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"IN  LIGHT  OF"  GOD'S  TRUE  CHURCH



GOD'S TRUE CHURCH

 Part 1 of 3

     There are at least 100 different denominations today all claiming to be God's true church. Can they all constitute God's true church when they conflict with each other in belief? For thousands of years the question of who and what constitutes God's church has raged. How can we know for sure?
     To comprehend this vital truth is to find freedom in Jesus Christ, but to misunderstand it is to be kept in bondage and captivity to Satan. It is of the utmost importance to all of God's followers that each one take the time to study for himself to understand who and what constitutes God's true church.
     The only way to understand this is to obtain knowledge and wisdom; but from where? Can we depend alone upon the knowledge and wisdom from earthly sources? No, because we would become the enemies of God (see James 4:4).
     Can we then depend alone upon the knowledge and wisdom from other men? No, because if we depend on the words of other men -- be they pope or priest, minister or elder, guru or Shaman -- we will be cursed (see Jeremiah 17:5).
     Can we then depend alone on our own wisdom? No, because that is foolishness (see I Corinthians 1:19-20, 3:19).
     Then where do we obtain the knowledge and wisdom with which to understand who and what constitutes God's church? It must be from God Himself, and He mercifully promises to grant us all the knowledge and wisdom we need to understand His truth (see James 1:5; John 7:17, 14:26). The wisdom and knowledge which comes from God, as is found in His inspired word, must be our ONLY foundation and dependence in trying to understand the truth of this vital issue.
     "To the law and to the testimony, if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." Isaiah 8:20.

     "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15.

     Each must search and study God's word for himself in order to know who and what is declared to be God's church, and we cannot allow any man, or group of men, to be our conscience or to do our study for us. And to make sure that we obtain the correct understanding, we must go back to the basic truths as found in God's inspired word, and build up a solid foundation of truth which we can stand firmly upon.
     There are only TWO different powers in this world -- either good or evil. There are only TWO different sources of doctrine -- either light or darkness. And God's word lists only TWO kinds of churches -- the pure righteous church of God (see Revelation 12:1-5; Ephesians 5:27), or the corrupt Babylonian synagogue of Satan (see Revelation 2:9, 17:1-6).
     The church of God is founded only upon God's light of truth (see I Timothy 3:15), because God is only the Author of light, goodness and truth (see Genesis 1:3-4; Matthew 19:17; James 1:17).
     While the church of Satan is founded upon lies, for the devil is the author of all darkness, error and falsehood (see Isaiah 14:4-23; Ezekiel 28:15-17; Revelation 12:7-9; John 8:44).
     In light of God's true church being founded only upon truth any church that holds to any error, even though it adheres to all other truths, cannot be God's true church! Therefore it must be part of Satan's synagogue, because Christ and Satan have no union or partnership with each other at any time (see John 14:30; 2 Corinthians 6:15).
     God's true church has only Christ as its Head and Leader (see Ephesians 1:22, 5:23-24; Colossians 1:18). Thus with Christ as its Leader the church will always do only those things which please God (see Psalms 92:15; John 8:29), and by so doing the gates of hell cannot prevail against it because there is nothing the Devil can find in it to use to his advantage (see John 14:30; Matthew 16:18). Therefore God's true church cannot and will never fall, but will stand forever because it is founded upon the Eternal and Everlasting immovable Rock -- which is Christ Jesus (see Deuteronomy 32:4; 2 Samuel 22:32; Psalms 18:2; Matthew 7:24-25).
     Whereas the church which Satan controls will put a man in the place of Christ as its head and leader (see 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). Thus that church will not do those things which please God, but will do those things which please men (see Matthew 16:23). This church cannot possibly stand, but will indeed fall and be destroyed, along with all those who remain in it, because it is founded upon the ever shifting, unstable and deceptive tiny rocks of sand -- which is fallible mortal beings (see Deuteronomy 32:31,37-39; Matthew 7:26-27; Revelation 18:2-8).
     The vast majority of religious people cannot comprehend that God's true church does not deviate from good, light, and truth at any time, even by the slightest degree. They declare that this Scriptural identification of God's true church is too straight and narrow to possibly be correct. They then are further shaken by the thought that there has never yet been a denomination in the entire history of this world which has always done only those things which have pleased God at all times. As they cannot harmonize their thinking with the Scripture truth and this knowledge of history, they become confused, the above Scriptures are ignored, and they are led to believe that God's true church must be made up of a combination of both good and evil existing together within it.
     There does not need to be any confusion, because there is no contradiction between the Scriptures and historical facts in this issue! You ask, how can this be? The whole problem lies in our understanding of who and what constitutes God's true church.
     Multitudes have been taught that God's true church is a denomination that is devoted to the worship of God. There is an urgent desire to find some denomination to join; but which one? Choosing one of the 100 or so denominations each declaring most positively that they are the one and only true church of God can be a most difficult task! Some have even suggested that it doesn't make any difference which one because all churches lead to heaven. This comes about because people have been led to believe that they must be members of, or otherwise connected to, some denomination in order to worship God, be part of His true church, and have their salvation assured.
     This is not what the Scriptures teach regarding God's true church! Jesus, in speaking of Himself and God's true church, declared: "I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine....and I lay down my life for the sheep...and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd." John 10:14-16.
     Jesus stated that God only has "one fold" or one true church, not many! This Scriptural truth debunks the idea that all the denominations collectively make up God's church. The word "fold" translates the same as "flock" (see Strong's Concordance, #4167). Who or what makes up this identity of God's true church, His "one fold" or "one flock"? Since all denominations can't be one fold, is God's one flock any particular denomination?
     "And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God." Ezekiel 34:31.

     God's one true church, His one fold, His one flock of today is not a denomination -- no matter how exalted their name, or how loudly they profess -- because God's one true church is made up of people. We must understand this vital point of truth, that God's church is made up of people and not a denomination, in order to be free in Jesus and not continue to remain in bondage and captivity to men!
     Even in Christ's time this battle of denominationalism was raging. Various church followers were battling with each other for converts and the right to declare themselves the one and only church of God. Each denomination was declaring that only they had the truth, and only in their church could God be truly worshipped. But did Christ sanction this belief?. Did Christ choose one denomination over another for His people to worship God in?
     One person directly asked Christ this very question, and please read carefully what answer He gave: "The woman (of Samaria) saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain (the temple at Mount Gerizim); and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for (the message of) salvation is of (was committed to) the Jews. But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him. God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth." John 4:19-24.

     God's true church is not made up of this denomination or that denomination, but is made up of individuals who worship God in spirit and truth. You do not need to find any denomination in order to worship God, but you can worship Him in your very homes -- just like the disciples and followers of Christ chose to do (see Romans 16:5; 1 Corinthians 16:19; Colossians 4:15; Philemon 2).
     In light of God's true church being made up of people and not any denomination is what sets you free in Jesus, and leads you to correctly understand other related issues regarding God's church. Whereas, the belief that God's true church is a denomination, will leave you in bondage to men, and to misunderstand other related issues regarding God's church.



GOD'S TRUE CHURCH

 Part 2 of 3 --

     In Part 1 it was shown that God's true church is made up of people and not any denomination and this is what sets you free in Jesus. While the belief that God's true church is a denomination leaves you in bondage to men.
     Some may still be having problems in seeing the difference between these two understandings, so let us briefly examine the following related scenarios from both perspectives which will help to show the difference between the two issues, and it should become clearer why one leads to freedom in Christ, while the other leads to bondage of men.
     The Bible teaches that God is offering rest for all who are weary (see Isaiah 28:12, 30:15; Jeremiah 6:16). With the understanding that God's church is made up of people, then we would individually find our rest only by going directly to Jesus (see Psalms 37:7; Matthew 11:28-30), and if we choose to leave Him, then we lose our rest and salvation. Whereas with the understanding that God's church is a denomination, then we would find our rest only by going directly to the denomination and if we choose to leave the denomination, then we believe that we have forsaken our rest and are lost.
     The Bible also teaches that God's church is the body of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 12:27; Ephesians 1:23, 5:30). So in understanding that God's true church is made up of people, then we individually become part of Christ's body by joining Christ Himself and are baptized (see Galatians 3:27-29; Matthew 12:30; Romans 12:5; Mark 16:16). And if we should choose to break away from Christ, then we would no longer be part of His body or church and are lost. Whereas with the understanding that God's church is a denomination, then we would become part of Christ's body by joining the denomination through baptism. And if we should choose to break away from, or should be cast out of, the denomination, then we would believe that we are no longer part of the body of Christ and are lost.
     The Bible teaches that God's people will obtain immortality or eternal life (see Romans 2:7). With the understanding that God's church is made up of people, then we would find eternal life only through Jesus (see 1 Timothy 1:16-17; 1 John 1:1-2; John 1:1-4, 14:6), and by disconnecting ourselves from Jesus, we have no chance for eternal life and salvation. Whereas with the understanding that God's church is a denomination, then we would find eternal life through the denomination, and by disconnecting ourselves from the denomination we believe we have no chance for eternal life or of salvation.
     As you can see, all these scenarios involve the issue of our salvation! The Bible does indeed teach that we must be saved (see 1 Timothy 2:3-4). In light of God's true church being made up of people, then we would individually find our salvation by connecting ourselves directly to Jesus Christ (see John 3:17; Isaiah 45:22; Acts 2:21, 4:10-12, 15:11, 16:30-31; Romans 5:9-10) and in separating ourselves from Christ, we are lost. Whereas with the understanding that God's church is a denomination, then we find our salvation by connecting ourselves to the denomination, and in separating ourselves from the denomination, we believe we are lost.
     Now let us put all of these points together. With the understanding that God's church is made up of people, then we would individually find our rest, become part of Christ's body and true church, find our eternal life and salvation, by going directly to, and becoming connected directly with, Jesus. Thus our eyes are directed upward, and our attention becomes centered and focused upon Jesus. He becomes the object of our love, adoration and praise. Jesus becomes our All-in-All, His life becomes our best and all absorbing theme to contemplate on. Hence our desire to please Him becomes paramount, and His will and commands become our delight to follow and obey. And by continuing to behold Jesus day after day, our very lives and characters are more and more changed into His perfect image, and our desire to lead others to also join with Jesus and find salvation in Him enlarges more each day. But by leaving, separating, disconnecting and breaking ourselves away from Christ, then we no longer have any rest; we are no longer part of His body or true church; we no longer have any assurance of salvation or hope for eternal life; which means that we are lost.
     But with the understanding that God's church is a denomination, then we would find our rest, become part of Christ's body and true church, find our eternal life and salvation, by going directly to, and becoming connected directly with, the denomination. Thus our eyes are directed downward, and our attention becomes centered and focused upon the denomination. It becomes the object of our love, adoration and praise. The denomination becomes our all-in-all, it's history becomes our best and all absorbing theme to contemplate on, and our desire to please the denomination becomes paramount. The will and commands of the denominational leaders becomes our delight to follow and obey. And by continuing to behold the denomination, our very lives and characters are more and more changed into the imperfect image it reveals, and our desire to lead others to join with us in the denomination grows more each day. But by leaving, separating, disconnecting and breaking ourselves away from the denomination, then we believe we will no longer have any rest; we believe we are no longer part of Christ's body or true church; and we believe we no longer have any assurance of salvation or hope for eternal life; which means we believe we are lost.
     The most serious consequence to those who believe this way, is that their denominational leaders can be as corrupt and wicked as the devil himself, their denomination can even apostatize from the truths of the Bible and exchange these for the doctrines of hell, and yet it would not matter one bit! Why? Because you believe that your denomination is the true church of God. So even if you can be shown evidence that reveals your church to be controlled by the Devil himself, it would not shake your blind faith in the denomination in the least! Why? Because you believe that your church is going through to heaven, and that by your remaining connected to it your ticket to heaven is thus assured, but if you would be separated from it, you would be lost!
     I earnestly pray that you can clearly discern the stark difference between these two ideologies and the pathway which it leads you to follow. One leads to complete liberty and freedom in Christ, the other leads to complete bondage and captivity to men! The one is the gospel truth of the Bible which centers in Jesus, the other is the heinous falsehood of Catholicism which centers in Satan! I sincerely hope that you can clearly understand that if you believe that God's true church is a denomination, that you are in bondage to the men who control that church. And, more importantly, that Christ has been robbed from you as your Saviour because the denomination has taken His place -- it has become the object of your worship and source of your salvation!
     This sad scenario, of the denominational church being made into the object of worship instead of Christ, is exactly what the Jewish people were led into. And what is even more disheartening, is that the majority of religious people today are being led to believe the very same thing.
     The Jewish people accused Stephen of speaking·"blasphemous words against this holy place" or against their temple (see Acts 6:13). And what were Stephen's words?
     "But Solomon built him (God) an house. Howbeit the most High dwelleth not in temples made with hands; as saith the prophet, Heaven is my throne, and earth is my footstool: what house will ye build me? saith the Lord: or what is the place of my rest? Hath not my hands made all these things?" Acts 7:47-50.

     Stephen was basically telling all the Jewish church members that in this New Covenant period, God does not dwell in literal buildings, but desires to dwell in the individual hearts of His people through Jesus Christ. In other words, Stephen was telling them that any who desired to worship God must worship Him in spirit and truth, that no one needed to belong to the denominational church or to visit any temple in order to worship God. This of course meant that no one needed to remain subject to the authority of the corrupt priests or needed to remain connected to their apostate church any longer, but could find perfect rest and lasting freedom in Jesus Christ! One religious writer makes it very plain:
     "He (Stephen) referred to the history of the temple and declared that God dwelleth not in temples made with hands. The Jews worshipped the temple and were filled with greater indignation at anything spoken against that building than if it had been spoken against God." E. G. White, Early Writings, p 198.

     The temple worshiping Jews became very angry that such words were spoken against their church and authority. And instead of recognizing this truth, taking their love and worship from the temple and placing it instead upon Jesus, they rejected Christ, rejected His truth, and stoned Stephen to death. But what is even more amazing, is that in this New Covenant period, this exact same evil spirit, which rises up in angry defiance against anyone who speaks against their denomination, is still rankling in the hearts of many today. When any words are spoken which expose the corruption in their church, or touches upon the false doctrines which their denomination upholds, even if these words are the truth, instead of examining the points brought forth to see if it is indeed true, they rise up in angry defiance against the messenger and want him silenced immediately. This is just an evident token that their denominational leaders have successfully supplanted Christ from their hearts and put the denomination in His place, and have led these individuals to worship their denomination instead of God alone. May these deceived individuals wake up before it is too late, because if they do not exchange their denominational church for Jesus Christ, then they will also be led to fight in any underhanded way against any who dare speak a word against their beloved church-idol, even to the point of murder as did the Jews, and yet all the time blindly believing that they are doing God service!
     But friends, the Bible truth is that we are no longer under the Old Covenant system where God's presence dwelt in the literal temple building in the Most Holy Place directly above the 2 tables of stone upon which God wrote His 10 commandments, and which temple the people had to resort in order to worship God. But we are the people of the New Covenant system, where God's presence can dwell in our body temple, where God desires to write His law in our heart or mind!
     "For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts, and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people." Hebrews 8:10.

     "...for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people." 2 Corinthians 6:16.

     The Bible is very clear that God's true church is not made up of any denomination -- no matter how exalted their name, no matter how much Bible truth they may claim to believe or to have followed for decades, no matter how loudly they may proclaim to be God's chosen, because what constitutes God's true church is individual people. Praise God for this true understanding! Now individuals no longer have to remain in bondage to a corrupt priesthood or to an apostate church, but they can find true freedom in Jesus Christ!

     In Part 3 we will consider how Christ offers us all the things we thought we were getting from our denomination.



GOD'S TRUE CHURCH

 Part 3 of 3 --

     In Parts 1 and 2 it was shown that God's true church is made up of people and not any denomination and this is what sets you free in Jesus. While the belief that God's true church is a denomination leaves you in bondage to men. And, more importantly, that Christ has been robbed from you as your Saviour because the denomination has taken His place and has become the object of your worship and source of your salvation!
     When we believe that God's true church is made up of people, we would then individually find our rest, become part of Christ's body and true church, find our salvation and eternal life, by going directly to, and becoming connected directly with, Jesus. Thus our eyes are directed upward, and our attention becomes centered and focused upon Jesus. He becomes the object of our love, adoration and praise. Jesus becomes our All-in-All, His life becomes our best and all absorbing theme to contemplate on. Hence our desire to please Him becomes paramount, and His will and commands become our delight to follow and obey. And by continuing to behold Jesus day after day, our very lives and characters are more and more changed into His perfect image, and our desire to lead others to also join with Jesus and find salvation in Him enlarges more each day. But by leaving, separating, disconnecting and breaking ourselves away from Christ, then we no longer have any rest; we are no longer part of His body or true church; We no longer have any assurance of salvation or hope for eternal life; which means that We are lost.
     On the other hand the majority of religious people have been taught that God's true church is a denomination. With this incorrect understanding, they would then find their rest, become part of Christ's body and true church, find their salvation and eternal life, by going directly to, and becoming connected directly with the denomination. Thus their eyes would be directed downward and their attention becomes centered and focused upon the denomination. It becomes the object of their love, adoration and praise. The denomination becomes their all-in-all, it's history becomes their best and all absorbing theme to contemplate on, and their desire to please the denomination becomes paramount. The will and commands of the denominational leaders become their delight to follow and obey. And by continuing to behold the denomination, their very life and character would be more and more changed into the imperfect image it reveals, and their desire to lead others to join with them in the denomination would grow more each day. But by leaving, separating, disconnecting and breaking themselves away from the denomination, then they would believe that they would no longer have any rest; that they are no longer part of Christ's body or true church; they would believe they no longer have any assurance of salvation or hope for eternal life; which means that they would believe they were lost.
     I earnestly pray that you can clearly discern the stark difference between these two ideologies and the pathway which it leads you to follow. One leads to complete liberty and freedom in Christ, the other leads to complete bondage and captivity to men! The one is the gospel truth of the Bible which centers in Jesus, the other is the heinous falsehood of Catholicism which centers in Satan! I sincerely hope that you can dearly understand that if you believe that God's true church is a denomination, that you are in bondage to the men who control that church. And, more importantly, that Christ has been robbed from you as your Saviour because the denomination has taken His place, it has become the object of your worship and source of your salvation!
     Any denomination or religious group which puts forth the claim that they are the true church of God, and therefore your salvation is jeopardized if you willingly separate from them, or are cast out, disfellowshipped, or excommunicated from their fellowship. You can then know that they have cast Christ out of their Church and have taken His place among their people! How is this true?
     The Bible teaches that it is only "in" and "through" Jesus Christ that:
          - we find the truth (John 14:6);
          - we become part of the New Covenant (2 Corinthians 3:13-18);
          - we find redemption (Romans 3:24; Ephesians 1:7);
          - we are justified (Acts 13:39);
          - we become righteous (Jeremiah 23:6; 2 Corinthians 5:21);
          - we have peace with God (Romans 5:1; Philippians 4:7; Colossians 1:20);
          - we have access to the Father (Ephesians' 2:18);
          - God shows us His kindness (Ephesians 2:7);
          - we receive grace (2 Thessalonians 2:1; Ephesians 2:7);
          - we receive the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:6);
          - we become wise (1' Corinthians 4:10);
          - we become alive and live (Romans 6:11; Philippians 1:21; 1 John 4:9; John 14:6);
          - God works in us (Hebrews 13:21);
          - we are sanctified (1 Corinthians 1:1);
          - we are made perfect (Colossians 1:28);
          - we can do all things (Philippians 4:13);
          - we gain the victory (1 Corinthians 15:57);
          - we triumph over sin (2 Corinthians 2:14);
          - we can remain faithful (Ephesians 1:1);
          - we can be preserved in righteousness (Jude 1:1);
          - we become the children and heirs of God (Galatians 4:7);
          - we can joy and glory in God (Romans 5:11; 15:17);
          - we receive spiritual blessings (Ephesians 1:3);
          - we become rich (2 Corinthians 8:9);
          - we can sit in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6);
          - we can escape from the wrath of God (Romans 5:9);
          - we will be resurrected if we should die before Christ returns (John 11:25);
          - we find our salvation and will be saved (2 Thessalonians 2:10; John 10:9, 3:17);
          - we find eternal life (2 Thessalonians 1:1; Romans 6:23; 1 John 5:11-12).

     That is why OUR ONLY HOPE IS FOUNDED SOLELY IN AND THROUGH OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST (1 Thessalonians 1:3), because anything and everything which is good in us comes only through Him (Philemon 6)!
     The above should unquestionably and conclusively prove why the foundation of God's true church can only be based upon Jesus Christ, the eternal and solid Rock (see 1 Corinthians 10:4, 3:11; Psalms 62:2, 18:2, 92:15, 2 Samuel 22:32)!
     No denomination, religious group, clergy, priesthood, man or group of men, can offer you any of these above items in truth. The only Being who can indeed offer you all of these above items in truth, is Christ Jesus; not Peter, or Pope, or Buddha, or Krishna, or Mohammed, or Maitreya, or any other being, but only Jesus Christ! Therefore if any denomination or religious group tells you, or leads you to believe, that any of these above items are to be found by joining their religious system, or that your salvation is in some way tied to being or remaining a member in their system, then you can know without a doubt that they are deceived agents of the devil, their church system is a counterfeit posing as God's church, and thus it is a snare and a deceptive trap to try and bring you down to hell by robbing you of Jesus as your Saviour. Only in and through Christ can we gain all things, be assured salvation and become part of His true church, but outside of Christ, we have, and are, nothing.
     God's true church is not made up of any denomination, no matter how exalted their name, no matter how much Bible truth they may claim to believe or to have followed for decades or centuries, no matter how loudly they may proclaim to be God's chosen, because what constitutes God's true church is individual people. Praise God for this true understanding! Now individuals no longer have to remain in bondage to a corrupt priesthood or to an apostate church, but they can find true and lasting freedom in Jesus Christ!
     Yet this Biblical understanding of who and what constitutes God's true church leads us to ask the following vitally important questions: What must we do to individually become part of God's true church on earth, and how can we remain part of it? And where can we find this church so that we can fellowship with other brothers and sisters?

     For answers to these questions call 1-800-372-9765.