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Old 10-14-2016, 12:32 PM   #6
aron
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Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Natal Transvaal
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Default Re: What is the New Testament Definition of a Church

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio View Post
aron, I think you went too far. Going from private meetings to the market place is not intended either. I believe the Lord wanted to keep these "family" offenses "in house" so to speak. "Tell it to the church" should be indicative of the boundaries of discussion.

I think this verse parallels I Cor 6 concerning lawsuits in Gentile courts. Our Heavenly Father's intentions were similar to those with Israel, i.e. we should handle our problems internally.
But Jesus doesn't say, "Tell it to My church", a la Matthew 16, but to the church. The ekklesia in gospel context was any gathering, religious or not. Only with the passage of time did ekklesia come to mean exclusively religious, even specifically Christian, assembly. We tend to read current understanding back upon the text, and assume it meant the same to the original speakers and writers as it means to us today. I'm just publicly questioning that, here.
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