One Assembly by Jonathan Leeman: A Book Review

Jonathan Leeman has written a book that many will find very unpopular. I'm pretty sure he has to be aware of this fact, but I'm also sure his hope is to convince the reader that he is right. In his new book One Assembly, Leeman argues that the biblical model for church is one gathered assembly—no multiple services, no multiple sites—just once service. Is Leeman's argument convincing?

Leeman argues that the biggest problem is multisite and multiservices aren’t in the Bible. As Christians, we should base what we do and why we do it on Scripture. Leeman says if you want a proof text for his whole book then look at Matthew 18:20 which says, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them." This means Jesus is in the 9:00 am service as well as the 11:00 am meaning that they are actually two different churches. 

Much of the book hinges on Leeman defining the greek word for church: ekklēsia. He argues that the literal meaning for ekklēsia is assembly. Using the metaphor of a team, he shows how to be an assembly, the church must gather all together. They are still an assembly or church when they are apart, but they must gather. This means that those multisites or multiservices are all actually separate churches. 

Biblically, Leeman engages with the best arguments that people make for a multisite or multiservice models and demonstrates that they are full of assumptions at best. He goes even further to demonstrate that the argument for separate churches actually makes more sense and requires much less assumption.

Leeman lands the plane by showing how the "one assembly" model forces the local church to be a champion of the universal church. What does a church do when their one service reaches capacity? Leeman offers solutions such as building a bigger meeting space, championing other local churches people may live nearer to, planting a new church, and revitalizing a dying church. 

He says, "Born-again hearts don’t need global structures or city structures. But they do need a global and city mind-set, one that both affirms God’s work through other churches and shapes how we do ministry. He affirms many of the options that he mentions won’t be easy, but they will promote greater unity.

Ultimately, I found Leeman’s position to be biblical and convincing. This book is a good, short read that I happily recommend to you. Following the biblical pattern for church structure will create stronger churches and greater unity, which is something we all need.

You can pick up your copy of One Assembly on Amazon. (affiliate)

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from Crossway in exchange for a fair and honest review.