by Terry Wane Benton<\/p>\n
The church is described as the body of Christ, with Jesus as the head of that body. Thus, the church is a group of people so connected to Christ that the body does not act without a proper signal (authority) from the head. If the church acts without authority, the church is not properly attached to the head, Jesus.<\/p>\n
“And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all<\/em>” (Ephesians 1:22-23 NKJV).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Every thought should be held captive to the obedience of Christ.<\/p>\n
“Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled<\/em>” (II Corinthians 10:5-6 NKJV).<\/p>\n
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him<\/em>” (Colossians 3:16-17 NKJV).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Because the head has a<\/strong>ll <\/b>authority, those who are bringing every thought into obedience to Christ try with all their mind and heart to “prove what is acceptable to the Lord<\/em>” (Romans12:1-3). Jesus said, “Why call me Lord, Lord, and do not the things that I say?<\/em>” (Luke 6:46). There is a disconnect from the head when doctrines, practices, words, behavior, and activities of the church collectively and distributively among every Christian is not tied to the authority of Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Terry Wane Benton The church is described as the body of Christ, with Jesus as the head of that body. Thus, the church is a group of people so connected to Christ that the body does not act without a proper signal (authority) from the head. If the church acts without authority, the church…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[78,448,73],"class_list":["post-84720","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-authority","tag-church","tag-jesus"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":94178,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-church-of-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":0},"title":"The Church of Christ","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 22, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"by Joe R. Price via The Spirit's Sword The expression \"church of Christ\" is a descriptive term of possession. The word church is a collective noun (like \"flock\" or \"family\"). The church is composed of saved people (Christians, the \"called out\" ones, Acts 2:41, 47). \"Church of Christ\" is used\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":21194,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/have-you-heard-about-the-church-of-christ\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":1},"title":"Have You Heard About the Church of Christ?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 27, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton The churches of Christ are not a denomination. They are neither Protestant, Catholic, or Jew. They are comprised of individuals born again through obedience to the commands of Christ (John 3:1-5; I Peter 1:22-25). The church of Christ is the church Jesus said he would build\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":3818,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-possible-to-preach-christ-and-not-preach-baptism-or-the-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":2},"title":"Is It Possible to Preach Christ and Not Preach Baptism or the Church?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 1, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Donald Townsley via Guardian of Truth, December 15, 1988 From time to time men set forth the doctrine that we should \"preach Christ\" and leave the controversial subjects of the plan of salvation and the church alone. Some say, \"just preach the man and not the plan\"; others say,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":37334,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/metaphors-of-the-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":3},"title":"Metaphors of the Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 23, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Dennis C. Abernathy via\u00a0Truth Magazine\u00a0- January 3, 1980 In our age when the church is thought of as some unimportant, outdated, or take-it-or-leave-it institution, it becomes very important for us to investigate what the Scriptures have to say pertaining to it. It is so important that we stress the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29780,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/identifying-a-new-testament-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":4},"title":"Identifying a New Testament Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 8, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Steve Dewhirst Sentry Magazine, December 2002 Traditionally, we gospel preachers have spoken of \"identifying the New Testament church\" in an effort to distinguish it from the sects roundabout. But in so doing, we have sometimes obscured the true nature of the body of Christ. We begin to preach about\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/01\/Magnifying_glass_with_focus_on_paper-300x169.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":57963,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-lords-church-is-magnificent\/","url_meta":{"origin":84720,"position":5},"title":"The Lord’s Church Is Magnificent","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 14, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jim Ward via the Lost River Bulletin, Vol. 59, No. 2, Feb. 2009. 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