The Value of the Church

When Jesus stood before Pilate, He was asked the question, "Art thou the king of the Jews?", (John 18:33). In reply to that question Jesus said, "To this end was I born, and for this cause came I into the world," (John 18:37). Jesus also told Pilate that His kingdom was "not of this world". Jesus' kingdom was not a tangible kingdom that could be observed in a physical sense. The Israelites tried to force an earthly kingdom onto Jesus and He departed from them, (John 6:15). Satan tried to give Jesus all the physical kingdoms of the world but He refused them, (Luke 4:5-7). Jesus' kingdom would be a spiritual kingdom, unable to be seen with fleshly eyes, being found neither here nor there physically, but would be within man, (Luke 17:20-21). It would be established within the lifetimes of those living at the time of the cross, (Mark 9:1), and would be an everlasting kingdom, (2 Peter 1:11), never to be overthrown.

When Peter first declared that he knew Jesus was the Son of God, Jesus announced that He would build His church on that confession, and the gates of Hades, meaning the bars of death, could not prevail against it, (Matthew 16:18-19). The very first time Jesus ever mentioned His church, He mentioned the kingdom right along with it. The church which was established in the lifetime of the 1st century disciples, fit every description of the coming kingdom of God perfectly, and was said to endure through all ages without end, (Ephesians 3:21). The promised kingdom written of in Isaiah 9:7, and Daniel 2:44 is the church of Christ.

How valuable is the church of our Lord? To answer that, one must consider what it cost to purchase it. Of all the material things on earth, is there one possession that is worth more than your life? Have you ever desired a possession so badly that you would give your own life, or the life your only child, in order to purchase it? Jesus placed a value on a single human soul, greater than all the combined material possessions of earth, (Mark 8:36). He refused all earthly kingdoms, yet gave His own life to possess the church, (Ephesians 5:25). One must then ask, what is the church worth to Jesus? The church was worth Jesus coming to earth in the flesh and dying for. The church was worth enough to God that He allowed His Son to be put to death for it.

If the cost of something is any reflection of its value, then what is the church of our Lord worth? The church of our Lord is unique; one of a kind. Jesus only died for one church, He only bought one, He built only one, heads only one and He is the savior of only that one, (Ephesians 5:23). Those who create their own church in His name and offer their own worship demonstrate their lack of reverence for the original. They don't seek first the real Kingdom of God, but rather create their own with no regard whatsoever for the one Jesus died for. They place no value whatsoever on God's masterpiece, choosing to elevate their own work above His.

But what about the ones that are close? Aren't they good enough? It's easy to spot a counterfeit with glaring imperfections, but what about the really good fakes? A counterfeit dollar bill, no matter how close it may resemble the original is still worthless. The best counterfeits are the deadliest because they are the hardest to spot. We must shun the counterfeits and have no part with them for in the end they will all be rooted up, (Matthew 15:13). It is not possible for the faithful Christian to offer acceptable worship to God in fellowship with a manmade body. There can be no fellowship with unrighteousness, there can be no communion between light and darkness, (2 Corinthians 6:14). We cannot participate in unacceptable worship and expect God's approval. Those who accept and approve of doctrinal error are partakers of the evil, (2 John 10-11).

In order to be able to recognize the true church of our Lord, we need to be familiar with its identifying characteristics. We read of only one church in the New Testament. Jesus built it and possesses it Himself, (Matthew 16:18); He died for it, paying its purchase price with His own life blood, (Acts 20:28). He is the head of His church, which is His body, (Ephesians 1:22-23). The church is described as His bride, (Romans 7:4), and should boldly identify itself as His church by wearing a Biblical name that identifies itself as being His, (Romans 16:16). The church is subject, or obedient, to Christ in all things, (Ephesians 5:24). The church is the spiritual kingdom of God. Faithful Christians look to Jesus as the perfect example to live by, are under subjection to His authority, diligently seeking His will and striving to obey Him in all things. Salvation is given to the obedient servants of Christ, (Hebrews 5:9).

What's the church of our Lord worth? It is our sole means of reconciliation with God. Our sins are forgiven only through Christ and in order to be the recipient of this blessing, we must be in the body of Christ. All spiritual blessings are in Christ, (Ephesians 1:3). Faithful Christians are the members of the body of Christ, (1 Corinthians 12:27). The church is not a building or a place. It is spiritual in nature and is made up of all the faithful of all ages. The church Jesus died for is the collective sum of all the faithful who ever lived. Just like the Israelites were of the house of Jacob, (Isaiah 48:1), faithful Christians are of the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth, (1 Timothy 3:15). He died for us and the church is priceless to Him. "Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish, (Ephesians 5:25-27). The church of our Lord is priceless to Him. Likewise the church should be priceless to us because if we are not a part of it, we have no hope. It is vitally important that we seek out the one church that Jesus died for, and be a part of that one. For there is salvation in no other.

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"My little children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth. And hereby we know that we are of the truth, and shall assure our hearts before him." 1 John 3:18-19

The church of Christ at Granby

AMEN!

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John 6:67-68: "Jesus said therefore unto the twelve, 'Would ye also go away?' Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.'"

Very true, David.

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"that in all things he might have the preeminence." Colossians 1:18

Amen David; This is what makes me so angry with the denominational world and those who believe themselves above what Christ died for and his love for the church.

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For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. 1 Tim 2:5 (U-NASB)

The local church in the eternal purpose of God: "Let men say what they please, the church with its affairs, its origins, fortunes, and consummations, is the most simple and elevated theme to which the mind of man, to which the towering hierarchies of heaven can aspire....Let haughty mortals, aspiring to be gods on earth, frown and fret. The eternal glory (character) of the church stands engraved on her gates and towers as the final consummation of God's eternal purpose in creation, providence and redemption."
Alexander Campbell, MH, III (March 5, 1832), 111--12.

The Local Church IS the Church....
We find in The Reformers concept of ecclesia invisibilis ---the Invisible Church.
Their sources: Augustine, Wyclif, and Hus; the attempt to reconcile the corrupted earthly institution with the biblical idea. Their problem, they came up with Platonic dualism. The church exists universally, and local church membership is neither coextensive nor coterminous with the Book of Life.

In its essence, the church that Jesus founded is one. The church in the New Testament is local, i.e., people meeting in congregations. In Scripture, to be a Christian is to be a member of a local body of believers; church membership is not a mystical connection to a transcendental ideal. The character of the church is the character of the LOCAL church. (Phm. 2; Revelation 1:4; 11 Cor. 1:1; Col. 4:15 et al.

Interesting that Paul in his letter to the church at Corinth dealt with the man committing fornication in this way: "Do not keep company with one sleeping with his father's wife, If any man that is called a BROTHER be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person" (1 Cor, 5:1-13).

When you are "put away" from the local church, you are "without Christ."
Paul said, "Know you not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God?"

Without the understanding of the mind, there is no edification: Acts 8:31-32
Jack Mann