The Biblical Burden for Church Restoration

In much of the United States (and in some other parts of the world), evangelical churches literally litter the landscape. Many of these churches resemble trash left on a street corner—they force people to cross to avoid them. The people who belong to these churches claim to believe in the Gospel, and their statements of faith seem to be a confession of the Gospel. There are indeed true Christians among them. But the overall message of these churches is far from the Gospel. Instead, they produce toxic waste instead of the nutritious food that people so desperately need.

Some churches in this condition may not be worth rebuilding. But the sad thing is that many evangelicals seem content to ignore such churches and simply start new ones.

Planting new churches is important and strategic, and I am glad to see more and more people taking up this cause.

But if you see a garden overgrown with weeds, will you just plant beautiful new flowers in the middle of it? If you can't hear the news on TV because your radio is too loud, will you just turn up the volume on the TV?

I would argue that church revival is a biblical task that involves bringing life back to dying churches by addressing the causes of their decline and building faithfulness. When we observe that these churches are anti-witnesses to Christ, we should recognize our Scriptural responsibility to take action in this direction. The purpose of this article is to prove this point.

Restoration of the Church: An Apostolic Priority

Consider the letter to the Corinthians. Paul had founded the church in Corinth around 50 C.E., and he wrote this letter just a few years later in response to reports he had received about the church and some questions the church had asked him. What factors prompted Paul to write to them?

Consider the following points:

• Divisions and factions: some say, «I belong to Paul, and I to Apollos, and I to Cephas, and I to Christ» (1:10-17);
• Tolerance of sexual immorality (5:1-13);
• Litigation between church members (6:1-8);
• Confusion over marriage and sexuality (7:1-40);
• Division in the church regarding the limits of Christian freedom (8:1-13; 10:1-33);
• Conflicts in worship (chapters 11-14);
• And the false doctrine of the resurrection (chapter 15).

If we squint a little and set aside cultural differences, the church in Corinth around 55 AD is a mirror image of many evangelical churches today. Many churches today suffer from a similar potent combination of false teaching, immorality, division, internal conflict, and the all-consuming bustle of the world. Many churches today need radical pastoral intervention to save their lives and restore the spiritual health of their people.

So when Paul faced these problems in Corinth, what did he do? He didn’t say, «These people are hopeless… You don’t need these people in your church»—and then commission Timothy to go and start a new church in Corinth.

Instead, he pleaded with them. He came to them again and again. He rebuked them, taught them, and endured them. In short, he worked to reform the church of God that was in Corinth.

Yes, there are some differences between Paul’s situation and ours. First, this church was the only one in Corinth at that time. But the point remains: Instead of leaving the church in Corinth to simply rot in its sin, Paul sought to restore it. Countless evangelical churches today need similar repair and restoration.

This also fits with Paul’s broader priorities as an apostle. … Instead, here’s what Paul did after his first missionary journey:

«And after some days Paul said unto Barnabas, Let us go again and visit the brethren in every city where we have preached the word of the Lord, and see how they do» (Acts 15:36). And he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches» (Acts 15:41).

Paul was so concerned about the condition of the churches he had founded… he returned to the region where he had already labored to strengthen the churches. I would argue that if we seek to follow Paul’s example, as Scripture calls us to do (1 Cor. 4:17; 11:1; Phil. 3:17), we should have the same burden for the continued health and strength of the churches that call themselves Christian and profess the Gospel.

Churches are not compostable. And when they begin to rot, they can give off a stench for years, decades, or even centuries that completely destroys the fragrance of Christ. When the church is divided, it proclaims that Christ is divided (1 Cor. 1:13). When the church tolerates immorality, it tells the world that Christ is not holy—and that immoral people, idolaters, drunkards, and swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God (see 1 Cor. 6:9-11).

So, like Paul, we must bear the burden of restoring, reviving, and reforming churches that are in various stages of sickness. And we have no shortage of such churches, especially in America.

JESUS REFORMS AND RESTORES THE CHURCHES

In the messages to the seven churches described in Revelation chapters 2 and 3, Jesus personally works to restore these local communities. He reaches out to them to mend what is broken, heal what is sick, condemn what is wrong, and breathe new life into what is dying.

Here are some examples: Jesus rebukes the Ephesians for having sound doctrine but lacking love (Rev. 2:2-7). He commends the church in Pergamum for holding fast to his name, but rebukes them for allowing false doctrine and calls them to repent (Rev. 2:13-17). There were some in the church in Thyatira who held to false doctrine, and Jesus promises to judge them (Rev. 2:20-23), but He commends the rest of the congregation and calls them to patience (Rev. 2:19, 24-28). And to the church in Sardis, Jesus says:

«Be alert and strengthen those who are about to die, for I have not found your works perfect before my God. Remember therefore how you have received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If you do not watch, I will come on you like a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come on you. But you have a few names in Sardis who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy» (Rev. 3:2-4).

If you need one verse to confirm the need for the restoration of the church, Revelation 3:2 is it: «Be sensitive and strengthen others who are about to die.».

True, this verse was written for the church itself, but shouldn't sister churches and ambitious pastors demonstrate Christlike compassion for churches like Sardis? Shouldn't we have similar concern for the faithful who remain in such churches who are suffering at the hands of false teachers?

Jesus reformed and restored churches—seven of them in these two chapters alone. So we should do the same.

GOD'S PEOPLE BEAR THE NAME OF GOD

Another motivation that Scripture gives us for reforming and restoring churches is that God’s people bear God’s name. Christians are baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (Matt. 28:19). Christians are the end-time temple, the embodiment of the place where God has called His name to dwell (1 Sam. 8:17, 19). The church is the people called by God’s name, the people He has chosen for His glory, whom He has formed and made (Isa. 43:7).

Furthermore, God is jealous for the glory of His name (Isa. 48:9-11), and we should have that jealousy as well.

However, as I have already noted, when churches decline in sin, division, and nominalism, they dishonor God's name. Such congregations tarnish God's name instead of adorning and glorifying it.

A fallen church, steeped in sin, is like a lighthouse with a broken lamp and a damaged mirror. Instead of reflecting the light of God’s glory far and wide… such a church leaves the darkness around it just as thick—or even darker. It is like a radio station taken over by the enemy: no matter what they say about their faith, such a church is broadcasting lies about God, not the truth.

Therefore, concern for God's name, which He has placed upon His people and, in a sense, to their common gatherings (Matt. 18:20), should prompt us to reform and restore the churches.

As Mark Dever often says, church restoration is a royal two-in-one: you destroy a bad testimony and at the same time create a good one in its place.

AND WHAT NEXT?

If this biblical position is sound, what should we do about it? I would say that as we consider how to spread the gospel and bear witness to the kingdom, church reform and renewal should be high on the agenda. It should be something our churches think about, work strategically about, and pray about. Churches that seek to spread and advance the gospel should be concerned, as Jesus and Paul did, with strengthening and renewing the witness of struggling churches.

Consider how your local church can support other churches that are struggling. Get to know them, research their needs, build relationships. Be willing to help in any way you can, even sending a minister and church members if the opportunity arises to help with reform and restoration.

If you are planning to start a new church, consider church reformation as another avenue to start a new congregation. By restoring a church, you will be able to glorify God and serve His people not only by planting a new church (which is often the result of reformation and restoration), but also by cleaning up the spiritual «mess» (trash) left by your brothers and sisters in town. As with physically cleaning up your neighborhood, you may be pleasantly surprised at how much your neighbors will appreciate a spiritually restored church. Who knows how many new congregations may be born or revived through your renewed church!

The reformation and restoration of the churches should become our burden, for it is the burden of God Himself, as we see from the personal ministry of the glorified Lord Jesus Christ and the apostle Paul. God's people bear His name, so we must be sensitive and support those who are on the verge of destruction.