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The Church in the Word In this mile-a-minute culture, we don't like to wait for things anymore. We are used to getting things fast and simplified. Unfortunately, it is easy to carry this attitude over to our worship life. If God has something to say, we expect it to be distilled to a 10-second sound-bite. We are still looking for the Cliff Notes' Guide to Spirituality, so to speak. Tragically, many churches have bought into this consumerism thinking. But true spiritual growth is not fast and simple. True spiritual growth takes time—and lots of it. Getting Back to That One Thing Instead of seeking to find some church that is run more like a spiritual supermarket, it is time for us to slow down and consider Jesus' words to the busy, preoccupied Martha in Luke chapter ten: "'Martha, Martha,' the Lord answered, 'you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her'" (Luke 10:41–42). The Bible gives us some insight into what that one thing is:
In the same way, we should sit at Jesus' feet, fellowship with God and His people, and want to move forward spiritually. If we don't focus on that one thing, we'll end up doing everything and accomplishing nothing! God has provided His church as the place for this one thing to take place. It is our departure from His original principles that has put the church in the weakened state we find it today. Can you imagine what would happen if the church returned to its first century roots and started turning the world upside down for Christ? It would have a powerful effect. Like the church of the New Testament heard after the day of Pentecost, people would be asking, "What does this mean?" and "What shall we do [to be saved]?" (see Acts 2:1–39). Contemporary Lessons from an Ancient Church As mentioned in our last study, Acts 2:37–47 highlights four key characteristics of the New Testament Church: first, it was a learning church; secondly, it was a loving church; thirdly, it was a worshipping church; and lastly, it was an evangelistic church. In this study, we will focus some more upon the learning aspect of this early church. 1. A Learning Church Preaches the Word "And they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine . . ." (Acts 2:42). As a pastor, God has given me clear direction as to what I should be doing. Paul wrote to Timothy, "Preach the Word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables" (2 Timothy 4:2–4). a. They Preached with an Urgency In the original Greek, an urgency is stressed here: preach the Word with alertness, carefulness, insistence, urgency! Some would say that the preaching of the Word is not enough today. They insist that those with deep psychological wounds must be carefully treated by trained Christian counselors before they can understand and appreciate the promises of Scripture. Yet, we do not find this supported in Scripture.
b. They Stayed away from Aberrant Teaching A more literal translation of Paul's description to Timothy of those with itching ears would be those who have an itch for novelty, or those who are looking for interesting and spicy bits of information. Sadly, this describes many in the church today. They are willing to accept any teaching—no matter how aberrant—or any experience no matter how bizarre. Such people use experience as their guide rather than the trusted words of Scripture. Remember—if it is not in the Word, it is not of the Lord. We must not be like the people Paul addressed on Mars Hill, who readily believed and embraced anything remotely spiritual: "For all the Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or to hear some new thing" (Acts 17:21). Instead, we should heed the words of the prophet Jeremiah: "Thus says the LORD, 'Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls'" (Jeremiah 6:16). c. They preached the Word They did not preach politics, morality, psychology or social issues. While these subjects can be dealt with, they must be presented in the light of scriptural teaching. When Jesus sent out the disciples, their primary objective was to preach the Word even though they also had the authority to pray for the sick and perform miracles. 2. A Learning Church Emphasizes Personal Bible Study Success or failure in the Christian life depends upon how much of the Word of God you get into your heart and mind on a regular basis, and how obedient you are to it. In the book of Acts, we read of those who lived in Berea and had the privilege of hearing the great Apostle Paul preach. Rather than taking what he said at face value, Scripture tells us, "They received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true" (Acts 17:11). If the Bereans did this with none other than the Apostle Paul, how much more should we do this with our modern so-called apostles and prophets today! In 1 John, the Apostle John tells his fellow believers, "Dearly loved friends, don't always believe everything you hear just because someone says it is a message from God: test it first to see if it really is. For there are many false teachers around" (1 John 4:1). Like the Bereans, we need to receive the Word we hear preached with eagerness, then examine, or scrutinize, the Scriptures daily to see if what we hear is so. If we have a good working knowledge of the Bible, we will be better equipped to identify false teachings and concepts that are contrary to Scripture. The more familiar we are with the real thing, the easier it will be to detect counterfeits. Getting Back to the Bible If we are missing the right spiritual ingredients, which can only be found in the Bible, then we are bound to be spiritually deficient and malnourished. As a result, we will also become spiritually weak and vulnerable. By and large, it seems that the art of Bible teaching has been lost in the church, and the art of Bible study has been lost by many individuals. The remedy to this perilous spiritual situation is to follow the example of Israel. They, too, lost the Scriptures and were influenced by pagan cultures around them. Yet, under the reign of King Josiah, they rediscovered the Scriptures in the Temple, and a revival resulted (see 2 Chronicles 34:14–33). We see the same power of God's Word in Luke chapter 24, where we read the story of the two discouraged disciples traveling on the Emmaus road. Their hearts that had once burned brightly for Jesus had cooled down. Their passion had greatly diminished. Yet, Jesus finds them and walks along beside them. He then does something that spiritually reignites them: He speaks to them from His Word (Luke 24:27). After their meeting with Jesus, they said to one another, "Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?"(Luke 24:32).
If we want to turn our world upside down like the early church, we must get back to the principles they lived by. That includes continuing in the Apostles' doctrine by being learners of God's Word. May His Word become part and parcel of our lives. |
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