This article was first published in Tabletalk, the Bible study magazine of Ligonier Ministries. Find out more at TabletalkMagazine.co.uk or try it free for three months today at TryTabletalk.co.uk.
Many Christians experience anxiety as they ask themselves, ‘When should I leave my church?’ It’s an important question that involves many factors. Simply put, there is no easy and comprehensive answer. But I hope to outline some of the considerations of the question in this article.
Defining what it means to ‘leave’ a church is helpful for this discussion. One of the assumptions made in this article is that church membership is biblical and necessary for Christians. There isn’t space here to make the argument for the necessity of church membership, but suffice it to say that if you don’t join a church, you can’t really leave it.
So, assuming a proper biblical church polity, there are only three ways that a Christian can leave a church: death, excommunication, and transfer of membership. This article won’t address death or excommunication. By ‘leaving the church’, I mean transferring your membership to another church. When is it appropriate to do so?
