The Local Church - The Highway

The Highway

Here is a question that lately has been on my mind.

A local Church has grown too big for their building.
Yet they can not afford yet to buy a bigger building.
Should they start having two services to accommodate people?

I just learned recently that many Christians believe if a Church goes to two services, they no longer are a biblical Church, because a biblical Church should meet together not in two services.
Instead they advocate a Church plant where they are affiliated but separate local churches.

Is this a big deal?

Hmmmmm, two services isn't such a horrible thing, IMO. The other choice; a church plant is something I would be in favor of if it was in another location so there would be no conflict of attendance between the two. Financially, I would like to believe that it could be accomplished. A new building wouldn't be something to start with but rather renting an existing building sounds feasible to me, or begin by simply meeting in a home depending upon how many people would be attending.

Simply put, I think it is not "a big deal".

Pilgrim

I just thought I would add a bit more to the subject.
One person who I know said the following to prove that on the Lord’s Day, the whole Church need to worship together. Not separated by a few services.

Quote

So, what does the New Testament teach us about the local church assembly?
1. First, we see that churches gather regularly. Paul uses phrases like “when you come together as a church” and “the whole church comes together” (1 Cor. 11:18; 14:23).
2. Second, a church assembly is a distinct event. This is evident because Paul provides instructions on what believers should do “in church”—that is, in the church meeting. “In church I would rather speak five words with my mind in order to instruct others, than ten thousand words in a tongue” (1 Cor. 14:19); “if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church” (v. 28).
3. Third, even large churches met as one body in the New Testament era. Thousands of believers belonged to the congregation at Jerusalem, yet they met “all together in Solomon’s Portico” (Acts 5:12).
4. Fourth, the New Testament writers instruct churches to do activities that can only be done by meeting together: teaching and admonishing one another; singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs (Col. 3:16); reading Scripture publicly (1 Tim. 4:13); and encouraging one another (Heb. 10:24–25). None of these can happen in a vacuum. And while it’s true that many of these things can take place among smaller subsets of the church (such as your Tuesday night Bible study), we should assume that they belong first and foremost to the main congregational gathering, given the biblical emphasis on the whole church meeting together.
5. Fifth, church discipline is an act of the gathered congregation. Jesus envisions “the church” as a whole, the ekklesia, speaking to the unrepentant sinner. In order to do this, they must be “gathered” in his name (Matt. 18:17, 20). Paul echoes this language as he instructs the Corinthians to implement church discipline “when you are assembled [same Greek word as gathered in Matt. 18:20] in the name of the Lord Jesus” (1 Cor. 5:4).

Tom

So, why doesn't this individual cough up the land and cash to build a temple with an enormous worship space and call it "Solomon's portico"? I fail to see the "mandate" that there can be only one building where believers gather together to worship. I don't see "denominations" in his argument either. Does he believe there should be only ONE SINGLE BUILDING in which every individual believer throughout the entire world meet on the Lord's Day? Seems a bit challenging doesn't it?

The Church grew and with that growth changes were made to accommodate those changes. Even in Paul's day, there were several separate physical churches in an area or region, e.g., Gal 1:2b "unto the churches of Galatia:". Although there were many places of worship, they all were to be of "one mind" and "one spirit" (Rom 15:6; 2Cor 13:11; Php 1:27; 2:2; 1Pet 3:8). The instructions for conducting worship pertained to ALL gatherings and still remain salient to the church(es) today, including church discipline. Perhaps if there are too many members or people in general who attend your gatherings and there is no facility to contain them, this person would recommend that you all meet outside in a field somewhere year round? Jesus did much of His teaching outdoors didn't He? By doing so, did He intend to set a perpetual precedent for all who followed Him? I find this person's view rather problematic, to say the least, and impractical for most churches throughout the world.