EKKLESIA

When I wrote a book entitled, Community of Believers,  I made a mistake of using the word “church when talking about the ekklesia and “church institution” when talking about the organization.   My rationale for that decision is based on a precendent set for the use of the word, “baptism.”  It is a transliteration of the Greek word, baptidzo that was a ruling of King James to the translators of his version of the Bible.   Even though we recognize that the word means “immersion” or a “burial,”  we still used the word “baptism.”   Likewise, I attempted to use the word “church,” even though the word conjures up different meanings.   The use of the word church is a conceptual difference that provides a barrier to my communication.  Therefore, I have chosen to reserve the use of the word “church” for the institution, while reserving the Greek word ekklesia to describe the called out.    The former is a poor substitute both in thought and word for the called out.  When we refer to the “ekklesia,” it is not a reference to the “local church organization” or to a denominational sect.   The called out refers to a classification of people who are saints by calling.   God collects them into one body and because they are his, they are sealed, according to promise, by the Holy Spirit (2 Tim. 2:19, 2 Cor. 1:22, Eph. 1:14, 4:30).    When Jesus promised to build His ekklesia (Matthew 16:18), he fulfilled it by the purchase price of His own blood (Acts 20:28).   This called out body is God’s new creation and includes the arduous task of making one new man from both Jew and Gentile.   The “manifold wisdom of God” (cf. Eph. 3:10) is seen by this finished product – the ekklesia.   There is nothing in this plan that includes these saints forming themselves into a local church organization.  It does not reveal the wisdom of God, but reveals the foolishness of men.