Perhaps the best way to discern whether one has grounds to leave a church is to go back to the basics. What is the purpose of the church? The Bible is clear that the church is to be the “pillar and support of the truth”
(1 Timothy 3:15)
(15) but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.
Everything in the church structure, teaching, worship, programs, and activities are to be centered upon this fact. In addition, the church should recognize Jesus Christ as its one and only head
(Ephesians 1:22)
(22) And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church,
(Ephesians 4:15)
(15) but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ,
(Colossians 1:18)
(18) He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.
and submit to Him in all things. Clearly, these things can only be done when the church clings to the Bible as its standard and authority. It is hard to see how anyone would want to leave a church such as described above, but few churches today fit this description.
Believers who feel a desire to leave a church should be clear on their reasons. If the church does not proclaim the truth or does not teach the Bible and revere Christ, and there is another church in the area that does, then there are grounds to leave. A case can be made, however, for staying and working to bring about changes for the better. We are exhorted to “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints”
(Jude 1:3)
(3) Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints.
If one is strongly convicted of the need to move the church in a more Bible-based, Christ-honoring direction and can do that in a loving manner, then staying would seem to be the better course of action.
The Bible does not outline a procedure on how to leave a church. In the early days of the church, a believer would have to move to another town to find a different church. In some places today, a church sits on seemingly every corner, and, sadly, many believers leave one church for another down the street instead of working through whatever problem they faced. Forgiveness, love, and unity are to characterize believers
(John 13:34-35)
(34) "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
(35) "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
(Colossians 3:13)
(13) bearing with one another, and forgiving each other, whoever has a complaint against anyone; just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.
(John 17:21-23)
(21) that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
(22) "The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one;
(23) I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me.
Not bitterness and division.
(Ephesians 4:31)
(31) Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.
Should a believer feel led to leave a church, it is crucial for him/her to do so in such a way that does not cause unnecessary division or controversy
(1 Corinthians 1:10)
(10) Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment.
Faced with a lack of biblical teaching, then the course is clear, and a new church should be sought. However, many people’s dissatisfaction with their church is due to their own lack of involvement in the ministries of the church. It is far easier to be spiritually fed by the church when one takes an active part in “feeding” others. The purpose of the church is clearly outlined in
(Ephesians 4:11-14)
(11) And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers,
(12) for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ;
(13) until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
(14) As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;
Grove Oak Church
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