God's purpose

The aim of Christian life today - The building up of the church

Jesus Christ has given us His life for two purposes:

1. The salvation of our souls (1 Peter 1:9)

2. The building up of the body of Christ, which is His church (Eph. 4:15-16)

Where is the church?

If we recognize the God’s intention and desire to follow Him, we will be faced with many Christian works and services which have led to many divisions in Christianity. God's word, the Bible, shows us that all born again (John 3:6) or regenerated (1 Peter 1:3) Christians should be one in a locality.  In the book of Acts, we see the principle of one church in one city.  Unfortunately today, many Christians attend the church of their choice, not according to God’s choice and desire.  There are so many Christian groups with different names everywhere, and new ones rising up.  But where is the church?

God condemns divisions!

We should reject divisions because the word of God declares dissentions to be sin and the works of the flesh (Galatians 5:19).  God does not allow us to support divisions.  Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:14, when Christians develop preferences for spiritual leaders or practices, these results in the division of Christians differentiating from each other through groups or different teachings.

The biblical principle - One church in a city

We have begun to assemble on the same basis as the early Christians in the book of Acts.  During the time of the New Testament, the churches always were mentioned in conjunction with the specific place.  As your read the Bible, you see the examples like the church in Jerusalem, the church in Corinth, the church in Ephesians etc.

This principle reveals how we as Christians should assemble together.  It is also the most practical way to keep unity/oneness in the building up of the church.  In addition, we are obligated to do so.