A Reason to Stay — The Encouragement and Ballast of a Larger Body

I regularly feel lonely in ministry. In a city of 1 million people, we are the only PCA church and there are fewer than five reformed churches from any NAPARC denomination. Almost every room I enter, I am the most conservative person there.

And that feels lonely.

But when I walk into General Assembly or an MNA conference or into one of the PCA facebook groups, there is a sense of “these people understand me” and we share a common theological vision for church ministry in our age.

As much as I’ve discussed feeling like an outsider, the size and scope of the PCA is encouraging. It regularly occurs to me at large PCA events that “it isn’t just me who thinks this way!” I can look around General Assembly and know that there are literally thousands of pastors and elders who are committed to a very similar expression of the reformed faith in all kinds of places.

The encouragement of such meetings is substantial.

Which leads me to a second point.

The very size of the PCA acts as a ballast in our current stormy cultural seas. If Canada were to form its own denomination, there are two risks that we run. One is that in a small denomination, a few strong personalities can dominate. A few motivated pastors might be able to steer the denomination towards their desired ends. Or, as Canada tends to run more liberal than the USA, it may be possible for a new small denomination to drift theologically without the attachment to a larger body.

To change significant parts of our Book of Church Order in the PCA, you not only need to convince a General Assembly twice, but also a majority of presbyteries. To change our confession or catechisms is even harder. But, if Canada were to split off, there are far fewer people to convince, both at General Assembly and in presbyteries. The door to change opens a little bit wider.

Smaller organizations, though nimbler and faster (which can lead to a strong missional focus) can go astray more easily without the checks and balances of a larger denomination.

A Ruling Elder in our presbytery who is a few decades older than me has watched a number of Canadian denominations slowly liberalize over his years. He joined a PCA Church because for him, it held the best of reformed doctrine combined with a missional focus. When I mentioned this series of articles to him, his main concern was whether or not Canada would stay the course theologically if we left our American brothers. I respect the wisdom of his years.

The encouragement and ballast of a larger body and a bigger denomination is a good reason to stay in the PCA.