Šta je to crkva?/What is the church?

Mnogi ljudi danas smatraju da je crkva građevina. Ovo nije biblijsko razumevanje crkve. Reč crkva dolazi od grčke reči "Ecclesia" koja se definiše kao "zajednica,” ili “oni koji su pozvani.” Koren reči “crkva” ne označava građevinu već ljude. Ironija je u tome da ako danas pitaš ljude u koju crkvu idu, oni će ti reći Baptističku, Metodističku ili neku drugu denominaciju. U mnogo slučajeva pod tim oni podrazumevaju zgradu ili denominaciju. Pročitaj Rimljanima 16:5: "…isto pozdravite crkvu koja je u njihovom domu..." Pavle misli na crkvu koja je u njihovoj kući, ne na crkvu kao građevinu, več na telo verujućih. Crkva je telo Hristovo. Efescima 1:22-23 kaže, "I sve je pokorio pod Njegove noge, a Njega je dao Crkvi za glavu više svega; ona je Njegovo telo, punoća onog koji sve ispunjava u svemu." Telo Hristovo je sastavljeno od svih verujućih od dana Pentekosta do dana Uznesenja. Telo Hristovo obuhvata dva aspekta: (1) univerzalna crkva je crkva koju čine svi koji imaju ličan odnos sa Isusom Hristom. Prva Korinćanima 12:13,14 kaže, "Jer smo svi mi jednim Duhom kršteni za jedno telo, bili Judeji ili Grci, bili robovi ili slobodni. I svi smo jednim Duhom napojeni. Pa ni telo nije jedan ud, nego mnogi." Vidimo da svi oni koji veruju su deo tela Hristovog. Istinska crkva Božija nije neka posebna zgrada ili denominacija. Univerzalna crkva Božija su svi oni koji su primili spasenje kroz veru u Isusa Hrista. (2) lokalna crkva je opisana u Galatima 1:1-2, "Pavle, apostol…i sva braća koja su sa mnom, crkvama u Galatiji." Ovde vidmo da je u provinciji Galatiji bilo mnogo crkvi – ono što mi zovemo lokalna crkva. Baptistička crkva, Luteranska crkva, Katolička crkva, itd. nije Crkva, kao univerzalna crkva – već lokalna crkva. Univerzalna crkva se sastoji od onih koji su poverovali u Hrista za spasenje. Članovi univerzalne crkve treba da traže zajdeništvo i pouku u lokalnoj crkvi. Da, zaključimo, crkva nije građevina ili denominacija. Prema Bibliji, crkava je telo Hristovo – svi oni koji su poverovali u Isusa Hrista za spasenje (Jovan 3:16; Prva Korinćanima 12:13). Postoje članovi univerzalne crkve (tela Hristovog) u lokalnim crkvama.

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Many people today understand the church as a building. This is not a biblical understanding of the church. The word “church” is a translation of the Greek word ekklesia, which is defined as “an assembly” or “called-out ones.” The root meaning of church is not that of a building, but of people. It is ironic that when you ask people what church they attend, they usually identify a building. Romans 16:5 says, “Greet the church that is in their house.” Paul refers to the church in their house—not a church building, but a body of believers.

The church is the body of Christ, of which He is the head. Ephesians 1:22–23 says, “And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.” The body of Christ is made up of all believers in Jesus Christ from the day of Pentecost (Acts 2) until Christ’s return. Biblically, we may regard the church in two ways, as the universal church or as the local church. The universal church consists of everyone, everywhere, who has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Corinthians 12:13). This verse says that anyone who believes is part of the body of Christ and has received the Spirit of Christ as evidence. All those who have received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ comprise the universal church. The local church is described in Galatians 1:1–2: “Paul, an apostle . . . and all the brothers with me, to the churches in Galatia.” Here we see that in the province of Galatia there were many churches—they had a localized ministry and were scattered throughout the province. They were local churches. A Baptist church, a Lutheran church, an E-Free church, etc., is not the church, as in the universal church; rather, it is a local church, a local body of believers. The universal church is comprised of everyone who belongs to Christ. Members of the universal church should seek fellowship and edification in a local church. In summary, the church is not a building or a denomination. According to the Bible, the church is the body of Christ—all those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation (John 3:16; 1 Corinthians 12:13). Local churches are gatherings of people who claim the name of Christ. Members of a local church may or may not be members of the universal church, depending on the genuineness of their faith. The local church is where believers can fully apply the “body” principles of 1 Corinthians chapter 12—encouraging, teaching, and building one another up in the knowledge and grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.