The Collection For the Saints

"Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him (par heautō = at home) in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem. And if it be meet that I go also, they shall go with me" (1 Cor. 16:1-4).

Many times Acts 17:11 is used to show the nobility associated with searching a matter to its end. The Jews in Berea "searched the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so." It is very easy sometimes to see error in opposing positions, but not always easy to see error with ourselves. The responsibility falls to you and me to search the meaning of the Scriptures daily to see if what we are being told (have been taught) is indeed the truth. 

This, however, is not simply looking at the verse on the page as self evident and believing the one who tells us, because he is such a great guy. The Bereans did not entrust their own salvation to a miracle-working apostle. They knew the meaning and value of the phrase "wolves come in sheep's clothing" and took appropriate and wise actions.

Hebrews 13:17 and Acts 15:24: To Whom We Gave No Such Commandment

"You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over (katakurieuo) them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you..." (Matthew 20:25).

"Unfortunately, the Western penchant for "offices" and "positions" has caused many Christians to bring these ideas to the Biblical text and view elders as official. But such thinking confuses the oversight of the early church with modern social conventions. It also strips the leadership terminology found in the Bible of its native meaning."[1]

"If you doubt that [the institutional] system is built on top-down [military style] control, try questioning it. If you do, it's quite likely that you will hear the rhetoric engines kick in. The frightening truth is that, all too often, those who raise questions about ecclesiastical authority send tremors through the ecclesiastical system. And they are often vilified as a result. If you are a dissenter who leaves the institutional church because you believe it to be unscriptural, you might be branded a "heretic," a "boat-rocker," a "troublemaker," a "loose canon," or an "unsubmissive rebel." Such invocation of religious rhetoric is designed to stifle thought. It's calculated to derail honest dissent with the partisan status quo."[2].

How Christians Conquered Rome

Illustration by Judith Clingan

"The Christianity that conquered the Roman Empire was essentially a home-centered movement."[1]

"When the Greeks got the gospel, they turned it into a philosophy; when the Romans got it, they turned it into a government; when the Europeans got it, they turned it into a culture; and when the Americans got it, they turned it into a business."[2]

One glaring difference between the original church that we claim to have restored and ourselves is that the first, second, third and even fourth century Christians did not meet in public buildings as we do. They met in homes for the first 275 years. That's longer than the United States has existed as a nation.

The Great Apostasy and The Institutional Church

Ilustration by Judith Clingan

It is difficult to get someone to see behavioral error when s/he makes a living from it. I am not condemning anyone or coming from a right/wrong mentality. My approach is from an if-then/ consequences viewpoint (John 8:31-32). As long as we accept the institutional church premise and refuse to recognize that the church went from a functioning, living body of Jesus on earth which met in private homes for 275 years, to a position-minded, institutional organization which functions like the state (Mark 10:42-45), then we will spend most of our time debating matters on a premise that is too narrow to notice the big picture. We will also be unable to recognize our own errors.