I have a question about the word church. In Matthew 16:18 Jesus said, "I'll Build my church." I know that the Greek word is ekklesia and basically means an assembly or congregation. I have seen the definition of the word church in the dictionary meaning "the House of the Lord", or a place of worship. ? Can you help Me because they traducirian the word ekklesia as a building or place (church) and not an assembly of people?
A If you look for the word "church" in a dictionary, you will see that the greatest use is the first, which is a building or house of worship. You have to see the rest of the list of the meanings to find one that refers to the people in that building. It is one of those cases in which due to the common use the primary meaning of the word has changed from what it was originally. Then I show you what happened.
The first believers meet in room houses. As their number grew they began to use structures suitable for larger meetings. When these structures were specifically built to house the congregation's meetings, they were properly called church buildings. As time passes, that is simply a church, and for most people today, the word "Church" refers to the building.
But if you in a Bible dictionary searches for the word "Church" you will find that the word comes from the Greek "Ekklesia". In the general sense, "the church is the community of all New Testament believers who have been united by the bond of faith and the regenerative action of the Holy Spirit, in a vital way, in Jesus Christ" (New Illustrated Bible Dictionary, CLIE, 1985)
When applied to Christians, it refers to people who are called to the world to a relationship with Jesus Christ. So. In the Bible the word "Church" always refers to the body of believers who have given their lives to the Lord, and not to a building where they can meet regularly.
When Jesus said, "I will build my church" in Matthew 16:18 he wasn't talking about building an edifice. He was talking about forming a body of believers on a global level.
Source https://gracethrufaith.com/
Can you see the previous post series called What is the Church?:
- What is the church? – Introduction
- What is the church? -The church as the body of Christ
- What is the church? - The church as the family of God
- Whats is the church? -The church as a pillar of truth
- What is the Church? | The church is the wife of Christ
- What is the church? Our home as a church.
- What is the church? The church as a community