Is That Really True?

by Gardner Hall

"The New Testament actually has very little to say about congregational worship or organization!"

This type of statement is becoming popular in a number a circles and a brief review of it is in order.

1. It Is An Exaggeration. It would be true to say that more of the New Testament is dedicated to expressions of God's love and the need personal holiness and responsibility than to congregational activity. However, to say that the New Testament has "very little" to say about it is an exaggeration. A number of chapters deal directly with congregational worship and organization: 1 Corinthians 11-14; 1 Timothy (most of the book), good portions of 2 Timothy and Titus and James 2:1- 12 are a few sections that come to mind. There are many more indirect references to collective worship and church organization.

2. The Quantity of References Doesn't Necessarily Reflect The Importance of The Matter At Hand. There are very few direct references to the Lord's Supper in the New Testament. Yet, who would deny that it is a key element of the Christian's life and his fellowship with others? To say that the Lord's Supper is of little importance because of the paucity of direct references to it would be a major blunder.

3. What Is The Purpose Of This Type Of Statement? Is it repeated to imply that how we organize ourselves in local bodies and how we worship collectively is of little importance? If so, what is wrong with organizing ourselves with presiding bishops, regional bishops, archbishops or even a pope? What would be wrong with holy water, Latin mass, the rosary, etc? If how we worship collectively is of little importance, what about fog machines, laser shows, screaming rock bands and other elements of entertainment-oriented worship? Are we willing to accept all the consequences of implying that church organization and congregational worship are of relatively little importance? Sometimes we just throw out statements without considering the results of taking them to their logical conclusions.

I think I understand some of the concerns of many who make such declarations. Yes, there are some who emphasize external acts of worship and yet seem to show little concern for the inner man. A few are grouchy or just plain mean.

Yes, Pharisaism is a legitimate danger. Yet in our concern for one error, let's not commit another by implying that it doesn't matter so much how we worship collectively or organize ourselves. That's the type of thinking that led to Romanism and modernism. Let's not go down that road again.

 

Other Articles 
Predisposition
Modernism's Assault on Prophecy
Scarcely A Ripple
Abiding in the Doctrine
The New Testament Christian in a Postmodern World