with in the family, within the family of God. So he goes on in verse number 17 and says this, "And if he shall neglect to hear them tell it unto the church, but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man. And a publican verily I say unto you, whatsoever you shall bind on earth, shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose on earth shall be loose in heaven." Does that sound vaguely familiar? That is the same teaching that He gave in Matthew chapter 16, when he first talked about building his church, He said to Peter, "I'm going to give you the keys of the kingdom. Whatever you bind on earth, we bound in heaven. Whatever you loose on earth will be loose in heaven." The Power of Prayer in the Church In other words, God has given to his church the great privilege of prayer, which is the divine link. It is the connection between earth and heaven. Heaven and earth. Isn't that glorious? And then he says in Matthew chapter 18, verse 19, "Again, I say unto you that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ...
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