Quote:
Originally Posted by Freedom
When there are groups who claim to be "standing on the ground", a man and a ministry come into play. That ultimately has been the deciding factor by which the LCM recognizes if a group is legitimate or not. Terry has mentioned the church in Moses Lake several times. They are apparently practicing the local church according to Nee/Lee except that the don't practice allegiance to a ministry. That alone is enough to not be recognized as a local church even though the general practice is still the same.
Apparently, there are still two groups calling themselves "the church in Toronto". The General Partnership Business church in Toronto is the one who receives LSM, and thus they are recognized as being legitimate. It's very ironic. The fact that they are registered as a partnership business does not lead me to consider them as a legitimate group, so when allegiance to a man and a ministry is considered a determining factor in what groups are legitimate, it can lead to some really bizarre results.
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Freedom points out the basis for a bonafide local church in the minds of most local churches being allegiance to a man and his ministry. For example a group of believers could be meeting as The Church in Big Bear City, but if you're not taking LSM publications as your One Publication, you're not a bonafide local church.