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Home Churches?


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Hi everyone. I was just wondering if Home Churches are very popular in America? By that I mean' date=' people who will not put themselves under any church authority and meet in their own homes?[/quote']

I have only seen a few people practice that in the area that I live in. Unless I have been living under a rock, it is not very common in New England.
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How in the world is it disobeying Mr Jerry? There have been many many churches that start this way! How else would a church start? There is a family up the street and "homechurch" with several other families. They rotate which house will host it. THey are doing so until they can afford a building. It is rather common over here.
There is another church that uses the highschool gym to meet until they too can afford a building. Is it really important WHERE Christians meet? Afterall, the actual church isn't the building, but the believers!!

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[offtopic]ok- the type of home church you are referencing is a church in the bud, one that is looking to become a church, not just an extension of the home. Many of the home churches that are existant today (and, really, they are popular here in America, in certain pockets) are there so that people do not have to be in a church. There is usually no actual pastor - many times each man takes turns as the leader.

It is all home centered. Yes, the home is vital! I am a strong believer in the home. But God also instituted the church, with certain offices. A home church that doesn't have a pastor (men taking turns doesn't quite match up with scripture...) isn't scriptural. Some churches start with a man being the leader, but not the pastor, while they pray and call a pastor. That isn't a home church, even if it's meeting in a home.

He told us to go out and win the lost. Many (not all) home churches have the "us 4 and no more" mentality. Some of the people with whom I have spoken who have home churches are actually quite arrogant, thinking they are more spiritual than folks who go to a regular church (I know arrogance is everywhere, but it does seem to settle amongst a lot of these folks).

One of the churches we attended (actually, the one that got my whole family going to church when I was younger - Open Door Baptist Church in Lynwood WA) was begun in the home. Not as a "home church," but the meetings were in a home. Many churches begin that way - but that isn't what is meant when someone says "home church."[/offtopic]

Home churches are popular in pockets of the country. Usually where there is a dense homeschooling population, one will find some home churches.

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Good points LuAnne!

It very much depends upon whether they are meeting at home to purposely avoid attending a traditional church or if they are meeting at home because there is no doctrinally sound church for them to attend.

If they are avoiding a good local church simply because they want to do their own thing, then they are disobeying God.

If they are holding church in a home because they have no other choice, then they may be in the will of God.

A few churches in this area began as home churches; most of these came about due to church splits.

Some home churches are good but from what I've read it seems most of the ones in America come into existence because those folks want a "have it your way" Christianity.

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How in the world is it disobeying Mr Jerry? There have been many many churches that start this way! How else would a church start? There is a family up the street and "homechurch" with several other families. They rotate which house will host it. THey are doing so until they can afford a building. It is rather common over here.
There is another church that uses the highschool gym to meet until they too can afford a building. Is it really important WHERE Christians meet? Afterall, the actual church isn't the building, but the believers!!


Back in the early 1900's around these parts, there were churches that got started up by having church services in people homes. They did this till such time that they could build a church building. There is nothing whatsoever wrong with this.

In fact I have a couple of bulletins from that time period which states whose home they're meting in the next Sunday that was mailed out by the pastor.

It would be wrong for the family to stay home, have church in their house, and skip attending regular church service. Of course I'm thinking about people who live in areas where there are true churches available for them to attend regular church services.

25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

Heb 10:25 (KJV)

They are people who do this that claim, "I can't find a church that teaches what I believe," I feel sure they can't, because they do not believe as the Bible states.
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:uuhm:

I've heard about internet churches, or should I say so called churches.


Yep. I never got into those types of "isolationist" movements. The Bible encourages fellowship. Just because I don't wear the same color socks as somebody else doesn't mean I can't fellowship with them. The Bible does tell us who to fellowship with but the isolationists take those verses too far.
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