Where can this message be found?

 

 

 

        We believe the bible is the only reliable source for answering this question. In it, God reveals, not only His will, but also, who is authorized to teach it.

 

 

 

        Only the Lord's disciples, the saved, comprise His church.

            Is it reasonable, that one who would teach a particular doctrine, would, first, become a disciple of that teaching? This is how the Lord established His following. The Lord, first made disciples (Matthew 4:18-22), then authorized them to teach, or persuade others to become followers (Luke 10:1-9), and afterward, to continue the teaching of new converts in His way. Matthew 28:19-20

 

 

 

Finding Christ's Church: A process of elimination.

 

The first question that may come to mind is: Why eliminate?  The scriptures below provide reasonable explanation for this need.

For an example of why one must eliminate, please consider the following opposing statements.

One of the above statements is true; the other is false. If one believes, that God exists, and the bible is His will, there is a choice to be made, between the two. Once the true statement is determined, a couple of steps must be taken in order to be pleasing to God.

  1. One must choose to obey that which is true. (Romans 6:17)

  2. One, who obeys the truth, must affiliate themselves only with those who promote the same. (2Corinthians 6:14-18) In other words, one must seek out those (the church) who worships and teaches in accordance with the truths found in the bible. (John 4:23-24; Mark 3:24-25)

 

 

How can we identify the Lord's church?

 

In the United States of America there are more than 2,000 different churches. Most claim to be the church Jesus established, or at least one of the “branches” of the church. Jesus came to the earth to build His church. He built one church. If Jesus only built one church, why are there so many different churches?

From Where Did All These Churches Come?

The New Testament tells us that some would leave the truth (Acts 20:28-31; 1 Timothy 4:1-4; 2 Timothy 4:1-4). Since the church began, people have slowly strayed from the truth. This has resulted in the hundreds of denominations here today. The question comes: Will Jesus approve of churches that He did not build?

Many have made the statement, “churches are all alike.” Is this true? Most would agree churches seem to be about the same, but upon closer examination, we realize they are not the same.

Characteristics

How do we find out which church is the one Jesus built? We can find the church Jesus built by looking for the characteristics that are recorded in the New Testament. We all use characteristics in our lives. We identify people by using characteristics. People are identified by name, description, social security number or identification number. People can be uniquely identified by fingerprints. No two fingerprints are the same.

If your child were to become lost, how would you find him? You would ask for the help of the police. When the police help you, they will ask you what the child looks like, and for a recent picture. For example: your child is a ten year old boy with blue eyes, blond hair, weighing about 75 pounds. Would you be satisfied if the police brought you an eight year old girl with brown eyes and red hair? Why not? She's a child isn't she? Are not children all about the same? You would not be satisfied until the child with all of your child's characteristics was found. Also, once a child with all of your child's characteristics was found, you would stop looking for your child. It would not make good sense to keep on looking for your child. The found child would have to have all of the characteristics of your child, for you to be satisfied.

Just as children are not all alike, cars are also not all alike. We identify automobiles by characteristics. If you paid $50,000 for an automobile, would you want that automobile to be a small, cheap car? It had better be a Cadillac, Mercedes Benz, or BMW. What is the difference between a Cadillac and a small cheap car? They both have engines, windows, doors, tires, etc. They are about the same, right? No. They are similar, but they are not the same. If we were to pay that much money, we would not be happy with the small, cheap, car.

The same is true with the church. There is only one church that Jesus built. Even though it may seem to be like other churches, unless a church has all the characteristics of the church we read about in the New Testament, it cannot be the church Jesus built. The New Testament tells us the characteristics of the church. Once we know these characteristics, we can compare the churches in the world and see which one has the same characteristics as the church Jesus built. The angel Gabriel said, “And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:33). The church Jesus built still exists. By using the characteristics found in the Bible, we can identify that church and become a part of it.

Jesus promised to build one church, therefore, the rest cannot possibly have been built by God. The way to be sure the church we are in is the church Jesus built is to look at the characteristics.

 

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CHURCH

When It Began

When was the Lord's church built? We can learn the answer to this question by studying the following scriptures: “And I say also 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. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:18,19). Jesus tells us in this passage that at this time, the church had not yet started, because He said, “I will build My church.”  In this passage, Jesus uses the terms, kingdom and church interchangeably. In Mark 9:1, Jesus declared, “Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power.”  The kingdom had not yet come when Jesus made this statement. It was still in the future. It was also still in the future when Jesus died on the cross because Joseph, who buried Christ, was still waiting for the kingdom (Mark 15:43). Jesus told his apostles to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the power to come (Luke 24:46-49; Acts 1:5-8). As the first chapter of the book of Acts closes, the church (kingdom) had not yet come.

In Acts 5:11, the Bible records: “And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.” We see in this passage the church had already started. Later, Paul wrote: “Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son:” (Colossians 1:13). In this passage Paul tells us the kingdom is already here. Even later, the apostle John wrote: “I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” (Revelation 1:9). The kingdom had not yet started at the death of Christ, but from Acts chapter five, the church (kingdom) was already here.

The church started sometime between the death of Christ and Acts chapter five. To find the time, we can turn to Acts chapter two. It was the first Pentecost after Jesus rose from the dead that Christ kept his promise to build his church. If a church had its beginning at any other time, it cannot be the church Jesus promised to build (Acts 2:1-4,36-42,47).

Where It Began

Upon learning when the church began, it becomes very easy to see where it began. We just have to see where they were when the church began and we will have the answer. In Acts chapter two, they were in the city of Jerusalem. This was according to prophecy (Isaiah 2:2,3; Luke 24:47). The church Jesus built began in Jerusalem. If a church started in a place other than Jerusalem, it cannot be the church Jesus promised to build (Acts 2:5,14).

 

The Name Given To The Church:  The Church of Christ

Jesus said, “I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18). He used His own blood to buy the church (Acts 20:28). The apostle Paul called it “the churches of Christ” (Romans 16:16). It must have the Scripturally authorized name to be the church Jesus built. Of course, it is possible to have a Biblically authorized name and still not possess the other necessary characteristics. Remember, a church must possess all of the characteristics to be the church Jesus built.

Some may say that a name is not that important. Do we believe this in other areas of life? We do not give bad names to our children. We do not name our children Jezebel or Judas specifically because names are important (Acts 4:12).

Founder/Foundation

Jesus is the founder of His church and the only foundation (Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians 3:11). If a church has a founder other than Jesus, that church cannot be the church Jesus built.

Organization

Christ is the head of the church (Ephesians 1:22,23). His church does not have earthly headquarters. Instead, Jesus’ church is organized into independent, self-governing congregations. Each congregation has a group of men to lead the congregation under Christ. The names or titles given to this group of men is: elders, pastors, shepherds, presbyters, and bishops (Acts 14:23; 20:17,18,28; 1 Timothy 3:1-7; 1Timothy 4:14; Titus 1:5-9). These congregations also have deacons to serve the congregation (1 Timothy 3:8-13 Philippians 1:1). The Bible says nothing about one man ruling over one or more congregations. If a church has a headquarters, conferences, or councils here on earth, it cannot be the church Jesus built.

Worship

The following bears repeating: Just because things are similar does not mean they are the same. All churches have some of the same items of worship, but they are not exactly the same as the church Jesus built.

Most churches pray and preach in their worship services. What they pray and preach might, on some occasions, be right. But it is not enough just to be right in some areas only. We must always do things the way the Bible instructs (John 4:24).

Lord's Supper

Jesus commanded His disciples to observe the Lord's supper (Matthew 26:26-29). When are we to partake of the Lord's supper? When are we commanded to assemble (Hebrews 10:25)? The 1st century Christians ate the Lord's supper when they assembled on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:33). Just as the Israelites, under the Old law, kept every Sabbath, Christians partake of the Lord's supper every first day of the week. If a church does not partake of the Lord's supper every first day of the week, they cannot be the church Jesus built. We use unleavened bread and fruit of the vine when we partake of the Lord's supper. We do not have authority to use anything else.

Singing

The Bible clearly teaches us we are to sing in worship (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16). There is no authority found in the New Testament for using instrumental music in worship. Yet, almost all religious groups use instrumental music in their worship. The church Jesus built does not use instruments of music in worship. If a church adds instrumental music to the worship, it cannot be the church Jesus built.

Contribution

Paul taught us to contribute of our means on the "first day of the week” (1 Corinthians 16:1,2). These contributions were to be free-will offerings (2 Corinthians 9:5-7). This is the way the church Jesus built gets the money to do its work. If a church uses any other method, it cannot be the church Jesus built.

 

God's Plan For Saving Man

The Bible teaches that we must hear God's word, believe, repent, confess Jesus as Christ, and be baptized (Romans 10:17; John 8:24; Acts 17:30; Matthew 10:32,33; Acts 22:16). The Bible clearly shows us that baptism is essential to salvation (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21; Romans 6:3,4). Bible baptism is immersion (Acts 8:35-39; Romans 6:3,4; Colossians 2:12). The purpose of baptism is to wash away our sins (Acts 22:16), allowing us to enter Christ (Romans 6:3,4; Galatians 3:27), where all spiritual blessings are found (Ephesians 1:3). If a church does not teach this way (Acts 9:2) for man to be saved, it cannot be the church Jesus built.

Conclusion

Jesus built only one church (Matthew 16:16-18). We must be a member of that one church to be saved (Acts 2:47). The scripture shows us how to identify His church. If you belong to a church that does not possess these characteristics, we encourage you to find the church Jesus built (Matthew 6:33). May God help us all to be a member of His church and not a man-made institution.

 

Do the contents of this page seem reasonable to you? Do you have a question? Many times, much can be learned through correspondence.

We encourage discussion of these biblical topics. If you have a question or comment, please email us at: 

 

  BackForwardReload