I’ve read a few books by Stephen E. Atkerson and it seems his model of House Church or Small Church is a bit of a mystery to me. The Second edition of New Testament Church Dynamics was published in 2024 and contains some interesting concepts not found in most books on the subject. I hope he has success and people do life well under his ministry, but I can’t recommend his book. You can read some excerpts below.
Aberrant Theology
The lure of a participatory meeting might attract those looking to promote an eccentric doctrine. This is another situation where leaders are needed. Timothy, stationed in Ephesus and temporarily functioning as an elder, was to “charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine” (1Ti 1:3). One qualification for an elder is that he must “be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it” (Titus 1:9). Similarly, Titus was told: “Exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you” (Titus 2:15). John warned about a known deceiver: “Do not receive him into your house” (2Jn 1:10). The prevention and correction of error is one reason elders are needed.One way to filter out doctrinal error is for the church to have an official statement of faith. Remarks made during the church meeting must be consistent with the belief statement. Members with odd beliefs should not be free to publicly express them. In addition, only brothers who are in good standing with the church should be allowed to share. Each week, an announcement should be made that only church members are permitted to speak. The leaders are the gatekeepers for would-be speakers.
Congregational Size
Meetings that are either too big (hundreds of people) or too small (fewer than ten or twenty) present hindrances to participation. The presence of too many people will be inimical to intimacy. It will intimidate the shy and inhibit sharing and accountability. Only a tiny fraction of those present in a big meeting would be able to share anyway (even if they had the courage). Too few contributions from people in a tiny congregation could make the meeting seem dull because of the absence of diversity of spiritual gifts. The typical first-century church, meeting in a wealthy person’s villa, might have sixty-five to seventy people in attendance. There were 120 in the upper room. Early church meetings comprised scores of people: not hundreds and, certainly, not thousands.
Overall I think Stephen promotes the idea of a small church in a building that allows others to speak and share a meal. This seems more of a hybrid between a typical organic church and the institutional church. Like I said above, if people are becoming more like Christ, then God bless them.
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