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by Sandy Shaw
We are in Acts Chapter 2. Peter has been explaining what the risen and living Lord Jesus Christ has done in the Temple in Jerusalem when He baptised these 120 disciples in the Holy Spirit in fulfilment of what was promised. Those who listened were convicted of their sin and they ask, "What shall we do?"
People always want to do something and it is important that people do the right thing. Peter replies in unmistakably clear terms. He tells the people, who asked that vital question, what to do. Having come to believe in Jesus - Repent or turn to God - Be baptised in water and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
We are given a picture not only of how The Church was birthed, but something of the daily life in the early Church.
When people come into The Church of Jesus Christ, we have to be very clear as to what they are getting into, and spell it out, not always immediately, because some may not able to hear it all at once. But over the early weeks and months, certainly these truths we are looking at today should be made clear.
What did people do? What are we to do? What are the basic principles? Teaching has to be given as to what they were getting into.
Following that experience in the Temple, Peter explained what God had done. Then people reacted by asking that important question as to what they should do, and in verse 38, we have this one complete comprehensive answer. This is God's answer. Repent, and do it at once. We should not have to repeat it. We should not be bothered for years wondering if we have further things to deal with. Many do.
It is an incisive command. Turn from the devil to God. Turn from the ways of the world to the Jesus Christ, who is the Way the Truth and the Life. This is not an emotion. It is a decision, as the believer in Jesus submits to God. Then it is sealed by baptism. Having submitted to God, we submit to what God has said at the hands of men, and then there is the seal of Jesus, as the individual is baptised in The Holy Spirit. This is God's plan and intention for every believer.
We need to know how to get in to The Church, and then, what to do once we are in. Jesus said, "I will build My Church". What type of Church does Jesus want to build? Peter warned these disciples of Jesus of the type of world in which they were living. We are not the first generation to live in challenging times. Peter pleaded with them, and some 3,000 believers were baptised.
A young man recently said to me, "They must have had sore arms". I had never considered this, but if the apostles had baptised these 3,000 believers in the five available pools around Jerusalem, it would have taken eight or nine hours to do so. Yes, they would have had sore arms!
What follows are four basic areas of activity, to which they were devoted and committed.
Teaching. These new believers accepted what was being taught by the apostles. If we do not accept that, we will perish somewhere in the wilderness. We cannot live on some wonderful experience. Perhaps this is why some are somewhere out there in the wilderness. We all need a sound thorough understanding of The Word of God. The Spirit of God blew people towards an understanding of The Word of God.
Jesus taught His disciples. We need teaching, just as infant requires nourishing milk, and the Word of God exerts a restraining influence over us. There is a relevant sentence in Romans 6:17 - "you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching". It is the word for a "mould". The Word of God formed, moulded and shaped the disciple. It moulded the believer when he was soft, and malleable - warmed up in the case of metal. We need a mould.
Think of what would happen if you were making a jelly and you just poured it out onto the table. Yes, it would just run all over the place. That sadly is what we have permitted in what is called The Church. We all need this mould. We all need to be melted by Jesus, and then poured into the mould and shaped. God wants us to be in good shape.
The Fellowship. That means sharing - all the fellows in the one ship - and you cannot get off, nor can you back off and walk out, when you please. Rituals, ceremonies, programmes, projects are all useless, if they fail to produce Fellowship. Fellowship needs somewhere to happen. Fellowship needs a platform, and that is one reason why the early church met regularly in each other's homes.
The early church had The Temple, and, the homes of the believers. You cannot be nourished by people who do not understand your experience, your spiritual life, and your spiritual growth and development. It was out of Fellowship that the first Missionary Team was birthed. Foreign Missions were birthed as five men were fasting and praying - GOD SPOKE. Up 'til that point, only persecution had got the people on the move.
The Breaking of Bread. This is so important, because it reminds us on each occasion of what is central - the death of Jesus Christ on the cross to rescue sinners from their sins.
What flows from all this is Prayer - yes, it is necessary to be instructed and taught and have meaningful sharing, and participate in the Bread and Wine, but all this should be accompanied by PRAYER.
These were the priorities of The Church.
The Church is so like the Ark of Noah. It is our place of refuge and strength and security. The dimensions are given by God. Everything is directed by God, and was right first time. It never needed a trial run and was never recalled for modifications. It did what it was designed to do, and both were built by a Carpenter.
The Church has never been modified. We cannot improve upon it. God has never changed the specifications. There is no need to bring it up to date. We come in the same way as they did, and God expects the same priorities to remain central.
These four fundamental principles of the early Church, are like the four legs of a table, giving stability. They are not additional extras. Once you had come into the Church of Jesus Christ, we are told how to behave in The Church. Now, are we clear on this? What we are reading of in this Chapter is the beginning of normal biblical Christianity.
Alexander 'Sandy' Shaw is pastor of Nairn Christian Fellowship in Nairn, Scotland. Nairn is 17 miles east of Inverness - on the Moray Firth Coast - not far from the Loch Ness Monster!
Gifted as a Biblical teacher, Sandy is firmly committed to making sure that his teachings are firmly grounded in the Word.
Sandy has a weekly radio talk which can be heard via the Internet on Saturday at 11:40am, New Orleans time, at wsho.com.
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