The New Testament Church was started just after Pentecost with the first mass outpouring of the Holy Spirit. We can read about Pentecost and the Apostle Peter’s bold address to the crowd of his very first gospel message in the Book of Acts chapter 2.
Acts 2:41 (NIV)
Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.
This was the birth of the Church of Jesus Christ. It was established in the power of the Holy Spirit. It was Spirit filled and, unlike today’s Church, without sect or denomination and the preaching man’s doctrines– just preaching Jesus Christ and him crucified!
This is the model Church that today’s Church should be imitating in every way, but sadly does not!
It was the Church that God himself wanted, conformed to the image of His Son, our Lord and Saviour – the King of kings who never changes!
Hebrews 13:7-8 (NIV)
7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Let’s examine how the Church was structured (the way today’s Church should be structured) and were ministering in faith and in accordance with the Word of God brought by the Apostles in the power of the Holy Spirit and let’s not forget the below words spoken to the Apostles by Jesus himself:
John 14:26 (NIV)
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.
The apostles’ teaching was directly from Jesus who is the Word – taught to them by the Holy Spirit!
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
1 Peter 1:21 (NIV)
For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
What were these new believers doing? What did their lifestyle look like? How was the Holy Spirit binding them together in unity to bring glory to the name of Jesus? How did they respond to the Holy Spirit’s leading and to the apostles’ teaching?
Acts 2:42-47 (NIV)
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
What does ‘devoted to’ mean?
Verse 42 in Acts 2 starts off like this: “They (the Church) devoted themselves to……….”
Let’s examine what they were devoted to and how they were devoted.
Today’s dictionary meaning of ‘devoted to’ is:
"Being devoted to something means being focused on that particular thing almost exclusively. When you are devoted to a cause, you work to achieve its goals. When you are devoted to a person, you place their needs above your own. Being devoted doesn't have to refer only to personal relationships."
So that’s how today’s modern dictionaries define ‘devoted to’, but in order to have a clearer picture of what the early Church would have understood by this we will need to examine the original Greek meaning of being ‘devoted’ to.
The original Greek meaning of ‘devoted’ in Acts 2:42 is:
Proskartereo (pronounced: pros-kär-te-ray-o) and its expanded meaning:
- To join together with
- To adhere to
- To be ready
- To give attention to
- To be fully committed to
- To spend much time together
- To be faithful
To join together with:
- What were they joined together with?
- With each other as the family of Christ.
- The Apostles and their teaching - The Word.
- And through this they were being unified as one Church in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The early church stuck together and did not deviate from the apostles’ teaching – the Word of God, the Bible.
To be ready:
They were being made ready to put into practice what they were being taught and to walk the Christian path as Jesus intended. A path of love, unity of the Spirit and self-sacrifice.
To give attention to:
They were focused on the Word, prayer, breaking of bread, fellowship with each other and with God in the fulness of the Holy Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
To be fully committed to:
They were fully committed to God, to each other and to the teachings of The Word and in putting them into practice.
To spend much time together:
They spend a lot of time together – devoted to each other in the love of Christ. They didn’t shrink back from fellowshipping together as often as they could. They helped each other and encouraged each other on the path to maturity.
To be faithful:
In all these things they were faithful as Christ is faithful to his Church! The unity of living life in the Spirit as Paul was later to describe in Romans 8!
What was the early Church devoted to – Acts 2:42?
1. The apostles teaching – The Word of God via the Apostles who were led and taught by Jesus, and by the Holy Spirit after the Lord’s ascension:
- Jesus – The Word – God
- Love for all mankind and especially for the family of believers – agapé
- Salvation in Christ Jesus
- The New Covenant by the blood of Jesus (set apart from the Law)
- Freedom in Christ
- The Holy Spirit
- In partnership with.
- Being a contributory help.
- Participation in.
- Sharing in.
- Communion with.
- Spiritual fellowship with the Holy Spirit and with each other.
Luke 22:19
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.“
1 Cor 11:26
For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
In the verse above, Paul tells us exactly what we are doing, apart from remembering the work of Jesus on the cross, when we break bread together. We are proclaiming his death until he returns.
Now here it will be good for us to have a look at the meaning of the word ‘proclaim’ from the original Greek translation. It comes from the Greek word ‘kataggello’.
Proclaim – Kataggello
- To proclaim.
- To declare openly.
- To preach.
- To laud (praise).
- To celebrate.
- To announce a message in a definite way.
So, here we see that when we break bread together, at least two significant things happen that only the Church, the true born-again believer, can do.
- We remember the significance of the pain and suffering the Lord suffered on our behalf that we may become born-again and thus reconciled to the Father.
- We announce to each other and to the world in an evangelical way that there is only one way to the Father and that is through Jesus Christ His son and that we are committed to Him and to each other.
Personal and corporate, relationship building prayer with God in the name of Jesus.
Acts 1:14
They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
Corporate prayer by the Church in unity, ushers in the presence and power of the Holy Spirit and brings revival both individually and corporately!
Pentecost is our prime example!
When the Church is devoted to God and to each other in prayer, love, action and devotion, supernatural things happen:
- People get saved, people get healed, people are delivered from demons!
Acts 2:47
praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
- We receive favour with the people.
- Miracles signs and wonders follow us.
Are you a devoted Christian and is your Church a devoted Church?
Today’s Church should look like the Acts Church, for Jesus is the same yesterday, today and always! Amen!
Hebrews 13:8 (NIV)
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Prayer
Dear Father in Heaven
In the name of Jesus, I ask that you continually fill me with your Holy Spirit and help me to become a devoted servant that I may bring glory to Jesus and be a blessing to others in Christ. Amen.
To Jesus belongs all glory honour and praise!
Jesus the Name above all names!
How do you feel about the change in music from hymns to "rock-style young people "performing?"
ReplyDeleteJaneDH: I have commented on that in a few published blogs already.
ReplyDelete