PORTRAIT OF THE SPIRIT-FILLED CHURCH
“And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.”
—Acts 2:42
OUR TEXT TEACHES, that the early church was devoted to prayer. On the Lord's Day, as believers came together for worship, they united in prayer to the Lord as members of one spiritual body. Scripture continually exhorts Christians to be a people devoted to prayer. Romans 12:12, “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Colossians 4:2, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.” And we are admonished in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 to “Pray without ceasing.” Clearly, the Scriptures teach that a church filled with the Spirit of Christ is a church that prays together on the Lord’s Day, and the members are also faithful in their daily private prayers. Are you devoted to prayer? We need to be mindful of our prayer life. We need to deliberately set aside a time of prayer. Try waking up 15 minutes earlier in the morning and devote that time specifically to prayer –get a new, God-glorifying routine going in your life. You may need to find another Christian to pray with so you can keep one another accountable.
PRAY THAT THE Holy Spirit will more and more equip every believer in general and every member particularly in your local congregation to be diligent in proclaiming the Apostles’ doctrine and promoting Christian fellowship so that the church will be a healthy, thriving, Christ proclaiming church. Make this a part of your daily prayers. This is the way the church lived after Pentecost, and this is the portrait that Jesus Christ sets before us as a church filled with the Holy Spirit. Oh, how we need the filling of the Holy Spirit today! How well do we reflect the church spoken of in our text? Do we show forth the same desire for the Apostles’ doctrine? Do we reflect the early church in our desire for the Word, worship, and fellowship with other believers?
IT’S IMPORTANT FOR us to examine ourselves in the congregation and determine where we need to change our lives and our attitudes. And if we are honest, when we compare the church today to that in our text, we can see we fall very short. The church is not always at the center of our lives. A lot of other things have filled the center and pushed the church off to the side. But the calling for the church remains the same in all ages because the Spirit was poured out into the hearts of all believers at Pentecost. But are we living in the reality of Pentecost? How do we compare in the use of our gifts and talents? Is our focus on the church of Jesus Christ and the cause of the Kingdom or are we pouring our time, talents, and treasures into other areas that are unimportant or less important?
JESUS CHRIST MUST be our first love lest we hear the awful words heard by the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2:4-5, “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place; unless you repent.” When Christ is primary in our lives we will be focused upon the Apostles’ doctrine (Scripture), fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayers, and then we will see growth as the Lord daily adds to the church as many as should be saved. This is the portrait of the Spirit-filled church described in our text.
Friday Devotional: May 30, 2025
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
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Members of Hope Reformed Church:
The Good Lord willing, this Sunday, June 1, 2025, we will celebrate the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. In order to prepare our hearts to receive this Holy Supper in a God-glorifying manner and for our spiritual benefit, please take time to read the form below and meditate upon the Scripture references listed, and examine your heart regarding this matter as to whether you truly believe God’s precious promise of forgiveness and righteousness in Jesus Christ.
A true examination of ourselves consists in these three parts:
1. Let everyone consider by himself his sins and accursedness apart from Jesus Christ, so that he may be displeased with himself and humble himself in the presence of God.
2. Let everyone examine his heart as to whether he truly believes this certain promise of God that all his sins are forgiven only for the sake of Jesus Christ.
3. Let everyone search his conscience whether he is determined to show his gratitude to God the Lord all the days of his life by walking uprightly before Him.
THE LORD'S SUPPER
Beloved in the Lord Jesus: Listen to the words of the institution of the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. “The Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body, which is broken for you; this do in remembrance of Me.’ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread, and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.”
The Lord’s Supper is a sacrament instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. Until His coming again it is to be observed as a continuing remembrance of the sacrifice of Himself in His death. The physical elements of bread and wine, representing the broken body and the shed blood of the Savior, are received by true believers as signs and seals of all the benefits of Christ's sacrifice on the cross. They signify and seal the remission of sins and nourishment and growth in Christ, and are a bond and pledge of the communion of believers with Him and with each other as members of His spiritual body, the Church. As signs and seals of the covenant of grace they not only declare that God is faithful and true to fulfill the promise of the covenant, but they also summon us to all the duties of the children of God, and call us to renewed consecration in gratitude for His salvation.
In order that we may celebrate the Lord’s Supper to our comfort, it is first necessary that we properly examine ourselves. A true examination of ourselves consists in these three parts: First, let everyone consider by himself his sins and accursedness apart from Jesus Christ, so that he may be displeased with himself and humble himself in the presence of God. Second, let everyone examine his heart as to whether he truly believes this certain promise of God that all his sins are forgiven only for the sake of Jesus Christ. Third, let everyone search his conscience whether he is determined to show his gratitude to God the Lord all the days of his life by walking uprightly before Him.
It is the solemn duty of the Minister of the Word to warn the uninstructed, the profane, the scandalous, and those who secretly and unrepentantly live in any sin, not to approach the holy table, where they would partake unworthily, not discerning the Lord’s body, and so eat and drink judgment to themselves. Nevertheless, this warning is not designed to keep the humble and contrite from the table of the Lord, as if the supper were for those who might be free from sin. On the contrary, we who are invited to the supper, come as guilty and polluted sinners who are without hope of eternal life apart from the grace of God in Christ. We confess our dependence for pardon and cleansing upon the perfect sacrifice of Christ; we base our hope of eternal life upon His perfect obedience and righteousness; and we humbly resolve to deny ourselves, crucify our old nature, and follow Christ as becomes those who bear His name.
—The RCUS Directory of Worship, pg. 33-35
Take time to read the following texts: Luke 22:14-20; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-34
In Christ’s Service,
Pastor S. Henry
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THE PATTERN FOR GODLY LIVING
“He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
—Micah 6:8
GOD GIVES the pattern for godly living in the text above, but we must apply it to our lives for it to be effective. How was your example yesterday? Was it godly? Did others see Christ through your words and works? Every day we must strive to become more like Christ, which comes through trusting Him by faith and walking in His ways.
IN MICAH 6:8, God commands us to do justly. Justice is described as “the quality of being just, righteousness, equitableness, or moral rightness.” God calls every believer to practice righteousness and moral rightness in our everyday living. What good is a godly example on Sunday morning if we are not living by God’s Word the other six days of the week? Too many times, Christians learn to “put on the show” at worship on Sunday mornings. They look, act, and speak correctly when around others, but when they go home Sunday afternoon or enter the workplace on Monday morning, they often leave their “godliness” behind and act very similar to the ways of the world.
THE LORD DOESN’T command us to act justly only on Sunday, but He commands us to obey Him every day of our life. Only as we consistently walk with Jesus each day will our godly example point others to the true and living God. Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 86, “Since, then, we are redeemed from our misery by grace through Christ, without any merit of ours, why must we do good works? Because Christ, having redeemed us by His blood, also renews us by His Holy Spirit after His own image, that with our whole life we show ourselves thankful to God for His blessing, and that He be glorified through us; then also, that we ourselves may be assured of our faith by the fruits thereof; and by our godly walk may win others also to Christ.”
Tuesday Encouragement: May 27, 2025
In Christ,
Pastor S. Henry
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