The Church is the body of Christ in the world, formed for the restoration of God’s created order. The Book of Discipline states that the local church, “as the most significant arena through which disciple-making occurs” is a community of true believers under the Lordship of Christ, the redemptive fellowship in which the Word of God is preached, and the place where the sacraments are duly administered. There are three specific areas that the Discipline posits as the reason for the local church’s existence – “for the maintenance of worship, the edification of believers, and the redemption of the world” (The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church 2008, ¶201). Such is the nature of the church according to the best expression of our common tradition. This understanding of the church highlights its communal nature, which Wesley himself described, in his sermon titled Upon our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount, Discourse IV, by saying, “Christianity is essentially a social religion, and to turn it into a solitary religion is indeed to destroy it.” He said “that it cannot subsist at all, without society, without living and conversing with other [men and women].” The church is called to be “in the world,” to be Christ in the world. As we live into this call, we endeavor to live out our mission which the Book of Discipline defines as “making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.” The Church, as a community of faith, is all about calling others to share with us in the abundant life that Christ offers, while we ourselves grow together in “grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (2Pe 3:18a).
Each faith tradition has its own nuanced approach to the making of disciples, but we as United Methodists are given significant guidance as to what this means for us. The Book of Discipline says that we make disciples as we proclaim the gospel; as we seek, welcome and gather persons into the body of Christ; as we lead persons to commit their lives to God through baptism by water and the spirit, and profession of faith in Jesus Christ; as we nurture persons in Christian living; and as we send persons into the world to live lovingly and justly. Our mission finds it fullest expression in the life of the local church, but that life has cosmic significance, as our life together transforms the world.