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The Early Church, part 2 of 3

Jonathan Santiago

Last week, Larry talked about the Old Testament and how it relates to the New Testament. The main point I got out of it was freedom. In God we have freedom from oppression, and with that freedom comes responsibility.

He also told us that "Hebrew" means "Cross over", and talked about the common-sense reasoning behind some of the Old Testament laws.

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament center around the cornerstone of the church, which is Jesus. So today, we're going to talk about Jesus.

Main Points:

  1. God doesn't always do things the way we expect
  2. God's word judges, saves, sanctifies, and edifies
  3. Shepherd vs. Hireling

John 1:35-42
  1. Again the next day after John stood, and two of his disciples;
  2. And looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God!
  3. And the two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.
  4. Then Jesus turned, and saw them following, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted, Master,) where dwellest thou?
  5. He saith unto them, Come and see. They came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him that day: for it was about the tenth hour.
  6. One of the two which heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.
  7. He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias, which is, being interpreted, the Christ.
  8. And he brought him to Jesus. And when Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son of Jona: thou shalt be called Cephas, which is by interpretation, A stone.

Christians were called Christians first at Antioch, because they were Christ-like. This is a description of the first three Christians in the church.

Peter was radically devoted to everything he did. He had passion, but he was also often puffed up with pride. Christ used the passion, and broke down the pride through trials and tribulations.

Matthew was a tax-collector. That means he worked for the Roman Empire. The Romans didn't just destroy other cultures; they also assimilated their religions and customs. Matthew probably took a large pay-cut to become a Christian, because tax-collectors usually worked on commission. Because they were agents of Rome (the enemy), tax-collectors were often despised by the Jews.

John 9:39-41
  1. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
  2. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
  3. Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Regardless of background or training, unless you were looking for God and receptive to his spirit, you wouldn't see Jesus.

What the Church Does:

The church allows us to use our talents

*Read the Parable of the Talents: Matthew 25:14-30

The church gives a means whereby we can use our talents.

Satan often tricks us into judging our worth to God based on our talents. But God judges on how we use those talents.

The church allows us to pool our wisdom

Matthew 18:15-17
  1. Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.
  2. But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
  3. And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto the church: but if he neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican.

The church is here to save

Luke 9:53-56
  1. And they did not receive him, because his face was as though he would go to Jerusalem.
  2. And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?
  3. But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of.
  4. For the Son of man is not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them. And they went to another village.

We're not here to judge. We present the word of God, which judges, saves, sanctifies, and edifies.

Jesus the Cornerstone

Let's look at how Jesus formed the cornerstone, the foundation for the early church.

The two main religious sects in Jesus' day were the Pharisees and the Saducees. Of the two, the Saducees were the more wealthy. Most of the seventy seats of the Sanhedrin were staffed by Saducees. They didn't belive in the resurrection or the afterlife. They didn't believe in ghosts or evil spirits. They did believe that your fate was determined by your actions, but they were very disconnected from the common man.

Luke 20:27-38
  1. Then came to him certain of the Sadducees, which deny that there is any resurrection; and they asked him,
  2. Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die without children, that his brother should take his wife, and raise up seed unto his brother.
  3. There were therefore seven brethren: and the first took a wife, and died without children.
  4. And the second took her to wife, and he died childless.
  5. And the third took her; and in like manner the seven also: and they left no children, and died.
  6. Last of all the woman died also.
  7. Therefore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she? for seven had her to wife.
  8. And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
  9. But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
  10. Neither can they die any more: for they are equal unto the angels; and are the children of God, being the children of the resurrection.
  11. Now that the dead are raised, even Moses shewed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
  12. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.

Jesus was telling them that there was a resurrection, even back in the days of Moses, in whose law they trusted.

The Pharisees, although in the minority, were the ones that the people trusted. They were middle-class businessmen. They were the ones praying in the streets.

The Pharisees were trying to relate the 613 commandments of the Torah to every facet of daily life. Any time they couldn't find a direct answer in the scriptures, they added their own commentaries to cover the situation. They believed that these commentaries were inspired of God. They believed in the resurrection and the afterlife.

There were other groups, such as the Herodians, the Edomites, and the Zealots.

In this next scripture, the name of Jesus was being spread around; people were beginning to talk:

John 7:21-24
  1. Jesus answered and said unto them, I have done one work, and ye all marvel.
  2. Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.
  3. If a man on the sabbath day receive circumcision, that the law of Moses should not be broken; are ye angry at me, because I have made a man every whit whole on the sabbath day?
  4. Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

God expects you to use common sense. In those days, people were judged by their social status. The man who was born blind was assumed to be in sin.

Reach out to people, but also redeem the time. You can only do so much.

John 6:63
  1. It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Jesus had done the miracle of the fishes and the loaves. The next night, they woke up and Jesus was gone. He had departed to the other side, but the ship was still there, because Jesus had walked on the water. When the disciples found him, he told them:

John 6:65-66
  1. And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
  2. From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

It's that dividing line between the physical and the spiritual that gets a lot of us. Jesus could have stayed on that mountain, gathering thousands upon thousands. But instead, he spoke a hard saying.

John 7:15-18
  1. And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?
  2. Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me.
  3. If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself.
  4. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his own glory: but he that seeketh his glory that sent him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.

So how do we know that we are abiding in God's doctrine? If we do his will.

John 9:39-41
  1. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
  2. And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
  3. Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Don't waste time getting caught up in formalities; they can only do so much.

John 9:34-39
  1. They answered and said unto him, Thou wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us? And they cast him out.
  2. Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the Son of God?
  3. He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him?
  4. And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee.
  5. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him.
  6. And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.

Jesus always made himself available. He met the woman at the well at the hottest part of the day, when no one else was there. The woman probably went to the well at that time of day because her lifestyle was well known and she didn't want to meet anyone else.

Shepherd vs. Hireling

John 10:11-13
  1. I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
  2. But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
  3. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.

A hireling is basically there for the paycheck. He's not attached to the sheep. But the shepherd is there for the sheep. Sometimes we get caught in the trap of having the attitude of a hireling rather than the attitude of a shepherd.

John 12:42-43
  1. Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue:
  2. For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.

I find that many churches or organizations who really preach the truth of God might not appear as praiseworthy on the surface. The temple of Jerusalem was a grand place. Nobody wanted to be banned from it.

Most people these days don't even know what they are. Ask them about their religion and they won't say, "I'm a Christian" or "I'm a Muslim" or "I'm an Atheist" or "I'm a Buddhist." Instead, they'll say, "I was raised as a (fill-in-the-blank)." When you plainly say that you're a Christian because you follow Christ, people feel challenged.

John 17:14-22
  1. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
  2. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil.
  3. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
  4. Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
  5. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
  6. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through the truth.
  7. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
  8. That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
  9. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:

This is a powerful scripture for me. Jesus is at the point where is about to be offered up, and he knows it. His disciples that have been with him all the time, he's not saying "Give them an easy life." He's saying "They have to stay in the world, but keep them from evil."

To sanctify or consecrate means to make sacred. We are sanctified through God's word.

John 17:22-23
  1. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
  2. I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

People will see our testimonies, our actions, and see whether we are of God. When Jesus heard about Lazarus, he could have raised him by mere thought. But he chose to pray aloud, not so that God would hear, but so that the people around would hear and know that God heard.

Jesus humbled himself. He carried water, which was traditionally the job of women, and washed the disciples feet, which was traditionally the job of slaves.

John 19:26-27
  1. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son!
  2. Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.

Did Jesus have natural brothers and sisters? Yes, but spiritual family is more important. Of course, you still love your natural family; you still reach out to them. But for meeting the needs of the church, Jesus chose spiritual family over natural family.

Jeremiah 31:33
  1. But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.

In John 14, Jesus talks about the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost. In Acts 2, we read about when the Holy Ghost appeared.

John 12:44
  1. Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.

Do we believe in God or in the church? Jesus called the Pharisees hypocrites for this reason:

Matthew 23:16-21
  1. Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!
  2. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?
  3. And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.
  4. Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?
  5. Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.
  6. And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.

Don't look at the things and circumstances of the church; look at the spiritual reasons behind them. The church could fall to the ground tomorrow and I'd still be saved. Never fall into the trap of believing that your righteousness comes from the church.

John 12:44-47
  1. Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.
  2. And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.
  3. I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.
  4. And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

Do people see God in our lives? Do people see Jesus in our actions and our speech? Do we give a scripture to cut somebody down or to improve them? Do we chastise and rebuke to build up or to destroy?

Do we take it upon ourselves to do God's work by judging his creation? Or do we take his word as an ambassador of Christ?

Comments on Shepherd vs. Hireling

Paul Rudolph When I put my priorities above someone else, I'm guilty of having the attitude of a hireling. Bob Vincent Most often, that attitude manifests itself when we say, "Well, I've done my job." Jonathan Santiago

Yes, "I fed the sheep. There's a wolf nibbling on that one's leg, but it's not my problem."