What Is the [True] Church?

RICHARD FOSTER

A very important issue that comes up for those transitioning out of Adventism is the question of the church. Where should I go to church when there are so many different options? How do I know what church is teaching the truth? Is being a part of a church even necessary? Perhaps all the different local churches and denominations to choose from are just man-made traditions. Indeed, questions about church can be daunting and overwhelming at first to those leaving the simplistic Adventist bubble. 

After all, in Adventism the doctrine of the church is quite simple. The real or true church is quite simply the Seventh-day Adventist organization. We were taught that it alone has the truth, and that all other churches are “apostate”, and part of “fallen Babylon”, while the Adventist Church is the “remnant church” of Bible prophecy. And as an Adventist, this definition made things quite simple. If the Seventh-day Adventist name was on the sign, it was okay to go there. If some other name was on the sign, that was a false church. End of story. 

Of course, this view assumed that the church must specifically consist in a particular human organization. And seeing that various organizations calling themselves churches teach things differently from each other, we assume there must be one that alone is right, while all others are wrong. In reality, though, this view of the church as a particular human-constructed, human-recognized particular organization is mistaken. Let me attempt to explain why. 

The universally recognized Nicene Creed (which contains doctrines that all orthodox Christians believe) has a very interesting line of confession in it that is worthy of our consideration: “I believe one holy catholic and apostolic church.” The Creed mentions four characteristics of the church. The church is:

1. One
2. Holy
3. Catholic
4. Apostolic

What do these descriptors tell us or teach us about the church of Jesus Christ? 

Understanding the Church

First of all, the Lord Jesus Christ has ONE church. He has built one church through the ages, and He continues with one church (Matt. 16:18). The church specifically consists of those who have been united to Christ by faith. Every true Christian believer has an unbreakable and secure union with Christ. We are in Him, and He in us. Even more, since every single believer is united to Christ, by virtue of that union we are also united to each other in Him. Each of us has an unbreakable bond together through our Head, Jesus Christ. We have all been adopted into the one family of God. Furthermore, we are not simply united with those Christians who are currently alive on earth, but we are united with all of God’s people from all times and all places (Hebrews 12:22-24). What building we may worship in, what name might be on the building makes no difference if, in fact, we are united to Christ. When we are in Him, we are all part of the ONE church that is our Lord’s. 

Second, the church of Jesus Christ is HOLY. This statement might seem silly at first glance; after all, so many churches have so many issues. So many people professing Christ fall short of their high calling in so many ways. Nevertheless, the statement is true. Think about how Paul often began his Epistles to the different churches to whom he wrote. He often addressed them as “saints” (1 Corinthians. 1:2, 2 Cor. 1:1 Eph. 1:1, Phil. 1:1, etc.). Now, that word “saints” means “holy ones”. 

After addressing them as saints, Paul would often reprimand them for all of the sins that were occurring in that particular congregations at that time (1 Corinthians. 1:11, for example). Nevertheless, he would address them as holy ones. How can this be? 

Again it comes back to union with Christ. Our Head, Christ, is perfectly holy, and we are in Him and He in us. By His great work of redemption accomplished for us, He has justified us ungodly people, not by works, but by faith (Romans 4:5). His holiness is ours; it is accounted to us by the grace of God. And the rest of the Christian life on earth is a holy war that each of us is engaged in against our flesh (Galatians 5:16-17). As we all know, we all still fall short in so many ways. In spite of our ongoing war against our flesh, though, the Scriptures declare that the church consists of the saints, or holy ones, and the Creed echoes this scriptural declaration. The church of Jesus Christ is objectively holy because of Christ’s own work to make it so. 

Third, the church is CATHOLIC. For many of us, the word “catholic” evokes squeamishness. “What do you mean, catholic?” I can hear you asking. “We are Protestant, not Catholic.” 

But the original meaning of the word “catholic” is “universal”. In other words, when we say the church is catholic, we mean it is universal. Christianity is universal in multiple ways. In the first place, the gospel has been given to us to take to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people, without distinction (Matt. 28:19). The gospel is to be spread and published universally without discrimination, to make disciples of all the nations. But in addition to this, as Christians we all have a common faith. We confess faith in the essential doctrines of Christianity together. The faith which we all believe is not unique to us or our congregation or denomination. Rather, we confess in common with other believers down through the ages a faith in the Triune God of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three in person and one in substance, as revealed in Holy Scripture. 

Further, we confess faith in Jesus Christ the God-man, and in His perfect life, death for our sins, burial, and bodily resurrection, all accomplished for our salvation. We confess faith in the saving gospel of Jesus Christ to save to the uttermost all who come to God through Him. In other words, every genuine Christian is worshiping the same God, believing in the same Jesus, and being saved by the same gospel.

In other words, the church is catholic in its basic doctrine that separates the Christian faith from heresies, cults, and world religions. Yes, there are different theological traditions such Lutheran, Reformed, Anglican, Presbyterian, Baptist, and so forth. Finer points of doctrine are sometimes understood differently, such as the nature of baptism or the Lord’s supper, how the church should be governed, or what the worship service should look like. But in the essentials of who God is, who Christ is, and what the saving gospel is, these different theological traditions are all part of the catholic Christian faith. There is, as it has been said, an “umbrella of orthodoxy” allowing for conscientious differences in matters that don’t compromise who God or Christ is, or what the gospel is. The church of Jesus Christ is catholic. 

Fourth, the church is APOSTOLIC. That is, the church is built on the apostles and their teaching. 

Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit (Ephesians 2:19-22).

 Notice the foundation the church is built upon is the apostles and prophets, and that Christ Himself is the chief cornerstone. That is, Christ is the chief apostle (Hebrews 3:1). What this truth fundamentally means is that the church is not built upon human tradition or human teachings, but upon the apostolic teaching which is contained in the Bible. It was Jesus Himself who chose the apostles (John 15:16) and gave them the authority to teach His gospel. Read the gospels and read the book of Acts, and the apostles’ divine call and unique role becomes abundantly clear. 

There are so-called “red letter Christians” who would place a premium on the words of Jesus over the rest of Scripture. And of course, having come from Adventism, we know there are those who downplay Paul. But this attitude simply doesn’t work. To reject the apostles is to reject Christ who gave them their authority (Matt. 10:40, Acts 1:1-8). Moreover, we have been blessed by the Lord to have the teachings of the apostles preserved in their own written words of the New Testament, so we don’t have to guess at the apostolic teaching. The church is apostolic, the foundation it’s built on is the apostles and prophets (Old Testament and New Testament), with Jesus Himself being the chief cornerstone. 

So, all of this being the case, what is the true church, and where should you go to church? 

The answer is: go to church wherever the Triune God is worshiped in Spirit and Truth. Go where the Biblical Christ is upheld and glorified as the Savior. Go where the preaching of the saving gospel of the finished work of Jesus is front and center. Go where the teaching of the apostles and prophets, contained in the 66 books of the Bible, is confessed as the infallible standard of all doctrine and practice. Go where baptism and the Lord’s supper are faithfully practiced in accordance with the institution of Christ. Where these things are the case, wherever these things are practiced by believers who are united to Christ by faith, there is a true church. 

What I’ve Experienced

In my own experience, I have traveled around the western United States frequently, and I have ended up being in different towns on Sundays. But wherever I happen to be when Sunday is coming, I want to find a place to worship with the body of Christ. I have my particular theological persuasion, so often I will look for a church that is most likely to be closest to that. But often times the towns might be small with only have a few church options. In that case I will ascertain what those are and select the one most likely to be solid, according to the characteristics mentioned above. In doing this I have attended Presbyterian churches, Baptist churches, Bible churches, Community churches, Calvary Chapels, and so on. Now, I don’t endorse each doctrinal point of all these different local bodies and denominations. But I have rarely came away with a negative experience. In fact, my family and I will usually leave after the service is over, thankful to the Lord that we got to meet and worship with brothers and sisters in Christ that we didn’t know before, and thankful that we heard the gospel preached. 

Indeed, since leaving Adventism it has been one of my greatest joys to realize that there are wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ all over in different towns and cities—and across the various countries of the world, for that matter. Two thousand years of the Lord Jesus building His church across this world has borne great fruit that all Christians get to enjoy. I marvel that almost anywhere I have gone, I can find fellow believers there. And to meet fellow believers who are brothers and sisters, united in Christ together with us, and to be able to worship our great God together and fellowship together is one of the most joyous privileges of being a Christian. 

So, I would appeal to all to embrace the Biblical historic doctrine of the church if you haven’t yet done so: the church is one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. And in doing so let your belief spring into action in assembling with the body of Christ on a regular basis. Though it is natural for people leaving Adventism to often be weary of church or organized worship, please don’t let the bad experiences of being in a false church deter you from receiving the marvelous benefits the Lord has for you through worshiping and fellowshipping together with the true church of Jesus Christ. As Christians we are not stand-alone individualists, but each of us is an essential part of the church which our Lord is building. It is both to our benefit and to the benefit of the rest of the body that each of us assemble together to worship our Lord Jesus who has saved us by His marvelous grace. †

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Richard Foster

Richard Foster is blessed to reside in beautiful San Juan Island, Washington, with wife Virlinda, and children Enoch and Taylianna. As an excavation contractor and septic system installer, he helps island homes to properly make wastewater go away, as well as digging holes and filling them in whenever needed. Formerly an Adventist for 13 years, the Lord providentially led him on a journey of deeper Bible study, and a realization of the true biblical gospel through learning what the real issues were in the Protestant Reformation. He continues to enjoy studying biblical theology in his spare time. He and his family happily attend and help with ministry in a local community church, where the preaching is expository, and the central focus is the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ alone.

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