12-3-2002
RELI
314
NT
Theology
The
idea of community found in the New Testament is very involved and can have a
big influence on the way in which we conduct ourselves within the community of
believers today. When discussing this
topic the first thing that should be looked at are the terms that the New Testament
uses to describe this community. One of
them is the term “ekklesia,” which means a “congregation of Christians,
implying interacting membership, an assembly of God.”1 This term was originally used in Greek
writings from the 5th century B.C. on for political gatherings
within a city.2 In the book of Acts both the singular and the plural terms are
used to designate the community, but in the greater scheme of things they all
refer to one complete Church, or group of believers called by God.3
The next term to be considered is “soma,” often translated as “body,”4 but in this context it refers to
believers who within a group where each play a vital role in the function of
that group (Ephesians 4:12).5 Paul makes great use of this metaphor
(Romans 12:5, Ephesians 1:23, etc.), where a person enters into this
relationship of the community through repentance and being united with Christ
in his death.6 The last term we will consider is that of “koinonia,” or
“fellowship.” This term refers to “an
association involving close mutual relationship and involvement” (1 Corinthians
1:9).7
1 John 1:3 shows that that it is on the basis of what the apostles had
seen and heard that fellowship is established, and that fellowship is with God
and Christ.
These
churches, or communities, are all established on the new covenant in Christ,
the community belongs to him (Matthew 16:18), and he is the head of it (Romans
12:5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-31; Colossians 1:18).8 It is Christ, therefore, who appoints all of
the gifts and responsibilities within this community.9 The organization of the communities in the
New Testament is not all the same. It
seems that the apostles laid the basic rules for organization and left the
specifics up to the individual churches.10 The churches were founded by the apostles
based on their testimony of what they had seen and heard from Christ himself.11
They then appointed elders to be leaders of the individual communities
and take over the responsibilities of leadership after they were gone (Acts 15
and 21:18).12 Their guidelines for integrity are given in
1 Timothy 3:1-7 and 5:17-20. Teachers
and Pastors were to take on the role of teaching and evangelizing much like the
apostles.13 Deacons were the first office assigned in
the church (Acts 6:1-6).14 Their ministry was one of service to care
for the widows, orphans, and poor in the community so that the apostles would
be free to teach the Word of God, and their standards are found in 1 Timothy
3:8-13.15
Women were also included in this ministry of service due to the
reference in Romans 16:1 to Phoebe as a deaconess.
The
community as a body of believers had certain responsibilities that they were to
tend to while awaiting the return of Christ.
The first is the proclamation of the risen Christ and making disciples,
a command given by Christ himself in Matthew 28:18-20. Going along with that was the ministry of
the Word of God to the flock, the actual practice of making disciples. There was also the responsibility of caring
for the poor, the orphaned, and the widowed, a principle found in numerous
books of the New Testament (especially Matthew 6:19-20, James 2:1-13, 1 Timothy
6:17-18, etc.) that is based on love for God and the neighbor.16
Another main responsibility was protecting against false doctrine, which
the Pastoral Epistles give much attention to.17
They way that the community
in the New Testament functioned can be seen in several pericopes in the book of
Acts. The first is Acts 2:42-47. In this passage there are four things that
the people devoted themselves to. They
were the Apostles’ teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and
prayer. They did these activities on a
regular basis, and continued to meet in the Temple and participate in worship.18
One striking aspect to this passage is the reference in verse 44 and 45
of being together, having “all things in common,” and “selling possessions and
goods” for those who were in need.
The second passage of Acs
4:32-35 speaks of this same principle.
They shared their possessions to the point that there was no one poor
among them. Some have described this as
a “religious communism of love,”19 but I
see it much differently. This giving up
of possessions was voluntary and there was no attempt to make everyone renounce
their material goods so that all would be equal. The extent of their love for each other is shown in verses
34b-35, with some selling land and homes to care for the needy among them.20
They placed the money at the Apostles’ feet for them to distribute so
that those who had really shown to be in need received the money.21
Luke follows this with two small passages of examples of this giving. The first is in 4:36-37, where Barnabas is
given as a positive example.22 Then in 5:1-11 Ananias and Sapphira are
given as negative examples.23
The last overarching theme
that runs through this topic of community is the work of the Spirit of God. The Spirit serves as Christ’s presence until
he returns, and serves as the medium through which Christ works in his church.24
It is the Spirit that promotes unity within the community, uniting
people from every race and background (Galatians 3:28).25
1 Johannes P. Louw and Eugene A. Nida, “ekklesia, as,” Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains, (New York, NY: United Bible Societies, 1988), 126.
2 Ed. Colin Brown, et al. “Church,” The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology, (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1975), 291.
3 P.S. Minear, “Church, Idea of,” The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1962), 608.
4 Louw and Nida, “soma, tos,” 94.
5 Ibid, 127.
6 Minear, 614.
7 Louw and Nida, “koinonia, as,” 446.
8 D.J. Tidball, “Church,” New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, eds. T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner, et al. (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000), 408.
9 Minear, 615.
10 P.H. Menoud, “Church, Life and Organization of,” The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al. (Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1962), 625.
11 Ibid, 618.
12 Ibid, 623.
13 Ibid, 624.
14 William Barclay, The Acts of the Apostles, (Philadelphia, PA: The Westminster Press, 1953), 51.
15 Menoud, 624.
16 H. Kvalben, “Poor, Poverty,” New Dictionary of Biblical Theology, eds. T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner, et al. (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2000), 690.
17 I. Howard Marshall, 1 Peter, ed. Grant R. Osborne, et al. (Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 1991), 162.
18 T.C. Smith, “Acts,” The Broadman Bible Commentary, vol. 10, ed. Clifton J. Allen, et al. (Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1970), 32.
19 Daniel B. McGee, “Sharing Possessions: A Study in Biblical Ethics,” With Steadfast Purpose, (Waco, TX: Baylor University, 1990), 168.
20 Justin Taylor, “The Community of Goods Among the First Christians and Among the Essenes,” Historical Perspectives: From the Hasmoneans to Bar Kokhba in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, eds. David Goodblatt, Avital Pinnick, and Daniel R. Schwartz, (Boston, MA: Brill, 2001), 150.
21 Andreas Lindemann, “The Beginnings of Christian Life in Jerusalem According to the Summaries in the Acts of the Apostles,” Historical Perspectives: From the Hasmoneans to Bar Kokhba in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls, eds. David Goodblatt, Avital Pinnick, and Daniel R. Schwartz, (Boston, MA: Brill, 2001), 212.
22 Taylor, 156.
23 Ibid.
24 Menoud, 618.
25 Ibid.
Barclay, William. The
Acts of the Apostles. Philadelphia,
PA: The Westminster Press, 1-60.
Brown, Colin, ed., et
al. “Church.” The New Interpreter’s
Dictionary of New Testament Theology.
Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1975.
291-304.
Brown, Colin, ed., et
al. “Fellowship.” The
New Interpreter’s Dictionary of New Testament Theology. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1975. 637-643.
Carver, Gary L. “Acts 2:42-47.” Review and Expositor. 87
(Sum 1990): 475-478.
Ferris, Theodore P. “The Acts of the Apostles- Exposition.” The
Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, vol. 9.
Ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al.
Nashville, TN: Abingdon
Press, 1982.
36-80.
Gaston, Lloyd. “Faith in Romans 12 in the Light of the
Common Life of the Roman Church.” Common Life in the Early Church. Ed. Julian V. Hills, et al. Harrisburg, PA:
Trintiy Press, International. 1998.
258-264.
Kroll, Woodrow Michael. “What Makes the Church Unique?” Fundamentalist
Journal. (10, N 1985): 36-37.
Kvalben, H. “Poor, Poverty.” New Dictionary of Biblical
Theology. Eds. T. Desmond Alexander
and Brian S. Rosner, et al. Downers
Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 687-691.
Lidell, H.G. and R.
Scott. “ekklesia.” Greek-English
Lexicon. Oxford, NY: Clardeon
Press, 1996. 509.
Lindemann, Andreas. “The Beginnings of Christian Life in
Jerusalem According to the Summaries in the Acts of the Apostles.” Historical
Perspectives: From theHasmoneans to Bar Kokhba in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Eds. David Goodblatt, Avital Pinnick, and
Daniel R. Schwartz. Boston, MA: Brill,
2001. 147-161.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “diakonia, as.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 462.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “ekklesia, as.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 126.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “eko koinos.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the NewTestament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 569.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “koinoneo.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on
Semantic Domains. New York, NY:
United Bible Societies, 512.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “koinonia, as.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 446.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “koinonikos, e, on.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 569.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “koinos, e, on.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 559, 792.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “soma, tos.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on
Semantic Domains. New York, NY:
United Bible Societies, 1988. 94, 127.
Louw, Johannes P. and Eugene
A. Nida. “sunagoge, es.” Greek-English
Lexicon of the New Testament Based on Semantic Domains. New York, NY: United Bible Societies,
1988. 128.
Macgregor, G.H.C. “The Acts of the Apostles- Exegesis.” The
Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, vol. 9.
Ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al.
Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1982.
36-80.
Marshall, I. Howard. “Congregation and Ministry in the Pastoral
Epistles.” (paper presented at
Gardner-Webb University, Boiling Springs, NC, 10 October, 2002).
Marshall, I. Howard. 1 Peter. Ed. Grant R. Osborne, et al.
Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1991.
McGee, Daniel B. “Sharing Possessions: A Study in Biblical
Ethics.” With Steadfast Purpose.
Waco, TX: Baylor University, 1990.
163-178.
Menoud, P.H. “Church, Life and Organization of.” The
Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible.
Ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al.
Nashville, TN: Abingdon Press, 1962.
617-626.
Millar, J.G. “People of God.” New Dictionary of Biblical
Theology. Eds. T. Desmond Alexander
and Brian S. Rosner, et al. Downers
Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 684-687.
Minear, P.S. “Church, Idea of.” The Interpreter’s
Dictionary of the Bible. Ed. George
Arthur Buttrick, et al. Nashville, TN:
Abingdon Press, 1962. 607-617.
Peterson, David. “The Worship of the New Community.” Witness
to the Gospel, The Theology of Acts.
Eds. I. Howard Marshall and David Peterson. Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company,
1998. 373-396.
Pohl, C.D. “Hospitality.” New Dictionary of Biblical
Theology. Eds. T. Desmond Alexander
and Brian S. Rosner, et al. Downers
Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 561-563.
Reumann, John. “One Lord, One Faith, One God, but Many
House Churches.” Common Life in the Early Church.
Ed. Julian V. Hills, et al.
Harrisburg, PA: Trintiy Press, International. 1998. 106-117.
Sabourin, L. “Koinonia in the New Testament.” Religious
Studies Bulletin. 1 (4, S 1981): 109-115.
Schmidt, Daryl D. “The Jesus Tradition in the Common Life of
Early Christian Communities.” Common Life in the Early Church. Ed. Julian V. Hills, et al. Harrisburg, PA: Trintiy Press,
International. 1998. 135-146.
Seccombe, David. “The New People of God.” Witness
to the Gospel, The Theology of Acts.
Eds. I. Howard Marshall and David Peterson. Grand Rapids, MI: William B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1998.
350-372.
Smith, T.C. “Acts.”
The Broadman Bible Commentary,
vol. 10. Ed. Clifton J. Allen, et
al. Nashville, TN: Brodman Press,
1970. 30-49.
Taylor, Justin. “The Community of Goods Among the First
Christians and Among the Essenes.” Historical Perspectives: From the Hasmoneans
to Bar Kokhba in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Eds. David Goodblatt, Avital Pinnick, and Daniel R.
Schwartz. Boston, MA: Brill, 2001. 147-161.
Tidball, D.J. “Church.”
New Dictionary of Biblical
Theology. Eds. T. Desmond Alexander
and Brian S. Rosner, et al. Downers
Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 407-411.