Organization of the church and Seven Historic Stages of Corruption

PART 1: Bible Blueprint for the Organization of the local church

Introduction:

1. Apostolic organization of the Local church:

a. The Apostolic period where each local assembly is independent and self governing.

b. A plurality of qualified, equal, autonomous overseers rule the deacons, teachers, members, and evangelists within their local church, but their authority does not extend outside their own local church assembly.

2. Four Organizational Possibilities for Local Churches

a. Scripturally organized: a church which has a qualified eldership.

b. Scripturally unorganized: a church without elders because no one qualified: Acts 14:1-3,6,8,21-23.

c. Unscripturally organized: Pastor system (one man over church), Unqualified men (Position worse than having no elders at all), any organization larger than local church (world headquarters etc.)

d. Unscripturally unorganized: church has qualified men who are not elders.

3. Seven stages of apostacy of the organization of the local church

a. Despite apostolic tradition and scripture, the leaders began corrupting the organization of the church for their own benefit around AD 150.

b. Between AD 150 —1054, of the simple Bible blueprint of the organization was twisted into a hideous, repulsive, and new form where leaders were kings and fatcats, and the people in the pews were irrelevant second class Christians who blindly obeyed.

I. Bible Blueprint of the Apostolic New Testament church

II. Bible Blueprint of the Local church

III. Bible Blueprint of Elders, Shepherds, and Overseers

1. Bible Qualifications for Overseer/Elder/Shepherd: 1 Tim 3:1-7 & Tit 1:5-9. Elders must be veteran Christians who are older, spiritually minded, married men with believing children.

2. Leaders (preachers, elders) are to be paid: Luke 10:7; 1 Tim 5:17-18; 1 Cor 9:14; 1 Cor 9:6-14; Phil 4:14-19

3. Leaders must be obeyed by the other members: Hebrews 13:17; 1 Thess 5:12; 1 Cor 16:15-16

4. Leaders must consider themselves “underrowers” (servants) to the church, not fat cats: 1 Cor 4:1

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5. Overseer/Elder/Shepherd have equal authority limited to one congregation: Acts 20:28; 1 Pet 5:1-3; 1 Pet 5:1

6. Plurality of Elders: Tit 1:5; Acts 14:23; Jas 5:14; 1 Pe 5:1-3; 1 Ti 4:14; 1 Ti 5:17, Jerusalem: Acts 15:2,4; 15:6; 15:22: 15:23; 16:4; 21:18, Ephesus: Acts 20:17,28; Judea: Acts 11:29,30

7. Local churches appoint and ordain their own leaders from within:

a. The Bible is the only law for a local church, not creeds.

b. A local church is autonomous, not controlled by a Bible college.

c. A local church appoints their own elders, not a Bible college.

d. A local church chooses their own evangelist, not a Bible college.

e. Elders oversee churches and scholars oversee colleges, both are good, but let the church be the church and let colleges be colleges.

Five terms describing the office of an elder
Term	Greek word	Definition:	Emphasis
Elder or presbyter	Presbureros	An older man a senior	Experience
Overseer or bishop	Episcopos	A guardian or superintendent	Oversight
Shepherd or pastor	Poimen	Metaphoric term (tending flocks)	Protection
Steward	Oikonomo	Metaphoric term (treasurer)	Trustworthy
Eldership	Presbuterion	Group of older men/elders	Plurality & equality

All terms refer to same single office
	Elder/Presbyter (Presbureros)	Overseer/bishop (Episcopos)	Shepherd/pastor (Poimen)	Steward (Oikonomo)
Acts 20:17,28
Tit 1:5,7
1 Pe 5:1,2

IV. Church leaders are “underrowers” not fatcats!

V. The Oldest known church building on earth AD 230:

1. It featured triclinium perimeter seating

2. It had no nave, chancel screens, or bema, typical of Byzantine churches where leaders were exalted.

3. It validates the deity of Christ with an inscription that reads, “God Jesus Christ”.

PART 2: Five Stages of Apostacy of the Organization of the Church

Apostacy Stage 1: Church leaders corrupted the Bible Blueprint of the New Testament church:

Apostacy Stage 1: Rise of the Head Overseer: AD 150

The Autonomous Congregational Board with Chairman: The pulpit minister/preacher/evangelist, was often appointed as a qualified overseer in his local church. His knowledge of scripture generally exceeded his fellow overseers, and he was often looked to as providing valuable insight and direction in congregational matters, but no one until AD 150 dared to claim a higher authority over his fellow overseers.

Apostacy Stage 2: Rise of the Bishop over the Elders: AD 200

Autonomous Congregational Bishop over Presbytery: The Episcopal Presbytery: The pulpit minister/preacher/evangelist (who is also an overseer) begins to exclusively call himself “overseer” as head of the local church over his former colleagues who are no longer called overseers, but they retain the titles of “elders/shepherds” (presbytery). The original church office is now two separate offices consisting of single overseer (Episcopate) who rules over a body of equal men (Presbytery).

Apostacy Stage 3: Rise of the Diocesan Bishop over other local churches: AD 250

Diocesan Bishop/Priest over many local churches: Stage 3 is marked by 5 major changes:

1. Total abolition of local church autonomy when diocesan bishops control many local churches.

2. Local churches are ruled by one man, not a plurality of men, making the presbytery functionally extinct.

3. The qualifications for an overseer in 1 Timoth 3 are ignored.

4. The bishop begins exclusively calling himself a priest, stripping all Christians of this previously held status.

5. The clergy/laity distinction is seen in the architecture of the earliest Byzantine church buildings with a marble chancel screen barriers and raised bema where the priest stands.

Apostacy Stage 4: Rise of the five capital city Metropolitans: AD 300

Metropolitans over Diocesan Bishops: Apostacy stage 4 further concentrated power by putting many diocesan bishops (who themselves ruled over many local bishops) under the control of dozens of Metropolitans living in the largest and most important Roman provincial capital cities. By AD 325 the Nicene creed gave pre-eminence to the four Metropolitan bishops of Rome, Constantinople, Antioch, and Alexandria. These further evolved into Patriarchates and with the addition of Jerusalem in AD 431, the church was divided into 5 geographic autonomous regions. Not until AD 588 would John IV the Faster, Patriarchate of Constantinople be first to seize all power and be first to claim the title of “Universal Bishop” (Pope). Local preachers were called priest but not bishops.

Apostacy Stage 5: Rise of the five Patriarchates: AD 381

Patriarchates over Metropolitans: Apostacy stage 5 divided the world up into 5 geographic zones. In AD 381, the council of Constantinople established 4 cities with equal and autonomous Patriarchates: Rome, Constantinople (new capital of Empire), Antioch (Apostle Paul’s home church), and Alexandria (Academic center of the world). However, Rome was seen as “first among equals” in the western Latin church, and Constantinople was seen as “first among equals” in the eastern Greek church, but second to Rome. This 5-tier organization of Universal Bishop, Patriarchates, Metropolitans, Bishops, and priests is how the Greek Orthodox church is organized from AD 381 to the present. Thus, the Orthodox church was founded in AD 381. The Council of Chalcedon in AD 451 added Jerusalem as the 5th Patriarchates. Local churches are stripped of their biblical “overseers, shepherds, and elders” and the preacher is exclusively called an unbiblical “priest” to the exclusion of members.

Apostacy Stage 6: Birth of the Greek Orthodox church organization: AD 381-present

Unbiblical organization of the Greek Orthodox Church: The current 5-tier organization of the Orthodox church traces its origin to the council of Constantinople in AD 381, which proclaimed Constantinople as “first” over the Patriarchates of Antioch and Alexandria, but “second” to Rome. After the church split fellowship in AD 1054 into Roman Catholic (West/Latin) and Orthodox (East/Greek), Constantinople became the functional Pope with the title of Ecumenical Patriarchate. In contrast to the extreme over/under military command style of the 3-tier Roman Catholic organization, Orthodox emphasises autonomy like King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table. Local “parishes” are stripped of all autonomy and their biblical “overseers, shepherds, and elders” and replaced with an unbiblical “priest”, further stripping the common members of their Biblical status of both saints and priests.

10 HERESIES OF THE GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH

1. Elevates human tradition equal to scripture.

2. Obeys human tradition when it contradicts scripture.

3. Inclusion of uninspired books into their Bible canon.

4. Only ordained priests can infallibly understand scripture.

5. Unbiblical use of leavened bread for communion.

6. Unbiblical elevation of Mary to being equal to God as the recipient of prayers.

7. Unbiblical Infant baptism.

8. Unbiblical triple baptism.

9. Unbiblical redefinition of saint and priest from all Christians to leaders.

10. Unbiblical organization of the global church.

Today, the organization of the Orthodox church:

1 Ecumenical Patriarchate (pope)

17 Patriarchates (country)

100’s Metropolitans (province) 1000’s Bishops (city)

100,000 Priests (local assembly)

220 million members

Unbiblical Orthodox Church Communion is Witchcraft

Details: Orthodox Communion is Witchcraft

Orthodox Eucharist liturgy is witchcraft with over 50 sequential component stages that include spells, incantations, gestures, actions, and precise recipe ingredients mixed in a special cup to brew a magic potion that mysteriously and spontaneously changes physical form and induces a supernatural effect only when it is drank from a spoon held by a witch. If all the 50 steps of the recipe are not followed precisely the magic potion is a failure. Both Orthodox and Catholic claim their bizarre, nutty, and anti-biblical Eucharist liturgy comes from oral apostolic tradition, yet they differ sharply from each other and none of it is found in scripture, making both liturgies a doctrine of demons and vain worship. Orthodox Eucharist is vain manmade worship because it is 100% different from the Bible pattern of how Jesus and Paul partook of the Lord’s supper. Jesus said, “do communion in remembrance of me”, not in remembrance of Mary, angels, and dead saints as in Orthodox Eucharist. A memorial pinch of bread for each living and dead person for whom prayer has been requested is put on the plate, yet communion bread is not a symbol of supplication prayer for living Christians but of the body of Christ. We do not pray for the dead because they have been judged, are in the hands of God, and we do not know their needs in the spirit world. Local dead members are memorialized through communion for 40 days.

Details: Orthodox Church Communion is Witchcraft

Apostacy Stage 7: Birth of the Roman Catholic church organization: AD 606-present

Unbiblical organization of the Roman Catholic Church: The current 3-tier organization of the Roman Catholic church traces its origin to Pope Boniface III in AD 606, who was the first Bishop of Rome who dared take on the title of Universal Bishop and dethrone Jesus Christ. The contemporary 5-tier organization was reduced to 3-tiers with Pope (also a bishop and priest), Bishops (also priests), and Priests (local parish). The trademark Biblical autonomy of the local church was long extinct. Catholic and Orthodox separated in AD 606 but did not divorce until AD 1054. The Orthodox grounds for divorce were the new Catholic practices of sprinkling instead of immersion, instrumental music, and the claim of Universal Bishop. Historically, it was the Roman Catholics who broke away from the Orthodox in AD 606 and 1054, not the other way around.

Historical Pope Wars between Catholic vs. Orthodox: AD 588-606

1. AD 533: Emperor Justinian I proclaimed the bishop of Rome supreme head of all churches, but the decree was ignored by all the bishops of Rome who never took the title bestowed by the Emperor.

2. AD 588: Constantinopolitan synod: John IV the Faster, patriarch of Constantinople, is granted the title of Universal Bishop but doesn't start using it till 595 AD.

3. AD 590: Gregory I, the great, becomes bishop of Rome, but never called himself Universal Bishop and considered it an abomination to do so.

4. AD 595: John IV the Faster, bishop of Constantinople, starts using the title of "universal bishop".

5. AD 595: Gregory, bishop of Rome, condemns John with the following:

a. Apostle Peter never claimed to be Universal Bishop. (Gregory 5.20)

b. Neither Gregory nor any other bishop of Rome has ever called himself the Universal Bishop. (Gregory 5.43)

c. Gregory Bishop of Rome, calls “Universal Bishop” a foolish title, an offence, a frivolous name, exceedingly harmful, precursor of Antichrist, sign of the times the antichrist is near. (Gregory 7.33)

d. Gregory condemns John as Lucifer with Isa 14:12-15 by usurping, dethroning Christ as the only Universal Bishop. (Gregory 5.18; 5.21) AD 595: John dies the same year he claimed to be Universal Bishop.

6. AD 604: Gregory, the bishop of Rome dies and is replaced by Sabinian, who reigns for two years but never calls himself Universal Bishop and died February AD 606.

7. AD 606: Boniface III succeeds Sabinian, and Emperor Phocas proclaims Boniface III as Universal Bishop, transferring the title from Constantinople to Rome. Boniface III is the first bishop of Rome in history to wear the title of “Universal Bishop”. AD 607 AD: Boniface III dies on 12 November, shortly after claiming to be Universal Bishop. just like John IV. AD 610: Muhammed founds Islam which decimates 80% of the church.

8. AD 1054: The Orthodox condemned the Catholic church for claiming that Peter or any bishop of Rome before Boniface III functioned as Universal Bishop. Today: The Roman Catholic church falsifies history by claiming every bishop of Rome back to Peter, was Universal Bishop otherwise known as “the pope”. There is little evidence Peter was ever in Rome and being an elder in the Jerusalem church, it is unlikely.

Organization of the Roman Catholic church today:

1 Universal Bishop (pope)

5600 Bishops

400,000 Priests (local parish)

1 billion members

Steven Rudd, March 2025