Bible

7 Powerful Traits of a Truly Biblical Church

7 Powerful Traits of a Truly Biblical Church

What do you picture when you think of church?

Do you think of the rows of wooden pews or the intricate stained-glass windows in the sanctuary? Stacks of Bibles and hymnals? What about a stage or pulpit? Maybe you think of a large auditorium setting if you attend a mega church. 

All these details tell us what we see when we look at a building, but they tell us nothing about what a church should biblically look like. Scripture does not give directions about the format of seating or the use of a stage. We find no mention of a required carpet color or use of stained-glass windows. During the early days of the church, there were no chapels or cathedrals with steeples. That is because the Church is not a building. 

Believers make up the body of Christ, the Church (1 Corinthians 12:27). 

As members of the body of Christ, what we look like stems from our relationship to Jesus and the mission He gave us. He has called us to be a multiplying people, a community that grows and reaches into the lives of others. It is a group of individuals who increasingly look like Him. 

C.S. Lewis wrote about the purpose of the church in Mere Christianity. As he explained, “[T]he church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time” (HarperOne, 2001, p. 199).

At first, Lewis’ statement might surprise us. Constructing buildings, doing missions, and studying the Bible are wastes of time? They are if people are not growing in Christ and making disciples. The body of believers is meant to look increasingly like Jesus and help others become reflections of Christ too. If the church is not doing that, then it is not accomplishing its purpose. It will not look like a biblical church.   

But what are the indications that a group of believers are accomplishing this purpose of growing to become more like Christ?      

Scripture does not have directions about what a church building should look like, but it does have a wealth of information about what it looks like to live as individuals belonging to the Church.

Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Will & Deni McIntyre

What Is the Biblical Significance of the Upcoming Solar Eclipse? 8 Christian Leaders Explain

What Is the Biblical Significance of the Upcoming Solar Eclipse? 8 Christian Leaders Explain

Editor's Note: This article was originally published in 2017, but is being found by readers in advance of the April 8, 2024 solar eclipse, such that it has made it into our Most Popular articles on CrosswalkHeadlines.

On August 21, a total solar eclipse will be visible across the U.S. Hundreds of viewing parties for this amazing and rare astronomical phenomenon have been scheduled from coast to coast, but many Christian leaders believe this event is more than an incredible scientific occurrence. Many believe it is a prophetic sign that we are living in the end times and that Christ's return is imminent. Many of these leaders point to Scripture passages, particularly in Revelation, which talk about the end of the age and the signs to look out for. Here is what 10 Christian leaders had to say about this total solar eclipse. What do you think? Is this event truly a sign of the end times? Are you planning on viewing it?

Photo courtesy: ©Jongsun Lee/Unsplash

Archaeology Offers 'Tsunami of Evidence' of the Bible

Archaeology Offers 'Tsunami of Evidence' of the Bible

Shasta Bible College Professor Tom Meyer, also known as the "Bible Memory Man," recently wrote a book explaining how archaeological finds further validate the Bible.

5 Biblical Reasons Gaza Is Important

5 Biblical Reasons Gaza Is Important

Headlines bombard us with news about the devastation in Gaza—the staggering death toll, the increasing war and bloodshed, the innocent lives lost. People on both sides cry for an end to the violence and the pain.  

As Christians, we hear the news, and our hearts fill with compassion and anguish. Why is this happening? Why are people so eager to fight—and die—over this one small section of land?

Gaza, also called the Gaza Strip, is a thin piece of land of about 140 square miles located between Israel and Egypt. Roughly 2.3 million Palestinians live there, and it is a Palestinian territory. It is situated on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, with Egypt on its southwest and Israel on its east and north.

However, there is longtime animosity between Israel and Palestine. In 1947, the United Nations divided Palestine into an Arab and a Jewish state. This was to accommodate a post-World War Two desire for a Jewish homeland, but it came against the will of the local Arab population.

On October 7, 2023, the Islamic militant group Hamas killed more than a thousand people, mostly civilians, and took 250 others hostage in the deadliest attack in Israel’s history. Israel immediately declared war on Hamas, and as of this writing, more than 30,000 people have been killed.

Beyond a territory for present-day Palestine, the land is much desired by both groups. But there is also much biblical importance and history surrounding Gaza. Here are five biblical reasons by Gaza is important.

Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/pawel.gaul

Theologian Claims Noah's Flood Was Regional, Not Global

Theologian Claims Noah's Flood Was Regional, Not Global

In an interview with CBN News, Gavin Ortlund, president of Truth Unites, explained he first made the claim on his Youtube channel, where he contended that the Genesis 6 narrative is “about a regional event that was in a huge area of the Earth, but not all over the globe.”

Tara Leigh Cobble of 'The Bible Recap' Podcast Says Reading the Entire Bible Transformed Her Life

Tara Leigh Cobble of 'The Bible Recap' Podcast Says Reading the Entire Bible Transformed Her Life

Author and ‘The Bible Recap’ podcast host Tara Leigh Cobble recently shared how reading the Bible in its entirety transformed her life and encouraged fellow believers to do the same.

9 Ways the Bible Defines True Manliness

9 Ways the Bible Defines True Manliness

In the beginning, God created male and female. As such, God saw his creation as good, so both the masculine and feminine are meant to be a blessing with a redemptive purpose. 

After the Fall, human nature was corrupted, and sin entered the world. Much of what God meant for good was also twisted, and this corruption colored our perspective of what was once good. For this discussion, the human understanding of males and females has been affected, too. 

The Bible is the written expression of God’s word to us, all for reconciliation back to the Father and the restoration of what God desires. While we may struggle with the idea of masculinity and easily point to toxic versions of it, God has a redemptive plan and design for manliness. The Scripture can then be a standard of calling and inspiration for men. 

Here are ten ways the Bible defines true manliness. 

Photo Credit:©Unsplash/Gift Habeshaw 

Poll: Most Preteens Reject the Bible as God’s Word; It's the 'Existential Challenge Facing the Church'

Poll: Most Preteens Reject the Bible as God’s Word; It's the 'Existential Challenge Facing the Church'

Only one-fourth of America's preteens believe the Bible is the Word of God and only one-fifth believe in absolute truth, according to a new survey.

Pro-LGBT Film 1946 Is Filled with Fallacies, Christian Apologist Says

Pro-LGBT Film <em>1946</em> Is Filled with Fallacies, Christian Apologist Says

A new progressive film that claims the Bible contains a mistranslation of the word “homosexual” is filled with fallacies and slanted arguments that the Christian church has long rejected, says a well-known apologist who has watched the movie.

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