This segment accompanies chapter 20 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. It is an overview of the information that is found in the Bible about the Holy Spirit. It is important that this be a Bible lesson and not just some modern religious teaching. The Holy Spirit is one of the three persons within the whole of the Almighty God, yet people use the name of the Holy Spirit to teach any number of things that are not biblical.
In Baxter's book, it is easier to read chapter 20 backwards. The a modified version of the conclusion is a good place to start. There are different measures of the power that the Holy Spirit has to give. We can count four such measures in the Bible. Jesus possessed the power of the Holy Spirit without measure, so that's one level.
The apostles on the day of Pentecost and Cornelius and the people in his household were visited by the Holy Spirit in the baptismal measure, the only two instances ever. The apostles laid hands on some church members, who received the power of the Holy Spirit in a miraculous measure, although those people could not pass on that measure of the Holy Spirit's power to more and more people, so that measure along with its purpose in establishing the church passed into history.
The only unqualified promise to any and every Christian is that the indwelling of the Holy Spirit will prevail in a measure of power that we might call the normal or ordinary measure. So, after the apostolic age, no person has had the power of the Holy Spirit without measure, none has had that power in the baptismal measure, and none has had it in the miraculous measure.
The Holy Spirit is a lifetime friend and guide to the Christian. We can be fully satisfied with and humbly grateful for the ordinary measure of the working of the Holy Spirit, because of all the wonderful things that involves.
Some of those things include giving evidence of our son-ship in the family of God which is in Christ Jesus; giving us strength in our everyday living; helping us to pray, since we do need that help many times; producing good fruit in our lives, because of that indwelling; giving us a reason to seek after a godly life; giving us a great sense of hope; and providing for us a guarantee of eternal life for faithful Christians.
Just as the love of the Father is still active, work of the church goes on, and the ministry of Christ goes on, the work of the Holy Spirit continues throughout the church today. With so much to be thankful for, we can lay claim to just what the Bible teaches about the Holy Spirit and still never use up all the blessings He brings into our lives.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Giving - Stewardship
The comments below accompany Chapter 19 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. Although the chapter title varies from the previous four, the discussion is about giving as one of the five acts of Christian worship in which we participate on the first day of every week.
The church needs to teach the right attitude toward material things. People who come to Christ from the world outside all too often have the wrong attitude. Also, church members either drift in their thinking or have not seriously looked at where they stand--or where they should stand in Christ Jesus--regarding material posessions. Matthew 6:19-33 is a great place to start on the study of stewardship.
In this chapter, Baxter shows that there are two basic attitudes. The wrong one says my things are mine, bought and paid for with my effort, and I will see about giving some part back to God. The right one says all things belong to God, and how I use them makes up a big part of my spiritual life. Therefore I wll use a necessary portion while giving as I have prospered, as I am able, and as I joyfully make my plans to do (Psalm 24:1).
For just a moment, take stock of your image of a person who was faithful to God in the time when Jesus lived, or perhaps before that. There are quite a few circumstances we tend to take in stride. Yes, they gave one-tenth of everything they produced and everything they earned. Yes, they made purchases for animal sacrifices to God. Yes, they also made material sacrifices to join in the pilgrimages and observances of special days on the Jewish calendar. Yes, they left their land idle one year out of seven. Yes, they forgave debts.
If this is part of being faithful to God, where is its counterpart in Christianity? If we look for an example in the early church, we see that what people had gathered or accumulated for themselves was no longer important to them, but the welfare of the church and those who were being helped by the church was important. When I review those passages, the term esprit de corps comes to mind. Followers of Christ were laying their trophies down, because of their excitement, joy, and convction that God had come in the flesh to guide them into all truth, and they were going there together, sharing all things, bearing one another's burdens, and providing for those in need.
This image is a far cry from begrudging a small amount for the contribution each week. That in itself should teach us a lot about giving. God loves a cheerful giver, as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 9:7. In our spiritual growth, we need to understand the cheer in giving. That is the path to the right attitude in stewardship.
So, we find that giving had its place in the activity of the early church, and as it compares to the material sacrifices made by God's people under the old covenant, it is worship to the Christian. Even though much of what we read about giving in the church is in response to specific needs that arose, we can put together from scripture that giving should be periodic, personal, proportional, preventative, and purposeful. That is a good framework that will keep our stewardship healthy.
Jesus made two statements that ring in our ears when we discuss stewardship and giving. One is from His instructions to the disciples in Matthew 10:8, "Freely you received; freely give." The other is from Luke 6:38 following the beatitudes, "Give and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure--pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return." The tone of these directive statements gives us the confidence that Jesus is looking for joyful generosity in His followers.
Baxter includes a few paragraphs carrying this spirit on through life and into the death and estate management of a Christian. As we grow spiritually into the right attitude toward stewardship, this aspect of it will become clear to us. Many people die having accumulated more than is needed for the care of themselves and their loved ones. We must not forget the work of the church in this last aspect of our lives.
The discussion of stewardship can be expanded into many lessons. Paul M. Tucker has done just that with a study book called Christian Stewardship. It would be wonderful if Christians would submit to this instruction, and if young people in the church could understand its principles. Yet, as with any number of problems the church faces, problems with attitudes toward material things can only be changed by teaching the truth and demonstrating that we care. If we teach and learn these things, we will certainly be blessed in "good measure."
The church needs to teach the right attitude toward material things. People who come to Christ from the world outside all too often have the wrong attitude. Also, church members either drift in their thinking or have not seriously looked at where they stand--or where they should stand in Christ Jesus--regarding material posessions. Matthew 6:19-33 is a great place to start on the study of stewardship.
In this chapter, Baxter shows that there are two basic attitudes. The wrong one says my things are mine, bought and paid for with my effort, and I will see about giving some part back to God. The right one says all things belong to God, and how I use them makes up a big part of my spiritual life. Therefore I wll use a necessary portion while giving as I have prospered, as I am able, and as I joyfully make my plans to do (Psalm 24:1).
For just a moment, take stock of your image of a person who was faithful to God in the time when Jesus lived, or perhaps before that. There are quite a few circumstances we tend to take in stride. Yes, they gave one-tenth of everything they produced and everything they earned. Yes, they made purchases for animal sacrifices to God. Yes, they also made material sacrifices to join in the pilgrimages and observances of special days on the Jewish calendar. Yes, they left their land idle one year out of seven. Yes, they forgave debts.
If this is part of being faithful to God, where is its counterpart in Christianity? If we look for an example in the early church, we see that what people had gathered or accumulated for themselves was no longer important to them, but the welfare of the church and those who were being helped by the church was important. When I review those passages, the term esprit de corps comes to mind. Followers of Christ were laying their trophies down, because of their excitement, joy, and convction that God had come in the flesh to guide them into all truth, and they were going there together, sharing all things, bearing one another's burdens, and providing for those in need.
This image is a far cry from begrudging a small amount for the contribution each week. That in itself should teach us a lot about giving. God loves a cheerful giver, as Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 9:7. In our spiritual growth, we need to understand the cheer in giving. That is the path to the right attitude in stewardship.
So, we find that giving had its place in the activity of the early church, and as it compares to the material sacrifices made by God's people under the old covenant, it is worship to the Christian. Even though much of what we read about giving in the church is in response to specific needs that arose, we can put together from scripture that giving should be periodic, personal, proportional, preventative, and purposeful. That is a good framework that will keep our stewardship healthy.
Jesus made two statements that ring in our ears when we discuss stewardship and giving. One is from His instructions to the disciples in Matthew 10:8, "Freely you received; freely give." The other is from Luke 6:38 following the beatitudes, "Give and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure--pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return." The tone of these directive statements gives us the confidence that Jesus is looking for joyful generosity in His followers.
Baxter includes a few paragraphs carrying this spirit on through life and into the death and estate management of a Christian. As we grow spiritually into the right attitude toward stewardship, this aspect of it will become clear to us. Many people die having accumulated more than is needed for the care of themselves and their loved ones. We must not forget the work of the church in this last aspect of our lives.
The discussion of stewardship can be expanded into many lessons. Paul M. Tucker has done just that with a study book called Christian Stewardship. It would be wonderful if Christians would submit to this instruction, and if young people in the church could understand its principles. Yet, as with any number of problems the church faces, problems with attitudes toward material things can only be changed by teaching the truth and demonstrating that we care. If we teach and learn these things, we will certainly be blessed in "good measure."
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Worship - Supper of the Lord
The following comments accompany Chapter 18 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. This chapter discusses the Lord's supper as one of the five elements of Christian worship.
At some point in history the word "communion" became a complete substitute for the idea of observing the Lord's supper. Someone said to me once that he didn't need to attend worship, because he could have communion with God in his home. I knew what he meant. The word "communion," while still referring to the Lord's supper, had come to mean a different thing, something that could be done anywhere, in a variety of ways. Maybe he had an answer for this too, but I wondered how he could take part in the Lord's supper by himself at home, by his own choice, while his church presumably met to take part in it together. Of course that doesn't make sense. We come together to break bread in the supper of the Lord. We commune, but we do it by observing the supper.
Have you ever wondered how the bread and fruit of the vine happened to be in the presence of Jesus when He instituted the Lord's supper? They were part of the passover meal that was prepared for Jesus and the disciples in the "guest chamber where [they] should eat the passover." The meal consisted of a roasted lamb, unleavened bread, bitter herbs, and a drink referred to as fruit of the vine. When Jesus made His points about the bread being His body and the wine being His blood, he used only two of the items. Because these two relate back to the statements made by Jesus on that occasion, these are the elements of the Lord's supper.
The bread is without yeast. The drink is grape juice, wine, or wine with water. No one can authoritatively make a case for one meaning or the other in the phrase, "fruit of the vine," but there are some good reasons to minimize or avoid alcohol content in the observance.
We cannot find a place where Jesus said how often to observe the Lord's supper. It is in the example of the early church, in places such as Acts 20:7, that we see it observed every first day of the week, and we fail to find it observed on any other weekday. Yet, the fact that it is mentioned as a reason the church came together does not make it the only reason they met.
People have commented or behaved as if the Lord's supper was the entire sum of our worship. Perhaps it is also because Jesus said directly, "Do this in remembrance of me." Surely, of all the elements of worship, it can be the most intensely personal and central act of worship. Yet, to discount the other things we do in worship and put this element on a higher pedistal can lead to a legalistic approach, in which we touch base on one thing while ignoring other important--and necessary--things.
There is a retrospective purpose for the Lord's supper, because we do it in Christ's memory. Truly it is a living monument to a life and a sacrifice greater than any other one can name. Also there is a prospective purpose for it. We look forward to the Lord coming again, and as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, we proclaim His death "until He comes," looking forward to that day.
A lot of prayers have been lifted up through the years about whether we will eat and drink the Lord's supper "in a worthy manner." Baxter points out that the passage in 1 Corinthians 11 that mentions this does not refer to some recent deeds that are wrong but what the person should and should not do while taking the Lord's supper. Not thinking of Jesus and His sacrifice for us is what the passage warns against. Having a problem with sin might cause someone to need to straighten it out before participating, but Baxter rightly remarks that such a person then needs to take part, to be strengthened by receiving what the Lord's supper provides to a person.
It is only when the practices of the church began to be "modernized" in denominational doctrine that the Lord's supper became anything other than a weekly observance. The Biblical stand is to take part in it on the first day of every week, and that is what the church should uphold. Baxter writes that it calls us back to the central facts of the Christian religion, and that is so very true. May the church continue to honor this practice, "until He comes."
At some point in history the word "communion" became a complete substitute for the idea of observing the Lord's supper. Someone said to me once that he didn't need to attend worship, because he could have communion with God in his home. I knew what he meant. The word "communion," while still referring to the Lord's supper, had come to mean a different thing, something that could be done anywhere, in a variety of ways. Maybe he had an answer for this too, but I wondered how he could take part in the Lord's supper by himself at home, by his own choice, while his church presumably met to take part in it together. Of course that doesn't make sense. We come together to break bread in the supper of the Lord. We commune, but we do it by observing the supper.
Have you ever wondered how the bread and fruit of the vine happened to be in the presence of Jesus when He instituted the Lord's supper? They were part of the passover meal that was prepared for Jesus and the disciples in the "guest chamber where [they] should eat the passover." The meal consisted of a roasted lamb, unleavened bread, bitter herbs, and a drink referred to as fruit of the vine. When Jesus made His points about the bread being His body and the wine being His blood, he used only two of the items. Because these two relate back to the statements made by Jesus on that occasion, these are the elements of the Lord's supper.
The bread is without yeast. The drink is grape juice, wine, or wine with water. No one can authoritatively make a case for one meaning or the other in the phrase, "fruit of the vine," but there are some good reasons to minimize or avoid alcohol content in the observance.
We cannot find a place where Jesus said how often to observe the Lord's supper. It is in the example of the early church, in places such as Acts 20:7, that we see it observed every first day of the week, and we fail to find it observed on any other weekday. Yet, the fact that it is mentioned as a reason the church came together does not make it the only reason they met.
People have commented or behaved as if the Lord's supper was the entire sum of our worship. Perhaps it is also because Jesus said directly, "Do this in remembrance of me." Surely, of all the elements of worship, it can be the most intensely personal and central act of worship. Yet, to discount the other things we do in worship and put this element on a higher pedistal can lead to a legalistic approach, in which we touch base on one thing while ignoring other important--and necessary--things.
There is a retrospective purpose for the Lord's supper, because we do it in Christ's memory. Truly it is a living monument to a life and a sacrifice greater than any other one can name. Also there is a prospective purpose for it. We look forward to the Lord coming again, and as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, we proclaim His death "until He comes," looking forward to that day.
A lot of prayers have been lifted up through the years about whether we will eat and drink the Lord's supper "in a worthy manner." Baxter points out that the passage in 1 Corinthians 11 that mentions this does not refer to some recent deeds that are wrong but what the person should and should not do while taking the Lord's supper. Not thinking of Jesus and His sacrifice for us is what the passage warns against. Having a problem with sin might cause someone to need to straighten it out before participating, but Baxter rightly remarks that such a person then needs to take part, to be strengthened by receiving what the Lord's supper provides to a person.
It is only when the practices of the church began to be "modernized" in denominational doctrine that the Lord's supper became anything other than a weekly observance. The Biblical stand is to take part in it on the first day of every week, and that is what the church should uphold. Baxter writes that it calls us back to the central facts of the Christian religion, and that is so very true. May the church continue to honor this practice, "until He comes."
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Worship - Songs, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs
The following comments are to accompany Chapter 17 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. This chapter is on singing as one of the five essential parts of Christian worship.
I can't let this opportunity go by without saying what great joy it brings to me that singing somehow got to be something we do every time we worship God. I love music and singing, and I look forward to singing in church. It is one of those things for which I am always thankful.
My path to the church is an interesting one. Just before I met the people who taught me to believe in Jesus, I had been working for months restoring some old recordings from the Smithsonian for a grant project. They documented the lives of people who lived in the Okefenokee Swamp and rarely ventured outside.
The usual practice of the swamp dwellers was to sit on their porches at night and sing hymns entirely a capella. Imagine my surprise not too long after that to find a church that also kept this practice to honor the example of the early church and the directives in scripture, using a capella singing exclusively in worship.
We find authority in scripture for singing, and we should do what we see is called for, skipping--or we might say avoiding--any extra things that are not called for. So, we sing with enjoyment and with purpose in worship, and we don't feel compelled or pressured to make a production out of it or play one or more instruments.
We do feel compelled to obey God, and that's really what it's all about. Studying the New Testament, we come to the conclusion that singing was exemplified, encouraged, and reqested, only with voices, by God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the apostles. The writing of historians also supports the conclusion that the church used a capella singing.
Having said all that, I will add that I hardly ever spend much time making speeches about the exact right way to sing. We should learn it and practice it in the interest of restoring the New Testament church, but perpetuating an endless argument about it causes us to completely lose focus on the value of singing in worship. The worship of God is a human activity, not a mathematical formula that can be distilled into ones and zeroes by scientific management. I firmly believe there is some room for expressiveness in the song service, although we all understand that there are some things we will do and some things we won't do, out of respect for God.
So, let's move on to the positive things in Baxter's chapter. He starts by mentioning that in Matthew 26:30 Jesus and the disciples sang, giving the early church the example that we follow today. A topic that can become quite fascinating is what song Jesus and the disciples sang after the last supper, before going to the Mount of Olives. Many scholars say that because the Great Hallel was an integral part of the closing of the Passover observance, it is most likely the selection. Psalms 113 to 118 are Hallel (praise) verses, apparently sung from memory. If it was the Hallel, we would know another major part of what was said (sung) at the last supper.
Some scholars say that it might have been a new, perhaps shorter hymn more closely fit to the occasion. The reason they suggest that is because the group sang this hymn at the end of their supper, not the main Passover rites, and this could mean that Jesus intended to keep singing a part of worship in His church, and therefore might have done something different from the ordinances of the old covenant.
Regardless of what they sang, it is of great importance that we see Jesus singing as the events began to unfold that would lead Him to the cross. We also see the disciples singing, even though this time was rather sorrowful for them. Truly that set the tone for the church.
When Paul and Silas sang in prison, Acts 16:25, we see that singing was very much like prayer, something Christians turned to as a way of dealing with whatever came their way. Writings of Paul and James show us the purposes of singing in worship and what our task is when we sing. We teach, we admonish, we exhort, we praise, we adore, we give thanks, we dedicate ourselves, and we sing directly to God and to Christ. That's a lot to do, so it is no wonder we often spend the second highest amount of time in our worship on singing.
Nearly everyone wishes they could sing better, but it's great and it helps our worship when we give up thinking about that and just let our songs go up from the assembly in a way that is pleasing to God. One of our greatest blessings as a part of the family of God is that we will never have to quit, ever.
I can't let this opportunity go by without saying what great joy it brings to me that singing somehow got to be something we do every time we worship God. I love music and singing, and I look forward to singing in church. It is one of those things for which I am always thankful.
My path to the church is an interesting one. Just before I met the people who taught me to believe in Jesus, I had been working for months restoring some old recordings from the Smithsonian for a grant project. They documented the lives of people who lived in the Okefenokee Swamp and rarely ventured outside.
The usual practice of the swamp dwellers was to sit on their porches at night and sing hymns entirely a capella. Imagine my surprise not too long after that to find a church that also kept this practice to honor the example of the early church and the directives in scripture, using a capella singing exclusively in worship.
We find authority in scripture for singing, and we should do what we see is called for, skipping--or we might say avoiding--any extra things that are not called for. So, we sing with enjoyment and with purpose in worship, and we don't feel compelled or pressured to make a production out of it or play one or more instruments.
We do feel compelled to obey God, and that's really what it's all about. Studying the New Testament, we come to the conclusion that singing was exemplified, encouraged, and reqested, only with voices, by God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the apostles. The writing of historians also supports the conclusion that the church used a capella singing.
Having said all that, I will add that I hardly ever spend much time making speeches about the exact right way to sing. We should learn it and practice it in the interest of restoring the New Testament church, but perpetuating an endless argument about it causes us to completely lose focus on the value of singing in worship. The worship of God is a human activity, not a mathematical formula that can be distilled into ones and zeroes by scientific management. I firmly believe there is some room for expressiveness in the song service, although we all understand that there are some things we will do and some things we won't do, out of respect for God.
So, let's move on to the positive things in Baxter's chapter. He starts by mentioning that in Matthew 26:30 Jesus and the disciples sang, giving the early church the example that we follow today. A topic that can become quite fascinating is what song Jesus and the disciples sang after the last supper, before going to the Mount of Olives. Many scholars say that because the Great Hallel was an integral part of the closing of the Passover observance, it is most likely the selection. Psalms 113 to 118 are Hallel (praise) verses, apparently sung from memory. If it was the Hallel, we would know another major part of what was said (sung) at the last supper.
Some scholars say that it might have been a new, perhaps shorter hymn more closely fit to the occasion. The reason they suggest that is because the group sang this hymn at the end of their supper, not the main Passover rites, and this could mean that Jesus intended to keep singing a part of worship in His church, and therefore might have done something different from the ordinances of the old covenant.
Regardless of what they sang, it is of great importance that we see Jesus singing as the events began to unfold that would lead Him to the cross. We also see the disciples singing, even though this time was rather sorrowful for them. Truly that set the tone for the church.
When Paul and Silas sang in prison, Acts 16:25, we see that singing was very much like prayer, something Christians turned to as a way of dealing with whatever came their way. Writings of Paul and James show us the purposes of singing in worship and what our task is when we sing. We teach, we admonish, we exhort, we praise, we adore, we give thanks, we dedicate ourselves, and we sing directly to God and to Christ. That's a lot to do, so it is no wonder we often spend the second highest amount of time in our worship on singing.
Nearly everyone wishes they could sing better, but it's great and it helps our worship when we give up thinking about that and just let our songs go up from the assembly in a way that is pleasing to God. One of our greatest blessings as a part of the family of God is that we will never have to quit, ever.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Worship - The Prayer of Faith, part 2
The comments below apply to Chapter 16 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God, and they are supplemented with material from James M. Tolle's book, Prayer. Chapter 16 of The Family of God is about prayer as a part of Christian worship.
Tolle identifies a practice of the early church in the New Testament that he calls social prayer. The setting might or might not be a worship assembly, but anywhere Christians are together. We can see it in Acts 2:42. It is public or group prayer that helped define the relationship among the Christians.
Tolle says that social prayer can help with resolving conflicts among brethren, can help the group in emergencies or special occasions, and can become a characteristic of the group just as togetherness in prayer marked the early church. The early Christians each presented the interests of all the brethren, Tolle says, and they considered all of those interests their own.
If the church today uses social prayer as a way of approaching things, Tolle says it would increase the "fighting power" of the church, give us strength to meet every emergency, and lead to growth in love and fellowship.
Prayer in worship is something that Tolle finds to be an integral part of the spiritual welfare and development of Christians and a necessary ingredient for harmony and unity in the church. Leading public prayer is important work, a weighty responsibility.
Tolle suggests that prayer leaders speak audibly and clearly; offer prayers to God, not as sermons, even though they are to be heard by everyone; avoid vain repetition, which means to be careful about anything that is repeated over and over or inserted to fill time; avoid trite words and expressions, which tend to attract atention to themselves rather than to the actual request; and be sincere and natural. We should think about what we are doing and use our words rather than "aping" someone else. We are directing hearts and minds, not proving how much we know, not proving how capable we are in expressing ourselves, not being less than our best self. We try to offer prayers of good understanding.
In our lesson from Baxter, we looked at some things the disciples learned from Christ about prayer. He said not to pray like the hyprocrites, to be seen praying by lots of people. He said not to use vain repetition, because such mindlesss practices were abundant in pagan religion both then and before then. He modeled a prayer for both physical and spiritual needs. His prayer was simple. It was direct, specific, and vivid. It was addressed to God, and it included a good measure of praise to God.
There are several lessons about prayer contained in James 5:13-18. When James writes, "let him pray," he suggests the importance of individual prayer. But, he also says, "let them pray," showing that united or group prayer has significance. He mentions the prayer of faith, which denotes believing prayer that is prayed in faith. He depicts the Christians praying for one another, which upholds the concept of intercessory prayer. He mentions effective, fervent prayer, showing that a Christian should pursue his or her requests to God with some effort. He discusses Elijah praying for no rain, then for rain, which points to specific prayer. Finally, he demonstrates that Elijah prayed more than once about this Old Testament event, thus highlighting the need for repeated or habitual prayer.
If we can combine these and other lessons on prayer and work them all into our worship assembly, we will have a mighty force working for us as a congregation. The public prayer life of the congregation is fed and supported by the individual prayer lives of the members. That should cause us to ask the challenging question, "How are my prayers contributing to the life of my congregation?"
Tolle identifies a practice of the early church in the New Testament that he calls social prayer. The setting might or might not be a worship assembly, but anywhere Christians are together. We can see it in Acts 2:42. It is public or group prayer that helped define the relationship among the Christians.
Tolle says that social prayer can help with resolving conflicts among brethren, can help the group in emergencies or special occasions, and can become a characteristic of the group just as togetherness in prayer marked the early church. The early Christians each presented the interests of all the brethren, Tolle says, and they considered all of those interests their own.
If the church today uses social prayer as a way of approaching things, Tolle says it would increase the "fighting power" of the church, give us strength to meet every emergency, and lead to growth in love and fellowship.
Prayer in worship is something that Tolle finds to be an integral part of the spiritual welfare and development of Christians and a necessary ingredient for harmony and unity in the church. Leading public prayer is important work, a weighty responsibility.
Tolle suggests that prayer leaders speak audibly and clearly; offer prayers to God, not as sermons, even though they are to be heard by everyone; avoid vain repetition, which means to be careful about anything that is repeated over and over or inserted to fill time; avoid trite words and expressions, which tend to attract atention to themselves rather than to the actual request; and be sincere and natural. We should think about what we are doing and use our words rather than "aping" someone else. We are directing hearts and minds, not proving how much we know, not proving how capable we are in expressing ourselves, not being less than our best self. We try to offer prayers of good understanding.
In our lesson from Baxter, we looked at some things the disciples learned from Christ about prayer. He said not to pray like the hyprocrites, to be seen praying by lots of people. He said not to use vain repetition, because such mindlesss practices were abundant in pagan religion both then and before then. He modeled a prayer for both physical and spiritual needs. His prayer was simple. It was direct, specific, and vivid. It was addressed to God, and it included a good measure of praise to God.
There are several lessons about prayer contained in James 5:13-18. When James writes, "let him pray," he suggests the importance of individual prayer. But, he also says, "let them pray," showing that united or group prayer has significance. He mentions the prayer of faith, which denotes believing prayer that is prayed in faith. He depicts the Christians praying for one another, which upholds the concept of intercessory prayer. He mentions effective, fervent prayer, showing that a Christian should pursue his or her requests to God with some effort. He discusses Elijah praying for no rain, then for rain, which points to specific prayer. Finally, he demonstrates that Elijah prayed more than once about this Old Testament event, thus highlighting the need for repeated or habitual prayer.
If we can combine these and other lessons on prayer and work them all into our worship assembly, we will have a mighty force working for us as a congregation. The public prayer life of the congregation is fed and supported by the individual prayer lives of the members. That should cause us to ask the challenging question, "How are my prayers contributing to the life of my congregation?"
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Worship - The Prayer of Faith
The following notes apply to Chapter 16 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. This chapter covers prayer as a part of Christian worship.
If we took an empty blackboard and started a list of things we want to be sure to do in worship, speaking to our Creator to express our thoughts and feelings seems like an indispensable element. The New Testament is filled with examples of Christians praying in the worship assembly and at other times. Therefore, we know there is something important about it.
Baxter mentions that in worship, Christians are inspired and encouraged to do the things the Lord wants done. If we think about the things Jesus asked His followers to do, prayer is certainly on the list. Baxter adds that prayer is essential to Christian living, even though some Christians do not make use of prayer as God intended. He says that maybe some people have not been taught to pray. We want to worship God fully, and we search for a basis for prayer in our lives. It makes us think about how we are taught at home and how valuable it is to see the example of our parents and know that they believe in prayer.
Several examples in our lesson show that Jesus believed in prayer. Right up to His time on the cross, he prayed often and with purpose. Jesus' followers believed in prayer. Mary believed in prayer. The early church members believed in prayer and got the church started in a prayerful manner. Then they continued steadfastly in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and prayers (Acts 2:42).
Baxter calls attention to the fact that mature adult men who were followers of Jesus, after a full life of religious teaching in the Old Testament law, would ask Jesus to teach them how to pray. Jesus then told them what not to do (Matthew 6:5-8) and some things they could do (6:9-13, the model prayer). From that example, Baxter notes in particular that Jesus' prayer was rather short but still covered both physical and spiritual needs. It was simple and direct, specific and vivid, not vague and indefinite. It was addressed to God, and its simplicity gave it beauty and power.
Several characteristics of prayer for Christians become evident. Prayers should be addressed to God through Christ. They should contain both praise to God and thanksgiving. They should include confession of sins and requests for forgiveness. Also, they should include requests to God for things we need, be they spiritual or physical.
Prayers should be prayed in faith. They should be prayed by someone who is obedient to God. They should be prayed with the understanding that God's will is the most important thing.
A passage in James 5 is filled with information about effective prayer. From it we can see that individual prayer is important, as well as united prayer. Believing prayer is needed. Prayer that intercedes for others is important. Prayer that is intense or fervent, specific, and repeated in more than one session are effective.
Finally, Baxter deals with questions about whether prayers are answered. If someone studied Christ, the apostles, and the Lord's church in the Bible, they would come away with rock solid assurance that prayers are answered. Baxter uses a really good phrase to describe the effect of prayer, saying that God has promised that when faithful Christians pray, things will happen that otherwise would not have happened. This helps us to see how, in God's infinite wisdom, He doesn't always send a "yes" answer, but He answers every prayer.
If we took an empty blackboard and started a list of things we want to be sure to do in worship, speaking to our Creator to express our thoughts and feelings seems like an indispensable element. The New Testament is filled with examples of Christians praying in the worship assembly and at other times. Therefore, we know there is something important about it.
Baxter mentions that in worship, Christians are inspired and encouraged to do the things the Lord wants done. If we think about the things Jesus asked His followers to do, prayer is certainly on the list. Baxter adds that prayer is essential to Christian living, even though some Christians do not make use of prayer as God intended. He says that maybe some people have not been taught to pray. We want to worship God fully, and we search for a basis for prayer in our lives. It makes us think about how we are taught at home and how valuable it is to see the example of our parents and know that they believe in prayer.
Several examples in our lesson show that Jesus believed in prayer. Right up to His time on the cross, he prayed often and with purpose. Jesus' followers believed in prayer. Mary believed in prayer. The early church members believed in prayer and got the church started in a prayerful manner. Then they continued steadfastly in the apostles' teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread and prayers (Acts 2:42).
Baxter calls attention to the fact that mature adult men who were followers of Jesus, after a full life of religious teaching in the Old Testament law, would ask Jesus to teach them how to pray. Jesus then told them what not to do (Matthew 6:5-8) and some things they could do (6:9-13, the model prayer). From that example, Baxter notes in particular that Jesus' prayer was rather short but still covered both physical and spiritual needs. It was simple and direct, specific and vivid, not vague and indefinite. It was addressed to God, and its simplicity gave it beauty and power.
Several characteristics of prayer for Christians become evident. Prayers should be addressed to God through Christ. They should contain both praise to God and thanksgiving. They should include confession of sins and requests for forgiveness. Also, they should include requests to God for things we need, be they spiritual or physical.
Prayers should be prayed in faith. They should be prayed by someone who is obedient to God. They should be prayed with the understanding that God's will is the most important thing.
A passage in James 5 is filled with information about effective prayer. From it we can see that individual prayer is important, as well as united prayer. Believing prayer is needed. Prayer that intercedes for others is important. Prayer that is intense or fervent, specific, and repeated in more than one session are effective.
Finally, Baxter deals with questions about whether prayers are answered. If someone studied Christ, the apostles, and the Lord's church in the Bible, they would come away with rock solid assurance that prayers are answered. Baxter uses a really good phrase to describe the effect of prayer, saying that God has promised that when faithful Christians pray, things will happen that otherwise would not have happened. This helps us to see how, in God's infinite wisdom, He doesn't always send a "yes" answer, but He answers every prayer.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Worship - Listening to God
The following comments apply to Chapter 15 of Batsell Barrett Baxter's book, The Family of God. This is the first of five chapters devoted to the individual "acts of worship" or things we do in Christian worship.
Among the numerous things that Jesus is known for, one of the more enigmatic occurs when he is telling a parable and tacks on the statement, "He who has ears, let him hear." Matthew 11:15 and 13:9 are two examples. In these teaching situations, one can imagine the questions in the minds of Jesus' followers: Who is this message intended for? Some people say that Jesus is trying to be as all-inclusive as possible by creating a category of those with ears.
Most scholars agree that the Lord's intent is to show that spiritually minded people will understand the spiritual message in His sayings--especially the parables--while those with worldly minds, who figuratively speaking can be said to have no ears with which to hear the spiritual truths, would not understand the message but would see only the surface story in a parable, because they are not tuned into the moral value.
Local newspapers sometimes ask the poll question, "If you could have dinner with anyone in the world, who would it be?" I've seen several responses indicating that people would really give up a lot to spend time with Jesus. What a shame it would be for those who were fortunate enough to be in the presence of Jesus, if they turned out to be the ones who "didn't have ears," and could not understand His teaching due to shallowness or worldliness.
Baxter says the same thing happened when Robert Fulton tried to describe his idea for the steamboat to Napoleon. He got only two minutes to make his pitch, and Napoleon was not intererested. Napoleon might have had significant victories if only he had listened and understood what Fulton was trying to tell him.
So it is with this first element of Christian worship. God's message is taught and heard as part of our worship. Everyone has a part in it, even though only one person is doing the speaking. Having ears for spiritual things, we listen and absorb something that God wants us to know, and that in turn provides us with a blessing that extends through the week and beyond.
Baxter points out that this teaching is different from the other elements of worship. Singing, praying, participating in the Lord's Supper, and giving of our means are all from us to God. The message is from God to us. So, if we count the worship acts on the fingers of one hand, we might want to make the thumb represent preaching, because it is a good bit different than the four fingers.
This one element takes up a large portion of the worship time. For that reason, among others, we need to know and remember that each of us has an active role in that act of worship where the message is presented.
Some day you might be explaining to someone how to be saved, and you would tell the person that it all starts with hearing the message of Christ. We should be thankful that hearing the message doesn't stop after it is first accomplished. It goes on and on, and there is much more to be heard as we become a member of the church and begin each week in worship.
I remember as a child getting pretty excited about collecting trading cards. We had cards with baseball and football players, cards with elephant jokes, and even cards with Civil War scenes. As we mature, we try to put more meaningful things in our lives. Some people try to remember as much as they can from each sermon. Let's all hope that we can get as excited about hearing biblical messages as we used to get when we bought a pack of trading cards. Certain ones of those cards have gone up in value quite a bit as time has progressed, but none can compare with the ultimate value of the gospel.
Baxter says there are two things needed for preaching and two main purposes for it. The two things needed are man and the message. The two purposes are to bring people to the Lord and to help people who are in Christ to live by faith.
For the Bible to be in written form helps make it permanent. It is a time-tested method of bringing the message to people that a spokesman teach in the worship assembly. That goes all the way back to the time before Christ, but it seems that with the coming of new technologies, this method has been challenged as the primary means of teaching. Radio, movies, television, the Internet, wireless communication, and social media on the Web all beg for our attention, and they deserve consideration as teaching tools. Yet, when a preacher stands in a pulpit and teaches God's word, he spans the entire history of creation with the method he uses. There is a lot to be said for maintaining and upholding that skill, because in the final analysis, faith in Christ is passed from person to person, just like a spoken message.
The message is equally important. A preacher must know what he is presenting to his hearers. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4 that we have this treasure (God's message) in earthen vessels (that's us). Elsewhere, in Romans 1, he announced rather pointedly that he was not ashamed of the gospel and its power. When it is regarded in that way, the message will be worthwhile and will produce its desired effect.
The preacher has a responsibility and so do the hearers. We should remember from the last chapter that the sermon is not done until the hearers go out and demonstrate that they know how to "walk in the light" and are willing to do it.
Among the numerous things that Jesus is known for, one of the more enigmatic occurs when he is telling a parable and tacks on the statement, "He who has ears, let him hear." Matthew 11:15 and 13:9 are two examples. In these teaching situations, one can imagine the questions in the minds of Jesus' followers: Who is this message intended for? Some people say that Jesus is trying to be as all-inclusive as possible by creating a category of those with ears.
Most scholars agree that the Lord's intent is to show that spiritually minded people will understand the spiritual message in His sayings--especially the parables--while those with worldly minds, who figuratively speaking can be said to have no ears with which to hear the spiritual truths, would not understand the message but would see only the surface story in a parable, because they are not tuned into the moral value.
Local newspapers sometimes ask the poll question, "If you could have dinner with anyone in the world, who would it be?" I've seen several responses indicating that people would really give up a lot to spend time with Jesus. What a shame it would be for those who were fortunate enough to be in the presence of Jesus, if they turned out to be the ones who "didn't have ears," and could not understand His teaching due to shallowness or worldliness.
Baxter says the same thing happened when Robert Fulton tried to describe his idea for the steamboat to Napoleon. He got only two minutes to make his pitch, and Napoleon was not intererested. Napoleon might have had significant victories if only he had listened and understood what Fulton was trying to tell him.
So it is with this first element of Christian worship. God's message is taught and heard as part of our worship. Everyone has a part in it, even though only one person is doing the speaking. Having ears for spiritual things, we listen and absorb something that God wants us to know, and that in turn provides us with a blessing that extends through the week and beyond.
Baxter points out that this teaching is different from the other elements of worship. Singing, praying, participating in the Lord's Supper, and giving of our means are all from us to God. The message is from God to us. So, if we count the worship acts on the fingers of one hand, we might want to make the thumb represent preaching, because it is a good bit different than the four fingers.
This one element takes up a large portion of the worship time. For that reason, among others, we need to know and remember that each of us has an active role in that act of worship where the message is presented.
Some day you might be explaining to someone how to be saved, and you would tell the person that it all starts with hearing the message of Christ. We should be thankful that hearing the message doesn't stop after it is first accomplished. It goes on and on, and there is much more to be heard as we become a member of the church and begin each week in worship.
I remember as a child getting pretty excited about collecting trading cards. We had cards with baseball and football players, cards with elephant jokes, and even cards with Civil War scenes. As we mature, we try to put more meaningful things in our lives. Some people try to remember as much as they can from each sermon. Let's all hope that we can get as excited about hearing biblical messages as we used to get when we bought a pack of trading cards. Certain ones of those cards have gone up in value quite a bit as time has progressed, but none can compare with the ultimate value of the gospel.
Baxter says there are two things needed for preaching and two main purposes for it. The two things needed are man and the message. The two purposes are to bring people to the Lord and to help people who are in Christ to live by faith.
For the Bible to be in written form helps make it permanent. It is a time-tested method of bringing the message to people that a spokesman teach in the worship assembly. That goes all the way back to the time before Christ, but it seems that with the coming of new technologies, this method has been challenged as the primary means of teaching. Radio, movies, television, the Internet, wireless communication, and social media on the Web all beg for our attention, and they deserve consideration as teaching tools. Yet, when a preacher stands in a pulpit and teaches God's word, he spans the entire history of creation with the method he uses. There is a lot to be said for maintaining and upholding that skill, because in the final analysis, faith in Christ is passed from person to person, just like a spoken message.
The message is equally important. A preacher must know what he is presenting to his hearers. Paul said in 2 Corinthians 4 that we have this treasure (God's message) in earthen vessels (that's us). Elsewhere, in Romans 1, he announced rather pointedly that he was not ashamed of the gospel and its power. When it is regarded in that way, the message will be worthwhile and will produce its desired effect.
The preacher has a responsibility and so do the hearers. We should remember from the last chapter that the sermon is not done until the hearers go out and demonstrate that they know how to "walk in the light" and are willing to do it.
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