This month I am posting a review I wrote some time back about the 2023 film The Essential Church. What prompted this is that NFBC will be showing this film on Sunday night, February 22nd at 6 pm. This is an important film that has a message that reaches beyond the covid lockdown era. If church was essential then, is it not still essential now? God’s people need to meet. Unfortunately, amongst evangelicals there does exist an attitude that church attendance is not necessary or essential. It is true that a person is not justified before God by going to church, they are justified by faith in Jesus Christ alone. But it is essential for a justified/forgiven person to gather with God’s people and hear the Word preached weekly to grow in their sanctification/walk with Jesus Christ. I do hope this review will be of benefit to you.

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“We must obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29) The Apostle Peter said this in response to the Jewish leaders who commanded him and the other apostles not to speak in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is at the heart of the film The Essential Church. The story of Grace Community Church, GraceLife Church of Edmonton, and Fairview Baptist Church during the Covid lockdowns is told in a seamless way with beautiful cinematography, powerful music, and an overall superb production along with a powerful message about the authority of Christ Jesus over His Church. The movie also has a clear gospel presentation, so that everyone who watches will understand how to be saved. Pastors John MacArthur, James Coates, and Tim Stephens told of their accounts during the lockdowns with conviction and clarity, which makes for a very moving film.

The film does deals with various aspects surrounding the coronavirus lockdowns including the political agenda behind the lockdowns, the legal battles of the church to stay open, and the questionability of the science behind Covid-19 among other matters. This movie also includes powerful anecdotes and examples from church history that very much relate to what happened during the covid period. But again, I believe that at the heart of the film is an argument as to why the church had a right to stay open during the pandemic. The film makes a compelling case as to why the government has no right to tell the church how and when to worship, and for why Christ is the Head of His Church, and not Caesar (government). Mike Riccardi, a pastor at Grace Community Church, details his own wrestling with Romans 13, a chapter in Scripture that tells believer to submit to “governing authorities.” (Romans 13:1) Riccardi, after reading Martin Lloyd Jones' commentary on Romans 13 came to the understanding that the state does not have authority over the church, nor does the church have authority over the state. They are both authorities established by God, and each one has a certain jurisdiction. History has seen the error of both the church trying to control the state, as well as the error of the state trying to control the church. Both are authorities under God, but they each oversee a different sphere. When the lockdown mandates were first in place, Grace Community Church along with many other churches took the threat of the virus seriously and wanted to honor what the governing authorities were saying. When the mandates continued and increasingly became unreasonable, it became increasingly clear to the churches represented in this film as well as many other churches in the country that continuing to stay closed down would be spiritually detrimental for people, as well as disobedient to the Lord’s command to gather for worship (Hebrews 10:25).

Many disagreed with the conclusions of the pastors and people in this film. Was opening the churches an instance of obeying “God rather than men”? Does the government have authority to close down the church? Biblically speaking the government’s responsibility includes keeping peace in society (See Romans 13). But its responsibility does not include telling the church when and how it should worship. Jesus Christ is the only Head of His Church, and He governs it by His infallible Word.

Some may not agree with every point in the film, or every action that the churches and persons represented in this film took, and they don’t need to in order to agree with the overall trajectory. As mentioned earlier, the movie does deal some with the science behind covid, but that is not the main focus. The film demonstrates how governing authorities used the coronavirus situation to attempt to severely limit and control the gathering of Christ’s people to worship Him. John MacArthur and Grace Community Church, along with others, took a bold stand that inspired and encouraged countless other pastors and churches to do the same. God was faithful to His people during this time. May we learn the lesson. If you have not yet seen The Essential Church, please do so soon! It is now available on DVD as well as on the Grace Media app.

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And as mentioned earlier The Essential Church will be showing at Niagara Frontier Bible Church on Sunday night, February 22nd at 6 pm! We will also have food before the show. Come on down and invite a friend!

Sam A. Torcasio

                                                       REFORMATION DAY

Society is preparing to celebrate Halloween. Many consider it an innocent day for the children to dress up like characters they look up to. Sadly, others use this day for dark and occult practices. We want to “TAKE BACK” this day for God’s Glory! By the way it is Reformation day!

What is Reformation Day? It is the day Martin Luther posted his 95 theses to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany in 1517 on October 31st. What did the 95 opinions (theses) say? They centered around 2 central beliefs: 1.) The Bible is the ultimate and only perfect authority for the church. [Ephesians 2:8-10] 2.) Humans may reach salvation ONLY by their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and not by their deeds. [II Corinthians 5:21]

What’s the connection between Halloween and Reformation Day? It’s more than just the proximity on the calendar. Here’s a little history to help you understand.

Martin Luther was confronting religious observances that exploited people’s fear of judgment and purgatory. Two important matters happened as a result of the Reformation. 1.} A rediscovery of the doctrine of justification by faith alone in Christ alone. [Galatians 12:2], 2.} A protest against the corruption within the Roman Catholic Church (ex, false doctrines, Biblical illiteracy, and superstition). The leaders of the church practiced selling of indulgences, the treasury of merit, purgatory, and salvation through good works.

Halloween’s deepest roots originate in paganism. {This is the reason why many Christians base their choice not to participate in the holiday.} Modern Halloween’s origin is Celtic; it has to do with the summer sacrifices to appease Samhain, the lord of death and evil spirits. It was believed that Samhain sent evil spirits abroad to attack humans, who could only escape by assuming disguises and looking like evil spirits themselves. All Saints Day (a.k.a. All Hallow’s Day) was an attempt to have a Christian alternative that celebrated the lives of saints and martyrs on November 1st. The evening before became known as All Hallow’s Eve, hence “Halloween.”

All Hallows Day was first celebrated on May 13, 609 when the Roman Pope Boniface IV dedicated the Pantheon in Rome to the Virgin Mary. Later the date was changed to November 1st by by another bishop of Rome, Gregory III who dedicated a chapel in honor of all saints in the Vatican Basilica. In 837, Gregory IV (827-844) ordered its church wide observance. All Soul’s Day (a.k.a. Day of the Dead)  is another day observed by Roman Catholics on November 2nd. This is a day of prayer and almsgiving in memory of ancestors who died, but its practices are not Scriptural. Prayers are offered for the souls of the dead in an effort to hasten their transition from purgatory to heaven by being purged and cleansed from sin. The treasury of merits was believed to justify people by charitable works, pilgrimages, and all kinds of religious performances and devotions. The people were encouraged to acquire this “merit” by purchasing certificates of indulgence. This left them wondering if they had done or paid enough to appease God’s righteous anger and escape his judgment. Salvation cannot be earned in this way, but only through the grace of God in Christ alone. This is precisely the kind of matter that concerned the Protestant Reformers.

This was the context of society that prompted Luther. Luther protested, “the true treasure of the church is the Most Holy Gospel of the Glory and the Grace of God” (thesis 62). This was Luther’s desire for Reformation Day!

In his own way Martin Luther was “taking back” the day for the Glory of God wanting to let the common people know what God’s Word (The Bible) said, and that they could know if they were going to heaven.

Here are a few Scriptures that will teach you about the grace of God – John 3:16; Romans 3:21-26; Romans 10:9; Ephesians 2:8-10. These are a great place to start, but there are many more!

Salvation is by trusting in the Lord Jesus Christ and His work on the cross alone. If you have not, please put your complete trust in the Lord Jesus Christ today!
 
Article originally written by Paula Copland with some contributions from Sam A. Torcasio.