We are a forgetful people in a land of distractions. Our minds are easily captivated by trivial and temporary inducements. New things quickly become old. In our mind’s eye even glory tends to fade and warnings tend to wane. It is no wonder that we who are invisibly united to Christ and visibly in and not of this world live in constant need of renewal. And what is true for the Christian is true for the church. This is a series that seeks to renew the mind of the church. Not so much by reviewing what she is called to do as much as what she is called. As with the Christian so with church, her God-given identity defines her. We who are the church are a people for God and none other.
Before we return to the book of Romans, we will be looking at the what scripture says about the Church, in its nature, how she expresses herself in song, and how the church cares and equips for its members.
The messages from this series can be found here:
Manny Pereira - February 26, 2017
Mark One of the Church: Preaching
The charter of the church is to know and make known the glorious Christ. She exists to make much of Him, not herself, and she does this first by preaching the gospel. And by preaching we mean more than evangelism. For the first mark of the early church is represented by the fact that “they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42). Apostolic preaching was the first object of devotion for the assembled church of God. Before the church was scattered to evangelize, they devoted themselves to the preaching and teaching of the apostles within their assembly. If the most important thing about us is what comes into our minds when we think about God, then the most important duty for God’s church is to guard what she feeds her mind. This message aims to enlarge our understanding of the place and provision of biblical preaching so that the church would make much of Christ through her primary ministry.
