We may consider that the church is composed of many people who have been saved—people like Ruth. Ruth was totally involved in sin, and Boaz came to redeem her. But this is not the picture of the church which Genesis 2 gives to us. By the time of Ruth sin had already entered, but in Genesis 2 there was no problem of sin. This is the church which was in the beginning; it had no association with sin. Oh, this is a tremendous matter, and these are very meaningful words. The church in God's forethought has no history of sin!

When people inquire concerning the history of our salvation, we always start with the fall, that is, how we committed sin and wandered in sin, how we were so evil and bad, and how we heard the gospel, believed on the Lord Jesus, and were saved. We always start with the fall. But in God's eyes, the church has never been touched by sin. The church is the part out of Christ which has never been touched by sin and known sin. That which is completely without sin is called Eve, and that which is wholly out of Christ is called the church. That which is entirely from Christ and will be solely for Christ is Eve, the church. Eve typifies a corporate man made by God—the church that is wholly of Christ. The church is not a composition of human beings from every nation, race, and people. No! Only that which comes out of Christ can be called the church. It is not that many people believe in Jesus and become the church. The church is the portion which is out of Christ alone. We must see that the church is the vessel chosen by God to manifest His Son, Christ, and to achieve His eternal purpose. It has nothing to do with sin and has never touched sin.

We must have our thoughts renewed and enter into the matter which God considers the greatest. Many of God's children refer everything to the problem of sin and being saved. They are always thinking about how they were so sinful and how they were saved. It seems that we are always looking from the perspective of sin. This matter is always with us, but God intends to turn our thinking completely around. He wants us to have an entirely new view of the church; He wants us to see that she is not related to sin at all. From beginning to end, the church is out of God and for God and has never touched sin. There is a portion in us which is out of Christ and which is Christ Himself. This portion has never been and never can be related to sin; sin has no way to come into contact with it. We can truly say that there is something in us which is holy. Oh, may we all enter into God's view of the church! From His viewpoint it appears that He has canceled all history of sin.

When we give our praises to Him in eternity, it will not be necessary for us to mention what kind of sinners we have been. God desires to bring us to a stage that all of the history succeeding Genesis 3 will pass away and only that which is of Christ will be brought to Him. This is God's eternal purpose! God desires to obtain a church, a corporate man, in whom everything is out of Christ and for Christ, a church in which there is no history of sin.

Let us turn back to Genesis 2:18. "And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a help meet for him." The creation of Eve was for the satisfaction of God's heart's desire. Because He had such a desire, He performed it. We must note that the creation of Eve is recorded in Genesis 2, before the events in Genesis 3 came to pass. There was no problem of moral responsibility between God and man because sin had not yet entered. Man had no problem with God; therefore, all the events recorded in Genesis 2 were for the purpose of meeting the needs of God Himself, not to deal with the shortcomings of man. God's creation of Eve in Genesis 2 shows how God purposed to have His church from eternity to eternity. The first thing in the sight of God was not man's fall but the plan which He purposed in eternity past. God's plan in eternity was for man to exercise His authority and spoil all the work of Satan. This is God's purpose for the church, and it will all be fulfilled in the coming eternity. God is after such a church to satisfy His heart. After He made male and female, He entered into rest. God was satisfied because He obtained such a church.