Marks of the New Testament Church

Acts 2:41-47

Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

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hristians today have the greatest advantages for spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ ever afforded any generation. In North America we Christians have greater wealth, greater access to mass media, greater opportunity, than has any generation before us. Yet it is fair to say that compared to the churches of centuries past we witness one of the greatest failures to evangelise our world. The church is becoming more like the world and the world is becoming less godly.

Quite often Christians ask me, “How would I recognise the church where God would have me serve?” Perhaps they are leaving the fellowship where they have worshipped heretofore or they are new to town and seeking to honour the Lord through affiliating with a Bible-believing church. The answer to that question is provided in the Word of God. Join me in an exploration of the marks of the church which are provided in the account of the First Baptist Church of Jerusalem as given in the Book of Acts.

I am able to simplify the message considerably by the observation that even a casual reading of this account alerts the reader to the fact that the New Testament church is marked in the broadest sense by three elements. The New Testament church is marked by commitment, by devotion and by transformation. We shall look at each of these elements in turn, noting the particular aspects to which that church is committed or devoted or in what ways that church is transformed. If our church is so marked we will be following in the lineage of those earliest saints, a worthy goal for which any church may aspire.

The New Testament church is marked by commitment. Carefully note first that The New Testament Church is Committed to the Christ. The members of that first church were those who accepted Peter’s message. That message separated any who might be merely religious from those who would be saved. That great message was a clarion call to faith in the Risen Son of God. Peter cited the prophecy of Joel as having been fulfilled on that glorious day when the Spirit of God was poured out on the nascent church. He pointed to Jesus as the Messiah appointed by the Living God in fulfilment of prophecies delivered throughout the Old Testament. He presented this Jesus as crucified because of the sin of all peoples and risen to give forgiveness of sin just as prophesied by the prophets of the Old Covenant. This Jesus, Peter trumpeted, is both Lord and Christ. This Jesus is both ruler of all and the promised Messiah. Thus all who heard Peter’s message were called to faith in this Jesus of Nazareth. They were called to nothing less than commitment to Jesus as the fulfilment of prophecy and as commitment to Him as Master of all.

The precise words to the people that day were: Repent and be baptised, every one of you, in the Name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. One of the awful hurts to be imposed on the church was promotion of the thought that people could be members of Christ’s Body through performance of a rite or through observance of a ritual. Though one may have had a ritual performed by his or her parents many years ago, such individuals cannot be members of the New Testament church. The New Testament church calls people to commitment to Christ as Lord. It is not commitment to a ritual which brings us into a right relationship to God, but it is submission to His Son.

The New Testament Church is Committed to Obedience. Those who accepted Peter’s message—that is, those who repented—were called to obedience. Those believing were baptised. The first command of Christ to believers is to confess Him and the means He has given for that initial confession is baptism. Here is where the hurt is perpetuated on multitudes to this day. Having had a rite performed by their parents when mere infants they assume they have been obedient to the command of Christ. Yet there is no sense of personal obedience born out of love, but rather a mere clinging to the promise that their parents performed a ritual during their infancy.

In Valemount I received a call from a young woman asking if I would baptise her children. She had been married in the church building some years before. Now God had blessed her with two beautiful daughters and she was concerned that they were not baptised. I asked to meet with her that I might explain the biblical model for baptism. Those who accepted Peter’s message were baptised. There is no word in the whole of the New Testament to indicate that infants were baptised. This was the awful hurt imposed on the church of Christ early in the history of this dispensation. Baptism does not make one a believer, but because one is a believer that one will want to be obedient to Christ. Baptism is, as Peter states so well in his first letter, the pledge of a good conscience toward God [1 Peter 3:21].

Listen again to the words of Christ recorded in Matthew 28:19,20. Make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. Discipleship is not complete until the one believing the message is baptised and taught in the truths of Christ the Lord. Obedience for the twice-born child of God begins with identification with Christ in baptism and proceeds through receipt of instruction in the things of God.

The New Testament Church is Committed to Christ’s Community. Those who accepted his message were baptised, and about three thousand were added to their number that day. In the pages of the New Testament there is not to be found even one unchurched Christian. Those who were saved through faith in Christ the Lord were baptised and also added to the church, just as in this instance those who accepted Peter’s message were baptised and about three thousand were added to the church roll that day.

I am frankly astonished at the attitude of modern westerners. Though professing to be saved too many can treat the church with despite. They are hesitant to unite openly with the people of God. They make excuses for their refusal to join. Do such people not realise that each excuse is a slander against the Son of God who purchased the church with His own blood? Do they not realise that when they resist the instruction of the Word which calls each believer to open union with the Body of Christ that they are showing that they despise the sacrifice of the very One they call Lord? We are called not only to salvation but also to service through the church of the Living God.

As a Christian you received a call both to profess Christ and to honour Him through service in His Name. Have you never read the Word of God which states, it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do [e[rgoi" ajgaqoi`" – Ephesians 2:8-10]. Paul, writing near the end of his service to the Lord instructed Titus that believers are to be ready to do good works [literal translation of e[rgon ajgaqo;n – Titus 3:1]. Again, in that same letter the Apostle insisted to Titus that Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing good works [literal translation of kalw`n e[rgwn – Titus 3:14]. An old adage says we are saved to serve.

The New Testament Church is Committed to One Another. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Of the early saints it was said, Behold how they love one another. Indeed the saints in that early day had no one to look to except for one another. The mere fact that we can afford to squabble over issues of no great moment reveals that we know little of the instructions of the Word to love one another deeply from the heart [1 Peter 1:22]. Were we committed to one another in love the vast majority of internal dissension would evaporate overnight.

In my childhood my brother and I fought like … well, like brothers. We were extremely competitive with one another—and we still are, I suppose. Though to the uninitiated we no doubt appeared intent on exterminating one another, it would not have been wise to try to harm either of us. Though permitting ourselves the luxury of internecine combat we would not tolerate an outsider trying to come between us. We were like a pair of scissors. Though the blades seemed to be moving apart at times it was dangerous to come between us because the blades would move quickly to put an end to any such interference. We were committed to one another and to our family name. I should hope that in this church we are committed to the Name of our Sovereign Head and that we are thus committed to one another.

The New Testament Church is Marked by Devotion. The forty-second verse of our text speaks of the devotion of that New Testament Church. That verse notes four specific areas in which the devotion of the congregation was exhibited. These marks should yet characterise the church which is pleasing to God and in which His Spirit lives.

The New Testament Church is Devoted to the Apostles’ Teaching. They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. That which the Apostles taught received the most careful attention of the membership of that New Testament congregation. What, exactly, did the Apostles teach? What doctrines were of such importance that the members were carefully attentive to them? Peter, in his two letters and through his influence over Mark’s Gospel, John in his three letters and the Gospel which bears his name, and Matthew in the Gospel which he penned, delineate the doctrines which defined the apostolic faith. Those doctrines are the same ones which should occupy our fullest devotion to this day. Jesus Christ is very God. He died a sacrificial death, was buried and arose from the dead on the third day. He ascended into heaven where He is seated on the right hand of the Father and from whence He is promised to return for His own people. Faith in Him—crucified and risen—secures life eternal for the one believing in Him. All these truths are known because our God has given us His Word in the Book.

Do you know these essential truths which define our Faith? Are you able to defend them? Are you steadfast in holding to these truths against the erosion of contemporary attitudes of dismissal? As a minister of the Gospel I have too often inquired of the faith of someone whom I have been asked to visit. They will sometimes respond that they believe what their church believes. When asked what their church believes they respond that their church believes what they believe. If the members of contemporary churches do not know what they believe perhaps it is the fault of the elders of the churches who are unwilling to insist upon a doctrinal standard consistent with the Word of God. New Testament Christians are people committed to the teaching of the Apostles and New Testament churches expect and insist upon such devotion.

In a day in which ordination is considered to be nothing more than a tax perk we must again heed the admonition of the Apostle to the Gentiles. The things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others [2 Timothy 2:2]. New Testament doctrine must be continuous. This is the reason I encourage members of the churches to which God has appointed me to bring their Bibles to the service with them. I expect the members to look into the Book to discover the verity of things taught. If there is no continuum of truth you have no responsibility to believe the things taught. However, if that which is taught agrees with sound doctrine—the teaching of the Apostles—you are responsible not only to hear it but also to heed it.

The New Testament Church is Devoted to the Fellowship. They devoted themselves … to the fellowship. These first saints were devoted to the fellowship—a term synonymous with the church. It is as well a term which speaks of one of the primary functions of the Body of Christ. The church should serve to reflect the glory of Christ as the members serve one another in love and build one another up through the exercise of the several gifts present within the assembly. The church should be a focus for evangelism, encouraging and focusing the ministry of outreach to the world within which the Body is situated. Nevertheless, a primary function of the Body of Christ is the mutual support and love for one another as the people share their lives in Christian fellowship.

These first saints sought opportunity to meet together as often as possible. Didn’t they ever have company visiting? Didn’t they ever spend a day at the beach or in the mountains? Didn’t they ever want to simply get away? Wasn’t the weather ever too warm or too wet to meet in Solomon’s Colonnade? I wonder how these early saints managed to maintain such devotion to the fellowship?

I am reminded of the story of an elderly saint who was constant at the services of his church, always carrying his Bible to the services. One day a younger man taunted the old man. “Grandpa,” he laughed, “why do you go to church carrying that big, old Bible each Sunday. You’re blind and can’t read a word in any case.”

The old man stopped and looking toward the porch from which that young man spoke, the old saint said, “Son, it’s true that I can’t see as well as I once did. It’s true that I’m old and have some difficulty going to the meetings of the church. But I go and I carry this Bible because I just want everyone to know which side I’m on.”

That’s it exactly! We need the fellowship of other saints; and if we didn’t need that communion with the people of God it’s important that everyone know which side we are on. There are plenty of people in this world who are openly on the side of evil. We who are called by the Name of the Son of God should be concerned that everyone knows that we are on His side and committed to His people.

The New Testament Church is Devoted to Worship. They devoted themselves … to the breaking of bread. Clearly the reference here is to the specific act of worship we know as Communion or the Lord’s Table. These early saints worshipped a risen Saviour and were devoted to Him and to the memory of His great love and they worshipped in expectation that He would shortly fulfil His promise to return to receive them to Himself. Should we do less? We are closer to His coming than ever!

Whenever we meet for the communion meal we make three great declarations. We remember the sacrifice of our Lord—an act prompted by His love for us. We confess our fellowship with one another—a fellowship which flows from our union to Him by faith. We anticipate the fulfilment of His promise to come again—a promise which renews hope and encourages us in the stress of daily living. These three thoughts—remembrance of His love, confession of fellowship, and anticipation of His return—define the Christian experience in this earth.

I confess that I am deeply disturbed whenever the Communion Meal is tacked onto the end of a service as though it were an afterthought. I struggle and labour to make it central as an act of worship, or to insure that it is primary, first in the order of service. Though the placement of the meal is only symbolic, it speaks volumes of what we do as a community of faith.

Too often the service of worship is patterned after the entertainment of this world. The worship of the church is reduced to a spectator sport in which the audience watches paid performers do their acts of devotion. One song from the heart is worth a thousand polished performances. One message delivered in fervent heat by a soul consumed with zeal for the Lord’s House is worth a thousand practised sermons. One act of devoted worship is worth a thousand performances presented to the applause of spectators.

The New Testament Church is Devoted to Prayer. They devoted themselves … to prayer. If worship is the missing jewel in the evangelical world, prayer is the missing setting. We say prayers, but we do not often pray. The prayers of the apostolic saints shame us for their admirable blend of boldness and humility. They called upon a great God and they were deeply humbled at the knowledge that He was God. Yet, because He is a great God, they dared ask great things of Him, believing that He would fulfil His promise to give them whatever they asked in His Name. You will no doubt recall Jesus’ words recorded in John 14:13, 14. I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Son may bring glory to the Father. You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it. These first saints dared believe His promise!

Listen to the prayers of those first saints. When Peter and John had been beaten on orders of the Sanhedrin, they returned to the saints and reported all that had transpired. Then the saints raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heaven and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:

“‘Why do the nations rage

and the peoples plot in vain?

The kings of the earth take their stand

and the rulers gather together

against the Lord

and against his Anointed One.’

Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform miraculous signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly [Acts 4:24-31].

In answer to prayer, the sick were healed, the dead were raised, the threats of their enemies were rendered ineffective. Most of all, Christ was honoured and souls were saved. They were bold in their witness to His Name. For all our investment in modern methods we manage to do less than ever our fathers in the faith did. Though possessing computers and laser printers and fax machines and cellular phones no preacher today is more effective than was a Spurgeon. No missionary in this day seems to accomplish more than did a William Carey or an Adoniram Judson. I suggest that the reason for their spiritual prowess, and the reason for our own spiritual lethargy, lies in devotion to prayer.

Quite frankly, the most exciting ministry of the church is the ministry of prayer. However, when did you last see an answer to prayer? I regret that I no longer keep a prayer journal as I once did, in part because of several moves in recent months. Recently as I reviewed my prayer journals from past years I recalled people saved in answer to prayer. I witnessed healing of marriages, healing of bodies, provision of needed supply for both individuals and congregations. I am not talking about some anaemic mouthing of mere god-talk as we say pious words; I refer to specific answer to specific need so that there is no question but that the Living God has heard His child’s cry. All else being equal, we shall have as much power in our Christian life as we have devotion to prayer.

The New Testament Church is Marked by Transformation. The New Testament expects transformed lives for those redeemed by the grace of God. If you are the same as when you first professed Christ you are likely not saved. Salvation is transforming. If you are the same as before you professed Him you cannot be saved. We do not change in order to become Christians, but because we are Christians we will be changed by His power. We are being transformed into His likeness even now; and if there has been no growth since first naming His Name you were stillborn.

Those saved on the Day of Pentecost were the very ones who formed that mob which had cried out to Pilate for Jesus’ crucifixion. When the Roman governor pleaded with them to reconsider they howled all the louder for His blood. As Pilate washed his hands before them and said I am innocent of this man’s blood. It is your responsibility [Matthew 27:24], the people brazenly responded, Let His blood be on us and on our children [Matthew 27:25]! Now, from that same crowd men and women were called to faith and they were transformed.

The New Testament Church is Transformed in Handling Possessions. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. These early saints looked for opportunity to show their love for one another. They wanted to share their homes, share their meals, share their praise of God who redeemed them, share their lives and relieve the need of fellow saints who suffered. I am not suggesting that they had no friends who were not Christian, but I am stating that they did love to share with other Christians.

This was not some form of glorified welfare. We well know the rule of the church which states that if a man will not work, he shall not eat [2 Thessalonians 3:10]. This was provision to assist those incapacitated by persecution and unable to provide for daily needs. Listen, the first responsibility of an individual is to provide for his/her own family [1 Timothy 5:8]. To fail to provide for one’s own family is to deny the faith before the watching world. Thus, the programme which was set in place in the early church was meant to be temporary relief to assist those suffering under persecution to obtain a measure of freedom following assault.

What is important for our consideration today is the knowledge that these first saints were deeply concerned for each other’s welfare. I must say something which may not set well with some of you, but it needs to be said nevertheless. Our first responsibility as Christians is to provide for fellow believers. We haven’t the capacity to provide relief for the entire world, but we are responsible first of all to demonstrate concern for our fellow believers.

We cannot congratulate ourselves because we gave a token gift to the United Way while ignoring the persecution of our fellow believers in Saudi Arabia and Laos. We cannot feel good because we gave to the Canadian Cancer Society while shutting our ears to the cries of suffering saints in China who enrich us by the sweat of their slavery. So long as Christian children and Christian women are sold into slavery in the Sudan and we refuse to inform ourselves of their plight so that we might relieve them, we are culpable. Until we have first cared for our own we have no obligation to the world except to preach Christ and offer His salvation to those who are lost!

The New Testament Church is Transformed in Worship. Worship was a priority. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favour of all the people. The New Testament church was a worshipping church. They came together expecting to meet God. Expecting to meet Him, they were not disappointed. I have already spoken of our expectation to be entertained in the contemporary church—and we usually get what we seek. I wonder at the degeneration of Christians meeting together in this day. There is no corporate prayer when we meet together. We laugh, we share a meal, we share a few brief moments in small talk … but we don’t speak of God together. We don’t rejoice in His presence together. We don’t worship together.

I know that some will think that I am painting with a broad brush at this moment. When, however, did you last meet with fellow Christians and become lost in wonder and awe at the knowledge that God was with you? It is rather hard to do so while watching Hollywood garbage or the latest sitcom beamed into our homes ridiculing all that is good. Worship is the furthest thing from our minds while listening to Eminem or Ricky Martin. Just as we are hard pressed to worship in the House of God because we haven’t prepared ourselves to meet Him we cannot worship with one another because we haven’t united for that purpose when we do meet. I hardly think it extreme to urge us to worship together beyond Sunday since the early church met day after day in the temple courts and house to house … teaching and proclaiming the Good News that Jesus is the Christ [Acts 5:42].

The New Testament Church is Transformed in Personal Relationships. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts. They sought out opportunities to be together so that they could enjoy one another. Loving God, the New Testament church has a deep love for those for whom Christ died.

Such love should not be seen as a matter of mere words; these saints gave evidence that they were concerned for one another. These first saints shared their lives, including their very possessions. The need of fellow saints was clearly the determining factor in providing assistance.

This mark goes beyond mere concern for one another, entering the realm of enjoying one another’s company. Here we approximate the apostolic command calling us to be devoted to one another in brotherly love, and to honour one another above yourselves [Romans 12:10]. Christians see their possessions as a stewardship and they are changed. They possess their goods and are not possessed by their goods.

Whenever someone tells me that he loves Christ but that he finds the church to be filled with hypocrites I do not hesitate to point out the hypocrisy of such a statement. John posed the unanswerable dilemma, If anyone says, “I love God,” yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen [1 John 4:20]. Those who say they would join the church except there are too many hypocrites need to know that there is room for one more.

The New Testament Church is Transformed before Society. They … enjoy[ed] the favour of all the people. The people of the society surrounding that early church knew the saints were different. One of the surest marks that we are not a New Testament church is the fact that anyone can enter our church building and know what is going to happen. Were the Spirit of God present in power no one could predict what would happen next. Outsiders entering into the presence of the people of God would be uncomfortable knowing that there was something different, something unlike anything witnessed in this world. Like Jacob of old outsiders would cry out in fear, How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God [cf. Genesis 28:17].

As it is, any politician feels free to use the holy Bride of Christ for his own ends speaking to her in coarse terms as one might speak to a common trollop. The people of this world wrap filthy arms around the Bride of Christ and speak in vulgar terms without fear of consequence. She is silenced in her fear of the world not knowing the power of Him who loved her and gave Himself for her. Were we a transformed people, however, the world would hold us in fear knowing that we were different from them and knowing that they could not explain us. Any sociologist, any psychologist, can explain the church of this day; but were the Spirit of God to again meet with us we could no longer be explained. No one can define the power of God because no one can define God.

I am always impressed by the testimony concerning the peoples surrounding that early church. The Holy Spirit killed both Ananias and Sapphira because they lied to God. (If God killed everyone that lied to Him in this day, the churches would be emptied.) What I would have you see is the response of the unbelievers: no one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people [Acts 5:13]. No one thrusts his hands into live coals; but who is afraid of ashes? Where the Spirit of God dwells in holy power the world stands in awe and confesses a sense of dread.

The New Testament Church enjoys the Blessing of God. The Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Because the church was committed to a cause greater than a denomination, greater than a manmade dream, greater than all mankind together, people took notice. Because the church was devoted to that worthy of highest devotion people listened to them. Because the church was transformed before the wondering eyes of unredeemed society, the saints were attracted to Him who transforms.

If we will see great revival movements, it will come from submission to that which is greater than our imagination. If we will see souls saved daily, it will be because we have devoted ourselves to that worthy of our deepest devotion. If we will see the Lord move in power, it will be because we have submitted to His transforming power and demonstrated that power in our very lives. Isn’t it time to begin again?

I’m reminded of the story of a woman from the Appalachian region of America who was vacationing in England. The tour group with which that old country woman travelled was touring the hallowed precincts of Westminster Cathedral. The guide spoke of the architecture of the building and its design and construction, of the notable individuals who are buried there, of the history of the great building and its symbolism to the British people as kings and queens were crowned there. As he related all these facts the old woman became more and more agitated. At last she blurted out, “Young man, enough of that! I want to know, has anyone been saved here recently?”

It’s a good question to ask of our own church. Has anyone been saved here recently? Where the Spirit of God dwells in power, God will add to the number. If we will witness continuing salvation of the lost it will be because we are committed to that which pleases Him. If we will see constant additions to the church, it will be because of our devotion to the things which really matter? If there will be continual growth it will be because we have been transformed by His power? With the Apostle I challenge the people of God. Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realise that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test [2 Corinthians 13:5]. Amen.