Whose idea was church?
The church exists in and through Jesus Christ , and so is a distinctive New Testament reality. At the same time it is continuous with Israel , the seed of Abraham and God 's covenant people. The new covenant under which the church lives (1 Cor. 11 :25; Heb. 8:7-13) is a new form of the relationship in which God says to His chosen community, "I will be your God, and you shall be my people" (Jer. 7:23; 31 :33; cf. Ex. 6:7). Under the new covenant, the Old Testament priests, sacrifices, and sanctuary have been superseded by the mediation of Jesus (Heb. 1-10). Believers in Christ are the seed of Abraham and the people of God (Gal. 3:29; 1 Pet. 2:4-10). Second, the limitation of the old covenant to one nation (Deut. 7:6; Ps. 147:19, 20) is replaced by the inclusion in Christ on equal terms of believers from every nation (Eph. 2; 3; Rev. 5:9, 10). Third, the Spirit is poured out on the church, so that fellowship with Christ (1 John 1 :3), ministry f