The word “church” (ekklesia) means “an assembly,” or “a gathering,” and is the word used to speak of all the people God gathers out of the world to belong to Jesus Christ. Theologian Wayne Grudem defines the church as, “The community of all true believers for all time.” In this way, the church is primarily a people and not a place. When the Bible speaks about the church, it is not referring to a building or physical structure, but to people who have come to trust in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and who have become his disciples. Not everyone who attends a physical gathering called “church” is part of the Church, but only those who have responded with personal faith in Jesus Christ and have publicly aligned themselves with him and his people through baptism.  

The Bible gives several images of the Church. The Church is called the household of God Ephesians 2:19 with God as our father and each believer existing as spiritual siblings. The Church is called the Bride of Christ (Ephesians 5:28-32), the object of his love and covenant faithfulness. The Church is called a new temple (1 Peter 2:5), the very people among whom God chooses to dwell by his Spirit and make his presence known. The Church is called the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:12-27) of which each believer is a part of the body, gifted in different ways to do different things in the Church. In all of these metaphors, Christ is the Lord. He is over the family of God, the husband who loves and leads his bride, the foundation of the new temple, and the head of the body. The Church is God’s flock and Jesus is the Chief Shepherd. The Church and her leaders are to submit to Christ’s rule, mediated by his Word that is applied by his Spirit.