INTRODUCTION
What are Old Testament Churches? Well, it's very simple. They're churches that have their main practices coming from the Old Testament. But, it get's confusing, because they claim to be New Testament churches. However, regardless of what they call themselves, they are Old Testament Churches because they use Old Testament principles in their practice.
Well, it sounds crazy because the term Old Testament Church is an oxymoron, a contradiction of terms, such as bittersweet or sweet and sour. That's why it sounds crazy, because the words "Old Testament" and "church" do not go together. It's a contradiction of terms. But, even though there were no churches in the Old Testament, there's a lot of Old Testament in these churches today.
The Church was instituted by God in the New Testament. This happened when God brought about two divine events on earth that resulted in three major changes. The two divine events were the death of Christ and the coming of the Holy Spirit, which resulted in three major changes: 1) the end to the Old Testament, 2) the beginning of the New Testament, and 3) the birth of the church.
When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, two things changed concerning God's dispensations on earth.
1) The New Testament fulfilled and replaced the Old Testament. In Hebrews, it says, "For where a TESTAMENT is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator" (Heb 9:16). This means that the death of Christ activated the New Testament. Because of this, Hebrews 8:13 says, ".... 'A NEW COVENANT, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.'" It is clear here that the New Testament fulfilled and replaced the Old Testament. Beginning of the New, the vanishing away of the Old.
So, when did this happen? It happened at the very moment that Jesus died on the cross. However, practically speaking, there was going to be a transitional period. That is why we have the Book of Acts. A changing from Old to New. Or a changing of dispensations. A "decaying and waxing of the old ready to be vanished away." So, in practice, there was a transition. It took some time, about 40 years, from the death of Christ around 33 A.D. to the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D.
Now, this does not mean that the Old Testament should be taken out of the Bible or that we should completely ignore it. No, it's still God's Word. But, what it means is that those dispensations in the Old Testament were over with. A dispensation is an arrangement or period in history that formed the framework through which God related to mankind. In the New Testament, the word dispensation is used in four verses and it has to do with the administration of a household or estate; especially, a religious "economy":-- It is a type of stewardship, or a "house order." So, it was God's system of order or government during most of the the Old Testament.
Many believe that there were as many as five dispensations in the Old Testament and the dispensation that we now live under is the dispensation of Grace or some call it the dispensation of the Church age. Paul said in Ephesians 3:2, "If ye have heard of the DISPENSATION of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:" And, in Colossians 1:25, Paul says to the church of Colossi, "Whereof I am made a minister, according to the DISPENSATION of God which is given to me for you, to FULFILL THE WORD OF GOD; Thus, the dispensation of the Law given to Israel in the Old Testament has ended, being replaced by the sixth dispensation, the dispensation of Grace and the Church in the New Testament, which will end at the Rapture. Shortly after that, the seventh and last dispensation will begin, the dispensation of the Millennial Kingdom.
So, when did the Mosaic dispensation of Law end? Remember, practically speaking there was a 40 year transition period, but the specific and official time that it ended was at the Cross when Jesus died. How? Well, Mathew, Mark, and Luke tell us that at the very moment when Jesus died on the cross, the veil in the Temple was torn in half. The Bible says, "And Jesus cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghost. 38 And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom" (Mark 15:37). Why is this important? Because God wanted us to know that at the very moment when His Son died on the cross, that He fulfilled the Old Covenant. Jesus said, "It's finished!" (John 19:30). "It's finished!" It's over with. Now, there is no more need for the Temple. No more need for the Priests. No more need for blood sacrifices. His Sacrifice has paid the sin debt in full. No more need for any of those symbols, types, and things from the Old Testament concerning Christ. It's all finished. He came, died, and fulfilled it all.
So, what did God do? He tore the veil in the Temple from top to bottom. This was the veil of the Holy of Holies, where the ark of the covenant was located. Only the high priest could go into that room only once during the year, at the Day of Atonement into God's presence at the mercy seat to offer the blood of the sacrifice for an atonement for himself and the people. This yearly atonement sacrifice was a picture of Jesus and His sacrifice.
But, guess what? Jesus has now died on the cross, offering Himself as the sacrifice for the atonement, once and for all. Not yearly, as the Old Testament high priests, but once for all (Heb 10:10). So, there's no need for all that other stuff, the yearly Day of Atonement, sacrifices, the high priest, the temple, the altar, the Holy of Holies, the mercy seat, and so on. It's finished. So, what did God do? He rent or tore the veil in two, right down the middle from top to bottom. This pictures an openness to God now into the Holy of Holies, that anyone can approach God without the need for a priest and a sacrifice (John 4:20-24). But, only if you approach Him through Christ, because Christ is now our High Priest and we approach God through Him, in Jesus Name. So, we don't need the other stuff. It's finished!
However, in spite of all of this, the Bible seems to indicate that the Jews sewed up the torn veil and continued on as usual. We see this in verses such as Acts 18:21, that Judaism continued on with the services of the Temple, the sacrifices, the altar, the priesthood, the feast days for almost 40 years after the death of Christ. But, God said it was over. They said, no, it's not over, and they continued on until the Temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. and the Jews booted out of Israel.
So, this was an end to the Old Testament and a beginning of the New Testament. The New Covenant with it's new promises replaces the Old Covenant. A "covenant" is the same thing as a contract. So, we are no longer under an Old Contract, but under a New Contract. God fulfilled the Old Contract and replaces it with a New Contract with better promises, a contract written with the Blood of Christ. The Bible says, "But now hath he (Jesus) obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises" (Heb 8:6).
2) The second divine intervention which helped bring about this change in dispensations, and the birth of the Church was the coming of the Holy Spirit. God the Holy Spirit gave birth to the Church as a result of the sacrifice of Christ. Yes, the Lord Jesus Christ died on the Cross, rose again the third day, and ascended into Heaven. Fifty days later, at Pentecost, the Holy Spirit comes down, and indwells every believer forming what God calls the "Church." The true Church is made up of every saved person from Pentecost to the Rapture. In between those two events, the Holy Spirit abides inside every true believer uniting us together into "the body of Christ" (1Cor 12:27). (2 Cor. 1:22, 1 Thes 4:13-18).
Now, please keep in mind that even though the New Testament replaced the Old Testament, the Church did not replace Israel in the sense that the Church takes on all the promises in the Old Testament given to Israel, thus Israel is no longer in God's plans. No, the Church is something new and totally distinct from Israel. God stills has promises from the Old Testament and confirmed in the New Testament that He will one day fulfill concerning Israel in the Millennial Kingdom. It's just that the church dispensation has replaced the dispensation concerning Israel. That God has put Israel on the shelf, but once the church age or the time of the Gentiles is over, then God will return His focus back on Israel during the Great Tribulation Period and will begin to fulfill His promises to her at that time and will continue to do so through the reign of Christ on earth.
You see, the Church is something completely new. With all the pictures, symbols, and types in the Old Testament concerning Christ, there is nothing there concerning the Church. The Church was a complete "mystery" in the Old Testament. Mystery in the Bible was something that God had not revealed previously, but now reveals it to us. In Ephesians, Paul says, "This is a GREAT MYSTERY: but I speak concerning Christ and the church" (Eph 5:32). The idea of Christ or the Messiah in the Old Testament was not that much of a mystery, but His relationship with the Church was.
Now, I know some will condemn me as an Old Testament basher. But, this is not true. I am not bashing the Old Testament. Matter of a fact, I love the Old Testament. I am reading through it right now and it is such a blessing to me. Why? Because it helps me see and understand the New Testament better. The Old Testament has it's place and should not be ignored. But, listen! We have to do what Paul says and that is to rightly divide the Word of Truth. Yes, it is all Truth, New and Old. But, if you don't understand how to rightly divide it, then you will be in deep trouble. The Bible says, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, RIGHTLY DIVIDING the word of truth" (2Tim 2:15).
Paul learned to "rightly divide the word of truth." How, by rightly interpreting the Old Testament that it might be in alignment and support the New Testament that God was revealing to him and the other apostles. Paul didn't just take the Old Testament and chuck it out the door. No, Paul used God's Word from the Old Testament to support the New Testament Scripture that God was giving to him and the other apostles to write. It was like a school master that would help the student better understand Christ (Gal 3). The Old Testament also helps us with our faith in general. There are many examples of men and women of faith in the Old Testament and their relationship with God (Hebrews 11).
So, if we want to better understand the Church, an institution that was a mystery in the Old Testament, then we better be getting our material from the New Testament where we see it's commands from God. Listen, this is not hard stuff here. The church is not in the Old Testament. It's in the New Testament. So, why take principles from the Old Testament and apply them to the church? Why would anyone want to do that?
Well, an Old Testament church might say, "We are a New Testament church." But, pay no attention to that. Don't listen to what they claim, but look at how they practice. If you take a closer look at all this, you will see that their main practices come in large degree from the Old Testament, which I will list a few for you. They are easy to see if you will only open your eyes. This first is a little long, but it is very important, because it deals with salvation and how to live the Christian life. The others are much shorter, but if you want more info on each of them, you can find them in my other articles where I go into much more detail.
1) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES EMPHASIZE THE LAW
When I look at these Old Testament churches today, I see that they emphasize the Old Testament Law and the Ten Commandments. Well, why not? They're Old Testament churches, so why wouldn't they stress the Law in salvation and for living the Christian life? It's because these churches are afraid to teach the New Testament doctrine of Grace, because they're afraid their flock would go off into a life of sin. So, to counter this, there's an emphasis on preaching against sin, and imposing Old Testament legalistic standards on the flock to keep their flesh under control. After all, that was the purpose of the Law, the keep sin in check, and to show man that he is a sinner.
Sad to say, but in my past, I have been in many conservative, fundamental churches where Godly standards were stressed by their preachers. For example, "Get rid of your TV and you will be a better Christian." Well, maybe, maybe not. A person can give up their TV and be self righteous about it, which is a pretty bad sin. So, in many of these Old Testament churches there is an emphasis on dress standards, outward appearance, makeup, jewelry, music and so on. But, do's and don'ts will not make a person a better Christian. "Touch not, taste not, handle not". You know, Col 2:20-23.
However, what does make a person a better Christian is the Holy Spirit producing the life of Christ in that person. This is Grace! So, getting saved and living the Christian life is entirely by grace, not by the works of the Law. It's either God's righteousness in us or OUR righteousness in us. And, there is a difference. The difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Yes, we are to live holy lives and not sin. The New Testament also teaches that. But, this does not make us righteous before God. However, if we trust in our living holy, then we would be putting ourselves under the principle of Law and then God would expect us to obey the "whole Law" all the time (Gal 5:3). We are to never trust in our works, or our trying to be good. We don't trust in our works, but in Christ's work. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him(2Cor 5:21)." Please notice that this says "that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him." We don't make ourselves righteous in Him. God makes us righteous in Him. This is true in salvation and it is also true in living the Christian life.
You must understand there are two kinds of righteousness mentioned in the Bible: God's righteousness and man's righteousness. God's righteousness only comes by faith in Christ, believing, trusting, depending, relying on the Lord Jesus Christ and believing His Word. Paul said, "And be found in him, not having mine OWN righteousness, which is of the LAW, but that which is through the FAITH of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:" (Phil 3:9). So, clearly, man's righteousness is by the works of the Law, but God's righteousness is only by faith in Christ.
It works this way for salvation, but it also works this way for living the Christian life. Day by day, in a practical way, God produces God's righteousness in us by the Holy Spirit as a result of our Faith and Trust in Christ and His Word. As a result, we will have power over sin in our lives and we will perform good works for the Lord. I will no longer have to strain and struggle not to sin, but as the Holy Spirit develops God's righteousness in me because of my daily faith in Christ, I will no longer have the desire to lie, steal, or cheat. Thus, as time goes on, being an honest Christian will be a result of my yielding to the Holy Spirit by faith in Christ, rather than my attempts to satisfy the Law by not sinning.
Paul said, "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh" (Gal 5:16). Please notice the order, and it must be in this order. "Walk in the Spirit" and it will result in "not fulfilling the lust of the flesh." Yes, learn to live by faith daily and you won't be filled by lust. Walking in the Spirit or living by faith means that we trust Christ and His Word daily, and that will result in us not sinning. But, most people get this backwards by saying, "Learn not to lust and sin, and it will result in you being able to walk in the Spirit. But, that's not true. Paul did not say that! Listen, you can focus on not sinning, and it can backfire on you and result in two bad ways. 1) you will get frustrated because you feel you can't stop sinning, you know, where do you draw the line where you have arrived, or 2) you feel like you have arrived and you get self righteous because you feel that you have conquered sin in your life. You know, you become proud of yourself, how righteous you are living, that like the Pharisee, you aren't a sinner like other people (Luke 18:11).
But, the Bible says we are all sinners and the only way you can conquer sin in your life is by putting your focus on Christ, not on sin. You don't conquer sin, Christ does. He will conquer it through you. "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Phil 4:13). Each day as you turn to Christ and His Word for strength, then the Holy Spirit will work in your life and produce God's righteousness in you, conforming you to be more like Christ. But, God does it. You don't. You don't have the ability to produce God's righteousness in your life. The Bible says, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2Cor 3:18). Here Paul is clearly saying that if we will look to Christ and focus on Him, then it will result in us being changed into being more like Him. How? "By the Holy Spirit of the Lord."
The Bible says we are to focus on Christ and His Word and it will change our lives. But, most preachers today focus on sin, preaching against sin. They say, "Clean up your life. Get rid of this sin and stop doing that sin, rededicate your life, and, that will result in you being a better Christian." But, that is not true. Focusing on sin will just stir up sin (Rom 5:20).
William Kelly said, and I quote, "Some good men who in grievous error would impose the law as a rule of life for the believer mean very well by it (for they strive to be pious) but the whole principle is false. The law, instead of being a rule of life, is necessarily a rule of death to one who has a sin nature. Far from being a delivering power, it can only condemn such; far from being a means of holiness, it is, in fact, and according to Paul, the 'strength of sin' (1 Corinthians 15:56)." Unquote.
So, the Law was given so that sin might abound, the Bible says. For example, the sign says, "Wet Paint, Do Not Touch." We read that, and then, all we want to do is to go over and touch it.
And, again, nothing wrong with you being more righteous in your daily conduct, control yourself, as long as you understand that it's "our righteousness," not God's righteousness. You must see the difference. If you can stop lying, then stop it. But, if you can't stop lying, then go to the Lord for strength to develop His righteousness in you. The Bible says, "God gives grace to the humble" (1 Peter 5:5). Grace and the strength to overcome this sin in your life. "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Phil 4:13).
Furthermore, the Bible says, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law" (Gal 5:22, 23). According to this, it's not us but the Holy Spirit that produces this righteousness in us. Don't you get that? We can't produce God's righteousness in ourselves. Only the Holy Spirit can do that. Love, joy, peace, and so on, are all part of the fruit of the Holy Spirit and only the Holy Spirit can produce this fruit in us. The verse ends by saying that with this fruit of the Spirit, "against such there is no law." Do you know what that means? It means that the Law has nothing to do with this, because the Law cannot produce fruit of love, joy, peace in us, but it is only produced in us by the Holy Spirit, if we live by faith in Christ!
The purpose of the Law was to show man how sinful he is, that he is a hopeless, guilty sinner before a righteous holy God (Rom 3:19). And in Romans 7:7, Paul says, "I had not known sin, but by the law:" So, the Law shows us how sinful we are, but it has no power to make us righteous.
But, the Law does something else for us. It points man to his need for Christ, to trust Him. "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth" (Rom 10:4). "Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster" (the Law) (Gal 3:24,25). The Law shows us that we are a sinner, and it brings us to Christ so that He can justify us by faith.
Paul said, "And be found in him, not having mine OWN righteousness, which is of the LAW, but that which is through the FAITH of Christ, the righteousness which is of GOD by faith:" (Phil 3:9). So, let me ask you. Which is being developed in your life: "Your" righteousness or God's righteousness? Righteousness by the Law or God's righteousness by Faith in Christ? You producing, or the Holy Spirit producing?
But do you know what most Old Testament churches preach today? They preach salvation by Jesus Christ PLUS being baptized, or Jesus plus your good works, or Jesus plus church membership. But in principle, what they're saying is it's Jesus plus works of the Law. This is legalism. Combining Grace plus Works, whether it's adding our works or adding works of the Law. And, friend, they do not mix. It has to be one or the other one. It is either 100% by Grace or it's 100% by the Law. Romans 11:6 says, "And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work." So, it has to be either by Grace or by Works. God says it can't be mixed.
Then, there are many other Old Testament churches that preach salvation by Grace, but we live the Christian life through Law keeping. Saved by Grace, but live by the Law. Keep the Ten Commandments the best you can. But, if you can't keep the Law well enough to satisfy their preachers, then well, you probably didn't get saved to begin with. That's their thinking.
No, the Bible says that the way it works in salvation, it works the same way in living the Christian life. We are saved by Grace through faith in Jesus Christ and we live daily the Christian life the same way, by Grace through faith in Jesus Christ. The Bible says, "As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, SO WALK YE IN HIM" (Col 2:6). How did you receive Christ? By Grace through faith in Jesus Christ? Right? Okay, then walk the same way.
Keep in mind that Legalism comes in one of two forms: 1) Adding works of the Law to Salvation or 2) Adding works of the Law to living the Christian life. Both are wrong. But, that is what Old Testament churches teach, that the Law should be in there somewhere.
Well, please don't be misled and confused by an Old Testament church. Remember that Paul had the same problem with the Galatian churches. They were trying to add works of the Law such as circumcision to salvation and in living the Christian life. However, Paul said, concerning salvation, ".... Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? And, in living the Christian life, he continues, "Are ye so foolish having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh (Gal 3:2,3).
So, it is important to remember that a New Testament church ought to teach what's in the New Testament about Grace, Faith, and Liberty, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ. The New Testament is clear that we are dead to the Law (Rom 7:4, 6; 8:2, Gal. 2:19, 21), and as New Testament believers, we are not under the Law as Romans 6:14 declares, ".... for ye are not under the law, but under grace" (Rom 6:14). So, why do I call them Old Testament churches? Because they preach, teach, and promote the mixing of the Law with Grace for salvation or in living the Christian life, or for both.
Let me close this section by saying that no one in the Old Testament ever got saved by the Law. Salvation has never been by Law keeping, for it has always been by grace through faith, even in the Old Testament. For example, "Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness" (Gen 15:6; Rom 4:3). But, the Old Testament churches are still going to impose the Old Testament Law in their churches. Not all of the Law. Just the parts they like. The parts that benefit their churches.
2) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES HAVE A PRIESTHOOD
Concerning leadership, an Old Testament church calls it the office of the pastor, but it is indeed an Old Testament priest-like clergy system. A special class of Christians. A division of the clergy and the laity. A church pastor is commonly referred to as a "man of God' and "called by God" and "ordained" into the ministry and service of representing God to the people. They "receive a call," are ordained, trained, hired, and imported into a church to serve as a pastor, or helper to a pastor. But, that's not in the New Testament.
Today's pastors are more closely related to Old Testament priests than they are the New Testament teaching of elders in a local church. Elders in the New Testament churches were never trained, imported in, and hired to be leaders. New Testament elders were older mature spiritual men raised up in that local church, men who had a desire to help lead or oversee the church, and they met the personal requirements of 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. Furthermore, the elders in each local church was always plural. It was never one man running a church.
I am not judging the men who are pastors. I'm judging that "position" and their "practice" as being wrong. You won't find it in the New Testament in the church. But, I do see that position and their practice in the Old Testament. Part of it comes from the position of the Levitical priests. The priests were from the tribe of the Levites. They're office was to care for the Temple or the "house of God." They received tithes from the people for their livelihood. They were an intermediary between God and man. They represented God to the people and they represented the people to God.
Likewise, the pastor in today's Old Testament church is in a special group of spiritual leaders (like the Levites), called the clergy. They also preside over the "house of God" or their religious building the church meets in. They also receive tithes from God's people, from which part of it goes for their livelihood for their ministry in the "sanctuary". They in many ways act as an intermediary between God and man. ("Follow me as I follow Christ." "God will lead me to lead you").
But, nowhere in the Bible will you find a command from God that one man should act as a priest in a New Testament church. He is not an intermediary between God and man. As Spirit filled Christians, we each are our own "priesthood", and we have no need for a priest or intermediary. "Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy PRIESTHOOD, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ. But ye [are] a chosen generation, a royal PRIESTHOOD, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1Pet 2:5,9). Now, listen. God is not just speaking to pastors. He is speaking to all Christians. We are all priests. We call it the "priesthood of the believer." All Christians are priests and Christ is our High Priest.
So, as far as leadership in the New Testament church, it teaches that older, spiritual men in the church, who meet the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1, should be examples and take the lead in the church. They are to lead, feed, and take heed in the local church. And, it was always a plurality of elders in each church in the New Testament. It was never one man called by God to run things in the church. This office of the one man church pastor is not from the New Testament. It is a sick mixture of the office of an OT priest, an OT prophet, and maybe a NT apostle. You can more specific details on this from my other articles about the church.
3) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES HAVE A SANCTUARY
An Old Testament church has a sanctuary, or a spiritual place of worship. Even if they have a large building with offices and classes, there is still a special large meeting place in the building called the sanctuary. Now, the whole church building is viewed as being holy, but this sanctuary is the holy of holies. In the building there are all kinds of functions, activities, classes, and offices, but meeting God is reserved for the sanctuary. The whole church building is referred to as "God's House", but the sanctuary is where God meets and fellowships with His people. This is the practice of Old Testament churches.
Now, where have I heard this before? Well, again, it's in the Old Testament. God did institute His dwelling place on earth in the Old Testament by having the Israelites build a mobile and temporary sanctuary called the Tabernacle. It was God's house. It was God's sanctuary through the wilderness journey. Later a permanent sanctuary was built called the Temple when the Israelites came into their promised homeland. God gave specific directions to Moses on how to build the Tabernacle and the Temple. It was made of gold and other costly materials.
When I look up the specific word "sanctuary," I see that it is mentioned in the Old Testament around 100 times, but no where in the New Testament except 4 times in the book of Hebrews where Paul is speaking to the Jewish Christians. Look at 2 of these verses.
"Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly SANCTUARY. For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the SANCTUARY. 3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;" (Heb 9:1-3).
So, you see, the "first covenant" or what we call the Old Testament had a sanctuary, a spiritual place of worship and a place where God dwelt with His people. But, notice that it says, "a worldly sanctuary." Yes, even though God designed and had this place of worship built, He calls it a "worldly sanctuary." Why? Because it was build by men here on earth. Yes, God gave directions, but men built it. God is heavenly, but this sanctuary is worldly.
However, Hebrews chapter 8 says, ".....We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; A minister of the SANCTUARY, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man" (Heb 8:1,2). Clearly this says we have a high priest and a sanctuary, but it isn't here on earth. It's in heaven. The Lord Jesus is our high priest and He is ministering for us in the sanctuary in heaven. But, in Old Testament churches, they have their own "called and ordained man of God" ministering in their own sanctuary.
It's also interesting to note that when Jesus was on earth that He even made the clear distinction between the true temple and the worldly one. "Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up" (John 2:19). Yes, the true temple was the body of Christ.
Even the body of the believer is referred to as a temple (1Cor 6:19). The temple of the Holy Spirit. He dwells in each true Christian. Furthermore, the group of Christians coming together in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ is referred to as a temple. Paul said to the Corinthians, "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" (1Cor 3:16). Now, it doesn't matter if they were meeting in a barn, they were the temple of God. So, it's not the building. The "temple" or "sanctuary" is that group of Christians coming together in Jesus Name.
When you look in the New Testament, we only see churches meeting in homes, or in upper rooms, but there is never any mention of a church building or a sanctuary built by the hands of men. However, today's Old Testament church buildings are more like religious cathedrals or shrines compared to the simple meeting places in the New Testament churches we see in the Bible.
Old Testament churches call their building "God's House," and they call the area where they worship "the sanctuary." The whole building is viewed as holy, but the "sanctuary" is viewed as most holy, where the worship takes place. Then, the sanctuary is divided even further by the altar area where we see the pulpit and nearby chief seats for the pastor and other speakers, the communion table, and the altar where the people can come down and do business with God, which brings us to the fourth OT principle practiced by Old Testament churches......the Altar.
4) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES HAVE AN ALTAR
Many in the Old Testament built an altar to offer sacrifices to God. Noah was the first one recorded to have built an altar (Gen 8:20). Abram was next (Gen 8:6), and built altars in several different places (Gen 12:7), in Bethel, (Gen 13:4), (Gen 13:18) in Mamre, which is in Hebron, but then later for the first time, God requested Abraham to build an altar in Moriah (Gen 22) to offer Issac. Jacob built an altar at Bethel (Gen 35), Moses built an altar at Rephidim (Ex 17:15). So, all these were free will altars unto God, except in Genesis 22 where God commanded Abraham to build an altar. In Exodus 27:1, we see God give details to Moses in how to build an altar. Then, finally, in Exodus 27:1, God gives Moses specific direction on building the altar for the Tabernacle which would be transported as they traveled their wilderness journey. Later, when they came into the promise land, they would build the permanent Temple and the altar would remain in Jerusalem. An altar could not be built just anywhere. It had to be in Jerusalem in the Temple. All sacrifices would be done there.
But, what about today? Are churches today supposed to have altars? Well, in Old Testament churches, they do indeed claim they have an altar in the church sanctuary. It is simply a few steps which are located in front of the pulpit and communion table. It is a place where people are encouraged to come and do business with God. You know, at your pew is not good enough. Come to the altar if you really mean business with God.
Now, an altar is mentioned several times in the New Testament, but most all have to do with the altar in the Temple. But, in the book of Hebrews, again Paul speaking to Jewish Christians, he says, "WE HAVE AN ALTAR, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle. 11 For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. 12 Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate." (Heb 13:10-12).
It is clear to me that these verses are speaking of an altar and sacrifice in contrast to the ones in the Temple, "We have an altar." But, what altar is Paul speaking of? I believe that the context of the whole passage is speaking about the Cross that Jesus was sacrificed on. So, the altar in the New Testament was the Cross of Christ. For the New Testament Christian, the Cross was God's altar where He sacrificed His only Son as a sacrifice for our sins.
Furthermore, this Cross was an earthly temporary altar. But, the New Testament tells us there is another Altar, a permanent one in Heaven. The Bible says, "And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the GOLDEN ALTAR WHICH IS BEFORE GOD.." (Rev 9:13). You can also see this Altar in Heaven in Rev 6:9, 8:3,5, 11:1, 14:18, and 16:7. Here are six verses that say that there is an altar in Heaven. But, you will find no verses that say there was an altar in the New Testament churches.
Also, note that Jesus as our high priest entered into Heaven, "Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Heb 9:12). So, yes, we have an altar, but it was not made by hands of men. We also have a sacrifice, but it also wasn't made by us. Christ did it all on the Cross.
But, the question is, should there be an altar in a New Testament church? Now, since there were no churches in the Old Testament, then we have to look in the New Testament to see what God wants in a New Testament church. And, we just did that, and what did we see? Not one example where a church in the New Testament had an altar. In the New Testament, every time the word "altar" is mentioned, it mostly refers to the one in the Temple. Remember, when the New Testament was written, the Temple was still there. Other than that, we have one time, the word altar refers to the Cross. The other few times it is mentioned, it is speaking of the Altar in Heaven. That's it. There is absolutely no mention of an altar in the early churches. But, Old Testament churches are going to have altars and encourage the people to come down and give offerings and sacrifices unto God. This brings us to the fifth Old Testament principle that Old Testament churches practice.
5) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES HAVE OFFERINGS AND SACRIFICES
Well, if you have an altar, then there must be offerings and sacrifices. In the Old Testament, there were about 6 different offerings with a sacrifice, some free will and others were commanded by God. They are the Burnt Offering, the Meal Offering, the Peace Offering, the Sin Offering, the Trespass Offering, and the Drink Offering.
In the Old Testament churches, they also have offerings and sacrifices, which are usually made at the church altar. This would include vows and commitments made to God to be a better Christian. This might include a sacrifice of something in the person's life. For example, giving up something in their life in order to be a better Christian. You, know, give up their TV, to quit going to the theater or not wearing makeup, or many other commitments of sacrificing this or giving up that. The altar is where you can make vows and commitments to God, rededicate your life to God, or to surrender to a call from God.
Another common practice of going to the altar in an Old Testament church would be to confess and pray for forgiveness of certain sins in the person's life. However, there is no Scripture in the New Testament for Christians to do this in a meeting of the church. We can confess our sins to God anywhere at anytime. Matter of fact, 1Cor 11:8 seems to indicate that this should be done before coming to church. So, it doesn't have to be done in church and especially not at a church altar. But, this is what Old Testament churches do. The Pastor will pressure the folks during the invitation to come down and get right with God. This applies even for salvation, that during the invitation, they are encouraged to come down and accept Christ. But, my question is why do you have to go down to the altar and get right with God or to accept Christ when you can do it at your seat? Well, it's all for show. Because, nobody can see you get right with the Lord if you stay at your seat. But, their reasoning is that it works better if you come down, you know that it confirms it more and makes it more real to you. If you can take that first step, then God will help you take the rest. If you can't come down to the altar and do it, shake the preacher's hand, and maybe say something to the congregation, or have the preacher say something to them for you, then if you can't do that, then you probably aren't really that serious about it. So, it's all a show, and you have become part of the show. Then, others are encouraged by you to do the same as what you just did. Yes, there is a feel good moment, but then, that's probably all it is, just feelings.
However, it seems to me that the New Testament teaches that things like this should be done between a person and God in private, not publicly in the church meeting. In Mathew 6, Jesus said that our alms (good deeds), praying, and fasting should be done for the Lord in secret. In contrast, notice that the hypocrites wanted to be seen doing these things even in the "synagogues" which was like their church meeting.
"Take heed that ye do not your ALMS before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. 2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the SYNAGOGUES and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: 4 That thine alms may be in SECRET: and thy Father which seeth in SECRET himself shall reward thee openly. 5 And when thou PRAYEST, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the SYNAGOGUES and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in SECRET; and thy Father which seeth in SECRET shall reward thee openly. 7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.... 12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 16 Moreover when ye FAST, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that they may appear unto men to fast. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. 17 But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face; 18 That thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which is in SECRET: and thy Father, which seeth in SECRET, shall reward thee openly" (Mat 6:1-18).
So, I believe this passage will show you that we are not to make a show out of our relationship with God and our making decisions for Him. Clearly, our alms, prayers, and fasting should be done for the Lord in secret.
As far as sacrifices in the New Testament, we see in Hebrews 13 that they are not things that we give up in our lives, or things we quit doing in order to become better Christians. Now, if it something that is sin, then stop it. Quit sinning, but I am not saying that. I'm talking about people sacrificing and giving up things of gray areas to be more spiritual. If you want to chuck your TV, then get rid of it, you have liberty to do that, but don't make it an issue that this is some great sacrifice that will please the Lord and make you a better Christian. Same with makeup, music, working on Sunday (Rom 14), not eating certain things (Col 2:21-23), and so on. Sacrifices.
But, in the New Testament, true sacrifices unto the Lord are spiritual in nature. "By him (Christ) therefore let us offer the SACRIFICE OF PRAISE to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. 16 But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such SACRIFICES God is well pleased" (Heb 13:15). Our sacrifices of praise is "To God" continually. Just like our alms, prayers, and fasting, our praise is to be directed to God. And it is to be done continually, not just on Sunday morning, or Wednesday night at the Old Testament church. It is to be done continually to God and for God. Also, notice our good deeds and fellowship ("communicate") with God and with others are mentioned as sacrifices unto God. So, we clearly see that spiritual things can be done outside the church rather than exclusively in the church.
In Romans 12, Paul says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a LIVING SACRIFICE, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Rom 12:1,2). Now, I ask you, is this something that should be done in church or something that should be done daily, continually? You see this is the problem. We want to be real spiritual at church, but then live like heathens the rest of the week. But, these verses indicate that God wants us to give Him a spiritual sacrifice, the presenting of our bodies, our brain, and our lives unto the Lord. That's 24/7. Every day.
"Be not conformed to this world" means that we are to believe God's Word, not the worldly views and this would include the traditions and commandments of men in so called churches. Do you realize that the biggest enemy that Jesus had was not with the common people or with the Romans, but it was the religious crowd of His day. Yes, the religious crowd had their religious traditions, their by-laws, and their man made commandments and taught them as being God's will. They were deceiving the people. The result? The religious crowd rejected truth, they rejected God Word, and they rejected Christ. Today, Old Testament churches do in fact have their own church by-laws, church traditions and commandments of men being taught as God's doctrine. Nothing wrong with church traditions, but when it is being taught as God's doctrine, then it is evil and dangerous (Mat 15:1-6, 9).
So, a church altar? Offerings and Sacrifices at the church altar? Where is that in the Bible? Well, it's been made up. It is part of the tradition and commandments of men taught as God's doctrine in Old Testament churches.
6) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES PRACTICE TITHING
Tithing is an Old Testament doctrine, part of the Mosaic Law for the nation of Israel. God clearly states this in His Word. He said tithing was: (1) for the nation of Israel to give, (2) for the tribe of the Levites to receive, and (3) it was part of the Mosaic Law.
(1) The Tithe was to be Given by the Israelites.
“And all the tithe of the land, [whether] of the seed of the land, [or] of the fruit of the tree, [is] the LORD’S: [it is] holy unto the LORD........the tenth shall be holy unto the LORD........These [are] the commandments, which the LORD COMMANDED MOSES FOR THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL in mount Sinai”(Levi 27:30-34). Here we clearly see that tithing was for the "children of Israel."
Even the most famous verse used by people today to support tithing in churches says that tithing was for the nation of Israel. “For I [am] the LORD, I change not; therefore YE SONS OF JACOB are not consumed. ...... Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. “ (Mal 3:6-10).
“Sons of Jacob” was another term for the nation of Israel. I don’t know about you, but I am not a “son of Jacob.” The command for tithing was for the "sons of Jacob," or the people of the nation of Israel. But, Old Testament churches have taken these Old Testament commands for Israel and transferred them into New Testament doctrine for their churches.
(2) Tithes were to be Received by the Levites.
“..... And, behold, I have given the CHILDREN OF LEVI ALL THE TENTH in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, [even] the service of the tabernacle of the congregation. (Num 18:20-26).
It’s very clear here that the tithe was for the Levites to receive, because they did not have a part of the inheritance, so it was for their livelihood and service in the tabernacle and later the temple. The tithe was for the priests and Levites. Only Levites could be priests. Only Levites could work in the Tabernacle or the Temple. ONLY Levites could receive tithes. So, are today's Pastors of the Levites? No, of course not. They just do whatever they want with the Scriptures. Here they have taken the Old Testament command for Israel to give tithes to the Levites and the Temple, and transferred the command upon Christians to tithe to Old Testament Pastors and churches today.
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(3) The Tithe was of the Law.
The tithe was very clearly part of the Law. Even in the New Testament this is clear. “And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a COMMANDMENT to take tithes of the people ACCORDING TO THE LAW” (Heb 7:4-5). Catch that? “According to the Law.” The Book of Hebrews is in the New Testament and it says the tithe in the Old Testament was “according to the Law.”
Furthermore, did you know that nowhere in the New Testament is there a command for tithing? Nowhere! I would hate to take any doctrine of the Law given to the Jews, and teach it as a doctrine for a New Testament church. Scary!!!
So, what does the New Testament teach then, if not tithing. It does teach that Christians ought to give, but never mentions tithing, and there is a difference. Most all churches today teach that Christians ought to tithe, but you will not find it anywhere in the New Testament in any of the commands to the churches. If it were that important, that God gave all those verses in the Old Testament for the Jews to tithe, and wanted it to continue in the New Testament churches, don't you think He would have said so? But, you will not find it anywhere in the New Testament commands to the churches. Nowhere!
You will find tithing mentioned in the four gospels, and Jesus commended those who tithed, but remember, that was not to churches. He was speaking to Jews. The Temple and the Levitical priests were still there. The Levites and the Law were still in affect in the four gospels. Jesus had not died yet, the veil of the Temple had not yet been rent, and the New Testament had not begun. The Church was yet to come. You will not find the church in the Gospels. Jesus was still fulfilling the Law of the Old Testament. When Jesus walked on the earth it was the closing of the Old Testament, the Old Covenant. The New Testament began at Christ’s death and the church soon was established by the Holy Spirit 50 days later at Pentecost.
Other than the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, you will NOT find tithing mentioned in the New Testament except in one passage in the book of Hebrews, written to Jewish Christians, and it is reflecting back to Abraham and is not being used to endorse tithing, but rather illustrating Christ as being the high priest in the Old Testament. You will not find tithing or giving ten percent anywhere else in the New Testament. Nowhere!
You would think with all these New Testament churches being founded by Paul and others, and the many epistles written to them regarding how to conduct themselves as Christians, that surely tithing would have been mentioned, especially to the many Christian Gentiles who were not familiar with tithing and other aspects of the Law. But it never is! Not only is there silence on tithing, but Paul does give instructions on how Christians ought to give. Free will giving is mentioned several times to the churches, but never tithing (I Cor 16:1-3) (II Cor 9:7). Yes, we are to give. God wants us to give. He tells us to give, but that we should give willingly, cheerfully, and liberally (II Cor 8:13). Liberal giving is taught here, not tithing.
It seems to me that most churches today have gotten themselves in this mess because most churches today operate as businesses, and when they do, they must have a steady source of revenue in order to operate the business, and they must have an executive or businessman to run the business. But, early churches did not operate as businesses, because God did not set them up that way. Now, in the Old Testament, you had a different situation. You had a building and properties, the Temple, and a priesthood, and tithing was a command of God for the nation of Israel to give this ten percent to the Levites (like an income tax) for their upkeep. Again, this tithe or 10% was the portion for the Levites who did not have an inheritance in the Land. But, tithers today forget the fact that they are not Jews and there are no Levites to give to. But, they will still take the part of the truth they like, the tithe, and bind Christians under it so they can get money to run things. Crazy! What a Scam!
It is very dangerous to teach that God commands tithing in New Testament churches today, when He nowhere said in His word that He wants Christians to tithe to a church. We should obey God, not men. God had no problem commanding the Israelites to tithe, and if He wanted Christians to tithe to churches, then He would have no problem giving those commands in the epistles to the churches. But, He didn't! You won’t find it. But, since today’s pastors and churches need revenue coming in, they take Old Testament commands for Israel and force them on today’s Christians in New Testament churches. That should not be. “…. let God be true, but every man a liar;….” (Rom 3:4).
Tithing is dangerous. Why? Because the Tithe was an Old Testament Law, a command to give ten percent, and it must be obeyed, so it puts you under the whole Law system (Gal 5). Furthermore, most church leaders would not be satisfied with you if you don't tithe. You don’t believe me? Well, question them about it, that tithing is not for today's churches, that it was part of the Law, and we are not under the Law. See what they have to say about that. Go ahead. Try it. This issue means more than you think.
Paul had a great deal of trouble trying to keep the Jewish legalizers away from the churches of his day, especially in the churches of Galatia. They were Jews who claimed to be Christians, but they taught the early Christians that they needed to be under the Law. That it was Christ plus keeping the Law. There have always been people around who don’t like other people having democracy, freedom, or liberty, to serve God the way they believe the Scriptures teach (Gal 5:1). Satan wants to bring Christians and churches into bondage. It has always been that way, and it's that way today. The legalizers have really had their effect on today’s churches. Instead of New Testament churches, we have more what resembles Old Testament temples. That's why I call them Old Testament churches. Churches that function according to Old Testament principles.
7) OLD TESTAMENT CHURCHES MAKE BAPTISM A TOKEN INTO THE CHURCH
In the Old Testament, Circumcision was given by God as a "token" of the covenant between God and Abraham and his descendants, the Israelites. Speaking of circumcision, God says, "This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised....and it shall be a TOKEN of the covenant betwixt me and you (Gen 17:10,11). A "token" is a visible or tangible representation of some fact. It is like a badge. In this case, circumcision was a token or symbol of the covenant between God and Abraham.
Other tokens of covenants in the Old Testament were the rainbow (Gen 9:13), blood on the door posts during the Passover (Ex 12:13), and Aaron's rod (Num 17:10). The most famous of all were the tokens in the Ark of the Covenant consisting of Aaron's rod, pot of manna, and the two tables of stone. So, all these tokens represented covenants, contracts, or promises made by God to Noah, Moses, and Abraham.
In the New Testament, one of the biggest problems that Paul and the early churches had was Jewish legalizers trying to force the doctrine of circumcision on the churches. We see this in the Book of Acts and in Galatians. It had gotten so bad, that these Jewish legalistic teachers were teaching "Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved" (Acts 15:1). These guys were trying to turn the early New Testament churches into Old Testament churches, trying to convince Christians to mix Law with Grace. However, Paul and the other apostles had a conference in Jerusalem in Acts 15 that helped clear up this problem in the early churches.
A few centuries later, the Roman Catholic Church and later the Reformation and denominational church groups came upon the scene, and no one it seemed got tangled up in the doctrine of circumcision again. After all, there weren't many Jews in their churches like there were in the early churches. So, circumcision was no longer an issue.
But, it seems to me that these Old Testament churches transferred the principles of circumcision to the New Testament doctrine of baptism. So, now it would be, "Except ye be baptized, ye cannot be saved." I've heard that many of them teach that. So, like circumcision was a token of the covenant between God and the Jews, now baptism had become a token between a new convert and the church. Baptism had become like a membership card into the church.
Remember, that in the Old Testament, a Jew or any male for that matter living among them, they had to be circumcised. If not, then they would be cast out from them. You had to be circumcised to be part of their group. And, today in Old Testament churches, you have to be baptized to be a member of their church. You often get a baptismal certificate and if you move to another church, then the certificate will get you in their church too. It's like a membership card.
Now, let me say that I am all for believer's baptism if it's done Scripturally. I believe that once a person is truly saved, then they should be water baptized. I have no problem with that. The problem I have is the way Old Testament churches practice baptism as a religious membership card into the church. Again, there are many denominational churches that teach baptism is necessary for salvation, which I do not believe. That is taking baptism too far and mixing works with grace.
The problem I have with Old Testament churches in this regard, is they take a precious ordinance such as baptism and make it a ritualistic event in their churches, and transfer the Old Testament principles of circumcision upon it, making it a token of membership into their group and in some cases teach that it is necessary for salvation. So, again here is another example of Old Testament churches pulling principles from the Old Testament and imposing them on the church.
Another problem I have with Old Testament churches is that it seems they will baptize anything that moves that has life in it. Doesn't matter if the person is saved or not. Many Old Testament churches baptize babies, and other will baptize children down to the age of 3 or 4. Programs and tricks are used to get anyone and everyone converted and then ducked or sprinkled with water so they can add them to the church role. There is nothing at all in the Scriptures that children were being converted and baptized. It just isn't there. But, Old Testament churches are going to promote and do it anyway. Why? Pad their numbers and look successful.
In the book of Acts, there are many examples of men and women getting saved and baptized. But, it also says that those that were saved, were baptized immediately after salvation, with the longest wait being about three days, in the case of Paul. Furthermore, there is no evidence that baptism was something that was only reserved for the church to do, nor only done by the church leaders. However, there does seem to be evidence that another Christian could baptize a new convert, one example being Ananias who was referred to as a "certain disciple" who baptized Paul (Acts 9:10). I also don't know of any Scriptures that indicate that baptism was a "token" or a door into the local churches.
THE NAME OF JESUS IS THE KEY FOR THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH
As mentioned, baptism is not a token for the Christian. In the New Testament, I don't know of any tokens between God and men, maybe because there were no contracts between God and men in the New Testament. You see, this new contract was not written between God and men, but between God and His Son. That's why this contract cannot be broken. If it were between God and us, we would break it, just like they did in the Old Testament. But, God made a contract with His Son, and Jesus signed it with His blood. It's called the New Testament? What is a "Testament?" It's a will. The last will and testament of Jesus Christ. And, this "will" has beneficiaries, which are all those who put their trust in Jesus Christ for Salvation. We become joint heirs with Jesus Christ, and we inherit all the conditions of His will.
So, we are part of this last will and testament of Christ. But, we don't have a token, at least, not a visible one. The token that God has given to us is the Holy Spirit. The Bible says, "Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts" (2Cor 1:22). The word "earnest" means a pledge or a guarantee. The verse says that the Holy Spirit has been given to us as a pledge or a guarantee from God as a reminder of good things to come from this will and testament. It also says that we have been "sealed" by the Holy Spirit. It literally means that we have been stamped with a signet or private mark by the Holy Spirit, preserving us unto God.
Wow! The Old Testament tokens were the rainbow, circumcision, the two tablets, pot of manna, and Aaron's rod. But, our token in the New Testament is the Holy Spirit in our hearts. Oh, the New Testament is so much better than the Old Testament. Why? Because of Christ and the Work He did for us. "By so much was Jesus made a surety of a BETTER testament" (Heb 7:22).
So, why do Old Testament churches want to go back to the Old Testament to get their principles for their churches, when the New Testament is so much better? We are so blessed to be in Christ and to be a part of His will. So, why wouldn't we want to use His principles that He has given to us in the New Testament in how we meet as a church? They are there for anyone to see, but for some reason Old Testament churches appeal more to those who insist on walking in the flesh and doing their own thing, and don't mind being ignorant to the Bible. They let others do their spiritual thinking for them instead of being a good Berean and searching the Scripture for themselves (Act 17:10, 11). "Well, they aren't qualified or educated to understand the Scripture. They would just end up in error." However, it seems to me that it's their professionally trained pastors and teachers that are leading them into errors. I just can't believe that someone dedicates their life and service to the Lord, goes off to a seminary to study and be taught the Bible, and comes away with his head full of errors to teach to his congregation. It's crazy that in most mainstream denominations today, you can't even pastor a church unless you have a seminary degree. And, you may have an old man sitting in the pew that knows the truth better than the pastor, but he can't teach because he hasn't been trained.
So, we as New Testament believers, we have a token, the Holy Spirit, Who lives within each believer. But, we also have something else that God has given to us. A "key." What is a key? A key is a small device that when used, it can unlock something like a door, or activate something like your automobile. Some are door keys. They unlock the doors and let me in. I have a few other keys to go to my vehicles. They not only unlock the car doors, but will also start the vehicle so I can go somewhere. So, it seems to me that God has given the Christian a key that will "open" and "activate" the Holy Spirit that lives within us. How does it work? What is the key?
In the Bible, Jesus said, "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you" (John 16:13-15).
It is clear here that Jesus is saying to us that the Holy Spirit that lives in us will receive from Christ and reveal it to us. Receive what? His Word. Christ will speak to us via the Holy Spirit through the Word of God.
But, what about the key? What is the key? I believe the key to open and activate this is the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. There are dozens of verses in the Bible that tells us that whatever we do for Christ, it is to be done in Jesus' Name. Yes, Jesus Name is the key.
For example, the Bible says:
1) We are to be saved in Jesus' name (Acts 4:12).
2) We are to pray in Jesus' Name (John 16:23).
3) We are to do good works in Jesus' Name (Col 3:17).
4) We are to be baptized in Jesus' Name (Acts 2:38, 8:16, 19:5)
5) We are to gather as a church in Jesus' Name (Mat 18:20, 1Cor 5:4).
Matter of fact, the Bible says, "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the NAME OF THE LORD JESUS" (Col 3:17).
Now, why do I say that the Name of Jesus is the key for the Christian and for the New Testament church? Remember, the key for an automobile? Without a key, a car just sits there. Motor won't turn. It won't do anything. No matter what you do, it won't run unless you have that little key. Put the key in and turn it, and the car is activated. All the systems in the car become alive. So, the key, although small, is very important, and it is the starting point. It's what gets things going.
So, the Name of Jesus is the "key" to living the Christian life. The Name of Jesus is the "key" to God's blessing in His Word. The Name of Jesus is the "key" to everything working properly in the church.
With the Holy Spirit living in each believer, we have everything we need to live the Christian life which includes having a right kind of church. We have all this potential in us, but if we don't use the key, then the Holy Spirit is of no use to us. He's there, but He is quenched. It's like having a brand new car, but you don't have a key to it.
Yes, the Holy Spirit can be grieved by our sin, but He can also be quenched when we do not submit to Christ and His Word and do things the way He wants. So, if we want to do something for God, then it should be done only in Jesus Name. Again, the Name of Jesus is the key to activating the Holy Spirit to lead, guide, and help us to understand God's will from His Word.
Why is Jesus Name the Key? Well, first of all, as we saw in all those verses, the Bible says so. It tells us that we are to do all those things in Jesus Name. It's what God says to do. But, why does it have to be Jesus Name alone? Well, that brings us to my second point, because if it isn't in Jesus Name alone, then it isn't in Jesus Name at all. God does not accept mixtures in other areas like mixing Grace and Law for example, so why should He accept mixtures with the Name of His Son? He doesn't. Thirdly, meeting in Jesus Name is a matter of establishing God's authority in the Christian's life and also in the church. It's the first step of obedience.
If we will submit to that authority of the Name of Jesus, then we won't have a problem submitting to God's other commands. However, if we won't get rid of our sectarian names, and meet in Jesus Name alone, then we won't obey God in all His other commands concerning the church. Why would we? It would be just pick and choose what we want to do. We only obey the commands we like and explain away those commands we don't like. That's why I say meeting in Jesus Name alone is the key to getting all the other things right and God will lead us to do that as we submit to Him and His Word. So, obey the most important command first, then move on to the other commands for the church. "IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, when ye are gathered together..." (1Cor 5:4). Paul is saying here that we come together in the church under the authority of Jesus Name, so that means we are to follow His commands. What commands? Those in the Old Testament? Or is it those commands in the New Testament epistles to the churches?
Now, just saying "In the Name of Jesus" doesn't mean anything at all if we are not willing to submit to the authority of His Name, which means submitting to His Word. I hear so many today say, "In the Name of Jesus..." But, listen, it doesn't work that way. It's not something you say like, "abracadabra" which is used before performing a magic trick, or, "Open Sesame" the magical password to open the mouth of a cave. So, don't be fooled when you hear these faith healers say, "In the Name of Jesus be healed," or whatever. When you try the spirits by the Word of God, and check out what they believe concerning Christ, then you will find out that these guys are frauds.
So, it's clear in the Word that using the Name of Jesus was backed up by a person or by a church that was submitted to the authority of the Lord Jesus and His Word. If you are not willing to be submitted to His authority, then shut up! Quit using His Name. You are a hypocrite.
When the early apostles were out preaching the Gospel that Jesus told them to preach, they were asked by the Jewish leaders "by what authority or by what name have ye done this?" (Act 4:7). The apostles answered, "by the name of Jesus Christ." Even the bad guys here knew that "by what name" meant "by what authority." Listen! They go together. "By what authority" means the same as "by what name." The Jewish leaders knew that. But, so did the disciples. Now, when they said, "by the Name of Jesus Christ," then what they are saying is,"we are just doing what Jesus told us to do."
When a church is meeting in Jesus Name alone, it doesn't mean that you have to put up a sign out front with "Jesus" on it. You don't need a sign at all. Just do what Jesus said to do in the church, and you are meeting in Jesus Name. Just like the disciples were doing. They didn't have to wear name cards on their tunics saying "In Jesus Name." They just did what Jesus commanded them to do, so they were doing it in the authority of Jesus Name. That's why they answered, "by the Name of Jesus Christ." It means the same thing.
And, by all means, the disciples did not have a name tag with a sectarian name on it. Can you imagine what it would be like if they wore a name card that said, "Jerusalem Bible Thumpers." Do you know what that would mean? In the context of the question they were asked, then that would mean that they were representing this secular group, the "Jerusalem Bible Thumpers." No, the disciples didn't have a name tag, and they surely didn't have a secular name for their group. No, they were just doing what Jesus told them to do, thus they replied, "In Jesus Name," which meant "by the authority of Jesus." It's means the same thing. Very simple.
So, "by what authority or by what name have ye done this?" It's the same thing. The bad guys knew it, the disciples knew it, but the problem is, we don't know it today. We think we can add a sectarian name to the Name of Jesus and it doesn't make any difference, that we still meet just in Jesus Name.
So, a church does not need a sign out front. But, if you do have one, by all means, don't put up a sign with another name on it, like a church secular name. For example, if you put up a sign with Baptist on it, then what you are saying is that you do things like the Baptist. That you meet in the Name of the Baptist. That you are under the authority of the Baptist. That you do things the Baptist way. Thus, what you are really saying is that you are not meeting in Jesus Name, but in the name of the Baptist, because it can't be both ways. It can't be mixed.
So, when some preacher says, "By the Name of Jesus....." that doesn't mean anything unless he is under the authority of Jesus according to the Scriptures. However, when we use the Name of Jesus according to the authority we have in the Word of God, then the Holy Spirit will become active, because we are submitting to the Name of Jesus, and His Name alone, which means we are submitting to His Word.
Listen, this is so easy here. Submit to Jesus Name alone, and you will submit to His other commands. If you don't submit to Jesus Name alone, then you won't submit to His other commands either. Why? Because submitting to Jesus Name alone is the first act of obedience. I see you scratching your head, because you have always been told that baptism is the first act of obedience. But, that's not true. Maybe that's the second or third act, but not the first. Otherwise, you aren't doing it in Jesus Name, because we are to be baptized in Jesus' Name (Acts 2:38, 8:16, 19:5). Our submission to His Name must come first, otherwise you were just baptized, because the Preacher and the church told you to do it in order to be a member of their church.
Submitting to Jesus Name alone is easy to understand, but hard to do. The hard part is doing it. Can you submit to Jesus Name alone, excluding all other sectarian names? You see, not that easy, is it?
When churches don't meet in Jesus Name alone, then they will have all kinds of problems in the way they function as a church because they are not functioning according to the authority of God's Word.
This is especially true with Old Testament churches. I don't even see them as being the Lord's churches because of their insistence upon following Old Testament principles rather than New Testament principles for the church. So, "In Jesus Name" means nothing there. Why? Because they are not under the authority of God's Word alone, but under someone else's authority. That's why they meet in secular names rather than in Jesus Name alone.
They might say, and you might agree with them, that I'm making too big of a deal out of all this, meeting in Jesus Name alone, that it's not that big of a deal. Well, my response is, if it isn't that big of a deal, then why don't you get rid of your secular church names and just meet in Jesus Name alone? Well, they won't do that, so that proves it's a bigger deal to them than they will admit.
So, my point is that if Old Testament churches will not get rid of their secular names and meet in Jesus Name alone, then this means that they cannot get their other problems right Scripturally, no matter how hard they try. I really believe they won't even have the desire to get anything else right in the church. They remain an Old Testament church practicing Old Testament principles for the church. It's a church that mixes Judaism with Christianity.
The Old Testament churches are in such an evil mess, that they are beyond repair. What they don't need is help in trying to straighten out each of their problems. The problems are too deep. What they need is the key. That's the starting point. And, the key is the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Forget about all the things they are doing that is wrong. They need the key to activate the Holy Spirit and then He will help them straighten out their problems. I can't help them make any changes. It's above my pay grade. They need the Holy Spirit to help them, but how?
If they were to ask me, I would tell them that to meet in Jesus Name means that it must be in Jesus Name alone. They must get rid of their secular church name. Get rid of their denominational name they have. Meet as a church in the Name of Jesus only. If they will do that, then that will turn the key. That will get things started. It's the starting point. Then, Holy Spirit will become activated in that church and they can then begin to work on getting their other problems corrected as the Holy Spirit guides them by the Word.
It is very clear in the Bible that the church should only be meeting in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "For where two or three are gathered together IN MY NAME, there am I in the midst of them" (Mat 18:20). Paul said to the Corinthian church, "IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, when ye are gathered together..." (1Cor 5:4). Paul also said to the Colossian church, "And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the NAME OF THE LORD JESUS" (Col 3:17).
You see, meeting in the Name of Jesus means that we are under the authority of that Name. We represent only that Name, at least in Spiritual things. It means that we are serious about following what Jesus has commanded us to do. If He has principles in the New Testament in how we are to gather as a church, then we need to do that.
So, the very starting point for a church to repent and get right with Christ is to be sure they are meeting in Jesus Name alone (1Cor 1:12). Get rid of your denominational name and the sectarian name for your church. Stop dividing the Body of Christ. If it's His church, then act like it and meet in Jesus Name alone. Hey, this is not hard! Just do what He says to do. Be gathered together "IN THE NAME OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST." Meet in Jesus Name alone, that is the key.
CONCLUSIONS
I love watching magicians perform. What they do is incredible. What you see is not really happening because of their skill and slight of hand. They do tricks so easily. They fool people. "How did they do that?" I think about how they did it, and I don't have a clue.
I feel the same way about Old Testament churches. They have played a trick and fooled everybody, including me for over 20 years. I don't know how they get away with it, but they do. Now, Satan doesn't have too many tricks in his bag, but they work. So, he just keeps using the same ones over and over, because they work, they fool people.
Now, I don't believe that the people caught up in all this mess know what's going on. I was in it for twenty years or so, and I didn't know. I knew something was wrong, but could never figure it out. Just like trying to figure out a magician's trick.
This reminds me when Paul said to the Galatian churches, "O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" (Gal 3:1). Paul wondered how in the world that these Christians in these churches of Galatia were being "bewitched," or as one translation says, "by what strange powers have you been tricked...?" So, it's sort of like being put under a spell. Tricked by master magicians.
So, the master trickster is Satan. All these other guys have just been tricked by him, and they go about tricking others. "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light. Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works" (2Cor 11:13-15). Notice the word "deceitful workers," which means these "ministers" use guile and cunning craftiness to deceive and mislead others.
Paul says that we are to grow in Truth from God's Word, that "...we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the SLEIGHT OF MEN, and CUNNING CRAFTINESS, whereby they lie in wait to DECEIVE.." (Eph4:14). Deceived! Tricked! That's just the way I felt all these years going from church to church trying to find the right doctrine and the right kind of church, but what was really happening to me? I was being "tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine," and being deceived. Deceived from finding correct doctrine. You see, you will never find the right doctrine when you are going from one Old Testament church to another Old Testament church. They just don't teach it. They are too busy keeping you from the truth.
Now, I don't claim to know all of Satan's tricks in his bag, but I know how one of them works. He lies! (John 8:44). And, like a magician, he will divert your attention a different direction in order to do his trick, keeping you from seeing what is really going on. One way Satan does this is through changing the definition of words, making you think the word or term means one thing when it really means something else, and people will believe the false definition. So, when Satan does this, even with just one word, then what he is really doing is changing the Word of God.
For example, the word "church." Most people today when the hear the word "church," they immediately think of the building or the organization. However, in the New Testament, the word "church" comes from a Greek word that means "assembly." It is used dozens of times and it means a gathering of the Christians together into an assembly to worship the Lord. It is very clear that the word "church" means the Christians, not the building they're meeting in. However, that is what most people believe today, that when they hear the word "church" they are thinking of the place, the building, the facilities that they meet in.
Why is this significant? Well, one reason is that because in the Old Testament, the words "tabernacle" and "temple" were indeed buildings. And, if we believe the word "church" is also the building, organization, programs, then many Old Testament verses can be applied to the church building rather than to the people. Thus, it becomes easier for people to see a relationship between the tabernacle/temple and the church. So, then you have Old Testament principles of the Temple being transferred to the New Testament church, thus it results in the church building now becoming the "house of God."
Same thing with the word "Pastor." When people today hear the word "pastor," they think that he is a religious clergyman in the church, that he is the "man of God," and presides over the church, the "house of God." But, in the New Testament, leaders in the local churches were always referred to as elders or overseers and it was always a plurality of them in each church. The Scriptural term was "elders," not "pastors." The word "pastors" was only used one time in the epistles to the churches, and in it's context, it refers to a spiritual gift, not an office (Eph 4:11). It was the spiritual gift of shepherding that elders had. So, in the Bible, leaders were elders! Not pastors!
When Paul went to Miletus, he sent for the elders from the church at Ephesus. Please note, he called the elders. The word is elders, not pastors. Also, notice it was the elders of the church, the word being plural, not singular. (Acts 20:17). Then, Paul said that these elders in the church at Ephesus were the shepherds to oversee and feed the flock (Acts 20:28). The Greek word for "feed" means to "shepherd" or to "pastor." It's what elders do. They pastor the sheep. They feed the sheep with the Word of God. Shepherding or pastoring is a spiritual gift (Eph 4:11) that elders or overseers had.
However, the Devil has taken the word "pastor" and has separated it from the elders and changed it to represent a man of the cloth, a clergyman, or a God called "man of God," called and ordained to preside over the church the "house of God." Thus, by that definition, the word pastor and priest means the same thing. The devil changed the definition from the way "pastor" is used in the Word of God. Thus, by changing the definition, he then transfers the priest's work in the Old Testament to this word "pastor" in the New Testament. Presto, Change-o. Now, it's the office of the pastor, but this office comes from the Old Testament. It is not the office of an elder or "overseer" , but the office of a priest from the Old Testament. How? First, change the meaning of the word, then you can go ahead and make the swap, elder to pastor. All done by slight of hand. A misdirecting of attention to perform the trick. Get you looking one way, so you can't see what's really going on the other way.
The word "ordained" is another example of the devil changing it's definition from the way it's used in the Bible. In the Bible, it simply meant that before the New Testament was finished, the apostles "ordained" or pointed out who the elders were in each church. The elders had to meet certain qualifications given by the apostles. But, after the apostles died out, and the New Testament was finished, then those qualifications are in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. So, today we have those qualifications in the Word to let us know who the elders are in the church. But, at that time, the apostles "pointed out" who the elders were. The people didn't know. They didn't have the written qualifications. So, the apostles or their helpers, such as Timothy and Titus pointed out or "ordained" elders in each church (Titus 1).
However, the devil has changed the definition of the word "ordained" to mean an official appointment of a clergyman or a pastor into the ministering of being a pastor, or whatever ministry they feel called for. And, since we don't have apostles today, then the ordaining is done by other clergymen. The qualifications? Well, this man declares that he has been "called by God" to enter into full time service for the Lord. He is to quit his secular job and go to Bible college and seminary and God will lead him into the type of service He has for him. At some time or the other, he will be ordained or appointed by other clergymen. They put their stamp of approval on him to become one of them, the clergy.
Now, the problem here is that there is absolutely no Scripture for any of this. They just make it up. There is no example of a "special call" for being a pastor. Yes, Paul had a special call of God, but he was an apostle. Moses had a special call being a prophet. But, there was no special call of God in being a pastor. Well, again, the word in the Bible is not pastor, but elder, and there was no special call of God in being an elder. All an elder had to do was have a "desire to do the work in the church and meet the qualifications listed in Scripture (1Tim 3).
So, they get away with it because of all the definition changes and word swaps. Changing the Biblical word "elder" to their made up word "Pastor." It's crazy. But, they get away with it. And, the devil is behind it all (Eph 6:12).
Sometimes the devil does a really neat magic trick to keep us off guard. He mixes it up sometimes. He does a reverse swap. Instead of changing the definition of the word first, so the word will have a different definition, he'll completely change the word first, which will then have it's own different definition. For example the word "bishop." When Paul spoke to Timothy about elders in the church being "overseers," the translators translated the Greek word "episkope" to the English word "bishop." "This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be blameless...." (1Tim 3:1,2).
The Greek word that Paul used had a specific meaning. It meant "overseer," which is what elders in the church do, they watch over or oversee the church. Watching for danger. Watching for the wolves.
However, most English translators translated this Greek word "episkope" into the word "Bishop." Now, why in the world would they do that? Doing this, they totally changed the word's meaning just by changing it's translation to the word "Bishop." So, what does "Bishop" mean? Well, most people then and now would think it means one of the top members of the clergy, especially in the Catholic Church and the Church of England, which by the way, provided the translators translating the Bible from Greek to English. So, they chose the word "Bishop." But, that's not translating the word! That's interpreting the word! They knew the word meant "oversee" but they purposely used the word "Bishop" that represented the leadership in their church, the Church of England. One might argue, "Well, Bishops were overseers in their church, so it was the same thing." No, the work of an elder in a New Testament church is not the same work of a "Bishop" in the church of England. Come on now.
So, do you think God was pleased with that choice using the word Bishop? Well, the Bishops were pleased, no doubt. It confirmed their position in the Church of England to have that in the Bible. So, personally, I don't use the word Bishop even though it's in my KJV Bible. I use the word "overseer" instead because that was the word God chose and Paul used. I was glad to see that the Darby translation uses the word "overseers." But, I have always used the KJV and I will stick with it. I just have to understand this word change and some of the archaic words used back then.
I could go on and on with this, where words have been changed in order to sneak in doctrine from the Old Testament and substitute it for New Testament doctrine. Paul dealt with these problems with the Jews that claimed to be Christians, but were trying to force circumcision, dietary laws, and other Mosaic rules and regulations upon the early churches. Where do you think we get that Sunday is the Christian Sabbath day? Again, the big swap. So, don't be fooled by this deception that is going on in Old Testament churches today. If you go there, then "Presto, Change-o." You'll see some great tricks. You will be fooled how clever they can be in changing the Word of God. But, again, don't give them all the credit. It's really Satan behind all this (Eph 6:12). They are just believing the lies he puts out. And, he's pretty good at it. He mixes a lot of truth with his lies. That's what makes it so hard to see his slight of hand tricks.
And, what is God's reaction to all the deception going on in churches today? "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2Tim 2:15). So, read the Bible yourself, and don't forget to rightly divide it. If you are interested in learning about the Lord's church, then you need to study where the Lord writes about it, in the New Testament.
So, in closing, where are Old Testament churches today? Well, they are everywhere, practically on every street corner. They operate under the disguise of different denominational names. It doesn't matter what denomination the church is in, because they all get their doctrines from the Old Testament when it comes to their church practice. It's what they all have in common. They all, to some degree, put an emphasis on the Law for salvation or for living the Christian life rather than by Grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ. They all have in common a priest-like clergy system that presides over a religious building or sanctuary they call the church. They have an altar and have altar calls for people to come and get right with God. They practice the commands of tithing, to name a few. These Old Testament churches may differ in a lot of things, but what they all have in common are these Old Testament principles for the church.
So, folks, the question is, how important is all this? Does it matter? Does a way a church meet all that important? To see how important the church is today, let me ask you a few questions. How important was God's house, the Tabernacle, in the Old Testament? Did it matter how things functioned in the Tabernacle? Was it all that important? Did it matter that the two sons of Aaron offered strange fire in the Tabernacle? Did God overlook that? Well, it must have been important, because God killed them (Num 3:4). Or, how important was it when God said no one was to touch the ark as it was being transported. Uzzah touched it, to steady it, and he died (2 Sam 6:7). Or, how important was it if the high priest came into the Holy of Holies contrary to God's directions. Well, it must have mattered, because God said if that happened, then the high priest would die (Ex 28:35).
So, if God was this way in the Old Testament with His "house," then is His "house," the church, all that important today? Does it really matter how we meet in the church? Well, let me ask you a question. When Jesus died on the Cross and later the Holy Spirit came down and baptized those believers into one body which Jesus called His church, was that important? Did that matter? Or, when the Jews sewed up the veil in the Temple, continued on with Judaism, and persecuted the early churches, even unto death, did that matter? How about Paul when he and the other apostles fought so hard against Judaism that was infiltrating the early churches with doctrines from the Mosaic Law, did that matter? Was that important?
What about when God killed Ananias and his wife Sapphira because they lied to the early church (Acts 5:1-10). Did that matter? What about the new convert, Simon when he offered money to buy the gift of the Holy Spirit that Peter said he would perish along with his money (Acts 8:20)?
God said in 1 Corinthians 11:29,30, that the Christians came to partake of the Lord's Supper, if they did not examine themselves before taking it, then "For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep (die)". Does that not sound serious to you? So, yes it did matter how they functioned as a church?
Lastly, does it matter when God says concerning the church, "Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body" (Eph 4:3, 4)? This along with other verses say to Christians, that there is only one Body of Christ, the Church, and we are to "endeavor", to work hard at "keeping the unity" of that one Body of Christ. Listen, various sectarian names divide the Body of Christ, so I ask you, does that matter? How we meet as a local church reflects upon and pictures the Body of Christ. Study First Corinthians, chapters one through three concerning those early attempts to take on sectarian names such as "I'm of Paul, I'm of Cephas, and I'm of Apollos," and see how divisive that was and how Paul reacted to it.
What about in the local church at Pergamos, where Jesus said, "Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth" (Rev 2:16)? Or, to the church at Thyatira, where Jesus said, "And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am he which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works" (Rev 2:23)? Or, to the church at Laodecia, where Jesus said, "So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew thee out of my mouth" (Rev 3:16)?
This sounds like the Lord Jesus is very serious when it comes to His churches, that it does matter what they do as a church. Yes, the Lord Jesus loves His Church very much, but when they get out of step, then He said, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent" (Rev 3:19). So, He does care what goes on. It does matter. It is important how we meet as a church.
The question then becomes if Jesus said, "As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent," then why are we not seeing change in these churches today? Well, it could be that they are not His churches. If He rebukes and chastens them, then why are they not repenting and getting right and meeting as a church according to His commands in the New Testament epistles to the churches? Why do they continue to go to the Old Testament for commands for their churches?
Yes, it seems to me that Old Testament churches just go right along as usual the way they always have. Do you see any of them changing from Old Testament principles to New Testament principles in the way they meet? I don't. So, the only thing I can conclude is that they are not His churches. If they aren't His churches, then why should He rebuke and chasten them? As you have seen from the Scripture, those early churches in the Bible, even those seven churches in Revelation, were His churches, so He pleads with them to change their ways or He will discipline them.
If Christ rebukes His churches, and chastens them, and they won't repent, then He said He will "spew" them out of His mouth. They may go on acting like His church, but they don't belong to Him anymore. They belong to a man, group of men, or to an organization of men who are teaching them to follow the Old Testament commands for their church. So, they belong to men, that's why they follow men. They do not belong to the Lord. This is why they will take on man made secular names and titles because they are under someone else's authority rather than the Lord's authority. But, Christ doesn't care. They're not His churches. Now, they can say whatever they want, and do whatever they want, and they can get away with it. They don't belong to Him.
But, having said all this, it makes me wonder what kind of people make up these churches? Why would a real Christian feel comfortable going there? I believe that most of the people in them are not saved. They are just religious. Here is one way to find out. Christ said He would rebuke and chasten them, right? Well, that was if they were His Church. But, how does that work in a church when that's in question whether they are His church or not? How can we find out for sure?
Well, I believe we can find out whether they are His church or not by sharing with them the truth of God's Word. Then, it's between them and the Lord. If they really belong to Christ, but just caught up in error, like the Corinthian and the Galatian churches were, then Christ will chasten or discipline them and they will repent as did the Corinthian church. But, the Lord can't do this if we don't give them the truth concerning the church from His Word. We are the messengers of His Truth. The people there aren't getting it from their pastor, because it doesn't benefit the pastor, so we have to get it to them some other way. However, if these people don't belong to Christ, then they will not listen anyway, and probably get mad at us for trying to correct them. They will just shoot the messenger, sort of speaking. But, this is scary when a person confesses to be a Christian and they don't want to hear or do what the Word says to do. Mark it down, they are probably not saved (Gal 4:20).
Now, it may take time, so we should allow some time to see what happens. But, in my experience, most people right away will be closed minded and get upset. I think you can write those off as being phony Christians. However, those who are even a little open minded about it, there may be hope. But, as I see it, we are fighting a losing battle, and very few will listen, and the odds for their pastor listening are even much lower. You see, the odds are on their side. You are just one person walking out of step with multitudes of others who think they are the ones walking in step.
Another reason it's so hard to get through to them is that they have so much invested in what they are doing. Family, friends, and so on. Too much at risk to give up and suffer persecution for Christ's sake. Furthermore, it was easy for the Corinthian church to repent and change their ways, because all the other churches were walking in step and following Paul. The Corinthian church was the one out of step, and it was easier for them to change and get back in step with the other churches. However, for an Old Testament church to change would be contrary, going against the grain in what all the other Old Testament churches are doing. It would be against the norm for them to do so.
Let me be clear. I don't hate Old Testament churches. Yes, I hate the Old Testament system they go by as a church, but I don't hate the people that go there, or hate everything they teach. Some of the stuff they teach is true. I try to fellowship with some of them in things we can agree upon such as the Person and Work of Christ. Thus, the fellowship is limited. Furthermore, I thank God that some of these denominations are preaching the truth concerning Christ and the Gospel.
The Bible says, "Some indeed preach Christ even of ENVY and STRIFE; and some also of good will: 16 The one preach Christ of CONTENTION, NOT SINCERELY, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: 17 But the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel. 18 What then? notwithstanding, every way, whether in PRETENCE, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therein do rejoice, yea, and will rejoice" (Phil 1:15-18).
So, I rejoice in that they are preaching some Truth concerning Christ, but I can't be apart or condone what they are doing that is so wrong Scripturally.
Some of you may think that I am making too big of a deal out of churches today using Old Testament practices such as the sanctuary, the altar calls, the clergy system, and so on. But, if you are thinking that way, it is because you have grown up seeing it that way, so you perceive it as normal. It's all you know. "What's wrong with a church meeting in a sanctuary, if they want to?" Well, you think that way, because it's how you've been raised only seeing it that way. It's all you know, so it seems normal. But, it's just like those who grew up during slavery days, and thought it was right, because they grew up with it. It's all they knew. But, as far as churches go, we must see how God looks at it, not how we look at it. And, the only way we are going to know how God looks at the church, is to look at it in His Word.
MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE WITH THE NEW TESTAMENT "ASSEMBLIES"
I was a member of the Baptist denomination close to 25 years, and in the mid 90's I wanted to get into a "right kind of church," but didn't know how. The Lord led me to leave the Baptist name and meet at home with my family in Jesus Name alone. I studied the Bible in how a New Testament church should meet. I compiled my notes and wrote a booklet that I titled, "Why Modern Churches are Carnal." But, we didn't know of any churches that practiced what I learned from my study. My wife went to the library and checked out a book called "Denominations in America," and we found a group of churches that met by these "New Testament" principles that I had learned. They had elders in each meeting rather than a one man pastor. Most of their churches met in simple rented places, but some had more traditional buildings. They had a weekly "breaking of bread meeting" which was very Scriptural and I really loved it. It was an open meeting according to 1Corinthians 14. Speakers were on a rotation basis by a few gifted men of the assembly. So, they didn't have a "sanctuary," an altar call, or practice tithing.
Even though I view these "assemblies" as New Testament churches, and we agreed with everything the library book said about them except for one thing. First, they claimed to be non-denominational and meet in Jesus Name, but while reading about them, I noticed that they got started in England in the mid 1800's and divided into two different groups. Although others at that time called them "Plymouth Brethren," they did not refer to themselves by that name or any other name. However, after the group split, they referred among themselves as "Bible Chapels" and "Gospel Halls," according to the library book. This made them seem denominational. This sort of grieved me and my wife.
Well, we thought we would give them a try and located one in a nearby city. We drove the 60 miles the following Sunday and I wept during the breaking of bread meeting. How precious it was. We feel in love with the meeting and the folks there, so we began to go there a few more Sundays, until we felt led to start a meeting like this in the Louisville area.
As time went on, I became more concerned about this group that called themselves the "Assemblies." Even though a small group, with maybe 1200 or so "assemblies" in the U.S., I became to see them more and more as a denomination. I began to say during my 15 years with them that I didn't come out of a denomination just to go back into one. Basically, I had two problems with this group even though I saw them as churches practicing New Testament principles.
1) They didn't refer to themselves as "churches" because how the word "church" has changed in meaning to mean the building and organization, so they referred their meetings as assemblies, and I understand that. I had no problem with that. However, as the years went by, I increasingly saw them as a denomination in how they used that reference. I often spoke up about how they spoke with denominational jargon, referring to themselves as the "Assemblies," and further dividing by referring to themselves as Gospel Halls or Bible Chapels which were subgroups in the Assemblies. In my view, these were definite sects within the larger group. Now, when speaking of the assemblies, they would say it was with a small "a," but I saw it with a capital "A" because of the way they used it as a proper noun referring to their group. I viewed this as dividing the body of Christ according to First Corinthians, chapters 1 through 3, "I'm of Paul, I'm of Peter, I'm of Apollos." They would say, "We are of the Assemblies," or "I go to the Assemblies," which is of course sectarian. By arguing that it was with a little "a" rather than a capital "A" did not fool me. I knew the difference between a common noun and a proper noun in how the word was being used.
So, even though they claimed to be non-denominational, they still used denominational names for their group "Assemblies" and for their subgroups "Gospel Halls" and "Bible Chapels." These two groups were often opposed to one another, mostly differences over having an "open fellowship" or a "closed fellowship." But, we knew this from the beginning, but decided to overlook it because of all the other New Testament principles they had that we agreed with.
2) The second problem we had that was very closely linked to the first was that not only did they use denominational names for their group, and their subgroups, but that they also used sectarian names for each of their local churches. The name of the "assembly" in Lexington that we first visited was "South Lexington Bible Fellowship." The meeting that I started in Louisville became known as "Mt Washington Bible Fellowship." We were part of the "Bible Chapel" subgroup having open fellowship. Later, when we moved the meeting over to Elk Creek, we became "Elk Creek Bible Chapel," then later changed the name to "Elk Creek Gospel Center." Then, the meeting grew as more folks from Louisville were coming to the meeting so we decided to move it into the city and it was then named "Plantside Bible Fellowship." A few years later, we moved again to a bigger space for the meeting had grown to around 70 people and we became "Louisville Bible Fellowship" because if we moved again, then that name could be used again.
However, I became grieved with all these sectarian names for the little meeting as we moved around from place to place over those 15 years. Even though I was an elder there and gave my concern from time to time, I didn't press the issue, because I knew it would create problems. So, I compromised.
In 2012, my family and another family left the "Assemblies" and started a weekly meeting in my home in Jesus Name alone. Not long after that, another family began to come meet with us monthly because they lived 2 1/2 hours away. A few months later a couple more families left the Baptist churches they attended and joined in with us. Four years later, they left and returned to the Baptist churches. So, for the past three years, we have 3 families that meets in our home. We meet in Jesus Name alone. No other name. We try to do what the Bible says.
I want to make clear that I have no hard feelings toward these brethren that call themselves the "Assemblies." I thank God for them. I still view them as New Testament churches, because they do follow New Testament principles for the church. They just need to get rid of the denominational aspect of their group and just meet in Jesus Name alone. They also need to get rid of their local church sectarian names. Just meet in Jesus Name alone. It can be done. It's not easy, but it can be done. But, it's the right thing to do.
When this movement started back in the 1800's, they didn't use sectarian names according to my research. Now, these people would have a name for the building they met in such as "Bethesda Chapel." But, that was a name for the building, not a name for the group of people meeting there. However, as the decades passed, they began to use their building names as a name for their group. For an example, and I'm just making up these names, it might be "Louisville Bible Chapel" or "Louisville Gospel Hall," but "chapel" and "hall" are buildings (not people), but they are being used as sectarian names for the Christians meeting in them. For example, they write out their checks to "Louisville Bible Chapel," and I ask you, how can you write a check out to a building? The building can't do anything with it. No, it's to the organization or the group of people. Even though it's a building name, it represents the group of Christians meeting there. It's sectarianism. There is another name you are meeting under, your group name, and not in Jesus Name alone.
When I left the "Assemblies" in 2012, I admit I thought this denomination was like all the other denominations, but I was wrong. The Lord has just recently shown me, as I write this, that the "assemblies" are indeed New Testament churches, because they practice New Testament principles for the church. I still appreciate and love them, however I can't be apart of their fellowship due to the seriousness I see in them not meeting in Jesus Name alone. Yes, they meet in Jesus Name, but they also meet in their sectarian names. They didn't start out that way in the 1800s, but as time went on, they became sectarian like all the other denominations. So, I see these fine folks being the only denomination that is a New Testament church.
Local churches in the Bible weren't perfect. But, they were the Lord's churches, because they met only in the Name of Jesus. No other name. However, today, this is not the case. For the exception of the "Assemblies," I see all the other denominations out there being Old Testament churches. Why? Because, they practice Old Testament principles in their churches.
Now, I don't see that there's any hope for these Old Testament churches. None at all. They have too much invested and too much to lose by changing and becoming a New Testament church. Their basic principles of meeting are all wrong being from the Old Testament. It's just too much to change. They just won't do it.
However, there may be some hope for the "Assemblies." They are already meeting by New Testament principles, they just need to get rid of their denominational names and their sectarian local church names. So, this would be much, much easier than it would be for the Old Testament churches, because even if they gave up their secular, sectarian names, then they still have to get rid of all those Old Testament principles they are practicing, and transition to obeying New Testament principles. That would be very difficult and I just don't see that happening.
So, to the New Testament churches that call themselves the "Assemblies," I say, just meet in Jesus Name alone. It can be done. It's the right thing to do. It's what the Lord would want you to do. It's what He said to do, "In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together...." (1Cor 5:4). Meet in Jesus Name alone. That would be the "KEY." If you would do that, then that would be the starting point for the Lord leading you in other areas that need to be corrected in the church so you can be more Scriptural. Get back to the way they were in the 1800's when those precious brethren met in Jesus Name alone and introduced us to the Lord's Principles for the New Testament church.
So, to sum up, I view all Christian churches today can be put into 3 categories.
1) First, The Catholic Church, (Roman and Eastern Orthodox) which is a mixture of Paganism, Judaism, and Christianity. She is a church influenced by Paganism which includes the idolic worship of Mary, the Saints, images, and other pagan practices. Judaism is also there with the Old Testament principles of an ornate Temple, sanctuary, priests, altar, tithing, and so on. Added to all this are some true elements of Christianity which will make it all more deceptive.
Catholic Church Recipe
Ingredients: Paganism + Judaism + Christianity.
Directions: Mix one part of bitter herbs of Paganism under the cover of two parts of eye pleasing Judaism to just enough Christianity to sweeten the taste to swallow all those bitter herbs of Paganism.
Results: A mixture of these powerful ingredients will produce a world-wide Church that will dominate all other Church Recipes on earth. It comes disguised with a sweet tasting Christian flavor, but has an extremely bitter aftertaste for all eternity.
2) Secondly, the Protestant Church denominations that are also Old Testament Churches, which includes all the Protestant churches, because they are a mixture of Judaism and Christianity. During the Reformation, the Protestant Reformers left the Catholic Church and got rid of the Paganism, but they didn't get rid of the Judaism, thus the continuing of Old Testament principles in their church practices. This would include main stream denominations such as Baptist, Methodists, Pentecostals, Church of Christ, and so on. Even though the Christianity element in some of these denominations may be very strong, such as preaching the Gospel, they still practice Old Testament principles for their churches.
Old Testament Church Recipe
Ingredients: Judaism + Christianity
Directions: Mix in a big lump of eye pleasing, mouth watering Judaism, and just enough Christianity to tickle the itching ear.
Results: A mixture of these ingredients will give you an Old Testament church that can be packaged in various denominational wrappers that offers a money back guarantee that it will appeal to the religious lost, and will draw in lazy carnal Christians.
3) Thirdly, the New Testament Churches. I know there are churches out there today that practice solely by the New Testament in how they function as a church. I believe we are one of them. So, we are indeed New Testament churches. You will not find any paganism or Judaism mixed in how these churches practice. But, these churches are few, and far in between. Furthermore, as I have mentioned, there is also the denomination that are called the "Assemblies," that would fit in here also, because they practice New Testament principles for the church. I believe God is pleased with this. However, as I have said, they do not meet in Jesus Name alone, thus I believe they have a sectarian spirit because they carry sectarian names which displeases God.
New Testament Church Recipe
Ingredients: Christianity and the New Testament
Directions: Just mix in Jesus Name alone with the New Testament commands for the church.
Results: A New Testament Church that will please God and give Honor to the Lord Jesus Christ, if you follow the directions properly.
I pray God will bless you and that you will be open to the Truth of His Word, and have the courage to act upon it.
In Jesus Name,
James B. Sparks
jb5sparks@aol.com
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