IS THE "CHURCH OF CHRIST"
MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE
NOT A RELIGION?
MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE
NOT A RELIGION?
YOU ARE ASKING if it is true
that the “Church” mentioned in the Bible is not a religion? Let the Bible
itself answers your question. This is what the Bible says in I Timothy 3:15-16:
“But
if I delay, this letter will let you know how we should conduct ourselves in
God's household, WHICH IS THE CHURCH of the living God, the pillar and support
of the truth. No one can deny how great is the secret of OUR RELIGION…” (I
Timothy 3:15-16, TEV, emphasis mine)
Apostle Paul explicitly called
the “Church” he belongs to as “our religion.” Thus, the belief that “the Church
is not a religion” contradicts the teachings of the apostles written in the
Bible. Also, those who say that “the Church is not a religion” do not
understand the true meaning of the word “religion.” Etymologically, the word
“religion” came probably from the Latin “religio” or the French “religare.”
Thus, the Webster’s Dictionary gave us this meaning of the word “religion”:
“Religion
— prob. Fr. religare, to tie back, the
personal commitment to and serving of God or a god with worshipful devotion,
conduct in accord with divine commands especially as found in accepted sacred
writings or declared by authoritative teachers, a way of life recognized as
incumbent on true believers, and typically the relating of oneself to an
organized body of believers.” (Webster’s Third International Dictionary, p.
1918)
Etymologically, the word “religion”
means “serving of God, conduct in accord with divine commands especially as
found in accepted sacred writings.” Thus, in saying that “the Church is not a
religion” is like saying that the Church is not about serving God. Actually,
according to the Bible, one of the main purposes of the Church is to prepare
God’s people to serve:
“Their
purpose is to prepare God's people, to serve, and to build up the body of
Christ.” (Ephes. 4:12 God’s Word)
Based on the concept that the
word “religion” came from the French “religare,” thus, another meaning of the
word “religion” is “binding back” or “to tie back.” Hence, the word “religion”
also means “to bring back to God.” So, if a person will say that “the Church is
not a religion” and the word “religion” also means “to bring back to God,”
hence, it is like saying that the Church is “not about bringing people back to
God.” However, the Bible clearly states that true Christians are “brought back
to God in one body”:
“He
also brought them back to God in one body by his cross, on which he killed the
hostility.” (Eph. 2:16-17, God’s Word)
The “one body” the Bible referred
to is the “Church of Christ”:
“For
just as the human body is one and yet has many parts, and all its parts, many
as they are, constitute but one body, so it is with the Church of Christ.” (I
Cor. 12:12, Weymouth)
Because “religion” is about
serving God and how people will be brought back to God, thus, TRUE RELIGION is serving
the true God and the true worship and service of God, and also how men will
truly be brought back to God.
Therefore, it is a grave error to say
that the “Church of Christ” mentioned by the New testament is not a religion.
The TRUE CHURCH OF CHRIST is indeed the TRUE RELIGION, the TRUE CHRISTIAN
RELIGION. Thus, we are now certain that those groups teaching that
“the Church of Christ is not a religion” is indeed not the true Church of
Christ and not the true religion.
Copyright Statement:
Copyright
© 2013-2014 by THE IGLESIA NI CRISTO
ALL
RIGHTS RESERVED
No part of this publication
may be produced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, or otherwise,
without the prior written permission from the publisher.
This is the first time I learned about church vs religion. Thank you Kapatid. Please allow me to share your articles on my fb account. :)
ReplyDelete