The authority, function and responsibilities of the Church have diminished in recent years. Snyder (1977, p. 138 & 143) argues that “the Church is biblically: the community of God’s people, not an institutional or organizational structure,” and it contains no “formal organizational structures.” He (Snyder, 1977, p. 144) goes on to remark that it “is fruitless to try to discover a formal organization underlying the life of the early church.” It is important to note that even though Snyder argues in this manner he does identify a few “structures” from the biblical evidence (Snyder, 1977, p. 146). As far as the institutional Church is concerned Snyder (1977, p. 158) asserts that “the Church will inevitably assume some institutional form, even though the Church is not the institution.” This highlights Snyder’s low-Church theological bias. A bent towards understanding the Bible as a book containing two independent/distinct volumes (i.e. New and Old Testaments) seems to underscore Snyder’s arguments against the institution of the Church. Our doctrine of the Church, its role, authority and responsibilities must be established from the entire counsel of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17 ). As we seek to unwrap the authority and responsibilities of local churches it is important to understand Church through whole Bible eyes.