Welcome to a firm foundation presented by Princeton ministries with Doctor Ken Smith. This is Carol Smith, Ken’s wife. Please enjoy.

If I asked you to describe the church, what would you say? Some people would say, well, the church is a building there. It is over on Main street. Others might say, well, the church, that is a place where religious people go. Someone else who may have read the Bible would say, well, I think the church is referred to in the Bible as the bride of Christ. If you were asked define the church, what word would you use to define it? There is a word that is used 30 times in the books of Romans, Corinthians, Ephesians and Colossians. One word to describe the church. I wonder if you would ever have thought of this word to describe the church. Paul tells us the church is a body. When you come to church, do you look around and think to yourself, this is my body.

Over there is a hand, over there is a foot, an eye, an ear. Or when you come to church, rather than think of it as a body which you are a part of, do you think of the church primarily made up of a group of strangers who you don’t know anything about? And as soon as the closing benediction is spoken, that is the last thought of the body for the week. I want to talk with you today about our body, the church.

From the word of God. We invite you to stay tuned for the next half hour as we bring you a message from the word of God, brought to us by the Reverend Ken Smith, minister of the Princeton Presbyterian Church in historic Princeton, New Jersey. Once again, here’s Ken Smith as he continues his message from the word of God.

Through the years, the question has been raised, what exactly is the church? How would you know if you were in the church? It’s interesting because three marks have been used to explain and describe what a church is. The first is the church is where there is the sound preaching of the Bible, of the scriptures. Do you hear the Bible being talked about? If you do, that is one of the marks of the church. The second mark of the church is the proper administration of the sacraments, where baptism and the Lord’s supper are faithfully taught and the church has the opportunity of receiving those sacraments. The third mark of the church is called the proper use of discipline.

Discipline simply means that as we come together as part of the church, it is important what you do and what I do, and if either one of us should begin to stray off the path, that somebody will say something. And so the church does not become a place of people wandering off continually out in the hinterlands and once a week coming back on the path. Rather, the church is seen as a group of people who, by the grace of God, try to walk on that path not one day out of the week, but seven days out of the week, and live their life according to the teachings of God’s word. When those three are together, you have the church. If any one of those elements are missing, you no longer have the church. You have some other group, but it is not the church.

Now, Paul talks about the church as being the body of Jesus Christ. He tells us that we are to build up one another. That is one of the purposes of coming together and meeting, that we would be built up, that we would be nourished and strengthened in Jesus Christ through his word. Romans twelve five tells us that we enjoy a special relationship with each other, that we are, in fact, members, one to another. In Romans chapter five, chapter twelve, verse five, we read this. So we who are many, are one body in Christ and individually members one of another. The Bible teaches that there are two families. There is one family that Jesus spoke about. He said to one group of people, you are of your father the devil, and his works. You do. There are those who are under that house.

But Jesus came to tell us that there is another family that we can be part of, and that is the family of God through Jesus Christ, and that Christ is the head of our family, that we together are members of the body of Jesus Christ. It’s for that reason that in the book of Ephesians chapter four, having explained this new life in Christ, we are told that now that we are in the family of God, we are to put away lying, anger stealing, evil speaking. Now, why would Paul be concerned about those qualities of life? It’s simply because we are all part of the same body. Can you imagine a body where the hand takes a hammer and strikes the foot?

Or could you imagine a body that takes its hand and secretly reaches around and steals from the back pocket of someone in that body? Or can you imagine a mouth yelling in anger into its own earth? Paul says, that’s silly. A body doesn’t do that. And that’s why we are instructed to put away these marks of living in our old house of lying and anger and stealing and evil speaking. Paul also tells us that because we are members of the body of Christ, we are called to build up that body. And the way we will do that is to be devoted one to another. In Romans chapter twelve, verse ten, we are told, be devoted to one another in brotherly love. In the New Testament alone, the church and Christians are referred to some 230 times as brothers.

We are to show Philadelphia love to each other. Have you been to Philadelphia? Do you know what the love of Philadelphia is? It’s not Philadelphia down in Pennsylvania. It’s Philadelphia. According to the scripture, Paul says that we are to enjoy a brotherly love. In the Greek, brotherly love comes from two philos, which means love, and Adolphus, which means brother. And hence the name of Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. You and I, as members of the Church of Jesus Christ, as part of the body, are to enjoy one to another, Philadelphian love. Brotherly love, one for another. How do you show this brotherly love? Well, there are several suggestions. One comes to us from the Book of Hebrews, chapter 13. Keep on loving each other. As brothers, we’re instructed, do not forget to entertain strangers.

Remember those in prison as if you were fellow prisoners. We are told that one way of showing brotherly love. Is to have people who are strangers to our house and to entertain them. That is one way of showing brotherly love. Someone who visited our church told me, he said, I was here. I’ve been here four weeks. And out of those four weeks, three times I’ve been invited to somebody’s home. Well, that is Philadelphian love. That is brotherly love. Bringing in the stranger and welcoming them. But also in one Peter three, we’re told that we are to live in harmony with one another. Be sympathetic, love as brothers. Be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil for evil or insult with insult, but with blessing.

So if there is real brotherly love within the body of Christ, it will be shown by a compassionate concern for the needs of other people. Now, that’s in contrast to the man who, several years ago, I heard say, there’s nothing wrong with this church that a couple of funerals wouldn’t take care of. Well, that is not the way the church accomplishes its task. The church accomplishes its task through compassionate love, one for another. Brotherly love. If we want to build up this body of the church, then we are to show honour to one another. In Romans, chapter twelve, verse ten, we are told, Honor one another above yourselves. Jesus did this. When he washed the feet of his disciples, he honoured them. He showed them a place of honour. Tolstoy, the great Russian writer, was walking along the street in Russia.

A beggar came up to him and asked for a handout. Tolstoy, who was a Christian, said, please don’t be angry with me. My brother. But I don’t have anything with me. And if I had something, I would gladly give it to you. The beggar is said to have said, you have given me more than I asked for. You called me brother. As you look around at people, do you see them through Jesus Christ as your brother, as your sister in Christ? That is part of what it means to build up the body of Christ. But also, if we want to build up the body of Christ, then we are called upon to be of the same mind.

Romans 15 five tells us, now, may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another, according to Jesus Christ. Now, is Paul telling us that you and I should just simply think the same on everything? So if you have an interest in flying or stamp collecting or some other area, that you should put that aside, because we all need to have the same mind. No, that’s not what he’s saying. He is saying that we need to have a same mind related to Jesus Christ. There needs to be a common understanding of who Jesus Christ is. Jesus prayed in John, chapter 17, a prayer for his church. He said, protect them by the power of your name so that they may be one as we are one.

Jesus was concerned that there be a unity of belief about Jesus Christ. Back in the 1920s, there were people who were entering the ministry who did not believe that Jesus Christ was the son of God. They did not believe that he was raised from the dead, and they did not believe that the Bible was God’s word. Well, a group of people came together and they became concerned, and they said, can’t we at least agree on a few basics, several fundamentals? Can’t we agree on these five things? Number one, that Jesus was born of a virgin. Number two, that he performed miracles. Number three, that Jesus died on a cross. Number four, that he was bodily raised from the dead. Number five, can’t we believe, according to his word, that he is going to return someday? Can’t we be in agreement on that?

And that became a major line of separation. And there were some who said, no, we cannot believe those things. We will not believe those things, even though that is what is taught in the scripture. And from 1929, with the great crash of the stock market, there also began within the church a separation as people would refuse to believe the claims of Jesus Christ. After all, we have the confessions of the church for all of these centuries, which are simply an attempt by the church to talk about and to come to some united understanding on some particular point of the Bible. And so we have the apostles Creed, followed by the scots confession, followed by the Heidelberg confession, followed by the Helvetic confession, followed by the Westminster confession, all in attempt to maintain the same mind about Jesus Christ.

If we would build up the body of Jesus Christ, then we are told in romans 15 seven that we are to accept one another as Christ accepted you in order to bring praise to God. James was very concerned about people who came into the church well dressed, obviously, people of substance, well trained, well educated. And the ushers would take those people, and they would seat them in the places of prominence within the church. And James said, that ought not to be where we would look upon one another and elevate one and downgrade another because of the way they look or the way they appear. James says, to do that is sin.

Lauren Spivak, who was for 30 years the moderator of Meet the press, learned a very important lesson about critics, those who are always upset about saying he learned that you can’t satisfy them. One day, he received a telegram from a man, and the telegram simply said, you don’t smile enough on tv. Why don’t you smile? I’ll be watching today, so please smile. So Lawrence Spivak, in all of his austerity and pomp, tried as best he could, knowing that some. Somebody was out there, and he tried to smile. And the next day, he got a note from his critic friend. It said, don’t do it again. That’s one of the things about critics. We are to love one another, not with a critical eye, but with an eye of encouragement, an eye that would help to build up the body of Christ.

We’re to build the body by greeting one another. Sounds so simple to be able to say hello. It’s amazing. I have met people who have attended other churches, and they have said that they have sat next to people in the same pew for several years. And when they get out into the supermarket at the mall, they run across that person, and the person closes their eyes or turns their head and pretends that they didn’t see them. Well, we are told in scripture that we are, too. Greet one another, not just the church, but anywhere that you might run into a person from the church. Paul said, greet Priscilla and Aquila. Greet the church that meets at your home. Greet Mary, who worked very hard for you.

Greet one another with a holy kiss as you met someone this morning, as we shook hands with one another, were any of you tempted to give a holy kiss? Probably not. We say, well, I’m not the huggy type. And that obviously was from another time. Well, we are called upon in a greater way to be members of the family of God. If your mother, your father, your brother, your sister walked in and you hadn’t seen them for a week, would you, at a distance, just simply say hi? Or would there be more of a welcome, perhaps even a kiss? But I underscore holy. The first century church knew something about being able to greet one another and to simply say, hello, it’s nice to see you. And it wasn’t just simply a pleasantry, a formality.

They saw each other as part of that family of God. We are to build the body of Christ by bearing one another’s burdens. Galatians six two says, bear one another’s burdens and thus fulfil the law of Christ. The gaiters have written a number of songs. One of them touches on this theme. You will notice we say brother and sister round here. It’s because we’re a family and these folks are so near. When one has a heartache, we all share the tears and rejoice in each victory in this family so dear. I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God. I’ve been washed in the fountain, cleansed by his blood. Joint heirs with Jesus as we travel this sod. I’m part of the family of God. We are called upon to build the body of Christ by sharing one another’s burdens.

Perhaps as you are listening to this, you’re saying to yourself, gee, I don’t bear anyone’s burdens. I don’t greet anyone other than a casual hello. I certainly am not interested in showing honour to others and of being one mind with Jesus Christ. I’m not sure about that. And for you, the church is simply the building on the street. For you, the church is just some religious people, but it is not the body of Jesus Christ. There are many who have an appearance of being part of that church. Their outward exterior looks exactly the same as a person who is actually a part of that body. Alexander Gibson was a farmer and he raised pigs. One of the products of his farm were prize hams.

He had one of those hams strung in his kitchen high on a ceiling beam, and it was just simply staying there for many months, curing and aging. Well, in his house, there was a rat that loved him, and it was a smart rat because he burrowed a hole down from the ceiling into the top of the ham and undetected for many months, just simply enjoyed that prized ham. Until one day the farmer’s wife took that ham and out dashed the rat. And I think that, in effect, is a picture of the person who comes with the shell of formality, the appearance that all is well, never knowing inside the reality, the power, the life of Jesus Christ.

We are called upon to be part of the body of Jesus Christ, not simply in exterior form, but internally to be part of that body, to put our trust in Jesus Christ alone, who will give us that strength to be able to follow him in the way that will build his body. He can do it, he is doing.

Building up one another. That was a good word to us, Ken. We need to be reminded we are all part of the body of Christ. I’m sure it will have an effect on how we treat each other as brothers and sisters in the Lord. You’ve been listening to a message by the Reverend Ken Smith, minister of the Princeton Presbyterian Church. We’d be happy to have you join our services any Sunday. You’re in the Princeton, New Jersey area. We meet in the John Witherspoon Middle School on Walnut Lane, just out from the central square of Princeton, New Jersey. Sunday school’s at 930, and the morning worship service is at eleven. Incidentally, we’d appreciate your comments about these broadcasts.

And in appreciation of your comments, we’d like to send you a copy of a message delivered by Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the Prince of Preachers, almost 100 years ago. This twelve page pamphlet entitled songs in the night is awaiting your name and address. I know it will encourage you, especially in those times of discouragement that affect us all from time to time. So just write to us. Here’s the address from the word of God, Box 3003, Princeton, New Jersey 08540. Cassettes of today’s message are also available, so ask for information about getting a cassette copy of building up one another. If you’d like to telephone Ken Smith, here’s the number. Area code 60992 110 20. Thank you for listening. Write or call soon and pray for us.

And now this is Joe Springer for Pastor Ken Smith and all the Princeton Presbyterian Church family inviting you to join us again now. Next week, Lord willing, when once again we return to you from the word of God Ever singing on the. All.

Thank you for listening to affirm foundation presented by Princeton Ministries. This programming is supported by you, the listener. You may go to our website, princetonministries.org, or send your donation to Princeton Ministries Post Office box 2171, Princeton, New Jersey 08543. That’s Princeton Ministries Post Office box 2171 Princeton, New Jersey 08543. The Lord bless you. And Doctor Smith looks forward to hearing from you.