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Churches can easily become 'hotbeds' of apathy because they sometimes forget to listen to what God wants them to do. Their past successes lead them to believe that they can just continue doing what they have in the past without being prepared to listen to the Holy Spirrit and be led by the Spirit. To counteract this apathy we ned to continue to come to God morning by morning with open expectant minds and listening hearts.

Christ has come to the seven churches of Asia Mior to evaluate their faithfulness to the teachings of their apostles and their spiritual health as Christian communities. His major criticism sems to be that their faith has become less important to them than it had been originally and they have slipped back into the ways of their surrounding cultures, compromising their love for Christ. They have become nominal Christians in many cases. Today, our Christian churches need to be aware of the danger of becoming nominal christians who meet for worship but whose hearts aren't really in it. Sometimes, following Christ seems too hard and other lifestyles seem more attractive. What a shock we would get if Christ did an impromptu evaluation of our Sunday worship and mission goals. Perhaps he already has and nobody noticed. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

I presume this question is referring to compromises christians sometimes are faced with in their work situations. A very difficult problem sometimes, especially if standing up for your principles loses you your job and means you may not find work in the same industry again. Presumably, this was the conflict faced by new christians in the church at Thyatira. What compromises do C21 christians face today? Fortunately, in Australia, we live in a nominally christian society, but where a christian is living in a muslim society, they can expect very real persecution of themselves and their family if they refuse to conform to traditional muslim culture. Nevertheless, even in Australia, with rosters covering a 7/24 week, many people have a real struggle if they ask for Sundays off so they can worship and rest.

I must say that I find this a very diffficult question to answer. There are so many ways that the church has lessened its standards to conform to society, such as allowing divorced people to remarry, permitting unwed mothers to worship in church for example. My dilemma is that I think that the Church is right in doing so, because there is a tension in taking the words of scripture which were important for the situation in which they were written and applying them for ever more. If our Bible contains the Living Word then I feel it is our duty to reinterpret the intention behind the words for today's society. The denomination to which I belong allows people who are living together but not married, practising homosexual people, people who have chosen never to marry, people who may have had an abortion in the past. I am sure there are many who would hold to a more rigid interpretation of scripture than this denomination, but I ask myself in these situations, "What would Jesus say to someone like this who wanted to worship God?" I think Jesus came to break down all the barriers to reaching God. In my experience, the people themselves have, in time, come to want to put their situation aright between themselves and God.

I feel that a local congregation is in danger of losing that 'first love' for Jesus when they discourage expressions of emotions, even of our love for God. Whenever faith is based purely or primarily on head knowledge rather than allowing people to experience the love of God through reverent worship and acts of kindness offered and received then a church begins to die spiritually. When there is a lack of love within a faith community, it is not long before divisions occur with the congregation splitting into unpleasant factions. The focus turns inward, meaning that the desire to welcome new people into the church is lost. Indeed, very few seekers or new converts would choose to join such a community. The congregation can only regain their love for God, each other and those who are still outside the church by repenting and turning their focus in both worship and ministry back to being Christ-centred.

The knowledge that Christ is walking among the lampstands, or churches, is a great encouragement to today's persecuted communities of faith because it is an assurance that Christ is not remote but very near and actively involved in their welfare. This teaches us that the Church is essential to God's purpose for the world and that God's will is for the Church to continue the ministry of Christ with the help of the Trinitarian God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The vision John describes is of the glorified triumphant Christ. The reader is struck with awe and reverent fear at this amazing depiction of Christ. This understanding of Christ is important if Christians are to have a balanced faith. The Carpenter-Teacher was certainly fully divine in nature, but God came in Jesus having first emptied God's self of all the majesty due to the eternal King. Now we see that the One who was present at creation is again on the throne of glory and will reign from there for ever more.

In Australia, I would say Christians are not being persecuted for their faith, but many of our missionaries have been killed even in the past few years. Christians in such countries as China, Vietnam, Indonesia and many muslim countries live with the daily threat of being arrested, tortured and dying for their faith in Jesus Christ. The book of Revelations must be a tremendous encouragement to such people because in it they will read that Jesus Christ has promised to those who believe in his name a special place in the kingdom if they remain strong in the face of persecution..

The significance of these verses to our understanding of Jesus' identity is that Jesus is making the same claims as the Father, that they are both eternal, existing prior to any created thing and continuing to exist long after all creation passes away.

The theme of testimony and witness is important to encouraging and strengthening a church because by definition a testimony comes from one speaking from personal experience to others who believe, but as yet have not seen or experienced for themselves. This testimony, then, confirms that what they have believed, is in fact, true. So to those who believed John's version of who Jesus Christ is, but who were struggling to see any evidence of the promised abundant life, John's revelations from the Risen Christ himself was a tremendous encouragement and confirmation that the one in whom they had put their faith was indeed trustworthy. Today, I believe we are ineffective or perhaps non-effective witnesses because we do not have the same assurance of faith that John had, that the risen Jesus Christ is powerful and willing to fulfil the promises he gave to those who believe in his name, ie abundant joyful life. If we ourselves have not experienced this, then we cannot really authentically convince others.

The verse which sums up best the conviction which God has shown me over the past five weeks is from Ephesians 5:21 - Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. From now on I will be aware that my thoughts about my fellow church members' 'shortcomings' (I mean from my point of view) must make no difference to my ministry for God. Previously, I would sometimes like to shake some of the people God has given me to work alongside, but now I see them differently and I will love them as I love my self, that is with much more compassion and grace. My attitude towards the wider church has changed so that I have now come to realise that just as on a small scale a local community forms the Body of Christ, so on a world-wide scale does the Church universal. We all are still part of the One Body, with our different gifts. Our world could do a lot worse than to learn to value unity in diversity.

In what sense should we love the Church because it is our own body? When we understand this fact, we realise that it is our responsibility to feed and care for the Church as we do our own bodies. It is not someone else's responsibility - it is ours. We can no longer justify not becoming involved in some way. What will that kind of love produce? We cannot justify friction within our own community nor between our Church traditions, because if we hurt another part of the Body, we also harm ourselves. Why do we need to repent of despising the Church and begin to love her aright? We want what Christ, the Head, wants for his glorious, resplendent Church - perfection. We will achieve this by allowing love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control - in other words, the Spirit of Christ to live in us, work through us and touch everyone we come in contact with. Thank you very much, Pastor Ralph for leading us through this study and thanks also to the others who have shared their insights with me. I have learned a lot.

In what sense is the Church glorious or resplendent? Here we are speaking about the Church universal, the Body of which Christ is the head. Christ has made the Church glorious and resplendent or perfect because he himself is perfect, therefore the whole body is also perfect. Is Paul talking about the present era or when Christ comes? I believe Paul is meaning that the Church will be presented to its bridegroom at the parousia or second coming. However, just as individuals have been made perfect now since Christ died for our sins once for all, so it is also with the Church. Although it may not seem to be perfect all the time, anymore than we are perfect all the time, we still believe in faith that Christ has made his Body holy.

How does the word of God work in the cleansing, purifying process? By showing the need for people to be cleansed from their sinfulness. The Word of God's, that is Jesus Christ's, purity shows up our impurity so clearly. However, he also provides the answer through the giving up of his life to save the world because of his great love for it. How should the word of God be implemented in a congregation to achieve these purposes? Christians in one sense have already been cleansed and purified, but in another, we are all still being transformed. Therefore, through preaching, bible study and prayer we become aware of some of the insidious ways that the world still has hold of us. How can we use the word of God for purification without relying upon threats of hellfire to scare people into repentance? The way of love is to walk alongside another and tell your own story, share some of your own areas of weakness, and the places in your own spiritual journey where you struggle. It is best, I think, to avoid sounding as though, as a christian, I have 'made it' and am somehow superior to anyone else.

What constitutes 'holiness' of a church? I notice you ask: of a church, not of the Church. A church which has recognised that it is somehow in the world, but not of the world; a church which has seen itself as dedicated to God, set apart, part of the Body of Christ. Is the church holy because of Christ's sacrifice for her, because of her own actions, or both? According to this passage, all the action is from Christ, and none from the Church. Christ loved, gave, makes holy, cleanses, presents. How can we be holy without being legalitic and judgmental towards one another? We, meaning the church and one another meaning our non-christian friends? When we realise that the Church has been made holy in a corporate sense, in the same way that individuals who make up the Church have - that is by the pure grace of God - then we don't have any right to be legalistic and judgmental towards others. Rather, we want to tell them that we understand because once we were lost too, but the good news is that now we have found peace and our true home, and we would love to show them the way to find these things for themselves.

What does it mean that Christ 'gave himself up' for the Church? Christ demonstrated the ultimate in self-giving love by his sacrificial death for the Church. What does this teach us about God's commitment to us? It shows us the amazing depth of God's love for the Church. Was this sacrifice altruistic or self-serving or both? Can sacrifice be self-serving? I don't think so. Christ's sacrifice was in fact a huge gamble in one sense, since there was no guarantee that the disciples would continue to believe in Jesus' teaching after his death.

What does 'submission' mean in regards to the Church's relationship to Christ? That the Church voluntarily allows itself to be used by Christ because the Church recognises that Christ is the originator and chief of the Church; and that it is Christ who keeps the Church going and growing. What does your own submission to Christ mean in practical experience? That I can't automatically do and say anything I want, without constantly referring and deferring to Christ's will for me. What would a seriously submitting congregation look like? Prayerful, harmonious, outward looking, growing. What does it mean in practice to say that Christ is the Head of the Church? My experience is that very often our churches forget to include / consult Christ in making decisions.

According to Eph 4:13-16 what is the purpose of constructing a healthy local congregation? The purpose is that, through each person exercising his or her gifts, each will help the Body to grow spiritually more mature and therefore more enabled to build up the Body numerically as they reach out to friends, neighbours and family with the love of God, passing on the good news they themselves once received to others.

I believe that it is more effective for the pastor to train the whole congregation to care for each other than to expect the pastor to do all the visitation, counselling, preaching and administration single-handedly. Otherwise the Body could never grow beyond the capacity of one person's ability to care. Nor could each member enjoy the responsibility of caring for others which helps to build up him or her to spiritual maturity. What actions might this equipping involve? Teaching how to pray with others; how to visit by phone or in person, the lonely, grieving and sick; helping out another family in crisis, etc and then giving the congregation permission and the authority to go out and minister. This is exactly like what Jesus did, since a) he couldn't do as much himself as a well-trained team could do; he wouldn't always be physically available to preach, teach and heal; and c) by giving permission to his disciples to do as he had taught them, they grew in their understanding of how faith in God can be expressed in practical ways.

How do pastors and teachers work to build up the Body? Pastors look after the welfare of the community and teachers explain the Word in today's context to the particular community. Do you recognise anyone in your congregation who has a pastoral/teaching ministry but is not ordained? Yes, in my community all lay people are encouraged to exercise pastoral care through the Patoral Care network. Teaching is carried out in our small groups, which meet for Bible Study, by lay people who have theological training. What effect do they have on the Body? They are very much appreciated because they take a big load off the ordained ministry team. What do small group leaders and Sunday school teachers do to build up the Body? Providing their knowledge and training is sound, they can build up the Body by helping each member to grow spiritually.

What does an evangelist in a local congregation look like? Unfortunately there is an evangelist stereotype who is not very attractive - the bible thumping, street-corner haranguer. But the most effective evangelists know their Lord intimately, and live their lives in such a winsome manner that their family, friends, acquaintances and workmates want to know 'what is your secret?' How does a local church evangelist function? Has a deep compassion for non-believers and desire to help them find Jesus. Has a strong personal relationship with Jesus. Can express clearly (without religious jargon) the secret of the peace which they have. Stands beside a person who expresses an interest in learning more about Jesus. How does he or she build up the Body? By allowing God to use them when an opportunity arises to tell the good news; by encouraging non-believers to 'come and see' for themselves what it is that drives their Christian friend; and by helping them to ease their way into a church community, remembering how strange and different that can be to anything they have experienced before.

How did (do) apostles and prophets build up the Body, in your opinion? All growing organisations need someone at the helm who is gifted and authoritative to give oversight and direction. I believe Paul was one of the greatest apostles but I also believe God has gifted people today who are recognised by the membership of the Body as having a very strong prayer life, who are walking closely with God, and who have the ability to impart good biblical teaching. By their example and their ministry the Body grows stronger and spreads. Prophets are very much needed within our Church to call us back to God. I would define modern-day prophets, not as those who predict the future, but as men and women who are willing to speak forthrightly messages they believe they have received from God - messages which many of us do not wish to hear. Prophets are generally not popular within the Body. Firstly, members are suspicious of their credentials - are they really speaking a message from God, or not - and secondly, their message is almost always unpopular. Unless they can bring repentance and revival within the Body they probably will not see much fruit from their spiritual gift in their lifetimes.

In what way does v7 teach that all Christians have received spiritual gifts? God's giving of spiritual gifts to every person who becomes a Christian is 'part of the package' we receive when we receive the Holy Spirit. To say we don't have any gifts is to deny the way God works. If all have received spiritual gifts, what is the implication of this in the light of the clause in Eph.4:16 that mentions 'each/every part'? God ensures that within each 'body' or congregation/community there is at least one person with each gift needed for the body to function and grow. If one or more within the 'body' deny their gifts or don't exercise their gifts, the whole 'body' suffers, just as one malfunctioning organ of a physical body can debilitate the person's wellbeing.

What act of Christian unity could I practise over the next two weeks to help me live out this truth in my life? I will attept to maintain my fellowship with believers by attending my Sunday services, my Monday bible study and my Thursday Prayer and Meditation times. In what area do I need to repent? I must confess that right now that is the last thing I really feel like doing.

In what sense should 'one baptism' unite us rather than divide us? In baptism we are sealed with the Holy Spirit, made members of the body of Christ, and called to his ministry in the world. Baptism is the symbolic death of our old lives and rebirth as new beings. Beings initiated into the fellowship of all believers, not into any particular denomination. In this sense there is only one baptism. How can we maintain unity of the Spirit and still disagree with other Christian groups re administration of baptism? The administration is academic. The most important thing is to understand the symbolism of using water - not how much is used or how it is administered. Should striving for unity blur our faithfulness to biblical understanding? Biblical understanding, it seems to me, is an ongoing process. In some things our understanding may be correct, but in others we may need to adapt our thinking. Remember how Peter had to admit his thinking on dietary restrictions no longer applied? And how Paul had to realise that baptism was for those uncircumcised as well as those circumcised? How do we balance the two? By allowing God to transform our minds.