What's So Important About the Local Church? (Part 1)

From Voice, May/June 2014. Used by permission.

Let’s face it: American pastors are constantly being asked questions about whether the local church is important and why church attendance is necessary. There are those who advocate that the modern American church is broken: why not fix it with a Starbucks-style makeover?

Some people are saying “the typical Sunday morning service of half lecture and half sing-along isn’t a useful way for me to connect with God. What if, instead of the church being like a theater, a police station, or a seminary, it was more like a coffeehouse?”¹

Those are definitely questions that need to be answered, especially when asked sincerely. But those are really questions about form and methodology when there’s an even more basic question that needs to be asked first: what’s so important about the local church? Can we ditch it altogether? With technology offering Bible teaching through the Internet on your laptop or iPad or iPhone, what’s wrong with virtual, web-based Christian communities? Can your iPad serve as your pastor and your friends serve as the source of your fellowship and accountability?

What’s so important about the local church?

The local church, God’s design

Local churches have been in existence since the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem in the First Century (Acts 2). Because Christ said He would build His church (Matthew 16:18), groups of believers in the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior have gathered together all across the world to form local congregations. In those congregations they would worship Him, teach His Word, evangelize the community, and practice the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Table. He indeed was building His church.

Through the centuries, many local congregations have chosen to identify with various groups and associations (often called in America “denominations”). Many people can only conceive of a group of churches with one authoritative, central office and one leading officer who directs the affairs of all the associated churches. This kind of church organization is usually controlled by the central administrative authority of the church group and the designated officers. The church lands and buildings in this kind of organization are usually owned by the group itself, and not by the local church’s members. Pastors for each of these churches are directed by the central office and are usually told in which of the group’s churches they will serve and for how long they will serve there.

Money is also an issue in these kinds of churches: each local church must send to the central office a certain, designated, mandatory amount of money each year for maintaining the central office, its officers, and its programs. In time, problems often arise in these kinds of church groups over issues like control (“who is in charge of the group and each of our churches?”), authority (“who will make the decisions for our group and each of the churches?”), and doctrinal integrity (“what will all of us believe as the core teachings and distinctives of our group?”).

But is this the only way to understand how local churches are to organize and be governed?

Throughout history there have been independent local churches free from outside control, dependent simply upon the Lord Jesus as the Head, the Holy Spirit as the Power, and the Bible as the Guide. The churches established by the First Century apostles of Christ began as independent local churches and the New Testament teaches the autonomy of the local independent church under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. The autonomous local churches of the New Testament were self-governing which means they:

• chose their own officers (Acts 6:1-6) according to a Scriptural standard (1 Timothy 3:1-13)
• exercised their own discipline (1 Corinthians 5:13)
• handled their internal problems as an individual congregation (1 Corinthians 6:1-5)
• were responsible to preserve the true teaching of the Bible in their church (1 Timothy 3:15)
• were accountable to the local elders of their church (Acts 14:23; Hebrews 13:7, 17a) who in turn were accountable to Christ (Hebrews 13:7b)

The autonomous local churches begun by the First Century apostles of Christ were also self-supporting which means they:

• supported their own local ministries through regular, systematic giving (1 Corinthians 16:1-2; 2 Corinthians 9:6-8)
• financially supported their own pastor (1 Timothy 5:17-18)
• took care of their own local people in financial need (like widows, 1 Timothy 5:3-16)

Following this pattern, today’s independent, autonomous local church depends upon the Holy Spirit for direction (Acts 13:1-3) and chooses its own name, government and programs. It is free to call its own pastor and invite any speakers and teachers it considers to be true to the Word of God. It is also free to determine when and where they will meet and at what time their meetings will occur. They can choose to meet in a building they construct or in a building they rent or in a large house or in the catacombs like the early church in Rome (the location they gather in is not the definition of a church).

Independent, autonomous local churches seek God’s direction in pursuing those evangelistic ministries they find Scripturally acceptable. They can choose the Christian education materials they believe are best to teach Bible truths to their people. They are free to support whatever ministries and missions and schools and organizations they believe are valuable for advancing the Gospel. Mandatory obligation to protect a tradition or an investment is not involved in an independent local church’s decision to support a ministry.

Misrepresentation and misunderstanding

But the concept of the independent local church can be greatly misrepresented in the sinful actions of the church people. If the church leaders and congregation are not obedient to the Bible and refuse to be humbly directed by the Holy Spirit, they can degenerate into warring factions in the church (1 Corinthians 1:10-13; 3:1-9) and domineering leaders lustful for control and power (1 Peter 5:3; 3 John 9). Even though the New Testament teaches the autonomy of the local independent church under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, autonomy means that each church grows in its dependence upon the Lord. He is the Head of each church and He demands their godly submission to Him in all areas of church life. They are to look to Him for the guidance from His Word regarding how they should function and they trust Him for the provision of their every need as a church. This type of church government encourages prayer, faith, and spiritual growth among all of its members.

Also, the concept of the independent local church can be greatly misunderstood to justify isolationism and a spirit of exclusivity. Remember that the body of Christ transcends all earthly denominations and organizations (Ephesians 1:22-23). It is composed of all who have trusted Christ as Savior, regardless of organizational affiliation. Biblically independent churches strive to be loyal to Christ and His Word rather than to any organization. They seek to establish, preserve, and expand local churches according to the New Testament pattern. Yet the First Century apostles of Christ also encouraged cooperative interdependence between local churches.