The true church of God, established by Jesus Christ and spread by His apostles, is composed of the Called Out Ones, individuals summoned and selected from the ways of this present world to surrender totally to God's rule. These are the eklektos, the chosen, picked out by God to the exclusion of others, as distinct from the broader kletos, those merely invited or called. As illustrated in the Parable of the Wedding Feast, many are called, but few are chosen, with God evaluating and narrowing down to those who wear the wedding garment of righteousness. The Called Out Ones are a small flock, often persecuted and unnoticed by the world, yet united in Spirit, mind, and heart through submission to God. They are not defined by membership in a physical organization but by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, growing in truth as God reveals it. Throughout nearly 2000 years of church history, many have been introduced to God's truth, yet only a few thousand have overcome and remained faithful to the end, enduring the judgment that begins at the house of God. The Called Out Ones must yield to being molded into God's image, producing fruit through His Spirit, showing faithfulness, commitment, and obedience in a joint effort with the Father to achieve their calling and election.

Amid a culture where newcomers shop for churches the way they shop for plumbers or schools—seeking preferred programs, preaching styles, or service times—this message challenges that consumer mindset by returning to Scripture to answer a deeper question: What is the Church? Drawing from Jesus' first use of the term in Gospel of Matthew 16:18, it presents the Church not as a building or denomination, but as the "ekklesia"—a called-out assembly of believers built upon and led by Jesus Christ Himself, the true Rock and Head. From the congregation in the wilderness to the Spirit-empowered believers of Acts of the Apostles 2, the Church is shown to be God's divinely initiated work: individuals drawn by the Father, brought to repentance and baptism, receiving the Holy Spirit, and gathered into a covenant community that worships in spirit and truth. This assembly is not formed by human preference but by divine calling; its members are chosen, transformed, and trained to live by God's Word rather than cultural trends, putting off the old self and putting on the new. Ultimately, the Church exists as God's spiritual training ground—His teachers' college—preparing a royal priesthood to reflect His image, proclaim His truth, and participate in His unfolding plan, growing into the likeness of Christ as they await His Kingdom.