Lifelines That LastSample

Lifeline of the Apostle’s Teaching

I'm fascinated by the process of building a home. Watching a build go up from the first step to the last always amazes me. I've built three homes in my adult life using three different builders. I've participated in several home builds in Mexico, using different contractors and foremen. Yet, each build has one thing in common. None of them start with the roof, the walls, or the landscaping. They all start with the foundation.

First things first: you prepare the ground and you lay the foundation. And then you wait. You allow it to set, to take hold, to firm up. You wait, and you wait, and you wait. You don't rush the process. You don't cut corners. You don't jump to the next step. You wait until the foundation has finished its work. And THEN you build.

You build upon the foundation. If the foundation is off, the house isn't stable. If the foundation isn't solid, the house won't stand strong. If the foundation isn't correct, and cured with integrity, the whole house will tumble down. From Mexico to Michigan, you build on a firm, solid, tried, and tested foundation.

The early church understood this. They built on a firm foundation. They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching, their firm foundation.

What did the apostles teach?

Throughout the book of Acts, we read various teachings from Peter, Paul, and the apostles. They all include the main thing, the cornerstone of the foundation. The apostles taught the truth of Jesus. They taught:

• Who He was – the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies;
• What He did – He lived, He was killed and buried in a tomb, and He was resurrected back to life;
• What He can do for you – forgiveness of sins is only through belief in Him.

Peter tells us Jesus is the stone you builders rejected, the cornerstone.

Jesus is the firm foundation on which we can build our lives. The truth of Jesus is our lifeline. Being devoted to the apostles' teaching, to God's Word, strengthens our lifeline. What does that look like for us today? How do we devote ourselves to the apostles' teaching? We gather together to hear God's Word proclaimed in church, we dig into God's Word in smaller groups of fellowship, and we develop the rhythm of reading God's Word daily on our own.

It's easy to think we don't need to do these things. We are busy people. It can be tempting to just sit out on Sunday. We convince ourselves we really don't need to go to church, we can just stay home and grab something online or read our Bible for ourselves. Have you ever had these thoughts? I know I have.

I'm sure the early church had the same thought, only it wasn't busyness that kept them from wanting to gather. It was probably more fear for their life. It would be better, easier, safer to stay inside, secure in their home than to gather with others and potentially be exposed as a Christ follower. Yet, they gathered. They came together to hear the apostles' teaching. Why? They understood foundations. They understood their need for lifelines. They were devoted to Jesus, their cornerstone.

We need to do the same. We need to link arms with other believers, gather together to hear God's Word, read it, study it, and talk about it together. This is a crucial part of having a lifeline that lasts, a lifeline that can withstand the storms of life.

Want a strong lifeline? Be devoted to the apostles' teaching. Gather together around God's Word.

Application Questions

1. How have you been strengthened by something you heard in a message at church?
2. What stops you from gathering together to hear God’s Word? What holds you back from joining a small group? Have you considered hosting a small group in your home? Why or why not?
3. When you look at your calendar, what does it tell you about your foundation? What does it show you are building your life on? What gets your first attention, the most attention? If gathering together around God’s Word is not a priority, what can you do to begin to shift to making it a priority?