A. H. Rule
In Matt. 16:18 Christ builds His Church. In John 11:52 He gathers together in one the children of God. In 1 Cor. 12:13 all believers are baptized by one Spirit into one body. In Eph. 4:4, "There is one body, and one Spirit." All this speaks of unity. The Church which Christ builds is one; the children of God which He gathers are one; the body is one. This is what God, in the power of the Spirit, has worked through Christ.
We find, too, in Scripture that the local assembly in a city or country place was a local representation of this one body, the Church. It was the assembly of God in the place, and gathered together on the principle that the assembly of God is one. The name of the Lord Jesus was that to which the saints were gathered. They were gathered to this Name in the power of the Spirit, and in obedience to the Word, and when gathered, Christ was in the midst of them. (Matt. 18:20; 1 Cor. 12:12, 13; Eph. 4:3,4.)
Such was the local assembly as set up of God at the beginning. The marks are plain, and show that in no sense was it a mere voluntary assembly formed by man's will. Let this be well noted. Man's will has no place in it, except as it may be introduced by the working of the flesh and contrary to the Spirit of God. An assembly formed by man's will would not be an assembly of God at all, even though a perfect imitation as to outward form and action. Alas, we know well the flesh may display itself in a shocking way, even in God's assembly! But, I repeat, a voluntary association is not God's assembly, no matter how perfect the imitation may be.
Now we know that God allowed the assembly to be tested, and it was not long till sad failure came in. The flesh displayed itself in various ways and in schisms growing out of the carnal state which was allowed to go unjudged. And these schisms were connected with heresies, that is, schools of opinion which God allowed to arise among them in order to manifest their state. "For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you." 1 Cor. 11:19. But these heresies are distinctly declared to be "works of the flesh" (Gal. 5:19-21). They are in no way the "fruit of the Spirit.”