Thank you. Now let's turn to the book of the Acts and the second chapter, after which we'll read some verses in the first epistle to the Corinthians. So called, we know of course that it really wasn't the first epistle to the Corinthians, because in that first epistle Paul refers to an epistle that he wrote to them earlier. Acts chapter two and the end of the chapter. Verse forty-one says, Then they that gladly received his word were baptized. Now that's not the subject for the evening. We're talking about the operation of the church. When we come to the obligation of the church, we shall find that part of the church's obligation is to... practice the ordinances, and one of them is baptism. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized, and the same day they were added unto them about three thousand souls, and they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles, and all that believed were together, and had all things common, and sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men as every man had need. Now turn to First Corinthians and chapter fourteen, will you? First Corinthians in chapter fourteen. Now this first epistle so-called has also been called the charter of the local church. Follow after love. That's verse one of chapter fourteen. Follow after love and desire spiritual gifts. Go down the chapter and look at the end of the chapter. Verse twenty nine. Let the prophet speak two or three, and let the other judge. If anything be revealed to another that sitteth by, let the first hold his peace. For ye may all prophesy one by one that all may learn, and all may be comforted. And the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets, for God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints. Let your woman keep silence in the churches, for it is not permitted unto them to speak, but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also said the law. and if they will learn anything, let them ask their husbands at home, for it is a shame for women to speak in the church. What? Came the word of God out from you, or came it unto you only? If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord. But if any man be ignorant, let him be ignorant. Wherefore, brethren, covered to prophesy, and forbid not to speak with tongues. Let all things be done decently and in order." Now I read there two references to a silent woman. I'm not going to talk about that tonight, but if you read the chapter through you will find that in beautiful balance there are also two references to a silent man. God is very, very orderly and sometimes we note the one and perhaps forget the other. This morning we talked about the operation of the Church of God with regard to management. And that brought us to a study of bishops and a mention because we didn't have time to go into the study of deacons. Now tonight we're going to talk about the operation of the Church of God with regard to ministry. And since that word ministry ranges over quite a wide area, there are three things that concern me about it, and these I'd like to deal with tonight. First of all, that of which it consists. What exactly is ministry? The second is that ministry. for which it calls. And the third is the way in which it is to be carried out. First of all, of what stuff does the ministry consist? For what does the ministry call? And how is the ministry to be carried out? Now there are other scriptures that I want to make reference to as we go along, but there are the three pegs upon which I want to hang the thoughts for the evening. Shall we have a word of prayer together? Our Father once again, because we want to be instructed in the things of God through the Word of God, we ask that the Spirit of God may be able without let or hindrance this evening to speak to our hearts and to point out to us the things in the Scripture that are pertinent in connection with ministry. We thank thee for the church of Jesus Christ. We thank thee for the body universal. We thank thee for the representation of the whole, the local ecclesia. And we bless thee for all of the instruction that thou hast given to us concerning it. Refresh our memories tonight, we pray thee, and challenge our hearts for the Lord Jesus' sake. Amen. Now I read to you from Acts chapter two to begin with, because there are four expressions here that probably sum up what I have in mind when I ask of what does ministry in the local church consist? It says that those that were born again continued steadfastly in number one, the Apostles' Doctrine. Number two, fellowship. number three, breaking the bread, and number four, prayers. Now these are the four things that I want to use to consolidate our thoughts about ministry this evening. Now the word ministry in its narrowest sense, I suppose, means simply service. But when we speak of ministry, and when the word of God speaks of ministry and ministering, I think it has a wider connotation. It certainly takes in service, but it takes in other things also. Now these four things can be summarized like this. The first is teaching, and that is certainly a part of the ministry. In teaching, one learns from another. One is taught by teaching. another. The second that we have in the verse is fellowship, and that certainly is a part of Bible ministry, and in fellowship each one strengthens and suckers the other. The third thing that is mentioned is worship. Now let's please remember that worship in its purest form is perhaps the breaking of bread service, when we come together not to get from God, but to give. That's our purpose in being there on the Lord's Day morning in order that we might render to him, and this is usually called by us our worship service. But although this is perhaps the purest form of worship, even our service in any way, shape, or form should come from a heart of love for the Lord Jesus and should in its own way be an expression of our worship of him. And so we perhaps are not right when we try to put worship and service into water-tight compartments, because I believe they are integral and they belong the one to the other. And though I repeat, the communion service, the worship service so-called, is perhaps worship in its purest form, our service for God should constantly be an expression of the worship of our hearts. And then, of course, after teaching and fellowship, teaching in which one learns from the other, fellowship in which one suckers or strengthens the other, Worship in which each adores the Lord Jesus comes prayer, in which each intercedes for the other. So we have teaching, we have fellowship, we have worship, and we have intercession. Now I want to put those four things together and use them to learn a few lessons. together about what we call the ministry, and the operation of the local church with regard to it. Now, first of all, teaching. There are four things I want to say about teaching, which is that in which one learns from another. Here it is called the Apostles' Doctrine. Now, it is called the Apostles' Doctrine because Before there was a New Testament, the Spirit of God entrusted to godly men the truth of God And so it was the responsibility of these men to pass on this truth to others, and the apostles especially had this responsibility. And so the doctrine was called the Apostles' Doctrine, and God gave to them certain signs to establish them as men upon whom this peculiar and special ministry had been given, and in whom this repository who had been made a repository of this divine truth. When the Scripture was written and the Scriptures were brought together and the New Testament came into being, there was not the need for the signs of authentication that there had been in the early days. The gifts of healing, of miracles, I believe tongues, the interpretation of tongues, and so on. These were peculiar gifts. that were actually a means of authenticating those who carried the Apostles' doctrine. These became evidences to the people that these were men of God, men chosen of God, to bring the message of God to the people. Now, when the Scripture was written and put into the hands of the people, then these authenticating gifts no longer became necessary. Now in saying that, I may be oversimplifying to some extent, but I believe that's the principle that works here. Now the four things about the Apostle's doctrine, which of course is what we have here in our New Testament, it is first of all enshrined in the Word of God. Paul and Barnabas, we read in Acts chapter fifteen, I think it's the thirty-fifth verse, Paul and Barnabas continued preaching and preaching the word of the Lord. Now the Apostles' doctrine was the word of God, and it is that Apostles' doctrine which we have written for us in the New Testament that God has so jealously guarded and has preserved for us, and that we have in our hands today. So you want to know what this teaching of New Testament times was. You simply look into the Word of God, because it is enshrined in the Word of God. Now our need today is to be literally saturated in that Word. If any man speak, the Word of God says, let him speak as the Oracles of God. And no preacher should ever stand behind a pulpit to preach anything else. Some of you will remember, I don't know whether it's been a couple of years ago or something like that, I got an anonymous letter. In fact, I stood here and I read it to you. It came to me with a Boca Raton bulletin in it and with a Fort Lauderdale postmark. And it was meant to be a rebuke to me for using humor in my messages. Now, I make no apology for that. I don't believe that a pill is any the less effective because it has a sugar coating. And I do believe that if every house has windows, sometimes the Word of God can become a little more clear to us as we seek to illustrate it. And I don't find the Word of God to be void of humor. But I hope that God will prevent me from ever standing behind a pulpit if I fail to bring to the people the Word of God. The Apostle's doctrine, the teaching in which one learns from another must be that which is enshrined in the Word of God. The second thing, it must be that which is empowered by the Spirit of God. Let him speak as the oracles of God. I quoted that verse out of First Peter. In First Corinthians chapter two, we read about words that the Holy Ghost teach. The Word of God is effective, as it is taken up and applied by the Spirit of God. Now again the teaching that is referred to here in this forty-second verse, which is enshrined in the Word of God, and empowered by the Spirit of God, is also entrusted to men of God. The same, said Paul to Timothy. Commit thou to faithful men who shall be able to teach others also. And all of it in order that that which is enshrined in the Word of God and empowered by the Spirit of God and entrusted to men of God might be edifying for the Church of God." Now that is what teaching is meant to be. Obviously no man has any right to stand where I stand or behind a pulpit or occupy a platform and speak to a congregation for the purpose of monetary gain. He suddenly should never stand up like this for selfish glory. He should never do it, though it has been done, and more than once tragically, for the purpose of causing division. Teaching should be presented to the people as the mind of God, in the power of the Spirit of God for their edification and blessing. Now I think that's what is involved here when it says they continued steadfastly in the Apostles' Doctrine, and that teaching of those New Testament times was certainly enshrined in the Word of God, empowered by the Spirit of God, entrusted to men of God, and edifying for the Church of God. and mark you when those men of God speak, when they taught, they taught from their heart and not just from their heads. Sometimes you know it's possible for the preacher to minister intellectually, much that may tickle the mind and the brain and the thought processes, but have nothing to minister to the heart. Now that is not ministry in the sense in which the word of God speaks of it. Now an aside here about this teaching, concerning which we've looked at these four things. There are several kinds of teaching. There's teaching in public. Now I read to you some verses that apply to the local church in that first Corinthians letter chapter fourteen where it says, let your women keep silent in the churches. In that chapter it says, when the whole church is come together. Now that's a very important verse in that chapter fourteen of First Corinthians, because the principles that pertain in that verse pertain when the whole church is come together. The teaching in public then is reserved for the men. I suffer not a woman to teach. said Paul, writing by the Spirit of God. But mark you that was only when the whole church was come together. That's teaching in public. But there are other activities in which there is also teaching in public, from which the women are not excluded. I read in First Corinthians eleven that the woman of prophesier must have her head covered. Now what does that word prophesy mean? It means to expound or to teach. But it means more than that. It means to publicly expound or teach. So there is a place for the woman in public ministry, but not when the whole churches come together. There are other activities. Now I know this must be true because I read of Philip that he had four daughters which did prophesy. I read also, your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, publicly expound. Evidently there is scriptural warrant for women's ministry among women, women's ministry among children, women's ministry among the heathen. There is a place for teaching in public for the woman, but not when the whole church has come together. Now that's one kind of teaching in public. But then there's also teaching in private. For instance, there's the Father and the children. We are told, as Christian parents, that we must bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Now, the word nurture refers to instruction, and the word admonition actually means putting into mind. So we have to instruct our children and we have to make sure that they obey that instruction. We have to teach them. It's the parents' responsibility to teach the children. And among the things that they must teach their children is fidelity. You know, in these days when there is so little of clueless, maybe I'm coining a word there, but I want to get the thought across to you. being loyal, being true, knowing fidelity, it becomes more and more and more incumbent upon the parents to teach their children to be true, to impress upon their children fidelity, fidelity to the Word of God. If our children are taught, depends upon the Word of God, they can trust the Word of God, they can, without fear, believe the Word of God, then we can teach them to be true to the Word of God. If it isn't going to let them down, then they must learn to be loyal to the Word of God. Along with fidelity to the Word of God, we must teach them fidelity to the things of God. When they have to make choices, our children must be in a position, in the position where their consciences are sufficiently trained to so that they cannot move off the straight and narrow in the bypass meadow without being troubled on the inside. Fidelity to the things of God, as well as to the word of God. And fidelity to the assembly of God, to the local church, being true and loyal to the local assembly. Now that involves not going outside and washing our dirty linen in public. No, it's a tragic thing. I've talked to you about the tongue in the past. And it is a tragic thing when believers let their tongues wag and they carry the little problems that arise in the local church out beyond the local church and even pour them sometimes into the ears of unbelievers. And then they wonder why unbelievers shake their heads and say, well, those are Christians I don't want to be a Christian. Let's be true to the Word of God. Let's be true to the things of God. Let's be true to the people of God. And let's teach our children in private that kind of fidelity also. And then there's teaching in private between husbands and wives. A wife is instructed to ask her husband at home. Now she's going to be a very unfortunate woman if her husband It doesn't read the Word of God and learn the things of God, and so it's unable to give her the answer. She has a right to look to her husband according to the Word of God for answers. Let them ask their husbands at home. Now this is teaching. A husband should be capable of teaching his wife. First Corinthians, fourteen and thirty-five. Let them ask their husbands at home. The home is not correctly ordered, but does not have the Father as a spiritual leader. Now perhaps, since the exception proves the rule, if a mother has been saved for years and the Father is newly converted, well, some kind of spiritual help has got to come from the wife. But basically the Word of God teaches that the spiritual leader of the home is the Father, and he must assume that responsibility. And there's not only a teaching in private way between parents and child, between husbands and wives, but also between believer and believer. Do you remember Aquila and Priscilla when they met Apollos? They instructed him in the things of God. They took him home, and they taught him. And so, as believers, We should discuss the word of God together. We should seek to impart truth to one another. We can all learn from one another. And we are expected to do this kind of teaching of one another also. Here then is teaching. I better leave that and go to fellowship. Now we said in teaching one learns from another. In fellowship each suckers or strengthens. the other. Now that's what fellowship means, being a fellow of the other fellow and sharing together. That's the way we get encouragement, you know. We should be a cheer and an encouragement to one another. We should be available to each other for advice and help. Our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ and that kind of fellowship overflows between believers and really makes their fellowship one with another real and precious. I was saying a little earlier on, it is always a thing of wonder to the unconverted serviceman to find out that no matter where the Christian serviceman goes, he always seems to find somebody immediately with whom he has a lot in common. and someone who's willing to take him home, somebody who has a feeling and concern for him, of course. They belong to the same family. His fellow believers are bound to feel for him. That's what fellowship is. Fellowship, and we've gone over some of this in the past, so I'm not going to stay here. It's partnership in work and responsibility, in our means, and yes, in our suffering. Because we are to share his sufferings, we are to know the fellowship of his sufferings, and the scripture says, bear me one another's burdens. Fellowship. Why there's so much more that could be said, but let me go on and talk for just a little while about worship. The word that's used here is, in breaking of bread. Now in worship, each adores the Savior. And the breaking of bread service is, as we said, perhaps worship in its purest form. Worship is an experience of reverence toward the person of the Lord Jesus. It is an experience of affection for the person of the Lord Jesus. It is an experience of occupation with the person of the Lord Jesus. Now, reverence, affection, occupation. All this adds up to adoration or worship. That word reverence perhaps is something that needs to be mentioned, because reverence you know is something that is tragically and sadly so often lacking among us. It's very striking because if you've traveled at all, and most of us have done some traveling, if you've traveled abroad, you invariably find that on your itinerary, you have this church and that church and the other church. I get bored with churches when I go abroad, frankly. But it always speaks to me when I watch the tourists generally enter any of these churches. As soon as they enter, they drop their voice. As soon as we enter, well, most of them put a handkerchief on their heads. It's their way of showing reverence. Now, we come together, the organ starts, and we continue our conversation unabated and, well, we used to. We're getting a little better. But, you know, it's really irreverence. It is really irreverence. We don't look upon it that way because after all we don't see each other very often. I don't know why because we don't live very far from one another. But the fact is sometimes we see each other on Sundays and on Thursdays and therefore we've got to just have that little exchange and that's good. That is good. That's part of the warmth and fellowship and wonder of the meetings. But we ought not to be doing it when our hearts should be preparing themselves. And that's especially true. of the services and when we come together for the worship service we don't usually have to be exhausted we come together we quietly sit down maybe fifteen minutes ahead of time and we seek to prepare our hearts for that experience of worship but you know when we come to the eleven o'clock service we should be in our places early And we should be seeking to prepare our hearts. We are praying that strangers will come in and get a blessing. But if they come in and let a massive hubbub of conversation, it doesn't really create a very good impression. Reverence is something that we ought to think about a little more than we do. And if we would be conscious of that, that the Lord is there, we would be quiet. We would be more thoughtful. We would be more confused, and that quietness would serve to prepare us. Reverence. Now, that's especially true when it comes to the person of the Lord Jesus. We should have a reverence for the book. We should have a reverence for the meetings, because we should have a reverence for the Lord Jesus himself. Indeed we do. A reverence for him. Let's ask ourselves whether we shouldn't let it spill over into these other areas a little more than it does. But more than just reverence for his person, there has to be in worship, affection for his person. Not only should we have an awesome sense of the presence of God, but we should have a warm glow of love for him at our heart. affection for the person of the Lord Jesus. You know, love delights to give. God is love, and that's why God is always giving. Now, the reason why the breaking of bread service which is mentioned here is so important, is because it is the only service when we do actually come together for one express purpose and that is the purpose of giving to the Lord Jesus for the worship and adoration of our hearts but it's an amazing thing you know when we come together to give to the Lord Jesus like that we never go away without having received We didn't come for that purpose. God is no man's dead. As we pour out in his presence the love and worship in our hearts, we go away and say, wasn't that a wonderful experience? Wasn't that a warm and precious meeting that we received? We got. So we didn't go to get. We went to give. Again, I remind you that worship is not limited to the breaking of bread service. but perhaps this is where we find it in its purest form. This is the supreme expression of worship, which is why the Lord Jesus instituted that remembrance. Now, why do we do it every Sunday when other believers are quite prepared to do it once a month or once in three months? Very simple, because the Bible says, The disciples will come together on the first day of the week and break bread. They did it every Lord, sir. There's no doubt at all about it. They may even have done it more often than that, but we know that they did it every Lord. There are those who maintain, by if you break bread, have a communion service every Sunday, it's going to become a familiar thing. Did you ever get any love letters when you were young? Did you ever bind them up with blue or pink ribbon? Now, why did you save them? So that from time to time you could undo the ribbon and read them again. Did it ever become too much? Did you ever become familiar and unappreciative of these things? Do you think God doesn't appreciate those times we come aside, even though it's every week, it's not even often enough then? That's the reason why at other times we have to go aside and say, Lord, if I just don't come and tell you how much I love you, I burst. But since the believers in the New Testament did it every Lord's day, we don't feel that we can do it any less than that. It was not an ordinary meal when it says they came together to break bread because it speaks of the first day. They came together on the first day of the week. Now they ate on other days than that. This is quite definite in the breaking of bread that is spoken up here in verse forty. The disciples did it every Lord's day. And it's not going to become a humdrum and familiar thing. It will recognize the force and wonder of it. As often as he eat this bread and drink this cup, as often as he do it, he to show forth the Lord. deal with each other. We don't have to apologize for often remembering the Lord Jesus. We don't do it any more often than they did it in early New Testament times. Here then is worship. Now what should we say about intercession? This is where each prays for the other. Now we are told to pray for the church, praying with all prayer and supplication for all saints. So we have to pray for all believers. You know, some are easy to pray for than others, aren't they? But the Bible says we are to pray for the whole church, all saints. We are to pray for the servants of God. We are also helping together by prayer for us. We are to pray for the authorities, for kings and all that are in authority. We are to pray for the lust. My prayer to God for Israel is, says Paul. Pray the Lord of the harvest, said the Lord Jesus. that he would thrust out laborers into his harvest. Pray, said Paul, for all men. That's his expression in one of his letters to Timothy. He was also to pray for the opposition. Pray for them that is rightfully amusing. Intercession. Now these are the four things then that make up ministry. They are teaching, fellowship, worship, and intercession. Now this is that of which ministry consists. Now for what does ministry call? If we are going to know what it is to teach and to be taught, if we are going to know what it is to enjoy fellowship, If we are going to know the true expression of worship and how to be able to intercede on the behalf of one another, there are two things demanded, two things called for. One is spiritual perception and the other is spiritual gifts. I obviously don't have time to go into too much detail here, but every believer has the right and indeed the responsibility of priesthood. What do you know about the priest? Now, priesthood first of all was exercised by the head of the family. That's how it was in Noah's day. That's how it was in Abraham's day. The head of the family was the priest. All right? Now, that family priesthood was followed by an Aaronic priesthood. The family of Aaron was raised up. and Israel drew its priesthood from the mine of Aaron. Now originally that priesthood, that Aaronic priesthood was exercised in any place, on any occasion, but finally in the temple that was built in Jerusalem. Then a new priesthood was ushered in that was first of all introduced in the Old Testament, and the Aaronic gave way to the priesthood of the Lord Jesus, the priesthood after the order of Melchizedek, and he who was at once the sacrifice, and the sanctuary was also the priest. And mark you, he did not come of Aaron's life. He was a priest after the order of Melchizedek. That's very striking. It was a man who, under the old order, was a king. His name was Oziah. Did you ever hear of him? You read about him in the Old Testament. King Oziah. Now he decided, one day, that since he was a king, he was going to function as a priest. You know what God did? God struck him down with leprosy. Because he was a king, he did not have the right of Christhood that was given to Aaron and his life. And so when he, though he was a king, presumed, God made a letter out of him. I read in Isaiah, In the year that King Osiria died, I saw the Lord high and lifted up, sitting upon a throne, and his train filled the what? the temple. Now what Uzziah couldn't do, that was joining the throne and the temple, in the year that Uzziah who couldn't do it died, Isaiah saw one who could do it. He saw the Lord sitting on a throne and he's train filling the temple. Now that priest resulted in a universal priesthood every believer has become a priest a royal priesthood there's the throne and what's the other one a holy priest that's right one is manwood one is godwood and here again you have a peculiar and a special and remarkable priesthood and into this priesthood as a Christian you have been wrote. Now, every believer, being a priest, must perceive when that priesthood is to be exorcised. Now, that is where the spiritual perception is called for. If we are going to be ministers of God, we are going to engage with the glory of God in the ministry of which we have been reading and of which we have been thinking, we must perceive when our peaceful is to be exercised. Now when we come to spiritual gifts, which are distributed by the Spirit of God, they are not only distributed by him, but every time they are exercised They must be exercised under his control and his direction. Now that's where the silent man comes in, in first Corinthians fourteen. Although a man may have a gift, there's a time when his mouth is supposed to be closed. Or it says, when a word is given to another, let the fur hold his teeth. There's a silent man. And you read about him twice in that chapter, just as you read about the silent woman twice. Spiritual gifts I've mentioned in the past, some were peculiar and temporary and some were ordinary and permanent. Apostles and prophets, they're now in the past. The evangelists and pastor teachers, they are in the present. The first have gone down into the foundation of the building, they are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, but the other gifts are still active today. Now these gifts have been given to the church. for it growing up and in order to prepare it for the work of the ministry. This then is what is called for in the ministry. There's one other thing, along with spiritual perception. And spiritual gifts is also a spiritual subjection. Because we read that the prophets have to be subject. The spirits of the prophets must be subject to the prophets. Now there has to be spiritual subjection, first of all, of the teachers or the ministers to the Holy Spirit. And then there has to be subjection of these ministers, those who minister the things of God, not only to the Holy Spirit, but to each other. And then also that there has to be spiritual subjection of the learners, to the Word of God that is minister to. Now, my time has gone. But this is a thought, perhaps a very good place to finish tonight, the thought of spiritual subjection. We are living in days of human rights, so-called. You know, the tragic thing that men have not yet learned, they really have no right. you're not your own, you're bought with a price, the precious blood of Christ. I see Anita Bryant is in trouble again tonight. She may be going to lose her job because there were those who were, those perverts who'd been trying to claim their rights as though they had any, and because she opposed them, refusing to have her children taught by homosexuals, now it seems as though the citrus industry and foreigner has already stopped filming or the advertisements that would have come up in the fall. She's going to have to pay a price. Here's a woman who has shown a willingness to pay the price to be subject to the Word of God and submissive to the things that the Spirit of God impresses upon her heart. Subjection is not an easy thing. It's not a natural thing for the human being to fight. But if you and I are not going to be subject to the Spirit of God, to one another, to the Word of God, and we are going to suffer in our own lives, and the Church of God is going to suffer, because we should not be taken away from making the contribution of God in terms of the Spirit.