The Church, The Kingdom, Is The Pearl Of Great Price
Jesus said, "The kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is a merchant seeking goodly pearls: and having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had, and bought it" (Matthew 13:45, 46). The church was purposed in the mind of God from eternity (Ephesians 3:10, 11). It was promised by God through the prophets (Genesis 12:1-4; 49:10; Galatians 3:16). It was in a state of preparation during the days of John the Baptizer (Matthew 3:1, 2). It was established in perfection or completion on the day of Pentecost (Mark 9:1; Acts 1:8; 2:1-47). The church of Christ is to be treated with respect when viewed from its conception in the mind of Almighty God until it shall have been presented to Christ "a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing" (Ephesians 5:25-27) in the eternal hereafter. Let us study some important points concerning the Lord's church.
Salvation is in the Lord's Church
It is an admitted fact that salvation can be had outside of manmade churches, but salvation is not offered apart from the Lord's church (Acts 2:47). The fact that it is generally admitted by those who advocate denominationalism that a person can be saved outside the membership of their churches proves the uselessness of those churches!
Although we certainly do agree that one can be saved outside of all denominational churches, we strongly affirm the necessity of the Lord's church while at the same time opposing all denominational churches as not only useless, but also sinful and diametrically opposed to Christ and His church (Matthew 12:25). Let us note some of the implications which follow when one contends that a person can be saved outside the Lord's church.
1. If one can be saved outside the Lord's church, then, the blood of Christ is nonessential. This position contradicts the teaching of the New Testament which shows that there is no possibility of forgiveness of sins apart from the shedding of the blood of Christ (Matthew 26:28; Hebrews 2:9; Revelation 1:5). The New Testament explicitly teaches that Jesus shed his blood to purchase the church wherein is salvation (Acts 20:28; Ephesians 5:25; 5:23; Acts 2:41, 47).
2. If salvation can be obtained outside the Lord's church, then it follows that salvation can be had in the devil's kingdom. The New Testament teaches that the Lord's church and His kingdom are one and the same institution (Matthew 16:18, 19). That very process causes the Lord to add them to His church, to translate them into His kingdom (Acts 2:47; Colossians 1:13). To put it another way, the sinner is lost until he he is born again, born of water and the Spirit (John 3:5). Jesus emphatically declared that a lost person cannot be saved from past sins until he both believes the gospel and is baptized (Mark 16:16).
3. If a sinner can be saved outside of the church of the Lord, then he can be saved in the devil's family. There are only two families in the world, the family of God and the family of Satan. The church is God's family (1 Timothy 3:15). Therefore, to be saved, it is necessary to be in the church (Ephesians 1:22, 23; 5:23). Therefore, salvation is in the Lord's family, the church. Salvation is not in the devil's family. God does not have any children outside His family. The average person does not fully realize the implications of the teaching which contends that the Lord's church is nonessential.
The Church Belongs To Christ
Christ built His church even as He promised (Matthew 16:18). His church is composed of His body of saved persons (Ephesians 5:25-27; Acts 2:1-47), who are dedicated to the restoration of New Testament Christianity and are neither Catholic nor Protestant but simply Christians (Acts 11:26; 26:28; 1 Peter 4:16). Christ promised to build but one church (Matthew 16:18), and Paul informs us that Christ died for but one church (Ephesians 5:25). His church is scriptural in the plan of salvation, worship, organization, mission, and rule of faith and practice. The words "the church" mean but one. So, Christ loved one church; He died for one church; He built but one church. The pronoun "it" can refer to but one. Therefore, He is the owner of but one church. The plural form of "churches" is never used in the New Testament except in reference to a number of local congregations in a certain section of the country as, "The churches of Christ salute you" (Romans 16:16); "The churches of Judea" (Galatians 1:22).
The Church Is Not A Denomination
The church of Christ is not a denomination (Acts 24:5, 13, 14), but apostates of our day "compass sea and land" in numerous efforts to cause the church of our Lord to compromise with denominationalism, and thus, ultimately to become a sister denomination among the denominations. Such false teachers are striving to convince brethren that the message we preach is just another message among many messages of equal value. They aver that the Lord's church is just another religious body among many equally important religious bodies. So anxious are some to turn the church of Christ into a denomination that they have joined ministerial alliances where in effect the accepted norm is "to agree to disagree." Some have invited false teachers to speak their error to brethren and allow them to do this without exposing their error. All who do this are in direct violation of the inspired Paul's instruction. "And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them" (Ephesians 5:11). At least one well known brother has spoke to a group of denominations encouraging them in their false doctrines and distribution of the same. He, and all like him, thus, become partakers of their evil deeds. "Whosoever goeth onward and abideth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God: he that abideth in the teaching, the same hath both the Father and the Son. If anyone cometh unto you, and bringeth not this teaching, receive him not into your house, and give him no greeting: for he that giveth him greeting partaketh in his evil works" (2 John 9-11). When brethren fellowship false teachers while opposing faithful brethren, we are reminded of the situation of Jeremiah's day. He said, "A wonderful and horrible thing is committed in the land; The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests bear rule by their means; and my people love to have it so: and what will ye do in the end thereof?" (Jeremiah 5:30, 31). The same attitude of compromise existed in Isaiah's day. He wrote, "Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever: That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits" (Isaiah 30: 9, 10). The prophet wrote, "Woe unto them that call evil good and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter" (Isaiah 5:20).
By: Garland Elkins