The Optional Church Member
or
Am I a Member of an Optional Church?
If the Lord gave the great
commission (Matt. 28:18-20) to the apostles, and then placed those apostles in
the local church (I Cor. 12:28), is it important for us to be affiliated with
the local church? Am I greater than the
church? Am I smarter than God? Can I pass judgment on the institution the
Lord established? Many people answer
this today in the affirmative, but the Lord may have a difference of opinion.
If you are reading this, and have not yet read the article on what
we believe about the church, it would be worth your time to read that article
first. The church in the New Testament
was a local church – not a universal one.
All commands given to individuals and having to do with the church can
only be carried out through the local assembly.
Christ built the church (Matt. 16:18), gave instructions on
conduct in the church (Matt 18:17), added to the church (Acts 2:47), provided
leadership in every church (Acts 14:23), is head over all things to the church
(Eph. 1:22), gets glory in the church (Eph. 3:21), loved the church (Eph.
5:25), and wrote letters to the churches (Rev. 2).
Christ empowered the assembly that was in the upper room on the
day of Pentecost (Acts chapter 2). No
one was empowered that day who was not a part of that assembly, as far as we
know. The church is the institution
that God has ordained to carry out His message on earth. The church, and only the church, has
authority to administer baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Baptism added members to the church on the
day of Pentecost (Acts 2:41), and those members continued with that body (Acts
2:42). Understandably, it was perhaps a
little easier in that day to remain a member of the correct church, since it
was more difficult to find another one down the street that was more to one’s
liking. It didn’t take long to get to
that point, however.
Today, we have a curious theological anomaly among those who claim
to be born-again, heaven-bound, spirit-filled children of God. We have “detached believers,” or those who
do not see any need to be formally affiliated with the institution God ordained
to carry out his work. Those folks need
to understand that they cannot be obedient to the Lord in such a
condition. We will attempt to explain
why. First, let’s ask ourselves a few
questions:
One may say, “Well, I’m attending here so God considers me a
member.” But are you really a member if
you are not subject to any requirements of the membership?
OK, enough of this beating around the bush. Let’s press on.
First, it was the scriptural pattern to appoint elders or
overseers in EVERY church (Acts 14:23, Tit. 1:3). These elders had responsibilities that could only be carried out
if they had a congregation that was to be subject to them
Eph 4:11-12 And he gave
some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors
and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry,
for the edifying of the body of Christ:
I Peter 5:1-4 The elders
which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the
sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight [thereof], not
by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;
Neither as being lords over [God's] heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory
that fadeth not away. Likewise, ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder.
Yea, all [of you] be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for
God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.
I Cor 12:28 And God hath
set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers,
after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of
tongues.
Phill. 1:1 Paul and
Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus
which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
Acts 20: 17-18, 28 And
from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church. And when
they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I
came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons, Take
heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy
Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath
purchased with his own blood.
Heb 13:17 Obey them that have the rule over you, and
submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give
account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that [is]
unprofitable for you.
Matt 18:17-18 And if he
shall neglect to hear them, tell [it] unto the church: but if he neglect to
hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. Verily
I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and
whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven
I Tim 5:17 Let the elders
that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour
in the word and doctrine. For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox
that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer [is] worthy of his reward.
If you “visit” a church for a couple of years only because you do
not want to become involved, or because you do not want to be responsible,
please know that you are abdicating your responsibility as a child of God. Amazingly enough, it is oftentimes these
same folks who complain that there is no spirituality in the church, and that
the Holy Spirit doesn’t seem to be able to teach those church members
anything. As Isaiah might say “Woe unto
them that call evil good, and good evil.”
Why is it we can always excuse ourselves for our clear disobedience to
the Word of God, but can’t seem to excuse others for their spiritual lapses in
judgment? We hope the Lord is more
merciful to us than we are to others, no?
Elders are “over you in the Lord,” (I Thess 5:12), “watch for your
souls” ((Heb 13:7, 17), “labor among you,” ( I Tim 5:17) and must give an
account (Heb 13:17). Now who are they
to labor among? Who is spiritually
subject to them? Who is supposed to
obey? Over whom to they have
authority? ONLY TO MEMBERS. Why?
Because only members can be disciplined.
Can you be cast out of an organization that you won’t join? I don’t think so. You can just wreak your havoc and leave. But with scriptural membership and
submission come scriptural discipline, and that can only be administered on
scriptural members. Can you vote in a
church if you are not a member?
No. Can you teach in a church if
you are not a member? The scriptural
answer is no. Can you take the Lord’s
Supper with a church of which you are not a member? The scriptural answer is, for the most part, no. Can you attend the Elks Lodge, or the
Masons, or the Royal Jelly Pooh-bahs, without being a member? No.
They have harsher requirements, unfortunately, than most churches.
So God says there are people that should have spiritual oversight
of you. God says He has established the
church for that purpose. He says it is
your responsibility to obey those that He has placed over you. And He says it is your responsibility to
submit to them. One of the biggest
reasons people today don’t want to actually commit to church membership is that
they don’t like to be submissive.
Children are not submissive to parents, wives are not submissive to
husbands, so churches are not submissive to God, and members or “optional
members” are not submissive to the church.
It’s all just a case of disobedience.
Submission is a biblical concept.
To refuse to submit is ungodly, unscriptural, and rebellious. Although some will try to make a case that
they can serve Christ better by disobedience, I believe that will be a hard
sell at the judgment. I have found very
few exceptions to the Word of God just for me.
Now you may say, if you are reading this, “Well, what can I do if
there are no churches around here that are scriptural?” When we say this, we are usually using our
own definition of that term, so it’s difficult to assess, but here are some
options.
There is no excuse for continued disobedience. The biblical command is to obey and submit
to church authority. If we love Christ,
we’ll keep His commandments, and they are not burdensome. So let’s get with it.
Doc Trin
Lord, I have loved the
habitation of thy house, and the place where thine honour dwelleth Psalm 26:8