Christians / Catholics only please...anyone else please show some respect and keep your nasty comments out of?

Question

this.....

What was the intent of the Church according to Christ? ....what purpose was the church oringianlly to serve?

And how does it differ today?

Thank you for your answers.

Answer 1

I am not catholic, But I believe church wanted to integrate all chrsitians. Because before council of nicea, there was choas, different version of gospels, different beliefs floating around.

Answer 2

Eph 4:11-12 "And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ,"

Here Paul is talking about the nature of the church (he begins with the "oneness" or unity in verse 4). He then states that there are five things Christ gave the church (five offices, so to speak, only three of which are still around; consider Eph 2:20). These statements lead to the purpose of the church, in verse 12: For equipping saints (saints means Christians, although common vernacular today would have us think otherwise), for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.

In the first century we see the church engaging in four activites: worship (Acts 20:7), spreading the gospel (Acts 13:1-4), edifiying the Christians/saints (preparing them for service by teaching encouraging, etc; Acts 13:1-4), and taking care of the Christians (called benevolence, Acts 11:29).

Since we really do not see other actions taken "by the church", that is what we can conclude the purpose of the church is.

Today, most churches (we cannot say there is one church, even if the BIble says that Jesus only created one church, Matt 16:16) has become a social activity club, missing that the original purpose was neither of these but to glorify God (neither of these are wrong, but are not what the church was created to do)

Answer 3

There are probably many different views on the purpose of the church. I think that Christ intended the church to be a place of encouragment for all believers. First and foremost it is a place of worship to God. We can give thanks and praise to him for our salvation and new life. Also, the scriptures say that "iron sharpens iron", and what better place to stay sharp then the church where we can learn the scriptures and how to apply them to our lives. The bible says "thy word have I hid in my heart, that I might sin against thee". It is also a place of rest and healing. When we are stressed and worn out with lifes everyday battles, we can find comfort and peace in the church. And last but just as important as all else, we are to have the church as a base of operations to spread the gospel of Christ.
Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Jesus' intent, when he spoke to Peter and proclaimed "you are the rock", was for a community of people willing to go out and spread the word of G-d about redemption. He also asked that they gather together in remembrance of the last supper, and break bread and share wine, a sacramental offering we re-enact (and we catholics believe becomes the body and blood of the Christ, as he mentions in the gospels) each week on Sunday (and at each mass).
the church, because it's message has been so successfully spread, necessarily grew into a more structured, bureaucratic organization, which tries to keep the message alive in individual parishes, but functions in the world as a political being, owing to the realities of life on earth.
To be fair, if Jesus were here he would frown on the organization, but smile upon the true church of parishioners who do much good in the world.

The organized church is a steward of the riches built up in the centuries since Jesus' death and resurrection, an dis one of the largest charitable organizations on earth.

Answer 5

The purpose of the church (the body of Christ Coming together) was for many reasons including building each other up in the faith and word of God, corporate prayer (such as when they all prayed and Peter was released from prison) Corporate worship, and receiving direction from the Holy Spirit. In Corinthians it says "not all are an eye, mouth, etc" so I"m thinking that when the body of Christ gathers together you should get a more complete picture of Christ and not only that...........there is the various gifts (healing, prophecy, etc) that we need to receive from each other. We do know as they gathered for prayer and fellowship and breaking of bread.........more and more were added to their numbers. It's sad that so many times the gathering of believers turns out to be for other reasons.......I really enjoy "home churches" where people have church services in their homes" I do enjoy church also when it's not all about programs and raising money for more buildings, etc. I"m not sure I agree with that I like to see outreach to the community and world around us.

Answer 6

Christ did not actually envisage a Church, if you read the New Testament, it is very clear that he was leading his people away from religious institutions - hence the "sermon-on-the-mount" - hence, John the Baptist, cleansing people of sin in a river. Jesus did not build a church and nowhere does he ask for one.

This is not to suggest that Churches (Catholic or otherwise) serve no useful purpose - today, they are places where people can get together, they offer support & friendship to so many, who might otherwise be completely alone. They also offer a sense of community and keep the message of love & compassion alive.

Answer 7

The intent of the "church" according to Christ was to spread goodness and love as was taught by Jesus. The apostles went out into the world, supposedly to do just that. What happened after that is that the church got entangled in politics, greed and the quest to be the most powerful. Today we see the result of the latter and very little of the former.

Answer 8

The church was originally to serve as God's "hands and feet" in the world. It was designed to strengthen believers and reach out to the poor, widows and orphans. It was also designed to go outside the four walls of their meeting place to bring the good news of the Gospel to a lost and hurting world.

Sadly, it is often a social club right now that looks down it's self righteous nose at those who are different. There are so many programs inside the church that edify the believer but those programs don't welcome the lost and hurting. There are glimmers of hope we are waking up to our original purpose, but it is painfully slow and not widepsread

Answer 9

The purpose of the Church is to prepare for the wedding with Christ. By this, we are to love mercy, do justly and walk humbly with God (sounds like a good song....). The goal has always been to show God's love in this world in preparation for the next. This should still be the same today. Not always the truth, but it should still be the same.

Answer 10

According to Christ a church is anywhere where two or more Christians get together to pray.
This is still true today, but different branches of the churches have their own rules and regs some incorporating O.T. rules, others just new testament, others their own.

Answer 11

Christ uses the term only in Matthew, and, of course, Matthew was writing in Greek, not in the language Jesus spoke. But it appears, according to my only handy reference book, to mean a group of people gathered or called out from the rest. A bunch of believers congregating to pray and learn.