To be the New Testament church is far more complex than many think. There are many differing views as to what that looks like.
Two of the key issues are prayer and proclamation. In Act 1:14 we read “They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers” (Acts 1:14 NIV).
The church is squarely founded on the ingrained reality of prayer in the life of the believer overflowing into the life of the church. Every church should be involved and seek to expand the life of the church through prayer, for it is only through protracted prayer and study of God’s Word that the church finds its footing. When we gather, we must worship, praise and intercede as the first things we do. When the message is proclaimed from his Word, the nature of the message must be examined; the human messenger must be double-checked from his Word by the people in that spiritual examination. We cannot fall to the temptation to follow a mere person, we must only follow God.
But the key first step remains—powerful, ongoing prayer, both individually and corporately―bathed in the Word of God.
When we do this, God’s Spirit empowers us with his presence. When the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit leads the church the only response is that we will proclaim the gospel without compromise to a generation that compromises everything. An uncompromising faith in Christ in today’s world is confusing to the current generation. Most are raised in a church-less existence and most who attend the average American church are served the spiritual fast food of today―allowing sin to go unaddressed, stepping around the “embarrassing” reality of the existence of hell and the availability of the operation of the spiritual gifts that, in fact, are part of the engine of the church.
The church today picks and chooses the comfortable parts of scripture and sneaks around the hard ones. Every single time we meet together on Sunday morning the gospel should roar forth from the heart of the pastor and there should be spiritual, intellectual and emotional responses to this powerful proclamation. People weeping of their sins, repenting and finding God’s grace as well as healing from his hand.
Preaching and worship is only half the equation for gathering on Sunday. There must be time for adequate response from the people gathered in prayer, healing, repenting and the operation of his gifts in his church for their edification in order for them to then go and engage the world with this treasure of the gospel.
Like we see in the second chapter of Acts.
But we cannot have the second chapter without the first chapter.
Bold proclamation must happen, but it is a toothless lion without the Word in prayer and the Spirit.
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“They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.”
Acts 1:14 NIV
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We can come to know Christ through confession of our sins and repentance (turning away from sin). Let me encourage you to do this by talking to God through prayer. Here is an idea of how you might do that:
"Dear God, I believe your son Jesus Christ died in my place on the cross and rose from the dead on the third day following his death. I confess my sins, all of them, to you now with a humble heart. I repent of those sins and ask you to empower me with your Holy Spirit in overcoming further sin. Amen”
If you prayed this or a similar prayer committing your life to Christ and becoming one of his followers, let me encourage you to find a good, Bible-believing church. If you live in the Weslaco/Rio Grand Valley area of Texas, let me invite you to the church I attend, Mid-Valley Assembly (www.midvalleyassembly.com).
Begin talking to God in prayer and reading the Bible daily. A good way to begin to read the Bible is to start with the Book of John in the New Testament.
Feel very free in connecting with me if you need any further help in your walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. You can do this via the above email or facebook page or this web page.
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Mercy Road Ministries was founded and now led by Ben Bounds. Ben has pastored churches across Texas for over thirty years and is an ordained minister with the Christian and Missionary Alliance (C&MA). He holds a BA in Pastoral Ministry and Biblical Studies from Southwestern Assemblies of God College and did graduate theological studies at the BMA Theological Seminary.
Ben's first book, The Divine Chase: Responding to a Pursuing God, was released on 12.08.2017 through Westbow Press, a division of Thomas Nelson and Zondervan. It is available in paperback and hardback through your preferred bookseller (Mardels, Barnes and Noble, etc.) and paperback, hardback as well as ebook through online book retailers (www.christianbook.com, www.cokesbury.com, www.amazon.com, www.booksamillion.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, etc.).
Ben is the host of Staying in Bounds, an on-air Bible devotional broadcast multiple times daily on KWJV 103.7 FM Weslaco, TX which can also be heard worldwide online at www.kwjvthestar.com.
Ben and his wife, Linda, together have four adult children and nine grandchildren. They live in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas.
Ben can be contacted for preaching engagements at benbounds695@gmail.com or 903.441.3279. Ben can also be contacted via his website @ www.benbounds.com, which is also his blog and contains more information about his ministry.
Follow Ben @ https://www.facebook.com/mercyroadministries/ and this website www.benbounds.com.
©2022 by Ben Bounds. All rights reserved.
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