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Acts 242 Church of Christ

Lesson 6 of 7 — Discipleship

Church

Understanding God's Heart for His Church

The Church is the Body of Christ. This lesson helps you understand how God values His Church, your place in it, and how to function as part of God's household.

Purpose

To gain a deeper understanding of how God values His Church and His wonderful plans for her, and to know how we must function as part of God's household.

Following along in the printed booklet? Foundation Guide, pp. 88–103

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Lesson Six

CHURCH

Understanding God’s Heart for His Church

Acts 242 Foundation Guide · Edition 1 · 2026
Lesson 6 of 7
Title1 / 29
Purpose

To gain a deeper understanding of how God values His Church and His wonderful plans for her, and to know how we must function as part of God’s household.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 88
02
Purpose2 / 29
Main Question

When you hear the word Church, what comes into your mind?

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 88
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Main question3 / 29
Intro

Many people think of church as a building, a service, or a religious gathering. But in Scripture, the Church is far more than that. The Church is God’s people, Christ’s body, God’s family, and the bride of Christ.

To understand the Church rightly is to understand how God wants us to live, love, serve, and remain faithful to Him.

How do you truly view the Church?

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 88
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Intro4 / 29
Your Answer

Before we open the Bible

When you hear the word Church, what comes into your mind?

Write the first three things, not the correct answer, the honest one.

What has your experience of church been so far?

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 89
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Before we open the Bible5 / 29
Scripture

Jesus Is the Head

Colossians 1:15–18 NIV

15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 90
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Colossians 1:15-186 / 29
Understand

The Church belongs to Jesus. He leads it, sustains it, and gives it purpose.

If Jesus is the Head, then the Church must submit to Him. We do not define the Church by personal preference, culture, or convenience. We understand the Church through Christ.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 90
07
Understand: the Church belongs to Jesus7 / 29
Scripture

The Body of Christ

1 Corinthians 12:12–14 NIV

12 Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. 13 For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. 14 Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 91
08
1 Corinthians 12:12-148 / 29
Understand

To be part of the Church means:

belonging to Christ
being connected to His people
living under His authority

Are you connected to the body, or only near it?

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 91
09
Understand: part of the Church9 / 29
Scripture

Every Part Belongs

1 Corinthians 12:15–22 NIV Verses 15 to 18

15 Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 92
10
1 Corinthians 12:15-1810 / 29
Scripture

Every Part Belongs, continued

1 Corinthians 12:15–22 NIV Verses 19 to 22

19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, “I donʼt need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I donʼt need you!” 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 92
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1 Corinthians 12:19-2211 / 29
Understand

God did not design the Church so that one person does everything and everyone else watches.

Each believer has a place, a value, and a function. Some may be more visible, while others serve quietly. But every part matters.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 93
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Understand: every part matters12 / 29
Scripture

No Division in the Body

1 Corinthians 12:23–28 NIV

23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it. 27 Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 28 And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues.

Lesson 06 · Church
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1 Corinthians 12:23-2813 / 29
Understand

The Church becomes unhealthy when people compare, compete, or withdraw.

The Church becomes strong when each member accepts their role and serves faithfully.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Understand: healthy and unhealthy14 / 29
Key Truth

Where there is pride, division grows. Where there is love, the body is strengthened.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Key truth: pride and love15 / 29
Scripture

How We Treat One Another

John 13:34–35 NIV

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

The Church is not held together merely by attendance, activity, or structure. It is held together by love, unity, and service. To function as the Church means:

serving one another
caring for one another
honoring one another
loving one another as Christ loved us
Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 95
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John 13:34-3516 / 29
Ask

Name one person in the church you will serve this month, and how.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Name one person you will serve17 / 29
Scripture

Members of His Household

Ephesians 2:19–22 NIV

19 Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and strangers, but fellow citizens with Godʼs people and also members of his household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.

The Church is not only an organization. It is a family. In God’s family, there should be:

belonging
support
growth
accountability
shared life in Christ
Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 96
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Ephesians 2:19-2218 / 29
Scripture

The Bride of Christ

Ephesians 5:25–27 NIV

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

Revelation 19:6–7 NIV

6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:
“Hallelujah!
For our Lord God Almighty reigns.
7 Let us rejoice and be glad
and give him glory!
For the wedding of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready.

Lesson 06 · Church
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The Bride of Christ19 / 29
Ephesians 5:25–27 / Revelation 19:6–7 · In Short
Acts 242 Summary

As a church, we are the Bride of Christ. Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, to make her holy and to present her to himself radiant. At the wedding of the Lamb, His bride has made herself ready.

This shows how precious the Church is to Jesus. He loves her, cares for her, and is preparing her. If the Church is the Bride of Christ, then faithfulness matters: keeping Christ first, rejecting compromise, pursuing holiness, remaining faithful to Him.

Lesson 06 · Church
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In short: the Bride20 / 29
Scripture

Headship

1 Corinthians 11:2–4 NIV

2 I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head.

Acts 242 Summary

Christ over man, man over woman, and God over Christ. He also says that a man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head.

Lesson 06 · Church
Book p. 98
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1 Corinthians 11:2-421 / 29
Scripture

The Hope of the Church

John 14:1–3 NIV

1 “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. 2 My Fatherʼs house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

Lesson 06 · Church
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John 14:1-322 / 29
Scripture

We Will Be With the Lord

1 Thessalonians 4:16–18 NIV

16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Lesson 06 · Church
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1 Thessalonians 4:16-1823 / 29
Understand

The Church does not live only for the present. We live with hope. Jesus has not forgotten His people.

This gives believers comfort in suffering, faithfulness in waiting, confidence in God’s promises, and hope beyond this world.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Understand: we live with hope24 / 29
Key Truth

The Church is not abandoned. The Church is awaited.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Key truth: the Church is awaited25 / 29
Reflect

Answer Honestly

How do I truly view the Church?
Do I see the Church as Christ’s body, God’s family, and the Bride of Christ?
Am I functioning faithfully as part of the body?
Do I serve, love, and protect the unity of the Church?
Am I remaining faithful to Christ?
Lesson 06 · Church
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Reflect26 / 29
Challenge
01
Value the Church the way God values the Church.
02
Refuse division.
03
Love other believers.
04
Use your gifts to serve.
05
Stay faithful to Christ.
06
Live with the hope of His return.
Lesson 06 · Church
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Challenge27 / 29
Prayer

Lord,

Thank You for Your Church. Teach me to value what You value.

Help me to love Your people, serve faithfully, protect unity, and remain true to Christ. Let my life strengthen Your body and honor You.

Amen.

Lesson 06 · Church
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Prayer28 / 29
Next

Lesson 7
Cross

Learning to hate sin and love God through Jesus’ sacrifice

Acts 242 Church of Christ · acts242churchofchrist.com
Acts 2:42
Closing29 / 29
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Purpose

To gain a deeper understanding of how God values His Church and His wonderful plans for her, and to know how we must function as part of God's household.

Main question

When you hear the word Church, what comes into your mind? How do you see yourself in the Body of Christ?

Explanation

The Church is not a building, a program, or a Sunday event. The Church is the Body of Christ — a living family God has called and joined together. Jesus is the Head, and every believer is a living part of that Body, each with a different function. No one is insignificant, and no one is indispensable. We belong to each other because we belong to Him.

Key Passages

Colossians 1:15–18

Jesus is the exact representation of God the Father, and all creation was made through Him and for Him. He is the Head of the Body, the Church.

1 Corinthians 12:12–14

The Church is the Body of Christ — one body with many parts, joined together by the Spirit.

1 Corinthians 12:15–22

Each one of us has different functions. We need one another. No one is insignificant, and no one is indispensable.

1 Corinthians 12:23–25

Because we are one body, there must be no division among us.

1 Corinthians 12:26–28

We function as one and use our gifts to serve one another.

John 13:34–35

A new command — love one another just as Jesus Christ loved us. By this all people will know we are His disciples.

Ephesians 2:19–22

As part of the Church, we become members of God's family and His household — built together as a dwelling place for God by His Spirit.

Ephesians 5:25–27

As a Church, we are the Bride of Christ — loved and cleansed by Him.

1 Corinthians 11:2–4

As the Bride of Christ, we must remain faithful to Him.

John 14:1–3

Jesus is preparing a place for us, and He will come back for us.

1 Thessalonians 4:16–18

The Lord Himself will come, and we will be with Him forever. Encourage one another with these words.

Understand

The Body of Christ

Jesus is the Head of the Church, and every believer is a living part of His Body. This is not a metaphor — it is a spiritual reality. When you belong to Christ, you belong to His people.

Every Member Matters

God gave each believer different gifts and functions. No one is too small to matter; no one is too great to need others. The health of the Body depends on every part working together in love.

A Family, Not a Crowd

The Church is God's household — His family. You are not a visitor; you are a member. You are not attending an event; you are belonging to a people.

The Bride of Christ

The Church is also the Bride of Christ — the object of His love and the one He will come back for. This shapes how we live now: faithfully, purely, and with great hope.

Reflection

Am I committed to a local church, not just attending it? How do I see my role in the Body of Christ? Am I using my gifts to build up others, or only consuming what others give? Am I loving my brothers and sisters in Christ the way Jesus loved me?

Challenge

Commit to being an active member of the Body. Serve in a ministry. Build real friendships with fellow believers. Pray for your church. Love those in it — even when it is hard.

Prayer

“Father, thank You for calling me into Your family. Help me see the Church the way You see her — as the Body and the Bride of Christ. Show me my place in Your household. Teach me to love, serve, and walk faithfully with Your people. Amen.”

Continue to Lesson 7

You have completed Lesson 6 of 7. Continue to the next lesson when you are ready.