Ecclesiology II - Gentlemen, please continue

Paul is addressing a local church in Ephesus. He is not addressing Old Testament saints. They have nothing to do with the local church or any church of any kind. Where do you get that from?

In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: (Ephesians 2:21)
--The KJV more accurately translates this as framed together. He is describing a building. The apostles and prophets are the foundation. Why? They are the authors of the Bible--NT and OT; the complete Bible. Jesus is the corner stone, the rock of the foundation, without which the foundation cannot stand. The members of the church at Ephesus were the stones of the house that, when fitly framed together, made a building like a holy temple. To be fitly or suitably framed together they had to be Spirit-filled, using their spiritual gifts, united with each other not against each other. This is what Paul is talking about.

As I mentioned, go the historical context. Ephesus was a church founded on his second missionary journey between 49-52 A.D. There were not many churches around the area. The province of Galatia was far inland to the East. Miletus was close by but it is doubtful that there was a church there. He was writing to a church that by all accounts was isolated from others. What do you think the Ephesians thought when Paul was writing to them? Universal? NO! He was writing to them, the believers at Ephesus, their assembly, and they would never think otherwise.

 

What is being built together? The antecedent must be in the previous couple of verses, which refers to the fact that we were once aliens to the commonwealth of Israel and are now Citizens. Yes, we are being built up, the those being built must be in the near context, not the far, which is also a hermeneutical law. The near context is that they far off... far off from the people of Israel, from Jews. Now brought near. Your jump violates established hermeneutical and exegetical laws.

 

BTW, do you concede that your belief is mostly absent in history until the last 150 or so years?

As I stated in another thread, new theology is probably not true. I believe your focus on the local church is both new and in error.

 

The local church; the assembly at Ephesus is being built together.

In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: (Ephesians 2:21)
--The members of the assembly at Ephesus are being referred to here. And the Ephesians would not be thinking of anyone else but themselves. Who do you think they would think of when Paul addressed this letter to them?

True. Gentiles were alienated from God. They are now citizens. Why? Because of Christ.

That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: (Ephesians 2:12)

Both Gentile Christians and Jewish Christians are partakers of the same covenant of promise. Before this time the Gentiles were left out of all promises and aliens with God. Now Christ has died. We are one in Christ.

The people of Israel are hardly in the context at all. Paul is stressing the unity of Gentile and Jewish believers, that they are now one in Christ. Once the Gentiles were estranged from God because in the OT, the Jews were God's chosen people. Christ's death on the cross has done away with that artificial division and has granted salvation to both Jews and Gentiles. He "has removed the middle wall of partition."
You are the one that is violating principles of hermeneutics.
This is not about Israel.
It is about the church at Ephesus. Those believers are one in Christ no matter what their background was: Jew or Gentile.

 

That is your opinion, and you are entitled to it, however wrong it may be.

 

http://www.baptisthistory.org/BaptistsSalyers.pdf

http://books.google.com/books?id=V9ECAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA12&dq=baptist+magazine&lr=&output=text


The above is taken from John Mockett Cramp's "Baptist History," written in 1871. In the last paragraph he makes references to the early church fathers. They referred to churches. The only "Church" that was referred to in their writings was that of the "Romish Church."

 

First, I apologize for not being here for about a week, I have been extremely busy with work and stuff. I have not gone through the posts, just wanted to check in.

 

In fact, the number of specific references in the Bible of the rapture of the church is-------zero.