Deconstructing Institutional Christianity Pt. 14

How To Recognize Institutional Christianity
A house built on sand.

A few years back before we ever heard of the term "institutional" Christianity, the closest thing to that was the  mysterious ecclesistical structures of Catholicism and some other groups. Words like "prelate", "parish", "diocese",  abbots, monestaries, and others were shrouded in obscurity. Since we read our Bibles fairly regularly, and found none of those terms in Holy Writ, we  brushed them off as non-relevant to our spiritual reality.

As my wife and I became more involved with our Pentecostal denominational church, we became familiar with our own Sections, Districts, Regions, District Presbyter, Superintendents, General Superintendent, the UPC General Board, and other "officials". 

Like our Catholic brethren we nodded and blithely accepted these positions and titles as "normal" and the way things were done.  Our focus was more on getting people baptized and filled with the Holy Ghost than it was pondering the ecclesiastical structure we were part of.

Without us being remotely aware of it, we had become part of the Institutional Church.
(referred to as the IC)

Because we loved God and His Word, to us it was not even in our conversation although as licensed ministers with the organization, we attended District Conference meetings, Ministerial fellowships, but never attended the Holy Grail called "General Conference" held every year. 

Later in the corporate life of our beloved church, we were led by the pastor into becoming a State Registered, 501c3, non-profit organization called a "church", and recognized by the IRS as such.

(BTW. the pastor profited very nicely from the corporation. He appointed the board, and he came up with the By-Laws which governed our assembly. He was also the only one on the payroll and personally administered the checking accounts. We found out we also had a "church charter".  

In other words, we were now a corporation, i.e. a legal entity!
Our legal name was "Life Challenge, Inc." 
We were also licensed by our city as we owned and occupied a commercial building down town.  Because we were a 501c3 tax-exempt corporation called a "church", we needed to have a CEO, Secretary, and Church Board. I was a member of the board. In addtion, we now had a dozen pages of BY-LAWS and "Membership" requirements.

Because we were a 501c3, non-profit "church", tax-exempt status, and our "contributions" to the corporation that was called Life Challenge Church, "donations" could now be recorded for tax-deductions from the IRS.

BTW, "donations" were a mandatory 10% for voting members. Corporation members agreed to abide to church By-Laws and rules governing the assembly which included voting rights, tax-deductions, and the expectation of finncial commitment. 

Leadership requirements were spelled out in the membership Rules and included a signed agreement to pay a 10% tithe and 5% offering. 

As we morphed into an independent "Evangelical, Inter-denominational"assembly after leaving the denomination, we modified the corporation  and membership rules. 

Still, as is very common, the pastors family remained in sole control of spending (general fund) and the tithe account. The 10% tithe requirement remained, as well as a modified "loyalty" pledge for anyone in ministry ranging from Sunday School teachers to Choir. Board members had an unwritten expectation to be solid financial supporters.

Next, as the church grows into a structure, DEPARTMENTS are formed and people are given TITLES for their departments. "Benevolent Ministry", Women's Auxillary", "Food Ministry" Childrens Ministry, Music Ministry, "Video Ministry", "Sound or Audio Ministry", "Youth Ministry", "Women's Ministries" are a few examples of various departments that are represented. 

We sat in on many of these meetings, as well as our Corporate BOARD meetings where the Pastor CEO oversaw the Treasurer, Secretary, and Board Members. As a Board of Directors, we oversaw the church operations and conducted business meetings.

Typical Church Government

In the IC world, the hierarchy structure of authority works like or similar to this in the LOCAL assembly:

1. (Bishop. -sometimes a titled Bishop may have some authority over the pastor. He may be part of the assembly, a semi-retired minister, or an out-of-town person of importance.) 
   Pastor
   pastors wife, and or associate pastors              
   board
   Departments,  (and their Head(s)elders
   deacons
   official members
   regular attendees
   helpers
   visitors

In some churches like this:
     2. Church Board
          pastor
          assistant pastors or associate pastors
          elders
          deacons
          members
          attendees and visitors

And in some:

 Pastors family run the church.

Complete control, ownership, and administration by the pastor and his family. (See our article "Nepotism: the Family church")

A retiring pastor may install his son or son in law as pastor and retain control behind the scenes.
Family members may be salaried, become Youth Pastor, or other "plum" positions within the assembly whether they are scripturally qualified or not.

Of course, there are variations many. 

In the hierarchy, there may be either a Bishop over the pastor, or a titled denominational position. Sometimes the lines of authority are blurred, overlap, or not clear.

The folks in the pew that just go to a "church" to worship God most likely have no idea of who or how the church is "run".
The church corporation may even have a President, Vice President, CEO, CFO, Secretary-Treasure, Board, etc. Not only do "churches" run this way, but so do most, if not all famous "ministries". 

So there is a definite "business side" to most ministries. Some for better, some for worse. When writing "The Tithe That Binds" God told me to go find out about 501c3 church organization. I was shocked, and you should be also! 

Here is one of many sites that explain this agreement with the "beast", our government and the IRS.     http://spofga.org/ten_commandments/2006/feb/church_info.php
That's right kiddies, there is an excellent chance YOUR church and favorite ministry is married to a worldly kingdom ruled at the very top by Satan.

But because "churches" do not openly disclose this in their advertising or in the Sunday brochure-program, it takes a little more effort by asking the RIGHT QUESTIONS from the smiling people.

Do you have a church board?
Are you 501c3 registered so our donations may be deducted on our taxes?
Who is the head of this church?
Can I see the "Rules for Members"? What Departments do you have? Childrens? Benevolent? Food Pantry?
Are there written "leadership requirements" ?
Is the pastor on a payroll and or taking tithes for his support?

That is more than enough, there are plenty more, but they will get suspicious real fast when you ask intelligent questions. 

 -Or you can play it safe and just ask  if they have Sunday School, a Nursery,  and what time is the evening service...

++++++

Politics and financial manipulation and shenanigans abound in these structures, especially the family run types.   People, including pastors,  take carnal ownership of ministries, positions, titles, and people. The Organization takes on a life of its' own and begins to exist for its' own comfort, name, and purpose. 

The church also becomes controlling and threats real or perceived  are cause for damage control, mind and thought control, manipulation, and loyalty enforcement. 

Protecting ones turf and position are very important especially when ones ministerial livelihood is involved.

We know, because we saw and participated in that process.

Formerly loved and cherished brethren may find themselves suddenly outside, marginalized, avoided, or expelled. -sometimes in the wake of misunderstanding mis-communications, and mis-reported words.

The Institution is what must be preserved....

Now go back and look at the words highlighted in red, these reveal the nature and characteristics if the IC.  The majority of these have absolutely nothing to do with scripture EXCEPT where Jesus warned "beware of the leaven of Herod".

  If you think God is happy with these institutions, understand these are the structures supporting the "Nicolaitane error which I hate". -Jesus said twice in Rev. 2, and are houses "built on sand".

WHO is BABYLON? A short word.

 Babylon that mighty city..........
-rory moore

In the Bible, in the Book of Revelation, is an entity called "BABYLON" is focused on, especially in chapters 17 and 18.

Although many mistakenly refer to Babylon as the Vatican and the Roman church, it is greater than that narrow definition. It was once a City-State, and an ancient empire that conquered Israel around 600 BC.
Let's expand our concept of who is "Mystery Babylon the great..."
Without making this too deep or complex, and apply to Babylon the nature and manner to exercise authority and power.

Understanding Who Babylon Is :

(hint 1: Money. 

 it is an economic system based on buying-selling-borrowing. Banking, business, commerce, advertising.

(hint 2:  Politics.

it is a political and governmental system rooted in patriotism, violent force, military conquest, and taking from others through forceful taxation, force of arms, and the non-just legal system.

(hint 3: Religion.

 it is the MYSTERY RELIGIOUS SYSTEMS of the world, satanically engineered for confusion, competition, clergy-ism, division, conflict, pomp and ceremony, showmanship, rituals, that operates through worldly hierarchy's and structures never given in God's Word.

(hint 4: Culture.
Driven by movies, entertainment, music, and celebrity,  it is the social culture that distracts, entertains, appeals to our carnal senses, and uses all means to divert our attention away from the Lord.

(hint 5: Medicine.

The medical system: “pharmakeia". Drug-based treating of most afflictions predicted by scripture. Controlled by organizations like the FDA, AMA, CDC and many others to impose vaxxes, control physicians, in order to shut out alternative and natural healing methods.

(hint 6. Law.

The legal system which pervert true justice and is run by corrupt people, unjust laws, lawlessness.

(hint 7. Military Force.
The world's military to use force to conquer, subjugate, use terror, mass murder, and financial plunder.

Revelation 14:8 And a second angel, followed, saying,
Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, that has made all the nations to drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication (spiritual, economic, social, medical, political, legal, military).

One thing that is astonishing about the above is the number of that certain group of people who claim to be Judaens are found at the top levels of each of those.

Old Wineskin Christian or New? updated

BECOMING A NEW WINESKIN

But First You Must Dump the Old Wineskin

Among Christians, and we are all guilty when we hear or see a problem or fault, it is "the other  guy", or "that church" with the problem. 
We read or hear something profound and we think "boy, THEY NEED TO GET THIS!" -but meanwhile we are oblivious to the "beam in our own eye" as we seek to point out the speck in our brothers eye.

Catch-words like “heretics” "trouble makers", "divisive", "Lone Ranger Christians", "carnal", "truth-rejecters", "un-loyal,  "troubled", "discord sowers" are some descriptions and labels we carelessly used.

We are all pretty good at backhanding those we disagree with.. 

After leaving our local church which we had helped establish and build, after 24 years, we found ourselves for the first time counted among with the  hundreds who had drifted through our assembly over the years.  What an eye-opener! 

We did not leave disgruntled or with a desire to return to worldly living. 
We wanted to leave in peace, quietly, and we rejected the "bon voyage" service to "honor" us for our 24 years of service.

We intended to return and visit regularly, and 3 months later had serious thought of returning thinking we had erred in leaving, and I was willing to go back and say how sorry I was for leaving.  

But the very night those thoughts went through my mind, God spoke to me twice in night visions which revealed the darkness within ourselves and our need to go into "the wilderness" which meant separation from all that we had been part of. It was like stepping off a cliff only the Lord was waiting for us to really trust Him with all of our Christianity.

From the time we left, my wife and I returned to diligent reading and study of God's Word, and prayer.  The Lord was doing a work in us that continues to this day.

We discovered much to our dismay, it was much easier to walk away from the institution of church than it was to get the institution of church out of us!

 -"purge out the old leaven that ye may be come a new lump". 
As we continued in God's Word, however, we continued to recognize more and more of what we left behind and the need to become "a new wineskin". 

The old wineskin had to go, but WHAT was that?
===> Becoming a new wineskin is not following a new church or pastor!

It is not changing churches,
it is not about what building you fellowship in,
it is not doing house church,
it is not about anything outward.  
It is not putting a new church label on yourself.

After 24 years of church, we found becoming a new wineskin does not happen over-night.

Wineskins are made from the flesh of animals.
This represents our "beastly" nature. You know, the one that likes to be admired, heard, respected, adored, loved, followed, complimented, believed, is comfort-driven, self-centered, materialistic, angry, vengeful, selfish, lazy, and our entertainment-pleasure-loving-side.

Yet all the while, the same old "beast" dresses up in a nice suit and tie, smiles, sings Christian music, and talks about God.
The man in the mirror can sure deceive us.

It was most painful for God to reveal ourselves honestly, and most of us cannot stand what we see, when we see ourselves.
Is it because there is far too much of us and far too less of Jesus looking back at our reflection in the mirror of His Word?

 
Could it be we have not followed Jesus in taking up our cross?

Mat 16:24    .. Jesus unto his disciples, If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. Did He really mean it?

This one verse shattered my concepts as a Christian and church member:
Luke 14:33
So therefore whosoever he be of you that does not renounce all that he has,
he cannot be my disciple.

We are not talking lip service here. He really meant it.

Renounce all:  literally to say adios by departing or dismissing; figuratively bid farewell, forsake, take leave, send away.

This not only means renouncing our ownership of all our "stuff', we have accumulated, 

it even means renouncing ALL OF OUR Christian education, doctrine and beliefs.

Is that too radical?  It was too radical for many followers of Jesus in John 6:66 also.

I am not saying all our ideas and teachings are completely wrong, what I AM saying is we must be willing to renounce them all as Jesus taught.

It is a step few Christians realize that Jesus required of us.

 If there is something worth keeping, let God affirm it to you in prayer and the Word after you renounce the teachings of men, and all manmade "Statements of Faith".
Every time I have renounced ownership of  old church doctrine and tradition, God has been able to teach me the truth right out of His Word.  Every time God revealed truth, it was different from what I had learned "in church".  And the Lord gave understanding to go with it.

The new wineskin..

Do you want to REALLY be one? -and be filled with new wine of His sweet anointed Word hidden away inside your vessel? You cannot get that blessing of a new Wineskin without throwing away, or walking away in most cases, from the entire OLD one!

What? Do you want to patch-in some old ideas, traditions, formulas, "creeds", "faith statements", words, and habits, that are not found in the Bible, and think you can still be new? 

 The New Wine will pour out through those old patches!  Forget it!

Hear the word of the Lord;

 Luke 5:36 And he spoke a parable to them: No man tears a piece from a new garment and puts it upon an old garment; else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not agree with the old.

37 And no man puts new wine into old wine-skins;
else the new wine will burst the skins, and itself will be spilled, and the skins will perish.

38 But new wine must be put into fresh wine-skins.

39 And no man having drunk old wine desires new; for he says, The old is good.

For Jesus teaching His disciples it would apply to the OLD Covenant and the NEW covenant.
The scope of this would include coming out of Judaism's traditions and the sects. 

 Holding grudges, hurts, anger, fear, doubt, covetousness, desire to control, always be right, unbelief, self-hatred, unforgiveness,  even murmuring and complaining!

-anything that is contrary to the nature of Christ must be renounced and God's deliverance received. 

The truth is today, in most churches, you can cover most of that corruption by attending church faithfully, giving financial support,  activity involvement, and being a nice person outwardly, -like we did.

 We know because  we lived this way, but only after leaving we found that "all we as sheep have gone astray" and "our righteousness was as filthy rags".  -all while sitting in a church pew and somehow convincing ourselves  I'm a new wineskin because I don’t party, commit adultery, or steal and "believed"...

 Will you trust God enough to renounce "all that he has" both materially and intellectually?

It took me 2-3 weeks to pray this renouncing after seeing the truth of what Jesus said in Luke 14:33.  I also asked him to "judge me" for the many sins I have committed as a Christian. 

We can honestly say we would not trade the  years of our present walk with Christ outside the camp of old wineskin "Christianity" for the 24 years of servitude to the system of Christianity.
Time and space will not allow to express the joy and thanks we have for God's grace in bringing us out of the old wineskin of our traditions.  

It is worth it.