Can “Authentic Christianity” Be Found Today?

Last updated on: March 8, 2015 at 6:45 am by Roger E. Olson

Can “Authentic Christianity” Be Found Today? 2015-03-08T06:45:18-05:00 Roger E. Olson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Like many Christians I grew up in a church that was committed to restoring the “New Testament church”—as it was in the first century. This impulse is called “restorationism.” (I only capitalize that term when referring to a particular tradition known to scholars as “Restorationism” whose main contemporary offshoots are the Churches of Christ, Independent Christian Churches, and the Disciples of Christ. Except, of course, when the term is first in a sentence.) Restorationism is the belief that the church’s main task in every age is to restore the New Testament church and emulate it as much as possible in a contemporary culture.

Many Christian traditions are restorationist in this sense: Anabaptists and Baptists (“baptists”), Pentecostals, Churches of Christ, Plymouth Brethren, et al. They all believe they have achieved it to some degree; some believe they have achieved it perfectly. They disagree among themselves about what must be done to recreate the New Testament church, which they all equate with corporate “authentic Christianity.” Baptists tend to focus on congregational autonomy, separation of church and state, and believer baptism by immersion. Pentecostals focus on the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit including speaking in tongues and healing. Churches of Christ focus on no instrumental music.

The restorationist impulse leads different churches in different directions. For the most part, though, it seems to me even restorationist churches usually fail to restore the New Testament church because they focus on outer, visible symbols. Most restorationist churches I know about (and I have made studying them an avocation for many years) pride themselves on having found and achieved one or two elements of “New Testament Christianity” while ignoring their own accommodations to contemporary American culture. (And I suspect the same accommodation to culture problem can be found in restorationist churches everywhere.)

I doubt that it is necessary or possible to emulate everything about the New Testament church. We are all partly products of our contemporary cultures—even groups that claim to be untainted by their dominant culture. Many of them have developed their own separate culture that has little to do with the New Testament church.

For many years I have sought for authentic Christianity in a corporate expression. I don’t think that can be identified by having church buildings or not having church buildings, speaking in tongues or not speaking in tongues, modes of baptism (although I don’t think all are equally correct), church polity, having musical instruments or not. These are all outward symbols that often deceive people into thinking their church has achieved true, authentic Christianity (which for restorationists means New Testament Christianity).

What am I seeking in corporate, relatively organized Christianity that would signal to me its authenticity?

When I read the New Testament I get several impressions about what the apostles thought authentic Christianity looks and feels like in its corporate expression.

The very first thing I look at is how much the church reflects the culture around it. I don’t mean in its facilities; I mean in its ethos. In America that means: To what extent does the church reflect consumerism, materialism, competition to “get ahead” of others, “success in life” as defining status, tolerance and self-esteem as goals, and “American exceptionalism?”

Closely related to the “first thing” is a second negative mark: to what extent the church values being “respectable” over being authentically Christian. For example, some churches emphasize “quality” in worship more than congregational participation. To me that is a mark against its authenticity.

Another thing I look for is doctrinally sound preaching and teaching that appeals to the heart as well as to the head. And by “the heart” I don’t mean emotions per se. by “heart” I mean the core of personality, the seat of personal values, decisions and behaviors. And by “appeal” I mean challenge and comfort. Sermons and lessons that constantly and consistently appeal only to the mind are missing the mark of Christian authenticity even though the intellect must not be ignored or demeaned.

True community manifested by sharing lives and property is another mark of corporate Christian authenticity. By “sharing property” I don’t mean communalism or collectivism but the practice of taking care of each other, hospitality, holding loosely to “personal property” so as to meet the genuine needs of others in the church.

Passionate commitment to Christ, the gospel, and the church is something else I look for in an authentic corporate expression of Christianity. Cool, calm, distancing worship, outreach, fellowship and involvement (or lack of it) signal unauthenticity. As I read the New Testament the people of God were totally committed to the cause of Christ and the gospel—to the point of death if necessary. Many American churches are simply Sunday morning gatherings of individuals who do not want to be bothered with total commitment or involvement. The church is to many of us only a club or support group, not the true Body of Christ in which we are all connected to him and each other. “Passion” does not have to mean emotion although I seriously doubt whether passion can be present where there is never any emotional display.

Another mark of authenticity in Christian corporate existence is unity in Spirit and in truth as opposed to non-spiritual similarity. The New Testament church struggled with diversity but the apostles promoted the ideal of unity around correct belief and spiritual experience—not around loyalty to a celebrity preacher or political ideology or cultural identity.

I was fortunate enough to have belonged to a church for a few years that manifested a true, authentic New Testament Christian ethos. Visitors often commented on how the members and attenders loved one another and on how the preaching and worship glorified Jesus Christ and both challenged and comforted. For a few years numerous visitors commented that they “felt something different” the moment they walked into the church’s worship space. The simple explanation for that is that the people were gathered to worship in expectation that God would be busy among them. They talked with each other about what God was doing in their lives and among them.

And that brings me to my final mark of authentic Christian corporate existence: Clear evidence that God is there busy changing lives for the better in super-normal ways. When I read the New Testament I see that primitive, original Christianity was not about helping people turn over new leaves or become nicer people. It was about people being radically changed in their dispositions. All things were becoming new—in concrete, visible, noticeable ways. I remember one man in that congregation who was well known as having racist feelings. He was not a “white supremacist” but clearly looked down on people of other races including especially African-Americans. People prayed for him. One evening, during a time of corporate prayer, as he lifted his arms in supplication to God to fill him, he experienced a total change of disposition. From that moment on he loved people of color and demonstrated that in genuine behaviors. Everyone in the church noticed it. But they were not particularly surprised because “that’s what God does.”

Uncategorized

Previous Post

March 4, 2015

Confessions of an Egalitarian Complementarian

Next Post

March 11, 2015 What Is the Old Testament Good For--Doctrinally?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Against Liberal Theology Uncategorized

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

What was the name of the river where Ezekiel saw his vision?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Jordan River Euphrates River River Chebar Nile River