I once mentioned that the church was born when Christ died and was resurrected. And she has been growing spiritually since. The church already existed in the OT era. However, the purpose and existence of the church became clear when Christ died and was resurrected. Thus, the church era started.

We humans judge everything by what we see. Christ told us that people are blind. Christians pay much attention to appearance. But the true church is the invisible church. It is the assembly of true believers which only God can recognize. We do not know who is a true Christian by looking at what we see with our eyes. Although the true church is invisible, it does not mean that she does not have flesh and blood. Each saint has flesh and blood just as Christ has flesh and blood. Although our physical body perishes when we die, we will be given an imperishable body when Christ comes back. God is spirit and we worship Him in Spirit and Truth. We, who are anointed with the Holy Spirit and are united with Christ, receive an imperishable body just as Christ lives forever without His body decaying or aging. Therefore, the church is God’s body.

… in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. (1 Corinthians 15:52)

False prophets claim that we must build God’s kingdom on earth. This notion is strong in those who think they can make everyone a Christian and make their nation a Christian nation. The kingdom is a spiritual kingdom. It stays invisible until the last day. People get tempted by the devil because he is the prince of the world. The devil wants to make his kingdom on the earth. By using the words of God, he entices many. He attracts people and accumulates wealth. And he builds something that people can see because the blind judge only by what they see with their eyes.

… for in one hour such great wealth has been laid waste!’ And every shipmaster and every passenger and sailor, and all who make their living by the sea, stood at a distance, and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What city is like the great city?’ (Revelation 18:17-18)

The city Babylon described in Revelation 17 and 18 is contrasted to the city Jerusalem described in Revelation 21, which comes down out of heaven from God.

And I saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is among the people, and He will dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be among them, and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” (Revelation 21:2-4)

God taught the church on the earth. At first, she was taught about the Trinity, which the Three Ecumenical Creeds explain. She was taught about TULIP during the second reformation. Although God taught the saints, they were not perfect. We learn from our ancestors’ mistakes. We now see the limitations of the second reformation because the third reformation has come. The second reformation focused on the salvation of a person.

The Heidelberg Catechism Q1 shows us a limitation of the second reformation.

Q. What is your only comfort in life and in death?
A. That I am not my own, but belong—body and soul, in life and in death — to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. He also watches over me in such a way that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven; in fact, all things must work together for my salvation. Because I belong to him, Christ, by his Holy Spirit, assures me of eternal life and makes me wholeheartedly willing and ready from now on to live for him.

When we focus on individual salvation, the law as the written code is overly emphasized. Question 2 and 3 prove this. However, we must see a bigger picture. The purpose of all creation is the kingdom of God. Christ came to preach the kingdom of God.

But He said to them, “I must also preach the kingdom of God to the other cities, because I was sent for this purpose.” (Luke 4:43)

The law does not give us eternal life. However, that is what theologians and ministers teach. God does not exist for my or your salvation. God made us for a reason.

“Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.” (Revelation 4:11)

However, theologians and ministers changed God to idols. Churches around the world no longer preach the grace of God. Their idea of grace is crooked. People focus on the church life on the earth and fail to see the reality. The irony is that they do not keep the law while judging others by the law.

You who say that one is not to commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who loathe idols, do you rob temples? (Romans 2:22)