Counsel #1 — God’s Church Through History

Picture: Counsel #1 — God’s Church Through HistoryCFL 27.1

God has always had a faithful people, a small group through the ages who have remained loyal to Him through persecution, calamities, pagan influences, and apostasy. This faithful “remnant” was the rootstock God used to grow His visible church^{[22]See Counsel #7: One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism for a more comprehensive understanding of God’s “invisible church.”} on earth, those through whom all the covenant promises would be fulfilled.CFL 27.2

The church is God’s family. Through history, it has derived its authority to represent God from Christ, the living Word as revealed in the Scriptures.^{[23]https://www.adventist.org/the-church/being-part-of-gods-family/}CFL 27.3

“Even so, then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace.” Romans 11:5CFL 27.4

“From the beginning, faithful souls have constituted the church on earth. In every age the Lord has had His watchmen, who have borne a faithful testimony to the generation in which they lived… God brought these witnesses into covenant relation with Himself, united the church on earth with the church in heaven. He has sent forth His angels to minister to His church, and the gates of hell have not been able to prevail against His people.” Ellen White in The Acts of the Apostles, p. 11CFL 27.5

Reflect: Do you stand under the blood-stained banner of Jesus as part of the body of Christ, or under the black banner of rebellion? (See Colossians 1:24) CFL 27.6