Published by In the English language the person who coined a word, and obviously the first to use it is almost always unknown. The word “Church” is one of the few exceptions to this case. Jesus Christ introduced the word Church to the Aramaic language, upon asking His disciples to certify His identity and the Apostle Peter, who was the most out-spoken, of The Twelve, answered,
“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God”.
Jesus answered him, “Flesh and blood did not reveal that to you, but The Father in Heaven; and upon this rock I will build My Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
I could write a whole encyclopedia on the subject, but because of the genre of this forum, I will curtail it to a few paragraphs.
So what exactly was Jesus saying He was going to build? What is the Church? The Church is a peculiar body of people, whom God through Jesus Christ, has called out of the whole milieu of people, and has set them apart to represent Him, as His ambassadors on the earth. The building, which is dedicated for the public meeting of the Church, is also called the church; although many people, even members of the Church will not accept this classification.
The church building is a public place set apart for people to go to learn of God, Man, society, life, prosperity, good success, time, eternity, evil, sin, satan, hell, heaven and Jesus Christ, the Living Word of God.
The Church, meaning the holy people is a much more complex matter. Synonyms are: saints, sons of God and Christians. These are the people and the organism through which God conducts His works on the earth. The saints are God’s living epistles, seen and read of all men. Christians are expected to be peculiar, worshipping God in spirit and in truth. As sons of God they are expecting to obey every law, precept and commandment of God, making them joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, to inherit an eternal inheritance in the heavens with God the Father, and His Son, Jesus Christ. Christ is the Head of the Church, and the Church is His Body.
For one to become a member of the Body of Christ, it requires a conscious decision to forsake sin, in which every man after Adam was conceived. This is the act of repentance. Next the person decides to receive baptism by immersion in the Name of Jesus Christ, receive the Holy Ghost, and forever onward obeying every word of God. According to Acts 4:12 this is the only way for a man to escape eternal damnation of hell and live eternally in the Kingdom of God.
Any Reader who requires clarification or further details of any of the above stated truth, can request the same and it will be duly delivered.
