Acts Articles – Church 02B

On July 17, 2012July 17, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life

In Acts 2:42, the early church devoted themselves to the breaking of bread. There is some debate as to whether this refers to simply eating meals together (part of their devotion to fellowship) or to the Lord’s Supper. As the Lord’s Supper was often connected to eating together (see I Corinthians 11), the answer might be both. As we already addressed their devotion to fellowship, let’s consider briefly their devotion to the Lord’s Supper.

As Jesus commanded, they were devoted to coming together to celebrate the Lord’s Supper. They came together to remember Christ’s death for them. We too need this devotion. We too need to regularly remember what Christ has done for us. Indeed Christ’s sacrifice for us is a large part of our motivation for the other three devotions, and all of our devotion.

He died for me. In amazement and gratitude, I’ll live for him.

Acts Articles – Church 02A

On July 12, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life

In Acts 2:42, the church devoted themselves to the fellowship. Fellowship has the idea of sharing – both sharing with and sharing together.

Verses 44-45 describe the sharing with. They were generous. They shared what they had with each other, and especially with those in need. They weren’t clinging to their stuff, but were willing to share, to even sell what they had to give to those in need. We need this generosity today – not only for the good of each other, but to break free of the materialism that grips our land. Generosity opens our clutching hands; it teaches us to give instead of hoard. We too need to be devoted to the fellowship – generously sharing with others.

Verse 46 describes their sharing together. They came together publicly (in the temple) and privately (in their homes). They gathered together regularly. They spent time together. They shared their lives together. Part of this sharing together was eating together. We like to joke about fellowship being tied to food, but fellowship is often tied to food in the Bible. Jesus is always eating with people. And here, the early church is eating together. Eating together implies friendship, a relationship. Refusing to eat with someone shows division. So we eat together in part to show our unity with one another. We need to make time in our busy lives to eat together, to do things together, to do life together. We too need to be devoted to the fellowship – sharing our lives together.

Verses 46-47 go on to tell us that they ate together with glad and generous hearts, praising God. Fellowship was a joyful thing for them. They delighted in one another. They enjoyed coming together. They praised the Lord for each other. Is that your attitude? Are your sharing together? Are you sharing with? Are you devoted? How might you need to grow in your devotion?

Acts Articles – Church 02

On July 3, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life, Habit of Scripture

In Acts 2:42, we find the early church devoted to coming together for the apostles’ teaching. The apostles of course were teaching about Jesus from our Old Testament and eventually wrote the New Testament about Jesus, so we devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching when we devote ourselves to God’s Word, and especially to the teaching about Jesus from the Bible.

Like the early church, we should be devoted to coming together to study God’s Word, so we can learn and know more, and ultimately grow. We should gather to listen attentively and respond appropriately. We should have a real commitment and a real hunger. Our attitude should be that we can’t wait to meet together with God’s people to study the Word.

Is that your attitude? Are you devoted? How might you grow in your devotion to gathering together with God’s people to study His Word?

Acts Articles – Jesus 02

On June 27, 2012March 26, 2016 By BrianIn Book of Acts

In Acts 2:22-42, Peter moves from preaching about the Spirit to preaching about the work of Jesus and calls for a response. He focuses on four aspects of the work of Jesus:

His Life (v22) – Peter especially considers his miracles as evidence that Jesus was sent by God. If Jesus was sent from God, we had better pay attention.
His Death (v23) – The Jewish leaders and Roman officials were guilty of killing Jesus. At the same time, God planned for Jesus to die to bring about forgiveness of sins (v38). If God planned this, we ought to pay attention.
His Resurrection (v24-32) – God raised Jesus from the dead. Psalm 16 predicted that the coming Messiah would rise. And the apostles are witnesses of his resurrection. If God raised Jesus from the dead, then again: we need to pay attention to him.
His Ascension (v33-35) – Jesus ascended into heaven. He sent the Holy Spirit upon his people. And he is now exalted at the right hand of God as Lord as was predicted in Psalm 110. If Jesus is reigning, we need to pay attention to him.

The work of Jesus is not just trivia; we need to pay attention. The work of Jesus points to Jesus as Lord and Messiah (v36), and calls for a response:

We must believe. Though not stated, it is clearly implied. The people would not be cut to the heart, repent, or be baptized if they didn’t believe Jesus is and did what Peter has just preached.
We must repent (v37-38). We should be cut to the heart over our sin, and turn from our sin to Jesus. The results are forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
We must be baptized (v38, 41). The rest of the New Testament makes clear that this is not a requirement for salvation, and yet it is tied closely to it. Saved people get baptized, publicly identifying themselves with Jesus.
We must be connected to a local church (v41-42). The new believers were immediately added to the church and devoted themselves to the ministries of the church. So should we.

May we pay attention to the work of Jesus and respond appropriately!

Acts Articles – Spirit 02

On June 26, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts

In Acts 2:1-21, we see Jesus send the Spirit to the 120 disciples. It is Pentecost, 50 days after Passover, and all the disciples are together.

Suddenly there is the sound of a mighty wind, and what appears to be fire sits above each one. We often see wind and fire when God comes down in the Old Testament, suggesting that we should see this event as a theophany. God has come down among his people.

They are all filled with the Holy Spirit and begin speaking in other tongues. Crowds begin to gather, and the disciples spill out of the house. Jews from all over the Roman Empire are there, and they hear the disciples speaking in their tongues, and they are amazed. Peter gets up and begins to explain what is happening from the book of Joel.

From his explanation, we can glean at least three reasons that the coming of the Spirit is important for us today:

New Relationship – God has poured out his Spirit on all of the disciples (v17, 18). Not just a few receive the Spirit as in the Old Testament, but all of his people. God now dwells with us. Jesus is with us through his Spirit. We can always enjoy a relationship with God because the Spirit dwells in us.
New Purpose – The disciples were waiting for the Spirit so they could go and be Jesus’ witnesses (1:8). Now that the Spirit has come, that is exactly what they are doing – they are being witnesses to Jesus Christ. And so the Spirit empowers us to fulfill this new purpose – to share the good news with others.
New Era – The Spirit’s coming is directly related to the last days (v17) before the Day of the Lord (v20). Since the coming of the Spirit, we are living in the last days awaiting the return of Jesus. He is coming, and we need to be ready.

Wedding Charge

On June 22, 2012June 22, 2012 By BrianIn Family/Single Life

I was able to officiate at a wedding last weekend. It was a beautiful ceremony on the beach of Lake Michigan. The charge they asked me to use was from the Christian Wedding Planner by Ruth Muzzy and R. Kent Hughes – a book I highly recommend. The charge contained many things we may seldom consider in our day. For those of you who are married, I thought it might be helpful to reflect on these words which I slightly modified for last weekend’s wedding:

Today you are presenting yourselves before this congregation to declare your intention of uniting your lives voluntarily and honorably for the service of God and man. You are making a double dedication:

To each other, in a lasting and indivisible union that shall endure for the remaining years of your lives;
And to God, that he may make you his dual instrument for the accomplishment of his purpose both in and by your personalities.

The achievement of this purpose will require

Appreciation of each other’s abilities and virtues,
Forgiveness of each other’s faults, and
Unfailing devotion to each other’s welfare and development.

There must be on your part a united consent to the purpose of God as he progressively reveals it to you by his Word and by his Spirit, and an unhesitant acceptance by faith of the challenges that he sets before you.

I charge you, therefore, first of all, to consider that your promises to each other are made in the presence of a God who remembers your pledges and who holds you responsible for performing them. They must be kept inviolable before Him.

I admonish you to keep in mind that each of you is the object of Christ’s redemption and should be valued accordingly. Neither should be neglected or belittled by the other. Esteem each other as God’s gift for mutual aid, comfort, and joy, and as a repository of complete confidence and trust.

I encourage you to share willingly and sympathetically your joys and worries, your successes and your struggles, and to be neither conceited by the former nor depressed by the latter. Whichever may prevail, cling closely to each other, that defeats may be met by a united strength and victories by a united joy.

I charge you to make your home a place where you will have a refuge from the storms of life not only for yourselves but also for all who enter your home. Let it be a haven for the weary, a source of uplift for the discouraged, and a convincing testimony to a cynical world.

In short, recognize the Lord Jesus Christ as the head of your house, the ruler of your destinies, and the object of your deepest affection. If you do, he will confirm your marriage by his guidance and will overshadow it with his peace. I charge you to love each other, to support each other, and to serve him with sincere hearts and determined wills until your mutual service for him shall be completed.

May God help our marriages look more and more like this, that they might be authentic reflections of Christ and his church.

Acts Articles – Prayer 01C

On June 21, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life, Habit of Prayer1 Comment

Yesterday we saw from Acts 1:15-26, that the 120 disciples sought direction from Jesus in prayer. Our churches need to pray together for direction from Jesus too. Three specific applications from the passage:

We need to pray together for direction in our witness. The 12 apostles had a special role in being witnesses to the resurrection of Jesus, and so Judas’ replacement was important for their witness. We too need to seek direction from Jesus as we seek to be witnesses in our communities, and beyond to the ends of the earth.

We need to pray for direction in our meetings. As the disciples met together, they prayed. It is entirely too easy for us to begin a church meeting with a quick perfunctory prayer and then rush into the business at hand. But prayer is the most important business at hand as we seek to discern what Jesus wants us to do. Every meeting should begin as a prayer meeting. And when we come to an issue that we are unsure of or divided on, the meeting should return to a prayer meeting. Because it is not what any of us want or think that is important. It only matters what Jesus wants and thinks. Our churches are not supposed to be country clubs with God tacked on. They are churches of the Living God – and we must pray for his direction.

Finally, we need to pray for direction in leadership. As an apostle, the man the 120 disciples chose would be a leader in the church. And so they prayed to the Lord who knew the two men’s hearts for direction on which man should take this place of leadership. The Word gives us certain requirements for leadership to guide us. But we can’t see the hearts of men. So we need to pray to the One who can see men’s hearts to guide us to whom he wants to serve as leaders in our churches.

May our churches grow in their commitment to praying together for Jesus’ direction in our witness, meetings, and leadership.

How To Encourage Your Pastor

On June 20, 2012 By BrianIn Church Life

R.C. Sproul, Jr. recently shared three simple ways to encourage your pastor. As a pastor myself, I know how easy it is to become discouraged, and I thought his suggestions were right on:

First, pay attention to his labors. Though we do not have a duty to be at the church every time the doors are open, one thing that discourages pastors is our unwillingness to simply avail ourselves of his gifts. When the pastor labors in his study to prepare a Bible study lesson, or writes a blog post, and the sheep under his care pay no attention, it is discouraging….

Second, speak well of him to others. …if word comes back to him, and it will, that you have spoken well of him, to others in the church, or even to those in your community, he will have to take your good word to heart….

Third, pursue godliness. Because he loves you, what your pastor wants more than anything else is for you to grow in grace and wisdom, to become more like Jesus….

I encourage you to read the whole post here.

Acts Articles – Prayer 01B

On June 20, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life, Habit of Prayer

Jesus ascended into heaven where he still acts and still speaks through his followers, through his church. But how do we know what he wants us to do? How do we know what he wants us to say? In the last post we said that part of the answer was the Word. Another part of the answer is through prayer.

In Acts 1:15-26, the disciples are guided by the Word to replace Judas. They find two men that fit the necessary requirements for an apostle – they had to be with Jesus during his ministry, and especially be eye-witnesses to his resurrection. Having determined the possibilities, the disciples then pray for direction.

They pray to the Lord. In the context of Acts, Jesus is often referred to as Lord. And so it is possible that we should understand the disciples as praying to Jesus. As the Head of the church, it would make sense for them to seek his direction. As the one who chose the original twelve disciples, it would make sense for them to speak to him about his chosen replacement of Judas.

And so we ought to seek direction from Jesus in prayer. Our churches need to pray together seeking his direction in how he wants us to apply his Word in our specific situations. We will look at three specific applications tomorrow.

Acts Article – Word 01

On June 19, 2012 By BrianIn Book of Acts, Church Life, Habit of Scripture

In Acts 1:15-26, Peter recognizes that Judas abandoned his role as an apostle, as was predicted in Psalm 69:25. He then finds guidance in the Word. Psalm 109:8 instructs them to replace Judas.

The main point I want to make is that they found guidance in the Word. The Word told them what Jesus wanted them to do. And so the Word tells us what Jesus wants us to do.

As we gather together as local churches to study the Word together, Jesus is speaking to us, telling us what he wants us to do and say. As we hear the Word taught and preached, Jesus is giving us our marching orders. And as we faithfully respond to what his Word tells us, Jesus is acting and speaking through us.

As we gather together around the Word, let us then be careful to listen attentively and respond appropriately so that we might be the hands and tongue of Jesus.