“But thanks be to God that, though you used to be slaves to sin, you have come to obey from your heart the pattern of teaching that has now claimed your allegiance.”
Romans 6:17 (NIV)
How many of us describe being a Christian as obeying “a pattern of teaching”?
Generally, we use words like a personal relationship with God thru His Son Jesus or living like the child of God that Christ made me.
In our church, I notice that we are careful not to talk about “doing” but to talk about “being”, perhaps because we feel that the dangers of legalism outweigh the dangers of license.
But where has this talk about “being” got us?
Has it not brought us into a place where if an outside observer followed the average Christian around all day- they could not tell the difference between them and a good moral non-Christian?
Matthew records all thru his gospel that our Lord talked about obeying a pattern of teaching.
Consider the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount;
“Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them. He said:"
Consider the end of the Sermon on the Mount;
“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority,
and not as their teachers of the law.”
and not as their teachers of the law.”
Consider the great commission as recorded by Matthew;
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
It seems pretty clear from these three passages that our Lord
expected us to follow His pattern of teaching.
expected us to follow His pattern of teaching.
A Christian does what they are, what we do comes from who we are - which is why we start with being and then move to doing.
A Christian changes from the inside out, but if there is no external change, no obedience to the pattern of teaching of Christ Jesus and His apostles,
then on what basis do we believe we are Christian?
then on what basis do we believe we are Christian?
Wait you say I love the Lord, I sing that in church - John 14:23,24 records our Lord’s answer to that.
Wait you say He calls me friend, I sing that in church – John 15:14 records our Lord’s answer to that.
Thanks be to God that we can obey from our hearts the pattern of teaching that has claimed our allegiance!
“Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.”
Colossians 3:16 (NIV)
This “pattern of teaching”, this “message of Christ” is to dwell among us, that is amongst the people who make up the local church called Parkdale.
For as we teach one another (that is an act of love) and admonish one another through the songs we sing together to God, the message of Christ dwells in our midst.
There are a number of phrases or sayings that have come out of church worship discussions over these last 20 years of change. One of those sayings is that the “modern” worship songs are a prayer language and that the old hymns are a teaching tool. This is one of those sayings that is only generally true, for there are many hymns that are prayers, and there are many “modern” worship songs that are teaching tools. There is an important place for spiritual songs that are prayerful in a worship service, and this verse specifically teaches us that there is an important place for songs in a worship service that teach the message of Christ.
Whatever we do in our services- may we do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus and may the peace of Christ rule in our hearts and in our congregation.
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