What The church is to Do

What is the Church Series continued

Review
Purpose of the church
1. Body in-reach
2. Believers out-reach
3. Bride up-reach

Leaders
Head of the church is Christ
Elder/Bishop/Pastor
three words meaning same position, elder speaks of the man, bishop speaks of the ministry, and pastor speaks of the method
Deacon/deaconess (servant)
Saints (minister to each other)

What are we to be doing as a church Acts 2:40:47

40 And with many other words he testified and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” 41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized; and that day about three thousand souls were added to them. 42 And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. 43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.
46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

There were 2 to 3,000 people meeting in the newly born church and there are 7 things listed that they were doing and their numbers were added to.

The first thing mentioned was
1. They studied the apostles doctrine.
Getting into the Word was to be the number one priority of a congregation. The contemporary expression of this is bible study - both corporately and privately.

Public - preaching is central Acts 6
3Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word."

They were not saying that they were too good to serve - they wanted everything taken care of and the Word needed to be their priority. (my question - do we in the traditional churches set ourselves and our pastors up for failure because we expect their priorities to be everything BUT the teaching of the Word?)

Bringing the Word of God to the flock of God is still the greatest need of the church today.

"If the Spirit of God takes a man of God and opens the Word of God, then people will attend.

*If emphasis is not on the Word then there will not be fuel for sustained revival.

Even Charles Spurgeon said that his pulpit was more influential than the King of England.

A Pastor has to have "the burden of the Lord"
Jeremiah, Isaiah, and Ezekiel
awesome responsibility - taking the very Word of God to the people of God

no light thing - costly thing
integrity and humility to go through the scriptures - all of them
teach the bible simply

Why study privately?
*Protection
Psalm 119:11
11 I have hidden your word in my heart
that I might not sin against you.
When Jesus was tempted in Matthew 4 He answered each time "it is written"

The Word is for protection and
*Direction
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet
and a light for my path.
Psalm 23:3 3 he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake.
The Word is our guide, not fortune cookie, not Oprah

How to begin? Pick a translation you can read.
It doesn't have to be the King James version. someone once told Jason that the King James Version was good enough for Paul, it was good enough for him???
Buy a notebook and a pen

There are different ways you can read. Cover to cover, section by section - the key is to read it and read it consistently. Like you would exercise. Like you would eat physical food. If we ate physical food the way we eat spiritual food we would be dead. That is why we have spiritual death.

In 2 Kings 3 When Elisha told Jehoshaphat to dig ditches and he obeyed, a great victory was won - because they were faithful to dig ditches. We need to be faithful to dig ditches (do the work - read the Word)

Read expectantly - expect the Lord to speak to you. Not a chore - but a privilege. Does the Lord want to speak to people who don't want to hear?

Read conversationally. Blessed is the man who meditates (speaking to yourself)
1 Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.

2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

Worship is interactive - bible study should be too. Ask the Lord - how does this aply to me? Bible study becomes interactive. Reading about the tabernacle cubits might be boring but it tells you that God is into details - He wants to be involved with every detail of your life.

Read obediently
You say God never speaks to you - was there ever a time when He did? Did you obey?

Hebrews Hebrews 5:12

12In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid
food!