73a) Cultivating Inter-Church Relationships #2

Foundational Principles and Biblical Data from Acts

0:02 All right, brethren, having addressed in your hearing the foundational principles which constitute the presuppositions of my efforts to handle this vast subject of inter-church communion, we then looked at some of the principles that must be present in qualifying our use of the New Testament data, particularly since most of that material comes couched in apostolic authority and apostolic office. And with those things beneath us, let's now move to large letter C, some major biblical data underscoring our duty to cultivate inter-church communion. And I'm assuming that our duty is not only found in explicit precepts, but in the precedence of Holy Scripture. And I've tried to collate the material. I've tried to collate the material roughly in these two categories in the book of the Acts and then in the epistles. And here again, with very little comment, we'll just do a flyover of these passages.

1:04 In Acts chapter 9, you have at least in principle an example of inter-church communion. You have a problem of one church as it assesses the qualifications of an applicant for membership. When Paul comes to Jerusalem, he asks aid to join himself to the disciples. The first thing he did was not to announce, Here you lucky people, I am gloriously converted, commissioned by the risen Christ.

1:32 Now sit down and listen to me. Now he filled out an application for church membership. That's the first thing he did. He came to Jerusalem, sought to become a church member, and they said, No way, Jose. We think you're here to just get on the inside and be a fifth columnist.

1:48 They exercised some discretion. So what did God do? God brought along Barnabas. Verse 26, But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, etc.

2:02 Now we know that Barnabas originally was sent out from the church there in Jerusalem, but we have a principle involved that here's a local church that's wrestling with an issue, and God brings some help from someone who had a broader exposure to the realities as they touched who this man Saul now was as a converted man, and he makes his contribution. to the betterment of Saul, who desires to be part of the church, and also of the strengthening of the church as the text goes on to say that he was with them going in and out, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. And then a similar passage in Acts chapter 11, God is pleased to establish a church in Antioch with some unnamed preachers who were part of the dispersion that was occasioned by the church. The persecution there in Jerusalem and Judea in the earlier chapters, and when the Jerusalem church hears a report of what has gone on, what do they do? They don't say, well, if God has birthed the church, it's independent, autonomous, leave them be. No, but what do they do?

3:12 Verse 22, The report concerning them came to the ears of the church that was in Jerusalem. They sent forth Barnabas as far as Antioch, who when he was come and had seen the grace of God was glad, and then Barnabas, Barnabas stays on there, ministers to them, recognizes that either he's reached the limits of his ability to help them alone, or whatever reasons, he seeks out Saul, brings him, and they minister to the strengthening of that assembly. Now, obviously, Paul was not still called Saul here. Paul was not sitting on his hands when he finds him at Tarsus.

3:49 He's already been speaking boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus. It meant that some church affiliation, and we can assume that as Paul sought to become a church member in Jerusalem and base his ministry in the life of the church, so there at Tarsus as well, he would have been involved with some community of the people of God, so there was some give and take in this inter-church experience, and there's the principle in broad outlines. And then, of course, the Acts 15 passage. You had a church in the Gentile world, the church in Antioch, that is troubled by people who say, we come from the Jerusalem church, or we come from Judea, and we're at least implying, if not explicitly stating, we come with apostolic credentials. So here's a church, a Gentile church at Antioch, that after they try to sort this out, they can't. They said, look, let's send men up to Jerusalem, that church from which these others purport to come, and with whose blessing they say they're, propagating this nonsense, and let's sort this out. And what you have here is not a formal structure of presbytery or synod.

5:03 You have a local church troubled by representatives purporting to be from another local church. And so they go up from this church to that church to sort it out. Now, granted, they had apostles. There was an element we don't have.

5:18 But in principle, we see this inter-church communion, even in seeking to resolve a doctrine, a doctrinal and practical problem. And then in Acts 18 and verse 22, we have another passage that is helpful.

5:34 We find that when he landed at Caesarea, he went up and greeted the church, and then went down to Antioch. And having spent time there, he departed, went through the region of Galatia and Phrygia in order, establishing all the disciples. So here we have again, he goes up, and apparently, not to, not to minister, but it says, greeted the church and went down to Antioch. Here's a man seeking to foster this communion of the churches by his own presence, his own reporting to them, as we read in the Acts 15 passage, as they were making their way up from Antioch or down from Antioch to Jerusalem.

6:17 What did they do along the way? Perhaps we ought to add or highlight the Acts 15, 3 passage. They, therefore, being brought on their way by the church, passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles and caused great joy unto all the brethren. They weren't passing through these other churches, picking up office bearers to constitute general assembly.

6:38 That's the way our Presbyterian brethren read the passage. And it's one of the things that kept me from becoming a Presbyterian when I was trying desperately to become one. This was the passage that they constantly kept referring to when I studied it. I said, it doesn't tell me what they're saying it tells me.

6:52 I don't read that they passed through Phoenicia, Samaria, picking up presbyters in order to go on their way to general assembly at Jerusalem. No, they didn't even apparently apprise them of the controversy. They just told them what God was doing among the Gentiles. They were communing with them of the work of God in other places that they might be aware of it and enter in with joy to that which God is doing.

7:16 So, here are some specimen passages of what we might call the seminal elements of interchurch communion in the book of Acts. And this is not an exhaustive list. I'm just trying to, by looking at these, to tweak your mind so that you'll be looking for these things when you read through the Acts of the Apostles. Well, the same thing is true in the epistles.

Biblical Data from the Epistles: Romans to 3 John

7:37 Now, tighten your seat belt and we'll start in Romans and make our way through to 3 John. And when I originally prepared the lectures, that's what I did. At a couple of sittings, I speed read all the epistles and just took out a selective amount, not an exhaustive amount of passages, where we have examples of the fostering of interchurch communion. And so we start in Romans 15, 25 to 28.

8:04 Romans 15. But now I say, I go to Jerusalem ministering to the saints. For it's been the good pleasure of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor among the saints at Jerusalem. For it has been their good pleasure and their debtors they are.

8:21 For if the Gentiles have been made partakers of their spiritual things, they owe it to them also to minister unto them in carnal things. When therefore I have accomplished this and have sealed to them this fruit, I will go on by you unto Spain. Now, why is Paul passing on this information? It's really not what we'd call necessary information as far as the well-being of the Roman Christians are concerned, but in apprising them of where he is, what he's doing, what he plans to do, he passes on information that fosters, inter-church communion so that the church at Rome has by Paul's letter an example of this catholicity of concern among the churches and among the people of God.

9:06 He uses as the occasion to underscore a vital principle that if we've received spiritual benefits from Jews after the flesh, should we not respond and meet them at the point of their physical and temporal necessities? This is all a dimension of inter-church communion fostered by the apostle. Likewise, in chapter 16, verses 1 to 4, I commend to you our sister Phoebe, who is a servant of the church that is at Sanctuary. Well, immediately there is inter-church communion.

9:41 We're going to benefit from the presence of this woman who is identified in terms of her church roots. He could have said, who is many other things, because he goes on to speak of her, as a very unusual woman, receiver in the Lord, worthily of saints. She has been a helper of many and of my own self. Greet Brisa and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ, who for my life laid down their necks, unto whom not only I give thanks, but look, all the churches of the Gentiles.

10:12 What's the purpose of this? To let them know that in greeting and receiving these people, they are entering into a communion of the benefit of the gifts, exercised by these various individuals among the churches. So there is a communion in the benefits of their ministry and of their gift. And the apostle is nurturing that among the churches.

10:36 1 Corinthians 1, 1 and 2. Every time I read through this opening paragraph, I marvel at this catholicity in the apostle's spirit. Paul called to be an apostle of Jesus Christ through the will of God, and Sosthenes, our brother, unto the church of God which is at Corinth, and then he identifies that church, them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called saints, with all that call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, in every place their Lord and ours. What is he saying?

11:07 He's saying, as I address you, I don't address you as a specific local church, without realizing that in calling you, or identifying you as those that are sanctified in Christ, called saints, that you're part of the large, larger communion of the people of God. And in so doing, he is fostering this awareness of the other churches, and as we see in the later part of the epistle, interchurch communion, chapter 16 and verse 1, now concerning the collection for the saints, as I gave order to the churches of Galatia, so also do you. Well, he didn't have to tell them that. Why does he introduce that?

11:51 To let them know that they are in a communion, of concern with other churches. He could have simply said, concerning the collection of the saints, these are my directions. As an apostle, he had a right to do it. But he says in giving you these directions, you are part of a fellowship, and a communion of concern, in these matters.

12:12 Verses 19 and 20 of the same chapter. The churches of Asia greet you, Aquila and Priscilla greet you, or salute you much in the Lord, with the church, that is in their house. All the brethren salute you. Salute one another with a holy kiss.

12:29 What's he doing? He's saying, you ain't in this thing alone. There are others, other communions, and individuals, and handfuls of the people of God, a church that is found in the house, of Priscilla and Aquila. Fostering interchurch awareness, to keep them from any sense of isolation, or carnal ecclesiastical, navel-gazing.

12:54 The work of God is broader, than what you see and know there, at Corinth. Then 2 Corinthians 3 and verse 1. Here's an allusion to an obvious practice. Are we beginning again to commend ourselves, or do we need as some, epistles of commendation to you, or from you?

13:16 Here were churches recognizing each other's existence, and the validity of each other's assessments, of their own members. So that if you were traveling from one place to another, and you wanted to be received, and you didn't have a Barnabas, bring your paper Barnabas. Bring your letter of commendation. Brother so-and-so is a well-proven, confessed disciple of Christ.

13:40 Receive him warmly in the Lord. Your fellow church act. And what were they doing? Recognizing this communion, this commonality of submission to Christ, and to his word, and to church order.

13:53 Likewise, in chapter, what is, what do we have here? No, that's supposed to be chapters 8 and 9. There's a little typo there. That's supposed to be chapters 8 and 9.

14:06 And then I've highlighted particularly 2 Corinthians 8 and verse 19. We get back up to verse 18. And we've sent together with him the brother whose praise in the gospel is spread through all the churches. Now think of that.

14:22 He says, look, this brother is one that I'm not, not merely my commendation, that he is one that can be entrusted with this. He's a proven man. But his provenness is spread through all the churches. He assumes that that's going to cut some mustard and carry some weight.

14:38 And not only so, but who was also appointed by the churches to travel with us in the matter of this grace. Well, how did the churches, plural, appointed if there were not interchurch communion and cooperation in this endeavor? And the recognition of each other's integrity. It would be impossible.

14:59 So behind these statements are marvelous, well-grounded assumptions of the nature of the interchurch communion that was being fostered. And then that simple little greeting at the end of this letter. All the saints, all of the holy ones, all of those set apart unto God in union with Christ greet you. You're not alone in this.

15:22 You're part of a larger communion, and fellowship of the saints. And then the familiar words of Galatians 6.10, As we have opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially those of the household of faith. All that comprise the household of those who embrace the one Lord and the one faith, and if submitted to the one baptism, and call upon the one God who is the Father of all and in us all.

15:50 He says that we're to do good to the entire household, and to the entire world. And then Ephesians 6, verses 21 and 22, But that you may know my affairs, how I do, Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, shall make known to you all things whom I have sent unto you for this very purpose, that you may know our state, and that he may comfort your hearts. Paul is communicating not only in this letter, but he's saying, I'm sending along a brother who will be able to tell you far more than I can disclose in a brief letter. Why?

16:28 So that there might be communion between that church and Paul's concerns and activities, and through him, the state and concerns of the churches to whom the apostle was ministering. And then again in the book of Philippians, we have some very clear examples of this inter-church communion. And you yourselves know, you Philippians, that in the beginning of the Gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, now, notice what he's graciously exposing as a bad example. No church had fellowship, koinonia with me, in the matter of giving and receiving, but you only.

17:06 Now, is he saying that to commend the other churches? No. So here's the flip side of it. Where there is not an aggressive effort to share in a communion of concern and a communion of support in Gospel endeavors, the apostolic assessment of that is not positive, but negative.

17:25 No church, had fellowship with me. No church had fellowship with me. Notice, no church had fellowship with me. For even in Thessalonica, you sent once and again unto my need.

17:38 And he commends them for that. Verses 21 and 22. Salute every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren that are with me salute you.

17:47 All the saints salute you, especially those that are of Caesar's household. Now, why did he put that in there? Saints in Caesar's household? I mean, what a marvelous conjunction of things that we would normally keep apart.

18:04 Caesar's household? Paganism? In its wretched idolatry and in its debased form of life, in its ethical aberrations, yet there in Caesar's household, God has a handful of his saints. And he wants the people at Philippi, who already have a large heart, who are already communicating with the apostle, he wants their hearts to expand even more.

18:28 And when they pray for Paul, they want to pray for the saints in Caesar's household. He's nurturing interchurch communion. And he's doing it in such a subtle way that we can read over these things and, you know, fall asleep and say, well, the real meaty part of the epistle is past. This is just stuff thrown in at the end.

18:46 Well, yes, it's thrown in at the end, but it has a wealth of practical theology in it. And then in Colossians 1, we find the same emphasis. He's giving thanks to the Father. He's giving a record, a transcript of his prayers.

19:01 And he says, we give thanks to God. These are the things that we give thanks for. And then he says, this gospel that you heard and was the means of your coming into Christian experience, which has come unto you, even as it is also in all the world, bearing fruit and increasing as it does in you, since the day you heard and knew the grace of God in truth. He lets them know, I'm giving thanks to God for what the gospel's done among you, but hey, Colossians, lest you think, hoo, hoo, he's doing something.

19:31 He said he's doing this throughout the whole world. You're part of something bigger than yourselves. And when I pray, I give thanks to God for you, but in giving thanks to you, I don't forget what God's doing elsewhere. Go thou and do likewise when you think of what he's done in your midst.

19:46 Remember, this is what he's doing through the same gospel throughout the world as the word and truth of the gospel goes forth. Colossians 4, 7 to 9. All my affairs, shall Tychicus make known unto you, the beloved brother and faithful minister and fellow servant in the Lord. Why does he give these little flattering titles to people?

20:08 Why didn't he just simply say, Tychicus is going... I mean, is Paul a man going around trying to puff people up and pin medals on them?

20:16 No. He's commending these servants of God to the churches. Have I earned some credibility, Paul says? Do you have any confidence in my assessment of other men?

20:28 Then I want you to benefit from this man, not merely to know his name and to receive him, but to receive him as the beloved brother, faithful minister, fellow servant, whom I've sent for this very purpose that you may know our state and that he may comfort your hearts. Here the apostle says, I'm going to communicate information to you so that as a church, your understanding and therefore your prayers and concerns will be fueled by this fresh information. Verses 15 and 16. Salute the brethren that are in Laodicea.

21:02 Wait a minute. We're here at Colossae. We've got enough to do. Keep our head above water with all the influence of paganism and the false philosophy and all the things that you've written to us about, Paul.

21:15 He said, yes, be concerned with all those things. But remember, you've got some brethren in Laodicea. Greet the brethren that are in Laodicea and Memphis and the church that is in their house. And, if this epistle's been read among you, cause that it be read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you read the epistle from Laodicea.

21:35 What's he doing? He's fostering inter-church communion. Oh, yes, he's also fostering a further grounding in apostolic doctrine. Yes, but he's doing it in the framework of inter-church communion.

21:46 And so he's saying, exchange epistles. Now, what happens when they exchange epistles? Well, when they would have occasion, on what occasions, I'm not sure, to be together, they have a common point of discussion. Well, did you note this in that epistle that was written to us when it was read to you?

22:02 Yes, and did you notice this in the epistle? And what does it do? It fosters a communion of commonality, of perspective and understanding of truth, both in its theoretical and in its practical applications, its theoretical essence and practical application. Well, we have similar emphases in these other texts, and I don't want to beat it thin at the edges, but do you begin to sense the cumulative weight of these things?

22:25 2 Thessalonians 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 2 Timothy 4, 19 to 21, and then, of course, that beautiful injunction in Hebrews 13, 3. We must at least read that. Remember them that are in bonds as bound with them, them that are ill-treated, as being yourselves also in the body. And then 3 John 5 to 7.

22:51 3 John 5 to 7. Beloved, you do a faithful work, in whatever you do toward those that are brethren and strangers with all, who bore witness of your love before the church. Now think of it. An opportunity was given for a testimony in the church.

23:09 To speak of what? Not some grand, glorious, new doctrinal insight, but to be able to convey the fact that somebody loved them and cared for them. Beloved, you do a faithful work in whatever you do toward them that are brethren and strangers, who bore witness to your love before the church, whom you do well to set forward on their journey worthily of God, because for the sake of the name they went forth, taking nothing of the Gentiles. We ought therefore to welcome such that we may be fellow workers for the truth.

23:44 So here were people that came from one communion into another. They are received with love, and an opportunity is given for them to bear testimony. That's how we were received. What does that do of their estimation?

23:55 It raises it. Their affections are kindled. Interchurch communion is being fostered. So I say that for anyone to say that interchurch communion is just some little peripheral issue, you simply cannot be honest with the data of the apostolic activity in the book of Acts, and with the transcript of their spirit-inspired directives in the epistles, and not come to the conviction that interchurch communion is indeed a crucial issue.

Practical Guidelines: Nurturing Oneness Through Information and Goodwill

24:26 Well, then we come to letter B. Some practical perspectives and guidelines with respect to the duty. First of all, the ways in which we can nurture and express our oneness with the body of Christ. And here we'll quickly go through these things.

24:44 I think there are nine listed all together. A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I. Yes, nine of them. All right?

24:51 First of all, by the acquisition, assimilation, and communication of information. That's the baseline. If we are committed to this biblical duty, then we are going to work into the framework of our weekly schedule, time for correspondence. If you're on the internet, you're going to use your email, you're going to use your telephone, you're going to use these means to foster interchurch communion.

25:21 And the key to that communion is its leadership. In all of these instances I've read, how are the greetings of one church conveyed to another? Through the servant of God who has been in the one church and is now in touch with the other. In all of these things, you're not going to have whole groups of believers hop in a 747 and show up for a weekend to spend in the homes of the people in your assembly and then worship with you.

25:48 And in great measure, interchurch communion will stand or fall in terms of you as the point man and the leaders in the other assemblies. It is carried on and mediated primarily through the leadership. Isn't that the reality? It's the reality we see in the scriptures and it's the reality we live with in the present hour.

26:08 So this must become a matter of conscience and don't say I'm too busy to call. I'm too busy to write letters. If you're too busy to do the will of God, you're doing something that isn't the will of God. And you need to adjust your priorities.

26:23 I have found again that so many of these things, it's not the big, noble, heroic expression that really carries the issue, but it's the day by day, the little drip, drip, drop, drop accumulation of relationships. You're praying through your special friends on a given day. That's your block of primary intercession. And you realize, hey, one of those guys, I haven't had any phone calls or letters for a couple of months.

26:52 So you say, make a note of that. That's on my to-do list for today. I'm going to call him and say, brother, I'm praying for you today. I realize it's been a couple of months since we've been in touch.

27:00 How are things going? How are things in the church? Now, that's no big heroic thing. You're not going to get big type in some Christian newsletter for that.

27:09 But it's in those little ways, the jotting off of a simple little note, assuring a brother of your prayers, the acquisition, assimilation, and communication of information. Secondly, by the communication of concern and goodwill. You notice how in many of these things the churches greet you. It is a big deal.

27:31 We're in their minds and in their hearts. And though they've been exhilarated and lifted up with the visit of the Apostles, they didn't forget us. And they said, hey, Paul, when you make your way to so-and-so, you be sure to tell them, all the brothers and sisters, greet them, greet them, greet them. How many times was it there in those passages?

27:49 And this is the communication of concern and goodwill, the awareness of the existence of one another. And then thirdly, by the communion of goods and material necessities. And here I've listed four pivotal texts. 2 Corinthians chapters 8 and 9, 1 John 3, 16 to 19, He that sees his brother have need and shuts up the bowels of his compassion from him, I'll dwell at the love of God in him.

Practical Guidelines: Communion of Goods and Cooperation in Scriptural Causes

28:14 2 Corinthians 8, 8 and 9, We know the grace of our Lord Jesus. Why? In that being rich, he became poor, that you, through his poverty, might be rich. And the Philippians 4 passage where Paul commends that church, that they were the only church that had fellowship with him in the furtherance of the gospel, in that new frontier of gospel enterprise.

28:37 And this is one of the ways that we express our awareness of our vital spiritual union with other churches is by the communion of goods and material necessities. And then fourthly, by the cooperation in scriptural causes. You see, many people think that the only way you can have cooperation is to have some kind of structured, organic organization. And I say, biblically, that's nonsense.

29:11 You may have to have a temporary organizational framework to implement some expression of this communion. That's what Paul did with the offering for the churches in Judea. But he didn't set up a standing apostolic benevolence committee with a rotating chairmanship. There was sanctified expediency and enough organization to provide all things honorable, as Paul says, in the sight of God and of man.

29:40 And when the mission was done, the organizational structure was dismantled, awaiting another need where some sanctified ingenuity would respond to that situation. And so we ought to be prepared to cooperate with our brethren in scriptural causes. Now let me get back here to my own details. These are all detailed notes so that I don't trust my memory in touching these matters.

30:08 Now by scriptural causes, I mean the building, planting, establishing of churches. And when we hear that one of our sister churches is convinced that there's a viable church planting endeavor in a given area and they send out a notification, the least we can do is say, look, we pledge ourselves to pray for that endeavor. Will you pledge yourself to give us regular communications? And then as you pray, sooner or later, the question will come, is there some need that we can respond to in a tangible way?

30:40 Is there need for pulpit supply? Is there need for some monetary involvement? And though our involvement may be very limited, yet we can involve ourselves at the level of monetary commitments so that the church has this tangible expression of its cooperation in this scriptural cause. And then the fifth thing is by the sharing of ministerial gifts.

Practical Guidelines: Sharing Ministerial Gifts and Recognizing Other Churches' Validity

31:04 I'm sure you noticed in a number of those New Testament passages, Paul was commending certain brethren and even certain sisters for certain functions and ministries and services so that the churches might benefit. And I've listed these three texts, Ephesians 4, 11, Christ gives His gifts to the church and certainly there is nothing to say that their usefulness is to be proscribed by a specific local church, Acts 11, 22 to 26 is a good example of this, though you do have the apostolic element. We see the principle where the gift that was being exercised in one place down in Jerusalem, Barnabas is sent up to Antioch, he sends from Antioch to get Paul at Tarsus and there is this fluidity in the sharing of ministerial gifts and the principle of Romans 15, 1 and 2, we that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak and not the wicked. And so, we have this fluidity in the sharing of ministerial gifts and the principle ought to please ourselves and Christ is the great example. Though in the context that speaking of the exercise of Christian liberty, the principle is far broader than that and when churches are strong in that they have an established leadership and perhaps several leaders, then surely they ought to show their communion of concern with lesser works or works of lesser establishment and strength by a willingness to share ministerial gifts. So, in the sixth place, by the recognition

32:33 of the validity of the oversight and discipline of other churches. We come back to the second Corinthians 3 passage. Do we need letters of commendation as do others? The principle being that the ordinary way of receiving people in an unknown setting is to take them on the basis of their letter of commendation.

32:52 Well, what lies behind the validity of the letter of commendation? The recognition of the integrity of the letter of commendation. So, the validity of the church that composed it. If you're suspicious of anything that you've not had your fingers in, how can there be any letters of commendation?

33:12 You see, the assumption is this recognition of the validity of the oversight and discipline of other churches. Now, I had a classic example of this this week. Lastly, I got a packet of materials addressed to the church. It was in my folder.

33:27 As soon as I opened it up, I realized that it was a church member way out in California trying to throw stones at the pastor in the church that disciplined them. The moment I got an idea of what the letters were about, I folded them up. I haven't read them, and they were shot back in the direction they came in a letter that was dictated yesterday, and it's on Ann's desk. And I said, dear so-and-so, the minute I read the letter and realized or read the opening part, what you were doing, I have no desire.

33:58 The Bible puts thief, business, all in the same category in 1 Peter 4, and I don't want that, so here's your materials. Keep them. And then I wrote a covering letter to the pastor and said, here's a copy of my letter to this character, and I hope you get that from every single person who got the letter, because that's what ought to happen. We have no reason to suspect the integrity of the church that disciplined this man.

34:25 And if this disgruntled, excommunicated scoundrel gets everything sent back, he'll feel the pressure of the church to stand by biblical integrity in their inter-church communion. You see, there's our weakness, and our Presbyterian friends would say, ah, but what do you do if such and such? You've got no way of defending yourself when you hold to the independence and autonomy of each church local. Well, yes, insofar as each independent church local is acting under the lordship of Christ by the rule of Scripture, we do have a very powerful framework to deal with issues and it's rooted in spiritual dynamics and not in what I would regard as man-made structures.

Practical Guidelines: Seeking Counsel and Periodical Recognition of Servants

35:07 So, this is one way that we foster and express inter-church communion. And then, seventhly, by seeking and offering counsel when requested. Seeking and offering counsel when requested. And here, Acts 15 gives us the principles.

35:31 I've often said in recent elders' meetings I'm going to ask someone who has the gift of art in the area of making beautiful posters to come up with some very scintillating, visually attractive poster that just has on it these letters N-Y-O-B. And I'd like about six of them posted in various places around the church. Mind your own business. Mind your own business.

36:04 Don't be ready to stick your nose into things that are none of your business. A busy body is listed with murderers and thieves in 1 Peter. But when your counsel is sought, be prepared to stick your neck out and give counsel. Be prepared to go through the self-denial of taking on the burdens of others.

36:30 And in the light of all the biblical teaching concerning the safety of the multitude of God, be prepared to seek wisdom and grace and experience in circles other than your own life and experience and your own eldership. Seek counsel from brethren who have a track record of wisdom and have a track record of stability in the work of God. This fosters and is a conduit of expressing real, spiritual interchurch communion. This is a periodical recognition of other servants of Christ.

37:11 What do I mean by that? Well, in the providence of God, when someone is coming from another place who is a proven servant of God, he may not be of the same precise theological framework, but you know that he is a man of integrity. He holds to the essential principles of the church and the church is a church of the people. Pray for those that are not within your own immediate circle of ecclesiastical associations.

Practical Guidelines: Public Intercession and Owen's Insights

37:51 This is a constant reminder to your people that you recognize the church of Christ is bigger than your own assembly and those of Christ are conviction about the church of Christ in its extent and then finally by the public intercession for other churches and other servants of Christ. Some have asked us from time to time why do we structure into our regular public prayers on the Lord's Day, this pattern of praying by region for sister churches and brethren. This pattern of prayer is not the same as it was in 18 and 19 where we are with all prayer and supplication to pray for all the saints but it is a calculated effort to impress upon our people whenever we gather we are just a part of a larger whole. We are not in this alone. We are not lone rangers. We are in communion and that is one of the practical ways that we can seek to accomplish this.

39:13 Now again, Owen as so often is the case hits the thing right on the head when he writes on page 192 in volume 16, this communion of churches in faith consists much in the principle fruit of it, and that therein the communion of the Catholic Church doth consist the Apostle declares in the following verses 19-22 now therefore etc. for prayers in all churches having one object which is God even the Father God as Father proceeding in all from one and the same continually offered unto God by the same high priest who adds unto it the incense of his own intercession and then he goes on to state that this is one of the ways that the glory of Christ's work is manifested when Christ puts into the hearts of his people to pray one for another and they express the extent or the degree to which we can nurture and express our oneness with the

Concluding Exhortations: Proportionality, Providentially Arranged Relationships

40:43 body of Christ and here I leave you with three very practical and I hope workable suggestions first of all to the extent that there is no erosion compromise or contradiction of our clearly defined mission and present to you at the larger level things that would undermine our local stability our doctrinal integrity and so we've got to wrestle with the whole matter of where are we as a local church are we sufficiently established in our understanding of the word of God of our own God and so we've got to think about what we should do in order to be able to be able to be able to be able to be able to be able to be able to be able to be able to

42:10 be able to have to have to have to have to have to to nurture interchurch communion ask yourself will this erode compromise or contradict our clearly defined mission and our present condition and then secondly it must be done in proportion to our unity of humanity faith and of life those churches sharing the same confession should engage in many more of these nine conduits of interchurch communion such churches should seek to share ministries, missionary concerns, etc. on the other hand, others can be included in a one shot exposure and occasional ministry for example, over the years we have had fellowship with totally unreformed communions in a once for all offering when we've heard of a need and the way in which that need could be met and was administered was through broad evangelical mission agencies or churches and we have judged that the church was strong enough and well established enough to understand that this fit the principle of Galatians 6.10 but we are not taking on a regular commitment to something that would ultimately mean an erosion of our own doctrinal integrity and the sense that the people have

43:37 of their commitment to propagate the things that they hold dear so in proportion to our unity of faith and life, these things will regulate the degree to which and the areas in which we get involved with some of these matters and here again I commend to you Owen page 190 of volume 16 where he addresses some of the factors that go into this element of making discretionary choices with respect to the things that we engage ourselves in and then thirdly we must consider our providentially arranged relationships within the body of Christ Paul and Barnabas with Antioch in the Gentile world churches then you have Peter and James with their higher profile in the Jerusalem and Jewish churches and here we have a principle if in your area there are some virile evangelical churches, you must consider their presence, you can't act as though they don't exist you have every reason to believe they are true churches now they may be nominally Arminian they may be nominally Calvinistic they may be a hodgepodge of things and you cannot welcome every avenue of inter-church communion as you would were this a church holding precisely to the same confession, but you cannot act as though they are enemies to the

45:06 things you hold dear, they are friends, wearing a different uniform, perhaps carrying a different shaped sword and different ammunition but if you have reason to believe they are true people of God and these are true churches, then you must somehow make that known to your people and seek to instruct them in such a way that they regard them in their true light, they are our friends not our enemies now they may be a company of Apollos' who need to have the way of God taught to them more perfectly, on the other hand there may be areas of God's truth that they've worked out more fully than you have and you and your people could benefit from some kind of inner church communion in which you would earn the right to help them understand the way of God more perfectly in areas A, B and C, but they may help you to understand the way of God more perfectly in areas D, E and F and how is that going to happen if you set up an adversarial perspective or just act like they don't exist if Christ has planted his church in other expressions of that church, we ought to recognize the work of Christ and respond accordingly and here again, I would commend to you Owen, page 185 of the same treatise where he underscores this principle that as God providentially arranges the churches and this comes out in our confession in chapter 26, we need

Concluding Exhortations: Avoiding Sectarianism and Applying the Golden Rule

46:34 to be sensitive to that as we nurture inner church communion now then, in the few minutes that remain let me quickly touch on my concluding exhortations in this whole matter of inner church communion, number one always treat brethren as brethren, be convinced that there's a difference between damning heresy, inconsistent with any valid profession of the Christian faith and error or an imperfect grasp upon certain aspects of truth, I hope you don't treat all pedo Baptists the same way, that you understand there's a difference between our brother Mike Marsland and a devout Roman Catholic, you better understand that difference and you better react to that difference in the light of the validity of those distinctions always treat brethren as brethren you may not be able to go to bed with all your brethren, but you can at least say that's a brother, because in great measure, your disposition is going to be reflected in your people secondly, avoid a sectarian attitude while holding tenaciously to your distinctive convictions of conscience, now some people say that's impossible, because the minute you speak with any degree of conviction about your distinctive convictions, you're called a bigot as someone has said, we live in a day when the

48:01 only heresy is to say that you believe there is such a thing as heresy and that's part of the liability of serving God in this generation where different strokes for different folks, if that's your truth fine, but don't impose your truth on me well, I recognize we're going to have to live with that, but we can avoid a sectarian attitude while holding tenaciously to our distinctive convictions of conscience I remember one of the classic examples of this was old Dr. Rudolph, I may have mentioned this in another setting at Reformed Episcopal Seminary and when we put out overtures to Dr. Rudolph about having a Baptist division of their seminary having a resident Baptist scholar who would teach Baptist church history and Baptist ecclesiology and distinctive Baptist things and using their good men, and they had some good men back then in the other departments of Old Testament, New Testament, church history, etc he said no, that wouldn't do because either you guys are right and we're wrong, or we're right and you're wrong, and though we're not ready to come at sorts points over the issue of baptism, both of us aren't right and if we set up a structure that says, well this is really a matter of indifference, he said we're not conveying the truth, and we're not going to educate men who have a consciousness of the right angles of truth but when we invited the man to come and lecture in the academy, he gladly did so but he came with his turd and collar

49:29 and his love of the prayer book and his solid convictions as a Reformed Episcopal and he tried to persuade you of his position and I loved him for it and our relationship was warm and deep, and non-threatening you can avoid a sectarian attitude while holding tenaciously to your distinctive convictions of conscience and then thirdly, avoid terminology which will unnecessarily offend, the scripture says let not your good be evil spoken of be careful about how you speak about others who do not hold to your Reformed convictions those of you under this ministry, you know you could sit here for months and you'll never hear the word Calvinistic or non-Calvinistic or Arminian from my lips in the pulpit here in this setting, it's convenient code language, but you don't need to use terminology that becomes loaded with negative overtones and speak of woolly-headed evangelicals you want to speak of woolly-headed people who are not being honest with their Bibles they profess to love the word of God, but just don't use terms that could be knee-jerk, unnecessarily knee-jerk terms in this whole area there is enough division, and suspicion, and ill-will without us throwing kerosene on those smoldering coals that are dishonoring to God and then the fourth admonition I give you is to avoid the slightest

50:59 tendency to erode strict parity that is the recognition that whatever God gives you under your labors in terms of the size and the influence and the diversity of giftedness in that assembly remember, every true church standing under the Lordship of Christ that meets with the pledge and promise of His special presence is to be regarded as a peer in this sense, as Owen says not in terms of perhaps gift or usefulness, but in terms of dignity and identity as a true church of Jesus Christ, and Owen speaks very powerfully to this matter of recognizing the strict parity among the churches I quote from him earlier but if a thousand pretenses should be made of supplying churches defects after the decease of the apostles by any other way, then equal communion in which there is strict parity, he says we're overturning the Christian religion itself, and then my final exhortation I put in bold print, above all, remember the golden rule of Matthew 7-12, if only this were recognized in inner church matters, and as you would that others do unto you even so do ye also unto them, for this is the law and the prophets, all of the ethical demands of the law and the prophets

52:27 are reduced to that golden rule would you like it if someone who has been disciplined and is disaffected goes out and starts to slander you and the church, would you like it if people were ready in other churches, especially other ministers and elders to receive that report, then don't you receive it, you get that report, shoot it back in the direction it came, when someone uses the phone to convey the latest ministerial gossip, as you would that others do unto you do you wish that others before whom you've walked with integrity would have an internal rejection factor when anyone would bring slander to their ears, then you do that to them if you were going into a given situation I'm sorry, if someone were coming from another situation into your would you appreciate it if they apprise you a month or two ahead of time, look, I'm coming to visit your area, I'd love to be able to get to know you I understand that you've been there and the church has been used of God, etc., as you would that others do unto you, do you like it if someone shows on your doorstep, calls you from Newark Airport and says, my name is John Smith, and I'm going to be here for the next three weeks and I'm wondering if maybe you could have a family in the church that could find a place for me to hang my hat and feed me, you like being treated that way, don't you treat others that way

53:53 in fostering inter-church communion, a little bit of courtesy and the Matthew 7-12 passage goes a long way to establishing a framework of goodwill and of a recognition of these biblical principles well, we've covered an awful lot of material brethren, but I hope this has at least challenged you to think through this issue and to realize as you anticipate serving Christ in his church no little part of your work of oversight and government and shepherding of the people of God is to be found in this area of seeking to be an instrument in God's hands to nurture biblically directed spirit-empowered inter-church communion and not only will you then be an instrument of blessing to others but how much will rebound upon your own head, often through the years when we have discussed with people God's goodness to us and the fact that we have been preserved with all of our remaining sin and potential for all kinds of evil that we've never known, a church split we've never known what it is to have the leadership set against one another and people ask, well, how do you account for that? Well, there are many things but not the least of which is that we just haven't had time we've been seeking constantly to expand the horizon of involvement in the concerns of the work of Christ and it's when you get involved in a form of ecclesiastical navel-gazing that when you're gazing at your own navel

55:21 in your peripheral vision, you can start seeing the warts and molds of your brethren all out of proportion but if you have an assembly of people that wonder every time they gather on Wednesday, what are we going to hear about this week? What's God doing here? What's God doing there? What's the Lord doing in this other place? What prayers were answered from last week? You've got no time to be looking at one another's warts and molds and this becomes a healthy means of keeping the church with that outward perspective that is a climate for gazing and for ongoing usefulness