How it Began
The history of the Christian Church and Churches of Christ, of which Northside Christian is a part, begins in 1801 at Cane Ridge, Kentucky (near Paris). The spiritual climate in America at this critical time was one of confusion and frustration. Mainline denominational churches from the old world had established roots in America, and unfortunately, had brought much of their religious baggage with them. Even in the old world there was a hunger among many church leaders for a church experience that was free from man-made regulations, and instead focused on the Word of God and the Lordship of Jesus. When some of these leaders came to America, they found a similar situation among church bodies, and a kindred spirit with believers who were tired of their circumstances. The time was right for what many call the second great American revival (or awakening), and it was obvious non-denominational Christianity based on the Word of God and the Lordship of Jesus would be at the forefront.
In 1801, at Cane Ridge, Kentucky, a Presbyterian preacher by the name of Barton W. Stone organized a gathering of believers for the purpose of breaking down man-made religious walls using God's Word as their guide. Although he was a Presbyterian at the time, he did not agree with the position that God had selected an elect few for salvation and others could not receive it.
The other two principal leaders in our history are Alexander and Thomas Campbell. Thomas, Alexander's father, had come to America in 1807 and almost immediately ran into trouble with his fellow Presbyterian ministers. After meeting with his father, Alexander Campbell realized the two of them shared many of the same feelings about their dissatisfaction with an authoritarian denominational approach to church government. Alexander and Thomas both wanted a church that was merely comprised of Christians, free of the sectarian attitudes.
Both the Stone movement and the Campbell movement rejected infant baptism in favor of adult baptism by immersion. Likewise, they both believed greater unity among believers was possible through a focus on the Word of God and the Lordship of Christ. All three agreed that denominational labels, creeds and religious hierarchy were detrimental to unity.
Because the Stone and Campbell movements both believed the Word of God could lay a foundation for the church Christ intended, they highlighted the example of the church in the book of Acts as a unifying model for Christians.
In 1832, the Stone and Campbells movements joined together in Lexington, Kentucky and a major American religious movement was formed. The emphasis of both groups was on the restoration of the New Testament Church, the desire for the unity of believers by putting aside man-made names and doctrines, the observance of the Lord's Supper and the practice of believer baptism.
The movement has been called the Stone-Campbell movement, the Restoration Movement (because of its attempt to restore the New Testament of the book of Acts), the Unity Movement, and the Disciples Movement (not to be confused with the modern denomination of the Disciples of Christ, which emerged from this movement).
While our movement would go through some changes in the years to come, we are still known as the Stone-Campbell or Restoration Movement. In our next lessons we will talk about some of the historical slogans that define us.
Sunday, 18 September 2011
Saturday, 17 September 2011
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ History - Part 2: Slogans
Movement Slogans
The following slogans are associated with the Restoration Movement or Stone Campbell Movement:
"We are Christians only, but not the only Christians" - This slogan has its root in something called the O'Kelly movement. James O'Kelly was a Virginia Methodist minister who led a group of people who wanted to be known as "Christians only" in the very late 1700s. While Stone and the Campbells are identified as the founders of the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, O'Kelly is considered one of the streams that led into it. O'Kelly promoted "congregational" churches (more independent) over those led by tightly knit ecclesiastical structures. He also was an abolitionist. Abner Jones and Elias Smith are two Baptist ministers from the early 1800s who also pursued the "Christians only" philosophy, seeking to be New Testament believers and not tied to a denomination.
"We have no creed but Christ and no book but the Bible" - A creed is a statement produced by a church to summarize its basic beliefs. Creeds were important in the early years of the church because copies of the Bible were in short supply. A creed could be memorized, understood and shared. However, in time, church bodies developed distinct differences in creeds and animosity grew between them because of their distinctives. For unity to blossom in the Stone-Campbell Movement, it was necessary to focus on the Lordship of Christ and the truth of God's Word. These should stand above all man-made creeds. In fact, creeds should be discarded in favor God the Lord and the scriptures.
"In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty and in all things love" - This slogan can actually be found in the writings of Augustine. It suggest we can have greater unity among believers if we distinguish between those things that are essential to salvation and those things that are not. The purpose of this slogan is not to spend great amounts of time arguing over what is essential and non-essential (although these things must be determined), but rather to recognize that there are things we must agree upon that are non-negotiable, and that there are other things that are not clearly spelled out in scripture, or do not affect our eternal destiny that can be matters of opinion. And in all of our discussions, we should practice love.
"Where the Bible speaks we speak. Where the Bible is silent, we are silent." - We should not separate from other brothers and sisters in Christ over issues that cannot be found in the Bible. However, we should be accountable to one another for those things that are. We will come back to this slogan because two variant interpretations of its fundamental principle led to a division later in the movement.
"Let Christian unity be our polar star" - A slogan inscribed on Barton W. Stones' likeness in Nashville, Tennessee.
The following slogans are associated with the Restoration Movement or Stone Campbell Movement:
"We are Christians only, but not the only Christians" - This slogan has its root in something called the O'Kelly movement. James O'Kelly was a Virginia Methodist minister who led a group of people who wanted to be known as "Christians only" in the very late 1700s. While Stone and the Campbells are identified as the founders of the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, O'Kelly is considered one of the streams that led into it. O'Kelly promoted "congregational" churches (more independent) over those led by tightly knit ecclesiastical structures. He also was an abolitionist. Abner Jones and Elias Smith are two Baptist ministers from the early 1800s who also pursued the "Christians only" philosophy, seeking to be New Testament believers and not tied to a denomination.
"We have no creed but Christ and no book but the Bible" - A creed is a statement produced by a church to summarize its basic beliefs. Creeds were important in the early years of the church because copies of the Bible were in short supply. A creed could be memorized, understood and shared. However, in time, church bodies developed distinct differences in creeds and animosity grew between them because of their distinctives. For unity to blossom in the Stone-Campbell Movement, it was necessary to focus on the Lordship of Christ and the truth of God's Word. These should stand above all man-made creeds. In fact, creeds should be discarded in favor God the Lord and the scriptures.
"In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty and in all things love" - This slogan can actually be found in the writings of Augustine. It suggest we can have greater unity among believers if we distinguish between those things that are essential to salvation and those things that are not. The purpose of this slogan is not to spend great amounts of time arguing over what is essential and non-essential (although these things must be determined), but rather to recognize that there are things we must agree upon that are non-negotiable, and that there are other things that are not clearly spelled out in scripture, or do not affect our eternal destiny that can be matters of opinion. And in all of our discussions, we should practice love.
"Where the Bible speaks we speak. Where the Bible is silent, we are silent." - We should not separate from other brothers and sisters in Christ over issues that cannot be found in the Bible. However, we should be accountable to one another for those things that are. We will come back to this slogan because two variant interpretations of its fundamental principle led to a division later in the movement.
"Let Christian unity be our polar star" - A slogan inscribed on Barton W. Stones' likeness in Nashville, Tennessee.
Friday, 16 September 2011
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ History - Part 3: Important Documents
Important Documents
Some important documents are helpful in understanding some of the logic and thinking of early leaders in the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement. Here are a few of the most important:
1. The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery (1904):
The Springfield Presbytery was an organization of dissatisfied Presbyterian ministers who chose to withdraw from the Presbyterian Synod in Kentucky. However, after a short lived existence, and not wanting to create yet another sectarian group, they officially put their organization to death so they could merely be a part of the body of Christ. Barton W. Stone had a major role with this group and was very possibly the author of the document.
2. The Declaration and Address by Thomas Campbell (1909):
The Declaration and Address was presented at a meeting of the Christian Association of Washington. This association included Thomas Campbell and some of his fellow church leaders who were increasingly dissatisfied with the sectarian spirit of the church. The Christian Association of Washington was soon disbanded and turned into the Brush Run Church. However, this document became "the" document that best sums up the sentiment and philosophy of those who started the Restoration Movement. It is a "must read" if you want to understand the core of our heritage as a church movement. Go to: http://www.therestorationmovement.com/_states/wv/declaration.htm.
3. The Gospel Restored:
An Evangelist by the name of Walter Scott created a "five-finger" exercise to share the gospel as he traveled from town to town. Walter Scott has sometimes been called one of the "big four" of the founders of the Restoration Movement (with Stone and the two Campbells). He was a great speaker and theologian, and presented many of the thoughts others were sharing in clear, systematic terms. Scott was known for naming Jesus the Messiah the "Golden Oracle". While he developed the five-finger exercise to show the process early Christians followed, he wanted to make clear that people weren't saved by following steps, but rather through Jesus: the "Golden Oracle."
Some important documents are helpful in understanding some of the logic and thinking of early leaders in the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement. Here are a few of the most important:
1. The Last Will and Testament of the Springfield Presbytery (1904):
The Springfield Presbytery was an organization of dissatisfied Presbyterian ministers who chose to withdraw from the Presbyterian Synod in Kentucky. However, after a short lived existence, and not wanting to create yet another sectarian group, they officially put their organization to death so they could merely be a part of the body of Christ. Barton W. Stone had a major role with this group and was very possibly the author of the document.
2. The Declaration and Address by Thomas Campbell (1909):
The Declaration and Address was presented at a meeting of the Christian Association of Washington. This association included Thomas Campbell and some of his fellow church leaders who were increasingly dissatisfied with the sectarian spirit of the church. The Christian Association of Washington was soon disbanded and turned into the Brush Run Church. However, this document became "the" document that best sums up the sentiment and philosophy of those who started the Restoration Movement. It is a "must read" if you want to understand the core of our heritage as a church movement. Go to: http://www.therestorationmovement.com/_states/wv/declaration.htm.
3. The Gospel Restored:
An Evangelist by the name of Walter Scott created a "five-finger" exercise to share the gospel as he traveled from town to town. Walter Scott has sometimes been called one of the "big four" of the founders of the Restoration Movement (with Stone and the two Campbells). He was a great speaker and theologian, and presented many of the thoughts others were sharing in clear, systematic terms. Scott was known for naming Jesus the Messiah the "Golden Oracle". While he developed the five-finger exercise to show the process early Christians followed, he wanted to make clear that people weren't saved by following steps, but rather through Jesus: the "Golden Oracle."
Walter Scott travelled extensively, sharing the New Testament pattern for following Christ everywhere he went.
Thursday, 15 September 2011
Christian Church and Churches of Christ History - Part 4: Three Groups
Divisions - Three Groups
In the 200+ years since the beginning of the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement, there have been two divisions of the body. It is always dangerous to overgeneralize divisions, but in many ways the first division was conservative and the second was liberal. Here is a brief description of the two groups and some of their identifying characteristics:
The First Division
The first division took place after the American Civil War. Emotions flared around 1896 and the break became final in 1906. People today recognize the first group to form its own body as the Church of Christ. Some people call this group the "Non-instrumental Church of Christ" but this is not really accurate since the official name is "Church of Christ" and the issues involved in its departure were not all related to the instrument ("instrument" refers to the piano at the time, but has since come to mean all musical instruments).
Ironically, the philosophical foundation for the Church of Christ came from the slogan "Where the Bible speaks we speak, where the Bible is silent, we are silent." The Church of Christ interpreted this principle to mean we should not introduce human innovations into the church that cannot be found in the New Testament Church modeled in the book of Acts. Our church body, on the other hand, interprets this principle to mean we should not bind people with rules that are not in the Bible, but can use innovations if they do not violate broader Biblical principles.
The instrument became a "trigger" for this division, but there were other issues, such as organizational structures that indicated a movement back toward the overbearing denominational models of the past.
Some have also pointed out that most of the churches that departed were in the south where believers were struggling during reconstruction following the war. Northern churches were introducing innovations which were financially out of the reach of churches in the south. This does not mean all divisions were along the north-south line, but it is possible things were complicated by the perception that churches in the north were being guided by prosperity, and not the gospel.
As the years passed, relationships between the non-instrumental and instrumental brethren continued to polarize. Those on the extreme conservative end of the Church of Christ believed it was necessary to be a part of their body to be saved, and many of those on the instrumental side of things showed no desire to extend the hand of fellowship. But in the past 25 years, thanks be to God, congregations and leaders in both groups have moved back toward one another. Both groups now share a much greater mutual understanding and respect, and many participate in ministries together. Several points of contention have been recognized as matters of opinion, and are no longer considered tests of fellowship. This is still not the case with everyone, but in general there is a tremendous celebration of our commonality.
We still have separate Bible colleges, church camps and conventions/lectureships, but many of our leaders participate in both. And it should be said while we may worship differently, we sing from the same Biblical page as our Church of Christ friends. We are both Biblically conservative, meaning we both believe in the Bible as the Word of God and our rule for faith and practice. This makes our bond very different than that with the other group we will introduce later.
The Northside church used to be called the Northside Church of Christ. This was due to the fact our name was adopted before the 1906 division and there was never a great desire to change it. However, a few years ago we changed our name to Christian Church because it better represented who we were. 3/4ths of the churches like Northside are called Christian Church and only 1/4 use the name Church of Christ.
The Second Division
The second division in our movement came from the liberal side of things and is now recognized as the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ. Incidentally, the Church of Christ does not consider its body a denomination since it does not have a central authority (which is also the case with our group), but the Disciples of Christ group is clearly a denomination with a central authority and a well structured hierarchy.
The division with the Disciples of Christ centered on the authority of God's word, the centralized authority of church organizations, and a departure from the historical Biblical positions of the movement. This came at the same time our American culture in general was applying rationalism and the scientific method to faith, and this was also the time of the rise of Darwinism.
You can see how these forces might have come together in the form of an attack on the authority of God's Word. Those who tried to degrade the Word applied the scientific method to it and refused to believe anything that could not be proven through rational means. One way of putting it is, if it couldn't be recreated in the laboratory, then it must not have happened. A Biblical conservative, in contrast, would say, "That's because God did it." A liberal would say, "That's because it isn't true."
While liberalism swirled in our movement, among some preachers and college professors, a prominent mission organization was accused of practicing "open membership" on the mission field. A part of the "open membership" charge involved bringing people into the church family without baptism.
It is hard to pinpoint exactly when this division occurred since there were a number of events that led up to it, from liberal teachers getting the upper hand in Bible colleges, to departures from the gospel message on the mission field, to the butting of heads over structural authorities beyond the local church. But generally, 1925 is when we went our separate ways. Many of the Bible colleges that train our congregation's teachers and preachers were begun around this time to rebuild our leadership following the division.
There were also many battles fought at this time over capital and properties owned by the church. Most Constitution and By-Laws documents in our churches came into being during this time to clearly state our congregations did not want to be a part of the liberal movement. If churches or colleges were not able to show solidarity in this way, they often lost their properties to the Disciples. As you might imagine, emotions ran high, and the next generation or two in both groups had very little to do with each other.
In recent years, the Disciples and our group of the movement have attempted to celebrate our common heritage and keep the ties out that bind, however, since we literally don't sing from the same Biblical page it is much harder for us to fellowship and serve together than with our Church of Christ brethren. The Disciples do, however, own the original Cane Ridge meeting house in Paris, Kentucky and all three groups share in its upkeep, though the Disciples provide the greater share of funds.
Now
Thus, there are now three groups that trace their heritage to the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement, the Church of Christ, the Christian Church: Disciples of Christ, and us who are known as the Christian Church and Churches of Christ (check out the website cctoday.org).
The Disciples are identified with a symbol that looks like a communion chalice with a cross in it. The Church of Christ is often identified by buildings that say "Meets Here" under their name. Our churches are usually called Christian Churches, but often have locations or other modifying terms attached to their names such as Discovery Christian Church. Some are called Christ's Church.
You can Google our church names to find our respective colleges, but examples are Abilene University (Church of Christ), Texas Christian University (Disciples) and Cincinnati Christian University (Ours).
Churches like Northside gather every year at an event known as the North American Christian Convention. We also have a growing National Missionary Convention. Both are non-delegate conventions that meet merely for connecting our churches for fellowship, inspiration and outreach.
Some people have suggested we are like a broken family, each representing a piece of the whole, with the Disciples representing our desire to have unity with all believers, the Church of Christ representing our desire to have truth, and our group attempting to keep the two in balance. But as has been mentioned in this lesson, the Church of Christ now, much more than in the past is also finding balance, with the exception of the extreme conservative end of their body.
In our region of the country, your will find churches like Northside with the name Christian or Church of Christ. In places like Ohio, where many churches predate the 1906 division, a large number use the name Church of Christ. Newer churches everywhere are more likely to use the name Christian with some sort of modifier attached.
In the 200+ years since the beginning of the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement, there have been two divisions of the body. It is always dangerous to overgeneralize divisions, but in many ways the first division was conservative and the second was liberal. Here is a brief description of the two groups and some of their identifying characteristics:
The First Division
The first division took place after the American Civil War. Emotions flared around 1896 and the break became final in 1906. People today recognize the first group to form its own body as the Church of Christ. Some people call this group the "Non-instrumental Church of Christ" but this is not really accurate since the official name is "Church of Christ" and the issues involved in its departure were not all related to the instrument ("instrument" refers to the piano at the time, but has since come to mean all musical instruments).
Ironically, the philosophical foundation for the Church of Christ came from the slogan "Where the Bible speaks we speak, where the Bible is silent, we are silent." The Church of Christ interpreted this principle to mean we should not introduce human innovations into the church that cannot be found in the New Testament Church modeled in the book of Acts. Our church body, on the other hand, interprets this principle to mean we should not bind people with rules that are not in the Bible, but can use innovations if they do not violate broader Biblical principles.
The instrument became a "trigger" for this division, but there were other issues, such as organizational structures that indicated a movement back toward the overbearing denominational models of the past.
Some have also pointed out that most of the churches that departed were in the south where believers were struggling during reconstruction following the war. Northern churches were introducing innovations which were financially out of the reach of churches in the south. This does not mean all divisions were along the north-south line, but it is possible things were complicated by the perception that churches in the north were being guided by prosperity, and not the gospel.
As the years passed, relationships between the non-instrumental and instrumental brethren continued to polarize. Those on the extreme conservative end of the Church of Christ believed it was necessary to be a part of their body to be saved, and many of those on the instrumental side of things showed no desire to extend the hand of fellowship. But in the past 25 years, thanks be to God, congregations and leaders in both groups have moved back toward one another. Both groups now share a much greater mutual understanding and respect, and many participate in ministries together. Several points of contention have been recognized as matters of opinion, and are no longer considered tests of fellowship. This is still not the case with everyone, but in general there is a tremendous celebration of our commonality.
We still have separate Bible colleges, church camps and conventions/lectureships, but many of our leaders participate in both. And it should be said while we may worship differently, we sing from the same Biblical page as our Church of Christ friends. We are both Biblically conservative, meaning we both believe in the Bible as the Word of God and our rule for faith and practice. This makes our bond very different than that with the other group we will introduce later.
The Northside church used to be called the Northside Church of Christ. This was due to the fact our name was adopted before the 1906 division and there was never a great desire to change it. However, a few years ago we changed our name to Christian Church because it better represented who we were. 3/4ths of the churches like Northside are called Christian Church and only 1/4 use the name Church of Christ.
The Second Division
The second division in our movement came from the liberal side of things and is now recognized as the Christian Church, Disciples of Christ. Incidentally, the Church of Christ does not consider its body a denomination since it does not have a central authority (which is also the case with our group), but the Disciples of Christ group is clearly a denomination with a central authority and a well structured hierarchy.
The division with the Disciples of Christ centered on the authority of God's word, the centralized authority of church organizations, and a departure from the historical Biblical positions of the movement. This came at the same time our American culture in general was applying rationalism and the scientific method to faith, and this was also the time of the rise of Darwinism.
You can see how these forces might have come together in the form of an attack on the authority of God's Word. Those who tried to degrade the Word applied the scientific method to it and refused to believe anything that could not be proven through rational means. One way of putting it is, if it couldn't be recreated in the laboratory, then it must not have happened. A Biblical conservative, in contrast, would say, "That's because God did it." A liberal would say, "That's because it isn't true."
While liberalism swirled in our movement, among some preachers and college professors, a prominent mission organization was accused of practicing "open membership" on the mission field. A part of the "open membership" charge involved bringing people into the church family without baptism.
It is hard to pinpoint exactly when this division occurred since there were a number of events that led up to it, from liberal teachers getting the upper hand in Bible colleges, to departures from the gospel message on the mission field, to the butting of heads over structural authorities beyond the local church. But generally, 1925 is when we went our separate ways. Many of the Bible colleges that train our congregation's teachers and preachers were begun around this time to rebuild our leadership following the division.
There were also many battles fought at this time over capital and properties owned by the church. Most Constitution and By-Laws documents in our churches came into being during this time to clearly state our congregations did not want to be a part of the liberal movement. If churches or colleges were not able to show solidarity in this way, they often lost their properties to the Disciples. As you might imagine, emotions ran high, and the next generation or two in both groups had very little to do with each other.
In recent years, the Disciples and our group of the movement have attempted to celebrate our common heritage and keep the ties out that bind, however, since we literally don't sing from the same Biblical page it is much harder for us to fellowship and serve together than with our Church of Christ brethren. The Disciples do, however, own the original Cane Ridge meeting house in Paris, Kentucky and all three groups share in its upkeep, though the Disciples provide the greater share of funds.
Now
Thus, there are now three groups that trace their heritage to the Restoration or Stone-Campbell Movement, the Church of Christ, the Christian Church: Disciples of Christ, and us who are known as the Christian Church and Churches of Christ (check out the website cctoday.org).
The Disciples are identified with a symbol that looks like a communion chalice with a cross in it. The Church of Christ is often identified by buildings that say "Meets Here" under their name. Our churches are usually called Christian Churches, but often have locations or other modifying terms attached to their names such as Discovery Christian Church. Some are called Christ's Church.
You can Google our church names to find our respective colleges, but examples are Abilene University (Church of Christ), Texas Christian University (Disciples) and Cincinnati Christian University (Ours).
Churches like Northside gather every year at an event known as the North American Christian Convention. We also have a growing National Missionary Convention. Both are non-delegate conventions that meet merely for connecting our churches for fellowship, inspiration and outreach.
Some people have suggested we are like a broken family, each representing a piece of the whole, with the Disciples representing our desire to have unity with all believers, the Church of Christ representing our desire to have truth, and our group attempting to keep the two in balance. But as has been mentioned in this lesson, the Church of Christ now, much more than in the past is also finding balance, with the exception of the extreme conservative end of their body.
In our region of the country, your will find churches like Northside with the name Christian or Church of Christ. In places like Ohio, where many churches predate the 1906 division, a large number use the name Church of Christ. Newer churches everywhere are more likely to use the name Christian with some sort of modifier attached.
Wednesday, 14 September 2011
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ History - Part 5: How We Stay Connected
How We Stay Connected
The beauty of a non-denominational church, such as Northside, is that we are not bound by large man-made structures that can inhibit leaders in local churches. The challenge, however, is that even non-denominational churches who are a part of a major stream of sister congregations need a way to stay connected.
Our focus here is on the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, instrumental. The other two groups within our movement, the Church of Christ (non-instrumental) and Disciples of Christ, have their own methods of connecting, the Church of Christ through college and university lectureships and the Disciples through denominational structures.
Our group, known collectively as the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ uses a number of voluntary structures to stay connected. We use the word "voluntary" because there are no denominational requirements, legal or otherwise, that force any given autonomous congregation to participate in these structures. They do so by choice because they want to maintain the spirit and principles of the Restoration Movement, and they realize staying connected to sister churches from the same movement is vitally important to everyone's success. Here are some, but not all of the connecting points:
Conventions
Conventions within our movement are not "delegate" conventions where churches send representatives who return with directives for the local church. Instead, they are merely gatherings of believers intent on being informed, inspired and invested. They want to remain informed of things going on among our sister churches, inspired for the mission of winning the world for Christ, and invested in something called the "Restoration Plea", which is the desire to balance "unity" and "truth" using the Word of God as our rule for faith and practice, and focusing on the Lordship of Jesus.
Our two major national conventions are the North American Christian Convention (the most prominent), and the National Missionary Convention. Both conventions move around the country from year-to-year as selected presidents develop programs of speakers and workshops through volunteer committees. There are paid administrators who perform functions necessary for the continuation of the conventions, but none of these administrators exercise authority over local congregations.
The Northside church supports the two major national conventions through its missions budget and considers their existence vital to maintaining the identity and mission of our church movement. These mission offerings are totally voluntary and each local church decides whether or not it wants to participate in this way.
Colleges
Our Bible colleges are vital to the continued existence and success of our movement because they educate future preachers, church leaders and missionaries. Historically, most all church movements have established institutions of higher learning for this purpose. The goal is to educate servants in the foundational principles of our movement, and to prepare them for meaningful ministry with a solid grounding in the Word of God and an approach to the mission that puts Christ first.
Over the years our colleges have gone through many changes to insure we can continue to equip servants for ministry. Most have expanded their programs to prepare believers in a variety of other vocations inside and outside the local church. The hope is that students will use their spiritual grounding to have an impact for Christ whether they are serving in a church body or a secular workplace.
Many of our Bible colleges have recently become universities. There are a variety of reasons for this transition, but generally speaking, college leaders are seeking a way to maintain a vibrant ministry that meets the needs of Christian students who sense an expanding scope of ministry possibilities, church and secular. In addition most of our colleges are fully accredited and well-regarded in the wider world of higher education, while maintaining a strong focus on biblical education and ministry at the core of their curriculum.
Our congregation and many others have always considered our Bible colleges a mission of our local body, since ministry students could not afford to attend if church contributions were not available to bring the cost of tuition down, and also because without them, we could lose our leadership base in a single generation.
Church Camps
Most everywhere you will discover clusters of churches that have come together to build and maintain Christian service camps. These camps host weeks of "church camp" in the summer for children and older students. Some offer year-round retreats and events. For many regions of our country, our church camps are "the" connecting point that keeps area churches in fellowship with one another. They have also historically been a place where many young people make decisions to follow Christ, and older teens choose to pursue full-time ministry.
Church camps are usually subsidized through the mission offerings of local churches.
Publications
There are a number of publications produced in our movement. These publications give leaders and servants in our churches an opportunity to exchange ideas, opinions and spiritual lessons that are helpful for the building up of the kingdom. The two dominant publications are the Christian Standard and the Lookout. While the Christian Standard targets church leaders and issues of concern to our fellowship of churches as a whole, The Lookout focuses more on helping people grow in their daily walk with the Lord.
Two other publications are worth noting. The Restoration Herald is a publication that focuses on key principles of our church movement, with historical references, and voices the more conservative concerns within our movement. In addition, Horizons magazine focuses on mission.
Mission Organizations
Mission organizations help provide oversight and a sense of connectedness with missionaries on the field. Since we are not a denomination, none of our organizations are directly tied to any church structure, but rather exist as separate organizations relying on the voluntary contributions of local churches and individuals. Most missionaries raise their own support, but it is considered a wise thing to go through an organization for accountability and training.
There are many organizations, but two in particular provide good examples that are worthy of examination: Christian Missionary Fellowship (CMF) and Team Expansion.
Summary
This single session hardly does justice to the many organizations and ministries that keep our movement tied together, including investment and loan companies, publishing houses, and children's homes. But perhaps the information here will give you a sense for how we maintain our identity. It should also be said again, the support for any and all of these groups is totally voluntary and each church is free to choose what they wish to do with their funds, mission or otherwise.
The beauty of a non-denominational church, such as Northside, is that we are not bound by large man-made structures that can inhibit leaders in local churches. The challenge, however, is that even non-denominational churches who are a part of a major stream of sister congregations need a way to stay connected.
Our focus here is on the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ, instrumental. The other two groups within our movement, the Church of Christ (non-instrumental) and Disciples of Christ, have their own methods of connecting, the Church of Christ through college and university lectureships and the Disciples through denominational structures.
Our group, known collectively as the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ uses a number of voluntary structures to stay connected. We use the word "voluntary" because there are no denominational requirements, legal or otherwise, that force any given autonomous congregation to participate in these structures. They do so by choice because they want to maintain the spirit and principles of the Restoration Movement, and they realize staying connected to sister churches from the same movement is vitally important to everyone's success. Here are some, but not all of the connecting points:
Conventions
Conventions within our movement are not "delegate" conventions where churches send representatives who return with directives for the local church. Instead, they are merely gatherings of believers intent on being informed, inspired and invested. They want to remain informed of things going on among our sister churches, inspired for the mission of winning the world for Christ, and invested in something called the "Restoration Plea", which is the desire to balance "unity" and "truth" using the Word of God as our rule for faith and practice, and focusing on the Lordship of Jesus.
Our two major national conventions are the North American Christian Convention (the most prominent), and the National Missionary Convention. Both conventions move around the country from year-to-year as selected presidents develop programs of speakers and workshops through volunteer committees. There are paid administrators who perform functions necessary for the continuation of the conventions, but none of these administrators exercise authority over local congregations.
The Northside church supports the two major national conventions through its missions budget and considers their existence vital to maintaining the identity and mission of our church movement. These mission offerings are totally voluntary and each local church decides whether or not it wants to participate in this way.
Colleges
Our Bible colleges are vital to the continued existence and success of our movement because they educate future preachers, church leaders and missionaries. Historically, most all church movements have established institutions of higher learning for this purpose. The goal is to educate servants in the foundational principles of our movement, and to prepare them for meaningful ministry with a solid grounding in the Word of God and an approach to the mission that puts Christ first.
Over the years our colleges have gone through many changes to insure we can continue to equip servants for ministry. Most have expanded their programs to prepare believers in a variety of other vocations inside and outside the local church. The hope is that students will use their spiritual grounding to have an impact for Christ whether they are serving in a church body or a secular workplace.
Many of our Bible colleges have recently become universities. There are a variety of reasons for this transition, but generally speaking, college leaders are seeking a way to maintain a vibrant ministry that meets the needs of Christian students who sense an expanding scope of ministry possibilities, church and secular. In addition most of our colleges are fully accredited and well-regarded in the wider world of higher education, while maintaining a strong focus on biblical education and ministry at the core of their curriculum.
Our congregation and many others have always considered our Bible colleges a mission of our local body, since ministry students could not afford to attend if church contributions were not available to bring the cost of tuition down, and also because without them, we could lose our leadership base in a single generation.
Church Camps
Most everywhere you will discover clusters of churches that have come together to build and maintain Christian service camps. These camps host weeks of "church camp" in the summer for children and older students. Some offer year-round retreats and events. For many regions of our country, our church camps are "the" connecting point that keeps area churches in fellowship with one another. They have also historically been a place where many young people make decisions to follow Christ, and older teens choose to pursue full-time ministry.
Church camps are usually subsidized through the mission offerings of local churches.
Publications
There are a number of publications produced in our movement. These publications give leaders and servants in our churches an opportunity to exchange ideas, opinions and spiritual lessons that are helpful for the building up of the kingdom. The two dominant publications are the Christian Standard and the Lookout. While the Christian Standard targets church leaders and issues of concern to our fellowship of churches as a whole, The Lookout focuses more on helping people grow in their daily walk with the Lord.
Two other publications are worth noting. The Restoration Herald is a publication that focuses on key principles of our church movement, with historical references, and voices the more conservative concerns within our movement. In addition, Horizons magazine focuses on mission.
Mission Organizations
Mission organizations help provide oversight and a sense of connectedness with missionaries on the field. Since we are not a denomination, none of our organizations are directly tied to any church structure, but rather exist as separate organizations relying on the voluntary contributions of local churches and individuals. Most missionaries raise their own support, but it is considered a wise thing to go through an organization for accountability and training.
There are many organizations, but two in particular provide good examples that are worthy of examination: Christian Missionary Fellowship (CMF) and Team Expansion.
Summary
This single session hardly does justice to the many organizations and ministries that keep our movement tied together, including investment and loan companies, publishing houses, and children's homes. But perhaps the information here will give you a sense for how we maintain our identity. It should also be said again, the support for any and all of these groups is totally voluntary and each church is free to choose what they wish to do with their funds, mission or otherwise.
Tuesday, 13 September 2011
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ History - Part 6: So Who Are We?
So Who Are We?
In this last session, we will attempt to summarize the material we have viewed and create a simple profile that accurately identifies the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ.
Guiding Principles
We believe the church is one, and unity can be achieved by focusing on the Word of God as our rule for faith and practice, and the Lordship of Jesus. We attempt to model the church after the example of the New Testament church found in the book of Acts.
The slogans shared in our second session continue to be guiding lights, and are frequently referenced by leaders as they seek to discern direction for the body. We still attempt to work for the unity of all believers, while holding fast to the Word of God and the good news of Jesus Christ.
A phrase one might use of us is that we are an "independent, Biblically conservative body that seeks unity with other believers by being 'Christians Only.'"
Theology and Practice
Because we are attempting to model ourselves after the New Testament Church, we try to shadow what we believe the first Christians did. We believe those who came to follow Jesus were immediately baptized by immersion (as opposed to babies who are sprinkled in some church bodies), and that the church met regularly to share in fellowship, learn from the apostle's teaching (the New Testament for us), break bread (take communion) and pray. These four practices are found in Acts 2:42.
Sometimes our churches are called "New Testament Churches" because of our philosophy regarding the church model we find in the book of Acts. However, this does not mean we do not use the whole counsel of God as revealed in both Old and New Testaments. Our focus on the New Testament is not intended to exclude the Old Testament, but rather to emphasize the importance of the Biblical model of the church as our standard.
Leadership Structure
Our congregations still resist large church structures beyond our local congregation, however, we do have a structure within our body based on leadership roles found in the New Testament. We have elders, who are the shepherds and overseers (1 Timothy 3:1-7); deacons (1 Timothy 3:8-12), who are special servants assisting the elders; and a host of other servant-leaders, some of them trained for a specific ministry focus as in the case of our paid staff.
While our church is "congregational" in that it is independent of bigger denominational structures, and often votes together on issues affecting us all, from a Biblical standpoint, we look to the elders as our final accountability under the Lord and His Word. The elders, in turn, give authority to others, including our trained staff, to lead and execute ministry. At Northside, the elders and staff come together regularly to pray and seek God's direction for the church body.
Aside from these roles, the Bible does not give a lot of specifics on how the elders are to perform their shepherding and oversight, or how specialized servants are supposed to minister, except that they should exhibit the character and grace of a spiritual leader. For this reason, organizational systems and titles for staff members vary from church to church as the size and circumstances of the congregation vary. Elders also often share their shepherding and oversight responsibilities with others, much the same as Moses learned to share his leadership with others in the wilderness.
Great care should be used not to marry ourselves to any one leadership or organizational structure that is not specifically spelled out in scripture, but rather to seek God's wisdom in every generation as we attempt to work through the roles He has established to build His kingdom. It is often hard for those who have been raised with one leadership structure to separate their experience from Biblical command, but again, we should always be open to methods that will benefit the kingdom, while not going against expressed Biblical commands.
Not the End of the Story
As a body, we are still committed to church unity, using the model of the church in the New Testament as our example. We will continue to study and learn as we reach out with the saving message of Jesus. And we believe we can continue to have a positive influence on our brothers and sisters in the denominational world by teaching our principles in love.
We continue to build fellowship with our non-instrumental brethren, and look for opportunities to celebrate common ground with the Disciples of Christ. There are, incidentally, small movements within the Disciples group to move back to a more solid Biblical foundation.
In addition, we make every effort to extend kindness and Christian love to everyone who worships our Savior, even though we may differ theologically and philosophically. Though we are not always in agreement with everything these groups do, we believe we are better able to draw others to the table to discuss what the Lord has commanded when we practice the "in all things love" portion of the slogan previously shared.
Somehow, in all of this we must remain uncompromisingly true to the teachings of the scripture, while still building relationships with those who differ. As a famous preacher in our movement once said, "I can participate with those with whom I disagree as long as I know where my anchor is."
Our anchor is in the Word of God, the Lordship of Christ, and the vision of His church as revealed in the New Testament and most clearly in the history book of Acts. To the extent we are able to understand and follow this example, we will be able to realize our two-fold goal of unity and truth.
In this last session, we will attempt to summarize the material we have viewed and create a simple profile that accurately identifies the Christian Churches and Churches of Christ.
Guiding Principles
We believe the church is one, and unity can be achieved by focusing on the Word of God as our rule for faith and practice, and the Lordship of Jesus. We attempt to model the church after the example of the New Testament church found in the book of Acts.
The slogans shared in our second session continue to be guiding lights, and are frequently referenced by leaders as they seek to discern direction for the body. We still attempt to work for the unity of all believers, while holding fast to the Word of God and the good news of Jesus Christ.
A phrase one might use of us is that we are an "independent, Biblically conservative body that seeks unity with other believers by being 'Christians Only.'"
Theology and Practice
Because we are attempting to model ourselves after the New Testament Church, we try to shadow what we believe the first Christians did. We believe those who came to follow Jesus were immediately baptized by immersion (as opposed to babies who are sprinkled in some church bodies), and that the church met regularly to share in fellowship, learn from the apostle's teaching (the New Testament for us), break bread (take communion) and pray. These four practices are found in Acts 2:42.
Sometimes our churches are called "New Testament Churches" because of our philosophy regarding the church model we find in the book of Acts. However, this does not mean we do not use the whole counsel of God as revealed in both Old and New Testaments. Our focus on the New Testament is not intended to exclude the Old Testament, but rather to emphasize the importance of the Biblical model of the church as our standard.
Leadership Structure
Our congregations still resist large church structures beyond our local congregation, however, we do have a structure within our body based on leadership roles found in the New Testament. We have elders, who are the shepherds and overseers (1 Timothy 3:1-7); deacons (1 Timothy 3:8-12), who are special servants assisting the elders; and a host of other servant-leaders, some of them trained for a specific ministry focus as in the case of our paid staff.
While our church is "congregational" in that it is independent of bigger denominational structures, and often votes together on issues affecting us all, from a Biblical standpoint, we look to the elders as our final accountability under the Lord and His Word. The elders, in turn, give authority to others, including our trained staff, to lead and execute ministry. At Northside, the elders and staff come together regularly to pray and seek God's direction for the church body.
Aside from these roles, the Bible does not give a lot of specifics on how the elders are to perform their shepherding and oversight, or how specialized servants are supposed to minister, except that they should exhibit the character and grace of a spiritual leader. For this reason, organizational systems and titles for staff members vary from church to church as the size and circumstances of the congregation vary. Elders also often share their shepherding and oversight responsibilities with others, much the same as Moses learned to share his leadership with others in the wilderness.
Great care should be used not to marry ourselves to any one leadership or organizational structure that is not specifically spelled out in scripture, but rather to seek God's wisdom in every generation as we attempt to work through the roles He has established to build His kingdom. It is often hard for those who have been raised with one leadership structure to separate their experience from Biblical command, but again, we should always be open to methods that will benefit the kingdom, while not going against expressed Biblical commands.
Not the End of the Story
As a body, we are still committed to church unity, using the model of the church in the New Testament as our example. We will continue to study and learn as we reach out with the saving message of Jesus. And we believe we can continue to have a positive influence on our brothers and sisters in the denominational world by teaching our principles in love.
We continue to build fellowship with our non-instrumental brethren, and look for opportunities to celebrate common ground with the Disciples of Christ. There are, incidentally, small movements within the Disciples group to move back to a more solid Biblical foundation.
In addition, we make every effort to extend kindness and Christian love to everyone who worships our Savior, even though we may differ theologically and philosophically. Though we are not always in agreement with everything these groups do, we believe we are better able to draw others to the table to discuss what the Lord has commanded when we practice the "in all things love" portion of the slogan previously shared.
Somehow, in all of this we must remain uncompromisingly true to the teachings of the scripture, while still building relationships with those who differ. As a famous preacher in our movement once said, "I can participate with those with whom I disagree as long as I know where my anchor is."
Our anchor is in the Word of God, the Lordship of Christ, and the vision of His church as revealed in the New Testament and most clearly in the history book of Acts. To the extent we are able to understand and follow this example, we will be able to realize our two-fold goal of unity and truth.
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