THE CHURCH—BUILDING OR PEOPLE

By Ben Berto

²⁵ Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, ²⁶ that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, ²⁷ so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.                                                Ephesians 5: 25-27 RSV.

Some people think that the church is a physical structure, a building, if you please. We see beautiful churches, such as cathedrals, basilicas, temples, and mosques etc. They are all made to worship God. And yet, the Bible speaks of churches as groups of people worshipping God in many places, like the Church at Corinth, Thessalonica, Antioch, and Rome, and many other places. In this article, I am calling the church the “household of believers in the saving grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The tenth Fundamental Belief of the Seventh-day Adventist Church states this: “In infinite love and mercy, God made Christ, who knew no sin, to be sin for us, so that in Him we might be made the righteousness of God. Led by the Holy Spirit, we sense our need, acknowledge our sinfulness, repent of our transgressions, and exercise faith in Jesus as our Lord and Christ, as Substitute and Example. This faith, which receives salvation, comes through the divine power of the Word and is the gift of God’s grace. Through Christ we are justified, adopted as God’s sons and daughters, and delivered from the lordship of sin. Through the Spirit we are born again and sanctified, the Spirit renews our minds, writes God’s law of love in our hearts, and we are given the power to live a holy life. Abiding in Him, we become partakers of the divine nature and have the assurance of salvation now and in the judgment.”

We believe that the experience of salvation involves repentance, confession, forgiveness, justification, and sanctification. Let us define them one by one briefly.

1. Repentance- means being sorry, to feel remorse for the bad things you did. “Genuine repentance results in a radical change in attitude toward God and sin. An example of this is King David’s sin of adultery and murder, as well as his subsequent repentance. Read Psalm 51.

2. Confession- Google defines confession as: “In the Bible, confession is primarily the acknowledgment of one’s sins to God, and sometimes to others, as a necessary step towards forgiveness and cleansing. It involves recognizing and admitting wrongdoings, expressing remorse, and seeking divine forgiveness.” The apostle John wrote,”⁹ If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1: 9 NKJV

3. Forgiveness – We are all familiar with forgiveness. Jesus said that if we do not forgive the trespasses of others toward us, our heavenly Father will not forgive us. We often recite the Lord’s prayer, which says, “And forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. Matthew 6:12 NKJV.

4. Justification- Biblically is the “divine act by which God declares a penitent sinner righteous.” When a judge, after examination of the evidence, deems the person Not Guilty. That is justification. God’s judgment is true. Sometimes, an earthly judge will err in his judgment by either declaring a person guilty or not guilty.

5. Sanctification – “In the Bible, sanctification refers to the process by which believers are set apart and transformed to become more holy and Christ-like. It’s a journey of spiritual growth where individuals are progressively cleansed from sin and conformed to God’s character. This transformation is both a divine work, as God empowers and enables believers, and a human responsibility, as individuals actively cooperate with the Holy Spirit’s work.” Google definition

When these events do not occur in a Christian’s life, can he truly be a Christian? The Bible says,⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2 8-10 NIV

So, saints, let the Lord Jesus be with us all. Amen.

To contact us: Our website is www.abundantlifeadventist.ca. Worship with us every Saturday Sabbath, the seventh day of the week. Genesis 2: 2, 3, Exodus 20: 8-10, Isaiah 58: 13, 14; Isaiah 66: 22, 23; Matthew 5: 17-19; Revelation 22: 14, John 14: 1-3, Rev. 6:6-12 We welcome sincere questions.