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For follow-up discussion and general commentary on the topic. Comments are sorted chronologically.
Bruce Shanks
*ebible; "We believe in the one church, unified, and composed of all followers of Jesus Christ, being built up together in Christ" (Eph 2:19-21, I Cor 12:12-13, I Pet 2:4-5)
Since the "Christian Church" i.e. "Family of God" is so fractioned, and confused by various denominations and opinions, I feel that "Church hopping" May help dissolve some barriers that now alienate God's Family, one from another. I attend a Church where the whole assembly goes to the Church in the next Town & vise versa, every other week! This means more Christians getting to know each other and seems to improve relationships between all the locals.
Kristine Rodrigues
Everyone here has posed insightful responses about the positives and negative aspects of church hoping. A good point is made about how negative it would be if everybody just church hoped all the time. But it is possible as we all fit into the body differently God wants some to plant roots in a place or within a group, whereas it may be beneficially to the body to also have those who go about to other assemblies as outlined in the other responses here.
Danny Hickman
The various answers to this question produce more questions than answers. "Church hopping" is said to be good and bad. So which is it?
Mr Houdmann's first line answered the question, "what does the bible say about church hopping?" He answered it: 'it doesn't address it,' it wasn't an issue. So all he and others said that is more than that is only opinion. So I have one.
The church didn't start as the organization that it has grown to be. It was one Man with twelve "elders" and a scattering of men and women looking to them, wanting to know the truth. Others say the church began on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1).
I think of the church as being God's chosen people, not an organization. It was started the day God appeared to Abraham and called him out of his pagan life and into a relationship with Him. That's how the church was /is formed and built. God told Abraham what the finished product would be: "In you all the families of the earth will be blessed." (Genesis 12)
God was telling Abraham more about Jesus than He was about the nation of Israel that came from him. God was telling Abraham about the people who would be restored to Him through Abraham's seed. He was telling Abraham about "the church," the called-out assembly.
Pentecost is the day the assembly got its eternal security and power. That security is more individual than organizational.
If you begin to feel cramped and stifled in your spirit at an assembly, it's a good idea to visit others... JMO!
Danny Hickman
Is the church one family?
'He predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ...' Eph 1:5.
Yes, the church is the adopted sons and daughters of God, by the grace of God, through faith in the Son of God, Jesus the Christ (Eph 2:8,9). All who are God's belong to God's holy family. 'God has only one family,' means there is only one church.
Church denominations are, in principle, like different ethnicities of mankind; (people on this site will say that there's only one race of man, then live as if that's not what we really believe).
That's the way denominations function. One denomination is thought to be superior to others.
Jacob and Esau were brothers born to the same parents; they belonged to the same family. God chose (loved) Jacob, but Esau He hated (rejected) (Mal 1:2,3). One was taken and the other left (Lk 17:35, Mt 24:40). That's how Jesus depicted the makeup of His followers (church).
Esau couldn't have "joined" himself to God if he had wanted to. The same is true of the church, the family of God.
Esau and Jacob had a falling out, and were reunited; all was forgiven. They came together and buried their father when Isaac passed away (Gen 35:29). Then they separated; Esau settled in Seir (Edom), Jacob in Canaan (the land of promise).
Jacob is a portrait of the church, Esau of the world. Both are kept by God; one for eternity, the other only for this world. There's a gulf between them, you can't go from one to the other (Lk 16:26).
No such thing as CH!