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A Covenant Community for the City: Part 2

By David Robinson/ September 11, 2016

Series  Christian Discipleship

Context  Westminster Chapel Toronto

Topic  The Church

Scripture  Acts 2:40-47; Titus 2:11-14

God has blessed us abundantly and we are in turn to bless one another and to bless the city. We are to live in such a way that people observe the hope within us and ask us about it.

Scripture:  Acts 2:40-47; Titus 2:11-14

Sermon Notes:

  1. God’s grace and blessing are evident among us; we are in turn to bless one another and to bless the city.
  2. The practical expression of abiding in Christ is our devotion to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer.
  3. The church is not a social club. God Himself has brought us together and He is working through us and among us.
  4. Because God’s Word is divinely inspired, it therefore defines who we are and our purpose in the city.
  5. We must emphasise the teaching and hearing of God’s Word.
  6. The body of Christ is identified by our practical and spiritual care for one another.
  7. The fellowship of the church must extend to getting to know one another in our homes.
  8. God is at the centre of our community, and so our community focuses around prayer.
  9. Prayer makes us attentive and alert to God’s work in the world. God is at work saving and judging and establishing His kingdom on the earth.
  10. God’s work of salvation applies to everything, and God’s concern extends to every aspect of life (Eph. 1:10; 2 Cor. 5:19).
  11. God’s Word speaks to and transforms everything.
  12. Hospitality means the love of strangers. We need to reach out to those estranged from the gospel and those estranged from the love of our community.
  13. God has a particular concern for the window, the orphan, and the stranger (cf. Ps. 146:7-9).
  14. Essential to ministering God’s grace is testifying to the Word of truth, as we noted in 1 John.
  15. We need to live in such a way that people observe the hope within us and ask us about it (1 Pet. 3:15).
  16. Education is necessary in our time when the Christian faith is seen as disconnected from the real world.
  17. In 1912 J. Gresham Machen observed that the thought of the day was profoundly opposed to, or at least disconnected from, Christianity, and that the church cannot combat the thought of the day because it does not understand it. 
  18. God’s Word applies to all of our lives. God is uniting all things in Christ.
  19. The Lord lights the darkness and empowers His people for victory (Psalm 18:29-30).
  20. The grace of God teaches us to live faithfully in every area of life (Tit. 2:11-12; Ro. 12:1-2). We take delight in studying God’s good creation (Ps. 111:2).
  21. God’s kingdom spreads to the nations (Ps. 80, Eze. 32) and transforms the wilderness into a temple (Eze. 47).
  22. God’s power is behind His kingdom work and so we are confident about the outcome (1 Cor. 15:58).
  23. We are renewed in our commitment to kingdom work weekly in the Lord’s Supper.

 

Application Questions:

  1. How can we ensure ministries of the church align with God’s priorities?
  2. Why does Scripture so often emphasize the importance of eating together?
  3. Is it possible to share the gospel without words?
  4. How can we reconcile the apparent divide between what we do on Sunday and what we do Monday through Saturday?
  5. Why do we need to recognize the thought of the day?
  6. Read through the Psalms and discover how God’s Word views all areas of life.

Sermon Notes