The local church certainly has the work of evangelism to do.  Such is proven in the case of what Paul wrote to the Thessalonians.  (I Thessalonians 1:7-8) “So that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia.  For from you sounded out the word of the Lord not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith to God-ward is spread abroad; so that we need not to speak any thing.”  The local church is to carry out the truth and nothing more or less to the lost (II Timothy 4:2 and John 17:17).  The Gospel needs to be carried out to the whole world (Mark 16:15-16 and Matthew 28:19).  The Gospel is that which will lead men to salvation (Romans 1:16).

Most will agree that it is a work of the local church to evangelize, but the disagreements come in when you ask how to do it.  Some believe that it is too large of a work to do on a local basis so they join together with larger missionary programs such as “Herald of Truth”.  This is when the local church seeks out a human institution to do it’s work.  Of course there is not one single example of this in the New Testament, there is no command from God to do this, or any inkling of an approved example of this practice either in the New Testament.  Certainly, if it were such a good idea God would have came up with it first.  God’s plan was for the local church to be under the oversight of her own elders (I Peter 5:1-2).  God designed the local church to be sufficient in carrying out it’s own work.

Then, you come to the issue of paying preachers.  Some say that you cannot pay a preacher, but the New Testament clearly shows that you can (I Corinthians 9:14).  Then you get into the “who” question of paying preachers.  I wrote a congregation one time for outside support.  They wrote back and asked me what congregation was “overseeing” my work.  I told them the local church I was preaching for was overseeing me.  They were not happy with that answer, so they wanted to become my overseeing church.  They said that they would raise support for me and have it sent there then they would send one check to me.  They would be my “sponsoring church”.  My question then and still today is this: Where is that concept in the New Testament?  You have local congregations such as in II Corinthians 11:8 and Philippians 4:15 helping, but doing so individually, not under a sponsoring church arrangement.  I have listened to brethren argue that it was more efficient to do it that way.  Well, it may be more efficient for some congregations to meet on Monday instead of Sunday but that does not make it right.  Where is the authority?

Then there are television programs such as “In Search of the Lord’s Way”.  At the end of this program it is stated that it was brought to you by churches of Christ in your area.  That program airs here in Butler, but we are not bringing it to this area.  We are not supporting it’s broadcast here.  If the church in Edmond, OK decides to run this program that is fine, but not under the support of local churches abroad.  There is no authority for it.  We have gotten letters from programs like this asking for help.  They have started something so big that they need someone else to help them.  That would be like me starting to renovate a house then coming to the church and saying that I have overspent and I need their help in paying for my bad money management and lack of counting the cost of the job.  That would be like me handing my credit card bills to the church and asking them to pay off my debts.  The local church is sufficient in carrying out it’s own work, overseeing it’s own work, and in funding it’s own work.  It should never enter into a work of it’s own without being able to fund it.  There is simply no example, command, or inference that local congregations worked together in evangelism breaking autonomy.

Then, you get into the education of evangelists.  There is nothing wrong with a local congregation training men to be Gospel preachers (II Timothy 2:2).  However, in the church today we see many cases where the local church is paying for the secular education of preachers.  We see cases where preaching schools under the direction of a local eldership start asking for funds from other congregations.  For example, one school that has always prided itself on being overseen and funded by the local church in Memphis, TN is the Memphis School of Preaching.  I noticed an interesting article in which it was pointed out by Curtis Cates [the director of the school] that “The school shares a campus with Forest Hill Church of Christ, which puts $400,000 a year into the school. The rest of the $2 million annual budget is covered by other congregations. http://memphis.bcentral.com/memphis/stories/2001/06/25/story7.html”.  This same preaching school built a library called the “N.B. Hardeman Library” which ran up a bill of 1.1 million dollars.  Who paid the price?  (CLICK HERE TO SEE PICTURES OF THIS 1.1 MILLION DOLLAR LIBRARY).  N.B. Hardeman’s granddaughter picked up half the cost while brethren and churches paid the other half.  The granddaughter and the individual brethren had the choice to do what they wanted with their money in this case, but where did the local church get it’s authority?  Not from the New Testament that is for sure.  To build a building to the honor of a man is something the local church cannot be involved in, and I would also question any one else.  Why?  See: I Corinthians 10:31 and John 12:43.  These are the things that occur when we break autonomy in the body of Christ and set up a man, school, or board to carry out the local church’s work.