Church, as most of us think of it, is not what Scripture describes. The word translated as church in our Bibles is the Greek word ekklesia, which means a called-out assembly of people. Not a building. Not an institution. The ekklesia is who we are.

In this episode, we look at how believers actually gathered in the New Testament, what happened when they came together, and why the intimacy Scripture describes cannot happen in the model most of us have called church. Believers met in homes, shared meals, and cared for one another daily. Everyone brought something when they came together. Teaching moved among them rather than flowing from one person to a silent audience.

We also look at Hebrews 10:25 in its full context. It’s the verse most often used to defend attendance at a modern church service, and when we read what it actually says, it describes something very different.

Unity is not sameness manufactured by a central authority. It is produced from the inside by the Holy Spirit as believers grow toward the same truth. Denominations, including the ones that call themselves non-denominational, form when something true is followed by man-made doctrine built on top of it. Being based on the Bible was never enough. A journey that starts correctly and turns wrong repeatedly still ends up somewhere it was never meant to be.

Gathering was never meant to be mediated for us by an institution. It’s already available with people we know, in the places we already are.

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