The Organization of the Church – Church Function

Acts 2:42-47 is often cited as the function of the Church:

⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

And to be sure, many of the functions of the church are mentioned here: apostolic teaching, fellowship, observance of the Lord’s Supper, prayer, and evangelism. But some are not mentioned. The dictionary defines function as “an activity or purpose natural to or intended for a person or thing.” The New Testament describes the activities intended for the Church.

Baptizing New Believers

On the day of Pentecost three thousand people came to faith in the Messiah Jesus and the apostles (and perhaps others of the first believers) baptized them: “Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day” (Acts 2:41). The book of Acts notes the baptism of many new converts (Acts 8:12,38; 9:18; 10:48; 16:15,33; 18:8; 19:5). The Corinthian church baptized (1 Corinthians 15:29). It is an expectation that all believers are baptized and the Church does this.

Observe the Lord’s Supper

Paul makes it clear when correcting the Corinthians about their practice of the Lord’s Supper, that it was a meal they had each time they met (1 Corinthians 11:20-22). Undoubtedly Paul, as the founder of this church, was instrumental in starting them with this function. Jesus did not command that the Church re-enact the Last Supper every week, nor did he command how it was to be re-enacted (with a full meal or something less). He simply said, as Paul notes,

This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me… This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me. (1 Corinthians 11:24,25)

Appoint Leaders

Paul told Titus to appoint elders in every church (Titus 1:5). He himself instructed the church at Ephesus on the qualifications of elders and deacons for appointment to their leadership (1 Timothy 3:1-13) and warned Timothy about not being hasty in the appointment of leaders (1 Timothy 5:22).

Discipline Errant Members

Jesus described the process of correcting errant church members in Matthew 18:15-20 and we see church discipline carried out in Acts 5:1-11 (Ananias and Sapphira), and in 1 Corinthians 5:1-5 (the man sleeping with his step-mother). We are to judge those inside the church (1 Corinthians 5:12).

Care for Members

Paul instructs Timothy about caring for genuine widows in 1 Timothy 5 and we see the example of the Jerusalem church caring for its poor and widows. See also 1 John 3:16-18 and James 2:14-16.

Preaching the Gospel to the World

Paul instructs the Philippians:

¹⁴ Do everything without grumbling or arguing, ¹⁵ so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.”^[c] Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky ¹⁶ as you hold firmly to the word of life. (Philippians 2:14-16)

The Jerusalem church was seeing people added to their number daily as a result of their evangelizing.

Ministering to God Through Worship

Peter tells his readers to offer “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5) and the author of Hebrews tells his readers to “continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name” (Hebrews 13:15).

Teaching the Word

As the church at Jerusalem was devoted to the apostles’ teaching, so the church in every location is to be teaching the truth of Christ, “rightly handling the Word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15), everyone bringing a “word of instruction” (1 Corinthians 14:26).