North End Church of Christ

By: Clarence DeLoach

Some talk about restructuring the church. How presumptuous! We had better leave the structure as God designed it. After all, that is not our prerogative. The Lord built His church, and we are His building (Matthew 16:18; I Corinthians 3:9).

However, our understanding of the nature of the church is at times woefully inadequate. We need to study afresh every scriptural designation of the church and see that every description says something important about it.

We need to see the balance between structure and relationship. The structure is fine–don’t tamper with it! However, it is more than structure. It is more than name and organization! It is relational. It is a community of believers who have experienced the “common salvation” (Jude 3). For every scripture that addresses the theology of the church (what we are to believe and teach), there is another that speaks to the sociology of the church (how we are able to relate to each other).

The church has form and the form is very important. a form suggests a pattern. You cannot have form without a blueprint. However, it also has function. It functions as a body–as a family (Romans 12:5; 2 Timothy 3:15). The relational aspect is emphasized.

For every scripture that speaks of organization (elders, deacons, servants), there is another that speaks of loving, caring, encouraging and edifying one another.

Yes, the structure is important! And, I have no sympathy for anyone who wants to change the God-ordained structure. In every generation, that divine structure must be emphasized lest we forget. But, we must see the component God has built within His church.

Corinth had structure, but needed to understand the church as a relationship place. Many of their problems were due to that. They were not treating each other right–divisions, lawsuits, and ill-will were prevalent. Paul taught that the way they treated each other was as important as the purity of their morals or the content of their faith, or the quality of their worship.

What we need is balance, or as Jesus once said to the Pharisees, “These you ought to have done, and not left the others undone…..”