Seeing the church for whom Jesus laid down His life Exhortations to Those Who "Home Church" (Part One)

by Matthew Chapman

 

  

In the past five or six years there has been a noticeable increase of Christians who have chosen to "home church" rather than continue along with the traditional religious system. Many have opted for "home church" because they were deeply disappointed or hurt by the institutional authorities in relation to a particular emphasis that was being made, abuses or moral failures by the leadership, or perhaps a matter of doctrinal truth. Some have pursued "home church" because they seek more meaningful relationships with other believers and have grown weary of the standard shallow conversations that take place before and after "services" as well as "fellowshipping with the back of someone's head" while sitting passively in a pew. Some do it because they enjoy the informality of meeting in a home, and the spontaneity of focus and activity it allows for. While others now find themselves "home churching" because they are seeking to more closely follow the "biblical pattern" with "like-minded brethren."

Quite a number of others have stepped out of the traditional institutional setting because they recognized the fallacy of dividing and segregating the family based upon age and marital status for religious purposes. Many within this particular group of people came to this realization when they saw how their children were being negatively influenced in the peer-dominated contexts of Sunday School, youth groups, Vacation Bible School, and the like. Even though these programs are sanctioned as normal aspects of "going to church," they woke up to the fact that they foster the very same types of compromising situations with the very same types of pressures and influences (though perhaps not quite as bad) that they had sought to shelter their children from in the first place by taking them out of government or private schools and home schooling them instead. This is a very general sampling or reasons why many Christians have begun to "home church." I suppose the specific reasons are as many and as varied as those who have chosen to go this direction are.

My decision to opt out of the traditional religious system came as the result of a "crisis of conscience" I had while still a single young man. Shortly after coming to the Lord in 1979 when I was 19 years old, a dear Southern Baptist pastor rightly instilled in me the absolute Lordship of Jesus and the authority of the scriptures. But perhaps he taught me these things too well. I embraced them at face value, and yet at the same time I had very few religious presuppositions about why traditional church practices were the way they are. So before too long, I began to innocently question a few of the standard practices and traditions that I couldn't find anywhere in the Bible. Needless to say, I soon learned what the term "sacred cows" meant. I was told, "Don't rock the boat, brother. This is just the way it is. Stay focused on Jesus." Since I respected the people who were admonishing me like this, and they had been in the Lord much longer than me, I took their advice, let my questions go (for the time being), and dropped my pursuit to reconcile these inconsistencies. I very much wanted to "stay focused on Jesus" even though it felt a little funny to attempt to do so while doing things in His Name that were not only nowhere to be found in the scriptures but were to be upheld nonetheless, and without question or challenge at that. But being a young believer, other things soon captured my attention and I didn't think much about these matters anymore.

I soon moved to Waco, Texas in order to attend Baylor University and complete my undergraduate studies. During those years and for several years after I graduated, I was involved in itinerant preaching, evangelism, street witnessing, and was a staff intern at a local denominational expression ("church"). It was in this context of seeking the Lord that He began speaking to my heart, and by His orchestration I finally reached my "crisis of conscience." At the Lord's initiation, I had begin to honestly face the differences between what the church looked like in the New Testament and what the church looks like today. In time, I had to acknowledge and confess before Him that there is no scriptural basis whatsoever for relating to a government-approved tax-exempt non-profit religious organization with a name, bank account, property, facilities, exclusive membership, and scheduled "services," as being "a church." In addition, I had to squarely face and embrace that there is just as much scriptural authority for the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, and Santa Claus-none-as there is for denominations, Sunday School, youth groups, pews, stained-glass windows, the modern-day role of the pastor, and so many other trappings men have come up with and added to life in the Lord. And yet over time these things have tragically become the traditionally accepted norms of church life, and most people are comfortable continuing within their confines. More importantly, I had to fully face that this system, made up of countless institutions and organizations, both denominational and "non-denominational," and this basic way of "doing church," though expressed in a variety of ways, could never lead to the corporate and individual maturity described in Ephesians 4:1-16.

In the months prior to this event, a handful of folks, myself included, had been seeking the Lord about what the church really is, and He began showing us His ways for building what truly is His church, as confirmed in the scriptures. I knew He was calling me (and these other saints and more besides) to begin walking in and cooperating with His way, but it was a way I/we had never walked in before. I had genuinely been born of the Spirit of God, and I loved Him and wanted to serve Him in every way possible, yet in ignorance I had immediately stepped into continuing along with an overall religious legacy and system that was now making its way through my generation, and now the Lord was calling me out and on.

I saw the truth, but then the real test came-the divine "fork in the road": was I going to be faithful to the Lord to act upon what He was showing me? By His grace, I was. In 1985, I quietly walked out of the religious organization I had been attending with a resolve to never "go to church" again but rather to discover the reality in Christ of daily living AS the church with His people in whatever locale I lived in. Just to make it clear, I walked away from participating in the institutional religious system but I was not rejecting my brethren who were choosing to continue on along with it. For some 16 years now (as the time of this writing in 2001), I have been on this journey, and have experienced more of the Lord and genuine church life than I ever thought possible-along with the joy, pain, victories, mistakes, anticipations, disappointments, warm receptions, and societal castigation, inherent in the process-and yet there is so much more to be [re]discovered and lived out by His grace and Spirit.

As I have the ongoing privilege of meeting many Christians around the United States and other places who have ventured out into these waters, I have been repeatedly asked a number of similar questions and have seen (and lived through myself) a number of the common challenges and pitfalls. I would like to use the opportunity of this article to share about several matters surrounding "home church" that are relevant for saints wherever they may be in this process, and especially for those just starting out. I know how alone you can feel when you have stepped out in faith to pursue this, and yet you know of few others, if any, who are doing this who can offer some substantive advice and help. So may I offer you some exhortations as "food for thought" for you to consider? I think those of you reading this who do not "home church" will find looking into these matters to be beneficial and though provoking too.

There are about fifty things I would like to say first, but I can only begin with one of them, so I will pick one of the matters that is most crucial when beginning because if you lack it, you will be building "upon the sand" from the very outset. At first you may not see how it relates to "home church," but by the end you will hopefully see that it has everything to do with the life of the church in your locality.

Seeing the church whom Jesus laid down His life for

If you are venturing out into the waters of opening your home for other believers in your area to gather together around the Lord Jesus and thus "establish a home church," it is important that you see what you are doing in light of reality in the kingdom of God. Is the Lord calling you "to establish a home church"? I ask this because we sheep so many times lose perspective, go stray, get lost, fall into a pit, and find ourselves stuck with no idea how to get out of the predicament we have created. Then, as the Great Shepherd somehow begins leading us out of our mess, we immediately think we understand why He has led us to take certain steps and thus we then assume to know more than we really do (this is a very dangerous thing for people who have been asleep to the kingdom of God to do!). Before long, we run on ahead of the Lord and shortly thereafter find ourselves in another pit again, wondering how we got there.

I state this general truth to now specifically apply it to those of you who are assuming the Lord wants you "to establish a home church." You are probably rightly hearing the Lord leading for you to open up your home and invite other saints in your locale to get together and share your meals and fellowship around the Lord, and do so on a more ongoing daily basis. But have you assumed beyond His leading that this must therefore mean that He wants you "to establish a home church"? Let's look at some matters regarding the church, and we will come back to this question.

First of all, what is the church? I know this may seem to be an awfully basic question, but it needs to be asked because we have awfully strayed away from the truth of its answer, as evidenced by how our present evangelical/religious landscape bears little, if any, resemblance to the testimony of the church in the New Testament scriptures. Simply put, the church is the people of God in a given locality who have been genuinely born of the Spirit of God. The church is not a building or a meeting, but the people.

Now for most Christians it is not too much of stretch to believe this. "Amen. That's right, brother! The church is the people, not a building or a meeting." And yet what is the practice of most of the very same people who claim to agree with this? What do they live out before the Lord and the world as a testimony of what is in their heart? If you were to drive them by a building with a steeple on it and ask them what it is, they would say, "A church." If you saw them dressed up in their nice clothes and driving somewhere on a Sunday morning and you asked them what they were doing, they would say, "Going to church." If Sunday School were over and you caught them walking down one of the hallways of their "church" [religious facility] toward the "sanctuary" [auditorium] and asked them what it is now time for, they would say, "Church."

If I were to then state that, scripturally, there is only one church in a city and the Lord is calling us to live in this reality, most people's first response would be to begin wondering if there is a convention center or meeting hall big enough to hold all the Christians in town. They might then consider how impossible it would be to get all these folks to come be at the same "service" at the same time. If indeed "a tree is known by its fruit," and "from the abundance of the heart a man speaks" (Matt. 12:33-37, 15:18; Rom. 10:10), then all of these types of everyday occurrences that are carried out by countless Christians throughout much of the world betray this pervasive deep-seated deception that the church is a building and/or a "service" to be passively attended-a notion that is contrary to the truth in God. We all have the most amazing ability to live in a way that completely contradicts what we purport to believe.

The scriptures clearly teach that there is only one church in any given city/town and it is composed of the people who have been genuinely born of the Spirit of God who live there. Except for the references where all the people of God, generally speaking, regardless of location and time, are cumulatively and universally referred to as "the church" (Heb. 12:22-23, Col. 1:18, Eph. 1:22-23, 5:22-32, et al.), the only other way the term "the church" is used is in references like this that refer to the saints in a specific locality. There was the church in Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), the church in Antioch (Acts 13:1, 14:26-27), the church at Corinth (1 Cor. 1:2, 2 Cor. 1:1), the church in Thessalonica (1 Thes. 1:1, 2 Thes. 1:1), the church in Ephesus, the church in Smyrna, the church in Pergamum, the church in Thyatira, the church in Sardis, the church in Philadelphia, and the church in Laodicea (Rev. 2:1, 8, 12, 18; 3:1, 7, 14). In all of these and the many other examples in the scriptures, the people of God in a specific given locale, some of which were very large cities, were together referred to as the (definite article) church (singular-only one) in that place.

The references in the scriptures where the term "the churches" (plural) is used-the Bible being consistent with its own definition and examples-is when the people of God in a number of localities are being referred to at the same time. Paul wrote to "the churches of Galatia" (Gal. 1:2), referring to the church in Derbe, the church in Lystra, and the church in Iconium, and perhaps the church in a few other cities or towns which were all located in the common region of Galatia. Paul and Silas traveled through the regions of Syria and Cilicia "strengthening the churches" (Acts 15:41). Paul exhorted the church in Corinth regarding a number of matters, emphasizing that this was how he also directed "all the churches of God" in all the cities where he labored (1 Cor. 7:17, 11:16). The Lord Jesus used the term "the churches" when referring to His people in each and every particular locale at any given time in history (Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22). There are many more examples that could be cited, but you get the picture. However, there is not one single reference in the scriptures to there being churches within a given city or town.

Interestingly, even though in God's eyes there is only one church ("the church") in any particular locality and thus, geographically speaking, there are many in any given region and throughout the world ("the churches"), the scriptures also make it unmistakably clear that there is only one body of Christ. When Paul, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was giving the components that make up "the unity of the Spirit" which we are to be "diligent to preserve in the bond of peace," what was the very first thing he listed? The spiritual reality that "there IS one body" of Christ (Eph. 4:1-6). Amazingly, as far as "the unity of the Spirit" is concerned, there being "one body" is placed on equal footing with there being "one Spirit. one Lord. and one God and Father of all," etc.

There is only one body of Christ-not several, not many, but just one. Geographically, there are many churches-one in each locality-but there is only one body of Christ. And the term "the body of Christ" is never used to refer to merely "the church" in one particular locale. The only places in the scriptures where "the body" is equated to "the church" are in the type of contexts like the ones I mentioned earlier where it is referring cumulatively/universally to all the people of God, regardless of location and time period (Col. 1:18, Eph. 1:22-23, 5:22-32, et al.). Thus it is a fallacy to say, as I have heard many Christians communicate to one another, things like, "Well our body does this, but I've noticed that your body does that." Tragically, they were usually referring to separate and different religious organizations or groups within the same city! Is the Lord Jesus some cell that has divided Himself into numerous autonomous bodies? No way!

So, to sum all of this up, there is just one body of Christ-period-while, geographically, there are many churches throughout the world, and yet in any given city/town there is only one church. And please take note that the scriptures never ever refer to a church as if there is such a thing as a self-contained entity that is autonomous and separate from the rest of the body of Christ. The references are always to "the" church. First Corinthians 12:13 says, "For by ONE SPIRIT we were ALL baptized into ONE BODY, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were ALL made to drink of ONE SPIRIT." This lets us know that all who are in Christ in a locality have a genuine interconnected oneness with one another in the Spirit of God, as well as with all of the saints everywhere and throughout all time (John 10:16, 17:20-23; 1 Cor. 3:21-23, 6:17; Heb. 12:1, 22-24)! The notion that it is somehow normal for Christians within the same city or town to maintain deliberate separation and autonomy from one another has no validity according to the scriptures and reality in the kingdom of God.

So how does this all fit together? The best analogy I can come up with that captures an unseen reality that has real, practical on-earth application is the air. Ultimately, there is only "one body of air" (atmosphere) in this world. And yet there is "the air" (definite article, singular noun) in each locality. We could talk about "the air" in Houston, Texas -and all of those who are breathing in Houston are partakers of and participants in "the air" there. The same is true of "the air" in Dallas, and "the air" in Austin, and "the air" in San Antonio, and "the air" in Amarillo. Since all of these cities/towns are located in the same state, I could refer to them as "the airs" of Texas. But then there is also "the air" in Deer Lodge, Montana, and all of those who are breathing in Deer Lodge are partakers of and participants in "the air" there. There is "the air" in Guangzhou, China, and "the air" in Kiryat Arba, Israel, "the air" in Kathmandu, Nepal, and "the air" in Bromley, Kent, England. Even though "the air" in each of the places I have mentioned may have different characteristics (clear, hazy, fresh, stale, smoggy, dusty, dry, humid, "thin" due to altitude and elevation, etc.), it is nevertheless "the air" the people in each of these cities have to live in, breathe, and deal with. And yet again, ultimately, all "the airs" are related and connected to one another as one body of air (atmosphere) in this world.

In the very same way, as we have seen, the scriptures make clear that "there is one body" of Christ. Yet in practical terms of time and space for those of us who are still running our race on the earth and preparing ourselves for the Bridegroom, there is only one church in any given city/town. Because the church is the people of God in that locality, factors like who they are and the time and circumstances in which they live give uniqueness to their expression of sharing the Lord's life together. For example, the church in Corinth and what they were dealing with was quite different from the church in Thessalonica and how they were walking, and both of these were different from the church in Smyrna and what they were going through. Yet these churches in their respective localities were all part of the one body of Christ and partakers of the same Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13), and they were all growing in sanctification and expressing the fragrance of Christ.

But going back to our "air" analogy, let me bring in one more facet of this truth about the church. Even though there is "one air" in each city or town, it would nevertheless still be appropriate to refer to, for example, "the air" at Matthew's house or "the air" in Samuel Lamb's house in Guangzhou, China. It is not that Samuel or I have all of the air in our localities compressed into our respective homes, but rather that some of "the air" is gathered there. You would never say "a air" is gathered there, or that we had "established a home air"! It is simply "the air" at Matthew's house or "the air" in Samuel's house, but "the air" in our respective homes is in no way viewed as being divorced or autonomous from all "the air" in the place where we live.

In like manner, just as there was the church in Colosse, a good-sized city in the first century, it was nevertheless appropriate for Paul, when writing to Philemon, who lived in Colosse, to also greet "the church [the people of God who gathered] in your house" (Philem. 1-3). In the same way, when Paul wrote to the church in Rome, a huge city, he also greeted Aquila and Prisca and "the church that is in their house" (Rom. 16:5). Paul asked the Colossians to greet the church in Laodicea for him, and particularly a woman named Nympha who lived there as well as "the church that is in her house" (Col. 4:15, Rev. 3:14). All of these scriptural references concerning the nature of the church are as clear and consistent as the analogy of the air. There is respect for the oneness of the church-locally, regionally, and universally-and yet, even in big cities, an acknowledgment of the homes where some of the church in that locality happened to gather together.

Someone might say, "Well isn't that basically how it is today with all the different churches is a city?" No, not even close. Please note that these distinctions, like "the church in Philemon's house," implied no division based upon doctrinal differences or loyalty to a certain leader or group. It was simply a geographical reference to the home where some of the church in Colosse happened to [regularly] gather together around the Lord Jesus. But judging by the religious practices of today, you would think that if you came upon Philemon's house back then, you would see a pointed object attached to his roof and a sign out with a front that said something like: "The Church of the Slave Owners. Philemon, Pastor. Services: Sunday, 10:45am and 7pm; Wednesday, 7:30pm. Come hear our special guest preacher this Sunday, Onesimus, giving a sermon entitled, 'Finding Jesus-A runaway slave's perspective.' Everyone welcome!" And then if you went to the other side of Colosse, you would see a sign in front of a house over there signifying another church that said, "First Prayer Church of Colosse-A member of the Southern TAPCAM Convention (The Apostle Paul's Churches of Asia Minor). 'We labor earnestly for you in our prayers' Epaphras, Pastor on sabbatical" (re: Col. 1:7-8, 4:12-13).

Can anyone even begin to twist the scriptures in order to make them say such things that would reflect our present Christianized religious system's ways of doing things? Of course not! Yet, tragically, these very types of willful ongoing practices by so many Christians today bear witness against them that they are not living in and cooperating with the will of God where church life is concerned. Paul said all of these kinds of things are "fleshly" and are a disgraceful testimony [supposedly of the Lord!] to the world (1 Cor. 1:10-13, 3:1-9, 11:17-22; and especially John 17:20-21). Oh saints, let's not add to this shameful legacy, but rather let's take advantage of the opportunity before us to walk in the Lord's way!

Okay, so the church is the people of God in a given locality, and there is only one church in any given city/town, and this is all in the context of there ultimately being only one body of Christ. What does this mean for us living in a day where we can look in the Yellow Pages of a local phone book, and find dozens, if not hundreds or even thousands, of so-called "churches" listed as being located in that one town/city? What does this mean for those of you who think the Lord is wanting you "to establish a home church"? Even if we become fully convinced of what the scriptures clearly teach about the church, how do we apply this to everyday life when everybody, and I mean most everybody, views church life in the Lord with the flawed traditional religious system perspective I described at the beginning of this section? How can we live in the truth of there being only one church in a city/town when there is rampant division and Christians are generally asleep to reality in the kingdom of God?

The answer? We must walk according to the Spirit, and not according to the flesh (Rom. 8:1-8, Gal. 5:16, 25). We must "see" and "enter" and "seek first" the kingdom of God, and "abide" in Him and all that is true in Him (John 3:3-5, 14:17, 15:1-8; Matt. 6:33, 2 Pet. 1:1-11). And we must do so not just in concept and doctrine, but in the Holy Spirit and in deed and truth. We must view and walk in the truth that is in God by faith (remember, "faith" = "substance" and "evidence" of "things not seen," Heb. 11:1). We must believe it, live it, and even speak according to it, regardless of what we see with our eyes on the earth or what anyone else thinks or says.

Even if you are the only one who sees and believes this where you live, and everyone else thinks you're crazy or is suspicious of you, you be faithful to humbly live in and walk according to what is true in Christ, not what is true in the world's economies and the carnal thoughts of men. You bear the testimony of Jesus, and "purify your souls for a sincere, unhypocritical love for all the brethren in your locality, fervently loving [them] from the heart" (1 Pet. 1:22). "Fervently loving" those who do not see this doesn't mean you join with them in anything that is of darkness and sin, it simply means that you see and value them as the Lord Jesus, who shed His blood for them, does, and you relate to them according to what is true in Him-that they are fellow members of the same one body of Christ you are as well as fellow partakers of the same Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13). Extend your heart and hand to them to join with you around the Lord Jesus and yet lovingly refuse to join with them in anything beyond this that is not of the Lord (1 John 1:5-7).

But let's get even more practical. If you are to have any hope of recovering genuine ongoing church life in Jesus, you must let go of your affiliations with, loyalties to, and spread of, division. It must begin in your heart and be realized in your actions and words. You must embrace all who are born of the Spirit of God as "the church" in your locale and ignore all of the man-made fences of division that many of the Lord's own people hold to and propagate. "Well, yes, I hear what you are saying, brother, but you don't understand. These so-called Christians over here do this and those over there do that-how can I embrace them as part of the church in the place where I live?" Let me answer this question with a question: Have you ever read the New Testament? Aside from the first century believers' overall good testimony in Christ, here is a sampling of things that the church in various cities at that time had to deal with: fornication, adultery, biting and devouring one another with words, tolerating "Jezebel," leaving the first love of Jesus, lukewarmness, forms of the prosperity teaching, legalism, drunkenness, partiality based upon social/economic class, holding to the teaching of the Nicolaitans, etc. Yet even with such ugly baggage in the lives of His people who were [hopefully] in the process of being dealt with and purified by the Holy Spirit, the Lord and the apostles still referred to them as "the church." Now if they could do that, can't we? My point is not to make a loophole for sin or to in any way imply that we should ever "participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness," but rather to say that even if brethren in our locality are walking in ways that are not pleasing to the Lord, we can still recognize them as part of the church in the place where we live, even if there is unfortunately no practical expression of this reality that can be lived out due to their choices. And this notwithstanding the fact that the Lord would also have them to recognize us, with all of our weaknesses and unresolved besetting sins, in the very same way too (2 Cor. 5:14-21).

You must also let go of all the labels and be content to simply refer to yourself as a "Christian," a "believer," a "follower of Jesus," or a simple "generic" term like that. If, on the other hand, you continue to call yourself a Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Pentecostal, Mennonite, Reformed, Evangelical Free, etc., or insist upon describing yourself in terms of a theological distinction such as a charismatic, a reconstructionist, a Calvinist, an Arminian, a Protestant, an evangelical, a pre- post- or a-millennialist, etc., then you are still harboring and propagating division in the body of Christ. Sure, various issues will arise from time to time that need to be looked at so that we can seek the Lord together and discuss it and become like-minded with Jesus (as in Acts 15; more on this in Part Two of this article), but to be loyal to a named division is "fleshly," immature, and inconsistent with life in the Spirit (1 Cor. 1:10-13, 2:6-16, 3:1-7; Gal. 5:19-21, Rom. 16:17-18, Titus 3:10).

Earlier I mentioned how Paul, in describing "the unity of the Spirit," first noted that "there is one body" of Christ (Eph. 4:1-4). Look closely at this passage again. It is "the unity of the Spirit" we are to "preserve.in the bond of peace." First, this tells us that we (two or more) can only experience this with one another when we are abiding in the Spirit, together. That is where this unity is located-in the Spirit-because it is of Him. Consequently, we cannot experience it when one or both of us are walking according to the flesh, as is so clearly exemplified in the religious landscape of today. Just as forgiveness of sin is an unseen spiritual reality that begins in our hearts and over time affects every area of our life, so also is the reality of there being "one body" of Christ. You have to see it with the eyes of faith and believe it, and then begin living according to it by the grace and Spirit of God. But then you must go the added step of learning to walk in and abide in it ("preserve" it) together with others.

Secondly, how can we "preserve" something that is not already in existence? We are not trying to create a reality that doesn't already exist, we are [hopefully] learning to let go to the Spirit of God and walk in a present reality in Christ that exists in the kingdom of God ! If we are genuinely born of the Spirit then we are members of one another in the same one body of Christ and can drink from the same Spirit of God together. And if this is true, then the more we can learn to abide in the Spirit together-not just in meetings but in everyday life-and be "leavened" with the kingdom of God, the more we will become like Jesus and bear "the family resemblance" and the fragrance of Christ (Matt. 13:33, 1 Cor. 12:13).

How many times have we been out of town or in the grocery store or somewhere and we see or meet someone, and immediately we can tell they are a Christian because of the life of Jesus that radiates from them. We see the glow on their countenance or whatever, and they can tell the same thing about us, and then one of you says "Hi," and you begin talking. After a little bit, one of you then mentions the Lord, and the other one says "I knew you were a Christian!" and you both begin to laugh. You then begin sharing the Lord with one another, perhaps it is even one of those "divine appointments" the Lord has set up where one of you shares something that significantly impacts the other's life and walk with Him.

The fellowship is sweet and is going so well until, inevitably, you ask them, "Hey, where do you go to church?" They answer and you think to yourself, "Oh my, they're one of those?! Well I guess this person is a little better off than the rest of those poor deceived souls over there." But then they ask you where you go to church. You answer and they politely shake their head and say, "Oh, I see. Hmmm, well, good," as their countenance somewhat falls. In the end, what began as a simple joining together around the Head of the body, the Lord Jesus, and a "drinking" of the one life-giving Spirit of God (1 Cor. 12:13), ended up going stale and dying because you left fellowship in the Spirit and took up your religious system distinctions and divisions with one another.

Now many of you may be thinking, "I thought this guy was going to talk to us about how to 'home church.'" I am! And I had to say all I have said thus far to create a clear context in order to be able to say some very important things. First, there is nothing inherently holy about your house. The same lumberyard that the building materials came from to build the religious auditorium with a steeple on top down the street is likely the same lumber yard that provided the materials to build your house and the local bar and movie theater as well! Then why meet in homes? Because doing so best cooperates with what genuine church life is, as the scriptures confirm. Remember that the church is the people of God in a locale. The church is who we (plural) are. And who we are is people who live daily lives and gather together around the Lord all the time, whether two or three or all the saints in our immediate neighborhood or area, at various times and in various contexts, both day and night. So home settings are quite natural and conducive to the Spirit and the ways of the Lord in His church.

This brings me to my second point. If you have now assumed-even if in ignorance and in great sincerity-to "establish a home church" and have taken up the "home church" label (which is why I keep putting this term in quotation marks), you have made yet another distinction about "what kind of Christian you are" and are still continuing to harbor and propagate division among the Lord's people. Labeling yourself as a "home church Christian" is no different than labeling yourself a liberal Methodist, a five-point-Calvinist Presbyterian, a premillennial fundamental Baptist, a charismatic, a "King James only Christian," or any of the rest.

If we are called to "seek first THE kingdom of God," then this ought to clue us in to the fact that human movements, organizations, schisms, sects, denominations, and the like, are not part of the equation because they are not "the kingdom"-the whole domain-of God. The wonderful opportunity here is for you to discover and experience genuine church life together as the Lord intended and to participate in something that is not of this world but is of the kingdom of God, and to do so on an ongoing basis. The glorious opportunity here is that by virtue of the new birth we can, together, eat and drink of the Lord, the Source of Life, anytime we want! Who would want to join up with another one of man's movements (and, yes, tragically there are a number of "home church movements" out there) when you can freely have this in Him?

Thirdly, unless you have a revelation of the truth I am speaking of and the resulting change of heart that accompanies it, any "home church" you establish will be little more than a re-creation of the monster in the comfort of your own living room. The religious system is something that dwells in the hearts of men, whether you are attending a religious facility or meeting in your house. Any of us who would hope to rediscover church life as the Lord intended it to be will have to be thoroughly purged and broken of institutional schismatic religion and learn to instead find our life in actively following the Lamb together wherever He goes, which will cost us everything (Rev. 14:4-5). Isn't this what we really want?

But, on the other hand, if you and some of the folks you know have established and become "a home church," you need to understand that "the cancer is already in the lymph nodes"-death is already at work in your midst, and it is only a matter of time until it dies and becomes devoid of the Lord's life and testimony. Instead of cooperating with the truth that is in Jesus, even if you were sincere in doing so, like the sheep mentioned earlier you have just run ahead of the Lord and assumed to create an autonomous entity in your own image and likeness. It is little more than a re-creation of the institutional wineskin with a homey twist. If, however, you begin with living in the substance of what is true in God by faith, there is potential for rediscovering true church life and possibly, in time, even becoming a "lampstand" in the city where you live that shines forth the testimony of Jesus (Eph. 2:19-22, Rev. 1:20-2:1). You can be spared some unnecessary "trips around the mountain" by going ahead and joining with the truth that is in Jesus now.

Some of you who are really getting what I am saying may now be wondering, "If this is true, then how can we ever begin gathering together around the Lord with other believers in our homes and not be guilty of creating another division too?" The answer is that it depends upon what is in your hearts. Remember, the motives and intents of your heart are on open display before the Lord, and the seed you plant together by doing whatever it is you choose to do will only produce "after its kind" (Heb. 4:12-13, Matt. 12:33-35). The testimony of church life in Jesus has to begin somewhere in your locality, if there is to be one, and He is glad to use foolish and weak people like you and me if we are resolved to believe and walk according to what is true in Him and not in the Christianized religious system way while leaning on our own understanding. He began with 120 disciples in hiding in Jerusalem, a Gentile Roman centurion and his family and servants in Caesarea, and some Jewish women praying by the river in Philippi (Acts 1:12-14, 10:1 ff., 16:1-15). Our gathering together in His Name-even if it is just a few of you or only two or three families, and yet your doing so is with the heart of embracing of all the Christians in your locale-serves as an intercessory seed that has the potential (other factors and helps are also needed) for germinating and growing over time into a valid expression of church life as the Lord intended.

Why does it have to be this way? Because in doing so, you are allowing the Lord to strip you down to a place of truly beginning with the Person of Jesus alone as your foundation and starting place (1 Cor. 3:10-17, Eph. 2:19-22). Remember, "Unless the Lord builds THE house" -not "a" house, but "the house," and remember you are [hopefully] seeking to see "the church" living and daily expressing the glory of the Head in a healthy way in your locality as opposed to starting "a home church" for yourselves-then "they labor in vain who build it" (Ps. 127:1, see also Heb. 3:1-13). Such a life together manifests that you all have nothing but Him as your foundation-no institutional guarantees of continuance, no fixed structures to win man's approval, no pre-packaged "order of service" that rejects His Headship and leading in/among the members of His body and their active submission to and participation in Him, no "fences" of division to distinguish and separate you from other Christians and give you an identity apart from Him (which, in our day and time, will cost you your reputation and be a stimulus for others to be suspicious of you), etc. You only have Him and you learn to walk through life together feeling this desperate need for Him all the time.

Is He really enough? Does "the government really rest on His shoulders" (Is. 9:6-7)? Is the Lord Jesus really capable of functioning adequately "as Head over all things to the church" (Eph. 1:15-23)? You get to find out! It is one thing to say a conceptual "yes" in answer to these questions, but it is an entirely different matter to willfully choose to live and walk together with other saints in such a way that, unless He comes through, you are absolutely sunk. But as you wait upon Him together in faith and see Him faithfully come through time and time again with whatever is needed, and discover that He really can do a fine job Himself of being the Head of His body without all of our Babylonian additives, then you get to taste of the real goods of the kingdom of God and be actively preparing yourselves for the eternal marriage to the Bridegroom by real interactive betrothal-stage relating to Him now in this life (2 Cor. 11:2-3, Eph. 1:13-14, Rev. 21:1-7).

This brings us to a place of asking a much-needed question whose answer is foundationally relevant to what we are talking about here: Who is the church for? Is it for us or for the Lord Jesus? Look deeply into your heart and see what your answer to this question really is, because however you answer will make a world of difference in how you relate to the church. The truthful answer to this question will reveal who is at the center of what you are doing, and whom you perceive as corresponding to whom.

Obviously, the church is for the Lord and we are to correspond to Him in all things (Eph. 5:22-27, Titus 2:11-15, et al.). Sure, we are transformed, given what we need, and very built up and blessed in the process, but even in all these things the center of it all is Jesus. But is this the testimony your life bears out with respect to how you relate to the church in your locality? If the church is indeed for Him, to please Him and bless Him and correspond to Him in all respects, they of necessity we must do things His way and stop all of our demanding that He fit with our predetermined man-made religious structures and systematic ways of doing what we insist is "church life." You may be thinking, "Wait a minute. I don't demand that of the Lord." Well, if you are continuing to relate to, participate in, and speak of something as His church that He does not recognize as such, then in essence you are, whether you are doing it in a religious building or your home.

What about "biblical elders"?

Many Christians who are beginning their journey of trying to discover church life in Jesus, endeavor to start "their home church" according to "the biblical pattern." This typically translates into a focus on establishing an authority structure and the need for elders. Now what could possibly be wrong with something that sounds as good and honorable and biblical as this? Clearly this exhibits a desire to be true to the Lord, do what is right, and hold to the scriptures, doesn't it? Well, yes, perhaps so, but the underlying assumptions of this notion are usually amiss. Aside from matters we have already covered surrounding the fallacy of seeking to establish "a home church," there is most often a perverted idea of elders as well as a "pattern mentality" that must be also overcome. We'll take these one at a time.

First, let's look at the matter of elders. My point here is not to do an exhaustive study, but rather to give you some things to consider as you walk forward on your journey in God. One of the most common pitfalls I have observed folks fall into when starting out is acting on a compulsion that they must have some type of authority structure set up-and this is typically focused on elders-in order to be "a" bona-fide church. The reasons typically given for this is that they must have them in order to "fulfill the biblical pattern," the need for authority and protection, and, if they were completely honest, perhaps a desire for respectability in the eyes of other Christians and the world. Having elders gives more of an "official" look to what you have, and thus earns you a little respect, as opposed to looking like a "po-dunk" (Southern term for something that is backwards, "small-time," and pitiful) bunch of people who have no idea what they are doing (which you probably are!). Well first of all, go ahead and embrace your weakness and be of good courage! The Lord has called and chosen the "foolish, weak, base, and despised," through whom to demonstrate His wisdom, power, and strength. Do you qualify? Or do you view yourself as "wise, mighty, noble, and strong," or at least want to appear so to others (1 Cor. 1:26-31, 2 Cor. 12:9-10)? The humble learners are the ones who qualify for the grace we so desperately need to walk in His ways!

But let's say, for a moment, you are going to be obedient to the Lord and follow "the biblical pattern" for elders. What is "the biblical pattern" for elders? Aside from the qualities Paul told Timothy and Titus to look for in the life and walk of the individual men who could be considered (1 Tim. 3:1-13, Titus 1:1-9), how do the scriptures present elders and how do you go about getting them? First of all, elders were always selected at a time subsequent to the inception of the church in a city. In other words, the elderless church in each city or town began its life and a history together in the Lord for a good while before elders were ever recognized. Folks need time to gel together in the life of Jesus and to gain maturity and consistency making a place for Him in their midst.

Secondly, the scriptures make it unmistakably clear that men who were appointed elders were elders for "the church" in an entire city (Titus 1:5, Phil. 1:1; Acts 14:19-23, 15:4, 20:17, et al.). These older, qualified, and more mature brothers in the Lord looked out for and served all the saints in the locality where they lived. I'm not saying that these men may not have more actively shepherded those saints who were in closer proximity to their daily lives, but, even so, the church in the city was their God-given scope of service and concern. There are no scriptural grounds whatsoever for their being elders of "a" group or "a" home church or "a" institutional religious organization.

And thirdly, elders were never ever nominated and then chosen by democratic means or a majority vote. They were chosen or "appointed" by one or more extra-local workers-typically an apostle and/or those who were traveling workers with him-under the leadership of the Holy Spirit (Acts 14:20-23, Titus 1:5).

Well, here is our "biblical pattern" for elders. So now the question needs to be asked, is the Holy Spirit really leading for you to elect "biblical elders" for your home church, or are you really acting on a compulsion of religious-system-residue that still lurks in your understanding of church life? I state this strongly because you need to see that your quest to elect or self-declare "biblical elders" for " your home church" at its inception is not only completely unscriptural, but once again is going to thwart you from learning to cooperate with what is true in Jesus regarding His way of church life.

But what about elders? Is there a valid place for them? Of course there is! And the church in every city desperately needs these older brothers who have true maturity in the Lord and His ways in His church. But such men are a rare commodity in our day and time because of all the rampant division, religious system traditions, and Christians who are asleep to reality in the kingdom of God. Once again, it goes back to how you see the church, and who the church is for, and what substance of the saints' life together in the Lord is being expressed in the place where you live.

It is my observation that we Christians in this day and time do not do very well with labels-not just where "elders" are concerned, but also in terms of "apostle," "prophet," "shepherd", etc.-and we would do well to lay them down until our understanding of them has been redeemed. Most Christians today cannot conceive of men with these labels attached to them without thinking in terms of an authority structure that typically goes something like this: Jesus gets the honorary position at the top, but then come the real heavyweights, the elders and those who "occupy an office" in the church (i.e., apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers). All of these labeled men are arranged into some sort of top-to-bottom flow chart of authority with the more important guys closer to the top with Jesus and the lesser important guys being more toward the bottom. And then lastly, always lastly, at the very bottom, come the Lord's precious sheep. Thus the only way most Christians can think of these men is in terms of "lording over them," and this is the very thing the Lord Jesus said they were not to do (Matt. 20:25-28, Luke 22:24-27, 1 Pet. 5:1-4, John 21:15-17, et al.)! Likewise, men, even good/godly men, who, for example, are elected elders in "a" church, typically know of little else to do but to come together and decide things for everybody else and "hand down" their decisions.

The reality in the kingdom of God is that "the head of every man is Christ," and every man is to be actively following the leadings of the Head (1 Cor. 11:3). Now an entire article, even a book, could be written just on how this reality is lived out among the saints-when differing levels of maturity, unsanctified perspectives and conduct, and truly gifted brothers are all part of the mix-but this is not my point here. My point is that, presently, we do not handle having labels very well and most Christians-yes, even good "fundamental evangelicals" who think they are beyond this sort of thing-still think in Roman Catholic terms of there being a clergy class of men (and, God forbid, women!) between the Lord and everyone else in the church, but instead of calling them priests, cardinals, and popes, we call them elders, pastors, apostles, etc. We are going to have to get our understanding of church life redeemed to a place where we can see these men and recognize them for what they are without any element of "lording" involved, and this is going to take some time because the religious system's clergy-laity caste system has been so deeply ingrained in us.

I knew of a family once who took in a child who had been physically abused. This child needed to be disciplined just like the rest of the children in that family, but because of the anger-driven beatings this child had previously endured, spanking, as an effective tool for discipline (Prov. 13:24, 22:15), had been ruined because in his mind it was inseparably tied to the abuse he had known from before. So, for a season, the parents poured out their love on this child, and whenever he disobeyed, they corrected him verbally and disciplined him in ways other than spanking. In the meantime, this child observed how all the other children in the family received spankings when they disobeyed, yet it wasn't done in anger or hostility, and his siblings were very secure in their parents and in their love. But the time finally came when the parents could tell that this child's understanding of spanking had been redeemed and his perspective of parents lovingly applying "the rod of correction" was completely separate from the abuse he had previously known. It was then, at that time, the parents were able to pick up using spanking as he needed it and it was all a part of normal, healthy, everyday family life.

Well, just like this child equated spanking and abuse in his mind, so most Christians today have elders and authoritative lording as virtually inseparable in their thinking. Some of you who are beginning to gather together in Jesus' Name in your homes may need to lay aside these labels for a while until your minds are redeemed and the Holy Spirit specifically leads you to take them up again. In the meantime, are you an older brother among your siblings in the Lord? Then serve your younger siblings in the Lord, as the Father would have you do, and be a good example to them. Are you a shepherd? Then tend to the lambs the Lord has laid on your heart, and help them get what they need at any given time. We can all do our work in the church in our locality regardless of whether or not we are properly labeled. Serve the church where you live, with what you have, and in love. If you are an elder brother, the younger ones will recognize it and esteem your maturity without you ever having to assert your label. The Lord willing, in time, perhaps you can pick up your use of the labels in a healthy way.

Dealing with the "pattern mentality"

Earlier, I mentioned that there is also "a pattern mentality that must be overcome" in the lives of many Christians today. The notion that we can delineate a pattern from the scriptures, and then all take our places on the "stage" of life, and then church life will automatically happen when someone yells, "Action!" is not at all true. Such attempts are a legal approach using the letter of the scriptures that can never produce life (John 5:39 , 2 Cor. 3:1-8). You can go to the scriptures and extract all sorts of things-things that are really there, as well as things you wrongly assume are there because you are reading with the bias of religious system tradition-and stitch them together with the thread of what you think is obedience to God to do them, and you still end up with death.

Since we're talking about "home church" here, let's consider a typical brother who is "laying a foundation for church life" in/among the saints meeting in his living room.

"Okay folks, were going to have scriptural church life, so we're going to do a Bible study in Acts and see what the scriptural pattern is and then do it. Okay, first we see that they 'were all together in one place' (Acts 2:1). Is everybody here? Okay, good. Next we see that they had the Holy Spirit (2:2-4). Everyone in whom the Holy Spirit indwells, raise your hand. Oh amen, great, we're doing well."

"Now then, we read that all those who were saved were then baptized (2:41). Since you all raised your hand and said the Holy Spirit lives in you, then I assume you are all saved, but have all of you been baptized? Okay, you two haven't? Great, we'll get some brothers to go get the spare watering trough from behind the barn and bring it over here and fill it up with water and I'll baptize you in a little while."

"Now what's next? 'They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles' teaching' (2:42). Hmmm. A lot of people don't believe there are apostles anymore-I mean, I guess, uh, why should we need them anymore since we have the Bible, right? Well anyway, if you folks will 'continually' come to these meetings in my home, I promise to continually preach to you, okay? That's the main point: that you get lots of good solid teaching."

"The same verse says they also continually gave themselves to 'fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer.' So you people be sure to get together as much as you can to fellowship, all right? As for 'the breaking of bread,' I think this means we must have the Lord's supper every time we meet, so, Brother Billy, will you keep us stocked up with bread and wine? Thanks. But since it later says they were 'breaking bread from house to house' and 'taking their meals together with sincerity of heart' (2:46), I think we also need to look for more opportunities to eat together. So from now on, you folks plan on potluck dinners every time we get together."

"And then there was prayer. Oh how we need to be a people of prayer! Let's make sure we begin and end every meeting with prayer-fervent prayer."

"What's next? 'Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe' (2:43). Okay, you people, you need to feel pretty awestruck by the level of biblical church life we are getting going here. Next, we see there were 'many signs and wonders taking place.' Hmmm. I'm not sure why but those sorts of things don't happen much anymore, but maybe we'll do a study on their historical validity sometime later."

"Now, moving along because of time, we find that the saints of the early church 'were together and had all things in common' and sold their property and possessions in order to have money to share with anyone who might have a need (2:45). Now I know this sounds a bit socialistic, but the main point is that they took care of the needs of the saints, so let's do that too. Let's be mindful of one another and help one another out."

"Next we see they were 'continuing day by day with one mind in the temple' (2:46). Folks, we need to be like-minded, so I've prepared a statement of faith for everyone to sign or at least agree to so we can all know for sure that we are all 'on the same page' theologically. If there are any disagreements, please make a note of it on the bottom of the page, and we will debate it later. This verse also tells us we need to meet together every day-is here at 7:30pm okay with everyone? Good."

"Then it says they were also 'praising God' (2:47), so we need to sing a decent number of songs to the Lord when we meet. The Lord is worthy of praise, you know. Next we read, 'They had favor with all the people.' Oh how we need integrity in the church today. Make sure you are polite, hard working, and gracious all the time-we need to have a good testimony before the world."

"Lastly, the Lord was daily adding those who were being saved. We must have an evangelism program and train all of you to be active soul winners. Don't you care about the lost? You should, so be sure to tell them about the Lord."

"Okay, now that we have thoroughly established the biblical pattern for how to have church life like they did in the Book of Acts, let's do it!"

Now how much real, genuine church life do you think our fictitious group will have in the days and weeks (or minutes?!) following this teaching? Tragically, this kind of thing is not as fictitious as you would think-it happens all the time. Scriptural truth was delineated from the Bible, told to a group of His people, and everyone expected this would do the trick and make it happen. But little changes, and death and heaviness sets in. Why? Because Life does not ever come from a pattern! Life comes from a Person-the Lord Jesus! HE is "the way, and the truth and the life" (John 14:6). Life begins with Him and emanates from Him, and we are partakers of His life. As we gather together in His Name around Him then, from there, He will lead us and guide us by the scriptures in what to do and how to establish proper order and structures for containing and expressing His life. As we eat and drink of Him together, we will no doubt find ourselves doing and putting on many of these things we can observe from the testimony of the scriptures ("the pattern"), as well as possessing the quality and purity and fragrance of Christ so evident in the early Christians. The Holy Spirit will no doubt quicken things to us from these very scriptures in Acts that He would have us to begin to do, like looking for opportunities to share our meals together in daily life or to be given more to prayer. But these things will come into being as issues of life by the Spirit of God as a result of being with Him and interacting with our Head, not as a result of reconstructing a pattern, taking our places, and acting on someone's cue. The Lord always begins with life. "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4). It is the life of Jesus that allows us to see where to walk.

This brings us to what we will be looking at in Part Two of this article, and that is how are we to live daily life. What are we supposed to do when we're together or having a saints' meeting? What are we to "have an eye for" when fellowshipping together? The answer is found in the Lord's Name, Immanuel, and our learning to often make a place for Him "among us" (Matt. 1:23, 18:20; 1 Cor. 14:24-25, Rev. 2:1, 21:3).

 

 

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