Brent,
"Plymouth Brethren" ...Don't knock it, until you've tried it...
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When you say "their pattern" are you referring to a "Plymouth Brethren" pattern or the assembly pattern...?
Just wondering...
I met my wife Ann in an "abusive" brethren type church..."Great Commission International." It's also in Enron's book, chapter 11, same chapter as the GG's Assembly - their George was a man named Jim McCotter. They were slightly less abusive, where the assembly emphasized "the gathering and the Lord's supper...GG's heavenly system, et.al." GCI emphasized evangelism and "Go therefore!" It was Jesus + The Great Commission.
After we left GCI, for years we wandered through lots of traditional churches, yet deeply desired to get back to our simple home meetings from GCI. And, only in the last two years have we come back to a "PB" type of orientation. And, hey, we love it! The home church is not only good for China, and for the Third World - It's good for us believers right here in America, too!
My life is no longer Jesus + Church = Righteousness...No, today we simply meet in a way that looks like a Brethren way. Why? It's an easy way to meet Jesus - to know Him when we gather. The home and simplicity in meeting lends itself to not being anonymous, for the use of gifts, and an easy environment for edification. And, more! Real discipleship and organic growth easily happens around a Acts 2:42 meeting - with the home as its true nerve center.
Is this the ONLY way? No! No! No! However, is it a terrific context for meeting, worshipping and learning? - Absolutely! Why, does it work so well...Cause it's simple, elegant, straightforward, and efficient. I think it's a great way to "imitate" the Apostle Paul.
We have a home church, no paid pastors, no morgage, shared ministry responsibility...However, a church unlike you EVER had in the assembly - we have lots of liberty - Just the structure of following/waiting on the Holy Spirit as our guide. You know what I love is the periodic, dignified silence...Quiet and waiting on the Spirit's unction. The Lord is wonderful - He prepares a different and unique feast for us everytime we meet. The ladies bring the food, the men bring the Word, everyone sings, fellowships, breaks bread and prays (no door keepers). Sometimes our meetings are 90 minutes, sometimes it's five hours! The Lord always has something that surprises us! Like the wind we don't know where it comes from or where it is going...
So, what am I saying? We need to be careful not to throw the baby out with the bath water. I think the tendency is that when we have had a bad experience we rush to discard everything that was ever familiar to us in our abuse. Actually I can't blame anyone who's come out of the assembly for this...However, I want to caution everyone - You may find yourself wandering around for perhaps years in looking for the
right church.
However, as a guy who left a
nice context of "the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ" because of some immature and abusive leadership and then wandered for 17 years via many forms of "church" -
Willow Creek type churches, EPC, Evangelical Free,
Seeker Friendly churches, Baptist churches, various pentocostal, AOG churches, independent churches...You name it! Seventeen years of a spiritual schmorgasbord.
What can I say...It is
WONDERFUL! to be gathering in a unpretentious, simple manner, again...Without the abuse!
I don't think you assembly folks ever saw this side of the PB form of gathering. The two times I visited your gatherings it struck me so much like my old Roman Catholic masses. My wife agrees, since she's done both - was a Catholic and was a part of the assembly and participated with me in my wanderings...I kept waiting for the Latin and the incense...So, religious. The assembly was PB with a double-dousing of Galatianism, wrapped in formalism with a bow of hypocrisy and yucky judgement for good-looks..
What I had hoped for was to get back to a simple gathering...What my wife and I had missed before in the 70s and early 80s in our past abusive church experience was trying to "add" things to Jesus and that's when things got warped. And, people, this is not limited to PB type churches! A Brethren orientation does indeed lend itself to serious errors. This is true since people generally take the Bible seriously in such intimate gatherings that the PBs are famous for...Don't let this fact take you by surprise - commitment has many slippery downsides. Commitment and youth are a dangerous brew. But, don't
"dis" simplicity and commitment. That's a woeful mistake.
"PB like" gatherings shouldn't be dysfunctional...George Mueller, Jim Elliott, and one of Christianity's ultimate examples Anthony Norris Groves (my particular hero of faith)...all were associated with Plymouth Brethren forms of gathering and church. By the Way, A.N. Groves in the 1830s was the earliest protaganist of the very first Brethren principles (he said he was just trying to
imitate Paul since the scriptures encouraged him to do so). It should also be noted that A.N. Groves fellowshipped with, gathered with, worshipped with and labored with every type of believer. Christ in a man was Groves basis of fellowship and unity with a man; in contrast to a sectarian distance from a man based on the man's
missing principles or immaturity.
If anyone emails me, I will happily direct them to the publisher of the Biography of A.N. Groves by G.H. Lang - Especially for anyone who would like to understand the man who was the
spiritual father and example for George Mueller - A.N. Groves was actually his brother-in-law.
Also, the Assembly had a heritage from the
darkside of Brethrenism....The Exclusives. And, George Geftakys was the worse Exclusive PB I have ever seen! J.N. Darby, the famous, and brilliant, 19th century heretic was the original Exclusive...
The father of Exclusives.
The "Open" Brethren were oriented totally different. Totally! They were as lovely as the Exclusives were ugly. Mueller was of the Open Brethren...The heritage of the Open PBs is quite glorious. The overwhelming majority of 19th Century missionaries were Open Plymouth Brethren. Hudson Taylor was heavily influenced by the Brethren's
"Let God provide" mission philosophy and he himself spent many years gathering with the PBs around the globe.
As all you ex-assembly folk begin your new pilgrimages to find a new church home...Remember your final destination may be right under your nose.
God Bless and fair travels!
Chuck Vanasse
chuck@vanant.com
