What is the church? Our home as a church.

What is a church in the house? We are accustomed to think of the church as a building, but how do you describe the Bible to the church? Interestingly, the Bible never uses the word "church" to describe a building. Instead, it gives us a picture of the church as a family. As in a family, there are spiritual mothers, fathers, sisters, and Brothers in Christ. The church is called "The House of God" (1 Timothy 3:15). They shared meals together (Acts 2:46, 1 Corinthians 11:20-21). They lived life together (Acts 2:44-46) and as a family, they cared and loved each other deeply (1 Peter 1:22). It is not surprising then that the New Testament churches would typically gather in the houses of the believers.

Here are some biblical examples of the New Testament of Churches in the house.

• The House of Lydia (Acts 16:40)
• A high room (Acts 20:8)
• The House of Priscilla and Aquila (Romans 16:3-5, 1 Corinthians 16:19)
• The House of Nymphs in Laodicea (Colossians 4:15)
• The House of Arquipo (Philemon 16:40)

Some in the West see the churches in the houses as a new phenomenon, when in reality, the churches in the houses have existed since the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:42-47). Many large churches today began because a small group gathered in the houses of the believers. In China, for example, the churches in the houses have been one of the vehicles that God has used to multiply the number of Chinese disciples, of a few thousand in the years 1930, according to some estimates, to more than 80 million of believers today.