Why the Name “Ekklesia?

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Notes for the Ekklesia Meeting

Sundays @ 10:00 a.m. :

Today’s Date: October 22, 2006

Why the Name "Ekklesia?

by Dan Trygg

"…upon this rock I will build My ekklesia; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it." Matthew 16:18

Where Do Our Beliefs and Practices Come From?

We are so entrenched within our cultural traditions about "how to do church", or "how to know and serve God", that it is difficult for us to see where our ideas and expectations come from.

What practices and concepts have solid Biblical precedent? What do we do, or think about "spirituality", that really has its roots in church history or pagan culture, not Scripture? I fear we have unknowingly come to accept some of these beliefs and practices as so normative as to be unquestionable. They have come to be virtual non-negotiables, as though these practices were the very measure of "orthodoxy", or "canonicity". Any deviations are quickly labeled as "heresy", or at least regarded with alarm and suspicion. In some cases, it could be argued that we, like the Jews of Jesus’ day, have come to "nullify the commandments of God for the sake of our traditions", "teaching as doctrines the precepts of men" (Mt. 15:1-9).

Could it be that some of what we commonly do in our culturally expected ways of meeting together actually is in conflict with what God's word tells us should be taking place? Does our approach, and the belief-system underlying it, actually frustrate and hinder the very things that the Scriptures tell us are supposed to happen when we meet?

The Lord Jesus lived at a time such as this. Occasionally, He was confrontational about some of the unhealthy dynamics of what was being done in God's name. It was obvious, however, that He was not going to be able to reform the synagogue system. That would have been fighting a fight with virtually no chance of winning. The fact that the system was so entrenched, was scattered around the world, and was protected by a "good-old-boy" network of religious traditionalists made such an objective virtually unobtainable. A reform movement capable of revitalizing such an established, fortress-minded institution would, in the best-case, be an uphill battle, and would require years of effort.

Instead of attempting such a crusade, or encouraging His disciples to do so, He did the unexpected. He initiated an entirely new movement. Instead of trying to rehash, rework, and reform the old, He inaugurated an entirely new wineskin for the new wine He was going to introduce. He did not just turn His back on Judaism, however, nor did He throw away the past strengths and valuable spiritual lessons that had been part of Israel's pilgrimage. He unwrapped an Old Testament "word-picture package" and uncovered a gem that had been ignored and neglected for generations. He brought out into the sunlight a word picture that had history and prophetic destiny.

Jesus presented things in a way that allowed His disciples to continue to legitimately identify with the OT people of faith, to value and preserve their life-lessons, and yet not be compelled to continue the stuffiness and limitations of the religious traditions that had crept in over time. His choice of this OT image, and even of the particular word He used to describe it, has deep and far reaching ramifications for how we are to understand the Church.

In order to appreciate the significance of these things, we must lay down a little background information:

The Synagogue

The synagogue, that has carried down to modern times, first originated during the Babylonian exile (586 B.C.), after the Jerusalem Temple was destroyed. It is interesting to note that there is no Biblical direction or mandate from God to start such meetings. No one really knows how they began, but they arose as an attempt by the Jewish exiles to keep themselves together, and to pass along the teachings and faith of their people.

The name, "synagogue", is derived from one of two words used in the Septuagint Greek OT to translate the Hebrew words for the "congregation" of Israel. Originally, it was a general Greek term used for any kind of gathering, sacred or secular. By the time of the NT, however, its usage had become so identified with these Jewish religious gatherings, and the buildings they met in, that it was only rarely used in any other context anymore.

Synagogue meetings were primarily founded to preserve the national identity of Israel. It was a neighborhood meeting place where the Scriptures were recited and read, where prayers were given, songs were sung, and a sermon was preached. The main thrust was to pass along the Bible stories and teach people what it meant to be a follower of God. It became a weekly tradition to go to synagogue on Sabbath days. In addition, synagogue schools were developed where Israelite children were taught to read and were instructed in the Law during the week. Jesus and the apostles would have attended such a school. Moreover, we know from Lk. 4:16 that it was His custom to attend synagogue on Sabbath days.

All in all, synagogue practices were very similar to those that have developed in Western church history, and continue to be used in most church meetings across our land on any given Sunday. They are as entrenched in our own thinking and expectations about religious gatherings as they were in Jesus’ time.

Jesus and the Ekklesia

It is interesting, however, that while Jesus came to fulfill the OT promises, He did not see His ministry as simply building upon the synagogue model of meeting together, or the other religious institutions of His day.

He did not just teach in the synagogue on Sabbath days. He taught in a multitude of places and at various times. He spoke to groups of all sizes. He especially determined to spend in-depth time living with, and instructing, His small interactive group of twelve disciples. These men would have been steeped in the religious traditionalism of Judaism. They were not expecting any special changes regarding how things should be done. Yet, when Peter confessed that Jesus was the Messiah (Mt. 16:16), Jesus introduced the beginning of a new movement. He used a different Greek word, ekklesia, for the people He was going to build.

Ekklesia was the other main word that had been used in the Septuagint translation to render the Hebrew words for "congregation" into Greek. Unlike "synagogue", it still retained its generic, non-religious meaning for a "gathering" or "assembly". The word had not become tainted with religious connotations. In fact, in the common Greek of the day, it was often used for a political caucus. It was the perfect word to use to start a new movement because the term had no preconceived, set patterns for how it was to look, or what they were to do when they gathered.

By choosing to call His followers the ekklesia (meaning "assembly" or "called out [ones]") instead of the synagogue, Jesus did two things: He succeeded in identifying His people with the OT people of God, establishing continuity with the OT prophecies and promises, and He also differentiated what His people were to be and do from the religious system of His day. By this word choice, He freed His people from any necessary suppositions that they must follow the expectations or methods established by the synagogue system. In other words, He liberated them to be different, to be creative and distinct in how they thought of themselves and what they were all about. They were not to be just "more of the same". The ekklesia would be the people of Jesus, those assembled for a purpose, those "called out" from everyday life, "called out" to meet together to accomplish some end.

Whatever it was to become, the ekklesia was not to be a NT synagogue

, though there is significant evidence that oftentimes Jewish converts attempted to merely carry over the dynamics of their religious experiences in Judaism into their new faith. In Jesus, the entire direction was to change, however.

Instead of having an isolationist, protectionist mentality, where the goal was primarily to pass down the beliefs and practices from one generation to another, Christianity was to be an aggressive movement, preparing and equipping followers to bring the light of Jesus’ love and truth into a world filled with darkness, sickness, bondage and despair in order to set people free to know and serve God.

Under the old way, the treasure to be guarded was the Law, and the practices prescribed therein. Under the new Way, the Holy Spirit came to live within believers. He would write the Law upon their hearts, to be lived out in their lives. He was the "treasure" that was living within them (II Cor. 3:2-6,17,18; 4:6,7). This was not to be "guarded", or "kept hidden". It was to be released and expressed outwardly (Matt. 5:14-16). The purpose of the ekklesia was to help believers get in touch with this inner power, and teach them to express it outwardly toward others in truth and love.

The gathering of believers was to not only be a place of instruction, but also of experimentation. Believers were to build each other up and come alongside one another to speak encouragement, affirmation and instruction into one another’s lives. They were also to hold one another accountable to grow and fulfill God’s calling on their lives. In fact, they were even to plan to agitate each other to express love and do good deeds to further the Kingdom of God.

In the synagogue, there was to be uniformity, and leaders presided from "up front" to guarantee that things did not change. In the ekklesia, however, everyone can lead, everyone can share and contribute, if they are prompted by the Spirit, as long as things are done in a respectful, orderly fashion, and what is shared is for the building up of the believers (I Cor. 14:26-40). The expectation of those in the gathering should be to see what new practical thing God would bring to light or lead them to do, since He is a living and creative God (I Cor. 2:6-13).

The NT gathering was not to be a free-for-all, or just an opinion forum, however. All things were to be tested and evaluated against the revealed word of God (I Cor. 14:29; I Thess. 5:19-22; I Cor. 4:6; I Tim. 1:3-8). Again, the purpose of the gathering was not to simply pass along doctrines and traditions. It was to build up and equip a people to become mature, fruitful followers of Christ (Matt. 28:18-20; Eph. 4:12,13; Col. 1:9,10). In order to do that, God’s plan was to assemble us into small family-type groups, where we can be ourselves, talk about real issues, and we can speak into one another’s lives to heal, stimulate and equip each other to discover and do God’s will.