Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew 16:17-18)

The Name Of The Church

When Jesus asked His disciples what men thought of the man from Nazareth, the answer included John the Baptist, possibly Elijah, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets. The crowds saw the power of Jesus and were astonished at His teachings, but many were at a loss to clearly identify Jesus as Lord. Jesus asked the twelve who they thought He was. Peter answered that they believed Jesus to be the Christ, the Son of the living God. Jesus commended Peter for his answer, telling the apostle that on the confession Jesus was the Son of God, the Lord would build His church. Nothing would hinder or destroy the church that Jesus promised.

Luke tells the story of the beginning of the church and its spread throughout the world. In his Acts of the Apostles, Luke describes the beginning of the church at Pentecost, where three thousand Jews believed the man crucified fifty days earlier was the Son of God. They asked what they must do to be saved, and Peter told them to repent and be baptized for the remission of sins. Luke records that God added to the church those who were saved. Saul of Tarsus began persecuting the church. He later became the great missionary for the Lord as he and others went everywhere preaching the word and establishing churches. Much of the New Testament canon contains the letters Paul wrote to various congregations in cities like Rome, Ephesus, Colosse, and Thessalonica, among others.

There is one characteristic of the early church that is constant. Luke, in describing the early church, never called the church by a single name. Paul wrote to the church of God which is at Corinth. In his letter to Rome, Paul sent greetings from the churches of Christ. To the church at Colosse, he wrote to the “saints and faithful brethren in Christ.” The early church was called by different names. Each of the names described a relationship with the Lord. There was never a marketing ploy to draw people to Christ. Church buildings were not erected with large signs out front in the community. The saints met in homes and large gathering places as followers of Christ.

The world needs to draw men to Christ by promoting ideas that appeal to the world’s curiosity. Many churches today follow names like Epic, Flood, or Free Life. There are the Grace churches, House of Prayer churches, and the Ignited church. Some call themselves the Renewing the Mind church, the Revolution church, Without Walls International, and the Victory church. For many years, all denominations were grouped under a particular Protestant movement, such as Baptist, Methodist, Lutheran, Episcopal, or Presbyterian. In modern times, churches have splintered off to individual names to tout a certain philosophy.

Jesus said He would build His church. There is only one church. The Bible teaches there is only one church. All denominations worldwide can trace their lineage to the Roman Catholic Church. For the faithful saints desiring to hold fast to the teachings of the early church, they will find their roots deeply embedded in the history of the Day of Pentecost. Jesus’ church started two thousand years ago. It is His church.