In an age with literally thousands of various religious bodies, it truly can be confusing concerning which church God truly accepts. If you will honestly consider these things with an open mind and Bible, you will be able to determine the church that is accepted by God. It is important for us to realize that the church described in the New Testament is the true church. If we today can match those characteristics, then we can know we are in the church that God accepts. Consider some things about the church of the New Testament.

ITS FOUNDER

The church of the New Testament was founded by Jesus Christ. Upon Peter’s confession that He was the Messiah, Jesus said, “upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Paul spoke to the elders in Ephesus concerning the church, which Jesus had “purchased with his own blood” (Acts 20:28). The church of the New Testament is the church, which belongs to Christ, or the church of Christ.

Seeing the church was purchased by and belongs to Jesus Christ, it should not wear any other name. The church is the bride of Christ (Cf. Eph. 5:22-33; Rev. 19:7-8). Christ will not accept any church wearing the name of a man, any more than any man today will allow his bride to wear the name of another man. The church of Christ belongs to Jesus Christ. It would be incorrect to say that Alexander Campbell (or any other man) founded the church of Christ. To make such claims is to misrepresent the Lord’s church.

THE TIME FOUNDED

It is of utmost importance for a church to have the correct time of origin.  If a church has a beginning date other than that taught in the Bible, it must be rejected. 

In the prophecy of Joel, he wrote, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh…” (Joel 2:28-32). For the purpose of this study, we shall only consider the first part of this prophecy and its fulfillment. If we have an inspired writer to give us the fulfillment of a prophecy, we must accept that and reject any interpretation given by men. Peter, who was filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4), on the first Pentecost after the resurrection of Christ, quoted this passage and made application to that point in time. Peter said, “But this [the events of that day] is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh…” (Acts 2:16-17; cf. Heb. 1:1-2). The church began on Pentecost, AD 33.

CONDITIONS FOR ENTRANCE

The church of the New Testament has certain conditions for entrance. Nowhere in the New Testament can one find that a person is voted into the church, neither can one join it. However, as we examine the church established on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2), we can clearly see that “the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (NKJV). It is not up to man to determine who can or cannot enter. God, who knows the hearts of all men, knows when a person has obeyed His commandments for entrance. What are the commandments for entrance? Notice the following passages:

One must hear the Gospel (Rom. 10:17). They must believe or have faith that Jesus is the Christ (John 8:24; Heb. 11:6). The faith we are to have will cause us to turn from, or repent of, our sins (Luke 13:3,5; Acts 17:30-31). A person also must confess Jesus (Matt. 10:32-33; Acts 8:37). This is not all that is taught; one cannot stop here and be added to Christ’s church. Jesus taught that one must be baptized (immersed) in order to obtain salvation (Mark 16:15-16; Acts 2:38; Rom. 6:3-4; I Pet. 3:21; and others). When one does these things, they “obey from the heart that form of doctrine” (Rom 6:17) and God adds them to the church. God will not accept any who has not completely fulfilled these commands. We are not asking you to obey the commandments of any man, but the commandments that are given by God Himself as revealed in His Word. The writer of Hebrews wrote concerning Jesus Christ, “And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him” (Heb. 5:9).