THE THIRD PART: 24 CRUCIAL LINES IN THE BIBLE
The Church
Message Four—The Nature, Condition and Ground of a Local Church
Scripture Reading: 1 Cor. 1:2; Rom. 16:16b; Eph. 4:3; Acts 8:1; 13:1; Rom. 16:1; Rev. 1:11
I. Considering the nature of a local church: the church of God, possessing the divine nature of God; the churches of Christ, being in the element of Christ—1 Cor. 1:2; Rom.16:16b: (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
A. The title “the church of God” denotes not only that the church belongs to God, but also that the church must have the nature of God—1 Cor. 1:2. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
B. First we must realize that the church is the church of God; a local church must be a church of God, possessing the divine nature of God—1 Cor. 1:2. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
C. Second, a local church must be a church of Christ, being in the element of Christ—Rom. 16:16b: (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
1. Every element has a nature, and the nature is the essence of the element. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
2. Christ is the element of the church, and God is the nature of the church. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
II. The condition of a local church may fluctuate and may differ from that of all the other local churches, just as the conditions of the seven churches in Revelation 2 and 3 differed from one another—Rev. 2-3: (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
A. The church in Ephesus was in one condition, and the church in Smyrna was in another condition; all the seven churches were different in their conditions; although the conditions of the churches may differ, the ground of the local churches remains the same—Rev. 2:2-4; 9-10. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
B. Because the condition of a church may fluctuate, our recognizing of a local church should be based upon its nature and ground and not upon its condition. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
C. A local church is preserved from being divided by its ground, not by its condition—Eph. 4:3: (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
1. The condition of a certain church may be good, but that does not assure that the ground of that church is right. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
2. A local church may be low in its condition, yet it is still a genuine local church as long as it keeps the genuine ground of the oneness of the Body. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
3. On the other hand, a local church may be high in its condition, but it is a division, a local sect, as long as it does not care for the genuine ground of the oneness of the Body of Christ expressed in its locality. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
III. The ground of a local church is the genuine oneness of the Body of Christ, that is, the oneness of the Spirit—Eph. 4:3: (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
A. The genuine oneness of the Body of Christ must be practiced with the unique ground of locality within the limit of the boundary and jurisdiction of the locality in which a church exists, that is, on the ground of locality—Deut. 12:5. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
B. As the church in Jerusalem, the church in Antioch, the church in Cenchrea, the church in Corinth, and the seven churches in the seven cities in Asia; all these churches were on the local ground, the ground of locality—Acts 8:1; 13:1; Rom. 16:1; 1 Cor. 1:2; Rev. 1:11. (A Brief Presentation of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 2)
C. The church is one; just as the church is one universally, the church is also one locally: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
1. The nature of the church is one, and there is only one kind of church; the church is the Body of Christ, the dwelling place of God, so the church cannot be divided— Eph. 1:23; 2:21-22. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
2. Not being divided on the basis of spiritual giants—1 Cor. 1:12-13; 4:6: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. Some believers in the church in Corinth said, “I am of Paul,” others said, “I am of Apollos,” and yet others said, “I am of Cephas;” this indicates that they took spiritual giants as the basis for dividing themselves from others. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. Martin Luther and John Wesley were both greatly used by the Lord, but they should not have become the basis for division. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
3. Not being divided on the basis of the person who is instrumental to our salvation or edification—1 Cor. 3:3-8; 21-23: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. We belong to only One—our Lord Jesus Christ. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. Belonging to those through whom we were saved, by whom we were baptized, or from whom we received edification is condemned by the Holy Spirit. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
4. Not being divided because of spiritual facts—1 Cor. 1:12-13: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. In 1 Corinthians 1:12-13, the Holy Spirit not only condemned those who claimed to be of Paul, of Apollos, and of Cephas, but He also condemned those who claimed to be of Christ. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. Although it is right to belong to Christ, it is not right to make this the basis of division. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
c. Therefore, there is no reason that allows us to be divided from other believers. There is, however, nothing we can do if believers decide to divide themselves from us. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
5. Not being divided because of differences in doctrinal views—Gal. 5:19-21; Rom. 14:1-6: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. Not considering doctrinal views as the faith. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. Practicing differently and being divided from others based on doctrine being fleshly—Gal. 5:19-21. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
c. Receiving those who are weak in faith—Rom. 14:1-6. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
d. The scriptures acknowledging doctrinal differences but not permitting division based on these differences—Titus 3:10. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
6. Not being divided because of differences in racial, nationality, and social rank—1 Cor. 12:13; Col. 3:11: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. The fact that 1 Corinthians 12 and Colossians 3 say there cannot be Greeks or Jews means that there cannot be divisions based on race or nationality. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. Although there are different social classes in society, there cannot be such a thing in the church. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
7. Not being divided because of Spiritual Weakness or mistakes—Rev. 2-3: (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
a. In five of the seven epistles written to the seven local churches in Asia, the Lord rebuked the churches because of their weaknesses and mistakes. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)
b. However, because those five were local churches, the Lord did not ask anyone to leave. (Lessons for New Believers, lsn. 15)