Steven H Miller, Th.M.

  All scripture is from NKJV Scripture:   Colossians 2:11-23 11   In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,  12  buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead.  13  And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses,  14  having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  15  Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. 16   So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new m...

  All scripture is from the New Living Translation. Acts of the Apostles 2:42 - 'All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.’ In this passage of scripture, we find ourselves at what is technically the beginning of church, the body of Christ.  Now, it was not anything like we know it to be now, n ot having buildings called churches.  There were temples that the Jews met in, but they were not used by the body of Christ, as far as we know. They met in the members’ houses. At this point in time, new believers in Jesus were not even called Christians yet. In fact, the majority of the first believers in Jesus were Jews. The service was brand new.   It no doubt had occurred to them at some point, “Hey, we’ve never done church like this before!” And you know what?   They hadn’t done church like this before.   If they had ever been to synagogue before...