Rebuilding the Church

Rebuilding the Church

A Return to the New Testament Church of the Book of Acts

My discussion on rebuilding the church is based on three events: First, what I and a few others heard from the Lord as to the blueprint and how it relates to Scripture; second, what we learned from the three separate movements that converged on Agape Fellowship in Kansas City, as well as some other fellowships, in the 1970s; and third, what we implemented in some of our home groups.  

This doesn't mean that we didn't make mistakes but as we grew in our understanding and application, Derek Prince used us as his example of what a body of believers could do. 

Three movements converge on Agape: The Jesus People Movement, the Charismatic Movement and the Messianic Jewish Movement.

Scriptures to understand that are essential for rebuilding the church:

The Great Commission

Matthew 28:16-20, ¹⁶ "Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

We are going to look at the following key points from this Scripture to see how it is part of rebuilding the Church Jesus' way. Christianity gets point #1, but has failed at #'s 2, 3 and 4. I'll tell you later, why.

1. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me."
2. "go and make disciples of all nations"
3. "baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit"
4. "teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you." 

Derek Prince use to say, "we are to make disciples, not church members."

Assembling Together

Acts 2:41-47, "⁴¹ Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their number that day.⁴² They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ⁴³ Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ All the believers were together and had everything in common.⁴⁵ They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. ⁴⁶ 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, ⁴⁷ praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Acts 4: 32-35, "³² Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.³³ And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. ³⁴ There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold ³⁵ and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 

Psalm 68: 5-6, "Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation. God settles the solitary in a home; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.

Governmental Structure

Grace & Government