I think I would like to use some portion of this blog on Mondays to have some follow-up to the lesson/message on Sunday nights and provide the chance to answer any questions you might have… so fire away!

In follow up – the Free Church does not take a cessationist view of the miraculous gifts and has nothing in our doctrinal statement that shows a sensitivity to them. We do believe, as you can see in the statement, that we take a Biblical perspective on everything. This means that we want everything to be done with the biblical guidelines – and only then (interpreter present, worship being orderly, etc). While the interpretations of this may be varied, we will agree to disagree on some things – put the power in the local church’s hands and let them decide. This is our only position the topic. 

Further, it would be wise to read 1 Corinthians 11-14 to get a feel for how these gifts fit into the local church. You will see quickly that the church in Corinth was really messed up. They had an issue with women in worship, as they were not obeying Scripture but were following cultural norms and causing men to stumble. Further, they were having issues with the Lord’s Supper and Paul gives them guidelines. Chapter 12 shows that Paul needs to remind the church why the church exists. It does not exist to follow certain gifts or idolize those that have these gifts. The gifts are to serve the church and help it out – not the other way around! Clearly some were using their gifts wrongly and there were some arguments brewing because of this. Paul goes on to show that love must be the foundation for all in the church (1Co 13). Lastly, he goes on to show them that each gift also must not take away from the worship needs of the church. In this, the church must not be disorderly in its worship and must be guided in a way that allows all to see God clearly, not taking away from Him!

Lastly, there are some different interpretations concerning tongues and the different forms they appear in. Here is an article to read if you have ever heard of the concept “prayer languages” and are curious. If you haven’t, you don’t have to read about it (especially if all of this is a little new and you are feeling overwhelmed – it will be here later!) right now but can come back to it when you are ready.

Questions concerning the sign gifts?

Thursdays are going to be spent working a little Theology (study of God) together – starting with the EFCA statement of faith found here.

The Evangelical Free Church of America is an association of autonomous churches united around these theological convictions:

God

1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.

So, what does this mean? We believe in one being – God who is three distinct persons existing in one (meaning we believe in the Trinity) being. He is holy (meaning “set apart” or “different than us”), perfect in every possible way, loving and eternal (meaning above or outside of time – no beginning and no end). God’s three persons are known as 1)Father, 2)Son and 3)Holy Spirit. They are all God, have and will always exist in these three persons. God is all-knowing (omniscient) and all-powerful (omnipotent) to do whatever He desires to do. He has purposed (not happen-stance) that man should be redeemed and all should be made new. So we wait for Him to do this, trusting Him and believing that He from outside of time knows best when all this will happen!

What does all this mean? God is good and exists in three persons. We don’t understand the mechanics of this, but believe it to be true. It is a great mystery that separates us from every other faith. There are ways to try to explain it that all fall short. Our God is one who is mysterious and chose to reveal things about Himself through the Bible, His Word. We call this specific or special revelation. He is also revealed in various other ways, like Creation and this is called general revelation. He is mysterious and holy – making Him different and unknown. Yet He is not unknowable to us because He is relational – meaning He wants to have a relationship with us. He showed this by sending His son, Jesus, to die on the cross as atonement for our sins and giving us the Holy Spirit to guide and instruct us. He wanted to redeem us and did this Himself. This shows His desire for relationship and now we work on this relationship to grow it deeper, by the leading of His Spirit to be “made new.” One day He will do this to the earth, whether it is ready or not, on His timing (not ours) and will lead to a new age where those who love Him are with Him forever. Do you have a relationship with Him? How are you being made new?

Passages: Luke 4:1-13, Matthew 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13

What was Jesus facing when fasting for 40 days? Our discussion took some interesting paths: 1) our own thoughts/opinions about fasting for 40 days colored our thinking 2) we wondered how “out of your mind” someone would be after 40 days – leading us to be inspired by the focus of Jesus in this moment and 3) the fact that this exercise was really hard because we don’t know what is/isn’t sin after 40 days/nights (could doubting God if you are God be considered sin?). We were not sure on where to land in this whole discussion, but I think I believe that whatever is short of sin here, Jesus felt it.

The Father and Spirit let Jesus (drove Him to it, even) go through the wilderness for our benefit and to perhaps redeem all the broken prophets that failed in these places in the past (Moses, Abram, Elijah, etc). Jesus needed to be tempted and tried to fulfill His Father’s will and to legitimize the ministry in general. What are your other thoughts?

Finally, we spent some time mulling over this equation for sin – doubt leads to disbelief leads to disobedience. The Devil is a crafty one that starts us down this path, “Did God really say…” and we fall for it too often. May this post be a blessing to you if you are struggling with sin right now. Be free, study His word and focus on what is true! Jn 8:32

To buy the study for yourself and follow along (we will be doing days 8 and 9 next week) go here

Another aspect of the writing of Andrew Sullivan was his point that we should not look to the church for answers, but to Jesus. I concur completely with the latter – Jesus should be followed and looked to for the answers. However, to demonize the church and suggest that it is not valuable at all is missing the point. Is the church at times corrupt? Yes. Does the church often miss the point? Yes. Is it an outdated institution that must be avoided to see God clearly? Not at all.

The problem is identity. The church seems to have strayed from what it was called to do. I would have you read yesterday’s post, but let me continue. The early church (within a year or so of Jesus’ death and resurrection) did not have the name “church.” In fact, “church” is just an English word denoting the Greek word “ekklesia,” which means “gathering” or “fellowship.” It represented the gathering of people – not a building you went to. They would learn together, eat/live together and desired to follow God together (Acts 2:42-47). You became a part of the fellowship by choosing to believe in Jesus and live His way – which is why the early church was called “The Way” (Acts 9:2). I love that better than “church” because the word has lost its meaning and purpose. Sure, it is still a gathering, but today’s people consider “church” to be a building – like ours here in Milwaukee. It is intended to be more than that – a community that helps one another grow into faithful followers of Jesus – does your church do this?

Which leads me to a point I alluded to yesterday. How does a church “do” this at all? How does one help someone become a more faithful follower of Christ? A sermon is great (and Biblical – Matthew 5-7 is a sermon, Acts is full of them 2, 4, 7, etc) for getting a lot of people information in a rapid and concise way. Yet, I perhaps have 5 sermons that have radically altered my walk with God – and they needed a response. Now, church is expected to be a sermon. Singing, also, is a great way to convey information and allow people a way to learn about God through words they will think/hum/sing throughout the week. Do you view singing this way? Unfortunately, singing and the sermon in a building have become what many conclude is “church.” When the singing and sermon do not meet your needs – it is time to move on. I agree with those saying that church does not help one to follow Jesus – because what once had purpose and design now has become stuck in a rut of that purpose and design. What once was used as a vehicle to help many start a walk and become a part of the real fellowship now has become the destination. This is wrong, and needs to stop.

Yet, Jesus had followers and a congregation. There was fellowship and a desire to learn and follow Him. After He taught, He sent people out – preparation called for practice. Practice led them to become practitioners and dare I say “professionals?” Now, the professionals are counted on and followed in droves – which is once again not the original intention. We were always meant to follow Jesus – to look to Him while learning from someone further along The Way. We were/are meant to take that knowledge and lead others to Him, by studying His words and spending time in a relationship with Him.

Are you doing this consistently? Perhaps it is time to start – and instead of leaving your fellowship and looking for a better preacher/musician/etc perhaps you should help others discover real community and fellowship by following Jesus together. Start reading John with some people, talking about it and searching for answers together. Pray with one another and grow together. Move away from the wrong parts of church that have lost The Way and follow Jesus – The Way He originally intended!