Blessed to Be a Blessing

 These were special days.  In the weeks following Jesus' return to heaven and the Spirit's arrival in the church, God was up to His jaw dropping best.  

These first Christ followers had simple priorities, Jesus first priorities.  Devotion to four basic activities (v42).  

The teaching of the apostles.  Spending every available moment together.  Sharing meals including the celebration of the Lord's Supper.  Praying together.  

There was an emphasis on community.  Notice that there's really nothing done in verse 42 that was done alone.  

While we can certainly read, study and meditate on Scripture ("the apostles' teaching") and pray by ourselves, Luke emphasizes that the infant church did everything together.

Each of us needs to ask, "Am I in community with God's people?  Am I devoted and committed to what God is doing in and through my church?"  

It's been said many times that there are no Lone Ranger Christians.  As a matter of fact, our enemy loves to get us alone.  A wolf who finds a sheep away from the flock is easy pickin's.

Their devotion and commitment to these four activities result in what we read in verses 43-47.  When you hear God's truth together, hang out together, eat together and pray together, an amazing thing happens.  

The Holy Spirit gets a hold of your heart and turns things upside down.  You go from a "me first" to a "me third" attitude.  God occupies the pole position that is rightfully His.  

And like Jesus, you begin to see others and their needs as much more important than your own (Phil 2:1-11).  You don't ignore your needs, they are simply no longer your highest priority.  We see this practically lived out in v43-47.

Luke tells us that one of the first things that happened to those 3,120 members of the early church was that "awe came upon every soul" (v43).  

The Greek word here is fobos, which means everything from fear and terror to reverence, respect and awe.  We derive our word phobia from it.  

These four activities open our eyes to what God is doing right in front of us.  When we look for Him, we see Him.  And when we see God for who He truly is, we respond in worship.  We are in awe.

"Many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles."  These miraculous marvels were God's way of confirming His choice of these men as His apostles and representatives.  

They were His divine ID.  Don't miss the fact of who was REALLY performing these miracles.  God was doing all of them THROUGH the apostles.  

Each of us is to simply make ourselves available to be used by Him.  It's not about ability, but availability.  The only way I can accomplish anything is to allow Jesus to work through me (Jn 15:5).

Just in case we may have missed it, Dr. Luke confirms what he had already told us.  These early believers spent every available moment together (v44).  "And all who believed were together and had all things in common."  

Don't miss that little three-letter word "all."  Every Christian on the planet was together.  This would be the last time until Jesus comes back that this would happen.  But they clearly met in as a group at times.  

And all believers shared all things.  Again, this is the result of a "me third" attitude.  What we have belongs to God.  Does anyone else need it?  We need to remember that we have been blessed to be a blessing. 

The good doctor goes on to write, "And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need" (v45).  

So were these early believers actually living in some sort of first century Jesus loving commune? Many understand this to be the case.  

And others hold these verses to be prescriptive rather than descriptive.  In other words, this is God's commanded design for life in the Body of Christ.

A couple of thoughts.  The key phrase in verse 45 is probably "as any had need."  When someone had a need, these believers used their resources to meet it.  

They did whatever they needed to do.  They gave.  They sold.  They took care of needs, not wants.  Needs.  It seems to be on a case by case basis.

Some NT scholars believe this was a special situation for a special time.  These early followers of Jesus expected Him to return at any time.  

Because of that, they saw now reason to be too attached to earthly possessions.  There is certainly validity to this view.

So what do we do with these verses?  First, we should make those four activities in verse 42 a priority.  Study God's Word TOGETHER.  Hang out TOGETHER.  Eat TOGETHER.  Pray TOGETHER.  

Second, we should open our eyes to what God is doing all around us.  

Third, we should understand that the Lord has blessed each of us so that we can be a blessing to others.  If we read these verses and see their charity as simply describing a unique time, we need to take a long look in the mirror of God's Word.  

Let's be clear about one thing.  This is NOT a call to live the Poverty Gospel.  But it should convict us.  

It certainly convicts me.

©2011

Jay Jennings

New Believer Follow Up

 Christian bookstores and blogs are full tips, hints and strategies for meaningful growth.  Some of them are outstanding.  Others, well, not so much.  

They all center on two basic ideas.  One, how do we get new people through the door?  Two, how do we insure we get new believers involved into the life of the church? 

We can learn much from the early church in their first week of existence.  They had what may be the best "New Believer Follow Up" program ever.  

It is simple.  It is effective.  And it breaks down into four things.

1. Teaching

2. Togetherness

3. Supper

4. Supplication

Authors and experts have spilled oceans of ink over the years on these verses.  One thought before we move forward.  We need to read Scripture and determine if each passage is either prescriptive or descriptive.  

In other words, does these verses command God's people to do something (prescriptive)?  Or do they simply tell us what was going on (descriptive)?  

I believe these verses do a little of both.  And some of the confusion and debate over Acts 2:42 centers on that issue.  And at times, it appears that God's Word may not be mandating certain activities, but giving us a good blueprint to follow.

Luke describes their basic flow and methodology in verse 42.  He gives us four activities to which the members of the infant church devoted themselves.  T

he Greek verb here is proskaptereo, found here as a present active participle.  It has a couple of shades of meaning.  

First, it indicates a persistence, devotion and perseverance to something.  Second, it means to closely attach oneself and be continually ready for something or someone.

These 3120-plus members of the first church were devoted.  They were persistent.  They didn't let a little bad weather or little league ball games get in the way of their new found faith.  

They reorganized their priorities and lives around what it meant to be followers of Jesus.  They closely associated themselves with this amazing new movement.  

And they were continually ready.  Ready to show the love of Jesus to their new brothers and sisters.  Ready to see what God was going to do next.

Are you devoted?  Or do you simply "go to church?"  Is your devotion to Christ and His church a day to day focus?  Or are you just a "weekend warrior?"

The first point of devotion was to the apostles' teaching.  This is NOT to say that these twelve men were simply making stuff up.  

In the first century, to be an apostles was a very serious duty.  An apostle is an official representative of someone who has granted them his full rights and responsibilities.  

When you interacted with one's apostle, it was as if you were interacting with the one who sent them.  So these twelve men were teaching what the One who sent them had instructed.  

They were fulfilling Jesus' command at the Great Commission (Mt 28:18-20).  In other words, this wasn't some made up message.  

All they had was what we call the Old Testament and whatever Jesus taught about it.  They taught what Jesus taught.

Are we teaching people God's Word? 

The second point of their devotion was to fellowship.  Again, let's make sure we say what this is not.  This is not fried chicken and Jello salad on Wednesday nights.  This is a daily devotion to their newfound brothers and sisters.  

They sought each other out.  They spent time together.  They got to know each other.  Fellowship (koinonia) is essential because relationships are essential.  

God designed life to be lived in community.  The Trinity is a model of perfect self-giving community.  Even before the Fall in the midst of His perfect creation, God announced, "It is not good for man to be alone" (Gen 2:18).  We need each other.

Are you a Lone Ranger Christian or in encouraging relationships with other believers?

Third, the baby church was devoted "to the breaking of bread."  Some believe this is daily observance of the Lord's Supper.  

Honestly, I think this is getting together for meals.  Nothing deepens a friendship like eating together.  You really get to know someone when you share a meal.  

Look at the life of Jesus.  So much of the meaningful moments of His ministry revolved around meal time.  

Did these times include celebrating the Lord's Supper?  Undoubtedly.  But it was not limited to that.

Do you regularly hang out over a plate of food with other Christ followers?

The fourth and final point of devotion was to "the prayers."  Once you hear God's Word taught, once you really get to know other believers, once you open your home and eat meals together, you will naturally pray for one another.  

Are you praying with and for other Christ followers?

So, does this verse describe or prescribe?  I'll let you make that call yourself.  

At the very least, it's certainly a wonderful model to follow.  And it certainly seems to work.  

"The Lord added to their number day by day those being saved" (v47).  That's what I call New Believer Follow Up!

Are you devoted?

©2011

Jay Jennings

Loosening My Kung Fu Grip

"And Peter said, 'See, we have left our homes and followed You.' And He said to them, 'Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life'" (Lk 18:28-30).

These three verses provide an epilogue to Jesus' conversation with the rich young ruler (Lk 18:18-27).  Christ's call to cash in his chips and follow revealed the man's idol: his own wealth.  Jesus then pointed out how it's easier to smush a 1500 pound camel through the eye of a sewing needle that for a rich person to squeeze himself through the gates of heaven.  The Lord pointed out that the only one capable of making that happen is God Himself.

At this point, Peter speaks up (v28).  Let's face it, when Pete says something, there's a 50-50 chance he's going to make a fool of himself.  Pastor Mike Lee says that it often seems like that the only reason Peter opens his mouth is to change feet.  But here, Simon says the right thing.

In response to the rich ruler's retreat, Rocky speaks up for all of the twelve.  It's just another example from the Bible of Peter's role as leader of the apostles.  It's a role he will retain even in the wake of his betrayal of the Lord.  He was part of Jesus' inner circle along with the Sons of Thunder.  Peter was first among equals among Christ's twelve.

The Rock reminds Jesus of all that His own disciples have left in the rear view mirror in order to follow.  "See we have left our homes and followed You."  Actually the word "homes" is not in the original text.  Pete actually says they have left "one's own" or “everything belonging to us" (Gr. adjective idios).

It is a reminder of how these twelve men walked away from not just their homes, but everything in order follow this amazing Man from Nazareth.  Professional fishermen dropped their nets and left their business behind.  A tax collector turned his back on his incredibly profitable occupation (and repaid with interest!).  They had left it all behind.

Jesus responds to Peter's statement with an encouragement (v29-30).  First, He talks about what they all have given up in more detail.  These men have left their homes, wives, brothers, sisters, parents and children.  And they didn't do it simply to hang out with some homeless and untrained Rabbi/Carpenter.  They did it "for the sake of the kingdom of God."  Somehow, someway they understood that something bigger was at stake.  And they were willing to leave it all behind.

Jesus announces here that this call to leave it all behind is not just for these twelve closest followers.  Are we willing to leave it all behind?  I'm afraid that we Americans are more like the rich young ruler than the blue-collar bunch that Jesus' assembled.  According to some statistics, 21st-century Americans are among the top 2% of the wealthiest people who have ever walked on the planet.  How many of us are willing to leave everything to follow Jesus?  House?  Family?  Job?  Cars?  401k?  I think it's time to move on.  It's getting rather uncomfortable, don't you think?

After affirming everything that His followers give up, Jesus goes on to give an overview of the benefits package (v30).  Those willing to forsake everything for the sake of the kingdom get unspeakable blessings, both in this life and the life to come.  Don't miss that Jesus speaks of receiving "many times more in this time."  Don't miss the math.  God's blessings will be multiplied "many times more!"

I would hardily disagree with those preaching a prosperity Gospel that Jesus is promising earthly riches.  It may happen.  But the blessings of God are so much more than that, so much more robust than that, so much deeper than that.  They include love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Gal 5:22-23).  Most importantly, it is the blessing of God Himself.  He is our portion (Ps 16:5).  He is our great reward.

Jesus alone is worth leaving all.

Then Jesus points us to the most mind-blowing retirement package the universe has ever known.  He promises that we'll see those blessings continue once we pass from this life into the life to come.  Much ink has been spilled on heavenly and eternal blessings.  Christ is reminding His followers that it's worth it.  It's VERY MUCH worth it.  He doesn't deny that they've given up a lot.  But they have only begun to scratch the surface on what's to come.  And they don't have a clue of what will happen in the coming months and years.  Their minds couldn't hold it all.

This passage reminds me of the statement that hands clinging tightly to earthly possessions are not open to receive the blessings of God.  Too often we have a kung fu grip on things that have absolutely no eternal value.

Let it go.  Put it down.  Let the Lord fill your palms with His unspeakable and overflowing goodness.  We can only receive when we loosen our kung fu grip.

Jesus alone is worth leaving all.

The 100% Husband

“Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach” (1Tim 3:2).

Back in the ‘90s, Tim Meadows created the incredibly sleazy “Ladies Man” for Saturday Night Live. As creepy Leon Phelps, he would give his callers the most disgusting dating advice. A few things are clear about this sleaze bag. One, he wasn’t looking for anything close to a lady. Two, he was far from being a real man. Third, he was one of the least funny reoccurring characters on the show. 

On the bright side, he does provide us with the ultimate BAD example when it comes to a man’s faithfulness to his wife. And that’s exactly the kind of dude Paul describes a leader to be. An overseer is to be “the husband of one wife” (v2). Or as several translations tell us, a “one woman man.” Leon Phelps need not apply. Instead of the “Ladies Man,” he’s one lady’s man. A totally devoted, fully faithful, 100% husband.

So what does a bad SNL character have to do with a first century church in Asia Minor? So glad you asked. A few years before writing this letter to his protege Timothy, the Apostle Paul planted a church in the port city of Ephesus during his third tour of the Mediterranean Rim. Things apparently go very well for a while with the message of Jesus transforming lives all throughout the region. 

But after Paul left town something happened. Something bad happened. A team of spiritual con artists weaseled their way into the church and have derailed folks from following Jesus. With the apostle on the road in Macedonia, he sends his spiritual son Tim to pastor the Ephesian church (1Tim 1:1-3). His assignment is pretty simple. First, finish cleaning up the hot mess left by the false teachers (1Tim 1:3-7). Second, remind folks of God’s waterfall of grace (1Tim 1:8-17). Third, put godly servant leaders in place to fill the void left by the hucksters (1Tim 3:1-13). 

Paul tells Tim the kind of leaders Jesus is looking for. He doesn’t give him a list of qualifications, degrees, certifications, or work experience. You won’t see anything like this on Monster.com. It’s not a job description. Instead the apostle instructs Tim to look for qualities and character. He’s looking for fully devoted followers of Jesus who are worth following. The entire list starts off with integrity. “An overseer mush be above reproach” (v2). All that follows is simply what it looks like for a leader to be blameless in every other part of his life.

It’s interesting that the first specific trait Paul lists has seemingly nothing to do with church leadership. He’s not looking for three years experience. He’s not demanding a seminary degree. He’s not requiring a career in business as a upper level manager, CEO, or chairman of the board. They might be nice, but that takes a backseat to being “the husband of one wife” (v2). An overseer must be completely faithful in his most important human relationship. If he’s not totally devoted to her, can he really be trusted to lead the Bride of Christ?

Digging a little deeper into the original Greek reveals a few interesting and important points. “The husband of one wife” (v2) we see in the ESV literally reads “one woman man.” “One” (Gr. heis, mia, hen) describes the one and only, the single one, a particular one. An elder is to have one and only one lady in his life. He’s one lady’s man. A 100% husband.

Since polygamy really wasn’t a problem back in the Greco-Roman world, Paul’s not describing someone from the reality show “Sister Wives.” This is a man who has a single romantic relationship with one specific woman. In other words, he may be married but he doesn’t have someone on the side. You do know that’s wrong, right? To hop in the sack with someone before your married is called fornication. Messing around with anyone but your spouse is adultery. Just want to make sure we’re all on the same page here.

Having a singular and devoted relationship also means we need to be careful with our friendships with the other sex. As followers of Jesus, men are to see woman as their treasured sisters, not targets. Men also need to be on high alert when it comes to sharing our hurts and hopes with women friends. Part of being a “one woman man” means you don’t have a so-called “work wife.” Stop chatting online with old girlfriends on Facebook. And yeah, you need to trash that Tinder account. Stop trying to swing like Tiger Woods (and I'm NOT talking about on the golf course!) Be a one lady’s man. A 100% husband.

The rest of the original language in this phrase, “woman” (Gr. gune, gunaikos) and “man” (Gr. aner, andros) emphasize gender and maturity. Why is that important? Because this really has zip, zilch, zero to say about divorce and everything to do with moral and sexual purity. There are a lot of churches and denominations who take “the husband of one wife” (v2) to mean an elder or overseer can’t be divorced. The only problem with that is the rest of this list is all about character qualities and integrity, not marital status. 

Now, let’s be VERY clear. Any man who’s been through the Big D needs to incredibly repentant and thoroughly examined before being asked to lead in the local church. It’s clear God hates divorce because of the damage it does ripping apart the “one flesh” He’s brought together (Gen 2:24; Mal 3:16 ; Mt 19:4-9). But the healing power of His grace is more than enough for those who know the incredible pain of divorce. Paul is NOT saying overseers can’t be divorced, but we need to be very cautious when a candidate has a failed marriage in their rearview mirror. Not just for the sake of the church but for person.

On the flip side, this does NOT mean church leaders must be married. It’s not a box that must be checked. The author of this very letter to Timothy was single guy (1Cor 7:8-9). This is about taking the covenant of marriage very seriously. Paul puts this kind of faithfulness at the top of his “an overseer must be above reproach” (v2) list because it’s the one every man is most prone to break. Don’t look at me like that, dude. You know deep down it’s true.

Paul can’t emphasize strongly enough that an overseer, elder, or pastor is a faithful husband. He must be fully devoted to the woman God has placed in his life. There’s no one on the side. Certainly not physically. Not even emotionally. A godly married man has one intimate friendship. A couple of versions reflect this idea in their paraphrases. “He must be faithful to his wife” (v2, NLT). “A leader must be…committed to his wife” (v2 The Message). Full devoted. Totally faithful. A one lady’s man. A 100% husband. 

It should come as no shock that Jesus gives us the perfect picture of what that looks like. But Christ was never married, you say. The Rabbi/Carpenter never hooked up with any lady during His 33 years on the earth because He already had a bride. His church. He was and is fully devoted to her. Paul tells the men of Ephesus that Jesus is our example of the perfect Husband (Eph 5:25-33). He loves her completely. He loves her sacrificially. He is the ultimate woman Man. Full devoted. Totally faithful. The one lady’s Man. The 100% Husband.

God Doesn't Need My Good Works

“The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works. These things are excellent and profitable for people” (Titus 3:8).

I have the attention span of a gnat. I’m one of those brightest-light-in-the-room kinda guys. My mind jumps from one thing to the next so fast that it gets whiplash. It’s frustrating when my prayers go something like this. “Oh, Lord Jesus…Look! A Bird!” Here in his letter to Titus, our man Paul tells the Big T to cut out the distractions and focus on being God’s blessing to the people around them. I’m to rein in my brain and think of ways to shine His light and spread His salt. Good works. They’re good for you, good for me, and good for them. Tullian Tchividjian is absolutely right. God may not need my good works, but my neighbors do.

The apostle has spent the past few verses trying to explain the mind-bending mystery of salvation. God rescues us when we could never even think of rescuing ourselves. Before Jesus pulled us out of the dumpster fire that we ignited, we were fools, rebels, dupes, addicts, bullies, and haters (Titus 3:3). I’m glad it wasn’t up to me. If I took one look at that hot mess of humanity, we really weren’t worth the trouble of saving. But that’s when Jesus did His divine swan dive from the palace of heaven into cesspool of sin to save us. Chew on that for just a minute.

We don’t do good works to build up our resume to get saved. Paul has already pounded the table over that point. “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness” (Titus 3:5). Instead of doing good works to get saved, we do good works once we’re saved. Our good works are an act of worship for what Jesus has done for us. They are not the price of admission into His kingdom. They are not the means that we stay there either. The only good works involved with our rescue is what Christ did for us that we could never do for ourselves. That’s why He screamed “It is finished!” (Jn 20:30). There’s nothing left to play. There’s nothing more to do. As the old hymn goes, “Jesus paid it all.” While we don’t work our way into being saved and staying saved, we do good works as a way of saying “thank You” to our Savior. God’s Word goes on to say that we’re all masterpieces of Jesus “for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Eph 2:10). That’s because God may not need my good works, but my neighbors do.

Back in his letter to Titus, Paul makes his point by writing, “The saying is trustworthy” (v8). Paul loved using this little phrase to put his apostolic stamp of approval on something. He drops it four other times in letters to his buddy Timothy (1Tim 1:15; 3:1; 4:9; 2Tim 1:11). The man from Tarsus talking here about what he’s just written in verses 4 through 7. A quick recap. Our good God stepped into the spotlight when Jesus took center stage during His incarnation. He came to our rescue, not because we deserved it, but because His heart broke for you and me. All three members of the Trinity teamed up to save us: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. Jesus drenched us in His Spirit to regenerate and renew us. Despite our obvious guilt, He declares us to be completely obedient as an act of overwhelming and undeserved goodness. We go from defendant to an heir of eternal life. THAT’S something you can trust! THAT’S something you can take to the bank!

So now that He’s rescued us, what do we do now? To paraphrase the great theologian Hulk Hogan, “Whatcha gonna do when God’s grace runs wild on you?!?!?” Well, listen up, all you little Hulkamaniacs. Paul pumps up the Big T to make a big point to God’s people about doing good stuff. Once we place their trust in the good work Jesus has done for us, we’re to preoccupy ourselves with doing good deeds for others. The apostle says believers should “devote themselves to good works” (v8). He uses the Greek verb phrontizo, which means to be concerned about something, fixate, and let your mind dwell on a topic. It literally means to rein in your brain and force it to focus on particular idea. After following Jesus, let’s focus like a laser on reaching out and helping others. We should always be thinking up ways to spread His salt and shine His light. Let’s be creative in what we can do. 

I need the reminder to focus. I need the encouragement to keep my head in the game. Good deeds are very important. While they certainly don't have any impact on my salvation. But God may use them to reach others around me. 

God may not need my good works, but my neighbors do.