THE CHURCH
What It Means
The word church is very recognizable, even to those who aren't regular "church goers." Often, a statement is made about a building wherein someone remarks how beautiful a particular church is or how big of a church is being built on the corner. The real meaning of the word church, though, is strikingly different from these general, casual and worldly uses.
By definition, the church is a "called out" group of people. Therefore, the church is not a structure but is instead a group of people who have been called out from the world to be something different. It makes sense then that after 3,000 individuals were baptized, God added these new Christians to His church (Acts 2:47). You and I, as Christians many years later, are still members of this important and divine called out group.
It's also important to know that the Bible uses the term church in two distinct and important ways. First, the Bible uses the word church in a "common" or "universal" way to describe the church of which we are all a part. In fact, the first usage of the word in the Bible was when Jesus stated, "I will build My church," referring to the great body which would be a called out and different from the world (Matthew 16:18).
A second way the word is used is in a particular, localized sense. For example, the Jerusalem church is specifically referenced in Acts 11:22 and the Antioch church in Acts 13:1. When Paul was concluding his letter to the church at Rome, he did so by extending greetings from various other local churches stating that the individual "churches of Christ" greet the brethren (Romans 16:16).
As Christians, we each have the great privilege of being added to God's church in the general sense and also being members of our individual congregations wherein we dedicate ourselves to that local work. We are quite appreciative of God's design and how He lovingly sought to include us in His great church.