Have you ever been in a discussion with someone, and then something, perhaps just a very small detail, lodges itself in your brain and sends a sense throughout your entire body that something is just not right? I had that experience today when talking with someone who I have always thought to be a Christian. In chit-chatting with her today, casually talking about my seminary plans for next year and my desire to equip people in the church with the knowledge, means, and encouragement to be effective ministers in their own environments, she started talking about her own church and small group and peers within her congregation. Something she said about the small group didn't sit right with me - something about a family that just wasn't committed in their faith. The evidence was that they often did not come to small group. I started thinking, wow, how many times have I cut out on small group. Sometimes I'm sick, sometimes I'm exhausted, sometimes I have play practice or am up against a deadline or something like that. Gathering with other Christians on a regular basis is important, and my small group record isn't stellar, but should small group attendance be the measure of spiritual committment? Then, she said something about the International Church of Christ. hmmm, I thought. That probably explains it. I knew some Churches of Christ are mainstream non-denominational Christian churches and some Churches of Christ are manipulative and cult-like. I couldn't remember which category the International Church of Christ fell into. I looked it up. Yup. It's the cult-like one.
If you don't know about the International Church of Christ, research about it. It embraces a form of compulsory dicipleship. First of all, one is not truly saved until he or she is baptized by an International Church of Christ member. Secondly, once one is saved and therefore a member of the church, one must be discipled by another - and here is the really scary part- one must be fully subordinate to the one who is discipling him or her. Therefore, whether the issue is marriage, work, major purchases, church involvement, etc., the one who is being discipled must submit to the authority of the other.
I'm saddened now. I don't really know where my friend stands in all of this. Does she fully embrace this doctrine or is she ignorant of it? I really don't think she's ignorant of it, which leads me to wonder what she's been thinking of me all this time. Am I saved in her eyes? Or, does she think I believe the same things she does? And, when I was talking today about discipleship and equipping, what was she thinking about? I'm sure we think of very different things when the word discipleship comes up, and right now I am sick to think that she might believe I actually endorse controlling people's lives as true discipleship.
It's a scary world out there. I hate cults. I hate groups that use the name of Christ to manipulate and control. I hate groups that use the most freeing message in the world to put people into bondage. I hate groups that manipulate so much that people lose their sensitivity to what bondage really is and then joyfully lead others into their own captive state.
My friend means well. But, it's just all so wrong.
I'm going to have to comment more about this later.
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