Introduction:
Many churches begin in someone’s home with a few members. Then
they grew like gangbusters, hired a preacher, appointed elders and
constructed a building all the while bringing more people to
Christ. Each year they had more members. But some time they stop
growing. The church continued to baptize new people, but never got
any larger. Ephesians
4:15-16 explains why this happens. Jesus provides the
growth of the body, but He does so through “that which every
joint supplies, according to the proper working of each part.”
In other words, the church will grow to the limit of the combined
strength of its membership. For instance, a church may be made up
of 100 people and the combination of those 100 people, due to
their individual strengths, can only do so much work. The church
can only do so much evangelism. It can only provide so much care
for the spiritual needs of its membership. Thus, 10 people may be
baptized in the year, but the congregation’s ability to maintain
the souls of its membership won’t allow much more than 100.
Regrettably, when that is the case someone is going to slip
through the cracks and the church will remain at about 100 people.
There is really only one way to break this barrier. Since the
church is going to grow to the level of the combined strength of
its members, each of the members must grow individually. Here, at
the Franklin Church of Christ, we are obviously able to manage,
maintain and support around 125-150 members. We must make sure
this does not become a growth ceiling for us. Each of us must
examine our roles in the congregation and determine how we can
grow individually to supply more strength to the group. You may
recall the eight keys to the success of the Jerusalem
church.
These will provide a good outline for where our personal growth
needs to begin. For this congregation to grow each of us must
improve our devotion to worship (Acts
2:42). Acts
2:43-47 explains the Jerusalem Christians’ devotion.
Discussion:
I.
The Jerusalem Christians were devoted to worship
because they feared God (Acts
2:43).
A.
This same term for “fear” is used four other
times in Acts: Acts
5:5, 11; 9:31; 19:17. Despite some translations, Luke is
not speaking just of “awe”. Was the fear in Acts
5:5, 11 simply awe?
B.
What were these Christians afraid of?
1.
While they were afraid of the apostles (Acts
2:43; 5:13), this was more than a fear of men. When the
apostles performed great works, the people were always pointed
toward God. God can destroy people over sin, aren’t you afraid
of Him?
2.
Consider another sense of fear. Have you ever had a
close call? Perhaps you pulled out onto the street only to hear
screeching tires and see a truck barely miss you. The danger has
past and you are safe, but your palms are sweaty, your heart is
pounding and you are filled with fear. How do you drive for the
rest of this trip? With great care. In Acts
2:37, these people realized they were a heart’s beat
away from eternal damnation. They had killed the Messiah. Despite
their relief that they were now saved, the fear of that close call
was still heavy and they proceeded with great care.
C.
This fear prompted daily praise to God (Acts
2:47), a constant devotion to worship. Do you want to
improve your devotion to worship? Focus on the power of God.
Remember your soul’s close call with eternal damnation. When it
is time for our congregational worship or our Bible classes,
remember the judgment of God. As you listen to the teaching,
remember the power of the One from whom this teaching originates.
When you bow your head in prayer, think about your soul’s
destiny. As you eat the bread and drink the fruit of the vine,
remember the Lord’s great mercy. As you purpose in your heart
and put the money in the collection, remember to Whom this is
given and what He has done for you.
II.
The Jerusalem Christians were devoted to worship
because they desired to serve others (Acts
2:44-45).
A.
Worship is humbling ourselves before the power of
God, but it is also a great means to serve brethren.
1.
Our participation in worship encourages one another
(Hebrews
10:25). You may not realize it, but the brethren around
you were attacked by Satan this week. They need to know that there
are others on their side and are there to support and help them
get to heaven. Your participation provides that.
2.
Our singing is done to praise God but also to edify
and speak to one another (Ephesians
5:19; Colossians 3:16). It is edifying because we, in one
accord, are lifting our voices demonstrating our combined
strength. Through singing, we all participate equally in the
edification.
3.
When we pray, we are performing the most powerful
service we can, because we are soliciting the help of the
All-Powerful to aid our brethren as we intercede on their behalf (Ephesians
6:18).
4.
Obviously the contribution is service (I
Corinthians 16:1-2). The funds we collect serve the needy
saints among us. They serve preachers locally, across our nation
and abroad. And every single bit of the money we collect in
contribution serves others by supporting the proclamation of the
Gospel. It pays for this facility. It pays for materials. It pays
for outreach. All of it is used to strengthen you and those around
you and to save the lost on the streets.
5.
When we take the Lord’s Supper, we are making a
proclamation to all of our faith in the death of Jesus and also
offering comfort as we look forward to the day of the Lord’s
return (I
Corinthians 11:26). As with singing each of us has an
equal participation in this service. When you eat that bread and
drink the cup, you are telling your brethren there is no need to
fear the atheists, the pagans, and the pseudo-intellectuals who
persecute us. Jesus is the Son of God. He died and rose again for
us.
6.
As we study and teach the Gospel, we are serving
one another through the strengthening word of Jesus Christ. Even
though you are not preaching right now, your attentiveness to the
word of God strengthens those around you to give attention. When
you are teaching, whether from this pulpit or in our Bible
classes, you have become a servant to help others draw closer to
God.
B.
Our worship not only serves Christians but also
non-Christians as our active participation will be like the
worship of those in I
Corinthians 14:24-25: worship which convicts the
unbeliever. Your participation in worship speaks volumes to our
guests, perhaps even more than the sermons I preach. Increase your
desire and capacity to serve others and your devotion to worship
will increase.
III.
The Jerusalem Christians were devoted to worship
because they were filled with gladness (Acts
2:46).
A.
This exceeding joy speaks of all the activities of
this verse. Not only did they take their meals with gladness, but
they were also daily meeting in the temple with gladness.
B.
Like the Ethiopian Eunuch of Acts
8:39, these
Jews were glad because their sins were forgiven. They had been
brought up under a law that could never bring about forgiveness by
itself. They had been brought up under a yoke that none had been
able to bear (Acts
15:10). Now they had been told grace was available. God
sent His Son to be the sacrifice for their sins. They could have
all their sins removed and have an advocate with the Father (I
John 1:9-2:1). No wonder they rejoiced exceedingly.
C.
These Christians were not punching a card or
striving to meet some regulation about a particular number of
worship services. They were filled with joy over what God had done
for them and in them.
D.
Perhaps this was the true beginning of their
devotion. Worship was not a burden or a requirement for these
early Christians. It was a joy and a privilege. So must it be for
us, if our devotion to it will improve.
IV.
The Jerusalem Christians were devoted to worship
because they had singleness of heart (Acts
2:46).
A.
The
Complete Word Study Dictionary defines “singleness” as “without a stone,
level, simple, without guile or duplicity. Simplicity, sincerity,
purity of intention.” In other words, “What you see is what
you get.” There was no duplicity. There were no underlying
motives behind their worship. They were not there to make social
contacts with the influential in society. They were not there as a
status symbol. They were not there in order to sell a product.
They were not there in order to promote themselves. They were not
trying to buy God off or earn salvation with worship. They were
not living however they wanted and using worship to make up for
their sins. They worshipped because of their pure intentions to
serve the Lord and serve Him faithfully. They were worshipping
because the church was assembled and there was no place they would
rather be than with the Lord and their brethren.
B.
Because of their single-hearted desire to serve the
Lord and their brethren, the Jerusalem Christians were not
distracted by the cares of this world. To improve our worship, we
too must have that single-hearted, undistracted desire to serve
God and our brethren.
V.
The Jerusalem Christians were devoted to worship
because they didn’t keep it “at church” (Acts
2:46-47).
A.
As discussed earlier, the gladness and sincerity of
heart modifies all the activities of Acts
2:46, including those activities separate from
congregational worship. These people allowed worship to affect
their lives. The teaching in worship was not a sermon, but a
life-changing message to be applied outside the temple.
B.
Additionally, praising God in prayer, song and
teaching was not just for congregational worship, it was part of
their personal lives. The praising of God mentioned in Acts
2:47 explains what they did not only congregationally, but
also as they met house to house.
C.
Worship was a part of their lives, not just their
Sundays. To grow in worship, we must not compartmentalize it into
the assembly or Bible classes. Have your own daily personal
worship time. Pray, study, teach, sing on your own, with your
family and when you spend time with your brethren.
Conclusion:
Barriers must not stop
this church. But we will only grow if we each strengthen
ourselves, becoming more devoted to worship. We all have room to
grow. You are an integral part of this church, supplying strength
to the collective. Grow your devotion to worship and watch it
bring about growth within this body.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
Franklin
Church of Christ
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