Featured The Church Universal

You can run, but you cannot hide, LOL. I do think there is a universal church of all believers throughout all ages, sometimes called the Kingdom of God. What I am trying to say is that the universal church has no useful function on this earth. As an organization, they do nothing towards the work of the Lord, the local church does.

 

So what does the Kingdom of God do then?

 

It awaits its proper role in eternity: the huge assembly as described in Revelation, marriage supper, bride, and whatever else God has in store. Here on earth, individual members of the universal church work for the Lord in the framework of local church, but as an entity, the universal church on earth does nothing.

 

Paul os writing to FBC Corinth--a local congregation. He calls FBC Corinth THE body of Christ. Not just A body of Christ, but THE body of Christ. This church, as every church, is a self-contained, a combination of different parts working together as a functioning entity. It is designed to carry out the desires of the Head. Just the same as the human body carries out the desires of the brain, located in the head.

Notice that he called FBC Corinth THE church which is at Corinth.

In 1 Cor 12:13, the Greek en is more accurately translated "in" rather than "by." Thus, the verse reads "For IN one Spirit, we were all baptized into one body.... "

Rather than referring to Spirit baptism, it simply means that being in or under the power of the Holy Spirit, we are brought by the Lord to baptism, and made members of His body, the local church.

Here Paul uses "church" in the generic sense. Throughout the ages, wherever there is a New Testament congregation,God receives glory in it

I don't know of a local assembly either that has survived since NT times. But I do hold that a NT assembly has always been in existence since then.

Is Paul writing to the Universal Church or a local church? Is not Christ the head of each local congregation? Is he not head of the church just as the husband is head of the wife? A real, assembling church and a real wife?

 

There is no argument with you about Acts 28:20. Christ's blood redeemed every sin of every believer for all times. That has nothing to do with the question being asked. The universal church as an organization has no useful function on this earth. The local church carries out the work of the Lord.

Yes, I have sung the hymn many times, 25 years as a Presbyterian and 35 years as a Baptist.

I agree that the Bride of Christ is the universal church. That function is in eternity, not here on earth. God's work is done through the local churches. Just to make things clear, there are many on the rolls of the local churches that are not saved. None of that has anything to do with the fact God uses local churches to accomplish His will.

When we are all standing before the Lord in eternity, the local churches will cease to exist and have no function, and the universal church will be the focus. A more proper term is the Kingdom of God.

As to your last statement, I said you were a universalist because you gave some credibility to the founding of the RCC. They claim to be the universal church. There is nothing in their doctrine that parallels Scripture. Again, the three models are RCC, universal, visible church, Protestant, universal invisible, and Baptist, local visible.

This is just my personal opinion, but if you would read other's posts carefully, you would see that there are areas of agreement on which you could build a bridge to other posters. Instead, you look for differences and go after them with a vengence.

If you will stop and think about it, for the most part we are in complete agreement on theology, especially on sovereignty. That is much more important than the character of John Calvin, which we will never agree. I don't understand why you focus on the disagreements instead of common ground.

 

Okay, but I don't believe the Kingdom of God is the universal Church. The Kingdom of God is something greater than that, though its redeemed citizenry is the universal Church of all ages.

Well, I think we can all agree that the universal Church will meet twice in the history of mankind. Once at Pentecost and the second at the eschaton.

Functionally, there is no way for the universal Church to meet on this side of heaven.

 

The universal church (or simply "the Church") serves a great purpose; it provides the unity by which all believers are bound to Christ. It is why our prayers for persecuted brethren in Asia can ascend before the throne room of God the Father; because they are mediated by God the Son. There is not a necessary disconnect between the Church and local church. All local churches are joined to the Church, of which Christ is the head. Not a pope. Christ.

 

In heaven, they won't call it the Universal Church. It'll be called the General Assembly. And for the first time, and forever afterward, it will assemble.

 

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Jesus Christ died for the Church, not churches. He is the Head of THE Church universal, as well as the autonomous churches scattered abroad.

 

I believe Christ died for the Church (singluar). I believe there is a universal church. I guess I am not getting my point across very well. Here on earth, not in eternity, here and now, God uses the local church to carry out his work. Missionaries are supported by local churches, the Lord's Supper is administered by a local church, baptisim is carried out by a local church. When Christ returns, the local churches no longer serve a purpose. Then, the universal church takes over. I do not believe one post said there is no universal church.

The one exception to that is that in West Virginia, all Baptisms are carried out by John Calvin.

 

So, this explains why our forestry always get burnt to a crisp. I guess John is chasing Michael through the woods, with flames of fire snapping at Michael's heels....:tongue3:

 

So I guess the KY WV border seperates Calvinism from Arminianism. Too bad for you that your ended up on the wrong side.

 

Heb. 1:7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.

Nope. We're on the right side, and will be raised on the right, being right with God. Johnny Boy made sure that he carried this verse out personally.

You, being on the left, will be left out. LOL

Just kidding about that last part, and you being on the left.

 

Michael lost, but didn't end up on the short end of the stick. He got all the sticks, with a bunch of matches to boot.

 

Speaking of matches, how about your breath and camel gas.