October 13, 2013
Let’s turn back to John 1:36. This is John the Baptist speaking to two of his disciples; what happens when he tells them this? Read vv. 37 - 39. They probably saw something very attractive when John said, “Behold the Lamb of God.” What did they see when they asked where He dwelt? Something very precious, because He dwelt in the bosom of the Father. It held them, to be with the One that attracted them to the precious abode of the bosom of the Father.
Hymn - The wise man built his house upon a rock
Prayer
As you might have guessed today, we’re going to read the parable of the wise man and the foolish man who built houses. The parable is in both Matthew and Luke; we’re going to read it in Luke.
Luke 6:47 - 49
We are talking about two different types of people. A wise man hears instruction and does the right thing, but a foolish man hears instruction also, but he does not do anything about it. It is easier to be a foolish man, but it is better to be wise. How did the wise man build his house? He began by digging down to bedrock. This gave him a solid base to place his foundation on. In our lives we also need a solid base to rest on and this is found in the Lord Jesus. We need to place our faith in Him.
1 Corinthians 3:11 - 13
The next thing that the wise man did was build his foundation. When looking at a house, you can’t see the foundation, but it is one of the most important parts of a house. The foundation of our lives is built by the truths that we find in scripture that we can rest our lives on. Upon the foundation you build the house. Our spiritual house is built by our actions like, love, kindness, serving, obedience and so on. These are all actions that characterize a wise man.
To be wise people we need to remember to hear instruction and do what it tells us to do. If we do this then the blessings will come down from the Lord.
Acts 2:41 - 47
Last week we talked about how these new believers continued steadfastly, and this week we get the four assembly activities that they continued steadfastly in.
The first was the apostles’ doctrine. The Lord had promised the disciples that the Holy Spirit would remind them of things He had said while here on earth, and the Spirit was certainly working powerfully here. Darby puts the possessive ‘apostles” after both doctrine and fellowship. Furthermore, he calls doctrine “teaching”, and that’s what the apostles’ doctrine was. It was what the apostles taught. Throughout the Bible there is different teaching by different people, and this was the system of teaching delivered by the twelve apostles. It’s a special piece of Christian doctrine, having to do with the setting up of the church and the day of grace.
There are many basic Christian truths: the Godhead, the deity of Christ, Creation, the Fall, etc. The paramount doctrine is redemption and salvation; and then there is eschatology (end events) and other truths. A special set of truths, though, has to do with the assembly; and this is one of the things that these new believers were steadfast in. We have the writings of the apostles, and therefore all we need to know about the assembly, in Scripture. It’s based on that bed-rock truth we mentioned with the children.
Some think that all truth is relative (which self-destructs, because if all truth is relative then the fact that truth is relative can change), but what kind of life and worldview does that leave you with? There is truth! We can’t be steadfast, and we can’t build our lives, if we have no truth to build on. We need to identify sound doctrine and build our lives, and order the assembly, on that. We need to search out the tenets of our faith.
What good is the apostles doctrine, though, if it isn’t accompanied by fellowship? If we know the truth of the assembly, but don’t follow it? We need the fellowship of one another; we can’t live the Christian life alone. We need to know the truth, and then follow it. Our beliefs run our actions. If, when the fire alarm goes off, you don’t believe that the building you’re in is on fire, you won’t leave it. These people believed what Peter said, they were saved, and their behaviour changed. Fellowship is so necessary to our lives. We know of people who claimed to be saved, came out to meeting for a while, and then left. It’s only a sick sheep that leaves the flock; healthy sheep want to stay together. Likewise, the Lord’s people love to stay together.
Paul had a desire and longing—often expressed in his letters—to be with other believers. He longed to encourage them, and was encouraged when they came to meet him. Personal meditation on the word of God is necessary, but we also need to come to share and hear what has been gleaned.
The third thing that these early believers continued steadfastly in was the breaking of bread. They did this, apparently, daily from house to house. Later in Acts Paul waited with believers until the first day of the week to break bread. The remembrance can be celebrated on any day of the week, not just Lord’s day. Without the Lord’s table there can be no assembly. The loaf speaks of the whole body of Christ, and it’s into that fellowship that people are received. Connecting fellowship and the breaking of bread, people will use the term ‘fellowship’ in asking to take their place at the Lord’s table—“He asked to be in fellowship with us”— and that is a proper use of the word.
The fourth and final activity that these new believers were steadfast in was prayer. Prayer—both collective, as here, and individual—is a valuable privilege given to us.
Hymn 350 – Read your Bible, pray every day
Prayer