 As disciples of the Lord we need to keep things simple. The early church in the Bible kept it simple. They majored on four things…
First they came together as we do for worship and teaching from the Bible. They did it daily - we do it a number of times each week mainly Sundays and one night a week with our small Growth Groups.
They enjoyed fellowship on a regular basis. This is when Christians come together and simply enjoy life together. We too do this with many events and activities each month such as this morning’s lunch following the service. And, there is a great deal of informal fellowship as we share coffee times with each other during the week.
Thirdly, they prayed together. I am sure they prayed for their own needs but, more importantly, they prayed for those who did not personally know the Lord and thus were not born again. Jesus said, “My house (church) shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” and so their prayers focused on the lost in those nations and thus the expansion of the Kingdom and the Church.
The fourth emphasis or focus of the Christians in the first century was telling others the good news. They had embraced a life-changing message and wanted others to experience the same love, acceptance and forgiveness they had encounter in the resurrected Jesus. So, they shared their new life by touching others with the same love and acceptance they were experiencing on a daily basis. The really wanted others to come to know the love of God that they had experienced in Jesus.
It was simple - just four basic elements to their life together in the early church. It has not changed. It is still just as basic. So, let’s keep it simple! |
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