Church Council Case Study
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Church Council Case Study
Amy Taylor
BIBL 364- Acts
April 21, 2023
1
The church has never been without obstacles, difficulties, hardships, persecution, and
pandemics. For centuries (AD 1-313) the Christians were under persecution. Persecution so great
that Christians fled for having faith in the Messiah- Jesus Christ. Christians throughout this time
were hunted, beaten, arrested, forbidden to worship and gather. They had their properties taken
from them. Their churches were destroyed, their Scriptures were burned, and all their civil rights
were taken away. During the worst times of the persecution of Christians during Nero’s reign
(AD 64-68), he would take condemned people and put them in the skins of wild beast and thrust
them into arenas to be torn apart by wild dogs. He would crucify people. He would dip
Christians in hot oil, attach them to stakes and set them on fire to light up the paths for his
nighttime parties. He would sexually torture women and virgins. It was under his reign of terror,
that the Apostles Paul and Peter were killed. Paul was beheaded and Peter was hung upside down
and crucified. All the Apostles died a martyr’s death so that the Message could be spread
throughout the world.
Even through the persecution, the church grew! Eight times in Acts, Luke says that the
church grew despite the persecution that was happening (Acts 2:47, 6:1, 6:7, 9:31, 11:21, 11:24,
16:5). The church grew and it spread throughout all the world. Nothing stopped the church from
studying what the apostles taught, meeting together in fellowship, and praying together. There
was unity amongst the Christians and because of this union, they were filled with joy and
continued to share their faith regardless of consequences.
Fast forward thousands of years later and in 2020 our Christian way of gathering was
interrupted by Covid-19 and the protocols that were put into place to protect people. For most
Christians there were two sides to the protocols. Those who would follow the science and
listened to those who were put in charge to make those decisions and believed those decision
2
would protect them and their family members from physical harm, and the second group was
those who were against the rules and regulations and thought that as Christians we should stand
our ground, defy the protocols, and live our lives without fear. Regardless of what side of the
“fence” you stood on, churches were faced with difficult decisions and those decisions caused
such disruption and discord that the church became broken, and many members left over the
decisions that were made. Over the past three years, the unity that the first church had
experienced in Acts, has become hard to find, and the question at hand is, will it ever be able to
recover from the Covid-19 protocols and lockdowns that were placed upon the church?
Let’s first look at the side of the “pro” protocols and lockdowns that were put in place.
Theologian David Hionides, argued that “followers of Christ must endure COVID lockdowns by
serving Christ as good citizens in the spirit of the early church.”
(1)
He continues stating that as
Christians we should make sacrifices to benefit others. In other words, we shouldn’t do anything
that would cause harm to another Christian or person. We should live in harmony with each
other. Many on this side of the opinion use
Romans 13:1-5
as to why as a church, we should
follow the protocols, guidelines and lockdowns of the government. By using this passage, the
“pros” believe it is necessary to submit to government authorities because they are God’s
servants whom we should respect and give honor to. They further use Romans 13:9b-10: “Love
your neighbor as yourself.”
Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore, love is the fulfillment of
the law”
(2)
to defend their beliefs on why the protocols were so important to follow. By
following Covid-19 protocols set up by the government to protect people is ultimately showing
love to your neighbor by not causing them harm. Love, protection, and science came first even if
____________________
(1)
David Hionides “We Must Obey Lockdown Laws,”
Convivium Magazine
, last modified February 5, 2021, accessed
April 24, 2023,
https://www.convivium.ca/articles/we-must-obey-lockdown-laws/
(2) “Bible Gateway Passage: Romans 13 - New International Version,”
Bible Gateway
, accessed April 24, 2023,
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans+13&version=NIV
.
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3
that meant shutting the doors of the churches and homes.
The second group that we will look at are those who were opposed to Covid-19 protocols.
Many Christians felt that the government overstepped their limitation of ruling by demanding
that churches no longer have indoor worship and stop all meetings and activities that would take
place inside of the church so that it would slow down Covid. Many felt that the government did
not have the right to tell churches if they could open or close their doors and many felt that
worship, faith, and calling was more important. In Acts 5, the government commanded Peter and
the apostles to stop preaching and to stop spreading the Gospel. But because Jesus told them in
Matthew 28:19-20
to go out into Judea, Samaria and the rest of the world to preach to Gospel
and make disciples. Peter and the apostles stated that they “must obey God rather than human
beings.” For the apostles it was necessary to do what Jesus commanded rather than what the
government was telling them to do. Hebrew 10:25 states: “
not giving up meeting together,
as
some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the
Day approaching.”
(3)
For those opposed to Covid-19 protocols, obeying government laws are
important, but not if it is disobeying the laws of God and the words of Jesus Christ.
How as Christians, as the church, should we have rendered a judgment in the case of
Covid-19 protocols? For most Christians, we can see and understand both sides. We can make
our judgments based on emotions or personal judgement, but what we need to do is look at
Scripture. Acts 1:8 says: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;
and
you will be my witnesses
in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the
earth.”
(4)
It was the purpose of the church then and should be our purpose now. Acts 2:46 says
_____________________
(3) “Bible Gateway Passage: Romans 13 - New International Version,”
Bible Gateway
, accessed April 24, 2023,
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews+10&version=NIV
(4) IBID, Acts 1:8
4
that the church went to the Temple daily for disciplined worship. They didn’t need to go to the
Temple daily because Jesus had broken that veil and a personal relationship with God was made
available through the death and resurrection of his Son. They went to the Temple daily, because
that is where the people were. That is where the people who were hurting, physically disabled,
and lost went to look for hope. It was the purpose of the church to go daily to engage with
people, to help them in their darkest hours, to worship with them, to encourage them, to pray
with them, and to help meet their needs physically and spiritually. When times became
dangerous for the church, they didn’t hide, and they didn’t isolate themselves. No, they
continued to meet. They continued to disperse into the world sharing the Gospel. Because of
their boldness to go against the government protocols and risked their lives, God blessed the
church and added to their numbers daily.
During the Covid-19 protocols, churches became divided. Fear stepped in. Regardless of
where you stood regarding the protocols, people were angry. Church members stepped away
from churches. They became comfortable sitting on their couches watching the service instead of
meeting together with believers and coming together in corporate worship to give glory to God
during difficult times. The church and the discord became evident in the eyes of unbelievers.
Resulting in a barrier between the church and the unsaved. Acts 2:42 says that the church studied
what the apostles taught, they fellowshipped together, ate meals, and prayed together. Not only
did the protocols stop the church, in person, from studying what the Scriptures said, it also
stopped fellowship, meeting together, eating a meal together and most importantly praying
together. Paul wrote to the Corinth church urging them to have no division among themselves
and to be in unity both in mind and thought (
I Corinthians 1:10
). Paul wrote to Titus and said to
be careful about arguments and quarrels about the law because they are useless and unprofitable.
5
However, isn’t that exactly what the church members did when it came to making decision about
keeping the church open during Covid?
Satan loves division and if he can cause division in the church; then that prevents the
church from doing what Jesus commanded which is to make disciples and to go out into the
world and share His story. John 10:10, says that the enemy has come to steal, kill, and destroy.
Ephesians 6:10-12 says:
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the
full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our
struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against
the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms”
(5)
Satan doesn’t care about politics. He doesn’t care about protocols. He doesn’t care about
social or physical behavior. He cares about destruction. We as the church, need to stand
united, to be of one spirit and one mind (
Philippians 2:2
) in order to fight the schemes of the
devil (
Ephesians 6:11
) and the fiery arrows that come (
Ephesians 6:16
,
Psalm 91:5
) and to be
alert and vigilant (
1 Peter 5:8-9
).
________________________
(5) IBID, Ephesians 6:10-12
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6
Dear Church:
We as a council have decided that it is important to respect our countries laws. Our
government officials were placed by God, and He is omniscient. We pray for our officials.
We pray for our church leaders. We encourage you to continue to walk in His footsteps as
these times are challenging for everyone.
The council has decided that first and foremost we should continue with the
commission of Jesus Christ. We are called to go out into our homes, cities, and the world
proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. We are not called to have a spirit of fear but one
of power, love, and instruction.
We believe in the direction and example of the church in
Acts 2:42. We believe we should meet to study the Scriptures, we are to have fellowship with
one another, we are to share meals together and we are to pray together. By following and
having lockdowns and protocols placed by our government, we go against what we were
commanded to do, and it goes against the example of Jesus Christ.
As a church, we will continue to come together in unity to praise and worship our
God. We will do so corporately, and we will continue as always-individually. We pray our
blessings and protection over each of you. We rejoice alongside of you that we serve a God
who will crush the head of Satan. We rejoice that one day there will be no more tears, no
more sorrow, no more pain and no more death.
We give all honor, glory, and faithfulness to the One who called us and to the One
who directs our paths. May we continue to be a Light in a dark world, and may we be excited
to spread the story of our Risen Savior, Jesus Christ.
Sincerely,
The Church Council
7
Bibliography
“Biblegateway.com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages.” n.d.
Biblegateway.com. Accessed April 24, 2023. https://www.biblegateway.com.
Closson, David. n.d. “When Churches Should Defy COVID-19 Restrictions.” FRC. Accessed April
24, 2023. https://www.frc.org/op-eds/when-churches-should-defy-covid-19-restrictions.
Hionides, David. 2021. “We Must Obey Lockdown Laws.” Convivium.Ca. February 5, 2021.
https://www.convivium.ca/articles/we-must-obey-lockdown-laws/.
McClendon, P. Adam. 2020.
Timeless Church
. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman.
“Neronian Persecutions.” n.d. McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia Online. Accessed April
24, 2023. https://www.biblicalcyclopedia.com/N/neronian-persecutions.html.