The Pillar and Buttress of Truth
There is a description of the church in God's Word, which I believe is a rare characteristic to be found in most local churches today. In fact, it is an attribute of the church which has been laid aside (unintentionally or not) because it may be viewed as irrelevant to so-called "church growth". In I Timothy 3:15, we are told that "the church of the living God" is a "pillar and buttress of truth." Now of all things that could have been said to capture an essential distinctive and quality about the church as it is seen in the world, God breathes in his biblical writer these words: "a pillar and buttress of truth."
This means that wherever the gathered church of Christ is visibly found in the world, it is to be a living, vibrant, and immovable testimony to God's truth. As a pillar...of truth, the church is to be the support of the truth; however, as the buttress of truth, the church is actually being pictured as a foundation to the superstructure of the truth. Thus, the church should never be seen as upholding anything that is false and opposed to the truth of God's written revelation. In fact, any so-called church which openly denies God's Word in any part, or treats it as anything less than being God's infallible Word - cannot be identified with integrity as a true church.
The reason I say this is because without the Word of God, the church has no authority nor legitimate basis for even being the church. For the church is not man's idea but the very creation of God (see I Cor.12:12-27; Eph.1:3-14; 2:11-22). Furthermore, the message and mission of the church in the world does not originate with the cleverness or imagination of man, but is given to the church by God as a stewardship (see Matt.28:18-20; I Cor.4:1-2). Yet the framework and knowledge of all these things come from God's Word. Henceforth, it is only by the truth of God's Word that a local church can be identified as the body of Jesus Christ, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, entrusted with the gospel of salvation; and is able to believe and teach with certainty and assurance the true character of God, the creation and fall of man, justification by grace alone, holiness of life, heaven & hell, and many other great doctrines which distinguish the church from the world. So then, if a church is going to be true and faithful to God's calling on who and what they are in Christ - they must therefore be a visible body of people who are a pillar and buttress of truth. Moreover, the church and the truth have a symbiotic relationship, in which each is always affecting the other. Messing with any part of one will always have adverse effects on the other (see Tit.2:5b, 10b).
In the most practical terms then, as the pillar and buttress of truth the church must, first of all, be digesting the truth. When the world sees the church, they should see a people who are memorizing, meditating, and studying the Word of God (Psa.1:1-2; 119:11; Rev.10:9). If pricked by anyone, the church should bleed bibline! Second of all, to be the pillar and buttress of truth, the church should be defending it. God's Word is always under attack, we must then be ready and willing to lay down our lives (whatever that may cost) to preserve and proclaim it in the face of any opposition (Phil.1:16; II Tim.4:1-4). Finally, as the pillar and buttress of truth, the church must be disseminating the truth & demonstrating its power in holy living. From the pulpit to the pew, from the homeplace to the workplace - the church should always be expounding God's Word without shame or apology to the glory of God, in word and in deed (see Matt.28:18-20; Acts 20:20-27; Eph.4:11-5:21; Col.3:12-17).