God’s Blueprint for the Church

Scripture: (Ephesians 4:11-16- (NKJV) And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, (v. 12) for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, (v. 13) til we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; (v. 14) that we no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, (v. 15) but speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head- Christ- (v. 16) from whom the whole body, joined together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

Before building any structure, a good builder requires a blueprint to help from start to the finish for the desired result. Generally, there are multiple steps needed to be completed to satisfactory reach the finishing structure/goal. The scriptures above shows us God’s Blueprint design for building His church. This design was in the mind of God before the foundation of the world. His blueprint does not require paper, pen or ink for a drawing. For His desired design is to have a healthy church functioning according to His intent, as laid out in His Word.

The Greek word for church is Ekklesia. It is seen 114 times in the Bible and in 111 verses of the New Testament. Ekklesia means a “calling out.”  It never refers to a building or meeting place --but always to people, the ones “called out” of the world’s society by God calling them to Service. A true servant of God is not motivated by a large following, the biggest edifice, or of the largest radio or TV following. Their focus is on serving Christ Jesus and His people  (I Cor. 3:10-15).

God’s design for the church must have the right foundation, which is Christ Jesus -- the Head. He is the foundation that will last (I Cor. 3:10-11). No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is already laid, which is Christ Jesus ( I Cor. 3:11). Christ’s work was to build the church on Himself. To this foundation Christ gave Himself apostles, preacher, teacher to equip and bring unity to the body of Christ so that we might mature into Christ’s likeness (Eph. 4:11-13). Gifted leaders are to speak the truth in love and to be used of God to perfect and equip believers to carry out the work of the ministry. Church leaders are equippers.  Our changed behavior to reflect God’s design demonstrates a committed life to the Lord -- thus, having a life that is a complete contrast to the world and at the same time connected life to the body of Christ ( Rom. 12:1-21).

Spiritually, each believer has been given at least one spiritual gift (I Cor.12:1-12). Spiritual gifts are not to be confused with natural abilities or talents. A spiritual gift is a God given ability to serve Him and other Christians in such a way that Christ is glorified, and believers are edified. Apostles and prophets were instrumental in helping to lay the foundation of the early church (Eph. 2:20). They are not needed today. Evangelists are “bearers of the good news” moving about from place to place preaching the gospel and reaching out to the lost (Acts 8-26-40; 21:28); (Eph. 4:11c). After the foundation was laid then the evangelist built on it by winning the lost to Christ. All believers should be witnesses in today’s  ministry. All may not have the gift of evangelism, yet many are in fact, burdened for souls or witnessing to them. A Pastor (shepherd) is a person who shepherds a local (church) flock of sheep (Acts 20:28). He is responsible for feeding and leading the flock (I Peter 5:1-4). He does this by the Word of God. The food nourishes the sheep (People). The Word is the staff that guides and disciplines the sheep. The Word of God is the church’s protection and provision.  God’s blueprint design for His Church rests in Him.    

Prayer:  Heavenly Father, I acknowledge many truths concerning the Church. It is Your design with its foundation built on Christ Jesus, which is such a sure foundation that will last. My committed life is to mature in Christ’s likeness, through the work of ministries. We are identified by Your name “Christians” – the ‘called out’ of the world by God to serve Him and one another.  In Christ. Amen.

(by Novella D. Carpenter)