The church in the book of Acts had…
- No stained glass, no pews, no theatre seats, no baptismal tank, no church building…
- No hymnbooks, no piano, no organ, no choir, no praise band…
- No Sunday School, no PowerPoint, no drama team, no video clips…
- No bulletins, no Bibles in the home, no devotional books, no literature…
- No ornate symbols or professional banners…
- No credentialed pastors, no diplomas on the wall in the pastor’s study…
- No gymnasiums or Family Life Centers…
- No organized sports teams, no youth group, no youth pastor, no children’s pastor, no nursery…
- No denominational affiliation, no Bible Colleges, no seminaries…
- No written by-laws, no tax-deductible giving receipts…
- No racism…
- No pictures of Spurgeon, Martin Luther King, or anybody else hanging in the foyer…
- No sound tracks, no recording artists, no copyrighted music, no paid concerts…
- No celebrity pastors…
- No political rants.
Could you be comfortable in the early church where…
- Prayer meetings happened every day?
- Every leader had forsaken the Lord prior to Pentecost?
- Souls were saved daily?
- Miracles were commonplace?
- Services were unpredictable (liars were struck dead and at least one got resurrected)?
- They had all things common?
- Slaves and slave owners worshipped together?
- Poor and rich sat side by side?
- Diverse races and cultures of people were bound together by agape love?
- Deacons served the people while the pastors studied and prayed?
- Persecution was heavy at times?
Is it possible that much we consider essential to the faith is really just cultural preference, and carnal prejudice? How many “churches” are more like cultural enclaves instead of communities? Enclaves are bound together by similar backgrounds, tastes, and likes. But the early church was knit together by supernatural love. Which do you prefer: the enclave or the community?
Harold Vaughan 3/18/2014 www.christlifemin.org
They had the Torah (Law) and the Prophets on scrolls, taught them, and obeyed what they were taught. They did not depart from the Torah in obedience to Proverbs 4:2 because it was YHVH’s good doctrine. There example was the life of Yeshua/Jesus who did not break even one law because He loved the Father and did all His ways out of love (the correct motive).
They did worship every day; yet, set apart the Sabbath (7th day from Genesis) as the Holy Convocation (Lev. 23) and continued in the feast and festivals of YHVH (Passover/Pasach, Pentacost/Shauvot, Feast of Tabernacle/Sukkot (see Paul’s life all through Acts).
Peter and John continued in the daily prayers “in the Temples” (Acts 3:1), held at the first lamb and last lamb sacrifices (corporate oblations from Leviticus). Yeshua/Jesus said He was the first and last the Aleph/Alpha and the Tav/Omega.
Yeshua is the lamb slain from the foundations of the worlds (Rev, 13:8) therefore in Father’s eyes (outside constraints of time) all sacrifices always pointed towards what He would do on the cross as if it already happened; even those that will occur again when He comes again (Ezk. 40 – 48).
The church in Acts will look just like the one clearly outlined that He will bring back when He comes back. We can look at and examine what we all do then, if we just read Ezekiel Chapter 40 – 43 and allow of “doctrine” we have learned to be wrecked by His truth. When we do, we will understand Jeremiah 16:19 – that we will learn that we have inherited the lies of our fathers, so we can turn again to the “old paths wherein is the good way” before it is too late (Jeremiah 6:16-19); and avoid the judgement coming which is outlined in Isaiah 24. In Isaiah 24 the world is judged because we have defiled it by not keeping His Torah (law); changing the ordinances (like those in Leviticus 23), and breaking His everlasting covenant (given through Abraham for not withholding his own son).
Let His word be ever true beginning with the foundations, because if the foundations be destroyed, what shall the righteous do?
Jack Jackson
Amen! Does this come in plaque form? This would make a great foyer wall “decoration”! 🙂
It is a shame what Christians are bound to and by today!
Quite right sir.
Too bad many do not see the things that Mr. Vaughn has listed in the first list, as non-essential. Except for having my own copy of God’s word and perhaps a hymnbook, I can’t see anything in that first list that’s necessary to my fellowship with any member of the body of Christ…and as far as I’m concerned, there are many things on that list I wouldn’t even darken the door of most visible churches because of.
“Racism”?
“Drama team”?
“Sports teams”?
“Praise band”?
“Recording artists”?
“Celebrity pastors”?
“Political rants” ( Why should we care what the world does, by and large )?
In fact, isn’t much of what is on the first list nothing more than the way the world does things, and some of it a tremendous waste of the Lord’s money?
Wow, what a list of distractions for the believer…(whew!) Indeed, a shame.