The Enduring Markers of a Healthy Church

Lessons on Church, or "#lessonsonchurch". Here’s what I have learned so far.

1. I am the church.
2. Jesus has to remain my foundation, my focus, my friend.
3. Jesus never goes on sale, because what He supplies is always in demand. His worth is inestimable. As the church, we need to be careful not to demand what He supplies. That's when we get into BIG TROUBLE.
4. My part of being church is to bear the name of the one who called me by name.
5. My part of being church is to pass the baton of AWE to younger generations.
6. I need to gather with other churches as one unified church for the purpose of encouragement.

Ever wonder what a healthy gathering of little “ekklesias” looks like? I certainly have! And this week, I stumbled on the Apostle Paul's answer to that question. He wrote about it to a little church in a letter we know as "2 Thessalonians." Paul was particularly pleased with this church. As he begins his letter to them, he lets them know that he has boasted to other churches about them. In other words, Paul has used them as a model church. Remember, our calling is to bear THE NAME. Paul’s words to this collective group of individual churches is to say that these things are reflective of THAT NAME: The name of Jesus.

Here are Paul’s words:

We always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters, as is right, because your faith is growing abundantly, and the love of every one of you for one another is increasing. Therefore, we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your steadfastness and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions that you are enduring. 

(1 Thessalonians 3-4).

I’ve pulled three key markers of a healthy church out of Paul’s boastings. They aren’t earth shattering. They are, however, a rubric of sorts, which we can use to look soul-deep at our gathering of ekklesias, or individually, since we are the church. Would Paul boast about you, or your church, to other churches? This church had...

• An abundantly growing faith.
• An increasing love for one another.
• A steadfastness and endurance in the face of persecutions and afflictions.

The writer of Hebrews said that our community of believers should not neglect meeting together, because the huge need of all ekklesias is encouragement. Paul takes that need one step further by breaking it down in these three areas: Encouragement to Faith; Encouragement to Love; and, Encouragement to Steadfastness / Perseverance. 

I don’t know about you. This is enough for me. I want to dig in a little more and unearth some details in each of those areas. There’s probably enough information to uncover to take a week on each. For now, I’m asking myself this question. If I am being the church, am I doing my part to help “one-another” other ekklesias to faith, love, and steadfastness?

You?

Your collective gathering of other believers?