Characteristics of a Healthy Church
We'll never find satisfaction through worldly pursuits, so how do we posture our hearts to participate in "thirst-quenching" worship? What does a healthy church look like? Here are eight characteristics of the church as a worshipping community.
-
Jesus and the Woman of Samaria
1 Now when Jesus learned that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples), 3 he left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob's well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.[a]
7 A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12 Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again.[b] The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty or have to come here to draw water.”
16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here.” 17 The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.” 19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”
How to Find Satisfaction?
You are designed to know satisfaction in God, which will never be satisfied apart from worshipping Him. It doesn't matter how extensive your portfolio is, the status you achieve, the degree you earn, or how much time you spend at the gym. Nothing will satisfy you apart from God.
For a Christian, fulfillment comes from worshipping God, not other people worshipping you. Fame, wealth, and status do not satisfy the deepest longings of the human heart. God is a call to satisfaction, and Jesus made this call to the Samaritan woman 2000 years ago.
Like the Samaritan woman, we try to quench our thirst in various ways, such as relationships, status, and possessions, yet we still find ourselves empty. However, Jesus offered her more, and with her interest piqued, she wisely asked Him to clarify this "living water."
Jesus responded by engaging her about worship. God designed her soul and wanted her to be satisfied in knowing, worshipping, and delighting in Him.
The truth of this is rooted in the Gospel of Christ: All have sinned and fallen short of God's holiness, God's perfection, but God is loving. As Scripture tells us in Romans 10, God does not want anyone to perish or be separated from Him, so He sent His son to bear our sins on the cross. In the light of Christ's holiness, when we repent our sins and turn to Christ in humility through faith, we are reconciled with God.
However, while the Gospel is forgiveness, there's much more to it than that. Preacher and author David Platt said, "Salvation is not forgiveness of your sin accompanied by the emptiness of your soul. Salvation is forgiveness of your sin accompanied by satisfaction in your soul."
Multiple times through Jesus' teachings, He refers to "the poor." However, the context of this phrase is not for the impoverished. Instead, it's an acknowledgment of those poor in spirit. It's for those who have chosen their path and recognize the emptiness of their plight; That's a poverty of spirit.
Jesus tells us that when we posture our heart and life like that that not only is our sin forgiven but binds our brokenness and wounds to set our captive hearts free. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, said, we can be saved to the uttermost!
A correct understanding of Christ changes our worship, and when we apply that truth to our hearts, we go from duty to delight. We find satisfaction in corporate worship, which removes the sense of obligation. Instead, worship becomes a spirit of celebration.
"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;" 1 Peter 2:9 (KJV) [READ MORE: Why Are Christians A Chosen People by Rev. Paul Lawler]
The Scriptures illustrate that ALL of life is worship. But it also calls the church to gather corporately for the purpose of worship. We come together to hear the Word of God, share in liturgy based on God's Word, sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, and pray. Our souls are designed to be satisfied in God in worship as we gather as a family, a bride, a body, a royal priesthood.
What does a church that meets these criteria look like?
Eight Healthy Characteristics of the Church as a Worshipping Community
No 1) Biblical Revelation
Scripture should be taught accurately and in the things that are unpopular, challenging, and counterintuitive.
JESUS: "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:24
Dr. Dennis Kinlaw, former president of Asbury University, said, "I've never known a godly man or woman who did not daily share in a quiet time with God." Man shall not live by bread alone, but every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Don't read the Word of God for information. Read it for formation.
You cannot worship a God that you do not know.
No 2) Spiritual Power
JESUS: "God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." John 4:24
Some things happen in corporate worship that doesn't happen apart from aiming at God.
There was a woman named Sue who had stage four pancreatic cancer. The church gathered around her during worship as lay leaders lay hands on her to pray. They wept and prayed to God to heal her, and that's precisely what happened.
I want to be very clear, I don't see things like that happen often, but it's within God's power. I've seen Christians go to war in prayer and begin to pray more significantly for God to do what only God could do in corporate worship gatherings.
God is in spirit, and those who worship Him in truth and openness understand the power of the Holy Spirit. This is why Biblically-centered worship matters because heart transformation is at stake.
No. 3) Gathering Together
"And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near." Hebrews 10:25
When you light a fire, the coals are hot. However, when you pull them out of the heart of the flames, they cool and eventually become cold. The same is true of Christians. When you actively adore God with your heavenly family, you are more apt to stay hot for God rather than make it a Sunday thing.
No. 4) Awakened Affections
JESUS: "And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength." Mark 12:30 (ESV)
This is what happens in the heart life of the Samaritan woman when she encounters Jesus. However, it takes experiencing His grace and forgiveness in new life for her affections to awaken. We gather in worship because we've tasted new life in Christ.
"…addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart." Ephesians 5:19
Do not fall into the trap of worshipping worship. As a pastor, I've heard it countless times, "I came here because I liked the worship band." Thank God for talented musicians with worshipful hearts, but we come to worship the King and bring excellence to His name. It's not about our mood or tastes; we worship Him because He is worthy as the God of the universe.
No 5) Truthful Confession
JESUS: "You have had five husbands, and the one you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true." John 4:18
On the surface, this may sound cruel; however, Jesus knows she will not be healed until her life has been exposed to the light of His grace and mercy. The Bible tells us that we will be saved if we confess our sins. The word confess means to come into agreement with God. By confessing sins, we're not glossing over them. We want to avoid coming to a place of corporate worship with hardened hearts. Instead, we want to bring them into Christ's light so we can participate in worship.
No 6) Gospel Celebration
"Jesus said to her, 'I who speak to you am he.'" John 4:26
Both Jesus and the Samaritan woman affirm that he is the one the Old Testament predicted, the Messiah and Anointed One. Blood sacrifices are no longer needed to clean sins because they are forgiven in the person of Jesus, and we gather to celebrate that truth.
No 7) Prayerful Intercession
Daniel Henderson said, "Prayerlessness is our declaration of independence from God." Where there is much prayer, there is much power, and where there is little prayer, there is little power.
No 8) Great Commission
"Jesus said to them, 'My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, 'There are yet four months, then comes the harvest? Look, I tell you, lift your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.' I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor." John 4:34-38
The woman has an encounter with Jesus, but afterward, she goes back to Samaria. What we see is they all soon believe based on her testimony. They haven't met Jesus in person but believe based on a transformed life.
Every Sunday, churches offer a benediction that tells congregants they are bearers of God's light to the community and city they're from. We are called to worship to find the ultimate satisfaction in His name and share that with others searching for an encounter with God.
TL;DR
Nothing will satisfy you apart from God.
A correct understanding of Christ changes our worship, and when we apply that truth to our hearts, we go from duty to delight.
Eight Healthy Characteristics of the Church as a Worshipping Community
Biblical Revelation
Spiritual Power
Gathering Together
Awakened Affections
Truthful Confession
Gospel Celebration
Prayerful Intercession
Great Comisssion
Related Reading
The First Things of a Blessed Life by Rev. Paul Lawler
Why Are Christians A Chosen People by Rev. Paul Lawler
The Church as the Bride of Christ by Rev. Paul Lawler
About Christ Church Memphis
Christ Church Memphis is church in East Memphis, Tennessee. For more than 65 years, Christ Church has served the Memphis community. Every weekend, there are multiple worship opportunities including traditional, contemporary and blended services
