Christian Living

Can We Replicate the NT Church Today?

by paul hoffmaster
11/22/25
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For some years now, I have wondered whether the church today could replicate the New Testament church.  The Biblical blueprint of organized Christianity has been studied and analyzed for generations, yet what ends up being displayed is different from the original prototype.  Instead of Biblical enhancement, there has been a reinterpretation of what can or cannot be included in the post-Biblical church.   

A new wave of intellectual ideas has birthed a new concept in our country, known as AI (Artificial Intelligence), which reaches beyond man’s natural capacities.  Similarly, Christian modernists have used HI (Human Intelligence) to refigure Biblical content.  Today, there are more translations of the Bible than the sixty-six books and letters it contains.  HI is replacing the HS (Holy Spirit).  Instead of bringing us closer to the Biblical definition of the church, it has produced an artificial concept that brings confusion rather than a profession of faith in God’s Word.

As I study the Scriptures, I see a church that personalized its structure to a living personification, namely, Jesus Himself.  It was not a tangible structure but a spiritual edifice that centered its existence on the Triune God.  God was not limited to buildings and areas; rather, He was in every new convert.  The blood of Jesus was stamped on each Believer, and the Holy Spirit sealed the relationship.

A few weeks ago, I wrote an article entitled, “Can you find the Christian?”  It was a simple game where you went to a large store and found a seat where you could scan people and try to identify the Christian.  It was not an easy game. Well, I decided to expand my little game to “Can you find a Biblical Church?”  After visiting many “churches,” I decided that many of them were HI instead of HS operated.  I did not go as a judge and jury but as a person looking for a group of Believers who wanted to follow the Living Word instead of the new and revised version of the church.  

I remember a time when my granddaughter was going to help me assemble a newly purchased product.  We laid out all the parts and opened the directions.  She decided that we didn’t need the instructions.  So the venture began.  When we were finished, the product did not resemble what the box had shown.  So many church creations are put together without following Biblical directions and, as a result, end up looking more like a “service club” instead of the body of Christ.  HI is continuing to distance itself from HS involvement.

The question is whether we have gone so “nuclear” (simple majority determining direction) that we cannot return to the Biblical church.  If there are more people in favor of the HI instead of the HS direction, then the answer is no!  On the other hand, if enough courageous people are willing to reexamine God’s Blueprint and let the Holy Spirit rebuild it, the answer is yes. 

There was once a movie entitled “Field of Dreams.”  The main character wanted to build a ball field but was afraid to take a leap of faith.  One day, he heard the words, “If you build it, they will come.”  He built it, and people came.  It is the same principle today: “Let the Holy Spirit build it and people will come.”