(Acts 2:42-47) “They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favour with all the people. And the LORD was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”
(Romans 12: 6-8) “Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.”
(1 Corinthians 12: 4-11) “Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same LORD; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are empowered by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as He wills.”
(1 Corinthians 14:26) “What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.”
1. Worship Services?
Today we have worship services with our altars our pulpits our musicians and set programmes with all of the action happening up at the front while the rest of the congregation just stand when it’s time to sing and to sit down when told to sit down. We call our meetings worship services. However, how do we define ‘worship’ in the context of how the first century Body of Messiah conducted their assemblies as we see described in New Testament?
In the New Testament the gatherings of believers were not called worship services. Rabbi the Apostle Paul expressly directed; “What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, and has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification” (1 Corinthians 14:26). He also wrote; “Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). As the author of Hebrews also writes; “…and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near”(Hebrews 10:24-25). The context is a public gathering of believers meeting together to edify one another.
And again Rabbi the Apostle Paul writes; “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification” (Romans 14:19). He also writes; “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29). He also writes; “To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7). As we read in Proverbs; “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another” (Proverbs 27:17). The Apostle Peter writes; “As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace” (1 Peter 4:10). Does this sound like “pew sitting?”
Are modern day church meetings the right way to be conducted for when the local body of Messiah meets together for mutual edification? We can unwittingly read our experiences of modern day church meetings into scripture while missing the point as to how the early Christian assemblies met together for building one and other up in their most holy faith (Jude 1:20).
To understand the New Testament assemblies we need to think of house gatherings, not church buildings. House churches were “All the rage” among the assemblies in the first century. They were places where the believers would gather to edify one another as each member exercised his or her spiritual gift in order to build their fellow believers up in their most Holy faith, as each member used their gifting from the Holy Spirit for this expressed purpose. Let’s continue…
2. The early Christian assemblies met in homes. Church buildings did not exist in the first and second centuries
New Testament gatherings of New Covenant believers met in homes. At first they met in the Temple precincts and in their homes as we read; “Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts” (Acts 2:46). Under Roman law Mosaic Judaism was a legalised religion and functioned with Rome’s permission. Judaism was corrupt and the Jewish leaders by and large compromised with Rome. Many Pharisees actually paid others to offer incense of worship to the statue of Caesar so that they would not have to do it themselves.
At first the Christians met in the Temple courts as well as in their homes as they were protected under the shelter of Judaism. The first assembly of the New Covenant believers were Jewish and meeting in the Temple courts was the norm as well as in their homes.
However, the time came when the religious hierarchy, namely the Sanhedrin, being the supreme Jewish religious council at Jerusalem, kicked the Christians out of the Temple precincts because of their testimony to the Lord Jesus as Israel’s Messiah and Passover Lamb. Once this occurred the Christian assemblies became an illegal religion in the eyes of Rome and their public gatherings were outlawed so they met in their homes where they encouraged and edified each other. In the New Testament we see various references to the Body of Messiah meeting in homes. Let’s look at this from the New Testament…
(Acts 2:46) “When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered and were praying.” (Romans 16:5) “Greet also the church that meets at their house.” (1 Corinthians 16:19) “The assemblies in the province of Asia send you greetings. Aquila and Priscilla greet you warmly in the LORD, and so does the assembly that meets at their house.”
(Colossians 4:15) “Give my greetings to the brothers and sisters at Laodicea, and to Nympha and the church in her house.” (Philemon 1:1-2) “Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our dear friend and fellow worker –also to Apphia our sister and Archippus our fellow soldier – and to the assembly that meets in your home.” (2 John 1:10) “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not take them into your house or welcome them.”
There were no church buildings in the first or even the second century. Christians met in homes. People were standing or sitting around including mums with their children. There were people of all ages gathered together. No ‘holy’ furniture or religious icons or statues, no big crosses hanging on the walls, no stained glass windows, no spires on the top of church buildings, just people with a common unity in the Holy Spirit meeting together to build one and other up in their most holy faith. There were no denominational structures either (Acts 2:42-47). The Apostle’s doctrine was the standard fare for every New Covenant believer. Let’s consider this…
3. The early believers devoted themselves to the doctrine of the Apostles which we have today in the entire New Testament
As Rabbi the Apostle Paul writes; “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:4-5). The Assemblies gave themselves or devoted themselves to the doctrine of the Apostles (Acts 2:42), which we have today in the New Testament and affirmed in the Nicene and Apostle Creeds. Doctrine is important as what we believe will affect what we will say and do (1 Timothy 4:16).
- Any doctrine not based on the Word of God is false doctrine. Unity of the Spirit is based on apostolic doctrine which we have in the entire New Testament. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth, not error, and will never lead any individual New Covenant believer or any assembly corporately into doctrine that does not align with the Word of God (John 16:13-15) (1 John 2.20). In the assembly meeting are we talking about worship or mutual edification?
4. In the New Testament Paul never wrote that a New Covenant believer went to the local assembly primarily to worship
Today we have “praise and worship services” with bands and supported by a multi-million dollar music industry where multitudes of singers and musicians are treated like celebrities and rock stars, many of whom use the church meetings because they cannot make it in the secular music world. Our perception of ‘worship’ today did not exist in the first century gatherings or assemblies of the Body of Messiah. The New Testament does not use worship terminology in reference to Christian meetings. What do the Greek words mean? The New Testament in Greek does not use the English term ‘worship’ we see translated in our English translations of the New Testament. Let’s look at two primary Greek words…
“proskuneó” (προσκυνέω)
The primary word used in the New Testament is “proskuneó” (προσκυνέω) also used 204 times in the Septuagint (The Greek translation of the Old Testament) and 61 times in the New Testament needs to be understood in the context in which it is used. Context determines meaning.
These 265 references give no indication that “proskuneó” implies singing, praying, preaching, reading scripture, or liturgy. It does not refer to any of that. The word “proskuneó” refers to “a greeting or prostration, meaning to kiss, like a dog licking his master’s hand; to fawn or crouch to or to prostrate oneself in homage, to do reverence and to, adore.”
It is also used as an act of worship or respect (literally or figuratively) properly in its Biblical context to kiss the ground when prostrating before a superior; to worship God, a readiness “to fall down, to prostrate oneself to adore Him on one’s knees.” It can also imply “to fall, to kneel and to fall on one’s face on the ground at the feet of another.”
For example this can happen in an assembly where believers are exercising spiritual gifts and an unsaved person or a saved person being an outsider who does not understand what is happening, and declare that God is among them (1 Corinthians 14-24-25). Literally; “falling on his face he will prostrate (proskuneó) to God.”
In all those 265 references it never implies raising ones hands in praising God. In first century pagan culture when one prostrated themselves before a pagan deity they were acknowledging that they were in the presence of that deity. In passing we know from scripture that the worship of idols is the worship of demons (Deuteronomy 32:16-17) (Psalm 106:36-37) (1 Corinthians 10:20).
In an assembly meeting an individual believer may prostrate themselves, however, the word does not imply to everyone in the meeting corporately prostrating themselves before the LORD. In the New Testament we never find a case where an individual Christian prostrated themselves in a regular assembly meeting, not that it cannot happen of course, however, when the believers met together for mutual edification they were building one another up in their most holy faith as they ministered to each other through exercising the gifts of the Spirit given as He determined (Romans 12:4-8) (1 Corinthians 12:4-11). It was a family affair where every member of the local assembly participated and not a one man show!
An exception would be when a revival happens. In that case many in the meeting will actually prostrate themselves in the presence of the LORD, being fully cognitive in their understanding of what is happening to them. We see this in the genuine revivals of the past under men like John Wesley, George Whitfield, William Booth and many others God used at certain times in the history of the Body of Messiah. One can question “carpet time” we see in Charismatic and Pentecostal meetings where people fall backwards.
In a genuine revival no one falls back in a stupor or into some kind of un-cognitive state of mind. Those prostrating themselves on their faces in God’s presence are fully aware of their unconfessed, un-renounced sin and are beseeching the LORD for mercy and forgiveness. They are on their faces not on their backs!
The only case in the New Testament where people fell backwards was when they came to arrest the Messiah our Lord Jesus. When He spoke to them they fell backwards. It was a judgement, not a blessing. In the New Testament Christians did not prostrate in their meetings. Christians had no buildings where God lived.
Prostration to God is obsolete until we appear in person before the throne of God as we see described in Revelation Chapter 4:10. Those before the throne prostrate themselves in His presence. The English word “worship” in our English translations of the New Testament in the Greek text is “proskuneó,” meaning to prostrate oneself (Revelation 17:6) (Revelation 7:11).
λατρεία (latreia)
Another word used in the New Testament translated as “worship” in our English translations is the Greek word λατρεία (latreia) found 107 times in the Septuagint and 26 times in the New Testament describing; “To serve deity with sacrifice.” It can be decribed as “sacrificing.”
“Proskuneó” and “latreia” are not synonyms, even though Bible versions in English would make you think that they are. Each one of them refers to something different “Proskuneó” refers to prostrating, “latreia” refers to sacrificing. These describe two different actions. The Word “latreia” refers to a physical act of a sacrifice of a cow, a pidgeon, a goat or a sheep used as a blood sacrifice in the temple.
The word does not refer to a religious meeting in any of its uses in the Septuagint or the New Testament. In the New Testament it is used six times in a metaphorical sense where we are not offering animal sacrifices. The Lord Jesus is the ultimate sacrifice. In the New Testament no more physical sacrifices are needed. When the Messiah our Lord Jesus died on the cross and gave up His spirit the curtain in the Temple was torn from top to bottom ending forever the need for blood sacrifices to atone for sin.
Rabbi the Apostle Paul speaks about a spiritual sacrifice when he writes; “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper sacrifice (latreia). Do not conform to the pattern of this world (be moulded by it), but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will (Romans 12:1-2).
Sacrifices in the Old Testament in the temple offered up to God had to be holy and pleasing to Him. When Paul is speaking about sacrificing in the context of Romans 12:1-2 he is not speaking about it in a literal sense. Our sacrifice is yielding up our bodies and transforming our way of thinking. If God gets our bodies He gets its contents as well!
Hence when we walk in step with the Holy Spirit and yielded to his control we will be empowered to crucify the flesh with its passions and desires and inevitably walk in God’s good, pleasing and perfect will! We are also told that “Praise is also a sacrifice” (Hebrews 13:15). Praise will also slap the devil’s mouth shut especially when in the hour of temptation and his taunts as the continuous accuser of the brethren (Psalm 8:2) (Psalm 9:1-3).
So then “Proskuneó” and “latreia” are the two primary words referring to temple activities not to meetings where the Body of Messiah meet for mutual edification. Physically sacrificing and bowing down, prostrating oneself in God’s presence in its context was part of Temple worship. The once and for all time sacrifice of the Messiah our Lord Jesus make temple sacrifices to atone for sin obsolete.
Sacrifices in the Millennial Temple in the age to come will be memorials to what Messiah did in the previous age when cutting the new eternal covenant for which the sacrifices point back to. The Lord Jesus prophesied the destruction of the physical temple which occurred in 70 AD terminating Biblical Mosaic Judaism.
The Judaism we have today is not Biblical Mosaic Judaism just as Roman Catholicism is not Biblical Christianity. Both are a mixture of Biblical and traditional doctrines and traditions of man. In the coming Millennial Kingdom Israel as a nation will practice Biblical Mosaic Judaism, only it will be centred around the Messiah our Passover Lamb sitting on David’s throne and His coming into and going out from the rebuilt Millennial Temple in Jerusalem (Ezekiel 44:1-3) (Ezekiel 46:1-18).
In this present age the corporate body of Messiah is now God’s living Temple, as are also individual believers (1 Corinthians 3:16-17, 19) (1 Corinthians 6:19-20) (2 Corinthians 6:16) (Ephesians 2: 19-22) (1 Peter 2:4-5) (1 Corinthians 3:9, 17). God is now living in us. He is with us (Matthew 1:23) and living in us in the person of the Holy Spirit also called the Spirit of Holiness (1 John 4:4).
Holiness is not in some building out there but on the inside of us as God’s living temple. Indeed we who are part of the corporate Body of Messiah are “the called out ones” to belong to the LORD. The Greek word is “ekklésia” meaning the assembly of New Covenant believers corporately who have been “called out” by God, to make a difference in the world, and to be different from the world. Salt is different from the food it flavours.
God has called the Body of Messiah to be separate from sin and living sinful lifestyles as the unsaved live in this present world (1 Peter 1:16), to embrace fellowship with other believers (Acts 2:42), and to be a light to the world (Matthew 5:14). God has graciously called us to Himself: “’Come out from them and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you’” (2 Corinthians 6:17).
Christians praised God and prayed in their assemblies, but these activities were not viewed as “Proskuneó” or “latreia”. These terms do not apply to what Christians did in their assemblies. If thus is the case what are we to do when we meet together as the Body of Messiah?
5. What are we supposed to be doing in Christian meetings?
The New Testament tells us what the Body of Messiah were doing when they gathered together to edify each other. These assemblies were not described as “worship” or as “worship services” or as “services of worship” as such.
The meeting where the believers gathered together for mutual edification are described as a gathering or an assembly “sunago” (συνάγω) can be translated as “a fellow worker” or “co-worker,” referring to someone who collaborates with others in a shared task, particularly in the context of spreading the gospel of the kingdom and serving God.
This term emphasizes active participation and partnership in work, both with God and among believers, or as an assembly “Ekklesia” (ἐκκλησία), which as we have already mentioned describes “a calling out” or “a called out assembly of people.” It is the community of the Redeemed Body of Messiah corporately together, whether being on earth or in heaven or both. It is translated as “Church” in English translations of the New Testament.
Today “Church” means something different than the word “Ekklesia.” When Paul speaks about the assembly at Laodicea or at Rome he is talking about someone’s home where the local believers were gathered. These meetings are described as a gathering or an assembly.
The gatherings were dominated by horizontal activities of encouraging “parakaleó” (παρακαλέω) meaning “to call to one’s side, to exhort, to encourage, to comfort, to urge, to entreat, to call near as to receive or to give help and to ask for mercy or help. “ It also implies strengthening one another “sterizo” (στηρίζω) describing “to make one stable, to place firmly or to make one firm and resolute, to set fast, to fix, to strengthen, to make one firm, to render consistency, to confirm one’s thinking.”
It implies edifying one another “oikodomeó” (οἰκοδομέω). Literally it means “to build a house, to erect a building up from its foundation, to restore by building, to rebuild and to repair.” Metaphorically, it is “to found, to establish, to promote growth in Christian wisdom, affection, grace, virtue, holiness, blessedness and to grow in wisdom and godliness.” These describe the dominant activates described as taking place during the meeting of a local assembly of New Covenant believers in the New Testament. Why do we need to do things differently?
6. What did these meetings involve?
The New Testament tells us that the Body of Messiah built itself up as each member did its part, or what God designed it to do when He gave each one their spiritual gift (Ephesians 4:16). It involved encouraging each other, strengthening each other and edifying each other (1 Corinthians 14:26). Every member of the Body of Messiah was to be fulfilling his or her task as designated by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians Chapter 12).
For the community of believers in the first century edification involved being continuously filled with the Spirit and speaking to each other with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making music in their hearts to the LORD, and always giving thanks to God the Father for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus the Messiah and submitting to one another out of reverence for Him (Ephesians 5:17-21). Do we see this happening today in the gatherings within virtually all of the structured denominational ‘churches’ both within traditional evangelical and Pentecostal/ Charismatic circles when they have their ‘worship’ services as such?
In the first century the Lord’s Supper, which was part of a shared meal, was also celebrated whenever the believers gathered together for mutual edification (Acts 2:42, 46) (1 Corinthians 11:23-26). It was a communal activity where everyone was involved, a meal commemorating what the Lord Jesus did at the cross which included taking bread and wine symbolising the body and blood of the Messiah. It was only for believers not for the unsaved and those who did not recognise what the meal meant. Yes it was a meal and the believers shared the bread and the wine together because in doing this they were declaring that they were joined to the LORD and one spirit with Him and recognising His sacrifice (1 Corinthians 6:17). This the heartbeat of the Lord’s Supper! (1 Corinthians 10:16-17).
Now Paul commands in 1 Corinthians 14:26 that all things must be done for edification. Some people were speaking in tongues without it being translated and in doing this no one was edified, nobody was built up, nobody gained anything from it by someone speaking out in a foreign tongue that was not understood or interpreted. If you are going to do speak in a tongue (language) in a public gathering make sure there is someone to translate what is being said so that all listening are all edified and spiritually built up corporately.
See in this website the study titled “The gift of Tongues”
The word “edify” is used 14 times in 1 Corinthians Chapter 14 which is the longest passage in scripture in the entire Bible to refer to what we are supposed to be doing when gathered together. Whenever we gather together let all things be done for edification, for building up one another spiritually.
7. How did ‘Worship Terminology’ develop?
How then did worship terminology related to temples develop? When did Christians start to use worship terminology? Early Christians firmly resisted having temples and all their trappings.
In Acts 7:48 Stephen’s speech at Jerusalem to a Jewish audience was the following; “The Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands.” Early Christians recognised that physical temples were not necessary to know God. In Acts 17-25 Rabbi the Apostle Paul giving a speech in Athens to a gentile audience on Mars Hill told them plainly; “The God who made the world and everything in it… does not dwell in temples made by hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything.”
Very early in the Body of Messiah Stephen and Paul knew that God does not need physical temples and buildings for worship anymore. They are gone. God does not dwell there anymore. He no longer needs this army of priests and temple officers and sacrifices, offerings and religious ceremonies as seen in temple worship. In 70AD the Romans conquered Jerusalem and destroyed the Temple effectively ending Biblical Mosaic Judaism.
In the Second Century the Epistle of Barnabas in 115AD he wrote that Jews no longer need the temple to worship God. In 155AD written in the publication the Martyrdom of Polycarp, the Bishop of Smyrna it states; ““The entire crowd…cried out with uncontrollable anger and with a loud shout; ‘This is the teacher of Asia, the father of the Christians, the destroyer of our God’s, who teaches many not to sacrifice or worship.”
The riot in Ephesus we see mentioned in the Book of Acts occurred during Pauls’ third missionary journey around 54-57AD. Ephesus, a major city in the Roman province of Asia (modern-day Turkey), was a bustling centre of commerce and religion, renowned for its Temple of Artemis, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The temple was not only a religious site but also a significant economic hub, attracting pilgrims and tourists, which in turn supported local craftsmen and merchants.
The disturbance arose due to the successful spread of Christianity in Ephesus, which threatened the local economy tied to the worship of Artemis. A silversmith named Demetrius, who crafted silver shrines of Artemis, incited the riot. He gathered fellow craftsmen and expressed concern that Paul’s teachings were turning people away from idol worship, thereby endangering their trade and the reverence for the goddess Artemis.
The Riot in Ephesus highlighted the tension between the burgeoning Christian faith and established pagan practices. It underscored the transformative power of the Gospel of the Kingdom, which not only changes individual lives, but also challenges societal norms and economic structures rooted in idolatry. This incident illustrates the spiritual warfare inherent in the spread of Christianity, as the proclamation of the truth often encounters opposition from those whose interests are threatened both without and within religious circles.
Early assemblies never had buildings and sacrifices like the pagans did, or even like the Jews did who rejected the Messiah, rejected His teaching and that of those who followed Him. In 200AD Clement of Alexandria wrote; “The Word prohibiting all sacrifices and the building of temples, indicates that the Almighty is not contained in anything.” Origen, writing in 230AD stated; “We object to building altars, statues, and temples, because…we have learned from Jesus Christ the true way of serving God.”
It has nothing to do with altars, statues or buildings or temples. These Church fathers as well as others were saying in effect; “We don’t offer sacrifices in temples, the pagans do that.”
We have church buildings and cathedrals and mega church infrastructure all over the place today, a far cry from what we read in the Book of Acts. For the early first 300 years of Church history Christians objected to temples and religious buildings. Another Church father Arnobius in 300AD said; “We do not build temples for the ceremonies of worship, do not set up statues and images of any god; do not build altars…”
8. Was the Lord’s Supper a sacrifice?
There was a shift in teaching concerning the Lord’s Supper which began in the early second century. Some started to say it was a sacrifice, not as representing Jesus’ sacrifice for us but rather as our sacrifice we offer up to God. This has been strongly believed in both Roman Catholic and Christian Orthodox denominations. The priest offers up a sacrifice on the altar.
In other words with the immergence of the erroneous doctrine of transubstantiation our Lord Jesus is offered up to God as a sacrifice continuously in the bread and the wine, which somehow mysteriously become the physical body and blood of Jesus, even though it still tastes like bread and wine. It could be defined as a form of spiritual cannibalism.
This concept of a sacrifice being offered on an altar was not found in the second century However in 190AD Irenaeus started to buy into this idea. He stated; “We make an offering to God of the bread and the cup of blessing… And then, when we have perfected the offering, we invoke the Holy Spirit… that the receivers of these antitypes may obtain remission of sins and life eternal.”
After the New Testament period the Church gradually resurrected literal temple terminology and applied it to their assemblies. It looked like this; The Lord’s Supper is viewed as our offering up a sacrifice to God. The table upon which the bread and the wine sits must become an altar, whether it be a pagan altar of a Jewish altar, or a Roman Catholic or Christian Orthodox altar, a sacrifice must have an altar.
Then if you are going to have a sacrifice and an altar upon which to offer the sacrifice, then you need to have a priest to make the offering. This was both pagan and Jewish terminology for somebody who presided over the process of offering sacrifices. By the end of the third century Christian ministers were being called Priests, a common designation today within wider Christendom. Many churches still have their altars today and regard the Lord’s Supper as a sacrifice.
Now if you have all of these things then you need a building in which this stuff takes place as a temple or as a holy place such as a cathedral and some with all of their church furniture, icons and statues. You have “a holy church”, “a house of God” or “a sanctuary”. These terms apply to Old Testament practices in Judaism. Even in New Testament times the pagans had their sacrifices, their altars, their priests and their temples. It is still happening today in those nations that still have these religious pagan practices whose adherents have never heard of Christianity.
What we have today within wider Christendom with its denominational structures, with its buildings, with its clergy class and a separation of the clergy from the laity is not New Testament Christian thinking. It is a far shift from what Christians were doing in the first century when the New Testament was being written setting forth apostolic doctrine, teachings, instructions and Christian living, which we clearly see in the Spirit-Breathed Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
What we see within structured Christendom today is a far shift from what we read in the Book of Acts and the epistles about Christian assemblies (Acts 2: 42-47) (Acts 4:32-35) (Romans 12: 6-8) (1 Corinthians 12:4-11) (Ephesians 4: 11-16; 5:17-21).
In these texts we see how the early assemblies or gatherings of the Body of Messiah conducted themselves when they met corporately to edify each other with every member exercising their gift from the Holy Spirit for the spiritual well-being and edification of their fellow brothers and sisters in Messiah. ‘Pew sitting only’ was not the norm in the first century gatherings of the Body of Messiah. Every believer present had the opportunity to share if moved by the Holy Spirit.
See in this website “The Gifts of the Holy Spirit” (A three part series)
What is the way ahead?
What then is the way ahead? How can the local assembly with its structured meetings and set programmes start to move in the direction of doing things as we see exemplified throughout the New Testament in the Book of Acts and the Epistles?
#1. We can start to adopt Biblical terminology; calling them gatherings or assemblies, not services of worship. Let’s not call it worship in light of that word used to define temple activities. Using Biblical terminology will help us understand what the early assemblies were doing and how they were conducting their meetings or gatherings. Why not re-examine what we read in the New Testament regarding how meetings were conducted with every member involved in edifying and strengthening each other as directed by the blessed Holy Spirit.
#2. We can make “edifying One Another” (1 Corinthians 14:26) the expressed purpose of the assembly; How can each member build up their brothers and sisters sitting around the using the gifts God has given for this purpose? In most services today the congregation members just sit while all of the activity as such is happening up at the front. How can we in our local assembly meetings spur one another on to love and good works in view of the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus by looking at the back of their head and sitting in the pew in front of us?
As the author of Hebrews writes; “Let us hold resolutely to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to spur one another on to love and good deeds. Let us not neglect meeting together, as some have made a habit, but let us encourage one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:23-25).
#3. We can allow time in the meeting for any member to share for the benefit of others. It may be a teaching, a testimony, a word of prophecy or teaching or exhortation, or a word of encouragement or sharing or a word of knowledge or wisdom all being led by the Spirit to edify the whole Body of gathered believers.
Break big groups into small groups; How can each member build one another up in an auditorium of 1,000 or more people? Even in a congregation of 150 how can each member build one another up especially if there has to be a regular set 40 -60 minute sermon every time the assembly meets together by usually the same preachers?
If you have a group of twelve then we might achieve the goal of mutual edification? While there is a place for special public meetings seminars and conferences with guest speakers, and at times even the need for a 40 minute sermon as such, when it comes to the local assemblies meeting together regularly, then the number of believers needs to be minimised to allow for the participation of any individual believer gathered in the meeting. Meetings conducted in the New Testament were not “one man shows!” This would be quite a radical step for most churches on a Sunday morning that havea large congregation.
We see this in the assembly at Antioch where there were prophets and teachers while they were ministering as prophets and teachers as they waited on God and that by fasting, (not worshipping God, as we see rendered in the English translations of the text). Barnabas and Saul were among them and the Holy Spirit was in full control. Only when He gave them directions did they act (Acts 13:1-3).
In the New Testament there was always a plurality of leadership in the local assemblies. You had some who were apostles, others who were designated as prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (the two are joined together in the Greek text) and elders to equip the local assemblies for works of service so that the Body of Messiah corporately could be built up (Ephesians 4:11-13).
This kind of meeting we see exemplified in the New Testament gatherings is common place today in those countries where Christians do not have buildings as such who are marginalised by society for their faith, cannot find employment, that are rejected by their unsaved family members and face imprisonment and persecution as they faced in the first century.
Every believer needs to be given the opportunity to speak and to share in the local gathering of believers. We may talk and teach about the gifts of the Spirit, however, it is futile if we do not allow for individual members to exercise them or designate time for them to share in the meeting. For gifts to develop they must be exercised. “Cherry picking” by leaders is not Biblical! Every member of the Body needs to operate for the body as a whole to function Biblically as each member is edified!
Every member of the human body needs to operate and function to give health and mobility to it. If only one or two members of the body are used the others over time will atrophy. This is what Rabbi the Apostle Paul was getting at in 1 Corinthians Chapter 12. In a meeting speaking a message from the LORD may be a prophecy or a teaching based on the Word of God, you can have at least three speakers sharing in turn (1 Corinthians 14:29-32).
In most church meetings you have the minister up front every week preaching a set sermon for 40-45 minutes with the congregation sitting in the pews, not that there should not be times when he will preach such a sermon, however, every week? Imagine for a moment how it would be coming to the assembly meeting every week in anticipation of how the Spirit would move among the members.
We see this happening in the Book of Acts where every day they met together in a common fellowship or gathering because God was on the move! (Acts 2:42-27). It was the place to be where blessings abounded! Also where the LORD added daily those who were being saved! Such was the spiritual drawing power of the first century Body of Messiah.
In closing, there are two undeniable principles; firstly; the New Testament does not use Greek ‘worship’ terminology to refer to the Christian assembly or to its activities. Secondly; Paul expressly directed; “When you come together… let all things be done for edification.” (1 Corinthians 14:26).
Only as each member of the Body of Messiah does its work will the whole body be edified, built up and strengthened in their faith, encouraged, challenged, comforted, convicted and grow in the grace and knowledge of the Messiah our Lord Jesus, and be empowered by the blessed Holy Spirit to become increasingly mature and committed to God’s will, committed to rightly dividing the Word of truth, declaring to each other the whole counsel of God, and increasingly conformed to the image and likeness of the Messiah our Lord Jesus.
The day is coming for the Body of Messiah in the west when what we see happening in the Book of Acts in the first century in past history of the Body of Messiah is also future history as well, which will be common place just before the return of the Messiah our Lord Jesus. It is time for the wider Body of Messiah to get back to the basics! Selah!
N.B. This article in part has been adapted from the video teaching of Dr Tom Wadsworth; “Why the Early Church didn’t have “Worship Services.”
