Category: Church

As Christians we have duties and obligations with regard to membership in a local congregation. Our attitude in carrying out those duties is important. We should be enthusiastic, industrious, positive and persistent.

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Ephesians 1:22-23

Our text is often used as a proof text showing that God does not approve of denominations and the creeds of men. The church is the body of Christ. There is only one body, and therefore the concept of denominationalism is without scriptural precedent. Jesus is head over one body, not many. Too, Christ is head, and is given all authority. As such, man made creeds are inappropriate, usurping a dominion reserved only for the Lord.

Though this application is valid, these final two verses, in context, serve as the end of a paragraph that has as its theme the exaltation of God and Christ (starting with verse 15). The power of God for our redemption works in Jesus Christ, a fact proven through our Lord’s resurrection. When God exalted His Son, He sat Him on the throne in Heaven, a place of dominion over the church and all things. In this God’s great scheme is fully accomplished.

One of the ways God’s people are referred to in the New Testament is as the Family of God. The concept of family does a wonderful job of describing the relationship we share with God and one another.

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I recently came across an interesting sermon outline by Mark Copeland with the above title. There were five major points in the sermon that I thought were very good, and wanted to share with you in article form.

In Revelation, chapters 2 and 3, the Lord wrote letters to seven different churches, some of which could be categorized as weak, and some as strong. One church in particular serves to make an important point. The church at Sardis, (cf. Revelation 3:1), was admonished by our Lord, “I know your works, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead.” A congregation can have a nice building, have many members, can have a lot of “program”, and can run smoothly and still be dead.

The better way of gauging the relative strength of a church is by determining whether the congregation has the characteristics of the church as revealed in the New Testament. There are terms such as “body”, “family”, “temple”, “kingdom”, “bride”, that establish principles which are the foundation of strength among God’s people.

Continue reading “The Measure of a Strong Church” →

The aim of the Restoration Movement was the attaining of truth. Those who know and apply the truth are able to be Christians identical to those in the New Testament. Truth is knowable, and the restoration of the Lord’s church is immanently attainable.

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Ask that question, and you will get many answers. But, what does the Bible teach concerning this institution which had its part from eternity in the mind of God? The word translated “church” in our English Bibles comes from the Greek word ekklesia. The simplest definition derives from its etymology: ek (out of), klesis (a calling), hence a calling out, or in the noun form “the called out.” The term in the greek has no religious significance at all. In the New Testament the word is used to refer to any group of people called out for a specific purpose. For example, it is used of a democratically called body (cf. Acts 19:39), and of an unruly mob (cf. Acts 19:32, 41).

The term gains religious significance in that our Lord used it to refer to his redeemed; those He called out of the world, into His body. Jesus said, “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). The expression denotes a relationship sustained with Jesus. The called out, or the church, consists of those who are saved, (cf. Acts 2:47); those who are “in Christ”, (cf. Galatians 3:27).

Continue reading “What is the Church?” →

The offices found in the local congregation, as revealed by the Word of God: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Elders, Deacons (cf. Phil. 1:1), and Teaches. (See Ephesians 4:11). These offices are ordained by God for the edification of the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12).

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AOTS Number 2

How do you make a New Testament church? By planting the seed, God’s word.

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Podcast Number 30

An examination of the Bible text reveals how different the Lord’s church is from the denominations today. If a congregation of Christians follows the pattern of the New Testament, then and only then it can be known as the true church of Christ.

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The church belongs to Jesus Christ. He built it, He is its foundation, the chief cornerstone, it’s Head. He purchased it with His own blood. As such, the church owes its allegiance to Him, and should submit to His authority.

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An article in the Tuesday, August 15th issue of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram carried the above title, with the subtitle: “Shopping around for a family church—when the parents aren’t regular attendees—can be intimidating, but experts say it’s never too late to start keeping the faith.” The author of the article, Gaile Robinson, related a cub scout field trip that sent herself and her son to a Catholic mission, with a group of other little boys. The site of a larger than life cross with the Christ figure upon it, with the crown of thorns complete with painted blood, led to an awed silence among the boys, but caused her son to ask, “Whoa, what happened to that guy?”

Continue reading “In The News: Choosing My Religion” →

No matter how far you are behind the loop, podcasting is pretty easy to understand. The name is derived from Apple’s ubiquitous iPod series of personal music players, a name that has come to stand for the concept as well as the product, like Kleenex or Xerox, and like Walkman used to be.

The idea is that a podcaster makes a recording, or a show, and distributes it to people to play on their MP3 players. Listeners can fast forward, rewind and replay to their heart’s content. Think of it as TiVo for your iPod.

It’s easier than it sounds. “All you need is a PC and a microphone,” says Maffin. “You can pick up something suitable at an electronics store for $15 and the software is free.”

Producers (or podcasters) create their show on a personal computer, using a microphone for their voice. They can use easily acquired software to edit in music, effects and other recorded sounds as required…

…”There are literally thousands of podcasts on a variety of subjects,” says Willi Powell, strategic development manager for Apple Canada and a confessed podcast fan.

“Of course, it all starts with music, but you can find everything from news to religion to home improvement.”…

Jerry Langdon
Toronto Star Online (thestar.com)

Analysis:

We have started a podcast on the soundteaching.org site, and are offering a new edition of the podcast each Friday afternoon. While much of the material at the site the members have already seen (bulletin articles and sermons), these podcasts are unique to the site itself. So, they will benefit the brethren here.

Continue reading “Podcasting” →

Sermon Title: The Measure of a Strong Church
Five scriptural characteristics or Measures of a strong, vital local congregation.
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The new year is upon us, and it is a good time to establish some resolutions and goals for this congregation as we enter the year 2006.

While I know that such resolutions are somewhat arbitrary, given that there is nothing special in the date of January 1st itself, nevertheless it is as good a time as any to evaluate our progress in the work of our Lord, and to encourage in each of us a more zealous effort in the future.

In the past year we have had several long time members move away for retirement or to begin working with other congregations. While we are proud, for example, of the preaching efforts of brother Kris Braddock, his and Courtney’s association with the brethren here is missed, as are all who have left our number and moved to other places.

Continue reading “Congregational Goals” →

Though many fail to see it, the date the Lord’s church was established is significant. It is significant because all of truth is significant. It seems the height of arrogance for man to take God’s revelation, and seek to place value on the constituent parts. While some of God’s word is “milk” and some is “meat”, nothing of God’s revelation should be considered unimportant.

This can be clearly seen by Paul’s treatment of those who taught error on the subject of circumcision. Some taught that the Gentile had to be circumcised (a Jewish covenant) as a part of their Christian profession. Continue reading “Church and Kingdom” →