Revolution Part 1

Revolution Part 1

In this series we’ll be looking at what made the first century Christians (church) so revolutionary. This was a revolution that turned their world upside down and our desire is to see the core values and message that made this so.

· Brotherhood

Never before was there a religion or philosophy that so completely removed the barriers of class and status as the message that was embraced by these early believers. Neither was this an intellectual or philosophical equality, but it produced a community in which the slave and his master, the Jew and the Greek sat next to one another as equals, acknowledging the image of God in one another.
Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek: there is neither bond nor free: there is neither male nor female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.

In a society, much more class conscious than our own, this new-found truth of man’s identity in Christ, caused people who previously would not even look at each other, to sit and eat and converse around the same table. They ate a real meal with a symbolic meaning - as they all partook of the same wine and bread they were reminded that they were all equally included in the work of Christ when His body was broken (as the bread) and His blood flowed (the wine). The meal was real and the meaning symbolic not the other way round.

This total absence of class distinction, race distinction and any other barrier between men, was one of the most revolutionary characteristics of this new way of life. It was not politically correct or socially acceptable, nevertheless it was the undeniable result of believing that we all have the same Father, who values and esteems us all the same.
The word ‘brethren’ or ‘brothers’ is one of the most popular words in the New Testament, used more than 340 times! So are the words ‘among’ and ‘one another’.

In that time, just as now, subtle deception, that brought awareness of position, levels of importance etc, tried to creep in unnoticed. James spoke very sternly about this in chapter two of his letter to a church. He said that if we reserve a better seat for a person that obviously has greater importance than another, then we violate the very essence of this gospel.

This revelation of the brotherhood of all men, our equality in His eyes, displayed in our esteem of one another, is an essential key to the revolutionary results of the first century Christians. Let’s grasp firmly this revelation again. Let’s bring back some of the revolutionary elements of our faith.

· No professional Clergy.

Christianity was the first ‘religion’ in the history of humanity that did not have its own religious buildings or own professional clergy. Even ‘eldership’ was secondary to ‘brotherhood’ In Paul’s letters he speaks of brothers 134 times, elders 5 times, overseers 4 times and pastors 1 time. He spoke of these concepts in proportion to their importance. It was the revelation of brotherhood that was much more essential to the faith than the eventual emergence of elders, or those mature in faith, to describe it differently.

These communities learned brotherhood long before (many years) they learned ‘elderhood.’ Even the word ‘leadership’ is deceptive in speaking about those who stood out. They stood out because of their servanthood.
Mat 23:11,12 "Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant. If you puff yourself up, you'll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you're content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Because this movement was led by ‘lay’, unprofessional, uneducated people, it became the most revolutionary movement ever. This is an essential quality of these radical new communities called church. The time of restoration has come!

This is the very quality that made duplication of this faith so easy! You did not need a qualification, a certificate or any other training to minister Christ to others. All you needed was the relationship you enjoyed with Him, displayed in the way you valued others.

Those with religious titles and positions were particularly disturbed that uneducated men were able to manifest God in a more real way than what they ever knew was possible.
Act 4:13 They couldn't take their eyes off them--Peter and John standing there so confident, so sure of themselves! Their fascination deepened when they realized these two were laymen with no training in Scripture or formal education. They recognized them as companions of Jesus,

Let’s take a firm grip on this essential quality that made ‘the way’ the most revolutionary movement of its day. A new revolution is brewing, or more like an old one, coming to its grand finale.


By Andre Rabe
andre.rabe@gmail.com
eclesia.blogspot.com.