The Doctrine of the Church (2): The Idea of the Church

"The visible church, which is also catholic or universal under the gospel (not confined to one nation as before under the law) consists of all those, throughout the world, that profess the true religion, and of their children; and is the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ, the house and family of God, out of which there is no ordinary possibility of salvation." Now what is the idea, what is the being, or essence, of the church of Christ? Scripture is rich in terms that describe the church of our...