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foreign good morning welcome to Free Grace Baptist Church and if you're visiting even some old friends from Ontario a special welcome to uh to a whole gang there the brocking family and any other visitors that are with us today a special and a warm welcome to you in regards to announcements uh the a couple of announcements there's the Lord's Supper this evening at our evening service that's at five o'clock as well as there's still no Wednesday night bible study Pastor brother is taking just a couple weeks off over the Christmas season so uh one more week of no Wednesday night bible study it will begin once again on the 11th of January there's a baptism on January the 15th the Lord willing and just an FYI Pastor Butler will be a way from January the 17th to the 27th in case you hadn't heard he's going to be visiting the church in Honduras for a couple of weeks so that's from the 17th to the 27th so it's one Sunday that he'll not be here in cam Porter who happens to be in Surrey today preaching so that Pastor Mike Kirkpatrick can be on vacation Alberta that's where uh Pastor or that's where miss cam Porter is today so cam will will preach for us in in Jim's absence so we're happy that he can go to Honduras and by that time the curries will be there uh honeymoon in in in Honduras and they'll have a few chaperones along to make sure the honeymoon goes well I thought they will well let's uh let's begin worship this morning uh by turning in our Bibles to Psalm 118 psalm 118. Psalm 118 as a call to worship will begin at verse 19 and we will go to the end of the chapter begin verse 19 of Psalm 118 open to me the gates of righteousness I will go through them and I will praise the Lord this is the Gate of the Lord through which the righteous shall enter I will praise you for you have answered me and have become my salvation the stone which the builders rejected has become the Chief Cornerstone this was the Lord's doing it is marvelous in our eyes this is the day the Lord has made we will rejoice and be glad in it save now I pray O Lord O Lord I pray send now Prosperity blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord we have blessed you from the house of the Lord God is the Lord and he has given us light bind the sacrifice with courts to the horns of the altar you are my God and I will praise you you are my God I will exalt you o give thanks to the Lord for he is good for his Mercy endures forever amen please turn with me in your hymn books to him 148 be as in Bob 148 B I ask you to please stand thank you Merry Christmas [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign prayer and ask his Blessing and praise him for this opportunity we have to worship him this day let's pray our gracious and our loving Heavenly Father we do along with the the hymn writer of the psalm here Praise You Lord we thank you that you've given to us a voice with which to open and sing your Praises this day father thank you for life thank you for breath that you put into our lungs that we can gather here this day that we can sing praises to you that we have ears that can hear the word of God opened up here in this place we praise you father for the gifts that you have given to us abundantly as we enter into this new year we praise you father for the year past and we look forward to the year ahead father by acknowledging that that fathers your hand to Providence that by which we are granted all things even the uh even the fact that we would see 2023 is a gift is a blessing from you that that we are still gathered together as the people of God here in this place we thank you we praise you father we pray that you would be pleased to present yourself here amongst us this day we pray Lord that you would help us in our worship to be singular in our focus upon the the Triune god father Son and Holy Spirit cause us Lord this day to uh to to have that that single thought towards the things of God this day we pray Lord that we would have not just ears that would hear the word of God but that you would plow up our hearts till up the soil of our hearts father that we might that we might take in that word as well that that word that seed would fall upon a soil that would receive the word and that Lord you would do you would be pleased to to to to multiply that that word in each heart each life here this day we thank you Father for the Salvation that is ours through your son the Lord Jesus Christ we praise you father that you saw fit in time past to to send your one and only son the Lord Jesus Christ who dies as a savior for Sinners such as us and how we praise you father that you've taken our Stony hearts and removed them and given to us fleshly hearts that would seek after you and so how we pray Lord that you would be pleased to to to bless the word as it's opened up here in this place may we truly Revel in our Salvation maybe truly Revel in the the fact of sin forgiven now we have dealings with a holy God that we have dealings through the Lord Jesus Christ and through his Precious Blood cause that blood to be a to be an efficacious blood throughout this this coming year as well the father might always enjoy and rest in the fact that that our sins are forgiven they are removed from us as far as the East is from the West they are put into the deepest part of the ocean father and not through any work on our part but all through the merits and the work of your son the Lord Jesus Christ May Christ be made much of here in this pulpit in the coming year as well we thank you for you've given to us pastors and teachers we thank you for pastor brother we pray that you would strengthen him in the in in this hour as he brings your word we know Lord that not it's it's not a human word but rather it's it's the word from one highest the word from God himself and we thank you Father for the word of God and for these 66 books and do bless the opening up of the scriptures this day and give to him give to us as a congregation your holy spirit that father we would be blessed of you that we would leave this place glorifying you and made and fashion more into the image of your son the Lord Jesus Christ father for any and all who come in here this day who do not know Christ who who walk as strangers to Grace father we pray that you would have dealings with them because because the the word of God to fall upon them may the spirit of God act in their heart and in their mind upon their heart upon their mind father that they might Trust and Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ they would see that he is the only hope for Sinners is to flee to that to that Fount that is open for uncleanness that we all had to flee to Father no one came into this world better than anyone else we all came into this world as Sinners as born in that adamic sinful human nature yet father you it is you you moving Upon Our Hearts moving Upon Our Minds that that would give to us that that Faith to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ Lord what we enjoy what we have may all enjoy uh here in this place this day thank you for the freeness of the Gospel Lord that you have given to us a place an instrument in the church whereby the Glorious gospel is made known we thank you Father for the fact that that you have been with the church since its beginning you have promised to to to see the the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ continue and the Gates of Hell will not Prevail against it no matter what man may do to to put up stops as we were reminded last week that the devil is a loser that he he he really cannot uh defeat uh the the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ and it may have it at its Ebbs and flows along a long history yet father we praise you that that Christ is building his kingdom and we praise you that we can be part of that Kingdom and Lord how we pray that you pray we do pray for those who govern over us as we're reminded in the last hour that that father we might live Peaceable lives that they would that they would not harass the church in the year ahead but rather that that we would be able to exist and continue on the Lord we look to you and again it's by your hand of Providence that that we deal with things as they come and acknowledge Lord all things do come from you and so how we pray that you would bless those who do govern bless those who do watch over us that Lord they would they would uh that they would mind the the the the the things that have been allotted to them by by the scriptures by the by the word of God and and by your Authority and that father we we too would would mind the things that that relate to us as the Church of Christ we're not uh that we would not uh uh interpose on on one another but rather we would continue to exist uh in in peace and quietness here in this nation father we do pray for other nations that do not enjoy the peace that we enjoy we pray for persecuting Nations father that they would not always have to be this way but we do pray Lord that in the midst of persecution in the midst of difficulty that you would cause your Believers your children your church to to uh to to endure the persecution with joy the Lord they might say that they might give glory to you and that in giving glory to you father they might be an Evidence of of one who has truly been touched by by God himself that father they do not lash out they do not uh they do not seek revenge but rather they accept all things that's coming from your hand and we do pray Lord that you would relieve them of their difficulty relieve them of their persecution and how we pray that you would cause the cause the nations of the Earth the leaders of of the earth that are seeking to to persecute your people and your church Lord to to be relieved and to be replaced and that they would not always have to be this way we do pray Lord your blessing be upon other churches that we are familiar with we think of the church in in Surrey this day we pray your blessing upon cam as he as he brings the word there again we pray you would Empower him and empower the word of God there in that congregation bless Pastor Mike Kirkpatrick as he has a time of refreshment a vacation we pray Lord he would be refreshed by this time he would come back uh next week to his uh to his church with uh with with great enthusiasm and desire uh to continue there to to be faithful in the place where you have put him we do pray Lord we do ask your blessing upon Pastor Ryan meljars as well uh in Armstrong bless him bless the congregation there for those in Ontario as well we pray Lord your blessing to be upon them so that they would know your strength your help your Aid this day for the church in Honduras Lord we thank you that we we can pray for one another we can bring each other before the throne of grace that acknowledge the Lord that that it's your blessing that we seek most uh first and foremost for each of these churches that they would be blessed of you that you would add to their numbers as many start to be saved and they would enjoy the the refreshment of of worship this day we do pray so Lord we do pray again you would forgive us of all of our sins cleanses afresh this day and that precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ for that remaining corruption that does related each one of us and we pray that you would be worshiped that you'd be glorified here in this place this day and it's in Jesus precious name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymn books to him number 405. 405 and once again I'll ask you to please stand bring me home the church I lost me yourself hear us [Music] thank you foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign and please turn with me your Bibles to Revelation chapter one Revelation chapter one as we continue to read through the New Testament on our Sunday mornings hymn number 405 I love that King Millers is a a good selection in in preparation to reading reading chapter one of Revelation because it does talk about the church so Revelation chapter 1 beginning verse 1 we read the entire chapter the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show his servants things which must shortly take place and he sent and signified it by his Angel to his servant John Who Bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ to all things that he saw blessed is He who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep those things which are written in it for the time is near John to the seven churches which are in Asia grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before his throne and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness the firstborn from the dead and the ruler over the kings of the Earth to him who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own blood and has made us Kings and Priests to his God and Father to him be glory and Dominion forever and ever amen behold he is coming with clouds and every eye will see him even they who pierced him and all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of him even so amen I am the Alpha and the Omega the beginning and the end says the Lord who is and who was and who is to come the Almighty I John both your brother and companion in the tribulation and Kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ was on the island that is called Patmos for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ I was in the spirit on the Lord's day and I heard behind me a loud voice as a trumpet saying I am the Alpha and Omega the first and the last and what you see right in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia to Ephesus to Smyrna to pergamos to thyatira to Sardis to Philadelphia and to laodicea then I turn to see the voice that spoke with me and having turned I saw seven golden lampstands and in the midst of the seven lampstands one like the son of man clothed with a garment down to his feet and girded about the chest with a golden band his head and hair were white like wool as white as snow his eyes like a flame of fire his feet were like fine brass as if refined in a furnace and his voice as the sound of many Waters he had in his right hand Seven Stars out of his mouth went a sharp two-edged sword and his countenance was like the sun shining in its strength and when I saw him I felt his feet as dead but he laid his right hand on me saying to me do not be afraid I am the first and the last I am he who lives and was dead and behold I Am Alive forevermore amen and I have the keys of Hades and of death write the things which you have seen and the things which are and the things which will take place after this The Mystery of the Seven Stars which you saw in my right hand and the Seven golden lampstands the Seven Stars are the Angels of the seven churches and the Seven lamps ends which you saw are the seven churches amen well just a couple of comments uh we we see in the last verse you know the interpretation often people as Pastor belt remind us he preached in Revelation last Sunday last Sunday evening it's not a mysterious book there may be difficulty difficult Parts in it and uh to to understand but small portions the majority of the book is really quite easy to understand if one goes through it uh carefully as Pastor Butler did in his in his thesis so if you're all if anyone is interested in didn't know he did he did do his Theses on Revelation so you can always get that all I think he might say there's a few things he might change now but nevertheless for the most part um I think he would say it's still pretty accurate um though he's shaking his head saying no don't well I I was greatly blessed by it when I read it some some years ago but of one thing for certain we are certain of and that is that there is interpretive Keys throughout the throughout the Book of Revelation it's not as hard to understand as perhaps we think it is in the last verse we see certainly the key the Seven Stars are the Angels of the seven churches uh so therefore that you know what what are the seven what what are the Angels but uh the pastors those who would those who would teach and preach from the word of God uh just as as stars emanate light uh so a pastor would emanate the light of the Gospel as he stands in the Pulpit here and preaches the uh preaches God's word and uh and uh in the midst of the uh sorry the second part of the first um the last verse uh are the seven lampstands in which you saw are the seven churches so the the lampstands are the churches that that Christ stands in the midst of that pastors are preaching from and I think it's just it's wonderful to know that there is Christ because we read verse 12 uh that worst crises in the midst of the lamp sand so where's crises in the midst of his churches so when we gather together uh yeah this may be maybe an edifice on Wellington but it's where Christ dwells it's where Christ is here in this place this day it's not a place of entertainment it's certainly it elevates the place of church it elevates the place of worship if we consider that Christ is here in the midst of us in the midst of his lampstand and and then he goes on uh John goes on to describe the Lord Jesus Christ and and uh certainly the only uh extraneous thing to the description of Christ uh is the uh to himself is the pastors at the end he had in his uh he had in his right hand Seven Stars and we know we learned from the from the last verse what are the Seven Stars but the seven churches so there's the Lord Jesus Christ in amongst his church and he is an intricate part of the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ it's not just out there he doesn't just bring us salvation and then departs from us he is an intricate part of our Salvation certainly but also of our gathering together Sunday by Sunday he is here in the midst of us and so what are our response be probably like John in verse 17. I fell at his feet as dead let me come to the Lord Jesus Christ it's not a place of entertainment it's not a place of casualness but rather it's a place of high honor and high respect for the king Eternal that the Thrice holy God would Tabernacle with us here at free Grace Baptist Church on on Wellington Street yeah we are a place so you know a bricks and mortar but we are the place where Christ dwells and that just elevates the the position that that we have here in this church God's given us pastors and teachers God's given us a church may we use it in 2023 to glorify him and the opening of his word and the preaching of the Gospel here in this place well with that let's pray are gracious in our loving Heavenly Father we do praise you we thank you that you are and uh amongst your lampstands Lord you are with your churches and ultimately that is why the kingdom of God Marches On marches forward and we thank you Father for the fact that that you have a vested interest with your churches and you will see the kingdom of God brought brought forth uh into the Eternal State and uh we we we will not see the church diminish uh in in at the end of time but rather we will see the success of the church the church militant will will will be will Ascend into heaven one day and it is the church that will continue and how we praise you father we can be a part of that here this day we do pray your blessing father to be upon this time upon the preaching hour in the next hour that you would be with our pastor strengthen him and give to him Lord a large measure of your Holy Spirit and unction to preach your word and to preach it faithfully and we pray Lord that you would be pleased to present your help presence yourself here amongst us cause us to to to learn much to to gain much from this act and time of worship and and looking into your word we do ask your rich blessing for it's in Jesus precious name we pray amen well please turn with me in your hymn books the last hymn before we hear the preaching and that is uh to 22 D 22 d as in David I'll ask you to please stand [Music] answer me [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] foreign [Music] Lord Jesus memories he is already ready [Music] foreign foreign with me in your Bibles to a book of Acts Acts chapter 2. it's common in New Year's sermons to have sermons on resolutions this won't be a resolution but a reminder as to why we try to do what we try to do so I want to look at the practice of the early church specifically verses 40 to 47 but it is not disconnected from the larger context so I'll pick up reading in Acts chapter 2 at verse 14. but Peter standing up with the eleven raised his voice and said to them men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem let this be known to you and heed my words for these are not drunk as you suppose since it is only the third hour of the day but this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel and it shall come to pass in the last days says God that I will pour out my spirit on All Flesh your sons and your daughters shall prophesy your young men shall see Visions your old men shall dream dreams and on my men servants and on my maidservants I will pour out my spirit in those days and they shall prophesy I will show wonders in Heaven above and signs and the Earth beneath blood and fire and Vapor of smoke the sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord and it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved men of Israel hear these words Jesus of Nazareth a man attested by God to you by Miracles wonders and signs which God did through him in your midst as you yourselves also know him being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God you have taken by Lawless hands have crucified and put to death whom God raised up having loosed the Pains of death because it was not possible that he should be held by it for David says concerning him I foresaw the lord always before my face for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken therefore my heart rejoiced and my tongue was glad moreover My Flesh also will rest in Hope for you will not leave my soul in Hades nor will you allow your Holy One to see corruption you have made known to me the ways of life you will make me full of joy in your presence man and Brethren let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David that he is both dead and buried and his tomb is with us to this day therefore being a prophet and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body according to the flesh he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne he foreseeing this spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ that his soul was not left in Hades nor did his flesh see corruption this Jesus God has raised up of which we are all Witnesses therefore being exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit he poured out this which you now see and hear for David did not Ascend into the heavens but he says himself the Lord said to my Lord sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool. therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ now when they heard this they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and the rest of the Apostles men and Brethren what shall we do then Peter said to them repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the holy spirit for the promises to you and to your children and to all who are afar off as many as the Lord Our God will call and with many other words he testified and exhorted them saying be saved from this perverse generation than those who gladly received his word were baptized and that day about three thousand Souls were added to them and they continued steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine and fellowship in the breaking of bread and in prayers then fear Came Upon every soul and Many Wonders and signs were done through the apostles now all who believed were together and had all things in common and sold their possessions and goods and divided them among all as anyone had need so continuing daily with one Accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart praising God and having favor with all the people and the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved amen well let us pray our gracious God and Holy Father we thank you for the Lord's day we thank you for the Lord's House and the Lord's people and for the privilege that is ours now to come to the father through the son in the power of the Holy Spirit we confess your glory and your majesty and your righteousness we confess The Works of your hand creation and Providence and Redemption and we praise you for that Gospel of our salvation for the life and the death and the resurrection of our blessed Lord Jesus Christ we know that ultimately is what binds our hearts together here we pray that you would be glorified and worshiped now we pray for any and all who have come here that are still dead in their trespasses and sins would be awakened by the power of the Holy Spirit would see their sins before a holy God and would see Christ as the one in whom alone there is forgiveness and salvation and we pray these things in his Most Blessed name amen well as I said this isn't a resolution we should try to do this but rather a reminder that we in fact do try to do this we don't do it perfectly we certainly do it fallibly but nevertheless in light of the reading in Revelation chapter 1 if as verse 12 tells us that Jesus Christ is in the midst of the lampstands than we ought to be conscious that he is looking for certain things to be present in other words he doesn't leave us leave it up to our own imagination and our own will on how we approach him on how we worship him and so we ought to try and parallel what we find in the Bible as closely as we can so that when Christ is in the midst of the lampstand he is pleased with his people He blesses and refreshes his people he encourages and builds up his people so that we may leave from this place having met with him and having fresh resolve to live in light of the person and the work of our blessed savior in the week to come now as I said this is Peter's preaching on the day of Pentecost in Chapter 2 verses 1 to 13 the section we did not read the Holy Spirit came in great power and as a result of the coming of the spirit they began to speak in tongues the tongues were not gibberish it wasn't nonsensical but rather it was to communicate the great works of God and of course some there said oh this is only because they're drunk or they're out of their minds or they've got some problems with you know this that or the other that's why Peter says these are not drunk as you suppose he first points to the prophet Joel and says this has been prophesied in Redemptive history that the Holy Spirit would come in power upon the people of God and then closing that citation of the Prophet Joel Notice what he says in verse 21 it says and it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved he's dealing with a matter of great importance what's the opposite of being saved it's to be lost it's to be damned it's to be under the Wrath and fury and Judgment of God it is to be ultimately consigned to hell if we leave this earth in that unsaved State and so it is a most important thing that Peter addresses on the day of Pentecost so the rest of his sermon is with the intent to explain Define and describe the Lord of whom we're supposed to call upon so again look at verse 21 it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved wouldn't it be wonderful to know that Lord to understand who that Lord is so that we can call upon that Lord and be saved in fact I hope that's your mindset this morning perhaps you're conscious of the fact that you're not a Believer you're not a Christian you're not the real deal you're not one who has confessed saving faith in our blessed savior it should be Paramount in your heart mind to want to know who that Lord is so that you can by Grace believe on him so Peter points to Jesus now and he stresses the true Humanity of Christ he stresses the crucifixion of Christ the resurrection of Christ and the Ascension and current session of Christ see the gospel isn't our feeling the gospel isn't our experience the gospel isn't our emotional response the gospel is the message concerning Jesus Christ his life his death and his resurrection from the dead that whoever calls on him in faith will have everlasting life it truly is amazing we sing that hymn sometimes Amazing Grace how sweet the sound that saved a Wretch like Me I once was lost but now and found was blind but now I see so God in the gospel of his son takes hell deserving Sinners and confers upon them saving benefit he gives them The Graces of faith and repentance he gives them forgiveness of all their sin not just some of their sin but all their sin are forgiven or Is Forgiven as a result of the blood of Jesus Christ but not only is our sins forgiven it's one of those things where it just keeps getting better but there's more you can hear the salesman saying it now but there's more so you're not only forgiven of your sins but you're given the righteousness of Jesus Christ you're not only cleansed from your filth but you're clothed in his righteousness so that you can stand in the presence of a Thrice holy God so Peter preaches Jesus Christ to these Jerusalem Sinners it's one other thing we ought to recognize these are Jerusalem Sinners not trying to be an anti-semite I'm not trying to castigate the Jews but I want to remind you that it was these Jerusalem Sinners that had murdered the Lord Of Glory in fact that's where Peter ends according to verse 30 says it is with the conviction of their sin notice in verse 36 therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus notice whom you crucified both Lord and Christ so they were guilty vile helpless Sinners they were murderous wretches and yet nevertheless there is This Promise This provision in the gospel of the Forgiveness of sins and a righteousness by which even a Jerusalem sinner could enter into the presence of God almighty this is why we call it gospel it's good news not good advice not self-help not try a little harder not dig down inside of you and find that virtue and do the best that you can no look unto the Lord Jesus Christ in faith look outside yourself look outside your Works look outside your sin and look to the one in whom there is forgiveness and a righteousness that avails with God Almighty so on the heels of that notice what happens they're convicted men and Brethren what must we do good response according to verse 37 and then a better response from Peter in verse 38 repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and then this promise it's for you it's for your children it's for all those who are afar off as many as the Lord Our God shall call the good news goes out to very bad people and we see by the grace of God it sticks it Finds Its Mark in their hearts we see them convert it we see them saved by grace through faith in Jesus and then we see them at worship then we see them function together as the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ and this follows very very closely with our Lord's last command to the church before his Ascension on high he says to his disciples go and make disciples of all the nations baptize those disciples in the name of the father and of the son and of the Holy Spirit and then teach those disciples to observe all that I have commanded you and lo I Am With You Always even to the end of the age that's what's happening in the book of Acts they preach the gospel to make disciples they form churches in order to teach those disciples so that those disciples can then shine as lights in a crooked and perverse generation so that those disciples can then hold forth the word of Truth so that those disciples can then function as Salt and Light in their environment and live in a manner that is consistent with the gospel of their salvation so I want to look first at the power of the Gospel in verses 40 and 41 and then secondly the practice of the church in verses 42 to 40 7. notice in verses 40 and 41. we see that Peter continued to teach continued to preach continued to exhort that so verse 40 and with many other words he this is Peter testified and exhorted them saying be saved from this perverse generation a very necessary emphasis in our own generation be saved in other words take these things to heart you ought not to be content until you know that you by grace are Heaven bound it's an amazing thing that in North America men care very little about their Eternal Destiny we care more about college we care more about career we care more about a lot of things that ultimately don't matter but for the Apostle Peter what was absolutely crucial and necessary was to be saved to look unto the Lord Jesus Christ to come to this one who lived who died and was raised again this one whom you crucified you need to be saved saved you need to think about this children you need to consider this as we start a new year we all say happy New Year well it could quite feasibly be a miserable New Year if you are not connected to God through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ that is uppermost that is Paramount that's the most important thing is where will I go when my eyes turn in death the reality is is that for Simon Peter and the apostles in the early church it was salvation it was being right with God it was justification by faith alone it was the reality that we are sinful men and women we are sinful boys and girls we rightly deserve God's curse and wrath both in this life and that which is to come and the only way of Freedom the only way of Liberty the only way of help is through Christ the lord so he presses that upon them be saved from this perverse generation notice they then received the word verse 41 then those who gladly received his word were baptized and that day about 3 000 Souls were added to that what does it mean to gladly receive the word of God well the context answers that question for us what is a glad reception of the word of God well it is to believe the word of God notice down in verse 44 the people who are saved are described as all who believed so to gladly receive the word of God means to believe the word of God but secondly it means to repent from one's sins verse 38 repent and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins faith and repentance go hand in hand faith and repentance are two sides of the same coin you don't have faith without repentance you don't have repentance without faith you come to the altar to marry your wife you leave behind the girlfriend you come to the Lord Jesus Christ and Faith you leave behind the wretchedness the sin the depravity the wickedness that marked your life prior to your coming to the Lord Of Glory and then of course baptism or obedience to the blessed savior so faith and repentance baptism isn't a work it's not on the same par with faith and uh repentance but when somebody believes the gospel one of the consequent fruits of that belief in the gospel is obedient to the obedience to the Lord of The Gospel so notice again verse 41 then those who gladly received his word were baptized they obeyed Christ they did what Jesus said they identified publicly and the Waters of baptism with the Triune God they espoused or expressed rather or confessed their faith in that sort of public way and then notice what the tax goes on to say it's not the preaching of Peter so much it's certainly not the Free Will of man it is the power of God that brought them to this place notice the end of verse 41. well we'll read it again then those who gladly received his word were baptized and that day about 3 000 Souls were added to that how were they added to them again it wasn't through Peter it wasn't as a result of them it was the grace of God most high how does a dead sinner come to that place of light and life in our Lord Jesus Christ it's not their free will it's not the power of their will it's not the persuasion of a preaching Peter but rather it is the power of God working in by and through the means of the word to draw those Sinners out of Darkness into marvelous light through faith in our savior so God is at work in building the church there's another passage in the book of Acts that illustrates this powerfully turn to acts 13 acts 13 the apostle so Paul is preaching in a synagogue in presidian Antioch and we see that there is sort of a mixed response the Jews rail against him they despise him they want to get rid of him they blaspheme his message but we see that Gentiles are begging that they'll hear more of it next Sabbath Gentiles are begging that they'll get more of that word of God and so the Apostle concludes that we're going to turn to the Gentiles notice in 1347 for so the Lord has commanded us I have set you as a light to the Gentiles that you should be for salvation to the ends of the Earth it's always God's purpose and plan not to send his uh Jesus simply to the Lost tribes of Jacob but also as a light under the Gentiles now notice verse 48 now when the Gentiles heard this they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord and as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed why did they believe because they have been appointed by God to eternal life the Bible teaches Sovereign Grace the Bible emphasizes God's free will not Man's Free Will it emphasizes his good pleasure it emphasizes his powerful operation in The Souls of man in fact Paul says in Romans 9 16 it doesn't depend upon him who Wills or upon him who runs but on God who shows Mercy now before you say well that seems to be counterproductive that might discourage persons from from trying to come to Jesus no what an encouragement God is in the business of saving Sinners the large-hearted benevolent God of absolute Glory power and Majesty the father who sent the son of his love into this world to live and die and rise again that God is in the business of saving Sinners I know some churches will tell you well well he's in the business of saving a few Sinners there's a handful of Sinners that that may ultimately come well in the Book of Revelation we have a great multitude that no man can number from every tribe and young and people in Asia the god of Holy scripture is a and I speak in the manner of man a large-hearted god a very benevolent God a very gracious God a merciful god he's the father of the prodigal who runs from the porch to fall on that wayward son and to kiss him and to put a robe on his back and to put a ring on his finger and to put meat on his table so the grace of God most high is the effectual portion of this coming to the Lord Jesus Christ and this God is about that he is into that this is why he sent the son of his love now let's look secondly at the practice of the church in verses 42 to 47. notice the practice described verses 42 to 47 a then we'll look at the power involved but notice the practice described the first thing is that they were steadfast steadfast simply means to persist in something to hold fast to to continue in and to persevere in something steadfast is the opposite of you know well I tried it once and it didn't work and it was unfulfilling so I'm going to try something new we're never called to do something new when it comes to church life would it be steadfast whatever God has mandated for us to do at our entrance to the church that's what we're supposed to do until we exit the church in death okay where do we find this transient let's just try whatever it is we think will work that will uh jive with the spirit of the age no look at the emphasis in verse 42 it says they continued steadfastly now that word continued or those words continued steadfastly modify that means sort of control the next four words in other words they continued steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine they continued steadfastly in Fellowship they continued steadfastly in the breaking of bread and they continued steadfastly in prayers so if we asked the question in the 21st century what should churches look like it's not hard to give an answer it's not hard to supply a response it's hard when we neglect what the Bible actually says and when we look to the innovation of man when we look to the creativity of man when we ask the consumer what is it that you want in a church service but it never Dawns on us that never in the Bible are we told to ask the consumer what he or she wants in the worship of God Christ comes into the midst of the lampstands and Christ expects in the midst of the lampstands to find his church doing what he commanded her to do now if you think that's an odd statement go back to the Old Testament look at how God was fastidiously detailed in telling them how to build the Tabernacle and then how to build the temple and how to conduct themselves in the worship of God you've got the legislation in Leviticus chapters one to eight that is very detailed on how they're supposed to sacrifice but can't we just worship any old way that we want no you can't you're supposed to Worship in the way that God commanded and the church in the 21st century would find it herself to do well by coming back to this passage we always hear that I want I want to be like the early church well if you want to be like the early church you'll continue steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine in Fellowship in the breaking of bread and in prayers it's pretty simple so let's investigate these terms notice they continued steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine the teaching of the word of God now this is interesting in light of the context what happened in chapter 2 verses 1 to 13. the Holy Spirit comes in great power the people of God are speaking in other tongues this was Sensational this was dazzling this was miraculous this was something they hadn't seen before and yet when it comes to the regular life of the ministry of the church what do they want they want Peter's preaching they want more about the true Humanity of our Lord Jesus Christ they want more about the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ about his resurrection from the dead about his Ascension on high his current session at the right hand of the father they want the apostles Doctrine brethren so many in the history of the church have sought out experience Brethren experience isn't bad but it has to be regulated by the word of God or that experience could Lead You astray so many are LED Away by sentiments so many are LED Away by ecstasy so many are LED away nowadays by entertainment you know what they wanted they wanted exegesis they wanted the word of God they knew that stability they knew that strength they knew that their grounding came not through experience not through ecstasy certainly not through entertainment but they needed the word of God most high taught to them preached to them and they would continue steadfastly in it for their own strength for their own growth for their own knowledge for their own maturation maturation and growth and strength are grossly underrated in the church today when we return to the book of Ephesians we will see in chapter 4 that Christ gave gifts to the church for that reason to make the church mature to stabilize that so they're not tossed to and fro by every wind of Doctrine so they're not untethered from reality living so they don't throw up their hands and say I can't believe we're in the mess that we're in we read in the last hour a portion from Jeremiah chapter 29 and basically what Jeremiah chapter 29 is it's a letter to the Exiles that are in Babylon how do I function as an exile in Babylon my country's been conquered my temple has been sacked my city has been destroyed and now I'm a prisoner in Babylon well we noted that that letter didn't say go find some C4 go find some bullets go find some ammunition and launch a counter-revolution against these Babylonians that's not what it said said pray for the Peace of the city that you're in said to Mary said the plant it said to live it said to engage it said to be normal Ordinary People functioning in a way that is good and blessed by God Almighty but before it even gets to that God says through the prophet that he caused these Exiles to be in Babylon we need that reminder Brethren so that when we look at a look out at a world gone mad we don't ask the question well what happened here God I thought you were righteous I thought you were holy and yet we see the celebration of that which is unrighteous and Unholy God's over it all but see if you're not intimately connected to the word of God you're not going to know that you're going to be tossed to and fro by every wind of Doctrine you're going to become untethered you're going to become unstable and you're going to be easy pray for the devil and even worse at times from the devil your own wretched feelings we need the protection that God's word affords and the early church continued steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine they wanted the word of God the rest of the New Testament emphasizes this as well Romans 10 14-17 First Corinthians 21-23 second Timothy chapter four you remember Paul's last formal command of the church church Preach the word not preach experience preach feelings preach ecstasy conjure up the gift of tongues preach the word be ready in season and out of season convince rebuke exhort with all long-suffering and teaching why do we think that we don't need what God says we need we need Scripture we need doctrine we need the gospel we need the law we need all of it Genesis to Revelation all 31 000 verses and these brethren in the early church continued steadfastly in it they didn't whine about it they didn't Grumble about it they rather wanted it they desired it they had to have it Calvin says neither doth he name all manner of Doctrine but the doctrine of the Apostles they continued steadfastly and the apostles Doctrine not the false Apostles not the heritage ex they didn't have this mindset well as long as we're learning no you need to learn the truth you need to learn what's right you need to retain the standard of of sound words he says that is that which the Son of God had delivered by their hands therefore wheresoever the pure voice of the Gospel doth sound where men continue in the profession thereof where they exercise themselves in hearing the same ordinarily that they may profit with all doubt there is the church it is the doctrine of the Apostles that the people of God crave they continue steadfastly in it they don't stop that notice they continued steadfastly in Fellowship now Brethren Fellowship has come to mean that two Christian Brothers go see a hockey game together okay it's kind of fellowshipy but not Fellowship in terms of the New Testament it's Christ that binds us together not the Canucks now I'm not saying two Christian Brothers can't go watch the Canucks but to say that's necessarily fellowship and again generally speaking yeah you're not with an unbeliever Drake that's good but in terms of Fellowship the emphasis typically lies on a charitable attitude the emphasis typically lies on what we follow or what we see follow in this chapter Calvin says it's mutual society and fellowship unto alms and unto other duties of Brotherly Fellowship notice verse 45 they sold their possessions and goods and divided them among all as anyone had need that's more likely the Contours of Christian Fellowship in this particular context so they went to hockey games together they went to concerts together they they rode their bikes together they really had Fellowship no that's not the the accent the accent is on selling their property and giving that money to the apostles so that they could distribute it as anyone had need you see that in chapter four as well the same sort of emphasis there The Fellowship of the church cannot be carried out by one man it can't be carried out just by a handful of men can't just be the officers in the church it's every churchman's responsibility not only to continue steadfastly in the apostles Doctrine but in Fellowship that means looking out for the needs of others and seeking by God's grace to alleviate those needs now you might think well I got a lot of needs in my my own if you started looking out for the needs of others the needs of your own would probably dissipate quicker than not it's when we're consumed with our own needs it's when we're all about me myself and I it's when we only look as far as our navel that our needs just seem to compound daily well of course all you think about is you all you're oriented with is you all you're obsessed with is you perhaps the best thing you can do to get away from you is to go serve somebody else I know it seems counter-intuitive and I know we'd all rather say well everybody should serve me well Brethren be the change you want to be and go serve others Fellowship in this context meant something it meant being charitable it meant being loving it meant being gracious it meant being kind it meant putting your money where your mouth was if that was necessary to alleviate the problems of the downtrodden downtrodden and poor among you but notice they continued steadfastly in the breaking of bread now this isn't probably you know tacos for dinner on Tuesday this is probably the Lord's Supper the fact that there's preaching going on the fact that there's praying going on the fact that there's generous giving that is uh designed to benefit people within the context of the church suggests that what we have here in this breaking of bread is the Lord's Supper so you see when they receive the word of God what do they do they're baptized that's the one-time initiatory right to come into the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ but the Lord's Supper we do it as the church we continue in it as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup what do we do we proclaim the Lord's death until he comes so they didn't say well you know it's Sunday night it's going to be the supper I really don't need that I'm not going to come tonight that's not how the early church viewed it Brethren they continued steadfastly in it they thought this way well if as Butler has said in the past the supper isn't our service to God but rather God's service to us I'd be a fool not to take advantage of that right who owns the house of God hint the answers in the question God owns the house of God who dictates baptism as that initiatory right but the householder but guess who dictates the terms of the supper yeah that's God too so when I suggest that it's God's service to us hopefully that puts a perspective on it that you've never thought about before so it's not me coming to serve God it's me coming to be served by God Bread and Wine which serve as helpful tangible physical reminders of the Conquering work of the Savior on my behalf could it possibly be the case that the Lord God who owns the house designed this in such a way as to build up weary pilgrims along the way that's precisely why that is precisely what's in View and when God gives us these things we ought to receive them it's kind of like the Sabbath oh the Sabbath what a controversial Doctrine what about what a blessed gift from God Mark chapter 2 the Sabbath was made for the man not man for the Sabbath why do we argue about gifts why do we argue about freebies well I I guess I know the answer to that one too because we're messed up I mean God hands us great things and we complain I don't want a whole day to worship I don't want a whole day to praise I don't want a day to cease from my ordinary labors and to find my joy in the place where Christ is in the midst of God gives the gift of Lord's Supper God gives that provision to weary pilgrims God does that to remind us consciously tangibly emblematically with Bread and Wine about the Lord's work on our behalf It's a Wonderful provision from our God and the early church continued steadfastly any Apostles Doctrine in Fellowship in the breaking of bread but then notice finally they continued steadfastly in prayer prayer prayer Brethren how do we advance the cause of Jesus Christ on Earth well we need to entertain the masses nope wrong answer we need to preach the gospel yeah right answer how do we preach the gospel do we do it mechanistically no we do it prayerfully Spurgeon was once asked about the nature of his success or the the description of his success if any of you have ever heard of CH Spurgeon you'll know that he found success in gospel Ministry God blessed him God prospered him that brother preached and God saved people there's a story that one time he was testing out the Acoustics of a place that he was going to preach in and he made just cited John 1 29 Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin Of The World God saved a janitor that happened to be in the building at that particular time because of that verse so God blessed and prospered Spurgeon so somebody asked him about that one time what is it it's an answer of your success yes you can hear that right how come how come Everything You Touch in terms of gospel seems to turn to Gold what what is it it says my people pray my people pray they pray for the advancement they pray for the power of the Gospel they pray for Willing ears and willing Hearts they pray for a receptive people they pray Brethren if we're going about the task of Gospel Mission gospel evangelism seeking by the grace of God to take seriously the Matthew 28 commission we're not going to do this in a prayerless way we're going to do this in a prayerful way that's why we try to have church services where we pray we have it every other Sunday morning at 9 30. we have it every Wednesday night when we're not off at 7 30. we have that mechanism in place not as a mechanism or formulaic but because they continued steadfastly in prayer turn to the book of First Timothy chapter 2. First Timothy Chapter 2 look at what Paul says 2 Timothy in terms of first priority First Timothy chapter 2 verse 1. therefore I exhort first of all now let me give you the context look at chapter 3 at verses 14 and 15. chapter 3 verses 14 and 15. these things I write to you though I hope to come to you shortly but if I am delayed I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God which is the Church of the Living God the pillar and ground of the truth see this is why I said God doesn't call us to be Innovative or creative he calls us to be obedient okay if God leaves it up to our own Hearts guess what we'll do I mean again look at the Old Testament why do you think in Deuteronomy 12 there was an emphasis on a central Sanctuary because God knew that if the desire for worship broke out in your heart and you weren't connected to that Temple you would most likely pour it out into an idol you need God to supervise you need God to lead you need God to command in order that you don't go astray so when it comes to Worship in life if you're an artist go create go innovate you're an inventor it's in your DNA go create go innovate you're in the church I don't know how to make this any more simple obey God okay he didn't ordain rock concerts he didn't ordain you know pastors repelling he he didn't ordain you know the guy writing in on his Harley he he didn't ordain that and he calls us to conduct that we are to exercise in the house of God wherever else you are as long as you don't sin the desire for creativity or innovation takes you go with it do it enjoy but in the house of God God's the house holder someone has made a very good observation about this the detailed legislation given by God to Moses in terms of the construction of the Tabernacle notice that God never told Moses where he should put his couch in his living room he never told Moses where he should put the fridge in his kitchen he never told Moses what to put in the garage why is that because that's Moses house the Tabernacle Temple Church God's house so why do we think it's okay to come in here and put our feet up and swing on the furniture and do those things that aren't appropriate here so back to First Timothy 3 verse 15 but if I am delayed I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God which is the Church of the Living God the pillar and ground of the truth so in other words everything he says up to this point and everything he's going to say after this point he wants Timothy to employ he wants Timothy to execute he wants Timothy to obey and Carry Out in the context of the church so back to 2-1 therefore I exhort first of all that you preach with the tongue of angels to visit every old lady in your church every Thursday and have coffee with them that you be the most gregarious fellow in the community you be the guy that everybody wants to hang he doesn't say any of that what's the first order of business when Paul comes to deal with Timothy therefore I exhort first of all that supplications prayers intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men all kinds of men and then he says for Kings those are kinds of men and all who are in Authority that we may lead a quiet and Peaceable life in all godliness and reverence isn't that interesting not I exhort first of all that you seek the gift of tongues I exhort first of all that you seek the gift of of prophesying you seek the gift of of healing you seek the gift of whatever it is that's going to ameliorate the downtrodden and poor in Ephesus no I exhort first of all that the church prays that you come to the prayer meeting you open your voice or you open your mouth and you you express petitions supplications intercessions and giving some things for all men in the context of a local church what does the prophet say concerning the identification of the of the house of God it will be a house of what prayer it is identifiably the House of Prayer so it shouldn't surprise us in this brief survey in Acts 2 4 40 and following that they continue to steadfastly in the word of God they can instead continued steadfastly in charity Fellowship those things that are associated with it they continued steadfastly in the ordinances of the church they had been baptized now they're going to participate in the Lord's supper and they continued steadfastly in prayer is it any Wonder to us that when we end this brief sex yet according to verse 47 they were praising God having favor with all the people and the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved why do you think he did that because the church was functioning in such a way that the Lord was happy to save Sinners and add them to that lot so that they could be worshiped worship of worshipers of our blessed God and enjoy the communion of Jesus Christ as he dwells in the midst of the lampstad so that my brothers and sisters is the practice of the early church that is what they did we'll just quickly look at a few of the sort of implications or sort of response results of this look at verse 43 then fear Came Upon every soul and Many Wonders and signs were done through the apostles the presence of God produced the fear of God upon every soul I take that as Brethren those Believers and non-believers the fear of God was pervasive now fear of God can be understood in a negative way but there's a positive way we can understand the fear of God the fear of God is simply understanding who God is and addressing him or or referencing him in light of that fact the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge according to Proverbs in Psalm 89 we read that God is greatly to be feared in the Assembly of the Saints and to be held in reverence by all those around him just again take the marked contrast what's indicative for a good worship service today the band was incredible do you hear that guy shred on the guitar that was great Brethren that's not what's in view here it was the fear of God see the presence of God always brings the fear of God those two go hand in hand wherever you see the fear of God in the scriptures mark my words the presence of God Is Right There It Is the presence of God that inculcates that fear of God and if it's only entertainment if it's only levity if it's only happy time if it's only joking time if it's only celebratory time and there's no fear of God we might be inclined to conclude well maybe God wasn't there yeah maybe he wasn't there and I speak as a man God is everywhere in terms of omnipresence consider this sort of summary statement later in the book of Acts a bit of a summary sort of uh recapitulation of all that's kind of been going on and Luke under inspiration of the spirit tells us then the churches throughout all Judea Galilee and Samaria had peace and were edified and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit they were multiplied that's acts 9 31 they were walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit and they had peace and they were what multiplied multiplication comes when the people of God obey as the Church of God again it's not formulaic we don't put in the proper components and you know sit there with our hands out expecting to be paid off but it does seem unique and interesting that when the church is serious when the church is knowing the presence of God in it it brings that pervasive fear of God and when she's walking in the comfort of the Holy Spirit when she's in that disposition then God is well pleased to to multiply her to increase her to bless her her power in the context of the world and then one final thought before we leave verse 43 notice the signs and wonders were done through the apostles now commentators typically when they treat the book of Acts make the distinction and well we should between disc description and prescription not everything described in the book of Acts is necessarily for us today I'm just going to tell you that the days of tongue speaking and prophesying as it's defined in in the book of First Corinthians those days are gone those were revelatory gifts used by God to communicate his word before we had his word in terms of the New Testament once the New Testament comes we don't need those revelatory gifts anymore we don't need tongue speaking we don't need prophesying but in the first century they didn't have Matthew to Revelation Bound in a beautiful Cambridge Bible so they needed the word of the Lord and oftentimes when the word of the Lord came it came accompanied by signs wonders and miracles if you look at the Bible you'll see there's a lot of signs a lot of Miracles a lot of Wonders but they're always connected to persons who bring the word Moses did Miracles Moses brought the word of God the prophets did Miracles the prophets brought the word of God the apostles did Miracles the apostles brought the word of God Jesus did Miracles Jesus brought the word of God sort of a pattern God says you can trust that this is my word by virtue of the fact that Moses is able to do this you can trust that this is my word by virtue of the fact that Elisha or Elijah is able to do this you can trust that this is my word because of the fact that Paul or Peter is able to do that so in other words the emphasis isn't so much on the signs and wonders but it's on the word of God lo and behold you turn to first and second Timothy and Titus the Pastoral Epistles where's the emphasis for Paul to his ministerial companions sound Doctrine not signs not wonders and Luke tells us here in verse 43 that it was the agency of the Apostles by which these signs and wonders came now there is a sense that non-apostles did signs and wonders in the apostolic age but for the most part when you trace the pattern the emphasis comes on the revelatory word of God and the signs and wonders simply confirm that you can look up Mark 16 20 later to validate that proposition and then notice Brotherly Love in the church verses 44 and 45. verses 44 and 45 now all who believe were together and had all things in common and sold their possessions and goods and divided them among all as anyone had need their love was seen in togetherness and their love was seen in charitableness they actually liked each other and they actually wanted to help each other typically fruits of the spirit because by Nature we really don't like each other and we really aren't nice to each other so it's God's word Conquering the soul of a sinner bringing us to that place where we want to be together and where we want to be together in charity now in terms of having all things in common this wasn't State coerced this is not a proof tax for communism or socialism it wasn't even mandated by the church Acts chapter 5 ananias and Sapphira Peter essentially says when you had the property it was in your power to do with it as you willed when you sold it and had the proceeds that was in your power to do as you will the problem with ananias and Sapphira wasn't that they were anti-commies or anti-socialists it was that they lied to God Almighty there's no coercion on the part of the Apostolic Church there's no coercion on the part of the state here mandating that everybody give in the in an equitable manner our confession underscores this nevertheless their communion one with another as Saints does not take away or infringe the title or propriety which each man has in his goods and possessions and pool goes right to the throat Christ's gospel does not destroy the law and the eighth commandment is still in force there's a huge difference between a blood-bought child of God taking his provisions and giving it to another and that blood-bought child of God being coerced being forced and having someone in force that against his will that's what pool means the eighth commandment is still in force private property is a gift and Blessing by God but the people of God who have been blessed and gifted it by him typically should respond with charity and law love and kindness to their Brethren who are downtrodden and poor that's the emphasis in the passage and then their ongoing conduct notice in verses 46 and 47 so continuing daily with one Accord in the temple breaking bread from house to house that was probably eating together we see that further explained they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart they were praising God and they had favor with all the people and again just so we understand it's not the will of man it's not the power of persuasion of Peter but it's the power of God most high that is instrumental in terms of the church the last verse tells us the last section tells us the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved well in conclusion Brethren I think hopefully we learn why we do what we try to do and why we should continue to try to do what we continue to try to do this is God's word it's not going to advance the cause of Christ's Kingdom on Earth to neglect these things we've got description prescription mentioned that a little bit ago got a little sidetracked everything described is not necessarily prescribed I don't pray for the gift of tongues before I come to church on Sunday morning that's a gift that has ceased so there's that which is described verses 1 to 13 and then there is that which is described but functions in a prescriptive manner as well so when we go to the later Epistles in the New Testament and we look at Paul's emphasis say in the Pastoral Epistles we see that he emphasizes sound Doctrine we see that he emphasizes Fellowship we see that he emphasizes the supper we see that he emphasizes prayer so this description is prescriptive for the church today so imagine the person that comes and said well I want I want the tongues of 1 to 13. but the actual practice of the church in verses 40 to 47 I really don't care too much about that that's to get it exactly backward that is to get it exactly wrong we should see this description as prescription for the people of God in terms of what it is Church Life ought to be about it is an ecstasy it isn't entertainment it is an experience it isn't feeling an emotion that's going to advance the cause of Christ on Earth and it's certainly not going to advance our soul into a place of comfort and stability and strength it is the apostolic Doctrine it is the means that God has ordained it is the blessings that he has provided and it is that realization on the part of God's people to realize the Father the householder actually does know what we need and he has prescribed these things for our well-being and for our benefit and we need to take them and we need to Delight in them but on the final note the only way to enter into the practice of the church is by belief in the gospel trust in the Lord Jesus receive that word in faith and repentance the fruit of that will be obedience conduct worthy of the Gospel now it's not going to be perfect it's not going to be impeccable to be sure but there are consequential fruits from those who have come by grace to the savior in faith and with repentance and obedience to the master filling out or living in a manner that he has called us to in terms of yeah here Church Life in terms of family life and in terms of terms of Civil Life but the way in is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone believe on him and you will be saved well let us pray Our Father in heaven we thank you for your word we thank you for its Clarity here in Acts chapter 2 and I pray that you would encourage our church and help us to continue steadfastly in the things that are specified here and to do so For Your Glory and for the well-being of the the Church of Christ here and even for the Salvation of Sinners who come in amongst us and we ask this in the name and for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ amen well you can take your handbooks and turn to 568 and we'll conclude our service by singing praise to our Triune God 568 will stand as we sing together please [Music] because [Music] the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all amen father thank you for this time that we've had together I pray that you would go with us now that we would know The Nearness of God as our good and we pray through Jesus Christ Our Lord amen well please be seated for a brief time of meditation