have been
congregation. "The church of God" would then have read, "Congregation of
God." "The church of the first-born" would have read, "The congregation of
the first-born." The church that was at Antioch would have read, "The
congregation that was at Antioch," etc.

What Is The Church Or Congregation?

The word church is a much misused word. It is commonly used at the present
day when speaking of the edifices erected for the purpose of the
assembling of the church to worship God. The quoting of a few texts will
give us the Bible definition of this word.

"Likewise greet the church that is in their house." Rom. 16:5. This was
the home of Priscilla and Aquila. This church was in their house. This
house was not the church. The church was in their house. The command was
to greet the church. This certainly begins to throw some light upon this
subject. See 1 Cor. 16:19; Col. 4:15; Phile. 2. "And he hath put all
things under his feet, and gave him to be head over all things to the
church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all."
Eph. 1:22, 23. "And he is the head of the body, the church." Col. 1:18.
See also 24th verse.

These texts plainly teach the church to be the body of Christ. What is the
body of Christ? Ans.--"Now ye [Christians] are the body of Christ, and
members in particular." 1 Cor. 12:27. The body of Christ is the church.
The church is Christians. This enables us to understand how the church
could be in Priscilla and Aquila's house, and how we can greet the church.
This is the Bible definition of church.

Which, One Church Or Many?

In the writings of the apostles the plural form of the word church is
frequently used, but this argues nothing against the unity of God's
church, nor in favor of the multiplicity of sects. If all the saved people
in the world could be congregated in one place there would be no occasion
for using the plural form of this word. Had it been so in the days of the
writers of the epistles, the word would have been used only in the
singular. But since there was a church or congregation of Christians at
Antioch, also a church at Corinth, at Thessalonica, Ephesus, Smyrna,
Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea, etc., to speak of the
whole it would be proper to use the plural of church. "The churches of
Asia." Please notice there is only one in each city, and the same writer
addresses them all.

It does not take a town of so great a size to