Church growth report

“Now while they were passing through the cities, they were delivering the ordinances for them to follow which had been determined by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem.” (1) With the addition of Timothy, the missionary team now consisted of three members (Paul, Silas, and Timothy). They traveled through various towns, likely following the course of the first missionary journey, which would have included visits to cities such as Iconium and Pisidian Antioch. (2) They taught the contents of the letter from the Jerusalem Council to the churches, which contained two key points: (a) Salvation by grace through faith, and (b) The four prohibitions. The four prohibitions served as guidelines to help maintain peaceful relationships between Jewish and Gentile believers. “So the churches were being strengthened in the faith, and were increasing in number daily.” This is the fifth church growth report mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:47, 6:7, 9:31, 12:24, 16:5, 19:20, 28:30-31). Additionally, this report marks the growth of churches outside the land of Israel.

Independence of the churches

(1) The churches that Paul visited were not placed under a specific organizational structure. (a) The Jerusalem Council or the Jerusalem church did not serve as the highest authority. (b) The decisions of the Jerusalem Council were not commands, but rather advice. In other words, the Jerusalem church and the apostles functioned as advisors to the churches, not as rulers with ultimate authority over them. (2) Each local church is an independent entity. Revelation 1:13 states, “And in the middle of the lampstands I saw one like a son of man, clothed in a robe reaching to the feet, and wrapped around the chest with a golden sash.” The lampstands symbolize the churches, and each lampstand is at an equal distance from the Son of Man. This means that each local church is directly connected to Christ, without intermediaries. (3) The Bible does not envision a pyramid-style church hierarchy. There are several dangers associated with such a structure: (a) An independent church is directly accountable to Christ, but in a pyramid-style organization, false doctrines can spread rapidly throughout the entire system in a short time. (b) Independent churches can go underground during times of persecution, while a pyramid-style church organization is more susceptible to control by totalitarian governments. Examples of this include the distinction between the state-sanctioned and underground churches in China, the situation in Nazi Germany, and Japan during wartime. The United Church of Christ in Japan was formed in 1941 when 33 Protestant denominations in Japan “merged” under pressure. During the war, it was forced to contribute to the wartime regime. The independence of the church is a critical biblical principle.