Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship

3. Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship Beresford Job writes, “When believers came together in each others houses as churches their corporate worship and sharing together was completely spontaneous with no one leading from the front” – Part 3 - Church is Family He added that “all present are free to take part without the controlling presence of anyone ‘leading’ the proceedings” – Part 4 - What the Bible Says! Robert Banks writes, “The best arrangement for a congregation’s meeting is not a rectangle containing rows of seats, all looking forward to what is happening in a space at the front. The best arrangement is a circle, in which each participant can look at the other, address the other, and hear from the other, preferably a circle around a table...” – The Church Comes Home, page 37

4. Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship Steve Atkerson says that churches must “...allow any of the brothers who so desire to verbally participate in the meeting” – Ekklesia: To The Roots Of Biblical Church Life, page 40 He emphatically states, “... holding church meetings in this spontaneous, interactive manner is declared to be imperative...” – page 37 Mike Root said, “This ‘first day of the week’ assembly was as unstructured and informal as an unplanned reunion of college friends” – Spilt Grape Juice, page 50

5. Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship “What all of this suggests is that the primitive church had an intimacy, informality, and degree of mutual participation largely foreign to our own experience” – page 151,152 “The gathered assemblies of the primitive church appear to have been far more participatory than what we experience; and, almost of necessity, therefore, more spontaneous and informal” – page 152 “The primary difference between the first century and the 21st century is that – apart from times when sermons are preached – there seems not to have been ‘an audience’ as we know it today. When does home ever have an audience? Just as a family interacts with one another around the house, in the house churches of the first century the family of God actively participated with one another in their mutual worship” – page 153

6. Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship “Over the years, we have spent an inordinate amount of time and energy arguing with others about the so-called ‘five items of worship.’ And yet it seems as if we never once stopped to realize that those ‘acts of worship’ – as practiced among us today – are mostly an orchestrated religious spectacle for which we have reserved seats each week” – page 154

7. Radical Restoration means ... Spontaneous, Informal Worship Paul sought to correct this error Rather than tell the brethren to verbally participate, he told some to be silent 1 Cor.14:26-33 He said for all things to be done decently and in order – 1 Cor.14:40 The worship of the church is always interactive They have missed the point of worship They want to create a warm and fuzzy emotional environment Some even assert that the assembly is NOT for worship but encouragement Our assemblies are NOT about us – they’re about God! There is plenty of room for improvement We must worship in spirit and in truth – Jn.4:24 Mike Root says: “We have been fighting a losing battle because we have been proclaiming that Christianity is something ‘you are,’ but worship is something ‘you do.’ Nothing could be farther from the truth. If you are a Christian you are worship to God” – Spilt Grape Juice, page 20 “Christians assemble to be together. We don’t assemble to worship because that’s what our lives are” – page 116

8. Radical Restoration means ... Mutual Ministry Jon Zenssays, “we must confess that the pulpit-tradition is a huge obstacle that blocks obedience to the one another, participatory dimension of body-life found in the New Testament” – Ekklesia: To The Roots Of Biblical Church Life, page 129 Zensquotes Pulpit Commentary scholar, David Thomas who writes, “Surely official preaching has no authority, either in Scripture, reason, or experience, and it must come to an end sooner or later. Every Christian man should be a preacher” – page 129

9. Radical Restoration means ... Mutual Ministry “What will it take for us to see how far removed most of our congregations are from the pattern of leadership in the early church? To honestly admit that there’s been a paradigm shift of the greatest magnitude? To have the courage to fundamentally change how we are fed and led?” – page 189 He accuses elders of “… abdicating responsibility for teaching and preaching of the Word by hiring professional ‘pulpit ministers’ (as distinct from full-time elders)” – page 189 “The very concept of worship focused around a pulpit flies in the face of the dynamic, mutually-participatory house churches in the apostolic age. Houses don’t have pulpits” – page 211

10. Radical Restoration means ... Mutual Ministry He affirms that “Pulpit ministers may be an invention, but mutual ministry is not” – page 212 He asks, “But could it really ever happen? No, not converting the world, but converting our own elders into ‘teaching pastors,’ and our pulpit ministers into ‘pulpit-less evangelists?’” – page 212

11. Radical Restoration means ... Mutual Ministry Reform may be called for with respect to preachers and elders Preachers are often views as denominational pastors or congregational CEO’s Elders are viewed as decision-making “Board of Directors” In such cases changes need to be made Correcting these abuses isn’t what Smith and others are really asking for They believe preachers are only to seek the lost while only elders address the church NT preachers both taught the lost AND edified local saints Paul planted, Apollos watered – 1 Cor.3:4-9 Timothy remained in Ephesus to work with Christians – 1 Tim.1:3 Titus worked among the Cretian churches – Titus 1:5