By actual count there are 217 people present for this Sunday evening worship. We are glad you are here. Your presence is a distinct encouragement. It helps. We can have better work by your being here than we could if you were not here. We have some visitors and you are very welcome. May you enjoy with us all the blessings that are to be had here and help us make these services even better!
At the close of the lesson we shall sing “Come to Jesus,” for the purpose of encouraging you to accept the Lord’s invitation. The invitation comes from Jesus Christ. By his authority and by the power of the Holy Spirit the doors of the church were opened nearly 2,000 years ago on the day of Pentecost, and the doors of the Lord’s church have been standing wide open ever since. Whosoever will may come. We sing this invitation song for the sake of the exhortation it contains and to give you a convenient opportunity to come forward and make known your desire to obey the Lord. Backsliders are invited to return to God, confessing their sins, repenting of them, and praying for forgiveness. Those who have never been born again are taught by the Bible to believe in Christ, repent of their sins, confess their faith, and be baptized for the remission of sins. We are prepared to assist you in carrying out your obedience of these commands. If you will come forward and make your wishes known, we shall be glad to help you in every way we can.
I promised to speak to you tonight upon the topic “Which Church Is Right?” That is a very important question, and the timeliness of it is evident by the fact that in the United States there are more than 200 churches. Just for the sake of a round number, we’ll speak of them as 200. That is, indeed, enough. In fact, too many! For, in the Bible, there is only one. Now, you just think about that—200 in the United States alone, to say nothing about other parts of the world, and only one in the Bible!
I
One Church in Bible
On the board tonight I have an outline of the lesson and the Scriptures which shall be used. I would like for you who are interested to write these Scriptures down, that you may give them further study. Search the Scriptures, as the noble people of Berea did, to see whether these things are true. There are many Scriptures which show that there is only one church in the Bible. Here are a few of them listed under No. 1. In Matthew 16:18, Jesus said, referring to the confession that Peter had just made, “Upon this rock I will build my church.” He used the singular form of the word. He didn’t say “my churches,” but “my church.” Therefore, Jesus Christ built only one. He bought and paid for only one with his blood, and he has only one tonight. “There is one body” (Eph. 4:4). There is “but one body” (1 Cor. 12:20). That body is the church. “And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all” (Eph. 1:22-23). Since there is but one body, and that body is the church, then it naturally follows that there is but one church. Only one church in the Bible, and more than 200 in America! Therefore, we must face the question, “Which Church Is Right?”
Please remember that this is no more my problem than it is yours. I’m not to blame for all these churches’ being in the world! I did not start them. None of you started them. We found them here when we were born into this world. They are here. We are not responsible for their beginning. Some of you may be responsible for helping to keep them going, but we found them here, and we have found that in the Bible there is only one. To decide which one is right is as much your problem as it is mine.
You may think that tonight I shall undertake to prove that the group of people with whom I am associated is the right group and that all the others are wrong. Well, I’m frank to say that I believe I’m right. If I didn’t, I would change! Some people think they are criticizing me when they say: “Oh, well, you just think you’re right and everybody else is wrong.” I believe that’s a compliment. Of course I believe I’m right! If I didn’t, I would change. A man who continues in a way which he does not believe to be right is a hypocrite! For one to teach what he sincerely believes is not conceit but sincerity. It’s not egotism but honesty. Not only do I believe that what I teach is right, but I stand ready to change it whenever anyone can show me wherein it is wrong. But I promise not to make a prejudiced or biased approach to this question.
II
The Church That Follows the Bible Is Right
Suppose you were to undertake to examine all the creeds of Christendom, and eliminate them one by one to see which church is right. That would take a very long time. You might even die with old age before you had finished the task. I believe there is a much shorter and more practical approach to the solution of the question. Just go directly to the Bible and see what it says and follow its teaching; then you will naturally be right.
If I were going to answer my question tonight in just one brief statement, I would say that the church which follows the Bible is the one that’s right. At first thought this may sound like a very trite statement. Somebody would reply by saying, “Well, all the churches claim to follow the Bible.” Such a claim demands investigation! It’s easy to make such a claim, but you notice that I did not say that the church which claims to follow the Bible is right, but that the one which follows the Bible is right.