There is only one church in the universe. There are not many churches in the universe; there is only one church. Since the source and production of the church are one, the existence of the church must also be one. According to the nature of the oneness of the church, the existence of the church in the universe must be one. According to the principle of the oneness of the church, the existence of the church in the universe should also be one. Therefore, the church is uniquely one in the universe; there is only one church. This is the aspect of the church emphasized in Ephesians 1:22-23.
There is only one church in the universe, and there is only one church in each locality. Regardless of whether the city was Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), Antioch (13:1), Ephesus (Rev. 2:1), or Corinth (1 Cor. 1:2), there was only one church in it. There can be only one church, not two or more, in each locality. If there are two or more in one locality, the oneness of the church is immediately damaged. All the saints in the universe belong to the universal church. In the same principle, all the saints in one locality belong to the church in that locality. If the believers in one locality become divided and form two churches, the oneness of the church is damaged.
Regardless of the locality, there can be only one church. In Taipei there is one church, and in Tainan there is also one church. In Tokyo there is one church, and in New York City there is also one church. In a large locality there is one church, and in a small locality there is also one church. The church is one. However, in today’s situation there are so many “churches” that there is almost one on every corner. There can be an East Gate Church on one corner, and a Baptist Church on another corner, or there can be a Lutheran Church on this street and a Wesleyan Church on the next street. This can be compared to a “church” market. If we see the light concerning the oneness of the church, we will abhor this situation. Such a condition completely contradicts the oneness of the church by establishing more than one “church.”
This can be compared to God’s creation of man and woman. God ordained that a man should marry one woman and that a woman should be married to one man. There should not be polygamy. People in both the East and the West abide by this ordination. A person who is married to more than one person is looked down upon because in the human concept, marriage is meant to be between one man and one woman. A man can have only one wife, and a woman can have only one husband. This also applies to the church. There should be only one church in each locality. If there are many “churches” in one locality, it is a big problem. This is not a small mistake. It is a serious sin (3:3-4). It is a sin greatly abhorred by God.
Some people may say, “Surely there are believers in these ‘churches.’ Surely some love the Lord zealously.” Yes, I agree that there are believers there. However, I would like to ask, “Are there not believers and pious ones also in the Roman Catholic Church?” However, Revelation 17 says that the Roman Catholic Church is a great harlot. Brothers and sisters, this age is dark, and the condition of the church is confused. We truly need God’s mercy. To those who have blurry eyesight, the Roman Catholic Church is a religion of piety, teaching man to believe in God, attend mass, and worship the crucified Savior. Little do they know that in God’s eyes, Roman Catholicism is a great harlot. Hence, we should not ask whether they are a Christian organization, or whether they preach the same gospel, or whether they speak the truths in the Bible. We should not assume that there is no problem as long as these conditions exist. We cannot merely look at these things. They may have all these things, but in the Lord’s eyes there is abominable confusion within. As another example, even though some are of the church of Jesus Christ, why should they hang a sign of Wesley? Why should they hang a sign of Luther? This is not a small thing. If this is not spiritual fornication, what is it? A church that has several names is no different from one woman who has several husbands!
In 1954 some believers went to Baguio in the Philippines. When a renowned preacher from China heard that we were coming, he left. Before leaving Baguio, he asked a brother whom he knew very well to ask me why we considered only ourselves to be the local church. I responded, as if jesting, and asked the brother to convey the following analogy to the preacher: “One day, Mrs. Chao saw Mrs. Lee, Mrs. Liu, Mrs. Wang, and Mrs. Chang. Being jealous, they asked Mrs. Chao, ‘Why do you consider only yourself to be Mrs. Chao?’ Mrs. Chao replied, ‘Why do you even ask me such a question? Do you not call yourselves Mrs. Lee, Mrs. Liu, Mrs. Wang, and Mrs. Chang?’”
The one church has been divided. This is something very offensive to the Lord. It offends the Lord even more than immoral sins. The church that should be of Christ openly and shamelessly puts up a sign of Lutheran or of others. Oh, what a shame! This is the same as Mrs. Chao calling herself Mrs. Chang. Today the Protestant churches condemn the Roman Catholic Church, calling her a great harlot, but what about the Protestant churches? Are they a pure and chaste woman in the eyes of the Lord? Those who have light will painfully admit that the Protestant churches have also become harlots!
Although there are many local churches, there cannot be many kinds of churches. There is only one kind of church. “Many” is a matter of quantity, but “kind” is a matter of nature. For example, there are many churches in Taiwan. There is a church in Tainan, a church in Taipei, a church in Taichung, and a church in Kaohsiung. Since there are many localities, there are many churches. However, these churches cannot be many kinds of churches. Since the nature of the church is one, there can be many churches in many localities, but there cannot be many kinds of churches. The church in Taipei and the church in Tainan are of the same nature. However, today in many places there are not only many “churches” but many kinds of churches. This shows that the oneness of the church has been lost and that the nature of the oneness has been changed.
We must see that the church is one; just as the church is one universally, the church is also one locally. Although there are many churches in different localities, the nature of these churches is one; they are of the same kind.