Review: Meetings in His Kingdom

2006-06-15T03:16:00.000-07:00

A brief review of Mike Peters’ book Meetings in His Kingdom

It was a typical evening enjoying dinner with my family when a rap was heard at the door. A sister in our fellowship stepped in somberly and obviously had a burden on her heart. After we exchanged greetings, she slowly shared with us that God had led her to urge me to read, prayerfully and open-mindedly, the book Meetings in His Kingdom. Her seriousness was overwhelming. I told her I would. Two nights later, here’s my first impression.

As I began to read something baffled me. I had in my hands a 180-page book dealing with how to properly hold Christian meetings. However, the author, Mike Peters, profusely denied that his focus was on meetings. On page two he declares,"We want nothing whatsoever to do with being known as 'those folks that talk about meetings.' YUK!"This didn't seem to square with the emphasis of the book. Add to this the fact that this Indianapolis church had distributed thousands of copies. Something didn't line up. Why devote an entire book and the resources to its distribution if the focus is not on meetings? Indeed, I had to ask myself, what compelled Mike Peters to pen such a book if the topic is off target?

I believe the book itself explains why. He writes:"If two or three are gathered in His name and 'there He is in their midst,' then the reigning King and Creator of the universe is in the room! Of course, we are always in His Presence if we are walking in fellowship with Him. Yet there is something special, according to Jesus, when His Body is gathered in His Name."(pg. 43) (See also pg. 29) Just how special does Mike Peters believe it is? Consider this statement on page 123 -"The power of God is found only by gathering 'in His Name' - existing for the sole purpose of doing His Will! Plug in!"Is the power of God found only by gathering 'in His Name'? Doesn't every Christian have access through the Holy Spirit to God's power regardless of place or time or the company he keeps?"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in Heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time."(I Peter 1:3-5) We who live in faith abide in the power of God. We don't need to go anywhere but to Jesus to access the power of God. Amazingly, Mike Peters teaches a certain place mentality which he claims to repudiate. This is why he is compelled to spend so much time on producing the perfect meeting where Jesus' Super- Presence can be found. If we need to"plug in"to Jesus in a special way in meetings, haven't we re-instituted the"find Jesus in church"error? No amount of denial can lesson this belief in the value of proper meetings if this is your understanding of Matthew 18:20. Please do check the context of this oft quoted verse. Were you surprised? Why is this truth given in the context of church discipline? NOT because of their being two levels of Jesus' presence, the regular octane when you are alone and the high-test when with a group! Jesus is always in our midst, alone or otherwise. Every Christian knows this and is comforted by it."Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world."(Matthew 28:20b) Why, in this discipline context, does Jesus restate that which is always true? Two reasons seem apparent. First, this is intended as a word of assurance at a very difficult juncture for any fellowship. Secondly, church discipline presents a temptation to extra-Biblical rule making. A reminder that Christ Jesus is presiding helps the church govern its affairs with restraint. (Compare with

I Corinthians 5:1-5) If we are, in a sense, unplugged from the power of God when alone, Satan has missed one of his best weapons - solitary confinement for the saints! However, as many testimonies of saints tell us the Lord Jesus was very powerful in their solitude. Take Paul for example:"At my first defense no one stood with me, but all forsook me. May it not be charged against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me..."(II Timothy 4:16-17a) Now that sounds like the power of God to me! What seems to me to be a misunderstanding of one verse has Mike Peters pulled in two directions. He dreams of a time"when a gathering does come up, you won't have to cross any lines and 'put on' a spiritual mind-set."(pg. 96) But considering his interpretation of Matthew 18:20 he is compelled to make a distinction.

It is hard to overstate the emphasis that is placed upon having a proper meeting in the book Meetings in His Kingdom. Try and keep a couple of their special definitions in mind. What is a"meeting"? Anywhere"two or three gather in His Name."This could be in a home, car, by phone (?), or in a thousand-seat auditorium. What is meant by"in His Name"? A recent Addendum to"Meetings"says it well."His Church is to be a Theocracy where ANOINTING and GIFTS and HIS CURRENT THOUGHT Rule over our interactions in surprising and ever-changing unplanned ways."Forget the unchanging Word of God. Now we’re to be guided by the ever-changing"current thought."(This insert has a cartoon drawing of a fifteen foot Jesus zapping people by shooting light beams out of His hand.) This definition of Church reminds me of a warning in Ephesians 4:14,"that we should no longer be called children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting."One thing is abundantly made clear; Mike Peters doesn't believe this meeting in His Name is happening in any typical church setting. This is made ferociously clear on page after page of"Meetings". AS A RESULT, JESUS' PRESENCE ISN'T THERE EITHER! (See pg. 121) Isn't it a good thing Jesus dwells in you and not just in gatherings properly assembled?"But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His... The Spirit Himself bears witness with our Spirit that we are children of God."(Romans 8:9,16) Rest assured, whatever the definitions, the Bible isn't preeminent, for"Meetings"declares"Our worship can be 100% 'scriptural' and even 'exciting' and Jesus not be there."(Footnote pg. 123)

"To point anyone towards us, rather than towards our Brother and King and the Truth of His Word, would be a tragedy."(Footnote pg. 3) This is Mike Peters’ own statement, and it’s a strong one! The American Heritage Dictionary defines tragedy as:"2) a dramatic, disastrous event esp. one of moral significance."In this same footnote Mike Peters warns that when a group (Indianapolis church included?)"offers themselves as a fishbowl for others to look at, they become driven by their need to protect their reputation..."What has driven Mike Peters to introduce"Meetings"with this statement,"This material is copyrighted and may not be quoted and/ or reproduced without its complete context (the entire book), except by the authors permission"? This really controls the ability of others to write reviews of"Meetings", doesn't it? Will they threaten me with a lawsuit if I publish my opinions which of necessity require quoting portions of the book? Can I obey I Corinthians 14:29,"Let two or three prophets speak and let the others judge?"The Bereans were called fair-minded by the apostles because they tested everything by Scripture (Acts 17:11). Will I be criticized because I seek to"Prove all things"

(I Thessalonians 5:21) as our Lord Jesus commands? I trust not. Isn’t it an attempt to protect one’s reputation when you discourage Biblical investigation?

Despite the warnings of how tragic it would be to point others to the example of our Indianapolis church, a day-by-day representation is given from pages 13-21. At the beginning of this section the Indiana church is likened to"Acts chapter 2000"(presumably the year 2000) (pg. 13). After seven pages of a play-by-play journal of daily activities in this fellowship, Mike Peters exuberantly declares,"This is the kind of 'Pentecostal' church that you read about in the original Acts Chapter Two Pentecost! This is 'Evangelicalism' at its best! This is Christ Jesus - expressed in His Body in our generation... This is Church."(pg. 21) Let me ask: Is this church in Indianapolis being pointed to as an example, a fishbowl to study and perhaps emulate? Mike Peters tells us not to look to"Meetings"and the Indianapolis church as an example but yet surprisingly he not only provides us with the information to do so but claims this to be"Christ Jesus - expressed in His body in our generation..."This appears to me to be a blatant contradiction of his own advice not to point others to them. Am I missing something?

One of the biggest surprises in the book was the teaching on church leadership. A fairly consistent theme throughout the book is that the only leader the church has is Jesus Christ. This may be the strongest point of"Meetings". Page one is headed with these words,"Jesus Personally Leading His Church..."Page ten simply tells us to"let the King run the meeting...". Yet how does this work out in the practical affairs of the church in Indianapolis?"Though no one is ever assigned to be the 'leader' of any particular event or gathering, large or small, in the church of the Bible, some gifts do definitely stand out more prominently than others."(pg. 160) And this:"This freedom in meetings, rarely with an official 'leader' other than Jesus Himself, is an essential ingredient of a Family of Believers consistent with God's Intent - a Priesthood rather than spectators. We must not yield to the gentiles' format for 'order': a few selected (or hired) men performing for and motivating an 'audience' ..."(pg. 34) And this:"As you may have ascertained, to have a man stand in front of a crowd of Christians and deliver a Sunday morning speech to them is not God's idea."(pg. 134) Okay already! I think I got the point. No leader but Jesus. It seems crystal clear from the book that the Indianapolis church has no leader but Jesus. Is this actually true? Let’s test this by looking at half a quote from Mike Peters. We’ll play fill in the blank. Ready? Here it is:"No one is to be put 'in charge' of anything in the kingdom of God who isn’t __________ ."It’s your call. Would you say Jesus? WRONG!! Listen to the entire quote:"No one is to be put ‘in charge’ of anything in the kingdom of God who isn't visibly 'full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.' Men, who clearly have what Stephen had, are the minimum requirement for being 'over' any matter, according to the Scriptures."(pg. 132) Shock! They do have leaders in charge of things! And how does this fellowship choose leaders?"The standard is this: VISIBLY drunk with the Holy Spirit and pressing hard towards the full measure of the stature and fruitfulness of Christ."(pg. 137) Not a bad standard for a church that claims no leader over -"any particular event or gathering, large or small, in the church of the Bible."(pg. 160) Just thinking out loud - I wonder who in the Indianapolis church would be visibly drunk in such a way? Could it be Mike Peters? If you happen to be in a meeting in Indianapolis keep telling yourself -"Mike Peters isn't in charge, Jesus is."Now repeat after me...

One thing that comes through the book loud and clear is that there must be no regular format."The early church was not ritualistic. It had no 'locked in' format."(pg. 84) Don't plan how and when and where you're going to do some great thing 'in next week's gathering.'"(pg. 65) I call this the NO FORMAT FORMAT."True life won't come from some kind of planned, intellectual 'neat' thing that you wanted to share with people."(pg. 46) Even with this said, an awful lot is given by way of helpful hints on how to best manage the NO FORMAT FORMAT. While Mike Peters says:"I really don't want to get into a 'cookbook' approach to Jesus' church and give a recipe for the perfect 'large gathering,'"(pg. 163) nevertheless, he has done so. Question: Are these pieces of advice based upon Scripture? Even Mike Peters admits they are not when he says,"Jesus didn't have liturgy. He had very few 'things' that you could point to and say 'this is the way we do it'"(pg. 83). So, why does Mike Peters try and point us to a picture of how Jesus did it? Is this extra-Biblical or anti-Biblical? Consider this extra-Biblical portrait of 'this is the way we do it.' Speaking of Jesus and His disciples, Mike fills in the blanks for us."In simplicity, they shared their lives in the Truth and Light of God, roasted hot dogs, laughed, threw a Frisbee, and just plain lived life, out loud and on purpose, together. That was and is, the Kingdom of God, with Jesus as the Head."(pg. 84) Please excuse me if I take exception to extra-Biblical imaginings which have the King of Glory downsized. The Kingdom of God with Jesus as the Head is described as"just plain lived life,"throwing Frisbees and eating hot dogs? Any casual glance at the life of the Apostles with Jesus as their Head portrays a life that is anything but"just plain lived life"! Jesus tossing a Frisbee? Let's face the reality that His ways really are higher than our ways. It does our Lord Jesus no service to transform Him into the hippie cool-guy mode to help us see Him as our pal. His death on the cross once-for-all bought our hearts in a way no fantasy Jesus ever can. Praise be to God For His indescribable gift through Christ Jesus our Lord.

On nearly the last page of"Meetings"Mike Peters writes:"And so, I ask your forgiveness if I have hurt anyone or have been the catalyst of any foolish reactionism in immature disciples."(pg. 177) Yes, we in our non-institutional church have been hurt by foolish reactionism by disciples of Mike Peters. On the next page, Mike Peters says:"In keeping with that heart, please remember that none of this was written so that a new generation of fault-finders, revolutionaries, and 'experts' in 'how to have church' might arise."(pg. 178-179) Yet remember, a student fully taught will be like his teacher. Therefore, before you ship out the next thousand copies of"Meetings in His Kingdom"consider well the new generation of 'experts' in 'how to have church' you have inspired.

My recommendation? You said it best yourself:"To point anyone towards us, rather than towards our Brother and King and the Truth of His Word, would be a tragedy."(Footnote pg. 3) I couldn't agree more!

So that was my first impression . . . After a month of rereading and meditating on all this, I’d like to add these further thoughts. Let’s revisit what I call the Go! Go! Go! spirit of"Meetings". Mike Peters gives us a representation of what the church of Christ really needs to look like"in order to delight her Betrothed."(First sentence from pg. 13) As was already mentioned, we are treated to a play-by-play overview of what is meant to be"typical, natural Life in the Spirit of Christ."(pg. 13) The journal covering eight"typical"days records the basic activities of this church of Indianapolis. Morning, noontime, late afternoon, and evening are accounted for. Here are the results. On four out of eight mornings believers are gathered at someone else’s home for fellowship. Three out of eight afternoons mothers are out of their own homes to share with others at the park or elsewhere. Seven out of eight evenings a majority of the church gathers at someone’s house to have a"Kingdom evening."(Pg. 19) Whew! Now you know what I mean by the Go! Go! Go! spirit of"Meetings"! Consider this interesting note:"Tuesday Early A.M. . . . This morning, too, one of the women confessed that she was not sharp in the use of her time at home."(Pg. 16) Do you wonder why? She’s kept running to and fro trying to emulate the pace of the"Life of Jesus in His physical body two thousand years ago"as"Meetings"recommends. (Pg. 13)

I discovered three reasons given in"Meetings"to account for this constant running:

1. An erroneous belief that our activity level must somehow match Jesus’ own pace during His 3 l/2 years of ministry and the intensity of Acts.

2. A misunderstanding of what is intended by the Scriptural command to exhort one another daily. (Acts 2:46 and Hebrews 3:12-13)

3. Misinterpretation of Matthew 18:20.

On item one, according to Scripture, to be like Jesus isn’t to copy His activity schedule but His holiness, love, and compassion. (See I Peter 2:21-23) This attempt to ape the pace of Christ and the early church reminds me of I John 2:6 which says,"He who says He abides in Him ought himself also to WALK JUST AS HE WALKED."In what way should we emulate Christ’s"walk"? Wear sandals? No. In a flurry of activity? No. The walking style we’re called to is keeping His commandments! (Also see II Corinthians 5:16b) As for the book of Acts, remember that what we read is the compressed history of twenty years of activity. It may seem fast-paced but these are highlights, not a day-to-day journal.

On item two,"Meetings"refers to passages such as Acts 2:46,"So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart."The conclusion is made that if the early church met daily, so should we. (See pg. 84) However, in early Acts there may have been a unique temporary reason for this. If you don’t believe me, check out the context. According to Acts 2:5, Jerusalem was loaded with men obeying the Mosaic law of feasts. The particular feast being observed in Acts 2 is Pentecost. The law requires"Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover), at the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost), and at the Feast of Tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the Lord empty handed."(Deuteronomy 16:16) Most had, no doubt, already been in Jerusalem since Passover, fifty days earlier. In God’s amazing providence, Jews crowded into Jerusalem at the precise time Christ was crucified, raised, and ascended into heaven. And then the crowning event, the Holy Spirit was poured out! A veritable army of eyewitnesses arose asking"What do these things mean?"(Acts 2:12) Wonderfully, multitudes of both men and women accepted the good news of Jesus and eagerly listened to the apostles’ teaching. Yet for most, their wives, children, and businesses were still far off in the surrounding region. Some had come from over 1000 miles away and had already been gone from home for almost two months (See the list of locales in Acts 2:9-11). Mike Peters tells us"It is clear in Acts 2 that men from all over the earth STAYED in Jerusalem and didn’t just wander off back to their hometowns . . ."(Pg. 103 of the book The Plumb Line). Yes, they did stay for a time meeting daily BECAUSE SOON THESE MEN WOULD RETURN HOME to care for their wives and children. Therefore, it was imperative these converted Jews absorb quickly as much as they could about Jesus’ teachings before returning home. The urgency of the circumstances makes the"daily"activity understandable. To impose upon today’s church a copycat format from Acts is a misunderstanding. Keep in mind these gatherings were so large they were held in a large, covered area near the temple called Solomon’s Portico (See Acts 5:12). After the persecution began, such daily public meetings obviously would have been abandoned (See Acts 9:1ff). When it says they"broke bread from house to house", do you picture everyone showing up at one house? Picture at least 8000 men (add numbers from Acts 2:41 and 4:4) meeting from house to house."Okay everybody, we’re meeting at James’ house tonight!"Eight thousand file into the living room, halls, bedrooms, and courtyard of one home? Not possible? You’re right. Even so, doesn’t Hebrews 3:13 say to exhort one another daily? YES! Yet I’d like my reader to answer three questions about this text:

1. To whom is this passage addressed?

2. How long each day should these believers meet?

3. Do these believers need to be of the same local Christian fellowship?

None of these questions are specifically answered in this text and as such there are several ways to fulfill God’s intent. Resist the pressure of anyone wishing to impose his imaginary format into this verse."As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are the children of God."(Romans 8:14)"Beware of men who lay heavy burdens on men’s shoulders hard to bear."(Matthew 23:4)

On item three,"Meetings"pushes constant running around to other people’s homes because of a misinterpretation of Matthew 18:20. My comments have already been made on this earlier, but a few additional thoughts may be helpful. Mike Peters tells us,"the Power of God is found only by gathering in His name . . . Plug in!"(Pg. 123) If I don’t accept this, am I saying that Christian fellowship is unimportant? Christian gathering is immensely important and vital to Christian growth (See Hebrews 10:25). It is important, but not because that’s the ONLY way to find the power of God. Jesus, who is OMNIPRESENT, isn’t more here because we’re in a crowd. Real fellowship begins individually with each heart aglow with Christ’s true presence. Then when we do assemble together, we won’t have to put on some"goo-goo spirituality"because Jesus is now REALLY present releasing His power! Consider this quote from"Meetings"on page 122:"He (Jesus) only promises to be in our midst when we are meeting in His name for His current Intents. Does that make sense?"No, not at all! He is just as much with us individually as when we are in a group."For you are the temple of the Living God. As God has said, ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people.’"(II Corinthians 6:16; Compare with I Corinthians 6:19) Let’s say, however, you’re still convinced Mike Peters’ understanding of this is correct. Where do we begin?"For starters,"says Mike,"please get out of your rooms and homes, each of you, and consider who you can jump over and see, ‘Where is God’s Action tonight?!’ . . . Go! Go! Go! . . . Beat down people’s doors . . ."(Pgs. 141-142) Is this Biblical Christianity or a Watchtower recruitment ad? Must we go find a special place where"God’s Action"is? Abiding in Christ is where the action is! (See John 15 and 6:28-29)

The failure of the church isn’t its lack of fellowshipping with one another, but it’s the lack of fellowship with its Source of power."For in Christ dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the Head of all principality and Power."(Colossians 2:9-10) Hold fast to the Head, Christ Jesus our Lord, and out of your heart will flow rivers of living waters. (See John 7:37-39) How shall we plug into such power? By running to and fro? No! The answer is not to be found in the streets or synagogues being seen by men, but rather, if you really want power from God, Jesus advises,"Go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly."(Matthew 6:6) Mike Peters tells us to"get out of your rooms"if you want power. Jesus says otherwise. Choose this day whom you will serve!

Maybe you’re still devoted to following the teachings of the Indianapolis church. Do you think it is enough to glean from"Meetings"and seek to adopt these helpful hints to true gatherings in Jesus’ name? No! Actually, we are told, it is essential to be in relationship with these men who teach these things! Consider this comment on the bottom of page 96 in"Meetings":"These gifted men may have their impact on you via booklets, cassettes, and videos . . . but personal relationship with them on the front line of battle is really where the joy and POWER (emphasis mine) for effective equipping is found. Write for Foundations and Patterns for more on this."(Presumably there’s a map enclosed on how to find the church of Indianapolis

) In this book Foundations and Patterns (now called The Plumb Line) we read:"Do you want these blessings or not? Show me one place in the Bible where there is a list of attributes more powerful than these! (He had just mentioned men with"the form of special giftedness") And these come, according to the word of God, from being equipped by these men. Not from personal Bible study. If your priority for living is to seek first the kingdom, then it will be a very small price to pay to live in ‘the exact times and places’ where God wants you to live . . ."(Footnote pg. 104) In the middle of page 104 in The Plumb Line we read,". . .I should do everything I can to position my life to be in relationship with them."

I’m finally getting the picture. Constantly criticize other churches, hold up your own as the pattern, claim God’s POWER is limited to your group, and presto! - Instant church growth!

BUT THERE’S MORE! I believe"Jesus"is about to show up in Indianapolis. . .or at least something will. Listen carefully to this comment in"Meetings":"The good news is this: God has fulfilled two of the three Jewish Feasts, Passover and Pentecost, in a profound and very visible way. There is much reason from Scripture to anticipate that the final and greatest of the three Feasts, Tabernacles, will be every bit as profound and visible . . .Expect another season of awesome Glory. Prepare the way."(Footnote on pg. 179) Could this be where the fifteen-foot Jesus comes in, zapping people with light rays out of His hands (See addendum to the"Meetings")? That surely would be profound, visible, and awesome! Mike Peters assures us that any time now Jesus is going to"build His Church that the gates of Hell no longer prevail against! ‘THIS is HOW all men will know you are MY Disciples.’"(Second page of addendum) Jesus Christ declared that the gates of hell shall not prevail against the church; not ‘once y’all get the church straightened out it will be fulfilled.’ Hell’s gates have never prevailed against Christ’s true church. Jesus promised! And by the way, how will all men know you are His disciples? Because we have created a super-church? No! Let me ask you. What fruit indicates we are His disciples according to John 13:35? L-O-V-E.

So what shall we say of Mike Peters and his book Meetings in His Kingdom? Therefore, if they say to you ‘Look, He is in Indianapolis!’ do not Go! Go! Go! out.

Comments or Questions?

Don A. Childs

15246 NW Griffin Ln.

Altha, FL 32421

Church in Indianapolis (and Mike Peters)

Review: Meetings in His Kingdom

Mike Peters's Church in Indianapolis FactNet