“The Local Church”
October 23, 2005
1 Timothy 3:14-16
I want to begin by thanking you for putting my mug shot in the newspaper this week. I can’t begin to tell you how much it has meant to me. You’ve done it for several years now, and the last couple of years the caption under my picture has just ministered to my soul. Last year, probably unbeknownst to you, I was struggling with vision and where to lead the church. But I was trying. And you wrote, “Pastor Matt Mitchell, thank you not just for what you do or who you are, but for how & where you are leading us.” That just floored me last year.
And then this year, when I was struggling through preparing the messages for this series on the local church, you wrote this: “Pastor Matt, thank you for 7 years of making Sunday the best day of the week.” And that just blew me away when I saw that. It’s like you’ve been reading my mind and seeing exactly what I’ve wanted for you. Kind of like when I “hit it on the nail” in a sermon and one of you says, “That one was for me.” These were for me! So thank you for your kind and thoughtful appreciation. It is a joy to be your pastor.
This is the fifth and last message this Fall on the doctrine of the local church. We’ve been answering the question: “What makes it a church?” What are the essential ingredients in a healthy, biblical, God-honoring church?
The first week, we basically said that it was a God-glorifying purpose. Our purpose is to glorify God by bringing people into a love relationship with Jesus Christ through worship, instruction, fellowship, evangelism, and service.
October 23, 2005
1 Timothy 3:14-16
I want to begin by thanking you for putting my mug shot in the newspaper this week. I can’t begin to tell you how much it has meant to me. You’ve done it for several years now, and the last couple of years the caption under my picture has just ministered to my soul. Last year, probably unbeknownst to you, I was struggling with vision and where to lead the church. But I was trying. And you wrote, “Pastor Matt Mitchell, thank you not just for what you do or who you are, but for how & where you are leading us.” That just floored me last year.
And then this year, when I was struggling through preparing the messages for this series on the local church, you wrote this: “Pastor Matt, thank you for 7 years of making Sunday the best day of the week.” And that just blew me away when I saw that. It’s like you’ve been reading my mind and seeing exactly what I’ve wanted for you. Kind of like when I “hit it on the nail” in a sermon and one of you says, “That one was for me.” These were for me! So thank you for your kind and thoughtful appreciation. It is a joy to be your pastor.
This is the fifth and last message this Fall on the doctrine of the local church. We’ve been answering the question: “What makes it a church?” What are the essential ingredients in a healthy, biblical, God-honoring church?
The first week, we basically said that it was a God-glorifying purpose. Our purpose is to glorify God by bringing people into a love relationship with Jesus Christ through worship, instruction, fellowship, evangelism, and service.
Or as we’ve been saying recently: loving Jesus, learning of Jesus, linking to others in Jesus, luring others to Jesus, and living for Jesus. Those purposes were all present for the Newborn Church in Acts chapter 2.
The second ingredient of a healthy, biblical, God-honoring church is God-glorifying leadership and follower-ship. God desires for His church to have godly, qualified leaders who joyfully watch over the souls of God’s flock and godly followers who obey and submit to their leaders’ authority. The Joyfully-Led Church.
The third essential ingredient for a healthy Church is being Cross-Centered. The Cross-Centered Church. Gospel-oriented, evangelical, built on the Good News of Jesus Christ and Him crucified. Being Cross-Centered in our proclamation of God’s Word and Cross-Centered in our celebration of the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The Cross-Centered Church.
Last week, we saw the fourth and last essential ingredient for a healthy, biblical, God-honoring Church, and it was Church Discipline. God desires for His church to go after those who stray. The Search & Rescue Church. Not content to let others just wander off. We are to be a Search & Rescue Church.
Now today, I want to put the cap on this series by going to 1 Timothy chapter 3 and seeing what God says the Local Church is.
What is the local church? How important is the local church? 1 Timothy chapter 3.
In verse 14, Paul says why he’s written this letter:
“Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth. Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.” (NIV)
We should be thankful that the Apostle Paul expected to be delayed at reaching Ephesus where Timothy was in charge of the church.
If he didn’t expect to be delayed, Paul wouldn’t have written the book of 1 Timothy, and it wouldn’t be in our Bibles. Sometimes, we don’t know why we have to wait for what seems like so long. But here, we know that if Paul didn’t have to wait, we wouldn’t have this book in the Bible. Thank the Lord for unplanned delays!
Thankfully, Paul did write this letter. And verses 14, 15, & 16 are the heart of the letter. They express the purpose of this letter. And it is all about “The Local Church.”
Verse 14 again. “Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed [which seems likely], you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
Paul wrote this letter so that Timothy’s people would know how “to conduct themselves,” how to behave, how to relate to, how to live in the local church.
This letter is not just about being a part of the universal church, the invisible church connected around the world by faith in Christ. This letter is about the nitty-gritty of how to live in the local church. 1 Timothy is full of instructions about the purpose of the local church, godly leadership and followership in the local church, being Cross-Centered in the local church, keeping the Main Thing the main thing in the local church, and even church discipline in the local church.
In many ways, 1 Timothy is a manual on how to keep a local church healthy. When we’re done watching the “Church in Real-Time” videos in Sunday School, the adult class is going to begin a study on 1 Timothy to carry this theme of the local church a little further.
Paul knew how important the Local Church really was. See what he says the Local Church is: “I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
There are three word-pictures here.
#1. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS GOD’S HOUSEHOLD.
Paul says that the local church is God’s household.
Now, remember, Paul is not talking here about a literal church building.
There were probably no church buildings when this letter was written. The Local Church primarily met in local homes.
The church is not a building. The church is a people.
But these people (called the church) are God’s household.
A household is a place where someone lives and the family that lives within it.
It’s another way of saying that the church is a family. It’s really a family made up of families. A household of households.
Now, in our household, there is Daddy and Mommy, Robin, Andrew, Peter, Isaac, and their little friends: Violet the Purple Bear, Zippy, Blue Bear, and a little duck blanket for Isaac. That’s our household.
And we are a household that is a part of a larger household–God’s household, the church.
God has a family. He is a Father. And we are His children, brothers and sisters with one another. Ordered relationships within an ordered household. Familial bonds.
“I’m so glad I am a part of the Family of God!”
You and I are not individuals with a merely personal love relationship with Jesus Christ.
You and I are a family with a corporate love relationship with Jesus Christ. He is our elder-brother, and God is our Father!
God has a family. Do you think of yourself when you come to church as coming Home? Not to the building, but to the people.
The church is not something we go to (aka “Where do you go to church?”). It is something we are. You don’t “go to family.” “Where do you go to family?” You go to family meetings, family gatherings, family celebrations. We don’t go to church. We go to church meetings, church gatherings, church celebrations.
We are the church.
The Local Church is God’s household.
And a household is the family that lives in a house and (to some degree) the house itself. The dwelling place.
This is saying that the Local Church is God’s dwelling place!
We are where God lives!
Have you ever thought about it like that?
The Bible says that we are individually living stones that are being built up together into a place where God’s glory dwells.
The Local Church is God’s household. The King James Version says, “God’s house.”
We are God’s house. We are where God lives.
I’ve heard well meaning people tell little children not to run in the church building because it is “God’s house.” Well, maybe they shouldn’t run in the building.
But this building is not where God lives.
This church is. And the local church is a family, a household where God lives.
Look around you. Look at the people sitting in front of you. Look at the people sitting behind you. Look at the people on either side of you down the aisle.
That’s where God lives. And God especially lives among us when we gather as the church.
Yes, God lives everywhere. But He is especially present to bless among His people.
Remember, the last page of Exodus?
Where the tabernacle was complete, and Moses inspected it and everybody wondered and waited to see if God would take up residence in it?
And then the Glory of the Lord descended onto the tabernacle?!
And God came to live at among His people?
The tabernacle was a shadow of what the church would be.
The local church is the household of God!
Not the building but the people (who are the building where God lives).
And that leads to the second word picture.
#2. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS THE ASSEMBLY OF THE LIVING GOD.
V.14 again.
“Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God.”
The Greek Word translated church is ekklesia. It came from two other words that mean to be “called out.” And it was often used of a called-out assembly. A group of people–a group, mind you, this is another corporate word–called out for some purpose.
The Local Church is a group of people who are called-out, not some dead idol, but to the living God. The Living God!
God is alive. And He has gathered a people to Himself. And they exist for His glory.
The local church is the place where the action is!
It’s where the glory is. It’s where the life is. The life of the living God!
No other group, no other assembly on Earth, can make this claim!
The local church is the assembly of the living God!
Not Congress. That’s an assembly. Not the United Nations. That’s an assembly. Not the assembly at Beaver Stadium. Not an assembly at the Bryce Jordan Center.
No other group, no other assembly on Earth, can make this claim.
The local church is the assembly of the living God!
The local church is where the action is.
Now, you say, Pastor Matt, it doesn’t seem like it.
It seems like the action is in those other places most of the time.
But appearances can be deceiving.
The book of Ephesians says that God’s “intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (3:10-11)
Angels and demons stand in awe of what happens in this room on Sunday mornings!
This is where the action is. I don’t want to be anywhere else than in the Local Church.
Even in the parachurch. Parachurch ministries are wonderful things, gifts to the Body of Christ–I am very thankful for them.
But here is where the action is. This is the assembly of the living God!
It’s not always as exciting as a Christian concert.
But this is where the action is. The local church is the assembly of the living God.
And #3. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS THE PILLAR AND FOUNDATION OF THE TRUTH.
That’s what it says in verse 15.
“I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
The Local Church upholds the truth.
Now, in one sense, the truth upholds the church. Absolutely. The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord. Absolutely.
But in another sense, the church upholds the truth in the world.
The Local Church is God’s answer to falsehood, error, heresy, and lies.
It is a pillar. We are a pillar.
The temple of Artemis (who was a dead goddess!) (in Ephesus where Timothy was) had 127 Ionic pillars, each over 18 meters high, making it one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world.
But Paul was saying that the local church in Ephesus (which probably had no buildings of it’s own) towered over the temple of Artemis in its awesome value to the world. It is the church of the living God which holds aloft the truth of the living God!
And it is a foundation. The Local Church undergirds the truth in a world full of lies.
What truth?
The truth of the Gospel. Verse 16. “Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.”
That is the truth of the Gospel.
Paul never loses sight of the Main Thing. The main thing is to keep the Main Thing the main thing. And the main thing is the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It’s the good news of His incarnation: “He appeared in a body.”
It’s the good news of His death and resurrection: “He was vindicated by the Spirit.”
It’s the good news of His exaltation to the right hand of the majesty on High, “He was seen by angels when He took His rightful place in Heaven.”
It’s the good news of His proclamation by missionaries and by you and me, “He was preached among the nations.”
It’s the good news of the establishment of His church throughout the Earth, “He was
believed on in the world.”
And it’s the good news of the eventual, uncontested reign of His Kingdom forever and ever and ever. “He was taken up in glory!”
It’s the gospel. The gospel is the main thing.
And the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing! That’s the truth that we uphold.
The Local Church upholds the truth like a pillar and a foundation. That’s how important it is!
The Local Church is God’s plan to publish the Gospel in all the world.
Bill Hybels is fond of saying that “the Local Church is the hope of the world.”
That’s how important it is.
Do you believe that?
I do. That’s what I am giving my life’s work to–building the church.
I’ve fallen in love with the Local Church again this Fall.
The Local Church is the Household of God.
The Family of God. And the place (unlike every other place) where God’s glory dwells.
Thankfully, Paul did write this letter. And verses 14, 15, & 16 are the heart of the letter. They express the purpose of this letter. And it is all about “The Local Church.”
Verse 14 again. “Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed [which seems likely], you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
Paul wrote this letter so that Timothy’s people would know how “to conduct themselves,” how to behave, how to relate to, how to live in the local church.
This letter is not just about being a part of the universal church, the invisible church connected around the world by faith in Christ. This letter is about the nitty-gritty of how to live in the local church. 1 Timothy is full of instructions about the purpose of the local church, godly leadership and followership in the local church, being Cross-Centered in the local church, keeping the Main Thing the main thing in the local church, and even church discipline in the local church.
In many ways, 1 Timothy is a manual on how to keep a local church healthy. When we’re done watching the “Church in Real-Time” videos in Sunday School, the adult class is going to begin a study on 1 Timothy to carry this theme of the local church a little further.
Paul knew how important the Local Church really was. See what he says the Local Church is: “I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
There are three word-pictures here.
#1. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS GOD’S HOUSEHOLD.
Paul says that the local church is God’s household.
Now, remember, Paul is not talking here about a literal church building.
There were probably no church buildings when this letter was written. The Local Church primarily met in local homes.
The church is not a building. The church is a people.
But these people (called the church) are God’s household.
A household is a place where someone lives and the family that lives within it.
It’s another way of saying that the church is a family. It’s really a family made up of families. A household of households.
Now, in our household, there is Daddy and Mommy, Robin, Andrew, Peter, Isaac, and their little friends: Violet the Purple Bear, Zippy, Blue Bear, and a little duck blanket for Isaac. That’s our household.
And we are a household that is a part of a larger household–God’s household, the church.
God has a family. He is a Father. And we are His children, brothers and sisters with one another. Ordered relationships within an ordered household. Familial bonds.
“I’m so glad I am a part of the Family of God!”
You and I are not individuals with a merely personal love relationship with Jesus Christ.
You and I are a family with a corporate love relationship with Jesus Christ. He is our elder-brother, and God is our Father!
God has a family. Do you think of yourself when you come to church as coming Home? Not to the building, but to the people.
The church is not something we go to (aka “Where do you go to church?”). It is something we are. You don’t “go to family.” “Where do you go to family?” You go to family meetings, family gatherings, family celebrations. We don’t go to church. We go to church meetings, church gatherings, church celebrations.
We are the church.
The Local Church is God’s household.
And a household is the family that lives in a house and (to some degree) the house itself. The dwelling place.
This is saying that the Local Church is God’s dwelling place!
We are where God lives!
Have you ever thought about it like that?
The Bible says that we are individually living stones that are being built up together into a place where God’s glory dwells.
The Local Church is God’s household. The King James Version says, “God’s house.”
We are God’s house. We are where God lives.
I’ve heard well meaning people tell little children not to run in the church building because it is “God’s house.” Well, maybe they shouldn’t run in the building.
But this building is not where God lives.
This church is. And the local church is a family, a household where God lives.
Look around you. Look at the people sitting in front of you. Look at the people sitting behind you. Look at the people on either side of you down the aisle.
That’s where God lives. And God especially lives among us when we gather as the church.
Yes, God lives everywhere. But He is especially present to bless among His people.
Remember, the last page of Exodus?
Where the tabernacle was complete, and Moses inspected it and everybody wondered and waited to see if God would take up residence in it?
And then the Glory of the Lord descended onto the tabernacle?!
And God came to live at among His people?
The tabernacle was a shadow of what the church would be.
The local church is the household of God!
Not the building but the people (who are the building where God lives).
And that leads to the second word picture.
#2. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS THE ASSEMBLY OF THE LIVING GOD.
V.14 again.
“Although I hope to come to you soon, I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God.”
The Greek Word translated church is ekklesia. It came from two other words that mean to be “called out.” And it was often used of a called-out assembly. A group of people–a group, mind you, this is another corporate word–called out for some purpose.
The Local Church is a group of people who are called-out, not some dead idol, but to the living God. The Living God!
God is alive. And He has gathered a people to Himself. And they exist for His glory.
The local church is the place where the action is!
It’s where the glory is. It’s where the life is. The life of the living God!
No other group, no other assembly on Earth, can make this claim!
The local church is the assembly of the living God!
Not Congress. That’s an assembly. Not the United Nations. That’s an assembly. Not the assembly at Beaver Stadium. Not an assembly at the Bryce Jordan Center.
No other group, no other assembly on Earth, can make this claim.
The local church is the assembly of the living God!
The local church is where the action is.
Now, you say, Pastor Matt, it doesn’t seem like it.
It seems like the action is in those other places most of the time.
But appearances can be deceiving.
The book of Ephesians says that God’s “intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (3:10-11)
Angels and demons stand in awe of what happens in this room on Sunday mornings!
This is where the action is. I don’t want to be anywhere else than in the Local Church.
Even in the parachurch. Parachurch ministries are wonderful things, gifts to the Body of Christ–I am very thankful for them.
But here is where the action is. This is the assembly of the living God!
It’s not always as exciting as a Christian concert.
But this is where the action is. The local church is the assembly of the living God.
And #3. THE LOCAL CHURCH IS THE PILLAR AND FOUNDATION OF THE TRUTH.
That’s what it says in verse 15.
“I am writing you these instructions so that, if I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth.”
The Local Church upholds the truth.
Now, in one sense, the truth upholds the church. Absolutely. The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord. Absolutely.
But in another sense, the church upholds the truth in the world.
The Local Church is God’s answer to falsehood, error, heresy, and lies.
It is a pillar. We are a pillar.
The temple of Artemis (who was a dead goddess!) (in Ephesus where Timothy was) had 127 Ionic pillars, each over 18 meters high, making it one of the 7 wonders of the ancient world.
But Paul was saying that the local church in Ephesus (which probably had no buildings of it’s own) towered over the temple of Artemis in its awesome value to the world. It is the church of the living God which holds aloft the truth of the living God!
And it is a foundation. The Local Church undergirds the truth in a world full of lies.
What truth?
The truth of the Gospel. Verse 16. “Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory.”
That is the truth of the Gospel.
Paul never loses sight of the Main Thing. The main thing is to keep the Main Thing the main thing. And the main thing is the gospel of Jesus Christ.
It’s the good news of His incarnation: “He appeared in a body.”
It’s the good news of His death and resurrection: “He was vindicated by the Spirit.”
It’s the good news of His exaltation to the right hand of the majesty on High, “He was seen by angels when He took His rightful place in Heaven.”
It’s the good news of His proclamation by missionaries and by you and me, “He was preached among the nations.”
It’s the good news of the establishment of His church throughout the Earth, “He was
believed on in the world.”
And it’s the good news of the eventual, uncontested reign of His Kingdom forever and ever and ever. “He was taken up in glory!”
It’s the gospel. The gospel is the main thing.
And the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing! That’s the truth that we uphold.
The Local Church upholds the truth like a pillar and a foundation. That’s how important it is!
The Local Church is God’s plan to publish the Gospel in all the world.
Bill Hybels is fond of saying that “the Local Church is the hope of the world.”
That’s how important it is.
Do you believe that?
I do. That’s what I am giving my life’s work to–building the church.
I’ve fallen in love with the Local Church again this Fall.
The Local Church is the Household of God.
The Family of God. And the place (unlike every other place) where God’s glory dwells.
The Local Church is the Assembly of the Living God.
It’s where the action is. It’s where the life is. It’s where the glory is.
The Local Church is the Pillar and Foundation of the Truth in the World.
We carry the priceless treasure of the Gospel that Paul says is undeniably great!
That’s the Local Church.
So what should we do about it?
Three points of application to close this sermon and the whole series on the local church.
#1. Become a Part of the Local Church.
As Joshua Harris would say, “Stop Dating the Church.”
Make the local church a priority in your life.
Join the membership. Go through the process and become a member. It is what your leadership here would desire for you to do. Make our job a joy and join.
Become a Part of the Local Church.
Prioritize participation in the Local Church.
For some people, church is the thing you do if you don’t get a better offer.
Camping, hunting, sporting events, a sniffle, a family gathering all take priority over the local church. “It was such a nice day!”
I’m not saying don’t go to those things and be here every time the door is opened. I’m saying, “This is the family of God. This is the assembly of the living God. This is the pillar and foundation of the truth.” It’s more important than just about anything else. Act like it!
Josh Harris says to become preoccupied with the Local Church. Be passionately committed.
Center your life on around it. Some of you here are living examples of what I mean.
Most of you can’t center your life around the church like I can. I’m a paid elder. I’m in career ministry. I am “married to the church” so to speak.
But many here have become a vital part of the local church and have lives that revolve around it and give testimony to it being the important thing that it is in their world.
Become a part of the Local Church.
It’s exciting to have 3 new couples join the membership today. They are a living testimony to the importance of the Local Church.
#2. Do Your Part in the Local Church.
Some of you may be technically members, but you don’t do very much to show it.
Some of the non-members at this church put some of our official members to shame.
And Sunday mornings are not enough! Not for you and not for us!
All of us need to do our part.
Another picture of the Local Church is that of a body–the body of Christ.
We are all body parts. And we all have a role to fill.
I’m like the stomach. I take in the Bible all week and digest it and send it’s truths out on Sunday to the rest of the body for action.
What body part are you? Are you doing your part?
Inside your bulletin is a little one sheet handout. It’s a tool that we have developed on the Leadership Board to help us to make disciples here at Lanse Free Church.
Here’s a secret for you. This is what we are trying to do to you piece by piece.
We’re trying to help you to take up your part in the Local Church by being made into a disciple in these 5 categories: Loving Jesus, Learning of Jesus, Linking to Others in Jesus, Luring Others to Jesus, and Living for Jesus.
In each box is a goal for each of us (and none of us have arrived) in Commitment, Participation, Life Skills, Following Christ in All of Life, Key Attitudes, and Prayer.
These are our goals for each part of the Body of Christ here at Lanse Free Church.
This is a one-page picture of what we think living in the local church should look like.
Worship in the Local Church, Being Instructed By the Local Church, Fellowshipping within the Local Church, Evangelizing with the Local Church, and Serving Within the Local Church.
Do your part in the Local Church.
The Nominating Committee is looking for officers for 2006. Many of you probably got what I call a “summons” today. Pray about that. Is that your part?
Maybe your part will be to help us to plant another Local Church in Philipsburg.
Do your part in the Local Church.
And #3 (and last). Never Part from the Local Church.
Love the local church. And stay committed.
The Bible says that Jesus Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her.
Can we do no less?
The Local Church is the Household of God. The Family of God!
The Local Church is the Assembly of the Living God. Where the Action Is!
The Local Church is the Pillar and Foundation of the Truth to a Needy World.
Another word picture of the Local Church in the Bible is that of a Bride.
The Bride of Christ.
Jesus loves His bride and has committed Himself to her forever.
And so should we.
The days of being Lone Ranger Christians need to be over.
The days of claiming to be a Christian but not having a love for and part in the Local Church need to be over.
It’s time to commit.
It’s time to say, “Yes.”
It’s time to love the Local Church, Jesus’ Bride.
Become a Part
Do Your Part
And Never Part from the Local Church.
"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."
[As I've been working through the theology of the local church, I've been listening to a series of messages from Sovereign Grace Ministries entitled: The Dearest Place on Earth. I highly recommend them. They have been food for my soul. Mark Mullery's sermon on 1 Timothy 3:14-16 was a definite source for this message, as was Mike Bullmore's sermon on 1 Peter 4 and Joshua Harris' message on Ephesians 5. I am in their debt.]
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