"Which church is the true church?" is the question that the writer has been asked many times? Mainly by those coming away from the bondage of some church, or group, that they once believed to be the only true church that God was using on Earth today! It is very hard for the person, who has never been in spiritual bondage, or spiritually deceived, to understand the dilemma one faces, when the realisation dawns upon them, that what you believed to be the only persons/people that God accepted and approved of on earth, are in fact nothing more than a dangerous cult group! The proliferation of groups and churches in our society, who are all "waving their flag" and vying for your attention, and all claiming to be the "true church" is nothing short of mind-boggling!

Ask Questions: The person who eventually recognises that he has been deceived, does not want to ever be deceived again! So, it is only natural that he adopts an extremely cautious and critical attitude towards all who would come to him in the future, inviting him to join with them. In fact, he begins to apply one of the basic rules one should use whenever told by another that one is in "the wrong place spiritually" - he simply asks questions!

He should ask in-depth questions on doctrine, group or church history and background of the group the person confronting him belongs to. In answering those questions many Christians have, unwittingly to their own credit, placed a stumbling block before the person concerned. They, because of their doctrinal and denominational beliefs, can only offer their doctrine/denomination which is wrong, wrong, wrong, a thousand times WRONG!

The True Church: The only offer one should make to you in a situation like that referred to above, is for you to establish A PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD, THROUGH THE LORD JESUS CHRIST AND "MEMBERSHIP" IN THE TRUE CHURCH, THE BODY OF CHRIST!" Anything more, anything less, is not of God.

However, the reader should not get the wrong slant here. EVERYONE needs to belong to a church! The be involved in a local church is the will of God. But, not just any local church, but one that is Christ-centred, Bible believing, preaches the Gospel in its fullness, and openly stands for the truth. The leader/leadership should not be a law unto himself/themselves. They should be accountable for all their decisions and actions! The church and its leadership must have credibility in the minds of, not only the Christian community, but the general community at large. It should be a church that respects the individuality and the inherent ability of all in its membership to find the will of God and to hear from Him personally. Importantly, it should be a church that practices love, acceptance and forgiveness, for all regardless of race, colour or creed!

A Living Reality: Is the foregoing a tall order? No. God, our Heavenly Father has the welfare of each one of us at heart. In His Word, the Bible, He has recorded for us the way in which He wants His church, the Body of Christ, to function. For many Christians the term "Body of Christ" is just a name to describe all those who are Christians. However, there is much more to it than that.

The Bible presents the Body of Christ as a living reality! The writer believes and teaches, that to be able to "see", or perceive the Body of Christ in the right spiritual context (in fact, it is perhaps better described as being a 'revelation' that comes with understanding), which removes the barriers created by the curse of denominationalism! One needs to see that God has placed His genuine Spirit-begotten people in every Christ-centred church, whether that be Anglican, Baptist, Salvation Army, Charismatic, Pentecostal, etc.

The Head of the Church: Ephesians 5:21-32 clearly states that the Head of the Church is the Lord Jesus Christ. To illustrate. Our own body does nothing without first being directed to do so by the head. The Church therefore, should do nothing without the direction of the Head of the Church, the Lord Jesus Christ (after all, it is His Church!). The church is meant to be run as a theocracy, ie., God ruled. It should not be run as a democracy, or an autocracy (i.e. man ruled) as sadly they often are!

So, a Church's authority must come from the Chief Executive, again it must be the Lord Jesus Christ. He delegates His authority to every local church. That delegated authority is vested in what is known by many as the "Ascension Gift Ministries" which are named in Ephesians 4:11 vis., "Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers". The Lord Jesus wants to impart life to His Body through the members. (Everyone who is genuinely born of the Spirit of God automatically becomes a member of the Body of Christ).

If one reads Ephesians 3:9-10 one will agree that it very clearly states that God has chosen to work through His Body - the Church. For it says, "... to make all men see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places". This is the exact reason that Satan sets himself the task of disrupting, confusing, and even destroying churches!

Humility: It takes humility to be a genuine member of the Body of Christ. In being a member there comes a requirement that we submit one to another in love. This of course should not be blind submission, but a submission that generates out of a respect for the genuine love of God that covers the many shortcomings of the other members. Remember, we will not all agree on every single Scripture this side of glory!

Many of the interpretations of Scripture that have been responsible for the erection of the aforementioned "denominational" barriers over the centuries, are not issues that have any affect on a person's Salvation.

Christians are counseled to pursue a holy life, showing the love of God to one another, and to be about helping each other to progress to spiritual maturity. By assisting and helping one-another to find our unique spiritual gifts and callings in God, we will enable the Body of Christ to function effectively and to then be capable of fulfilling its "Great Commission" (which is outlined for us in Matthew 28:19-20). These should be our top priorities in the Church today.

One Body: The legendary Watchman Nee of China, said of the church over a hundred years ago, that, "If a person does not discern the Body and does not follow the law of the Body, he will be subject to weakness and sickness. Why is it that some people are so easily deceived? Why are some believers the recipients of evil spirits? It is because of one's inability to apprehend the Body [of Christ]". We should never reject the Body of Christ, or those who graciously represent it, but rather have the grace to submit oneself to it. (Parenthesis added)

Conclusion: Everything that God wants for mankind is expressed IN, THROUGH, and FOR the Body of Christ. Therefore our very ability to function in the Body exists solely by us holding securely to the Head - the Lord Jesus Christ. To be at odds with your brother, except perhaps where you need to stand steadfast for the truth, or against sinful practices, is to be at odds with the Head - Jesus! Notice in Psalm 133:2 that when Aaron the High Priest was anointed for office, that the anointing oil ran from the top of his head, down his beard and over his garments, or the coverings for his body. This description gives us insight into how God wants the Body of Christ to function.

The anointing of God is upon His Son Jesus as the Head of the Body. The anointing flows from Him, to the Body as a covering. Therefore, to be out of touch with, or outside the Body of Christ, is to be out of touch with the Head. It is a fact that many people battling with problems, who have sought the writer's counsel over the years, have repeatedly said that the reason they are not in church regularly, or haven't attended for x, y, or z months was because, "...the Lord told me to step aside and rest" or some such ridiculous story!

Well, that's just simply not true, or even good enough - why? Because it's God's will that we all belong to and become and remain a part of the Body of Christ!

Yes, the writer allows that when changes of location due to employment, disabilities, personal sicknesses, sickness within the family etc., that it may not be possible for one to attend a church regularly. Be assured that a loving God knows you and your family's needs. Remember, to be outside the Body is to be outside the will of God. All genuinely Born-Again Christians need to be a part of the Body of Christ. To be outside it to be vulnerable to the whiles of the Evil One!

From the writer's experience, the holders of a wrong understanding of the Body of Christ usually fall into two basic categories:

1. They have no understanding of same due to poor discipling when they first became a Christian, or committed themselves to a church. This highlights the fact that there is an obvious lack of teaching in the church they attend.

2. In many cases, the persons are really only seeking to cater to their own selfish whims. In so doing they become just plain disobedient to God. Perhaps they are refusing to accept responsibility for taking their place in the church to pursue the ministry that God has for them in the church. Why? Because they know that to do so will cost them their time, energies, money, and worldly ambitions.

Many people treat church, as someone has already said, as a cafeteria! This is horrifying. They are just spectators to what God is doing in the lives of a few others! God's will is not for us to be spectators, but for us to be participators. Running a campaign styled, "Church Life - Be in It!" would be good. This would encourage more people to seek, and find, the fulfilling spiritual life of belonging to, and knowing your place in the true Body of Christ. This can only be achieved by encouraging Christians to identify their individual and unique gifts and callings and exercise them in the Lord.

If the church you currently attend is not doing this, then ask the Lord to guide you to one that is, and join it! It is only by entering into this on-going learning process, that one finds the promised peace that passes all understanding. After all, the Lord Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace!(See Isaiah 9:6) True peace and contentment on this Earth can only generate from knowing that one is in the all pervading will and purposes of God.

Copyright 1996