Jesus loves the church. He is not always happy about the state of it, but He’s concerned about its welfare. The church is not a building; it’s you, and me, and all of us together. The church exists to glorify God, to build up the saints, and evangelize the world. In Acts chapter 2, we see the first-century church, which turned the world upside down. The reason that they were able to do that is because they were a W.E.L.L. church: worshipping, evangelizing, learning, and loving.
Practical Principles
- They were a worshipping church. When we gather together to worship the Lord something happens. The Bible says that the Lord inhabits the praises of His people, and we should worship whether we feel like it or not because God is good and He deserves our praise.
- They were a learning church. “They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and in prayers” (Acts 2:42 nkjv). Jesus said, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples” (John 8:31 nkjv). The church of the first century was a Bible studying church.
- They were a loving church. Spirit filled believers like to meet with other believers. As we learn more from the Word of God, we want to spend time with others who also love the Word of God. Church is a place to talk to each other about God, and when you are walking with God, you will want to be with God’s people.
- They were an evangelistic church. “The Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47 nkjv). This is the natural outgrowth of being students of Scripture, worshipping the Lord, fellowshipping with other believers, and sharing our faith with nonbelievers.
Relevant Reminders
- Our worship is a response to what we know and learn about God. We want to worship with intelligence, with biblical understanding.
- If you find yourself out of fellowship with God, you will find yourself out of fellowship with other believers as well.
- Serving others is important—both for those we serve and for us.
- God will hold us accountable for our faithfulness and for sharing our faith.
Applicable Actions
We are to go into the world and make disciples. That means you take that newly minted believer under your wing, and help them to grow in their faith and get them acclimated in the church. You help them see what it is like to be a believer. They need to see how a Christian treats their spouse, how a Christian lives if they’re single, what kind of movies a Christian sees, and so on. They need to see Christianity modeled for them. You say, “I don’t have time to do that. I’m busy.” Well some things are worth making time for because “discipleship is not adding someone to your calendar; it’s including someone in your calendar.”
