"The kingdom of Heaven is like a man in search of fine and precious Pearls, who finding a single Pearl of great price went and sold all he had and bought it." Matthew 13:45, 46.

Comment: In this study the position we have taken is one that most commentators could agree with; that the terms "Kingdom of Heaven" and "Kingdom of God" are used interchangeably. With other points of view we have no argument except to say that the King and the Kingdom are 'omnipresent and indivisible'.

2 Corinthians 11:3 "But I fear lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtlety so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ."

Religion seems to have a talent for complicating what is supposed to be simple; in particular those things that Christ always meant to be straightforward and plain. The message of the Kingdom of Heaven is one of those subjects. The confusion that now exists surrounding the true character of the Kingdom has been a complete triumph for the adversary, the arch-enemy of Christ. It shows how easy it is for the Church to be corrupted from the simplicity and purity that is Christ.

There are many interpretations abroad with regard to the nature and operation of the Kingdom of God. No claim to authority by any man, or group of men, can be accepted until they have proven it to be well founded. Simply because someone puts forward their claims is not sufficient or acceptable, until they can prove their assertion from an infallible source beyond all doubt. This dissertation is an attempt to set forth as clearly as possible its true nature, free of radical interpretations and unfounded claims of which many abound; some stretch the imagination to astounding lengths.

In matters of doctrine it is of vital importance that the authority we act upon is one we can without a second thought rely on. The matter of where, or from whom the church gets its authority, is undoubtedly of supreme importance. Some advocate that such authority is vested in the Church. This at once raises questions for our consideration, namely, which Church? I have been a member of several and none of them could agree about almost anything. Perhaps we should be asking ourselves; what is the purpose of the church, its calling, and what is its constitution and destiny?

God has put some things together that we divide at our own peril. Chief among them is the "Spirit and the Word". What God has put together, let no man put asunder?

The Church which is His body on earth and the kingdom are separate entities. The Kingdom is timeless and preceded the formation of Israel and the church. The Angels, although they do not form part of the Body of Christ are never the less in the Kingdom. Psalm 103:19-22. The Kingdom has always been. The King has always ruled. The Pharisees were hindering men from entering the kingdom. God made a covenant with Israel at Sinai making them custodians of the Kingdom on earth. The Jews although professing allegiance to it, continually rebelled against it, consequently sharing in the general rebellion of all mankind. When the King finally came to them, they refused to acknowledge Him, but set about to reject Him, and finally kill Him.

The ownership of the Body of Christ (called the church) is the Head.
Every body must have a head for it to live. Christ is the head of His own body. Some facts are basic and clear; namely, that the Body belongs to Christ. It is His personal possession. Without Christ there could be no Body.

That the Body exists at all is only because of three foundational facts; His Incarnation; His Atoning Death; and His Resurrection, and to this we add His prophetic announcement, "I will build my church." The personal pronoun immediately suggests that other persons have laid claims to owning churches. This must be so because in many cases they are traded as one would dispose of a personal possession.

Moses had one in the wilderness Acts 7:38. When Jesus came He took one look at it, denounced it, and then He forsook it. Of all the four Gospels Matthew is the only one that contains direct reference to the statement made by Christ concerning building His church. The same is true regarding the local church. All that is taught in the rest of the New Testament is consistent with our Lord's statements. The claims of Holy Scripture and the Divine authority of their teachings compel our obedience to and acceptance of them alone. To follow any teaching contradictory to that taught by Christ and His Apostles is to have the effrontery to challenge His right to govern what is His.

Opposition to His Headship is treason. 

Antagonism to His headship insults the glory of God, and the person of Christ, so it comes as no surprise to us that the arch-enemy should set about with all his might, and his most persistent and ingenious devices, to appose and imitate it. Nor should we be surprised that although we live in an era when God is calling out from among the nations a company for His name, to constitute the Body of Christ that the adversary should seek to obscure, and mock the truths relating to it. Long before Christ came; Satan was busy making preparation to paganise the apostate Christendom of the fourth century AD, by the worldwide spread of Babylonian customs and practices.

The word "Church" is a title invented by the Papacy to lay claim to all things Christian. 

The titles Pastor, Bishop, Church were substituted for; shepherd overseer elder and congregation in the Latin Vulgate by the Papacy for the purpose of exercising control over all things temporal as well as spiritual.

These terms are not found in the Bibles used by the reformers. They were included in the KJB at the insistence of Papist King James. To enforce this he had, "Defender of the Faith" inscribed on the coin of the realm.

These Titles have been in use by religious organizations since that time for the same reason the Papacy did. They are used to make their members compliant; and thus easier to control. All that fail to submit are rejected as rebels, free thinkers. In former times they burned them at the stake.

The Body is a spiritual edifice. The Apostle Peter uses the metaphors chosen by the Lord, calling Christ a "living stone" rejected of men, but "chosen of God". Then he says of believers, "ye also, as living stones, are built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices unto God" 1 Peter 2:21. "All the building fitly framed together grows into a holy temple in the Lord". Believers are builded together for a habitation of God by the Spirit Eph 2:21.

This apostate church is an institution: The Body of Christ is not.

Quote:  

"The Apostles did not establish an earthly system, an organization of churches centralised in an ecclesiastical headquarters in Jerusalem. They had no such policy, method, or doctrine. What took place in Jerusalem as recorded in Acts 15 provides no example for us to set up councils to adjudicate when problems arose. They were not setting a precedent for the future. The gathering has been referred to by some as an, 'apostolic council'. Call it what you may, but the fact is no Apostle presided over it. They took part in it, James summed it up, an epistle was addressed in the name of the Apostles, the elders, and the whole church together (vs. 22) chose delegates. But this gathering did not set a precedent, it was an incident. The decision far from settled the matter. Peter caused trouble by acting inconsistently with what the whole congregation recommended. Gal 2:11-14.

Events at Jerusalem provide no support for the establishment of a controlling center for the organization of churches. One will search in vain and not find one in Acts and the Epistles. The binding bond was spiritual. Their common life was in Christ through the indwelling Holy Spirit. There was no such thing as external unity by way of a federation of churches or ministers. The church is heavenly in its constitution and organization, its seat of government is centered in Heaven, where it's one and only head resides. The word of God does not countenance any organization or amalgamation of churches, whether in a locality or the world at large. The plural 'churches' is used, when referring to "the churches of the saints" and, "the churches of the Gentiles".