I have been studying with a close friend for the past year.  We started by reading through the gospels, and then we studied Acts and looked at each epistle.  I feel like we have had a very profitable study.  At the end of the day, he asked me, "Where does the church that we read about exist?" He went on to explain that he did not get the impression that the New Testament church as it is claimed to be today is what we read about.  He said, "It's as if the church you attend does things or doesn't do things, and then looks to the Bible to justify them.  Instead, if we looked at the New Testament Christians, and tried to derive their organization, where would we get to what we see today?"  He comes from a very ritualistic background and has a hard time seeing how we haven't adopted the traditions of worship from them.  Where should I point him, and does he have legitimate concerns with where we are as the restored church?
Sincerely,
Study Stuck

Dear Study Stuck,

There are a lot of vague details with your question.  For starters, we don’t know what church he has his traditions from, and we don’t know what the practices of your church are.  If you want more specific help, please e-mail us again and include an e-mail address we can respond to.

We can say this though.  The easiest way to see what the New Testament church looks like is to add up the practices that you see in the New Testament.

1. Their name should be Biblical. Church of Christ (Rom 16:16), the church (Acts 14:27), church of God (1 Cor 1:2), the Way (Acts 24:14) – all of these are Biblical names given to a local congregation. Having the right name on the front of the building doesn’t mean they are the right church, but if they can’t even get their name from the Bible, they probably aren’t worth wasting your time on.

2. Their doctrine should be a copy of the New Testament (Acts 2:42). Any creeds, ‘statements of faith’, articles of belief, manuals, or handbooks are from man and not from God. You want a congregation that uses the Bible to decide their practices.

3. They are autonomous. Every congregation of the New Testament had independence. Only local elders were over them (1 Pet 5:1-2, Acts 14:23). They were bound to follow Christ as their only head (Eph 5:23). No boards or committees, no headquarters in some other state, no popes or potentates – what you are looking for is a local body of believers which is accountable to Christ and His Word.

4. The church’s work should be simple. The church of the first century wasn’t involved in every community and political arena. Their work was focused on three things – caring for needy christians (Acts 4:34), preaching to the lost, and teaching the saved (Acts 15:35). Find a congregation who is committed to being about Christ’s work.

5. They should be open to examination. Any congregation that is serving Christ should be willing to explain why they do what they do. They should be willing to be examined because they are constantly examining themselves (2 Cor 13:5). There is nothing wrong with asking a congregation where their practices can be found in the New Testament. Ask questions and expect Bible answers for them.

These five things are by no means all of the characteristics of Christ’s church, but they are a conversation starter.   SB