The legalists insisted that earthly institutions effectively wielding power were what guaranteed a state's survival. (bookbrowse.com)
That statement isnt based on knowledge, rather it's based on anger against an earthly institution. (religion.blogs.cnn.com)
It is the Church and Church alone which can witness to the reality that man belongs to God in Christ with a higher right than that of any earthly institution which may claim his supreme allegiance... We may and we should doubt whether the churches as they are do truly express the mind of Christ, but we may never doubt that Christ has a will for His Church, and that His promises to it holds good. (christianitytoday.com)