The church of Christ - Who are these people? On the coasts of Caesarea Philippi, Jesus promised, "upon this rock I will build my church" (Matthew 16:18). In Jesus' statement, there are several observations that we wish to note: (1) Jesus Christ would be the One to build this church. (2) The church that Jesus promised to build belongs to Him. (3) Also, it is very significant that Jesus promised to build one church and one church only. In looking at these three major points, we can learn much about the church of Christ.

JESUS CHRIST BUILT THE CHURCH
Paul taught that the church was made up of "many members" (1 Corinthians 12:20). The church is not a building made of wood or bricks or stucco. The church is made up of people; individuals like you and me. We are not talking about just any individual here. Rather, we speak of those individuals who have been cleansed from their sins. It is the blood of Christ that washes away the sins of men (Matthew 26:28). It is that same blood of Jesus Christ that purchased the church (Acts 20:28). That is why Luke recorded, "And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved" (Acts 2:47). Thus, the Lord built His one church by cleansing men from their sins and saving them. Those saved were then added to the church.

THE CHURCH BELONGS TO CHRIST
This is exactly what "church of Christ" delineates. The word "of" shows possession. Jesus Christ "purchased [the church of God] with His own blood" (Acts 20:28). Concerning the church, Paul said that Christ "gave Himself for it" (Ephesians 5:25). It is thus no surprise that the church is spoken of as "the purchased possession" (Ephesians 1:14). Christ built the church, and He purchased the church.

CHRIST BUILT ONE CHURCH
When one looks out upon the religious condition today, he sees a multiplicity of religious bodies. Literally thousands of entities that claim to be "religious" exist. Hundreds claim to be Christians. Yet, when Jesus made the promise in Matthew 16:18, He promised to build His "church" -- in the singular form. There are many passages which indicate there is "one body." A couple of those passages are: Ephesians 4:4, "there is one body" and 1 Corinthians 12:20 "But now are they many members, yet but one body." There are also passages which show that the church and the body are one and the same. In Ephesians 1, Paul wrote that God "gave Him to be the head over all things to the church, which is His body" (Ephesians 1:22, 23). Colossians 1:18 says, "And He is the head of the body, the church." Though the phone book may indicate a multiplicity of churches, the Bible teaches there is but one church -- the church of Christ.