Hymns 1257

Scripture Reading:

Acts 8:1          And Saul approved of his killing. And there occurred in that day a great persecution against the church which was in Jerusalem; and all were scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

Acts 13:1        Now there were in Antioch, in the local church, prophets and teachers: Barnabas and Simeon, who was called Niger, and Lucius the Cyrenian, and Manaen, the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

THE GROUND OF THE CHURCH BEING THE VERY PLACE
WHERE THE CHURCH IS

What is the ground of the church? The ground of a certain thing is the very place where you put that thing. That is the ground. In other words, the ground of the church is the very place where the church is.

If a vase rests on a table, the ground of the vase is the table. Then what is the ground upon which the church stands? It is the city where the church is. The first church in the New Testament was in Jerusalem (Acts 8:1). It is very clear that the city of Jerusalem became the ground of that church.

Then the church spread from Jerusalem to Antioch. Since there was now a church at Antioch (Acts 13:1), spontaneously the city of Antioch became the ground of the church there. Then the church spread from Antioch to Ephesus, Corinth, and to many other cities. All the cities where the church spread became the ground upon which the church stood. This is the unique ground of the genuine unity. This is the local ground or the ground of locality.

THE UNIQUE, PROPER GROUND OF THE CHURCH
BEING THE LOCALITY WHERE THE CHURCH IS

Suppose that in Corinth some of the believers who liked Apollos were to build an Apollonian church and those of Peter were to build a Petrine church. Then there would be a church of Apollos and a church of Peter. Then suppose those of Paul were to build up a Pauline church, and even some would say that they were of Christ, so they would build up a “church of Christ.” Then, there would be four churches in the one city of Corinth, and all of these four churches would claim, de­clare, and proclaim that Christ is their foundation. The Apollonian church is built on Christ, the Petrine church is built on Christ, the Pauline church is built on Christ, and, of course, the “church of Christ” is also built on Christ. All four different kinds of churches claim to have Christ as their foundation. Their foundation may be the same, but their grounds are absolutely different. They are all built on differ­ent grounds. One has the Apollonian ground, one has the Petrine ground, one has the Pauline ground, and one even says that Christ is their ground. What are these grounds? We must be clear that they are all divisive. Only Corinth is the right ground. The ground of locality is the one unique and uniting ground upon which the church can be built. The unique, proper ground of the church is the locality where the church is. (The Practical Expression of the Church, pp. 52-53)

AN EFFECTIVE ILLUSTRATION OF THE LOCAL ONENESS

If someone tries to argue with you concerning the ground of oneness, point as an illustration to the situation of the children of Israel in the land of Canaan. Jerusalem was the unique place, the unique center, chosen by God to maintain the oneness of His people. Eventually, God’s people were carried away into captivity, some to Egypt, others to Assyria, and still others to Babylon. Originally God’s people were one, with a unique center of worship on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. But they became scattered into at least three major divisions. After the seventy years of captivity in Babylon had expired, God commanded the people to return to Jerusalem. A remnant of the people did return. By returning to Jerusalem, they spontaneously formed a fourth group among God’s people. Before the return from captivity, there were just three groups—those in Egypt, Assyria, and Babylon. Although these three groups were divisions, the fourth group, constituted of those who had returned to Jerusalem, was not a division. Yes, the fourth group was a distinct group, but it was a recovery, not a division.

Perhaps some of God’s people who chose to remain in Babylon said, “Brothers, you shouldn’t be so narrow. God is everywhere. We don’t need to go back to Jerusalem to worship Him. Consider Daniel. He loved the Lord and served Him without going back to Jerusalem. If he could stay in Babylon, then we are free to do the same thing.” Under the Lord’s sovereignty, Daniel remained in Babylon even after the year Cyrus issued the decree ordering the captives to return to Jerusalem (2 Chron. 36:22; Dan. 1:21; 10:1). Prior to that time, he prayed daily with his windows opened toward Jerusalem. This indicates that Daniel desired to go back to Jerusalem; however, he was not given the opportunity to do so. Therefore, his case should not be used as an excuse to remain in Babylon, that is, to stay in division.

For God’s people to remain in Egypt, Assyria, or Babylon was to remain in division. Those who returned to Jerusalem did not cause further division. On the contrary, they shared in the recovery of the genuine oneness. Among the four groups, only they could be regarded as the nation of Israel. Although the ones who remained in Babylon may have vastly outnumbered those who returned to Jerusalem, those who returned could be regarded as the nation of Israel, whereas those who remained could not.

In principle, the same is true with respect to the nation of Israel today. It is those who have returned to the good land who are recognized as the nation of Israel, not those who are still scattered throughout the world. For example, the number of Jews in New York City may exceed the number of those in Israel. Nevertheless, as even the United Nations recognizes, the Jews in Israel make up the nation of Israel, whereas the Jews in New York do not. Those in New York may love the nation of Israel and may give generously to support it. Nevertheless, simply because they have not returned to the land of their fathers, they cannot be regarded as the nation of Israel. To be part of the nation of Israel one must be not only a Jew—he must be a Jew on the proper ground, that is, in the good land. (The Genuine Ground of Oneness, pp. 142-145)

Further Reading: The Practical Expression of the Church, ch. 6; The Genuine Ground of Oneness, ch. 10; CWWL, 1963, vol. 4, “The Life and Way for the Practice of the Church Life,” chs. 14-16