3 The Spirit's Sword

March 9, 1997 Northside church of Christ · 5201 NW RD · Bellingham, WA Volume 1.4

The Spirit's Sword

Continue Stedfastly

_And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and the prayers.” (Acts 2:42)

So comments the Holy Spirit on the activities of the early Christians. They were full of zeal and enthusiasm as they dedicated themselves to being faithful disciples of Jesus. They were attentive to living for Christ. Do we show the same attentive devotion as the primitive Christians?

They continued stedfastly in the apostles’ teaching. They were convinced that the apostles of Jesus were speaking the word of God which deserved to be believed and obeyed (1 Ths. 2:13). What they taught was the end of the matter in all things pertaining to life and godliness (1 Cor. 14:37; 2 Pet. 1:3). We must obey all of the apostles’ doctrine (Gal. 1:6-10).

They continued stedfastly in fellowship. They did not define fellowship as “food, fun and frolic.” In the NT fellowship among saints is spiritually defined, describing the participation and sharing of Christians in God-given worship and work (Gal. 2:9; Phil. 1:5; Phil. 4:15). We should dedicate ourselves to similar sharing today.

They continued stedfastly in the breaking of bread. This is not a common meal, but the Lord’s Supper (see Acts 2:46; 20:7). The weekly memorial of Christ’s sacrifice for the sins of the world was not neglected, it was vigorously observed.

They continued stedfastly in prayers. They knew the power of prayer and were bold to approach God with their supplications and their thanksgivings (Acts 4:24-30; 12:5).

If the Holy Spirit were describing our devotion to Christ, would He say we are continuing stedfastly? -jrp

Assignments: Sunday, March 9

Announcements: Morris Bass

Opening Prayer: Morris Bass / Dan Torres

Closing Prayer: Aaron Bass / Tim Beckley

Song Leader: Dan Torres / Rick Holt

Scripture: Shane Bass / Rusty McGrew

Lord’s Supper: T. Haith/C. Gardner/J. Bass

Building Cleanup (Mar. 15): R. & R. McGrew

· Gospel Meeting: Next Week! ·

March 16-21 - Gary Johnsen

· Remember: Mackie DeWispelaere, Sheri Stark, Keith Alsobrook (tests this week), Floyd Henderson (Debbie Price’s father, surgery tomorrow), Marietta Ashton (surgery in April), the Hollister family has been sick.

· Loren Parker has Guard duty in Omaha, NE until April 4; Debbie Price is in Phoenix, AZ.

· Men’s Class: Tuesday, 7 pm, Gary Bass.

· Women’s Class: Friday, 10 am, McGrew.

A Successful Gospel Meeting requires:

· The gospel fully preached ·

· The gospel gladly received ·

· The Christian in his place ·

· The sinner saved from death ·

SERVICE SCHEDULE

Sunday: 9:30 & 10:30 AM; 6:00 PM

Wednesday: 7:00 PM

Our Need For Authority

_Authority is a good and needful thing. It is the authority of the parents in the home, properly dispensed and followed, which insures the discipline and instruction of the next generation (Eph. 6:4; Prov. 22:6). Lawful authority safeguards citizens in many ways every day. From the dispensing of drugs to our weights and measures, we are protected from harm as we submit to legitimate authority.

There are ultimately only two sources of authority by which we all live. In things moral and spiritual, we either follow the authority of man or of heaven: “By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?...The baptism of John, whence was it? from heaven or men?” (Matt. 21:23-25) The vital question for each of us is this: “by what authority am I living my life?”

Christ has authority over us which we must adhere to in order to guarantee our spiritual safety. “All authority hath been given unto me both in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18). “And whatsoever ye do, in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Col. 3:17).

Inspired scripture reveals God’s authority for our lives. In it His authority is established by means of direct statements (commands), apostolically approved examples and necessary conclusions. Acts 15 provides an occasion when each of these means were used to prove that Gentiles are not obligated to observe the law of Moses to be saved. We must prove our moral, spiritual or religious conduct on the basis of revealed truth to have the authority of heaven supporting us (1 Ths. 5:21-22).

To “have authority” means we have the freedom to act with heaven’s approval of our lives. By whose authority do you live, heaven’s or man’s? -jrp

Relationships and Christians

Rick Holt

Servants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ; not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart, with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men, knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free. And you masters, do the same things to them, giving up threatening, knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him. (Eph. 4:5-9)

Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh, not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but in sincerity of heart, fearing God. And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ. But he who does wrong will be repaid for the wrong which he has done, and there is no partiality. Masters, give your servants what is just and fair, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven. (Col. 3:22-4:1)

How do you feel about your job? Do you enjoy it? Do you hate it? Do you try to keep a positive attitude from day to day? Christ has spoken through His word on this subject. And if we are to have the proper relationship with Him, then we must realize that now that we are Christians, Christ regulates all relationships that we are a part of.

A careful reading of the two passages above reveal our attitude toward our work. First of all we see that, as servants, we are to obey, or the idea is conveyed of an attitude of yielding to our masters. Our service is to be done in sincerity of heart, being faithful from the heart, with good will, the right intention, doing your work heartily, with vitality and strength. These are the ways that God would have us conduct ourselves in our secular work. This is the positive aspect of these passages.

But we also see in these passages the negative aspect of which we should stay away from. Our service should not be one of merely eyeservice, or, the outward appearance of our work is intended to falsify the eye of our employer, causing him to think we are working, when we are just killing time, watching the clock, and collecting our pay, with little work accomplished. When we work this sort of way, we have become men-pleasers, and we have ceased pleasing God, and will be repaid for the wrong we have done.

The key in these passages is “as to the Lord and not to men.” We serve our masters as we would serve God, with fear and trembling, from the heart, knowing that the good that we do here on earth will translate into good from God in heaven...the reward of the inheritance.

This passage also speaks to masters, or employers, or those in authority. Masters are to treat their servants justly and fairly, giving up, letting up on threatening. If you are in a position of authority over others, do you treat them justly and fairly, looking for the best solutions to problems? Or, do you depend on menacing, harsh words to compel your servants to obey. If this is the case, beware, “knowing that you also have a Master in heaven,” and, “there is no partiality with Him.”

The Christian should be the best example to the world, whether in a position of authority, or one of service. We need to remember that we are watched all the time, whether we realize it or not. We have influence over others, whether we realize it or not. Our actions tell others about us. If we profess to be Christians, certainly our work will reveal that to others. And then, they might want to know why you have that big smile every morning and have a good attitude toward work, even when work becomes a little hard or feelings are stepped on.