As we
conclude the first lesson, we need to ask the question: where does it end? We
have concentrated on two of the main areas of institutionalism, but very
similar arguments were/are used to justify church sponsored schools and
colleges, fellowship halls, the social gospel, church camps, etc. As we conclude the first part of our study,
consider the following quote from Bill Hall:
A thing is right or wrong on the
basis of whether it agrees with this book [the
Bible]. Do you know how churches get
into apostasy? They don’t go into apostasy in one giant leap. They take just a little step, sometimes it’s
only a half step, in the wrong direction.
And then the first thing you know, they get to thinking, ‘Well, I don’t
see any difference in that and this.’
And so they take another step.
‘And I don’t see anything different about this and this.’ And they take that step. ‘Well, what’s the difference in this and
this?’ And the first thing you know, each thing they do, they justify on the
basis of something they have already been doing. That is not how you establish authority for
anything. Everything we do in the Lord’s
work must be established on the basis of what the Scriptures teach, not on
whether it’s consistent with something we’ve already been doing.[1]
Establishing
proper Bible authority for all that we do is the key component to examining the
arguments presented thus far. What we have
to do is establish the pattern set forth in the Bible for what we can and
cannot do as a collective group, and then put each of these arguments up
against that pattern and see how they stand up.
Keep Brother Hall’s point in mind: an activity is not right or wrong
based on what we are or are not doing, but rather it is right or wrong based on
what the Bible says!
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