Wow! I simply cannot get these two words out of my head: encouragement and empowerment. They are powerful words to say the least.
The Word of God is full of encouragement and power. Hebrews 4:12 states that it is "living and active"; and if churches stick to the living Word for directives and guidance then they will always be encouraged and empowered.
What seems to happen though more times than nought is that churches created their own rules and regulations to be the sole requirement for functioning. Church constitutions and bylaws are not bad in and of themselves, but when they take the place of or supersede the living Word of God the church ceases to be encouraged and empowered by God.
At best, constitutions and bylaws can only be guiding principles as functioning structures for churches. No matter how biblically based they might be in their presentation, these principles will always come up against biblical exceptions to the rules of the constitution and/or bylaw. Often, when constitutions and bylaws are strictly adhered to they suck the encouragement and empowerment of God right out of the church and its operation.
God's holy Word needs to always be the final authority for the church and its functions, even if it means a complete change to constitutions and bylaws. This is an important point whenever a church comes to a place where change is necessary. Change usually means renewal and revival, and sometimes it is our man-made structures such as constitutions and bylaws which stall us or hold us back completely.
Today's millennial generation, 20-somethings, may not have the same appreciation for formal, legal documentations such as constitutions and bylaws. Even these traditional documents may have to be put on the table (subject to the chopping block) if they stand in the way of true encouragement and empowerment to move ahead. The church is called through the Great Commission to always reproduce itself from one generation to the next and this era's way of functioning as a church may not work for the next. At some point the entitlement has to be surrendered from one generation to the next and that may mean letting go for the sake of change.
I am not advocating an anti-constitution and bylaw revolution by any means. What I am advocating is change when God calls us to it, regardless of what our constitutions and bylaws decree. Let God's Word be the final authority on all things and the church will always be encouraged and empowered by the right source, and God's name will be glorified. Amen.
Blessings,
-Leo
