In a recent religious blog, the author (a prominent member of a large denomination himself) reviewed what he called “Contemporary Trends in Church Names.” Space will not allow a listing of all the common church names that he found but notice what is making the top of the list today:
- “Point” has become ubiquitous: LifePoint; CrossPoint. Add an “e” to be fancy: GracePointe.
- “Life” has a new life: Life Church; Real Life; New Life; LifePoint or LifePointe.
- Five biggies the past ten years: Journey; Bridge; Foundry; Mosaic; and Generation.
- “Cross” has made a surge: Cross Church; Cross Fellowship; Cross Roads; CrossPoint.
- Meaningful names: Impact; Potential; Epic; Transformation; Renovation; Innovate.
- “Fellowship” can be found in almost any town. It usually has other words, but sometimes just Fellowship Church.
- “Grace.” Especially in the Reformed churches.
- Many churches like the “New” factor: New Life; New Hope; New Song; NewPoint; NewPointe.
- Moving on up: Elevate; Vertical; Summit.
What do you notice about these names being used for various groups today? In short, not a single one of them is found in the Bible. But, is that really a big deal?
Do you realize that without the Bible, we do not know a single thing about the church? Everything that we know about the church—its origin, its establishment, its organization and even its name—is found in the Bible! So, if we wanted to know what the Lord wanted us to call the church, there is one source to which we must look! To use a name that is not found in the Bible is to use a designation created by man rather than by God! Why would we do that?
The church of the Bible wears the name of its Founder, its Owner, its Savior, its Bridegroom. There are various designations for the church in the New Testament: “the church” (Col. 1:18); “the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:12); “the church of God” (1 Cor. 1:2); “the church of the living God” (1 Tim. 3:15); “churches of Christ” (Rom. 16:16); “the kingdom of God” (Mark 9:1); “the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Col. 1:13); “the house of God” (1 Tim. 3:15). Compare these Scriptural designations for the church with the ones that are popular today. The designations in Scripture are given as marks of ownership, for the church does not belong to man but to Christ!
If a “church” today wears a name different than one found in the Bible, can it be the church of the Bible?