WE-05-04-2022 – HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
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May 4, 2022
Wednesday Night Bible Study
HISTORY OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH
Acts 1:1-11
Read Acts 1:1-5…
1 The first account I composed, Theophilus, about all that Jesus
began to do and teach,
2 until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had
by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had
chosen.
3 To these He also presented Himself alive after His suffering,
by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of
forty days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of
God.
4 Gathering them together, He commanded them not to leave
Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised,
“Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me;
5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the
Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
What former book?
(cf. Luke 24:44-53)
44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to
you while I was still with you, that all things which are written
about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms
must be fulfilled.”
45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,
46 and He said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ would
suffer and rise again from the dead the third day,
47 and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be
proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from
Jerusalem.
48 You are witnesses of these things.
49 And behold, I am sending forth the promise of My Father
upon you; but you are to stay in the city until you are clothed
with power from on high.”
50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His
hands and blessed them.
51 While He was blessing them, He parted from them and was
carried up into heaven.
52 And they, after worshiping Him, returned to Jerusalem with
great joy,
53 and were continually in the temple praising God.
Jesus made at least 10 different appearances, during the
40-day period between His resurrection and His ascension
back into heaven, we studied those on the last tow
Wednesday nights. If you need a copy of that study, let me
know.
John the baptizer
(see Mark 1:4-5)
4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a
baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.
5 And all the country of Judea was going out to him, and all the
people of Jerusalem; and they were being baptized by him in
the Jordan River, confessing their sins.
John called people to confess their sins and repent, to be
publicly immersed in water, so as to identify with their need
for forgiveness, basically saying, "God help me, I'm a
sinner!"
(see Mark 1:8)
8 I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy
Spirit.”
contrasts his water baptism with that of the Messiah's
spiritual baptism through the Holy Spirit.
Jesus called people to acknowledge the God’s presence
among them, believing and confessing Christ as the Savior,
the One providing forgiveness for sins.
Spiritual baptism is an immersion into the spiritual Body of
Christ by the Holy Spirit Who purges and purifies our soul,
setting us apart as God's children when we confess our
sins believing in Jesus Christ
(see John 1:12-13;
12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to
become children of God, even to those who believe in His
name,
13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of
the will of man, but of God.
Ephesians 1:13-14;
13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the
gospel of your salvation--having also believed, you were sealed
in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise,
14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to
the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His
glory.
Romans 10:9-10;
9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe
in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be
saved;
10 for with the heart a person believes, resulting in
righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in
salvation.
1Corinthians 12:13).
13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether
Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made
to drink of one Spirit.
There is only one spiritual baptism among believers
(Ephesians 4:4-6),
4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called
in one hope of your calling;
5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism,
6 one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and
in all.
At salvation we are spiritually, divinely, and eternally
placed into the Body of Christ, of which
(Colossians 1:17),
17 He [Christ] is before all things, and in Him all things hold
together.
Read Acts 1:6-11…
6 So when they had come together, they were asking Him,
saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to
Israel?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs
which the Father has fixed by His own authority;
8 but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come
upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem,
and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of
the earth.”
9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while
they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their
sight.
10 And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was
going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them.
11 They also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking
into the sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into
heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched
Him go into heaven.”
Jesus' followers wanted Christ to rule over Israel now;
Jesus tells them the kingdom will come, but before it does,
the gospel message of forgiveness and salvation will be
preached to all the world; it is purpose of Christians to
testify to the Truth of God's provision of forgiveness and
eternal life through Christ.
The power and presence of God came to the followers of
Christ at Pentecost (Acts 2), so that until He returns to
earth, His followers might serve as witnesses of God's
divine power, presence, mercy, and grace
(see John 14:15-17,
15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
16 I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper,
that He may be with you forever;
17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive,
because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him
because He abides with you and will be in you.
John 14:25-27;
25 “These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you.
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in
My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your
remembrance all that I said to you.
27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the
world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled,
nor let it be fearful.
John 16:14-15).
14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it
to you.
15 All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that
He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you.
Matthew 28:16-20,
16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the
mountain which Jesus had designated.
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were
doubtful.
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I
am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
tells us some important attributes Christians should have:
Matthew 28:16 –
16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the
mountain which Jesus had designated.
be available
[being where He told them to be]
Matthew 28:17 –
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were
doubtful.
be worshipful
[honoring Him internally and externally]
Matthew 28:18 –
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority
has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.
be submissive
[following Him]
Matthew 28:19 –
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
be obedient
[exemplifying Him]
In Matthew 28:19,
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
the phrase make disciples [matheteuo] is the main verb and
command, it means to make believers, followers, and
learners of Christ.
Genuine belief in Jesus Christ brings
immediate salvation
(from death to life),
immediate discipleship
(in believing, following, and learning from God's Word),
and
immediate spiritual baptism
(a relationship immersed in the Father, the Son, and the
Holy Spirit).
In Matthew 28:19,
19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing
them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
we are to be going
[to unbelievers] because they aren't coming to us.
We are to baptize
[immerse] them
[1. Immerse them in water, as an identification with the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
- Immerse them in everything the Bible teaches about the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.]
We are to teach
[equip, encourage, exhort] them
to observe
[know and obey] all that is revealed in the Word of God.
2Timothy 2:15,
15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a
workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately
handling the word of truth.
2Timothy 3:16-17,
16 All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching,
for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness;
17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every
good work.
To be continued
True repentance that brings salvation devotes itself to obey
God's Word, honor God the Father, exemplify the life of
God the Son, walking the power and wisdom of God the
Holy Spirit, as we reach out with the Love of Christ to all
who will listen.
- Prayer:
Probably the most difficult of all our spiritual exercise, it
embraces the kingdom of God and the people of God. It is
hard work to pray on behalf of God's will and God's people
in accordance with God's Word, for God's plan and purpose
through Christ to be accomplished. There are no “Me’s” or
“My’s” in the Lord’s prayer
(see Matthew 6:9-13).
9
“Pray, then, in this way:
‘Our Father who is in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
10
‘Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
On earth as it is in heaven.
11
‘Give us this day our daily bread.
12
‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.
13
‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
[For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
Amen.’]
- Worship:
He alone is worthy! We praise Him with all that we have and
all that we are that we bow before Him then stand and serve
Him
(see Matthew 22:37-40,
37 And He said to him, “ ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR
GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL,
AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
38 This is the great and foremost commandment.
39 The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR
AS YOURSELF.’
40 On these two commandments depend the whole Law and
the Prophets.”
The Greatest Commandment).
- Evangelism:
Living as light and salt in this dark and decaying
generation, we purpose to live for Christ by our walk and
words, that others might come to know Him
(see Matthew 5:13-16).
the salt has become tasteless, how can it be made salty again?
It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and
trampled under foot by men.
14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be
hidden;
15 nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but
on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.
16 Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may
see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.
- Teaching/Training:
Proclaiming God's Word accurately, completely,
understandably, and authoritatively, we seek to live out our
Christianity, while encouraging other believers to grow and
mature in Christ
(see Colossians 3:16-17).
16 Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom
teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to
God.
17 Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the
Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.
1John 2:3-6,
3 By this we know that we have come to know Him, if we keep
His commandments.
4 The one who says, “I have come to know Him,” and does not
keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him;
5 but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly
been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him:
6 the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in
the same manner as He walked.
God's Word tells us Jesus ascended from the Mount of
Olives, and it says He will return to the Mount of Olives at
His 2nd coming
(see Zechariah 14:4);
4 In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is
in front of Jerusalem on the east; and the Mount of Olives will be
split in its middle from east to west by a very large valley, so that
half of the mountain will move toward the north and the other
half toward the south.
in some ways His return will be similar to His departure, in
some ways it will be quite different
(see Revelation 1:7;
7 BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every
eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes
of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.
Revelation 19:11-16).
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and
He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in
righteousness He judges and wages war.
12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many
diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one
knows except Himself.
13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is
called The Word of God.
14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen,
white and clean, were following Him on white horses.
15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may
strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron;
and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the
Almighty.
16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written,
“KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
The Acts of the Apostles is a historic journey of the first
Disciples, the first witnesses who believed and trusted in
Jesus Christ as God's Son, Lord and Savior.
Like those first witnesses, we ought to commit to study,
understand, and apply God’s Word, as we encourage one
another to do the same, seeking to live out our faith, in
unity, as one body, going, making disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son
and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey
everything
God has commanded us.
Pastor Mike
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