Introduction
People go through a lot to keep their bodies in shape. Diets, weight lifting, aerobics, fitness videos, cycling, rowing machine, chin-ups, sit-ups, push-ups. For instance, every morning I try to get in an hour of exercise while watching the news: 15 pull ups, 200 sit-ups, 300 rows on the hardest setting of a rowing machine, 25 push-ups, and then I take the dog and run 1-1.5 miles. On top of that I try to bike at least 150 miles per week.
Some mornings when I get up I just don't feel like getting on the rowing machine but generally I turn on the news and exercise anyway because I know it is good for me. It takes discipline to do this everyday and discipline is never easy. But the reward of feeling better and of feeling better about yourself is worth it.
Spiritual health – let's call it spiritual fitness – takes discipline too. Faith exercised regularly grows strong and vibrant; faith ignored becomes weak and flabby.
Most of us, I am sure, know who Jane Fonda or Arnold Schwarzeneggar are. God has blessed them both with beautiful bodies. Because of their hard work, they are heroes of today's fitness mentality. In the same way, if you work at spiritual fitness, if you discipline yourself, you can be a hero of faith. Think of Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Rahab, Gideon, Deborah, David, Elijah, Daniel, Mary, Peter, Paul, John – they all were men and women just like us (James 5:17), complete with sins, weaknesses, doubts, and fears; yet, they are listed among God's heroes of the faith. Why? Because they submitted to the discipline of making themselves spiritually fit.
William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army; Mother Theresa, the missionary to India's Untouchables; Amy Carmichael, who established a home for the children of Hindu temple prostitutes; Billy Graham, the greatest evangelist of the 20th century; and Corrie ten Boom, whose family hid Jews from the Nazis – I am sure all of these are also listed among God's heroes of the faith? Why? Because they submitted to the discipline of making themselves spiritually fit.
Young People, I want to tell you this evening how to become spiritually fit. If you are willing to work at it – to discipline yourself – God will bless you with a lively, healthy, life-changing faith. Not only that, but it is possible for you to someday also be listed as one of God's heroes of faith.
In our Scripture reading from Acts, Luke tells us about the spiritual-fitness program of the early church: teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer. This should be our spiritual-fitness program too.
I Teaching
A The first thing we are told about the early church's spiritual-fitness program is that she devoted herself to the apostles' teaching.
What is this teaching? What did the apostles preach and teach? What was the content of their message? What did they say to the people? In one word, they preached the Gospel. And the Gospel, of course, focuses on Jesus Christ.
I told you before about the little boy who returned home after his first Sunday School class. His mother asked, "Who was your teacher?" and the little boy answered, "I don't remember her name, but she must have been Jesus' grandmother because she didn't talk about anyone else."
The apostles were that way. They talked and taught about Jesus. In his Pentecost day sermon Peter said, "Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth ..." (Acts 2:22). As Peter demonstrates, it is impossible to preach the Gospel without proclaiming Christ.
Young People, in their teaching and preaching the apostles present you with an example to follow. For you, like the apostles, must focus on Christ. You can't ever hear enough about Jesus and what He has done and is doing. You need to keep you mind set on Jesus rather than on sports, grades, girl-friends, boy-friends, college, graduation, and Summer jobs.
B In her spiritual fitness program the early church devoted herself to the apostles' teaching. One of the first things people want to throw away is Catechism teaching and preaching. But in her spiritual fitness program the early church worked at teaching and learning. Members sat at the apostles' feet, hungry to receive instruction, and they persevered in it. This was no 10 week or 2 year course they participated in; rather, it was something lifelong. Also, it wasn't only the young but the middle aged and the elderly too who received instruction. They heard the Word, they studied the Word, they memorized the Word, they read the Word, they meditated upon the Word.
C In her spiritual fitness program the early church devoted herself to the apostles' teaching. What does that mean for Young People?
*This means you get involved in youth group and attend Catechism.
*This means you never neglect Bible reading
*This means you read not just secular but Christian magazines and books too.
II Fellowship
A The second thing we are told about the early church's spiritual-fitness program is that she devoted herself to fellowship.
What is this fellowship? The Greek word for "fellowship" is "koinonia." Today we often reduce fellowship to being chummy or friendly with one another. But "koinonia" involves loving, caring, sharing fellowship. In one word, it is love.
The Spirit-filled New Testament church that we see in our Scripture reading devoted herself to koinonia. This means that she worked – and worked hard by the strength of Christ's Spirit – at being loving, caring, and sharing. She devoted herself to this. You see, in a sin-filled world it takes much sweat and dedication to experience fellowship; it is never easy or automatic.
B The discipline of koinonia means that we act in a certain way towards one another. The best way to explain this is to point you to the "one another" passages in the New Testament. There are over fifty of these passages. Let me highlight just some of them:
-Love one another (Jn 13:34-35, Gal 5:14)
-Encourage one another (Heb 3:13; 10:24-25)
-Be devoted to one another (Rom 12:10)
-Build up one another (Rom 14:19; 1 Thess 5:11)
-Be kind to one another (1 Thess 5:15)
-Accept one another (Rom 15:7)
-Serve one another (Gal 5:13)
-Have concern for one another (1 Cor 12:25)
-Confess your sins to one another (Jm 5:16)
-Forgive one another (Eph 4:32)
-Teach and admonish one another (Col 5:16)
-Pray for one another (Jm 5:16)
-Don't judge one another (Rom 14:13)
-Don't slander one another (Jm 4:11)
All of these were part of the spiritual-fitness program to be found in the early church. Members devoted themselves to koinonia or fellowship with one another.
C The discipline of koinonia presupposes something, something we find scattered throughout our Scripture reading and all of Acts 2. And that is "togetherness." Listen to what these verses say about being together:
(Acts 2:44) All the believers were together ...
(Acts 2:46) Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts ...
At the very beginning of the chapter we read this:
(Acts 2:1) When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.
Many people today say they don't need the church to be a Christian. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. You don't need the church to become a Christian but you certainly need the church to be a Christian. The church doesn't make you a Christian any more than a garage makes a bike a car. But Spirit-filled Christians – and there are no other kinds of Christians – gather together in church.
When God saves us, He puts us together physically with other Christians. He puts us together to experience koinonia. He puts us together so we can learn to love one another, encourage one another, be devoted to one another, build up one another, be kind to one another, accept one another, serve one another, have concern for one another, and so on. Christian Young People need to be part of a group that holds them accountable, that encourages, admonishes, supports, prays for them, and cries with them.
III Worship
A The third thing we are told about the early church's spiritual-fitness program is that she devoted herself to worship.
Luke doesn't tell us much about this worship. But what he does say is most instructive:
(Acts 2:46) Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God ...
Did you catch that? "Every day" they met together for worship. Many of us come together for worship twice a week, but those early believers gathered together seven or more times per week.
B At its heart, early Christian worship was centered on God: His praise, His honor, His glory, His Word. First and foremost early Christian worship was directed towards God. The songs, prayers, and gifts were all for God's glory. Scripture tells us they were "praising God" (vs 47).
Compare early Christian worship to the entertainment mindset we see today. Many Christians today expect to be entertained when they come to church. Their focus is themselves, their feelings, their likes and dislikes, whether the music or songs or sermon moves them. But the Bible says that our focus in worship should be God.
Christian Young People who want to be spiritually fit, then, devote themselves to worship. They make a point of gathering together as often as they can for the praise, honor, and glory of God. The praise of God is a necessary ingredient of spiritual fitness.
IV Prayer
The fourth thing we are told about the early church's spiritual-fitness program is that she devoted herself to prayer.
The early Christians spent time and effort on their prayer. It wasn't on again, off again, as our prayer so often is. They were persistent, constant, and continuous in their prayer. I think of the time Peter was about to be killed by King Herod. Though it was the middle of the night, his fellow believers had gathered together to pray for him (Acts 12:12).
Two chapters later Luke tells us what happened when those early believers prayed:
(Acts 4:31) After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.
I always have a hard time imagining the scene. The Christians prayed and the building literally shook on its foundations.
Here in California we associate shaking with earthquakes. A couple of weeks ago I biked to Parkfield, on the other side of the mountains from Coalinga. Parkfield advertizes itself as the earthquake capital of the world. It sits right on the San Andreas fault and has all of this solar-powered seismic equipment everywhere. Here in California, shaking means earthquakes, but in the Old Testament shaking often signified the presence and voice of God. I think of the time when the people of Israel met with God at Mt. Sinai. Scripture says,
(Ex 19:18) Mount Sinai was covered with smoke, because the LORD descended on it in fire. The smoke billowed up from it like smoke from a furnace, the whole mountain trembled violently ... (cf Is 6:3-4)
As in the Old Testament, the shaking in Acts 4 signifies the presence and voice of God. It means God was there, that He both heard and answered their prayers. It means He filled them again with His Spirit. It means He poured His miraculous, wonder-working power into them.
Christian Young People who want to be spiritually fit need to spend time in prayer. For it is in prayer that we come to draw on God, His power, His resources, and make them ours.
Conclusion
The early church devoted herself to teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer. What was the result? Scripture tells us:
(Acts 2:47) [They were] enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
We can say that teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer made them spiritually fit, healthy, strong, and vibrant.
This coming week I want to challenge all you Young People to work at being spiritually fit through teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer. Discipline yourself to do your spiritual exercises consistently and faithfully. And, this I promise you, you will find your faith growing stronger.
Now, why am I laying this challenge before you? In the last three weeks I have conducted two funerals for cyclists. Both grew up in a Christian home; they attended church and Sunday School; their parents read the Bible to them and prayed with them; and, one of them even confessed his faith in Christ. One died in a cycling accident when he crossed the yellow line while going downhill and ran into a jeep; he was only 32 years old. The other was stabbed to death in front of two friends; he was only 23 years old.
Do you know what made the funerals hard, really hard for me to do? Neither one of these cyclists was spiritually fit. Somehow, both had drifted away from the disciplines of teaching, fellowship, worship, and prayer. Both were in top physical condition but neither were in very good spiritual condition. In fact, I can't say where the one ended up when he died – whether in heaven or hell. As for the other, I believe that He – in God's mercy – ended up in heaven, but I would have had a far easier time in declaring this if his faith was strong and vibrant.