THE  CHURCH  IS  HIS  BODY

And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him
to be the head over all things to the church, Which is  
 his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.

Ephesians 1:22, 23

For most Christians, there is no question that the Church is a good thing.  There may be individual Churches or perhaps whole denominations that have deviated from the faith to various degrees. Some may even reach the point where they must be classified as secular, or as a cult, or maybe as heathen. But the Church as an institution is still viewed as the place where God is doing His work in the world.

Unfortunately there is a wild boar loose in the vineyard of the Lord! His name is Harold Camping, and he is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Family Radio. Family radio is headquartered in Alameda, California, and is broadcast throughout the United States, and in many parts of the world by short wave radio. This gives him a wide sphere of influence and renders him a very dangerous person.

This same man wrote a book in 1992 entitled “1994”, in which he predicted that the world would end in 1994. Through his allegorical method of studying the Bible, he came up with extreme and fanciful interpretations of any number of passages that of course confirmed his view.  Needless to say, the Lord did not return in 1994 as predicted by Mr. Camping. As he went back to the drawing board, he came to the conclusion that in reality he was not so wrong in his calculations after all. He had merely failed to incorporate the teaching on the “Latter Rain”. So off he went, headlong into his “Depart Out” teaching, that says among other things, that the Church age came to an end in 1994, and that since that time Satan has been the head of the Church. Believers are to leave their Churches and listen instead to Harold Camping and Family Radio. There are to be no more Church leaders. Such offices as Elders and Deacons are no more. There is no more celebration of the Lord’s Supper and Christian Baptism is a thing of the past. Obviously Church discipline is out. Individual believers are to gather together around a radio and let “every man do that which is right in their own heart” unless they hear otherwise from Harold. You may read Harold Camping’s own presentation on your computer by going to www.familyradio.com/cross/tract/church.htm. It would be funny if it were not so serious. There are too many people out there already that look for any excuse to strike out at the Church as nothing but a bunch of hypocrites. (When I am reminded by a critic about the hypocrisy in the Church, I always tell the one bringing out this news to “Come on over, there is always room for one more!”) It is a very sad situation, and one that is of great concern to all that have responsibility for shepherding the flock of God.

We are encouraged by the fact that many of Mr. Camping’s friends, associates and listeners are confronting him on this latest heretical teaching and we are praying that he comes to his senses very soon and repents as openly as he has gone astray.  If he does, the Church will not only be saved from the turmoil and grief he has caused, but will no doubt be strengthened in these very trying last days. 

It is my conviction that Harold Camping arrived at his faulty teaching in large part because of his failure to understand the Biblical concept of the “Church”.  There is no excuse for this lack of understanding, but it is there none the less.  In fact, the true nature of the Church is so well known, that most of what I am about to write is old hat to you. Nevertheless, it is necessary for me to repeat it because the pending heresy is completely refuted if one comprehends what the Church is and how it functions. Bear with me for a while as I explain the obvious, and encourage you to  share it with anyone you meet that thinks God is finished with His Church!

The verse quoted above tells us with certainty that Jesus is the head of the Church. It also tells us with certainty that the Church is His Body. This is extremely important. Of course the Body is one of many metaphors that our Lord has used to represent His people. He has also referred to them as the Temple, Houses, Vines, Trees, Marriage, etc. The Body/Church metaphor is found in other places including Colossians 1:18, 24 and Ephesians 5:23 (see Endnotes). 

So the question before us is this; what picture should we get in our mind when we read the word “Church” in our Bible? Let me first tell you what you should not get! The American Heritage Dictionary defines “Church” as “A building for public worship”, “A denomination”, “Worship in a Church” and “Clergy”. Now all of these definitions are correct when explaining what modern English means by “church”. But when considering this word in the Bible, not one of them is indicated by the original Greek word in our New Testament!

This same dictionary tells us that “Church” is derived from the Middle English word “Cirche” (Kirk) and ultimately through the Latin from the Greek word for “Lord” (Kurios, Kuriakon). It was a choice by the early English translators that was heavily influenced by their understanding of such things as The House of the Lord, The Lord’s Supper and The Lord’s Day. These are all noble concepts and Biblical to the core.  But it was not and is not an accurate reflection of “Church” as found in the original Greek.

As always with Bible study, if we would understand what God has said, we must not dwell upon the meaning of the English word, but rather upon what the original Hebrew or Greek word behind the translation means. This is true when interpreting any document that is translated from one language to another. With the Word of God, following this procedure is vital.

The Greek word that we are interested in is EKKLESIA (Strong’s dictionary #1577) It is a compound word formed from the preposition EK “Out of” and the verbal form KALEO “To Call” and has the resultant meaning “The Called Out Ones” i.e. Those called out of the world from all nations and peoples and gathered unto the Lord.

This is why the translation “Congregation” or “Assembly” is a better and more accurate description of the original. This also explains why the theological term for the study of the Church is “Ecclesiology”.  If you were to look in your concordance under church, you would find with one exception that the original word behind the translation is indeed EKKLESIA.  The exception is the phrase “robber of churches” in Acts 19:37, which translates HIEROSULOS (Literally “robber of temples”).

What does all this mean to you and I? Well, for one thing it means Jesus wants us to know that He is the originator and guarantor of the Church. (Matthew 16:18). It means that the Church is His Body and His people. It means that where two or three are gathered together in His name, there He is in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) It means that the church cannot be defined as the place where they meet or as a denomination or by the descriptive names of its denominational government such as “Episcopalians”, “Presbyterians” nor by their primary doctrines such as “Baptists” or “Pentecostals”. It means that no matter how many times Harold Camping denies it, his current group that meets as the Alameda Fellowship is just as much the church as it was before this false teaching came to him! (I do not say it was a true Church before, but only that it is no less because Harold says so.) It means that since the Church is the Body of Christ, that it is also His Bride! It means that He is not going to allow His Body to be indwelt by Satan, nor is He going to let Satan steal His Bride!  Glory to God! (I must stop here and offer another word of glory) I Timothy 1:17 17  Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.

If we are born again by the Spirit of God, then we are the Body of Christ. If we are the Body of Christ, then we must function as the Body. Once again, just because so many Christians think they can be “Lone Ranger” believers, sitting at home and watching their “Television Pastor”, does not make it so. When I think of those who claim to be my television pastor, my thoughts go to a large field filled with sheep looking for guidance and sustenance (food). They approach the televised version of the “Frugal Gourmet” expecting to be fed. But there is no food, no aroma, and no communication through which to request the same. Somehow though, the lack of real communication does not stop the T.V. guy from “fleecing” the flock! As every preacher from Saint Peter to Pastor Hayden has said, the Church (His Body) is not an organization, but a living organism. It needs real people on both ends of the pipeline 

To summarize the nature of the Body, I have invented (all by myself) an acrostic using the letters B.O.D.Y. thus:

B - Stands for BIBLE, the Word of God preached to His people.
O - Is for ORDINANCES, Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.
D - Is for DISCIPLINE, which can only be applied to those who join the Church.
Y - Is for YOU, without which there is no Church or Body in a local expression.

The next logical thing for me to do would be to expound on I Corinthians 12:12ff, but that must wait for another time. But I have included verses 12 through 28 below to stir up you pure minds by way of remembrance. So remember, do not “Go to Church” this Sunday (and Wednesday evening etc.), but “Be the Church” (24hours a day and 7 days a week) till He comes again!

Pastor Hayden 

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Endnotes:

Colossians 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.

Colossians 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:

Ephesians 5:23  For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the savior of the body.

Matthew 16:18 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.

Matthew 18:20  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.

II Peter 3:1, 2 This second epistle, beloved, I now write unto you; in both which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Savior: