Archives

What Is God's Idea of the Perfect Church?

Sunday marks the Day of Pentecost, which we also recognize as the birthday of the church.  It occurred, as described in Acts Chapter 2, fifty days after the resurrection of Jesus, when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples who were gathered in a room in Jerusalem.  Later in chapter 2, we read that the believers were united in heart and mind as they gathered to praise Jesus, to pray and share meals. Those verses paint a very idyllic picture of a group of believers earnestly living out their faith while being wholly focused on Jesus. 

Not only were they in one accord with one another, but they were in one accord with Christ.  When I reflect on that beautiful picture of the first church, I’m drawn to the prayer of Jesus that is recorded in John, Chapter 17.  The whole chapter is Jesus’ three-part prayer for Himself, His disciples, and the people who will come to saving faith through the witness of the disciples.  It’s the third part, Jesus’ prayer for the future Church, that I’d like to focus on.

John 17: 20-26

20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one — 23 I in them and you in me — so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 26 I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Here we are two thousand years later.  The Church has expanded well beyond Jerusalem.  Followers of Christ gather for worship in nearly every country around the world.  And, although we speak different languages and practice varying rituals, there is a great unity in the Church. 

The core practices of the Church have remained remarkably consistent throughout our history.  God is worshiped.  Prayers are offered.  Scripture read.  The Communion supper shared.  The Word preached.  Offerings received.  Baptisms performed.  Meals shared.  And significant moments in life such as births, marriages, and deaths are honored and celebrated.  These shared practices bring a sense of stability and tradition to worshipers.  They provide familiarity to believers who visit from different churches.  And, they foster a sense of unity within the body of Christ.  These core practices are important, but the real unity people experience in the Church is found in the degree of unity they and their fellow believers have with Jesus.

Jesus used the imagery of a vine to describe the importance of remaining close to him as he remained close to the Father.

in John 15, we read:

5“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing…7If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. 8This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples.

9“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. 10If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. 11I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

Jesus continually emphasized his complete dependence upon his Father.  He would separate himself regularly from his followers in order to spend time with the Father in prayer.  He loved his Father, his Father loved him, and he always did the Will of his Father.  And through His example, Jesus showed His disciples the vital importance of sustaining a deep and abiding relationship with the Father so that they could discern and accomplish the Fathers Will.  Jesus’ example holds for us today.  If we, the Church, are to discern and accomplish the Father’s Will we must be completely unified with Him.  We must live in the vine, deeply connected and continually nourished by Him. 

I’m told that there are some animals that can go for long periods of time between meals.  Well, having been a Nazarene preacher for over twenty years, I can tell you that we are not in that group!

People need to be continually nourished, physically, emotionally and spiritually.  We get hungry.  And I think everyone of us knows that not all sources of nourishment are the same.  There is only one that truly satisfies our soul.  Jesus.  And if we would be called by His name, we must remain in Him.  Intimately united with Him, nourished by Him, led by Him, to do the will of the father.  For truly, we, the church, can accomplish nothing of eternal consequence if we are not unified with Jesus and the Father.

Here at Nazarene Bible College, we are called to accomplish something of eternal consequence.  We are called to prepare those who are called to Christian ministry.  We are called to teach the Word to those who teach the word to others.  We are called to nourish those who nourish others.  For us to be able to accomplish this extraordinary work, we must remain intimately united with Christ.  We must draw our nourishment from God. 

We are doing Kingdom-building work.  And whenever I think about Kingdom-building work, either as an adjunct instructor or as a pastor, I’m reminded of the opening verse of Psalm 127: 

“1Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain.”

It has been my privilege to work with NBC for over 15 years.  I’ve taught on-campus for the Advantage program working with Dave Church, and on-line facilitating the Senior Ministry Integration courses for Pastoral Studies majors under the leadership of Jim Russom and now Dan Powers.  I also worked briefly with a group charged with developing strategic initiatives for marketing, financial development and academic programming.  Throughout my association with the Bible college, I’ve always considered the leaders, faculty and staff to be men and women with a deep and abiding love for Jesus and a passion for achieving the mission of Nazarene Bible College which exists to glorify Jesus Christ as Lord by preparing adults to evangelize, disciple, and minister to the world.

Brothers and sisters, we have been going through a long difficult season at NBC.  Thousands of prayers have been offered up to God for wisdom, divine guidance, financial increase, and I, daresay, strength of endurance — that we would not lose faith due to the hardship.  I am certain that in our petitions to the Lord, He regularly hears from us the words, “Thy Will Be Done.”     

To our students who are pastors, or who will soon be pastors, as well as those who will be serving in Christian ministry in a church; there will be difficult seasons in your ministry as well.  Continue to prepare yourself, as you have begun here at NBC, by steadfastly seeking after Jesus.  Develop an intimacy with Him through the practice of Spiritual disciplines prayer, fasting, and reflective Bible reading.  As you lead others in the church, nurture the same intimacy in them.  Guide them in fulfilling Jesus’ prayer for the church — that they would be united with Him and the Father.  And their one and only desire is to do the will of the Father.

Perhaps that’s what a perfect church looks like in God’s eyes.

 - Miles Trumble has been an adjunct professor at NBC since 2008. 

Published: 06/06/2025

Archived News