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The Church As A Building And A Body
Scripture presents the Lord a church in a variety of ways. It is often compared with things with which we already have considerable knowledge. This lesson will consider the church in two ways, as a building and as a body.
We have no difficulty understanding what a building is. We know the components of it, the important parts of it, its purposes, and other information. Therefore, let us take our knowledge of buildings and learn how the church is like a building.
Foundation
Matthew 16:16-18, "And Simon answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona, for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." Jesus said He was going to build something. What He would build, therefore, is like a building. That building He built was the church.
I Corinthians 3:11 informs us of the foundation upon which the church is built. "For other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ." The truth that Jesus is the Son of God is the "rock" upon which the church stands. Anything built by Christ and upon Christ must command the serious consideration of every person who expects to go to heaven by Jesus Christ.
Ephesians 2:19-22, "Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellow-citizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief cornerstone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye are also builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit." This language was sent to the church in Ephesus and once more we see the church presented as a building.
The foundation mentioned here is that of the apostles and prophets. They are considered the foundation only in terms of the message they preached, which was Jesus Christ. Again, the whole existence and support of the church rests on the person, Jesus. For this reason Paul declared, "We preach Christ."
Cornerstone
Christ is called the cornerstone. The cornerstone of a building, especially in ancient construction, was the most important stone of the structure because everything was ultimately measured by that stone. In fulfillment of prophecy (Isaiah 28:16; Psalm 118:22), and as Peter wrote, (I Peter 2:6,7), this cornerstone is Christ.
Fitly Framed
Notice this building is "fitly framed together." We have seen constructions that were sloppily done, doors sagged, windows were out-of-line, walls that were not straight and floors unlevel. Not so with the Lord s church. Like the temple built by Solomon, every piece fit perfectly with every other piece. So it is in the church when the church is as the Lord designed and erected it to be.
God's Habitation
Like the temple, the church is the habitation of God. This is also taught in I Corinthians 6:19,20. Turning to I Peter 2:5, we again see the church presented as a building. "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ." These Christians to whom Peter wrote made up a house, a building, a spiritual house. They were the stones, living stones, that composed this house.
Sometimes we hear people say the church is not a building, and in the sense they are speaking, this is correct. The church is not a physical edifice, but it is a spiritual house. This distinction has been made necessary because some have made laws regarding the use of church buildings that God never ordained as His laws. The stones that make up the church are people, living people, saved people.
A Body
The Bible also presents the church as a body, the body of Christ. Ephesians 1:22,23, "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be head over the church, which is his body, the fullness of him that filleth all in all." Ephesians 3:6 called the members of the Ephesian church "fellow. members of the body." The gospel is for both Jews and Gentiles in one body (Ephesians 2:16). Like any normal body, there is one head and the head has but only body. The head of the church is Christ (Colossians 1:18), and the church is the body. Ephesians 4:4, "There is one body..." What does this do to the doctrine that one church is just good as another church? Such a doctrine is obviously false because there is but one body, one church, and that church is not composed of denominations, something of which the Scriptures reveal nothing except to condemn the division denominationalism propagates and upon which it feeds. The Bible does not speak of the bodies of Christ but the body of Christ. This harmonizes with what Jesus said in Matthew 16:18 when He said, "I will build my church." Church is singular.
Unity
An outstanding significance of the presentation of the church as a body is the necessity of oneness, unity, harmony, and cooperativeness of the members of the body, being of one mind and one judgment. The church as a body pictures for us the relationship we have to one another as well as to Christ, the head. It presents the duties we have to Christ and one another in operating as a body. I Corinthians 12:12-27 is an extensive passage denoting the one church being composed of many members, who are individual Christians. This writing is so easily understood, as well as the implications of it, we need not belabor the point further.
There are other ways that we study from time to time that show us the nature and composition of the church and its distinctiveness, it is always important that we recall how Christ is the Savior of the body (Ephesians 5:23). From this we cannot escape the necessity and importance of being a member of the Lord's body, His church. We must be among those living stones to enter heaven. We should strive to be a stone that fits.