Church Attendance

We believe in one and only one universal church that is a living organism and not an organization or institution, and that the church is made up of individuals who are born of God and are baptized by one Spirit into the one body of Christ, and that Christ alone places each member (individual Christian) of His body into its proper place through love relationships, and not through organizational membership (Eph. 4:4, Col 1:18, 24, Eph. 1:22-23, 1 Cor. 12:13, 18, 24). These individual members of the body of Christ make up the ekklesia, or the called out ones (the church). We believe there is only one membership roll for the church, and that roll is in heaven and not on Earth (Heb. 12:23), and We believe that there are members of the true church, which is spiritual (1 Pet. 2:5, Eph. 5:30, 32, 1 Cor. 2:10-16, 15:42-50), within and without the false church, which is the outward visible institutional structure of "Christian" religion, as well as the "body" of false Christians that may make a profession in Christ, but do not do the will of the Father (Mat. 7:21, 12:50, Gal. 2:4).

We believe that a church as an organization that stands and functions independently and often competitively in regard to other churches by establishing a named entity with organizational and doctrinal walls of separation from other churches or denominations is wrong, and to commit to a specific church or congregation in a way that preempts commitment to the entire church is wrong, as well, for the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you" (1 Cor. 12:21).

We do not believe church attendance, in a building we call a church, and as members of an organization (sometimes a corporation) we call a church, to be a biblical expression of Christian gathering. We believe that organized religion is an invalid expression of New Testament Christianity, that it was unknown to the early church, and that it is unsupported by scripture.

The writer to the Hebrews gives us the following instruction: "And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching" (Heb. 10:24-25). The Greek word here translated as "the assembling" is the noun form of the verb "gathered" as recorded in Matthew 18:20, where Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them." This phrase intimates that where two or three are led to gather, Jesus will be there. We have found that as the Holy Spirit leads us to get together with other true believers "in His name" or in harmony with His nature and purposes, rather than gathering under the "banner" of any other name (to denominate means to name), Jesus is present with us, and we believe that as the writer to the Hebrews states, we are to stir up one another and exhort one another, and not to sit passively in a pew while a professional does it for us.

We are not, of course, opposed to large gatherings, or to organized meetings, or to preaching, for they have their place. However, as the main expression of Christian worship and gathering, we believe that they have done much to separate man from God, from his fellow man, and from true religion, as the organized church, with her corporate organization, programs, and performance related services, has usurped the place of the home and work-place as the center for Christian worship, fellowship, and evangelism (Mark 11:17, Acts 2:42, 46, 5:42, 9:11, 10:22, 30, 12:12, Rom. 16:5, 1 Cor. 16:19, Col. 4:15, Phm. 1:2) .

We believe in the church (ekklesia - the called out ones) as one living organism, and not as a fractured and disconnected conglomeration of independent and often competing organizations. We also strongly believe that to divide the local church into separate distinct groups called by different names ("I am of Paul, and I of Apollos", or "I'm of Such and Such Fellowship", or "I'm of First Church of Such and Such", or "I'm reformed" or "I'm Baptist, Pentecostal, or Methodist" etc.) is carnal and infantile (1 Cor. 3:1, 3-4), and dismembers the many membered body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:24-25). For us, becoming the church has replaced the Sunday morning obligation of going to church.