The One Church

Q: What does the Bible say about the oneness of the Church?

The Bible emphasizes that all true believers in Christ are one body, united in Him, as stated in John 17:20-22. In John 17:20-22, Jesus prays for all believers, asking that they may be one, just as He and the Father are one. This oneness is a spiritual unity that transcends time and space, encompassing all true believers who have faith in Him. Unlike the divisions seen in various religions and denominations, true believers share a common faith, hope, and calling that binds them together in Christ. The oneness of the Church is rooted in the shared identity of all believers as members of the body of Christ, where there is no discrimination among them, as exemplified in Ephesians 4:4-6, which declares there is one body and one Spirit.

Q: How do we know the Church is one?

The unity of the Church is established by scriptural teachings that affirm there is one body, one Spirit, and one Lord, as in Ephesians 4:4-6. The Scriptures affirm the oneness of the Church through various declarations about the nature of believers' unity. Ephesians 4:4-6 teaches that there is one body, one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God. This means that all true believers are united not just in the external identity of religion, but in core spiritual truths that define their faith. Each believer’s condition in Christ, their shared hope for eternal life, and their common calling all contribute to this unity. As articulated in Colossians 1:18, Christ is the head of the body, which is the Church, and this headship ensures that true unity exists in the one body of Christ, regardless of denominational differences.

Q: Why is the concept of being chosen in Christ important for Christians?

Being chosen in Christ emphasizes God’s sovereignty in salvation and the unity of believers as they are all predestined to be like Christ. The doctrine of being chosen in Christ is vital for understanding the nature of salvation within the framework of sovereign grace. Ephesians 1:4-5 states that believers were chosen before the foundation of the world. This acts as a powerful reminder of God’s sovereign will in selecting individuals for salvation, thus emphasizing His grace rather than human effort. As a result, all those who are chosen in Christ share a common identity and future. Their ultimate transformation to be like Christ signifies not only personal salvation but also the communal aspect of salvation, as believers are collectively referred to as one body in Him. This unity is a source of comfort and assurance for Christians, for it highlights that their position in Christ is secure and bound by divine promise.

The title of the message for
this hour is The One Church. The One Church. And I've chosen
as my text John 17 verse 20. John 17, that's the Lord's Prayer. Our Lord's great priestly prayer
from John 17. In verse 20 he said this, Neither
pray I for these alone. but I pray for them also which
shall believe on me through their word that they all may be one
neither pray I for these alone these disciples who believe on
me but I pray for all of those down through the years who shall
believe on me through their word that they all may be one that's
my prayer that they all may be one as thou father art in me
and I in thee that they all may be one in us that they may be
one as we are one now that's oneness one as God the father
and God the son are one that all these who believe all believers
All who have faith in Christ may be one, one, as God the Father
and God the Son are one. Now people have tried in vain
for centuries to bring all religions and all churches and all denominations
and all professing Christians together. There have been all
sorts of ecumenical movements and organizations trying to bring
these denominations and churches together under one umbrella. This is what they say. They say,
we all believe in God. We all believe in life after
death. We all are aspiring to go to the same place. Let us
unite. Let us unite under one head,
under one organization, and win the world to religion. It'll
never be done. It will never, never be done
because religious people are not one. Religion doesn't make people
one. Christ makes people one. He said,
I don't pray for these alone. I pray for them which shall believe
in me through their word that they all may be one. Religious
people are not one. They're divided over the essentials
of faith. Just because they use one Bible
doesn't mean that they're one. Just because they use the same
Bible does not mean that they agree on what the Bible says.
Actually, religious people all over the world disagree on the
inspiration of the scriptures. They disagree on the essentials
of faith. They disagree on the character
of God. They don't all agree on who God is. What power God
has. They don't agree on the fall
of man and sin. They don't all agree on what
happened in the garden. They don't all agree on who Jesus
Christ is. Some believe he's the son of
God. Some believe he's the son of Mary. Some believe he's the
son of Joseph. They don't agree on his life.
They don't agree on his death. They don't agree on his resurrection.
They don't agree on the Holy Spirit and his work. They don't
agree on how God saves sinners. They don't agree on the resurrection.
You see, religion today will never be one. They'll never be
together because they're not agreed on the essentials of faith.
And they're not one, they never have been one, they're not one
now, and they never will be one. But listen, as our Lord prayed,
all true believers are one. It doesn't matter where they
live, who they are, they may never have met one another, but
they're one. Abraham is one with the Apostle
Peter. Moses is one with the Apostle
Paul. Isaiah is one with James and
John. They're one. It doesn't matter
what dispensation they lived. It doesn't matter how much information
they had. But true believers are not divided.
They're one in Christ. They're one in Christ. They've
always been one. They're one now. They always
will be one. That's what our Lord prayed,
that my people may be one. Thou father art in me and I in
thee that they all may be made perfect in one Listen to this
in John 10 Our Lord said other sheep I have which are not of
this foe. He looked at the disciple. He
said other sheep I have which are not of this foe them also
I must bring I will bring I shall bring and They shall be they
shall hear my voice and they shall be one foe one foe and
one shepherd, one fold and one shepherd. You see what I'm saying? Believers are not one because
they believe in one God. That doesn't make them one. The
devil believes in one God. That's what scripture says. You
believe there's one God, you do well. The devil believes there's
one God. So believers are not one only because they believe
in one God. Believers are not one only because they read one
book. Satan quoted the Bible on the Mount of Temptation when
he was tempted in Christ. He said, it's written. It's written. It's written. Believers are not
one only because they want to go to the same place. Believers
are one because they're in one body. They're in one body. They're in the Lord Jesus Christ.
He said, I am the head, you're the body. There's one body. Christ
doesn't have a dozen. He's no monster. He doesn't have
one head and a dozen bodies. There's one head, that's Christ,
he's the head of the church, and there's one body. And all
believers are one because they're in one body, they're in Christ.
That's what he said, I pray for these people, I pray for my people
who shall believe on me through their word that they may be one,
as we're one, as the Father and the Son are one. That they may
be made perfect in one, one body. You see, believers are one because
they're chosen in Christ. They were all chosen at the same
time before the foundation of the world in Christ. They're
all blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ. They're all predestinated to
be like Christ. Yes, they're going to all be
alike. They're going to be like Christ. They're called in Christ,
accepted in Christ, redeemed in Christ, forgiven in Christ,
seated in Christ. And in the fullness of time,
listen to this, in the fullness of time, God is going to gather
together in one. All things in Christ, which are
in heaven, which are on the earth. Is Christ divided? Then the church
is not divided. Is the Godhead divided? Then
the church is not divided. Can Christ be separated? Can
he be divided? Not at all. Neither is the body
of Christ divided. There's just one Christ and there's
one body. Listen to Ephesians. I want you to take your Bibles.
And turn with me to Ephesians 4, verse 4 through 6. Now, if
you're going to establish a oneness, this is where you have to do
it. It's in Christ. That's how we're one. Now, Ephesians
4, verse 4. Listen, Paul says, there's one
body and one spirit, even as you're called in one hope of
your calling, there's one Lord, one faith, One baptism, one God
and Father of all, and then in 1 Timothy, there's one mediator
between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. Now that's true
oneness. That's oneness. And that's the
oneness of believers. That's how they're one. One body,
one spirit, one Lord, one hope, one faith, one baptism, one God,
and one mediator, and those who embrace this truth are one. They
cannot be otherwise because there's just one. Do you see that? There's just one. But all this
conglomeration and denial of the essentials of the faith,
you'll never bring that stuff together because it's not one,
it's not in Christ. There are half a dozen different
ways of being saved. There are half a dozen different
ways of coming to God, but not according to the Scripture. All
right, let's look at it. First of all, he said there's
one body. One body. What is this body? Well, it's the church. There's
one true church. I know there are a lot of local
churches. I'm pastor of a local church. I've been pastor of the
same local church for 30, almost 39 years. And there are other
local churches out there. But let me tell you something.
There's one true church. There's one glorious church.
There's one body. And one family, it's the church
of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's what it says in Colossians
1.18. Listen, Christ is the head of the body, the church, singular. Not churches, not bodies. Christ
is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning. He's the firstborn from the dead.
Then in all things, he might have the preeminence. The head
has the preeminence. The head governs the body. The
head controls the body. And then in Ephesians 5, 23,
it says, for as the husband is the head of the wife, even Christ
is the head of the church, the church. And then he said, husbands,
love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself not
for them, but for it, that he might present it, that one church,
to himself a glorious church without spot or wrinkle. It's
the church of the firstborn whose names are written in heaven.
In other words, in this church, there are no terrors. In this
church, there are no hypocrites. In this church, there are no
false professors. In this church, there are no
lost people. In this church, the body, the bride of our Lord
Jesus Christ, there's neither Jew nor Greek, there's neither
male nor female, there's neither rich nor poor, there's neither
black nor white, there's neither old nor young. It's one church
in Christ, one body. And they're one. They're one. They may not, most of them have
never met one another, never seen one. To some I'm in glory.
Some I'm on this earth, some I'm overseas, some I'm here in
this country, that country, the other country. But they all believe
the same thing. They believe the same gospel.
They've heard from the same Lord. There's one body. All right? There's one spirit. Only one
spirit. This is the Holy Spirit of God.
And every Every believer has the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit. If any man have not the Spirit
of Christ, he's none of his. You see, by one Spirit, listen
to this, by one Spirit, we have been baptized into the body of
Christ. That's how you got into the body
of Christ. By the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. By the
miraculous regenerating work of God's Spirit. No man can call
Jesus Lord but by the Holy Spirit. People who are out looking for
the Holy Spirit have never met God. They do not know Christ.
You see, the Holy Spirit regenerates us. We're born of the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. Christ said, and when He,
the Spirit of truth, has come, He'll convince the world of sin.
The Holy Spirit reveals Christ. Our Lord said, when the Spirit
of truth has come, He'll take the things of mine and show them
to you. He won't speak of Himself. He'll glorify me. The Holy Spirit
teaches us. The Holy Spirit seals us. In
whom you trusted after you heard the word of truth, the gospel
of your salvation, after you believed, you were sealed with
the Holy Spirit, who is the earnest, the token of our profession. He's not the spirit of confusion.
He's not the spirit of division. He's the spirit of truth. And
the Holy Spirit glorifies Christ. There's one body, one church,
And there's one spirit. And then it says, listen to this,
there's one hope of your calling. One hope of your calling. You
see, salvation is a calling. I know it's a new birth, it's
regeneration, I know it's a conversion, but it's a calling. The scripture
says it's a holy calling. The scripture says we are the
call of Christ Jesus. God is calling out a people for
his name. He called you by our gospel.
You see your calling, brethren. Whom he called, he justified. You see that? So salvation is
a calling. Everybody who's saved is called.
God calls them to himself. And here it says there's one
hope of your calling. There's one objective. There's
one aim. There's one goal. There's one
hope of your calling. One hope. Everybody's agreed
on this in this one church. in which we've been baptized
by one spirit. They have one hope. Do you know
what that hope is? I'll read it to you. Beloved,
right now are we the sons of God. And it does not yet appear
what we shall be. But we know that when he shall
appear, we shall be like him. For we shall see him as he is,
and every man that hath this hope in Him. What hope? What I just read. We're going to be like Him. When
He shall appear, we shall be like Him. And every man that
hath this hope, what hope? To be like Christ. Our end and
goal is not just to go to a city or go to a heaven or go to a
place. Our one aim and goal is to be
like a person Christ said to the thief, today you'll be with
me. Paul said, I have a desire to depart and be with Christ. To be absent from the bodies,
to be present with the Lord. That's the hope. You're united
on that. And you're not going to bring
all this speckled birds and people together who don't believe anything,
but believers have one hope. And that's to be like Christ.
You see, this is a threefold desire of a believer. Total commitment
to Christ. Total communion with Christ.
And total conformity to Christ. That's his hope. Christ in you,
that's the hope of glory. There are no degrees in glory.
Don't bring that around here. All this, you're going to live
in a mansion, I'm going to live in a cabin, you're going to have
six crowns, and I'm going to have none, and you're going to
live on a big street, and I'm going to live on a back street.
That's foolishness. foolishness. We're all going
to be like Him. And there are no degrees in glory.
All are like Christ. They're all loved with the same
love, redeemed with the same blood, and they're all going
to be like Christ. One Pope. One body, the Church. One Spirit, the Holy Spirit.
One hope, to be like Him. And there's one Lord. One Lord. There's one Lord, one King. Now
believers are brothers. And they love each other. And
they respect each other. And they help one another. And
they learn from one another. And they support one another.
But there's just one king. There's just one Lord. There's
just one master. Don't you call any man your father.
There's one father. Don't you call any man your master.
There's one master. There's one Lord. And that's
the Lord Jesus Christ. And we don't ascribe and seek
the higher seats and lord it over each other and put men under our dominion. No,
sir. Believers are brothers. We don't
take high seats and high titles and high handedness. There's
one Lord. One Lord. He's the Lord by eternal
decree. God made him Lord. You don't
make him Lord. God made him Lord. God beat you to it. He's Lord
by creation. All things were made by Him and
the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the world and
all that dwell therein, they're His by creation. He's a Lord
by death. He died that He may be Lord of
the dead and the living. And He's Lord by faith. We believe
in our hearts and confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord. He's the only Lord. One Lord. You see the oneness? Now if you
want to start an ecumenical movement and get all these folks together,
let's start right here. There's one body. There's one
spirit. There's one hope. And there's
one Lord. Nobody's going to play superintendent.
Nobody's going to play president. There's one Lord. And then there's
one faith. Only one faith. Believers are
one because they have one faith in one Lord. It may be a small
faith. It may be a great faith. But the strength is not in the
faith, it's in the Lord. It's the object of the faith.
It may be weak faith, or strong faith, early faith, or late faith,
but there's just one faith. One faith. You know, this is
something I've never been able to understand. I've heard people
say, well, I'm a Christian, but I'm not of the same faith as
you. How do you get that? I'm not of the same faith as
you. There's just one faith. There's
one body, one church. There's one spirit, one hope,
one Lord, and one faith. That's right, just one faith.
It has the same author. He's the author and finisher
of our faith. There can't be two. He's the author and finisher
of our faith. It has the same object. Christ
is the object of saving faith. If there are two kinds of faith,
do they have two objects? There's only one object, and
that's Christ. He's the object of faith. He that believeth on
the Son of God hath life. He that believeth not on the
Son of God, that's another faith. What does he believe? I don't
know, but he doesn't believe on the Son of God. Then he has
another faith, and there's just one. And faith arises out of
the same need with sinners. He came to save sinners. And
faith has the same foundation, the Word of God. And faith has
the same rest, come unto me and I'll give you rest. We have ceased
from our labors and entered into his rest. There's only one faith. There are a thousand denominations,
but I tell you there's one faith. There are a thousand different
recipes for ruin, but there's just one faith. There are a thousand
messiahs, but there's just one Lord and one faith. That's just,
that's what the Word says. And then in the sixth place,
there's one baptism. Only one. Now many people believe
this is the baptism of the Holy Spirit. It may be. It may be. We're all baptized by God's Spirit
into one body. The baptism of the Holy Ghost
is not something you get after you're saved. It's not something
you get after you've met Christ. The baptism of the Holy Spirit's
when you meet Christ. It's the Holy Spirit that baptizes
you into the body of Christ. There's only one baptism of the
Holy Spirit, and that's when a man's saved. He's filled with
the Holy Spirit, he's baptized by the Holy Spirit, the Holy
Spirit indwells him, and if any man have not the Spirit of God,
he's none of his. As many as are led by the Spirit
of God are sons of God. A man's not led by the Spirit
of God, he's not God's son. But there's one baptism, and
that's water baptism. That's the only baptism mentioned
in the New Testament. Go ye into all the world and
preach the gospel to every creature, baptizing them in the name of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Go ye into all the
world, preach the gospel. He that believeth and is baptized
shall be saved. Baptism's only for believers.
He that believeth and is baptized. When the Ethiopian eunuch wanted
to be baptized, what did Philip ask him? He asked him if he believed. And he said, I do. I believe
that Jesus is the Christ. He said, all right, I'll baptize
you. You don't baptize somebody before they believe. Not an infant
or a child. You baptize a person who does
believe. He that believeth and is baptized. Go make disciples
and baptize them. And baptism is a confession of
Christ. It's a confession of His death,
burial, and resurrection. It's a confession of my death,
my burial, and resurrection to walk in newness of life. Baptism
is identification with Christ. Baptism is a declaration of my
commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. There's one baptism And
that's the baptism in water, confessing Christ. And then in
the seventh place, it says there's one God, one father of all believers. He's the father of all believers,
and he's only the father of believers. And he's above all, he's sovereign
in all things. They asked David, they said,
where's your God? And David said, our God's in the heavens. Where's
your God? Our God's in the heavens. He
hath done whatsoever He pleased. Whatsoever the Lord pleased,
that did He in heaven, earth, and the seas, and all deep places.
He's one God and one Father, and He's above all. That means
He's sovereign over all, and He's through all. By His providence,
He works through all things. He directs all things. You see
the one God, one Father, above all, that's sovereign. Through
all, That is, he works through all things, all things work together
for good to them who love God, who are called according to his
purpose. God works through everything. He works through nature, he works
through scriptures, he works through providence, he works
through judgment, he works through sunshine or moonlight, he works
through daylight, he works through darkness, he works through trial,
he works through sorrow, he works, he's through, he's above all
and he's through all and he's in all. That's what he says,
and he's in you all. That is, he dwells in you. He
dwells in you. One body, there's one spirit,
there's one hope, there's one Lord, there's one faith, there's
one baptism, and there's one God. Now, I've saved this for
last. In 1 Timothy chapter 2, verse 5, the Apostle Paul says
there's one God. And there's one mediator. One
mediator between God and man. It didn't say God and man. It
says God and man. And that's the man, Christ Jesus.
My friends, God is holy. Immaculately, infinitely, eternally
holy. He will not change. Man, you
and I, men, we're sinners. We're fallen sinners. Our sins
have separated us from that holy God. Well, that God in mercy
and love and grace determined to show mercy and grace to fallen
sinners. He determined to redeem a people
for His namesake. And He sent His Son, the Lord
Jesus Christ, into this world. Into this world, He became a
man. He was made under the law, made of a woman, born of a woman.
In this world, He became a man. And He met the holy law of God
as our representative, and He obeyed that law. He went to the
cross and bore our sins in his body and paid that debt. He was
buried as our scapegoat, arose as our justifier, ascended, exalted
to the right hand of God, and sat down, and there, he's our
mediator. He's the intercessor between
us and that holy God. He's the mediator. He's the only
one through whom we can come. He's the only one through whom
we can pray. He's the only one through whom we can approach
God. God won't speak to us except through that Mediator. He's spoken
to us by His Son, and we can't speak to God except through that
Mediator. Now, Mary's not a Mediator. Jude
is not a Mediator. Saint Christopher's not a Mediator.
Your preacher's not a Mediator. Nobody's a Mediator but Jesus
Christ. There's one Mediator, Jesus Christ,
the man. If you come to God, it'll be
through Him. Now then, everybody who believes those things are
one. You don't have to make them one. God made them one. They're
one even as God the Father and God the Son.

The One Church

What does the Bible say about the oneness of the Church?

How do we know the Church is one?

Why is the concept of being chosen in Christ important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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The One Church

What does the Bible say about the oneness of the Church?

How do we know the Church is one?

Why is the concept of being chosen in Christ important for Christians?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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