Well, because we ARE the church. Church, or the Greek word "ekklesia," refers to a group of people, not a building. In the New American Standard Bible translation (my preferred one because that is the way I speak and is easiest to read for me, among other reasons), there are 79 uses of the word "church." Every single one of those refer to the gathering of people in a location as opposed to the building in which they gathered. That begs the question: "If the church is the people, then what is this really talking about?"
The church is also referred to as the "body of Christ" in several places (e.g., Rom. 12:5, 1 Cor. 12:12, Eph. 3:6, 4:12). Scripture refers to us as "one new person" in Christ (Eph. 2:15). That "one new person" is made up of all believers throughout the entire earth through all of human history. We are all "in Him" according to the Word. When we say we are a part of the Church, we are saying we are part of that great and glorious body! How does one become a part of that you ask? Well, you have to be born into it.
Let me be clear here, I'm talking about a spiritual birth, not a physical one. If you don't completely understand, you're in good company. In the Gospel of John chapter 3, there was a man named Nicodemus, a leader among the Jews, and I think a Pharisee, who didn't get it either. In fact, he asked Jesus about this very thing. Jesus told him that he needed to be "born from above," (Darby) or "born again," (KJV) or "born anew." (NASB). Nicodemus scratched his own head at that. In fact he asked if that meant you had to crawl back inside mom and come out again! As funny an image as that may present, it showed Jesus and it shows us that he really didn't understand. So what was Jesus talking about?
He was talking about how a person is reconciled to God and justified by faith alone. Check out the detail of that in another article called "FULL Salvation" on this site.
Once you are born into this living organism called the body of Christ, you're a member!
Gerry gave his life to Jesus Christ in June of 1985 through the witness of a man who was a member of the Charismatic movement. He first attended a Pentacostal church in his hometown during his final year of high school (1985-1986). After that, he went to university and studied Biology (Entomology/Ecology), graduating with an Honours degree in 1992. During this time, he attended a non-denominational gathering that was much in form like a Brethren assembly, leaving that place in 2004. In 2005, he and his young family began attending a local Baptist church in the city where he lives today. He serves there as the chair of the Christian Education, Missions, and Outreach commission, the coordinator for the Deacons-at-Large, and as the Deacon of the Pastor of the congregation.
His love of the Scriptures began the very night he became a Christian, and has continued to the present day. It is his desire that everyone that comes accross this site would become a careful reader of the Scriptures, even if they disagree with his own opinions about what they say, because he believes that the testimony to Jesus is the spirit of prophecy – and that the main goal of all Christians everywhere should be to follow Jesus to the best of their ability, with a spirit of devotion to the Lord, not just commitment to doctrinal positions. To this end, he has self-published an eBook titled “Practical Discipleship,” available on Amazon.com for the Kindle reader.
