{"id":30329,"date":"2017-01-22T17:08:00","date_gmt":"2017-01-22T23:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/?p=30329"},"modified":"2024-12-06T19:38:01","modified_gmt":"2024-12-07T01:38:01","slug":"corruption-in-church-organization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/corruption-in-church-organization\/","title":{"rendered":"Corruption in Church Organization"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\t\t<meta itemprop=\"url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/0020\/01\/CorruptionInChurchOrganization.mp3\" \/><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-30329-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/0020\/01\/CorruptionInChurchOrganization.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/0020\/01\/CorruptionInChurchOrganization.mp3\">https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/0020\/01\/CorruptionInChurchOrganization.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n\t<p>by Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/0020\/01\/CorruptionInChurchOrganization.mp3\" download target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Audio\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\t<p>Text: Acts 20:17-35<\/p>\n<p>&#160;<\/p>\n<p>I.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Equality of members (first century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The early church was marked by the equality of its members &#8211; Galatians 3:28;\nColossians 3:11\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;As Jesus prayed, the desire was for all Christians to be one &#8211; John 17:20-21<\/p>\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;C.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;There were different duties, but the people were seen as equals<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;D.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;There was no separate priesthood, as under the Old Law because all Christians are\npriests &#8211; I Peter 2:5, 9\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Notice that the people (<i>laos <\/i>&#8211; laity) make up the priesthood<\/p>\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;But one of the pulls was to imitate what the Jews once had<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Not only the Jews, but the idolatrous religions also had priests separate\nfrom the common people\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;E.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Paul warned of departures from the faith starting in the eldership &#8211; Acts 20:29-31<\/p>\n<p>II.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A head in an eldership was called the bishop (second to third century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;During the second century, however, the single bishop, distinguished from the\npresbyters, gradually achieves precedence (cf. Ignatius of Antioch). While\nproviding stronger leadership, this system tends to produce authoritarian bishops\nin direct antithesis to the recommendations to elders in 1 Pet. 5:2-3.&#8221; [Hermann\nW. Beyer, <i>Theological Dictionary of the New Testament<\/i>, p. 248].\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;We find Ignatius, bishop of Antioch of Syria, writing early in the second\ncentury concerning the importance of &#8220;unity with the bishop, the\npresbyters, and the deacons.&#8221; [&#8220;Letter to the Philadelphians&#8221;, T\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;a.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;But notice that the bishop is separated from the rest of the elders.<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Worse, the bishop is considered superior to the elders: &#8220;Your bishop\npresides in the place of God,, and your presbyters in the place of the\napostles, along with your deacons.&#8221; [Magnesians 46:1].\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;This is not to say that Ignatius came up with the ideas. His writings\nprovide proof that it existed.\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Notice that synonymous terms are split. Bishop (overseer) and elder refer to the\nsame duty &#8211; Titus 1:5, 7\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;Yet the bishop is always in the singular and the presbyters are always\nplural (even in Tit. 1:5ff). Already, then, there may be a tendency for a\nleading presbyter to take over administrative functions within the\npresbyterial college &#8211; the probable starting point for the later development\nof the monarchial bishop&#8221; [G&uuml;nther Bornkamm]\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The argument is false. <\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;a.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Both in Acts 20:28 and Philippians 1:1 overseer appears in the\nplural. \n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;b.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Elder is in the singular in I Timothy 5:19<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;C.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;The elevation of monarchial bishops within local churches is hardly surprising in\nlight of human nature. As the Israelites clamored for a human king, so do many\nChristians. What is interesting is how early this worldly phenomenon was\nmanifested in the church. Within only years of the death of its last apostle, the\nchurch saw the initial emergence of an ecclesiological system which was to have\ndevastating consequences. The creation of a new caste of Christians was not far\nbehind&#8221; [Mark M. Mattison, The Rise of the Clergy].\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;D.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;By the third century, we find &#8220;The bishop, he is the minister of the word, the\nkeeper of knowledge, the mediator between God and you in the several parts of\nyour divine worship. He is the teacher of piety; and, next after God, he is your\nfather, who has begotten you again to the adoption of sons by water and the Spirit.\nHe is your ruler and governor; he is your king and potentate; he is, next after God,\nyour earthly god, who has a right to be honoured by you&#8230;.let the bishop preside\nover you as one honoured with the authority of God, which he is to exercise over\nthe clergy, and by which he is to govern all the people&#8221; [<i>Constitutions of the Holy\nApostles<\/i>, 2.26].\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Notice direct conflict with Christ&#8217;s teachings &#8211; Matthew 23:8-10<\/p>\n<p>III.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Regional bishops (second to third century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;During the persecution during the second and third century, bishops coordinated\nwith each other in making decisions. This resulted in further separation of the\nleadership from the common people. \n<p>IV.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Separation of clergy from laity (third century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;We have to wait until the beginning of the third century before encountering the\nterm kleros used to describe a limited group within the Christian community. It\nwas only then that certain Christian ministers became clergy. It was also at that\ntime that the term &#8220;layman&#8221; came to be employed again.&#8221; [Alexandre Faivre,<i> The\nEmergence of the Laity in the Early Church<\/i>, p. 5-6].\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Cyprian (third century) argued that clergy should not be made executors in wills\nbecause &#8220;every one honoured by the divine priesthood, and ordained in the clerical\nservice, ought to serve only the altar and sacrifices, and to have leisure for prayers\nand supplications.&#8221;  Citing how the Levites were the priests under the Old Law,\nCyprian applied it to the church, &#8220;Which plan and rule is now maintained in\nrespect of the clergy, that they who are promoted by clerical ordination in the\nChurch of the Lord may be called off in no respect from the divine administration,\nnor be tied down by worldly anxieties and matters; but in the honour of the\nbrethren who contribute, receiving as it were tenths of the fruits, they may not\nwithdraw from the altars and sacrifices, but may serve day and night in heavenly\nand spiritual things&#8221; [Cyprian, <i>Epistle LXV<\/i>].\n<p>V.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Monks to priests (third to fourth century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;As the church became more hierarchical and bureaucratic &#8211; in a word, more\nworldly &#8211; many Christians responded by embracing monasticism. Created in the\nfourth century as a &#8220;lay&#8221; movement, it soon precipitated the very thing Tertullian\nhad feared &#8211; a special class of Christians within the church from whom &#8220;the\nclergy&#8221; could recruit its members. Monk-priests began to fill the ranks of &#8220;the\nclergy,&#8221; touting their asceticism and questioning family values. As &#8220;the clergy&#8221;\ncontinued to drift apart from &#8220;the laity,&#8221; the church&#8217;s hierarchy continued to\nevolve. The church catholic was rapidly becoming the Roman Catholic Church&#8221;\n[Mark M. Mattison, &#8220;The Rise of the Clergy&#8221;,\n<a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20190222010718\/http:\/\/www.auburn.edu\/~allenkc\/openhse\/clergy.html\">http:\/\/www.auburn.edu\/~allenkc\/openhse\/clergy.html<\/a>]\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;This is different from the early church where preachers in a church trained people\n&#8211; II Timothy 2:2\n<p>VI.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Bishops from major cities called archbishops (fourth century)<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;As Christianity became accepted in the Roman world , it received legal benefits,\nsuch as tax exemption, making being a church official rewarding\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The result was that people were attracted to larger churches with more wealth.\nThe large churches in regions became the prestigious ones.\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;C.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#8220;It was but a short step to the recognition that the monarchial bishops of some\nchurches were more important than others. The exaltation of the monarchial\nbishop by the middle of the second century soon led to the recognition of the\nspecial honor due to the monarchial bishop of the church in Rome&#8221; [Earle E.\nCairns, <i>Christianity Through the Centuries<\/i>, p. 124].\n<p>VII.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;This early departure strongly influences the various denominations<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;During the reformation, groups pulled out of the Roman Catholic church, but they\ndidn&#8217;t make a clean break from all the ideas present in Catholicism. A distinction\nbetween leadership and the common people remained.\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The organization is altered slightly. Most denominations have a tendency to\nmodel their organization on the popular government at the time of their formation.\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;1.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The Roman Catholic organization is similar to Imperial Rome<\/p>\n<p>&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;2.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Anglicans use a parliamentary system<\/p>\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;3.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;More modern denominations use a representative democracy style, such as\nthe Southern Baptist or the Christian Church\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;4.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Some model businesses with a board of directors, such as the Jehovah&#8217;s\nWitnesses or the Mormons\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;C.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;But what remains is that the clergy is separated from the common people and that \ncontrol exists beyond the local congregation and is in the hands of a few people.\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;D.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Instead of monasteries, we see seminaries from which the denominations educate\nand draw people for their clergy.\n&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;E.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;We need to follow the pattern laid out by God and not the traditions of men &#8211;\nMatthew 15:7-9\n\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/origins-of-denominations\/\" target=\"_self\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\tOrigins of Denominations\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Download Audio Text: Acts 20:17-35 &#160; I.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;Equality of members (first century) &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;A.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;The early church was marked by the equality of its members &#8211; Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:11 &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;B.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;As Jesus prayed, the desire was for all Christians to be one &#8211; John 17:20-21 &#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;C.&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;&#160;There were different duties, but the people were seen&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[726,300,123,667,277,1599],"class_list":["post-30329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-church-history","tag-denominations","tag-elders","tag-organization-of-the-church","tag-priests","tag-roman-catholic-church"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":69971,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-purpose-of-the-local-church-financial-support-for-members\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":0},"title":"The Purpose of the Local Church &#8211; Financial Support for Members","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 29, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Download Audio by David Bunting Understanding Christ's Church","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Audio&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":16421,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-organization-of-the-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":1},"title":"The Organization of the Church (Kimbrough)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 3, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Earl Kimbrough via Searching the Scriptures, August 1978, Volume 19, Number 8 The Lord designed the church according to his own will and circumscribed it with certain distinguishing marks that are clearly set forth in the Scriptures. No one of these essential features of the church is more important\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/12\/organize-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":25801,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-autonomy-of-the-local-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":2},"title":"The Autonomy of the Local Church (Sharp)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 8, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"by Keith Sharp Introduction Several years ago I spoke by phone to a preacher who works with a large congregation in South Texas. As we conversed he asked if I was \"anti-cooperation.\" I told him I knew what he was talking about, but that I advocated scriptural cooperation between churches\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Article&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/sharp1-300x150.gif?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":69805,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/understanding-christs-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":3},"title":"Understanding Christ&#8217;s Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 14, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by David Bunting September 26-29, 2026 Thursday (September 26) to Saturday (September 28) at 7 pm Sunday (September 29)\u00a0 at 9:30 am, 10:30 am, and 5:00 pm The Biblical Meaning of Church A Biblical View of the Local and Universal Church The Purpose of the Universal Church The Purpose of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Audio&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":29235,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-organization-of-the-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":4},"title":"The Organization of the Church","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 8, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Text: Hebrews 8:1-5 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We give God glory when we teach His doctrine and execute it accordingly - I Peter 4:11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Thus we are to follow the pattern set for us - Philippians 3:17 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Warnings abound not to change the message - Galatians 1:6-10 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0C.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Any change would give glory to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Audio&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":61801,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-autonomy-of-the-local-church-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":30329,"position":5},"title":"The Autonomy of the Local Church (Hamilton)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 9, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0One area that sharply distinguishes the Lord\u2019s church from the various denominations is its organization \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The church is the organization through which God\u2019s wisdom is made known - Eph 3:9-11 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a01.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It is a product of that wisdom and is organized by God. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The head of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sermon&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Sermon","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/sermon\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30329"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30329\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}