Learning From The First Century Church

Introduction

Good morning. If you will open your Bibles with me to Acts chapter 4. Acts chapter 4. As we consider the New Testament, we think often about how the New Testament is different in the Old Testament, in the sense as Galatians chapter 3 teaches us, it’s no longer just about Abraham’s physical offspring who are God’s people. It is all people who can be God’s children. That’s a powerful blessing. Amen. And you think about who that people is. Who can share in that blessing? There are those who are childs of faith, those who are baptized into Christ Jesus. Galatians 3 makes that very point. And we think about who that means, and that means the church. The church is the body of Christ. And of course, the body of Christ is that which will be saved, viewed with favor by God.

And so we take great care to obey God, to trust his commandments, to do his will. And oftentimes we think of lessons in the book of Acts in particular as a roadmap as it can and should be. And we think about the New Testament epistles and use them as sort of rules and ideas to follow, which we can and should. But sometimes I want to make sure that when we say we want to be like the New Testament church, that we think beyond just the pattern of organization, which is critical, that Christ is the head, that elders are over the local flock that is among them, having deacons serving and Christians as well in the local congregation. I want us to see that the local church is more than just a group of people that gathers once, maybe twice, maybe three times or so a week.

But when we look at the New Testament church, I want us to learn from them to be like them in every way. And you’ll see in Acts chapter 4 in the scripture reading, down at the beginning of service this morning, how powerful that statement, that example truly is. In Acts chapter 4, beginning in verse 32. Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul. And no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own. But they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of land or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of what was sold, and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

Now this is a powerful passage because we know this example was not necessarily binding, but in Acts chapter 5, Ananias and Sapphira went to make their contribution, but doing so in a deceitful, false way, they were struck down. And as Acts chapter 5 and verse 11 says, great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things. This morning we’re going to examine the New Testament and see not just how the church at Jerusalem was, but how many of the different churches that are described in the New Testament operated, what their zeal was for God, what it meant to be a part of even a local group, let alone the entire universal body of Christ. Let’s see if perhaps we can be challenged this morning to be like the first century church.

1. They Served Their God With Their Whole Heart

First of all, we see it from verse 32, they served their God with their whole heart. Can you read verse 32 with me again? The full number of those who believed were of one heart and one soul. And no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. Can you highlight or bookmark verse 32? What better depths can we go to than to have everybody on the same page, all in for God, not counting self as something, not elevating self over the needs of others, but recognizing that God comes first, that others need to be taken care of second. And that is in so doing how we will show love for our God who has blessed us first with everything that we can share with others to begin with.

But if you note earlier what this sacrifice meant, what part of this love in God with their whole heart implied was that there were going to be some challenges. And they were willing to work through and pass this. In verse 19 and 20 of chapter 4, Peter and John answered them, whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge. For we cannot but speak of what we had seen and heard. Now, if you’re wondering what’s happening right here, notice the next verse and see what boldness with which Peter and John spoke. In verse 21, when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them before the people, for all were praising God for what had happened.

Verse 22, for the man on whom the sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old. Peter and John and the apostles were doing many wonders and signs in the New Testament time, in the first time of the beginning of the first century church. And as they are doing these miracles, these wonders, these signs, guess who didn’t like that? Those who weren’t in the group of verse 32. Those who weren’t part of that full number who believed and were of one heart and soul. And so Peter and John were being punished. They were being cornered before the Sanhedrin Council. And in Acts chapter 5, we find this again. And what we find is while the Sanhedrin Council was very upset with Peter and John with their miracles, with their teachings in particular, the people knew that there was something different.

In verse 21. They had to only be threatened. They couldn’t be punished. Why? Why could the Sanhedrin Council not punish Peter and John? Because of the people. For all were praising God for what had happened. Those who had seen the miracle, who had seen the man before and after Peter and John’s impact on the community, before the power of God in their community, they saw. They were not fooled. They understood that there was something unique and powerful. That doesn’t mean that everybody obeyed. And isn’t that kind of just the struggle that we have in being like this? We want to serve God with our whole heart. We want to be willing to sacrifice, but then when we see the price, when we see that we might not be as successful as we deem fit or worthy, we kind of back off the cause.

I wonder if I could guarantee you, if God would guarantee you that if you went through a three-step evangelism program, that whoever you spoke to, your neighbor, your co-worker, your family member, they would obey the gospel of Christ. They would become a part of the body of Christ. If it was 100% guaranteed, if you taught them step one, step two, step three, they would be believing Christians. They would be like those in verse 32. How much evangelism would go on here? And I don’t mean how many people would be converted, although that’s a wonderful thing to consider. How much effort would I put in over what I’m doing now? Sometimes there’s various causes for us not making the necessary sacrifices to do the will of God.

It might be that we feel unqualified. It might be that we feel unsuccessful or that we won’t do any good. But if you note what compelled Peter and John, it was not success, it was God. In verse 19, why was it that they were going to continue to preach about Jesus, continue to teach about the true and living God and his ways for man? In verse 19, whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard. They were compelled. They knew what Jesus had done coming to this earth in his form, in our form, and being crucified on the cross for our sins, and being resurrected, to live again on this earth, and then to be ascended into heaven, to be at the right hand of God.

That is a powerful, wonderful blessing. And Peter and John, as witnesses to that, realized that there was nothing that could stop them because serving God meant everything. If we truly were willing to sacrifice, as Peter and John did, to believe in God with all our heart and all our soul, to share all that we have, what a powerful local church this would be. Can you imagine if we were like this? If we had that fire, if we had that passion that was not quenched by any struggle or trial. You know what that is, right? You know what that burden is called. There’s a word for what keeps us from doing more because of a fear of something else or not wanting to lose something. That word is sacrifice.

What are we willing to sacrifice for the cause of Christ? I have to ask myself, and perhaps the answer is not particularly amazing, and I’d encourage you to ask yourself as well. What this week have you truly sacrificed in the service of God? That doesn’t just mean going and having a Bible study with someone. If you go back to the text we read in verse 34 and 35 of Acts chapter 4, we see part of their service, part of this first century church model was that there was no needy people among them. Why? For as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

Emphasize the key word there in verse 32 was serving and believing in God, and they were compelled to serve the needs of others. So when I consider my week, what have I done? What have I sacrificed? What have I given to God’s service to others that otherwise would have been kept back for me and came at a cost? Not the fringe. Have you ever been at a Thanksgiving table with just an amazing spread? And there’s just food after food. I eat pretty much turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, and call it quits. But for normal people, you eat all kinds of different food. You have your stuffings, you have your different types of beans, etc., etc. Other stuff I’m not going to bother with. And you say, I want a little bit of all of that.

But what usually happens to be truthful is there’s something. There’s one type of food. There’s one just type of genre you might say that gets left behind because we want to save room for dessert. There’s always a food that’s left. Is that really a sacrifice? Oh, I went without that stuffing, so I could have some of that apple pie. That’s not a sacrifice. That’s giving something that you could you could have, yes, certainly you could have had that too. You didn’t leave it for others. You were filled first. And we’re thinking about how to further be filled later. A true sacrifice is when you give up something which costs you. I wonder what my sacrifices have been for God this week, this month, and this year thus far.

2. They Opposed Error at Just About Every Turn

Consider secondly with me about the first century church. They opposed error at just about every turn. If you look with me in Revelation chapter 2 and verse 2, in Revelation chapter 2 and 3, you have the seven letters to the seven churches. And in Revelation chapter 2 and verse 2, notice the very beginning of the letter to the members at Ephesus. I don’t get that out. In Revelation chapter 2 and verse 2, Jesus says, I know your works, your toil, and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and have found them to be false. This is a powerful testimony of the church at Ephesus in verse 3. I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary.

And while, yes, this is the church that in verse 5, or excuse me, verses 4 and 5, that Jesus would say, You have abandoned your first love. You have abandoned the love that you had at first. In verses 2 and 3, we see something powerful about the first century church at Ephesus. In verse 2, they were willing to test those who call themselves apostles and are not. And in so testing them, they found that many, those who were not truly called apostles by God, were false apostles, false teachers. And they had to rebuke that false teaching, those false standings that these men were claiming to have.

Keeping the universal body of Christ pure in the way that God and Jesus had desired and designed. In Galatians chapter 1 and verse 6, I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel. Not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preach to you, let him be accursed. What was this difference in Paul? What was this difference in the doctrine? Yes, keeping it pure. Yes, striving for holiness, but verse 10 is the key to the often overlooked part of this passage.

For am I now seeking the approval of man or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ. I wonder when it comes to opposing error in our community, as it gets unpopular to have any sort of belief that conflicts with anything, if we’ve allowed ourselves to be focusing on the needs of man and pleasing man more than pleasing God. I have to say I’ve read a lot of debates from members and preachers that would associate themselves with churches of Christ from the mid-20th century. And oftentimes some of those debates were quite brutal. They went after the character of each other, they would pull church budget statements and use them as hammers against one another.

And I find myself reading that and thinking, how can Christians be a part of this? Talk about the Bible issue. Let’s see what the Bible say, not what does this man do, even if he was doing something hypocritical. It doesn’t change what God’s will is. In the 20th century, as I can understand it, people were hungering and thirsting for the word. They wanted to hear different representations of the word of God to decide what is God’s one way. But nowadays that’s not the culture. Any type of disagreement over anything, we can’t even agree that there are two genders as created by God, let alone that the world is created by God. And if you differ, if you voice in opposition to any previous idea, you are a hater.

You are spreading division. You are to be feared, you are to be outcast, you are to be silenced. And so, to be honest, it’s a lot easier just to say, you know what? I’m just gonna do my thing. I’m gonna teach the truth. I’m gonna kind of worship where I know truth is being taught. I’m gonna praise God the way I know how, and we keep my head down and keep moving forward. You see, we’ve lost that idea of point number one, which is that loving God with our whole heart implies necessarily great sacrifice. The church at Ephesus had to find and test the false apostles. They had to consider if what they were saying was true, if it was divine, if it was inspired by God.

In Acts chapter 15, we see them weighing the ideas that even were finding themselves on the first century church. In Acts chapter 15, notice verse 1 and 2. Even with the church, even with the council that is gathered at Jerusalem, they’re going to figure out how do we understand what is God’s will and what is error. In Acts chapter 15 and verses 1 and 2, some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved. And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and debate with them, Paul and Barnabas and some of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and the elders about this question. Paul and Barnabas were willing in verse 2 to have a discussion that is rendered by the English Standard Version to be of no small dissension and debate.

Don’t you want to have the recording of that debate? Paul and Barnabas versus these Judaizing teachers. But as you think about what they did, they were willing to study the will of God. Because again, it’s stated in verse 5. Some believers who belong to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses. And so in verse 6, what happened? The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. And we know who Acts 15 continues. Peter gives his testimony of evangelizing to Cornelius. Then you have Paul who talks about the signs and wonders he and Barnabas had done. And James quotes from the Old Testament scriptures to show Jesus has come.

The kingdom is open to the Gentiles, concluding, of course, with the rightful idea that the gospel is for all, and that we don’t need to bind Jewish parts of the law on Christians. If we want to be like the first century church, it’s not just about having that right organization or doing the right things in worship, although those are of critical importance because God has made them so. We also need to be willing to oppose error and realize that that comes with facing problems head on. That does not mean creating problems. That does not mean picking fights. But if you look in 1 Corinthians chapter 11, Paul once again is in the middle of a conflict. In 1 Corinthians chapter 11, note why, though. In 1 Corinthians chapter 11, if you know, beginning in verse 17, in the following instructions, I do not commend you, because when you come together, it is not for the better, but for the worse.

For in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you. And I believe it in part. For there must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. What’s the problem, Paul, verse 20? When you come together, it is not the Lord’s Supper that you eat. For in eating, each one goes ahead with his own meal. One goes hungry, another gets drunk. What? Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I commend you in this? No, I will not. If you notice, Paul was unafraid. Yes, he was divinely inspired by God.

Yes, he was an apostle of Christ. But he was unafraid to discuss this issue. Again, did he create this? Did he pick a fight? No. What was the problem in verse 19? He heard that there were divisions. But what does Paul say about those divisions in verse 19? There must be factions among you in order that those who are genuine among you may be recognized. That’s the problem in verse 20. They were going ahead and eating without one another. They weren’t practicing what it means in Acts chapter 4 and verse 32 to love, to believe in God with all their heart and soul, and to have everything in common, not just physically. That is a unifying belief. A message we’ll get to in just a moment.

But Paul is dealing with this error. And despite the fact that there were problems, was the church at Corinth not a church of God? Was it not a church of Christ? It absolutely was. Look at 1 Corinthians chapter 1, and just read the first two verses. Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus and our brother Sosthenes, to the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours, grace to you and peace from God our Father and from Jesus Christ. Paul calls them in verse 2 the church of God that is in Corinth.

He specifies even to those sanctified in Christ Jesus who were called to be saints together. We need to realize that a local church is not devoid of problems because as long as there are people, there are going to be people problems. And that’s just the way it is. But we cannot cower away from teaching truth. That does not mean bullying.

3. Many of Them Had Greatly Changed Their Life

Consider a third attribute of the first century church with me. Many of them had greatly changed their life. And no doubt this would have upset many former ties. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, one of the most outstanding commendations, I think, in the New Testament for a church is found in 1 Thessalonians chapter 1. Oh, if this could be said of us individually or us as a local church. In 1 Thessalonians chapter 1, notice beginning in verse 6. First Thessalonians chapter 1 and verse 6, you became imitators of us and of the Lord. For you received the word in much affliction with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything.

For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come. What was the difference about the Thessalonicans? In verse 9? They had turned to serve the true and living God from what? From serving idols. This was not an ideal prospect of a people. These people were serving idols, probably, if not mostly Gentile in nature. You consider that their depths to which they were disobeying God had come to one of the most elemental and fundamental prospects of following after God is to recognize that He is God alone.

That you don’t bow down, you don’t sacrifice for, you don’t serve idols. And that’s exactly what these people had been doing. But they changed. They turned to God. I wonder how different my life has been. Have you ever thought about what your life was like before being a Christian and after? And for some of us, that story gets a little bit messy depending on how you grew up, what your background was, who taught you at what point you took your faith seriously. But for those who take their faith seriously in God to be like the first century church means my life will be drastically different if I was not a Christian. I love Kevin Clark. He’s a preacher we’ve had for a gospel meeting before, and he had a great example in a sermon that he did in a gospel meeting here, where he talked about considering one day what his life would be like if he did leave the church.

And he realized that he had to do a gut check to decide am I really in it for God? Or am I in it because that’s how my life has panned out? He honestly reasoned with us that his wife is a member of the church. His parents are members of the church. And to fall away would make that very difficult. And on top of that, many of his friends are in the church, both local and universal in nature. So to step away from God, to stop being a part of the local work that he is a part of would mean not only leaving God, but leaving his wife, leaving the faith of his parents, leaving the company of his friends, this would be a major life shakeup for him.

And so we have to do the same self-acknowledgement to say, am I in this for God? Or am I in this because of what it does for me? There’s a good way to tell, and it’s found in 1 Corinthians chapter 6. When you look at that Corinthian church, if you want to know how bad they were, where they started from, in 1 Corinthians chapter 6, verses 9 through 11, this is it. And if we’re honest, this is some of us too. In 1 Corinthians chapter 6, beginning in verse 9, Paul again, unafraid of opposing error, but to make the point that they can be better in verse 9. Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

And such were some of you. But you were washed. You were sanctified. You were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. What was the difference in the Corinthians before and after Jesus? What was unique about this first century church? They were living lives completely devoted to self and to sin. But the change is in verse 11. Such were some of you. This means two things for me. It means one that my life can, should, and must be different from even my own before I followed after Christ, and certainly from those who actively do not around me. But also going back to sacrifice, going back to evangelism. We need to realize that the gospel is truly for all.

4. They Had One Faith

And that if the Thessalonicans can turn, if the Thessalonians could turn, if the Corinthians could turn, if the Ephesians could turn, if the Macedonians can turn, anybody can accept the gift of God. We need to be willing to talk to anyone and everyone who will listen. But realize that yes, there is a great cost. And in Matthew chapter 10 and verses 34 through 37, Jesus is very clear that we must love him more than father and mother, more than brother and sister. God must be our everything. And if it comes to it, yes, we must, to use the word of the text there, hate mother and father, brother and sister, in the sense of putting God first, foremost, and only if that is required. A fourth and my second to last point about the first century church is they had one faith.

Yet they did have to choose between similar doctrines. In Ephesians chapter 4, if you turn with me to Ephesians chapter 4, and you read with me beginning in verse 4 of Ephesians chapter 4, there is one body and one spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.

Because to be honest, if we collectively counted every church that we drove past as a collective group this morning to get here, we would probably list hundreds of different churches if we could count them twice. Over and over, all over town, all over the country, all over the world. There are all kinds of churches, all kinds of denominations, all kinds of different religions. Wouldn’t it just feel easier to say, well, if I was in the first century church, there’s just that one faith. There’s just the one God. It would be so much simpler then. Except what have we already seen? The church at Ephesus in Revelation chapter 2 and verse 2 had to deal with false apostles. When it comes to the faith of even some of the Judaizing teachers in Acts chapter 15, the Christians had to deal with Jews who were kind of converts to Christ, but also Jews who were actively opposing Christ.

Remember the San Adrian Council from Acts chapter 4. We have to have the unity of mind that Christ begged us to have that puts God first, that puts others second, first in our lives over our will. But consider first John chapter 4 and verse 1. In 1 John chapter 4 and verse 1, again, a similar idea to as before, where John writes and warns them, Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world. How do we know that which is authentic? How do we test them? Verse 2, by this you know the Spirit of God. Every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God.

This is the spirit of the Antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Antichrist isn’t quite what we thought it was, is he? When you think about the first century church, they were committed to God. They believed and had things in common in Acts chapter 4. But as the time of, in the turn of the century moved forward and as years marched on, more and more religious error crept into and around the church of God, and the first century church members had to oppose it at every turn. But it wasn’t just Paul and Barnabas doing this lifting. It fell on the members that John was writing to. It fell on the members of the church at Ephesus to examine what about these nuances in faith.

Remember Acts chapter 15? It sounds kind of silly to us that they would have to examine do Gentiles have to be circumcised to please God in the New Testament church era. But to the Jews who lived that whole time, it’s not as simple as us looking in the Bible and saying, okay, the old law stops here, the new law starts here, and off we go. It’s a lot more difficult. They were living, they lived in their families that were Jewish for centuries, serving God that way, obeying God through the law of Moses that God had given his people. When we think about what the New Testament Christians had to do, they had to carefully examine between things which were similar. But there was only one which is authentic.

5. The First Century Church Sought Converts, Not Just Members

They had to choose between different gospels, not that there is another one, but between that which is from God and that which is from man. How discerning am I in my faith? Or do I go along with what the leaders of the church teach, or what my favorite teachers that I can listen to online preach? Do I examine the word? Do I seek to know what is truth? If I’m like members of the first century church, I again not only can and should, but must. Consider one final point with me this morning. The first century church sought converts, not just members. I want to point something out kind of interesting. In Acts chapter 8 and verse 4, many of us know that verse, as there’s a great persecution with Saul perhaps at point on the church in Acts chapter 8.

And as Saul in verse 1 has approved of the execution of Stephen, verse 4 is popular, it’s powerful, something we need to learn from. Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word. And by the way, those who went about scattered were those except the apostles in verse 1. And this is a powerful example that all of us need to be involved in this teaching. But consider one critical point about this. Have you ever thought about Acts chapter 8 and verse 4? If they were scattered from Jerusalem, going about preaching the word of God, what church were they sending their disciples to? Have you ever thought about who was doing the bulk of the teaching? Who was keeping them provided for? Who was keeping them in the right, in the narrow way, as opposed to the broad way.

There’s nothing that South Bumby can say or do besides teach the words of Christ that will change anyone’s life. Because God has and always intended for us to recognize him through his actions and through his word. In John chapter 6 and verse 26, there were followers of Jesus. And Jesus had some strong words for those who were following. And Jesus knowing them, knowing their hearts. And John 6 26 had a few problems with several of them. In John 6 26, Jesus answered them, Truly, truly I say to you, you are seeking me not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Yeah, they weren’t following Jesus because of spirit of spiritual nature, but because of a carnal one that had overtaken them.

In verse 60 of John chapter 6, when many of the disciples heard the teachings of Jesus, they said, This is a hard saying. Who can listen to it? And verse 66, reaching the point that many of us might. After this, many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. What is the difference between those who followed Jesus devoutly, those who became strong pillars, became strong members, became those sanctified, became the saint of the first century church and all of those who did not. It’s the same thing that will distinguish those followers today who are sanctified, who are saints of Jesus today from all those who are not. It is those who trust in Jesus and follow after him, believing in God with all their heart and soul.

Conclusion

The first century church did a lot of good things, but as you notice, a lot of even those good things came with problems. In fact, in some of the cases, they just had problems for the sake of having problems because there were people there. But the truth is the first century church did something that was powerful. They did something that was amazing. In Acts chapter 4 and verse 32, it is said of them that the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul. And no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own. But they had everything in common. What is the lesson from the first century church? That God always comes first. We must be uncompromising.

We must be sacrificial. We must be focused on serving and pleasing him. But also that we must be focused on serving, pleasing, and being unified in Christ with our brothers and sisters. God’s plan is perfect. God’s way is awesome. We need to trust in him. Will you go to God in prayer with me? Our dear God and most gracious Heavenly Father, we thank you for your love. We thank you in a particular way on this day and this time for creating us, for allowing us to have the safety and security that we that we do. We pray that you bless us with the boldness to teach, preach, and study the words of Peter and John had. That we’ll recognize that we are compelled to teach, recognizing how mighty and wonderful the sacrifice of Jesus is, was, and forever will be.

We thank you for allowing us to come to know you. We thank you for providing us your word that we might learn it, study it, and learn more about you and how to be pleasing in your sight. As we worship you this day, we we pray that we do so according to your will, in spirit and in truth. Bless us, keep us safe, be with those who are missing and lacking. It’s in your Son’s name we do pray. Amen.