CHURCH, THE BODY OF CHRIST: THE

PRAISE OF HIS GLORY 

By: Bishop Albert Gran

Ephesians 1

King James Version (KJV)

1 Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints which are at Ephesus, and to the faithful in Christ Jesus:

² Grace be to you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:

⁴ According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:

⁵ Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,

⁶ To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.

⁷ In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

⁸ Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence;

⁹ Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

¹⁰ That in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him:

¹¹ In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

¹² That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ.

¹³ In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise,

¹⁴ Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Members of the church which is His body or the church the body of Christ has purely set by God in our times as the focal assembly wherein  fellowship of the mystery shall be made known unto all the world concerning the riches of God's grace, unto the glory of all those who believe on Him to life everlasting with that unfathomable grace of God which He made known to all lost sinners.  

Let everyone who knew Christ be refreshed once again such tremendous attempt of God to inform all human kind about the greatness of His love toward us, with the love you never experience in this world. Human love is demonstrated conditionally but the love of God was presented to all without condition of doing something, except to be responded BY FAITH and be accepted and claimed as yours and a means of His GIFT for you.    

A DISTINCT CHURCH

The wisdom of God was no less hidden throughout world history except for the truth in our current time by which it was described as HIDDEN, KEPT SECRET or the MYSTERY which is now revealed through Paul. From ages to ages,  God communed to people from the past to make known His wisest counsel and prudence so that people shall not be deficit of His knowledge and wisdom. He used diverse means how He could revealed His perfect plan to the seed of humanity. He preserved His words  through copies just to make it more beneficial to those who ideally make  use the light of His revelation. It takes an utmost love and passion to succumb the idea how important is the sole reliance of that given revelation whereby God shared His heavenly blessings, wise dealings, long-time decision, life everlasting, and our blessedness in this dispensation of grace. Through the church, the Body of Christ which was purchased by His own blood, by which you became part of it, God convey His wisdom, so that through your instrumentality many would see the glorious light of the gospel effectually working in you that believe. It's always amazing to delight the wondrous love of God which was shed abroad in our hearts as if you see the glorious image of God shining in you and within you.

The church, the Body of Christ made so much and greatest significance to prove the reason in spite of nothingness and deep poverty, leaving the highest state of God when He took the form of a servant, and out of deep sacrifices gave Himself for the church so you can be exalted today, with the position based on your standing before God as His heir and fellow-heir with Christ until the judgment seat when you receive the  things done in your body.

Our church was not inherited from the tradition of men whereby many thought it was directly given to Peter who holds the keys and had given the charge to loose and bound or in view of the man-made church after Peter's to be the vicar of Christ with the succession of leadership centering the Vatican city. Along with this notion is the man-made protestant denominational groups authored by some of its founders by which their ministers called for allegiance defending their founded church in spite of being far from the truth and not giving importance to that which was designed by God before the foundation of the world. Many ministers nowadays had not properly understood that the local church or the assembly can be a bridge to convey the truth of God's wisest counsel regarding God's plan of redemption to all lost sinners. It's not the building that conveys the message but the people who were worshipping God in that building. Many were hailing for the titles and names of their own church so as making it more popular, the strongest group or organization so to speak,  and  even more powerful than the other, however,  not made realize what forms of doctrines  these churches are founded upon especially in the doctrine of salvation for many established works instead of faith in the grace of God as our precious GIFT . Mostly, local churches tend to be legalistic and establishing set of rules and putting yoke to every member applying the if-then principles that calls for their management. This unspoken attempt is a popular actions done in both unbelieving and believing organizations though appearing to be preaching Christ which for me adhere the same principle in the name of  HUMAN TRADITION.

Let the wonderful story of God's plan for the church, the Body of Christ shall become part in your life today. Know through revelation what's this Body of Christ about for your GLORY and GLORIFICATION. I'm not against tradition but I adhere to good tradition which is the tradition of God, not the man-made tradition of founding churches which is for and emphasis about local buildings or place of worship, however a church in light with the glorious image of His Son brought by the gospel with the true church ordained by God before the foundation of the world by which in wise ways talks about the nurtured men and women who had been established by the grace of God and the doctrines of the mystery of God towards us Gentiles today. This is the church which was purchased by Christ's own precious blood. The church or churches many who would want to be part of had not brought the sole gospel of salvation and eternal life presentation on the basis of Christ's precious blood alone.  

 The Biblical church of God ordained to Peter frankly speaking  is about the kingdom which shall be on earth in view of the gospel presentation that the KINGDOM IS AT HAND. This is the kingdom of David promised to be for everlasting and Jesus Christ is the heir of David's throne by which He shall reign, reigning the people with rod and iron. Again the emphasis is "THY KINGDOM COME". The term come should not be understood to be in heaven for the spatial location had its source to COME which had its vicinity to mean down or below and therefore the emphasis is ON EARTH. Opposite to what we desire after the dissolution of our vile body to be present with the Lord which we all knew the place where Paul has been brought in his vision seeing things cannot be uttered by words. That's the ABODE OF GOD the place we called HEAVEN and not the conjectured and presumed heaven to mean symbolically a life classified with pleasures and merriment in this world.   

The church the body of Christ has nothing to do with Christ reigning with rod and iron knowing that every saint shall be considered rulers casting judgments based on the wise counsel of God in accordance to truth and righteousness judging angels in the heavenly realm. The heavenly seats have to be vacated by the church members in the heavenly glory. Yours has the church to be IN or OUT of this long promised church ever had in the mind of Christ which is something revealed in the "BUT NOW".          

Let me share to you this position that all of these plans of God set for today had been shared by God through revelation as something available in the church distinct from the past age or time's past and it's available in Paul's "MY GOSPEL". It's a good thing to know how that God created this special unique organization for you to be accounted  and function in accordance to the measure of your faith and love in Christ Jesus.   

WHAT CAN YOU SAY ABOUT  BELIEVERS BEFORE THE OFFERING OF REDEMPTION THROUGH THE BLOOD OF CHRIST DURING HIS EARTHLY MINISTRY AND EVEN UNDER THE LAW?

Although the plan of redemption was set for the kingdom church in the new covenant as type of the blood of animals  and sacrifices under the Old Covenant, the manifestation of Christ's first advent was purely a drive looking forward to the kingdom church having had its precepts in view of the new covenant with the same presentation of Christ's blood to find perfect rest and remission of sins to those who believe. However, the resumption of prophetic law was still in view of the kingdom church by which God Himself will cause His word to be written in their hearts.       

Certainly, there were two Biblical churches whose foundation was built by God and Christ Himself alone namely: the kingdom church promised to Peter and the church the Body of Christ which for many centuries past our very own apostle, the apostle Paul had called you to be part of it.

God's desires in us is to embrace and stand firmly to the true church which God Himself organized and not to what was presumed by many as though ordained by Christ and yet not in our current times. Let's be astute in the firm foundation of our faith developing the soundness of truth trumpeting to every one's heart telling them IF YOUR NOT FOR GOD then by far YOU'RE FOR MEN.

Our task as agent of rightly dividing the word of truth soundly harmonizes God's simple plan for the ages simply similar as when He divides heaven and earth. Because he had a plan in heaven, it's logically sensible to say there's a church or collected assembly for HEAVEN to be blissfully occupied by the members of the church, the saints in the Body of Christ. And the fact that He also had plans on earth, God set the nation Israel, containing 12 tribes  through which the Son of Man was promised to be the legal heir of David's throne, to be introduced by someone preaching in the wilderness in the person of John the Baptist along with repentance and baptism for the kingdom of heaven is at hand , who also represented by the 12 apostles with Peter as the leader of the kingdom church which is ON EARTH and thus, the ushering the New Jerusalem in the New Heaven and New Earth  as the old heaven and earth will be vanished.    

Review the words of God stated above and you'll definitely see the amazing glory of God's grace through the CHURCH, THE BODY OF CHRIST.

Simply consider the pure grace alternatives and perspectives affecting the CHURCH WHERE YOU THINK YOU ARE IN.

Grace and peace!