The Good News That's Coming

Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"

Suppose any Christian denomination claims to be the ONE true church described in the Bible: would such a claim be necessarily arrogant? Is there is no one TRUE church on earth? And suppose somewhere on earth ONE true church does meet the doctrinal criteria in the Bible, but it is so plagued with internal confusion and apostasy and backsliding that it can make no credible claim before the world, does that mean that it will never be healed and purified?
Bible teaching may seem at present unattained, but that does not mean that it is unattainable, given the leading and ministry of the Holy Spirit of God plus that there are at least some people on earth who are honest at heart who will respond to His leading. (If the latter is not true, then it must be obvious that Christ died for nothing!)
Scripture speaks of "one body, and one Spirit, ... one Lord, one faith, one baptism" (Eph. 4:4, 5). It speaks of a people who "keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus" (Rev. 14:12), a "remnant ... seed" emerging after centuries of the Dark Ages as those distinguished who "keep the commandments of God, and [who] have the testimony of Jesus" (12:17). They are distinct from "Babylon," a false system of worship that will deceive "all that dwell upon the earth" except those "whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of life" (13:8). They will bear a witness to earth and heaven that it is possible for an organized, corporate "body" of believers in Christ to "follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth" who stand displayed before the universe as a corporate body "in [whose] mouth is found no guile, for they are without fault before the throne of God" (14:4, 5). They will eventually be the fulfillment of Paul's vision of a "glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing, but ... holy and without blemish" (Eph. 5:27).
In all honesty, one must admit that there is no such "spotless church" on earth today, but if the Bible is true, someday there will be. What will accomplish such a transformation? (1) There's a hint in Ephesians 5:2: the proclamation of agape, which (2) will result in the experience of justification by faith (Rom. 5:8-11). If such a "church" is reconciled to God, it will also be reconciled to God's holy law. Good News--that's coming.
From the "Dial Daily Bread" Archive: October 18, 1999.Copyright © 2010 by Robert J. Wieland.
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