We don’t generally attach enough importance to Christian fellowship as a Means of Grace. Even if we participate in Christian fellowship we may forget that it is something that God uses to strengthen us and build us up (i.e., as a Means of Grace). Scripture give us clear encouragement to fellowship. For example:
Acts 2:42
And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Acts 2:46-47
And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.
Hebrews 10:23-25
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.
John 15:12
This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
So we are to be devoted to fellowship, think about how to provoke one another to love and good works, and encourage each other to fellowship. We are each to minister in this way to each other. We have an inclination to allow responsibilities and ministries that should be embraced by us to move to the church staff. The function of Christian fellowship, in part, is to meet needs that would otherwise be met by the staff.
We see examples of that when we organize and visit and meet physical needs and when we pray and share from Scripture in times of spiritual need.
Another point that we need to consider is that when you contact class members or Christian friends it is not a small thing. If you allow the Holy Spirit to rule in your life then you’ll find Him using those times to minister Grace to the Body of Christ. That’s important. In addition, you should expect the Holy Spirit to prompt you to contact other members of the Body of Christ.
Fellowship in Spiritual Gifts.
God give us all gifts to use to bless the Church. If you have been through the Body Life Training that all our new members get these days then you will have taken a test that helps point the direction in which you are gifted for the Church. You don’t want to view these as natural abilities for you to use as you decide for the benefit of the Church. You need to try to do what God calls you to do at His time, in His way, and with no thought but for His glory. You are a steward who administers what God has given you as He directs. Peter says that:
1 Peter 4:10-11So with our gifts, we serve as stewards of Grace so that God may be glorified through Jesus Christ since we are the Body of Christ. This should be an active
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.
Ephesians 4:11-16So we only had a sort list there but all the ministries including administration and helps along with the more visible gifts like preaching have the purpose of ministering Grace to build up the Body of Christ so it (we) work properly that is we grow and build ourselves up in love. Grudem says that, “This should remind us of the abundant favor that God has given us as undeserving sinners, and should also make us realize that many different Christians, with diverse gifts, can be the channels through which grace comes to us.”
And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.
We don’t all have the same gifts and that is OK. God is in control and we just need to submit to Him. You trust Him to lead you into the ministry He has for you and you should be looking for that. You’ll be suited and enabled for what God calls you to do although you’ll be stretched and may be tempted to whine.
Sometimes the ministry is very specific for an individual and not general or to a group. Also the ministry is sometimes from a group to an individual. This is all part of fellowship as a Means of Grace. For example, John warns us that, “But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. (1st John 3:17-18).
Physical touch is also a common practice when praying for healing in the New Testament. Jesus often touched the individuals that He was healing. Those were the lucky ones since at least once He made mud with his spit and put it in the eyes of a blind guy. That would surely get you in trouble these days whether it worked or not. Probably the healed guy would just use his healing so he could find a lawyer in the phonebook.
In addition to laying hands on folks who need to be healed we are instructed at least in some cases to anoint the sick person with oil and have church leadership pray for them (James 5:14). Oil is a symbol of the Holy Spirit so we are using a physical symbol of what we are praying for spiritually.
We are so oriented toward physical causes and the blessing of medical science that we’ve made it an either or situation and we neglect prayer, laying on of hands, and anointing with oil when we are sick. God uses medical science to bless everyone. He has given us tremendous blessings in modern medicine and that is His Grace as well but we need to remember Him and what He has told us to do. Laying on of hands was the normal way that Jesus healed others and we should obey God and anoint with oil at least in prolonged illness to simply pattern in the physical world what we are asking for in the spiritual. Even as we lay hands on another we ask God to lay His hand on someone for healing or even for an anointing for additional ministry or for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (Acts 6:6; 9:17; 13:3). We aren’t looking for a procedure or a magical trick we are just obeying God and the practice is considered an elementary doctrine (Hebrews 6:1-2)
Footwashing
And I bet you’re sitting out there wondering, “Hey why hasn’t he said anything about footwashing?” That would be foot washing as a Christian ceremony and not just part of normal personal hygiene.
Every once in a while you find a group of Christians who practice footwashing as a ceremony based on Jesus statement:
John 13:14Some Christians think that footwashing is just as important as baptism and the Lord’s Supper. The question for Christians revolves around what Jesus meant or what He intended in what he was saying. Baptism and communion have clear reference to our rebirth and His sacrifice for us. They are symbolic and they were symbolic at their institution. When Jesus washed the disciple’s feet they were dirty and it was a custom.
“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet”
The more mainstream interpretation of footwashing is lost if we accept it as a symbol in contrast to the purpose we find in the symbolism found in Baptism and Communion. What I mean by that is that footwashing and Jesus’ command is to serve each other with humility and love. If you turn it into a symbol then you think you’ve met the command when you wash somebody’s feet. In this day and age you haven’t begun to fulfill the command to “wash one another’s feet” when you wash one another’s feet. It isn’t even a problem anymore. So we have to look at our Brother’s and Sister’s and think (ouch) about how to serve them with humility and love. They no longer need their feet washed but what do they need? A cup of coffee? Breakfast on Sunday morning? Ask God, He has pretty good ideas and He’ll lead you to service in humility and love.
Also note that Scripture makes it clear that baptism and the Lord’s Supper were practiced as sacraments but we don’t see footwashing as an ordinance. The majority of the Church throughout history has understood the Scripture to be telling them to serve one another (remember to interpret Scripture with Scripture) and Scripture tells us that over and over.
If someone wants to practice footwashing then they should really make it clear that what they are doing isn’t really addressing the meaning of Jesus command. It would seem a little awkward but it is best to stress that footwashing is an anachronistic expression of serving each other in humility and love rather than give the impression that we’ve actually done what was commanded.
Conclusions
So I’ve generalized some topics and we’ve covered the following 5 Means of Grace. God has given us these things for our use to work together with Him to purify our lives and grow us in Grace.
1. Teaching of the Word (including Evangelism and Bible Study)
2. Sacraments (Baptism and The Lord’s Supper)
3. Prayer and Worship (including Giving)
4. Church discipline
5. Fellowship (Including Spiritual gifts and Ministry to Individuals)
As we embrace these Means of Grace in our lives we release the Holy Spirit to use us in the lives of others to minister Grace.
No comments:
Post a Comment