Quote:
Originally Posted by Sons to Glory!
..what truly is this entity we are part of, which He bought with His own blood?
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When you ask "what truly is this entity" I refer you to the quote above it, from Ephesians 5: "This is a profound mystery". If Paul calls it a profound mystery, I daresay it's not an answer that you'll get through systematic theology, nor by some subjective euphoria. Both are, at least of themselves, false trails.
I'll ask a question which touches on
OBW's comment on "disorientation" should one examine any terms too closely, as if some turn of phrase of itself could whisk one into a special "reality". What's the difference between the Apocalypse's Great Harlot Mystery Babylon, and the woman clothed with the sun? Not much, by appearance. Both are dazzlingly arrayed. But one's full of abomination and one isn't.
From where we are, we may get too dazzled, and fail to distinguish properly what really and truly is what. I've seen this, over and over again, in various iterations. We become enthralled by some concept, and fail to distinguish that the "reality" of our daily living is not that which seems to fill our vision. I speak from experience! Don't let your feet stumble, staring at the heavens!
Here is an example. I was reading the preface to the book "The glorious church" by Watchman Nee. They were saying that it was given during training messages in China from 1939 to 1942. Not long after that, the elders of the Shanghai church expelled Nee for fornication. So how glorious was the church? Were the elders really that stupid, that they in concert ejected the man who'd been leading them? The hand-picked elders of Nee? Was Nee really so bad at 'training' them that they couldn't even follow basic protocol of the NT and ascertain whether the one leading them was in sin, or not? Was Nee really so 'spiritual' that he allowed a false claim to overturn his glorious church?
Then it was followed, after restoration and resumption of ministry, by another sexual scandal, and again Nee went along with the charges...are we really to believe that Nee falsely confessed to a sexual crime because of some higher spiritual plane, knowing it would stumble so many (see, Ruth Lee, Lily Hsu, and others)?
Seems that either Nee lied, and confessed when he didn't actually commit the crime, in order to get a lighter sentence, even knowing that his lie would destroy the spiritual journey of so many [!], or else he confessed to the truth, that he'd actually been creating and holding pornography. Either way, he doesn't come off too well.
So where's that "Glorious Church" he dazzled so many with? I don't care how many verses he gave. They were merely supporting his chimera, a cup filled with abomination. There was no reality. Reality is how you love your neighbour (or not). And how can we tell how real our love is? Every hair on your head is numbered, but have you numbered them, or rather has God? Then leave the evaluation up to God, what's "glorious" about the ekklesia. Your biblical command is to love your neighbour as your self - in truth, in deed, not merely in word, or lip service. Let Christ love the Church.
It's so critical to remain basic, essential, grounded, away from snares of imagination, concept, and unfounded speculation.
And I'd reoeat that one should look at all Greek usage of 'ekklesia' as it predates the NT and Jesus Christ by centuries in the spiritual literature (LXX). And Jesus spoke of building "my ekklesia" - there are other ones besides that of Christ. Again, don't assume anything. For instance there's an ekklesia in the NT that's in danger of being called a riot. Doesn't seem too glorious to me. "And with these words, he dismissed the 'ekklesia' " ~Acts 19: 40,41