Articles
Much Needed Thought On What The Church Is NOT
(February Theme: Authority... In Church Organization)
Continuing our thoughts on church organization, I’d like to share some thoughts from brother Doy Moyer. It is very helpful and necessary to discuss what the church (and it’s organization is), but it is also a very helpful exercise to see what it isn’t! This is an excerpt from Doy Moyers series of essays and articles on the topic of authority...
“First, the church is not the building. We know this, but we need to be careful with the way we express ourselves.
Second, the church is not a denomination. Many have the idea that belonging to a church necessarily means belonging to some denomination. This is false. Denominationalism finds no support in Scripture, and our plea is not to leave one denomination to join another, but to abandon all denominationalism and simply be part of Christ’s body.
Third, the church is not a social club. While there are many social benefits to being able to spend time with other Christians in spiritual and even social settings, the church was not designed to as a social organization meant to provide for all social and physical needs, take care of entertainment, and make sure everyone is socially happy. Not even Jesus was concerned about fixing every social situation. For example, Luke 12:13-15 presents a situation where two brothers had a dispute over a family inheritance. Jesus could have easily solved the situation, but notice his reply: ‘Man who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?’ His purpose was not to fix all the social, political, or financial problems in society. Further, in John 6:26-27, Jesus had already fed the people, but He was not willing for that to be the premise upon which they would follow Him. They needed to move beyond the signs of and the food to accept the teachings of Jesus. Many ended up walking away because of what Jesus said in John 6.
Fourth, the church is not a political conduit. Jesus brought together disciples who were on very different ends of a political spectrum: Simon, the zealot and Matthew, a tax collector. The local church does not exist in order to be a political machine aimed at promoting various political agendas. There should be no attempt in a local congregational setting to overthrow a government or become lobbyists for particular political campaigns. Scripture teaches Christians to submit to governing authorities (Romans 13) and not to speak evil of those in charge, ut to pray for them so that we lead a peaceful life (cf. Jude 8-9; 1 Tim. 2:1-4).” (Doy Moyer, Mind Your King, chapter 9 “The Church of the Lord”)
Why does this matter? Because too often people (particularly in denominations) confuse what the purpose, scope, and organization of the church is and should be. There are so many “righteous” agendas in the world that sometimes it’s easy to rope them into other things we perceive as important.
While it is good for us to be social with one another (especially in the church), to be aware of need aware of issues in our communities enough to help our, and possibly even pay attention to what’s happening in the government (i.e. politics), we cannot start mixing things into the Church that Scripture itself has not stated. This kind of misunderstanding leads to using church funds on causes, interests, and people outside of the church (which is unscriptural). It leads to broadening fellowship past the boundaries God has set (which is unscriptural). It culminates in focusing and directing the church through a mindset that is foreign to Scripture (which is, by definition, unscriptural)!
