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Scripture Reading:    Ephesians 1:22, 23

Many Christians believe that every time the word "church" appears in Scripture, it refers to the same thing.  This is unfortunate, for this thinking has led to much error and confusion.  The fact is, at least three can be distinguished in Scripture.

The first church we find in the Bible is "the church in the wilderness"  (Act 7: 38).  This was the Old Testament congregation of Israel.  Some would object to calling Israel a church, but this is exactly what the Holy Spirit calls her.  In fact, the Hebrew word for "congregation", found numerous times in the Old Testament, is equivalent to the Greek word for "church" (see Psalm 22:22 & Hebrews 2:12).  Yet, the Old Testament Israelite church is not the church of today.

The next church we read of in Scripture is yet future.  Christ spoke of it in Matthew 16:18 where Christ told Peter, "I will build my church; and the gates of hell (Gk. 'hades') shall not prevail against it." This church is still future, for it is begun with a resurrected people. The "gates of hades" is not a reference to Satan's forces, as many teach, but a reference to the entrance (and exit) of the place of the dead (cf. Isaiah 38:10 where "gates of the grave" is literally "the gates of sheol" - sheol being the Hebrew equivalent to the Greek hades).

The third church is the church of today. Paul calls it "the Church which is His body" (Ephesians 1:22, 23). All true believers today are members of the Body of Christ, the one true Church in this dispensation of grace. Are you a member of this Church?