The Difference Between Closed and Open System Churches.

By Kevin E. Jesmer                                                                                                            3-26-16

“When you get to heaven you will not complain of the way by which the Lord brought you.” John Newton.

Romans 8:28, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (ESV)

In Christianity there are churches that can be categorized as closed or open system churches. In my walk with Jesus I have lived life in both types of systems. There are clear differences between open and closed system churches. There are varying degrees of being closed and open. Closed system churches run the gamut from being ancient faiths, to mainline Christian denominations, to small house churches.

I fear that some people may be offended by this article. “Is he implying that we are a closed system church?”  To call a church, “a closed system church” is not a judgment call. I bring up this topic, as an observation and not as a judgment. I am holding up the statements outlined in this paper to stimulate thought and bring up options.

I do concede that God can and does work through both of types of churches. I met Jesus and grew as a Christian in a closed system church and now I am furthering my service to Christ in an open system church. I also concede that churches may be open and closed to varying degrees.

We tend to think that an open system is the best system. It sounds better. It sounds godlier, freer, and more open. The closed system sounds more sinister, more suspect, more controlling, more closed. But this may not be the case. God works through different types of churches. Some people may need a closed system church for a while. Some cultures may a need closed system. Some people need to grow up spiritually in an open system church. But the bottom line is, “When you get to heaven you will not complain of the way by which the Lord brought you.” John Newton. And as Romans 8:28 states, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (ESV)

This paper will seek to discover the different characteristics between the two types of churches. Then it will compare some of the detriments and benefits of each.  The last part will deal with what may happen when a closed system church becomes an open system church.

What are the characteristics of a closed system church?

The following is a comparison between a closed system and an open system church. The first statement has to do with a closed system and the following is a comparison to an open system. They are put side by side to make the comparison clear.

1. They draw upon their own members for leadership. When it comes to being a pastor, there is no searching for a possible candidate from outside the church community. They are always drawn from within the church or ministry.

Open system: They are open to any possibility. Possible pastors apply and may serve as an interim pastor at first. But they may come from a variety of sources.

2. They don’t encourage young people to go to seminary. People do go to seminary, but it is not advertised nor encouraged. The people who go to seminary are mostly older and seldom the young leaders of the church.

Open system: The option to go to seminary is presented early on in the believer’s life and encouraged. If a high school grad wants to go to seminary it is celebrated.

3. They are looking for ways to measure their success. Measurements could include numbers of Sunday Worship attendants, or numbers of Bible studies, or numbers of churches.

Open system: They are not so concerned about measuring their success in terms of numbers. There success comes from the spiritual growth of the congregation. If they do start new church plants those churches go on to be independent congregations very quickly.

4. They produce their own Bible material generated and produced from among their own ranks. Their Bible material may not be wrong theologically, but it is their own material. It may include books and interpretations of the Bible passed on from Bible teacher to Bible student. They may even generate their own study Bible.

Open system: They also use their own material. But they are not averse to using Bible material from other ministries and often do.

5. They feel that they have a unique calling from God, and that is why they operate as a closed system.

Open system: They do not claim a unique calling. They are linked to the local church and think that that they are simply an “out post” of the Kingdom of God.

6. They may criticize other churches in the eyes of their members, dissuading them from attending other churches.

Open system: The criticizing of other churches is at a minimum. They are not concerned about people going to other churches, for they trust that God will lead his people where he wants.

7. They emphasize the importance of people being a good influence on the body, Which includes regular church and exclusive attendance.

Open system: Again, an open system does not need to worry about whom comes and goes, because they trust God with his guidance.

8. They only promote opportunities and new roles for their people within the church. Any opportunities outside the church may be ignored and not even mentioned.

Open system: All opportunities are available, inside and outside the church.  God is free to lead his people where he wants them.

9. They do not work with other churches and ministries but will seek to co-work with other chapters of their own ministry.

Open system: They are open to co-work with other churches and ministries that are not part of their denomination. They still seek to co-work with “like minded” churches. The possibilities are endless.

10. They affirm each other for things that build up their ministry and remain silent on things that don’t.

Open system: They affirm all things that are from the Lord, whether or not it has anything to do with their immediate ministry or not.

11. They do not concern very much about being cross cultural. Missionaries are sent out to replicate the closed system church structure only, anywhere in the world.

Open system: Missionaries are sent out without an agenda. They are cross cultural and try to contextualize all they do, even if it means losing their numbers and churches.

12. They develop their own church language that is not used in the rest of Christianity.

Open system:  These churches are always connected with the rest of Christianity and they do not develop its own particular jargon.

13. They bypass the local church and mission agency. They feel that they are the local church and the mission agency all in one.

Open system: They work through the local church. They understand their limits in supporting missionaries and are willing to co-work with other agencies.

14. They hope that others will come to study with them and learn their ways, but they seldom go to others to study and learn their ways.

Open system:  They open to go wherever the Lord wants leads in order to further the advancement of the Kingdom of God.

15. Special speakers or scholars are brought into to support the agenda. Any scholar that brings up topics for repentance will be met with silence.

Open system: They do not fear where the teachings of a guest scholar may lead, for they are ready to accept the truth, no matter what form it takes.

16. People have little or no say on the structure and the mission of the church. They live by the strict mandates of the closed system. The churches places limits on imagination and variation.

Open system:  They are will to allow God to mold them as he sees fit. God is the potter and we are the clay, even the church.

17. There is not much dissention among the ranks. People are acculturated to not rock the boat. The elders become like a rubber stamping committee.

Open system: The people have a voice. There are channels for the people to voice their opinion and their opinions are heard. Their opinions may or may not be acted upon but they are heard.

18. Usually lead by one man, the CEO Pastor. They may be elder led, but not much dissenting opinions. Even elder led closed churches are heavily influenced by one person.

Open system: There is a classification of roles. There is the teaching pastor, the family life pastor, the youth pastor. The church may not have enough money to hire all the different types of pastors, but they know the direction that they need to take.

19. Does not try to contextualize the Gospel to outreach to the surrounding culture. Things don’t change. Things carry on, in the same way for decades, even though the culture has changed. Also the same ministry framework exists in other countries with differing cultures.

Open system: Contextualization is of utmost importance. They want to present the Gospel in culturally relevant ways. They know that their churches will look different in the different countries they operate in and they are OK with that.

20. When people move on from the church their move is mostly mourned with a sense of loss. The person’s move is seen as a loss to the ministry, a discouragement to the church.

Open system: The person’s move is not criticized, but prayed for and if appropriate, celebrated, for they know that God is the one who is leading.

21. The leadership has very few opportunities for advancement, because the closed system offers very little options. A person with a lot of maturity could be a pastor “for life” or some kind of regional coordinator.

Open system: The sky is the limit, because advancement is not limited to the closed system. A person can be called to positions in other ministries and agencies.

Concerning the effects.

There are some benefits of a closed system church.  Such systems are stable in doctrine. People may try to come and turn articles of faith around, but a closed system brings stability of doctrine. It maintains the course and the vision of the church. In many churches there are pastors that leave. They may go through a pastor once every five years. When the pastor leaves, the vision of the church changes. Then they get an interim pastor for a short time and the vision changes again. Then they get a new pastor and the vision changes again. Some churches go through waves of leadership changes. A closed system church provides stability. It also provides unity. It provides familiarity, so that when one missionary or a congregant comes from another country, they will feel comfortable with the church that receives them. They can transition easily into the life of the church. It provides structure for growing Christians who may have lacked structure in their lives.

Yes, the majority of the experiences in a close system church, were good experiences with some dark times. But that is life anywhere I guess. Without a mixture of good and bad time then it is not real life. The weather is a mix of summer and winter.

But there was a cost to becoming part of the group and becoming acculturated into it.  I never followed my passions. I had to curtail my opinions. I gave up my own choices on so many fronts. I surrendered my creativity and opportunities to make independent choices.  The last ten years of my life in the closed system was marked with depression and strained familial relationships that I simply chalked up as par for the course. I was subject to paternalism for decades. This was the cost that had to be paid to operate in a closed system.

     Life in an open religious system is different. I can apply my imagination to ministry. My ability to form and express an opinion is getting stronger. I feel that my opinion is heard and is making a difference. The possibilities for ministry feel endless. I can see the power of networking and how the work of God must be supported by co-working with all of Christendom. I am free to engage in contextualized Gospel ministry and not just keep a certain form. I am not longer depressed. I can follow my passions. My relationships with my family are getting stronger. I am exercising my ability to form an opinion and make a choice. Praise the Lord.

What Happens When The Closed System Opens Up?

There will be a whole lot of changes, some of which will be smooth and some of which will not be so smooth. The character of the ministry will change according to God’s plan. God is the almighty and all powerful God. He will lead his people. His people will thrive and bear the fruit that God wants them to bear in their lives.

There will be more possibilities for mission as the closed system crumbles, for the closed system will not try to dictate how God should work. The senior leadership will be set free to enter into the next chapter of their Christian lives as God sees fit. This may mean being led to another ministry. There will be avenues open, outside of the ministry, to make this happen.

People will need to be allowed to gracefully exit the ministry, to follow the God’s leading in their lives. And there leaving will be prayed for a celebrated if appropriate.

People may not know what to do at first. If they were always following the mandates of the closed system, their ability to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit will need some “exercise”. This will be unfamiliar terrain for many.

Things could get messy. The church would be forced to abdomen its own agenda. They will have to relinquish control. They would have to be free to form what God wants to form among them. Only God knows what that that is and it is unique for each chapter of the ministry in each setting.  But we can rest in the fact that the change would be subject to the leading of the Holy Spirit. God will surely guide the ministry.

The church would be forced to network with other churches. I am not talking about working with other chapters within the same church, but actually work with churches and ministries outside their own closed church system. Then, with humble co-operation and networking they will propel the Gospel mission forward.

The demographics of the ministry will change. A closed system has their own idea of their target population. But in an open system, God will bring whom he wants to bring. These may be people that are not those of the former target population of the ministry.

The form of ministry will change according to the will of God.  This will be culture specific. It can take on many forms. That is what can be unsettling to a person within a closed religious system.

Things may get messy in other ways too. There will be people who oppose leadership of the church. These people can no longer be so easily dismissed and driven away. They will have to be related to.

There will be people who demand a “place at the table”, based on their knowledge only. They will want to by-pass humble service within the church and demand that their fruit of their lives be recognized by leadership. These people will have to be related to.

Leaders will have to face criticism. They will have to be subject to the elders. There jobs will not be guaranteed.

Yes, there will be trouble when you cease to be a closed system church. But there will be healthy church growth and lasting fruit. It will be a congregation that God wants it to be. Things will unfold according to God’s plan.  There will be more possibilities for ministry and fruit bearing as the closed system crumbles and gives way to an open system church.

There will be new ideas and views introduced. There will be new paradigms of mission, differing views of doing ministry. These will have to be affirmed and if it is God’s will, followed through on. In Jesus, the possibilities are endless.