What is "Ekklesia?"

by Mike James

With the recent rise in interest in Dominionist theology and Christian Nationalism in the United States, there has been an effort to redefine the term "Church," or ekklesia in the Greek. When you search this word in an authoritative source like the Bauer/Danker Greek and English Lexicon you find three primary definitions.

Ekklesia — not just a building, but a people called out to live, grow, and worship together.

The first definition provided is a regularly summoned legislative body or assembly. The second definition is a casual gathering of people, an assemblage, or gathering. The third definition is people with a shared belief, a community, or a congregation.

There is no doubt that in the ancient Greek and Roman worlds, this word was used in reference to Greek and Roman citizens assembling to make public policy or political decisions, just like a modern-day congress. This is how some Dominionists and Christian Nationalists understand it. And yes, this is the first definition the Danker/Bauer Lexicon uses, but that is not how the writers of the New Testament were thinking about this word when they used it. The second and third definitions of this word fit much better with how we should understand this word in the New Testament.

Evidence to support my contention comes from Scripture. In John 18:36, Jesus lets Pilate know that His kingdom is not of this world, and if it were, He would fight for it right then and there. Acts 1:6-8 reiterates this notion that God's kingdom would not be taking over rulership on the earth at that time. The job of Christ's disciples was to witness the message of the gospel until a future time when the kingdom would come.

Biblical language scholar, Dr. Ron Cottle provides further proof by looking at the usage of the word ekklesia in the Septuagint translation of the Bible. Remember, the Septuagint was a Greek translation of the Old Testament books of the Bible. The Greek word ekklesia was used in the Septuagint for the Hebrew word qahal.

Here are a couple of examples of the usage of qahal/ekklesia in the Old Testament. In Ezekiel 23:45-47, we see the word being used in reference to God's people being judged and punished by a company (qahal) of people due to the sins of Israel and Judah. The word here does not mean a political assembly, but a foreign army that carries out God's punishment.

In Acts 7:38, the Greek word for "church" (ekklesia) is used to describe the nation of Israel in the wilderness on their way to the Promised Land. This is because God was with them in a theocratic union much like it will be again when Christ returns and sets up the Kingdom of God on earth after His Second Coming.

Israel in the wilderness and in the Promised Land did not continue as God's people on earth because they sinned and did not stay in covenant with God. Since that time, there has never been another nation or people who have properly followed God. We could argue that major Christian nations in the world, like the United States and the United Kingdom, are similar typologically to ancient Israel, but they have failed to be obedient to God despite the fact that some of their people have God's Holy Spirit.

Our job right now is not to rule this world, but to be ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20) for Christ's Kingdom, which will be coming to this earth at the time God chooses to reveal it. Ambassadors represent a nation within another nation or kingdom. They do not rule and control the other kingdom in which they are living.

God's Word is clear that until Christ returns, the kingdoms of this earth are not under God's dominion and authority. Scriptures like 2 Corinthians 4:4 make it clear there is a different god (Satan) reigning over the kingdoms of this world now. Christ acknowledged this when He was tempted by Satan in Luke 4:6-8.

Only after Christ returns and puts Satan away for a thousand years will governance of this world be restored to the true God (Revelation 20:1-3). This happens after Christ destroys the kingdoms of this world who are governed by Satan currently (Daniel 2; Revelation 13; Revelation 19).

The early church did not set the world upside down (Acts 17:6) by altering the governments in place at that time, but by baptizing and teaching people the true gospel message about Christ and His coming Kingdom (Matthew 28:19-20). Go and do likewise.

Sources:

"Is the Ekklesia Really the Legislative Ruling Body on the Earth?" by Joseph Mattera, Christian Learning, November 7, 2022, https://www.christianlearning.com/is-the-ekklesia-really-the-legislative-ruling-body-on-the-earth/

A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other Early Christian Literature, Third Edition, Frederick William Danker based on Walter Bauer's, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000).