The church must have a ground. What do we mean by the ground? The ground is where something is placed. This podium needs to be placed somewhere. That place is the ground of the podium. Similarly, the church, being something so great in the universe, needs a definite place, a site where it can be placed. The church is real, concrete, great, and weighty. In order for the church to be expressed in the universe, it must be on a site; this site is its ground. Without a ground, speaking of the church is vanity because there is no way for the church to be displayed. In order for the church to be displayed, there must be a ground. This is a principle, a law.
The Bible says that the church is a house built by God as His dwelling place. In order to build a house, there must be a base. This base is the ground. We must differentiate the base of a building from its foundation. The foundation is the lowest part of a building, but the base is the piece of land that is underneath the foundation. Therefore, as the house built by God, the church needs a ground.
When discussing the ground of the church with people, some quote 1 Corinthians 3:11, which says, “Another foundation no one is able to lay besides that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” From this verse they concluded that the Lord Jesus is the ground of the church. Their speaking has confused the ground with the foundation. The ground and the foundation are two absolutely different things. The foundation is the lowest part of a building, and the ground is the base upon which the building is placed. Since the church is the dwelling place of God, the building of God, it not only needs a foundation but also needs a ground.
Even from the point of view of individual believers, it is not good to be a wandering Christian. Nevertheless, some people are “wandering” Christians; they do not belong anywhere but come and go from place to place. They are like the wandering stars spoken of in Jude 13. This is not acceptable. As a Christian, we need to be stable and settled. In order for us to be settled, we need a place, a ground. Because conditions change, we cannot be settled merely based on a condition. We can be settled only in a place. Therefore, both the church and even individual believers need a ground.
The ground of the church must be local because the expression of the church is in a locality. In lesson 14 we saw that the expression of the church is in a locality. Since the expression of the church is in a locality, the ground must also be local. For example, as I am standing at the podium, I am being expressed at the podium; consequently, the podium is spontaneously my ground. Since the church is expressed in a locality, the locality is the ground of the church. The universe is not the ground of the church. If the church is not expressed in a locality, it cannot exist in the universe because the universe is something in the air, without a solid ground.
This is a point of dispute that others have had with us in the past few years. They always speak concerning the universal church, but we insist that there must be local churches. Sometimes I have said to them, “You speak concerning the universal church, but can you show me where it is? When I speak concerning local churches, I can immediately point out definite places, including Jerusalem, Antioch, Ephesus, Corinth, Rome, London, New York City, and Taipei. However, you cannot show me the universal church. You may speak concerning the universe, but really, you are in a locality, and if you were not in a locality, you would not be in the universe.” Do we see this? Speaking of the universe is too vague; only a locality is practical. Thank the Lord that the ground of the church is local, not universal.
Where does the Lord place the church? We need to see clearly that the Lord places the church in localities. Therefore, in the New Testament there are many churches in different localities, such as the church in Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), the church in Antioch (13:1), the church in Corinth (1 Cor. 1:2), the church in Ephesus (Rev. 2:1), the church in Smyrna (v. 8), the church in Pergamos (v. 12), the church in Thyatira (v. 18), the church in Sardis (3:1), the church in Philadelphia (v. 7), and the church in Laodicea (v. 14). All of these churches were in different localities. It is a pity that people do not see the word in when they read these verses in the New Testament.
The word in, which many people often miss when they read the Bible, is used in two important ways in the New Testament. The first in relates to being in Christ: “There is now then no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1); “so then if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation” (2 Cor. 5:17); “obey your parents in the Lord” (Eph. 6:1); “rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil. 4:4). Many people read obey your parents but do not read in the Lord; they read rejoice always but do not read in the Lord. The second in relates to the churches in a locality: “the church in Jerusalem,” “the church in Antioch,” etc. We need to see the significance of the second in. Being in Christ is a matter of our redemption and enjoyment of God, and being in a certain locality is a matter of our knowing the church.
Over the past twenty years it has become very clear that if we do not resolve this matter of locality, the problem of the church will never be solved. When we studied church history in the beginning, we received significant help on the matter of the church from the light the Brethren received over one hundred years ago. But the help they gave us did not solve all the problems, because their light regarding locality was not very clear. In 1933 after spending much time and effort in the Word, Watchman Nee saw the second in. The believers are in Christ, and the church is in a locality. Once we are detached from Christ, we lose our position of salvation; once we are detached from a locality, we lose the ground of the church. It is true that in the spiritual aspect, the church is also in Christ, but in the aspect of practicality, the church is altogether in a locality. Without being in a locality, the church cannot be contacted and touched. Since the church is expressed in a locality, the locality is the ground where the church is placed. Let me repeat, the ground of the church is local. Concerning this matter, we need to pay attention to several points.