House Churches

Text: Philemon 1-2

What Exactly is a House Church?

Generally smaller (approximately 15-25 members)
Typically meet in someone’s house
But there is more to the house church movement than the size & location of a congregation’s assembly
Two different kinds of house churches — one is connected to a larger church, the other is independent (this is probably the more common one today)

What Drives People to House Churches?

House churches are becoming more popular — Barna Group study estimated 6-12 million Americans attended house churches; Pew Forum survey found that 9% of American Protestants only attend home services [source]
Many believe this is a return to the type of churches that existed in the first century
Some see problems that exist in larger churches and believe this is a better alternative
Without judging motives, we should still recognize reality — house churches provide more freedom for people to do what they please in worship, explore/promote strange doctrines, and they have an environment where one’s ambitions will not be hindered by one in authority — these things appeal to many people (the religious world as a whole is proof)

How House Churches are Different than Local Churches

Arguments in Favor of House Churches

This is what existed in the first century (1 Corinthians 16:19; Colossians 4:15; Philemon 1-2) — they assume that a church meeting in a home was a “house church”; not all churches met in houses (Acts 2:46; 19:8-9; 20:7-8)
Large churches are corrupt, treated like businesses, focus too much on physical things instead of spiritual things — these things might be true of various congregations, but they are not universally true; even so, it doesn’t prove the legitimacy of the house church arrangement
This arrangement facilitates greater focus on Jesus & our brethren (1 Corinthians 2:2; Hebrews 10:25) — it is possible that we can be guilty of neglecting these things, but again, this doesn’t prove the legitimacy of the house church

House Churches Have the Wrong Organization

Leadership in the local church — God’s design is a plurality of qualified men serving as elders (Philippians 1:1; Acts 14:23; 1 Timothy 3:1-7); at a given time a congregation may be without elders, but they must not be content in this but recognize that they are lacking in this area (Titus 1:5); house churches are not going to have elders because they aren’t designed to — everyone is to have equal roles
Authority of elders — in the case of house churches that are connected to a larger church, the “metropolitan” church elders oversee the various house churches; NT talks about the universal church (Ephesians 1:22-23) and local churches (Romans 16:16), but never “metropolitan” or “house” churches; elders were to be in every church (Acts 14:23) and were to oversee just that one congregation (Acts 20:28; 1 Peter 5:2)
Located preachers — house churches do not have what they call “professional preachers” (located preachers); yet we have NT examples of preachers staying in a location for extended periods of time (Acts 20:31; 8:40 — 21:8), they have the right to be paid for this work (1 Corinthians 9:14)
A congregation can get by without a located preacher, but without a preacher & elders, they’ll have a hard time doing what God requires them to do (1 Timothy 3:15) — not an ideal situation; certainly not preferrable

Common Practices in House Churches

One thing about house churches — they are all different, but we’ll notice a couple of common practices that differ from the NT pattern
Our worship assemblies should look a certain way (John 4:24; Hebrews 8:5) — the pattern is important, yet the house churches change the pattern in various ways
Common meals — a smaller group allows them to share common meals in their assemblies; sometimes this is combined with the Lord’s Supper, sometimes not; either way, Paul condemns it (1 Corinthians 11:22,33-34) — home is distinct from the place of assembly
No weekly collections — they argue that the collection is for specific needs, not to be an ongoing practice; weekly collections are commanded & a treasury is authorized (1 Corinthians 16:1-2)
Other things as well (testimonials, instrumental music, etc.) — but these are some of the more common differences

The Root of the Movement

People want to worship how they want & with whom they want
How they want to worship — God will not accept just any worship we offer (Colossians 2:23; Matthew 15:9)
With whom they want to worship — often have a “grace-unity” view of fellowship, looser than the Scriptures (2 John 9-11; 2 Thessalonians 3:6); also limited to those they want to worship with — we are not to divide the body into smaller groups based on personal preference or convenience (1 Corinthians 1:10-12; Philippians 4:2-3)