Now, after investigating all of these various passages, we would be forced to conclude, from our reading, that there is, therefore, only one answer to this question, that there is only One God. Now, how did we arrive at that conclusion? Well, it should be obvious to us that the answer had to come from the Bible. Now, should I, therefore, teach to everyone that there is One God? An honest individual would have to say, “Yes, you should teach that.” Well, why? Again, an honest individual would respond, “Because the Bible says so.” And that person would be exactly right.

It should be very clear, then, that the answer to the question, “Will only those in the church of Christ be in heaven?” can only come from God’s Word. That response from an honest individual, that response, “Because the Bible says so,” lies at the heart of any answer that we might give to any question of this kind, and we must impress upon everyone that this is NOT our opinion, that it’s not our opinion on the subject that matters, but rather, it’s what the BIBLE says in response to any question of this kind that is most important. In fact, the way the BIBLE answers this question is ALL that matters.

Now, suppose we were to get into the realm of opinions. If we were to do that, to most religious people in the so-called “Christian” world there would be “many churches.” In fact, this the foundation upon which this question before us this morning is based. Keep in mind that most people who ask us this question are members of denominational churches. They believe that the church of which they are a member is but one piece of the universal church of Christ, which consists of all the denominations that pledge allegiance to Jesus. But, is this what the Bible teaches?

The question I would ask then is, “Is there one church?” Well, let’s look at these passages of Scripture:

We read in Matthew 16:18 the following well-known statement by Jesus: “And I also say unto thee, that thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Christ said, “I will build My church.” Not “churches.” In the original Greek language of the New Testament, this statement by Jesus is constructed in a particular grammatical manner, in a particular way. It is singular—one church; it is possessive—belonging to Jesus.

Also, when we read in the Bible that the church is referred to as “the body,” notice what these passages of Scripture say:

“…and He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fulness of Him that filleth all in all,” Ephesians 1:22 and 23.

“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as also ye were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in all,” Ephesians 4, verses 4 through 6.

“And He is the head of the body, the church: Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence” Colossians 1:18. Now, how many bodies are mentioned in this passage of Scripture? One. Since the body is the church, and there is only one body, how many churches are there? One.

And once again, we arrived at our conclusion from the Scriptures. Now, would you have me go contrary to what the Bible teaches and teach a multiplicity of churches—would you have me teach more than one church? Would you want me to teach the most popular doctrine, which says, “Attend the church of…your choice”? If you have the desire to stay in harmony with the Scriptures, you would not want me to teach—or anyone to teach—anything other than the Truth, and the Truth of the matter is this: The only correct choice anyone has is to be a member of Christ’s church, and there is only one.

Now, you may ask yourself, “Well, if there is only one true church, how can I know this church?” Well, you can know it by the description of it given in the Bible.

It will have a Scriptural name:

“the church of the Lord,” Acts 20, verse 28 [“Take heed unto yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit hath made you bishops, to feed the church of the Lord which He purchased with His Own blood.”].

“the church of God,” 1 Corinthians, chapter 1, verse 2 [“…unto the church of God which is at Corinth, (even) them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called (to be) saints, with all that call upon the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, their (Lord) and ours…”]; 1 Corinthians 10:32 [“Give no occasions of stumbling, either to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the church of God…”].

“The churches of Christ,” Romans 16:16 [“Salute one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ salute you.”].

“the body of Christ,” or “the body,” 1 Corinthians 12:27 [“Now ye are the body of Christ, and severally members thereof.”]; Colossians 1:18 [“And He is the head of the body, the church: Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence.”].

“the house of God,” 1 Timothy 3, verse 15 [“…but if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how men ought to behave themselves in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the Truth.”].

“the church of the living god,” also 1 Timothy 3, verse 15 [“…but if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how men ought to behave themselves in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the Truth.”].

Or, “the church of the firstborn,” Hebrews 12, verse 23 [“…to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect…”].