Why was the Sinai assembly not a church?
The Sinai assembly was a called-out assembly, the same word as ecclesia, but not a church. It lacked deacons, bishops, and pastors. Israel was under the law and under Moses, a completely different setting from anything pertaining to the church.
Les teaches that what happened at Sinai was a called-out assembly, which is also the word Ecclesia. Israel was indeed a called-out assembly because God called them and led them out of Egypt and camped them in Sinai. However, it was not a church as we understand the church. They did not have deacons, bishops, or pastors. They were under the law and under Moses. It was a whole different setting than anything that pertains to the church, even though it is the same word: a called-out assembly.