What is the church?

When you hear the word “church,” what comes to mind? An old looking building with a steeple? Stained-glass windows? Sunday services? The sound of music? Smells? Bells? Centuries of tradition?

While these are common images, church is something much bigger—something far deeper than any one building or expression.

So, what is the church? I think it can be summed up in three words: Called, Connected, Commissioned.

First, called

The Christian story takes a dramatic turn after Jesus’ resurrection. He appears to hundreds of witnesses over 40 days before ascending to heaven, leaving His followers with the mission of sharing His good news with the world. And it is here, in the aftermath of Jesus’ death and resurrection in the book of Acts in the New Testament, that the church is born.

The word “church” comes from the Greek word ekklesia, meaning “a gathering” or “assembly” of ‘called out people.’ So, in Biblical terms, the church isn’t a place—it’s a people. It isn’t a ceremony—it’s a community. Early Christians didn’t have church buildings; they gathered in homes, courtyards, and public spaces. They were united not by a physical structure but by a shared spirituality—a personal relationship with Jesus lived out through service and love for others (Acts 2:46-47).

In the broader Christian story, the church represents both continuity and discontinuity:

Continuity in the sense that God has always had His representative people on earth. In the beginning, humanity itself, through Adam and Eve, was tasked with reflecting God’s rule. After humanity strayed, God called the people of ancient Israel to be His light to the nations (Isa. 49:6). Through Israel, God’s presence, law, and mission were made visible to the world.

But there is also discontinuity in that the church isn’t simply a spiritual continuation of ancient Israel or its replacement. The church is a entirely new community made up of all people—Jews and Gentiles alike—in fulfilment of a new and better covenant promise God made with the ancient people of Israel. Just to give you one example of how it is new and better, take the idea of the temple. In the Old Testament, God’s presence was confined to the temple, but in the New Testament church, His presence dwells within His people through the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:16). Christians themselves become ‘holy ground’ and ‘lights to the world’ (Matt. 5:14-16).

But the church isn’t just called, it’s connected.

Second, connected

There are many metaphors used to describe the church throughout the New Testament: the family of God, the bride of Christ, a holy temple, a flock of sheep. But one of the primary metaphors is the church as the Body of Christ. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:27, “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it,” adding in Colossians 1:18, “He [Jesus] is the head of the body, the church.”

What this body metaphor does, is help us to understand and appreciate the unity and diversity of the Christian church. Theologians sometimes distinguish between the capital “C” Church in general, and a lowercase “c” church in particular.

• The capital “C” Church refers to the universal church—all Christians throughout history united by their faith in Jesus. It’s not an institution or one denomination but a living organism connected by one Spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, and one baptism.

• The lowercase “c” church is a local organisation of this living organism (the capital “C” Church). It’s the local community described in Acts 2:42-47: devoted to the teachings of Jesus, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer. How this looks varies based on culture and tradition, explaining why many different Christian denominations exist today.

The key point is this: No member of the body is indispensable to the whole. Just as the head guides and gives life to the body, so each person—uniquely gifted and shaped by their experiences—plays a crucial role in the body’s health, growth, and overall function.

Or to change the metaphor: like members of an orchestra, the church thrives when every member contributes. When some play off key, out of tune, or fail to play at all, the whole symphony suffers. But when all play together, the church resonates with the purpose of Jesus, transforming hearts, communities, and history itself.

Called, Connected, finally, the church is Commissioned.

Third, commissioned

Just as the church is both local and universal, so its purpose operates in two dimensions: inside and outside.

Inside the Church the primary purpose is to grow into the full measure of Jesus Christ, embodying His compassion, forgiveness, and humility (Col. 3:12-14). This happens through teaching, fellowship, and worship in community, which is why Hebrews 10:25 urges believers not to “give up meeting together... but encourage one another.”

Outside the Church we see how this primary purpose of being built up in Christ extends into the world. Jesus told His followers to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matt. 28:19)… “You will be my witnesses... to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The church is called to share the good news of Jesus in both word and deed—serving others, opposing injustice, showing mercy, and offering hope to a hurting world. And to this end, the Christian Church has been perhaps the most disruptive, transformative and influential movement in world history, building hospitals, founding schools, advocating for the oppressed and leading abolition movements.

Of course, the Church hasn’t always lived up to this high calling. The Bible doesn’t hide this reality—Jesus Himself confronted religious hypocrisy in His day (Matt. 23). But these struggles underscore a deeper truth: the Church is not like a museum of saints, it’s more like a workshop of sinners, hammering out a hope we know personally. God doesn’t call the already equipped; He equips the already called. So, while there have been times when members have played off key, but that doesn’t mean the symphony written by our Savior isn’t beautiful when played as intended.

Ultimately, God seems more concerned with intimacy than efficiency. Part of the way the Church is built up inside is from its work on the outside. Like a child helping dad in the garden, the gardening may not be as quick or efficient if it were just dad, but the relationship deepens through the shared work as the child listens, learns (often times by mistake), trusting and ultimately growing in their relationship with their Father.

Called, Connected, Commissioned. The church is where heaven’s light leaks through earth’s cracks. It isn’t perfect—it’s made up of people like me and you—but in that sense, it embodies the message it proclaims. The church is a living testimony of God mercy meeting human messiness. All of us need to be forgiven, all of us need grace. This is what it means to be the church. A family saved by grace, sent to love, and partnered with God in His redemption story.