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Christ. Two things basically were
required of Christ to save the
world. First it was necessary for
him, who was the Maker of us all,
to die for all, thus paying the death
penalty in our stead. No one could
do this but Jesus Christ alone.
But many have not realized that
we are not saved by the blood of
Christ.
Y
ou will read in Romans
5:10 that we are reconciled to God
the Father by the death. of Christ,
but we shall be saved by bis life–
by the resurrection.
1
arn writing
this particular passage on what the
world calls ..Easter Sunday."
Today, the churches and the evan–
gelists have said much about the
resurrection of Christ, but virtually
nothing about the resurrection of
all who shall be saved, and of the
resurrection by which people may
be saved.
Jesus alone could make the sacri–
fice in payment of our past sins.
But the world must look for salva–
tion through his life after bis resur–
rection. The Church is the
affianced Bride of Christ to be
married to the Son of God on his
return, after the resurrection of
those in the Church. After we have
attained to the resurrection of the
dead, as the wife of the Son of God,
and members of the God family, we
shall be not only heirs and coheirs
with Christ, but in a sense, co–
saviors.
The farnily of God will grow. As
kings and priests, the Church in the
resurrection will be co-rulers under
Christ in restoring the government
of God over all nations. But we
shall also be, as priests, co-saviors
with him in saving the world.
Why Flratfrulta Necessary
Now why was it absolutely neces–
sary that the Church be called out
of the world to receive salvation
during this Church age, while the
rest o( the world was left in spiri–
tual darkness and deception?
Before Jesus could qualify to
become our Savior and future
King, it was necessary for him, as
the second Adam, to do what the
first Adarn failed to do-to over–
come Satan and to choose the mind
and government of God instead.
If
the Church is to rule with and
under him- if the Church is to be
priests as well as kings, aiding,
12
under Christ, in saving the world, it
was also necessary that those in the
Church must also qualify by resist–
ing and overcoming Satan.
That will not be required of the
overwhelming majority of others
when salvation comes to them. Sal–
vation will not come to them until
after Satan has been put away. So,
you see, it was far from discrim–
inating against the rest of the
world, when Jesus said, "No man
can come to me, except the Father
which hath sent me draw him"
(John 6:44). It was necessary that
the Church be called at a time
when each member had to turn
from, resist and overcome Satan.
Otherwise we of the Church could
not qualify for the wonderful posi–
tion of becoming kings and priests
in the kingdom of God during the
1,000 years.
This explains the
WHY
of the
Church-its great PURPOSE.
la the Church Organlzed?-lf So,
How?
But
WHAT
is the CHURCH- HOW
ORGANIZED-HOW does it func–
tion?
When 1 carne among the breth–
ren of the Church of God, there
were questions among the leaders
respecting the nature of Church
organization. At that time, 1927,
the Church was organized on the
pattern of a biannual general con–
ference. Each local congregation
could send one member to the bian–
nual general conference and thus
had one vote in election of officers,
questions of Church doctrine and
Church policy. A local congrega–
tion could consist of as few as five
members.
But division over Cburch organi–
zation and government began about
1930. By 1933 the Church was
divided right down the middle.
Two leaders organized a new
Church, departing from its head–
quarters at Stanberry, Missouri,
setting up its new headquarters at
Salem, We st Virginia. They
adopted a system of organization
that they erroneously called "Bible
organization."
This new organization consisted
of twelve men narned as
apost/es–
designated as "the twelve." Seven
men were appointed to the office of
deacon, the chairman of whom was
the treasurer handling the money.
Then there were "the seventy"-<>r
seventy leading elders. This was
copied from the ancient Sanhedrin
in Judaism. However, there were
not enough ordained ministers
within the Church to make up
more than half of "the seventy."
The Roman Catholic Church is
organized on the hierarchical sys–
tem with the pope in supreme
authority, a college of cardinals
next in authority, a curia at head–
quarters in the Vatican with arch–
bishops, bishops and priests.
The Presbyterian Church is
organized with the presbyters or
ministers in control. The Congre–
gational Church delegates top
authority to the congregation–
"government by the consent of the
governed."
And so it goes. The churches of
this world of Satan are organized
according to humanly devised pat–
terns. But the Bible gives explicit
directions in regard to Church gov–
ernment. Jesus Christ is the Head
of the Church. God's form of gov–
ernment is, indeed, hierarchical.
God the Father is head over
Christ- the sole Lawgiver and
supreme authority.
God explains in
1
Corinthians
12
functions, offices, administrations
and their officers as Goo set them
in his Church.
"Now concerning spiritual gifts,
brethren,
1
would not have you
ignorant. ... Now there are diversi–
ties of. gifts, but the sarne Spirit.
And there are differences of admin–
istrations, but the same Lord. And
there are diversities of operations,
but it is the same God which work–
eth all in all. ... But all these work–
eth that one and selfsarne Spirit,
dividing to every man severally as
he will. For as the body is one, and
hath many members, and all the
members of that one body, being
many, ARE ONE BODY:
SO
also is
Christ. For by one Spirit are we all
baptized into one body, whether we
[in the Church] be Jews or Gen–
tiles, wbether we be bond or
free ..."
(1
Cor. 12:1 , 4-6, 11-13).
One Church wlth One Government
Notice especially, there is only the
ONE CHURCH. Not MANY churches.
The CHURCH is not divided. There
is only one Church. Not a parent
Th•
PLAIN TAUTH