Introduction
Today I thought I might introduce myself. I have been a part of this site since it began, but have not been active at times. Maybe I can begin to get more involved soon.
About 30 years ago now, my wife and I began to sense a need to change in our Christian fellowship, but I resisted it. I was a part of this fellowship when I was a teenager and returned to it at around 21. I had seen people church shop from place to place. I had been through a divorce and saw many other relationships break up. I did not want to be like them.
After serving as an elder for about 15 years I began to worry about the influence of New Age teachings. Some were beginning to think they were equal with Christ! When I attempted to address this I was looked down upon or pitied as one of the unenlightened ones. Don't get me wrong, these for the most part were wonderful and loving people. We still love and appreciate them but feel some are seriously deceived.
Our meetings were never closed to only "clergy," but eventually they became more focused on the opinions of the leaders. I always believed and taught that leadership should be a plurality of elders according to 1 Peter 5 and Acts 20:28. But now my voice was not being heard anymore. It was one of the most difficult times of my life. Then we ran into some friends that we had not seen for a while and began to get together. We connected and two other families joined us. They had been in "house church" many years before, but that is the first time I heard the phrase. It was like a light went on inside of me, and I was off to the races!
After searching "American Online" I found others, like David Anderson the admin of this list. We have been great friends ever since. Then I began finding books and articles that encouraged me on this path. It was a wonderful time, and we have had many from around the country visit our home and we visited some of their homes as well. While we all did find many things in common, one thing I eventually learned was this: I could not assume we all had the same vision or goal.
What has been important to me for 50 years now was God's plan for the Church, His body as detailed in the book of Ephesians, Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12-14. I had hoped that once the clergy/laity problem was out of the way we could continue to develop in that plan. I agree that titles were a problem for some, but others really wanted to eliminate important functions as well. They wanted a "leaderless" community, and worked very hard to suppress those who were called and gifted to teach or lead.
Some with this thinking would join us from time to time and bring tension with their fear of all things traditional. I can understand these fears as I have had them as well. In the end it is God and His will that matters. From my 72 years on this earth I have come to understand His will mostly from what the Holy Spirit has brought to life to me through the bible. It was a major life changing event when I learned to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and He would add what I needed. For me that includes obeying His calling me to preach and teach His Word from the bible to anyone who will listen.
My hope is that this new generation of people seeing the possibilities of house church, simple church, or whatever it is called, will become more open to they way God Himself designed for His church/Ekklessia to grow.
Ephesians 4:10-16
11 It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, 12 to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
14 Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. 15 Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. 16 From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
NIV
My question is this: Are there any groups, large or small that would appreciate a visit from people like my wife and I, who finally have the time and still the ability to travel and encourage the family of God, the body of Christ to build up one another in love?
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Hi all. Hello there Ant Man. Hiya Dan.
What a rich life you have lived, my dear brother! With more to come:
Working at the Governor mansion in Ohio. Serving the Lord whenever and wherever possible. Sending out thousands of newsletters to the young and old. Making good music with Brenda and others. Taking international mission trips at you own expense. Publishing books at your own expense. Serving the saints by all manner of encouraging words and deeds.
Yes, there has been disappointments along the way... no doubt. But you have remained submissive to your Heavenly Father and to godly principles.
I enjoy your site very much. Others will, too. There we can hear you in your own voice.
Brothers and sisters, let us be thankful for good examples along the pathway of life. Let us also help others in the strength of Christ. Let us honor Him with our talent and substance. In doing so, we shall lay up treasures in Heaven which none can take away.
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Hey Brother Dan,
Even though I have not known you for very long, I have come to appreciate your thoughts and writing. In your comments above, you said, "From my 72 years on this earth I have come to understand His will mostly from what the Holy Spirit has brought to life to me through the bible." It means the world to me that you view Scripture as the central authority for the life and practice of the Christian. While we may debate on what God is trying to tell us in His word, if we don't have a common starting point then it's unlikely that we will ever come to agreement on anything. Christ is our all-in-all, and if we keep him in focus then we'll be ok. One of my favorite passages is 1 Col 1:15-20...
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
I think that it's great that your focus is on God's kingdom reign. A couple of decades ago I was involved in a church plant. It was funded by our church denomination, and within a few years the funding for the pastor was pulled because the denomination didn't think that we were making progress fast enough. Instead of letting the church die, a number of us took it over. It lasted several more years but finally disbanded. I'm convinced that what finally killed us was our inability to move beyond the initial adrenaline rush that came about when we were abandoned. Those negative emotions that we experienced at the start of our journey finally subsided. But then we lost the fuel to continue the mission, so we finally gave up.
The reason for me to tell this story is that I see the same potential danger with this group here but in a different way. I am grateful to find like-minded Christians who believe as I do that church leadership has gone completely off the rails. There is no place in Scripture that I can see for the clergy-laity system that has been so well developed in the institutional church today. That being said, I think that it is incumbent upon those of us willing to speak up about these abuses to then do what we can to restore church leadership to its rightful place in God's kingdom. In other words, we can't just be whiners. We need to be part of a church leadership culture that points to the preeminence of Christ in all things and desires to see God's reign in our lives and the church. For as Heb 13:7 says to the sheep, "Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith". I believe that if we indeed bring the word of God to our fellow believers then they will "consider the outcome of [our] way of life" and find us worthy to lead.