I. It is a building
A. Some mistakenly believe that Christ's church is simply a building. Because
we often use the word church to designate a place of assembly, some
misunderstand the church as equivalent to the building.
B. Acts 5:12. Fear did not come upon the building, but the Christians.
C. Acts 12:5. The building did not offer up prayer, but the Christians did.
D. 1 Cor 1:2. Paul did not write a letter to the building, but the Christians in
Corinth.
E. What we must understand is that the church is not a building, but people who
belong to God. The people who belong to God all over the world are the
"universal church" or body of Christ (Col 1:18), while the people who
belong to God at a certain location are a "local church" (1 Cor 1:2).

II. It is all denominations in one
A. Some mistakenly believe that Christ's church is simply all the denominations
rolled into one.
B. Eph 4:4. There is only one body-only one group of people belonging to
Christ. However, each denomination is a different body, led by a different
head, going in a different direction. If they were all one body, why would
they be separate?
C. Those who follow Christ as head will always be united in one body (Eph 1:22-
23). They will not be divided by men and their ideas.
D. 1 Cor 1:10-13. Christ's body has no room for following men. When the
church at Corinth tried to divide over men, God specifically forbade them.
Denominations today are only different in which men they follow.
E. John 15:1-6 is usually cited as a proof-text for denominationalism. In fact, this
passage speaks specifically to individual Christians (v. 5-6). He speaks of
our relationship to the vine as disciples.

III. One church is as good as another
A. "All roads go to heaven" is the word of the day. All the denominations are
equally pleasing to God, they say, therefore any church is as good as
another. Actually, only Christ's church is acceptable.
B. John 14:6. There is only one road to God-Christ's road. We can only be
saved by being in His body. It is not a matter of our preference, but
God's.
C. Matt 7:13-14. It is not many roads going to the same place, but only two
roads. Either we are on God's road, or we are going toward destruction.
D. How can contradictory positions both be true? Can infant baptism be
acceptable (Methodism) and unacceptable at the same time? Can having a
pope (Catholicism) be both right and wrong?
E. Clearly Jesus either accepts or rejects these practices. God is not the author of
confusion (1 Cor 14:33), so we know He doesn't want both these things.
F. What we learn then, is that we must find Christ's church. We must be
baptized into it (1 Cor 12:13) and find a local church of saints who will
follow Him in all things (Col 3:17). No denomination is a replacement for
Christ's church. One church is not as good as another.

IV. Entrance is by vote or act of the church
A. How do we become a member of Christ's church? Some believe that entrance
into His church is by vote or agreement of some assembly or
denominational body. The Bible does not teach such.
B. Acts 2:47. The Lord does the adding, not any man! We can be right with God
no matter what any man says!
C. 1 Cor 12:13. We are baptized into the body. This does not mean that baptism
happens after salvation, but that baptism is the final step that puts us into
Christ's body. This is confirmed by Gal 3:26-27 and Rom 6:3.
D. Some denominations make it easier to go to heaven than to get into their
church. In Christ's church, Christ controls the adding and membership.
Certainly local churches attempt to make their membership mirror
Christ's, but they do not control it.

In summary, Christ's church is
1) People, not a building
2) One body, not many
3) The only right church
4) Controlled by Christ-in membership and entrance requirements ___Jacob Hudgins