The Necessity of Limited Church Size

No, not harder, impossible. There is a finite number for which one can pray every day.

In a healthy functioning Christian church, a thriving complex of multidimensional relationships exists.  The Triune God alone maintains these without limits of quantity.  He alone fills the dimensions of worship, witness, and works.

We are limited in all of these capacities.  When we come together to be what we are, the Body of Christ in worship, there is a limit to the number of brothers and sisters for whom we can:

·        Exercise the fruit and gifts of the Spirit

·        Effectively pray with and for

·        Earnestly be accountable to

When we go forth to be what we are, the Body of Christ witnessing to a dying world, there is a limit to the number of people that we are able to:

·        Serve bodily, Luke 4:18, James 2:16

·        Supplicate and intercede for realistically

·        Share Christ with honestly and lovingly

When we take up our work to be what we are, the Body of Christ serving all creation, there is a limit to the number of tasks that we are able to:

·        Do correctly and reliably

·        Direct intelligently and wisely

·        Discharge promptly and effectively

That limit varies from person to person, as the Spirit provides strength and direction.

·        I can only be accountable to around seven close friends

·        I can only pray for around one hundred people a day

·        I can minister to many more, randomly on the internet, but the number I actually reach and help is very small.  I would be overwhelmed to know that one person a month came to Christ and started living for Him alone, as a direct result of my ministry to that person.

·        Only in our choral hymnology and liturgical service do we experience anything where size is not a formidable obstacle to serving Christ honestly.

Christ limited Himself to:

·        An inner circle of three

·        A core team of thirteen Apostles, it always was a baker’s dozen

·        A new Sanhedrin of seventy

·        A handful of other faithful men and women friends

When Christ was tempted to receive the mega-church, He repeatedly turned it down (Matthew 4).  He said, “My kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36).”  Only the Heavenly Church (Hebrews 12:22-24), of which we believers are all members, can tolerate unbridled size.  Even that Church is currently less than seven trillion humans strong.

Body Life only functions interactively and dynamically.  We function as a body; we only influence the cells with which we make contact.  Even a red blood cell only contacts one other cell at a time.  When numbers become excessive in size, the genuineness of relationships begin to break down into that which is fake and unreal.  Fake, unreal relationships spawn “said” Christians, not real ones, they spawn cancer cells.

Covenants are not written, they are cut.  The Holy Scripture must be cut into our sinful flesh, so that we are carved into little Christs by the Spirit of the Living God.  If Christ has not bloodied us with His Word, we are none of His.  There are many fraudulent, pretend Christians running around.  However, when Christ lays hold of us, He marks us indelibly.

 

When Christ lays hold of us, He marks us indelibly.

 

It is simply impossible to do this on a mega-scale.

Large churches like First Baptist, Dallas, accomplish this through smaller social groups, these are the real churches.  In this sense churches like First Baptist, Dallas, are not churches at all, but assemblies of many small churches.  I’m using First Baptist, Dallas, as a good example of a large church.

Nevertheless, the mega-church defect is more than one of size.  I have lived long enough to hear every heresy under the sun spouted forth in so-called Christian churches.  The defect is more than one of size.  We are creatures, we are limited.

Yours in Christ,

Herb Swanson aka Augie