Defining the 21st Century Church — Lesson 2
October 9, 2009
Defining the 21st Century Church
“Representation and Incarnation” – Lesson 2
Adult Wednesday and Sunday Bible Class
West Broad Church of Christ
October 11 and 14, 2009
Dr. James L. Nesmith, Jr., Facilitator
Introduction:
We reviewed briefly the work of select American Restoration leaders in our first lesson. In today’s discussion, we will focus not only on the form of the church but also on the form of the Christ. How does this process impact our understanding of the Lord’s church in the 21st century? How does it impact our understanding of the Lord’s church in downtown Richmond?
I. The Church: Representation and Incarnation
Incarnation is defined as, “the embodiment of a deity or spirit in some earthly form.” How does Scripture speak to this reality?
· The first incarnation. Question: What do Matthew and John say about the Lord’s presence on this planet? How do their words speak to you? Christ did the work of God and instructed his disciples to do the same. Question: How does this speak to us as Christians?
· Another incarnation. What does the definition of incarnation say to us, today?
o The promise of works. There is a connection between works and representation.
§ A political lens
§ A divine lens
o The execution of works. There are familiar passages in the book of Acts. Let’s consider them, again.
§ Works in the New Testament church. Question: Can we see the New Testament church doing what Jesus did?
§ Embodiment of the New Testament church. There is a clear indicator for identifying the Lord’s church.
Summation:
According to the New Testament, we see that both representation and incarnation are important as we consider the identity of the 21st century church. Question: How close is the Church of Christ to realizing the mission of “incarnation?” What role will you play to advance the idea of “a second incarnation” as we labor in downtown Richmond?
