Doing-life-together ... churches of the New Testament
Elemental Basics ... Dialogue 2
Church in the New Testament…do any of these verses surprise you a little?
- Consider what a brief period of time that early Christians used the temple and after that where they began to gather in Christ’s Name:
- Though the temple courts were used at first, who built and owned the temple?
- When were the first church buildings built?
- How old is the United States? (235 years old) Early Christians thrived without church buildings longer than the USA has lived with church buildings.
- Luke 5:18, And when they could not find how they might bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the housetop and let him down, with his bed, through the tiling into the midst before Jesus.
- Luke 22:11, Then you shall say to the master of the house, ‘The teacher says to you, Where is the guest room where I may eat the Passover with My disciples?’ And he will show you a large, furnished upper room; there make ready. (the Lord’s Supper was instituted by Jesus in a home)
- Acts 2:2, And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. (the Holy Spirit first came to a home gathering.)
- Acts 5:42, And daily in the temple and in every house, they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.
- Acts 16:15, And when she and her household were baptized…
- Acts 16:31-34, And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house.
- Romans 16:5, Likewise greet the church that is in their house.
- 1 Corinthians 16:19, greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house.
- Colossians 4:15, Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea, and Nymphas and the church that is in this house.
- Philemon 1:2, Archippus our fellow soldier and to the church in your house;
What can we conclude about God’s viewpoint of churches that gather in homes?