Church Perpetuity

By Rick Perdue

“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him [be] glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.” – Ephesians 3:20,21

This text says that the Lord is to receive glory in the church throughout all ages. Evidently this means different things to different people; so, in order to narrow its meaning, I quote Roy Mason from the book, The Myth Of The Universal Invisible Church Theory Exploded: “Do I believe that there has been a linked chain of true churches through the centuries? I certainly do, but my belief in the continuity of Baptist churches does not depend upon being able to trace this unbroken chain. Rather, IT DEPENDS UPON THE SACRED WORD OF PROMISE SPOKEN BY CHRIST OUR LORD.” Let us consider three questions:

First, what is a church by scriptural definition? The Greek word EKKLESIA means a called out assembly. It is a word used to identify an assembly called out with authority to deliberate and transact business (a type of city/state government). Christ’s church (EKKLESIA) is that assembly that He called out (those who had been saved, and then baptized by John the Baptist, the one sent from God) and to whom He gave authority. That authority was not given to individuals, nor to a presbytery, but to His church (we shall demonstrate that principle later).

Second, what does perpetuity mean? It means to continue perpetually with unbroken existence.

Third, does the Bible teach Church Perpuity? Yes!! If Christ is to get glory in the church throughout all ages, she must exist throughout all ages. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus promised that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. If the perpetuity could be broken, the gates of hell would have prevailed. Jesus promised to be with His church alway in order for Him to be with it alway.

There is ample scriptural proof that Christ established His church during His earthly ministry, and authorized it to do His work. Authority necessarily includes propagation, and the pattern for this propagation and thus perpetuity of the church is recorded in the book of Acts. On the day of Pentecost the LORD added to His church (see Acts 2). Until the church was dispersed by persecution in Acts 8, there was only one church. After they were scattered abroad preaching the Word (Acts 8) there is no longer one church, but churches (Acts 9:31).

The principle of propagation is spelled out in Acts 13:1-4: God called, church sent and Spirit led. This authority included administering Baptism. Salvation is a pre-requisite to baptism, and baptism is a pre-requisite to church membership. “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added [unto them] about three thousand souls.” (Acts 2:41) The same manner as John the Baptist, for he required evidence of repentance before baptizing: “Then went out to him Jerusalem, and all Judaea, and all the region round about Jordan, And were baptized of him in Jordan, confessing their sins. But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance:” (Matthew 3:5-8)

Baptism must be by the right authority. This is demonstrated in Acts 18:24-19:4. But first let us get the setting. In Acts 13 Paul and Barnabas were sent out by the church at Antioch. After making this first mission trip they returned and reported to the church. After some time, they decided to return to the churches to see how they did. However, they had a disagreement and parted ways. Barnabas took John Mark and departed to Cyprus. Paul chose Silas and they, “being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God. And he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.” (Acts 15:40,41) Note: Paul and Silas were “recommended by the brethren” (the church). Even though Paul had been “ordained” in Acts 13, his second trip required the recommendation of the church.

That brings us to Acts 18:24-19:4. When Paul came to Ephesus he found a group of believers who had been baptized. Who had baptized them? The strong inference is that Apollos had. But who was Apollos? Someone who had been baptized by John the Baptist. Did he have scriptural baptism? Yes! Did he have authority to baptize? No! But after Aquila and Priscilla “expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.”, he evidently joined that church, and “when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him:”. Sounds a lot like a letter of recommendation from one church to another to me. Back to Paul and the disciples that he found at Ephesus. After examining them, he discovered that their baptism was not by the proper authority, so he, having scriptural authority, baptized them and they were duly constituted as a church. This is the scriptural way ; the Baptist way; the Landmark way; the Historical way!

This is what J.R. Graves believed: “To preserve and perpetuate the scriptural design of baptism, and its validity and recognition only when scripturally administered by a gospel church… To preserve and perpetuate the doctrine of a divinely called and scripturally qualified and ordained ministry, to proclaim the gospel, and to administer the ordinances, not upon their own responsibility, but, for, and under the direction of, local churches alone.” (Old Landmarkism; 1880, page 94)

This is what Particular Baptists of England, Wales and Ireland believed in 1660, according to a quote taken from, “A Vindication of the Good Old Paths Wherein Our Fathers Walked”, by R.E. Pound: “Concerning a minister and some brethren who differed with a church and left it, the brethren stated: ‘That a letter be sent to the said disorderly brethren to exhort them to consider from whence they are fallen and their present practices; and to forbear for the future to utter rash or scandalous words of the church; or receiving into or keeping in their fellowship, such as are or shall be cast out by the church or any that shall come away from them; that they attend upon the CHURCH MINISTRY NOT PRACTICING IN THEIR PRIVATE MEETING ANY SUCH ORDINANCES AS ARE PROPER TO THE CHURCHES OF CHRIST.”

As Baptists, we have a great heritage written in the blood of our forefathers. In all ages there have been those who have departed from the faith and those who have sprung up on their own. They have given rise to the multitudes of “Christian” denominations, most of which have persecuted our forefathers. Yet, God has preserved Himself a remnant who have “kept the faith”. It is His promise upon which we stake our faith for church perpetuity, and at the same time we must operate upon the pattern established in the book of Acts for perpetuating churches; authority is the key.

If you see a bird that looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, waddles like a duck, you can be fairly certain that it is a duck. The story of the ugly duckling demonstrates that there are those who want to be ducks, and appear in some degree to be ducks. However in the process of time their true nature comes out and demonstrates clearly that they are not ducks. So there are some who want to be Landmark Baptists, and share a remarkable resemblance, but, alas, by and by their true colors come out and they are proven not to be Landmark Baptists at all. Let us “Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men’s sins: keep thyself pure.” (1 Timothy 5:22). Rather let us “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.” (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

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“Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place.” Isaiah 28:17