The church as the assembly of the called out ones is composed of those who have been called by God. First Corinthians 1:2 says, “To the church of God which is in Corinth, to those who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints, with all those who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, theirs and ours.” Another verse that speaks of the called ones is Romans 1:7a: “To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called saints.” God begins to save us by calling us. In eternity God foreknew us, chose us, and predestinated us. Then in time, after we had been created and had become fallen, God came in to save us. The first thing in God’s salvation is His calling of us. This means that the One who foreknew us, chose us, and predestinated us from the foundation of the world one day came to visit us. The believers, therefore, have been called by God Himself. God’s calling is not originated or initiated by the called ones. Rather, it is initiated by God, the One who calls.
The church, the assembly, has been obtained, acquired, by God with His own blood. In Acts 20:28 Paul speaks of “the church of God, which He obtained through His own blood.” God obtained the church by purchasing it. In order for anything to be purchased a price must be paid. According to Paul’s word in 20:28, God obtained the church by paying the price of “His own blood.”
The phrase “His own blood” is very unusual. God is God; He is not a man or a creature. How, then, can God, the Creator, have blood? Prior to incarnation, God certainly did not have blood. But through incarnation our God, the Creator, the eternal One, Jehovah, became mingled with man. As a result, He was no longer only God-He became a God-man. As the God-man, He surely had blood with which to obtain, acquire, the church.
When Christ, the God-man, died on the cross, He died not only as man but also as God. The One who died on the cross was the One who had been conceived of God and born with God. Because He was a God-man, the element of God was in Him. The divine element was mingled with His humanity. In this way God joined Himself to humanity to be the Savior (Luke 2:11) who died and shed His blood for us.
The blood that has redeemed fallen human beings is the blood of Jesus, the Son of God. As human beings, we need genuine human blood for our redemption. Because the Lord Jesus was a man, He could fulfill this requirement. As a man, He shed human blood to redeem fallen human beings. The Lord is also the Son of God, even God Himself. Therefore, with His blood there is the element of eternity, and this element insures the eternal efficacy of His blood. With this blood God has obtained the church by purchasing it.
The God who purchased the church with His own blood is the processed God, the God who became a man called Jesus and Emmanuel, God with us. As such a One, He is no longer merely God-He is God mingled with man. In the matter of His being God only, He surely did not have blood. But in the matter of His being God incarnate, God mingled with man, He surely, in His humanity, had blood to shed on the cross to purchase the church. This is the reason Paul could say that the very God who called us has obtained us, acquired us, purchasing us with the price of His own blood.
Because the church is composed of those who have been called by God and because the church has been purchased by God, the church is of God. In 1 Corinthians 10:32 Paul refers to “the church of God.” God is the Possessor of the church; the church is His possession. God is the Owner of the church because He is the Purchaser. Furthermore, to say that the church is of God means that the church is constituted of God, that it is constituted of the divine and spiritual essence. The church is produced of God as the source.
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