[djohnson(XLCmember)]

YP call me ignorant but I don't see the overriding concern of this issue. Clearly in the NT there was no such thing as a "universal church" in terms of administration, organization, etc. The RC and LCS ideas regarding this are simply ludicrous. And frankly I don't think anyone really considered Jerusalem as the HQ. They were the source of some turmoil and so Paul went there to address the issue at the source. The idea of a HQ came after the apostles died with the advent of Rome as the organizational and judicial and theological center for all Christians. And the main reason it occurred was to "preserve the truth" i.e. many heresies arose in the early church and local leaders were often not equipped to handle their spread so they appealed to a center where the seat of truth was so to speak. This center grew in influence and power. Does any of this sound familiar?

I am all in favor of the local assembly answering directly to God however with the added caveat the when the assembly leaders start to lead the flock astray or down a path I in good conscience cannot take then I can freely walk across the street and assemble with other Christians.