E. M. Borden
Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matt. 16:18). Notice, He said “my church”—not Luther’s, Wesley’s, Calvin’s or any other man’s. Notice also that the word “church” is in the singular. It is one—not many. Now, are we right when we refer to it as “the church of Christ?” It was not the Jewish congregation, but the church of Christ.
Jesus not only said, “my church,” but He said, “The gates of hell [hades] shall not prevail against it.” That same church is in existence now and all Christians are members of that church. To be a Christian is to be a member of the church of Christ. On the day of Pentecost the Lord added the saved to the church (Acts 2:41, 47). The Lord does not add people to the Methodist or Baptist churches, or any other man made denomination. He adds them to His church.
The popular idea of a person becoming a child of God and then joining the church is absurd. It is true that a person can become a Christian, then afterward join some human institution to his own detriment. But when one becomes a Christian he becomes a member of the church of Christ by a spiritual birth (John 3:3-5), and Paul said that church is, “the house of God”—God’s family (1 Tim. 3:15). How can a man join a family after he has been born into it? Think on these things.
