Humans take things seriously. They take their politics seriously, they take their food seriously, and they take their sports seriously. There is one place where they are less inclined to take things seriously: finding the right place to call their church home. Paul writes in Ephesians 2:19-22, "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit." (ESV) This is no matter of preference or light affiliation. The church is where Christians make up the household of God himself. The church is the holy temple of the Lord. In Acts 20:28, Paul commits the pastors of the church in Ephesus to be diligent in their work because of the value of the church, saying, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” Since the church is bought with the precious blood of God’s Son, finding a suitable church is supremely important. Such a proper church will be seen correctly administering ordinances, administering church discipline, and teaching the whole counsel of God.
Finding a new church begins with considering what are not acceptable reasons to leave a church. In 21st-century American society, people have choices. They can choose their subscriptions, groceries, and cars from unlimited sources. Christians should not treat the church the same way. Christians should not leave because they dislike the new worship leader. They should not leave because they bought a house ten minutes further down the road. Christians should not leave their church because their friends have moved churches. Why? Because these things do not rise to the seriousness of the ordinances, church discipline, or, most importantly, faithful preaching of God’s word. Music, location, and friends are matters of preference and leaving for such reasons alone displays a corrupt heart.
Nonetheless, there are legitimate reasons to leave a church. It is often the case that people receive promotions at work that require them to relocate. Perhaps someone sees the need to move back home to help their aging parents. However, even when such contexts present a reason to move that is not infected with selfish motives, Christians need to ensure they seek God’s will and are confident that the new job or the move back home is what God has for them. It may be right to turn down a promotion to be able to remain in a church.
Moreover, moving could easily be a way to hide discontentment under a good pretense. Even though leaving a church because of extraneous matters is considered a light thing in the American church, this is no light matter, as the church is bought with the blood of Christ. His church is worth infinitely more than the small amount of extra income a promotion might bring. Separating from a church for any selfish reasons is a dangerous place to go.
Nonetheless, Christians can and should leave their church if it fails to teach and live out what the Bible instructs. An entire book could be written on when it is right to go and how a departure should be made. Still, the primary reason to leave a church revolves around the potential for corruption of a Christian’s soul that can quickly happen when they allow themselves to be surrounded by unrepentant sinners. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 5:11, “But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one.” The context of this passage deals with church discipline. Still, the direct application of removing unrepentant sinners from a church because of their potentially deadly effects also means that Christians should not remain in a church surrounded by aggressive sinners because of the danger they put their souls in.
Once a Christian has determined they are departing their church for another based on wholesome reasons, they must be diligent in finding an appropriate place to go. The reformers argued that the faithful preaching of the Word, the proper administration of the sacraments, and church discipline were the three marks of a healthy church, and their conclusion is correct. However, these are not comprehensive, nor are they adequate to determine every aspect of a church’s health. Still, they are satisfactory to use as tools when attending a church for the first time and to consider it as an outsider. For example, it will likely take more than a first visit to tell if a church is filled with genuine love, as John 13:35 teaches that love reveals legitimate Christianity. During a first impression, robotic tradition can undoubtedly appear to be love. Nevertheless, if these three marks of the reformers are in place, it is a good indicator of the church’s overall health, including the health of less discernable aspects like authentic love.
Beginning with the proper administration of the ordinances. Perhaps baptism or the Lord’s Supper are not held when a Christian visits a new church. Simply asking the pastor how they practice the two ordinances will quickly illuminate how they are done and if they are done well. It is likely that the church posts recordings of services where they perform baptism or the Lord’s Supper for online viewing. Indeed, the church has much debate about how and when the ordinances should be done. Still, an individual Christian’s convictions on each matter can quickly align with a church or not with the simple watching of the ordinances taking place.
An area slightly more difficult to discern is the area of church discipline. 1 Corinthians 5:11, referenced earlier, clarifies the seriousness of the church’s health. Galatians 5:9 reminds us that even a little leaven affects the whole lump of dough. A visitor to a church will not, and should not, be able to observe church discipline taking place, but its practice will be quickly known by simply asking the pastor if it occurs. This will have to be asked as a church rarely posts in their bulletin or website about the practice. Mark Dever clarifies this practice’s importance, writing, “Biblical church discipline is simple obedience to God and a simple confession that we need help.” Since Christians know they need help, they must seek a church that will help and help through even church discipline.
Finally, the most nuanced mark is teaching. This teaching is the biblical, applicational preaching of the Word of God and must be well done. For without good preaching, the entire church will falter in all areas. One of the first things the early church in Jerusalem was found doing was listening to preaching. “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42). After listening to preaching, it is no coincidence that the church is found doing other godly things like fellowship and the Lord’s Supper. Good preaching has that effect on its hearers.
While considering the church’s teaching, Christians should make sure they hear a biblical gospel proclaimed. For Christians to be built together into God’s household of Ephesians 2:19- 22, the authentic gospel needs to be proclaimed. There are tragically many things that parade under the name of the gospel and even many fakes that look real. The gospel must include preaching the bad news before the good news. The bad news is that humans have broken God’s holy law and deserve terrible punishment, this message is not something even many Christian churches are eager to preach, but without the bad news, there is no place for the good news. The good news also must be preached. That God is love, and he has made a way of escape for his children through the death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ.
Preaching must instruct Christians on their new state, and preaching must press Christians on to love and good deeds (Heb 10:24). Among many possibilities, it is worth highlighting two, prayer and church planting.7 When a church is committed to prayer, great things will happen, but a church will only know this and do this if they are rightly taught how to pray from the pulpit and through discipleship (Col 4:2-6). Good preaching will create a congregation committed to planting new churches and sending missionaries to the unreached people of the world (Acts 1:8). Planting churches is not something even Christians will automatically do without the faithful preaching of God’s word.
Finding the right church to be in is a serious matter. It is a matter of eternal life or eternal death. Christians need to not fall to the temptations of American culture. They should evaluate their choice based on what is best for them spiritually and, more importantly, what is honoring to God.
Compass Bible Church. “Our 8 Distinctives.” https://www.compasschurch.org/8-distinctives/.
Dever, Mark. Nine Marks of a Healthy Church. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2013.
Frame, John M. Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Christian Belief. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2013.
Whitney, Donald S. Spiritual Disciplines Within the Church: Participating Fully in the Body of Christ. Chicago: Moody Press, 1996.
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