NEW TESTAMENT MEETINGS AND THE RAPID CHURCH PLANTING OF THE APOSTLES

New Testament Meetings and the Rapid Church Planting of the Apostles

One of the keys that allowed the apostles to rapidly plant churches was the way early believers conducted their meetings. The apostles left churches behind for some period of time with no appointed elders to lead them.

Imagine what would happen in many traditional churches if the government came in and arrested the pastors and other ‘official’ church leadership. What would happen to churches if the pastors were taken? This may sound like an unrealistic scenario, but it often happens in many countries. In China and Vietnam, for example, church leaders can be imprisoned. If this happened in the church you attend, would the brethren be able to have edifying church meetings by themselves, without the pastor?

I have seen church services canceled because the pastor was sick. I know of one church that shut down because the pastor moved and took a secular job to feed his family. Many people feel that in order to have a church meeting, there must be a specially called minister of the Gospel, ordained by the laying on of hands.

In Acts 14:23, we see that the churches were already churches when Paul and Barnabas appointed elders. A ‘church’ is an assembly. These believers were already assembling together as churches. They met without apostles or official ordained leadership. Yet they were still able to meet.

A careful study of the New Testament reveals fascinating information about how the early church met. When we understand how the early church met, we can understand how the apostles could leave churches for extended periods of time with no appointed elders.

What you are about to read may shock you. It may challenge some of your most fundamental beliefs about church meetings. I ask that you read this with an open mind, prayerfully searching the scriptures to determine if the things I write are true.

The Three-Point Sermon

Many seminaries teach students to preach three-point sermons. Many consider this to be the idea type of sermon. A three-point sermon is composed of an introduction, body, and conclusion. The introduction mentions the three main points of the sermon, the body expounds on the three main points, in the order in which they were introduced in the introduction. The conclusion, of course, is the end part of the sermon.

In my studies of the New Testament, I have never noticed a prophet, apostle, or the Lord Himself ever preaching a three-point sermon. There are many examples of sermons in the New Testament to examine. Paul certainly did not write letters with only three points. If the New Testament does not teach us to preach three-point sermons, and does not give us an example of any three-point sermons, where does this type of preaching come from?

The three-point sermon comes from ancient Greece. Aristotle taught the pattern for three point speeches in his Rhetoric. [Verify this and point out the year.] Hundreds of years before the birth of Christ, Athenian teachers were teaching statesmen to give three-point speeches in city meetings. Writers wrote using this same method of organization. Even today, the ability to write a three-point essay is considered to be a necessary skill for high school or college graduates.

Christianity flourished in Greece. Some of the educated Christian authors of the first centuries of Christianity were educated in philosophy, and had learned to give well-organized three-point speeches. For example, John Chrystosom, in the 300’s, was known for his ability to preach beautiful sermons.

Paul was most likely not a trained public speaker:
II Corinthians 11:6 But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been thoroughly made manifest among you in all things.

Paul was probably a powerful speaker in a way. He had a lot of knowledge, and probably spoke with much further. He was educated and had rabbinical training. But he may not have had the type of Greek educated given to public speakers-the type of training philosophers had. If Paul’s writing style and sample sermons from Acts are any indication, it is unlikely that Paul preached three-point sermons. While a three-point sermon may be a legitimate means of communicating a message, the Bible gives us no reason to consider the three-point sermon to be the ideal means of teaching in church meetings.

Sermon as Central Part of the Church Meeting

Sermons were preached in churches long before the Reformation. But it was after the Reformation that, in many types of churches, the one Sunday sermon came to be viewed as the central focus of the church meeting. For centuries before the Reformation the most important aspect of the church meeting was considered to be partaking of Holy Communion. In Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and certain traditional Protestant churches, Holy Communion still holds this central place.

Why was Holy Communion considered to be so important? Think about it. Where did the custom come from? Christ Himself instituted Holy Communion. Of all the things we do in our church meetings, Holy Communion stands out as the one unique practice that Jesus Christ Himself instructed His disciples to do.

That is not to say that Bible teaching is not important. It is clear from the New Testament scriptures that hearing and learning the word of God is essential. But we need to realize that the way in which the word is taught in church has evolved over time. When Martin Luther nailed the 95 thesis on the church door in Wittenberg in 1517, there was great ignorance in the churches. Masses were conducted in Latin which most of his fellow Germans could not understand. Many had little idea of what the Bible, read in Latin, said.

Martin Luther emphasized expounding on the scriptures in sermons. He translated the New Testament into German for his fellow countrymen to read. Yet, Luther still emphasized the importance of Holy Communion. In Roman Catholic Churches, and many Lutheran churches, the pulpit is toward the left of the sanctuary and there is an altar front and center for distribution of Holy Communion. The arrangement of the furnishings indicates the theoretical central importance of Holy Communion in such churches. Now, ironically, some Protestant churches in Indonesia have pulpits on the left and altars in the middle, but rarely celebrate Holy Communion.

Later Reformers after Luther took the pulpit and placed it front and center in the congregation, where it still stands in many congregations today. In many churches since the Reformation, the central focus of the whole meetings is a long sermon given by one leader.

There are many kinds of sermons. This sermon may be a three-point sermon. It may be a verse-by-verse exposition of a passage. Some sermons are just a preacher standing in front of a congregation, reading a few verses, and then spouting out a few of his own unrelated ideas. But in almost every church that came out of the Reformation, there is a sermon every Sunday morning, and the congregation generally considers the high point of the meeting.

What is the Biblical evidence for the Sunday sermon? Acts records long sermons by Peter, Stephen, and Paul-- Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount and gave other extended teachings. But this was before ‘regular church meetings’ began after Pentecost. Peter preached a sermon on Pentecost, and Paul preached sermons in synagogues and other public places, but these were evangelistic in nature, rather than messages given in gatherings of believers for the edification of the saints. Where is the evidence for the Sunday sermon in scripture?

The closest thing to a piece of scriptural evidence for a Sunday sermon preached in church is found in Acts 20:6-7.

6 And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days.
7 And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

In the passage, the word for ‘teach’ [berbicera dengan] means that Paul was talking with the saints. It is likely that he had an interactive discussion with the saints until midnight. Paul probably had a dominant speaking role in that particular meeting on this particular occasion because he was leaving the next day, and the church needed to get as much knowledge out of him as they could before he left.

What other evidence is there in scripture for the Sunday sermon? I am not able to find a good scriptural example of the custom of going to church to hear a monologue from one man week after week. Church meetings are the right place for Christians to learn and study the word of God. Teaching should be a part of such meetings. But this teaching need not take the form of only one church leader giving a three-point sermon. The Lord may gift a church with many teachers. The early church allowed more than one speaker per meeting. Believers can also learn by hearing a passage of scripture read, and discussing it with others. We should expect that the saints would be more blessed by the gifts of many in a meeting than they would by the gifts of one.

Evidence for Mutually Edifying Meetings

Hebrews 10 contains a verse often quoted by preachers to encourage the members of the congregation to come to church. Let us take a look at Hebrews 10:24-25

Hebrews 10:24-25
24 And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Notice the context provided by verse 24. Believers are to provoke one another to love and to good works. I have often heard verse 25 used in exhortations to attend church meetings, but it seems like few people pay attention to the whole verse. The verse commands not to forsake assembling together, but to exhort one another.

How many of us obey this verse? Many of us do not forsake assembling together, but when we assemble, we receive exhortation. But here Hebrews 10:25 instructs believers to assemble and to exhort one another.

Do any other passages of scripture teach us that meetings are supposed to involve mutual edification? In fact, the longest chapter that gives the most detailed instructions in regard to church meetings tells how to have mutually edifying meetings.

I Corinthians 14 was written to correct excesses among the Corinthians. Apparently, many of the Corinthians were either standing all at once and speaking in tongues without interpretation in the meeting, or else standing one by one and speaking in tongues with no interpretation. In this chapter, Paul explains that messages in tongues without interpretation do not edify the assembly. Paul contrasts tongues with prophecy, which edifies the church.

Something very interesting to notice about I Corinthians 14 is that Paul does not correct the Corinthians disorderly behavior by telling them to sit silently and listen to a preacher preach a sermon. In fact, we see that the Corinthians were not in the habit of hearing on man preach a sermon.

I Corinthians 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Here we see that ‘every one of you’ had something to share in the meeting. Paul does not address the issue of a meeting in which only one man teaches, but a meeting in which the various members of the body of Christ use their gifts to edify the whole assembly. Paul’s solution for the Corinthian’s problems is not limiting the number of speakers to one man, but rather allowing the Corinthians to express their gifts in an orderly manner.

I Corinthians 14 has to be taken in the context of the whole epistle. In I Corinthians 12, Paul lists various gifts of the Spirit, and explains that we all the members of the body of Christ have different gifts, and we all need one another. Chapter 13 explains the importance of love in relation to the gifts of the spirit. Chapter 14 then explains how the gifts of the Spirit are to be used by the members of the body of Christ to edify one another. The place for the exercise of gifts of the Spirit to build up the body of Christ is in church meetings.

In I Corinthians 14, we see that Paul was very positive about the idea of all prophesying in a church meeting. In verses 24 through 25, Paul presents a scenario demonstrating something positive that could happen if everyone in the church meeting prophesied. In verse 31, Paul writes, “For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.” In verses 33 and 36 Paul indicates that what taught about church meetings was the practice of the other churches and that the Corinthians did not have the right to altar these practices. In verse 37, Paul explains that his instructions for church meetings were the commandments of the Lord.

Other Scriptural Evidence of Gifts in the Churches

Romans 12:4-8 teaches believers to use their gifts to edify one another. The passage instructs those with the gift of prophecy to prophesy according to the proportion of faith. Those with the gift of teaching are to teach. Those with the gift of exhortation are to teach. Why would Paul have given such instructions if there were no opportunity for the saints to use these gifts to edify one another in their meetings?

Consider Peter’s instructions:
1 Peter 4:10-11
10 As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
11 If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

A steward is one entrusted to take care of someone else’s property. Christians are stewards of God’s grace. If God gives us spiritual gifts, we must be responsible to use them properly. Verse 11 mentions ‘speaking.’ Those who have speaking gifts like prophecy or teaching, must use those gifts to edify others.

From these passages, we can see that God gives regular believers gifts. He expects us to use our gifts. Unfortunately, the format of many churches allows little or no opportunity for believers to use their gifts. Often, one man, week after week, has an opportunity to use his gift, but other people are not allowed an opportunity to use their gifts.

The Example of the Synagogue

Synagogue meetings in the first century were liturgical with ritual prayers and scheduled Scripture reading. But the synagogue allowed a lot more freedom for members to minister to one another in their meetings, in some ways, that many modern churches allow.

In the first century synagogue, any Jewish male member of the synagogue might read a passage of scripture. In many churches nowadays, the same man gives the sermon week after week. But in the synagogue, regular Jewish men could read the scriptures before the congregation. A regular, unordained Jewish man who knew the Bible well and had good moral character could be a preacher of sermons in the synagogue. After the sermon was given, others in the congregation would ask questions and comment on the sermon in a discussion. We often see Jews debating with Paul in the synagogue in Acts

Christ, the twelve apostles, Paul and Barnabas all spent a lot of time in the synagogue. This was a part of their cultural background. Many of the saints in the churches of the first century, even those planted by Paul and Barnabas, were quite used to the synagogue. They were used to discussions of teachings of scriptural passages. If a teaching were presented in a church meeting in the first century, wouldn’t it have felt natural for the believers to discuss the teaching in the meeting?

The epistles of the New Testament emphasize the importance of using spiritual gifts to build one another up. The first century church had gifts that were not present in the synagogue before Christ came. The type of meeting Paul encouraged the Corinthians to have would have allowed for believers to express their gifts to build one another up much more freely than a synagogue format would have allowed. Ironically, many churches these days have less freedom for expression of gifts than a synagogue format would allow.

Evidence from the Problems of Churches in The First Century

The types of problems the New Testament addresses give us a clue as to the interactive nature of church meetings.

The Gentile Circumcision Controversy.
Let us take a look at the problems that arose in Acts 15.

Acts 15:1-2
1 And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved.
2 When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.

In what venue did Paul and Barnabas argue with the men who were teaching the Gentiles to be circumcised? Considering the fact that the Jews in the synagogue could discuss or debate a teacher’s teachings, and that the apostles had grown up in the synagogue, isn’t it likely that Paul and Barnabas rebuked the false teachers in the assembly? If they had not confronted the false teachings publicly, many in the church may have stumbled.

Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem to deal with the Gentile circumcision issue. Notice what happened in a meetings of the church in Jerusalem:

Standing up an disagreeing with a preacher in a church these days would seem like an incredibly rude act. But since the early church had an interactive format to meetings which allowed for more than one person to speak.

In Antioch, Paul rebuked Peter for withdrawing from eating with the Gentiles when some men came from Jerusalem. Paul confronted Peter ‘before them all’ (Galatians 2:14.) Isn’t it likely that Paul would have confronted the promoters of Gentile-circumcision before the congregation?

Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem to deal with the Gentile circumcision issue. Notice what happened in a meetings of the church in Jerusalem:

Acts 15:4-5
4 And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church and the apostles and the elders, and they rehearsed all things that God had done with them.
5 But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees who believed, saying, It is needful to circumcise them, and to charge them to keep the law of Moses.

Here Paul and Barnabas are speaking before the church. Because of the interactive format of church gatherings in the first century, some men stood up promoting Gentile circumcision.

Acts 15 continues on to tell us how the apostles and elders met and discussed the issue of Gentiles circumcision, and finally reached a decision. In this meeting, we do not see one man doing all the talking-preaching a sermon-while the rest listen. Instead, there was a lot of discussion until the assembly discerned the will of the Spirit as expressed in the scriptures.

False Prophecy

It is likely that the Thessalonians had had to deal with false prophecies:

II Thessalonians 2:2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.

What advice had Paul given to the Thessalonians about prophecy?

I Thessalonians 5:20-21
20 Despise not prophesyings.
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

Perhaps because of false prophecies, the Thessalonians may have been tempted to despise prophesyings. Paul’s solution for dealing with prophecies was not to reject them out of hand, but rather to prove them, and hold fast to the good.

The fact that prophecies were given and that the Thessalonians heard them is strong evidence for the exercise of the gift of prophecy in their meetings. As in Corinth, those with the gift of prophecy were to be allowed to speak.

Some would deal with false prophecies by forbidding the gift. But this is not Paul’s solution. To the Corinthians, Paul instructs that the prophets speak two or three, and that the other judge. (I Cor. 14:21.) Paul doesn’t instruct the churches to muzzle the mouths of the saints to prevent their every being any false teaching or prophecy. His solution is rather to allow the saints to use their gifts, and to deal with problems after they arise.

There are,. However, false teachers whose ‘mouths must be stopped” (Titus 1:11.) The open format of the early churches sometimes allowed room for false teachers to creep in. False teachers who deny the truth should be resisted by the whole congregation and, in particular, apostles and elders.

Sometimes, regular believers in the assembly may go off into strange doctrines, and want to preach them. The church in Ephesus had such people:

I Timothy 1:6-7
6 From which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling;
Desiring to be teachers of the law; understanding neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm.

Paul taught not to pay attention to such teachers. (I Timothy 1:4.)

Biblical Remedy for False Teachers

The whole congregation of believers must make an effort to withdraw from those who teach false doctrine. Paul wrote,

1 Timothy 6:3 If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;

Paul writes of such a person, in verse 5, “from such withdraw thyself.”

Apostles and elders in particular have a role in resisting false teaching. We see Paul and Barnabas resisted false teaching in Antioch. In II Peter 2, Peter writes against false teachers who taught for money and deceived people into sin.

The elders of the church also have a role in resisting false doctrine. The elders met with the apostles in Jerusalem to deal with the issue of Gentile circumcision in Acts 15.

In his instructions to Titus concerning elders, Paul describes their responsibility to defend the truth of the Gospel.

Titus 1:9-11
9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the gainsayers.
10 For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers, specially they of the circumcision:
11 Whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre's sake.

Clearly, the open, mutually participatory nature of New Testament style meetings presents a lot of challenges. False teachers and false prophets may try to take advantage of the opportunity to share their dangerous ideas. Well-meaning believers may share ideas that are not edifying. The Bible gives us solutions to these problems. Apostles, elders, and ‘regular believers’ must all resist false doctrine and stand for the truth. Prophecies are to be carefully weighed.

The Bible offers solutions to the problems that arise in New Testament style meetings.
But the modern practice of not allowing regular believers to use their gifts also causes many problems.

Problems of Closed Meetings

Unused and Undeveloped Spiritual Gifts

Many problems arise in churches from not allow believers to exercise their gifts in church meetings. One problem is the fact that the local church body misses out on the blessings and benefits of the gifts of those who are not active in the meetings. Consider the following verses from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians.

I Corinthians 12:19-23
19 And if they were all one member, where were the body?
20 But now are they many members, yet but one body.
21 And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you.

We need the gifts of all the parts of the body of Christ. We are supposed to be ministering to one another with these gifts.

Imagine if the only part of your body that you used to move around was your arm. The rest of your body is in a cast, except for that one arm. If you are very persistent, you may learn to drag yourself across a room by laying on the floor and pulling yourself along with that one arm. After a year of doing this, your arm muscles would be very strong. You would have powerful fingers. But what would happen if you were to remove the cast? The rest of your muscles would have atrophied. Your legs would not work properly.

Many churches are like this. A few parts of the local body use their gifts to edify others. The rest of the believers in the church often just sit there an listen. Many believers do not make much effort to use their spiritual gifts to edify others. Their gifts are often mostly unused, and are weak. They don’t use their gifts because they are not taught that they should. They think their role as Christians is simply to attend church meetings, pay tithes, and live a fairly decent life. The pastor and a few others in the church, who use their gifts, may have very well developed gifts.

No matter how knowledgeable a pastor is, he cannot edify a local church as well as all the members of the body of Christ using their gifts. Many pastors like to focus on a few topics that they are interested in, week after week. Some even begin to repeat themselves. Allowing all the gifted teachers in an assembly to teach helps the local body to learn the word of God better. Allowing the other gifts to function allows the body to be edified in other ways. Pay special attention to the following verse.

I Corinthians 14:31 For ye may all prophesy one by one, that all may learn, and all may be comforted.

Notice that all prophesy so that all may learn and be comforted. What happens if only one prophesies? Can we expect to get the same results if only one prophesies that we could if all prophesied? God has distributed His gifts among the body of Christ so that we need one another in order to be properly edified.

A local church where all believers use their gifts, and honor and seek the Lord with them is a powerful threat to the kingdom of Satan. Just imagine how much more powerful the church would be in evangelism and as a witness in society if all believers exercised their gifts to their full potential?

Lack of Community

Christians are supposed to be a loving community. The earliest saints in Jerusalem realized this, and took care of one another. Those who had wealth shared with those who had none. Christians are to fellowship with one another. We are to share our lives together. The love that we have for one another is to serve as a witness to the world

Consider the words of Christ in John 13:35 “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

The use of spiritual gifts to edify one another helps build community. Being ministered to by someone can help you increase your love and affection for that person. Think about someone who has ministered to you spiritually in the past- maybe someone who discipled you, prayed with you, or ministered to you in some other way. When you think of that person, don’t you feel grateful? Hasn’t his ministry caused your affection for that person to increase?

If you minister to someone, that can also cause your affections for that person to increase. When we serve one another in the body of Christ, it promotes love, community and oneness. Consider the words of Paul about the body of Christ from Ephesians.

Ephesians 4:16 From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.

Notice in this verse that every part of the body must work so that the body might edify itself in love. The word ‘edify’ shows up in many other passages in Paul’s letter. One chapter in which he uses the word many times in I Corinthians 14. Consider the following verse:

1 Corinthians 14:12 Even so ye, forasmuch as ye are zealous of spiritual gifts, seek that ye may excel to the edifying of the church.

This verse appears in the context of a teaching on how to behave in church meetings. One of the main places the saints in the body of Christ are to use their gifts to minister to one another

Protecting Doctrinal Purity

Throughout the New Testament, we see that the early churches had a plurality of elders. Something especially dangerous about many churches today is that they have one pastor, or one pastor over all the rest, who, in some cases, is not held accountable if he preaches wrong doctrine.

While there are many humble servants of God preaching the word faithfully, there are also men who preach false doctrines. Guest speakers could come and preach false doctrines. What would happen in your church if a visiting preacher preached some strange doctrine? Imagine what he preached was not blatant heresy, but just something strange. Would there be any format for anyone to correct the strange idea during the meeting. Even if the preacher preached blatant false doctrine, in many churches the congregation would sit quietly and do nothing.

In Antioch, when men taught false doctrine, Paul and Barnabas argued with them. It would be very shocking for some other ministers of the Gospel to stand up and interrupt someone preaching heresy today. But we need to keep in mind that the evidence we see from scripture shows that early church meetings had an interactive format.

An interactive format helps protect churches from false teachers. But it can also help protect churches from their own pastors. The Bible never shows that apostles appointing one pastor over a church. They appointed a plurality of elders. If one elder taught something wrong, there were other elders to help correct the problem.

But something else to keep in mind is that the fact that regular believers could use their gifts in meetings also kept balance. In addition to the elders of the church ministering to the body, the teachers, prophets, and other saints could speak and minister. The Proverbs say, “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counselors there is safety.” (Proverbs 11:14.)

One common problem in many churches that have one pastor is that, even though the pastor may be preaching the truth, he likes to focus on only a few issues. It is not fair for us to expect for one man in the church to contain all the gifts and knowledge of God. Of course, pastors will have their favorite doctrines and teachings. But focusing only on a few teachings can lead to an error of emphasis, or even doctrinal error.

Imagine a church where the pastor’s favorite topics are speaking in tongues and eschatology. Week after week, church members learn about little other than speaking in tongues and eschatology. Since the Bible contains a limited number of passages on speaking in tongues, in order to keep preaching on the subject, the preacher either has to repeat himself, or else be ‘creative’ in his interpretation of Scripture. As a result of overemphasis and ‘creative’ interpretation of scripture on this issue, there are some Christians who pray in tongues at the same time in church meetings without interpretation. Some even think that the Devil cannot hear you if you speak in tongues and that you should pray in tongues if you have a secret prayer you don’t want the Devil to hear. (Apparently, this idea comes from a strange interpretation of I Corinthians 14:2.)

It is Biblically true that God provides for His people, and this is a fine subject to teach on. But some preachers have focused too much on the issue of financial provision in their teaching, and ignored the many teachings of Christ against greed and trusting in wealth. Churches that overemphasize God providing us with wealth can easily appeal to the carnal mind and encourage greediness. If believers hear week after week about god giving them money, they may come to think that Christianity is all about getting money. This kind of doctrinal atmosphere is a place where conmen and false teachers can find easy prey.

An imbalanced focus on Calvinistic teachings can lead to hopelessness and even immorality. The Bible teaches us about rewards and punishments for a reason. If people are simply taught that their destiny is already decided and has nothing to do with their actions, they may grow lazy. On the other hand, overemphasis on free will and man’s responsibility can lead to false doctrine as well.

Having one member of an assembly do all the teaching can lead to imbalance. If one man teaches on God’s provision all the time, wouldn’t it be good for another man in the assembly to have freedom to teach on Christ’s sayings against greed?

An open format in an assembly provides an opportunity for false teachings to be addressed before all. It can prevent errors of emphasis which occur from hearing only one man speak on his favorite topics over and over again.

An open format in a meeting can also protect against false prophecies. Notice the common theme in the following verses:
I Corinthians 14:29 Let the prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge.

I Thessalonians 5:20-21
20 Despise not prophesyings.
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

Prophecies are to be judged and tested. What better place is there to prayerfully, carefully, and reverently evaluate and apply prophecies than in a church meeting? I Corinthians 12:10 mentions the gift of discernment of spirits. In many churches that have prophecy in the meetings, the prophecies go by without any comment from anyone in the assembly on them. Shouldn’t those with the gift of discernment of spirits be allowed to exercise their gifts, right in the assembly to edify others?

Some think that open, New Testament style meetings can lead to doctrinal error. It is true that this type of format does allow for problems to occur. A well-disciplined congregation, used to such meetings, who know the word of God, and strong leadership are needed to protect against false teachers arising in the midst and from well-meaning brethren with strange ideas.

Ironically, though, open meetings can prevent false teachings and strange ideas from spreading that are promoted by leadership. A one-man pastorate with no accountability structure is a potentially dangerous thing.

Meetings the Key to Understanding Paul and Barnabas’ Church Planting Strategy

Understanding the way the early church conducted their meetings is a key to understanding how Paul and Barnabas could have planted so many churches. These two apostles left churches behind with no appointed leadership to lead their meetings, yet these churches were able to function for maybe months or years without apostles or elders to lead their meetings.

Churches that do not have elders can have open, interactive meetings for breaking bread and mutual edification. Such an environment is a good place for believers to meet, and grow in their gifts. When the apostles returned to the churches they had started, they were able to find men who could be appointed as elders of the church. These men had grown spiritually in the churches. Participating in church meetings would have helped them mature into the type of men suitable to be elders of the churches.

© Paul L. Hudson, Jr. 2002