Are Independent Churches Operating in Rebellion?

[Carpenter]

Originally Posted by ManOfWord

No, we have card readers at the pews! It's easier for the people.

I know this is WAAAAY off the beaten path, but you know those bags with the wooden handles they pass around to take offering and people smile and then hand them off to the person next to them?

Ok, I sit toward the back, and by the time the bag reaches me, at least 200 people have touched and squeezed those nasty wooden handles. I can't imagine the microscopic nastiness those handles have on them. I don't even touch em, I handle the thing by the rim....people scratching their feet and butt, and nose and ears...then they touch that thing???

oooh, no wonder Howard Hughes went looney toons!

[iceniez]

I got in on this a little late .But no Independant apostolic assemblies are only considered rebellious to those in organizations. However if they are Baptizing in Jesus name and Obeying the gospel no matter what they call themselves they are not rebellious to Jesus and are part of his CHURCH. And therefore HIS.

[MamaHen]

Originally Posted by Carpenter

I know this is WAAAAY off the beaten path, but you know those bags with the wooden handles they pass around to take offering and people smile and then hand them off to the person next to them?

Ok, I sit toward the back, and by the time the bag reaches me, at least 200 people have touched and squeezed those nasty wooden handles. I can't imagine the microscopic nastiness those handles have on them. I don't even touch em, I handle the thing by the rim....people scratching their feet and butt, and nose and ears...then they touch that thing???

oooh, no wonder Howard Hughes went looney toons!

Not to mention the forced handshakes......I keep hand sanitizer in my purse, and use it for just such occasions LOL

[theoldpaths]

Originally Posted by Charnock

Should every pastor and church be connected to a denomination?

Can there be true oversight without denominational affiliation?

Are independent churches operating in rebellion?

If someone was in an organization such as the UPC and got publicly rebuked for committing adultery and lost his license and left on bad terms with his pastor and started an independent church, then my vote is - yes he is in rebellion.

[Sept5SavedTeen]

I was at a UPC assembly for the first few years of my walk with GOD, and now I have been going to an indep assembly for about a year, and the grass is greener!
I believe it is in rebellion to GOD and to the NT pattern of the Church to be in an organization. I am one of those people who truly believe that the structure of something will effect the working of something. I do believe that an assembly wrongly structured will not reach it's full potential. I await the day when the structure is made right and we have a glorious Church!

-Bro. Alex

[Rhoni]

Originally Posted by Charnock

Should every pastor and church be connected to a denomination?

Can there be true oversight without denominational affiliation?

Are independent churches operating in rebellion?

In answer to your question: Many independent churches are operating in rebellion. They refuse accountability to an organization, and many times to a congregation. My limited knowledge of some of these; they are indepnedent because they don't want anyone telling them what to do, or they have already transgressed and cannot join any organization because of past sin or misconduct.

Not ALL independent churches are rebellious. Some truly believe they are following the mandates of God without the limitations of man.

JMHO/
Rhoni

[Truthseeker]

Originally Posted by Charnock

Should every pastor and church be connected to a denomination?

Can there be true oversight without denominational affiliation?

Are independent churches operating in rebellion?

1) No a pastor doesn't need a den.

2) Yss, ther can be oversight if the ministry is biblical setup.


3) No.

[Truthseeker]

Originally Posted by Charnock

When speaking of the church, we refer to it in either the local or universal sense. From looking at the biblical record, we find that local churches were organized to be independent from each other (1 Peter 5:1-3), answering only to Jesus, the Head of the church (Ephesians 1:22-23). In passages where the universal church is under discussion (Ephesians 5:23-27), scripture is silent concerning any formal organization. The Lord’s church has been organized without earthly headquarters and bureaucracies. Jesus is the head of the church and elders in local congregations answer directly to Him.

http://www.bible.ca/ef/topical-local...sing-error.htm

BINGO! We got a winnner folks!

[Truthseeker]

Originally Posted by jaamez

Hey, Bro, would you please elaborate on this for me? I'm not rebuking or refuting, I'm sincerely curious how you support that statement. I've heard that it's harder to get tax-exempt status without an affiliation and even harder to get a bank loan should we ever decide we should purchase a building.
.

that's another issue, should the church register with the government?

[Brad Murphy]

How can anyone operate in rebellion when no one, absolutely no one, including the most distinguished and respected preachers that you can think of can prove that God gave them authority to speak for Him and have authority over other people?

They cite vague references in the Bible and claim that gives them personally the authority to be over others... using that logic, I could read a U.S. History book and claim to be a police officer.

You can only be in rebellion to authority if the people you are in "rebellion" to actually have any authority.

A police officer has authority because the "powers that be" actually certified him to act on their behalf.

A preacher (or an organization) only has authority because people decide to follow him and he has no certificate from God to prove that he has authority from God himself... he may (or may not) have a following, but a following does not prove that he actually was given authority by God... any more than a school bully with a few lackeys has any authority at the school just because he has a following.