By the Elders, Westside Bible Fellowship
The New Testament clearly shows that churches are to have a kind of formal belonging and that all Christians are to commit themselves to local churches in this way. We Elders desire to see Westside be a people that is warm, welcoming, and filled by the Spirit of Christ. We simply want to model our congregation after the New Testament churches established by the Apostles.
We have sensed the Lord leading us Elders to call Westside together to model that unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3) and commit ourselves to one another in a meaningful way. This is crucial, as we set forth below, in seeking to follow the New Testament. As we look toward the future of the Church here in the United States, we believe it will become increasingly important for us to function in this way.
THE CHURCH IS PEOPLE COMMITTED TO ONE ANOTHER
Here are some of the relevant reasons in the New Testament that we have considered as we seek to let the Scriptures guide our understanding of who Jesus has called us to be:
“The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you,’ nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’ On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” 1 Corinthians 12:21-27
Key Principle- There is a unity and organic relationship implicit in the body metaphor that can only be explained by an identifiable congregation.
Key Principle- The whole point of the metaphor is that each part is needed for the benefit of the whole body and clearly communicates how God designed us to function within our congregation (body).
Key Principle- The biblical word for our role in the local body of Christ is “member” (ESV, NASB, NET, NKJV) or “parts (as in body parts)” (NIV, HCSB, NLT).
Big Idea- Every part of each local congregation is needed for health and accomplishing the mission given to us by Jesus (Matt 28:18-20). An unattached body part does no good for the body or for itself. But a body that has all of its parts functioning properly (Ephesians 4:16) can grow to maturity and more into the image of the fullness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13), which benefits the entire body.
“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” (Hebrews 13:17)
Key Principle- A local congregation has identified leaders who are to shepherd the congregation.
Key Principle- Christians are told to submit to their leaders, which means giving up our autonomy and putting ourselves under the church’s authority.
Key Principle- Leaders will give an account for those entrusted to their care, which means that they have to know who those people are.
Big Idea- Each local congregation has leaders who are identified and the body is called to obey and to whom they are to submit. These leaders are accountable to God for their leadership and for the souls entrusted to them. So this passage assumes an identifiable congregation who is committed to one another. All of this is for the benefit of the congregation.
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” (Matthew 18:15-20)
Key principle: Followers of Jesus are instructed to deal with sin in the congregation when we have sinned against each other.
Key principle: The final step in the process pre-supposes an identified congregation who will plead with the offending brother/sister to be reconciled to God, the offended party, and the congregation.
Key principle: The identified congregation has the responsibility to remove their spiritual affirmation of the unreconciled person.
1 Corinthians 5:1-13 speaks of a discipline case that assumes public knowledge of who’s in the church, and who’s not. Expelling makes sense only in the context of visible belonging.
“I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. ‘Purge the evil person from among you.’” (1 Corinthians 5:9-13)
Key Principle- Churches have an inside and an outside.
Key Principle- Church members are expected to know who does and does not belong to a church.
Key Principle- People inside the church are treated differently than people outside the church.
Key Principle- Christians are under the authority of the church, such that if they persist in unrepentant sin, they are to be excluded from it.
THE CHURCH IS A FAMILY
There are many here in our congregation at Westside who are enthusiastic about being a part of the body but are uncomfortable with the term “member” or “membership.” We’ve sought to find terminology that reflects the sense of belonging, responsibilities, love, and warmth that the New Testament Church clearly had and each local congregation is called to reflect. So, we have chosen the word “family” (1 Timothy 3:15).
A family is a place of belonging. It’s where people grow up to maturity. There are bonds in a family that a stronger than friendship. There are responsibilities and expectations when you’re in a family. But there is also warmth and unity when a family is following God’s design. Strong families demonstrate a healthy love and unity to a world stuck in isolation. Westside seeks to be such a family.
In a healthy family, others outside of that immediate family are welcome at the table. It’s common for grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins to share a table with a family. In a similar way, we want to see Westside function like a godly family. Other believers (grandparents, aunts and uncles, etc.) are always welcome to join us. Our spiritual relatives are often traveling through and we show hospitality to them and welcome them in the name of Jesus. But we know that this is not their home and don’t expect them to give significant input on the direction of our family.
Friends who are not related to our family are frequently at our tables. Similarly, outsiders (i.e. non-believers) are welcome to join us at Westside. Our goal is to show them the love of Christ and the truth of God’s coming judgment on sin. We want them to feel welcome and loved by our family as an expression of God’s love for them.
We are calling on those who call Westside their church home to formally join our family, commit to live out the concept of fellowship as taught in the New Testament, and be part of what God is doing in and through our family. As we move forward together, we believe that what our Lord prayed for us should be our prayer as a church family:
“‘I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me.’” (John 17:20-23)
And as Paul encouraged,
“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel… complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.” (Philippians 1:27, 2:2)
“I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” (1 Corinthians 1:10)
Finally,
“‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.’” (John 13:34-35)