The Original Way of Home Fellowship

     My road of faith and it’s hills and valleys have been many through the years of my Christian walk. Since  I left the institutional congregation of believers, I feel as if I have been wandering in a desolate wilderness while stumbling over rocks and boulders strewn along the landscape. My connections with like minded-believers, who have found the same path, have been few and far between. Sometimes, I feel like a man without a country, but I know that there are others of you out there who are in similar situations on your journey.
    My journey has been filled with research, reading, and reflection on numerous authors who have been on similar and more extensive travels through the home church wilderness. I have concluded in my mind after all this time and research that the way that the early New Testament believers met is the “better way.” However, I believe instead of saying a better way, it should be the “Original Way.”
     A few weeks ago or maybe months, I came across a listing of what one home fellowship sees as a thread weaved through the fabric of their meeting together as a body of New Testament believers. I believe that as I have read through this listing that it fleshes out what I see could be foundational to a body of believers meeting in the home so let me share it with you:

• Jesus is the head of the body of believers.

• Understand that Jesus’ desire for believers is that together they will conform to his image and be prepared for mutual ministries to each other and outreach to the lost world,

• Believe in the “priesthood of all believers” for the work of the ministry.

• Enjoy prayer, praise, worship, bible teaching, the Lord’s supper, testimonies of the Lord working in the believer’s lives as a common practice in the home environment.

• Encourage teaching, learning, and sharing times that are open to questions and discussion

• Include children as part of the gathering and ministry time.

• Enjoy practicing all the one another’s listed in the scriptures

• Let elders have a functional mindset and emerge naturally over time.

• Make decisions for the body by consensus (Acts 15:22,25) looking to Jesus, the head, allowing the Holy Spirit the opportunity to bring the whole body of believers into one mind.

If you can think of more let me know.