Who has authority in the local church?
August 16, 2019 (Transcript)
How is the local church governed? Or who has final authority in the local church? Is it a Pope? Bishops? Do elders or pastors rule and make most, if not all, decisions? What about presbyteries, synods, and general assemblies? Is every decision, including the carpet and paint colors, voted on by congregations?
I would argue that the Bible grounds final authority for the local church, particularly issues of membership, church discipline, and maintaining a faithful gospel, in the congregation itself. This idea is called congregationalism. Jesus gives the keys to the…
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