A Biblical Structure of the Church

A physical family with covenant signs.

Adam and Eve marriage marital union

Noah family rainbow
Abraham tribe circumcision
Moses nation Commandments on tablets
David/Solomon Kingdom Kingdom / temple

Jesus universal Kingdom Eucharist

Twelve tribes
Twelve Apostles
Matthew 19:28
Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man
sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Matthias: It was important to keep the Twelve in tact. Acts 1:21 - Therefore it is
necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus
went in and out among us, 22beginning from John's baptism to the time when Jesus was
taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection."

Revelation 21:12
It had a great, high wall with twelve gates, and with twelve angels at the gates. On the
gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel.

Temple – Body of Jesus:

John 2:20-
The Jews replied, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to
raise it in three days?" 21But the temple he had spoken of was his body. 22After he was
raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the
Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.

At Pentecost the Twelve, gathered with 120.

Acts 1:13-15
When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those
present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and
Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14They
all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of
Jesus, and with his brothers.

The already given Church at Pentecost:

Ut Unum Sint #14: It is not a matter of adding together all the riches scattered
throughout the various Christian Communities in order to arrive at a Church which God
has in mind for the future. In accordance with the great Tradition, attested to by the
Fathers of the East and of the West, the Catholic Church believes that in the Pentecost
Event God has already manifested the Church in her eschatological reality, which he had
prepared "from the time of Abel, the just one".19 This reality is something already given.

Temple – Church –
Ephesians 2:20-22 describes the church as
built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief
cornerstone. 21In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy
temple in the Lord. 22And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling
in which God lives by his Spirit.

Ephesians 4:11 – the gave gifts

It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and
some to be pastors and teachers, 12to prepare God's people for works of service, so that
the body of Christ may be built up 13until we all reach unity in the faith and in the
knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the
fullness of Christ.

Notice – some of these gifts are part of the hierarchy, and come charismatic gifts.

CCC 2003 - Grace is first and foremost the gift of the Spirit who justifies and sanctifies
us. But grace also includes the gifts that the Spirit grants us to associate us with his work,
to enable us to collaborate in the salvation of others and in the growth of the Body of
Christ, the Church. There are sacramental graces, gifts proper to the different
sacraments. There are furthermore special graces, also called charisms after the Greek
term used by St. Paul and meaning "favor," "gratuitous gift," "benefit." Whatever their
character - sometimes it is extraordinary, such as the gift of miracles or of tongues -
charisms are oriented toward sanctifying grace and are intended for the common good of
the Church. They are at the service of charity which builds up the Church.