Not any of us can decide to “join” this church simply by getting our names placed on some membership roll here on earth.
Hebrews 12:23 (
Dy) explains, this is the “church of the firstborn who are
written in the heavens.” God is the one who selects the members. He sets them in the congregation as
he pleases. (
1 Corinthians 12:18) These are the ones who will be with Christ in heaven. And Jesus revealed that, far from including all who profess to be Christians, they are limited in number to 144,000.—
Revelation 14:1-3; Luke 12:32
They are, indeed, a group of persons called out from spiritual darkness for a special purpose. While here on earth they boldly “declare abroad the excellencies” of the Most High God, who called them out of darkness into his wonderful light. (
1 Peter 2:9) And, after their resurrection, they will have the grand privilege of ruling with Christ in his heavenly kingdom.—
Luke 22:28-30.
The first members of this true church were all Jews (as were Jesus and his apostles) or circumcised Jewish converts. At Pentecost of 33 C.E.—just ten days after Jesus had ascended to heaven and opened the way for others to follow him in due time—Jehovah indicated his selection of these members through the pouring out of holy spirit. Their receiving of the spirit on that occasion bore witness to them that they were now God’s spiritual sons and heirs of the kingdom with Christ. (
Acts 2:1-4, 16-21, 33; Romans 8:16, 17) But the membership of the true church did not remain all Jewish. Three and a half years after Jesus’ death the way was opened for Gentiles or non-Jews to be included. (
Acts 10:30-33, 44; Romans 9:23, 24) So, in course of time, the true church came to have international membership.
Jesus Christ made clear that he himself is the foundation. He applied to himself the prophecy of
Psalm 118:22 saying: “The stone that the builders rejected is the one that has become the chief cornerstone.” (
Matthew 21:42-44) The apostle Paul adds his testimony that Jesus is the “chief corner stone,” writing to Christians at Ephesus: “You are fellow citizens with the saints and the domestics of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone.” (
Ephesians 2:19, 20,
Dy) The apostle was very definite about it, saying again: “For other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid: which is Christ Jesus.”—
1 Corinthians 3:11
Jesus, the Head, does not split up the body of his congregation into a clergy class and a laity class of the “common people.” He says to his followers: “Do not you be called Rabbi, for one is your teacher, whereas all you are brothers. Moreover, do not call anyone your father on earth, for one is your Father, the heavenly One. Neither be called ‘leaders,’ for your Leader is one, the Christ.” (
Matthew 23:8-10) So Jesus shows that there is no division among those who make up the true church. However, he did arrange for men to take the lead in the Christian congregation, to serve the spiritual needs of their brothers and organize the work of preaching the good news. Jesus said such ones were not to “lord it over” their brothers but were to be like slaves or servants to them. (
Matthew 20:25-28) Is that true of the clergymen you know?
To fit the Bible’s description of the true church, those who make it up must be united in their worship. In this regard the apostle Paul wrote: “I exhort you, brothers, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you should all speak in agreement, and that there should not be divisions among you, but that you may be fitly united in the same mind and in the same line of thought.” (
1 Corinthians 1:10) So we cannot Scripturally expect to find them scattered among all the conflicting religions of Christendom. They must be gathered together in just one organization. As
Ephesians 4:4, 5 says of them: “One body there is, . . . one Lord, one faith.” It is vital for us to know what that “one faith” is.
The members of the true church under Christ their head are said to become “Abraham’s seed, heirs with reference to a promise.” (
Galatians 3:29) This promise is that all others of obedient mankind will bless themselves through Christ and his congregation. (
Genesis 22:18) The Bible foretold that, at the time of the establishment of Christ’s kingdom, there would be only a remnant of these children of the “Jerusalem above,” God’s heavenly organization, left on earth. (
Galatians 4:26; Revelation 12:10, 17) Jesus described these members of his church on earth as a “faithful and discreet slave.” And he said that such ones who were found faithfully serving at the time of his coming to his judgment work would be appointed “over all his belongings,” that is, over all the earthly interests of Christ’s kingdom. They would take the lead in the preaching of the good news of the established Kingdom to all the nations in the “time of the end.”—
Matthew 24:14, 45-47; 25:19-23.
All those today who hope to gain eternal life in God’s new system need to recognize this arrangement. For Jesus said that, in this “time of the end,” he separates to a position of favor those doing good to the remaining ones on earth of his “brothers,” his joint heirs who make up the Christian congregation. (
Matthew 25:31-40) These are the remaining ones of the “living stones” that are built up into a spiritual house or temple, “a place for God to inhabit by spirit.” (
1 Peter 2:5; Ephesians 2:20-22) Those ‘doing good’ to the members of this temple class are described in the book of Revelation as a “great crowd” of persons who come under God’s protection. Note, too, that they gladly serve God “day and night in his temple,” that is, in association with the remnant of the spiritual temple class, the Christian congregation.—
Revelation 7:9, 10, 15.
These sheeplike persons say, in effect, to the heirs of the promise made with Abraham: “We will go with you people, for we have heard that God is with you people.” (
Zechariah 8:23) Even as those of the true church or congregation faithfully walk in Christ’s footsteps and proclaim the Kingdom message, so likewise these sheeplike ones ‘go with them,’ serving God right along with them. Are you doing that? If so, you have the prospect of receiving eternal life on earth, along with all the other blessings that will flow from Christ and his glorified congregation in the heavens.