The Grown up Church: Restoration of the New Testament Church

© 2014 . All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 01/16/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4918-5191-3 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-5190-6 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4918-5189-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014900828

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Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Contents

About the Author

Introduction: The Grown Up Church

Tradition, Religion and Revelation

Christ’s Manifesting Church through Worship

The Grown-Up Church

God Directed Services

God Desired Services

New Testament Church Concept in Action

The Church of Living Stones

The Church by God’s Design

Church Leadership or Government

The Church as a Family of God

People of the Word

God’s House

Going Beyond the Church Bulletin

The Lost Meaning of Church Service

Beginning Steps Into Dynamic Services

No Caged Eagles

Put Down the Coffee Cup

Spiritual Growth Through Love

Do I love My Brother?

The Primacy of the Holy Spirit

Christ’s Designed Leadership

Traditional Title or Function

Whatever Happened to Divine Order?

Prophecy Over Your Life

The Word of the Lord

The Exemplary Christian

The Authority of Sacred Scriptures

God’s Complete Word

The Essential House Church, Part 1

Hospitality, a Forgotten Practice

The Intrigue of This Late Hour

A Cain and Abel World

The Believers’ Passover

The Sleeping Church

How We Endure (The First Sign of a Healthy Christian Church)

The Good, The Better and The Best

Christian Solidarity

Jesus the Supreme Teacher

Deeper Worship

The Nature of Prophets

Who Will Lead Us?

Conclusion to the Book—

The Grown Up Church

To my dear wife of 39 years and handmaiden of the Lord, Julie, who committed the first ten years of our marriage in true sacrificial ministry.

From spiritual battles to overcoming at the Throne of Christ, I love you, always.

About the Author

Earl Lambdin is a proponent of the New Testament or Primitive Church Restoration. At around the age of 12, he accepted Jesus as his Savior at a Billy Graham crusade. During the Jesus Movement of the 1970’s and early ’80’s, he served as a deacon, elder and Bible teacher. In 1979, he was ordained as a pastor where he served as a tent maker ministry—taking no minister’s wage. He served with his wife in children’s ministry with the Vineyard Movement during the early and mid ’90’s. His present ministry is intercession and prayer. He and his wife reside in the Eastern Sierra area, and conduct home church—not affiliated or limited by denominations.

Introduction: The Grown Up Church

This book is dedicated to the unrelenting pursuit of Biblical truth concerning our apostolic founders’ vision of Christ’s interactive, maturing church. As the early apostles were committed to the growing-up of each individual disciple of the Body of Christ, so this book is written to challenge and exhort all believers and followers of Christ to not settle for the same-old predictable church style of stale hierarchal leadership with mediocre followers and results. If the reader would be willing to humble oneself and dare to become boldly unchained and unafraid of embracing what is presented in this book, through scriptural truth, then a much greater understanding of the goals of early Christian discipleship could be greatly realized for the full stature and steely strength of united saints in these most desperate of latter times.

Since prayer was removed from our American schools in 1964 and the Ten Commandments posting-ban was enacted in 1980, the Christian faith has come under increasing assault. Church structure and function, as usual tradition, have been only partially successful in producing equipped, strong and unapologetic Christians set for the defense of the Gospel in our times. Far too many unequipped young Christians left their homes and mundane churches only to lose their fragile faith while attending our secular universities.

Since the cultural revolution of the 1960’s, many traditional established church goers have drifted away. I believe that the New Testament Restoration is imperative, now, to produce the engaging and salty Grown-up Christian. For the attack against the Christian faith grows stronger and more deliberate each day. The liberal, progressive Humanists have become activated through increasing political actions by professional politicians and atheist judges, who at best, only feign validation of the Christian community while pushing crazy laws which are driving our culture further down into a morass of immorality, darkness, and confusion with Judeo/Christian intolerance.

If the Apostle Paul would return to visit American Christian Churches of today, he would sadly not recognize most of them in function and structure—vastly different from his instructions and revelations given to the newly formed home churches following the Pentecost outpouring. Humbly, yet boldly, I would gladly submit these messages to Paul himself, without shame or apologies, as confirmation to his exhortations and admonitions.

From this collection of messages on the New Testament Restoration, true searchers can gain greater insight into local church member relational standing, function and purpose by receiving the scriptural light to become inspired, challenged, and actually burdened, to see today’s church set free from its post-traditional professionalism which has produced spiritual infants in a spectator structured apparatus. There have been periods of reformation going all the way back to God’s servant Samuel, who coming from the devastation of a corrupted priesthood order, raised up companies of prophets to renew and restore spiritual power to the faith and the nation—actually paving the way for Israel’s greatest hour of glory under King David as a type of Christ the King of kings to come.

Thankfully, the church has stayed the faithful course of presenting the bedrock gospel of salvation, as the essential message of Jesus Christ—the only way to eternal life in Heaven. For Jesus cannot deny Himself as Savior to all who seek! But the maturing, gifting and faith-activation of the members of Christ’s Church has not been so successful. Therefore, leaving the elementary teaching about Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and faith toward God. Hebrews 6:1 This Biblical passage clearly reveals the state of the common Christian Church of today.

Found within the chapters are messages committed to the return or restoration of the original New Testament Church. The vision is for each Christian home to be a sanctuary, and for families, groups of Christians and willing churches to become restored New Testament Churches, and finally, for towns and communities of believers to become united as one apostolic church—representing Christ to the community as a whole—Christ’s prayer in John 17, fulfilled.

Faith, hope and love: That each inquiring reader will sincerely take to heart with prayer and serious study every message presented. It will bless and change the common conception of church as it has been, forever! The question is, though, Are enough serious believers truly hungry and ready to assume the spiritual responsibilities that come with a Grown up Church?"

Tradition, Religion and Revelation

This people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrine the commandments (or traditions) of men. Matthew 15:8, 9.

Religions are a curious and varied mixture of man—decreed tradition and God-given revelation. There are precious few times when man has found himself walking in lockstep with God, and free from the trappings of traditions or encumbered with strict and irrelevant religious practices. The greatest strengths of religion’s traditions are that they can provide some sort of order and discipline to an otherwise pagan or law-of-the-jungle existence. When time honored traditions and religion break down, then society is in real trouble. But, are mixtures or concoctions of traditions and revelations forming various religions really the best that man can ultimately attain to; and can religion by itself, sustain itself into Christ’s coming Kingdom?

They answered and said to Him,’ Abraham is our father.’ Jesus said to them, ‘If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. John 8:39.

Understand this—Abraham was a religious man before He met the Living God. After Abraham left behind his idolatrous lifestyle in ancient Babylon (Iraq), he walked with God by obedient revelation. He no longer had a religion, but a very personal relationship that was tested and blessed for all eternity. Jesus instructed the Jews, who were sons of Abraham by flesh only, do the ‘deeds’ of Abraham. The Covenant of Circumcision was carried out by Abraham because of obedient revelation to God’s request and plan, and not purely religious in action. Revelation creates a road map and reveals an intended relationship with the Living God, but over time, religion can foster the opposite of revelation—as in blindness, passivity and institutionalism. Revelation must be renewed and unfolded in the hearts of every new generation of believers, until God’s plan for mankind is fulfilled.

This is my Beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased; listen to Him! Matthew 17:5.

This verse ends with an exclamation point, God is saying, Listen. The most important part of a Christian’s walk with God is to listen, keep an open heart and listen. When Jesus was transfigured or glorified on the mountain before Peter, James and John; and Moses and Elijah appeared to them, Peter wanted to build three tabernacles. It seems that we humans are incurably religious by nature. A great revelation of God occurs, and we want to build a shrine, statue or something else for basically, worshipping that experience. Many times our own ideas and ambitions only get in the way, as religious clutter, to knowing, growing, and worshipping God through further revelation. Philippians 3:13,14.

And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God. And Jesus answered and said to him, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. ". . . and upon this rock I will build my church." Matthew 16: 16-18. This time, Peter had it right, the Lord is forever right, forever Lord, and He will never fit into the boxes we try to make for Him.

Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Psalms 127: 1.

And the Lord was adding in number day by day those who were being saved. Acts 2: 47.

Christ fulfilled the God-instituted Feast of Passover, and His church fulfilled the God-instituted Feast of Pentecost. As Samuel Wesley wrote in one of Christianity’s greatest hymns, The church’s one foundation is Jesus Christ her Lord; she is His new creation by water and the word… The great words to this Spirit inspired song best describe the true church in her relationship to God, her struggles in this world, and the outcome of the intercessory hope and prayers of her Spirit-filled members. The goal has always been simple and pure, and true and inspired; but the battle has always been relentless and ruthless, deceptive and obstructive. But as that great reformer Martin Luther penned in our victorious song, A Mighty Fortress is our God, God’s unmatched truth, by grace alone, will abide, prevail, and triumph, ultimately.

As the early church was birthed, she was formed and shaped by the Spirit-filled Apostles’ teachings and instructions. Specifically, Corinthians, Ephesians, Colossians, Galatians and James can divulge to us priceless keys to the function and operation of the church in action. The church, fresh in her revelation of Christ, was a powerful and irresistible force of God’s glory. Acts 17:6. But, like anything in nature that is beautiful and strong, the forces of storms and pestilence began to be activated against her. For nearly two-hundred and fifty years or from about A.D. 64 through A.D 312, Roman Caesars began to issue decrees bringing untold persecution against Christ’s followers. Like the underground church in China, who probably has the purest form of Christianity, the early church continued to grow and spiritually thrive.

Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the traditions of men. thus invalidating the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down; and you do many things such as that. Mark 7: 8, 13.

After 312 A.D., Constantine goes to war to become the next Roman Emperor over all of Rome—both East and West. Before the battle, a sign in the shape of a cross appears in the sky to him, and with the inscription—by this sign conquer. After Constantine won his battle, he issued proclamations of Christianity as the new paradigm to follow for the official state religion. Roman subjects from the far reaches of Roman dominance became new converts of a