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Put simply, it is a group of people who have committed themselves to Jesus Christ and to one another. It is not an organization made up of programs, systems, and methods to attract money and members to itself. It is not a building, office, or a denomination dedicated to earthly display and self-glorification. The church we read about in the Bible was not part of a denomination, but instead each was autonomous, answering only to Jesus Christ as the Head. Each congregation had a leadership consisting of Elders as the spiritual overseers, Deacons serving in positions of taking care of particular needs in the congregation, and the Evangelist or preacher that spoke forth the Word of God. In addition there were teachers and others that worked in the local body as well.
The Bible uses many images to describe the church. The body of Christ is one of the major metaphors. It is used to indicate that we are connected to and need each other, just like the parts of the body. It also teaches that Christ, not any one person, is the head of the church. While each congregation is responsible to the King we do have a relationship with others of like faith. We are free to work together in order to see God's Kingdom on earth increases as we were told to do in the Great Commission (Matt. 28: 19-20).
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