The Apostolic Church

Minister:
Date: PM
Text: Acts 2:42; Lord's Day 21
Psalters: 50, 241, 176, 315
  1. A Biblical concept.
    1. The true Church “continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42).
      1. This refers to the teachings of the Apostles about the person and work of Jesus Christ.
      2. This is a chief characteristic of the congregation to which the Lord added daily the ones He was saving (47).
    2. Thus we can see that the church is “built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets” (Eph. 2:20).
      1. Figure of the construction of a building:  the church’s foundation consists of the “apostles and prophets.”
      2. It is the teachings of the apostles and N.T. prophets (not their persons) which are foundational for the Christian faith.
    3. The true church is described as “the pillar and ground of the truth” (I Tim. 3:15).
      1. The visible church was instituted for the sake of the truth, not the truth for the sake of the church.
      2. The object for which the church exists on earth is to declare and uphold the truth.
  2. The implications.
    1. We must preserve the Word of God as the container of the apostolic teachings.
    2. And it is fundamental that the church of Christ today consciously view the creeds as containing the apostolic teachings.
    3. It is fundamental that the church of Christ today consciously stand related to the church of yesterday.
    4. The local congregation in Jerusalem which grew was the one which maintained apostolic teachings (Acts 2:42-47).
    5. The determination of which local congregation I join myself to is that one which continues in the apostles’ teachings/truth.
    6. Personal implications.