The Bible in the Light of the Church

MEMORY VERSE: “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.” —Colossians 3:16

I TIMOTHY 4:11-16; EPHESIANS 3:7-10

THE word “church” as found in the Bible is a translation of the Greek word ekklesia, which means “a calling out.” This suggests that the faithful followers of Jesus during the Christian era are a class called out from the world in general. Jesus said to his disciples, “I have chosen you out of the world.”—John 15:19

First among this chosen class were the believing Jews of Jesus’ day, and other Jews who accepted him prior to the time when the Gospel went to the Gentiles. When the message began to go to the Gentiles these also were thereby given an opportunity to be of the chosen class. We read in Acts 15:14, “Simeon hath declared how God at the first did visit the Gentiles, to take out of them a people for his name.”

From these scriptures we clearly see that it has not been the divine intention to bring all mankind into the church. This is fundamental to a proper understanding of the plan of God for the redemption and recovery of mankind from sin and death. It means that the work of God in the earth during the present age is not the conversion of the world to Christ, but rather the calling out from the world of those who will constitute God’s elect class to be associated with Jesus in the future conversion and blessing of mankind in general.

When Peter said to Jesus, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” Jesus replied that upon this great truth concerning himself he would build his church. (Matt. 16:16,17) When someone undertakes the work of constructing a building, the expectation is that in due course the structure will be complete. So it is with the building of the church. This work is not to go on forever, but in God’s due time all the called out ones will have been brought into this elect group, and then, coming forth from death in the first resurrection, as priests and as kings they will reign with Christ a thousand years.—Rev. 20:6

Much of the information in the Word of God has been put there under the inspiration of God’s Holy Spirit for the instruction and encouragement of the church class. These precious spiritual truths cannot be understood and appreciated by the world in general. A person unconsecrated to the doing of God’s will would find nothing in our memory verse of real meaning—“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom.” The wisdom of the worldly is selfish. Heavenly wisdom, on the other hand, leads to laying down one’s life for others.

How meaningful to the dedicated Christian is the admonition that we shall be “teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.”—Col. 3:16

Paul’s admonition to Timothy (I Tim. 4:11-16) is not designed for the unconsecrated with the view of helping such to be successful in business. Every dedicated believer should endeavor to be an example to others of like precious faith. These should give attention to reading the Word of God, and “to exhortation, to doctrine.”

The word “prophecy” in this passage really means “publicly proclaiming the truth.” If the Lord has favored us with opportunities and abilities for this service, we should he faithful in their use. A public proclamation of the truth today can be accomplished through the distribution of the printed page.

As dedicated Christians we should give ourselves wholly to the service of the Lord. It is through faithfulness to the Lord that we lay up treasures in heaven.

EPHESIANS 3:7-10

For a long time the Jewish people were the only ones recognized by the Lord as his. (Amos 3:1-2) But Paul explains that it was the Lord’s will for the Gentile believers also to be included, and that he had been made a special minister to the Gentiles of “the fellowship of the mystery,” the mystery described by him as “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” (Col. 1:27) This mystery is that the great Messiah of promise includes the body members of Christ, the church.

QUESTIONS

What is the meaning of the word “church?”

Is God now trying to convert the world?

To whom is much of the instruction in the Word of God directed?

What is one of the great mysteries of the Gospel?

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