The Church is referred to by different names throughout the bible.
Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God; which he hath purchased with his own blood. 1 Timothy 3:15 But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. Hebrews 12:23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
The church of God, the church of the living God, the church of the first born are just a few names mentioned. Our word church in the bible comes from the Greek word ekklesia. The basic meaning of the word ekklesia is 'the called out' or 'the assembled'. When a group of people are called to assemble themselves together, technically you can call that group a church.
The church of the New Testament is also referred to as the body of Christ.
Colossians 1:18a And He is the head of the body, the church… Ephesians 1:22-23 22And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.
There are many figures used for the church in the New Testament, and the body is one of the most important.
No denomination or local assembly can claim to be "THE" body of Christ, for that body is composed of all true believers. I refer to this body as the global church. Scripture makes reference to this church / body.
Acts 2:47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. 1 Corinthians 10:32 Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: Ephesians 1:22-23 22And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all. Ephesians 4:4 There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
The previous verses refer to the entire body / Church or the global body of Christ, the church of which he is the head. No believer on earth is the head of the church. This position is reserved exclusively for Jesus Christ.
Various religious leaders may have founded churches, or denominations; but only Jesus Christ is the Founder of the church which is His body. This church is composed of all true believers, and it was birthed on Pentecost.
Now the fact that I belong to the universal church, does not release me from my responsibilities to the local church. I cannot minister to the whole church, but I can strengthen and build the church by ministering to God's people in a local assembly.
We noted some verses earlier that referenced the global church of the body of Christ. Now let's look at some verses that address the local church the local body of Christ.
Acts 13:1a Now there were in the church that was at Antioch…
This verse is speaking about a local church, the local body of Christ.
Acts 20:17 And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.
Again this verse is talking about the local church at Ephesus. The elders referred to here are the elders of the church from Ephesus. Now there may have been several churches that were represented, however its sill referring to Ephesus.
Romans 16:1 I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: Romans 16:3-5 3Greet Priscilla and Aquila my helpers in Christ Jesus: 4Who have for my life laid down their own necks: unto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles. 5Likewise greet the church that is in their house.
Not only do we see another local church here, but also this verse adds some insight as to where the first century churches met. Priscilla and Aquila were a wonderful married Christian couple who had a church in their home. So we have seen that these verses refers to the church in the New Testament as the local or the entire church the body of Christ. The body of Christ is the church. Now let me take you a step farther.
1 Corinthians 12:12-14 12For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 14For the body is not one member, but many.
The body referred to here is the body of Christ, the church. This body is made up of many members. These members consist of anyone who has called on the name of the Lord Jesus.
Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Now back to 1 Corinthians.
1 Corinthians 12:18 But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him.
In the Greek, the last part of this verse (as it hath pleased him) means according to His will. In other words, wherever God has chosen to place you in the body of Christ was according to His will, not yours.
By way of review we have seen the following:
Now this brings up several interesting points. First of all, we all have a God ordained talent or ability; perhaps a gift and calling to serve in the body of Christ. Nowhere in the scriptures does it state or imply that any born again believer is excluded never. All are equipped, called, and placed individually and personally, according to God's will by none other than God himself.
Which local body has God placed you in? And have you accepted and obeyed God's placement?
You see, if you don't recognize and understand the simple truth that God has chosen you and placed you in a local body, a local church, according to his will, you will never see yourself doing anything but attending a church or multiple churches.
The church's primary intent was and is never to entertain us or give us a social life. The church's primary intent is not to raise our children. The church's primary intent is never to turn us into spectators and loyal followers of men.
The church's primary intent has always been to supply a Godly environment where the family of God can come and meet and take their God assigned placement in the body of Christ; the church is a place where all the church could assemble and share their talents, enablements and gifts and introduce others to Christ.
The church is a place where Christ takes His position as the head; somewhere you could belong and contribute; and a place where you can give and receive spiritual and personal fulfillment.
This is God's idea, His will and pleasure, and we should remember that we live and serve because of the will and good pleasure of our Father.
God has placed you in the body where it has pleased Him. Since He doesn't make mistakes, you should be pleased to serve there.
Note: All scripture is from the King James Version unless otherwise noted. NIV indicates The New International Version, NKJV indicates the New King James Version, ASV means the American Standard Version, BBE means the Bible in Basic English, DBY means the Darby translation, NAU means the American Standard Version, 1995 Edition, and NAB means the New American Bible translation. For more information, go to the Works Cited page.