ECCLESIOLOGY, Part 4 - THE NEED FOR ASSEMBLING

When most people think of ‘church’, I suspect they either think of a building with a steeple, or, the people in a Sunday meeting of a congregation. In this post, I’m addressing the latter understanding of church. Christ has ordained that His church meets together regularly. The original history of the Church (the Book of Acts) reveals that the first Church met in the Jerusalem where thousands gathered in the Temple’s outdoor precinct; and, in one another’s homes around Jerusalem. As the Church grew around the Mediterranean world, local churches initially met in the large homes of wealthy householders. These Greco-Roman households provided a ready-made structure to these new churches. It wasn’t too long before problems arose in many of the local churches. This is something that we should all be very thankful for, because the result of these church problems were the New Testament epistles. Within these epistles we find the biblically ordained liturgy (how a church service is conducted) for when a church assembles. Let’s consider what this is...

1. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO ASSEMBLE TOGETHER

When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus

FIRST CORINTHIANS 5:4

I grew up going to a Primary School where the Principal held an outdoor “assembly” every week. I think Mr. Blackie was ex-military, at least that’s what one of the other students said when we had to standard to attention, salute the flag, then stand at ease. It was during this weekly assembly that important announcements were made, special achievements were mentioned, and the school’s rules were reinforced. At the conclusion of the assembly we were all given a small glass bottle of milk and an al’foil lid to drink (which was no fun on a hot summer’s day after these bottles of milk had gone-off in the outdoors full-sun!) This weekly assembly gave me a fuller understanding of what the apostle Paul was referring to when he wrote to the Corinthians. When the church gathered on the Lord’s Day each week, they were to assemble. They were, in a way, to ‘stand’ to attention, give God honour, pay attention to what said, then have a time of fellowship. This was not a mere optional obligation for believers. The writer to the Hebrews exhorts all believers to not to neglect the gathering (assembling) together - as is the habit os some! (Heb. 10:25). 

A Christian is one who (i) believes (in the saving work of Jesus Christ); (ii) belongs in a local church family; and, (iii) behaves in accord with the teaching of Christ. Each church family is called to assemble each week - that is, every believer is called to join with his or her church family and praise God together, participate in the ordinance of Holy Communion together, give heed to preaching and exposition of God’s Word, worship the Lord with their giving, and minister the grace of fellowship to one another. To consider more about the theology of the assembling of the church, I suggest The Community of the King by Howard A. Snyder. 

2. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO PRAISE TOGETHER

Christianity is one of the few religions in which singing is a vital component of its worship of God. When a church praises God together with singing, it helps to refocus the worshipers onto the greatness of God. Congregational praise can be a positive distraction from the cares and worries of life. Singing our praise to God can be prayerful, meditative, and uplifting.  Praising God together can also be an effective witness to outsiders:

And in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy. As it is written,

“Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles,

and sing to your name.”

ROMANS 15:9

Praising God should be thoughtful so that it engages the mind and the heart of a believer. The Church has a long tradition of producing thoughtful hymns that enable this. There some denominations of churches which will only use the Psalms as the songs of their congregational praise - but, Colossians 3:16 encourages the use of much more than Psalms as the basis for church praises:

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.

COLOSSIANS 3:16

This act of worship—singing—by a congregation is not dependent on whether someone is a good singer, because singing praise is a matter of heart, not talent! This is why every believer who attends their church family’s worship service is obliged to join in singing. 

3. THE CHURCH IS ORDAINED TO CONDUCT THE ORDINANCE OF HOLY COMMUNION TOGETHER

Jesus established certain ordinances (also identified as sacraments by some Church traditions) for His Church. These are universally acknowledged as holy communion (eucharist), water baptism (some denominations also refer to this as christening), and marriage. Each of these involve the interaction of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Communion - Christ, on the night He was betrayed, instigated the Lord’s Supper where He took unleavened bread, gave it to His disciples, and said “This is My body, take and eat.” Then He took the cup of unfermented fruit of the vine, and gave it to His disciples, and said, “This is My blood, drink this in remembrance of Me.”

¶ Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”

MATTHEW 26:26-29

Holy Communion is a sacred ordinance of the Church. The earliest Christians came to recognise this ordinance as a significant aspect of their Sunday worship service. They understood Christ’s emphatic statement that the bread and wine - the elements (also referred to as 'accidents' by some church traditions) - were “My body” and “My blood” meant that when believers celebrated Holy Communion in faith that Christ Himself was present by His Spirit. That is, when the early believers ate and drank the communion elements in faith, they were actually nourishing their souls on Christ. Perhaps churches today might need to recapture some of this reverence for this sacred ordinance. At the very least, celebrating Holy Communion as a church congregation is one of the sacred things which constitutes an assembling of believers as a church.

4. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO GIVE HEED TO THE PREACHING AND TEACHING OF GOD’S WORD

The apostle Paul told Timothy, his lieutenant, that his role at Ephesus was to preach the Word (2Tim. 4:2). The preaching and teaching of God’s Word was instigated by the apostles from the Church’s outset (note Acts 15:35; 1Peter 1:25). This demands two important things. Firstly, preachers and teachers of God’s Word are responsible for developing their skill and expertise to fulfil their ministry. I would strongly encourage preachers to learn how to preach the Word of God expositionally, rather than reading or reciting a sermon from a script. Do not read your sermon - preach it! For any preacher who would like to begin to hone their craft, I suggest, The Preacher’s Portrait, some New Testament Word Studies, by John R. W. Stott. Preachers should remember that the aim of a sermon was for a congregation not merely to hear a sermon, but to apply its lessons by heeding it.

Secondly, believers must learn how to listen and heed the preaching and teaching of God’s Word. Believers should bring their bibles to church and come prepared to take notes of what is preached and taught. This is an important component of what Christ has ordained for His church when they assemble.

5. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO WORSHIP GOD THROUGH ITS GIVING

The Mosaic Law prescribed in the Old Testament including the bringing animals to be sacrificed, offerings of gold and silver (money), and the concept of regular giving in support of the Levites and priests referred to as tithes. Jesus told His hearers that they should tithe (Matt. 23:23). This was said in the context of the Mosaic Law still being current - despite the general corruption of the Levites and priests. It might then be tempting to dismiss to dismiss such a comment from Christ with a wave of the hand and a “But we’re now in the New Covenant” exclamation. However, before you do so, consider that much of what Christ taught about New Covenant ethics went higher - not lower - than Old Covenant ethics. Consider what Christ said about such things like murder, or adultery. In the case of murder, Jesus raised the standard to hating being equivalent to the sin of murder (Matt. 5:21-22), and for adultery He raised it to lusting after a woman being equivalent to adultery (Matt. 5:27-28)! 

In the early chapters of the Book of Acts we see how the early Church understood what Christ was teaching about giving - and it was certainly not a lower standard than the Old Covenant.

And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

ACTS 4:33-37

The apostle Paul instructed the Corinthians that as they met each Sunday (“the first day of the week”) to also receive a special offering to support the impoverished Jerusalem believers (1Cor. 16:2). In writing to the Ephesians via Timothy, Paul stated that the church was to support those who dedicated themselves to the preaching and teaching of God’s Word (1Tim 5:17). Today, giving continues to be an act of worship by New Covenant believers who give as God has blessed them.

As the Church expanded around the Empire and beyond, and churches grew where it was impracticable to continue meeting in homes of even wealthy householders, funds were raised to build houses of worship and teaching. Yet, the primary need for believers to give financially to their local church was to support the ministry of those who shepherded the local church congregation. Today, this same purpose remains and is supplemented when wealthier churches give to missions projects beyond their immediate locality as well.

6. WHEN THE CHURCH ASSEMBLES IT IS TO MINISTER THE GRACE OF GOD ONE TO ANOTHER THROUGH FELLOWSHIP

When the church assembles it is also called to fellowship. This is a spiritual discipline which seeks to be commune through Christ with a brother or sister in Christ. It involves listening, caring, responding, and sharing. It is an important part of what happens when a church assembles. Done well, it is a blessing. Done effectively, it results in prayer. Done habitually it leads to closeness with another brother or sister in Christ. While it has a place in the time that a church family has met for weekly worship, it also takes place outside of this time.

But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

FIRST JOHN 1:7

We have seen that the New Testament describes and prescribes the components of a liturgy for when a local church assembles. This includes: prayers together, the singing of praise together, partaking of Holy Communion together, hearing and heeding the teaching and preaching of God's Word, bringing our financial gifts, and prayerful/caring/thoughtful fellowship one with another. Sadly, it seems that today, many believers have come to see weekly church assembling as an optional thing. I would encourage all believers to make assembling each week with their church family one of their highest priorities. I would also strongly urge all believers to contribute their willing participation in each of the aspects of their church's liturgy outlined above. In doing so, we may once again begin to see what the apostle wrote about about in Ephesians 3:8-10. If you are interested in exploring the theology of Christian fellowship, I suggest Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

Amen.

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DUMB PRAYERS THAT I HAVE PRAYED AND GOD HAS ANSWERED OVER THE YEARS

Over the past nearly 29-years of pastoring Legana I have occasionally mentioned that one day I would write about “the dumb prayers that I’ve prayed.” It’s not really that they are all ‘dumb’ prayers, it’s that they are the kind of prayers that are guaranteed to be answered by God (because they are “surrendered” prayers) but have not been fully considered what God’s answer might entail. I do not consider the more well-known and obvious “dumb” prayers – such as praying for revival to bring in hundreds of lost/lonely/broken souls into the kingdom and then being surprised by God’s answer resulting in exhaustion, burn-out, over-stretched resources, spiritual attacks, and the inevitable pride. Neither do I consider the even more obvious “dumb” prayer for patience and humility and the resultant means (difficult people and obvious trials!) by which such a prayer can only be answered. Instead, I begin with a prayer I prayed as a teenager then others that I prayed down through the years which have led me to this unexpected point. What I hope, and pray, you might discover after you have read this is something which will might benefit you in your knowledge of God and how He often answers prayers.

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WHAT’S THE POINT OF PRAYING THEN?

There a different ways to pray. Some prayers can be verbalised. Some prayers can be silent. Some prayers are spontaneous. Some prayers are prepared. Some prayers are prayed in private and are clumsy. Some prayers are prayed in public and are clever. Some prayers are long. Some prayers are short – even just one word. Whatever way you pray, there are three things you need to keep in mind.

¶ “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites. For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you. ¶ “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
JESUS THE CHRIST, Matthew 6:5-7

Firstly, when we pray, we are talking to God. When praying at a public occasion we are still praying to God and we are praying on behalf of those present. Out of respect for those who are present these public-occasion prayers should be well considered. This is why I recommend writing such prayers out and reading them with passion when prayed in public. Otherwise, the pray-er often sounds confuddled with mindless phrases such as this prayer I have heard many times:

“Father God, oh Father God, Father God Lord, I [pause] I come to You to pray Father God, Father God Lord. Yeah [pause] Amen.”

(Perhaps this should go in the obvious dumb prayer category because I have no idea what is being prayed for.)

Secondly, when we pray, particularly in private, our words don’t particularly matter. There are not ‘right’ words to use in prayer. Prayer is not magic. Prayer is not like a Harry Potter spell. Prayer is coming from your spirit to God’s Spirit (Rom. 8:26; 1Cor. 2:11). God hears your heart when you pray.

Thirdly, God always hears our prayer but does not always answer our prayer/s they way we want. Prayer should be an expression of worship for God and trust in Him. When we pray we should also trust God with the timing of His answer not just the ‘how’ of His answer. One of the most inspirational books on prayer that I ever read — which had an enormous influence on my life — wasn’t even a book on prayer! It was the story of Dawson Trotman. As a young man he came to Christ and together with a few other guys they began praying for people, then nations, to come to Christ. Before his tragic drowning death as he rescued a young drowning girl, he had remarked that nearly everything he had prayed for some twenty-years earlier had been answered positively by God. “I now have” he said, “one regret – not that I didn’t pray enough, but that I didn’t pray for enough!” Dawson Trotman became one of Billy Graham’s intercessors and the founder coordinator of evangelism follow-up ministry called the Navigators. 

The point of praying is that we are invited by our heavenly Father to extend the reign of His Son over the earth through the ordinance of prayer. When we pray “Thy kingdom come!” we may not fully grasp either importance or the impact of our praying. 

 

WHAT’S ‘PRAYING IN THE SPIRIT’ THEN?

Christianity is the only ‘religion’ that regards prayer as a God-focused and God-empowered conversation. Jesus taught that after He had ascended back to the Father that it was imperative for His disciples to wait for the outpouring of the promised gift of the Holy Spirit who had been with the disciples up until that point, but when He would be poured out into the earth He would be in the disciples (Jn. 14:17). Other religions regard prayer quite differently. Some religions teach adherents that prayer is like meditation and needs to be mindless, while other religions teach their adherents that prayer involves the recitation of certain words sometimes in a language unknown to the pray-er such as Latin or Arabic. But Christianity teaches worshipers of the Creator and LORD to pray “in the Spirit” (Eph. 6:18; Jude 20). This can be (i) praying a Spirit-gifted language that involves the Spirit-baptised believer speaking in tongues to God in prayer (1Cor. 14:2); or, (ii) praying in your heart-language in a way that the Spirit leads you to pray (1Cor. 14:15).

¶ Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
Romans 8:26

 

WHAT’S GOD DOING IN ME WHEN I PRAY THEN?

When C.S. Lewis’s wife, Joy, was dying of bone cancer, Jack (C.S.) was seen praying everyday in the nearby Anglican chapel. The Rector asked him if he was praying to change God about Joy’s prognosis? Jack replied, “No, I’m praying for God to change me!” Since prayer is a worshipful conversation with God, there is a high likelihood that when we pray throughout our day as our spirit communes with God that our spirit is also ‘hearing’ unconsciously from God. This perhaps is even more pronounced when we pray in tongues to God. Therefore, what may surprise praying worshipers is just how much they positively change as they wait on God in prayer seeking His face rather than His attention (Jn. 15:7). 

 

MY DUMB PRAYERS

I consider a ‘dumb’ prayer to be one that the pray-er had not fully considered the implications of how God might answer that prayer. The unconsidered implications are especially its cost, discomfort, inconvenience, and potential suffering. At one point I was prayerfully begging God to redeem and rescue the hurting, lost, lonely and broken people of my community. Those who have experienced my pastoring will be aware how God answered that prayer and how at times it was overwhelming. Then I developed a deep concern for the unwell. Again, those who are aware of my pastoral journey will know that I began a season some time ago, when for every significant health issue that someone came to me for prayer, was actually put on me. On several occasions this resulted in me being hospitalised. The list of ‘dumb prayers’ below are only the first half of these answered prayers. I am leaving the second-half — the implications — to your imagination. These are some of my ‘dumb’ prayers over the years that God has answered and as a result I have been transformed and become more responsive to God’s will:

🥺 Father, send me wherever You want – but please don’t make it an easy place. Make it a really hard place spiritually. Make it a place where few of Your servants are prepared to go! [Prayed before Kim and I moved to Tasmania.]

🥺 Lord God, fill me with Your love. Give me Your compassion for the hard-to-love. Help me oh God to truly see people and to truly hear them! [Prayed after Kim and I moved to Tasmania.]

🥺 Jesus, help me to understand Your Word. Show me what Your Word really says and to see past what I have been taught and told Your Word says to see what Your Word truly says! [Prayed regularly while in Tasmania.]

🥺 Holy Spirit, please rescue the lost, the lonely, the broken, the hurting, the confused, and the unloved! Holy Spirit, please bring them into the Kingdom of Christ through Your church! Help me to love them, heal them, and care for them. In the meantime, please fill Your people with Your love and power to be the hands and the feet to offer the love, the care, and the Father’s adoption to these needy people. [Prayed very recently while in Tasmania.]

🥺 Lord GOD, give me the time I need to complete this PhD with Monash and help me to navigate each of the challenges that will arise in doing so! [Prayed very regularly in Tasmania at the moment.]

🥺 Father, help me to hear Your voice and to heed Your Word! In fact, help me to make a difference both now and for the next four centuries by what I will leave behind [Prayed presently while preparing to depart Tasmania for wherever God will lead us.]

🥺 God, have Your way in my life! Make me, shape me, and break me, to be conformed to Your will! [Prayed presently while preparing to depart Tasmania for wherever God will lead us.]

 

PRAYING FOR GOD’S WILL TO BE DONE IS NEVER DUMB

I am a Pentecostal, but I do not hold to the Word-of-faith / Prosperity-gospel. As a Pentecostal I believe that the gifts of the Spirit are still available and will be so until the eschaton (“the Last Day” referred to in John 6:39-44, 54; 11:24; 12:48).Thus, I believe that the Bible teaches that the Holy Spirit still performs miracles – including transforming lost souls into saved saints. But I also believe – not because I am a Pentecostal, but because I am a Bible-believing Christian – that God is good and always does good. This means that God has a good will and that I need to pray according to His will — even when I do not like His will! My ultimate example to pray according to God’s will is the record of Jesus in Gethsemane just before He went to the cross. And therefore, so should we.

Again, for the second time, He went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”  And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. So, leaving them again, He went away and prayed for the third time, saying the same words again.
Matthew 26:42-44

Thus, praying for God’s will to be done in your life is never dumb!

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.

3 EXERCISES THAT WILL MAKE YOU HEALTHIER, FITTER, & STRONGER, Part 1

Part 1, Aerobic Exercises

Who likes exercising? Who has attempted something that you thought would be relatively easy only to discover that you didn’t quite have the energy needed to do it? The benefits of exercising are not always immediately obvious – especially when you think there’s somewhere else I’d rather be and there’s something else I’d rather be doing! Exercising is often (if not always) inconvenient. It takes time. It can hurt. It can be tiring. It can even be injurious. But it has undeniable benefits. Exercising, (whether it be physical, emotional, psychological, academic, spiritual, financial, social, or intellectual) done correctly, increases an exerciser’s stamina, concentration, strength, capacity, confidence, and enjoyment. It requires consistency, routines, and self-discipline. Many people spend a deal of money and time just exercising their bodies (which 1Tim. 4:8 commends by the way). Others spend even more money and time exercising their minds. But only a few people spend any money or time exercising their spirits. As a result of this lack of spiritual exercise, too many people do not have spiritual reserves, and consequently lack spiritual strength, capacity, confidence, psychological contentment, or the emotional happiness that they would otherwise have had. Yet, this is so unnecessary considering that there are three very simple spiritual exercises that everyone whose spirit has been regenerated can do to remedy this malady. 

 

AEROBIC EXERCISE FOR YOUR SOUL

Every physical fitness coach will tell you that daily exercise which causes you sweat and puff is the kind of exercise that is doing you long-term good. Vigorous physical exercise such as running will cause you to need more air in your lungs which will cause you to puff. Puffing, the act of heavy breathing to replenish your need oxygen helps your respiratory and cardio-vascular systems to become healthier. Interestingly, breathing is the word that the Bible uses to describe how God created the First man.

Then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground
and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life,
and the man became a living creature.
Genesis 2:7

For nerds like me, I find it interesting that the word for “spirit” — in both the language of the Old Testament (Hebrew) and in the language of the New Testament (Greek) — the word used means: breath (Heb. ru’âch; Gr. pneuma). Thus, breathing is intrinsically spiritual – especially when we are talking in prayer to God. In Genesis 3 we get an indication that God would regularly meet with Adam in the “cool of the day” by walking and talking with him (Gen. 3:8). Both activities require breathing. In fact, I would encourage anyone to try this aerobic spiritual exercise by incorporating the physically aerobic aspect of walking while trying this spiritual exercise. 

 

EXERCISE #1: BREATHING AEROBIC PRAYER

All people have been created to pray (talk to God). While nearly all religions consider prayer a necessary part of their religious activity, only Christianity sees prayer as a relational connection – a conversation – with God. Praying effectively must be learned. It also requires practice like any exercise. It was when Christ’s disciples had spent weeks with Him that they had observed that Jesus did not pray like their religious leaders. When their rabbis and priests prayed they simply read prayers from books, or recited them from memory—and always did them in public so that others could hear and see them. Jesus condemned this heartless praying!

¶ “And when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites.
For they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners,
that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret.
And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
¶ “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do,
for they think that they will be heard for their many words.
Matthew 6:5-7

This led His disciples to approach Jesus with the request “Lord, teach us to pray.” This is what He taught them and it has been embraced by all Christians as The Lord’s Prayer. Here is my analysis of this powerful spiritual exercise –  

Here’s how you can practice this spiritual exercise –

1.  Start your praying with worship and thanksgiving.
2.  Prayerfully express your surrender to God and His Word.
3.  Ask God to meet the needs of those you love (family, friends, church, neighbours), and also to meet your own needs.
4.  Confess your sins and seek God’s forgiveness for them.
5.  Ask God for the grace to forgive those who you struggle with.
6.  Pray for God to give you a hate for sin and the strength to avoid and resist temptation.
7.  Close your prayer with worship seeking God for Him to be glorified in your life. 

If you should ever draw a blank on #3, then please remember me in your prayers that I might be loving, godly, caring pastor and a Spirit-filled preacher of God’s Word. For experienced pray-ers, this outline of a routine prayer exercise takes around one hour. Some use it as an exercise to pray to our Father throughout their day.

In my next Pastor’s Desk I’ll share Spiritual Exercise #2. In the meantime, happy praying.

Your Pastor,

Andrew

Let me know what you think below in the comment section and feel free to share this someone who might benefit from this Pastor’s Desk.