Where a Car Is Mentioned in the Bible

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                          Acts 2:1

Where a Car Is Mentioned in the Bible

by Robert T. Cooper

Years ago a joke went around: Where is a car mentioned in the Bible? They were all in one Accord.

After the Ascension, the believers in Jesus spent 10 days in a 24/7 prayer meeting waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit. They didn’t know it would be 10 days. They just started praying and kept right on praying until the prayer was answered.

After Pentecost, there would be too many people for everyone to meet together in one room. There just were no rooms in Jerusalem at the time that would accommodate over 3000 people (and that number was probably just the adult men). Then, a meeting of all the believers would require going to the mountainside outside of town.

But during this time, there were 120 (again, that number is probably just the adult men, and we know for certain there were women in addition; don’t know about children 12 and younger) who all met together. It is traditional to think this was in the Upper Room at the home of John Mark’s parents. But it is unlikely a private residence would have had an upper room that would hold that many people. A more likely location for this room was in the Temple complex. It being the Pentecost season, it was possible such a room could have been reserved and used.

Note that they were all together. Not many churches can boast of a 100/% attendance for a single hour of any meeting anytime. And it is probable that during the 10 days not all of the 120 were present at all times. But when Pentecost morning rolled around, those who had prayed all night and those who were coming for the morning prayers were all 100% present and accounted for. All together in one place.

When the KJV says they were in one accord, it also implies that there was no dissension among the group. There was no party spirit. Everyone was in perfect agreement as they prayed together. Again, it is rare for a church of any size to be in one accord regarding any particular thing. But on that day, at that time, the 120 were in one accord.

Unity in the local congregation is a condition that allows the Holy Spirit to be free to do His work. Discord hinders the complete, free work of the Holy Spirit.

Take a moment to pray. Ask the Lord whether there is anything for which you need to repent so that your congregation may be in one accord. Ask whether there is anyone with whom you need to be reconciled so that your congregation may be in one accord. As far as it depends on you, seek this Acts 2:1 condition in your church life.

Has your congregation ever been in one accord? Please share about it in the comments section.

Don’t Forsake the Assembly

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                          Acts 1:6

Don’t Forsake the Assembly

by Robert T. Cooper

I’ve been hurt at church and by church people. It seems that many of the people I talk with have had hurtful church experiences. There are even those who say the election of President Obama to a second term is the direct result of so many having been hurt by church people. When we began the church of which I am a part, one of its distinguishing characteristics was (and is) that it is a church for people who have been hurt by churches.

Lots of people will not attend church services because of those hurts. Others will not attend because they have simply allowed themselves to become too busy with other things in life they deem to be more important. Some people don’t see what the big deal is; they believe one can be a fine Christian, or at least a fine person, without the commitment.

Acts 1:6 deals with a special time in the lives of the Apostles. Jesus had risen from the dead. He was meeting with them frequently to give them final instructions. The Apostles didn’t realize the establishment of God’s Kingdom on earth would not take place in their near future. They didn’t realize Christ’s Ascension was to come before Pentecost. They were simply fixated on continuing to meet with Jesus and with one another as often as possible.

After the Ascension, 120 disciples set up an around-the-clock prayer meeting. They kept the meetings they had with Jesus before His Ascension going. Jesus was no longer meeting with them in the flesh, yet they knew they were supposed to keep on meeting. After Pentecost, the meetings continued. Many of the meetings were regularly scheduled meetings—at the Jewish prayer hours and at set times between the prayer hours. Many of the meetings were spontaneous as they kept inviting one another to spend time with each other—for the Teaching of the Twelve, for fellowship, for meals, and for prayer.

As the decades went by it became evident that some people were not keeping up with the meetings. Perhaps they were hurt. Perhaps they were overscheduled. Perhaps they were frightened by the persecution that came their way. In fact, the unthinkable happened. Some people were getting to where they didn’t attend any of the meetings at all. Using the terminology of the author of Hebrews, they forsook the assembly.

I know how it is. The situation is such that if something were to happen to my current church or if the politics there drove me away, I don’t know that there is any congregation left in our county I might attend. It would be hard to find a place where I might fit in with the fellowship.

And yet I need to continue meeting with believers. There is a special sense in which “where two or three are gathered” Jesus continues to participate in meetings of believers in ways beyond the manner in which He meets with individuals. It isn’t just me; all believers need to participate in the life of a local congregation.

Questions: Have you ever been through a period of your life in which you didn’t meet regularly with a local church congregation? Why do you think it is so important for disciples to meet together? What can you do to prevent yourself from dropping out?

Ending Up at the Place You’re Supposed to Be

Royal Priesthood, Holy Nation                                              Acts 1:2

Ending Up at the Place You’re Supposed to Be

by Robert T. Cooper

Musicians joke that Beethoven would write several possible endings to a composition, not be able to decide which was best, and so would use them all! I was always amazed that Dickens could write two totally different endings for Great Expectations. But then, several authors have done that. Several movies have been released in versions with different endings.

When Luke came to the end of the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, following Jesus’ resurrection He made appearances for forty days “until the day he was taken up to heaven” (Acts 1:2). No alternative ending. Jesus went to a particular place. He sat down at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, and He stayed there.

Jesus makes a couple of later appearances in the book of Acts. He appears in Acts 7 standing at the right hand of God. He also appears in Acts 9 in a light from heaven.

Jesus is at God the Father’s right hand in order to help us with our prayers. We often don’t know how to pray as we ought. So Jesus takes our prayers and straightens them out for us so that God the Father receives them as they should have been prayed.

Jesus is also an advocate for us with God the Father. Face it, we often need someone to speak to the Father on our behalf. Sometimes we don’t even realize we need someone to do so. But Jesus knows, and He is right there on the job. He delights in caring for us so.

Finally, Jesus is at the place from which He will return when He comes back, as Acts 1:11 expresses it.

So for the final section of His earthly life, Jesus did what the Father assigned Him to do, and ended up at the place He was supposed to be.

What about you and me? We are in a section of our earthly lives. For all we know, it might be the final section. Are we doing what the Father assigned us to do? Are we making a point of ending up at the place we are supposed to be? Unlike Beethoven or Dickens or the movies, we don’t get a second chance.