When Did The Church For Today Begin?

[Complete]

Hello there,

In a bi-monthly expositor that I received this month there was an article by a gentleman from the Philippines, entitled, 'When Did The Church For Today Begin?', in which he looks at the position held Mid-Acts Dispensationalist on this subject, he being formerly of their persuasion, but is now persuaded of the truth of the Acts 28 position. Not being acquainted personally with the Mid-Acts position, I found it informative, and thought I would share it on the forum.

When Did The Church For Today Begin?'(by S.B. Chua)

The greatest question for a serious student of the Scriptures is to determine from among the many prevailing views the historical beginning of the Church for us today. There are those who hold that the Church for today began historically at Pentecost, Acts 2, while some, called Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, believe that the Church began when the Apostle Paul was called. They also believe that the teachings for the Church are to be found in all 14 of Paul's epistles. In other words, all one has to do to know about God's instructions for the Church today is to carefully study all the epistles of Paul. These are Galatians, Hebrews 1 & 2 Thessalonian 1 & 2 Corinthians, Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy.

Those who hold the view that the Church historically began at Pentecost, say that the Book of Acts is the story book of early Christianity, and that God has given us the Book of Acts as the PATTERN of Christian testimony, missionary effort, etc., a pattern which we do well to follow. So what message then shall we preach? Shall we call men 'to repent and be baptised for the remission of sins' and offer them Messiah's return and the establishment of the Kingdom, as Peter did in Acts 2:8; 3:19-21? Or shall we proclaim the economic program presented in Acts 2 & 4 and have all things common? Again, if we should use Acts as a pattern, can we faithfully carry it out as to miracles and healings, and could we expect Divine intervention like the Apostles did? All of those who believe that Pentecost is the beginning of the Church should claim to possess the signs and gifts, yet the evidence is not very convincing.

Coming to the Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, we must distinguish between two groups. One group believes that the Church for today historically began at Acts 9 when the Apostle Paul was converted, while the other group believes that the Church began at Acts 13 when Paul was sent on his first missionary journey. Before we can thoroughly refute all their claims, let us first consider some of the 'givens' regarding the position of the Mid-Acts groups.

Both groups agree that the hope of the Church is the so-called Rapture, of 1 Thessalonians 4; that all believers shall be in Heaven; that the Church is different from Israel, for Israel's hope is an earthly Kingdom to be established during the second coming of the Lord; that Israel was set aside at either Acts 9 or 13; and that all the epistles of Paul are the true instructions for today. They also agree that Paul's epistles are divided into the pre-prison epistles: Galatians, Hebrews, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Corinthians & Romans; and the prison epistles: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy. If we carefully consider the relationship of the letters of Paul to the history of Acts, we can see that the pre-prison epistles were written during the Acts period, while the prison epistles were written after the close of the Book of Acts.

Let us now look at the validity of the claims of the Mid-Acts brethren. Firstly, the hope of the Church which is the so called 'Rapture', of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. They claim that when this particular event happens, members of the Church for today will then be taken to Heaven by the Lord. However, a key word occurs in verse 17. This word in the Greek is apantesis and is translated, 'to meet', and it is used only four times in the whole Bible. These occurrences are Matt. 25:1,6; Acts 28:15 and 1 Thess. 4:17. In the three references apart from 1 Thess 4, a clear direction is shown. The people who came out 'to meet', someone are seen returning to wherever they came from. Applying this rule to 1 Thess 4:17, we only have to ask ourselves, 'who meets whom', and we will be able to determine where these people went after the meeting in the air.

Mid-Acts people claim that after the meeting in the air, the Lord will take the believers who were raised, and those who remained, to Heaven. This can only be true if the one who meets the believers is the Lord. But by carefully reading the verse, we will see that it says, 'then we ... shall be caught up ... to meet the Lord' in the air. In other words, it is the believers who will meet the Lord, and after the meeting, shall accompany the Lord to the earth, where He will establish the promised Kingdom here on earth at His second coming, also called 'The day of the Lord'. Because the believers who meet the Lord came from the earth, their hope therefore is an earthly one, not heavenly.

This is also the idea of Galatians 3:7,9,2; 4:24-26. It is very clear that believers of Galatia, saved during the Acts period, were promised that they will be 'blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM' (Galatians 3:9) and are heirs according to the promise, verse 29. These references are all saying that where Abraham will be, they will be there also, and will be heirs also of the same promise given to Abraham. We know that Abraham will not be in Heaven, but in the earthly Kingdom, thus the Galatian believers will be there with him, not in Heaven as claimed by the Mid-Acts brethren.

The Covenants, both Old and New, are for the people of Judah and Israel, Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:8-12. During the Acts period the New Covenant, or Testament is the program that is being implemented by God through the Apostles, including Paul, 2 Cor. 3:6, showing to us that the early ministry of Paul and the pre-prison epistles that he wrote, are related to the administration of the New Covenant made solely with the House of Judah and the House of Israel. This is not for the Church for today.

All the contents of the Book of Hebrews are definitely related to Israel, particularly to the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods, the Law of Moses and the New Covenant, the animal sacrifices - which are contrasted to the One Sacrifice of Christ, and the ministries of angels. All these things are saying that the Book of Hebrews is truly Jewish in purpose and teaching.

Romans is the last book written by Paul during the Acts period. The ministry presented here is 'Jew first', then to the Greeks, which mean that if the message presented to the Jewish synagogues was rejected, then Paul would go to the Gentiles. The reason for turning to the Gentiles was only to provoke Israel to jealousy, Rom. 1:16; 11:11,14. This shows that during the Acts period, the Jewish nation had not yet been set aside, for the very reason that they are still being 'provoked to jealousy'. You cannot provoke someone to jealousy if that 'someone' is already absent.

Consistently during the Acts period, the people of Israel, its miraculous endowments, Acts 2:1-4; 9:36-41; 19:11-12; 28:3-9 and its hope, Acts 1:6; 26:6-7; 28:20, were all still the object of the ministry of the twelve Apostles, and also that of the Apostle Paul. This is proof that during the whole period of Acts, from the opening of the book right up to the end, the hope of Israel is still there until finally God sets them aside at Acts 28:28. From that point on, the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles apart from Israel.

It was then, after the pronouncement of Acts 28:28 that God saw fit to give unto the Apostle Paul a new set of revelations regarding, 'the Mystery', Eph. 3:3-9, which was kept secret since the beginning of the world. The hope of this secret is in, 'heavenly places', Eph. 1:3, and its citizenship is in Heaven, Phil. 3:20. It must also be noted that this revelation was given ONLY to the Apostle Paul, Eph. 3:1-9.

If we truly desire to know God's instructions for the Church which is His Body, then we have to take and study diligently the prison epistles, written after the close of the Book of Acts. Indeed, 'to be approved of God' today, we must take heed of what 2 Tim. 2:15 is saying - 'rightly divide the Word of Truth' - in order that we may distinguish the things that differ and see clearly God's Dispensation of the Mystery revealed to and through the Apostle Paul alone.

If we rightly divide the pre-prison epistles of Paul from His prison epistles, then and only then, can we truly appreciate the joy of understanding His gracious will for today. I know, because I was once a member of the Mid-Acts groups, not only as a believer, but as a pastor for eleven years. Throughout all those years, I thought our position was indeed the right one until I was bothered by Galatians 3:7-9, where it is clearly stated that, 'they which be of faith, shall be blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM'. Once again, if we only open our eyes, we shall see that this is saying that where Abraham will be, those believers of that time will be there with him. We know also that in Gen. 12, God promised Abraham a piece of land, commonly called, 'the Promised Land', in theology. This is where the Kingdom promised to them, and also during David's lifetime, is going to be established, 2 Sam. 7.

Indeed, if we can only forget all that we have been taught, and consider what the rightly-divided Word teaches about the contents of the pre-prison epistles of Paul as they relate to God's program for His chosen nation, the people of Israel, the we will see the removal of seeming contradictions in the Scriptures, and allow the real purpose and teaching of God for today in Paul's prison epistles to show through. It is in these epistles that we find the REAL PATTERN for the ministry of the Church which is His Body, Ephesians 1:22-23, whose sphere of blessing is in the Heavenlies, Eph. 1:3, 'to the praise and glory of His grace'.

The hope of Israel is now in abeyance, and it will stay that way until the end of the Dispensation of the Mystery, which end is the appearing or manifestation in glory of the members of the Body of Christ, the Church for today, Col.3:4.

This article is written with the prayer that those who are at present in the same condition I was before, may be enlightened to see the beauty of the new revelation as given to the Apostle Paul and contained in the seven prison epistles. My prayers for you are like those of Paul in Ephesians 1:17-19.

'Therefore let it be known to you
that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles,
and they will hear it'!
(Acts 28:28)

Re:-'The Berean Publishing Trust CIO'

(Any typo's are mine) ​

Thank you
In Christ Jesus
Chris

 

[synergy]

Hello there,

In a bi-monthly expositor that I received this month there was an article by a gentleman from the Philippines, entitled, 'When Did The Church For Today Begin?', in which he looks at the position held Mid-Acts Dispensationalist on this subject, he being formerly of their persuasion, but is now persuaded of the truth of the Acts 28 position. Not being acquainted personally with the Mid-Acts position, I found it informative, and thought I would share it on the forum.

When Did The Church For Today Begin?'(by S.B. Chua)

The greatest question for a serious student of the Scriptures is to determine from among the many prevailing views the historical beginning of the Church for us today. There are those who hold that the Church for today began historically at Pentecost, Acts 2, while some, called Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, believe that the Church began when the Apostle Paul was called. They also believe that the teachings for the Church are to be found in all 14 of Paul's epistles. In other words, all one has to do to know about God's instructions for the Church today is to carefully study all the epistles of Paul. These are Galatians, Hebrews 1 & 2 Thessalonian 1 & 2 Corinthians, Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy.

Those who hold the view that the Church historically began at Pentecost, say that the Book of Acts is the story book of early Christianity, and that God has given us the Book of Acts as the PATTERN of Christian testimony, missionary effort, etc., a pattern which we do well to follow. So what message then shall we preach? Shall we call men 'to repent and be baptised for the remission of sins' and offer them Messiah's return and the establishment of the Kingdom, as Peter did in Acts 2:8; 3:19-21? Or shall we proclaim the economic program presented in Acts 2 & 4 and have all things common? Again, if we should use Acts as a pattern, can we faithfully carry it out as to miracles and healings, and could we expect Divine intervention like the Apostles did? All of those who believe that Pentecost is the beginning of the Church should claim to possess the signs and gifts, yet the evidence is not very convincing.

Coming to the Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, we must distinguish between two groups. One group believes that the Church for today historically began at Acts 9 when the Apostle Paul was converted, while the other group believes that the Church began at Acts 13 when Paul was sent on his first missionary journey. Before we can thoroughly refute all their claims, let us first consider some of the 'givens' regarding the position of the Mid-Acts groups.

Both groups agree that the hope of the Church is the so-called Rapture, of 1 Thessalonians 4; that all believers shall be in Heaven; that the Church is different from Israel, for Israel's hope is an earthly Kingdom to be established during the second coming of the Lord; that Israel was set aside at either Acts 9 or 13; and that all the epistles of Paul are the true instructions for today. They also agree that Paul's epistles are divided into the pre-prison epistles: Galatians, Hebrews, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Corinthians & Romans; and the prison epistles: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy. If we carefully consider the relationship of the letters of Paul to the history of Acts, we can see that the pre-prison epistles were written during the Acts period, while the prison epistles were written after the close of the Book of Acts.

Let us now look at the validity of the claims of the Mid-Acts brethren. Firstly, the hope of the Church which is the so called 'Rapture', of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. They claim that when this particular event happens, members of the Church for today will then be taken to Heaven by the Lord. However, a key word occurs in verse 17. This word in the Greek is apantesis and is translated, 'to meet', and it is used only four times in the whole Bible. These occurrences are Matt. 25:1,6; Acts 28:15 and 1 Thess. 4:17. In the three references apart from 1 Thess 4, a clear direction is shown. The people who came out 'to meet', someone are seen returning to wherever they came from. Applying this rule to 1 Thess 4:17, we only have to ask ourselves, 'who meets whom', and we will be able to determine where these people went after the meeting in the air.

Mid-Acts people claim that after the meeting in the air, the Lord will take the believers who were raised, and those who remained, to Heaven. This can only be true if the one who meets the believers is the Lord. But by carefully reading the verse, we will see that it says, 'then we ... shall be caught up ... to meet the Lord' in the air. In other words, it is the believers who will meet the Lord, and after the meeting, shall accompany the Lord to the earth, where He will establish the promised Kingdom here on earth at His second coming, also called 'The day of the Lord'. Because the believers who meet the Lord came from the earth, their hope therefore is an earthly one, not heavenly.

This is also the idea of Galatians 3:7,9,2; 4:24-26. It is very clear that believers of Galatia, saved during the Acts period, were promised that they will be 'blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM' (Galatians 3:9) and are heirs according to the promise, verse 29. These references are all saying that where Abraham will be, they will be there also, and will be heirs also of the same promise given to Abraham. We know that Abraham will not be in Heaven, but in the earthly Kingdom, thus the Galatian believers will be there with him, not in Heaven as claimed by the Mid-Acts brethren.

The Covenants, both Old and New, are for the people of Judah and Israel, Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:8-12. During the Acts period the New Covenant, or Testament is the program that is being implemented by God through the Apostles, including Paul, 2 Cor. 3:6, showing to us that the early ministry of Paul and the pre-prison epistles that he wrote, are related to the administration of the New Covenant made solely with the House of Judah and the House of Israel. This is not for the Church for today.

All the contents of the Book of Hebrews are definitely related to Israel, particularly to the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods, the Law of Moses and the New Covenant, the animal sacrifices - which are contrasted to the One Sacrifice of Christ, and the ministries of angels. All these things are saying that the Book of Hebrews is truly Jewish in purpose and teaching.

Romans is the last book written by Paul during the Acts period. The ministry presented here is 'Jew first', then to the Greeks, which mean that if the message presented to the Jewish synagogues was rejected, then Paul would go to the Gentiles. The reason for turning to the Gentiles was only to provoke Israel to jealousy, Rom. 1:16; 11:11,14. This shows that during the Acts period, the Jewish nation had not yet been set aside, for the very reason that they are still being 'provoked to jealousy'. You cannot provoke someone to jealousy if that 'someone' is already absent.

Consistently during the Acts period, the people of Israel, its miraculous endowments, Acts 2:1-4; 9:36-41; 19:11-12; 28:3-9 and its hope, Acts 1:6; 26:6-7; 28:20, were all still the object of the ministry of the twelve Apostles, and also that of the Apostle Paul. This is proof that during the whole period of Acts, from the opening of the book right up to the end, the hope of Israel is still there until finally God sets them aside at Acts 28:28. From that point on, the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles apart from Israel.

It was then, after the pronouncement of Acts 28:28 that God saw fit to give unto the Apostle Paul a new set of revelations regarding, 'the Mystery', Eph. 3:3-9, which was kept secret since the beginning of the world. The hope of this secret is in, 'heavenly places', Eph. 1:3, and its citizenship is in Heaven, Phil. 3:20. It must also be noted that this revelation was given ONLY to the Apostle Paul, Eph. 3:1-9.

If we truly desire to know God's instructions for the Church which is His Body, then we have to take and study diligently the prison epistles, written after the close of the Book of Acts. Indeed, 'to be approved of God' today, we must take heed of what 2 Tim. 2:15 is saying - 'rightly divide the Word of Truth' - in order that we may distinguish the things that differ and see clearly God's Dispensation of the Mystery revealed to and through the Apostle Paul alone.

If we rightly divide the pre-prison epistles of Paul from His prison epistles, then and only then, can we truly appreciate the joy of understanding His gracious will for today. I know, because I was once a member of the Mid-Acts groups, not only as a believer, but as a pastor for eleven years. Throughout all those years, I thought our position was indeed the right one until I was bothered by Galatians 3:7-9, where it is clearly stated that, 'they which be of faith, shall be blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM'. Once again, if we only open our eyes, we shall see that this is saying that where Abraham will be, those believers of that time will be there with him. We know also that in Gen. 12, God promised Abraham a piece of land, commonly called, 'the Promised Land', in theology. This is where the Kingdom promised to them, and also during David's lifetime, is going to be established, 2 Sam. 7.

Indeed, if we can only forget all that we have been taught, and consider what the rightly-divided Word teaches about the contents of the pre-prison epistles of Paul as they relate to God's program for His chosen nation, the people of Israel, the we will see the removal of seeming contradictions in the Scriptures, and allow the real purpose and teaching of God for today in Paul's prison epistles to show through. It is in these epistles that we find the REAL PATTERN for the ministry of the Church which is His Body, Ephesians 1:22-23, whose sphere of blessing is in the Heavenlies, Eph. 1:3, 'to the praise and glory of His grace'.

The hope of Israel is now in abeyance, and it will stay that way until the end of the Dispensation of the Mystery, which end is the appearing or manifestation in glory of the members of the Body of Christ, the Church for today, Col.3:4.

This article is written with the prayer that those who are at present in the same condition I was before, may be enlightened to see the beauty of the new revelation as given to the Apostle Paul and contained in the seven prison epistles. My prayers for you are like those of Paul in Ephesians 1:17-19.

'Therefore let it be known to you
that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles,
and they will hear it'!
(Acts 28:28)

Re:-'The Berean Publishing Trust CIO'

(Any typo's are mine) ​

Thank you
In Christ Jesus
Chris

The Church began at Pentecost.

The bigger question is what is the Church? I don't wish to take your OP on a different direction but we do need to define our terms better on what exactly is the Apostolic Church The Bible does not go into depth on what constitutes the Church. The Church was already established when Paul started to write his Epistles so there was no need at that time to go into details that were already known at that time.

Catacomb evidence shows the Lord's Supper practice was in fact central and paramount within the Church. Church service was liturgical, an extension of the Jewish Liturgical form of worship and not a break off from that. I learned that icons were extensively deployed. This all coincides with Catacomb evidence. Anabaptists snd their descendants are woefully deficient in that area and they formulated their own Church practices throughout the years based on their own presuppositions.

 

[Complete]

The Church began at Pentecost.

The bigger question is what is the Church? I don't wish to take your OP on a different direction but we do need to define our terms better on what exactly is the Apostolic Church The Bible does not go into depth on what constitutes the Church. The Church was already established when Paul started to write his Epistles so there was no need at that time to go into details that were already known at that time.

Catacomb evidence shows the Lord's Supper practice was in fact central and paramount within the Church. Church service was liturgical, an extension of the Jewish Liturgical form of worship and not a break off from that. I learned that icons were extensively deployed. This all coincides with Catacomb evidence. Anabaptists and their descendants are woefully deficient in that area and they formulated their own Church practices throughout the years based on their own presuppositions.

Hello @synergy,

Thank you for responding.

The Church for this present day, I believe, is that which was Divinely revealed to Paul after Acts 28, and made known by Him in the epistles written from prison, namely Eph. Phil. Col. 1 & 2 Tim. Titus and Phile..

Thank you
In Christ Jesus
Chris

 

[Fred]

The New Testament Church began on Pentecost (Acts 2:4).

The baptism with the Holy Spirit places a person into the New Testament Church (1 Corinthians 12:13; cf. Romans 6:3; Galatians 3:27; Ephesians 4:5; Colossians 2:12). Thus, when the apostles and those with them were baptized with the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:5) they were placed into the New Testament Church (Acts 2:4).

The boldface below is mine.

1. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (TDNT): Concerning Acts 2:4, "This event is regarded by Luke as the birthday of the church" (6:50, pentēkostē, Lohse).

2. Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: in the beginning, when the church was founded, Acts 11:15 (archē, page 76).

3. New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology (NIDNTT): What until Pentecost, the decisive date for the universal church, was the privilege of only a few individuals, is from that day forward the most important characteristic of the Jewish and subsequently (cf. Acts 10) the Gentile church (1:739, Fullness, R. Schippers).

4. The Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible: The primary reference to Pentecost in the NT is in connection with the pouring of the Holy Spirit to dwell in the church (Acts 2:1). This event was in answer to the explicit promise of Christ (Jn. 16:7, 13; Acts 1:4, 14). It is almost universally agreed among theologians that Pentecost marks the beginning of the church as an institution (4:783, Pentecost, C. L. Feinberg).

5. New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and Exegesis (NIDOTTE): The Spirit of God is the agent of creation (Ps 104:29; Job 33:4). His Spirit was active not only at the original creation (Gen 1:2) and at the re-creation after the Flood (8:1), but also at the creation of the people of Israel (in the form of wind, Exod 14:19-20; 15:10) and at the creation of the church (Acts 2:1-4) (3:1075, ruah, Van Pelt/Kaiser/ Block).

6. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words: In the Epistles the only direct mentions are in Col. 2:16, "a sabbath day," R.V. (which rightly has the singular, see 1st parag., above), where it is listed among things that were "a shadow of the things to come" (i.e., of the age introduced at Pentecost) (Sabbath, page 984).

 

[TomL]

Hello there,

In a bi-monthly expositor that I received this month there was an article by a gentleman from the Philippines, entitled, 'When Did The Church For Today Begin?', in which he looks at the position held Mid-Acts Dispensationalist on this subject, he being formerly of their persuasion, but is now persuaded of the truth of the Acts 28 position. Not being acquainted personally with the Mid-Acts position, I found it informative, and thought I would share it on the forum.

When Did The Church For Today Begin?'(by S.B. Chua)

The greatest question for a serious student of the Scriptures is to determine from among the many prevailing views the historical beginning of the Church for us today. There are those who hold that the Church for today began historically at Pentecost, Acts 2, while some, called Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, believe that the Church began when the Apostle Paul was called. They also believe that the teachings for the Church are to be found in all 14 of Paul's epistles. In other words, all one has to do to know about God's instructions for the Church today is to carefully study all the epistles of Paul. These are Galatians, Hebrews 1 & 2 Thessalonian 1 & 2 Corinthians, Romans, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy.

Those who hold the view that the Church historically began at Pentecost, say that the Book of Acts is the story book of early Christianity, and that God has given us the Book of Acts as the PATTERN of Christian testimony, missionary effort, etc., a pattern which we do well to follow. So what message then shall we preach? Shall we call men 'to repent and be baptised for the remission of sins' and offer them Messiah's return and the establishment of the Kingdom, as Peter did in Acts 2:8; 3:19-21? Or shall we proclaim the economic program presented in Acts 2 & 4 and have all things common? Again, if we should use Acts as a pattern, can we faithfully carry it out as to miracles and healings, and could we expect Divine intervention like the Apostles did? All of those who believe that Pentecost is the beginning of the Church should claim to possess the signs and gifts, yet the evidence is not very convincing.

Coming to the Mid-Acts Dispensationalists, we must distinguish between two groups. One group believes that the Church for today historically began at Acts 9 when the Apostle Paul was converted, while the other group believes that the Church began at Acts 13 when Paul was sent on his first missionary journey. Before we can thoroughly refute all their claims, let us first consider some of the 'givens' regarding the position of the Mid-Acts groups.

Both groups agree that the hope of the Church is the so-called Rapture, of 1 Thessalonians 4; that all believers shall be in Heaven; that the Church is different from Israel, for Israel's hope is an earthly Kingdom to be established during the second coming of the Lord; that Israel was set aside at either Acts 9 or 13; and that all the epistles of Paul are the true instructions for today. They also agree that Paul's epistles are divided into the pre-prison epistles: Galatians, Hebrews, 1 & 2 Thessalonians, 1 & 2 Corinthians & Romans; and the prison epistles: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Titus and 1 & 2 Timothy. If we carefully consider the relationship of the letters of Paul to the history of Acts, we can see that the pre-prison epistles were written during the Acts period, while the prison epistles were written after the close of the Book of Acts.

Let us now look at the validity of the claims of the Mid-Acts brethren. Firstly, the hope of the Church which is the so called 'Rapture', of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. They claim that when this particular event happens, members of the Church for today will then be taken to Heaven by the Lord. However, a key word occurs in verse 17. This word in the Greek is apantesis and is translated, 'to meet', and it is used only four times in the whole Bible. These occurrences are Matt. 25:1,6; Acts 28:15 and 1 Thess. 4:17. In the three references apart from 1 Thess 4, a clear direction is shown. The people who came out 'to meet', someone are seen returning to wherever they came from. Applying this rule to 1 Thess 4:17, we only have to ask ourselves, 'who meets whom', and we will be able to determine where these people went after the meeting in the air.

Mid-Acts people claim that after the meeting in the air, the Lord will take the believers who were raised, and those who remained, to Heaven. This can only be true if the one who meets the believers is the Lord. But by carefully reading the verse, we will see that it says, 'then we ... shall be caught up ... to meet the Lord' in the air. In other words, it is the believers who will meet the Lord, and after the meeting, shall accompany the Lord to the earth, where He will establish the promised Kingdom here on earth at His second coming, also called 'The day of the Lord'. Because the believers who meet the Lord came from the earth, their hope therefore is an earthly one, not heavenly.

This is also the idea of Galatians 3:7,9,2; 4:24-26. It is very clear that believers of Galatia, saved during the Acts period, were promised that they will be 'blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM' (Galatians 3:9) and are heirs according to the promise, verse 29. These references are all saying that where Abraham will be, they will be there also, and will be heirs also of the same promise given to Abraham. We know that Abraham will not be in Heaven, but in the earthly Kingdom, thus the Galatian believers will be there with him, not in Heaven as claimed by the Mid-Acts brethren.

The Covenants, both Old and New, are for the people of Judah and Israel, Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:8-12. During the Acts period the New Covenant, or Testament is the program that is being implemented by God through the Apostles, including Paul, 2 Cor. 3:6, showing to us that the early ministry of Paul and the pre-prison epistles that he wrote, are related to the administration of the New Covenant made solely with the House of Judah and the House of Israel. This is not for the Church for today.

All the contents of the Book of Hebrews are definitely related to Israel, particularly to the Aaronic and Melchizedek priesthoods, the Law of Moses and the New Covenant, the animal sacrifices - which are contrasted to the One Sacrifice of Christ, and the ministries of angels. All these things are saying that the Book of Hebrews is truly Jewish in purpose and teaching.

Romans is the last book written by Paul during the Acts period. The ministry presented here is 'Jew first', then to the Greeks, which mean that if the message presented to the Jewish synagogues was rejected, then Paul would go to the Gentiles. The reason for turning to the Gentiles was only to provoke Israel to jealousy, Rom. 1:16; 11:11,14. This shows that during the Acts period, the Jewish nation had not yet been set aside, for the very reason that they are still being 'provoked to jealousy'. You cannot provoke someone to jealousy if that 'someone' is already absent.

Consistently during the Acts period, the people of Israel, its miraculous endowments, Acts 2:1-4; 9:36-41; 19:11-12; 28:3-9 and its hope, Acts 1:6; 26:6-7; 28:20, were all still the object of the ministry of the twelve Apostles, and also that of the Apostle Paul. This is proof that during the whole period of Acts, from the opening of the book right up to the end, the hope of Israel is still there until finally God sets them aside at Acts 28:28. From that point on, the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles apart from Israel.

It was then, after the pronouncement of Acts 28:28 that God saw fit to give unto the Apostle Paul a new set of revelations regarding, 'the Mystery', Eph. 3:3-9, which was kept secret since the beginning of the world. The hope of this secret is in, 'heavenly places', Eph. 1:3, and its citizenship is in Heaven, Phil. 3:20. It must also be noted that this revelation was given ONLY to the Apostle Paul, Eph. 3:1-9.

If we truly desire to know God's instructions for the Church which is His Body, then we have to take and study diligently the prison epistles, written after the close of the Book of Acts. Indeed, 'to be approved of God' today, we must take heed of what 2 Tim. 2:15 is saying - 'rightly divide the Word of Truth' - in order that we may distinguish the things that differ and see clearly God's Dispensation of the Mystery revealed to and through the Apostle Paul alone.

If we rightly divide the pre-prison epistles of Paul from His prison epistles, then and only then, can we truly appreciate the joy of understanding His gracious will for today. I know, because I was once a member of the Mid-Acts groups, not only as a believer, but as a pastor for eleven years. Throughout all those years, I thought our position was indeed the right one until I was bothered by Galatians 3:7-9, where it is clearly stated that, 'they which be of faith, shall be blessed WITH FAITHFUL ABRAHAM'. Once again, if we only open our eyes, we shall see that this is saying that where Abraham will be, those believers of that time will be there with him. We know also that in Gen. 12, God promised Abraham a piece of land, commonly called, 'the Promised Land', in theology. This is where the Kingdom promised to them, and also during David's lifetime, is going to be established, 2 Sam. 7.

Indeed, if we can only forget all that we have been taught, and consider what the rightly-divided Word teaches about the contents of the pre-prison epistles of Paul as they relate to God's program for His chosen nation, the people of Israel, the we will see the removal of seeming contradictions in the Scriptures, and allow the real purpose and teaching of God for today in Paul's prison epistles to show through. It is in these epistles that we find the REAL PATTERN for the ministry of the Church which is His Body, Ephesians 1:22-23, whose sphere of blessing is in the Heavenlies, Eph. 1:3, 'to the praise and glory of His grace'.

The hope of Israel is now in abeyance, and it will stay that way until the end of the Dispensation of the Mystery, which end is the appearing or manifestation in glory of the members of the Body of Christ, the Church for today, Col.3:4.

This article is written with the prayer that those who are at present in the same condition I was before, may be enlightened to see the beauty of the new revelation as given to the Apostle Paul and contained in the seven prison epistles. My prayers for you are like those of Paul in Ephesians 1:17-19.

'Therefore let it be known to you
that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles,
and they will hear it'!
(Acts 28:28)

Re:-'The Berean Publishing Trust CIO'

(Any typo's are mine) ​

Thank you
In Christ Jesus
Chris

Matt 18:17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.
Acts 5:11And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.
Acts 8:1And Saul approved of his execution. And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.
Acts 8:3But Saul was ravaging the church, and entering house after house, he dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
Acts 9:31So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
Acts 7:38This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

We have got to specify the New Testament church

 

[mikesw]

When I ponder this question, the most important thing to say is "I am of Apollos." Let the listener pay heed to Paul's point.

The more detailed response is that the omission of a topic like receiving the blessings of justification through the promise to Abraham does not mean that Paul has changed his mind about our pathway of justification. Paul only needs to discuss topics that he sees as a fitting response to the situation that individual churches faced. This is just like not needing to mention that baptism is a common part of following Christ; people would already know that such that it would not likely be restated again. It seems the basis of this guy's new theory of a church seems largely to be proposed on the basis of the omission of the mention of Abraham in the later letters. When someone does that, it is likely to make a claim that his church location or doctrine is somehow outstandingly unique from all the fellow church groups in Christ.

 

[mikesw]

There is an obvious mistake in that proposal of some sort of change of operation or nature of the church. Paul is silent about that change. It is easy for someone to claim there is a hidden message about a new basis for the church. However, that claim can not be justified by some significant point documented in scripture. Is Christ's death and resurrection replaced? Is the Holy Spirit replaced? These are the bases for the church and has not been replaced by anything superior to Christ.
Avoid gimmicks like this lest one falls into worse interruptive or dangerous teachings.

 

[Complete]

Hello @synergy, @Fred, @TomL, @mikesw,

My thanks to you all for responding, I do appreciate it.

In Christ Jesus
Chris

 

[Bob Carabbio]

When Did The Church For Today Begin?​

When the Disciples were Born Again of the Holy Spirit, and indwelled by Him, as recorded in John 20:22. The Church was subsequently endued with power as recorded at Acts 2:4 when the Holy Spirit came upon The Disciples.

 

[TomL]

Hello @synergy, @Fred, @TomL, @mikesw,

My thanks to you all for responding, I do appreciate it.

In Christ Jesus
Chris

Hello back at you

You are welcome

 

[JD731]

Hello there,


When Did The Church For Today Begin?'(by S.B. Chua)

​

Thank you
In Christ Jesus
Chris

There are several things that were said in the op that are just not true. What is important to the topic is that we do not have to guess about the beginning of the church. We are told when it began and we are given illustrations of it in the physical realm. I am going to post a few reasons to be assured by the scriptures when the church of Jesus Christ began. Logic and reason is a reason to believe the truth of the beginning and growth of the church of Jesus Christ

First of all, the church began on Pentecost because Israel had been observing the ordinance of the feast of Pentecost and the festival thereof for some 1500 years. Without going into details, the offering of the feast was TWO loaves of fine ground grain mixed with leaven, a picture of sin and corruption. They were waved before the Lord. The Holy Ghost was sent from heaven. He is explained everywhere as life, eternal life, the life of God. He was in Jesus Christ from conception and was his power to live a sinless life in the flesh. From Pentecost he is in believing sinners who are now "sons of God" because of his presence in their mortal bodies. The Spirit is the life of God. Jesus Christ is the "only" begotten son of God in the flesh, ever!

Joh 1:4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Secondly, the men in Acts 10 who accompanied Peter to the home of Cornelius, the first gentiles to be save in 40 AD, said the beginning of the church took place at Pentecost when the Jews first received the Holy Ghost. Take a look.

Ac 10:44 ¶ While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

I have highlighted the operative word, ALSO. This means in addition to.

Reason and logic says that if this was not the original entrance of gentiles into the kingdom of God then there is no reason for astonishment in the Jews.

Fast forward a few days when the contentious Jews in Jerusalem called Peter on the carpet where he defended his action by naming when was the beginning of the church.

Acts 11

12 And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:
13 And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter;
14 Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved.
15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning.
16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
17 Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?
18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

Slipping back 10 years to Pentecost we have this;

Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
42 ¶ And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all [men], as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

This agrees with all the church doctrine Paul preached and taught in his epistles.

But here is one that seems to be a clincher for the beginning of the church and there is no reason to guess any longer.

Col 1:12 ¶ Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [us] into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Now watch this:

18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

The church consists of everyone who has had a new birth by the Spirit quickening their bodies by dwelling in them, beginning with Jesus Christ and ending when the fullness of the gentiles be come in according to Romans 11:25.

Ro 8:10 ¶ And if Christ [be] in you, the body [is] dead because of sin; but the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness.
11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

The operative word above is "also."

There are many other proofs in scripture but I will just mention one without commentary since it is late.

The structure of the church is likened to a temple with every part of the building necessary for the unity of the building.

The discussion is in relation to the forming of the church with both Jews and gentiles believers as equally sons.

Eph 2:14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.
18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And
are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
22 In whom ye also are builded together
for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

This is awesome. Any way one looks at the church of Jesus Christ the trinitarian signature will be present such as above. Jesus Christ is the first and the last. He is the Rock on which it is built and the capstone that finishes it.

 

[TomL]

There are several things that were said in the op that are just not true. What is important to the topic is that we do not have to guess about the beginning of the church. We are told when it began and we are given illustrations of it in the physical realm. I am going to post a few reasons to be assured by the scriptures when the church of Jesus Christ began. Logic and reason is a reason to believe the truth of the beginning and growth of the church of Jesus Christ

First of all, the church began on Pentecost because Israel had been observing the ordinance of the feast of Pentecost and the festival thereof for some 1500 years. Without going into details, the offering of the feast was TWO loaves of fine ground grain mixed with leaven, a picture of sin and corruption. They were waved before the Lord. The Holy Ghost was sent from heaven. He is explained everywhere as life, eternal life, the life of God. He was in Jesus Christ from conception and was his power to live a sinless life in the flesh. From Pentecost he is in believing sinners who are now "sons of God" because of his presence in their mortal bodies. The Spirit is the life of God. Jesus Christ is the "only" begotten son of God in the flesh, ever!

Joh 1:4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Secondly, the men in Acts 10 who accompanied Peter to the home of Cornelius, the first gentiles to be save in 40 AD, said the beginning of the church took place at Pentecost when the Jews first received the Holy Ghost. Take a look.

Ac 10:44 ¶ While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word.
45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.
46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter,
47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?
48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

I have highlighted the operative word, ALSO. This means in addition to.

Reason and logic says that if this was not the original entrance of gentiles into the kingdom of God then there is no reason for astonishment in the Jews.

Fast forward a few days when the contentious Jews in Jerusalem called Peter on the carpet where he defended his action by naming when was the beginning of the church.

Acts 11

12 And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into the man’s house:
13 And he shewed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter;
14 Who shall tell thee words, whereby thou and all thy house shall be saved.
15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, as on us at the beginning.
16 Then remembered I the word of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
17 Forasmuch then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that I could withstand God?
18 When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

Slipping back 10 years to Pentecost we have this;

Acts 2:41 Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.
42 ¶ And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all [men], as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

This agrees with all the church doctrine Paul preached and taught in his epistles.

But here is one that seems to be a clincher for the beginning of the church and there is no reason to guess any longer.

Col 1:12 ¶ Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:
13 Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated [us] into the kingdom of his dear Son:
14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:
15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.

Now watch this:

18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

The church consists of everyone who has had a new birth by the Spirit quickening their bodies by dwelling in them, beginning with Jesus Christ and ending when the fullness of the gentiles be come in according to Romans 11:25.

Ro 8:10 ¶ And if Christ [be] in you, the body [is] dead because of sin; but the Spirit [is] life because of righteousness.
11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

The operative word above is "also."

There are many other proofs in scripture but I will just mention one without commentary since it is late.

The structure of the church is likened to a temple with every part of the building necessary for the unity of the building.

The discussion is in relation to the forming of the church with both Jews and gentiles believers as equally sons.

Eph 2:14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;
16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:
17 And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh.
18 For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
19 Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
20 And
are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets,
Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
21 In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
22 In whom ye also are builded together
for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

This is awesome. Any way one looks at the church of Jesus Christ the trinitarian signature will be present such as above. Jesus Christ is the first and the last. He is the Rock on which it is built and the capstone that finishes it.

You should specify the New Testament church as the word is used

Acts 7:38 (KJV 1900) — 38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us: