Another principle that the Open Brethren meet on, which we now turn to examine, is that each local assembly is autonomous (independent). They believe that the local assembly is to stand and act for itself and is directly responsible to the Lord, having no corporate connection to any other assembly. Each assembly, therefore, is not responsible for, nor bound by, the administrative actions of other assemblies with whom it may be in fellowship. Hence, the Open Brethren sometimes have been called “the Independent Brethren”—in fact, they prefer to be called that. Again, our inquiry is simple: Is this principle according to the Word of God?
A New Departure
The origin of the principle of autonomy can be traced back to Bethesda. She clearly gave up the ground on which she professedly occupied in fellowship with brethren elsewhere and adopted independence as being the principle on which she stood—and thereafter openly avowed. The principle of the independency of assemblies that they acted on is clearly stated in “The Letter of the Ten.” It says, “We do not feel that, because errors may be taught at Plymouth or elsewhere, that we therefore, as a body are bound to investigate them.” They also said, “What have we at Bristol to do with errors taught in Plymouth?” The fact that they did not regard the judgment of brethren in Bath concerning Ebrington Street (Plymouth) and went ahead and received partisans of B. W. Newton, shows that they saw no corporate responsibility to act in step with their brethren, and thus, to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace” (Eph. 4:33Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:3)). It was not until some time later that they held their seven church meetings to examine Newton’s teachings, and formally stated that Ebrington Street was an assembly with which they were no longer in fellowship.
Robert Baylis confirms this new departure in his book, “My People” (a history of the Brethren from the “Open” standpoint). He raises the question as to which side maintained the first principles after the division. He asks, “Which branch most truly carried on the original principles established in the first decade or two? Who should the Independent Brethren look to as the model for Brethren leadership today: Mr. Darby with his worldwide federation of Exclusives, or Anthony Groves, whose ideas were put into practice at Bethesda in Bristol?” Mr. Baylis erroneously concludes that brethren ought to follow the ideas of Mr. Groves and model their assemblies after his principles. But in stating this, he makes it clear that they did not begin to practice independency (the principle of autonomy) until the matter at Bethesda arose! He says that it was first “put into practice” at that time! Here we have from his own mouth that it was the Open Brethren who really were the ones who made a new departure in Church doctrine and practice.
The false principle of independency on which Bethesda acted is strenuously upheld in the writings of the Open Brethren from that day until now and is regularly practiced among them. Our query is, “Does Scripture teach that each assembly is independent, and do the administrative judgments each make have a bearing on other assemblies with whom they are in fellowship?”
What Does Scripture Teach?
Turning to Scripture, we see that it does not speak of Christians as being “members” of local assemblies, though people often do so mistakenly. The only membership Scripture knows is that in the body of Christ (Rom. 12:55So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. (Romans 12:5); 1 Cor. 12:12-2712For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. 13For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. 14For the body is not one member, but many. 15If the foot shall say, Because I am not the hand, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 16And if the ear shall say, Because I am not the eye, I am not of the body; is it therefore not of the body? 17If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? If the whole were hearing, where were the smelling? 18But now hath God set the members every one of them in the body, as it hath pleased him. 19And if they were all one member, where were the body? 20But now are they many members, yet but one body. 21And the eye cannot say unto the hand, I have no need of thee: nor again the head to the feet, I have no need of you. 22Nay, much more those members of the body, which seem to be more feeble, are necessary: 23And those members of the body, which we think to be less honorable, upon these we bestow more abundant honor; and our uncomely parts have more abundant comeliness. 24For our comely parts have no need: but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacked: 25That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care one for another. 26And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it. 27Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. (1 Corinthians 12:12‑27); Eph. 5:3030For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. (Ephesians 5:30)). This is a universal bond embracing all true believers on earth; every Christian on earth is in this membership.
One Universal Fellowship of Believers
Scripture also teaches that since the bond among the members of Christ’s body is universal, their fellowship should also be universal. Accordingly, Scripture says, “God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor. 1:99God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:9)). Though Paul was writing to the saints in Corinth, there is no mention of this fellowship being a local thing in Corinth. In fact, when addressing them in regard to matters of assembly order and fellowship, the Apostle said, “ ... with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Cor. 1:22Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours: (1 Corinthians 1:2)). He carefully linked those in Corinth with the other assemblies on earth as being in one fellowship. God’s desire is that every Christian would walk in this one fellowship, regardless of where they may be on earth.
Scripture indicates that though there would be many gatherings of Christians in one city, they would be viewed as one assembly. For example, Paul addressed the Corinthians as “the assembly of God which is in Corinth” (1 Cor. 1:22Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours: (1 Corinthians 1:2)), even though later in the epistle he recognized that they did not all meet “in one place” in the city (1 Cor. 14:2323If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad? (1 Corinthians 14:23)). This is seen again with the assembly at Jerusalem. In Acts 2:4747Praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved. (Acts 2:47) it says, “The Lord added together daily such as should be saved” (J. N. Darby Trans. footnote). They broke bread in many meeting places in the city, but they did it as being “together” in one fellowship.
It is seen again in Acts 9:3131Then had the churches rest throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied. (Acts 9:31), “The assembly then, throughout the whole of Judea and Galilee and Samaria, had peace, being edified, and walking in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit” (W. Kelly Trans.). The KJV mistakenly translates it as “the churches,” but it should read, “the assembly.” There were many gatherings in those regions, but they are referred to simply as “the assembly,” indicating the one fellowship of Christians that existed in those regions.
Matthew 18:15-2015Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 16But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. 17And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. 18Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:15‑20) is the first mention of the local assembly in Scripture, and we see the Lord alluding to the thought of practical unity among those gathered to His name. Matthew 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) says, “For where two or three are gathered together unto My name, there am I in the midst.” He desired that all whom the Spirit of God gathered to His name, wherever they were on earth, would be “together.” He couldn’t have meant that they should all be gathered in one geographical place, as it was in Judaism at Jerusalem. The Lord was indicating that they were to act together, with all others on that ground on which He gathered them (even though they may be in different localities), so as to express universally that they were one. Hence, from the very outset of the teaching of the assembly in Scripture there is the thought of there being one universal fellowship of the saints on earth.
Now someone might think that we are reading more into this word “together” (in Matthew 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20)) than what is intended, but when we turn to the book of the Acts and to the epistles, as we are about to do, and interpret this Scripture in the light of the whole tenor of the Christian revelation, we can see that the Lord was indicating the truth of the Church’s oneness. It is only hinted at here in Matthew 1820For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) because the disciples did not have the Spirit yet, and they wouldn’t have been able to take it in (John 14:25-26; 16:1225These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. 26But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. (John 14:25‑26)
12I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. (John 16:12)). The Lord did this on many occasions in His ministry, giving but the seed of a truth and leaving it to be developed through the apostles when the Spirit came.
In John 10:1616And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. (John 10:16), the Lord indicates that He was going to gather together His people into “one flock.” Note: He does not say that He wanted them to be found in a number of independent flocks, but that they would all be “one,” regardless of where they may be found on earth. There would be many gatherings, but only one flock—only one universal fellowship of saints.
In John 11:51-5251And this spake he not of himself: but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should die for that nation; 52And not for that nation only, but that also he should gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad. (John 11:51‑52), God moved Caiaphas to prophesy of His intention to “gather together in one the children of God that were scattered abroad” after the Lord had accomplished redemption. Also, the Lord prayed to that end, saying, “Holy Father, keep through Thine own name those whom Thou hast given Me, that they may be one, as We are.” And again, “That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me” (John 17:11, 2111And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. (John 17:11)
21That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. (John 17:21)). These verses in John’s gospel speak of the oneness in the family of God. They show that God’s desire for His people is that they would be found together in a visible unity on earth, regardless of where they were geographically.
The Members of Christ’s Body Are to Visibly Express the Truth That They Are “One Body”
Moreover, Scripture indicates that the “one body” of Christ (Eph. 4:44There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; (Ephesians 4:4)) is the ground on which the Church is to meet locally for worship, ministry, fellowship, and administrative actions of discipline. Hence, a Scripturally gathered assembly will express this truth with other assemblies that are similarly gathered on that ground, and thus, will manifest the unity in the body of Christ in a practical way.
The epistles to the Ephesians and Colossians disclose the truth of the “great mystery” of Christ and the Church, which is His body. And, the very first practical exhortation in the epistle to the Ephesians is to “walk worthy of the vocation” wherewith we have been called (Eph. 4:11I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, (Ephesians 4:1)). We may ask, “How are the members of the body to walk worthy?” Some might tell us that we are to do it by living uprightly and being good citizens in the community, but that is not the point in the passage. Christians, of course, should be concerned about walking uprightly, but the context of Ephesians 41I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, (Ephesians 4:1) indicates that the exhortation to “walk worthy” is in view of being called into the body of Christ. This is seen in the following verses which say, “With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love; using diligence to keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace. There is one body” (Eph. 4:2-42With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; (Ephesians 4:2‑4)). It is clear, therefore, that the Church is to walk worthy of its calling by keeping the unity of the Spirit because it is “one body.”
We are not called to keep the unity of the body, but rather, “the unity of the Spirit.” This is because the unity of the body is a vital thing that the Spirit of God formed at Pentecost in uniting the members of the body together to the Head in heaven, of which we are now a part through the sealing of the Spirit (Eph. 1:1313In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, (Ephesians 1:13)). No power of evil or enemy can break the unity of the body, for God Himself keeps it. The unity of the Spirit, on the other hand, is a practical unity among believers that we are responsible to keep, and it is our privilege to do so. F. G. Patterson said, “Keeping the unity of the Spirit is to endeavor to keep in practice that which exists in fact.” And what exists in fact? The passage goes on to say—“there is one body.” Another has said that the unity of the Spirit is “that which the Spirit is forming to give true expression to the truth of the one body.” We conclude, therefore, that Christians are to walk worthy of their calling by putting into practice the truth that they are “one body.” It is God’s will that this unity should be expressed universally, wherever the body is on the earth. This is the first great collective responsibility of the Church, the body of Christ. This unity is not referring to a local group of believers merely; the subject is the “one body,” and the “one body” is not in any one locality. It is a universal unity among believers on earth.
To aid the members of the body of Christ in walking together in practical unity, Ephesians 4 goes on to tell us that Christ, the ascended Head of the body, has made full provision for the members to that end (Eph. 4:7-167But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:7‑16)). He has given “gifts” to the Church for the purpose of helping the saints understand their privileges and responsibilities in the body, so that they would walk worthy of their calling.
The Open Brethren will acknowledge the truth that “there is one body,” but they see it merely as a doctrinal concept that has no practical ramifications in Christian ecclesiology (Church practice). But they are mistaken; Scripture shows that the early Church practiced the principle of the “one body,” and the Church today should practice it also. This truth is found in many places in the New Testament. We will focus on two things: reception and discipline.
Reception Into Fellowship
In Scripture, reception into fellowship is not seen as being merely a local thing, though it is enacted locally. When a person is received into fellowship at “the Lord’s table” (1 Cor. 10:2121Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. (1 Corinthians 10:21)) in one locality, he is received into the fellowship of the saints at large—in all assemblies that are on the true ground of the Church of God, as gathered to the Lord’s name.
If someone were to visit another assembly in another place, he is not re-examined by the brethren in that locality to which he has gone, but rather, is received because he is already in fellowship—even though he may never have been to that assembly before. If he is not known in that gathering, he is to bring a “letter of commendation” stating that he is in fellowship (Acts 18:24-2824And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus. 25This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John. 26And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. 27And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace: 28For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publickly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ. (Acts 18:24‑28); Rom. 16:11I commend unto you Phebe our sister, which is a servant of the church which is at Cenchrea: (Romans 16:1); 2 Cor. 3:11Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you? (2 Corinthians 3:1)). Such letters are written from one assembly to another, commending a person to the practical fellowship of the assembly to which he is going. This letter does not tell the brethren in the locality to which the person is traveling to examine him, and then, if all is well, to receive him into fellowship. The letter announces that the person is already in fellowship, and that the assembly is to receive him as such.
Since all matters having to do with the assembly are to be done “in the mouth of two or three witnesses” (2 Cor. 13:11This is the third time I am coming to you. In the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established. (2 Corinthians 13:1)), two or three brothers from the person’s local (home) gathering should sign the letter. By this, we express the truth that we are one body in these matters of inter-assembly fellowship.
When people were saved in the “regions beyond” (2 Cor. 10:1616To preach the gospel in the regions beyond you, and not to boast in another man's line of things made ready to our hand. (2 Corinthians 10:16)) and new assemblies were formed, it was done in fellowship with those on the ground of the “one body.” It was not God’s thought that these new gatherings would exist as independent assemblies, but that they would be part of the one fellowship of believers to which all Christians are called. Hence, the Spirit of God was careful to link them together with those already gathered on the ground of the “one body,” so that “the unity of the Spirit” would be kept. It says of the Thessalonian believers, “For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 2:1414For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews: (1 Thessalonians 2:14)). Thus, they were linked in practical fellowship to what the Spirit of God had already begun.
This is borne out in the book of the Acts. We see the various assemblies moving together practically and expressing the truth that they were one body—and this was before they even understood the truth of the one body! It is seen in Acts 8:4-244Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word. 5Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them. 6And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spake, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. 7For unclean spirits, crying with loud voice, came out of many that were possessed with them: and many taken with palsies, and that were lame, were healed. 8And there was great joy in that city. 9But there was a certain man, called Simon, which beforetime in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: 10To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. 11And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries. 12But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. 13Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip, and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were done. 14Now when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter and John: 15Who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Ghost: 16(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) 17Then laid they their hands on them, and they received the Holy Ghost. 18And when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money, 19Saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Ghost. 20But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. 21Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter: for thy heart is not right in the sight of God. 22Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. 23For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity. 24Then answered Simon, and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me, that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me. (Acts 8:4‑24). Many in Samaria had come to believe on the Lord Jesus through Philip’s preaching, yet the Spirit of God did not own them as being on the ground of the assembly until they had received the Spirit and had practical fellowship with those whom He had already gathered unto the name of the Lord Jesus in Jerusalem. This was done to prevent the Samaritan believers from setting up an independent assembly that was separate from the assembly in Jerusalem. In seeking to keep “the unity of the Spirit,” two representatives came down from Jerusalem and laid their hands on those in Samaria (an expression of practical fellowship—Gal. 2:99And when James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given unto me, they gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of fellowship; that we should go unto the heathen, and they unto the circumcision. (Galatians 2:9)), whereby the Spirit of God identified Himself with them. It shows that it is not God’s mind to have independent assemblies. Mr. C. H. Brown said, “God did not permit the Samaritans to get official recognition as belonging to the Church [assembly] until they got it from these emissaries that came down from Jerusalem.” Great care was taken by the Spirit of God to link these believers “together” with those in Jerusalem so that there would be one practical expression of the “one body” on earth, even though this truth had not yet been revealed as a matter of doctrine.
When the Apostle Paul came across a group of believers at Ephesus (Acts 19:1-61And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, 2He said unto them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost. 3And he said unto them, Unto what then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism. 4Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. 5When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied. (Acts 19:1‑6)) who were unaware of others with whom God had worked, he found that the Spirit of God had not owned them as being on the divine ground of the assembly. They were not recognized as being on the ground of the “one body” until they had the Spirit and had practical fellowship (signified by the laying on of hands) with those whom the Spirit had already gathered. In reference to this group of believers C. H. Brown also said, “They needed something. They had to be brought into the same unity that already existed. They could not be owned as occupying a different ground to the rest of them. Paul could not say, ‘You folks are not on the same ground as the folks up at Antioch, or at Jerusalem, but you have a lot of truth, and I will just go on with you.’ Oh no. He is going to see that they are brought onto the same ground as the rest. They were brought into the same thing that had been formed before they ever heard of it.” Here again we see the care and the wisdom that God had in maintaining “the unity of the Spirit” so that there would be one practical expression of the truth of the “one body.”
Assembly Discipline
Scripture clearly indicates that the truth of the “one body” should also be expressed in matters having to do with discipline and excommunication. Even though there may be many miles between assemblies, they are seen as all being on one ground and in one fellowship; when one assembly acts in an administrative capacity, the other assemblies recognize that act of binding or loosing (Matt. 18:18-2018Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:18‑20)), because such acts made in one assembly are made on behalf of the body at large.
In 1 Corinthians 12:2727Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. (1 Corinthians 12:27), Paul indicates that the assembly at Corinth was the local representative of the body at large. This would be true of all assemblies, whether it was Corinth, Ephesus, Philippi, etc. Unfortunately, this verse in the KJV says, “Now ye are the body of Christ.” This is misleading and might cause someone to think that the body of Christ was only at Corinth—as if they were the only ones in the body, or that each local assembly was the body of Christ. This is not correct because the body of Christ embraces all Christians on the face of the earth. The verse should read, “Now ye are Christ’s body, and members in particular.” This more accurately conveys the thought. Note: Paul does not say, “we,” but “ye ... .” He was speaking of the assembly at Corinth. They were surely not the whole body, but they were of Christ’s body—that is, part of the whole.
Hamilton Smith illustrates this point by asking us to suppose that a General, addressing a local company of soldiers, might say, “Remember men, you are Coldstream Guards.” He would not say, “You are the Coldstream Guards,” because they do not form the whole regiment. The absence of the article “the” in the correct translation conveys the right thought that the Corinthian assembly was the local expression of the body of Christ at large. Being the local representative of the whole body, the assembly is to act on behalf of the body at large in administrative affairs of fellowship. Hence, whether acting in reception, discipline, or some other matter, they do so in view of the body as a whole—that is, what is acted on in one locality extends to the whole. Each assembly’s competency to act on behalf of the body at large comes from the fact that the Lord is in the midst sanctioning the ground on which it meets and its administrative actions (Matt. 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20)).
If one assembly should make a binding decision in putting someone away from the fellowship, the body at large acts in fellowship with that assembly and recognizes the action so that the person “put away” is regarded as “without” in all other gatherings too—not just in the locality where he resides. We see this in 1 Corinthians 5:1313But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person. (1 Corinthians 5:13), where the assembly at Corinth was to put away that wicked person from their midst. Then, 2 Corinthians 2:66Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. (2 Corinthians 2:6) tells us that the “rebuke” or “censure” made by the Corinthian assembly was “inflicted by the many.” “The many” refers to the body at large—the mass of the saints universally (see J. N. Darby’s Translation footnote). Hence the offender is made to feel the rebuke by more than just his local assembly. (We do not say that the man in question actually went to other localities and felt the rebuke by them, but that the action was carried out by the body at large.) The point here is that if a person were to be put out of the fellowship in a particular locality, he is regarded as out of fellowship everywhere on earth, because what is done in the name of the Lord in one assembly affects the whole in practice.
Matthew 18:1818Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 18:18) confirms this. The Lord said, “Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth. ... ” This shows that a decision made by an assembly is made for the whole earth. The Lord didn’t say that it was something for a specific locality. There is nothing in Scripture about making a binding decision that only applies to a certain locality. In this verse, the Lord is simply saying that if the assembly makes a decision in His name, He will recognize it. If heaven recognizes it, then all on earth are to recognize it too.
Likewise, when it comes to loosing an action that has been bound, the assembly where the binding action was made lifts the censure and (administratively) forgives the repentant person that it has excommunicated, then the body at large follows, expressing forgiveness also, in receiving the person if he should come to those assemblies. Hence, when it is “loosed in heaven,” it is loosed in all other assemblies too. An example of loosing is seen in Paul’s remarks in 2 Corinthians 2:7-117So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. 8Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him. 9For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things. 10To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; 11Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. (2 Corinthians 2:7‑11). While Paul had authority to act apostolically in this matter, if need be, he chose to wait until the assembly at Corinth acted, so as to keep “the unity of the Spirit.” He said, “To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also.” By doing this, the Church expresses the truth that it is “one body.”
Paul went on to say, “Lest Satan should get an advantage of us” (2 Cor 2:1111Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. (2 Corinthians 2:11)). Note: he didn’t say, “Get an advantage of you”—referring to the Corinthians; he said, “Us.” This indicates the saints at large in the “one body.” Paul knew that Satan was seeking to divide the assemblies in their universal testimony of the one body, and this delicate inter-assembly matter was where he would work. Therefore, Paul, as representing the saints abroad, indicates how we are to act in these matters of loosing an assembly judgment. Even though he (and perhaps others) knew that the man was repentant and should be restored to fellowship, he didn’t go ahead of the assembly at Corinth and act independently in the matter, though, being an apostle, he had authority to do so. Instead, he waited for the Corinthians to act in the matter first; then he and the rest of the saints elsewhere on earth would accept its judgment and follow it. We are taught by this that we are not to act independently, but in concert with the assembly that makes the action, and thus express that we are one body.
We see another example of the truth of the “one body” practiced in Acts 15, when trouble arose among the saints at Antioch on account of Judaizing teachers from Jerusalem who disturbed the saints with their doctrine of mixing law and grace. Again, we learn some valuable lessons as to how God would have us to deal with inter-assembly problems. The first thing we find is that they determined to take the problem up with those at Jerusalem. We might think that the reason they took the matter there was because it was God’s center for dealing with assembly problems, as if it were the one central place on earth (a headquarters) to which the assemblies were to take their problems. But the assembly at Antioch did not go to Jerusalem because it was unqualified to handle the problem—the Lord was in the midst in the Antioch assembly as He was in Jerusalem. And, if it were simply a case where they wanted an apostolic judgment in the matter, they could have appealed to the apostles Paul and Barnabas who were there at Antioch. Who but the Apostle Paul was more qualified to handle matters touching law and grace? While it’s true that they valued the insight of the apostles and leaders at Jerusalem in the matter, the deeper reason for going up to Jerusalem was to “keep the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace.” The fact was that the Judaizing teachers who were troubling the saints at Antioch had come out from Jerusalem (vs. 24). So as not to break the practical unity between the two assemblies, the brethren at Antioch would not deal with the problem independently but took it to its source and let Jerusalem deal with it.
It teaches us that if one from a certain assembly visits another assembly and does wrong there, so that it requires correction or disciplinary action, that that gathering is not to act independently but to bring it to the local assembly from which the troublemaker has come, so that they can deal with it. Thus, “the unity of the Spirit” is kept in the uniting bond of peace. This, again, shows that Scripture does not support the idea of assemblies acting autonomously.
It is noteworthy that when they went up to Jerusalem with this matter, and stopped at various assemblies along the way, they did not upset those gatherings by spreading the problem among them. They only spoke of things that would cause “great joy” among the saints, though they were, no doubt, deeply burdened about the matter that struck at the heart of the Christian’s standing in grace. This teaches us the importance of not spreading local assembly problems needlessly. Our adversary, the devil, could get a hold of it and use it to cause trouble among the saints.
Hence, a Scripturally gathered assembly is not autonomous, but functions in fellowship with all other assemblies on the true ground of the Church, because it meets on the ground of the “one body.” The principle of the “one body” is also to be acted on when a whole assembly goes wrong. If that assembly refuses to deal with its wrongs after it has been shown to them conclusively from the Word of God, it is to be disowned by the binding action of another assembly acting on behalf of the body at large. After carefully looking into the matter, they would simply make a formal statement that the assembly in error is no longer gathered on the true ground of the Church of God. Following the principle in the type in Deuteronomy 21:1-91If one be found slain in the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee to possess it, lying in the field, and it be not known who hath slain him: 2Then thy elders and thy judges shall come forth, and they shall measure unto the cities which are round about him that is slain: 3And it shall be, that the city which is next unto the slain man, even the elders of that city shall take an heifer, which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawn in the yoke; 4And the elders of that city shall bring down the heifer unto a rough valley, which is neither eared nor sown, and shall strike off the heifer's neck there in the valley: 5And the priests the sons of Levi shall come near; for them the Lord thy God hath chosen to minister unto him, and to bless in the name of the Lord; and by their word shall every controversy and every stroke be tried: 6And all the elders of that city, that are next unto the slain man, shall wash their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley: 7And they shall answer and say, Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. 8Be merciful, O Lord, unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of Israel's charge. And the blood shall be forgiven them. 9So shalt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou shalt do that which is right in the sight of the Lord. (Deuteronomy 21:1‑9), the action is to be taken by an assembly that is the nearest to the problem and knows the situation intimately. (The nearness here is not necessarily a geographical nearness, but a moral nearness. This is seen in Acts 151And certain men which came down from Judea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. 2When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question. 3And being brought on their way by the church, they passed through Phenice and Samaria, declaring the conversion of the Gentiles: and they caused great joy unto all the brethren. 4And when they were come to Jerusalem, they were received of the church, and of the apostles and elders, and they declared all things that God had done with them. 5But there rose up certain of the sect of the Pharisees which believed, saying, That it was needful to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses. 6And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter. 7And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. 8And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; 9And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:1‑9). The assembly at Antioch was morally nearest to the problem, having had the Judaizing teachers teach their bad doctrine in that assembly. They took it up with the assembly at Jerusalem, from which the Judaizers came, even though there were other assemblies geographically nearer to Jerusalem.)
This collective responsibility is illustrated in another type in Deuteronomy 13. If evil was found in a person in a city in the land, the city wherein he lived was to “stone” him to death (vss. 6-11). Stoning speaks of the conscience of all in a local assembly being engaged in the judgment of a wicked person in its midst. But, if a city is found to have evil in it that it won’t judge, then the other cites in the land were to act for the Lord’s glory and judge that city. It was to be destroyed and made a heap forever (vss. 12-18). This shows that there was a collective responsibility on the part of all the cities in Israel to put away evil in the land. See also Judges 19-20. Typically, it speaks of an assembly that has proved to be unrighteous, being disowned by the other assemblies in fellowship with it, and thereafter, it is viewed as no longer gathered on the true ground of the Church.
In view of these Scriptural principles, we can affirm that Scripture knows nothing of independent (autonomous) fellowships. Local assemblies are not seen in Scripture as “islands” of separate fellowships all to themselves in the ocean of the Christian profession; Scripture sees only one universal fellowship to which all Christians are called (1 Cor. 1:99God is faithful, by whom ye were called unto the fellowship of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. (1 Corinthians 1:9)). The Open Brethren call this “the inter-connexualism of assemblies” (as opposed to their “autonomy of assemblies”), but Scripture calls it keeping “the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace; there is one body” (Eph. 4:3-43Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; (Ephesians 4:3‑4)).
The Principle of a Confederacy—an Imitation of the Practical Unity in the “One Body”
Oftentimes, when those with the Open Brethren hear of these principles of inter-assembly fellowship, they will say, “We do that; we receive persons from other assemblies who have a letter of commendation, and we recognize the administrative acts of discipline made in other assemblies. When someone has been excommunicated from another assembly for some sin, we will not receive that person.”
It is true that assemblies among the Open Brethren will often recognize one another’s acts, but they don’t do it because they see that such decisions are “bound in heaven,” and therefore, binding on each assembly. They will clearly state that they do not believe that each assembly is bound by another assembly’s acts. They believe that each assembly is to take up the case for itself and arrive at its own conclusion before the Lord. If they come to the same conclusion that the other assemblies have arrived at on the matter (which they often do), they mutually consent, and act in accord with it. But, being independent assemblies as they are, they reserve the right to accept or reject a decision made by another assembly. Therefore, outwardly, it may look like they are acting on the principle of the “one body”—but it only appears that way; it really is an imitation of that truth.
The Open Brethren are a system of independent assemblies meeting on the principle of a confederacy. It is an unscriptural principle of unity and a perversion of the truth of the “one body.” Fellowship between assemblies is based on a mutual recognition of each assembly being independent, and that each assembly is free to come to its own determinations in matters. When an action is taken in an assembly, they don’t pretend to be making it on behalf of other assemblies, because they believe that all administrative assembly actions are purely local. Hence, a matter dealt with in one assembly is open to reconsideration and review in another assembly. This unscriptural principle of independency assumes that everything stops at the local assembly and does not extend to other assemblies. If assemblies happen to act together in a matter it is purely on the principle of mutual consent.
An illustration given by W. J. Brockmeier helps us to see the root principle of a confederacy. He asks us to consider the position of the two sides of the United States in the Civil War (1861-1865). The Union (the North) viewed the nation as one indissoluble whole; the Confederacy’s (the South) position was that each state retained the right to be—or not to be—part of the nation, if matters were such where they differed in opinion. The North viewed secession as illegal, while the South held that each state had the right to secede. Thus, we have the root principle of a confederacy; it is the very thing on which the Open Brethren operate in inter-assembly matters.
Hence, when a person visits from one locality to another, and presents a “letter of commendation” to an Open Brethren assembly, it is really more of a letter of recommendation, because each assembly retains the right to accept or reject the person. (This would be in the “tight” arm of the Open Brethren because the “loose” arm has all but given up any kind of care in reception.) They do not see the person as being already in fellowship; hence, there is a need for a re-examination in the locality to which he travels. Their view of a letter of commendation (which a visitor presents) is that it merely assists the assembly in its examination of the person, and acts as an aid to their arriving at a decision as to whether they will receive that person or not. In N. Noel’s “History of the Brethren,” he tells us that these letters will often be “personal, individual, and private letters of commendation!” In other words, they are the personal opinions of sincere individuals regarding the person who carries the letter. He also reports that most Open Brethren assemblies disapprove of the use of letters from one assembly to another. In fact, according to Mr. Noel, they will declare that a letter of commendation is not a “communion ticket,” but evidence that, in the judgment of godly men, the bearer of it belongs to Christ. It is clear from this that “letters of commendation” among the Open Brethren have really lost their Scriptural meaning.
As we proceed, it will become clear that the false principle of independency, first introduced at Bethesda, is indeed an imitation of the truth. Let us remember that we have been warned by the Apostle Paul that there are going to be those in the Christian profession who will imitate the things of God. He speaks of “Jannes and Jambres” as an example (2 Tim. 3:88Now as Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses, so do these also resist the truth: men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. (2 Timothy 3:8)). What those two men did looked like the real thing, but it was not.
Practical Problems That Result From the False Principle of the Autonomy of Assemblies
Employing human principles in the things of God will always be problematic. The idea of each assembly being autonomous is no exception; there are unintended consequences that result. The problems arise when it comes to putting this unscriptural principle into practice. We will now look at some of these problems.
The Lack of Uniformity in Assemblies
Firstly, since each Open Brethren assembly is inherently independent, being left to itself in all matters, principles and practices vary from one assembly to the next. Thus, each assembly tends to have a different character and order. In some cases, it is slight, but in others it is quite significant. The diversity ranges from the type of meetings carried on, to the standard of holiness used in reception. Slowly but surely, the Open Brethren assemblies have drifted to polarizing views on reception, the use of musical instruments in the meetings, the use or disuse of head coverings, etc. The result is that Open Brethren meetings generally lack uniformity from locality to locality, and from one country to another. Today, the differences between the “tight” arm (the Halls) and the “loose” arm (the Chapels) are worlds apart.
Meeting on Scriptural principles, there is a certain degree of immunity from this drift. When the Spirit of God gathers believers unto the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, He gathers them “together” (Matt. 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20)). If the Spirit of God is given His rightful place as President in the assemblies, He will produce unity of doctrine and practice. The assemblies will have a singular uniformity, being universally of “one mind and one mouth” (Rom. 15:66That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 15:6)).
In keeping with this, Paul taught and encouraged uniformity in all the assemblies (1 Cor. 1:22Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours: (1 Corinthians 1:2)). In the early Church there was one common standard of doctrine and practice for every assembly. He could say, “ ... as I teach everywhere in every assembly” (1 Cor. 4:1717For this cause have I sent unto you Timotheus, who is my beloved son, and faithful in the Lord, who shall bring you into remembrance of my ways which be in Christ, as I teach every where in every church. (1 Corinthians 4:17)). There was also one common standard for conduct, regardless of the culture. He said, “Thus I ordain in all the assemblies” (1 Cor. 7:1717But as God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches. (1 Corinthians 7:17)). There was also one common way for sisters to recognize headship in the new creation, in prayer and prophesying, expressed in the use of head coverings. In this regard, Paul said, “We have no such custom, nor the assemblies of God” (1 Cor. 11:1616But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God. (1 Corinthians 11:16)). There was one order for public ministry of the Word in the assemblies. Since the Spirit of God was there in the midst using the gifts that were present, there was a uniformity of godly order in those meetings. He said, “As in all the assemblies of the saints” (1 Cor. 14:3333For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints. (1 Corinthians 14:33)). Finally, there was one common use for the funds accumulated in their collections. Paul said again, “ ... as I have given order to the assemblies” (1 Cor. 16:1-31Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. 2Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come. 3And when I come, whomsoever ye shall approve by your letters, them will I send to bring your liberality unto Jerusalem. (1 Corinthians 16:1‑3); Rom. 15:25-2625But now I go unto Jerusalem to minister unto the saints. 26For it hath pleased them of Macedonia and Achaia to make a certain contribution for the poor saints which are at Jerusalem. (Romans 15:25‑26)). His great burden was that the various local assemblies, wherever they were on earth, would practice the same things when they came together—whether it was for worship or for ministry.
Walking together in one universal fellowship tends to encourage uniformity from one gathering to another. In Scripture, we find that when new gatherings were established on the true ground of the Church, they did not meet in any way they desired, but followed the order in the assemblies that already existed. It says of the Thessalonian believers, “For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 2:1414For ye, brethren, became followers of the churches of God which in Judea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews: (1 Thessalonians 2:14)). This shows that there was consistency and uniformity from one assembly to another in those days—and there should be today.
The Difficulty of Judging Accurately
Another thing that is problematic with the false principle of independency is that when each assembly is left to judge matters for itself among the assemblies at large, it is exceedingly difficult to judge accurately. The farther away an assembly is from the problem, the greater this reality becomes. How would they know the details of the case, or the spirit of a thing (which often is the key), to be able to judge the matter accurately?
This is the very thing that Bethesda complained about. They did not feel that they were capable of judging the matter of the evil teacher and his followers in Plymouth, not having known the details of the case. This may have been true, but they failed to see that they were not asked, nor were they responsible to look into the details of the sin in Plymouth and make a judgment—it was something that had already been done; a godly judgment had been arrived at concerning the evil. All that was required of brethren was to accept the judgment that was made and to refuse those from Ebrington Street, Plymouth. Thus, “the unity of the Spirit” would have been kept in “the uniting bond of peace.”
God’s way is simple, but man’s way complicates matters. God’s way is to have the matter looked into and judged in the place where it occurs. If it concerns an individual, or a whole assembly that has gone wrong, those who are intimately acquainted with the problem and are morally nearest to it are to make the judgment (Deut. 17:77The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from among you. (Deuteronomy 17:7)). If it is a whole assembly, that assembly is disowned, and such is done on behalf of all the assemblies at large. The other assemblies do not have to look into the case and judge the matter for themselves—they wouldn’t be able to do it accurately anyway, because they are not from that area. The simplicity of God’s order is that the other assemblies do not have to make the decision; the decision is made for them. All that the assemblies abroad are to do is to bow to the action, because “there is one body” (Eph. 4:3-43Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; (Ephesians 4:3‑4)), and in doing so, “the unity of the Spirit” is kept. How could we think that an assembly, hundreds—maybe thousands—of miles away from a problem could properly judge a matter accurately? God does not place such an impossible task on the Church. His way is to have those at the epicentre of the problem deal with it, for, and on behalf of, all the other assemblies.
All Bethesda had to do was to accept the decision of the brethren who knew the whole case at Plymouth and keep Mr. Newton’s supporters out of fellowship in Bristol. But misunderstanding this principle, they thought it was incumbent upon them to deal with it, and they handled it in their own independent way. By taking the matter into their own hands, they were, essentially, re-judging the case and the judgment at Bath. When this error was brought to the attention of the leaders at Bethesda they defended their independent action rather than own their wrong, and this only made matters worse. It gave occasion to the dividing of the brethren at large.
The Inevitable Likelihood of Assemblies Coming to Opposing Decisions and Thus Disrupting Unity
Another complication that arises from the false principle of independency is that it opens the door to the possibility of assemblies coming to opposing decisions in certain matters, and thus, ceasing to walk with one another as far as inter-assembly fellowship is concerned. This is not hypothetical; because of this very thing, not all Open Brethren assemblies are in fellowship with each other.
For example, assemblies A, B, and C recognize and accept a decision (judgment) made by assembly X, but assemblies D, E, and F do not recognize that decision. Assemblies D, E, and F consequently fall out of practical fellowship with X, but remain in fellowship with A, B, and C, who are in fellowship with X! This is utter confusion, yet it is a present reality among the “tight” arm of the Open Brethren. It is not the unity of assemblies of which Scripture speaks.
The result of this principle of independency is that the whole system on which the assemblies stand breaks down when it comes to the practice of it. Mr. Darby illustrates this by saying, “Supposing we were a body of Freemasons, and a person were excluded from one lodge by the rules of the order, and instead of looking to the lodge to review the case, if it was thought to be unjust, each other lodge were to receive him or not on their own independent authority, it would be clear that the unity of the Freemasons systems is gone. Each lodge is an independent body acting for itself. It is vain to allege a wrong done, and the lodge not being infallible, the competent authority of lodges and the unity of the whole is at an end, and the system is dissolved.”
Evil Cannot Be Properly Dealt with in the Fellowship of Assemblies at Large
An even more serious consequence of the system of independent meetings is the loss of true Scriptural discipline. The principle of independency prevents evil from being adequately dealt with. Since each assembly is autonomous, and judges for itself, if an offender were justly disciplined by his local assembly, he might go to another assembly and be received. The decision of the second meeting would be its own responsibility and would not concern the first. The offender could then travel around to the various gatherings with a letter of commendation from the second meeting and he would not be affected by the discipline enacted by the first meeting. The first meeting would not consider it a matter of concern, unless the offender they had disciplined came back to them, which he would not likely do. Hence, all effective discipline is negated by this unscriptural principle.
This false system of independency makes it possible for a person to be part of a decision that rightly excommunicates a wicked person, yet he faces the possibility of breaking bread with him in another assembly! Mr. Darby said that the independent system of assemblies “entails the consequence that I might participate in the exclusion of a wicked person in one meeting and take the Lord’s Supper with him in another!” This is confusion. Again, such scenarios are not merely hypothetical, but actually happen on occasion among the Open Brethren. Mr. W. Hoste (an avowed defender of the Open Brethren) has admitted that he knew of such cases.
There is No Recourse to Set Right an Unrighteous Assembly Judgment
It could happen that a brother might be put out of a meeting unjustly. He could find some comfort in being received at another assembly, but the decision of the unjust meeting could not be challenged. Hence, there is no possibility of ever having the matter set right. The assembly in question can continue under the banner of Open Brethren and nothing can be done about it.
Or, a teacher of serious error may arise in one assembly, and that assembly could be in such a state that it does not see the error, and consequently, does not deal with him. Other meetings might rightly refuse the evil teacher, if he should go there, but his local gathering could not be dealt with by the other assemblies. Since the Open Brethren assemblies allow those in association with the evil teacher’s doctrine to be received in the other assemblies (providing that they were not convicted of holding and promoting those doctrines), there is no way of stopping collateral defilement from spreading through the other assemblies from that evil teacher.
Summary
In summary: the false principle we have considered in chapter 1 lets evil into the fellowship at large, and the false principle that we have now considered in chapter 2 makes it impossible to put it out! This is always the result when human opinions, principles, and methods are introduced into the things of God. There are unintended consequences.
Four Objections to the “One Body” Being the Ground on Which the Church Should Meet
The Open Brethren will argue strenuously for their independency by saying that it is not possible to practice the truth of the “one body.” The following are four main objections:
Objection #1
“If you practice the truth of the one body, you will of necessity have to break bread with every member of the body of Christ. This means that you would be breaking bread in fellowship with Catholics, Episcopalians, Congregationalists, Charismatics—in short, with every kind of evil doctrine and practise in Christendom. This is something that God would not ask His people to do. Anyway, how would you ever get all Christians in the body of Christ to consent to these principles; they don’t want them?”
The Principle of a Remnant Testimony
It is clear that those who say this don’t understand the concept in Scripture of a “remnant testimony.” It is extremely important to grasp this truth, for it has a great measure of application to our day.
A great principle on which God acts when that which He has committed into the hands of men in testimony fails is that He reduces its size, strength, glory, and numbers, and carries it on thereafter in a remnant form. He no longer identifies Himself with the existing testimony at large in the power and glory that He once did when it was first established. If He were to do that, it would give the appearance that He condoned the conditions that exist in its fallen state. Instead, He falls back upon His sovereign power and grace to maintain His testimony—but in a remnant form. God has acted on this principle in Israel in the past, and He will do it again with the Jewish remnant in a coming day, and He is doing it today in the Christian testimony.
To see this principle in God’s Word more clearly, turn to Deuteronomy 12:5-75But unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put his name there, even unto his habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come: 6And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: 7And there ye shall eat before the Lord your God, and ye shall rejoice in all that ye put your hand unto, ye and your households, wherein the Lord thy God hath blessed thee. (Deuteronomy 12:5‑7), “The place which the LORD your God shall choose out of all your tribes to put His name there, even unto His habitation shall ye seek, and thither thou shalt come. And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: and there ye shall eat before the Lord your God.” This shows that originally it was God’s desire for all His people to gather for worship at this one “place” of His choosing, which was Jerusalem.
Now turn to 1 Kings 11:9-13, “And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned from the LORD God of Israel, which had appeared unto him twice, and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it for David thy father’s sake: but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but will give one tribe to thy son for David My servant’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake which I have chosen.”
Then, in verses 29-36 it says, “And it came to pass at that time when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; and he had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field: and Ahijah caught the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces: And he said to Jeroboam, Take thee ten pieces: for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee: (but he shall have one tribe for My servant David’s sake, and for Jerusalem’s sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel:) because that they have forsaken Me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of the Moabites, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon, and have not walked in My ways, to do that which is right in Mine eyes, and to keep My statutes and My judgments, as did David his father. Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand: but I will make him prince all the days of his life for David My servant’s sake, whom I chose, because he kept My commandments and My statutes: but I will take the kingdom out of his son’s hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David My servant may have a light alway before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen Me to put My name there.”
Then in chapter 12:22-24 it says, “The word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying, Speak unto Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the remnant of the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel: return every man to his house; for this thing is from Me.”
We see from this, that although it was God’s desire to have all His people gather at Jerusalem to offer their sacrifices (Deut. 12), since failure had come in, He would no longer continue His testimony at His divine center in the power and glory that it once had. Solomon and the children of Israel had failed and had turned from the Lord to idolatry (1 Kings 11:10-11, 33), and this led the Lord to change His ways with them. He would reduce the size, power, and glory of His testimony in Israel and carry it on thereafter in a “remnant.” It would continue thereafter with just one of the twelve tribes.
This is the first time in Scripture that the word “remnant” is used in connection with the public testimony of God’s people. The “first-time rule” in Bible interpretation is important to observe, because when something is first used in Scripture, it usually gives the sense of how it will be used thereafter in other passages. Hence, we do well to pay attention to what is said here. The important thing to see is that there was a marked change in God’s ways when failure came in. He removed ten of the tribes from the divine center and kept only “one tribe” there—a remnant. The Lord said, “This thing is from Me.” It was His doing in removing most of His people from the divine center of gathering. It is not a contradiction of God’s principles as given in Deuteronomy 12, but a change in His ways when wholesale failure had come in.
The Lord will act on this same principle with the Jews in the coming Great Tribulation. When the nation gives itself over to the idolatry that the Antichrist brings in, the Lord will separate a remnant among them and will bring many of them through that time of trouble into His Millennial kingdom (Isa. 8:12-18; 17:6-7; 66:212Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. 13Sanctify the Lord of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14And he shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken. 16Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. 17And I will wait upon the Lord, that hideth his face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for him. 18Behold, I and the children whom the Lord hath given me are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, which dwelleth in mount Zion. (Isaiah 8:12‑18)
6Yet gleaning grapes shall be left in it, as the shaking of an olive tree, two or three berries in the top of the uppermost bough, four or five in the outmost fruitful branches thereof, saith the Lord God of Israel. 7At that day shall a man look to his Maker, and his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 17:6‑7)
2For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word. (Isaiah 66:2)). In those days, “the testimony” will not be with the mass of the nation, but “among My disciples” (Isa. 8:1616Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples. (Isaiah 8:16)).
Some may ask, “I can see this principle in God’s dealings with Israel, but can it be applied to the Church’s testimony?” The answer, unequivocally, is yes. We see the principle of it in the passage that we looked at in 2 Timothy 2:19-2219Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his. And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity. 20But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth; and some to honor, and some to dishonor. 21If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. 22Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. (2 Timothy 2:19‑22). There, God encourages exercised believers to separate from the mixture in the house of God and to retreat to a remnant position “with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart.”
It is seen more specifically in Revelation 2-3. These chapters outline the prophetic history of the Church from its early days, just after the apostles, right down to the last days. If we follow the course of things as depicted in these addresses to the seven churches, we will see a downward course in the Christian testimony, until finally, a point of no recovery is reached, and thereafter, the Lord acts on the principle of a remnant testimony.
In Ephesus, we learn that “the angel of the church” (the responsible leaders) rightly judged all that was inconsistent with the Lord. It says that they would not “bear them which are evil.” But sadly, their heart was not with Him in it (Rev. 2:2-42I know thy works, and thy labor, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars: 3And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast labored, and hast not fainted. 4Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love. (Revelation 2:2‑4)). In Smyrna, any further slide downward was temporarily stayed by the great persecutions that came upon the Church. The severity of the trial cast them back on the Lord. But in Pergamos, when the times of great persecution were ended, “the angel of the church” began tolerating some who held “the doctrine of Balaam,” which is worldliness and idolatry. The angel was not charged with holding these doctrines, but the Lord found fault with them because they did not denounce the evil, as did the angel at Ephesus.
In Thyatira, a worse condition prevailed; “the angel of the church” allowed the same evil doctrine and practice that was held by some in Pergamos to be taught! (Compare Rev. 2:1414But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication. (Revelation 2:14) with 2:20) What started out as some holding evil doctrine resulted in many teaching the evil doctrine. This shows that if the holding of evil is not judged, it will lead to the propounding of it. In Thyatira, the teaching of this evil had developed into a system of things called “Jezebel,” which surely answers to Catholicism. In the Middle Ages, that wicked system had such a tyrannical grip on the church at large, with its strength and organization, that it controlled the angel! Those who were in the place of responsibility had failed to deal with it when they could have, and now it had grown into a monster that controlled them! (Compare Acts 27:14-1514But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon. 15And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive. (Acts 27:14‑15). The “Euroclydon”—a great Mediterranean wind—swept over the sailing ship, and the sailors could do nothing but “let her drive.”) The figure of “Jezebel” is aptly used here because that woman not only brought idolatry into Israel formally, but she also controlled and manipulated her husband, king Ahab.
Such being the case of the public state of the Church, where there remained no power to deal with evil, the Lord separated a remnant, saying, “But unto you I say, the rest [remnant]...” He let the mass go (Rev. 2:2424But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. (Revelation 2:24)). Thereafter, He worked with a remnant that would hear what the Spirit was saying to the churches. Here, we have the word “remnant” used in connection with the Christian testimony. It is significant that the Lord did not put on them “the burden” of setting right the confusion in the Christian testimony in an effort to bring the church back to where it once was. Instead, He turned their focus forward to His coming, saying, “Hold fast till I come” (Rev. 2:2525But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. (Revelation 2:25)).
From that point forward, a marked change is seen in the Lord’s ways with the Church. Up to this point, the voice of the Spirit was to the whole Church. “What the Spirit saith unto the churches” preceded the promise to the overcomer in the first three churches. This indicates that the reward to the overcomer was set before the whole Church because the Lord was still dealing with it at large. But now, at this point, that order is reversed. The call to “hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches” follows the promise to the overcomer. This is the order in the latter four churches. What the Spirit has to say in regard to Church order is no longer given to the masses—only to the overcomer. This is because it is assumed that only the overcomer will hear what the Spirit is saying—in the context of Church order the masses are not expected to hear and repent. Paul’s prediction to Timothy that the masses would “turn away their ears from the truth” has come to pass (2 Tim. 4:2-3), and therefore, the Spirit is no longer speaking to the body at large.
Remarking on this change, J. N. Darby said that the body at large is “dropped” from this point onward, because the public mass in the Christian profession is treated as being incapable of hearing and repenting. Mr. W. Kelly said, “The Lord thenceforth puts the promise [to the overcomer] first, and this is because it is vain to expect the Church as a whole to receive it ...a remnant only, overcome, and the promise is for them; as for the others, it is all over.” As a result, the Lord no longer expected the mass of the Christian profession to hear and to return to the point from which it had departed. All thought of recovering the Church at large is abandoned because it has reached a point of no recovery. This is why we do not believe that the Spirit is necessarily speaking to every person in Christendom today in regard to the truth of gathering. With most, He is letting them go their own way as to their ecclesiastical affiliations.
Working with a remnant testimony since that time, it has pleased the Lord to recover the truth that was lost through the Church’s carelessness in the centuries before. However, He has not seen fit to recover all of the truth at once. The remnant referred to in Revelation 2:24-2924But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden. 25But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. 26And he that overcometh, and keepeth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations: 27And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers: even as I received of my Father. 28And I will give him the morning star. 29He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. (Revelation 2:24‑29) are the Waldenses, the Albigenses, and others like them who separated from the evil of “Jezebel” in Medieval times. They were told to “hold fast” to what little truth they did have. Sometime later in Reformation times, the Lord allowed a little more truth to be recovered—such as the supremacy of the Bible and faith in Christ alone for salvation. But that movement of the Spirit was impeded by the Reformers turning to various national governments in Europe for help against the persecutions of the Church of Rome. This was tantamount to turning to the flesh for help instead of relying on the Lord (Jer. 17:55Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. (Jeremiah 17:5); Psa. 118:8-98It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in man. 9It is better to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in princes. (Psalm 118:8‑9); Isa. 31:11Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord! (Isaiah 31:1)). The result was the formation of the great national churches in Christendom, and the deadness of Protestantism began, as depicted in the church at Sardis (Rev. 3:1-61And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write; These things saith he that hath the seven Spirits of God, and the seven stars; I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead. 2Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God. 3Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. 4Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy. 5He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels. 6He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. (Revelation 3:1‑6)).
It was not until the early 1800s that the Lord gave a full recovery of “the faith which was once delivered unto the saints” (Jude 33Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints. (Jude 3)). It happened when men stepped away from all formal, man-made organization in Christendom. This is depicted in the Lord’s address to the church at Philadelphia (Rev. 3:7-137And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; 8I know thy works: behold, I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it: for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name. 9Behold, I will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, and are not, but do lie; behold, I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee. 10Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. 11Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown. 12Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. 13He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. (Revelation 3:7‑13)). At this time, God established a corporate testimony to the truth of the one body. Prior to this time, the remnant had been individuals who sought to go on faithfully in separation from the corruption of the Church of Rome. We are now in days when every man is doing that which is right in his own eyes (Judges 21:2525In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25)), and most are complacent in their low state. This is depicted in the church at Laodicea (Rev. 3:14-2214And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God; 15I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. 16So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth. 17Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked: 18I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see. 19As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent. 20Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me. 21To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne. 22He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches. (Revelation 3:14‑22)).
The thing for us to see here is that the Christian testimony has reached a point of irremediable ruin, and this has called for a change in the Lord’s ways with it. He has let go of any attempt to restore the public state of the Church at large to what it once was and is now working to maintain a testimony to the truth of gathering in a remnant form.
A Divine Provision for the Day of Ruin
Our point in mentioning a remnant testimony is to show that God has made a gracious provision for us in this day of ruin. In resorting to such a position in Christendom, we can still practice all the truth of God—including the truth of the “one body.” And in doing so, we do not have to compromise any principles by breaking bread with Christians who are defiled by their bad doctrines and evil practices. The brethren gathered to the Lord’s name from the early 1800s have taught this; it is not a new idea, though evidently misunderstood by the Open Brethren.
While we cannot practice the truth of the “one body” with all the members of the body of Christ today, we can still meet on the principle of the “one body.” To practice this truth the Lord does not need to have every single Christian in the world gathered together to do it—though it is His desire; but it can be done in a remnant testimony. The very meaning of the word “remnant” implies that all are not there. In divine prerogative and grace, God is taking a few here and a few there, and is gathering them unto the Lord’s name so that this remnant testimony is carried on until He comes.
The maintaining of this testimony today is a sovereign work of God. This is seen in the Lord’s remark to Philadelphia, “He that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth” (Rev. 3:77And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth; (Revelation 3:7)). No man or devil can hinder its continuance, though it might appear to carry on in much feebleness. Humbling as it may be, He does not need any one of those whom He has gathered, regardless of how gifted they might be. If we don’t want to be there and we go away, the Lord will gather someone else so that this remnant testimony will be carried on until His coming.
Let us say it again; God desires all the members of the body of Christ to be together in practical fellowship—whether they are Catholics or Charismatics, etc. (Eph. 4:1-161I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called, 2With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; 3Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling; 5One Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all. 7But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ. 8Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. 9(Now that he ascended, what is it but that he also descended first into the lower parts of the earth? 10He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.) 11And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 12For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; 15But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: 16From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:1‑16)). It is His ideal. But since ruin is everywhere in the Christian testimony, and there is much confusion and corruption, God’s Word indicates that we are to take a position of separation from the disorder and practice the truth in a remnant testimony.
The books of Ezra and Nehemiah illustrate remnant testimony principles typically, for those in that day were a remnant of God’s people in Israel. In Ezra 6:16-2216And the children of Israel, the priests, and the Levites, and the rest of the children of the captivity, kept the dedication of this house of God with joy, 17And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs; and for a sin offering for all Israel, twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel. 18And they set the priests in their divisions, and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God, which is at Jerusalem; as it is written in the book of Moses. 19And the children of the captivity kept the passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month. 20For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them were pure, and killed the passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves. 21And the children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek the Lord God of Israel, did eat, 22And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for the Lord had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel. (Ezra 6:16‑22), we see that when they had returned to the place of the Lord’s appointment (Jerusalem), they offered a sin offering “for all Israel,” even though all of the tribes were not there. This shows that they felt the general failure of the people of God and owned their part in it. It is significant that the offering had “twelve he goats, according to the number of the tribes of Israel.” This shows that even though it was some 500 years after the sad division of the tribes under Jeroboam, the remnant that had returned still had the whole nation on their hearts. They still held to God’s thought and purpose for the twelve tribes of Israel that they should gather as one at the divine center—Jerusalem.
The point to see here is that even though all the tribes were not there, it didn’t stop those who were from setting “the priests in their divisions [classes] and the Levites in their courses, for the service of God; as it is written in the book of Moses” (vs. 18). They were still able to practice the truth as it is written in the Word of God. They “kept the Passover” and “the feast of unleavened bread” in the prescribed manner (vss. 19-22). They even practiced Scriptural separation from those who—though they were Israelites—were defiled in the land.
The “Brethren” Are Not God’s Remnant in Christianity
Some will likely see pride and bigotry in the idea of a remnant testimony. They might say, “How can the Brethren think that they are God’s remnant today? It sounds like they believe they’re His chosen faithful few!”
This is really a “straw man argument.” A “straw man argument” is to set up a fictitious and flimsy argument that someone supposedly uses to defend his or her position on some belief, but like a straw man, it can hardly stand up on its own accord. Then, we come along and easily knock the straw man down and make ourselves look like a champion. This is what we have here. It’s easy to poke holes in the idea that brethren think they are God’s remnant today, and point out the bigotry of it, and so on. But the problem is that the statement is false to begin with; the brethren gathered to the Lord’s name do not believe that they are God’s remnant.
Brethren have always held and taught that all true believers among the mass of mere professors in Christendom are the remnant in Christianity. Ecclesiastically, the saints gathered to the Lord’s name simply occupy a remnant position in testimony and are where the remnant (all true believers) should be, as gathered to His name. The gathered saints, therefore, at best, are only part of God’s remnant; they make no claim to be the remnant. They may be accused of believing that they are God’s chosen few, but these accusations are bogus.
It may be that people think that the brethren are saying that there is ruin out there in the church denominations, but not among them, because they are doing things right and the churches are not. This also is a terrible misunderstanding. Brethren do not see themselves apart from the ruin; they fully own their part in it. They often refer to Daniel’s prayer as an example (Dan. 9). The gathered saints have been set in a very privileged position in Christendom, but sad to say, as a whole, they have not been faithful—and they will freely own it. The idea of the brethren thinking that they are God’s only faithful ones is pure fiction. They see themselves as being quite unfaithful, though extremely privileged. The misunderstanding here is that people are confusing the great privileges given to the gathered saints with their personal and collective faithfulness.
Let us remember that there would be no need of a remnant testimony if the Christian testimony at large were not in ruins. That there is such a thing as a remnant testimony is proof that the Christian profession at large has failed and is not what it should be. If the gathered saints are any kind of a testimony, they are a testimony to the fact that there is a sad ruin in the Christian profession.
Objection #2
“Teaching that all administrative actions of a local assembly are binding on all other assemblies is saying that the assembly is infallible, which it is not. The whole idea is akin to the evil of Popery that claims infallibility, and thus, it couldn’t be the truth.”
The Assembly is Vouchsafed with Authority, But Not with Infallibility
The misunderstanding here is falsely concluding that because the assembly has authority that it also has infallibility. There is no truth to this. An assembly gathered on divine ground is vouchsafed with authority, but not infallibility.
In Matthew 18:15-2015Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother. 16But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established. 17And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican. 18Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:15‑20) the Lord announced that He was going to confer His authority upon “the assembly” to act for Himself during His absence. This was a new departure in the ways of God. Israel was going to be set aside on account of their failure, and Christ would “build” His assembly (Matt. 16:1818And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. (Matthew 16:18)). The assembly was going to be the new divine administrative center on earth that God would set up and recognize. If difficulties were to arise among the saints, they were no longer to bring them to the judges at Jerusalem, as when He gave His authority to Israel to act for Himself in Judaism (Deut. 17:8-138If there arise a matter too hard for thee in judgment, between blood and blood, between plea and plea, and between stroke and stroke, being matters of controversy within thy gates: then shalt thou arise, and get thee up into the place which the Lord thy God shall choose; 9And thou shalt come unto the priests the Levites, and unto the judge that shall be in those days, and inquire; and they shall show thee the sentence of judgment: 10And thou shalt do according to the sentence, which they of that place which the Lord shall choose shall show thee; and thou shalt observe to do according to all that they inform thee: 11According to the sentence of the law which they shall teach thee, and according to the judgment which they shall tell thee, thou shalt do: thou shalt not decline from the sentence which they shall show thee, to the right hand, nor to the left. 12And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the Lord thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel. 13And all the people shall hear, and fear, and do no more presumptuously. (Deuteronomy 17:8‑13)); they were now to bring it to the assembly. He said, “Tell it to the assembly.”
The Lord went on to say that the assembly would have authority to act in His name administratively, if need be, saying, “Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” As mentioned already, an example of the assembly binding can be found in 1 Corinthians 5:11-1311But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. 12For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? 13But them that are without God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person. (1 Corinthians 5:11‑13) and an example of the assembly loosing is in 2 Corinthians 2:6-116Sufficient to such a man is this punishment, which was inflicted of many. 7So that contrariwise ye ought rather to forgive him, and comfort him, lest perhaps such a one should be swallowed up with overmuch sorrow. 8Wherefore I beseech you that ye would confirm your love toward him. 9For to this end also did I write, that I might know the proof of you, whether ye be obedient in all things. 10To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; 11Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. (2 Corinthians 2:6‑11). Thus, the assembly has been vouchsafed with the Lord’s authority to act in His name during the time of His absence, and its acts are to be submitted to as the final authority. This authority was not given to the apostles (though a special apostolic authority was given to them), but to the assembly.
However, because the assembly has been given authority, it does not mean that it is infallible in its acts. J. N. Darby has written a helpful article on this subject entitled, “Confounding Authority with Infallibility.” He shows that it’s possible that the things the assembly may bind on earth may be in error, but it does not change the fact that the Lord’s authority is vested in the assembly. Many people have been confused on this point. They can’t understand how an action that is wrong could be “bound.” They conclude that if it is wrong, then it couldn’t be bound in heaven. However, it is a mistake to think that “bound in heaven” means that it is necessarily approved by heaven. It simply means that heaven recognizes it. Heaven may not be pleased with a decision the assembly makes; yet stands by it. The thing is still bound because the assembly has been vested with the Lord’s authority to act for Him representatively. It is an extension of His authority, and it’s possible that that authority could be misused.
Illustrations abound in this regard, and it shows that we understand this principle in other areas of life. A police officer has authority but not infallibility. He could mistakenly arrest someone, and they would have to submit to it until it was set right. A father, having authority in his household, may also wrongly discipline one of the children in his family; again, the child would have to submit to the discipline until it was set right. The President of the United States could pass a law with the backing of Congress that is terribly wrong, both morally and ethically, but because he has authority, it would be a law that is bound on the nation until it was officially set aside. If the civil authorities were not run that way, there would be no order in government at all; we would be living in a state of anarchy. In each case, the place for those under such authorities is to acquiesce and submit to the decision until God sets it right. This is the way order is maintained in the house of God.
It should solemnize us greatly when we think that we could use the Lord’s authority mistakenly and identify heaven with something that is not right; and thus, incur His governmental judgment. If such a thing would happen that an assembly makes an unrighteous decision, there is recourse. Firstly, we can take the matter in prayer directly to the Lord, the Head of the Church. He can exercise the consciences of those in that locality to the end that they will set the action right. Secondly, the Lord will raise up prophets among them locally or send some from other assemblies to arouse the conscience of that assembly, so that it might be rectified (2 Cor. 2:44For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears; not that ye should be grieved, but that ye might know the love which I have more abundantly unto you. (2 Corinthians 2:4); Rev. 2:1313I know thy works, and where thou dwellest, even where Satan's seat is: and thou holdest fast my name, and hast not denied my faith, even in those days wherein Antipas was my faithful martyr, who was slain among you, where Satan dwelleth. (Revelation 2:13); 2 Chron. 24:19-2219Yet he sent prophets to them, to bring them again unto the Lord; and they testified against them: but they would not give ear. 20And the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah the son of Jehoiada the priest, which stood above the people, and said unto them, Thus saith God, Why transgress ye the commandments of the Lord, that ye cannot prosper? because ye have forsaken the Lord, he hath also forsaken you. 21And they conspired against him, and stoned him with stones at the commandment of the king in the court of the house of the Lord. 22Thus Joash the king remembered not the kindness which Jehoiada his father had done to him, but slew his son. And when he died, he said, The Lord look upon it, and require it. (2 Chronicles 24:19‑22); Judg. 9:5-215And he went unto his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being threescore and ten persons, upon one stone: notwithstanding yet Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself. 6And all the men of Shechem gathered together, and all the house of Millo, and went, and made Abimelech king, by the plain of the pillar that was in Shechem. 7And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them, Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. 8The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. 9But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honor God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? 10And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. 11But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? 12Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us. 13And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? 14Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and reign over us. 15And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 16Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands; 17(For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian: 18And ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother;) 19If ye then have dealt truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you: 20But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from the house of Millo, and devour Abimelech. 21And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother. (Judges 9:5‑21)). Thirdly, if that assembly refuses to deal with its wrongs after they have been shown to them conclusively from Scripture, that assembly would be disowned by a binding action of another assembly which would act on behalf of the body at large. They would simply state the fact that the assembly in error is no longer on the true ground of the Church of God. The whole (local) assembly in question is dealt with because it has defended the evil in its midst and has become a partner in it. If things reach this point, it is no longer a question of certain individuals in its midst being involved in the evil, but the whole (local) assembly that has refused to judge it. This is the sad but orderly and Scriptural way of dealing with a wrong assembly action, or inaction—should they fail to act to put away evil (Deut. 135And that prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put to death; because he hath spoken to turn you away from the Lord your God, which brought you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of the way which the Lord thy God commanded thee to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from the midst of thee. 6If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; 7Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; 8Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: 9But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. 10And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the Lord thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 11And all Israel shall hear, and fear, and shall do no more any such wickedness as this is among you. 12If thou shalt hear say in one of thy cities, which the Lord thy God hath given thee to dwell there, saying, 13Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known; 14Then shalt thou inquire, and make search, and ask diligently; and, behold, if it be truth, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought among you; 15Thou shalt surely smite the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, destroying it utterly, and all that is therein, and the cattle thereof, with the edge of the sword. 16And thou shalt gather all the spoil of it into the midst of the street thereof, and shalt burn with fire the city, and all the spoil thereof every whit, for the Lord thy God: and it shall be an heap for ever; it shall not be built again. 17And there shall cleave nought of the cursed thing to thine hand: that the Lord may turn from the fierceness of his anger, and show thee mercy, and have compassion upon thee, and multiply thee, as he hath sworn unto thy fathers; 18When thou shalt hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, to keep all his commandments which I command thee this day, to do that which is right in the eyes of the Lord thy God. 1Ye are the children of the Lord your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness between your eyes for the dead. 2For thou art an holy people unto the Lord thy God, and the Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth. 3Thou shalt not eat any abominable thing. (Deuteronomy 13:5‑14:3); Judg. 215And the children of Israel said, Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came not up with the congregation unto the Lord? For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up to the Lord to Mizpeh, saying, He shall surely be put to death. 6And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said, There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day. 7How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by the Lord that we will not give them of our daughters to wives? 8And they said, What one is there of the tribes of Israel that came not up to Mizpeh to the Lord? And, behold, there came none to the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly. 9For the people were numbered, and, behold, there were none of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead there. 10And the congregation sent thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest, and commanded them, saying, Go and smite the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the children. 11And this is the thing that ye shall do, Ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by man. 12And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins, that had known no man by lying with any male: and they brought them unto the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan. 13And the whole congregation sent some to speak to the children of Benjamin that were in the rock Rimmon, and to call peaceably unto them. 14And Benjamin came again at that time; and they gave them wives which they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh-gilead: and yet so they sufficed them not. 15And the people repented them for Benjamin, because that the Lord had made a breach in the tribes of Israel. 16Then the elders of the congregation said, How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin? 17And they said, There must be an inheritance for them that be escaped of Benjamin, that a tribe be not destroyed out of Israel. 18Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters: for the children of Israel have sworn, saying, Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin. 19Then they said, Behold, there is a feast of the Lord in Shiloh yearly in a place which is on the north side of Beth-el, on the east side of the highway that goeth up from Beth-el to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah. 20Therefore they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying, Go and lie in wait in the vineyards; 21And see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in dances, then come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. (Judges 21:5‑21); 2 Sam. 20:14-2214And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth-maachah, and all the Berites: and they were gathered together, and went also after him. 15And they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maachah, and they cast up a bank against the city, and it stood in the trench: and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down. 16Then cried a wise woman out of the city, Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab, Come near hither, that I may speak with thee. 17And when he was come near unto her, the woman said, Art thou Joab? And he answered, I am he. Then she said unto him, Hear the words of thine handmaid. And he answered, I do hear. 18Then she spake, saying, They were wont to speak in old time, saying, They shall surely ask counsel at Abel: and so they ended the matter. 19I am one of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel: thou seekest to destroy a city and a mother in Israel: why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the Lord? 20And Joab answered and said, Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy. 21The matter is not so: but a man of mount Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David: deliver him only, and I will depart from the city. And the woman said unto Joab, Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall. 22Then the woman went unto all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and cast it out to Joab. And he blew a trumpet, and they retired from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king. (2 Samuel 20:14‑22)). We mention this to show that there is recourse against the abuse of the Lord’s authority in administrative affairs.
Let us note that Scripture never instructs us to take matters into our own hands as individuals and act independently in what seems to be a wrong assembly action. Independent actions of individuals in such collective matters is always decried in Scripture (Deut. 17:1212And the man that will do presumptuously, and will not hearken unto the priest that standeth to minister there before the Lord thy God, or unto the judge, even that man shall die: and thou shalt put away the evil from Israel. (Deuteronomy 17:12); Num. 15:30-3130But the soul that doeth ought presumptuously, whether he be born in the land, or a stranger, the same reproacheth the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. 31Because he hath despised the word of the Lord, and hath broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off; his iniquity shall be upon him. (Numbers 15:30‑31)). It only opens the door to the enemy. God has His way in which such problems are to be dealt with, and we must follow His directions if order is to be maintained. Unfortunately, this is where many Christians get into error. They think that they can’t submit to something they believe is unrighteous and not according to Scripture. They think that they will be compromising a good conscience. Some will say, “I have to obey the Lord first, not the brethren.” But whether they realize it or not, they are really saying that they are more holy than the Lord Himself. If He can stand by the decision until it is rectified, why can’t we? An assembly that makes an error in its administrative responsibilities still has the Lord in its midst until it is disowned as being no longer on the true ground of the Church of God. J. N. Darby said, “Why speak of obeying the Lord first, then the church? But supposing that the Lord is in the church? It is merely setting up private judgment against the judgment of the assembly meeting in Christ’s Name with His promise (if they are not, I have nothing to say to them); it is simply saying, ‘I count myself wiser than those who are.’ I reject entirely as unscriptural the saying, ‘First Christ, then the Church.’” He also said, “The question therefore is a mere and poor sophistry which betrays the desire to have the will free, and a confidence that the person’s judgment is superior to all that has been already judged.”
W. Potter has written a short paper on assembly actions in which he says that the “whatsoever” in Matthew 18:1919Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 18:19) is an “unconditional” whatsoever. An assembly may bind something wrongly, and our place is to submit until it is rectified in an orderly way. Regardless of what Potter says, seeing “whatsoever” as being unconditional, to some, is akin to Popery. They believe that this would be making the assembly infallible in its administrative actions, which is not true. Such persons argue that if “whatsoever” is unconditional, then the assembly could bind anything that it wanted, and it would be automatically bound in heaven. In their minds it would be making heaven subject to the actions of the Church on earth; and should the assembly make a mistake, then heaven would be putting itself in fellowship with the evil, which is something God would never do. On the surface, this argument seems quite logical, but behind it is the enemy’s attempt to bring confusion into the assembly, and an overthrowing of its actions. All anyone has to do is to declare that an action of the assembly was an unrighteous action, and thus, conclude that heaven has not bound it. And if heaven has not accepted it, then they should reject it too. Therefore, they do not have to bow to it. It is a convenient way of setting aside assembly actions that we don’t like. If the assembly’s administrative acts were to be only submitted to under the condition that they were righteous acts, then all order would soon be lost.
The great problem with this erroneous idea is that assembly judgments become subject to our private judgment. The assembly is no longer the highest court of authority in these matters; our personal judgment is. In this, all order is gone. Everyone is left to do “that which was right in his own eyes” (Judg. 21:2525In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25)). Many have been sadly misled with the idea that unless an assembly action bears the hallmark of God’s Word, it binds no one on earth and is not ratified in heaven. In other words, the decision is only a bonafide binding action of the assembly when it is a right decision. Now, if we were to bow to an assembly decision only when we thought it was right, the sad outcome each time the assembly acted would be that some would end up submitting to the decision, and others would not, simply because their private judgments differed. In these days when the state of the Church is generally low, we are bound to have some who will think that they are wiser than their brethren, and whose private judgment will differ from the assembly. The enemy would soon make use of it in dividing the saints, and thus, disrupt the unity. It’s surely not God’s way of maintaining order in His house. No, we are enjoined to submit, even if we thought the action to be wrong, and wait on the Lord to correct it. Thus, order is maintained. J. N. Darby said, “A judgment of an assembly, even if I thought it a mistake, I should in the first instance accept and act upon.”
In an effort to negate the force of the “whatsoever” in Matthew 18:1818Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 18:18), and prove that it could not be unconditional, some have mistakenly assumed that verse 19 is a prayer meeting, and thus, reason that if the “anything” in the assembly’s prayers is subject to heaven’s qualifying (for God only answers our prayers when they are according to His will), then their “whatsoever” in binding decisions must also be subject to heaven’s qualifying. But they are mistaken in thinking that verses 19-20 are referring to the prayer meeting. The context indicates that it is a meeting for assembly discipline, though the principle laid down in these verses is broad enough to include all assembly meetings in a secondary application. (This is why Matthew 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) is sometimes read in the breaking of bread.) Paul speaks of this same meeting for discipline in 1 Corinthians 5:4-54In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together, and my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, 5To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus. (1 Corinthians 5:4‑5).
If Matthew 18:1919Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. (Matthew 18:19) is speaking of the prayer meeting, then the Lord changed His subject right in the middle of His dissertation on the assembly’s administrative actions; and then He switched back to it in verse 20 and in the following verses, having to do with having a forgiving spirit toward a repentant brother who has sinned (vss. 21-35). It would not be orderly. The point of verse 19 is that the assembly comes together with the Lord in the midst (vs. 20) to invoke God to ratify their binding decision. The promise is sure, “It shall be done for them of My Father which is in heaven.” This is a promise that the Lord never gives in regard to an assembly prayer meeting. He retains the right to grant or not grant the assembly’s prayer requests. But that is not the case here with administrative actions—He simply says, “It shall be done.” It is upheld as bound in heaven.
For those who might question whether “whatsoever” is anything that the assembly might pass judgment on, we would point them to 2 Corinthians 2:1010To whom ye forgive any thing, I forgive also: for if I forgave any thing, to whom I forgave it, for your sakes forgave I it in the person of Christ; (2 Corinthians 2:10). We find there that when it comes to loosing a binding action, Paul says, “To whom ye forgive any thing ... ” If they are seen forgiving “any thing” they must necessarily have bound anything.
C. D. Maynard said, “An assembly, when gathered to the Name of Christ, has Him in its midst, and has His authority for acting in binding or loosing the sins of an offending brother. (Matt. 18:18-2018Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. 19Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. 20For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:18‑20)) Such an act is ratified in heaven. From this decision there is no appeal, save to Christ in glory; as Jesus 'committed [His cause] to Him that judgeth righteously.' (1 Peter 2:2323Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: (1 Peter 2:23)) ...It might occur to some that if a local assembly judged, as they thought, wrongly, an appeal might be made to another local assembly. For example, to restore a person wrongly put out. This has no more Scripture for it than any Romish corruption. On the face of it, it denies the practical oneness of the two meetings. To entertain the question refuses that there is one body and one Spirit. If the Lord’s Table be one, both meetings are bound when one acts, so that appeal is impossible. If they can revise one another's judgments, the unity of the Spirit does not exist there; they are but independent meetings.” The misunderstanding of this important principle in assembly matters is behind all the sad divisions that have occurred among those gathered to the Lord’s name down through the years. We do well, therefore, to ponder these things carefully.
Another erroneous idea is that if the assembly makes a wrong decision (and it may be only so in someone’s eyes), then it can no longer be regarded as an assembly owned by God; and, therefore, they should leave it. This may be an excuse for a person to act in self-will, and perhaps leave the assembly. However, it is a mistake to think that an assembly loses its standing as being Scripturally gathered to the Lord’s name because it made a binding action in error. Again, this confounds authority with infallibility. The fact that an assembly has authority but not infallibility is to assume the possibility that it could make a mistake.
Objection #3
“In the Lord’s addresses to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, He held each assembly responsible for what went on in it. He never told them to interfere with the matters in another assembly, even though there were some serious evils there. This shows that each Christian assembly is autonomous and does not have a responsibility in regard to what goes on in other local assemblies.”
Assembly Order and Function is Not the Subject of “the Seven Churches”
The book of Revelation does not deal with Church order and function as a matter of doctrine. It is a mistake to think that it does. If we were to take our Church doctrine from it, we would run into some serious errors.
It’s true that the Lord didn’t tell any of the other assemblies to deal with the flagrant evils going on in Pergamos and Thyatira, which had idolaters and blasphemers in their midst. But neither did He tell those responsible in Pergamos and Thyatira to excommunicate those wicked persons in their assemblies! If we try to teach from these chapters that assemblies have no corporate responsibility in regard to one another because there is no mention of it here, then we would also have to take from these chapters that assemblies shouldn’t excommunicate wicked persons in their midst, because there is no mention of it here either! The Open Brethren surely do not believe this. It shows that we cannot take our Church doctrine from these chapters.
It is a mistake to think that because there is no mention of things concerning the truth of the “one body” in these chapters that assemblies are not to practice the truth of the unity of the body. The “one body” is Paul’s line of truth; John (the writer of Revelation) doesn’t take up that side of things—it was not given to him to bring out. If Revelation 2-3 are teaching us that local assemblies are autonomous, then Scripture would be contradicting itself. It is because, as we have already seen from the book of the Acts and the epistles, Scripture indicates that there should be a corporate cohesiveness among the assemblies at large. Revelation 2-3 is not the place to be looking for principles of assembly order and function. If we want such, we must turn to the Corinthian epistles. Importing that line of things into these chapters is “forcing a round peg into a square hole.” It may be convenient for supporting Open Brethrenism, but it is poor Bible exegesis. Sound Bible interpretation is to interpret Scripture in the light of all other Scriptures, and other Scriptures plainly show that Christian assemblies are to practice the truth of the one body in their inter-assembly dealings.
The book of Revelation is to be understood by its symbolic interpretation (Rev. 1:11The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to show unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: (Revelation 1:1) – “He sent and signified it”); we are not to interpret it literally. It’s true that the seven churches were literal assemblies in that day, but the Lord was using them to symbolize certain conditions that would develop in the history of the Christian testimony. This is the primary interpretation of these chapters.
Objection #4
“Having assemblies move together as a whole unit cannot be done without some sort of a federation or human organization to oversee it. This is what the denominational churches do, but since setting up something like this is not found in Scripture, it is not of God.”
Holding the Head
The simple answer here is that if the saints were “holding the Head” as Scripture enjoins us to do (Col. 2:1919And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God. (Colossians 2:19)), such unity would be realized among the assemblies at large, and there would be no need for a human organization. The proof that this truly works is seen in the early chapters of the Acts. They had no headquarters or ruling organization over them, yet the assemblies walked in communion with the Lord, and kept “the unity of the Spirit in the uniting bond of peace.” If saints are truly gathered to the Lord’s name, they have the Lord in their midst, and He makes it work. There is no need for human organization.
However, if an assembly is not on the true ground of the Church, it will not have the Lord in their midst in the sense of Matthew 18:20. (We realize that the Lord is with all Christians in another sense [Matt. 28:2020Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen. (Matthew 28:20); Heb. 13:55Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. (Hebrews 13:5)], and if they were to be together for any purpose, He would be there with them, but Matthew 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20) is speaking of a different sense altogether. It refers to Him as being in the midst of those whom He has gathered unto His name, to sanction that ground upon which they are gathered, and to authorize their administrative acts.) If Christians are only professedly gathered to His name, and the Lord is not in their midst in this sense, it will be all but impossible for them to practice a corporate unity without some human help. But it simply is not true that there needs to be human organization in place to have assemblies move together in concert with one another in a universal, worldwide fellowship. Christ, is the Head of the Church, and He will keep it together, if we look to Him and hold the Head.
Objections Summary
In summary, looking back to the origin of the principle of independency among Brethren, it is clear that the leaders in Bethesda did not understand the truth of the “one body” in the first place. When called upon to act on the principle of the unity of the body, they “dropped the ball.” Mr. R. Evans, in replying to Mr. W. Hoste (a staunch Open Brother and defender of the position taken by Bethesda), summed up the whole problem succinctly. He said, “The fact is, Bethesda acted more as if it were a private concern of its own, than part of the one Church of God on earth. Or, in all events, as if they were an independent congregation, without responsibilities beyond their own membership ... .Neither Muller, nor Craik, nor those meeting at Bethesda Chapel ever understood the position they had taken. Mr. Muller was never anything more than a Baptist Pastor. This I have been told by an Open brother in Bristol.”
This is still very much the position of the Open Brethren today. Those who take this unscriptural ground of independent assemblies have little else before them than their local fellowship. As those in the denominational churches, they see themselves as being “members” of a local assembly. The “loose” arm is fast becoming like the independent (free) evangelical churches of Christendom with all the trappings of “the camp” (Heb. 13:1313Let us go forth therefore unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. (Hebrews 13:13)). The “tight” arm is closer to the truth, but neither group practices the truth of Scripture in regard to the true ground of gathering, though they profess to be gathered unto the Lord’s name as in Matthew 18:2020For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them. (Matthew 18:20).