An Observation or Two.

It seems that some people depart from traditional churches to adhere more closely to Biblical teaching, and some people do so to get away from adhering to Biblical truth. The discovery of an intensely relational God who loves us with utter abandon cannot serve as a rationale to jettison other truth that God does have wrath, that we are commanded to fear Him, (see previous post), and that Jesus came as a propitiation for our sins. It is American culture that promotes the concept of anarchy (that we can do whatever we want), either moral or otherwise.
We should also not throw out the proverbial baby with the bathwater with regard to Bible teaching. Many of us have heard sermons that essentially said, this is the way it is and there is no other way it can be. With certain things that is true. Jesus is Lord, no matter what we may think. Simply because we have been burned in the past does not mean that we should ignore the Bible or refrain from teaching it. In a small group of people who have developed trust and relationship with one another over time, we can submit our Scriptural understanding in humility, offering it as a gift to the Body. But the foundational truths of the faith must be taught. It is incumbent upon each generation to preserve the truth of the gospel and transmit it to the next.
It also seems much easier to lose relationship with someone than to gain it.

The Fear of the Lord (?!)

About fifteen years ago I was talking with a solid, mature brother and he remarked that he just couldn't relate to the idea of fearing God. More recently a very prominent speaker said flatly in public (in my hearing) that the fear of God had no place in a Christian's life. Now we all make mistakes but this was said in a rather adamant way, not as an aside. We need to follow the example of the Bereans (Acts 17:11) and examine the Scriptures daily to see if things are true.
Psalm 19:9 says that the fear of the Lord is clean enduring forever. Deuteronomy 10:12 states, "And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul." (ESV) And the conclusion of twelve chapters of lament in Ecclesiastes is to fear God and obey his commandments. (Ecc. 12:13)
Now some may say that this reflects the Old Covenant and that we are in the New. I wholeheartedly agree that we are in a New Covenant (Thank you, Jesus!) but I find references to fearing God in the NT as well. Matthew 10:28 has Jesus telling us to fear him who can destroy both body & soul in hell. (The devil has no power to do this) Great fear comes upon the church upon the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:5,11) But perhaps this is an unhealthy fear. Acts 9:31 "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied." Being built up, peace and comfort are mentioned in the same verse as the fear of the Lord with a very positive result. 2 Corinthians 7:1 directs us, "Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God." Philippians 2:12 tells us "to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." Finally Peter commands us to fear God. "Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor." (1 Peter 2:17 ESV) Many more references are available but I believe these make the point for those willing to submit themselves to the authority of the Word of God.
I trust that I have written a number of times on the love of God in this blog and that I will again in the future. However the truth that God is love should not be allowed to eliminate the fear which God commands of us towards Himself.

Picking up the Cross

Tuesday had the honor of gathering with a dozen other brothers who function as elders in their respective house churches. Very impressed by the strength of their desire to get together. Our brother John led a discussion based on the question of what vision God had given each man for the ekklesia in which he gathered. We concluded with a time of prayer. Everyone stayed after for at least a half hour and some for almost an hour. The dilemma rises in the seeming need for additional structure when more people come. Should we multiply into smaller groups? Or try to meet for a longer period of time?
Thursday evening met with the support and accountability group. Had the blessing of hospitality from our brother Russ and some solid counsel. "The pleasantness of one's friend springs from his earnest counsel." (Prov. 27:9) Friday morning got together with our brother Gary, who is growing into a man of the Word, a major turning point in his life. Later that same morning met with our brother Matt and worked out some glitches in our relationship. God be praised.
This morning met with the E. Cambridge brothers, updated one another, prayed, and worked through a question in the process towards deciding whether or not to acknowledge elders in our group. Tonight had the joy of fellowship with the Monson ekklesia. Interaction centered around abiding in God's love by doing His commandments. (John 15:10) and the theme of forgiveness. Thank you, Father, for forgiving us our sins.

Welcoming One Another

Romans 15:7 says, "Therefore, welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God." (ESV) This verse is one of at least fifty "one another" verses in which all believers are encouraged to participate. Not one to all of the others, but one to another. How has Christ welcomed us? "God showed His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Rom 5:8) We have been given the privilege and joy of welcoming people into God's family. "Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents." (LK 15:10) We also have the blessing of welcoming our brethren into whatever part of the Body of Christ that we are in. Some people can integrate themselves into new situations easily, others cannot. Our responsibility is to help and welcome all. But the best part of all of this, for those who believe that glorifying God is His ultimate purpose for us, is that welcoming one another gives Him glory.
One practical application of this for the saints in the E. Cambridge ekklesia is the opportunity to invite people to experience what God is doing in our midst. We are blessed to have this experience on a regular basis. We usually have a contingent from a nearby Christian college, young saints who have never experienced NT church life. We also have those who are considering starting a house church, or people from more isolated groups. "To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen." (Romans 16:27)

Brotherhood in Christ

In previous posts I have written on our brotherhood in Christ, giving references from the Scripture ( Matthew 23:8, John 20:17, Romans 8:29, Hebrews 2:11-12 ESV.) Today I wish to explore the ramifications of that truth. If we are in fact brothers (or sisters- the underlying Greek word "adelphoi" means siblings)and this is eternal, then it comprises a major part of our identity, who God the Father says that we are in Christ. Jesus is the firstborn among many brothers and is not ashamed to call us such. We must allow this reality to change our thinking. We place much importance on things such as race, socio-economic status, ethnicity, clergy-laity, secondary or tertiary doctrinal viewpoints. All of these and many others must dissolve or take lesser importance if we are to fall in line with the prayer of Jesus in John 17 that we may be one even as He and the Father are one. (John 17:11,21) Colossians 3:11 supports this position. "Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all." It is being the brother or sister of Christ Himself that is significant, something we received by adoption, not of any work or merit of our own. May we learn to see our brotherhood as the highest honor we can ever receive.

Legalism?

One of the most common charges that I hear hurled by Christians (?) is that of legalism. It is often said in response to someone else urging that the first person adhere to Scripture. Granted that there may be issues of interpretation involved, yet usually the epithet is used from a place of moral anarchy, as in "I can do whatever I want." Sadly it is often the only time that we use the term "brother" with one another. Legalism refers to law, and the primary law spoken of in the Bible is the Law of Moses. Those who believe that they are in a New Covenant are not under the Law of Moses. Yet we do believe that Jesus is Lord and we reflect that conviction by our obedience to Him.
As I've said in the past I see an increasing number of issues as falling within the purview of Romans 14, "Let everyone be fully persuaded in his own mind." We need not agree on every point. However there are a handful of core things that we must believe in order to be genuine followers of Christ. One of these is the gospel of Jesus, the same gospel that the apostles preached. We have no warrant to change this in any way. I urge my readers to study and insure that they are not preaching a different gospel. (Galatians 1:6-9)
Tuesday I spent at least five hours on the phone talking to five different people. May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ continue to minister through the Holy Spirit in each of these situations. Wednesday I had the privilege of prayer and fellowship with our brothers John R, and Mark O. I thank God for their heart for Him, and their walking as Kingdom builders.

The Hard Way

I realize that certain themes recur in this blog; I trust that the Holy Spirit wants me to emphasize some things. One of these is the way in which we learn. I believe there are three primary ways- receiving revelation from God directly, through the Word or in prayer etc., observing or receiving from other people, and the hard way in which we learn through personal, usually painful, time consuming experience. It must be human nature that causes us to utilize the third method so often. One could say, well, as long as we do learn. I suppose.
Along these lines I have observed a wide spread phenomenon in the generation from 20-40. There is an inordinate sensitivity to something called "tone", i.e. the way in which things are said, the precise words used to convey things. (Ironically, this "tone" concept is usually something I have to explain to older people.) I find myself walking on eggshells in hope of not causing offense. Again, I don't find this among middle aged people. I would welcome comments on this phenomenon.
Saturday morning the brothers of the house church continued our exploration of eldership and decision making. Met with our brother Josh in the afternoon. God continues to mature and grow him. In a rare event our ekklesia met Saturday evening. Shared on consensus and the interaction between it and those called to be leaders. Some passages include Matt. 18:15-17, Acts 6:1-6, and Acts 15. Sunday had the privilege of fellowship in Whitinsville. Our brother Alex joined us. Free flowing discussion, exhortation and praise of our King.