When our Lord Jesus Christ was on earth during His ministerial work, He established the apostolic church and appointed the officers of the first organized church in the Christian era. Jesus departed from the organized Jewish church and laid the foundation of the organization of the Christian church. The twelve disciples whom the Lord ordained were the first officers of the new church founded in a.d. 27. The Bible tells us:

“It came to pass in those days, that [Jesus] went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God. And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles” (Luke 6:12, 13).

“The first step was now to be taken in the organization of the church that after Christ’s departure was to be His representative on earth.”1

After His death, resurrection, and ascension, these disciples of Jesus - who became apostles - continued the work of preaching the gospel.

The early church was well organized, as we can see by the election of the seven deacons in Acts 6:1-6. When Saul, before his conversion, was persecuting the members of the church of God, the same Jesus who had organized the church appeared unto Him in vision. When Saul asked the Lord, “What wilt thou have me to do?” the answer was given: “Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do” (Acts 9:6).

Saul could have logically reasoned that he certainly knew the Scriptures very well, and even in the city it was likely that no one else knew the Scriptures better than he. Besides, the Lord Himself who had just communicated with him by an audible voice could easily have told him straightaway what he was to do next. But no, Jesus specifically directed Saul to contact the established organized church, and its representatives would be the ones to tell him what he must do.

“Thus Jesus gave sanction to the authority of His organized church and placed Saul in connection with His appointed agencies on earth. Christ had now a church as His representative on earth, and to it belonged the work of directing the repentant sinner in the way of life.

“Many have an idea that they are responsible to Christ alone for their light and experience, independent of His recognized followers on earth. Jesus is the friend of sinners, and His heart is touched with their woe. He has all power, both in heaven and on earth; but He respects the means that He has ordained for the enlightenment and salvation of men; He directs sinners to the church, which He has made a channel of light to the world.”2

Later on, as the church progressed and the persecutor himself joined the ranks of the persecuted, the Lord used Paul as His representative and revealed to him many mysteries which other apostles did not understand. But even then, Paul still recognized and respected the authority of God’s organized church.

“Notwithstanding the fact that Paul was personally taught by God, he had no strained ideas of individual responsibility. While looking to God for direct guidance, he was ever ready to recognize the authority vested in the body of believers united in church fellowship. He felt the need of counsel, and when matters of importance arose, he was glad to lay these before the church and to unite with his brethren in seeking God for wisdom to make right decisions.”3

In every age God has had His embassy on earth - His church. Although the church was sometimes made up of only a few souls, the Lord has always maintained a channel of light on earth.

The gates of hell could not blot out “God’s fortress”4 - “His city of refuge” - amidst the trials and persecutions that rose throughout the centuries.

When the Seventh-day Adventists were first established as a church, they were not well organized and had much confusion among them. Ministers went out to preach, baptize, and administer the church ordinances on their own account. There was no order, no organization. By the guidance of the Spirit of Prophecy, however, they soon understood the need of organizing the believers in church capacity. The Testimony reads:

“As our numbers increased, it was evident that without some form of organization there would be great confusion, and the work would not be carried forward successfully. To provide for the support of the ministry, for carrying the work in new fields, for protecting both the churches and the ministry from unworthy members, for holding church property, for the publication of the truth through the press, and for many other objects, organization was indispensable.

“Yet there was strong feeling against it among our people. The first-day Adventists were opposed to organization, and most of the Seventh-day Adventists entertained the same ideas. We sought the Lord with earnest prayer that we might understand His will, and light was given by His Spirit that there must be order and thorough discipline in the church - that organization was essential. System and order are manifest in all the works of God throughout the universe. Order is the law of heaven, and it should be the law of God’s people on earth.”5

Notice the main reasons for having an organization:

• For the support of the ministry.

• To carry the work in new fields.

• For protecting the churches and the ministry from unworthy members.

• For holding properties.

• For publishing the truth through the press, and so forth.

The conclusion to which they came was in accordance with Bible truth.

The apostle Paul mentions the various offices in the church:

“[Christ] gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:11-16).

In 1863 the Seventh-day Adventists organized their General Conference. The highest - or heaviest - responsibility in the church falls on the officers of the General Conference. God provided means by which this could be carried out. We read about this arrangement:

“Every member of the church has a voice in choosing officers of the church. The church chooses the officers of the state conferences. Delegates chosen by the state conferences choose the officers of the union conferences, and delegates chosen by the union conferences choose the officers of the General Conference. By this arrangement every conference, every institution, every church, and every individual, either directly or through representatives, has a voice in the election of the men who bear the chief responsibilities in the General Conference.”6

We learn from this testimony that delegates should come together to elect the leaders of the church in its highest (most weighty) offices. When these delegates come together from all parts of the world, they do not only nominate the leaders, but also discuss doctrinal points, administrative problems, and so forth. The decisions taken there which are not contrary to the Bible and the Testimonies should be received and accepted by the people as the voice of God. If the church maintains itself loyal to the commandments of God, its decisions are sanctioned in heaven.

“I have often been instructed by the Lord that no man’s judgment should be surrendered to the judgment of any other one man. Never should the mind of one man or the minds of a few men be regarded as sufficient in wisdom and power to control the work and to say what plans shall be followed. But when, in a General Conference, the judgment of the brethren assembled from all parts of the field is exercised, private independence and private judgment must not be stubbornly maintained, but surrendered. Never should a laborer regard as a virtue the persistent maintenance of his position of independence, contrary to the decisions of the general body.

“At times, when a small group of men entrusted with the general management of the work have, in the name of the General Conference, sought to carry out unwise plans and to restrict God’s work, I have said that I could no longer regard the voice of the General Conference, represented by these few men, as the voice of God. But this is not saying that the decisions of a General Conference composed of an assembly of duly appointed, representative men from all parts of the field should not be respected. God has ordained that the representatives of His church from all parts of the earth, when assembled in a General Conference, shall have authority. The error that some are in danger of committing is in giving to the mind and judgment of one man, or of a small group of men, the full measure of authority and influence that God has vested in His church in the judgment and voice of the General Conference assembled to plan for the prosperity and advancement of His work.”7

In the culture in which we are now living, it is quite common for self-sent messengers to arise and interpret the Bible to suit their own taste. The only way to be secure is not to advocate independency. Private opinions should not prevail when delegates from all parts of the world make a decision. No new light, no new interpretation of the Scriptures should be accepted if it does not come through the right channel. The Spirit of Prophecy tells us:

“There are a thousand temptations in disguise prepared for those who have the light of truth; and the only safety for any of us is in receiving no new doctrine, no new interpretation of the Scriptures, without first submitting it to brethren of experience. Lay it before them in a humble, teachable spirit, with earnest prayer; and if they see not light in it, yield to their judgment: for ‘in the multitude of counselors there is safety’ (Proverbs 11:14). ”8

It is the plan of Satan to incite people to act independently and without due regard for their fellow believers. He tries to convince people that church organization is not necessary, yet this essential element is a key safeguard of the church.

“Oh, how Satan would rejoice if he could succeed in his efforts to get in among this people and disorganize the work at a time when thorough organization is essential and will be the greatest power to keep out spurious uprisings and to refute claims not endorsed by the word of God! We want to hold the lines evenly, that there shall be no breaking down of the system of organization and order that has been built up by wise, careful labor. License must not be given to disorderly elements that desire to control the work at this time.”9

Just as the human body has many members - but one depends on the other - so it is also in the church.

Christ is the head, and we are the member of His body, the church. No members can live if cut off from the body. So it is also in the spiritual sense. Independent individuals cannot live spiritually if they do not belong to the organized body, whose head is the Lord. The different offices in the church represent the different positions of the members in the body. Read 1 Corinthians 12:12-28. In verse 28 Paul is speaking specifically of the different offices that should exist in the church. All members working together have the same goal - the perfection or unity in the faith.

“The spirit of pulling away from fellow laborers, the spirit of disorganization, is in the very air we breathe. By some, all efforts to establish order are regarded as dangerous - as a restriction of personal liberty, and hence to be feared as popery. These deceived souls regard it a virtue to boast of their freedom to think and act independently. They declare that they will not take any man’s say-so; that they are amenable to no man. I have been instructed that it is Satan’s special effort to lead men to feel that God is pleased to have them choose their own course independent of the counsel of their brethren.

“Herein lies a grave danger to the prosperity of our work. We must move discreetly, sensibly, in harmony with the judgment of God-fearing counselors; for in this course alone lies our safety and strength. Otherwise God cannot work with us and by us and for us.”10

The Spirit of Prophecy does not suggest that in these last days people should think and act as they please. No independency is allowed. The servants of God should act “subject to the sanctified mind of the whole” (the organized church, whose members come together in a general council), and their decisions should be respected. So it was in the past and so it must be today.

“When dissension arose in a local church, as later it did arise in Antioch and elsewhere, and the believers were unable to come to an agreement among themselves, such matters were not permitted to create a division in the church, but were referred to a general council of the entire body of believers, made up of appointed delegates from the various local churches, with the apostles and elders in positions of leading responsibility.”11

“The council which decided this case was composed of apostles and teachers who had been prominent in raising up the Jewish and Gentile Christian churches, with chosen delegates from various places. Elders from Jerusalem and deputies from Antioch were present, and the most influential churches were represented. The council moved in accordance with the dictates of enlightened judgment, and with the dignity of a church established by the divine will. . . .

“The entire body of Christians was not called to vote upon the question. The ‘apostles and elders’, men of influence and judgment, framed and issued the decree, which was thereupon generally accepted by the Christian churches. Not all, however, were pleased with the decision; there was a faction of ambitious and self-confident brethren who disagreed with it. These men assumed to engage in the work on their own responsibility. They indulged in much murmuring and faultfinding, proposing new plans and seeking to pull down the work of the men whom God had ordained to teach the gospel message. From the first the church has had such obstacles to meet and ever will have till the close of time.”12

“Some have advanced the thought that, as we near the close of time, every child of God will act independently of any religious organization. But I have been instructed by the Lord that in this work there is no such thing as every man’s being independent. The stars of heaven are all under the law, each influencing the other to do the will of God, yielding their common obedience to the law that controls their action. And, in order that the Lord’s work may advance healthfully and solidly, His people must draw together.”13

This is a very important point which should be understood: The church as an organized body must teach and obey the commandments of God at all times and in all circumstances. As it does, it is the highest authority of God on earth. If it does not, it cannot be God’s embassy. Therefore we have to be sure which one is the organized church that keeps the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. By being a member of it we receive nourishment and are guided by the head of the body, even the Lord Jesus Christ.