Pictures of the Church-Overview
How do you describe something too large to fit into a single word? The New Testament faced that question when it spoke of the church. The apostles did not give a dictionary definition. They painted pictures. Paul called the church a body with Christ as its Head. Peter called it a flock under the Chief Shepherd, a spiritual house built of living stones, and a royal priesthood. Jesus spoke of branches drawing their life from the true vine. John saw a bride made ready for the Lamb. The letters speak of a household where strangers become family and of a fellowship in which believers share one life in Christ.
Each picture shows something the others cannot. The body tells us that every member is needed. The fellowship tells us that we hold our life in common. The flock reminds us that we need a Shepherd, and the priesthood assures us that every believer may come to God. The household gives warmth, and the temple calls us to holiness. The vine teaches that our life comes from Christ, and the bride tells us that He loves us and calls us to be faithful. Held together, the pictures answer the questions every believer asks: Who is Christ to us? Who are we? How should we live together? Where is the story going?
This collection has two parts. The overview sets the pictures side by side. It shows how to read a biblical picture, introduces each one briefly, and traces how they correct and complete one another. It is the best place to begin, and it can be read on its own as a single lesson.
The detailed studies then take up each picture one at a time: the body of Christ, the fellowship of the saints with its companion word study on sharing, the flock of God, the household and family of God, the temple and building of God, the vine and the branches, the bride of Christ, and the royal priesthood. Each study follows the picture from its roots, often in the Old Testament, into the New. It quotes the key passages in full from the New King James Version, explains the important words in plain terms, and offers exegetical observations on the text. It draws out what each truth means for the local church, framed as what we should align with and what we may need to adjust, and closes each section with questions for reflection and discussion.
The studies can be read in order or one at a time, by an individual, a class, or a whole congregation. But the pictures are not given only to be studied. They are given to be lived. A member serves, a partner shares, a sheep follows, a child belongs, a stone is set into the wall, a branch abides, a bride waits faithfully, and a priest offers praise. As you read, ask which of these is the next step for you and for your church.