Frequently, when folks visit a group of worshippers, they leave with various impressions having been made. Often, some will say, “That’s not what I expected.” Yet everyone’s expectations may differ from each other. The reasons for different viewpoints may relate to a variety of different backgrounds and experiences.
Those with a Pentecostal background might say, “The worship seemed dead,” while others might say that they appreciated that things were done decently and in order. Some might say that they are more accustomed to pomp and tradition, while others say they appreciated the simplicity without an effort to be overly casual. Some have been known to comment that they missed hearing musical instruments while others were impressed that they did not have to endure an organ drowning out the singing.
Where do the assorted expectations come from? Some come from one’s religious background, and it may be that they are looking for something that seems familiar. Maybe a person has just visited here and there and formed a few notions of what worship ought to be. One might have viewed some religious programming on television and derived some expectations from that, also.
The main question, however, should not involve one’s previous background or exposure to religion; the question should be, “What does God expect and require in worship?” If we go by our own opinions and impressions, we set ourselves up as the standard: “I really liked this,” or “I did not understand or appreciate that.” The question all people (members and visitors) should ask is, “What pleases God?” It would be impossible to satisfy every person’s preferences, but we can all satisfy God’s requirements. Concerning worship, for example, the apostle Paul wrote, “Let all things be done decently and in order” (1 Cor. 14:40). Some may prefer chaos, but God requires orderliness.
Christians have an obligation to do only what God has authorized in worship. First, there must be an attitude of reverence since worship is offered to a holy God. God must be the focus of our worship, although a secondary benefit is that we are also edified and built up spiritually. How is our worship to be expressed when we meet on the first day of the week, which is the day God authorized (Acts 20:7)?
We offer up prayers, in which one brother leads the minds of all of us. Of course, all who are Christians can pray at any time, but it is also what we do when we are together. The Word is also proclaimed when we meet. Bible teaching is the heart of the message. We do not meet to discuss politics or popular poets; we seek to increase our understanding of God’s will for mankind.
We meet to remember our Lord’s death each Lord’s day, as was the custom of the church in the first century (Acts 20:7). The unleavened bread represents His body which was broken on the cross for us, and the fruit of the vine represents the blood that He shed for the forgiveness of our sins (1 Cor. 11:23-26). Giving on the first day of the week (1 Cor. 16:2) is also authorized, and this money is used to continue the work of the church. We are also authorized to sing songs and hymns and spiritual songs to God, which also edifies ourselves (Eph. 5:19; Col. 3:16). No one in the New Testament sang hymns to God with musical accompaniment—not Jesus, His apostles, or any of the churches. We can only practice what God has authorized us to do (Col. 3:17).
Our emphasis is upon truth (Pr. 23:23; John 8:31-32), which God has revealed and which all can understand. We try hard to keep His commandments and to please Him (1 John 3:22), and we invite you to do the same. The apostle John rejoiced that brethren walked in the truth (3 John 3-4), which is our emphasis, also.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. “Where’s the piano?” One of the most noticeable things that people comment on is the absence of a piano or organ or band, which sometimes strikes visitors as peculiar. They have occasionally suggested the following reasons for why we do not use them.
a. “Are you too poor to afford one?”
b. “Do you not like instrumental music?”
c. “Are you just trying to be different?”
The answer is none of the above. Many members of the church own pianos or other musical instruments; it is not a matter of money. Each year we give away more than $25,000 to missionaries (notice the men we support on our Missions Bulletin Board). Certainly, we could have bought a musical instrument if we wanted to use the Lord’s money in that way.
Who doesn’t like or enjoy instrumental music? Not only are many members proficient in playing various instruments; many possess robust collections of albums and CDs.
We do not do anything just to be different; what would be the point? Oh, sure, it might attract a few people, but it would repel most; so that is not the reason, either. As explained previously, it is a matter of Bible authority, but people do not often understand that immediately. So let us use a Biblical example to explain.
Until the death of Solomon, Israel was one nation. His son followed some foolish advice and lost the kingdom. Rehoboam was left with Judah and Benjamin, along with the Levites, but the other ten tribes revolted, leaving Judah a small territory only a fraction of the size of the tribes in the north. The leader of what now was called Israel departed from God and set up two golden calves. One might think that the people would have protested such actions, saying, “Don’t you remember how angry Moses became when the people coerced Aaron into forging a golden calf—how he broke the two tablets containing the Ten Commandments—and then ground the calf into powder, spreading it on the water, and making the Israelites drink of it” (Ex. 32:19-20)? But most of the people did not object.
A century later, if they were ever questioned about the golden calves, the people could say, “We have had those for 100 years; how can you even hint that they are wrong?” Two centuries later, someone could defend them by saying. “Why those have been here all my life, and my father’s life, and his father before him. How can anyone suggest that it should be otherwise? Are you just trying to be different?” More than 200 years later, however, Israel was taken into captivity because of them.
When the leader of the north set up those golden calves, he made Israel sin a great sin (2 Kings 17: 21). It does not matter how much time elapses; it was wrong the first day, the first week, the first month, the first year, the first decade, the first century—just as much as it was wrong when they were taken into captivity. The passage of time does not transform something wrong into something that is right.
But what does that have to do with the use of instrumental music? Like the golden calves, they were not authorized at the beginning of the kingdom and not used for several centuries. Just about every reformer opposed the addition of instruments of music to the worship (John Wesley, John Calvin, et al.). They did not believe that it was Biblical since it is never found as a practice in the New Testament. We still believe the principles they did, but their followers have, for the most part, given that principle up. In other words, if you lived any time during the first thousand years after Jesus ascended to heaven, you would not have worshipped with musical instruments. Nor would it have been likely that you would have done so another 700 years after that. But now you have been born in a time when the majority of people have accepted them (just as they did the golden calves).
The question cannot be decided by popularity or custom, but rather, “What does the Bible teach?” Of course, in the Old Testament God authorized instruments for use in worship (2 Chron. 29:25). But He did not do so in the New Testament. Since the Jews were accustomed to their use, it is striking that none are mentioned in the Jerusalem Church—or anywhere in any of the other churches. We must have authority for what we teach and practice (Col. 3:17), and it simply does not exist. God did not command instruments for use in Christian worship, nor is there even one example of anyone doing so. Thus, they lack authority. People may think their absence is odd because for 200 years most religious groups have used musical accompaniment, but they were not put into the kingdom by God.
2. “Are you a cult?” This question probably stems from non-usage of instruments of music, but it is ironic that when a religious group follows what the Bible teaches and bases their practices on what the Bible authorizes, they are thought to be a cult. Jesus once lamented: “I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive” (John 5:43). What does this verse mean? Jesus came by the authority of God. What He taught was authorized by God (John 12:48-50). Yet many did not care to listen to Him. But if someone came in his own name with his own message (without God’s authority), many would receive him and listen to him.
The same is true in our age. If we teach what the Bible says and speak by the authority of what God has revealed, many dismiss us with a wave of a hand. But Joseph Smith comes along with a message that contradicts the Bible, and people receive him! Various church councils make decisions that contradict the Bible, yet people listen to them. If a person claims that God spoke to him, wow, how exciting—even though it directly violates the revelation God gave us in His Word.
Generally speaking, a cult exalts a man or a particular group above what the Scriptures teach. The Bible is our only authority, and those who seek to replace it with the wisdom of men can be rightly said to be a cult. We have no desire to follow the teachings of any human being or committee; in fact we have said for a long time, “No creed but the Bible.” This philosophy is Biblically sound and eliminates us from any suspicion of being a cult.
3. “What denomination are you?” Once again, this is the kind of practice and language to which we are accustomed. How many denominations are there mentioned in the Bible? That’s right—none. Religious denominations did not come into vogue until the 1500s. They are all we have ever known, but like the golden calves of Israel, they were not authorized or approved by God and were never part of God’s original plan.
The writers of the New Testament letters did not address their inspired messages to different denominations because none existed. A look at the introductions in the epistles finds Paul addressing Christians as those called to be saints (Rom. 1:7). We may be accustomed to hearing that term applied to dead and glorified Christians of the past, but saints is never used that way in the Scriptures. It instead refers to living Christians; it literally means “the holy ones”; it refers to the fact that Jesus has cleansed us of our sins, thus making us holy.
Paul also referred to the saints collectively as ”the church of God” (1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Cor. 2:1) and “the churches of Galatia” (Gal. 2:2), He either uses the term saints or refers to the church in some location. The point is that no religious denominations existed, and there was only one church, regardless of the location—the church for which Jesus died (Acts 20:28). Paul even explicitly states that there is one body (Eph. 4:4), which he had previously defined as the church (Eph. 1:22-23).
No division existed, and when there were signs of one occurring, Paul reminded the brethren that they did not have the right to divide the body of Christ (1 Cor. 1:10-13). All Christians were united because they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine (Acts 2:42). Division results from people departing from what the Bible teaches—from what God authorizes. The following example may seem silly, but it makes a valid point.
Suppose God commanded, “Wear yellow socks to worship on Sunday.” All right. People wore yellow socks for 1,000 years, but then some decided gold was even a better color; so some wore yellow, and some wore gold, and a division occurred. Later, some said that red would better reflect the blood of Christ; so now another group sprang up, and we have the gold socks wearers and the red socks wearers. Over the years, some advocated blue socks, and others white (for purity). All kinds of opinions held sway, and no one appreciated those with yellow socks. They called them legalists and said they should be more progressive than literal. Sigh.
If we demonstrate what happens on something frivolous, it is easy to see that all those who departed from wearing yellow socks are wrong. But with various doctrines, people get confused because they may have an emotional tie to a certain practice. Take, for example, the Lord’s Supper.
The church in the New Testament observed the Lord’s death every week, but some came along and assured us that it was not necessary to do so. Once or twice a month (or year) was sufficient. Others said the bread and fruit of the vine do not just represent the body and blood of the Lord; they are His actual body and blood. Some said that unleavened bread was not necessary; so they used leavened bread or even cake! Others said, “Let’s use fermented wine,” but only the one officiating can have that. Everyone else just gets the bread. Others said, “We can use water instead of the fruit of the vine.” Finally, some came along and said, “You’re missing the point. This is a spiritual observance; we don’t need any physical elements at all.”
Why not just do what the church in the first century did, which we know was right and pleasing to God? For this reason we are not interested in any creeds that men have developed over the centuries; we just do what the New Testament teaches. And that is all that we ask others to do as well.
4. “Don’t you believe in salvation by works?” No one on the face of the earth can work his way to heaven. No one deserves salvation or eternal life. God offers them on the basis of His grace and love. However, His offer of Heaven, which comes through grace, must be received in the way He specified. Not everyone cares about God or His grace, nor will everyone be saved (Matt. 7:21-23).
Jesus is “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Heb. 5:9). One must obey the gospel initially (Acts 2:38) and then continue to live according to His will. This is the correct response to God’s grace, but it does not constitute salvation by works. No amount of good works could ever merit salvation. But God still expects obedience (as opposed to rebellion against Him). The blood of Christ cleanses us of our sins as we walk in the light (1 John 1:7-10). We find great joy in Christian living.