Perspectives from Living for Jesus Inside and Outside of Institutional Churches?

The Holy Spirit has given me insight by time spent getting to know the living Word of God (Jesus) through the Bible, prayer & meditation; Christian fellowship, life experiences, and from the instruction of a few mature Christians. What I share here is not only for me they are important biblical truths for where as I understand God is taking the 21st century followers of Christ within this post-modern world. The Lord Himself is tearing down everything that has kept many of us from living an institution and religion free organic relationship with Jesus and the Church that He is building.

I have encountered hundreds of true-life stories of followers of Jesus Christ from other parts of the world most notably Asia as well as from saints from the United States and other nations who have spent significant time among them. I believe from what I have seen and heard Christians outside of “Western Nations” are years ahead of us in walking with Christ and His Church in the way God is taking those of us who live in other nations and cultures.

Earlier I said most notably China; in 1949, Mau Zedong became the Emperor of Communist China. One of his first official acts was to remove all “Christian Missionaries” from mainland China most of whom were from “Western Nations.” Afterwards systematic persecution of Chinese Christians began driving those remaining to meet secretly and the “Underground Church” began. With the institutional and religious brand of “Western Christianity”, gone Chinese Christians began experiencing the same life and explosive growth as the followers of Christ within the pages of the New Testament.

After several years, concerned Saints interested in discovering the state of “the church” in China or whether there were, any remaining faithful to Christ visited making contact with the “Underground Church.” Many have gone since all returning with story after story confirming Christians in Communist China may be the healthiest in the known world. In addition, reports consistently come back explaining they are experiencing the greatest spiritual maturity and growth in numbers of any nation in history. This is all with extremely limited availability of bibles, no hierarchical leadership structure, and no organized religious institutions. They are simply living in relationship with God and one another and therefore being the Church instead of going to or doing church.

The following are lessons I am learning to flesh out in daily life and the premises I am writing from in the non-biographic portions of this writing. They are not in a purposeful order.

1. The word Ecclesia (“Ecclesia” being the Greek word that has been replaced with"Church" within English Bible translations) means the whole community of people who are in Christ. It is an organic community built by Christ not an organization or institution, which man can build. There is no such thing as "a church" as if there could be more than one. There is only the Ecclesia! It is not possible to go to, build, do , or start/plant Ecclesia it is only possible to be or not be The Ecclesia.

The word Church is not a translation of the word Ecclesia it is a translation of the word Greek word Kuriakon that until Constantine’s supposed conversion to Christianity was only used in Greek culture and language in reference to Pagan religious buildings of worship.

2. Many if not most of the problems within so-called Christian Churches since the time of Constantine are natural outcomes of unbiblical leadership structure, practices, and organization into institutions, programs, and system. All of which there is no evidence for within the pages of the New Testament or recorded in the first 500 years of history following Christ’s death and the birth of the Church as being part of the life or gatherings of the disciples/apprentices of Jesus. In fact all come from pagan cultural, religious, governmental, and business practices and organizational forms.

Most of what people refer to as “Christian Churches” regardless whether Catholic, Protestant, Evangelical, Reformed etc. is copied from pagan Greco/Roman Government and Religious Cult intuitions and practices. Therefore, most of the problems and corruption we see in so-called “Christian Churches” are the same issues found in the worlds governmental and business institutions only dressed in religious clothes with biblical sounding labels.

Please read Colossians 1:18; Mark 9:35; Matthew 20:25&26; John 13:1-17.

3. Human leadership and authority in the Ecclesia Christ is building is purely relational, because Christ is the only Head of His Body and the only covering. Therefore human leadership in the in the Church cannot be hierarchical as all the parts under the one Head are equal. The concept of having leadership over anyone is by definition lording it over them and therefore in contradiction to the clear teachings and example of Jesus. The people who choose to follow another’s instruction, counsel, or direction give relational authority to those leaders. The purpose of authority is to serve and do well to those who choose to give another authority in their lives.

4. If it is not in the New Testament, it is not valid to teach as Christian doctrine and practice for followers of Jesus Christ or their gatherings under the New Covenant.

5. Living by rules, regulations, and principles enslave and grace frees! Shoulding ourselves and on others is unacceptable!

6. God loves you and me and desires us to know him for our benefit with no strings attached. The purpose of Prayer, bible study, meditation, and other so-called disciplines is spending time getting to know God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Everything else that happens during that time and outside of it naturally flows from experiencing Father's love and the desire that follows to give Him what he wants. In other words, what I am supposed to do or not do becomes irrelevant, because when we love someone for their benefit, doing what pleases and benefits them is the inherent outcome.

7. Discipline is a fruit of the Spirit for our old nature our flesh. The flesh cannot be conformed to God’s image and nature and opposes everything of the Spirit. Therefore, we choose to make the flesh subject by the power of Christ through whom we can do all things even though the old nature our flesh is completely contrary to the will of God and demands satisfaction. The more we experientially know God’s love and accept it by faith the easier discipline becomes. We experience God’s Love by spending time with Him and learning to live in the constant state of communion with Him!

8. You and I reflecting our Fathers likeness is what glorifies God. Not the things we do or do not do.

9. Father’s pleasure is in knowing us and in our having, relationship with Him not in our performance there is nothing we have to or can do to earn it and nothing can undo it.

10. He enjoys the simple act of giving to us and meeting our needs infinitely more than we enjoy receiving just because He loves us!

11. Faith in Christ and His payment for our sin alone with nothing else added ever is what makes us in right relationship with Father and gives us favor with Him.

12. In “Western Culture” Church as most have experienced it, the Gospel typically heard and proclaimed, traditions we have had passed down are not what was taught and demonstrated by Jesus or the Ecclesia within the pages of the New Testament. The Gospel of the Kingdom and life in Christ is much less complicated than is often taught or most have imagined and therefore more simple then many are willing to comprehend or accept.

Please read Acts 13:16-41, Acts 2:42, 1 Corinthians 14:26.

For further study on this topic I suggest reading the book Pagan Christianity co-written by George Barna and Frank Viola and the sequel Reimaging Church by Frank Viola. I also strongly suggest the video documentary by my friends at Family Room Media titled “Church Outside The Walls.”

I have purposefully left out many scripture references to avoid the habit of proof texting which is taking scripture out of context to prove a point rather than reading it in the context of the whole volume of Biblical scripture. I hope everyone will be like the Bereans in Acts 17:11 (New International Version) “Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.”

The few references included are just a suggestion from where you may begin studying and allowing Holy Spirit to teach you. 1 John 2:27 (New Living Translation) “But you have received the Holy Spirit] and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit] teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.”

From here forward, the word church refers to religious institutions and the abbreviation “IC” refers to institutional church and the Greek word Ecclesia refers the community of those who are in Christ.

I am not claiming to be an expert when it comes to the Ecclesia or being apprentices of Jesus as he intends. To the contrary, I am a newbie who has just begun walking the narrow way. Even though I placed faith in Christ 30 years ago, I just recently began discovering the way is narrower than I once thought and even fewer find it, because most prefer religion over organic relationship with God and others. Most often, it is, because religion is manageable and genuine relationships get messy, require vulnerability and religion has a false feeling of safety, and ease...

I believe Father in His grace is teaching others and me the Ecclesia Christ is building is one that is institution and religion free, which is new territory for me, and I am certain for many others.