An Acts 2 Church - Teachable

An Acts 2 Church - Teachable Acts 2:42 begins: "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching ..." The church had just begun. Most of the believers were newly saved on Pentecost. On what foundation would the church be built? They were devoted to the Apostles' teaching. This was the foundation. The church grew because they were teachable and listened to the right teaching. What is the apostles' teaching? What did they teach? We learn in Acts 6:2 & 4 that they ministered the word of God. For them, the only word of God available was our Old Testament. On Pentecost, Peter preached his sermon quoting passages from Joel 2, Psalm 16, and Psalm 110, but he also proclaimed Jesus as crucified, resurrected, exalted to the Father's right hand, and both Lord and Christ. And following Jesus, he taught the commands of Jesus and obedience to them. So where do we find the apostles' teaching today. We still find it in the Old Testament which they taught, but we also find it in the New Testament which they wrote. One key test for the inclusion of a book in the New Testament was apostolic authority, that the author either was an apostle or wrote under the authority of an apostle. Our source of apostolic teaching is the whole Bible. We are to study it, understand it, and obey it! Why should we value Biblical teaching in the church? Teaching His word is God's plan for His church. Listen to Paul's instruction to Timothy. In 1 Timothy 4:13, Paul tells him, "Devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to preaching and to teaching." Since Scriptures had to be handwritten, copies were few. So public reading was needed to give the foundation for preaching and teaching. Later, in 2 Timothy 4:2, Paul summarizes this command with a simple "Preach the word." God makes teaching a top priority in His church. The book of Acts is so named because it recounts the actions of the Holy Spirit and of the early church. The final verb or action word in Acts is "taught". The ongoing action of the church is to be teaching. In a list of gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:28, teachers are not only listed but ranked above workers of miracles. In the pulpit and in the classroom the church needs the teaching of the apostles. We need to study the Bible with the goal of both understanding it and obeying it. It is God's word to us. We need pastors and lay teachers that faithfully explain the apostles' teaching, the whole Bible. But teachers can accomplish little unless the people of the church are teachable. What does it mean to be teachable? The members of the Acts 2 church devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching. They were committed to know what the Bible says, to understand what it means, to apply it to daily life, and to obey all that God asks of us. To be teachable means to be willing to learn from those God places over you, from anyone God uses to teach you, and, primarily, from His word, the Bible. To be teachable also means to be willing to change. Learning involves doing, not just knowing. We are to know what God says and then do it, live it. We must change from our ways to His ways. If you never change and grow, you are not teachable. Teachable Christians are submissive to God's word. We are to do our best to handle it correctly as Paul told Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15. "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." Correct handling requires careful study, alone or under a teacher. Correct handling requires submission to the word and its author, the Holy Spirit. Submission allows Scripture to do its work. Paul continued in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." Allow the Bible to teach you, to set your doctrine. Respond to its rebuke with repentance. Change your life in response to its correction. Live by its instruction and grow in righteousness. God's word will change us, but only as we submit. Submission to God's word is submission to Jesus as Lord. We cannot make ourselves acceptable to God by our own efforts. Jesus came to do that task. He then gave the Holy Spirit to enable that change in us. But He will not force us to change. We must choose to be teachable and to submit. The Acts 2 church grew because they were teachable. Are you teachable? Do you hear what the Spirit is saying to you through Scripture? Are you willing to change your life to live as it says? Is your spirit submissive to the authority of God's word? Our inborn nature is rebellious, not submissive. We need to ask the Lord to enable us to submit. Ask the Father to change you on the basis of the sacrifice of Jesus, the Son, and in the power of the Holy Spirit who dwells in all who trust in Jesus.