How Were First-Century Churches Different From Most Modern-Day Churches? (Part 1 of 2)
"They didn't have air conditioning, carpet or nothing," says Dylan, age 5. Actually, it was "the way the seats were lined up," says Milese, 6. No, that wasn't it at all: "because there were no chairs back then," says Halie, 6.
You all missed it, says Hannah, 6: "They did not have toys back then or church dresses."
Many interesting answers, but Gracie, 7, wins the award for the most thought-provoking: "Church was different back then because they didn't have one."
Hmm. Let's call this the Gracie paradox -- church without a church. Is this possible?
I'm happy to report that the first-century church spread around the world without church buildings. Most people think of church as a building with a certain style of architecture. When the Bible refers to the church, it has nothing to do with physical buildings. Rather, it's all about a spiritual building called the body of Christ, the house of God and the bride of Christ.
That spiritual building consists of all who have ever believed in the Lord Jesus Christ as their savior. "Living stones" is the Apostle Peter's metaphor for Christians because they are the building blocks that make up this living organism called the church. To call any building a church is a misnomer because the New Testament never uses the word this way (Ephesians 2:19-22 and I Peter 2:4-5).
There is the universal church, which consists of all Christians of all time. Then, there are local expressions of the universal church, when believers assemble in the name of Christ as a church in a particular location. In the early church, people met in houses, in fields and even in the Roman catacombs (underground tunnels used to bury the dead).
"In the first century, they didn't have churches, but every day in their homes, they praised God, broke the bread and drank the wine," says Jimmy, 11. "Now we do all of that, and more, but we gather our community together and rejoice in one building."
Jimmy, your church sounds like a happening place. But many who assemble aren't so fortunate, says Mikelle, 11: "In the early church, all the members were alike and together. They met at the church every day and even had meals together. Today, we may know a few other members of the church, but we don't even know everyone's names. We certainly don't see them every day."
"In the old days, they went from house to house having dinner," says Braxton, 7. "Today, we have different churches that talk about God. And we don't go house to house having dinner no more."
In previous columns, I've mentioned that the Lord's Supper is a meal. There's not one instance in the New Testament where the Lord's Supper is anything other than a meal. By definition, a "supper" is a meal. By reducing the Lord's Supper to something less than a fellowship meal, we're missing most of the community aspect of the church that made the New Testament church so dynamic.
"It was different because they split their stuff with others. And every night, they ate at other's homes," says Kyle, 7.
The Jerusalem church had a difficult time. It was not easy being a Jewish Christian in Jerusalem, the very place where the Lord Jesus was tried and crucified. In this time of extreme hardship and persecution, Christians came together and sold property so that they had all things in common.
The lives of Jerusalem Christians spoke to people's hearts to the point where the Scripture records: "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved" (Acts 2:47).
Carey Kinsolving is a syndicated columnist, producer, author, speaker and website developer. To see more material like this, visit www.KidsTalkAboutGod.org. The Kids Talk About God website contains free, online content for children and families. See Carey’s Kid TV Interviews. Hear a book talk. Print free lessons from the "Kids Color Me Bible" and make your own book. Let an 11-year-old girl take you on a trip around the world in the Mission Explorers Streaming Video. Print Scripture verses illustrated by child artists. Receive a complimentary, weekly e-mail subscription to our Devotional Bible Lessons.
Bible quotations in this Bible lesson are from the New King James Version.
Copyright 2007 Carey Kinsolving