What is the Purpose of the Church ?
Every organization has a purpose. The purpose of a restaurant is to serve food to its customers. The purpose of the electric company is to keep the lights on. The mechanic's purpose is to perform maintenance or repairs on their customers’ vehicles. The purpose of Congress is to enact legislation. The purposes of the aforementioned organizations are described in their company bylaws, with the latter described in Article I of the United States Constitution
The church is an organization of divine origin; thus it must have a divine purpose. The church is the only authorized institution in the New Testament; thus, every work that God has called men to do is worked out through the church's actions. We must go to the handbook and constitution for the church (The Bible) for the purpose of the church.
What is Not the Purpose of the Church?
The purpose of the church is not to bring glory to men. The church does not grant social prestige. This threat had to be quickly curtailed in the early church. The brethren in Corinth were attempting to divide by their various favorite preachers. The inspired Apostle Paul asked, “Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?” (1 Cor. 1:13)?
The purpose of the church is not to make men financially wealthy. We can surely learn how to be faithful stewards of our earnings. We can learn the value of hard work and accountability as New Testament Christians, which more often than not leads to financial well-being. God did not send His Son to die so you can have whatever you want. Jesus died so that you will want for nothing. Our brother David recorded this in the Psalms,
I have been young, and now am old;
Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken,
Nor his descendants begging bread.
He is ever merciful, and lends;
And his descendants are blessed.
(Psalm 37:25-26)
The purpose of the church is not for entertainment. It is not for the entertainment of her members. We have work to do. We have plenty of other organizations for entertainment. The world is full of entertainment, but we are here to fulfill the purpose of the church. The purpose of the church is not to entertain its members or the world. The message of Christ is foolishness to the world. The Spirit said, “For the word of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us who are saved it is the power of God” (1 Cor. 1:18). The more the church takes cues from the worldly in entertaining the masses, the more we lose sight of our purpose–converting the lost. I have heard the church compared to a battleship, rather than a cruise ship.
The True Purpose of the Church
The church is the sole institution given the duty of spreading the eternal truth. There is no other institution in this world, not the governments of men, nor their schools. “The church is the house of God, the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (cf. 1 Tim 3:15). The church is to be “seen as lights in the world, holding forth the word of life” (cf. Phil 2:14-16).
The church is the spiritual body of Christ (Col 1:24). Christ is the head of the church (cf. Col 1:18). So, we must reason that we cannot come to Christ without being added to that spiritual body. Luke recorded, “They then that received his word were baptized: and there were added unto them in that day about three thousand souls (Acts 2:41), and they were added to the church (the saved) (cf. Acts 2:47).” So, if the church is the body of Christ, then the church must have the same purpose as Christ. So, in essence, to answer the question “what is the purpose of the church” is to ask “what is the purpose of Christ?”
Jesus gave His purpose. The Lord said, “For the Son of man came to seek and to save that which was lost” (Luke 19:10). His purpose was to die for sinners. This is the love of God!
For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
(Romans 5:6-11)
If this is what Christ did for us, then what must we do for the lost? We die to ourselves and carry out the purpose of God. We must teach the truth to others as often as we can. We must talk about the goodness of God. We must do good works so that the praise and glory will go to God, and with teaching, some of those souls will come to know the God of Heaven. We also must pay attention to acts of benevolence tied to our evangelism and edification. We look after the needs of the lost but also of the brethren. The Spirit said,
But the end of all things is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers. And above all things have fervent love for one another, for “love will cover a multitude of sins.” Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
(1 Peter 4:7-10)
If you do not know where to start, we have great resources available to teach a Bible study with the intent of converting sinners. We are ready to help every Christian to get to work at soul-saving. This is what God commissioned His brethren to do. Jesus commanded, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen” (Matt 28:19-20). When this happens, God is glorified, and the purpose of the church is fulfilled.
