The Best Church Model, Part 2

The Best Church Model

Live from the Mecca of Mormonism (and the Factory here in Salt Lake City, Utah) this is Heart of the MatterTGNN’s original show where Shawn McCraney deconstructed religion and developed fulfilled theology., where Biblical Christianity meets American Evangelicalism Face to Face. Welcome to Show 14: The Best Church Model – Part II, aired on June 4th, 2013.

And I’m your host, Shawn McCraneyFounder of TGNN and developer of the fulfilled perspective—calling people to faith outside of religion.. We praise the True and Living God for allowing us to participate in this, His ministry. We pray His Spirit upon you – and us – tonight.

Hey, if you are in the Salt Lake City area and are seeking to belong to a unique church family, we invite you to visit our website at www.C-A-M-P-U-S.com. We encourage all people to seek out churches that use the biblical model for doing church and not the model set forth by Man. There are a lot of good ones out there. If you’re having trouble finding one, come check us out. Sundays 10 AM for Milk and 2:30 for Meat. Go to www.campus.com for information like directions. Now listen, we told you all that we were going to stream our services – and we’ve decided against this. Why? Because you can get on the site and watch the services through our archives just as easily. If the teachings are archived, streaming becomes almost completely unnecessary when you think about it. And we’ve thought about it. So streaming of CAMPUS is over before it even began.

Messages from Viewers

I think we are in for a good show tonight as we’ve received a number of really good emails since last week’s program. Let me hit on a couple of those emails before we continue with our topic of the Best Model for doing Church.

Hi Shawn, I have just finished your book "Born Again Mormon." I was actually in the process of leaving the Church and had penned the letter to the Bishop expressing why I could not be a member of the Church anymore, and it was not founded on truth, and that it was not substantiated with Bible truth, etc. First, let me explain, I gave my life to the Lord when I was 15. I am English, was actually born and raised in the C of E church. I accepted Christ at a Youth Ministry. I was married at the age of 19 and was having marriage difficulties when I was 22, and pregnant with my third child. I was praying for direction and then met some Mormon missionaries, and yes, you guessed it, joined the Church. I have been a member of the Church for about 30 years, and during that process was eventually divorced and ended up moving to Salt Lake City.

I was married in the Temple to a Strong, stalwart type, in 2000. We separated in 2007, and after much protraction and battle due to his affair, etc., we divorced in 2009. This was devastating to me, but nonetheless, I continued in my activities at Church. However, due to reasons of my ex's behavior, I found myself questioning what I was doing. But, being the ever faithful Latter-day Saint, I pressed on all the harder to make that facet of my life work, even if all else was failing. Well, that has not been successful because I felt out of tune and was looking for Jesus in all of this but was not finding Him.

Over the last few weeks, I have found Him again and feel grateful and very blessed beyond measure to have done so. I have a peace and calmness that is amazing. I walk daily holding the Savior's hand and enjoy daily, all day long communion with Him. Yes, my daughter thinks I am a "Jesus" freak. I have spoken with my Bishop. He knows I say what I mean and get to the point. I asked him what percentage Jesus Christ played in his salvation. After much prompting, he eventually said 100%. I explained that some members would state figures from 1% to 100%, depending. Anyway, to cut a long story short, the Bishop ended up speaking in Sacrament a couple of weeks later, discussing what we had discussed.

By reading your book, I am able to still attend LDS meetings, with hope and love for my fellow saints, and also attend a Calvary Chapel to listen to amazing sermons in the Word. I do not know how long I may do both, but am very grateful for the love and sacrifice of my Lord and know and live my "new" life. I am excited for the challenges ahead. I thank God for what he has done in my life and for bringing me back to Him.

Historical Context of John Calvin and Michael Servetus

you for your book, it has help that transition, just when I needed it.

Thanks Jo

Hello,

While watching the Faith Healing episode I was surprised to hear of the claim that John Calvin declared the belief of the circulatory system to be a heresy. This one is new to me. I am aware that Servetus was credited with the discovery of the circulatory system, and Calvin would later have him executed. However, it was not because of Servetus belief in the circulatory system, but because of his Unitarian Universalism beliefs attacking the Triune nature of our Creator.

Although I believe executing a man over doctrine and convictions is still an egregious sinMissing the mark of faith and love—no punishment, just lost growth or peace., I also believe that the true circumstances surrounding the historical events should be presented truthfully and accurately. I know you all are probably very busy, but Shawn also stated in the same episode that we should question even his assertions. If it is at all possible, I would appreciate it if you could provide the source for his claim so that I can research it myself.

Thanks for all that you do.

Sincerely,

Jared Clark

Clarification on the Heresy Claim

RESPONSE:

Here’s the deal – The connection between Calvin considering belief in the human circulatory system heresy is in the fact that the man who believed in a human circulatory system (the brilliant Michael Servetus) was put to deathSeparation from God—now overcome. Physical death remains, but it no longer separates us from life with God. by Calvin.

The Church (so to speak, was very much against so-called scientific advancements) and so it is believed that in addition to other theological heresies maintained by Servetus Calvin would have certainly looked down on his thoughts on circulation. However, Jared is correct in pointing out that there is no quote (that I can find at least) proving that Calvin considered the idea of a human circulatory system heresy.

So I stand corrected: There is no direct evidence that proves Jean Calvin thought Michael Servetus’s revolutionary insights on the human circulatory system were heresy.

There is concrete proof Calvin had the man tortured and burned at the stake for heresy . . . but we cannot prove Calvin thought his teachings on human circulation were wrong. This is important because truth, no matter what it is is important and if I am guilty of perpetuating non-truths I want to know. We’ll be covering more about the man Jean Calvin (with documented evidence) in the future.

Christian Perspective on Social Issues

A Viewer from Arizona wrote me and she was very upset. This is what she said:

“I was really shocked and upset when you said on your broadcast of May 28 that Christians should not be involved in fighting abortion. I disagree.”

Now, let me stop right here. I am not against Christian people, who want to help stop abortion from getting involved in the cause. My point – AGAIN – is fighting abortion is NOT a Christian duty, it’s NOT a Christian call. In other words, we are not, as the Body of Christ, supposed to gather together in Jesus name and fight world evil. Individuals, who feel led by God to work in these areas is one thing. I am a Christian who believes someone should put a stop to a number of things that go on in this fallen world – but these battles are NOT Christian battles.

This writer goes on with standard rhetorical warfare to support her stance saying things like:

“Jesus loved the children very much while he was here on earth.”

“Unborn children are still children.”

“Aborted babies are denied the chance to even live,” and “a baby still in the womb is precious to God.”

A Different Perspective

Of these things I have no issue. I agree. But again, this is NOT the point. Her email went on and on and on with lots of hyperbolic claims and subjective opinions but as her writing progressed (or digressed, for that matter) the imagery she inflicted on me became more and more gruesome:

“Abortion is murder in the womb,” she wrote. “These unwanted babies aborted parts are being thrown in dumpsters like yesterday’s leftovers, and used for experiments, and you say Christians should not have anything to do with trying to save these innocent lives.”

She ended the email with:

“The picture that came to my mind when I heard you say what you said was of piles of aborted baby parts in clear plastic bags being thrown at and piling up around your feet as you spoke . . . even though they were not your own flesh and blood. Innocent blood.”

Here we have written (living) example illustrating some of the problems with Christianity (as a whole) being associated with stopping or fighting social evil.

First,

The Call to Share Jesus

It is not the biblical call. Not part of the New Testament great commission, NOT part of what Jesus or Peter or Paul did. They shared Jesus.

Second, even if Christian were able to eradicate abortion from off the face of the earth (which they NEVER will) the world will remain in a state of sin and condemned. To think that fighting abortion IN THE NAME OF JESUS and AS A BODY will do anything in cleaning up this world is akin to thinking Christians have it in their power to keep every single pane of glass on earth clean – it isn’t possible. So we humbly share Jesus with the world, and we pray for those who are in it. And we allow the evil to bring people to their knees – so we can offer the only solution to it – Him.

The Mormon Church Model

Elaine wrote in and speaking of last week's message where I said the best model for doing church (again, at the local congregational level) was the Mormon way, she said: We were expecting “the twist” the message took last night . . .” and she added: “I hope you will bring up the "downside" of the perfect model church (mormon) you led us to . . . namely CONTROL of the members.” She was not the first nor the last to make this suggestion.

There is tremendous irony in receiving an email that “strongly suggests” I let everyone know how controlling Mormonism is at the local level. Look – we gotta stop being afraid here. I spent seven YEARS exposing the downside of Mormonism – every week for seven years. And on one show I give the organization Kudos for doing something right and I am swimming in “reminders” that I had better be quick in showing the “downside” to the religion. Come on, folks!

We lose nothing (as believers) when we give ground on something that is true – no matter what it is. If Mormonism does something well we are not selling out Jesus or Christianity or truth if we admit it. This very ( . . . beat . . . “THING” or attitude) is one of the problems existing within modern American Evangelicalism today. What I mean by this is if a believer has an idea or insight or opinion that exists outside of the status quo of American Christiandumb their very salvation is often called into question.

I’m not saying that the writer Elaine did this here. But her suggestion that I “quickly remind everyone of the downside of the way Mormonism operates at the local level” illustrates this kind of controlling undercurrent alive in the Body today. We’re going to get to all of these points in the future, but can I be accepted as a Christian IF I have ideas or opinions that differ on issues like . . .

1. The creation story?
2. King James only?
3. Spiritual gifts and their expression?
4. Abortion?
5. Homosexuality?
6. Dinosaurs?
7. Euthanasia?
8. Stem Cell Research?
9. The death penalty?
10. Political leanings?

Can a Christian be a communist? A non-Calvinist? A Calvinist? An anarchist? Worst of all things, can a Christian be a, a dammid democrat? (beat)

When Christian love is present it all gets pretty silly doesn’t it? Look – sin is sin, Jesus is Jesus, true believers are saved by grace through faith to love and the rest of all schtick must (at best) be set on the back burners for God to figure out. When it’s not, something is lost – really, truly. And when it is, Christianity becomes as much about MAN and his ideas as it is about God and His.

Salvation Through Faith Alone

Finally, we received this email from Doug D and it serves as a perfect lead in for our topic tonight, titled: Who Does Church Best – part deaux. His email said:

Shawn, I really enjoy watching you cause you exposed Mormonism at its best, and you really are up there on every doctrine. But I still want to make sure about what you believe in the doctrine of salvation. I am a Baptist and I believe that salvation is by faith alone plus nothing and minus nothing, faith without any works.

(And he cites Ephesians 2:8-9 before adding)

I also believe that the gift of God is eternal life that means the moment I believe he gives me eternal life and I live forever. And so I can never lose my salvation no matter what I do, even if I wanted to go to hell God will not send me there because his promise still stands.

Please clarify if you believe what I just wrote.

Exploring the Church Model

As I said, this last email serves as a great lead-in for our discussion tonight – Part II of What Church Model is Best. But before we get into it, let’s have a word of prayer. I need it.

Last week, after providing a very rough sketch of how church has morphed and grown over the past several hundred years here in America, we came to some general conclusions: First, we suggested that churches (like Calvary Chapels and many other non-denom churches out there) have done a really good job of emphasizing the first principle of Christianity (which we likened to the vertical post of the cross) and defined it as man's relationship to God through Christ, the event of salvation by grace through faith, and essentially from that point forward a focus on “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus.”

We mentioned that this is the (proper) “horse before the cart” in Christianity, that it is where salvation is received, and that there can be no other thing (in our Christian walk) without it being “firmly established first.” We then said that once this vertical post was firmly planted in the earth (and therefore naturally pointing to the heavens above – symbolic of the relationship saved humans (here) have with God (who is on high there) it was time to attach the horizontal beam of the cross. If the vertical beam is, among other things, faith, reliance, and love of God (the first great commandment) the horizontal represents our faith in God being expressed by love of neighbor (the second great commandment).

Church Models and Metaphors

In this department, we suggested that in many respects, the institutional denominations have done a far better job (in what we called “making disciples”) because they are more inclined to implement the biblical model of “doing Church” than the large non-denoms, “Jesus movement churches” or Mega churches today that often hold “stop and go” church making true discipleship impossible. At this point, we then loosely listed a number of models and pictures the Word of God supplies us in describing local church, and these types (if you will) included concepts like:

• The church is a flock

And then using “a flock” in our example of how to do church “best and biblically," we said the flock would be:

• Limited in size (as no true shepherd has a flock that is so big he cannot protect, feed, and tend to all the sheep in his care).
• We said the flock would have a Shepherd (or pastor) who would know the sheep’s names (Jesus Himself gave us this model), and
• We mentioned that it would be a flock where the pastor would NOT turn the well-being of the sheep over to a hireling or what I would call a paid co-shepherd (and Jesus told us why as well – because He said the hireling will flee when danger rear its head.)

We then talked about the local church being a “Body” and because of this model God presents us we said that to do church “best and biblically,” the body would be composed of:

• Members
• (I might add that all members of a body have a function and are not part of the body to just exist and be fed but to use how they have been made for the betterment of the congregation)

The Importance of Membership

We noted that membership is vital to congregations because in this capacity individuals really know the pain and suffering of those who were in their midst . . . and come to their aid through compassionate service. Stop and go memberless churches cannot possibly fill this biblical command. I would add that the Bible makes Christ the head of this body not

Understanding Water Baptism

Scripture also presents us with the picture of the local church being a family, again consisting of . . . (that’s right) members.

• From this concept (and some of the others) we see the true import of water baptism.

This is how it appears to function, as far as I can tell:

• Men and women are convinced that Jesus is Lord. They receive Him by faith and are saved by grace.
• They come to the church in their community (the early churches were known by their geographical location NOT by denomination – like the church at Ephesus, at Corinth, in Rome, etc) and having been saved by grace through faith, submit to water baptism, symbolic of SO MANY Biblical tenets, including:
• Being buried with Christ (death to the former self) and then raised to new life.
• Being born into a New Family, who gathering around and witnessing your public profession see you then as a member of the flock or family.
• Water baptism also serves to identify the believer (like circumcision did with the COI).
• In all of these ways, the water baptism appears to be more applicable and for the benefit to our relationship with other believers and not as any means of salvation.
• In the early church there was communication between the different city churches regarding the standing of members of the flock, which we now have as epistles from the apostles of Christ.

So in the event someone is baptized in Germany, and comes to Salt Lake City, it would be to the benefit and health of the body to know what kind of believer they were – hence communication from the pastors (who get along one with another) would be requisite. If such communication is impossible, rebaptism occurs, again, not for salvation, but as a sign of commitment and identification for the local church.

Salvation By Grace Through Faith

Now, to the email we received. It asked (first) about my view of salvation – How is it obtained? he asks.

My view is the biblical view, which is salvation is by grace through faith. Period. Nothing else, nothing more. No works or rites. My view is the vertical beam of the cross – God reaching down from heaven to people with feet of clay and by faith saving all of us. IS THIS CLEAR? (beat) Good.

Then the writer adds he also believes:

“I can never lose my salvation no matter what I do, even if I wanted to go to hell God will not send me there because his promise still stands. Please clarify if you believe what I just wrote. I know it seems very basic but I want to make sure.”

Assurance of Salvation

Okay. Salvation is by grace through faith. Period. Keeping, maintaining, continuing in Him, abiding in the vine is by grace through faith period. We do not gain salvation through our good works we do not lose salvation through our bad works. Saved and kept by grace through faith. IS THIS CLEAR? (beat) Any question on how salvation comes or how it is kept – BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH. (long beat)

To believe salvation is lost by personal failure, by mistake, by personal weakness is a lie. He is our true Shepherd. He never ever lets us go. We are His (listen . . .) by faith. We are not His by perfection. We are not His by works. We are not His if we prove ourselves daily. We are His . . . remember, by the same means we became His . . . by grace THROUGH faith.

Can a person choose to walk from faith? Abso-freaking-lutely. If this was not the case, then stop and go churches is all that believers need. In fact, we wouldn’t need church at all.

The Role of Faith in Salvation

Need would be missional efforts to save souls! Then people who believed could walk around detached from all the rest of the New Testament directives. And all they would teach and talk about would be the vertical experience because they were saved never even considering the possibility that they could walk from their first love.

But I believe the Bible. I believe what it teaches and tells us contextually. And I believe every model, and picture, and allusion is purposeful. One of the purposes of the Church is to help believers who have been saved by grace through faith is to help them continue to learn to abide and grow by grace through faith.

Before we go to the phones, let me present to you a chapter of scripture. It’s not that long but it (along with a dozen other passages I could present and will present when we get to our discussion of Calvinism) clearly lays out what I just said. It’s Hebrews chapter three. Because of time I am going to skip a few blocks of scripture which only serve to bolster my argument contextually. But read with me. The writer of Hebrews says:

Hebrews Chapter 3

Hebrews 3:1 Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

Now I want to point out to whom the writer is writing – “holy brethren,” and those who ARE partakers of the Heavenly calling . . . got that? In verse 2-5 the writer then says how much more worthy Jesus is than Moses. Then jump with me down to verse six, where he says:

6 But Christ as a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

We are of his house “IF” ? If? What the heck is that all about? I thought I was unconditionally saved no matter what? Read on.

In verse seven through 11, the writer makes a comparison to the COI who hardened their hearts (became faithless – FAITHLESS) when in the wilderness, and then says in verse 12 (to believers, brethren)

12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

The Danger of Unbelief

How do we depart from the living God? Unbelief. Faithlessness. We are saved by grace through faith, we can walk from God through faithlessness – not believing. What does God give believers to help inoculate us from the sin of unbelief?

Verse 13

13 But exhort one another daily, while it is called To day; lest any of you be hardened through (what? Hardened through what) the deceitfulness of sin.

I would suggest that the sin the writer of Hebrews is talking about is unbelief, but admit he could be saying that other sins can bring believers to become unbelieving in their hearts. Either way, the writer suggests believers can be hardened in the heart.

14 For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.

Again, he reiterates that he is speaking to believers (For we are made partakers of Christ) and then he reiterates the condition for continuing as believers, IF, IF, IF! We hold the beginning of our confidence stedfast unto the end.)

This flies in the face of once saved ALWAYS saved – which is a lie. AGAIN . . . we DO NOT MAINTAIN our salvation by working and sweating and worrying, but in the same way we obtained our salvation . . . by His grace through our faith. If we walk from faith, we walk from His grace. Simple, and biblical, as that.

The writer goes on, saying AGAIN that if we will not harden our hearts, as the COI did in the wilderness, we will enter into His rest, and he wraps the chapter up, telling us why the COI could not enter into the promise land (for so many years) verse 19:

19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief

Which makes a direct inference that neither will anyone who has been saved enter into heaven who too has an unbelieving heart.

In the end, how people do church is based on their interpretation of scripture. Those who say it is the Jesus experience alone – the vertical – and nothing else matters, typically create churches to reflect that ideology. Those who say

Salvation by Grace Through Faith

Is is the Jesus experience followed by a life of duty and work errantly and typically create religious institutions that reflect that ideology.

But the Bible is clear – contextually – anybody who is saved has been saved by grace through faith, and anyone who abides in the vine, abides by His grace through their faith. This doctrinal position, in my opinion, perfectly describes how to do church – which we will get into more next week.

Jesus and the Church

“The Church likened to a flock”
The Church is a body
The church is a family
We enter the flock, Body, and Family by water Baptism

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 1

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 6

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 1:12

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 13

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 14

GRAPHIC of Hebrews 19

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