A Typical New Testament Church Meeting

The Church in Worship

     One of the most important elements in a believers’ meeting is the element of worship. Worship is the backdrop for all that the Holy Spirit desires to do in the midst of His people. Worship ushers in the anointing (the very presence of the Holy Spirit) and sensitizes the believers to His gifts and enablements such that they begin to operate. This then allows the Holy Spirit full expression through which he can speak and move in the midst of his people as He sets forth revelation, correction, direction, healing, miracles, etc. I am including a symbolic diagram of what a typical church meeting might be like (see figure 1). 

Allow me to explain the diagram: 

     As the praise begins, it’s like a powered airplane beginning to climb skyward. Behind the plane is attached a glider which represents the believers which are present. The worship team (the powered plane) lifts the believers to new heights as the anointing begins to build. When this powered plane has reached a suitable height the glider is released to soar into realms of worship upon the wind currents (the Holy Spirit). The glider begins spiraling its way slowly back to earth; occasionally catching an updraft (air current). As the glider of worship is freely soaring, the spiritual gifts (i.e., the gifts of prophecy or a combination of tongues and interpretation) begin to manifest themselves.

It's not over yet!

     When these gifts of the Spirit are through being manifested, those gifted in preaching or teaching (depending on the nature of the information manifested) begin to tie together all that the Spirit has just revealed into a cohesive revelation of the purpose and plan of God for that specific meeting. The teaching, at this point, could be fortified by testimonies, revelations, scripture readings, or by other gifts of the Spirit (i.e., word of knowledge, word of wisdom, etc). All this would lead to new levels of commitment by those in attendance. 
     In conjunction with this move of the Holy Spirit there is a spiritual checks and balances system in operation, using the gift of discerning of spirits in order to distinguish the move of the Holy Spirit from the move and deceptions of the enemy. Remember, spiritual warfare is always raging. The prophets also have a checks and balances system. All prophecy is judged and evaluated by those other prophets in attendance.

There's still more!

     When all is said and done, the plane lands and this is the end of that portion of the meeting. At this point some of the other gifts of the Spirit (i.e., the gift of faith, the gifts of healing, or the gift of working of miracles) could begin to function. Communion (the Lord’s supper) might be in order, or a continuation of worship might bring the meeting to a close. 

     This pattern for a spiritual meeting (which all meetings should be) is very general because the Holy Spirit desires to be creative; however, the pattern elements that make it up are basically the same. Pretty exciting, huh? This is what Christianity is supposed to be--alive, life changing, and exciting.

How can we have meetings like these?

     You may be asking yourself just how all this can come to be; how can we have meetings like these? First of all, we must remember that the church is primarily spiritual and that without the help of the Holy Spirit the best we can hope for is a form of religion with little or no real anointing or power. The genuine gifts come from God through the ministry and application of the Holy Spirit. To their own chagrin many churches try to mimic these gifts.  
     There’s only one way to have a truly spiritual meeting. We must humble ourselves and call on the name of the Lord with all our hearts until these types of meetings are restored from heaven. A group of believers desiring this type of an outpouring might have to come together for an extended time in praise, worship, prayer, and possibly even fasting; doing those things that invite the move of God, but not doing those things that substitute it.

Let's look in on a Messianic New Testament church meeting:

     Robert D. Heidler in his booklet "The Messianic Church" relates what might have been an early church meeting: "Let's imagine we are walking down a street in the city of Rome. It is A.D. 95 ... more than 60 years have passed since the day of Pentecost. We are about to "drop in" on a typical church service in that city.

     The time is Saturday evening. By Jewish reckoning, the first day of the week began at sundown on Saturday. The church meets in the evening because most of the people have to work during the day. We arrive at the door at a typical Roman house, and are warmly welcomed by the host.

     The particular church we are going to visit is a house church. The early church operated on two levels: The house church and the congregation. Even if the church grew to 20 or 30,000 members, its primary unit would still be the house church. From time to time the house churches would also congregate in larger groups, many times outdoors or in a rented auditorium. In Jerusalem they met in the Temple courts.

     We are going to visit a house church. Let me warn you before you go in, to be prepared for a serious case of "culture shock". What you are about to witness is not church life as you have known it.

     As we walk through the door, you look across the entrance into a large open courtyard of the home. There appears to be some sort of party going on. Some of the people are playing flutes, lyres, and tamborines, while others are singing, dancing, and clapping their hands.

     You immediatly look around to make sure you came into the right house! As you listen to the words, however, you realize that this is the right place, for the words of the songs are words of praise to Jesus! The people are overflowing with joy because they have come to know the living God.

     What you are witnessing is the way the early church praised God. This type of worship is foreign to much of the church today, but from the biblical and historical records, this is what the worship in the early church was like. It was a free and joyful celebration, with a great deal of singing and dancing.

     Most church services  would begin with the people getting in a ring (or several concentric rings) and dancing Jewish-style ring dances (like the Hora) ... 

     So here we are in a large courtyard. There is a great deal of singing, dancing, and rejoicing in the Lord. As the songs slow down a little, many people get down on their knees before the Lord. Most are lifting up hands to Him. A tremendous sense of the Lord's presence fills the courtyard.

     During the churches praise and worship, there are spontaneous shouts of praise. Some shout, Amen!" to voice their agreement with what others have said. As we enter into the worship, we are overwhelmed by the love and acceptance of the people.

     After much singing and dancing, food is brought out. People find their seats and prepare for the meal. We are surprised to see people eating a meal in the middle of a church service, but this is described by Paul in 1 Corinthians, as well as by Jude, and Peter. This shared weekly meal is called the "love feast" or Agape.

     To begin the meal one of the leaders stand stands with a cup, blesses the Lord, and offers thanks. It also is passed from person to person. This is the Lord's supper in its original context.

     The meal is a joyful time centered on devotion to the Lord. As they eat, the believers talk about the things of God, share testimonies, recite and discuss scripture, and sing praises to the Lord. You are impressed that, while very few have copies of any biblical books, most of those present appear to have large portions of the Bible memorized.

     After the meal ends, worship continues until at some point, a change begins to take place. There is a subtle shift in the atmosphere. The air seems to thicken. A tangible sense of the presence of God come and rests in the place. First Corinthians chapter five describes it this way, "When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus ... and the power of our Lord Jesus is present ..."

     Those who have studied revival literature recall that a tangible sense of God's presence has frequently accompanied  the great revivals of history. The manifest presence of God is, in fact, the hallmark of true revival. In the presence of a Holy God sinners find salvation, backsliders find repentance, and the miraculous becomes commonplace. "