Thirdly, we must see that the practical expression of the church must be local. Since it is practical, it must be local; it must be in the place where we are. If we would put the church into practice, if we would make it practical, we must have a local expression. There is no other way. Do not expect to have the church in a better place. The place where you live is the right place. Wherever you go, wherever you are, is the right place to practice the church life. The church life must be local. Any place, however pleasant from an earthly standpoint, is hell without a church. And on the contrary, any place with a church is heaven. Do not think that these are my words or my opinion. You remember, when Jacob dreamed and saw the ladder set up from earth to heaven and the angels of God ascending and descending upon it, he called the name of the place Bethel. Bethel, we know, means the house of God, and the house of God is the church today (1 Tim. 3:15). Jacob said about that, "This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven" (Gen. 28:17). Wherever the house of God is, that place is a gate of heaven. The only place that is good for us is the place where there is a church. And, praise the Lord, wherever we are and wherever we go there can be a church.
Can you find a verse in the New Testament telling us that the church is in the heavens? You cannot. But we do have the church in Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), the church in Antioch (Acts 13:1), the church at Cenchrea (Rom. 16:1), the church in Corinth (1 Cor. 1:2), and the church in so many other cities. They are the local churches. Eventually at the end of the New Testament, in the book of Revelation, we have a picture of seven churches in seven cities. It is so clear. The practical expression of the church must be local. We need to see this.
In Christianity today, there are some people who have a so-called "university church." There are others who have what they call "the church in the home." Some, on the other hand, have a national church or even a world church. And still others insist that there should not be any kind of church on this earth. In Japan there is a movement which is called the non-church movement. The situation everywhere is indeed complicated and confused.
What shall we do? We need to forget the confusion and the complications. If you get involved in them, you will certainly miss the way. Do not ask: How about this? How about that? The more you do that, the more you will be in the woods. Learn to stay away from complications and make yourself very simple. Read the simple words of the New Testament: "the church in Jerusalem," "the church in Antioch," "the church at Cenchrea," "the church in Corinth," etc. It is so clear—the church must be local.
Finally, we must see the unity, the unique oneness of the church. Today in so many denominational churches there may be a unity, but it is not the unique unity. These unities are unities of divisions. For example, the Presbyterians have a unity among themselves, the Methodists have a unity among themselves, and the Lutherans have a unity among themselves; but these are not the unique unity. The unique unity must be the one on the proper ground. There is only one proper ground for the church—the ground of the unique unity. All the denominations have their own ground; therefore, the unity is broken by them. We cannot stand upon the ground of certain denominations or the ground of certain groups. The only ground upon which we can stand is the ground of the unique unity of the church. It must be the general ground which makes it possible for all the believers in one locality to gather as the one church in that place.
In the Bible, we find the principle of one church for each city—no more, no less. In the entire New Testament this principle is never violated. Whenever a church in a certain city is mentioned, it is always in the singular number. Whenever reference is made to the churches, in the plural number, it is always in relation to an area or district which is larger than a city, such as a province. There is nothing in the Bible about street churches, school churches, churches in a home, or, on the other hand, national churches or world churches. There are only churches in cities. You may say that there are some instances of a church in a home recorded in the Bible. But if you read carefully, you will see that in every case these simply refer to the home in which the entire church in that city met. The boundary of the church is not limited to a home; neither is it expanded to a district or nation. In the Bible, it is always according to the size of the city. A church that encompasses the whole city meets the qualification of the unique unity.