You've Been Taught Church Wrong — It Was Never a Building

Araceli: Welcome to one more episode of Bible and Wine Lounge Podcast.

Giovanni: Podcast. Yeah. Cheers to that.

Araceli: You know I wasn't gonna drink today but it's Bible and Wine Lounge Podcast.

Giovanni: Gotta do what you gotta do. Yep.

What We Thought Church Was

Araceli: Alright, so today we're gonna dive in and we're gonna talk about the word church in our Bibles. This one for me, I'm sure you got your own backstory on it but before I actually dove into the Greek manuscripts I thought it was a building. I thought it was a requirement for me to go to a building to go worship God and so I don't know what your circumstance was, what your reality was.

Giovanni: Well as you know my mom I felt so bad for her in COVID. She was suffering that she could not go to church. She felt that if she wasn't going to church she wasn't being with God and we had to talk to her and it took her, it took us a while to make her see that she did not need to go to church to be connected to him.

Araceli: Yeah, I remember.

Giovanni: That's how I grew up with that.

Araceli: Yeah, I remember her conscience was really condemned. She felt so condemned.

Giovanni: Big time. Yeah, that's true.

Araceli: But what was your personal idea of the word church?

Giovanni: A place that you have to commit to going to go see him. It just came to my head like right now like when you have a elderly parent in a elderly home, like a senior home type thing. Yeah. And you commit yourself to go see him or that or her once a week on the weekends. That's what it was to me like that's where he's at. I gotta go see him once a week and then coming from an old Catholic apostolic church you know it's like that's where you go and you confess and you clean yourself up and you can mess up again for the next couple days and you just go do it again. I'm pretty sure there could be a couple people that that can relate to that if you're one of them. Please do give us your opinion comment here. We'd like to hear

3,000 Translations and Pulling My Hair Out

Araceli: but yeah that that used to be our reality. All the Bible versions that you read out there, whether it be the NIV, the NKJV, the KJV— all these Bible translations that are out there I think I've seen that there's like 3,000 Bible versions out there.

Giovanni: Yeah.

Araceli: And so diving into these translations I don't know if you remember, I'd come out with my hairs in my hand, just pulling. I was upset because I'd compare one translation version to another all English Bibles and I'd have them in front of me and they'd be like they're all saying something different about the same verse.

Giovanni: Many editions.

Araceli: And it would drive me up a wall. I wanted to know the truth right right because Christ said if you know the truth it will set you free. So, Dane, if I don't know the truth, how am I gonna be set free?.

Giovanni: Right.

Araceli: So this this was—

Giovanni: and whose truth?

Araceli: Frustrating. Yeah.

Giovanni: The King James truth or the NIV truth or the Baptist truth or the Catholic truth

Araceli: mm-hmm yeah it definitely turns into that I was oh man I can't tell you how many times I was just about to quit on reading the Bible altogether. But I'm happy I kept going because things got clearer when I started diving into just the manuscripts especially the Peshitta. So, back to the word church. So that's what we're gonna dive into right now and so to find to find out what this word means it really is as simple as doing the following like if I would have known back then, when I was struggling and pulling my hairs out of as I had all these English Bible versions in front of me— if I would have known then that all I needed to do was go into the Aleppo Codex the Septuagint go into any one of these manuscripts and just pulled any of the verses in Greek I could have just learned from it the Greek language that the original Bible manuscripts are written and I could have just read that word and known it was never talking about a building and we're gonna take you on this journey because I'm sure we are not the only ones

Giovanni: and I'm sure you'll post where they can go to get the actual Hebrew or Greek yeah manuscripts and just to point out a little added bonus if you will when she first told me this you know it didn't make that much sense or I didn't give it that much importance until we came across that Yeshua with the Pharisees were at the leper's house and you know you brought up like wait why would they be at a leper's home especially the Pharisees they were so like you don't touch me they didn't want to be near a leper, let alone go to a leper's home and then you went to the translation and figured out that it actually the word meant leper or jar maker Wow what a difference now it makes sense why the the lady that came with the jar of perfume why she would be going to that house why would she be going to a leper's home but why would she be going to a jar maker because guess what that's what that's where she puts her perfumes so I was like wow if that's the case with that how much more and that's when I started to realize the importance.

Araceli: I mean, if you guys think about this 200 years from now if I was to write down the Bulls Chicago Bulls basketball team slaughtered, you know, the New York Mets—

Giovanni: I know, that's baseball. You know nothing about sports.

Araceli: Alright, what's another team? Basketball team?

Giovanni: Miami Heat.

Araceli: People be like, oh my god 200 years ago they would chop 'em to pieces, because slaughter means cut in pieces but we know what it means so that's why it's so important to go to the manuscripts and how it was written and seen in that era just to give you an overview of the importance that we're not just being nitpicky.

Giovanni: No, no, there's, there's a lot behind it. And so without further ado, you can continue

The Greek Word: Ekklesia

Araceli: and so when we dive deep into what the original language is telling us for the Greek for the New Testament it's Greek the manuscripts were written in Greek, and also Aramaic when you go into the Peshitta, and so in the Old Testament Hebrew and so when you start reading the original language the words it's a whole new world it's a whole new world a lot of theology gets put to the test and fails. Just putting out a disclaimer out there. It is what it is you and I have been disturbed shocked and our reality is shattered don't take our word for it do your own homework okay so what does that word church in our Bibles what does that Greek word mean well for one that Greek word is ekklesia, E-K-K-L-E-S-I-A. And the Strong's Concordance 1577 and 1537 say that that part ek means out from and to and the klesia part means to call so properly put together it means people called out from the world to God the outcome being the church which is the body of Christ it says here, i.e., the universal total body of believers whom God calls out from the world and into his eternal kingdom. I.e., us!

Giovanni: Yeah.

Araceli: When I read this, I'm like why does this feel so right these Greek words, or these Aramaic words. If you read the Peshitta, the Syriac Peshitta, or the Hebrew words, if you're reading the manuscripts for the Old Testament Wow they do change the way that you've been brought up to think about the Word of God and so this is what the word church means that Greek word for a church that is in our English Bible translations every time you see it something's going to now click in you you're gonna see it very differently as we continue moving along you're gonna see that word church very differently but if that isn't enough we will go to a more logical way to come to the conclusion of what our Bibles are really telling us when we read scriptures in our English version versions to say the word church there is more there is more

Can a Building Be Burdened? 1 Timothy 5:16

Araceli: so we're gonna dive into First Timothy 5:16, the NKJV version, and it says if any believing man or woman has widows let them relieve them and do not let the church be burdened that it may relieve those who are really widows I don't know about you guys but please do tell me when you guys catch a building being burdened because I think we want to catch this on camera I think the world needs to know

Giovanni: right have you ever seen I mean I knew you were going there I heard you tell that to your sister yeah that was like oh it makes sense

Araceli: right yeah church can't be burdened

Giovanni: no but people can yeah

Araceli: well yeah what do you guys think about this one you good have you guys ever read First Timothy 5:16 and seen this here? I want to know if you know somebody connected the dots in that way that would be really cool

Giovanni: you know yeah let us know because most haven't you know you we have my uncle who's a theologian doctor and oh my god so many titles and he would not see many of things you know we get so blinded and I could see why Yeshua would say they have eyes but they do not see.

A Building in Fear? Acts 5:11

Araceli: So we want to know if you if anybody actually saw this and like wait a second how can a building be burdened it would be good to know how many other brothers and sisters out there have also come to this conclusion okay but that's not it there's more there's more here's another scripture I've bumped into: Acts 5:11, and it's the NKJV version and it reads so great fear came upon all the church, and upon all who heard these things. I don't know about you, but have you ever seen a building in fear?

Giovanni: Shaking, trembling. Boom. I mean, no.

Araceli: Yeah. I mean, we don't think about these things man and so this is where we do have to come to that place and we came to that place of being like the Bereans and questioning everything everything that I was ever taught about God I began questioning it but it all started to make sense oh man when I started really to pay attention I just okay you teach me God who you are and spirit of truth come right could Christ said the spirit of truth will come and lead us no man into all truth right there's another scripture says let no man guide you Oh no man teacher right so that's where becoming like a Berean and just really scrutinizing everything that I ever learned about God and really looking at Scripture in this way just started making the word come alive and things like this started popping out so I encourage everyone everyone to become a Berean all right so great fear came upon all the church so I think you guys are starting to see the picture here and please do share if this is something you had already researched found out through scholarly scholarly articles and even the original manuscripts diving into the real Greek words and Hebrew words do share in comments we want to hear we want to know other people that have come to this conclusion okay but there's more so this will help you look at this biblically with a logical mind.

Giovanni: Right.

You Are the Temple: 1 Corinthians 3:16-17

Araceli: Because now, right now we're just using our logic to make sense of what this word could possibly mean and so now let's go into first Corinthians 3:16 and 17, the NKJV version. It says, do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you if anyone defiles the temple of God God will destroy him for the temple of God is holy which temple you are and so we see here that the word church wasn't used this word church wasn't used here and there's even other scriptures where our Lord— it is said that he was driving out, right, the money changers and all the people that were selling in the temple, driving them out. He said, in the temple he drove them out. He entered the temple and drove them out. So that's the building

Giovanni: yeah that is the building

Araceli: why would they have two different words right right church temple so temple was the building in the Bible but they couldn't use the word temple for the word church because that's not what it meant and I like first Corinthians 3:16 and 17, which we just read, because it's letting you know it's letting us the readers know who has become the temple of God I didn't say it first Corinthians did it says for the temple of God is holy which temple you are. You are the temple.

Giovanni: You are the temple! I am!

Araceli: If you receive this, comment "Amen," comment "I am the temple." Profess it and confess it, because this is the truth this is the truth it's not a building

Giovanni: it's not a building

Araceli: it's wonderful that we go and we get together in the building but each other up in good works, like Paul says.

Giovanni: Absolutely.

Araceli: But the problem is when the building becomes the place that we think that's the only place God is in so that's where I have to go

Giovanni: and six days out of the week I don't act like I'm in that temple like I'm in that building yeah that's what we faced even before yeah it's like okay I'm in the temple so I'm gonna be good but now I'm out

Araceli: but when you know that the you are the temple now it's a way of life

Giovanni: it's a way of life yeah yeah yep

Ending With the Lord's Words: The Samaritan Woman

Araceli: this shattered our reality okay well we want to end it with the Lord's words and the Lord said he backs this up. He backs First Corinthians 3:16 up, which says you were you're the temple we're the temple he tells the Samaritan woman: but the hour is coming, and now is when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such to worship him God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth. He told this to the Samaritan woman, 'cause the Samaritan woman was like well where are we supposed to worship you know we say it's the mountain but you guys say it's the temple. And because— just a little back and forth— and they would fight about it. And this is why they were at odds. This one of the many things many reasons that they were at odds about and so this dissension was one of those things some thought the temple was the proper way of worship the Jews and the Samaritans thought it was the mountain and so this is this is why the Lord answered her what he answered her yes he's like no the time is now when we will worship in spirit and in truth no longer needing to go to any mountain or temple which he said that too because I'll go back I'll back up to verse 21 he says, Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem worship the father so he clearly was letting her know the time is now no longer will you need to worship at the temple or on the mountain because now just like Corinthians told us— First Corinthians 3:17— we were gonna become the temple you are the temple and when you think about the temple in Old Testament time and even during the time the Christ was alive that's where the Holy Spirit was known to dwell and so now we get to be that temple that God dwells in.

Giovanni: And he said the time is now because he was there she didn't know who he was she who she was talking to at that time yeah and I don't think we went backwards it's not like Yeshua said, okay, the time is now— and he died, and things went back to the old ways

Araceli: no it stayed the same it's still there we're still the temple

Giovanni: we're still the temple

Araceli: okay so we're church it's not a building it's a group of believers

Giovanni: it's a group of believers

Araceli: that are called out from the world to God that's the definition of that Greek word and we are the temple

Giovanni: we are the temple Amen