The Activities of the Church
Notes
Transcript
Intro: Many people would like to win the lottery! There are literally thousands of “sure fire schemes” on the market for winning the lottery. It would seem to me that if it was so easy to beat the odds and win, then the lottery would be broke, or everyone would be a multi-millionaire. Yet we all know that this isn't the case. In fact, I have read several people who have won the lottery say that they were surprised they won.
Many people view church growth like the lottery. They are not sure how to be effective, but once in a while it just happens. Of coarse, the whole church is full of excitement when they, “by chance,” find they have done become large.
There are also people who get all excited about their “sure fire schemes” to church effectiveness. Like lottery schemes, those with the most advertising, and the most spectacular sounding results often draw people into their scheme.
Effectiveness as a church is very unlike the lottery. God expects us to be effective. It shouldn’t be something that happens to churches that get “lucky.” The Creator of the church made sure that the activities of His first effective churches were recorded so that every church today could be effective every time they followed His plan.
Theme: Effective churches are always controlled by their Biblical purpose based activities.
So how does this look? What does a church with the right biblically based activities look like?
I. The church must be involved in teaching its people about God.
I. The church must be involved in teaching its people about God.
Colossians 1:23 (NKJV)
...continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard...
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. 29 To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
A. They displayed a deep willingness - even an eagerness to be taught.
Knowledge is important. However, if we only have knowledge, we might as well have a Uni. While I thank God for Christian schools and colleges, institutes and universities, I do not think every Christian has to attend one. I degrees from Christian institutions and I’m very grateful as I couldn’t do the work I do without it. Yes, they are a great benefit, but that is not the sole activity of the church.
This is why we find in 2 Tim that among the qualifications of a pastor/ elder is “Able to teach”. The only role that has this mandatory qualification in the church is the Pastor/elder.
Titus 1.9 tells us one reason why the Pastor and elder have to be able to teach.
9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.
B. The early churches were taught the sound doctrine.
“They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine” or “in the things taught by the apostles.”
Teaching the things that help people know and understand God and what He has done.
16 But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness,
14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them,
17 You therefore, beloved, since you know this beforehand, beware lest you also fall from your own steadfastness, being led away with the error of the wicked; 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.
The Mormons and JW’s put most churches to shame when we are talking about the quantity, but you and I both know that the quality is all wrong.
I once went to a funeral that was conducted by a High Anglican minister. I felt so angry when I left. He was baptizing caskets, praying to candles, and telling everyone that each of us must find our own way to God. Nothing could be further from the truth of Jesus Christ statement that no one gets to the Father except through Him.
3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear.
C. Teaching was highly valued in the early church.
Often the length of time is irrelevant! The goal was not a “level of competence” but an ability to pass the faith on to others.
20 how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
27 for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.
In Acts 20.7-11 we find Paul preaching and teaching all night long. The joke among preachers is that it killed someone, but they so desired to hear what Paul would teach was so strong that he did not stop until it was time to leave town.
They valued this!
Acts 17:11 (ESV)
... they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 28 Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. 29 To this end I also labor, striving according to His working which works in me mightily.
Conclusion: We have only begun on our study of the activities of the church. It is no secret. The very things that God used to establish His church still apply today. They apply all the way down to the level of the local congregation. Today we have seen that we must give ourselves to the study of the things the Apostles taught.
Q1. How highly do you value the teaching of the Word?
Q2. Do you hold both the positive and the negative side of sound doctrine as equally valuable? Sometimes it instructs, and some times it rebukes.
Q3. Are we tempted to follow the teaching of an individual or a denomination rather than getting to know God from Scripture?