church hopping and membership

I agree with your post. I have never church hopped, and have been at my church for over 35 years. However, when you move from the realm of being responsible for your actions to controlling someone else's, that is a different story. If the local church wants members to be answerable for church hopping, then it needs to be in a church bylaw, or convenant, and made clear when they join. If the requirement is not in your church documents, it is really no one else's business what the other member does. Our church bylaws address an expectation of attendance, financial support, participating in ministries, and certain types of conduct. However, even the expectations written down are seldom enforced, such as attendance not being acted on until decades later vs the one year limit for being removed from the rolls.

Having said that, I do not think it is healthy for a Christian to church hop. They need to serve where the Lord lead them. For anyone else to get involved when there is really no authority to do so, may cause more problems than the hopping does, such as hard feelings in an otherwise unified congregation. Sometimes when you stick your nose in someone else's affairs unjustified, you might draw back a nub. Without a policy, if anyone has the right to bring it up, I would think it should be the pastor.

I think the Holy Spirit in us should solve most of these type of problems. He tells each of us what is right and what is wrong. Unless there is some type of activity that is against the church bylaws, or obviously contrary to Scripture, one person has no right to tell another what to do, as in the final analysis, the message that have to impart to the fellow church member is merely an opinion.

 

All of this really goes back to the question of what is a Baptist church?

I believe in soul competency, with the church a VOLUNTARY association of believers coming together to do the Lord's work of reaching the world with the gospel.

Obviously some of you have a more Roman Catholic view of priestly authority over the souls of members.

 

Otherwise known as....Legalism.

 

If you join a church you should be faithful to that church. I can understand going to one or two special services at another church if you felt led but if you are a member at a local church that is where you should be 95% of the time.

I'm not a pastor so I wouldn't confront them. I would hope that if a church member wasn't attending on a regular basis the pastor would inquire as to why.

I think this is wrong. This is making church attendance into a buffet, and seems to be motivated by selfish reasons.

 

Golly... and here all along I was under the impression that each local church was a BODY of believers, that as a BODY we had responsibility and accountability to one another, that as a BODY we were to build each other up. And now I find out the only persons in the church with any responsibility and accountability to anyone are the teachers and staff members!

 

I am with you on this one.

It even makes me wonder what people think God gave them pastors for. I am reminded of a passage from Ezekiel 33. He was called to be a watchman. The same thing is true for pastors. In fact, if we look at chapter 34 we see that pastors who abuse and neglect their flocks will have their sheep taken from them.


Eze 33:1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
Eze 33:2 "Son of man, speak to the sons of your people and say to them, 'If I bring a sword upon a land, and the people of the land take one man from among them and make him their watchman,
Eze 33:3 and he sees the sword coming upon the land and blows on the trumpet and warns the people,
Eze 33:4 then he who hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, and a sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head.
Eze 33:5 'He heard the sound of the trumpet but did not take warning; his blood will be on himself. But had he taken warning, he would have delivered his life.
Eze 33:6 'But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and a sword comes and takes a person from them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require from the watchman's hand.'
Eze 33:7 "Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me.

 

Your comment triggered this scenario in my mind. One Sunday I decided that instead of going to one of my various churches that I hop around to visit, I'll actually attend my "home church."

When I arrived, there was one car in the parking lot. And there was one member there. I was shocked. Where is everybody?

"Oh," he said, "they're out visiting other churches today. The Pastor and staff, all the teachers and musicians decided they needed more variety."

Well, I asked, what are you doing here?

"Oh, I drew the short straw. I'm the one who had to stay behind and tell anybody who showed up that we weren't having church today. We're all out church-hopping, like you do."

Uh, what about next week. Will they all be back?

"We know the pastor and paid staff will be here, because they get paid to show up. They all took a vacation day today, so they could be away and still draw their pay. I can't say whether anybody else will show up or not. You should be okay with that. They're just doing what you do."

 

Thanks, Salty. Tell you what. I'll write some lyrics, you write the music, and we'll split the profits.

I also have this idea.

Church-hoppers can hop all you want, just send your tithes and offerings to the church. That way we can pay the pastor/staff (and the pulpit supply) when they do their hopping. We'll pay our deacons and teachers so they'll have an incentive to show up more often than they otherwise would.

Ah, Salty, just think of the fun we can have with this.

 

Okay Salty, here are the lyrics. Wanna put a tune to them? It'll work with The Old Rugged Cross

Oh the church where I belong has some really nice folks, but I need more vuh-ry-hy-uh-tee.
So I visit a-round, make my church-hopping rounds, 'cause remember, it's all about me.
Chorus
So I'll cherish the vah-ry-uh-tee.
"Cause commit-ment is just not for me.
Otherwise, they'd want my money and time.
But this way, I don't give them a dime.

2.Now the preaching's okay, and the music is good
But my wife likes the choir at Church B.
And my kids like it, too, so what can I do?
I'll be back in three weeks; guaranteed.
Chorus

 

Well now, you shouldn't presume that the church hoppers aren't serving or tithing.

Both my father and I give financial support to the churches we attend regularly. I still sing in the choir and help with VBS, etc at one church and toss my hand in when help is needed at the other. Why do you think I said church hopping was for me a pain in the neck?

But it also isn't the worst thing in the world a Christian can do. I think that would be forsaking the fellowship altogether. Some of ya'll are a little set in your ways and are awful quick to chalk things you can't concieve of doing up to selfishness. If I were being selfish, I go where I wanted with no concern for the spiritual needs of my children or the congregation they choose to worship with.

 

The majority aren't.

 

Question for those with divided loyalties:

Give a detailed breakdown of the time you spend at each church.

Say, your home church. How many Sundays do you go there?

Say your other home church)es). How often do you attend?

Please detail the extent of your involvement in each church?

Please detail how you split up your financial support of each church (if any)?

Are there other folks in those churches who church-hop?

What do the pastors of the churches you attend think about your practice?

 

Let me clarify my position. I understand some folks who might be classified as 'church-hoppers' who in reality are 'winter haven' people. We have a lot of folks who spend summers up north and winters down south and thus have two 'church homes'. I don't see much of a problem with that. It's certainly not ideal but it is understandable.

 

Say, your home church. How many Sundays do you go there?

Usually every other Sunday, though certain things the choir is doing at my home church or different thing the church is doing may keep me at one or the other for several Sundays in a row.

Say your other home church)es). How often do you attend? See above

Please detail the extent of your involvement in each church?

Well you only asked about Sundays but Wednesday night is usually spent at my home church because that is when choir practice is, though occassionally the "other" church may be having a study I want to participate in on Wednesday. And sometimes I can do both churches if the time works out just right.

Please detail how you split up your financial support of each church (if any)?

I give more to my home church and more regularly. I think this is because my home church is vastly bigger than the one I hop to and also because I haven't been hopping for very long. And really a lot of my giving depends on what is happening that I need to financially support.

Are there other folks in those churches who church-hop?

Yes. At least at my home church. It's gone on for as long as I've been a member.

What do the pastors of the churches you attend think about your practice?

Well, I'm slipping through the cracks at my home church. In the last two years we've completely replaced all of our ministers and the ministery position that would keep up with me has had a series of short term interims. However more than one member and deacon knows I'm going back and forth and why and don't consider it a problem. (and yes they realize I may move permanently to the other church)

The minister at the second church is fully aware that I am a member elsewhere and elsewhere is an entirely different denom. He's willing to let me learn their theology and get to know the congregation, while not pressuring me in either direction.

And between the two I find there are more differences becasue of size rather than theology. There are some worship differences as far as style goes (the "other" church is Episcopalian), but those exist within our own Baptist denom as well (music, invitation or not that sort of thing). I've been rather surprised to find that once you get to the core our beliefs aren't nearly as far apart as I expected. (at this particular church/congregation only. I won't include the national organization in that comment)

 

Remember, some of us see our loyalty as belonging to Jesus Christ.

And yes, we may very well be hopping IN ORDER to serve where He tells us to serve.

Examples: I have my home church, but on occasion attend where my piano skills are needed that morning. I have my home church, but at times the weather makes the road impassable to I hop on down to another one I can reach. I have my home church, but have a family member who belongs to another church and sometimes go with that person out of love.

My home church does not offer the specific music programs and some children's programs needed for the spiritual good of some children I minister to. But those churches are just not as strong in the Word. So at times I take the kiddoes to do "their thing" like VBS, and that means some Sundays also.

Where is the sin? Every Sunday barring illness or severe weather I am in the Lord's house serving Him to the best of my ability. Any time I am not at "my church" it is in an effort to better serve Him.

My loyalties are NOT divided. My loyalties are solely to Jesus Christ.

And I AM part of the body.

Perhaps the fretting is some landmarkism, each seeing their own little local assembly as "the Body of Christ" rather than seeing the whole church as that Body.

I am accountable to HIM, to obey HIM.

 

I find those who church hop to be uninterested in the biblical mandates to fellowship with a local body of believers.

Not that I do not understand why they hop around. It is always nice to get God's "goodies" and never really have to join the work in progress, but that is not at all what the Christian life is about. It is a life of service and ministry, and according to Jesus, that in a local congregation.

One thought did come to mind while reading the responses above... How many are you are in favor of a "church universal?" Seems to be the only true justification there is for church hopping unless one is an apostolic sort of messenger to the Churches, called by God (no, I'm not involking an Apostolic sort of ministry where we add to the 12).

 

Washington Post: first family has never chosen one church

[The Obamas visited Washington's Zion Baptist Church yesterday for MLK Sunday]

 

A question for those who condone church hopping:

Who do you allow to hold you accountable?