Church = Institution = Problem?

 Imagine a high schooler saying, “the church is not a building!” What is he/she saying? Is he/she making a truth claim that the church building will not be raptured (which is obvious)? Or that, unless we stay in the building we won’t go to heaven? Or could the child, who has been attending church at a young age due to parental obligations, trying to communicate, “Don’t judge my faith by my church attendance?”  

Certainly, this is a made-up scenario, but I’m trying to get at the phenomenon that some loaded statements often reflect a deeper reality and problem. So, when someone says, “The church is not an institution,” or when someone attacks the “institutional church”, what they’re really getting at is (hopefully) something deeper and something different...while not always using the right language.  

I will break down these claims and get to the “real issue”. 

Church ≠ Institution? 

The church is an institution. Let’s face it. Any claims against the church as an institution is problematic. Why? Because a family is an institution. A marriage is an institution (cf. Matt 19:4-6). If marriage/family = institution; church = family (of God); then church = institution. To claim that Jesus established a church on earth but did not intend it to be an institution that the gates of hell will not prevail (cf. Matt 16:18) is simply fallacious.   

Everything that a church is (regardless of how formal/informal) adheres to the traits of an institution: (1) Social structure; (2) Purpose/function; (3) Hierarchy of power; (4) Rules/regulations etc. People who claim that a church is not an institution need to define what they mean by institution, and how their definition is valid and reflects reality. (Again, if God intends marriage/family to be an institution...I don’t see any way around how the church isn’t.) 

To claim the church is not an institution appears is similar to, “A Tesla isn’t a car/vehicle because it’s electric!” To claim that an “electric vehicle” is not a vehicle is treading on lines that are too thin to make a substantial case.  

So why is there a disdain for the institutional church? (from believers and unbelievers alike)? Let’s look at 2 issues: 

Issue #1: Detesting Authority 

They detest authority. A clear trait of an institution/organization is that there is a hierarchal structure of power/authority. For whatever reason, (lack of father figure, experiences of power abuse, trauma, stuck in rebellion etc.) they resist and detest authority. They just can’t submit to authority. Naturally, they can’t stand “church” because God calls His people to listen, obey, and submit to church leaders who are ordained by God (Heb 13:7; 17)!  

Hebrews 13:17 writes,  

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”  

My point is this, people detest authority and blame it on the “institutional church”. Have there been abuses of authority and power in churches? Yes. Does it mean all churches have untrustworthy authority figures? Of course not. It’s not like house churches are free of sin and problems. Perhaps people who detest the “institutional church” have undealt issues in their hearts and need healing. Or maybe its pride.  

Issue #2: Misdiagnosing the Problem (Commercialization, Corperateness)

It is possible that some Christians’ issue with the “institutional church” does not regard the “institution”, but commercialization and corporateness! They do not have problems with authority, rather, they associate the institution with (1) the love of money, (2) the misuse of finances, and (3) the swayed purposed because of wealth.  In other words, if the church is called to make disciples of Christ (cf. Matt 28:19-20), commercialization can affect the cause.

An example is this: some rich megachurches go crazy with production, and that can be viewed by faithful Christians as “missing the point”. A drum battle in the beginning of worship may be attractive, but would that actually contribute to making disciples? Certain cultural aspects can be redeemed, but at some point, concerns will be raised when the church looks too similar to the world—often an issue caused by commercialization.

Now, if someone were to say this, I’d be 100% on board! Just make sure the problem is actually the problem.  Is it true that larger church organizations tend to be more commercialized? Yes. But the problem isn’t organizational/institutional nature by itself—rather, commercialism!

Conclusion: 

The church is indeed an institution. But the church isn’t just another institution on earth. It is the only institution that is a beacon of the Kingdom and built on truth. The church is a God-ordained institution. Similar to marriage, it is not perfect because we aren’t. However, when God-ordained institutions thrive by striving after God’s design, the evoked beauty is unmatched.  

 This post is not advocating for, or against a specific type and model of church. Do I have thoughts on this? Of course I do, but that is besides the point for now. Rather, the emphasis is that we should see the church as an institution AND do our best in enabling her to shine in her God-given beauty. For some people, a good place to start is by knowing what the Bible says about the global and local church. A good question to ask is, “What makes a church, a church according to the Bible?”

All in all, the nature of a church as an institution is not a problem. Rather, a problem arises when a church operates under a system that lacks biblical prescription and corrupt leaders.

If you're at a church—great! If you're not and claim to be Christian, you need to start doing so!