What is "the Church"?

[BritGuy]

I recently came across a page (Why I Don't Go To Church Anymore!), and it got me thinking it might be a good topic to start up. What do people here generally believe the Church to be, and what is your general reaction to this article?

I believe the church is people who have been baptised in the Holy Spirit:
For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, ...and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
(1 Cor. 12:13)

as detailed in scripture:
"you shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence ... they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. " (Acts 1:8, 2:4, see also 10:44-6, 11:14-18).

I havn't read the article but any organisation that builds a "house of God" building like the one pictured clearly isn't believing the above verses, it was Babylonian religion that had buildings with towers.

What most people call "church" isn't what God calls his church so what they have rejected is dead religion, to which I say good!

[BritGuy]

I recently came across a page (Why I Don't Go To Church Anymore!), and it got me thinking it might be a good topic to start up. What do people here generally believe the Church to be, and what is your general reaction to this article?

Kurieuo.

What most people call "church" isn't what God calls his church.
Jesus knows what he wants, he only set up 1 church, see Acts 2, 10 for details.
Membership was by entering into a Father-son/daughter relationship with God by receiving His Spirit, resulting with the new prayer language (1 Cor. 12:13).

Without this you have is disappointment and confusion.

[PeteSinCA]

I recently came across a page (Why I Don't Go To Church Anymore!), and it got me thinking it might be a good topic to start up. What do people here generally believe the Church to be, and what is your general reaction to this article?

Kurieuo.

What most people call "church" isn't what God calls his church.
Jesus knows what he wants, he only set up 1 church, see Acts 2, 10 for details.
Membership was by entering into a Father-son/daughter relationship with God by receiving His Spirit, resulting with the new prayer language (1 Cor. 12:13).

Without this you have is disappointment and confusion.

If by your second to the last sentence you mean that all true Christians speak in tongues, you run into problems with a number of Scriptures. In Acts chapter 8, in Samaria, quite a few became believers and were baptized in water, but received the gift of the Holy Spirit days or weeks later. In Acts chapter 19, the believers at Ephesus are identified as "believers" and called "brothers" by Paul before they received the gift of the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues and/or prophesied.

I suggest re-reading 1 Corinthians 12:13 a little more closely and comparing it to Mark 1:8 (all four Gospels have accounts of this statement by John, Mark 1:8 just happened to come to mind). Ask three questions for the comparison:

* Who is baptized (immersed)?

* In (with) what are they baptized (immersed)?

* Who does the baptizing (immersing)?

[UsagiTsukino]

The Church is Greek just means to assembly meaning anywhere people worship is the church. Anywhere is the church. For Christians did not have building they used their homes or other places to worship.