Understanding (Part 1)

There is a great problem today about understanding he teaching of the Bible and applying it properly. This problem is different from all other problems that man faces. The problem with a lack of understanding of God’s Word is different from any other problem because a failure to understand God’s Word will be the difference between our going to Heaven or to gehenna (i.e. the lake of fire). Perhaps some of our readers do not consider this matter as worthy of so serious a consideration but after we examine this proposition, I am sure you will have changed your mind. You see, there is nothing worse than loosing ones soul, the only possession that we have that is truly of eternal value (i.e. priceless) is our soul. Note the circumstance of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 12:16-21,

“16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17 and he reasoned within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have not where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, be merry. 20 But God said unto him, Thou foolish one, this night is thy soul required of thee; and the things which thou hast prepared, whose shall they be? 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (ASV)

You will notice that the rich man did not understand that his soul was really the most important possession he had – vs. 20. The rich man in the parable is like many of us today , we become so involved in the affairs of this life that we just do not take time to reflect on deeper matters of life, that there might be something of great importance that we are neglecting – the rich man was surely such a person.

WHY IS THE SOUL SUCH A VALUABLE ASSET?

Our soul has an eternal value (i.e. it outlasts the physical body), that part of us that is the life force; whenever it leaves the physical body it does not end. Because it does not end we must adequately prepare for it wherever it is going. The Book of God says that the soul of man is eternal and will reside in one of two places after death depending upon how we prepare for it when we physically die – Look carefully at Luke 20:35-38,

“35 but they that are accounted worthy to attain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage: 36 for neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. 37 But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in (the place concerning) the Bush, when he calleth the Lord, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. 38 Now he is not the God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.” (ASV)

Since the soul will survive physical death to be resurrected at the last day, every person ought to be alerted to the reality of this event and examine the nature of the resurrection and events that follow.

HOW DOES A PERSON KNOW WHAT PRECEDES And WHAT FOLLOWS THE RESURRECTION?

Each person may understand the nature of birth, life, physical death, the resurrection,  judgment, and eternal life or eternal torment {i.e. death}. This understanding is found whenever a person turns to God’s Written Word and searches it for such important details about these matters.

1.  BIRTH, This is the natural process that God put into action after he had created man and woman (i.e. Adam and Eve), Genesis 1-3

2.  LIFE, is what happens to those that are born {i.e. physically} into this world, each person begans to grow into adulthood.

NOTE:  During this time (i.e. living life) each person begins to understand many facets of life, we learn about other people, education (i.e. development of the mind and senses), we come to realize that in life each person is a product of their choices. Indeed, choice makes each person whatever he or she becomes – we choose between right (GOOD) and wrong (EVIL) as we decide upon our course of life. Many times we choose those things that are not wrong in and of themselves but we become so involved it them that we have no time or spend no time in contemplation, therefore we ignore sometimes the important things for the mundane things of life. You see, God instructs us to “seek first the Kingdom of God (i.e. recognize that God’s way is more important) cf. Matt 6:33 – before other things. A person will not want to waste this time that he/she has on the earth, they will want to make arrangements so that when they leave this life they will know where the soul will go. Paul said of this life in  2 Timothy 4:5-8,

“5 But be thou sober in all things, suffer hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill thy ministry. 6 For I am already being offered, and the time of my departure is come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith: 8 henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing.” (ASV)

To the church at Smyrna the John wrote, Revelation 2:10, “Fear not the things which thou art about to suffer: behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days. Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life.” (ASV)

As a person can see by studying God’s Word, understanding of these important matters occurs because we do seek answers where real answers may be found, in God’s Written Word (i.e. the Bible).PHYSICAL

3.  DEATH, The death of everyone is assured by the testimony of God:

Hebrews 9:27, “And inasmuch as it is appointed unto men once to die, and after this (cometh) judgment;

1 Corinthians 15:51-55, “51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 But when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory. 55 O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?” (ASV)

4.  THE RESURRECTION, The resurrection of everyone is just as sure a reality as physical death. That the resurrection follows death is a Biblical doctrine that cannot be denied. With regard to the resurrection let us examine the teaching of the Bible:

*    Hebrews 9:27, “And inasmuch as it is appointed unto men once to die, and after this (cometh) judgment;

**  John 5:28-29, “28 Marvel not at this: for the hour cometh, in which all that are in the tombs shall hear his voice, 29 and shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment.” (ASV)

***      Acts 24:15, “having hope toward God, which these also themselves look for, that there shall be a resurrection both of the just and unjust.” (ASV)

****    1 Corinthians 15:21, “For since by man (came) death, by man (came) also the resurrection of the dead.”

5.  THE JUDGMENT, The judgment of all mankind will take place before the Righteous Judge, Jesus Christ:

2 Timothy 4:1, “I charge (thee) in the sight of God, and of Christ Jesus, who shall judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom:” (ASV)

2 Timothy 4:8, “henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give to me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing.” (ASV)

THE FOLLOWING VERSES WILL TELL US WHAT THE STANDARD OF JUDGMENT WILL BE:

“… The word that I speak (i.e. the words of Jesus Christ) …” is the standard – are measuring up to the standard? John 12:48, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day.” ASV

6.  THE LAST DAY, The trumpet of God will sound, all the dead will be raised, everyone will be judges and sentenced on the “… last day …” All things created by God in the beginning will be dissolved and immortality of the resurrected will commence.

CONSIDER THIS FACT:  There will be only one last day. If the last day is not the last day then God has erred, we know that this is impossible, therefore there cannot be 1,000 years after the last day.

NOTE:

1 Corinthians 15:52-53, “52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.” (ASV)

John 6:39-40, “39 And this is the will of him that sent me, that of all that which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 For this is the will of my Father, that every one that beholdeth the Son, and believeth on him, should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”

John 11:24-25, “24 Martha saith unto him, I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live;” (ASV)

John 12:48, “He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my sayings, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I spake, the same shall judge him in the last day.” (ASV)

SUMMATION:  Do we understand these things? We ought to study until we have reached an understanding of these important issues, that pertain to life, death, and the hear-after. Without a clear understanding of these things we will be unable to experience “JOY” in our lives and “The peace that passes understanding” will escape us – cf.

Philippians 4:4-8, “4 Rejoice in the Lord always: again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your forbearance be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. 6 In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honorable, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (ASV)

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Worship in Spirit and in Truth

On one occasion during Jesus’ ministry on earth, He and His disciples passed through Samaria.  On this occasion, Jesus stopped at Jacob’s well to get a drink of water while His disciples went to buy food.  While there, a Samaritan woman came to draw water and she had a discussion with Jesus.  During this discussion, she brought up the subject of worship.  Jesus made a statement to her at that time regarding true worshipers which we are going to focus on for this lesson.  Turning to John 4:23-24, we read, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.“

This statement by Jesus is the main Biblical text we turn to when regarding Christian worship.  In the context of this discussion, Jesus reveals that the time has come when true worshippers will no longer worship in Jerusalem.  A change had come to the age old classic Levitical worship system and those who wish to be true worshippers will have to abide by a new set of guidelines.  These guidelines are the basis for our worship today as Christians in the kingdom of God. 

God seeks true worshippers, and He identifies them as those who “worship Him in spirit and in truth“. Worshipping God in spirit and in truth is a serious matter which must not be taken lightly. If we have any regard for our own souls, we will want to make sure we are worshipping God in spirit and in truth.

An analysis of the text reveals 5 things that characterize the true worshipper which God is in search of. 

1. The absolute of Christian worship – “must” God seeks true worshippers and they must worship. 

2. The action of Christian worship – “worship”  Meaning to prostrate oneself, to render obeisance, respect and reverence, to kiss toward and to serve. 

3. The aim of Christian worship – “God“

4. The attitude of Christian worship – “spirit”  Meaning from one’s heart.

5. The authority of Christian worship – “truth” Meaning according to God’s word which is truth (John 17:17).

Before we examine these five things, let’s look at some Biblical examples of some who were not true worshippers. 

The Bible speaks of Ignorant Worship

In Acts 17, we read of Paul in the city of Athens on that occasion when he confronted some of the citizens of the city about their pagan worship.  They had an idol set up to honor an unknown god in case they missed one somewhere.  Paul made this statement recorded by inspiration in verse 23: “For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you.“

Paul acknowledged that they were very religious but he warned them that their religious service was not pleasing to God for it was done in ignorance, without knowledge of what God wanted or even who God was.  Paul went on to say in verse 30 that, “the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent“.  The word “winked” means ‘overlooked’.   Paul told the Athenians on that occasion that God would not overlook their ignorant worship. 

Ignorant worship is not pleasing to God for he is not glorified by accident, but by a conscience praise of His name.  God is seeking true worshippers and those who worship God ignorantly are not worshiping in truth and are therefore excluded from those whom God is seeking to worship Him. 

The Bible speaks of Vain Worship

In Matthew 15:7-9, we read the words of Jesus as He confronted a group of Pharisees, “Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men“.

The word vain means ‘to no purpose’.  The Pharisees made their worship vain (useless) because they had added on the commandments of men to their  practices.  They were proclaiming praises and honoring God with their lips, but their hearts were corrupt because by adding their own traditions and requirements to the word of God, they were setting themselves as an authority higher than God.  In other words, God says this, but you must do something more, or less or different than what God said.  Such things were said by inspiration to render our worship of no worth, and is a demonstration that our attitudes about worship are not right.  Those who exhibit the wrong attitude in their worship are not worshiping in spirit and are therefore excluded from those whom God is seeking to worship Him. 

The Bible speaks of Will Worship

Colossians 2:23, “Which things have indeed a show of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.” The NKJV translated “will worship” as “self imposed religion“.  In this context, Paul was dealing with some of the very things that Jesus was talking about in regards to the Pharisees back in Matthew 15:7-9.  Some people in Colossi were imposing manmade elements into Christianity which did not belong.  Basically, this is an extension of what causes vain worship.  Backing up to verse 23 of this context, we see Paul writing, “according to the commandments and doctrines of men”  Paul alluded to Jesus’ teaching while dealing with “will worship” or “self imposed religion” with the Colossian church.  The consequences are the same.  Their worship is vain, meaning useless and of no value. 

So we can see from these three examples of incorrect worship that true worshippers have a standard they must adhere to if they want to be the worshippers that God is seeking.  We understand from these three examples that our worship must not be done in ignorance and must come from God only and cannot include the commandments of men.  

The absolute of Christian worship

Those who worship God must worship in spirit and in truth.  The word ‘must’ is what we call an auxiliary verb.  It means to be bound by an imperative requirement.  The Bible teaches us that faith is a must (Heb. 11:6), and repentance is a must (Luke 13:3).  When the word ‘must’ is used, the consequences for failure or refusal to comply are spiritual death.  Those who fail to have faith will be condemned, likewise, those who fail to worship in spirit and in truth will suffer the same fate. 

The word “must” modifies three elements which constitute Christian worship.  The word ‘must’ modifies the object of worship – Him.  We ‘must’ worship God.  Consider the words of Jesus in Matthew 4:10, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” 

The word ‘Must’ modifies the attitude of worship which is spirit and the standard of worship which is truth.  Our worship therefore must be to God, it must be in spirit and it must be in truth.  Thus, the object, the attitude, and the standard of Christian worship are vital – they are a must!

2. The action of Christian worship

Webster defines “worship” as “courtesy or reverence to worth; hence honor and respect. An act of paying divine honors to deity; religious reverence or homage.” The word “worship” it translated from several different Greek words, three of which are used more than once:

1. PROSKUNEO
This word Occurs 60 times in the New Testament as is always rendered worship.  This is the Greek word used in John 4:24 in regards to worshiping in spirit and in truth.  Vines dictionary of NT words defines this word, “to make obeisance, do reverence to”.  Thayer defines it, “to kiss the hand to (towards) one, in token of reverence ? to fall upon the knees and touch the ground with the forehead as an expression of profound reverence”

2. SEBOMAI
This Greek word Occurs 10 times in the New Testament.  It means to “To stand in awe; to venerate, to reverence, to worship, to adore”.  It is the Greek word Jesus used when He said in “vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” in Matthew 15:9. 

3. LATREUO
This Greek word Occurs 21 times in the New Testament. It means “To render religious service of homage; to worship God in the observance of rites instituted for worship”.  It is translated as both worship and service in our English translations.   

All three of these words are verbs.  All three of these words are action words, meaning we are to be participants and not spectators.  In true worship, we are not the audience, rather God is.  Our aim in worship must be to please God which brings us to the next characteristic of true worship. 

3. God; The aim of Christian worship.

The Bible teaches us that Gods is to be the sole object of our worship.  In Exodus 20:2-6, we read these very familiar words, “I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me; And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments“.

That was one of the ten commandments given to Moses on Mt Sinai.  Things have not changed since then.  In Matthew 4:10, when speaking to Satan, Jesus said, “Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve“.  We must remember that in true worship, God seeks those who worship Him only.  It is God that we are obligated to do reverence to.  We do not approach God in worship to be entertained.  The responsibility for true worship lies squarely on us as His children.  Since God seeks true worshipers, He therefore seeks those who will worship Him and Him only.  If our aim in worship is not God, then we are not worshiping in spirit and in truth and we are therefore excluded from those whom God seeks.

4. Spirit; The Attitude of Christian Worship.

New Testament worship is spiritual, meaning from the heart.   We learn that we are to offer up spiritual sacrifices as a holy priesthood in 1 Peter 2:5.  We are to draw nigh unto God with a true heart, in full assurance of faith (Hebrews 10:22). Our worship is to be offered to God with grace in our heart unto the Lord (Colossians 3:17; Ephesians 5:19).

New Testament worship must come from the heart; Ephesians 5:19-20, “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”  Colossians 3:16-17, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him”.  Notice in both of these scriptures that we are commanded to be thankful and to demonstrate that in our worship. 

In Hebrews 12:28, we read, “Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear“.  Part of the spirit of true worship is reverence and godly fear.  Our worship in spirit must reflect a deeply reverent attitude, humble, submissive and respectful.  God is all powerful, all knowing and everywhere present.  He is absolutely fair and just.  He is always right and never wrong.  He is the creator of everything material that we can see.  And He sacrificed of Himself freely for all mankind when He could have just left us to die.  He deserves our respect, our honor, our reverence and our godly fear.  He is worthy of our respect, our honor our reverence and our godly fear.  The right attitude of true worship is from the heart, in genuine and devoted love and gratitude directed solely to our God in heaven.  God seeks true worshipers and the attitude and the heart is one of the things He identifies one with.  Let us be sure that our attitudes in worship reflect that which God seeks so that we can be assured of being among those true worshippers that God is searching for. 

5. Truth; The authority of Christian worship.

God also seeks those who worship in truth.  What is truth?  The Bible tells us in words that are impossible to misunderstand in John 17:17, “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth“.  So if God’s word is truth, and we are to worship in truth, then we must therefore worship according to God’s word in order to be “in truth“.   In Colossians 3:17 we find a verse of scripture that sets a parameter for all that we do in life.  This most certainly applies to our worship.  Colossians 3:17, “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.”  Our worship to God is part of whatsoever we do, so we need to make sure that our worship is in the name, or by the authority of Jesus Christ.  And notice there’s that little exhortation on the end about giving thanks to God and the Father?  So we see here in this verse that we are to do the things we do by the authority of Jesus, “in truth” and with a thankful attitude, “in spirit“. 

We must seek authority for the things we do in our worship.  To add to the worship God has prescribed is to think beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6).  To leave out something is to fall short of the glory of God and fail to do those things what God is looking for in His true worshippers.

So how do we determine from the word of truth how to worship according to the word of truth?  The new testament does not have a book named, ‘How to Worship God’.  There is not a checklist in scripture that specifically lists all of the things God is looking for in true worship.  So in recognition of this fact, and in full realization that God expects us to worship according to His word then what do we do?  Does the word of God even tell us what to do?  Indeed it most certainly does. 

When writing to the Christians in Corinth, Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 4:16, “Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me“.  Several modern versions of our English translations correctly render the Greek word for “followers” as “imitators“.  Paul wrote almost the exact same thing to them again in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Imitate [follow] me, just as I also imitate Christ“.  Use my actions, my life, my worship, my service to God as a pattern for you to follow or imitate.  Paul is telling them to ‘Do what I do, live how I live, worship how I worship.  Use my life as your way, your template, your pattern for living’.  If that will work for them, will it not work for us? 

Now let’s consider Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 2:14, “For ye, brethren, became followers [imitators] of the churches of God which in Judaea are in Christ Jesus: for ye also have suffered like things of your own countrymen, even as they have of the Jews“.  When speaking to the Thessalonians Christians concerning their conversion to Christ, Paul mentioned that they had become imitators of the churches of God in Judaea.  The Thessalonians had followed the lead of another congregation of Christians.  They conformed themselves to the pattern of another congregation thus making themselves imitators or followers of that pattern.  Paul held the churches of God in Judea up as a mold, or an acceptable pattern for the church in Thessalonica to follow or imitate.  Well. if they can do it, then why can’t we do the same thing they did?  Well, we can’t follow or imitate the churches in Judaea because scripture does not have a detailed description of those particular churches in scripture so what then do we do?  If the church in Thessalonica imitated the churches of God in Judaea, then can we not imitate it and be assured of being just like the churches Paul set forth in scripture?  The answer is yes as long as the church in scripture we are imitating is an exact match. 

For instance, we know from a study of scripture that the Corinthian and the Galatian churches, among others, had internal problems that we wouldn’t want within our congregation.  So then what do we do about that?  The answer is very simple.  We follow the approved examples and patterns of all of the churches in scripture and we reject the unapproved ones.  We then combine that with the teachings of the apostles and other inspired writers of scripture and when taken all in all, we can get a picture of how the Lord’s church is to worship.   In short, we simply use all of the approved examples, teachings and commandments in scripture given to all of the churches and individuals in scripture and we form a composite image of what the New Testament church was and we imitate that.  In view of the lack of a detailed checklist of how we are to worship in scripture and given the commands we have to worship in spirit and in truth, there simply is no other way to achieve what we are commanded to accomplish.  Scripture makes the internal claim to be inspired and to throughly furnish us unto every good work in 2 Timothy 3:16-17.  Worship is a verb, therefore worship is a work of righteousness.  God simply did not command us to worship according to a set of guidelines and then leave us without a way of determining what those guidelines are. 

So using this principle to guide us, how did the first century church worship?  There are two forms or types of worship in the New Testament.  There is a continual form of worship which all Christians are to participate in.  Scripture teaches us to “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and to “sing psalms” when we are merry (James 5:13).  There is a sense in scripture where the Christian is to live in a continual state of worship at all times.  Paul taught in Romans 12:1 we are to present our “bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”  The Greek word for service in this context is “LATREUO” which is correctly translated in scripture as worship in a number of places.  The NIV translates this as “worship” instead of “service” and this understanding is completely consistent with the meaning of the words.  Jesus Christ used both “LATREUO” and “PROSKUNEO” synonymously in the exact same phrase when confronting Satan.  Backing up to a verse we have already looked at, we again see Jesus telling Satan in Luke 4:8, “Get thee behind me, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship [PROSKUNEO] the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve [LATREUO]”. 

There is a sense of worship in all the service we do for God and this has mistakenly lead many people to the mistaken conclusion that all life is worship to God.  We associate and rightly so, the concept of sacrifice being a part of worship.  And scripture plainly teaches this from the front to the back.  One cannot separate worship from sacrifice, the two are intertwined and cannot be separated one from the other.  There is no doubt that sacrifice was inextricably bound to OT worship.  Under NT worship, our sacrifices are more of a spiritual nature as we see in 1 Peter 2:5, “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.”  We see also in Hebrews 13:15-16 that, “By him [referring to Jesus], therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, (there is that sense of a continual worship again), that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”  There’s those spiritual sacrifices that Peter referred to in the previous verse of scripture. 

Jesus accomplished the atoning work of sacrifice with His death on the cross, so we today don’t have to offer blood sacrifices.  But when the Israelites were done with the atoning sacrifices, they approached God and offered spiritual sacrifices in the form of singing, praise and thank offerings (2 Chronicles 29:30-31).  The sacrifices were not over for the Israelites when the atoning sacrifice was finished.  They then approached God and offered additional sacrifices and worshipped.  Read with me in 2 Chronicles 29:31 concerning their worship after the completion of the atoning sacrifice, “Then Hezekiah answered and said, Now ye have consecrated yourselves unto the Lord, come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings into the house of the Lord. And the congregation brought in sacrifices and thank offerings; and as many as were of a free heart burnt offerings.”  Focus on those words “come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings“.  Hezekiah told the Israelites to come near, to approach God.  The Israelites could not come near and approach God until after the atoning sacrifice.  God’s presence was in some fashion understood to be inside the temple behind the veil in the most holy of holies and the Israelites were not allowed to draw near to God’s presence without that atoning sacrifice.  Now today, that atoning work has been accomplished through the once for all time sacrifice of Jesus Christ.  Today, we can approach God without having to first offer a blood sacrifice.  Jesus did that for us.  What we need to take from this is that now, under the New Testament we can “Approach God”.  Worship is about approaching God.  There are a number of ways that we accomplish this.  We can, and are commanded to approach God through Christian service on a continual basis such as prayer, confession, benevolent good works, etc, etc and these things are a type of service and a type of sacrifice and therefore are a type of worship but this kind of service is different than the worship we offer collectively during our assemblies. 

In the assemblies, the whole congregation comes together into one place for the purpose of unified worship to God.  The Bible never comes out and directly says in those words that the purpose for the assembly is to worship God, but we do have a plethora of scripture where the activities of the Christians at those assemblies is evident and regulated.  For instance if one look at 1 Corinthians chapters 10 thru 16 and disregards the abuses of the Lord’s Supper and miraculous gifts, then we find all of the things we do in our assembled worship today.  Paul referred to their coming together in one place in 1 Cor. 11:17-20, 33). Now let’s consider the following in 1 Cor. 14:23-26, “Therefore if the whole church comes together in one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those who are uninformed or unbelievers, will they not say that you are out of your mind? But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or an uninformed person comes in, he is convinced by all, he is convicted by all. And thus the secrets of his heart are revealed; and so, falling down on his face, he will worship God and report that God is truly among you.  How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification”.  Notice what was done when they came together. They partook of the Lord’s Supper, Prophesying, or, teaching/preaching was done; Praying and singing was also done as revealed in 1 Cor. 14:15 and finally, giving was commanded in 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. 

Notice that the giving was specified on the first day of the week.  When we look back at Acts 20:7 we learn that the disciples met on the first day of the week to break bread which means they partook of the Lord’s Supper.  From this we can rightfully reason that Christians of the first century met on the first day of the week to worship God.  The activities engaged in during these meetings was the Lord’s supper, singing, praying, edification and giving. 

Keeping in mind that worship is about approaching God, we need to understand that the things done in our assemblies are spiritual points of contact wherein God seeks to involve us in some aspect of relationship with Him or with spiritual matters. 

1. We approach God through our singing.  Draw in your minds with me an arrow pointing from us to God and from us to each other.  The spiritual points of contact originate with us and move toward God and to each other.  Our relationship with God and with each other is thereby strengthened and we are admonished and edified through it as a benefit. 

2.  Giving is a spiritual contact between us and our fellow man.  Our giving is a sacrifice which has its parallel in the free will offerings under OT law which nothing to do with the atoning sacrifices.  Freewill offerings occur in the OT in 17 places.  Consider the language used in regards to the freewill offering to be given at the feast of weeks in Deuteronomy 16:10, “And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the Lord thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the Lord thy God, according as the Lord thy God hath blessed thee“.  The language is strikingly similar to what we see in 1 Corinthians 16:2 where we read, “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him“.  Freewill offerings under the law of Moses were part of their worship.  Our giving is not for God, rather it is for our fellow man.  The spiritual contact for us is to our fellow man and through it we strengthen and uphold each other. 

3.  The Lord’s supper is a spiritual point of contact between us and Jesus as the communion of the body and blood of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16) and reflecting inward as we examine ourselves and our relationship with the Lord while we remember the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for us. 

4.  Congregational praying is a spiritual point of contact from the whole congregation to God, indicating a priestly function wherein one man with one voice represents the people to God. 

5.  Preaching/Studying is a spiritual contact originating with God and moving to the congregation through the teacher or preacher.  Those who teach and preach are required to speak as the oracles of God, meaning we are to speak as if He were the one who was talking.  The Greek word for “oracles” means an utterance of God.  The teacher or preacher is one person communicating the will of God to the congregation.  This is the only way that God has a voice through His word to us.  The spiritual point of contact is therefore God speaking His will to us in the assembly. 

These five approaches to God, properly accomplished serve to completely furnish us with what we need to live our lives acceptably, grow in our knowledge of Christ and to make the world a better place.  We have with our worship made spiritual contact with God, each other and ourselves.  We have been edified and strengthened.  we have subjected ourselves to an inner examination.  We have reached out to our fellow man through our giving and laid our petitions at the feet of God’s throne as a congregation, and received instruction from an oracle of God.  These ways of approaching God are simply referred to in scripture as worship.  When considering worship, it is important to understand that God does not need it.  Acts 17:24-25 reads, “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things”  God does not need anything including our worship, but He knows that we do need it.  He wants it because He knows that it is good for us.  Everything God does for man is for man’s ultimate benefit and is a reflection of His just and loving nature.  Think of our worship to God as a spiritual feast wherein we are fed.  We provide physical food for our earthly children and we require them to eat it because of our concern for their well being.  We do not need for our children to eat in order for us to exist, but we want them to so that they will grow up and be healthy and live.  God likewise provided a spiritual banquet for the feeding of our souls, not because He needs it, but because He wants us to grow up and be spiritually healthy and live.  God’s providential care for man is evident in everything He has ever done and our worship to Him is a reflection of His desire to provide us with the things we need to live the Christian life in full assurance of our hope to the end. 

And lastly, let’s consider the throne scene in Revelation 4 with the saved of all the earth gathered around the throne in the presence of God in heaven.  All singing praises and glorifying God together as the heavenly host.  Our worship today in song and praise to God is a picture of what we will be doing when we get to heaven.  The assemblies on the first day of the week is the closest we can get to God and Heaven this side of the grave. 

We approach God, we sing, we praise Him, we adore Him, we glorify Him and we reverence Him through our worship in the only way we can this side of eternity.  In heaven, we’ll actually get to see Him.  We will get to stand in the glory of His presence and we will get to worship Him face to face in His presence.  Until then, we assemble and receive that which we need to inherit our eternal home and help others along the way. 

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Slow and Steady

Seldom is anything accomplished, and done well, through haste. It takes slow and steady determination, hard work and persistent in nearly every aspect of our lives. Church and personal spiritual growth; family, friends and neighbor relations; civic activities, and hobbies all prosper from a slow and steady approach. Let me give you a few examples.

Those of you who have played golf with me know that I am not a tour caliber player. However, I have gotten better over the years. It did not happen overnight. One does not become a great outdoorsman, chef or craftsman without a lot of time and energy invested into those activities. The relationships that I am involved in only get better with time and energy. I love my wife more today than I did nearly 18 years ago when we were married. As time goes, I become a better father and friend. I know that through trial and error, hard work and dedication I will become a better man. However, I still have a lot of growing to do.

In the two and a half years I have been here at Point Pleasant, we have seen growth. We have overcome problems. We are involved in more and have more things happening, but are we where we need to be? It will take a lifetime of slow and steady growth to be what God wants us to be.

How is our service? How is our faithfulness? Do we know the Bible as well as we should? Can it be that some of the things we used to think to be true are not? Do we need to continually keep an open Bible and an open heart before us? Is not this what took place when Apollos was taken aside by Aquila and Priscilla and taught “more perfectly” (Acts 18:26). Was Apollos offended by their attempt to teach him and correct him? Don’t you think Apollos might have had a special place in his heart for their love and help?

The Bible likens our lives here to a farmer who plows his field with patience and determination. Those who look back are not fit to be called His children (Luke 9:62). Paul said he had not yet reached the pinnacle of perfection, but he “pressed on” with steady determination (Philippians 3:13-14). He also tells us to be of the same mind and of the same judgment (Romans 12:16; 1 Corinthians 1:10).

There is one glaring exception to this “slow and steady” rule. Those who are not right with God should not procrastinate in reconciling with the Creator of their souls. Note the example of the Philippian Jailer and his family who, upon hearing the Word of God, “straightway” or “immediately” were baptized in obedience to Christ (Acts 16:33). The verbiage here means literally, “it was done at once.”

If you are not a baptized child of God today, done put it off, do it now! If you are a child of the King and you have not run with patience the race set before us, come back to God. Act immediately to be reconciled to the Creator of your soul. Then you can face eternity slow and steady, with persistence and determination. Be faithful!

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Disfellowshiping

Can you explain the procedure of disfellowshiping a member of the Church and how the members are to deal with it?

Well, first of all, dis-fellowship is not even a word.  This concept of dis-fellowship stems from the protestant and Catholic religions and has to do with the breaking of a church policy or denying their sacraments.  Now, the Bible does speak of withdrawing fellowship and there is several reasons why that fellowship is withheld as well as a few different situations where fellowship is withheld.  The reasons one can withdraw, according to Scripture are as follows:

In a social setting, meaning that we could not sit and eat at their home or visit them socially.  Those who walk disorderly, meaning those who refuse to work and who go about doing their own thing, we are not to have company with him  (2 Thess. 3:6-14).  Next, those who have perverse disputing’s from corrupt minds who are destitute of the truth because they seek gain (1 Tim. 6:5).  We are to have no company with fornicators, covetous, idolater, railer, drunkard, extortioner (1 Cor. 5:9-11).

Now, there is a withdrawing or marking in a private setting, meaning a problem that exists between just two people.   In Matt. 18:15-17, we learn about forgiveness and how to go to someone that you privately have a problem with.  However, this verse cannot be used in a congregational setting to withdraw from.  This is referring to a private matter.  Vs. 18, it begins mentioning the singular person again with vs. 19 speaking to the one who has done wrong and the other who is the offender.  Vs. 21-the rest of that chapter continues along the same singular line.  Thus, the church is not that involved here.

At a congregational level, one can be withdrawn from based on Rom. 16:17 which creates divisions and offences that are present in the church that must be dealt with.

So, what is the procedure?  Tit. 3:10 tells us that a man who is a heretick, meaning, one who brings division or who is teaches falsely is to be admonished twice.  This means that once he is rejected, have nothing to do with him; have no society with him; admit him not to private conversation; and eject him from church communion.  Now, he is to be publically admonished twice and this admonishing is not to be done in private.  It is to be public and in the name of the Lord.  Now, each admonition according to Jewish standards was 30 days before the next admonition.  After that is done, if one has not turned from his ways, he is to be rejected, that is, his fellowship is refused.  Because, If he will not receive instruction, if he has shut his heart against conviction, then shun him.  Do him no harm in body, soul, character, or substance.  Hold no communion with him; but leave him to God.

What do the members do?  Pray for him (jam. 5:16).  Weep for us and for him (Acts 20:29-31).  Do nothing that would encourage him or her in their sinful actions because when we associate with him, we condone the erring member’s sins.  Withdrawing fellowship is never done lightly.  It is a last resort.  It is when all else has failed and it is done to protect the flock (Acts 20:29).

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Unreasonable Expectations

It is unreasonable to expect that everyone will obey the gospel. Of course, it is our job to go into the entire world and preach the gospel to everyone who will hear us (cf. Mark 16:15). Naturally, this commission that Jesus gave His apostles also applies to you and to me (cf. Matt. 28:20). Nevertheless, this does not mean that everyone will obey the declared gospel. As a matter of fact, Jesus went out preaching the gospel (Matt. 4:23; 9:35), but He could not convert all to whom He preached. In fact, many of them became so infuriated with His messages that they killed Him, and His followers after some three years of preaching were relatively few (cf. 1 Cor. 15:6). Thus, if Jesus, the Master Preacher, could not motivate everyone to obey the gospel, why should I unreasonably expect everyone to whom I preach to obey the gospel? Having full assurance of this fact will definitely prevent discouragement in my evangelistic efforts!

It is unreasonable to expect that the church will not suffer problems. The early church began as the culminated effort of our Savior (cf. Matt. 16:18), but it began to have problems early in its existence. Several Christians were not so Christian in their behavior (Acts 5:1-11). Elderly members began to grumble and complain because of prejudicial attitudes (Acts 6:1-4). Some from other religions began to argue and debate (Acts 6:9ff), which eventually led to an all-out murderous persecution against Christianity (Acts 7:54-8:4). Quite the contrary, the early church of our Lord grew in spite of these problems. Nevertheless, it seems as if many want their Christianity to be so comfortable that they ignore such statements as, “Yea, and all who will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution” (2 Tim. 3:12). As a matter of fact, suffering problems is associated with rich blessings (Matt. 5:10-12), and James states that it contributes to the development of Christian character—patience (Jas. 1:2-4). Thus, it is unreasonable to expect that the church will not suffer problems. The key is how we react to them!

It is unreasonable to expect that children should behave as adults. God correlates Christianity with a process of maturity (cf. 1 Pet. 2:2). Naturally, adults should not behave as children (cf. Heb. 5:12-14; 1 Cor. 13:11; 16:13), but we ought not to expect children to behave as adults. If I can understand that my physical child needs time, space and opportunity to grow and develop, making mistakes along the way, then I ought to understand that spiritual children need such also. Far too many young converts have fallen by the wayside over the years because some well-meaning “mature” Christian harshly criticized their behavior, forgetting that they were once young, too. Just as children need gentle teaching and discipline that is age-appropriate, babes in Christ need gentle, reinforcing teaching with discipline that is age-appropriate spiritually.

It is unreasonable to expect that all Christians will remain faithful. In addition to what we noted with our first point, it is certainly the desire of God that all Christians would remain faithful, but such will not be. Jesus made it clear that only a few would enter the appropriate gate and successfully traverse the appropriate path to eternal life (Matt. 7:13-14). His demeanor is one of a longsuffering nature, “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9). Yet, some will accept the gospel, but because of persecution, tribulations or worldliness, they will not last (cf. Matt. 13:20-22). The warning from the apostle Peter is quite clear—the possibility of apostasy is a danger for us all (2 Pet. 2:20-22). It saddens us deeply when our brothers and sisters in Christ lose their first love, and to these, we implore them to repent and do the first works (cf. Rev. 2:4-5). It is unreasonable to expect that all Christians will remain faithful.

While we could offer others, may we learn from these unreasonable expectations and profit thereby!

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