Meaningless Traditions (Part 2)

THE DAILY WORD
By Jim Seekamp

Wednesday April 1, 2009

There are many religious traditions and regulations that are entirely man-made and have no Biblical basis. One of them is church membership. There is no basis in the Bible for having to "become a member" of a church... when you get saved you are automatically part of the church!

The main verse people use to try to make membership seem Biblical is Acts 2:41:

Acts 2:41 (NIV)
Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.

The argument is that how would they know that about 3,000 were added to their number if they weren't keeping track? So they must have had some kind of church membership right? Some churches will tack on to that and say that these people were "baptized into the church" as well, and say you have to be water baptized at their church in order to become a member!

Neither of these ideas has any Biblical basis. The idea that "about three thousand" were added to the number of believers means absolutely nothing beyond that simple fact. To say it means more would be reading into the verse for something that isn't there. Also, the people were water baptized because they had just received Christ and been saved, NOT to become a "member" of an organization!

In fact, many believe that you must go to an "organized church" in order to be saved! That idea is the most ridiculous of all: it's like saying that going to church makes you a Christian just like being in a garage makes you a car! It doesn't, of course! But the main verse people use to argue this case is Hebrews 10:25:

Hebrews 10:25 (NIV)
Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another-- and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

First of all, this was written to the Hebrews to tell them not to stop meeting together, so they could encourage one another! It doesn't say a word about meeting with an "organized church"! I've had my most encouraging Christian fellowship with other believers OUTSIDE of a "local church", and I know many Christians who would say the same thing!

Many times "local churches" are more interested in growing their own number than they are in people's well-being, so they become controlling, and try to make their "members" believe they must go to an "organized church" in order to keep their faith! This is a crippling belief, since many Christians then become dependent on "church", and never grow up in their faith on their own, so they end up being weak and unable to stand on their own against satan's attacks!

We should never stop having fellowship with other believers, but that doesn't mean you have to become a "member" of a "local church"! You are already a member of the church of Jesus Christ as soon as you get saved! Right after you get saved, you should go to a church where you can learn some basic fundamentals of the faith (the milk), but when you grow up, you need to be able to stand on your own, and not be dependent on others, but become dependent directly on Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit!

A good example of this is Philip:

Acts 8:26-29 (NIV)
26. Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go south to the road-- the desert road-- that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." 27. So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28. and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. 29. The Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot and stay near it."

The modern day version of this, that many churches would want you to do instead, would be: 1. go to your pastor to make sure it was the Holy Spirit who told you to stay near that chariot. 2. Bring another believer with you, or have the pastor go instead. 3. If the eunuch was found to be an unbeliever, then you should get away from him because he is a bad influence on you!

How ridiculous is that? We need to listen to the Holy Spirit and obey him without doubt or question, and that confidence only comes through knowing God for yourself and not being dependent on others!

Of course there's nothing wrong with going to church; church can be a blessing, and if you are an experienced believer, and your gift is teaching, you can help teach the new Christians who should be coming into that "local church"! But once we have come to know the Lord, we should not become dependent on any "local church" for our own personal growth in the Lord!

PRAYER
Thank You Father for Your wonderful, life-giving Word. Help me comprehend Your Word and rightly divide it so I can allow You to govern my life completely.
In Jesus Name, Amen.

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