Now after John had been taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.

Mark 1:14-15

From the beginning of His ministry, Jesus came preaching the Gospel of God, that the Kingdom of God is at hand.

This was His message, that the good news, the long awaited Kingdom from heaven was now within arm’s reach, and that it was to be believed in.  The command for every call to the Kingdom has always been ‘Repent and believe!”.

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I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Matthew 16:18

It was upon a man with a revelation that Jesus chose to build His church.  It wasn’t loosely put together, or framed on the first day, as He didn’t even talk about his “ekklesia” before this point.  But, something shifted once Peter heard this direct word from God, and Jesus discerned the change in the Spirit, and confirmed Peter in his understanding.

The Kingdom of God can be likened to a treasure hidden in a field, worth selling all for.  The Kingdom can be compared with a pearl of great price.

And in the midst of Christ’s Kingdom, He has chosen his called out, ruling body, His church.  We are His body on the Earth.  As He was in the Earth, so should be the church.

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I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

Matthew 16:18

According to scholars, the first reference Jesus makes to building a “church” or even mentioning the word is this word that He gave to Peter.  As far as I can tell, this is one of the only “nuts” and “bolts” that Jesus ever gives concerning building a church.

Many make a case for either large church or small church based on various scriptures and reasonings.  It is good to point out, however, that the Word actually says they did both.

 Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.

Acts 2:46-47

This scripture makes it clear they met BOTH in the temple as a large congregation, and house to house, which seems to indicate smaller groups as well.  But, what is interesting, is that no where is the character of these gatherings described by what we understand as a ‘meeting’ today.  They met, sure, and they shared.  There certainly would have been some format, but they weren’t doing “Sunday Morning” back then.  They were glad, genuine, and thankful, because they had the Truth.

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Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1

Faith in God is a real, active, and living thing.  God is alive, and powerful.  Faith sees Him, and the word of His power overcomes what cannot be otherwise overcome, and carries a person with it through otherwise impossible situations.

It was by faith in God that David conquered the giant, and it was by faith in God that Jonathan, his friend, along with his armor bearer, single-handedly took on an entire Philistine garrison.  It was by faith that overcame their weaknesses and came to be firmly established in the land.

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Matthew 13:3-8

Then he told them many things in parables, saying: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.

Proverbs 4:23 says to keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issuings of life.  Jesus, when confronting Peter after His  resurrection, after that Peter had denied Him, asked Him three times, “Do you love me?” (John 21:15-17).  Three times, He asked Peter if he loved Him the way He himself loved Peter, unconditional, undemanding love.

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Matthew 16:18

And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.

Colossians 2:8

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ

John 8:31-32

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

In Exodus 33:15, Moses told God “If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here.” This is the heart of the church. If God does not show up, us meeting is little more than a social club.

Colossians 2:8 points out a key distinction between the Christian church and everything else. Does what we do depend on human tradition and the basic principles of this world, or does it depend on Christ? Focus on the word “Depends”. Think about that word. Everything must be built upon on something. If that ‘something’ fails or changes, or if it shifts or even disappears, your structure comes breaks or even crashing down in. That is how it should be with our churches.

The church is not a building, it is His people coming together. Read more…