When we encounter a difficult matter in our service in the church, how should we discuss it and make a decision concerning it? Should the matter be settled by one person’s word, or should it be decided by everyone expressing his opinion and then taking a vote? Is the democratic way of deciding by the majority applicable in church service? In the Catholic Church only what the pope says matters whereas in the Protestant churches it is what the majority says that counts. Is there a place for these two methods in the Scriptures? Our simple and categorical answer is, “Absolutely not!” In the Bible there is absolutely no place for decisions to be made by one individual, and there is also no place for decisions to be made by the majority. Neither has a place in the Bible. Since this is the case, what is the way that matters are decided in the church life? From the human point of view, there seems to be only two ways-either the way of one individual making the decisions or the way of the majority making the decisions. In the Bible, however, we can see a third way.
Although there is not much record in the Bible concerning the administration of the church, the elders and apostles in the early days of the church definitely followed certain principles of service in the administration of the church. Acts 15 gives us a pattern of how to manage and handle church affairs. In this chapter the problem in the church was resolved neither by the opinion of one individual nor by the opinion of the majority. Instead, it was resolved by the Holy Spirit’s passing through and operating in the church. Therefore, decisions made in the church life should not reflect the opinion of a single individual acting in an autocratic way or an opinion that is derived from a democratic vote by everyone. Instead, the Holy Spirit operates in the church, and the church makes its decisions according to and along with the Holy Spirit.
This kind of decision is reached not by the Holy Spirit alone but by the Holy Spirit passing through and operating in the church. In other words, when something happens, the matter is not decided by one person praying and having an angel appear to him to show him the right way. Neither is it decided by all the members praying until the Holy Spirit speaks forth the Lord’s intention through someone as a prophet. All the decisions concerning the church should be decided in the following manner. When the church discovers that there is a problem that cannot be settled or resolved, then what to do in this situation should be decided not by just one person or by the opinion of the majority. Instead, all the apostles and all the elders-those who represent the church-should gather together. This group of people should include all the apostles and elders in that locality at that time.
The elders represent the local church, and the apostles represent the churches in various localities. The elders represent one locality, and the apostles represent various localities. Just as the elders clearly understand the situation in a locality, so the apostles clearly understand the situations in various localities. When these two groups of people are put together, they understand the situation of all the saints in various places, and as a result they do not hold on to their own one-sided opinions. On the one hand, they are clear about the situation of the saints in various localities, and on the other hand, they do not insist on their own opinions. Instead, through fellowship they present what they understand and have observed concerning what God has done in the saints in various places. In this kind of fellowship everyone has the opportunity to speak, and they can speak as much as they like. This is the pattern shown to us in Acts. Everyone may speak to the full extent.
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