As mentioned in our introduction post, each week we want to provide a sample of the riches and the fellowship from brother Titus Chu, as well as from the saints who have been enjoying these messages throughout the week in small groups. We hope this digest is able to bring you and those you share it with into the riches that we have enjoyed with one another.
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This digest is based on the thirteenth message given by Brother Titus Chu. If you have not seen it already, you may watch it on the Youtube Channel. You may also want to read the outline and relevant Bible verses for this message.
I Will Build My Church
In this message, Titus focuses on Christ’s declaration that He will build His church.
Christ is the Creator, Christ is the Upholder, Christ is the Inheritor, Christ is the Operator. You say, “Wow, marvelous! Christ is doing all this!” Christ says, “No, no, no, I don’t just do this outwardly. I can create the whole universe outwardly. I can uphold the whole universe outwardly. These are all outward, but I would like to do something inward, with substance, with My being as the reality.” What is that? That is the church. This is why Christ insists, “I will build My church.”
Message Transcript, p.2
Ekklesia
Before discussing how to build the church, we need to know what the church is. The Greek word ekklesia [commonly translated in English as church] is composed of three words: ek, kaleo, and ia.
Ek – “Out of a realm” – indicating that the church is produced by a group of people coming out of their original realm.
According to man, this realm can be valuable: I do welfare. This realm can be ethical: I live a life that upholds society and the community…This realm can also be worthless: I’m a drunkard; my realm is wine. I’m a doper; my realm is drugs. I’m a greedy man; my realm is money. I’m a terrible person; my realm is filled with terrible things. This is one kind of realm. God says, “Come out of it!” “But,” you say, “my realm can be very outstanding. I’m just a good man. I love my parents. I love my wife and my children. I love my colleagues. I love my neighbors. I do good things for them.” Even to this, the Lord says, “There’s another realm. Come out of it.” Why? Because all these do not match and do not have Christ Himself. So He said, “Come out of it. Come to Christ alone. I’m the unique One.”
Message Transcript, p.3
Kaleo – “[to call] to enter in.” I call you out to enter.
You can become a unique entity after you come out…We were all called out and we’re very happy. We’re not called out just to wander, you know. If I don’t belong to any society, then I become a wanderer. So what are you in? If you don’t belong to any realm, then where are you? No, I’m called out to enter into something, and what we enter into is extremely precious. What we enter into is the word ia.
Message Transcript, p.3
Ia – The ia in ekklesia is indicating the nature of the caller,
indicating that the church is being called out for the change of her position.“I’m coming out. I change my position, I change my existence, I change my essence, I change my belongings to be an organic entity with Christ the caller.” Christ is the caller. “Come out. Come out. Come out.” Come out for what? “Come out to be part of Me. One with Me. Receive My life. Take Me, take My essence. Take My element. Take My person. Take My being as yours.” So you are not just called out to be apart–“I have nothing to do with the world.” No, you were called out to be someone. Ekklesia means being Christ. A group of people were called out from whatever they were in to join to Christ himself. That is the church.
Message Transcript, p.3
Putting It All Together
What is the church? In a simple word, ekklesia. Then what is ekklesia? Coming out! Then, coming out to go where? To go to Christ. Ek- come out. Kaleo- come in, come to this. Come to what? To this “ia.” “Ia” means Christ Himself: “I am the caller. I want to call you out of everything so you can be part of Me.”
…
Brothers, isn’t that marvelous? Now we come out of everything and we join Christ. [We are] called out of darkness, out of sin, out of wine, out of drugs, out of world wealth, out of success in human nature, out of PhDs, out of a lot of study, out of a lot of success—we are out of it. Now we are just having Christ. The church is only Christ alone.”
Message Transcript, p.4
The Body of Christ
What are we now?… The believers are those who are called out to partake of Christ with His divine nature, His divine person, His divine being, and because of that, you know who are you now? Number one, you are the members of the body of Christ. What is the church? Paul says it very clearly. The church is His body. The ekklesia is His body.
Message Transcript, p.5
Membership
According to His Measure
Some functions or parts, you don’t quite see but they’re part of your body. They can be so crucial, more crucial than what you see, but they were there receiving and dispensing, receiving and dispensing, eventually turning the whole body into one full of energy, full of life element, full of strength, just like what? Just like your heart. Just like your lungs. Every heartbeat is receiving and circulating and dispensing. Every breath is receiving and dispensing. Eventually, the body becomes so healthy. Brother can you tell the Lord, “Lord, I don’t want to be a church-goer. I’d like to be an operating member in the body. I’d like to receive life from the church life. I’d like to dispense life in the church life. I’d like some brothers to help me. I’d like to be able to help many others. I’d like to be blessed by the brothers. I’d also like to be a blessing to some other brothers!” What a marvelous body life is this kind of body life here, this church life.
Message Transcript, p.6
Growing to be a Joint of Supply
Eventually you say “Lord, could I grow? Grow to be a joint of supply?” You see, I have an arm, and here, a wrist. What is this? This is a joint. When this joint functions right, my hands function right. I become a joint of supply. With this joint, my whole hand operates. With a proper shoulder joint, then my whole arm operates…We should say, “Lord, I’m so thankful I’m called out to be with You, to be in You, to have You, to be part of You, so I can become a member of the body in the church life. When I’m a member in the church life, not only do I have my part, but I receive life, I dispense life, I operate with circulation to bless the body. Eventually Lord, how I’d like to grow. How I’d like to grow. Grow to become a joint. Through me, many members can operate freely. Through me, many members can feel liberty and freedom, in the life element, in the realm of life.” What a marvelous ekklesia.
Message Transcript, p.6
Final Words & Prayer
This is ekklesia. Where were you? In the world. Where were you? In the world, sinful or ethical. Where were you? In my PhD studies, this seems good right? But still, that’s another realm. Now I come back to the realm of Christ Himself. I come out of it, I join Christ. After I join Christ, Christ is my essence, my element, my everything! More than that, I become a member. Eventually how I desire to become a functioning member, and even be a joint, supporting the functioning members.
Can you pray to the Lord, “Lord, be merciful to me. I’d like to grow, to become a joint, become a joint of supply for the whole body to be built up together, to the satisfaction of Christ.”
What a marvelous ekklesia. And what a marvelous thing we are part of, this ekklesia. In this, we find nothing but Christ. Also in this, everyone becomes so useful because of Christ, because out of Christ, in Christ, with Christ, receive Christ, release Christ, dispense Christ, eventually Christ can have a preeminence and become a blessing to all. Can we tell the Lord “Lord have mercy upon us. We like to be a healthy member in this ekklesia, the body of Christ. We like to be growing in this ekklesia, the body of Christ, so that Your testimony can satisfy you.” What a good thing. Lord says “I am satisfied.” Lord says “I will.”Then with this, we say “Lord if You will, our answer is we are willing. We are willing to live, to walk, according to ‘You will,’ to Your satisfaction.”
Message Transcript, p.6
