The Body and the Institution: How do we make a clear distinction between the body of Christ and the institutions of men?

The Body and the Institution

How do we make a clear distinction between the
body of Christ and the institutions of men?

Roy Hershberger

One of the major points of confusion evident in the Christian world today revolves around how we view the body of Christ. There seems to be many incorrect ideas about what it is, ideas that have become deeply intrenched over the centuries into the Christian mindset. I know for myself it has taken years of trying to think this through, struggling to critique paradigms that have been continually reenforced from childhood, before some rational conclusions started to form.
     With this article I hope to draw a clear distinction between the body of Christ, its role, function, and structure; from the institutions of men and their role, function, and structure (i. e. denominations, churches, and Christian organizations). The conclusions I reach in doing this exercise I admit will be radical and difficult to accept for many, as the truth often is, but we must face the truth if we are to grow and move beyond the current anemic state of Christianity.
     The unfortunate fact is that we have been so far removed from what the body of Christ should look like, and our thinking has strayed so completely away from the proper original New Testament model that we (the body of Christ) do not even recognize that we have a problem. The old ecclesiastical methods of structure, what we think of as “the church,” has become so much a part of our worldview that it is very difficult to move beyond it in our thinking.
     The first thing that is so important to understand is that the body of Christ and the Institutions of men can never be one in the same. We have blurred the boundaries between the living breathing organism which is the body of Christ and the cold, formal, institutional structure of our churches. However, this does not necessarily mean that these institutions of men are evil, or that God can not use them for his purposes. It does mean that confusion in this area can lead to many problems and evils.

Church as Ministry

One of the major points of confusion lies in are tendency to view our local body, or congregation of believers, as the place where we “do ministry.” In other words, the way to engage in “ministry” is to get involved at “church”. If we are not involved at “church,” with all it's programs and functions, then we are often viewed as being uncommitted Christians who are not interested in “ministry.” This may or may not be the case.
     What is often not considered in making such judgments is that most people's true ministry, their gifts, talents, and interests, may have nothing to do with the organized structure of “church.” Their God given passions lie elsewhere, outside of the excepted “normal ministry” As a result those who are blessed with these gifts are rarely encouraged and supported in their vision. These people will not fit well into church, and if they bother to stick around at all, are often categorized as the “pew warmers.” They are the sleeping giant that is the true body of Christ. Put to sleep by a man-made religious system that they just can't get excited about.
     I've often seen pastors who become so frustrated by such “pew warmers” that they start to condemn and rag on them in every sermon, in the hopes of lighting a fire under their widened posteriors and get them involved in the churches programs and functions. This just leads to more frustration and disillusionment and many leave or go looking for another church where they can get away from the venom.
     Here is a common scenario played out every day. A young man has a vision for the lost people on the streets of his city. His first impulse, do to cultural programming, is to go to seminary and become a pastor because this will give him the platform, he reasons, to reach his vision, (the vision can be anything that is generally thought of as “ministry” based, this is only an example). When he finishes his education he goes out and finds a church to pastor. He brings with him his vision for reaching the inner city. He expects everyone in the congregation to join him in his efforts to win street people for Christ, the only problem is that few seem to get all that excited about “his vision.”
     Some in the congregation may have visions of starting a business, helping the poor, or reaching out to unwed mothers, or whatever. However, because the congregation has been taught that their local “church” is their “ministry” they will attempt to try and support the pastor in his vision instead of pursuing their own. Naturally their effort to help is forced and half hearted at best.
     Anyone who has been involved in a congregation of believers will probably recognize this scenario. It occurs time and time again because we fail to understand that the body of Christ is about building each other up for the work of the ministry, not about ministry itself. Let me say that again in case you missed it. The body of Christ is about building each other up for the work of the ministry, not about ministry itself.
     Consider this possible scenario instead. A young man has a vision for the lost people on the streets of his city. He realizes that he needs support, and accountability in his life in order to attain his goals. He finds a group of believers who encourage and support him in every way possible that he may discover the path to the realization of his dream. He is never told that he must conform to some leaders vision, but is encouraged to develop his own unique direction. He finds others in the group who share his passion and together they are sent out by that group of believers to the inner city.
     Each person in this same group is equally encouraged to find and develop their own vision as well. Some peoples ministry may be directed toward the body itself, in helping to build it up, but most ministries are focused on the broader community around them. The end result is a body of Christ that is influencing their world powerfully and effectively for the kingdom of God
     The question that is begging to be asked is: How can we make this last scenario the reality when we are so intrenched in the first? I believe it will be very difficult to do as long as we maintain our present form of institutional structure. This is where the radical conclusions that I spoke of earlier come in.
     The fact is that denominations and the local organized churches that represent them are organizations built for the purpose of ministry. They are in fact “the ministry” of certain members of the body, yet we are in the habit of thinking of them as being synonymous with the body itself. It is evident that we have it backwards. The body of Christ should be what is feeding and growing our organizations, but by it's very definition it can not be an organization itself.
     If someone has a vision for a ministry that reaches out to the lost in the inner city then the local body of believers within his community should encourage and support him so that he can see that vision realized. The congregation should not be the organization that does the ministry, it should be the inter personal relationships that help to build that organization through the one who has envisioned it.
     Organizations are generally a good thing. We need them to accomplish many tasks that would be impossible otherwise. But when we organize ourselves as a church or a denomination we are in effect attempting to institutionalize, organize in human terms - using human wisdom - using the pragmatic methods of men, the body of Christ. This will never have the same powerful impact the New Testament Christians witnessed, (which history has shown and we continue to see every day), and it is one of the reasons we have so much confusion and problems in the Christian world today.
     It is crucial that we reverse this backward mentality. The body of Christ must become the source and backbone that grows individual ministries. But how can this be realized as long as the organized institutional “church” has all ready set itself up as “the ministry.” This leaves very little room or resources for these real ministries to be established and grow.
     How much resources, time, and energy is spent on just maintaining the structure, the institution, the building, the organization, the religion? Shouldn't these resources be going into the ministry of individuals, which would empower them to build organizations and institutions that meet specific needs and minister to the world? Shouldn't the body of Christ, under the headship of Jesus and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, be able to maintain itself without any formal man-made structure? This would free up all this energy and resources to be used for “the work of the ministry” through the individual members of the body.
The underground Christians in China are a good example of this. They have no formal structure, thanks to their communist government, perhaps a blessing in disguise. Yet numbers are being added daily by the thousands. This is all being done with small home groups who expand and grow into more small home groups. No overshadowing leaders, no structured denominational hierarchy, only small groups of worshippers absolutely dependent on the head shepherd to guide them into truth and maturity. It is very likely that their multiplying numbers will eventually change their culture and government. They will, and perhaps already are, building organizations and developing ideas and programs that will impact their country for the glory of God.
     If the conclusions of this article are true then we need to question organizations that sets themselves up as the head of the body. We need to take a hard and careful look at the way we organize ourselves in the name of Christ and ask if we are truly following the New Testament model. Has our traditions and methodology stifled our ability to be the salt and light of our culture by limiting our ministry options and confining the body of Christ into a narrow role? Hopefully it will not take the same type of persecution that China faces in order for Western Christianity to discover what it really means to be the body of Christ.

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