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The Church in God's Cosmic Plan

Tyndale Conference Address 27 th June 2004

Introduction

God placed all things under Christ's feet and appointed him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body and which is being filled by him who is in the process of filling all things in every way. (Ephesians 1: 22-23)

Church planting and church growth have been presented to us in different shapes and forms, especially in the last few decades. We are familiar with many views on church growth. Some, like Warren's church at Saddleback, have said that you can start with a few dedicated people with a shared vision. Others, like Phillip Jensen, have said that churches should divide before they get too big, and birth new congregations. Bill Hybels emphasises seeker services. The Vineyard movement promoted signs and wonders as the way. Sydney Anglican Diocese is currently pursuing a ten-year vision to have ten per cent of Sydneysiders in "Bible-based" (not necessarily Anglican) churches by 2012

Some Church Questions

What is church? To what extent is church a local meeting?

In what is church of a trans-local dimension?

How does God view the nature of church?

If we are planting churches, to what end are we planting them?

If churches are growing, what is the growth?

How does God view the role of church within his wider plan?

In a recent web article, Paul W. Barnett outlined the difference between Griffith Thomas' model and that of more recent theologians such as D. Broughton Knox and Donald W. B. Robinson. Barnett has also made a useful distinction between "ecclesia" and "the people of God". Barnett agrees with the basic ecclesiology of Knox and Robinson but sees the Biblical teaching on "the people of God'" as a corrective to extremes that might arise out of an extreme congregational model of "ecclesia". I am not sure that Ephesians looks at these matters other than in terms of "ecclesia", but suffice it to say that although denominations, as such, are not "church", they, along with para-church and voluntary Christian associations or societies, can have a valid place as expressions of "the people of God".

Thesis of this Lecture

Church is right in the centre of God's plan for the total cosmos, as demonstrated from Ephesians. We need to examine how we might understand and apply these truths within our church life and activity, for instance, in view of the challenge of Islam; and also in view of the political, economic, social and ethical issues of our time.

Groundwork and Research

Much of my material on Ephesians relates to my unpublished paper of Nov 1991 as part of my M. A. (Theol) studies, entitled "Fullness", "Filling" and "being Filled" within the Epistle to the Ephesians". Other material has con tributed also.

Some of the Major Themes in Ephesians

Paul discusses God's eternal plan; the summing up of all things in Christ, the supremacy of Christ; the Kingdom "now and not yet" (to pick up Andrew Lincoln's terminology); the place of the church within Christ's plan; how the church can move towards the achievement of that plan; and how to deal with demonic opposition to God's plan.

"Church" means "gathering". In Acts 19 it is used in a completely secular way. It is not a religious word. Within the New Testament, "church" is sometimes used in an universal sense, and very often it is used of specific congregations in different places. In Ephesians 1 it is used in a universal. In Ephesians 4 "the church" seems to be used both universally and locally. For convenience of this lecture, I will express but not argue for my own view that there is one church (or congregation that is the gathering of Christ with his people, and that this one church manifests itself in every local congregation based on his word. I understand this to be the view of the late D. B. Knox.

Rethink of our profound Privilege and Responsibility

Evangelical Christians need continually to grasp both the connection between responsibility and privilege and the nexus between what is individual and what is corporate. For instance, is "being filled by the Spirit" (Eph 5: 18) about individuals, or is it about the church, or is it about both/

Exegetical Issues in Ephesians

1; 10     A plan for the fullness of time to unite all things in Christ.

Fullness is used in a discussion of God's cosmic plan.

1:23      The fullness of the filling.

3: 19     Prayer that we shall be in an ongoing process of being filled unto all the fullness of God.

4: 10    The policy of the Ascended Christ that he might fill all things.

4: 13     The future completeness associated with Christ.

5: 18     The instruction to the church to keep being filled by the Holy Spirit, and the outworking that will be evident.

At the beginning of this lecture I referred to Ephesians 1: 22-23

There are eight or nine possible translations based on at least eleven

variables. My favoured translation.

God placed all things under Christ's feet and appointed him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body and which is being filled by him who is in the process of filling all things in every way. (Ephesians 1: 22-23)

{ For the benefit of those who read Greek, this translation is based on the following conclusions. soma is the antecedent of to pleroma . to plhrwma is passive in its signification. plhroumenou is middle voice with active meaning. eis panta en pasin   separate. ta panta is adjectival and en pasin is adverbial. Otherwise Paul could have used pantapasin . This happens to be the view of Andrew Lincoln. The translation offered by P. T. O'Brien (p.152) appears to be in agreement, viz [ the church, which is Christ's body],the fullness of him [i.e. Christ] who fills all things in every way. }

I examined the grammar of the various translations and also the overall theology of Ephesians and came to my own conclusion that this is to be preferred above seven other translations. My main reasons are twofold: the church does not complete Christ, but Christ completes the church; and secondly "all" and "all things" are so used by Paul in Ephesians that they point in this direction. Christ is central to the process of filling. The process relates to the cosmos, not merely the church, but the church is central to the outworking of God's will. Whatever he is doing in the universe he is doing in a significant way through the church. I call this the "pantology" of Ephesians! "All" translates the pan words. In 1: 10 the plan of God is to unite all things in heaven and on earth (i.e. all things in the universe). We are to take ta panta in the widest sense, according to Lincoln. God focuses his interest on the cosmic, including the macro and micro dimensions of life, personal or material, all things whatever. At 3: 19 the term is used eschatalogically. In 4: 10 it is a reference to the cosmos.

In 5: 20 we are to give thanks to God always concerning all things. The community's worship is not intended to be an obsession with religious enthusiasm nor with the life of the church community with a corresponding retreat from the world.

In the interest of clarity, let me summarise the main impact of Ephesians 1; 22-23 in the light of the whole of Ephesians.

I repeat the verse,

God placed all things under Christ's feet and appointed him to be head over all things to the church, which is his body and which is being filled by him who is in the process of filling all things in every way. (Ephesians 1: 22-23)

Now here is the summary.

1           God the Father has given all authority and power to Christ.

2           Christ is head over all things in the universe, including nature, people, angels and demons.

3             Although this work is often invisible, Christ is inexorably and continuously pursuing his own agenda with regard to the universe (including the church).

4           Christ's agenda is to bring the whole universe to its full destiny in line with God's purposes. Insofar as this was interrupted by the Fall, Christ will restore and then take it further.

5           Within this process Christ has a special agent, with whom he has a type of marital union. That agent is his bride the Church, his own special body whom he nourishes and cherishes.

6           This church is at the centre of his plan and purposes.

7           What Christ is doing universally he is doing also in the church and what he is doing in the church he is also, in principle, doing universally.

8           The sphere for Christ's agenda and activity is the totality of all that exists in the created order.

9           The methods that Christ is using are described as "in every way".

10         As Christ is Lord of All, then he is Lord over marriage, family, politics, nations, the economy, sport, recreation, technology, and nature.

Practical Issues

There needs to be a resolution of the balance between individualism and the corporate dimension. Our modern era, particularly in Western societies, reinforces "rugged individualism", a Christians may easily pursue a piety that relates mainly to their own immediate family concerns, or perhaps as far as the concerns of their own congregation. How far can individual Christians promote world mission, or respond effectively to the relief of widespread suffering?

We need to know how to handle the tension between the revealed mystery and the dynamic of the seed growing secretly (cf Mark 4); between "now" and "not yet". Christian and church experience in Sydney and Australia generally may lead us to feel despondent about how far God is actually fulfilling an agenda in the world. This sense of doubt can easily be increased by what regularly fills the media. We may well ask, 'How inclusive is "all things" and "in every way" in Ephesians 1: 23?'

"All things" are everything in the cosmos. The celebration of our gratitude to God should not stop short of the continuing practice of thanking God concerning every type of thing within his creations. We are to see his hand beyond our noses! We are to broaden the horizons of our interests. We are to reinterpret world events and trends in line with the fact that God has an invisible plan that looks quite different to the visibility that we perceive. This is meant to inspire hope that in turn breeds increasing gratitude and obedience.

Are we grateful for God's working in history and in politics. Can we thank God for raising up Reagan to help end the Cold War? Can we thank God that Gorbachev ruled the Soviet Union? Can we thank God that there is I strong government in Saudi Arabia that is able to help deal with terrorists such as El-Qaeda. Nebuchadnezzar learned to thank God that he gives the kingdoms to whomever he wills.

How are we to do "truthing in love"? The Greek of Ephesians 4: 15 cannot be translated easily. It does not mean merely "speaking the truth in love". It means living a life-style that both speaks and commends the truth and truthfulness.

What is the balance between unity and diversity?

If being filled by the Spirit with God's Word leads us to be grateful with regard to all things, to what extend within the parameters of "all things" do we see God at work? How do we account for the fact that the tyranny of Ceaucescu in Romania could be overthrown with little blood-letting? How do we assess leaders like Reagan? Do we see God, as Nebuchadnezzar and Daniel saw him, as giving the kingdoms of this world to whomever he will. Do we see the powers that be as "minister of God" as in Romans 13? Or are we so stained by the manure of rebellion and cynicism that we see all leaders as insincere, especially the "god-talking" variety?

What is spiritual warfare? How to we fight. The challenge of Islam: Dhimmitude and Jihad. In Jihad the fight is "with flesh and blood".

Koran 3: 145 No soul ever dies except by Allah'sa will at an appointed time. Allah encourages Jihad for the faithful who will receive heavenly reward.

3: 157-8 There is certain forgiveness of sin for those who fight for Allah and are slain or die therein.

Dr. Mark Durie wrote a paper in Dec 2003 in which he referred to the significance of a statement by Amrozi the smiling bomber   when he entered a Bali courtroom on the day of his sentencing: "Jews, remember Khaibar. The army of Muhammad is coming back to defeat you. When Muhammad conquered the oasis of Khaibar in 628, the Jews who lived there managed to negotiate a surrender.. This was a temporary concession, withdrawn in 640 by Umar, in obe3dience to Muhammad's dying wish. 'Two religions shall not remain together in the peninsular of the   Arabs". It is the conquest of Khaibar that set the precedent in Islamic case law for the subsequent treatment of non-Muslims who surrendered to Islamic conquest and rule. The discriminatory sharia regulations applying to non-Muslims, who are referred to in Islamic law as dhimmis, are based on the precedent of Khaibar. F extremists like Amrozi, says Durie, Khaibar stands for the defeat of infidel enemies, and their subsequent humiliation and subjugation under sharia conditions, "an enduring signpost to the hope of an Islamist victory. For non-Muslims this name stands for centuries of obliterated history and oppressive discrimination, referred to by Bat ye'or, historian of the dhimmis as dhimmitude".

Archbishop George Carey has recently spoke strongly about the aggressive stand being taken by extreme Muslims.

In the Pauline corpus, the Christian has to fight on three fronts: against one's own sinful nature that daily demands the death penalty; against the cunning and lust of deceitful and manipulative men (Eph 4: 14); against the principalities and powers, the spiritual rulers of this present darkness (Eph 6: 10-18). God ultimately wins, as Martin Luther well expressed it:

For what I assert and contend for is this:- that God, where he operates without the grace of his Spirit, works all in all, even in the ungodly; while He alone moves, acts, and carries along by the motion of His omnipotence, all those things which He alone has created, which motion those things can neither avoid nor change, but of necessity follow and obey, each one according to the measure of power given by God:- thus all things, even the ungodly, co-operate with God!...

Luther, Bondage of the Will . (Translated by Henry Cole, Baker Baker Bookhouse, Michigan, 1981, Section CXXX1, page 317

Conclusion

The Church is the body that belongs to Christ. It is being filled by Christ who is filling all things. He is doing this in every way. He even uses the wrath of men to praise him. He hijacks the evil that men and devils concoct and he forces the very evil to serve his own good purposes.

We have an ongoing responsibility to allow the Holy Spirit to fill us with Christ, so that we may respond to and participate in God's cosmic plan, in any of the all things that he calls on us to do. Those who have been given by Christ to the church as people with distinct ministries have a responsibility to equip the whole membership to work in harmony towards the ultimate goal.

Lindsay Johnstone

Copyright J. H. L. Johnstone 23 rd June 2004. All rights reserved.

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