Can the real Biblical Church, please, step forward?!

Do you ever wonder about the Church? Not just a church but the Church. I have, I do, all the time.

What is it? Where is it? What, figuratively speaking, does it look like?

The Lord Jesus declared " And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. "

Strange thing to say, don't you think ?

In the four Gospels the word church is only used twice, both times in Matthew and both times by the Lord Himself. The first, is the quote from above (Mat 16:18) and the other being in Mat 18:17.

" And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he neglects to hear the church, let him be to you as a heathen and a tax-collector."

In the rest of the New Testament its used around 116+ times in different forms, it is not really until after Pentecost in Acts 2:47 that the that the use of the word church truly begins.

What did Jesus mean, "I will build My church"? What is "My church"? I guess we could say that it is the church which is His. Easy enough. That belongs to Him. His.
He declared that His church would be built upon a "rock". That this rock would serve as the foundation to the the His church. What then is that rock?

Mat 16:16-18 And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. 17.Jesus answered and said to him, You are blessed, Simon, son of Jonah, for flesh and blood did not reveal it to you, but My Father in Heaven. 18. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Therefore, Jesus said that it was upon the declaration or proclamation that He is the Christ, the Son of Living God and that only by given revelation from God. So then, what is the "rock" on which Jesus's church is built? It is the God given revelation that declares that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of Living God.

So Jesus's church then, can be in part identified, through looking at what it is built upon, Himself. It is a Christ centered church, a God centered church. It is a declaring, proclaiming and believing group of people all united in and through Him.

It is His church. Just a thought.