Chapter 2: The Blessings of Singing

Chapter Introduction
WHAT IS SINGING? Ephesians 5:19 "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;"

When God, in the New Testament, talks about singing, He does not talk about the requirement for sounding beautiful, but rather the emphasis is always on the heart (thinking about the words being sung and meaning the words being sung). As we notice here in Ephesians, Paul, speaking by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, does not even use the Greek word for singing, but rather he uses the Greek word, laleoo, which is translated in the King James Version as “speaking”. According to Thayer, the word laleoo means to utter a sound. In Psalms the writer uses the phrase, “a joyful noise” stressing again the fact God is not concerned about how the words sound to the ears as men are. But rather God is concerned about how the words proceed forth from the heart.

In Ephesians 5:19, all three Greek words that are used to describe the songs being commanded, refer to songs that are sung acappella, or only using the voice. The Greek word translated here Psalms when used in the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Old Testament used in Jesus day and time, does include songs that are sung with the accompaniment of instruments, but by Jesus day and time, the word, psalloo, Strong’s number 5568, had changed in meaning and according to Greek scholar’s meant only songs that were not accompanied by instruments. There were Greek words in general use at the time that meant songs were accompanied by the use of instruments. God did not see fit to use them rather He chose words that indicated songs which were not accompanied by instruments.

Therefore when I use the term, singing, in this book, I am always referring to songs which are sung without the use of mechanical instruments of any type. It is not enough to sing only without instruments of music in order to be pleasing to God, but the song has to be sung also with the spirit and understanding. Every song that is sung must be sung with words the user understands and they must come from the heart.

Matthew 15:18-20 "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man."

The words which come forth from the lips originate in the heart (mind). Therefore, God is not pleased with a Christian just mouthing words they have memorized. Do you want to please God or man? If we want a choir accompanied by instruments of music, we are concentrating on what is pleasing to men. Songs sung by trained singers with natural talent accompanied by various instruments of music are pleasing to men, but are they pleasing to God? Nowhere does the Bible even hint that instruments of music are pleasing to God.

WHY WE SING
When we understand how much we have received from God and we begin to appreciate the love God has for us, then in natural response to that we begin to feel thankful which in turn leads to gratitude. A natural outcome of gratitude is a joy which is expressed through singing. Therefore any time we realize how great God is, we will want to burst forth in songs which express our feeling.

Singing is one of the many ways we as human beings have of showing our thanksgiving, our love, or feelings and emotions. If we want our singing to be pleasing to God, we need to know what is pleasing to God. So that is our purpose in this chapter, to see what the Bible, the word of God, says about singing, to please God.

Psalms 13:6 "I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me."

A natural outgrowth of receiving blessings from God is that we are thankful to Him and a natural way of human expression of thanks is singing. When we recognize how much we have received from God, we sing and this pleases God. Singing is one way we show appreciation to God and God wants us to recognize what he has done for us. He wants us to appreciate the sacrifices His son made for us and he is pleased when the human heart cannot be quiet, but must burst out in praise and thanksgiving to our heavenly Father.

I Chronicles 16:9 "Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works."

The realization of the many works the Lord has done for us causes us to want to sing. The more we realize how much we depend upon God, the more we desire to sing praises about God and His spectacular works. This is a natural response if we appreciate all God has done for us, but only if we truly appreciate the love God has manifested towards us.

Exodus 15:1-2 "Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spake, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. 2 The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him."

Here is a perfect example of how appreciation for what God has done causes people to sing. If you remember God has just delivered the Israelites from Egyptian bondage. The children of Israel were trapped with the Egyptian army behind them and the Red Sea before them and miraculously they were delivered. The Egyptian army, which was coming to take them back, had just been drowned in the Red Sea.

Moses and the Israelites make up a new song and go about camp singing and thanking God. “I will sing unto the Lord, the horse and his rider hath He thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and song, He is become my salvation.” Only when someone truly understands what God has saved them from, will they truly desire to sing it out and tell others.

Romans 15:9 "And that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy; as it is written, For this cause I will confess to thee among the Gentiles, and sing unto thy name."

Another reason we sing is so outsiders will know about God and sing praises unto His name also. We sing because we understand what God has done for us and so others will know the mercy of God and will glorify God because of the greatness of His mercy.

Acts 16:23-25 "And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks. And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them."

Paul and Silas, even after they have been beaten, are singing praises unto God. Singing praises to God, helps fill us with the Holy Spirit and helps see us through trying times. Singing praises to God also teaches outsiders about God and differentiates Christians from non-Christians.

HOW WE SING
Psalms 92:1-2 "It is a good thing to give thanks unto the LORD, and to sing praises unto thy name, O most High: To shew forth thy lovingkindness in the morning, and thy faithfulness every night,"

Our songs should show forth thanksgiving to God for what he has done for us. This means we should be thinking about all God has done for us. We should be remembering how Christ suffered and died in our place. If we realize how much God the Father and Jesus Christ the Son have done for us then we should have no trouble singing, knowing our songs will be showing forth praise to God. Our songs should and do show unto others how we feel about God. Therefore we need to stop and think before we start singing and examine ourselves as to what our hearts are feeling.

1 Corinthians 14:15 "What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also."

Our songs should spring forth from the heart and should express our feelings for God. We should also understand the words we sing and think about what the words mean as we sing. The phrase “to sing with the spirit and understanding” basically is saying we should sing words we understand and we need to think about them, in order that we mean the words we are singing. While singing with the spirit does not mean just singing with emotion, one cannot sing with the spirit without having emotions involved.

Ephesians 5:18-19 "And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;"

Here being filled with the Spirit of God is being contrasted with being drunk. A person who is drunk has their inhibitions taken away, so they are more likely to just do or say anything. Thus basically they react emotionally without control, where being filled with the Holy Spirit while our emotions are involved, does not take away our will or our self-control at all. A person, who is filled with the Spirit of God, will be willing to express their feeling of joy, but they have control over their thoughts and emotions. Here in Ephesians, God does not just tell us to be filled with the Holy Spirit, but he goes on and tells us how to do this, the first thing he says is “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;” So we see being filled with the Spirit of God is something we as Christians have control over. Do you want to be filled with the Spirit of God? Then stop and start counting your blessing and as you realize how much God has done for you, just burst out singing praises to God. Tell God in song how much he means to you, thinking about the words as you sing, make sure they are coming from your heart., Make sure you are “plucking the strings of your heart”, that you are putting your feelings into your singing. If we do our part, God will do His part, because He always keeps His promises. You will be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Just remember there is more involved in being filled with the Spirit than just singing, Paul, through the inspiration of God, goes onto say “ Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” So we see we always are in control of our spirits, as the Bible says, “The Spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets.” But if you want to be a Christian who is filled with the Holy Spirit, you need to be a person who first of all is in submission to God. Then secondly, you need to be a person who is in the habit of going about singing praises to God from the heart, understanding the words you are singing, meditating on them. You need to be a person, who takes time to count their blessings and who takes the time to go to God in prayer, thanking Him for the many blessings you have received from Him. You need also to be a servant to others, helping them to grow as Christians, and helping them in whatever things they have need of.

To sum it up, a Christian who is filled with the Holy Spirit is a baptized believer, who is a singing, appreciative servant of God and of his or her fellow Christians. We should be teaching each other and the visitors in our assembly how we feel about God, Jesus Christ, and one another through our songs.

THE BLESSINGS WE RECEIVE FROM SINGING PROPERLY
Colossians 3:16 "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord."

When we sing in the proper way, we grow in spiritual wisdom. When we sing in the scriptural manner, we are taught about spiritual things. When we sing as God would have us, we are admonished and encouraged. But for all of this to happen, we must sing with grace in our hearts to the Lord, or to put it simply, we need to be singing in such a way our songs rise up before God as a sweet incense, as our gift back to God to show our appreciation for all He has done for us.

Ephesians 5:18-21 "And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God."

We, as Christians, are told not to be drunk with wine, wherein is excess, instead, we are told to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Bible goes on to tell us how to be filled with the Holy Spirit: by speaking to ourselves in psalms, hymns and spiritual songs, by teaching each other by the way we sing, by teaching visitors about the love we have for each other, by being a prayerful, appreciative people, and by being submissive first to God and then because we are in submission to God, we are submissive to each other. These things, if done properly, cause us to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

Hebrews 2:11-12 "For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren, Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee."

If we sing in the scriptural manner, we declare unto everyone we are brothers and sisters in Christ. If we sing in the scriptural way, we declare the name of Christ to everyone in attendance, especially our fellow Christians and if we exalt (lift up) the name of Christ, he will exalt us.

1 Chronicles 16:23 "Sing unto the LORD, all the earth; shew forth from day to day his salvation."

When we sing unto God in the way He has instructed, we show we are saved. When we sing unto God in the way we are commanded on a daily basis, his salvation grows in us and is shown through us.

Exodus 15:2 "The LORD is my strength and song, and he is become my salvation: he is my God, and I will prepare him an habitation; my father's God, and I will exalt him."

When we sing unto the Lord God in the scriptural manner, we are preparing our hearts as a habitation for God. When we sing in the way God has intended, we lift up the name of God and we exalt Him. When we sing in the proper way, we show forth the salvation of God and we declare Him to be God.

Isaiah 35:10 "And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away."

When the ransomed of the Lord return to the house of God and sing spiritual songs with joy in their hearts, they obtain joy and gladness. All sorrows and sadness will vanish away. When you are sad and depressed, sing unto the Lord as if you were happy and you will become happy and joyful.

How The World Has Changed The Singing Service
The world has changed and corrupted the singing service of the worship service probably more than any other part of the worship service. From the year, 666, when the Catholic Church introduced the organ into their services until now, the changes that have been made to the singing service has proven once again the wisdom and truthfulness of God when He revealed to us through the Apostle Paul in 2 Timothy 2:15-16 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul tells us to study in order that God will approve of the things we do and so we can correctly understand the scriptures."

Paul continues in verse 26 and warns us to avoid profane and vain babblings for they are ungodly and once we start down that path, they will increase unto more ungodliness. Profane simply means anything not found in the Bible and vain babblings are talking about human wisdom or as the religious world loves to say, theology. Theology is simply trying to understand and comprehend about God and spiritual things from human reasoning which we know from studying the Bible is impossible. In the Old Testament in Numbers 24:13 "If Balak would give me his house full of silver and gold, I cannot go beyond the commandment of the LORD, to do either good or bad of mine own mind; but what the LORD saith, that will I speak?", the prophet Balaam lets us know how God looks at mankind’s additions. Even if I think I have a good idea, I am not to be adding to what God commands.

The first major change was the addition of musical instruments under the guise of convenience and improvement. As if mankind can improve on anything God has given! The next, as far as I can tell, is the addition of the choir. Both of these are supposedly justified by how they are an aid and not an addition, but I have visited at various religious organizations which have both instrumental music and choir and my experience tells me different. Every church I have been to that has musical instruments has at times during their services played their instruments with no singing, but I have never seen them even for a moment have singing with no instruments being played, the same being true for the choir, I have never seen the congregation singing but always the congregation sits and listens while the choir sings. Which is more important to them? Clearly their instrumental music and choir has become their entertainment and is more important to them than the beauty and simplicity the Bible pictures in the word of God. Otherwise if as they claim, these things are just conveniences, they would be having congregational singing by itself at times and the instruments of music and the choirs would be silent.

The religious world has gone so far astray that you can not in many cases tell the difference between the concerts you can go to in the world and the abominations the religious world refers to as their worship service. So far the only difference I see is I have not yet seen the insanity referred to as ‘The Mosh Pit” being justified as worshipping God, but I would not be surprised anymore by anything people do and the extremes they will go to in order to justify the things they do. Anything people do that works them into “a frenzy” has become what the denominational world refers to as “worshipping God.”

Chapter Summary

1. Christians sing to show their appreciation and thankfulness for what God has done for them.
2. Christians sing to tell others about what God has done for them.
3. Christians sing to tell others about the Greatness of God.
4. Christians sing to tell God how they feel about Him.
5. Christians sing to tell others about the Mercy of God.
6. Christians sing to tell others about the salvation enjoyed by Christians.
7. Christians sing to show their joy because of God's Grace.
8. Christians sing from their hearts with feelings.
9. Christians show forth the love of God when they sing.
10. Christians should understand the words they sing.
11. Christians should mean the words they sing.
12. Christians sing and make melody in their hearts to God.
13. Christians should sing in such a way they teach and admonish one another about:
13a. The love they have for God.
13b. The love they have for each other.
13c. The Greatness of God.
13d. The Mercy of God.
13e. The Glory of God.
13f. The Existence of God.
14. When Christians sing in the proper manner, for the right reasons, they receive:
14a. Spiritual Wisdom.
14b. They are filled with the Holy Spirit.
14c . They are taught and admonished by fellow Christians.
14d. They are exalted by Christ.
14e. They grow in salvation.
14f. Their sorrows and sadness turns to Joy and Gladness.

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Chapter 3: The Blessings of Prayer

Chapter Introduction
WHAT IS PRAYER? To petition, to beseech (beg), to smooth down, to bend or bow (to humble oneself), to ask, to wish.

Philippians 4:6 "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

Prayer is simply talking to God and letting Him know our needs. God does not want us to spend our time worrying. He wants us to trust Him. We manifest this in prayer by turning our problems over to God. We talk to Him about our problems and ask God for His help and then we go on with the rest of our life, trusting God to take care of everything. In the same way little children trust their parents to supply their needs, we as Christians should trust our heavenly Father. Children do not worry about where their next meal comes from. Children just know their parents will take care of them.

Prayer is talking to God, whatever the purpose.
Prayer includes a number of things. Prayer is petitioning God, asking for His help. Prayer is also taking the time to thank Him for what He has done. If we just stop and think a minute or two we would realize how numberless the blessings are that we are continually receiving from God. Prayer is also a time we can just talk to God as one would talk about their innermost thoughts with a friend. We also need to realize that prayer would not be complete without asking God for His forgiveness because of the many sins we commit against Him.

WHY WE PRAY Philippians 4:6 "Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God."

One of the main reasons most people pray is they have problems in their lives. Prayer is letting God know our problems and our needs. We should not be worrying about our problems. Prayer is asking God for His help and then one of the hardest things for us to do sometimes is after turning it over to God for us to let go and have the patience to wait for God’s answers. We are to be like little children in that when they want something, they know in order to receive it, it must come from their parents, so they ask their parents for what they want and they trust their parents to supply their needs. Have you ever known a child worrying about where their next meal comes from? Children don't worry about it, they just know their parents will provide.

Whether or not we continue to worry about a problem after we have prayed to God and supposedly turned it over to Him, is probably one of the biggest indicators of how much we trust in God. A Christian who has ulcers from worrying about problems is something that should never happen.

Acts 6:4 "But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word."

This verse and the surrounding verses teach a very valuable lesson about the importance of prayer. If you remember, the Church in its infancy was growing rapidly. This was shortly after the establishing of the Church on the day of Pentecost. Every year, according to history, from the Passover to Pentecost, Jews from all over the world came to Jerusalem to worship God and they remained there for around 50 days until Pentecost. The city of Jerusalem swelled to approximately 10 times its normal size. After the church was established on the day of Pentecost, instead of returning to their homes which were in “every nation under heaven”, the Christians remained in Jerusalem to learn more about this Messiah. If the Jews, who obeyed the gospel, were in the same proportions as the rest of the Jewish population in Jerusalem at the time, for every Christian who lived in the area of Jerusalem, there was at least nine who did not. So as time went on and those who were from other places ran out of money and food, it was impossible for the Christians who lived in Jerusalem to support the Christians from other countries. The need became so great they began to sell their property in order to meet the need of the saints. This is the situation that existed at the time of Acts Chapter 6. The Christian’s from other lands began to complain to the Apostles because they felt their widows were not being taken care of equally.

The Apostles tell the Church, “Look here, let’s get some help here, We Apostles are being distracted from the more important work of praying for the work and the work itself.” The spiritual work of the apostles was more important than feeding the hungry. Prayer is more important than any part of the physical needs of the Christians. Prayer is to be and always must be an essential part of taking care of everything we do. How many times do you think a work has failed, because we have allowed ourselves to be distracted by the physical needs of people and have not devoted ourselves to prayer and the spiritual work of the church?

I Timothy 4:4-5 "For every creature of God [is] good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving: For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer."

When something is sanctified it means it has been set aside as special, dedicated for a special purpose. The Bible in these verses says it is prayer and the Word of God which sanctifies. Two important reasons we pray before our meals is to set aside the food to be used for the nourishing of our bodies and to show our appreciation to God for the blessings we receive. We as Christians should automatically pray to God and ask His blessings and give Him thanks, whether we are simply praying for food, offering thanks for the communion, praying for a new work, or anything we are doing at all. We need to learn to dedicate anything we do with prayer and then continue to pray for its success during the life of the work. I sincerely believe if we spent more time praying for the work of the Lord, we would have a lot less failures in the work. When we start off a new day with prayer, we have sanctified the day to the Lord or in other words we have set it aside as special and we have prepared ourselves for service to the Lord. The same is true of any work we become involved in. Fervent Prayer is essential to the success of any work.

HOW WE ARE TO PRAY
1 Corinthians 14:34-35 "Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law.

It is very plain what the Holy Spirit has revealed about the role of women in the public worship service and in praying publicly. They are to be in silence! Only male members are to pray aloud in the public worship services. The woman’s role in the public prayer is to be praying silently. This does not mean the private prayers of women do not accomplish as much and perhaps more for the work than the prayers, both public and private of men, it simply means that for whatever reasons, both stated and unstated, God does not want women to be praying openly and publicly. As Christians, we are to be pleasing to God and it should be enough for us that this is the will of God.

1 Corinthians 14:14-17 "For if I pray in an unknown tongue, my spirit prayeth, but my understanding is unfruitful. What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray with the understanding also: I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also. Else when thou shalt bless with the spirit, how shall he that occupieth the room of the unlearned say Amen at thy giving of thanks, seeing he understandeth not what thou sayest? For thou verily givest thanks well, but the other is not edified."

Paul here reveals several important facts about prayer. The first thing we want to notice is if one of us as a faithful male member of the Lord’s Church is chosen to lead the prayer for the congregation we need to realize how great an honor has been bestowed upon us and how seriously we need to take the honor. We are to pray in such a way the entire congregation can hear us. This is why at my home congregation, we ask the men who are chosen to lead the prayer, to come up to the front or to stand up, in order they can be heard by all. The men chosen to lead the prayer must realize they are praying for the entire congregation and speak loud enough to be heard by all.

I enjoy leading prayers in the worship service very much, yet I have had to give it up because the Parkinson’s disease I am afflicted with has affected my voice to the point I can never be sure it will be loud enough to be heard by people standing near me let alone the entire congregation. I believe in the Word of God strongly enough I have voluntarily had to give up the leading of public prayers and teaching publicly because that is what the Word of God says and that is enough for me.

Saying amen at the close of a prayer is the scriptural way of acknowledging the prayer and adding one’s agreement. This is why it is so important the public prayer is said loud enough and plain enough for all to hear. Saying amen is not just a means of saying “OK, this prayer is over, we can get to the next part of the worship service.” The word amen, basically means, “I agree and give my approval to the things prayed.” If the man who is leading the prayer, prays for something amiss, DO NOT SAY AMEN. Saying a-men at the closing of prayer means you are adding your approval and voice to the prayer and we do not want to give approval to false doctrines that might be advocated in a prayer we have not been able to hear. This is why it is important for the leadership in a congregation, the Elders, and the teachers to teach everyone how to pray, so problems will not arise during the worship service.

Please forgive me for going off on a tangent, but I think many people even in the Church misunderstand a simple truth taught in these verses about teaching or praying in an unknown tongue. I have heard preachers say from the pulpit stand these verses are teaching the speaker cannot understand himself when he is speaking or praying in an unknown tongue or as the original Greek implies through the context, in a foreign language. I disagree and believe strongly that is not correct. What Paul says is “... but my understanding is unfruitful.” The phrase “my understanding” means I understand something. The phrase, “my understanding is unfruitful” simply means if I teach or pray in a foreign language or in such a way that the listener can not hear and understand me, the things I have learned and understand do not bring forth fruit in the listeners. They are not edified and I have not fulfilled my responsibility.

Matthew 6:9-13 "After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."

Here Jesus gives us a model prayer. This was never intended by God or Jesus to be an exact prayer to say word for word, but rather one to teach the manner we should pray and some of the things we should pray for. Let us investigate the components of this model prayer and see what we can learn.

Our Father which art in heaven,

From the way Jesus opens the model prayer, we learn all prayer is to be directed to God the Father, we do not pray to Peter, Paul or John, or to any dead saint, or even to Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit, but to God the Father only. Many religious organizations and individuals teach and practice different, but that does not make it scriptural. The Holy Spirit has taught us very clearly all prayer is to be directed to God the Father.

Ephesians 5:20 "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Here in Ephesians, Paul reminds us of the same thing Jesus taught in the model prayer, all prayer is to be directed to God the Father. We are not to direct our prayer to anyone other than our Father who is in heaven. This includes praying to Jesus for any reason, even for salvation. This clearly teaches one is not to pray, what the world calls “The Sinner’s Prayer”, where they say the alien sinner who wants to be saved should simply say “Lord Jesus, come into my heart and save me.” It is wrong to pray to anyone other than God the Father at anytime and any place.

I have heard it said Stephen the first Christian martyr prayed to Jesus, when he said in Acts 7:59-60 “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” When Stephen said, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge”, I do not believe Stephen, who had just had a vision of Jesus in Heaven, standing on the right hand of God, and was talking directly to Jesus could be said he was praying to Jesus anymore than any of the disciples or any one, such as Pilate, who talked to Jesus while he was on the Earth could be called praying to Jesus. In any case, the Bible clearly teaches we are to pray to God the Father, and even if Stephen as he was dying, prayed to Jesus, it does not change what the Bible clearly teaches.

Hallowed be thy name.

Jesus continues on in His model prayer to teach us not only should every prayer be directed to God, but in addition, anytime one is praying to the Creator of the Universe, they should be in such awe of God, they should additionally give praise, honor and reverence to God. In my opinion, anytime anyone is talking to the Heavenly Father, they should be in a sense of shock, that the Almighty, Omnipresent God, would care enough for them He would take the time to listen to them, words of praise should automatically and humbly fall from their lips.

Romans 16:27 "To God only wise, be glory through Jesus Christ for-ever. Amen."

Paul, in closing the book of Romans and writing about God ties words of praise to the name of God and shows even the purpose of the ministry of Jesus Christ was to bring glory to God the Father. So we can easily conclude our prayers would not be complete if we did not give praise to God in some fashion.

Thy Kingdom Come,

The Bible shows in many different ways, the terms “the Kingdom of Heaven”, “the Kingdom of God”, and “the Kingdom” are all referring to the Church of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. While Jesus was on the Earth, before his resurrection and subsequent ascension into heaven, He prayed for the Church which was to come and taught his disciples to pray for the Church also. But now the Church is here, does it make sense for one to continue to pray for the Church to come? No, it does not, but we can and should pray for the Church every time we pray. There are many more things we could pray for the Church than I can write, but to mention a few, we can and should pray for the unity of the Church, we should pray Christians everywhere would strive together to have true peace in the Church, we can pray for mission efforts throughout the world and we can pray for the Evangelists, Elders, Deacons, and teachers to allow the wisdom from above to guide them in all they do. When every Christian remembers to pray for the Church and the various works the local congregation is involved in as well as praying for mission fields around the world, I believe we will see a revival that has not been seen since the days of the Apostles.

John 17:20-21 "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in Me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent Me."

Jesus is in His hour of greatest trial and tribulation. He knows He is about to die on the cross and at the time of His death, the future Church was still one of his greatest concerns. I believe every time we pray, the Church should always be on our hearts and minds. We should also pray for the leaders in the Church, that God would grant them the wisdom, humility, and courage to serve the Church properly.

Luke 6:28 "Bless them that curse you, and pray for them that despitefully use you."

Not only should we pray for the saved, but we also need to pray for those who are lost, and those who have not always treated us right. We especially need to learn to pray God will help us to have the proper attitude towards our enemies and He would help us to come in contact with them in such a way as to give us the opportunity to teach them about the gospel plan of salvation. It is also appropriate we ask God to help prepare their hearts, to put them in such a place they would recognize their need for the Saviour and help us to be in contact with them at that time. I believe we should also ask God to give us the wisdom to recognize the opportunities He makes available and He would help us to prepare our minds and we would have studied the scriptures in such a way we would have the knowledge to help them see their needs. There are many ways we can and should pray for the growth of the Church, both numerically and spiritually.

Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven.

In these simple words, Jesus teaches we should pray, first of all for ourselves, we would have the humility to submit to the will of God in the same way the angels in heaven submit and are servants of the Most High. Just think about it, if God tells an angel to go to a certain place and do a certain thing, what does that angel do? The angel does just what God told the angel to do. Do you think the angel asks “Why?” or “How long do I have to go?” The closest example I know of in the Bible to show the attitude we should have is when God told Abraham at the age of 80 to leave his Father’s house and to go. Abraham packed up his things, and left his home behind. He wandered around the rest of his life, because he trusted in God. Would you do that? That is what is necessary for God’s will to be done in earth as it is in Heaven.

In Heaven all beings are under obedience to God, the only way that could happen on the earth is if every human being is given the opportunity to obey from the heart that form of doctrine. Does this not sound like the Great Commission? Basically, with every prayer, if we are praying for God’s will to be done in earth as it is in heaven, we are asking God to open up fields for us to go and harvest.

Matthew 7:21-23 "Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven. Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity."

Just saying we love the Lord is clearly not all there is to serving God as shown in these verses. We must show it in our day to day decisions. Do we plan our lives around God, from things as simple as making sure we can be to the worship service of the Church to the type of job we take or don’t take? We need to be as Jesus was when He said, not My will but Thine be done, then He proved He meant it every day of His life, up to and including the day of His death.

Give us this day our daily bread.

Here we acknowledge the fact we depend upon God for our daily necessities and we can count on God to supply them. We also need to recognize the fact there is a tremendous difference between our daily necessities and the tremendous blessings God has given us. Our daily necessities include things like enough food to eat today, enough clothes to protect me from the elements today and to keep me modest, a roof over my head and the heads of my family and in today’s world, perhaps a means of transportation so I can go to work so I can go to the worship service of the Church, and so I can pick up people to take them to worship God also. Anything more is not necessities, but luxury. There is no way I can call the two cars I have necessities. There is no way I can call my computer a necessity. I enjoy very much the fact these things make it easier for me in life, but they are not necessities.

Psalms 37:24-25 "Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand. I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

Here David expresses a truth, even though Christians may be persecuted or have problems in their lives because of doing the right thing, God still has control over the world. God promises through David if we continue to stand with God, it always turns out for the best to serve God. Our daily necessities will be taken care of.

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.

We are reminded for God to forgive us of our sins when we sin against Him, we must not only obey God, but we must also have a forgiving heart. In many different ways, we are reminded the debt a fellow Christian or anyone else for that matter, could owe us is minor when compared to our debt to God.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever.

We are reminded to acknowledge we understand the Church, the future, and all things are in God's hands. When we truly realize this, we can face anything that comes along, because we trust in God and know He will not let us down.

I am reminded of a story I heard in one of my Dad's sermons years ago. There was a passenger liner sailing upon the ocean. A great storm arose and the big ship was being tossed to and fro and seemed in danger of sinking. The passengers were panicking. As they were filled with fear, one of them noticed this little boy who seemed calm and fearless. One of the passengers asked the little boy, "Aren't you afraid?" The little boy answered "No, because my father is the Captain of this ship and he will not let anything happen to me" How much do we trust God to take care of us and protect us. Even if God sees fit to allow me to die in a horrible fashion, like His son did, do I trust God enough to still serve Him?

Amen

The word “amen”, basically means “let it be so”. This is the scriptural means given by God in which each Christian acknowledges and agrees with the things being prayed. This is how we make the prayer the entire congregation’s prayer, by simply saying amen. What a powerful word. If God listens and answers the prayers of one child of His, how much more do you suppose He listens and answers the prayers of an entire congregation?

Matthew 6:6-7 "But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking."

When we are praying for ourselves, we are to be private in our prayers. But whether we are praying for the Church publicly or privately, we are not to use vain repetitions, such as just repeatedly saying Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. Our prayers should be thought about and prayed from the heart with the spirit and with the understanding.

BLESSINGS THAT COME FROM PRAYING
Acts 8:22 "Repent therefore of this thy wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee."

The Bible teaches here and in many other places prayer is essential to having our sins forgiven. If a baptized believer has sinned and if they repent either they or another child of God can pray for them and they will be forgiven. Nowhere does the Bible even hint they must wait until they are at a public worship service to take care of their sins. But it does make sense both logically and from a scriptural perspective, if a sin is public, it is known by others, all that know of the sin should also be made aware of the repentance and prayer. Otherwise, if I have sinned and another person knows about it, unless they become aware of my repentance and the fact prayer was said for the sin, they will not be able to deal with me as a faithful brother in Christ. There would be a veil between us. But it is important to realize the difference between what is necessary for God to forgive us and the need to let our brothers and sisters in Christ know we have made things right with God.

But it important for us to realize if we do not pray and ask for forgiveness, none will be forthcoming. Time erases human memories, but not God’s. If we sin and 20 or 30 years go by and we have not repented and had prayer about the sin, humans might forget and accept us back, but God insists upon repentance and prayer.

The forgiveness of sins is a blessing comes from praying. This is a tremendous blessing Christians enjoy, no one else in the world possesses this blessing. We have the ability to go to God at any given time and have the slate wiped clean. This is truly a fantastic blessing and while having the ability to have our sins wiped away is priceless, there is not enough money in the world to have it, it comes free when we obey the gospel.

Matthew 26:41 "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."

Whenever we are being tempted, if we stop and look for the way of escape God has promised, we will find it. If we stop and pray, prayer brings strength to overcome temptation. Not only can prayer help us to overcome temptation, but if we get to know ourselves and the areas we are weak in, areas where we are prone to temptation, if we stop and pray to God, prayer can bring us strength to avoid and even to overcome temptation. Which do you think is better in the eyes of God, to pray ahead of time and avoid temptation or to be overcome and wait until we have repented of the sin, so we can then pray and receive forgiveness? Of course it is always better to avoid temptation in the first place. This is a big step in a Christian’s growth, when one realizes the power prayer can have in their life.

Matthew 21:21-22 "Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer , believing, ye shall receive."

If we trust in God and pray for the things we have need of, God will see to our needs and answer our prayers. We need to always realize we do not have all knowledge, at times God's answer may be no, because God knows what is for the best.

James 5:15-16 "And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. 16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."

If we pray in faith, the sick will be healed. Why do you think some congregations have prayer boards and NewTestamentChurch.org sends out prayer requests? Because we believe in the power of prayer and we believe the more Christians you have praying for you the more likely it is God will answer our prayers. If the fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much, how much more do you think the fervent prayer of a righteous congregation will avail?

If we confess our faults to one another and pray for one another, our sins will be forgiven. Isn’t this a marvelous thought, we have the power to make things right between a child of God who have become estranged from their Father God Almighty Himself. Also another purpose for the Church is before we sin, if we are struggling with a problem, if we go before the Church and ask for help, we can overcome that problem, fault, or temptation.

Colossians 4:2-3 "Continue in prayer , and watch in the same with thanksgiving; 3 Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:"

These verses teach us about another blessing we have because of prayer. If we pray for the Evangelists and the teachers and ask God to open doors for them, then God will open up opportunities for them and help them know what to say. But the same as any prayer, we must believe and trust in God and then He will answer those prayers. Our prayers can soften the hearts of the alien sinner. Thus we should continually pray for the work of the Church and for those who serve God and the Church and our prayers can and will make a tremendous difference. How much do you want the alien sinner to be saved? Do you want it enough to pray diligently for God to soften their heart? I have seen examples of wives who have prayed diligently for their unsaved husband for years and I have seen the joy that comes when God answers their prayers, not by saving them through some miraculous means, but by eventually their hearts being opened and receptive to the gospel plan of salvation.

Several times I have seen it happen. One time in the late 1970s, I was working with the North Area Church of Christ in Sacramento, California and we had gone through a period of six months where we had not had any visitors to the congregation, let alone any conversions. As a congregation, we began meeting expressly for the purpose of praying for the work. Additionally, we asked each member of the congregation to mention the work every time they prayed. Within the next 2 weeks, we had over a dozen visitors from the local community just dropped into the worship services and most of them were baptized. I believe so much in the power of prayer because I have seen it happen too many times to doubt.

Acts 10:4 "And when he looked on him, he was afraid, and said, 'What is it, Lord?' And he said unto him, 'Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God.' "

Another blessing our prayers bring us is every time we pray, our prayers rise up before God as a memorial. Memorials are designed to help us remember someone or something such as the Vietnam Memorial, the Washington Memorial, and others. Our prayers act as a memorial before God, they rise up before him as sweet incense and they cause us to be brought favorably to God's thoughts.

Matthew 9:37-38 "Then saith He unto His disciples, The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth labourers into His harvest."

Here is another blessing that comes from our prayers, if we pray and ask God to send laborers into the fields, he will answer and send laborers. But we need to be prepared either to become one of those laborers if God chooses to send us or to be willing to help to financially support those whom God does send. It is our responsibility to pray to God to bless the work, but our responsibility does not stop there. We must then do what we can to act as tools for God. One of the blessings which can come from prayer is the spiritual and numerical growth of the Church. Just think, we have the power to shape the hearts and minds of men through our prayers.

Luke 11:9-13 "And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?"

Anytime we begin a study, open a new mission field, or start any work, we need to be heavily involved in prayer about that work. God has promised His word will not return unto him void, but it will accomplish what its task is, thus it behooves us to pray. If we pray believing God is answering the prayer, it will happen. God said it and we believe it. Look at the great things God has accomplished in Africa, in India, in the Philippines, in Cuba and elsewhere around the world.

Anytime we start a sermon, or a study, or a book, or any project, if we pray and search the scriptures, we will find the truth and our project will be much more successful. Additionally if we pray and ask for God to strengthen the Holy Spirit we received when we were baptized, He will answer. God is our heavenly Father and if He takes care of the Lilies of the Field, how much more will He take care of us whom He loves. If anyone will give prayer the place it should have in their lives, they will no longer have a single doubt about the power of prayer. Just imagine, in any given moment, when we are being buffeted by problems and trials and tribulations, we can stop and turn to God in prayer. The God who is so powerful when He imagined the universe and spoke the words to create it, the creation had to take place. There was no way to stop it, we have the attention of that All-Powerful God, the God who loves us and wants to help us. The next time you are feeling overwhelmed. STOP! Look out at the universe and all of its immense glory and mystery, think of the power that was necessary to create it. That is God. He is listening to you. If God can create the universe and life itself, surely He can solve any problem you may have. All you need is to trust in God and turn it over to Him.

How the World Has Changed the Prayer in the Public Worship Service
The religious world has even corrupted the way God has specified we are to talk to Him in such a way that clearly most who even try to talk to God are not being listened to. The ways prayer has been perverted can be seen in many places and many ways. For example many religions have turned prayer into a way to make money. They have people send in money and they either pray for them or they send prayer handkerchiefs, the answer to those prayers being based in part at least on the amount of money has been donated. Others forgetting Jesus condemned those who pray using vain repetitions run around saying Jesus, Jesus, Jesus and believe they are praying and God is pleased, even though they are violating a number of commands of God, as was noted, praying vain repetitions and praying only unto to the Heavenly Father.

Many of the religious world have gone so far as to say we are to pray to Mary the Mother of Jesus, or to angels or even to dead Christians who they claim are with Jesus and since they have the ear of Jesus or of God, these dead people can intercede directly for us. All of this having no basis in the scripture, but the religious world does not care.

Since the Bible teaches us very clearly God prefers simple prayers, and does not want us to be repetitious in our praying, we need to remember praying is just talking to our Father in Heaven using ordinary everyday language in such a way everyone can understand and thus make it their prayer also by saying amen at the closing of the prayer.

Chapter Summary
Prayer:

1. Sanctifies (dedicates things and people to God's work)
2. Brings forgiveness of sins which have been repented of.
3. Is an important part of the Christian work
4. Brings Strength to overcome temptation and to avoid it.
5. Brings us before God as a Memorial.
6. Strengthens the Holy Spirit which we receive when we are baptized.< br /> 7. Brings strength and wisdom to the leadership of the Church.
8. Opens doors for the ministers of the gospel.
9. Is thanking God for what we have been blessed with.
10. Is talking to God and asking for things we need.
11. Helps bring our daily necessities from God.
12. Helps bring recovery from physical and spiritual illness.
13. Helps send labourers into the field.
14. Helps the various works that are going on.
15. Helps us to be guided unto the truth when we study.
16. Strengthens the Holy Spirit within us.

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Chapter 4: The Blessings of Partaking of the Communion

Chapter Introduction
WHAT IS THE COMMUNION? The Bible uses several different terms to describe the Communion service. Each of these terms emphasizes a different aspect of the Communion. To begin our study of this part of the worship, let us look at each term, the Bible uses to describe this part of the worship service.

1 Corinthians 10:16 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?"

First, we want to notice the term Communion is used in the Bible to refer to the item of worship specifically dedicated to the remembrance of Jesus. The word communion literally means a common sharing, a partnership, a fellowship. This term is used to emphasize the fact this item of worship was instituted by Jesus Christ on the night in which he was betrayed. It was designed by God to always be done jointly with our brothers and sisters in Christ in a local congregation. We jointly share each of the three emblems which are part of this item of worship with all of our assembled brothers and sisters as well as with Jesus Christ. The Bread which we all jointly partake of, is it not the communion (common sharing) of the body of Christ. The Cup which contains the fruit of the vine (grape juice) is designed by God for all of the assembled Christians to jointly drink from the one cup. In partaking from one cup, we are showing we are all bound together by the one covenant which we have with God. Because the one Cup which represents the one covenant (contract) we jointly have with God, contains the fruit of the vine which is to us as Christians the common sharing of the blood of Jesus Christ, we are all acknowledging it was the blood of Jesus Christ, which ratified the New Testament and cleans us from all unrighteousness.

1 Corinthians 10:21 "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils."

ere the term used to refer to the Communion is “the Lord’s Table”. The term “the Lord's Table” emphasizes the fact this is something we do that is ordained by the Lord. This term is emphasizing the Lord is the one who determines what is to be set on His table and how. The Lord Jesus Christ is in charge. He instituted the Communion service and he determines what is to be used on His table. If I say, “This is my wife's table”, this phrase shows my wife is the one who determines what will be served, she is the one in charge.

1 Corinthians 11:20 "When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper."

The term The Lord's Supper emphasizes the fact we are partaking of a spiritual meal. But this term gives emphasis to what is to be eaten rather than who determines what items are in the Communion service. The term, the Lord’s Supper seems to place the emphasis on the emblems themselves being consumed rather than the table itself. The thoughts are centered around the emblems, the eating of these items, and the benefits that are available if we partake properly.

We have looked at three scriptural terms for the same part of the worship service, the Communion, the Lord’s Table, and the Lord’s Supper. Each of these terms brings out different aspects of this item of worship.

WHY WE PARTAKE OF THE COMMUNION.
John 6:53-57 "Then Jesus said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me."

These verses in John are in dispute among various preachers and scholars as to their meaning. Some believe Jesus is talking about simply following Him. While others among who is the author, believe Jesus is prophetically talking about partaking of the Communion. I believe He is talking about partaking of the Communion for several reasons:

1. Because the wording fits perfectly with what Jesus says later when he institutes the Lord’s Supper;
2. Because if you read the entirety of John 6, the listeners thought Jesus was talking literally about eating His flesh and drinking His blood;
3. Nowhere else in writings before Jesus time, during Jesus ministry or since Jesus ministry have I found someone else talking about eating their flesh and drinking of their blood and meaning they wanted someone to follow them;
4. If Jesus is using common terminology then why did most of Jesus’ followers and disciples become confused and quit following him? In verses 66 and 67, we see even the twelve apostles did not understand, but they stayed because they knew Jesus was the Messiah, and He was the only one who had the Words of Life.

But also I do not think it matters, since even if he was not talking about the Communion, He was talking about eating His flesh and drinking His blood which everyone admits we do when we partake of the Lord’s Supper. So either way, I believe the things written in John 6 apply.

I believe the Bible teaches it is the contact with the blood of Christ that takes away our sins. I believe sins can be forgiven during the partaking of the Lord Supper. This occurs when we examine ourselves, as instructed, and realize we have sinned, especially, during the part of the Supper when we are partaking of the cup which represents the New Testament. It is degrading the New Testament, if we realize we have sinned, and do nothing about it. We then should immediately pray to God asking for His forgiveness. The eating and drinking at the Table is in remembrance of what Christ accomplished when He died on the Cross and shed His blood for our redemption.”

1 Corinthians 11:28, 30 "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep."

One reason why we as Christians partake of the Lord’s Supper is because one who does not partake of the Communion properly has no life in them. We see because Christians do not partake properly in the right frame of mind, many become spiritually weak and many die spiritually. We as Christians must place a high priority on partaking of this spiritual meal in such a way so we can live spiritually. We partake because one who partakes properly hath eternal life and having eternal life is what Christianity is all about. We partake in order to dwell in Christ. For human beings to rise above their frailties, they must partake of the flesh and blood of Christ. We partake because of the importance of the Communion in our spiritual lives.

We partake thoughtfully and carefully because of the responsibility the Bible places on each of us to examine ourselves and then to partake of the body and blood of the Lord. We partake thoughtfully because we can partake in an unworthy manner with disastrous consequences. We also want to show the greatest reverence and respect to our Lord. We can see the attitude we have when we partake is just as important as partaking in the proper manner on a consistent basis.

1 Corinthians 11:17, 22 "Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse. For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it. For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you. When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper. For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken. What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not."

Paul in writing to the Corinthian brethren is correcting a number of things they were doing wrong. Apparently they had changed the entire worship service to God, because Paul in the remaining chapters of 1 Corinthians covers the rules and guidelines for every part of the worship service. Here, he tells them because they had changed the Communion they were no longer partaking of the Lord’s Supper. They had turned the Communion into a common meal and they were eating a common physical meal during the public worship service of the Church and calling it the Lord’s Supper. He goes on to tell the Corinthian brethren no matter what they thought, no matter what excuses they made, what they were doing was wrong. They were bringing shame upon the Church and their brethren in Christ.

We are to stop and study carefully and make sure what we are doing is what the Lord has commanded. If we want to partake of the Lord’s Supper, we need to make sure we are partaking thoughtfully. Since it is possible to observe the Communion improperly, we need to study in order to insure we are partaking in a worthy manner and in the proper way. We also need to make sure what we are doing is within the bounds of both the letter of the commands of God as well as its spirit.

We need to partake thoughtfully because heresies and false teachings are involved every time the communion is changed. We are to partake carefully after studying because there is no praise or no good involved in changing the Communion. We partake thoughtfully so we partake of the Communion properly. We need to partake thoughtfully because the attitude we have when we partake makes the difference between being saved or being damned.

HOW WE ARE TO PARTAKE OF THE LORD'S SUPPER
The first element of the Communion is the bread. The Greek word translated bread in the New Testament is transliterated which literally means a loaf of bread. This word is singular in nature and is defined by Vine's Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words in the following manner: artos NT:740, "bread", signifies (a) "a small loaf or cake," composed of flour and water, and baked, in shape either oblong or round, and about as thick as the thumb; Every translator or commentator I have read uses a singular “a” or “the” when either translating or commenting on this word.

Luke 22:19 "And He took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is My body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of Me."

To a Christian, the bread is the body of Jesus. While we know and understand the bread physically always remains bread, to a Christian, it does not matter we are to have the same respect and reverence as we would have if it literally became the body of Christ. This means we need to be thinking about what Christ did for us. He gave up his home in glory came down to this low-land of sin and sorrow. He took the sins of the world on Himself and paid the price for them by dying on the cross at Calvary, all for you and for me. We need to keep in mind the seriousness, the somberness and at the same time the tremendous joy of the occasion. We are to realize we are to partake in remembrance of Jesus. We are to remember Christ died on the cross in our place.

1 Corinthians 11:23-24 "For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, He brake it, and said, 'Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.'"

The Church at Corinth had changed the Communion and in doing so, it meant when they came together, they were no longer partaking of the Lord’s Supper. In correcting their sin Paul takes them back to the night in which Jesus was crucified and relates how the Communion was instituted and how it should be done. Further more he reminds them this knowledge had not been passed on through human beings to the Apostle Paul. Rather Paul makes it clear he had received this information directly from God. He goes on to say the bread represents the body of Christ, but only after it was blessed (prayed over). Prayer is an essential part of sanctification. The word sanctify means to set apart for a particular purpose, it is prayer that sets the bread aside for the purpose of representing the Body of Christ. We are reminded we are to partake in remembrance of Jesus. Our minds need to be centered on Christ during the Communion.

1 Corinthians 10:16-17 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread."

The Bible using the phrase, “The bread which we break,” referring to the fact each Christian breaks off a piece of the bread and eats it. The Bible goes on to tell us the partaking of the bread is the Communion (the common sharing) of the body of Christ. It is because we jointly participate, or because the assembled Christians partake of one loaf we are a congregation, a local body of believers with each of the members being part of one another.

THE CUP (POTERION; A Drinking Vessel, With or Without A Handle, With or Without A Stem)

The second element or item on the Lord’s Table is the cup. The word Cup is translated from the Greek word poterion which according to Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament words means that whenever this word is used the cup being spoken of is a literal cup.

1 Corinthians 11:25 "After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, 'This cup is the new testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.'"

Paul is explaining what Jesus had revealed unto him says the cup (singular) is the New Testament which Jesus brought into effect by his death. Every time we partake of the one cup, we need to remember we are in a covenant relationship with God. We have a contract with God that was ratified with the blood of Christ. We should be thinking about the agreement we made with God when we were baptized, we need to examine ourselves comparing the life we have led in the past week to the Bible and if we have sinned, we need to make it right then and there with God, rededicate our lives to his service and go forth sinless in the sight of God. Just as there is one contract between God and man, there is one cup on the Lord’s Table. If we each have separate cups, it would indicate we each have a separate contract with God, it would mean there is more than one faith. Because there is one New Testament, Jesus took one cup and we are to partake just as Jesus did, from one cup.

Luke 22:20 "Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you.'"

We have a plain declaration the one cup represents the New Testament which was ratified by the blood of Christ. Just as you cannot pass around a liquid, such as the fruit of the vine without a container, you can not separate the blood of Jesus from the New Testament. The New Testament was brought into effect by the shedding of Christ's blood and we need to be thinking about this as we drink from the one cup.

FRUIT OF THE VINE (GRAPE JUICE)
The third element or item in the Communion service, the Lord’s Supper, is the contents of the cup, the fruit of the vine. When used in this sense according to Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, it is being used as a figure of speech called a metonymy, in which the container is being referenced to imply the contents. This is shown clearly in the following verse where cup and fruit of the vine are used interchangeably.

Luke 22:17-18 "And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, 'Take this, and divide it among yourselves: For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come.'"

The cup Jesus took contained the fruit of the vine. The assembled Disciples were told to divide it among themselves. We see this was to be done by drinking of the contents. Prayer is what dedicates the fruit of the vine as the blood of Christ and the cup as the New Testament. Until the prayer is said in the worship service to set aside the cup and its contents for their sanctified purpose, they are just a cup and fruit of the vine, but when the prayer (blessing) is said, to a Christian they become the New Testament and the blood of Christ.

Matthew 26:27-29 "And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, 'Drink ye all of it; For this is My blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.'"

Jesus took one cup containing the Fruit of the Vine. The contents of the cup, after it was prayed for, represents the blood of Jesus Christ. The disciples were told to divide the contents of the cup by drinking it. There are only two ways this could happen: Either All drink from the cup or one to drink all of the contents of the cup. We are to remember Jesus shed his blood for our sins. Jesus drank from the cup and communes with us in the Kingdom, the church

Mark 14:23 "And He took the cup, and when He had given thanks, He gave it to them: and they all drank of it."

We see Jesus took one cup. Remember in the previous verses we looked at in Luke and Matthew, Jesus commanded them to divide the contents of the cup by drinking all of it. How did the disciples fulfill this command? They clearly understood what they were being asked to do because each one of the assembled disciples drank from the one cup.

1 Corinthians 10:16 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?"

The cup here is said to contain a blessing. The phrase, “Which we bless” simply means we dedicate it with prayer. This is the communion or the common sharing of the blood of Christ because we share the one cup by all drinking from it.

Isaiah 65:8 "Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants' sakes, that I may not destroy them all."

The unfermented juice, the new wine that comes from the cluster of grapes has a blessing in it. We know that the contents of the cup is unfermented grape juice and not just any juice from a vine. The fruit of the vine that grows in clusters is grapes and new wine is always unfermented when it is squeezed from the grapes. The term “Cup of Blessing” refers to the fact God said through Isaiah the liquid, the new wine, the grape juice, when it was squeezed from the grapes, contained a blessing. The Communion cup contains a blessing because a blessing is in the new wine squeezed from a cluster of grapes.

THE PURPOSE OF THE COMMUNION
The Communion, the Lord’s Table, or the Lord’s Supper was instituted by God for various purposes. Let us investigate and see what the Bible says some of those reasons are.

A Memorial Service
1 Corinthians 11:24 "And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, 'Take, eat: this is My body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me.'"

We are to partake in remembrance of Jesus Christ. We should be thinking about what Jesus did for us, how He died for our sins. We should be respectful while the Communion is going on. This is not a time to be balancing the checkbook, worrying about what we are cooking, or planning what we will be doing the rest of the day. We need to concentrate on what we are doing. We need also to remember the manner in which we partake can bring damnation to us.

An Outward Showing of Christ's death
1 Corinthians 11:26 "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till He come.

When we partake of the Communion we are showing to others what Christ's death means to us. What does the manner you partake of the Communion show to the world, to your fellow Christians, and to Jesus who is in our midst, about how you feel about Jesus and his death? The world has chosen to remember Christ's death at Easter, God intends for us to remember it weekly.

An Inward Examination
1 Corinthians 11:28-29 "But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body."

Each of us is to honestly examine ourselves before we partake. We are to compare our lives to the New Testament, see how we have done, repent and rededicate ourselves, then to partake of the Communion. If partaken of properly, the congregation after the Communion is made up of sinless, rededicated Christians. The Communion is intended for Christians and Christians only, not for children or outsiders. But God leaves it up to each person to examine themselves and determine if they should partake. This is a time for self-examination, not a time to be examining others.

Looking Forward to Christ's return
1 Corinthians 11:29 "For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body."

We are to examine ourselves and partake, remembering the judgment at Christ's return. If Christ returned at the end of the service, what would your destination be? Most of us have children or loved ones who have gone to be with Jesus, if Christ returned today, would we spend eternity with them or separated from them?

When We are to Partake of the Communion
Acts 20:7 "And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight."

The disciples assemble on the first day of the week and partake of the Communion on first day of the week. We should plan ahead to worship God. That is the Biblical pattern, in the same way the Israelites remembered every Sabbath and kept it holy, so we need to gather together every first day of the week.

The Blessings that come to us from properly partaking of the Communion
1 Corinthians 11:26-31 "For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged."

One of the blessings we receive is we remember weekly the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord. Another blessing we receive is weekly we reexamine and rededicate ourselves to God. If taken of properly another blessing we receive is we grow in strength and do not grow weak and fall away. Another blessing we receive is when we honestly judge ourselves, others do not have to judge us. The Church sometimes must take action because individuals do not judge themselves. The laws of the land sometimes must judge Christians because they did not judge themselves.

1 Corinthians 10:1-4 "Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; And did all eat the same spiritual meat; And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ."

One blessing we receive is as Israel ate a spiritual meal, so do we in the Communion and are strengthened. Another blessing we receive is we feed our spiritual body, if we partake properly. The Communion is one of only two places I find in the Bible where it says, If you do this properly, you will go to heaven and if you don't you are lost. The other is in II Peter, where we are told to add to our faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity and if we do this we shall never fall.

John 6:53-57 "Then Jesus said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, dwelleth in Me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent Me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth Me, even he shall live by Me."

One of the blessings we receive when we partake of the communion properly is eternal spiritual life. Another blessing we receive when we partake properly is we partake of a spiritual meal. Our spiritual body is fed.

Luke 22:19 "And He took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, 'This is My body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of Me.'"

Another blessing we receive is on a weekly basis we are reminded of what Christ did for us. Thus we are less likely to take him for granted. Human beings tend to easily forget the things that are done for them. I consider the fact if I partake of the Communion properly, I will be less likely to take Jesus for granted and forget about what he did for me which is a tremendously important blessing.

1 Corinthians 10:16-17 "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

Another blessing we receive if we partake in the proper manner is on a weekly basis we come in contact with the blood of Christ. It is contact with the blood of Christ which takes away sin. The reason I believe sins are taken away in the Communion is when I realize after examining myself during the part of the Lord’s supper involves the cup, the New Testament, if I find I have sinned, it is natural for me to pray quickly for my sins to be taken away. If we partake properly, every week we are brought in contact with the blood of Christ and are rededicated to God. Another blessing we receive if we partake properly is we become members one of another. Another blessing we receive if we partake properly is we acknowledge we are members of the body of Christ and as such we acknowledge the responsibility we have for our brothers and sisters in Christ.

How the World has changed the Communion
The world has taken the simplicity and beauty of the Communion and in the name of convenience has changed it into something that no longer paints the beautiful picture that is the Lord’s Supper. It has been changed within many of the congregations of the Lord’s Church into a bastardized version. The beauty of the one loaf of unleavened bread which is the one sinless body with Christ as its head has been changed into multiple loaves, which if it symbolizes anything it would be the denominational world which claims to follow Jesus as its head, but in reality has clearly taken the stand the commands of Jesus mean much less than the thoughts of man. The beauty of the unleavened bread representing a sinless body has been changed into crackers that can no longer be said to represent the one sinless body, since each person having their own cracker has destroyed the image God has portrayed of a body with many members and changed it into an image that could only be representing the thought each person today stands by themselves, thus the body, the Church is no longer important. The only picture that could be even attempted to be drawn is a grotesque image of a head being attached to each of its many bodies which are composed of one organ, which have no interdependence on each other.

The beauty of the one cup which is the New Testament which shows we share a common salvation, we have a common agreement with God has been changed to multiple cups which could only symbolize a concept each Christian has worked out their own salvation with God since each one is separate from the other. The extent many of our brothers and sisters in Christ will go to in order to justify their convenience and fear of germs is astounding to me. It just proves what Paul wrote Timothy about profane and vain babbling being ungodly and increasing unto more ungodliness is as true as it ever was.

The beauty of the fruit of the vine, grape juice, being the blood of Christ is such a beautiful picture because it shows the image of how the blood of Christ is inseparable from the New Testament in the same way the fruit of the vine or any liquid is inseparable from the container as it is passed from one member to another. It is contact with the blood of Christ that takes away sins and as the cup passes from one hand to the next, if each person is partaking in the way they should, the image is presented each week of sinless members of the body of Christ being united by one covenant and being one body brought alive by the blood flowing from member to member. This image is distorted and outright destroyed by many congregations and churches because of the use of fermentation in wine. The unleavened or unfermented wine, the fruit of the vine symbolizes purity as opposed to leavening which is used in the Bible to represent sin. The use of fermented wine to supposedly symbolize the pure sinless blood of Christ is an abomination which destroys the very concept the fruit of the vine shows. Truly the religious world has no concept of the simple beauty Jesus showed in his instituting of the Lord’s Supper.

Chapter Summary

1. The scriptural terms for this item of worship is The Communion, The Lord's Table, The Lord's Supper.
2. We partake of the Communion thoughtfully because to do so brings spiritual life.
3. We partake of the Lord's Supper in the way the Lord delivered it, because that is the command of God.
4. We partake of the Lord's Table in the way he delivered it, because we can partake of it in an improper manner and we know the way the Lord did it is right.
5. We partake upon every first day of the week, because that is the example laid down for us.
6. The Unleavened Bread is to Christians the common sharing of the body of Christ.
7. The Cup is to Christians the New Testament, that Contract we have with God.
8. The Fruit of the Vine (Grape Juice) is to us as Christians the blood of Christ.
9. When we partake properly, our sins are taken away and we are rededicated to God.
10. When we partake properly, we are reminded of what Jesus did for us.
11. When we partake properly, we are made members one of another and we are made one congregation.
12. When we partake properly, we are promised by God we will grow stronger and not fall away.

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Chapter 5: The Blessings Associated with the Contribution

Chapter Introduction
What is The Contribution? The Greek word translated collection in 1 Corinthians 16:1 is logeia which is Strong’s number NT:3048 (in the commercial sense); a contribution. In this book, I will be using the terms, Giving, Contribution, Offering or Collection interchangeably. Whenever any of these terms are used in this book, I am referring to the free will offering that is taken up by the command of God on the first day of the week, the Lord’s Day.

Why We Give 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come."

One of the first things we will notice as to the Biblical reasons we should contribute is to help our brothers and sisters in Christ who may find themselves in temporary position of poverty or special needs. We are to give because we care about the needs of those in the Church who are in a situation where they need help. We also need to give because it is a command of God. We realize God’s commands are given for our good and we want to please God. It is important to notice God’s command to give is tied to how we have been prospered. For us to fulfill this command properly, we need to sit down during the week and count our blessings. I believe this is essential for a Christian to receive the blessings God has in store for us as we partake of this part of the worship service.

In my opinion, based on my study of the Bible and also of human nature, one of the biggest reasons Christian’s get discouraged and fall away from the Lord is they begin to take God for granted and quit appreciating the shower of blessings God gives to them each and every day of their lives. I firmly believe one of the reasons God has for basing what a Christian is to give on how they have been prospered is so we will take the time to at least try to count the blessings God gives us.

I have advanced Parkinson’s disease and I learned very quickly if I concentrated on the few problems in my life, I could quickly become discouraged. One of the problems many Parkinson’s patients struggle with is depression. It is a path for about a year I found myself slipping down. There are physical reasons why Parkinson’s patients are prone to depression, for example, the body’s production of dopamine is affected. Dopamine is the chemical the body produces that seems to be involved in being happy. Besides it becomes easy to be worried about the possible future when one reads about all of the things that can go wrong when one has Parkinson’s or any other degenerative disease.

Fortunately through the grace of God, I found if I just put my future in the hands of God and trusted in Him depression does not have to be one of the symptoms. If I start off my day concentrating on the few problems in my life, those problems get blown out of proportion and I can become consumed with my problems. But if I start off counting my blessings, I never finish counting them, so I do not even have the time to worry about the few problems that are in my life today, let alone have time to begin worrying about possible problems in the future.

I am blessed so far above my ability to count and when I realize this, I will be less likely to take God and the blessings I receive from Him for granted. When we truly realize how much we have been blessed, then our appreciation for God will show forth in our giving. I firmly believe that is why Paul could boast about the churches in Macedonia even though they were in great poverty how they gave liberally to help the brethren in Jerusalem. They had counted their blessings first and therefore even though Paul knew their poverty, they thought of themselves as rich and they trusted God to supply their needs, thus they could give as if they had a tremendous bounty.

Another reason we give is so when the need arises, the need can be met without having to take up a special collection. Can you imagine the humiliation that would arise if every time there was a need for let’s say, Brother Joe Smith, we had to stand before the Church, take up a special collection and say Brother Joe Smith, needs $200.00 and have a public debate over the issue. God in his infinite wisdom has commanded us to take up the collection on the first day of the week so this and other problems will not arise.

Another side note, I personally find it very humorous the very denominations that will argue and fight against having the Communion every first day of the week or even that every Christian should assemble together every first day of the week, have no problem taking up a collection at a minimum of every first day of the week, plus more often if they feel they have not received enough in the collection.

2 Corinthians 9:1-11 "For as touching the ministering to the saints, it is superfluous for me to write to you: For I know the forwardness of your mind, for which I boast of you to them of Macedonia, that Achaia was ready a year ago; and your zeal hath provoked very many. Yet have I sent the brethren, lest our boasting of you should be in vain in this behalf; that, as I said, ye may be ready: Lest haply if they of Macedonia come with me, and find you unprepared, we (that we say not, ye) should be ashamed in this same confident boasting. Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work: (As it is written, He hath dispersed abroad; he hath given to the poor: his righteousness remaineth for ever. Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;) Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God."

Paul reminds us one reason we give is because it is part of our responsibility to minister to the saints. How could any of us call ourselves Christians and claim to love our brothers and sisters in Christ and shut up our bowels of compassion for a brother or sister in need when we realize how much God has blessed each of us with great bounty. Also we give because we trust in God who has said “as we sow so shall we reap”. We give the amount we give because it is the amount we planned on giving after we have counted our blessings and it is an amount we can give cheerfully. We give the amount we give because it is based on the blessings we receive from God. We give the amount we give because it shows our thankfulness to God. In addition we give an amount that is also based on what is needed to support those who have ministered to our spiritual needs.

Matthew 28:18-20 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen."

We as individual Christians and collectively as a local congregation have been commanded by Jesus Christ to spread the gospel in every generation to all nations. We are told to baptize those who believe. This baptism is to be in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. We as Christians are also commanded to teach those who are baptized they have a responsibility to obey all of the commands of God. This takes men who have dedicated their lives to Jesus Christ. These men have the right to have a family also have a responsibility to provide for that family. This means the Church has a responsibility towards those who minister to the gospel.

Another reason we give is so the Church can fulfill its responsibility to spread the gospel. The Bible also teaches us when evangelists and teachers are involved in conversions and doing the work of the Lord and are supported through funds we have contributed, we as individual Christians and the local congregation that is supporting the work, we share in the rewards that come from those conversions. So every time we contribute, we in turn receive spiritual treasures in Heaven. We give because supporting the gospel is necessary for the work to get done.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

Giving is a natural expression of love. The more a person gives of themselves the more love is shown. Do you know how much God loves us? God's love was shown through the fact he gave his only begotten Son to die in our place, so we could have a hope of eternal life. I know several people I love enough if the choice had to be made, I would give my life for. But I do not know anyone I love enough to give the life of one of my children or grandchild for. It sends shivers up my spine to realize God loved me enough to not only let His Son die for me, but to also suffer as Jesus did. Every stripe He took, He took for me.

This brings us to another very important thought. If giving is a natural expression of love, how much am I demonstrating that I love God by the amount I give on the first day of the week? One reason we give is because giving demonstrates the love we have for God, Jesus Christ and the Church. I try to answer that question when I am determining how much I am going to give. We need to realize the attitude in which we give also demonstrates the love we have for our brothers and sisters in Christ. I think we need to realize our attitude matters whenever we give and make sure we are giving cheerfully.

HOW WE GIVE
1 Corinthians 16:1-2 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come."

One of the reasons for assembling upon the first day of the week is because God has commanded us to give of our means on that day. We are to give as God has prospered (blessed) us. This means it is not just a “reach in your pocket and give what you happen to have event.” For me to give as I have been prospered means I MUST know how I have been prospered. This implies ahead of time, I need to sit down and determine how much God has prospered me. Then I need to determine the amount I am going to give. I personally think it is best to do this on the day before which is on Saturday. I have found if I wait until Sunday morning to do this, I usually start running behind and start getting stressed which is not conducive to being properly prepared for the worship service.

I try to count all of the blessings God has given me which includes monetary blessings, physical blessings such as health, family, transportation and spiritual blessings such as our brethren, salvation, how God has answered our prayers and etc. One of the reasons I believe this is important is God wants us to remember these blessings come from Him. I personally still find myself not appreciating everything God does for me, so I can imagine how easily it would be to take these blessings for granted and to stop appreciating how much God does for us every day of our lives.

Another thing I find very important I do not believe is stressed enough is in the contribution, the attitude we have in giving affects our worship service to God. In other words, the amount I give, the attitude I have during the collection, shows reverence, respect, love and trust towards God. We need to stop and realize this while we are counting our blessing and determining how we have been prospered and while we are deciding the amount we can and will give cheerfully.

Matthew 25:14-18 "For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord's money."

In this parable, Jesus portrays himself as a man who is taking a long trip to a far country. He has many goods. Before he goes on this trip, he divides up his wealth and entrusts it to the care of his servants accord to their ability to handle it. When he returns, he calls in his servants and demands an accounting of how they had used what he gave them. He then rewards them based on how they had used his goods. He is happy with how they used his goods until it comes to the servant who received one talent. This man had been so afraid of losing his master’s wealth that had been entrusted to his care he had buried it and he returns the original amount. If you read the full parable you will see the servant is called an unprofitable servant and is cast into the lake of fire. God is teaching in this parable we will be held accountable for several important things. The first is God expects us to use what he has given us to the best of our abilities. God wants us to develop the abilities we have. Secondly God will only hold us accountable for what we have the ability to do. What do you think would have happened if the one talent man had used the one talent to the best of his ability and through a bit of bad luck had lost it? I firmly believe God would have told the one talent servant, “Well done thou good and faithful servant.” God is not judging these men according to what they returned to him, but rather, he is judging them according to how they put forth the effort to fulfill their responsibility.

The same Master, who divided his wealth according to his servant’s abilities, teaches us it is He, God, who gives the increase. Otherwise, Noah would have been considered a failure because we have no evidence in 120 years of preaching and warning the world, he was able to convert anyone. Yet Noah is listed as a man of great faith. Why? Because in the 120th year of his labor, Noah got up and worked on the ark and warned the people the same as he had in the first year. He is a shining example of what God wants us to do, cast the seed.

The third point I believe God is teaching is every Christian has been entrusted with talent, ability, and things of great wealth. The one talent man was given 1 full talent, which depending on whether it was a talent of silver or a talent of gold was worth in today’s currency depending on which scholar you ask anywhere from $15,000.00 to $100,000.00 if it was a talent of silver and a talent of gold was worth anywhere from to $180,000.00 to $2,500,000.00 (2.5 million dollars). This is no small amount. God does not consider any Christian as not worth much. God expects all of us to use what we have for him and He will hold us accountable.

OUR ATTITUDE CONCERNING GIVING
1 Corinthians 16:1-2 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come."

We see we are to give from WHAT GOD has given us. This means we need to realize everything comes from God. I used to know a man who claimed God did not give him anything, he earned everything he had. And for some strange reason he was an unhappy bitter old man. I believe if we do not realize how much we depend on God, we can never truly appreciate what we have. I used to think I understood that fact, I thought I appreciated what I had. Then one day approximately eleven years ago, the doctor diagnosed me with Parkinson’s and I learned how much I had been depending on my own strength rather than the Lord.

Another thing having Parkinson’s has done for me, I count my blessings more and appreciate them more and am able to give much more cheerfully which is the main thing is pleasing in the sight of God. We also want to notice we are to give as God has prospered in order when the need arises, funds will be available to take care of that need.

2 Corinthians 9:6-8 "But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:"

An important fact we learn from the Bible is not only are we to give an amount we can give cheerfully, but we are not to be stingy about our giving. We are to give because we want to, not because we have to. God loves a cheerful giver. The Apostle Paul through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit uses a natural law to teach an important spiritual truth when he says, “He that soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully.” Can you imagine a farmer bragging ahead of time about the bountiful harvest he is expecting and someone saying, “You must have sown a lot of seed.” The farmer replies, “No, I only sowed one ear of corn, but I got a feeling I am going to have a big harvest because I am trusting in God.” Trusting in God means one sows a lot of seed, not they sow only a little, just in case the harvest is not good, so they will still have something to eat.” Reaping as we sow means we will be blessed as we have given. We also need to keep in mind, as we give, God has promised to make sure we have everything we need. To sum up everything this verse is teaching, we need to give an amount we decide we need to give based on how we have been blessed and how we trust God to take care of us.

Luke 12:33-34 "Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also."

One of the most important things a Christian needs to know is material possessions are temporary and not important and heavenly treasures last forever and are most important. We can tell where our heart is by where we put our treasures. If we love the Lord, it will show in how much we give and the attitude we have in our giving. We should feel cheerful and willing with our giving. If we want to make sure we keep our heart on spiritual things, we will make sure and lay up spiritual treasures in Heaven, where we do not have to worry about them being stolen or wearing out.

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

We have heard giving is a measure of love. We should be astounded then because God loved us so much He gave His son for us. There is no question about how much God loves us. The only question we should have is how much do we love God? If God loved us so much He gave His son to die a humiliating cruel death on the cross, what does the attitude we have when we give and the amount we give say about how much we love God?

Matthew 6:1-4 "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly."

We learn an important truth here in Matthew. The amount we give should reflect how we have been prospered and shows the love we have for God. But the amount we give should remain between us and God. We should not give because of what people may think of us. We are told what we give should be a secret between us and God. We are to give in such a way others do not know the amount we give. If we give in secret, God will reward us openly. If we give in order to be seen of men, then that will be the only reward we receive, because God will not have a good reward for us. We should give generously, cheerfully, and out of love as we have planned ahead of time

One more side note, in today’s environment where checks are the primary means of giving and is required for tax purposes, it is essential, whoever counts and records the collection, needs to be quiet about anything they inadvertently learn about the amount any person contributes.

HOW MUCH ARE WE TO GIVE
1 Corinthians 16:2 "Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come."

We are to lay by in store as God has prospered us. The Bible stresses this fact. If we do not think we have been blessed or prospered by God, then God does not want anything from us, even though I doubt if any of us really have not been blessed by God. If we want to be pleasing to God we are to count our blessing, to determine how we have been prospered. Then we are to decide for ourselves, what we are going to give. If we do this properly, at least once a week we are reminded of the blessings we have received from God. I believe this is one of the most important reasons God has us lay by in store in the first place. If we do this at least once a week it will help us to not take God and His blessings for granted.

Deuteronomy 14:22-23 "Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always."

While we know the Old Testament is not something we are to follow anymore, we do know it was given for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. The Old Testament was given as an example. If we use it properly, it will help us to avoid making mistakes and sinning. Israel was commanded to give 10% of the increase of their goods. They were prospered by whatever increase came in their goods. If they planted 1 bushel of wheat and they harvested 11, they were prospered 10 bushels of wheat and they were commanded to give 1 bushel back to God. So we see we are prospered by whatever we are blessed with. I receive a paycheck. Whatever the amount of the paycheck is, that is how much I have been prospered.

Romans 12:8 "Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness."

Paul, in writing to the brethren, lays down a very simple guideline regarding the way we are to determine what we are going to give. We are to keep our giving simple. If we need a lawyer to figure out what we are going to give, it is becoming too complicated. We are to decide what we are going to give based on what we receive. One of the simplest ways is a simple percentage basis. We determine if we are going to give 5%, 10%, 15% or whatever and give.

2 Corinthians 9:5-7 "Therefore I thought it necessary to exhort the brethren, that they would go before unto you, and make up beforehand your bounty, whereof ye had notice before, that the same might be ready, as a matter of bounty, and not as of covetousness. But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."

This means we need to realize is how much we are blessed by God. We are blessed in this United States in a material way probably more than any other nation in history. We are so blessed and yet we do not appreciate our blessings like we should. We have such abundance the biggest health problems in our country stem from having too much, being overweight, and eating so much junk food. We truly have a bounty and only when we realize it and appreciate the blessing God has showered down up on us, then and only then can we give in such a way we are pleasing to God. It is only when we realize we have been blessed with abundance we can give of our bounty. The amount we give is to be determined by the amount we receive. Our blessings are affected by the attitude we have and how we give. The amount we give is to be an amount we can give cheerfully. We are to give as we determine ahead of time, after we count our blessings. We are not to give in a grudging manner. We are to remember God loves a cheerful giver.

Malachi 3:6-10 "For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

Here God through the prophet Malachi tell us people forsake God when they quit following his commandments. We see also it is possible for us to rob God. We rob God if we do not give as he wants us to. We also learn the blessings we receive is partially dependant on how we give. The attitude we have in our giving or rather should I say in not giving properly can cause us to rob God.

WHEN SHOULD WE GIVE
1 Corinthians 16:1-2 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come."

Christians are commanded to give on the first day of the week, Sunday, the Lord’s Day. One reason we should give every first day of the week is when the need arises, the money will be there to help take care of that need.

WHAT TO DO WITH THE CONTRIBUTION
1 Corinthians 16:1 "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye."

One purpose for the collection is to help the needy saints. It is a command of God we help the Brethren who are in need.

1 Timothy 5:17-18 "Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. 18 For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward."

The Elders in a local congregation have a right to be supported, if they rule well. The congregation has a responsibility to support or to provide for the needs of those who serve the congregation. The leadership in a congregation has a right to be supported because the labourer is worthy of his hire. In other words, the congregation has a responsibility to those who labor among them because if someone is working hard for the Lord, they have a right to be supported because you do not muzzle the ox that treadeth the corn.

1 Corinthians 9:7-14 "Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ. Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel."

We see the Bible teaches those who preach the gospel have a right to be financially supported by the gospel. This does not mean they have a right to live high off the hog, but neither does it mean they should be living below the poverty level. My own personal opinion is those who are being supported by a congregation should be supported at about the average for a family in the congregation, if they have no other means of support. The Bible clearly teaches in 1 Corinthians those who sow to the spirit have a right to receive carnal blessings from those who are blessed spiritually. Why? Because God commanded the mouth of the ox that treadeth the corn is not to be muzzled. Paul quoting from the Old Testament shows the reason God had commanded the Israelites not to muzzle the ox they used to tread the grain, was not because of the ox, but because God wanted the example clearly shown if the ox was expected to be able to eat of the grain we as Christians could realize we have an obligation to make sure those who labor in the gospel are to be taken care of. Again we see the example given. Is a soldier expected to pay for his own equipment and salary? NO! The soldier has a right to expect to be paid. We can sum it up by saying the contribution can be used for all things that are necessary in the spiritual fight, that are expedient and are not wrong.

Matthew 28:18-20 "And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen."

The Church has a responsibility to spread the gospel, baptize believers, and strengthen them. We see then the contribution is to be used to spread the gospel and can be legitimately used to do so. The contribution can be used on anything in this category, as long as it is not wrong. So we can use the contribution for such things as supporting the preacher, buying advertising time in a newspaper or TV, buying bibles for those who have been baptized, buying song books, grape juice or etc.

How the Religious World Has Changed The Contribution
The religious world has changed the way money is raised in much the same way they have changed the rest of the worship services of the Church. Anything that is successful monetarily is fine for them religiously. The only way the Bible shows God authorizes for his people to raise money is through the free-will offering. But the world has changed this until it has no semblance of the simplicity God gave.

The way some religious organizations have changed the giving, range from instead of relying upon the will of the members, the church dictates the amount each member is expected to give. It has become so bad the purpose of many of these religious organizations is to raise money. The purpose of the Church is to spread the gospel. Raising money is incidental to the mission of the Church. Most religious organizations have bought stock in companies because they have forgotten everything God has said about what He wants. The business of many religious organizations has changed from the concept of primarily spreading the gospel to one of primarily raising money.

Chapter Summary

1. On a regular basis we count our blessings.
2. Because we count our blessings, this helps us to appreciate what God does for us.
3. Because we count our blessings, we don't take God for granted.
4. We give because it is the command of God.
5. We give because when we obey God, it is counted unto us for righteousness.
6. On a weekly basis we are reminded of how greatly we are prospered.
7. We are reminded of what God does for us.
8. We get a chance to show our appreciation to God.
9. The work of the church is blessed.
10. The needy saints are helped when the need arises.
11. We get a chance to give back to God, based on our love for him.
12. The gospel is spread throughout the entire world.
13. Those who minister about the things of the gospel have their needs taken care of.
14. We are blessed and prospered based on how we sow.
15. We learn to be cheerful and generous with our giving.

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