The Church is the House of God and the Household of God – the Church is of God!

The church is the house of God, even the household of God, the house of the living God, an organic entity that grows and expands to express the Triune God on earth. Hallelujah for the church!

This week in our morning revival we come to the topic, The Function of the Church (1) The House of the Living God and the Pillar and Base of the Truth.

As we dive deeper into the matter of living and serving according to God’s economy concerning the church, we need to see what the church is and what are the functions of the church.

Paul’s word in 1 Tim. 3:14-16 is very crucial in the four books of 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon; we could even say that it is the most crucial portion in these four books.

Paul was in prison, but he witnessed the beginning of the decline of the church, for he saw how many left their first love for the Lord and abandoned the ministry of the age. Oh, Lord!

However, Paul was not discouraged nor was he disappointed.

He knew what the church was and he knew that God had a very high standard for the church, but he was not discouraged when he saw the situation in the churches.

He had insight and foresight, so he could be encouraged because he knew that one day, somehow, in the Lord’s way and in His time, the church would reach God’s standard.

We need to look at what the church is according to God, see the high standard that God has for the church, and be encouraged, for the church is the house of God and the household of God, and He will take care of the church.

We may see the church’s degradation today and think that the Lord has been utterly defeated, for there is no built-up church as the Body of Christ on earth today.

But we should look to the Lord, for He is the One who lives in the saints as the members of the Body of Christ, and He will bring the church up to the standard where He wants it to be.

The apostle John wrote the book of Revelation, and he even said that, if the church in Ephesus does not repent, the Lord will come and remove the lampstand.

It seems that the church in Ephesus did not come up to God’s standard.

But praise the Lord, we can be full of faith, for the situation in the Lord’s recovery is heading toward God’s standard so that the church would function as the house of the living God and as the pillar and base of the truth, even as the great mystery of godliness.

May we bring these matters to the Lord, reminding Him of what and where He wants the church to be, and living one spirit with Him so that we may grow in life and be the church of God, the household of God, as His living and organic expression on the earth today.

The Church is of God, having God as its Source, Nature, and Essence

The house of God in 1 Tim. 3:15 modifies the church, and the pillar and base of the truth also modifies the church; the house of God and the pillar and base of the truth describe what the church is.

According to the Bible, the church of God is the house of God; the church is the house of God (1 Cor. 1:2; 10:32; 11:16).

The fact that the church is of God indicates that the church is possessed by God and that it has the nature of God and is constituted with the element of God (Acts 20:28; Gal. 1:13).

The church is the flock of God among whom the Holy Spirit has placed some overseers to shepherd the flock of God, which He has obtained through His own blood.

Christ obtained the church with His own blood; He purchased the church, and the church is His possession.

We need to realize that the church is possessed by God, and the church has the nature of God, being constituted with the element of God.

For example, we may have a table made of wood; the table is of wood – wood is the element, the constitution of the table.

We may change the shape of the table but we can never change the nature of the table.

When we say that the church is of God, we mean that the nature of the church is God, the element of the church is God, and God possesses the church.

The church is of God because the church is produced of God as the source and has God as its nature and essence, which are divine, universal, and eternal (1 Cor. 3:16-17).

All the members of the church are genuine children of God, those who are born of God (John 1:12-13).

We are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in us. If anyone destroys the temple of God, God will destroy him, for the temple of God is holy, and such are we.

The content of the church essentially is God Himself (1 Cor. 10:32).

When we serve in the church, we need to realize that the content of the church is essentially God Himself, and we should not damage or mar the church by serving in our self or in the flesh, even though we may have good intentions.

Whatever is not of God, is not the church; whatever is of God, is the church.

Hence, we need to build the church with gold, silver, and precious stones, not with anything of wood, grass, and stubble.

We need to build up the church with what we have enjoyed and experienced of God, not with anything that comes out of our natural man, our zeal for God, or the works of the flesh.

Paul was a person who built the church not only with doctrines from the word of God but even more, with his own living of Christ.

His entrance toward the believers was something of God, something of Christ living in him; therefore, others could see Christ, receive Christ, and believe into Christ to become members of the church as the house of God.

Whatever is not in God or out of God should not be brought into the church, for the church essentially is God Himself.

Whatever is not God cannot be the content of the church.

This is the meaning of the church being of God.

May we see what the church is and how God esteems the church according to His concept and feeling, and may we do all things for the building up of the church as an entity in God, of God, and unto God.

Lord Jesus, unveil us to see the church of God. May we clearly see that the church is of God. Hallelujah, Christ gave Himself up for the church. Thank You, Lord, You died for us to purchase us to be the church of God. Praise the Lord, the church is of the element of God, having the essence of God. Amen, Lord, thank You for making us Your temple; You dwell in us and we dwell in You. May we realize that the church is indwelt by the Spirit of God, by God Himself. May we be those who build up the church with what we have enjoyed and experienced of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. Amen, Lord, we exercise our spirit to build up the church with our experience of the Triune God so that the church as the house of God may be built up. Save us from trying to build the church with anything of the self or the works of the flesh. Amen, Lord Jesus, grant us to see a vision of the church being of God and in God!

The Church is the House of God and the Household of God, the House of the Living God

The church is the house of God (1 Pet. 2:5) and the household of God (Eph. 2:19, 22). In Greek, the word for house is oikos, which means not only the house, the dwelling, but also the household.

On one hand, the church is the house of God. On the other hand, the church is the household of God, the people who make up the household.

On one hand, we are the house of God as the dwelling place of God, the place where God dwells.

God dwells in us as His house, and we are the temple for God to dwell in.

On the other hand, the church is the household of God, the components of God’s house, the folks who live in the house of God (Eph. 2:19).

God is a great Father, having millions of children; the dwelling place of God on earth is the church.

In the physical world, the house is one thing and those who live in the house are different from the house itself.

Our house, our home, is an inorganic entity in which we live, having nothing to do with us organically; we as the family living in a house are different from the house we live in.

But God’s house and His household, His family, are the same.

God’s house is His family, and God’s family is His house.

The church is the house of God and the church is also the household of God.

We as the church are a group of regenerated, called ones, who are indwelt by God Himself.

We are not just men; we have been regenerated by God and we’re indwelt by the living God with all that He is to be God’s dwelling place and His family.

The church is not an organization or a social club composed of many Christians; the church is something organic, something in the divine life and in the divine nature, even in the Triune God.

Many Christians stress that the church is ekklesia, the gathering of the called-out ones; indeed, the church is such an entity composed of those called out by God.

But much more, the church is the house of God for God to dwell in, and the church is the household of God, the family of God, for us to dwell and live in.

Such an entity is organic; the church is an organic entity, the living house of God.

Paul says that the church is the house of the living God (1 Tim. 3:15) and that this house grows (Eph. 2:21).

A physical house does not grow; rather, it becomes old and falls apart.

But the church as the house of God and the household of God is something living, an organic entity, that grows.

Hallelujah, we believers in Christ are living persons, having God living in us, and we together are a living entity, the church as the house of God, the household of God!

We may look at the church in our locality and may see this or that situation, or we may see that we are not growing as well as we should; however, we need to have faith in the Lord, for the church as a living entity is growing!

We may not see much growth today or tomorrow, this month or the next month, but as time goes by and the Lord grows in all the saints, the church is growing.

The church is the house of God and the household of God, a living and organic entity, and the church is growing!

As we all grow in life by enjoying the Lord and experiencing Him, we grow with the growth of God, and the church as the Body of Christ grows.

May we see that the dwelling place of God (the house of God) and the family of God (the household of God) are one entity, a group of called, regenerated ones indwelt by God Himself (1 Pet. 1:3; 2:5; 1 Cor. 3:16).

Just as Christ is not separate from the members of His Body but rather, He dwells in them, the Father is also not a separate member of His household but rather, He is in all the children (Rom. 8:16; 12:4-5; 1 Cor. 3:16).

Thank the Lord that the church as the house of God is organic in the divine life, organic in the divine nature, and organic in the Triune God (Eph. 4:18; 2 Pet. 1:4; Matt. 28:19).

We have the life of God and are growing in this life. We have God’s nature and we’re partakers of this divine nature.

And we have been baptized into the Triune God so that we may be put into God and God may be put into us for us to grow together into one entity, the church as the house of God and the household of God.

Praise the Lord, because is organic, the church is growing!

Because we have Christ in us as our life, we are growing in life, and together we are growing into a holy temple in the Lord!

Hallelujah, the church is the house of God and the household of God! Amen, Lord, thank You for coming to dwell in us as the house of God. Thank You for bringing us into the church as the household of God, the family of God, for God to dwell in and among us. Praise the Lord, we are a group of called out and regenerated ones indwelt by God Himself to be the church, the house of God! Wow, Lord, may we really see that the church is the family of God and the dwelling place of God. May we realize that Christ dwells in us, the Holy Spirit dwells in us, and the Father is also in us. Keep us contacting You and enjoying You so that we may grow in life. Hallelujah, the church as an organic entity in Christ, a living entity that grows in the Lord to be the household of God, the house of God! Grow in us, dear Lord. Cause us to grow in life day by day so that the church may grow with the growth of God!

References and Hymns on this Topic

• Inspiration for this article/sharing comes from the Word of God, the enjoyment in the ministry, a sharing by the brothers in the message for this week, and portions from, Collected Works of Witness Lee, 1983, vol. 3, “The Basic Revelation in the Holy Scriptures,” pp. 426-427, as quoted in the Holy Word for Morning Revival on, Living and Serving According to God’s Economy Concerning the Church (2023 fall ITERO), week 8, entitled, The Function of the Church (1) The House of the Living God and the Pillar and Base of the Truth.
• Similar articles on this topic:
  – The church as the household of God in Ephesians, article in Affirmation and Critique.
  – Living in the Church as the House of God – Ron Kangas in Calgary, Canada (Sept 2011), via, Living to Him.
  – The first mention of the house of God in the Bible is in Genesis 28, a portion from, Lesson Book, Level 5: The Church—The Vision and Building Up of the Church, Chapter 3, by Witness Lee.
  – 7 Wonderful Aspects of the Church in Ephesians, article via, Bibles for America blog.
  – The church is also the house of God (1 Pet. 2:5), a portion from, The Basic Revelation in the Holy Scriptures, Chapter 5, by Witness Lee.
  – The Indwelling Christ and His Wonderful Indwelling, article via, Holding to Truth in Love.
  – Assailing the Ground of Oneness (4): Are “House Churches” Biblical? Read more via, Shepherding Words.
• Hymns on this topic:
  – Insufficient are materials / Precious though they be and best: / These must be built up together / That God’s house they may express. / Fifth step: We ourselves hand over / To the building that we be / Built into God’s house, His dwelling. / One in each locality. (Hymns #1324 stanza 7)
  – In God’s house and in Thy Body / Builded up I long to be, / That within this corporate vessel / All shall then Thy glory see; / That Thy Bride, the glorious city, / May appear upon the earth, / As a lampstand brightly beaming / To express to all Thy worth. (Hymns #840 stanza 5)
  – So the Church’s many members / Christ’s enlargement are, / One with Him in life and living, / Spreading Him afar. / Fulness, increase, duplication, / His expression full, / Growth and spread, continuation, / Surplus plentiful, / Is the Church to Christ, and thereby / God in Christ may be / Glorified thru His redeemed ones / To eternity. (Hymns #819 stanzas 6-8)