Toward a Biblical Church Model

The model of the church presented in the scriptures is quite different from the one we see today.
The primitive church survived, even thrived, without most of the things many would consider necessities for a successful church. Comparing the early church to our present day model and we will discover some interesting facts.

1. She did quite well without a centralized leadership structure. The leadership of the early church was quite democratic for its day. Decisions were made by the Apostles, elders, brothers and anyone else who had a stake in the topic at hand. We read of elders being given responsibility to oversee the congregations. Elders in the New Testament are almost always spoken of in the plural. There was no head or senior elder. There was just Elders and the church.
The pastor as we know him today does not exist in the New Testament.

2. She had no order of worship. There is not one example of a standard liturgy in the NT. Not one. None. Nada. Zip. The only order of worship was whatever the Holy Spirit should direct.

3. They had no church buildings. Church buildings did not begin to emerge for 300 years after the time of the Apostles. A simple gathering in the home or public place was all our early brothers and sisters needed to carry out their mission.

4. They did not run programs. No support or affinity groups. No special interest meetings. How did they do it?

5. There was no official statement of Faith. Theology was unheard of. In fact theological debate was discouraged. Something they called "Truth in Love" was the main theme of those early years.

After comparing our model with the early church, I have to wonder how did they do it? How could they possibly hope to succeed without strong pastoral leadership and a well written vision statement? How could they have reached the lost without radio or television? They could not even give everybody a bible! These poor ignorant souls did not have Bible colleges, seminaries and universities to train Pastors. They lacked the technology to do marketing studies to determine the best strategy to reach their core demographic. How could they operate as a church without a building, pews or even a pulpit? Let's take a look at the early church model, perhaps we can learn something from these primitive unlearned people.

1. They were a community held together by a common faith in Jesus Christ.
2. Each gathering directed it's own affairs without centralized leadership.
3. The Holy Spirit had a direct influence in their meetings.
4. They lovingly watched over each others spiritual welfare.
5. Christ was held up as the head of the gathering of believers.
6. The gospel was simple and easy to understand.

Church Models - Introduction - The Current Model

A model, as we are using the term, refers to a prototype design. It's a sort of cookie-cutter approach to building things. Consider the model that most homes in the U.S. ,perhaps the world, follow. They have a front door, a place called a living room, a bedroom, some kind of heating unit and so on. These are all things required by most human beings to live comfortably. Looking at it from this perspective, we could say most houses are pretty much the same. The differences are mostly cosmetic. A model is a preconceived idea that acts as a pattern of design.

The Current Model

There are hundreds of denominations that call themselves Christian and there must be tens of thousands of smaller churches with all kinds of distinctions. (1) It would seem that they are all different, but in fact they almost all follow the same model. If you strip away the externals of dress, language and culture you will come down to the same basic structure.

1. They all have a person, usually specially trained and paid, to do all the holy things. Some of the titles used for this include pastor, priest, bishop, teacher, elder, apostle, prophet, teacher, facilitator, leader etc. Whatever you call him or her they perform essentials the same priestly or pastoral functions.

• Officiate at weddings, funerals and other milestones of life.
• Present a sermon, teaching, talk, lecture on a weekly basis.
• Serve communion, baptize, anoint and perform other rituals.
• Oversee the other ministries in the church
• Visit, pray for and comfort people
• Represent the church to the community
• In many churches this person will act as the CEO of the board
• This person may also be responsible for the upkeep of the facilities, the oversight of the finances and various other mundane administrative tasks

2. They all have a service of worship where people sit in rows looking to the front. The order of worship may be written or unwritten but it usual goes like this:

• Opening prayer (invocation)
• congregation singing
• A special performer may present a song
• An offering and announcements
• The specialist gets up and speaks
• Closing prayer (benediction)

They may have a thing called "Communion" or "the Eucharist", sometimes monthly and sometimes weekly. This is a cracker of some sort and a bit of juice. Some even use real wine and or bread.

There are many variations, such as the day of the week they meet or kind of songs they sing, but they are essentials the same in structure. Speaking of structure....

3. A building is nearly essential to most churches. In fact the very word "church" invokes in peoples minds the image of a white building with a tall steeple. This piece of holy architecture usually contains an area called "the sanctuary" where "the Service" is held. Some will call this building "The House of God". This is kind of sad, since most people only visit God in His house once a week.

4. They all run meetings and programs. There are programs for everything under the sun and most of them take place in the holy building. Programs for dads, moms, kids, singles, couples, addictions, and on and on and on. It's possible, in many churches, to be out every night of the week, participating in a program. It would seem the solution to every problem can be found in the right program.

5. They all have a statement of faith and practice to distinguish themselves from other groups. Some have to baptize with immersion, others sprinkle, some require a certain kind of dress, others are casual. The list is endless and the degree that people are required to follow them vary. This one thing is true about all of them; they have rules and you had better follow them if you are going to be a good Christian.

Next we will look at the model of the church presented in the New Testament.

1. Wikipedia

The Christian's Secret Life

Christ calls us to a secret life. In His sermon on the mount he clearly said that we should give, pray and fast in secret because our Father who sees in secret will reward openly. It seems clear from this text that much of what we do should actually be unseen by the world and yet in the same teaching he said that a person should "let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven". This would seem to be a contradiction. To those who understand the Kingdom there is no contradiction. "Works in secret" has to do with intentional acts of devotion. "Good works before men" has to do with the light shining from within. If we have an inward experience with the Father, we cannot avoid being a shinning light in a dark world. The hypocrite practices his acts of devotion in the sight of all with the hope that they will see him and think him a "holy man". The sincere person practices his acts of devotion in secret because his only desire is to please the Father.

When our hearts are totally devoted to pleasing the Father, the good works will follow. These works come from our secret life with the Father. We are like the merchant bringing out treasure old and new. We are like the branch that is full of life from the vine and bears fruit from that life. These are the good works that bring glory to the Father. Jesus said that it was the Father in him that did the works. If Jesus relied on the Father to do good works so should we. Religion wants us to seek the approval of men whereas Jesus tells us to seek the approval of God. Religion tells us that if we set our goals, work at it and don't give up, we will be the kind of person God wants us to be. Jesus teaches us that if we will seek His will, trust in the power of His Resurrection and abide in Him, He will change us into His image.

It is a secret life because it is an inward life, an unseen life. A life spent veiled to those who are born from below. Just as men are not able to grasp the Kingdom, so they also cannot understand those who are of that Kingdom.

What the world will see is the outward manifestation of the secret life. Like looking at the light of the sun without seeing the sun itself. They behold our good deeds without seeing the source. Being secret dose not mean unknown, it simply unseen.

Even now Christ is hidden from this world. Seated at the Fathers right hand, he remains for the time being, behind the veil. Soon to be revealed to the world in all his glory with judgment and wrath to those who do not obey the Gospel; Joy and reward to those who have believed in Him. God has not left us without witness.

We have the witness of His word, His Spirit and His people. His word has been preserved across the ages as a testimony to the Gospel of Jesus. His Spirit has been convincing men of the reality of Christ. His people (Jew and gentile), have continually Born witness to God the Creator and Jesus the Lord.

Is there another way to do church?

I have often asked myself this question
but never had the courage to explore
the possibility.
Where would such a question lead?