A Vibrant Church In Action

by George Prasher, Manchester, England | Category: New Testament Churches Of God | Mar 1999

Let us draw further guidance and inspiration from the activities of the first Church of God in Jerusalem. As recorded in Acts chapter 2 a tremendous spiritual movement developed through the apostles' witness. The number in the Church of God increased from about 120 to more than 3,000. That growth continued as the disciples testified to others of their Saviour and Lord. Here was a Church ripe for further blessing - one in mind and heart and purpose. There was a spirit of sacrificial giving. Many sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all, according as anyone had need. Great grace was upon them all. Great power was evident in their preaching. So much so that 'the number of men came to be about 5,000'. Later we read 'the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and one soul'. After this 'believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women'. Moving on to Acts 6:7 we find that 'the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith'. Wonderful days as the word of God was running and being glorified in that ancient city!

How different now from the small group of about 120 disciples who formed the original nucleus of the Church. Then they could all meet in an Upper Room. Now, with this vast increase, they could no longer meet in one place; they formed companies in different parts of the city. But they were still one in their unity of purpose and dedication to the will of the Lord Jesus. Indeed they were still spoken of as one Church - the Church of God in Jerusalem, meeting in different places within the city; one Church of God formed of many companies, but united by the leadership of apostles and elders throughout the whole Church. An example which gives valuable guidance today for maintaining divine unity among disciples in a locality where their numbers make necessary more than one place of gathering.

However, no work for God goes unnoticed by our great Adversary. Satan soon stirred up opposition against the Church of God in Jerusalem. The Jewish religious leaders who had plotted the death of Christ could not easily tolerate the growth of a movement which proclaimed His resurrection and in doing so declared their murderous guilt. Blind in their zeal for tradition the Scribes and Pharisees failed to understand the changed purpose of the God of their fathers. This change involved the passing away of the Law as the basis of worship under the Old Covenant, and the introduction of the Faith of our Lord Jesus Christ which was the basis of service under the New Covenant. It meant an end to the worship of God in the Temple of Jerusalem and its replacement by spiritual worship in the holy place in heaven.

So the apostles were threatened by the Jewish religious authorities. But arrest, imprisonment, threats and beatings all failed to subdue these Spirit-filled men. When charged to speak no more in the Name of Jesus, Peter replied: 'Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you rather than unto God, judge ye: for we cannot but speak the things we saw and heard' (Acts 4:19,20). 'And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people'; (Acts 5:12) so that many came from places round Jerusalem, 'bringing sick folk, and them that were vexed with evil spirits; and they were healed every one' (v.16). All attempts to stem the tide of blessing failed.

With typical subtlety Satan then tried to undermine God's work from within the Church. Many who owned properties had sold them and brought the proceeds to the apostles so that funds would be available for distribution to those in need. Ananias and Sapphira saw what others were doing and they also sold a possession. Then they agreed together to give only part of the proceeds to the apostles, but pretended they were giving all. To Ananias Peter said, 'Why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land?... thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God' (v.3,4). On hearing this, Ananias immediately died. Not knowing what had happened to him, his wife shortly afterwards repeated his lie, and she also died. We can imagine the effect on the whole Church when this hypocrisy was exposed and so severely punished. Drastic as it seemed, God was in this way cleansing the Church from evil principle. As we read in Hebrews 10: 'The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God' (v.31).

Further troubles were stirred up within the Church because Grecian Jews among them complained against those of the Aramaic speaking group that their widows were overlooked in the daily distribution of food; another attempt by Satan to hinder the Church by sowing seeds of discord. But the problem was wisely handled by the appointment of seven well respected, Spirit-filled men to supervise the daily distribution. This left the apostles free to concentrate on prayer and ministry of the Word. Again Satan's attack was foiled and the Church progressed.

We should take careful note that even in this remarkable Church of God Satan was repeatedly able to exploit the weakness of some of the disciples. The Church was soundly established on divine principles as revealed to the apostles by the Lord Himself. Spirit-filled apostles and elders gave a high standard of leadership. There was much blessing on the witness of the Church. Yet human failure soon emerged. If we follow the guidance of Scripture in our service together as disciples of Christ we may still enjoy the same foundation of truth which enables us to function as a Church of God. The principles are clear, and we cannot improve on the divinely given pattern. Yet we shall not find perfection in disciples who form such churches. As James reminds us '...in many things we all stumble' (3:2). But within churches of God there is provision to deal with such weaknesses, and by wise spiritual guidance the disciples concerned can be offered the help they need.

Much else can be learned from the early chapters of the Acts about the Church of God in Jerusalem, but the following summary will serve to emphasize aspects of truth which are of great practical value in relation to the formation and functioning of Churches of God today:

1.That each person identified with a church of God had personally believed the message of the gospel, and afterwards was baptized in water and then added to the church.

2.That there was commitment to continue in the apostles' teaching and the responsibilities of church fellowship.

3.That the breaking of the bread in remembrance of the Lord Jesus on the first day of the week was a regular and central feature of their spiritual service.

4.That fervent prayer and the fullness of the Holy Spirit pervaded all the activities of the Jerusalem Church.

5. That even when their numbers had increased to many thousands, and they had to gather in different companies throughout the city, the unity of the Jerusalem Church was preserved by respect for the authority of the apostles and elders among all the companies.

George Prasher, Manchester, England | Mar 1999
New Testament Churches Of God