"HOW TO LIVE IN THE CHURCH"
INTRODUCTION
When Jesus Christ called you to follow Him, and you accepted, He was
calling you not only to eternal life but to an entirely different way of life!
Here at Open Bible Fellowship it is our joy to discover all the wonderful ways
of the Lord, which lead to the abundant life God has for us. We desire
to be the kind of people and New Testament Church that He wants us to be.
This new life is to be bathed in the love of God through relationships with
Him and His people. Not to experience these relationships is to miss out
on the will of God!
“If we love one another, God abides in
us, and His
love
is perfected in us.” I John 4:12
And
“…The one who does not love his brother whom he has
seen,
cannot love God whom he has
not seen. 21And this commandment we have from Him,
that the one who loves God should love his brother also.”
I John 4:20-21
So God’s Whole Purpose For
Us Then Is This:
“What we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also,
that you also may
have fellowship with us;
and indeed our fellowship is
with the Father,
and with His Son Jesus
Christ.” I John 1:3
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Sometimes we become surprised when people do not act correctly; we think, "I
thought they were Christians." But, correct attitudes and actions do not
happen automatically; they must be learned. So we must understand that
the Lord's ways must be learned and applied. We must see others and
ourselves in the church as needing to be changing and growing.
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“Church
Hurts” occur in churches. People have not learned to relate with other
fellows Christians, as they should. Churches do not operate as God
desires; Pastors are frustrated. And, when problems
arise, rather than coming to a good resolve, there are hurts and a breakdown
in relationships. And, the outreach and effectiveness of
the Church of Jesus Christ is weakened. But it does not need to be like
this; that’s why we are having this study of God's Word. "Show Me Thy
Ways, O Lord!"
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
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INTRODUCTION (Continuing ...)
Even as you are reading this you may be thinking this applies to others- not
you; yet inevitably you WILL cause some hurt by your actions, attitudes,
inactions or simply by wrong procedure. There are reasons for all this.
But if we learn how God wants to structure the church and see how we are to
relate to one another in different circumstances, we will avoid problems and
be, rather, strengthened, blessed and effective. That's why the
Scriptures tell us-
“I Write So That You May Know
How One Ought To Conduct Himself
In The Household Of God”.
I Timothy 3:15
After 50 years of life in churches
and 25 years of ministry I have discovered
that many of the experiences churches go through are commonly repeated, though
at the time the people may feel it is unique, it is actually very common.
This is what I call "The Mouse Theory": "If you see one there will
be a lot more around." I've learned if you let mice go, they start
making real messes. So too, problems we encounter are not unique but
common. But, if we learn to do things right in the first place we will
have a neat, orderly, sweet house.
Did you know if, at the beginning of this year on
January 1, if you allow one mouse to thrive and have babies who in turn will
have babies who can all thrive, by the end of the year on December 31, there
would be 34,000 mice? That's the way it is with problems in the church
and in our lives. That's why it's important to understand how to
identify and change problems and bad habits before they thrive. It makes
a big difference. Keep the Mouse out of the House!
When we accepted Jesus into our lives, and are born
again, a new spiritual baby life began within us. But that's just the
beginning of the growing process; now our minds, thoughts, attitudes and
actions still need to be changed and conformed to the ways of the Lord (Romans
12:1-2; I Cor. 3:1-3). Most of the Bible was written to God's people on
occasions of their needing correction and an understanding of how God wants us
to live.
We ALL need to learn the ways of the Lord and apply
them to our lives. To think otherwise, is to be proud and arrogant.
God stands against the haughty in heart (I Peter 5:5); but those who are
humble, gentle and allowing the Lord to change them and mold them will truly
become great in His Kingdom!
We ARE Of Those Who Want The Lord To Work In Our Lives.
We ARE Of Those Who Want To See A Strong, Healthy Church.
We ARE Of Those Who Want To Have Jesus Manifest In Our Lives.
“Show me Thy ways, O Lord;
Teach me Thy paths.
Lead me in Thy truth, And
teach me:
For Thou art the God of my salvation;
on Thee do I wait all the
day.”
Psalm 25:4-5
A SPECIAL NOTE
ABOUT SIGNING ON EACH LESSON
At the end of each
lesson there is a place to sign off on the lesson. The purpose of this
is to give special attention to the thought of each lesson and apply it to my
life as an individual.
This is not to get
everyone to conform to mindless obedience in the church; rather it is to help
each person see the importance of the Biblical idea and to make a conscious,
special, effort to apply the lesson into their thoughts and character.
This application will help our church be the way God wants us to operate.
If you disagree or have questions about it, don’t just sign it anyway; rather
talk to the Pastor or teacher about it in order to find further understanding
together.
We do not want to be
only hearers of the Word and not doers of it. We need to be open to
changing the way we are. By signing we are taking special thought to
take a look at how we will change to be the way God wants us to be.
I have had the
experience, after some problem has arisen of going back to the people who
violated one of these principles to have them respond by saying, “Oh, we are
just not like that.” But that is the very point; we are to change!
We are not to go by our old ways. We are to be conformed to the image of
Christ. So, for instance, when people are not open to share their
misunderstandings and just keep things bottled up until it explodes, they are
not following the Biblical injunction that we are to be open and honest in
“speaking the truth in love”.
Each of these lessons
cannot be stressed enough. Each one of us must take a serious look at
conforming ourselves to the principles of God, or there will continue to be
problems rather than blessings. For we are to be a church that is a
loving, open, growing, peaceful, united, joyful, fellowship of believers,
being conformed and changed daily into the image and character of Christ.
Is your heart and will open to change. Are you
willing to allow the Lord to change you and teach you? Are you willing
to die to yourself and be the way Jesus wants you to be, or is there a spirit
of pride welling up in you to want to fight the changes the Holy Spirit and
the Word of God are calling you to make?
Let’s do a practice
signing right now!
Lord, help me to be open to hear,
understand and apply into my life the truths that You want developed
into my life and character!
Signed
_________________________________________________
CONTENTS
1. Love Is The
Greatest
6
2. Team Work
8
3. Freedom
10
4. Keeping Out Anger
12
5. Openness
14
6. Preventing Gossip
16
7. Correction
18
8. Unity
20
9. God’s Purpose For
Authority
22
10. Working With
God's Leadership
24
11. How God Has Set Up
The Church
26
12. Understanding Elders
28
13. Understanding Headship
30
14. Complaining Or
Contributing
32
15. Giving
34
16. Grace, Grace, Grace
36
Membership Application
37
This study
is based on using the New American Standard Bible,
However,
other translations should work fairly well with this study.
There is
available an answer book as well.
Page Numbers In Italics follows References
In Our Church's Blue NIV Bible For Easy
Locating.
ãRev. Wallace Shea 1990, 1993,
revised 2000
Open Bible
Fellowship
2662 NE 102 Ave.
Ankeny,
Iowa 50021
515-964-8544
LOVE IS THE GREATEST!
Have you ever seen a game in which some team member
pressed through to score a point, only to find he was going the wrong way and
actually scored against his own team? It happens.
Jesus says it will happen with people in the church
also; those who think they are doing great things for God will in the end,
find out they didn’t do the will of God, in fact they were doing more harm
than good; they didn’t even really know Jesus. (Matt. 25:31-46 and
Matt.7:21-23)
I have seen, often, where people get so wrapped up in
“Ministry” they fail desperately in the basics. Some people may have
great abilities and gifts and talk a lot about a relationship with God; yet
they do not have a good love, acceptance, thoughtfulness, or hunger towards
having a supportive fellowship with others. In their rush to ministry
they start running over people and become harsh and thoughtless. The end
result is a score for the enemy of the church. Wouldn’t it be tragic for
you to invest in ministry only to find out you failed in the Lord’s eyes?
It can happen! The Key Difference?
-LOVE!
Most everybody will agree love is the most important
thing. When Jesus was asked what was the greatest commandment, Jesus
told us we were to Love God AND Love one another (Matt. 22:36-40).
Yet Love is presumed upon. Talking the talk, but not simply "coming down
to earth and living with the rest of us!" It takes humility and putting
others first. Read Romans 12:10-14. The greatest struggle in the
church has been for people to simply come to Fellowship Groups where we have a
chance to get to know one another (which services can't facilitate). How
can we pray for one another, love one another, share our burdens and grow
together if we don't even relate to or know one another? In our church
therefore all this is a necessity in becoming true to Jesus in our faith and
being the kind of real Church Jesus wants us to be!
Love is demonstrated in its actions, not in its
acclamations. (Romans 5:8 and James 2).
It is not enough to just know Love is needed. We must know how love
acts! Do We Need To Learn How To Live In The Church? Absolutely!
LOVE IS THE GREATEST
How is it possible for someone to have great ministry,
even have an impressive, spiritually powerful ministry, and yet be counted as
a big zero in God’s evaluation? (I Cor. 13:2) (p1114)
. .
________________________________________________________________________
On the other hand, it is a wonderful thing to be on the
receiving end of the ministry of love! Rewrite I Corinthians 13:4-7
(p1114) in a way to express how people will be
acting toward you if they are acting out of love. Replace “Love” with
“They are being...” We will start it out... They are being: patient
with me, …
(Thinking then too that we should be this
way towards others):
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
Read John 15:12-13 (p1046) and answer the following
questions based on this truth:
1.)
From what Jesus is telling us are our emotions to tell us who and when
to love? Why?
_________________________________________________________________
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep The Mouse Out of the House!:
Having studied this lesson I realize the importance of all
this and commit
myself to being gracious,
accepting, and loving of everyone! If something
is done or said I could take
negatively I will instead look to the heart and take everything in the best
way. I will not hold to bitterness but rather rejoice in the love and
grace we share together.
Signed ___________________________________
TEAM WORK
Love demands by its character, caring and
involvement! While many people can talk the talk of Christianity and
attend church services and even enjoy the benefits of the church, yet for the
true disciple of Jesus, our love and faith are demonstrated by doing what is
His will.
To not be involved with the people of God and working
supportively together, as we have already seen, is to be outside of God's will
and character. Indeed there are many "Mavericks" who act out of arrogant
attitudes: they don't need anyone else, they can minister better than anyone
else, no one else is as committed as they are, they
can worship God themselves and don't need the church.
Rather than blessing the Lord by loving His people for
which He came and died, their arrogant attitude
keeps the church apart, hurting and weak. Yet Jesus looks for His people to be
one body.
We can always do more together than we can alone.
But this takes a great change of heart and attitude to really understand and
appreciate this. It means we must learn the ways to be patient, work
with one another, forgive, encourage, think of others more than ourselves etc.
In short, we must start living the real Christian lifestyle. Are you
ready to put down your own life in service to others? Are you ready to
be on the Lord's Team? That's a big challenge isn’t it? That is the
Lord's will and way isn't it? Isn't it?
TEAM WORK
We MUST come to understand how important involvement is in
the church. God uses the analogy of the individual as being a member of
a living body:
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Thought:
What will you say to someone the next time they say, "I
don't need the church, I can worship God better out in nature in my fishing
boat"?
Keep
The Mouse Out of the House!:
I realize now through this study that God's personal
ministry to me
and my ministry to Him cannot
really be fulfilled outside of the Church.
I therefore reject the notion that I can serve God and be
fine by myself apart
from the church. I will
see myself as a part of God's team, the Body of Jesus by our being together in
Open Bible Fellowship.
Signed ___________________________________
FREEDOM
What Wonderful liberty and freedom we truly have in
Jesus!!! "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty!"
II Cor. 3:17. In fact Jesus said you can discern what is of Him by
the fruit. Where He is there is freedom. We are free from a lot of
legalisms and bondage. Our church is to be the fellowship of God's
people who have found freedom in their lives. We have freedom to think
and see for ourselves what God’s truth is. There is strength and joy in
this.
One of the reasons people like to stay away from
churches is because they feel their freedom is imposed upon. They
may feel they are judged and categorized if they think or believe a little
differently. The sad truth is, often that is the case. Yet, that
is not in the character of God. We cannot be that way.
As Christians we are blessed people who can know truth
and have great freedom. We must understand how to
handle truth with grace, love and openness. We must understand how to
relate to other church members and non-believers who may hold different
opinions. We will find new freedom to share more openly when
people know we truly care about them and have their trust.
FREEDOM
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep The Mouse Out of the House!:
Realizing that real growth and freedom comes about by
being able to be
Open to reason and freedom of expression, I will offer
this to others in the
Church and to myself!
Signed
___________________________________
KEEPING OUT ANGER
When we are wronged or someone does something with
which we do not agree, a natural reaction to that situation is anger.
There are times when anger is appropriate and times when we need to be
gracious to not take offence where none was intended. It is important to set
our church as a place where people are gracious with each other instead of
quick to get upset. And we certainly do not want to have a place where we
feel like everyone needs to be "walking on egg shells", do we!
There are usually different ways a person can take a
comment or action. The first step to avoid problems with anger is to
look at things in the most gracious way. Do you really think
they meant to hurt you, or was it simply an unintentional offense? If
they did not mean it to your harm, why let the devil stir up unnecessary
strife by taking something in the worse way possible?
What would be worse: (check one)
____being wrong by giving someone the benefit of
the doubt who really deserved your anger?
____being wrong by giving someone your anger and
distrust who meant no harm?
Do you think it is better to error on the side of grace
rather than to error at giving undue anger?
Remember Satan is always there to try to spark and fan
a flame to bring discord. But we will not allow that. We are not
ignorant of his designs. Giving grace neutralizes all offenses.
Always keeping open communication waters down any
opportunities for flames to grow.
KEEPING OUT ANGER
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep
The Mouse Out of the House!:
O God, I see it is necessary that I live as a gracious
person and not as an
angry one. O God, help me
to change by being patient instead of being
quick to anger or take offense.
Help me overcome my past and live the way you want. I will do my part by
setting my will to forgive all and change into a being a person of grace.
Signed ___________________________________
OPENNESS
Have you ever walked into a freshly cleaned house
and enjoyed the atmosphere of it? It smells and feels good doesn't it.
And we know there is a difference between just an aerosol having been sprayed
or real cleaning having been done.
The house of the Lord is to be that way also.
It is to be a refreshing change from the world. Our
"Communications” is our house maintenance policy. If we have a
good house maintenance policy, we will keep the house of the Lord clean and in
order. If we do not understand the Lord's communications orders, it will
be like a household in which we only live but do not clean or keep good order.
Different people have different attitudes and
approaches towards handling situations. Some take the "sweep it
under the rug" approach. We know what stink that eventually brings.
Some may feel they just don't like talking to people. But the reality is
we all communicate anyway; so it’s only a matter of learning how to
communicate correctly, God's way.
And, yes Our Father expects His children in His household to apply themselves
and put forth the effort in learning what He expects of us.
OPENNESS
According to Ephesians 4:15 (p1135), we should
speak _____________in ____________ What is the
result of such communication?
______________________________________________
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep
The Mouse Out of the House!:
I
understand that in order to keep our church, the House of
the Lord,
with an open, clean, wonderful
atmosphere, I MUST never let confusion,
hurts, complaints or being
upset about differences remain. I commit myself to always
being open to communicate with those involved
and not run on any presumptions. I will by this, keep my mind and heart
clear of misunderstandings and bad feelings.
Signed ___________________________________
PREVENTING GOSSIP
In learning to be wise and gracious in our speech,
we also then need to be aware of the tricky issue of gossip. It is a
slippery thing to get a hold of, as far as what it is and how to deal with it.
One thing we will see here is how serious of an issue it is. It leads to
misunderstandings, divisions, judgments, and strife.
Let us
define gossip in this way: Gossip is talking to others about rumors
or complaints in which the speaker is speaking to someone
who does not have the power and authority in the situation to be
directly involved.
PREVENTING GOSSIP
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep
The Mouse Out of the House!:
I know this is a tricky issue to deal with, but I will try
very hard to watch and when any disparaging remarks start being made by
anyone, I will stop it and say, "Don't tell
me about it, you need to talk to them or with someone who can do
something about it, or be quiet! Don't spread roomers,
I am committed to not being a part of gossip!
Signed ___________________________________
CORRECTION
As we have just seen within our last lesson,
sometimes we are forced to make a correction. In the church we
focus on love, grace and acceptance, so it is hard for us, as it should be, to
have to correct some situation. Yet the scriptures are full of commands
to the church in regards to corrections. For a church not to say "No" to
wickedness, strife, or immorality, is to accommodate it, even affirm it.
Maturity calls for balance and seeing all dimensions
of an issue God wants us to understand. Maturity sees evenly both sides
of the coin. When we talk about correction we must have the mature,
proper understanding.
First let us talk about the one side of the coin we
may be more familiar with. As we read Matthew 7:1-5 (p.939) we
understand Jesus says we are not to judge lest we be judged. And, He
also tells us we are not to look at the speck that is in our brother's eye
when we don’t see the log that is in our own.
Indeed, this must be a reality and a part of our
lives as gracious, non-judgmental people. We must not
become "nit-picky" people always telling
others their faults. Let not this lesson be perceived by anyone to think
we have license to be finding fault and telling others their faults.
As the saying goes: "Whenever my hand is pointing at
someone, I have three fingers pointing back at me!
Now, with that clearly understood, we need to see
the other side of the issue of correction. It is something that God
expects and commands us to do. But we have to understand its proper
place and benefit in the church; for indeed it is in the scriptures for us to
understand and properly apply.
CORRECTION
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep The Mouse Out of the House!:
This is an issue, which takes more maturity to understand,
but I realize that it is God's command and it does come out of love, therefore
I understand that without being nit-picky or judgmental, sometimes, serious
sin requires that out of love, we may need to give and receive correction
within the church. I know this is to only come out of the fear of
God and the love of God.
Signed ___________________________________
UNITY
This is a subject that is more near and dear to
the hear of Jesus than it is probably to any of us.
The people who follow Jesus are His body and He knows it is in the unity and
fellowship where He and we have such a great blessing. We really need to
open ourselves up to a new perspective to see things from God's intention for
us to be one in unity in the church!!!
It is the heart's cry of the Lord Jesus for the
church to be in unity. We think this is understood until we see how
easily people say and do things that bring division or strife. Or else
they simply ignore and disregard the local church. It is here
where we are to live and work. It
is here the life and ministry of Jesus is to be a witness through the local
Christians by the Holy Spirit into the community and world around us!
UNITY
Hear Jesus' prayer to the Father in John 17:20-26
(p1049) then answer:
What was Jesus' request in verse
21? _________________________________________
To what is the closeness of our unity
to be compared? ___________________________
________________________________________________________________________
In our unity whose love is to be
in us? ________________________________________
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Keep The Mouse Out of the House!:
I will keep it as a priority to always watch to maintain a
spirit of unity, cooperation and joy in our fellowship and church!
Signed ___________________________________
GOD'S PURPOSE FOR AUTHORITY
We have seen
God's concern about unity in the church. God is a good god
who desires peace and good order. One of
the chief ways in which He works to accomplish this
is through authority. As
an example: If children get into a dispute, rather than
fighting it out, they have parents whom God has set
over them to harmonize and care for the family.
By establishing authority, God establishes peace and
good order.
Those young in the spirit-filled life often feel
that we should not have any leadership or authority in the church. These
feel that the church should just get together and let
whatever happens happen. We are excited about the "New
Wine", but Jesus also says there must me a "New Wineskin" of a structure to
hold the New Wine so it will not be lost.
The problem
with this approach is that we are not in a vacuum. Whenever
there is a lack of proper Biblical
authority in the church, that void is quickly filled by other authority.
There is no such thing as a group life
without authority of some kind.
Many church
hurts come about over disputes for authority and its decisions
concerning the direction of the church. As we saw in the previous
section, in order to move together, we must
be in unity and thus be unified in our understanding of authority.
"Authority" to
many in our society is a dirty word. But, we must come to
appreciate just how important of
a factor this is in God's mind before we will appreciate that fact and
work with God's authority within the church.
GOD'S PURPOSE FOR AUTHORITY
WORKING WITH GOD'S LEADERSHIP
How are churches to operate? Who leads, who
makes decisions? My seminary professor said the Bible doesn't say
anything about this so each church operates in different ways however they
want. I soon found out that is totally wrong. God has much to say
about it. And here too, if we see how God wants the church to operate we
will be effective and blessed!
Now that we have seen that God has a "thing" about
authority- He has, in fact, established it in every area of creation, even in
the invisible and visible realms, we must come to understand that God
takes it very seriously in the church as well.
It is an amazing thing that God works through
people. He doesn't just throw out an idea
into the air and let people pick up on it. The way He has
always worked is to anoint a person for a task and let the ministry develop
around that authority. Yes, God works through people. We see
it that way, for instance, in Moses, in the Judges, in Jesus and the Apostles.
The same is true today. God places His people in the Body for ministry.
To not recognize that and even fight against it is to fight against God's
plan.
So, Christ is in and working through His people.
True Biblical authority is not opposed to the Spirit-led principle; it is a
part of it. The scriptures show us clearly that Jesus is the Head of the
church. But just how is this authority to be recognized and followed in the
church?
Many of the authority structures we see in today's
churches spring from political/social movements rather than a
scriptural understanding of church polity (church government). We
must come into this subject therefore with a truly open mind, hungry to
see God's truth, yet of course very cautiously since the very life,
direction, and outcome of the church will be decided by the question of
authority in the church.
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
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AUTHORITY IN THE CHURCH
There is always a struggle for authority. In the
following Biblical examples you will see where there has been a struggle for
authority: Read Numbers 16:1-35. (p146) What is the
argument some of the people are coming to Moses with in verse three?
____________________ ________________________________________________
Did God take sides. ____ What was
God's judgment of the situation?
__________________________________________________
HOW GOD HAS SET UP THE CHURCH
As we have
just seen, honoring and understanding how authority is to work in Jesus'
church is very important to The Lord. Therefore, we need to identify and
understand Biblical Leadership.
Many churches have various titles for ministry positions in churches.
Some are from the Bible; some not. Some churches use Bible terms but
attach different meanings to them. Our interest, in our church, in order
to come to a correct and full understanding about this is to use the correct
terms with correct functions; thus, we can start understanding the correct
ways of leadership.
Here are
some basic statements; (you do not need to look up these verses, but may
if you want:)
All leadership and leaders in the church are to come
from Christ:
Matthew 2:6 (p934) Eph. 4:8,11,12
(p1135) John 17:1-2 (p1048) Colossians 1:13-18 (p1143)
We are to honor and submit to the leadership in the
church:
Hebrews 13:17 (p1171)
John 13:20 (p1045) I Tim. 5:17 (p1153) I
Thess. 5:12-13 (p1148)
HOW GOD HAS SET UP THE CHURCH
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
UNDERSTANDING ELDERS
When I was Pastoring in Traditional Churches I
remember thinking that the Bible says Jesus is the head of the church, but I
saw no real evidence of that. As I sought out this issue of how
God wants His church to be I also started noticing that if people came forward
with a sense of leading by the Holy Spirit it would be a successful sense of
ministry and connection.
But what I usually saw was every year there would be
a type of "fruit basket upset" and everyone would take turns doing different
positions in the church. I was often frustrated with the Boards and
committees because there was not a sense of personal interest and calling to
the position, but more an attitude: "We have this monthly hourly meeting
so lets get this done". I often thought,
these in leadership do not have a pastoral calling or heart for this.
Then I realized God's intended way. If each
person comes into the ministry because they feel called to and placed there by
the Holy Spirit, you start to see God formulating something in the church.
In Proverbs 18:16 it teaches that the gift makes the way for the person.
Indeed the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit distributes the gifts and
ministries in the Body as He desires. Therefore as people are placed
according to their calling, gifting and proven ministry we start to experience
an exciting sense of direction in the Church that is being developed not by
human agency and business but one that is truly coming from the Head of the
Body, Jesus Christ, through the Holy Spirit. We are seeing this develop
in our church and it is wonderful. I know, I have lived it and pastured
in it both ways.
In the New Testament church we see then, not a
democratic principle in operation, but a spiritually led one. The
leadership of the church comes by the recognition of the anointing upon those
individuals who qualify for leadership. The principle authority for the
local church is in the Elders, who serve together to shepherd the church.
These are to be mature and qualified men who provide a consistency and
stability in leadership, rather than the church having rotations of different
people and programs elected by various business meetings.
So, in most American Churches the reality is, that
the Pastor therefore is not a true Head Elder that
is shepherding the flock, rather He has become just a hired man (Note:
John 10:11-14). He is dictated to not by the agency of the Holy Spirit in the
bond of unity of spirit by the anointed leadership, but by the ever changing
whims and turnover of boards and meetings conducted more like business
meetings. Pastors are given the title but not true authority.
Becoming frustrated that the church can not move forward they keep moving on
to other churches. That's why the average stay of Pastors in American
churches is only two years.
God's way, once seen is very clearly laid out and
taught in the Bible. Note the following:
UNDERSTANDING ELDERS
Who is supposed to shepherd the church according to the
scriptures in I Peter 5:1-3 (p1179)?
____________________________________________________________________
What is their attitude supposed to be?
_____________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________.
The New Testament refers to three groups within the
church. What are they as referred to in Phil. 1:1 (p1138)? 1)
__________________ 2) ___________________
3) _________________
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
UNDERSTANDING HEADSHIP
We have seen authority is important to the operation
of the church. Now we take a closer look at one aspect of authority that
God uses to keep things operating smoothly.
Plurality (more than one) in leadership gives
strength by the nature of unity of numbers. There is more strength, more
counsel in numbers. Yet it also can be more chaotic, if it were not for
"Headship". For instance, none of us would want to be in a car
that’s being driven by a committee. And even in our country, though
democratic, we have a President to allow for one voice to speak for the nation
and be able to take quick action as commander in chief of the armed forces, if
needed.
So we need to understand the Biblical concept of
headship, which functions in equality and unity yet still
leads and speaks for a body. From family, to government, to God
Himself, even in the midst of unity of plurality there is headship!
UNDERSTANDING HEADSHIP
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
COMPLAINING OR CONTRIBUTING
We have just studied how God has established
authority in the church, it is vitally important
next to understand how to work together in the church to continually improve
the church. We must all understand and know there is continuously
room for improvement in the church. We must be progressive in
becoming all God wants us to be.
There are two ways to approach needed changes in the
church. One is to contribute ideas, resources and give positive, patient
effort to help things become better. The other is to criticize from
underneath, putting in negative thoughts and attitudes; this of course does
not help but destroys; yet it constantly happens in churches.
The Bible shows these two approaches are common
among men, even in the people God is trying to work with. Looking
into some of these scriptures shows us the seriousness of the effects we can
have on the church.
Some individuals become "Heroes" of rebellion,
thinking they are great to stand against others, especially anyone in
authority. In the work place, after the supervisor comes in to instruct
the workers, this person will say, "Ah, you don't need to listen to them and
do all that!" Thus, causing chaos and frustration for the company,
which is trying to establish smooth and productive
operations. In the church, too, this person operates the
same way, with the same effects. People do not realize how much
discouragement and grief they have brought to good church workers, who are
trying hard, by their little complaints and negative words given here and
there.
We must fear God and be wise in how we build the
church together. What God expects, if you see a shortcoming, is to
help contribute to its solution. Offer to help. Make positive,
helpful suggestions. Never criticize what you yourself cannot offer to
help with. If every member would do this, it will bring quick and
solid joyful growth and development
to the church.
As we have already been seeing, God wants us to
respect our leadership in the church, love one another and help one another.
If everyone will simply do this, nothing will be
impossible for us!!!
COMPLAINING OR CONTRIBUTING
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
GIVING
Having just dealt with some negatives in the last
lesson we now get to focus more on some positives. Yes, we are talking
about how to contribute to the church; indeed it is a wonderful thing to be
able to do. It is and can be our joy to see the work
of the Lord prosper by our part in it.
Some people look at the giving of time, money and
effort to the church as a burden, but not so for the Christian. It is a
mystery as to why, if God owns everything, does He ask us to contribute.
Maybe that obvious question presents an obvious answer. He doesn't need
it, He wants us to be able to share in what He is
doing in His kingdom!
When we talk about contributing to the work of the
Lord, therefore, an overwhelming revelation comes about. The truth
of the matter is that God has "blessed us
with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.... He
predestined us to adoption, as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according
to the kind intention of His will.... In Him we
have redemption, …which He lavished upon us” Eph.
1:3-8 (p1133). We are heirs of the kingdom of God. Even if
we were to suffer and lose everything, the weight of Glory that is to be ours
for all eternity is beyond compare (II Cor 4:17)(p1107).
God doesn’t need us. He wants us.
And, He wants us as worthy children to share in the kingdom so much so that He
has delegated the whole of the Gospel to be made known through us. He
has given us the commission, (Matt. 28:18-20)(p967).
It is our responsibility. We will rule with Christ (Rev. 20:6)(p1206);
(II Tim. 2:12)(p1156). We will even judge Angels (I Cor. 6:3)(p1108).
But, that means it only happens as we work with God
to make it happen. Souls will be saved or lost by what we do or don't
do. The fact of the matter is that we need to see ourselves in the
church as God sees us - as a Team. We can do so much more together than
we can alone. What we invest will determine the results. Do we
want to have a spiritual home that is a Fellowship of love, joy, excitement,
with the Gospel effectively being taught and lived out. Do we want
to see the reality of the Gospel being lived out and spread around the world?
We must pool our resources of time, energy and money to see it all happen.
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
GRACE, GRACE, GRACE
Because we have been
given such tremendous Grace from God we are to be a people of grace. We
are to give grace to others and to ourselves. We are to avoid legalisms
and all the bondages that people try to attach with being religious.
As we have
seen Satan is called the accuser of the
brethren and this is what he tries to get Christians to do to one another.
He is always trying to bring condemnation. If we fail in some way then
he knows we can be condemned. But God has given to us something that
destroys all Satan's efforts. It is something that he has no
defense against. It is Grace!
Grace defuses when
Satan accuses!
The ball
player who throws down his bat because he gets a
strike, will never learn how to hit a home run. Likewise, if his team
mates encourage him rather than ridicule him they will gain a more valuable
player.
Sometime people get short
with people and make no allowances for the person to be able to change.
The reality is we all are growing and changing and none of us is perfect yet.
Especially when new, "baby" Christians come into the church out of the world
there may be a lot of habits and styles etc. that are not conformed to the
ways of Christ. To be judgmental and condemning one another is to
destroy one another. Grace could also be spelled: "Time"
"Patience" "Love" "Acceptance" "Like Jesus".
GRACE, GRACE, GRACE
NOTE:
Included in this web page is the first page of each
lesson.
Each lesson in the study comes with two parts.
We are only giving the first part here on the web.
The second part contains fill in the blank studies
with references to scriptures.
The Full Study is available in Book Form.
We retain all rights and you may not reproduce and
give it to others, but you may print one copy and use it for yourself.
If you wish the full study and right to use it contact Pastor Shea at:
pastor@openbiblefellowship.org
Costs:
$10.00 each plus shipping.
Membership in
Open Bible Fellowship
Through this study you
have seen how important it is to be involved in the church; and how important
it is to correctly understand and live in the ways of the Lord! As a "Team" of
Christians it is so necessary to know what it means to be a part of the team;
thus this study has been developed.
The membership policy of
Open Bible Fellowship helps give a greater stability and strength to our life
together in the church; because everyone is required to go through this study
as well as the one other study, "The Foundational Christian Teachings".
By this, we help prevent "church hurts" and ineffective ministry, while at the
same time fostering a deep and real love and support for one another.
You may become a member
simply by signing this note, (or any note requesting membership) and
presenting it to the church. Just tear out this sheet and present it.
Membership requires: completing the two mentioned studies, having been
baptized as a believer and approval by our Elders. If you have any questions
please talk to the Pastor or one of the Elders. It isn't difficult;
its easy. We love you. Our goal is to be a blessing
to your soul!
Yes, I would like to
become a member of Open Bible Fellowship.
My Name Is:
_______________________________________________________
My Address Is:
_____________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________
My Phone # Is:
_____________________________________________________
