THE
CHURCH OF THE BIBLE
–by Jerry W. Joseph
When the question is asked,
"What is the church?", many would respond by
saying, "Which church are you talking about?" We realize there
does exist hundreds of different religious groups in this world. Many of which claiming to have some attachment to the church of the
Bible. When we speak of the church, we have reference to the
church that one can read about in the Bible.
BUILDER IS CHRIST
Christ is the builder of the
church that you read about in the Bible. In Matthew 16:18, Christ declared, "Upon this rock, I will build my
church". The church belongs to Christ. He is the foundation
upon which it is built (1 Corinthians 3:11).
Dear reader, did Christ build the church of which you are a member? Is
the church that you are a member of built by man or Christ? You need to
be a member of the church built by Christ, His church.
BEGINNNING OF THE CHURCH WAS IN JERUSALEM
The church that you read about
in the Bible began in the city of Jerusalem, on the day of Pentecost following the ascension of our
Lord. This was in fulfillment of Old Testament prophecies (Isaiah 2:1-4;
Daniel 2:44; Joel 2). These prophecies were fulfilled in Acts
2. Dear reader, is the church of which you are a member, have its
beginning in Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 2? If not, then you are not a
member of the church that you read about in the Bible.
BIBLE BASED
The church that you read about
in the Bible is Bible based. The Word of God is the pattern that is to be
followed in all things (2 Timothy 3:16-17,
1 Thessalonians 5:21).
Every that the church does must be based upon what God has said in His
Word. When it comes to the (1) Way of salvation (John 14:6; John 8:24;
Luke 13:3; Matthew 10:32-33; Mark 16:16); (2) Worship (John 4:24; Acts 2:42;
Ephesians 5:19; Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; 2 Timothy 4:2-4), (3) Work of
the church (Matthew 28:18-20; Galatians 6:2, 10; James 1:27; 2 Timothy 4:2-4),
(4) Way of Life for the members of the church (Titus 2:11-12; Galatians
5:19-23; 1 John 2:15-17; Colossians 3:1-3; Matthew 6:33), the Bible has the
only answer and it must be followed completely. Dear reader, does the
church of which you are a member has the Bible as its
only guide and standard of authority?
BOUND FOR HEAVEN
The church that you read
about in the Bible is the body of Christ (Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 4:4), bride of Christ (Romans 7:1-4; Revelation
19:7-8), family of God (Galatians 3:26-28),
kingdom (Colossians 1:13)
and the saved (Acts 2:47).
Dear reader, don't you want to be a member of the church that you can read
about in the Bible? You can, by obeying
the Gospel (Romans 1:16-17)
by believing in Christ (John 8:24),
repenting of sins (Luke 13:3), confessing Christ (Matthew 10:32-33) and by being baptized (Mark 16:16). You then will be
added by the Lord to the “Church of the Bible” (Acts 2:47).