Two Kinds Of Examples
An example is something that has been taken out for a pattern. The Bible presents two kinds of examples: (1) patterns to be imitated, as in 1 Timothy 4:12 and 1 Thessalonians 1:7; (2) patterns to be avoided, as in 1 Corinthians 10:6-11 and Revelation 3:14-22.
A man or a church should not be imitated, except as that man or that church complies with the will of God (1 Cor. 11:1); but every Christian should so live that he would not lead others astray, if they imitated him in everything; and every church should work and worship in a way that would not lead other churches to do wrong, if all other churches imitated it in everything.
Both churches and individuals teach by example, and it is just as important for churches to set good examples as it is for individual Christians to do so. No church has a scriptural right to do anything in its work and worship, that would be wrong for all other churches to imitate.
By the example of their liberality, the churches in Macedonia taught others to give liberally. (2 Cor. 8:1-8.) Their example is good for all churches to imitate today.
Paul complimented the good example of the church in Thessalonica for sounding "forth the word of the Lord" in many places. (1 Thess. 1:7, 8.) All churches everywhere today should imitate that noble example.
In its endeavor to sound "forth the word" in every place, neither the church at Thessalonica nor any other church launched a preaching project which it knew from the beginning it would never be able to support, and which would make necessary an eternal begging campaign for the contributions from other churches all over the world. When a church today starts a preaching or benevolent project which makes its control of the work and money of other churches a continuous necessity, that church is setting a bad example. That is an example that other churches must avoid, or bring shame and disgrace to the kingdom of Christ before the whole world.
Can you imagine how churches of Christ would look today, if they all were out begging all the time for control of one another's contributions? Is any man so blind that he cannot see that such would bring ignominy and disgrace upon the church before the whole world?
In New Testament times, when members of a church were in need, other churches sent relief. That is an example worthy of imitation by all churches today. (1 Cor. 16:1-3.) The members of the Broadway Church in Lubbock and the Highland Church in Abilene are as well off as the brethren in other churches. No famine, no calamity has hit either Abilene or Lubbock; but they are voluntarily and continuously begging for the control of the money of other churches all over the world. If all other churches all over the world should imitate them, what would be the result? How long is it going to take the brethren in Lubbock, Abilene and a few other places to get their eyes open to the fact that they are setting examples without scriptural precedent — examples that must be avoided by other churches, or the whole brotherhood will be held in contempt and disgrace and dishonor before the whole world?
If it is God's will for Lubbock and Abilene to inaugurate projects that make it necessary for them continuously to beg and accept control of the work and resources of other churches, then it is God's will for all churches of Christ all over the world to inaugurate projects that make it necessary for them to beg and accept one another's contributions.
Would any man, with as much as one grain of common sense, argue that it is God's will for all the churches to start something which would make it necessary for them to have control of one another's resources? Is it God's will for Abilene and Lubbock to do that which would place the kingdom of Christ in a contemptible and scornful position before the world, if all churches imitated them? Has God granted special privileges to Lubbock and Abilene? No; Lubbock and Abilene are violating God's will. Other churches should avoid their example.
An elder's self-respect should compel him to consider it an insult for any of these "sponsoring churches" to ask him for the control and oversight of his congregation's money, thereby insinuating that he is incapable of overseeing the charge allotted to him.
Broadway, Highland and a few other "sponsoring churches" should stop this disgraceful practice that would bring the whole church into bad repute, if all churches imitated their example. They should be setting examples of benevolence, liberality and mission work that would be worthy of imitation by all churches all over the world.
Churches that do not sound "forth the word," and churches that do nothing to meet their obligations to the poor, are bad examples, too. We can imagine the result, if all imitated the example of the do-nothing churches.