# The Church and Its Mission

> Long before the denominations, God established His true Church to be the pillar and ground of truth. This study traces what the church is, whose bride she is, the seven pillars she must build on, and the one mission she was called out to carry.

- Source: https://timeisathandlive.org/end-time/the-church-and-its-mission
- Site: Time Is At Hand Evangelistic Ministries (https://timeisathandlive.org)
- Key scripture: Matthew 16:18
- Topics: Bible study
- Updated: 2026-08-28
- Licence: free to read, quote and share, with attribution.

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Long before the Catholic church, orthodox, Lutheran, Church of God, Anglican,
Presbyterian, Methodist, Anabaptist, congregational, Baptist, and the
Pentecostal Church, God established His true Church to be the pillar and ground
of truth and the gateway to heaven.

## Called out to be separate

The word *church* comes from the Greek word called *ek-kle-sia*.

The word *ek* means out and the word *kle-sia* means to call — indicating that
God's church is called out to be separate from all others and to fulfil a
special purpose.

## A typology of Christ and His Church

At the end of creation week, God made Adam and Eve.

> **Genesis 1:27** — So God created man in his own image, in the image of God
> created he him; male and female created he them.

Adam is a typology of Christ and Eve a typology of His Church. It takes a woman
and a man to bring out the beauty of God's plan. As Eve was the bride of Adam,
so the Church is the bride of Christ.

> **Revelation 19:7-8** — Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him:
> for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
> And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and
> white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

## Put to sleep for the life of His Church

The Bible tells us that God put Adam to sleep and took a rib from his side and
made Eve his wife. He did not make the woman at the same time when he made the
man. Just as Adam was put to sleep and a rib was taken from his side to make
his wife, the scripture shows us that Christ was put to sleep and out of His
side came blood and water, which was for the regeneration and rebirth of His
church which had been made defiled by sin.

> **John 19:34** — But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and
> forthwith came there out blood and water.

Adam was put to sleep for the life of his wife, and Christ was put to sleep for
the life of His Church.

## The head and High Priest

Adam was made the head and priest of his wife, and Christ is made the head and
High Priest of the Church.

> **Ephesians 5:23** — For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ
> is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.

> **1 Corinthians 15:22** — For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all
> be made alive.

> **Ephesians 5:24-25** — Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let
> the wives be to their own husbands in every thing. Husbands, love your wives,
> even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it.

> **Ephesians 5:27** — That he might present it to himself a glorious church,
> not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and
> without blemish.

## Upon this rock

Through Adam the church became corrupted and lost her way, but in Christ she is
redeemed forever. When Christ says to Peter that on this rock I will build my
church and the gates of hell cannot prevail against it, He was simply saying
that the first time the devil prevailed through Adam, but this time he has to
come through Christ.

<figure>
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    />
    <img
      src="/images/blog/upon-this-rock-i-will-build-my-church.jpg"
      alt="Matthew 16:18 — 'Upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it'"
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  <figcaption>
    <strong>The promise the church rests on</strong>
    Not that she will escape the assault, but that it will not prevail.
  </figcaption>
</figure>

> **Matthew 16:18** — And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon
> this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail
> against it.

## The pillar and ground of the truth

God has a church on earth and it will always be. There is nothing anyone can do
to stop it. This Church has a special purpose to fulfil before Christ returns.
It must conduct itself in accordance with God's will.

> **1 Timothy 3:15** — But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou
> oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the
> living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

There are seven foundational pillars that she must constantly build on. They are
the Everlasting Gospel, the Law of God, the Sanctuary in Heaven, the Judgment,
the Spirit of Prophecy, the Faith of Christ and the Second Coming — with
emphasis on the state of the dead also.

<figure>
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              /images/blog/seven-foundational-pillars-1600w.webp 1600w"
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    <img
      src="/images/blog/seven-foundational-pillars.jpg"
      alt="The seven foundational pillars the church must build on — the Everlasting Gospel, the Law of God, the Sanctuary in Heaven, the Judgment, the Spirit of Prophecy, the Faith of Christ, and the Second Coming"
      width="1600"
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  <figcaption>
    <strong>Seven, and all seven</strong>
    They are named in a single sentence in the original. Set out one by one, they can be counted and checked.
  </figcaption>
</figure>

God's church will be a pure one.

> **James 1:27** — Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is
> this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep
> himself unspotted from the world.

It is called to separate itself from apostasy, errors, and ecumenism.

> **2 Corinthians 6:17** — Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye
> separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive
> you.

## The great mission of the church

The great mission of the church is to preach the everlasting gospel.

> **Matthew 24:14** — And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all
> the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

<figure>
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    <source
      type="image/webp"
      sizes="(min-width: 80rem) 44rem, (min-width: 48rem) 60vw, 100vw"
      srcset="/images/blog/this-gospel-shall-be-preached-400w.webp 400w,
              /images/blog/this-gospel-shall-be-preached-800w.webp 800w,
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              /images/blog/this-gospel-shall-be-preached-1600w.webp 1600w"
    />
    <img
      src="/images/blog/this-gospel-shall-be-preached.jpg"
      alt="Matthew 24:14 — 'And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come'"
      width="1600"
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  <figcaption>
    <strong>The one commission</strong>
    Everything else the church does is in service of this, and the end waits on it.
  </figcaption>
</figure>

Her mission is to call God's people out of apostate false worship.

> **Revelation 18:4** — And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out
> of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive
> not of her plagues.

> **John 10:16** — And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also
> I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and
> one shepherd.

> The church is God's appointed agency for the salvation of men. It was
> organized for service, and its mission is to carry the gospel to the world.
> From the beginning it has been God's plan that through His church shall be
> reflected to the world His fullness and His sufficiency. The members of the
> church, those whom He has called out of darkness into His marvelous light, are
> to show forth His glory. The church is the repository of the riches of the
> grace of Christ; and through the church will eventually be made manifest, even
> to "the principalities and powers in heavenly places," the final and full
> display of the love of God. Ephesians 3:10.
>
> — *The Acts of the Apostles*, p. 9

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On the first of the seven pillars named here,
[The Everlasting Gospel](/end-time/everlasting-gospel) sets out the message of
Revelation 14, and [The Three Angels' Messages](/end-time/three-angels-messages)
takes the three proclamations one at a time. On the third,
[The Sanctuary](/studies/the-sanctuary) works through the types, the services
and the Messiah they pointed to. On the seventh,
[Time Shall Be No More](/end-time/time-no-more) turns to Revelation 10 and the
close of probation.

For the Christ who is the head of this church,
[Getting to Know Jesus](/studies/getting-to-know-jesus) takes up Philippians
3:10 and what it means to know Christ personally rather than to know about Him.

If this study has raised something you would like to talk through, the team
reads every message: [ask a Bible question](/contact/bible-questions), or
[send a prayer request](/contact/prayer-requests).