SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/12/2017
10:56 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Intro to
Acts 5:12-42
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Acts 5:12-42
Message of the
verses: Once again I will not be
quoting all of these verses because there are so many, but as usual I will
quote the verses we go over each day.
In his introduction to this chapter John MacArthur talks
about what the mission of the church is all about, as some today, and in days
past have not totally understood and so I think it best to go ahead and quote
from his introduction on this topic and then as I usually do quote the last paragraph
to show us where we will be going as we study this particular chapter from his
commentary. Now before I quote from his
commentary I have to say that I was somewhat surprised to read what he wrote,
but was happy to read it as I learned something.
“A perennial problem the church of Jesus Christ faces is
a lack of focus on its mission.
Widespread confusion exists over what that primary mission should
be. Some argue that the church should
lead the crusade for social justice for the poor and downtrodden. Others see it as a political force to help
change the culture. Still others view
their church as a private club, where they can socialize with their friends.
“On a more biblical note, the church’s goal is to mature
the saints through the preaching of the Word, fellowship, and
discipleship. It also meets to praise
and worship God. Those are important
goals, and should mark every church. Yet
not of them is the church’s primary goal here on earth. Indeed, every one of them could be better
accomplished in heaven.
“What is the primary goal of the church? Our Lord answered that question by charging
us to ‘go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in
the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to
observe all that I commanded you’ (Matt. 28:19-20). The church’s primary goal is evangelism. It is to carry on the work begun by the Lord
Jesus Christ, whose mission was ‘to seek and to save that which was lost’ (Luke
19:10). That is the only duty of the
church that can’t be better done in heaven.”
MacArthur goes on to write that the early church
certainly knew this was their goal as we have already looked at the number of believers
that were added to the church in these early chapters of Acts. Now we will go on and look at what he wrote
at the end of this introductory commentary.
“What did the church do to contribute to this remarkable
growth? How did the church expand so
rapidly despite the determined opposition of the Jewish authorities? (Acts 5:12-42 presents five keys to the
effective evangelism of the early church:
purity, power, persecution, persistence, and productivity.”
As we begin our next SD we will be looking at this first
word: purity and see what we can learn from its content.
Spiritual meaning
for my life today: I realize that
evangelism is most important and I desire to be as Peter wrote we are to be “being
ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the
hope that is in you (1 Peter 3:15b).”
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust that the Lord will continue to give me
opportunities to tell others of the good news of the gospel. As I write my Spiritual Diaries and put them
onto my blogs it is my desire, and my prayer each day that the Spirit of God
will use these SD’s to bring about a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ to those
that He leads to read them.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “Mary Magdalene” (John 20:15).
Today’s Bible
question: “What was the original name of
the country God promised to Abraham?”
Answer in our next SD.
10/12/2017 11:37 AM
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