HOME MEETINGS
Pray-reading: “So also you, since you desire spiritual gifts, seek to abound for the building up of the church.” (1 Cor. 14:12)
In this message we will consider the way to practice the home meetings. The way to practice any meeting is, first, to have mutuality and, second, to have speaking. These two things are very useful and prevailing in the practice of any meeting.
MUTUALITY IN THE CHURCH MEETINGS
Because of the history of Christianity, almost all Christians today, including us, are not accustomed to having mutuality in their meetings. Generally, in Christian services we see that one or two people speak and the rest are simply listeners. This is in no way according to the biblical teaching.
In the New Testament there are two main categories of Christian meetings. The first is the ministry meeting—the meeting of the apostles, the meeting of any gifted person, such as Peter on the day of Pentecost. The meeting on the day of Pentecost was a meeting for ministry.
One cannot consider this type of meeting as a church meeting and in the church. On the other hand, when 1 Corinthians 14 speaks of the meeting, it refers to the meeting of the church and in the church. Verse 23 says, “If therefore the whole church comes together…” This is the meeting of the church in the church. When we speak of the home meetings, without any doubt, we refer to the meetings in the church and the meetings of the church.
The preaching or teaching in the ministry meeting does not have much mutuality nor much speaking to one another. But in 1 Corinthians 14, in the church meetings, there is the basic need—the basic factor—of mutuality.
1 Corinthians 14:23 says, “If therefore the whole church comes together…” Then in verse 26 it says that in this type of meeting, “each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation.”
This shows us that the meeting of the church and in the church depends on mutuality. There is always the sense of one toward another. We must be very clear that the home meetings certainly are not meetings of any ministry.
The home meetings are absolutely meetings of the church and in the church. They depend one hundred percent on mutuality. If there is no mutuality, there is no home meeting. To have a home meeting without mutuality causes the home meeting to lose its character; that home meeting would not be of the church.
It may be that it is a home meeting but only of a small ministry, where one person speaks and all the rest listen. There would be a speaker there with a small audience, but there would be no mutuality. First Corinthians 14 is the only chapter in Paul’s writings that teaches us something about the church meetings. In this chapter is the basic factor of mutuality.
SPEAKING IN THE CHURCH MEETINGS
The second necessary factor for the church meetings is speaking. If no one speaks, that kills the church meeting. The lack of speaking kills the church meeting. The church meeting depends on mutuality and speaking. The Scripture references for this message provide a basis for fellowship concerning such factors.
Acts 5:42 says, “And daily in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching [the good news] Jesus as the Christ.” This took place at the beginning of the church life, after the day of Pentecost.
After the thousands of new believers were saved, they met in the temple. The meeting in the temple was for the ministry, so that Peter and John could minister, speak, preach, and teach.
Verse 42 also refers to the fact that they met from house to house and in every house. What did they do there? They met to teach and to preach. No doubt they taught Christ, they taught the things concerning Christ. On the day of Pentecost, after Peter’s preaching, three thousand were saved, and right away they began to meet.
Surely they were not speaking about the Jewish religion. No doubt they were speaking about what they had heard in Peter’s one message. They taught and they preached. They preached Jesus Christ as the good news. In their meetings they did only two things—both included speaking. Teaching is speaking, and preaching is also speaking.
🌿 Enjoy more:
Hymn: Meetings – “Functioning”
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