Colossians 1:18 "And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence."
Ephesians 1:22-23 "And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23 Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all."
I have been very blessed in studying what the Bible and the SOP have to say about God's church. I came away from my studies inspired to be a person whom God can use to fulfill His purposes for the church. I hope you will be inspired in the same way. More than that, I hope you will allow God to do the necessary refining and shaping that will enable you to become one of the "living stones" that fulfills the unique purpose that God has in mind for you within the church, all the while perfectly fitting with the other "living stones."
Colossians 1:18 (KJV) 18 "And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence."
"Oh, that men would revere the great Head of the church, and would manufacture less human methods, bringing down spirituality to the very dust with human inventions! God has been left out, and the church is not prepared to advance to the conflict under the banner of Jesus Christ. It is not doing the work for suffering souls, [who] Christ owns, as if done to Himself. But the church, defective as it is, and enfeebled with so much chaff, is the only object on earth upon which He bestows His highest regard. In His estimation, the church in heaven and the church on earth are identical. He has promised to come personally into the midst of His church. He said to everyone holding a position of truth, “learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” [Matthew 11:29, 30.] {Lt119-1895.33}
God is leading out a people to stand in perfect unity upon the platform of eternal truth. Christ gave Himself to the world that He might “purify unto Himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.” This refining process is designed to purge the church from all unrighteousness and the spirit of discord and contention, that they may build up instead of tear down, and concentrate their energies on the great work before them. God designs that His people should all come into the unity of the faith. The prayer of Christ just prior to His crucifixion was that His disciples might be one, even as He was one with the Father, that the world might believe that the Father had sent Him. This most touching and wonderful prayer reaches down the ages, even to our day; for His words were: “Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word.” {4T 17.1} How earnestly should the professed followers of Christ seek to answer this prayer in their lives. Many do not realize the sacredness of church relationship and are loath to submit to restraint and discipline. Their course of action shows that they exalt their own judgment above that of the united church, and they are not careful to guard themselves lest they encourage a spirit of opposition to its voice. Those who hold responsible positions in the church may have faults in common with other people and may err in their decisions; but notwithstanding this, the church of Christ on earth has given to them an authority that cannot be lightly esteemed. Christ, after His resurrection, delegated power unto His church, saying: “Whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained.” {4T 17.2}
Ephesians 1:22-23 (NKJV) 22 "And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all."
"The life of the church is communicated from Christ, and we help the church when we work in harmony with the life-giving power, losing sight of ourselves, and seeking to build one another up in the most holy faith. "{ 1888 1091.1 }
"God has a church. It is not the great cathedral, neither is it the national establishment, neither is it the various denominations; it is the people who love God and keep His commandments." {17MR 81.4}
"When the Spirit was poured out from on high, the church was flooded with light, but Christ was that light; the church was filled with joy, but Christ was the subject of that joy. When the Spirit is poured upon his people in this day, Christ’s name will be upon every tongue, his love will fill every soul; and when the heart embraces Jesus, it will embrace God; for all the fullness of God dwells in Christ. When the beams of Christ’s righteousness shine upon the soul, joy, adoration, and glory will be woven with the experience." – {ST June 9, 1890 Par. 13}
"The purpose which God seeks to accomplish through His people today is the same that He desired to accomplish through Israel when He brought them forth out of Egypt. By beholding the goodness, the mercy, the justice, and the love of God revealed in the church, the world is to have a representation of His character. And when the law of God is thus exemplified in the life, even the world will recognize the superiority of those who love and fear and serve God above every other people on the earth. The Lord has His eye upon every one of His people; He has His plans concerning each. It is His purpose that those who practice His holy precepts shall be a distinguished people. To the people of God today as well as to ancient Israel belong the words written by Moses through the Spirit of Inspiration: "Thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God: the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be a special people unto Himself, above all people that are upon the face of the earth." Deuteronomy 7:6."Behold, I have taught you statutes and judgments, even as the Lord my God commanded me, that ye should do so in the land whither ye go to possess it. Keep therefore and do them; for this is your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the nations, which shall hear all these statutes, and say, Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people. For what nation is there so great, who hath God so nigh unto them, as the Lord our 13 God is in all things that we call upon Him for? And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?" Deuteronomy 4:5-8. {6T 12.1}
"The church of Christ, enfeebled and defective as she may appear, is the one object on earth on which he bestows in a special sense his love and regard. The church is the theater of his grace, in which he delights to make experiments of mercy on human hearts." {RH December 4, 1900, par. 4}
"The church on earth is God’s temple, and it is to assume divine proportions before the world. This building is to be the light of the world. It is to be composed of living stones laid close together, stone fitting to stone, making a solid building. All these stones are not of the same shape or dimension. Some are large, and some are small, but each one has its own place to fill. In the whole building there is not to be one misshapen stone. Each one is perfect. And each stone is a living stone, a stone that emits light. The value of the stones is determined by the light they reflect to the world." {RH December 4, 1900, par. 1}
"The whole treasure of heaven is at our command in the work of preparing the way of the Lord. By giving us the co-operation of the holy angels, God has made it possible for our work to be a wonderful, yes, a glorious, success. But success will seldom result from scattered effort. The united influence of all the members of the church is required." {RH December 4, 1900, par. 11}
"Christ would have a church that labors to separate the evil from the good, whose members will not willingly tolerate wrong-doing, but will expel it from the heart and life." {RH December 4, 1900, par. 6}
"Oh, that men would revere the great Head of the church, and would manufacture less human methods, bringing down spirituality to the very dust with human inventions! God has been left out, and the church is not prepared to advance to the conflict under the banner of Jesus Christ. It is not doing the work for suffering souls, [who] Christ owns, as if done to Himself. But the church, defective as it is, and enfeebled with so much chaff, is the only object on earth upon which He bestows His highest regard. In His estimation, the church in heaven and the church on earth are identical. He has promised to come personally into the midst of His church. He said to everyone holding a position of trust, “learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” {Lt119-1895.33}
“Through centuries of persecution, conflict, and darkness, God has sustained His church. Not one cloud has fallen upon it that He has not prepared for; not one opposing force has risen to counterwork His work, that He has not foreseen. All has taken place as He predicted. He has not left His church forsaken, but has traced in prophetic declarations what would occur, and that which His Spirit inspired the prophets to foretell has been brought about. All His purposes will be fulfilled. His law is linked with His throne, and no power of evil can destroy it. Truth is inspired and guarded by God; and it will triumph over all opposition. {AA 11.3}
During ages of spiritual darkness the church of God has been as a city set on a hill. From age to age, through successive generations, the pure doctrines of heaven have been unfolding within its borders. Enfeebled and defective as it may appear, the church is the one object upon which God bestows in a special sense His supreme regard. It is the theater of His grace, in which He delights to reveal His power to transform hearts." {AA 12.1}
"One thing we must do and that is to trust implicitly in the Lord at this time. This is our only safety. And if we have done this, then should the winds blow, and the vessel rock, Jesus is on board and He will speak the word that will bring calm and steadiness, and we will outride every gale and come safe into harbor. We have work to do for the Master, which we must do relying not on human wisdom, but upon the wisdom of God. How little real faith and trust we have in God after He has shown His tender pitying love towards us." {Lt12-1892.1}
"Human power did not establish the work of God, neither can human power destroy it. To those who carry forward His work in face of difficulty and opposition, God will give the constant guidance and guardianship of His holy angels. His work on earth will never cease. The building of His spiritual temple will be carried forward until it shall stand complete, and the headstone shall be brought forth with shoutings: “Grace, grace unto it.” {7T 170.1
"Believers are to shine as lights in the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. A church, separate and distinct from the world, is in the estimation of heaven the greatest object in all the earth. The members are pledged to be separate from the world, consecrating their service to one Master, Jesus Christ. They are to reveal that they have chosen Christ as their leader. The work in Cape Town is an important work and the church is to be as God designed it should be, a representative of God’s family in another world." {TSA 90.3}
"His church on earth is to assume divine proportions before the world as a temple built of living stones, each one reflecting light. It is to be the light of the world as a city set on a hill, which cannot be hid. It is built of stones laid close together, stone fitting to stone, making a firm, solid building. Not all the stones are of the same form or shape. Some are large, some are small; but each has its own place to fill. And the value of each stone is determined by the light that it reflects. This is God’s plan. He desires all His workers to fill their appointed places in the work for this time." {8T 173.2}
"The Son of God was withdrawn from our world, and the great manifestation of His love was to be seen and exhibited by His church, and made visible, and distinctly to represent His great love. He has instituted His churchfor the communication, as a channel, for the principles of love to flow forth in rich currents to a world lying in wickedness; and if the church had stood in its elevated character, purified from selfishness and worldliness, then she would have been as a city set on a hill, receiving from heaven the power of propagating the great and saving Bible truths to the world. The Lord Jesus Christ is the greatest gospel missionary the world ever knew. The Lord Jesus Christ instituted a church [so] that His followers should implant the heavenly principle of divine love in the hearts, sanctifying all human love, that it should be employed for the express purpose, on no limited scale, for the extension of His kingdom in our world; for there was light to go forth from the church as a lamp that burneth. In the church below there is to be the most perfect unity, and this can only be by all wearing Christ’s yoke of restraint and obedience. {Ms165-1907.5}
“Ye are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid.” The aggressive power of the gospel is in proportion to the genuine faith and piety and example of the believers. The church is to be the Lord’s light bearer to shine amid the moral darkness of a corrupt and sinful generation. There can be nothing in the world that is so dear to God as His church. Nothing is guarded by Him with such jealous care. Nothing offends God more than for the church to be in a disunited state, because it bears to the world a very bad testimony and example." {Ms176-1902.1}
Key Words For Studying
"United church,"
Unless otherwise stated, quotations come from the writings of Mrs. E. G. White.