The Church is the sum total of all believers knit together by the Holy Spirit's indwelling power and leadership and locally ALL those who believe (are found living in Christ). One of the key facets to the nature of the Church especially in a given locality is the nature of Jesus Himself - that they are all ONE.
There are not many independently run churches" in a given locality. That is heresy akin to taking a butcher knife and cutting up the Body of the Lord Jesus into pieces and we should rightfully fear God to attempt that or maintain it.
What is "known" as various "churches" today in most places are by their very nature divided from the whole and that is contrary to the very nature of God Himself. When one "comes out" of that system of endlessly dividing and idependently identifying "churches" one does not "come out" from fellowship with believers in the locality. One comes out into the glorious freedom that is in Christ Jesus to intereact with ALL other believers in the Holy Spirit without the obstruction of a system that is competing with Christ for our loyalty and ultimately is designed to bring people into loyalty to their particular so called "church" image. To bow down to the false image of "church" as most people understand it because they have been taught that from day one.
That is not the doctrine of Christ that was taught "in the beginning." That is the doctrine of the Tower of Babel where God himself divided them because gathered together they would have built a man-made tower to "heaven."
That is not to say that God hasn't used the organizational structures that most of us are familiar with but to recognize that "we see in part and know in part..." therefore everything that is expressed as understanding is taught based on the fact that our understandings are as yet incomplete.
We should ALWAYS remain in a position of humility in recognizing that Truth. We have not arrived yet at the greater perfection that will be apparent at the revelation or 2nd coming of the Lord Jesus for HIS Bride who will be found without spot or blemish.
The problem with the current system of independent "churches" (which are "denominations" in the making) in the locality and the world as opposed to the Church which Jesus is building upon the Bedrock of the revelation of HImself is that when "churches" are formed under the current system of independence there is a great tendency to be closed off from others outside their particular gathering from being used by the Holy Spirit to bring correction and needed revelation of the Word that is missing. The result of that is that there is a mix of Truth and error in EVERY gathering so organized.
In God's design for HIS Church the believers are together and hold all things in common, no man having anything he calls his own. "We being many are ONE." God's Church is not an organization of organizations. It is a singular organism wherein every cell has a purpose and function to uphold the life of the organism. That is true in the locality and that is true worldwide.
I want to encourage us all today to seek God's wisdom on where we are presently at in our local communities and consider this one thing: Are we connected to other believers in the locality just as much as we may be to those of "our" particular gathering. It's time to walk across the street in our neighborhoods and give glory to GOD with our bretheren who may in fact be bretheren of the Lord Jesus the Messiah. And perhaps to prayerfully ask God why in so many cases and situations that love of the bretheren today in our lives does not functionally extend past the manmade walls of the organization we identify with.
Although I do not personally subscribe to the "law" of the Sabbath, being that it is the scriptural Sabbath may we submit ourselves to God's Spirit and "cease from our OWN works" (the religious works of man) and enter into the finished work of the cross towards our bretheren.
Someone once said that in order to sail on the ocean to previously unknown worlds we have to be willing (have the faith) to lose sight of the land that we came from.
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In reponse to someone's comment elsewhere:
The question then arises, "Are the local assemblies accountable to EACH OTHER? Do they submit their doctrines to one another? Are they like the apostles who for a long time met daily in the temple and in homes being in ONE mind and accord? When was the last time the elders in Hilo got together to fast and pray together and share what the Holy Spirit was revealing? Do they feel comfortable confessing their sins and weaknesses to one another? Bearing in mind that no one man has a corner on the whole Truth do they invite each other into the "pulpit to share" a particular understanding in the word or a direct word from the Lord? Is there free flowing Holy Spirit led fellowship in local neighborhoods for "members" of various gatherings to gather in their homes and edify one another based soley upon their identification with Christ regardless of the various gatherings they attend to? Is that a Spiritually natural way of life?
It seems to me that the very same guidlines that apply to "church" operation and function also apply to the Church function in the locality (and the whole world if possible). But the most important thing to remember is that none of those guidlines are valid apart from from the teachings of Christ or the work of the Holy Spirit in our midst.
We have been so "taught" that this independence from each other is normal and acceptable that we can no more see a true unity of the Spirit functionally than we can see ourselves handing over our bank accounts to each other by faith that works by deep love for one another.
It is true that God will use incredibly imperfect situations to take care of His children but it is not always true that He is smiling when doing it.
"Father, I would that they may be one EVEN AS You and I are one."
(Can we even imagine the depth of that prayer.)
I am wondering. How close do you think Jesus and the Father were at that moment of decision? I tend to pay very close attention to a dying man's request. It is most often the closest thing to their heart.
