A Day I Saw Jesus
This post is part of the January 2011 synchroblog on the topic “The Manifestation of God.” Now, when I first read about this synchroblog – and the fact that it would fall around the celebration of the Ephiphany – I again thought about not participating.
As most of my readers know, I did not grow up in a liturgical tradition. I mean, obviously, we had our “liturgy,” but it didn’t follow the traditional Christian calendar.
Then, I thought more about the description of this synchroblog topic:
This month’s synchroblog’s theme is inspired by the season of Epiphany which begins on January 6 and ends the day before Ash Wednesday. The word “epiphany” is rich in meaning. Epiphany is derived from the Greek epiphaneia and means manifestation, shining forth, revelation, or appearance. In a religious context, the term describes the appearance of an invisible divine being in a visible form. It can also indicate a sudden realization or comprehension of the (larger) essence or meaning of something. An “epiphany” might refer to those times in life when something becomes manifest, a deep realization, a sudden recognition that changes one’s view of themselves or their social condition and often sparks a reversal or change of heart. In the spirit of Epiphany we invite you to share stories, experiences and/or thoughts about “The Manifestation of God.”
I realized that while I did not celebrate “the season of Ephiphany” annually, the idea of epiphany is central to my understanding of who I am in Jesus Christ.
In fact, it all goes back to Jesus’ statement to Peter upon Peter’s confession that Jesus was “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus said, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 16:17 ESV)
I believe that all who are God’s children have such an “epiphany” – that is, such a revelation from God that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that we have salvation, a place in God’s kingdom, and a restored relationship with God through him.
So, I began to ask myself, when have I seen Jesus Christ revealed? Immediately, so many examples popped into my mind. But one episode stood out clearest. So, I decided to share about this one particular day that I saw Jesus revealed.
Rhonna was a friend of ours. We had met her several months before in “the Neighborhood” – a government assisted housing project in our city. She was a single mother with four children who was both working and going to school to try to make a better life for herself and her family. Over those months, Rhonna had begun to share part of her story with my wife, Margaret. She had had a rough past.
Once, when we were out of town, Rhonna called us. She had gotten into some legal trouble when she tried to break up a fight. Now, because of the legal trouble, she was being kicked out of her duplex.
After several weeks of trying to get the decision reversed, the government organization gave Rhonna and her family an eviction notice. She had to move out; there was not further recourse available.
We told some of our friends about Rhonna and her situation. She had to move out of her duplex, and she had to move right away. Could anyone help?
Several of our friends showed up at Rhonna’s duplex with a couple of trucks and willing hearts. Together, we loaded the family’s belongings into the trucks and a few cars and made several trips to a local storage facility. Rhonna had decided to store her belongings and move in with her mother in a nearby city.
That night, I saw Jesus several times. I saw Jesus in the humility of a single mother who was willing to ask for and accept help – even from strangers. I saw Jesus when Rhonna began to weep and share with my wife about her struggles and her past experiences with domestic abuse. I saw Jesus in the faces of my friends who were willing to give up their evening for a complete stranger who could never repay their kindness.
I saw Jesus that night so many times and in so many ways. As our lives intertwined with his, I knew that our Father in heaven was revealing something special to us. That night, the kingdom of heaven was close.
You see, it’s very possible for God to reveal himself to us in the form of dreams or visions. But, God is present with his children every moment of every day. We should look for and expect to see “revelations” from God when his children are following him.
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Here is a list of other posts that are part of the January 2011 synchroblog “The Manifestation of God“:
Beth Patterson – A Robust Universe Includes The Botched and Bungled
Jeff Goins – The Manifestation Of God
Jeremy Myers – Pagan Prophecies Of Christ
Mark Smith – Manifestation Of God
Ellen Haroutunian – Stories of Epiphany
Liz Dyer – God Breaking Through Moments
Josh Morgan – The Manifestation Of God
Steve Hayes – Theophany: the manifestation of God
Sarah Bessey – In which Annie opens the door of her heart
Christine Sine – Eve of Epiphany – We Have Come, We Have Seen, Now We Must Follow
Tammy Carter – Paralysis In His Presence
Peter Walker – Epiphany Outside Theophany (Outside Christianity)
Leader-controlled or Free-for-all
Three years ago (wow, I can’t believe it’s been that long already), I wrote a post called “Leader-controlled or Free-for-all.” I wrote this post for one particular reason. Whenever I talk about “participatory meetings” between believers, many people assume that mean a “free-for-all.” In other words, people tend to see the two extremes of leader-controlled or free-for-all. I hope this post explains that I do not think a participatory church meeting is either leader-controlled or a free-for-all.
Also, this post follows along well with my series on edification from last last week.
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Leader-controlled or Free-for-all
For the last year and a half or so, I have been encouraging “open participation” during church meetings. However, I think there is a misunderstanding about “open participation”. Open participation is not the same thing as a “free-for-all”.
During the traditional meeting of the church, the only people who speak are the ones who have been scheduled to speak. The only people who choose songs or sing are the ones who have been scheduled to choose songs or sing. For everyone else, participation is limited to singing along and listening.
Usually, if someone has something to say, they have to tell the pastor or other leadership. The leadership will determine whether or not the other people should hear what the person has to say. Even if the person is allowed to speak, the speaking remains “leader-controlled”.
However, in several blog posts, I have suggested that leadership is not a requirement for speaking, nor is leadership alone responsible for speaking during the meeting of the church. In fact, Scripture says absolutely nothing about the relationship between speaking during the meeting of the church and leadership. Specifically, Scripture says nothing about leadership being responsible for filtering what is or is not said during the meeting of the church.
In two posts, “Who is qualified to speak during the meeting?” and “Who is responsible for speaking during the meeting?“, I said that there are only three scriptural qualification for speaking during the meeting of the church:
- The person must be indwelled by the Spirit of God, and therefore gifted by the Spirit.
- The person must speak from a motivation of love.
- The person must speak in order to edify the body of Christ.
Furthermore, I said that all believers are responsible for determining whether or not they should speak during the meeting of the church. However, this determination is not made according to a schedule or plan, but according to the work of the Holy Spirit within the life of the individual and the group.
A meeting that includes biblical “open participation” will not be a “free-for-all” where everyone makes sure that they get a word in. In fact, this type of chaos is the opposite of the Spirit-controlled order that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 14. Instead of all believers at the meeting trying to say something, Paul describes a meeting where everyone considers the other person first, to the extent that if one person is speaking, he or she will sit down if another wants to speak. This is not a “free-for-all” but an order directed by the Holy Spirit.
However, a “leader-controlled” meeting is also the opposite of the Spirit-controlled order that Paul describes in 1 Corinthians 14. Instead of only certain people being schedule to speak, Paul describes a scenario where the Spirit reveals something to someone during the meeting, and that person immediately stands up to speak. The person speaking yields the right to speak to his brother or sister.
Again, neither extreme – neither a leader-controlled meeting nor a free-for-all meeting – is described by Paul or by any other author of the New Testament. For leaders who refuse to give up their position as the sole speaker to the assembled church, it is the responsibility of mature believers to point out to those leaders that every brother and sister in Christ should be allowed to speak toward the edification of the church. For those who take advantage of open participation in order to always have their say, it is the responsibility of mature believers to help them understand they should consider others instead of themselves.
So, what I have been suggesting on this blog and in person – what I call “open participation” – is neither a meeting that is controlled by those in leadership positions, nor a meeting that is a free-for-all. Instead, I suggest that each meeting should be controlled by the Holy Spirit, and that he should be allowed to choose who will speak and who will not speak. Since he knows who is present, what gifts they have, what has been revealed to them, and what the people need to hear, I think the Holy Spirit is the only person qualified to lead and control a meeting anyway.
Silence that’s deafening
Andy at “aBowden Blog” has written a short but very good post called “Beyond the silence.”
His post goes along very well with my series on mutual edification this week.
I don’t want to copy his entire post, but I also don’t want to leave out too much. So, I’m going to copy the first two paragraphs, and then let you jump over to his blog for the final paragraph.
This is how Andy starts:
I think it’s reasonably safe to assume that any given Sunday, as we sit in the cozy buildings in which our churches gather, no matter the size of the congregation, we sit within arms reach of someone with serious marital trouble, tremendous financial pressure, a sorrower needing comfort, next to someone grappling with real theological questions, wondering what’s wrong with the health, wealth, and prosperity gospel, next to someone who experienced real victory this week, who experienced new boldness in their witness, answered prayer, victory over sin.
I’m also convinced that within the same building sits one with a word of encouragement, a word of exhortation, a song of praise, a timely Scripture, a genuine desire to listen, to rejoice, to mourn. Yet, because of the structure of the typical “worship service†in America, those needing encouragement and those ready to offer it sit in virtual silence, listening to the same two or three voices week after week.
There are two things that I’d like to say in response to this:
1) I’m glad that more and more people are recognizing this problem with the way that most churches meet together today.
2) One of the most exciting things about our church meetings (and we’re far from perfect) is when someone shares a concern or struggle or pain or whatever and people begin to gather around that person to encourage them, pray for them, offer help, etc.; sometimes right away, sometimes later; sometimes in groups, sometimes one-on-one.
Don’t forget to jump over to Andy’s blog and read the final paragraph. You won’t be disappointed.
Mutual Edification and the Church: Conclusion
This is the conclusion of a week-long series examining what Scripture says about the purpose of believers gathering together. In short, I believe that Scripture shows through example, principle, and command that Jesus’ disciples should seek to build up (“edify”) one another (“mutual”) whenever they get together (“church”).
I began with an “introduction” to this series. Next I showed several “examples” from the Book of Acts of believers getting together in which several people took part in encouraging or strengthening the church. These examples are primarily in narrative form. In the next post in the series, I looked for “principles” in Scripture that would help us understand our mutual responsibility of building up one another. These principles were usually given in command form (not narrative), but they are not specifically given in the context of believers gathering together. In the fourth post, I discussed two “commands” in Scripture related to mutual edification that are specifically given in the context of believers gathering together.
These examples, principles, and commands cover almost the entire time period of the New Testament, from not long after Jesus’ ascension until the end of Paul’s third missionary journey. They either describe or are written to different groups of believers in different places at different times with different backgrounds. While most of the passages I examined come from Luke or Paul, there are similar passages by other authors.
For a quick example, consider the teaching about spiritual gifts from Peter. He writes:
As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies – in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. (1 Peter 4:10-11 ESV)
While Peter does not say specifically when, where, and how these gifts are to be used, it is in a context of caring for other believers (“keep loving one another” in 1 Peter 4:8 and “show hospitality to one another” in 1 Peter 4:9). If Peter agrees with Paul (which seems likely), the he would also conclude that God gives spiritual gifts for the benefit of others (see 1 Corinthians 12:4-7).
When Christians talk about the church meeting – “worship service” if you prefer – the assumption is usually that believers should gather together to worship. Recognizing that Christians are to worship God always in all aspects of life, the reason for coming together is sometimes termed “corporate worship.”
Unfortunately, I think this leads to misunderstandings and confusion. Yes, believers are to worship when the meet with other believers, simply because every aspect of their life is to be lived as worship to God.
Instead of asking “should we worship?” when we gather together, we should be asking “how do we worship when we gather together?” We demonstrate our worship to God when we obey him and give ourselves to him. According to Scripture, when the church meets together (that is, whenever two or more disciples of Jesus are together), we worship (that is, we obey God) when they mutually edify one another.
Both parts of the term “mutual edification” are important. The whole church should be involved in the meeting, and whatever happens should serve to “build up” the church.
Unfortunately, the meaning and extent of the term “edify” or “build up” is too big for the final part of this blog post. Suffice it to say (for now) that edification (at least) means helping our brothers and sisters live in way that honors God or helping our brothers and sisters live more like Jesus Christ. While this might include teaching or singing, it goes far beyond teaching or singing.
There are many “commands” accepted by Christians today that are only found in examples, principles, or commands. However, the concept of meeting together for the purpose of mutual edification is found in all three: examples, principles, and commands. What else do we need before we start following these examples, principles, and commands when we meet together?
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Mutual Edification and the Church Series
Mutual Edification and the Church: Command
I believe that Scripture clearly points out that the church should assemble (whenever believers get together) for the purpose of “mutual edification.” Scripture does not tell us exactly what actions should be taken when the church meets. But, in this series, I am attempting to show that Scripture demonstrates the purpose of the gathering of the church through example, principle, and command. So far, I have “introduced” this series, and I’ve presented some “examples” and “principles” found in Scripture. In this post, I examine commands in Scripture related to the church gathering together for the purpose of “mutual edification.”
As I mentioned in a previous post, I make a distinction between “commands” and “principles” based on context. “Commands” are given specifically in the context of believers gathering together, while “principles” are not.
There are at least two specific passages in which commands are given related to believers gathering together for the purpose of mutual edification. The first is found in 1 Corinthians 14 – the entire chapter – and specifically verse 26:
What then, brothers? When you come together, each one has a hymn, a lesson, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. Let all things be done for building up. (1 Corinthians 14:26 ESV)
Before this passage, Paul talks about the superiority of prophecy compared to speaking in tongues when the church is meeting together. He says that prophecy is superior in that context because prophecy builds up the church while speaking in tongues (without interpretation) only builds up the tongues speaker.
Following 1 Corinthians 14:26, Paul gives a few guidelines related to prophecy and tongues speaking. Again, priority is given to prophecy because through prophecy the church is directly edified, while through tongues speaking (without interpretation) only the tongues speaker is edified.
It is also clear in this chapter (especially 1 Corinthians 14:27-32) that Paul expects several people to take part in speaking while the church meets. He even provides for the possibility that someone may speak even though that person had not planned or prepared to speak (at least where prophecy is concerned, but I believe this applies to any speaking that provides direct edification, such as teaching) (see 1 Corinthians 14:30).
The wording in the ESV at the start of this verse (“When you come together…”) is a little misleading. The verb “come together” is subjunctive with a subjunctive conjunction. Together, they should probably be translated “Whenever you come together…” Thus, Paul is making an appeal for working together for the purpose of edification any time and on any occasion that the believers meet together.
A similar passage is found in the Book of Hebrews:
Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:19-25 ESV)
I included the entire paragraph because it sets the instructions of considering one another, encouraging one another, and not forsaking to meet together in the context of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross and his position as our high priest.
In this passage, the author specifically says that the believers should think about one another so that they can provoke (a very strong word, usually used in the negative) one another to love and good works. He relates that this cannot happen if they stop meeting with other believers, but that it can happen if they encourage one another. (Although the ESV translates the “one another” with “stir up” instead of “consider,” the term “one another” is actually the direct object of the verb “consider.”)
As far as the mutuality of this passage is concerned, it would seem that the same ones who are instructed to “draw near to God” and to “hold fast the confession of our hope” are also the ones who are instructed to “consider one another to stir up love and good works.” In other words, this applies to all believers, not just certain ones.
In the context of the Book of Hebrews, the idea of “encouragement” includes both moving away from certain things (i.e., sin and deceit) and toward other things (i.e., love and good works). This is very similar to the idea of “building up” that we’ve seen before, even though the term “edify” is not used here.
So, in this two passages at least, we see clear commands within the context of gathering together that believers should work together in order to help one another in their walk with God – i.e., build up one another or encourage one another.
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Mutual Edification and the Church Series
Mutual Edification and the Church: Principle
I believe that Scripture clearly points out that the church should assemble (whenever believers get together) for the purpose of “mutual edification.” Scripture does not tell us exactly what actions should be taken when the church meets. But, in this series, I am attempting to show that Scripture demonstrates the purpose of the gathering of the church through example, principle, and command. So far, I have “introduced” this series, and I’ve presented some “examples.” In this post, I examine examples in Scripture of the church gathering together for the purpose of “mutual edification.”
While many of these “principles” are actually “commands,” I’m separating them for one particular reason. The passages that I list as “commands” are specifically given in the context of believers gathering together, while the passages I list as “principles” are not given in that particular context.
When it comes to finding principles relates to believers gathering together, the main problem is deciding where to start and where to stop. It is almost impossible to read one paragraph of the New Testament without finding some principle or instruction related to the relationships between brothers and sisters in Christ.
Consider, for example, and as a starting point, the “one another” commands of Scripture. These are always given within the context of two or more disciples of Jesus being together. How can you have a “one another” without having more than one, and thus a meeting of believers, and thus, the church. Here a few that specifically seem to apply to “building up” one another (although all of the do):
Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing. (1 Thessalonians 5:11 ESV)
But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. (Hebrews 3:13 ESV)
I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another. (Romans 15:14 ESV)
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. (Galatians 5:13 ESV)
Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16 ESV)
As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace… (1 Peter 4:10 ESV)
In would be difficult to understand how these commands could be carried out when believers are not meeting together. And, if some want to suggest a special type of meeting of brothers and sisters (“Sunday worship service”) – a differentiation which is not found in Scripture – it would still seem that these principles would apply.
There are a few passages that specifically show principles of interrelationships between believers that lead to mutual edification.
We ask you, brothers, to respect those who labor among you and are over you [who lead you] in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love because of their work. Be at peace among yourselves. And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. (1 Thessalonians 5:12-15 ESV)
In this passage, Paul does not specifically state that these things should happen when the church is gathered together. But, the instructions here cannot be carried out without more than one disciple of Jesus being together. It would even seem that the instructions for all the “brothers (and sisters)” would be in the same context as “those who labor among you.”
Here is another one that shows even more clearly that the church must work together (“mutual”) in order to build one another up (“edification”):
So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Ephesians 4:11-16 ESV)
In this passage, Paul clearly shows the important principle of mutual edification – that the whole church must work together in order to build themselves up in Christ.
Through the “one another” passages and many others, it seems that mutual edification is a consistent principle throughout Scripture. The authors of Scripture expected the church to work together in order to help one another in their life in Christ.
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Mutual Edification and the Church Series
Cullmann: Edification, the Body of Christ, and Christ Himself
In my previous post “Cullmann on ‘The Aim of the Service,'” I quoted Oscar Cullmann’s book Early Christian Worship (London: SCM Press, 1953). In that book, Cullmann concludes that there are many, many different activities that happened when the church met together. He also concludes that the “aim” (purpose) of that gathering is edification (or “building up”).
Cullmann points out that the only limitation that Paul places on the wealth of activities that might happen when the church meets is the filter of edification.
Now, a few pages later, I come across another section of Cullmann’s book in which he discusses the work of edification in the church gathering. Cullmann connect edification with the formation of the body of Christ and the presence of Christ himself when the church meets:
First, what is the specifically Christian aim of the gathering for worship? The occasions serve for the ‘building up’ of the community as the Body of Christ, the spiritual body of the risen Lord. The Church as the body of this Christ must take shape in the gatherings of the community. The Church is built up in virtue of its coming together. But because the Church, which is thus built up, is the spiritual body of the risen Christ himself, we can also say that Christ is shown forth in the gathering of the community: where two or three are gathered in Christ’s name, there is Christ in the midst of them, indeed, in such a way that he takes form in the gathering itself. Everything which furthers a ‘building up’, so understood, and only this, belongs to the Christian service of worship. This aim purifies the Christian service of those elements which serve only to satisfy profane, egocentric human needs, but at the same time excludes all excessive enthusiasm which would empty the service in its attempt to purify. The purpose of building up the Church as the body of Christ is served by all the different parts we have identified in the early Christian gatherings: breaking of bread, reading, proclamation, confession, prayer, doxology, blessing, hymns in liturgical and free form; prophecies, speaking with tongues and interpretation of tongues subjected to examination. (pages 33-34)
What do you think of Cullmann’s discussion?
Mutual Edification and the Church: Example
As I “introduced” in a previous post, I believe that Scripture clearly points out that the church should assemble (whenever believers get together) for the purpose of “mutual edification.” Scripture does not tell us exactly what actions should be taken when the church meets. But, in this series, I am attempting to show that Scripture demonstrates the purpose of the gathering of the church through example, principle, and command. In this post, I examine examples in Scripture of the church gathering together for the purpose of “mutual edification.”
Looking at examples from Scripture of the church assembling for mutual edification is both the easiest and hardest of the three (example, principle, and command). It is easiest to examine because there are so many examples. It is the hardest of the three because of context.
What do I mean by context? Well, when Luke was writings Acts (the location of most examples), he was concerned with the continuing work of Jesus Christ through the apostles, primarily Peter and Paul. Thus, he usually talks about what the apostles did when they were with the church. However, if we look at what Luke said, we find that the apostles were not working alone when they were with the church.
For example, consider Acts 13:1 where several people are listed as “prophets and teachers” among the church in Antioch. In Acts 15, we see that “men from Judea” (obviously among others) were “teaching the brothers and sisters” (Acts 15:1). After Paul and Barnabas went to Jerusalem, they met with the church, and again we see several people speaking to the church (Acts 15:4-5). Because of the questions raised by the conversion of Gentiles, the whole church in Jerusalem (including the apostles and elders and others from Antioch) worked together to come to a solution (Acts 15:6-22).
The Jerusalem church sent a letter to the churches of Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. But, they didn’t just send the letter back to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas, they also sent along Judas (Barsabbas) and Silas. The church in Antioch rejoiced because they were encouraged (Acts 15:31). Then, Judas and Silas (who were not “members” of the church in Antioch in the modern or traditional sense) continued to “encourage and strengthen” the church in Antioch (Acts 15:32). But, Judas and Silas were not the only ones prophesying and teaching in Antioch in order to strengthen the church. We also read the Paul and Barnabas were teaching “along with many others” (Acts 15:35).
An important example is found in Luke’s description of Paul’s work in Ephesus. As usual, Paul began by proclaiming Jesus and making disciples in the Jewish synagogue meetings:
And he entered the synagogue and for three months spoke boldly, reasoning and persuading them about the kingdom of God. (Acts 19:8 ESV)
The practice of allowing several people to speak and discuss and argue during the synagogue meetings seems to have been common during the first century. (For example, we see Jesus speaking often in the synagogue, even though he was not officially a rabbi. We also see Paul and Barnabas being offered the opportunity to encourage the Jews when they visited the synagogue in Pisidia in Acts 13:14-15.) (By the way, there is other evidence – outside of the NT – that confirms that discussions about Scripture were common practice in the first century synagogues.)
When the Ephesian Jews decided that they did not want to hear about Jesus any longer, Paul and the other disciples starting meeting elsewhere. But notice that they continued “reasoning” or “discussing” together in their new meeting location:
But when some became stubborn and continued in unbelief, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus. This continued for two years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks. (Acts 19:9-10 ESV)
For two years, Paul met with believers in the hall of Tyrannus where they “reasoned” (from the Greek verb often translated “discussed”) together. This discussion did not just happen at the beginning, when Paul was trying to convince them of the veracity of his message (notice that they were already disciples). Nor did the discussion only take place after the disciples had matured and learned enough information. Paul used discussion as a means of teaching disciples from the very beginning.
We see another example of Paul discussing with believers in the church when he met with the church in Troas on his way back to Jerusalem:
On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them, intending to depart on the next day, and he prolonged his speech until midnight… And when Paul had gone up and had broken bread and eaten, he conversed with them a long while, until daybreak, and so departed. (Acts 20:7, 11)
The verb translated “talked” and “conversed” above is the same verb translated “reasoning” in Acts 19:9. It indicates a two-way conversation. Paul had a discussion “with them” in Troas. This was not a long-winded lecture on the part of Paul.
(As a side note, if you follow the narrative in Acts 20:7ff, you get a good picture of the church meeting in Troas. They talked together for a while, then they ate a meal together, then they continued talking together. However, the length of the discussion was probably longer than usual because of Paul’s presence.)
Through these examples, we see that when early Christians met together, several people spoke in order to encourage or strengthen the church. The people speaking were not always the same people, and often they were “strangers” (but still considered brothers and sisters).
These are a few of the examples that we find in Scripture of the church meeting together for the purpose of “mutual edification.”
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Mutual Edification and the Church Series
Cullmann on “The Aim of the Service”
In my study of the early church (between the time of the apostles to the middle ages), I’ve started reading Oscar Cullmann’s classic Early Christian Worship (London: SCM Press, 1953).
So far, Cullmann continues to call the church gathering by the term “worship” or the phrase “service of worship.” You’ll see the terms used below.
But, pay close attention to what Cullmann says about the “aim” of this “service of worship”:
The Aim of the Service
We are now familiar with the various elements of the service of worship in early Christianity. They are extraordinarily numerous, and it is astonishing how many forms the life of worship in these first Christian communities has assumed. In the light of this wealth of form, we must assert here and now that the services of worship in the Protestant Churches of our own era are very much poorer, not only in respect of the free working of the Spirit, but also in respect of what is liturgical and especially in respect of what is aimed at in the gatherings of the community. The aim is constantly described by Paul as building up of the community (1 Cor. 14). We must not interpret this word in the hackneyed pietist sense of ‘uplift’, but we have to think of the figure of the body of Christ, which must be formed effectually in the community. All the different elements which we have examined individually are subordinated to this purpose, which attains its peak in the ‘coming of Christ’ in the Lord’s Supper. To this aim is due the wealth and the variety of the elements in the early Christian service. But, on the other hand, in view of this aim their use is constantly brought under examination and, if necessary, limited. Paul has also seen this second necessity; he has recognized the danger of this wealth, but he has not thrown out the baby with the bath water. On the contrary, he has preserved everything which can contribute to the ‘building up’ of the body of Christ. (pg. 26)
What do you think of Cullmann’s statement?
Mutual Edification and the Church: Introduction
“Scripture does not tell us how the church should meet.”
I’m sure that you’ve read statements like the one above before. And, technically, the statement is correct, as far as it goes.
You see, you will not find any command in Scripture in which the church is told to do certain things, say certain things, pray certain things, teach certain things, etc. when they meet together. Read and read and read as much as you want, and you just won’t find that kind of instruction in Scripture.
And, that’s what we want, right? We want things spelled out for us so that we know that we’re doing it right. The problem is, that’s not what the writers of Scripture were concerned about.
You see, they understood something that is difficult for us to understand. The church is people – really and truly and not just a slogan. So, when the church gathers together, that meeting will look different from gathering to gathering for one simple reason: the people are different. The people have different gifts and talents and concerns and struggles and abilities and preferences and etc.
When the church gets together, the form and shape and method and happenings of that meeting will depend upon the people who are involved.
Yes, I know that this flies in the face of modern Christianity and church methodology. But, if the church really is the people, then it is true that the meeting will change as the people change.
However, just because the authors of Scripture were not concerned with the specific things that happened when the church met together does not mean that they were not concerned with the church gathering together. In fact, I think they were very concerned.
It is correct for us to say that Scripture does not tell us how the church should meet together. It is completely incorrect to say that Scripture does not tell us why the church should meet together. Scripture is very clear on the purpose of the brothers and sisters in Christ gathering together, whenever they gather together.
Several different terms are used to describe this purpose. I like the term “mutual edification,” because it takes into account both important parts of this purpose. 1) “Mutual” indicates that the purpose of the gathering is carried out by many people working together. 2) “Edification” indicates that the purpose is some type of growth or building up of the people involved.
For the next three posts, I’m going to unpack how Scripture indicates to us that “mutual edification” is the purpose of the gathering of the church. Scripture spells this out through example, through principle, and through command. I think that only one of these (example, principle, command) would be sufficient, but we have all three in the pages of Scripture.
I’m going to make one final claim. I’m not going to back this up in this post, since it is impossible to prove a negative. Scripture does not give us any other purpose for the church meeting together other than mutual edification. (I’ve asked for examples to prove me wrong, and I haven’t received any examples from the New Testament that specifies a different purpose for church meetings.)
If the purpose of the church gathering together is so that we can all build up one another, then we should be concerned if that’s not the reason we are gathering with the church today. I hope this series helps demonstrate why I think Scripture is clear when it comes to mutual edification and the church.
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