1. Individual and Collective Action

2. Why is This Important? The universal church is made up of individuals.
But God chose to organize local churches for a specific purpose.
Organization implies purpose: BOOK club, BOWLING league, etc.
In order to be the Lord’s church, we must know His purpose for the local church.
We must distinguish between the work of the church and the work of the individual.

3. God organized Individual Efforts
Universal Church
Local
Church
Acts 2:47: Believe, Repent,
Confess, be Baptized.

4. Individual Action

5. Distinguishing Between Individual and Collective Action
Universal Church
Individuals have authority to act in every realm of life.
The collective is restricted to the limitations of God’s purpose for it.
The collective has different guidelines than the individual.
Individual
Individual
Individual
Collective
Action
Individual
Individual

6. Distinguishing Between Individual and Collective Action

7. Collective Action Evangelism God is specific Worship
Local (1 Thess. 1:8).
Foreign (Acts 13:2-3; Phil. 4:16).
Worship
Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:22; 33-34).
Collection (1 Cor. 16:1-2).
Sing (Eph. 5:19), pray, edification
Edification
Matt. 28:20
Eph. 4:11-16
Benevolence
Acts 11:29
2 Cor. 8:4
1 Tim. 5:3ff
God is specific
He gave nothing else for the local church to do
If we respect His authority, we will limit ourselves to these.

8. Conclusion
There is a difference between the work of the individual and the work of the collective.
Many churches today do not respect that difference.
We must respect the difference if we want to be a New Testament church.