Hymn: 832

Scripture Reading:

Heb. 1:1-2 God, having spoken of old in many portions and in many ways to the fathers in the prophets, has at the last of these days spoken to us in the Son, whom He appointed Heir of all things, through whom also He made the universe.

Acts 2:42 And they continued steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles, in the breaking of bread and the prayers.

Titus 1:9 Holding to the faithful word, which is according to the teaching of the apostles, that he may be able both to exhort by the healthy teaching and to convict those who oppose.

 

I. The apostles’ teaching is the entire speaking of God in the New Testament. It is God’s entire speaking in the Son to His New Testament believers—Heb. 1:1-2:

A. God also spoke in the Son as the Spirit through the apostles, in Acts and the twenty-one Epistles (Romans through Jude)—John 16:12-15; Matt. 28:19-20; Heb. 2:3-4; 2 Pet. 3:15-16; Col. 1:25-27.

B. God’s speaking concerning the New Testament teaching was completed through Paul and John—Col. 1:25-27; Rev. 22:18-19.

C. The unique divine revelation of God’s New Testament economy and the contents of the full gospel of God—Col. 2:2-9; Eph. 3:3-11; 5:32; Rom. 1:1-14.

D. The apostles’ teaching, as the church’s constitution, should be universally taught everywhere in every church in the same way—1 Cor. 4:17; 7:17.

E. This constitution, like every constitution, must be properly interpreted.

II. Any teaching that was different from the apostles’ teaching was not allowed by the apostles:

A. No other belief besides this unique faith was allowed by the apostles—Gal. 1:7-9.

B. The different teachings, including those from the Old Testament dispensation that were different from God’s economy, were not allowed by the aposltes—1 Tim. 1:3-4.

C. All teachings different from the unique revelation of God’s New Testament economy were considered by the apostles as winds of teaching—Eph. 4:14.

D. God’s holy writing should not be twisted by anyone in any way, but rather unfolded rightly and straightly without any distortion—2 Pet. 3:16; 2 Tim. 2:15.

E. The teaching of the apostles is the very holding factor of the one accord—Acts 2:42a, 46a.

F. If we limit ourselves to the apostles’ teaching, the teaching concerning God’s economy, we will be kept in oneness and will have one way for one goal.

G. There should be only one unique teaching —the apostles’ teaching; furthermore, there should be one unique fellowship, which is produced by the apostles’ teaching.

H. If we teach wrongly and differently from the apostles’ teaching, our teaching will produce a sectarian, divisive fellowship.

III. The blessing of the church is dependent upon the church’s continuing steadfastly in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles—Acts 2:42, 46; 6:7.

 

References: Holy Word for Morning Revival—The Crucial Content of God’s New Testament Ministry (1), week 1; Holy Word for Morning Revival—The Crucial Elements of the Lord’s Present Move, week 1; The Apostles’ Teaching, ch. 1; The Apostles’ Teaching and the New Testament Leadership, ch. 1; Elders’ Training, Book 4: The Practice of the Lord’s Recovery, ch. 8; Elders’ Training, Book 7: One Accord for the Lord’s Move, chs. 3, 8; Elders’ Training, Book 9: The Eldership and the God-ordained Way (1), ch. 4; The God-ordained Way to Practice the New Testament Economy, ch. 17; The Ministry of the New Testament and the Teaching and Fellowship of the Apostles, ch. 2; Life-study of Acts, msg. 12; Life-study of First Timothy, msg. 8; Life-study of Titus, msgs. 1-3.

 

Excerpts from the Ministry:

THE APOSTLES’ TEACHING IS THE ENTIRE SPEAKING OF GOD
IN THE NEW TESTAMENT,
IT BEING GOD’S ENTIRE SPEAKING IN THE SON
TO HIS NEW TESTAMENT BELIEVERS

God has spoken, and today God still speaks. There are many matters in God’s speaking. Today God speaks to us in the Son (Heb. 1:1-2). God’s speaking in the New Testament is in the way of incarnation. The Lord Jesus’ speaking was God’s speaking in the Son as the man in the four Gospels (John 14:10; 5:24; Matt. 28:19-20).

He also spoke in the Son as the Spirit through the apostles, from Acts to Revelation (John 16:12-15; Rev. 2:1, 7; 1 Cor. 4:17b; 7:17b; 2 Pet. 3:15-16; Rev. 1:1-2). While God was speaking in the Son, one day the Son told His disciples, “I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. But when He, the Spirit of reality, comes, He will guide you into all the reality; for He will not speak from Himself, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He shall glorify Me, for He shall receive of Mine and shall disclose it to you. All that the Father has is Mine; therefore I said that He receives of Mine and shall disclose it to you” (John 16:12-15)….This means that after the four Gospels, there would be God’s further speaking.

In the Acts, in the Epistles, and in Revelation, God spoke further, in the Son as the Spirit through the apostles. The apostles through whom God spoke in the Son as the Spirit were only a few. They were Peter, John, Paul, James, and Jude. Nearly the entire New Testament was uttered by these five persons.…Paul was used by the Lord in his speaking to complete the word of God, especially concerning the mystery of the Triune God (Col. 1:24-25).…Paul completed the part of God’s speaking that concerns the mystery of the Triune God, but John completed the entire speaking of God. Therefore, at the end of Revelation there is a concluding word which says that no one has the right to add anything to this book or to subtract anything from this book (Rev. 22:18-19).…God’s speaking is complete. Thus, when God speaks today, He simply repeats what He has already spoken.

The teaching of the apostles is the entire speaking of God in the New Testament, first in the Son as a man, then in the Son as the Spirit through the apostles. In the New Testament God cannot depart from the principle of incarnation. He must speak through man. In the four Gospels the man was Jesus. In the succeeding twenty-three books, the men were the apostles. Today we are the men. God speaks in the principle of incarnation. (The Apostles’ Teaching, pp. 9-13)

The entire teaching of the New Testament, the teaching of the apostles, is the unique, divine revelation of God’s New Testament economy. This revelation is concerning the mystery of God—Christ (Col. 2:2-3, 9), the mystery of Christ—the church (Eph. 3:3-11), and the great mystery—Christ and the church (Eph. 5:32).

The apostles’ teaching…is the contents of the full gospel of God (Rom. 1:1-4). The gospel of God mentioned in Romans 1:1-4 is the full gospel of God, comprising not merely a part of the New Testament, but the entire New Testament. (The Apostles’ Teaching and the New Testament Leadership, pp. 12-13)

THE APOSTLES’ TEACHING IS THE CHURCH’S CONSTITUTION;
THE CHURCH MUST HOLD IT AND BE UNDER IT ABSOLUTELY

In the Old Testament, the law could be considered as the written constitution of God’s people. In the New Testament what replaced the law for God’s administra¬tion among His people? We know that Christ replaced the law, but we are referring to the aspect and sense of replacing the law in God’s administration. In the New Testament, the teaching of the apostles replaced the law. Acts 2:42 says, “And they were continuing steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles.” Immediately after the three thousand were saved on the day of Pentecost, they began to continue steadfastly in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles. In the Old Testament kingdom of God, the constitution was the law, and in the New Testament kingdom of God, the constitution is the teaching of the apostles. (Elders’ Training, Book 9: The Eldership and the God-ordained Way (1), p. 45.)

Acts 2:42 indicates that all the three thousand who were saved on the day of Pentecost continued in the teaching and the fellowship of the apostles.…We must continue in these two things—in the teaching of the apostles and in the fellowship of the apostles. If we intend to continue in the fellowship of the apostles, we must first continue in the teaching of the apostles. Teaching must come first; then fellowship follows. (The Apostles’ Teaching, pp. 7-8)

ANY TEACHING THAT WAS DIFFERENT FROM THE APOSTLES’ TEACHING
WAS NOT ALLOWED BY THE APOSTLES

Any teaching different from [the unique revelation of God’s New Testa¬ment economy] is not allowed by the apostles (1 Tim. 1:3-4). “Teachings that go beyond and do not abide in the teaching of Christ also are not allowed by the apostles” (translated) (2 John 9-11). The different teachings included things from the Old Testament, yet they were different from God’s New Testament economy. Such teachings were not allowed by the apostles (1 Tim. 1:3-4). (The Apostles’ Teaching and the New Testament Leadership, pp. 12-13)

Any other belief besides this unique faith is not allowed by the apostles (Gal. 1:7-9). Galatians 1:8 says, “But if even we or an angel out of heaven should announce to you a gospel beyond that which we have announced to you, let him be accursed.”…The apostles were very strict in their teaching, that is, in the New Testament teaching, the contents of the full gospel of God.

All teachings different from the unique revelation of God’s New Testa¬ment economy were considered by the apostles as winds of teaching (Eph. 4:14)….These winds of teaching are…with a view to inducing men into the satanic system of error….Satan has a system, and if it were possible, he would induce all Christians into it. The goal, the aim, the purpose, of his system is to carry the saints away from the central lane of the divine revelation with the intention of frustrating and even tearing down the building up of the Body of Christ. Some winds of teaching do not appear to be evil. However, the factor of evil is there.

The apostles’ teaching, the New Testament teaching, is very crucial. Whenever we hear something differing from the apostles’ teaching, we should not be bothered or affected. We should simply come back to the apostles’ teaching. However, if we are not able to properly discern a teaching, we should fellowship with certain saints to receive some help. In God’s New Testament economy, there is only one kind of teaching revealed and recog¬nized by God—the teaching of the apostles. We need to continue steadfastly in this teaching (Acts 2:42). (The Apostles’ Teaching and the New Testament Leadership, pp. 13-14, 16)

From Peter’s word in 2 Peter 3:16 we can learn one lesson, that is, that God’s holy writing should not be twisted by anyone in any way. The Bible does need some expounding and some interpretation, but we must be careful when we expound the Word of God not to twist it….but unfold them rightly and straightly without distortion. In 2 Timothy 2:15 Paul charged Timothy to learn how to cut straight the word of God. In Greek the word for cutting straight is a word used in carpentry. When a carpenter cuts wood, he must cut it straight; otherwise, he will spoil the wood. To unfold the word is to cut the word. This is to expound the word, to interpret the word. We need to unfold the Word rightly and straightly, not twisting it or distorting it in any way. (The Ministry of the New Testament and the Teaching and Fellowship of the Apostles, p. 25)

THE APOSTLES’ TEACHING IS FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCH,
WHICH IS THE ONENESS OF THE BODY OF CHRIST

The matter of one accord controls the entire revelation concerning the Lord’s move on one side. If there were no Spirit on the Lord’s side, it would be impossible for the Lord to move on this earth at all. In the same principle, without the one accord on our side, God cannot move. We have to match God. He is now the consummated Spirit, and we have to say, “Lord, we are ready here as the very one accord. We want to not only render but we are also ready to offer to You this one accord.” Immediately there is a kind of marriage, and a couple comes out. Then anything can be done.

If you expect to have one accord in any kind of society, group, or movement, you need the same kind of thinking that comes out of the same kind of knowledge. The Socialist party stresses socialism. Any political party has its own “ism.” They stress their “ism” in order to have a party, to have what we call the one accord. Without the one accord, no party could accomplish anything. Any society, group, or movement needs this one accord that comes out of the same kind of thought, the same kind of knowledge. Therefore, Acts tells us that on the one hand, there was one accord among the disciples, and on the other hand, all those who were one in one accord were continuing in the teaching of the apostles (2:42). The teaching of the apostles was the very holding factor of the one accord. If there were more than one teaching, this would damage the holding factor. (Elders’ Training, Book 7: One Accord for the Lord’s Move, pp. 110-111)

[In the Lord’s recovery we must take the] one way for one goal without different teachings (1 Tim. 1:3-4). We take only the apostles’ teaching (Acts 2:42) as the healthy words of the Lord Jesus (1 Tim. 6:3)….The one way for the one goal is altogether in the limit, in the sphere, of the apostles’ teaching. All the problems, division, and confusion among the Christians today are due to one thing—not caring for the apostles’ teaching. Many Christians teach different things from the apostles’ teaching. They have not been limited, restricted, and kept strictly in the sphere of the apostles’ teaching. The deciding factor of the one way for one goal is the apostles’ teaching. (The Holy Word for Morning Revival—The Crucial Content of God’s New Testament Ministry (1), p. 13)

THE CHURCH’S BEING BLESSED IS BECAUSE
THE CHURCH IS CONTINUING STEADFASTLY
IN THE APOSTLES’ TEACHING AND FELLOWSHIP

In 2 Timothy 1:15 Paul says, “…all who are in Asia turned away from me.” Asia was a province of the Roman Empire in Asia Minor, far away from Rome where Paul, who was in prison, was writing his Epistle to Timothy. When Paul said that all who were in Asia turned away from him, this does not indicate that they turned away from the person of Paul because the person of Paul was far away from them. This verse indicates that they all turned away from Paul’s ministry. Among the churches in Asia was the church in Ephesus, which was fully established by Paul’s ministry as recorded in Acts 19. They received the gospel, the teaching, the edification, and the establishment from the ministry of the Apostle Paul. But by the time Paul was imprisoned in Rome, they had all turned away from this ministry.

Paul’s second Epistle to Timothy was written about A.D. 68. About thirty years later, the Lord used John to continue His divine revelation. The Lord came back to all the churches in Asia who had turned away from Paul. Because they turned away from Paul’s ministry, the churches in Asia declined into a situation full of degradation. The degradation of the churches in Asia as recorded in Revelation 2 and 3 was due to their turning away from the proper ministry. This degradation began with their losing of the first love toward the Lord, which transpired at Ephesus (2:4), and ended with the lukewarmness (3:16), the Christlessness. The Lord as the Head of the church is standing outside the degraded church, knocking at her door (3:20).

In these seven epistles in Revelation 2 and 3, the striking point of the churches’ degradation was three kinds of teachings: the teaching of Balaam, a Gentile prophet (2:14), the teaching of the Nicolaitans to build the hierarchy (2:15), and the teaching of the woman, the so-called prophetess, Jezebel, full of heresies and fornication (2:20). These three kinds of teaching crept in because they left the teaching of the apostle. Why has Christianity become degraded? Because they turned away from the apostle’s teaching. Thus, all the different teachings came in.

In 1 Timothy 1:3 and 6:3 Paul warned not to teach differently. The saints should teach according to Paul’s teaching, and the result of this turning away was that they received three kinds of heretical teachings. The teaching of Balaam to worship the idols, the teaching of the Nicolaitans to build up the hierarchy, even the papal system, and the teaching of Jezebel to bring the leaven of evil, heretical, and pagan things into the fine flour of Christ (Matt. 13:33) came in because the proper teaching was rejected. Within thirty years after Paul’s final Epistle to Timothy, these churches had reached such a point of degradation. It is dangerous to leave or turn away from the apostle’s teaching, from the apostle’s proper revelation.

The Lord came in these seven epistles to judge those degraded churches. His eyes were as a flame of fire (1:14) to observe, search, and enlighten, and out of his mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword (1:16), which is His discerning, judging, and slaying word (Heb. 4:12; Eph. 6:17). They turned away from the right word, so the Lord came with this word to judge them. The Lord’s feet were like shining brass, as having been fired in a furnace (1:15). Brass signifies divine judgment (Exo. 27:1-6). The Lord’s coming to the churches in such a way fit in with their turning away from the apostles’ teaching and their picking up of different teachings.

One church was unique, and was highly appraised by the Lord—the church in Philadelphia. The Lord highly appraised them and even appreciated them because they kept the word (3:8). That means they did not turn away from the apostles’ proper teaching. Although they were weak, the Lord still appraised them highly, telling them that they had a little power and that they had kept the word.

To turn away from the proper teaching is a terrible thing that will result in degradation and in picking up other teachings. I say this as a warning to those dear ones who would not take the new way. To reject the proper revelation, the proper teaching, of the leaders among you is a dangerous thing. You will open the door for other teachings to come in and suffer degradation. I hope that all of the church people in the recovery would not be followers of those in Asia who turned away from Paul’s ministry. Rather, I hope we would follow the pattern of the church in Philadelphia—keeping the Lord’s word even though we only have a little strength. Let us keep the word of the Lord, which is to remain in the teachings of the apostle, to remain in the healthy words, to remain in the unique revelation from the Lord with the proper leadership. Then we are safe. (Elders’ Training, Book 7: One Accord for the Lord’s Move, pp. 128-130)

 

Questions:

1. Briefly describe what the apostles’ teaching is.

2. Why did the apostles forbid any teaching which was different from the apostles’ teaching?

3. How does the apostles’ teaching influence the church?