Saucy: where the church can be seen

Monday, May 25, 2020
    Feast of the Venerable Bede, Priest, Monk of Jarrow, Historian, 735
    Commemoration of Aldhelm, Abbot of Mamsbury, Bishop of Sherborne, 709
Meditation:
For the LORD loves the just
    and will not forsake his faithful ones.
They will be protected forever,
    but the offspring of the wicked will be cut off;
the righteous will inherit the land
    and dwell in it forever.
    —Psalm 37:28-29 (NIV)
Quotation:
    It is true that the New Testament uses the term ekklesia for the spiritual reality of the body of Christ and also for the assembly, in which the genuineness of the spiritual reality of every individual professing member cannot be known. To this extent, the exact membership of any individual church and the universal church at large cannot be known and is thereby invisible. But even this invisible membership is very visible in the reality of life. As for membership in an invisible church without fellowship with any local assembly, this concept is never contemplated in the New Testament. The universal church was the universal fellowship of believers who met visibly in local assemblies.
    ... Robert L. Saucy (1930-2015), The Church in God’s Program, Chicago: Moody Press, 1972, p. 17 (see the book)
    See also Ps. 37:28-29; John 10:27-30; Rom. 11:2-5; 1 Cor. 8:3; 2 Tim. 2:19
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, Your invisible church is visible to the world. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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