The town of Marietta, Georgia, has a problem with churches and used car dealers who own less than five acres of land. The Georgia Brazilian Assembly of God, a church of less than fifty members, was told by city officials they could not build a chapel on their three-acre lot. According to the AP article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution,

Marietta’s planning and zoning manager, Rusty Roth, said he’s not sure why the church rule was enacted, but said churches aren’t alone in needing minimum land space for approval. Used car dealerships, for example, have acreage minimums, he said.

The church rule “has been in our ordinance for quite some time,” Roth said. “Typically churches need quite a bit of land for the ministries and amenities they offer nowadays, all the parking they need.”

The church is filing suit to overturn the ordinance.

Would Marietta have a problem with the apostle Paul? His congregations in Rome, Corinth, and Laodicea met in private homes; I doubt they were on five acres, either. But maybe the early church could pass the “ministry test” for permission to use their own property.