THE BUILDING OF THE CHURCH

The church is a solid and integrated spiritual structure that exists locally and physically among men as assemblies among those that profess faith in the risen Christ as Lord and Saviour. In supremacy, Jesus is the builder of the church- Matt. 16:18. He laid the foundation with His ministry, death and resurrection Through His earthly ministry, He ordained apostles and other disciples that included women- Acts 1:12-15, and trough His death and resurrection, He laid the foundation for man's redemption and this is obtained through repentance and forgiveness of sin. He empowered the disciples to carry this foundation that He has laid through His gospel to the world of humanity and anyone who believes receives this foundation laid in his or her life and this is the sum total of salvation.

The laying of the foundation of the church was done by Christ Himself through His death and resurrection as Saviour and Lord of our lives- 1 Cor. 3:11. The foundation of the apostles and prophets metaphorically speaks of a solid and integrated structure which refers to the founding works of the early Christians who preached and taught God's word- Eph. 2:20. The building of the believers who believed through the ministries of the early apostles and prophets (the foundational work done on them) has continued till this present time, and will continue till the coming of Jesus Christ; these are the believers that are being built as living stones into a spiritual house to become holy priesthood that offer spiritual and acceptable sacrifices to God. Jesus is both the foundation and the chief corner stone of the spiritual temple called the church.

A corner stone is used to denote any principal person. Christ as the corner stone occupies the position of the starting point, the middle and the top of the building structure of the spiritual temple. Jesus, being the chief corner stone is a living person and life-giving personality. He has life in himself- Jn. 1:4. Believers derive their life from Christ who is the original living stone and life giving spirit- 1 Cor. 15:45. Hence, the church is a living temple and Christ is the life that permeates every part of it.