Dedication to the Truth
Acts 2:42-45
42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. NKJV
When the Holy Spirit’s power is presently active in the church you will find this kind of unity. The highlights of these verses are the two main components of the body of Christ. You have the Apostles and the followers. Today we have teaching elders and committed members. The followers are just as important as the elders and Apostles; and in some ways even more important. Followers are devoted to sitting under teaching or doctrine as their primary task. This is the primary means of God’s grace in administering His Word in the world. In this dedication there is fellowship between saints and the Holy Spirit. Lastly, all are dedicated to the Lord’s Table and prayer. A healthy church will be committed to these three characteristics in some form within the church.
In summary of our previous studies we witnessed the outpouring of the Holy Spirit’s power upon a bunch of ordinary and uneducated people in comparison to the ‘devout Jews’ who were considered to the be the elite class of that culture. The devout Jews were amazed by such authority and power coming from the minds and hearts of these ordinary “Galileans”. It is good to remember that when the Holy Spirit’s power came, all one hundred and twenty disciples, were gathered in unified prayer waiting for the promise of the Holy Spirit’s power. God’s power continues to be “seen” as we continue in the work and devotion to the three major principles of the first assembled believers; that is doctrine, the Lord’s table, and prayer.
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, . . .
Doctrine or teaching is the priority of the church. A faithful church devoted to doctrine will have the following characteristic – fellowship. Without proper teaching you will have improper fellowship and communion. As a result of poor leadership the followers will suffer judgment (Matt.15:14;23:15). Therefore doctrine must first be pure and then the peaceable fruit of the Spirit will have His control over the fellowship of the body (Jas 3:17) and her communion will bring healing triumphing over judgment (Jas. 2:13). This will also lead to answered prayers when the leadership is in ‘agreement’ with the sound words of Scripture (Matt. 18:19).
My daughter and I briefly studied the life of Roald Amundsen this past week for her Heritage Studies class. Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer and adventurer. He originally wanted to be the first to explore the North Pole but a man named, Robert Peary, beat him to it. Therefore Amundsen set off to be the first to explore the South Pole. Amundsen was a talented leader of many experienced explorers. During this study my daughter and I discussed the importance of being a follower. Without the help and encouragement of others who are willing to follow, a leader cannot accomplish great things. Helpers are just as important as leaders in any form. We all tend to want to be leaders, but sometimes in this effort we just get in the leaders way. A follower can be leader simply by following the leader; not ‘blindly’ following him being tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine(Eph.4:14); but just by the simple means of support and encouragement which is often the harder role. He who wants to be the greatest must be slave of all (Mk.10:44). A follower often has to suffer more to fulfill his or her role than the elder has to suffer to prepare for it. The followers are often greater than the leader in their example of the Christian life. Amundsen devoted his life to exploration; and we too, as Christians, should be devoted to the exposition of the Holy Scriptures. After Amundsen came another explorer, Robert Scott, who tried to reach the South Pole only to find Amundsen's flag. Scott was a poor leader and led his team to their death. He was not prepared for the cold weather or the proper means of transportation. He chose to use ponies instead of dogs to pull their sleds. He was not equipped for the risks that would challenge his team and it cost them their life. This is why it is necessary for the importance of good leadership in the church. The followers are to lead with their encouragement and support of God’s chosen elders.
“A minister may be made a man of power by prayer, and he may be unmade and bereft of power by people failing to pray for him. Any church may have a mighty man of God for its pastor, if it is willing to pay the price, and that price is not a big salary but great praying. Have you a pastor you do not like, a pastor who is perhaps inefficient, or does not clearly know nor preach the truth? Do you want a new ministry? I can tell you how to get him. Pray for the one you have till God makes him over.” ~Austin
And the elders are to be careful in their doctrine and practice of worship (1Tim.4:16). Poor elders will destroy the life of the church very quickly when they are not laboring to keep their doctrine to the purest form, as it has been taught, from the Scriptures (2Tim.1:13). This takes a steadfast dedication and a backbone to stand on the truth. As C. H. Spurgeon puts it:
“If I am wrong upon other points, I am positive that the sin of this age is impurity of doctrine, and laxity of faith. Now you know you are told every Sunday that it does not matter what you believe; that all sects and denominations will be saved; that doctrines are unimportant things; that as to the doctrines of God’s grace, (legitimate Calvinism) they are rather dangerous than otherwise, and the less you inquire about them the better; they are very good things for the pastors, priests and theologians, but you common people cannot understand them. Thus they keep back a portion of the gospel with cautious reserve; [and…as they do…they label their own position as the most conservative and moderate and biblical, all the while] telling the people that it does not matter whether they preach dambable heresies instead of the truth of God. And what do the congregations say? “Well, he is a wise man, and ought to know”. So you are going back into as bad a priestcraft as ever."
In summary both the elders and the followers make or break the fellowship of the church. The presence of Christ depends on the agreement and unity of the body (Acts 18:10;Matt.18:20).
. . . in the breaking of bread . . .
This is a brief reference to the primary ordinance of the Lord Jesus Christ. This does not mean the church is required to set up a food bank to provide bread for five thousand hungry people. It is a traditional means instituted by our Lord on the night of His betrayal to impart grace to the hearers of His Word and judgment upon hypocrites who presume upon His grace (1Cor.11:29). This practice was and is to be done in remembrance of His death and sufferings upon the cross for the remission of sins on behalf of those who repent and believe in Him.
. . . and in prayers.
The third devotional characteristic is prayer. When these early believers gathered for worship it was also to pray for the advancement of the gospel and the sanctification of the local believers. They prayed that the ministry of the Word would take effect in their hearts and lives. This was not just to come together and listen to someone say a few words; but to offer up prayerful songs of worship and intercessory prayer for the saints and unsaved loved ones. Public prayer really is the life of the church. This is where the saints truly have fellowship in the Holy Spirit. God works in the midst of the body as the Holy Spirit prays through the means of faith working in the hearts of the saints; bearing witness to His Word and fulfilling His promises before the whole congregation. This is how the saints can carry each other’s burdens and bear fruit to God (Gal. 6:2). Believers can be given rest and life in the depth of their soul as the body intercedes in love for one another. May God increase this attitude of prayer in us and grant us a holier faith to overcome the weakness of our flesh, for indeed the Spirit is willing (Mk.14:38).
Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
When these three practices are the priorities of the church, the Holy Spirit works a sense of fear and awe of the greatness of God in His people. The Apostles were doing many signs and wonders to validate the message of Jesus Christ and establish the Scriptures as the authority of the church for this life. The fear that came over the saints, was a fear of departing from the one true God; but this fear worked differently in those who continued in sin; to push them out from among the saints (Acts 5:5,11). These practices bring discomfort and conviction to unbelievers but great encouragement to the saints (Acts 9:31).
