THE CHURCH
WHAT THE CHURCH IS!
There are several names given to the ONLY true Church.
THE BODY OF CHRIST.
1 Corinthians 12:27 “Now YOU ARE CHRIST’S BODY, and individually members of it.”
1 Corinthians 12:16-17 “Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a SHARING IN THE BODY OF CHRIST? Since there is ONE BREAD, WE WHO ARE MANY ARE ONE BODY; for we all partake of the ONE BREAD.
THE BRIDE OF JESUS CHRIST
Revelation 21:9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you THE BRIDE, THE WIFE of THE LAMB.”
Look carefully at what the angel is saying here! He is going to show John in the vision THE BRIDE, THE WIFE of THE LAMB, the Lord Jesus Christ. The wedding has taken place during the Tribulation period and the BRIDE will come with the BRIDEGROOM, the Lord Jesus Christ to the earth at the end of the Tribulation period. At the start of the Millennium she will come down as the NEW JERUSALEM.
Look at the next verse what the angel has t say.
Revelation 21:10 “And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the HOLY CITY, JERUSALEM, coming down out of heaven from God”.
This is NOT the OLD Jerusalem, but the NEW JERUSALEM, the BRIDE, the WIFE of the LAMB.
Ephesians 5:25-32 “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless. So husbands ought also to love their own wives as their own bodies. He who loves his own wife loves himself; for no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church, because we are members of His body. FOR THIS REASON A MAN SHALL LEAVE HIS FATHER AND MOTHER AND SHALL BE JOINED TO HIS WIFE, AND THE TWO SHALL BECOME ONE FLESH. This MYSTERY is great; but I am speaking with reference to CHRIST AND THE CHURCH.”
THE NEW JERUSALEM
Revelation 21:10-14 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like a very costly stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall, with TWELVE GATES, and at the gates twelve angels; and names were written on them, which are the NAMES of the TWELVE TRIBES of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had TWELVE FOUNDATION STONES, and on them were the TWELVE NAMES of the TWELVE APOSTLES of the Lamb.”
Ephesians 2:19-22 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are FELLOW CITIZENS with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been BUILT on the FOUNDATION of the APOSTLES and PROPHETS, CHRIST JESUS Himself being the CORNER STONE, in whom the WHOLE BUILDING, being fitted together, is GROWING into a HOLY TEMPLE in the Lord, in whom YOU ALSO are BEING BUILT together into A DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT.”
In the first verse above we read that the New Jerusalem coming down from heaven has a great wall with TWELVE GATES with the NAMES of the TWELVE TRIBES of Israel and also TWELVE FOUNDATION STONES with the NAMES of the TWELVE APOSTLES of the Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ.
In the second verse above we read the same things, namely, that we are fellow citizens with the saints. Citizens must have a city and the city here is the New Jerusalem. The verse continues by saying we are of God’s household, having been BUILT on the FOUNDATION of the APOSTLES and the PROPHETS (of the tribes of Israel), with Jesus Christ being the CORNER STONE. We are growing into a holy temple IN THE LORD, in WHOM we also are being built together into a DWELLING OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT.
Further more after the Rapture we will be in our eternal bodies COVERED with the GLORY of God, just like Adam and Eve were COVERED with the GLORY of God before their fall. The first verse mentioned above also states that the New Jerusalem will have the GLORY OF GOD.
1 Peter 2:2-5 “And coming to Him as to a LIVING STONE which has been rejected by men, but is choice and precious in the sight of God, YOU ALSO, as LIVING STONES, are being BUILT UP as a SPIRITUAL HOUSE for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
John 14:9:2-3 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. If I go and PREPARE A PLACE for YOU, I will come again and RECEIVE YOU TO MYSELF, that WHERE I AM, THERE YOU MAY BE ALSO.“
If you look closely to the above verse you notice that Jesus said in His Father’s house are many dwelling places and then compare that with the above verse in Ephesians 2 you read there at the end that we are being built together into A DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT. The verse also says that the whole building is fitted together, growing into a TEMPLE IN THE LORD.
I can’t understand why so many people find it hard to grasp this TRUTH. The New Jerusalem will be a spiritual city and we are LIVING STONES in that spiritual city as we are in our spiritual, resurrected, eternal body in which the Holy Trinity dwells, as Jesus told us that the Holy Spirit will dwell in us and the Father and Jesus Himself would come and make their abode in us and that THEY will NEVER leave us. We will be the Temple, the Tabernacle where God will dwell for eternity.
John 14:23 “Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make OUR ABODE WITH HIM
John 14:16-17 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may BE WITH YOU FOREVER;. that is the SPIRIT OF TRUTH, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because HE ABIDES WITH YOU AND WILL BE IN YOU.”
THE TEMPLE IN THE LORD
Ephesians 2:19-22 “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are FELLOW CITIZENS with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been BUILT on the FOUNDATION of the APOSTLES and PROPHETS, CHRIST JESUS Himself being the CORNER STONE, in whom the WHOLE BUILDING, being fitted together, is GROWING into a HOLY TEMPLE IN THE LORD in whom YOU ALSO are BEING BUILT together into A DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT.“
Paul is clearly saying here that the WHOLE BUILDING is being fitted together. We know that the WHOLE BUILDING is the NEW JERUSALEM as Jesus Christ is the CORNER STONE.
Now who is fitting the building together? The builder, who is nobody else but JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF.
John 14:2 “In My Father’s house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I GO TO PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU for you. How is He doing this? He is working on every Christian’s life, chopping away on rough edges to make us smooth LIVING STONES, so that when the RAPTURE takes place and we are changed into our eternal bodies we will be perfect LIVING STONES that will fit perfectly into the HOLY TEMPLE IN THE LORD, a DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT, the NEW JERUSALEM.
Revelation 21:22 “I saw NO TEMPLE in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are ITS TEMPLE.”
John 17:22 “The GLORY which YOU have GIVEN ME I have GIVEN TO THEM, that they may be one, just as We are one;“
The GLORY Jesus had with the Father in eternity before the creation was of their PERFECT UNITY in the eternal TRINITY.
We have been given that same GLORY, given to us by Jesus the moment we are BORN AGAIN and are covered in that GLORY at the moment of the RAPTURE when we receive our glorified eternal bodies because of our UNITY in Jesus Christ.
John 17:21 “that they may all be one; even as YOU, FATHER, ARE IN ME AND I IN YOU, that THEY ALSO MAY BE IN US, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
Can you now see that the Church is the NEW JERUSALEM, a DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT, a HOLY TEMPLE IN THE LORD.
Revelation 16:1 “Then I heard a loud voice from the TEMPLE, saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
Here we see that there is a TEMPLE in heaven.
Revelation 21:22 “I saw NO TEMPLE in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are ITS TEMPLE.”
Here we see that in the NEW JERUSALEM there is NO TEMPLE.
As the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the TEMPLE where They dwell and we are GROWING into a HOLY TEMPLE IN THE LORD in whom we are also BEING BUILT together into a DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT.
1 Corinthians 6:19 “Or do you not know that your BODY is a TEMPLE of the Holy Spirit who is IN YOU, whom you have from God, and that YOU ARE NOT YOUR OWN?”
The moment we trust in Jesus as our Lord and Saviour and are BORN AGAIN the Holy Spirit makes His abode in our body which becomes TEMPLE of the Holy Spirit and belongs to God. The Lord Jesus Christ is preparing us as LIVING STONES that at the RAPTURE will be changed into spiritual LIVING STONES that will form the DWELLING PLACE OF GOD IN THE SPIRIT, a HOLY TEMPLE IN THE LORD, the NEW JERUSALEM, where we will be a ROYAL PRIESTHOOD
Can you now see the meaning of John 17:21 “that they may all be one; even as YOU, FATHER, ARE IN ME AND I IN YOU, that THEY ALSO MAY BE IN US, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
Pray about this that God may give you understanding of this wonderful TRUTH.
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