1. Chapter 72
The Nature of the Visible Church(es)
Ppt by Mark E. Hardgrove, PhD, DMin
2. There is no mention of one universal
visible church, such as the Roman
Catholic Church claims to be.
John wrote to seven local churches:
Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira,
Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea (Re. 2-
3).There are no letters explicitly written
to the whole visible church.
Even the General Epistles had less-than-universal
targets.
3. The ecclesiastical debate over the nature of the
visible church can be divided into the following
points which Catholics affirm and Protestants deny:
1. Is there one visible church?
2. Is the Roman Catholic Church the one visible
church? Was Peter appointed by Christ to be
the visible head of the church?
3. Is the present bishop of Rome (the Pope)
Peter’s successor?
4. Is the Pope infallible in official
pronouncements on faith and practice?
4. The Head of the Local Church(es)
Christ is the head of both the visible and the
invisible church (Eph. 1:22-23)
The local church is built on the doctrinal
foundation of the apostles (Eph. 2:20; Acts
2:42; Titus 1:5-9).
Even the Apostles submitted to a local church
(Acts 2:42; 2 Cor. 12:12)
5. Acts 15 demonstrates the following concerning the
role of apostles in the local church:
1. The apostles’ decision was applicable to all churches.
2. The decision carried apostolic authority, not just
apostolic opinion.
3. The issue generally affected the church as a whole, but
the two church were directly affected.
4. There is no idea of appealing an infallible bishop.
5. This process cannot be replicated in the modern church
because the Apostles are dead.
6. The local church’s role is significant.
6. The Authority of Apostolic Delegates in the Local
Church (Titus 1:5):
1. This work was part of an apostle’s foundational
task in establishing a church.
2. An apostle appointed elders to establish self-governing
churches.
3. The church was to continue faithfully in
apostolic teaching.
7. According to Catholic dogma, Rome’s teaching
magisterium is infallible when officially
defining faith and morals for believers.
With respect to Papal infallibility, the Catholic
church does not assert that the pope is infallible
in everything he speak, but only when he
speaks ex cathedra as an official interpreter of
faith and morals.
The pope is not infallible when pronouncing on
matters not pertaining to faith and morality.
8. Papal infallibility continued:
The pope is not absolutely infallible, only God
has “Absolute infallibly.”
Infallibility entails irrevocability. He cannot
nullify previous ex cathedra pronouncements.
Catholic theologians do not believe that the
pope is infallible independently of the bishops.
9. Papal infallibility continued:
The Catholic church points to Peter as the
foundation of the church as the supreme
teacher of the Faith. This applies to him and
his successors.
They point to John 21:15-17 as a proof text.
Catholics argue for Papal infallibility from their
Tradition which they view as inspired as
Scripture.
10. Protestants embrace scriptural infallibility but
deny that any human being or institution is
Scripture’s infallible interpreter.
The appeal by Roman Catholics to Matt.
16:18ff. as a proof text that Peter is the
prototypical Pope is wrong on several counts
including the argument that the Rock is not
Peter, but faith in Christ, and that Peter was not
the only foundation upon which the church
was built, but all the apostles form the
foundation.
11. Peter’s NT role does not reflect the unique role
among the apostles that the Catholics argue for.
It is never hinted in Scripture that Peter had
any type of infallibility.
12. Geisler overstates the case when he subjectively
argues for the cessation of certain gifts of the
Spirit. While it might be argued that the
Twelve Apostles were unique, that does not
mean that the gifts they possessed ceased with
them.
13. The problem of heretical Popes. Some of the
Popes of the Catholic church proposed things
that were later deemed to be heretical by the
church. How then could a Pope be infallible?
The problem of revelational insufficiency.
Divine revelation is God revealing Himself.
The scriptures never say we need an infallible
guide to Scripture. The Holy Spirit bring
illumination.
If the Pope is infallible, then why is there
disagreement among Catholics concerning
various Scriptures or theological positions?
14. The principle of sola scriptura. The Protestant
position is the Bible alone is infallible and the
ultimate authority for Christian doctrine and
practice.
The perspicuity of Scripture. This means
simply that the central teachings of Scripture
are clear.
No apostolic succession. There may be
(a)postles in the form of missionaries and
church planters, but no (A)postles as in the
Twelve.
15. The autonomy of the local churches.
Ultimately Christ is still the invisible head of
the visible local church.
The plurality of elders in the church. There are
checks and balances in the leadership of the
church and no one man or woman is
unchallenged or infallible leader. There is a
plurality of leadership positions in the church.
The purpose of the local church is to glorify
God and to be the visible manifestation of the
character of Christ’s body, to edify other
members of the body, and to evangelize the
world.
