I'm a new christian, but there is so much that I do not understand; one of the things that I need to know is: when I was in the Baptist church, I learned to take communion every first Sunday.  Now, I'm in a different church, and there is no communion… just once a year washing of the feet as Mary did for Jesus, so when I heard that one of the ministries on TV was giving communion last week, I also took part while at home.  Was I wrong, or should I only do feet washing?  Thank you for taking the time to answer.

Sincerely,
Clean Toes

Dear Clean Toes,

The church should take communion every Sunday.  In fact, the subject is so clear that it is an evident sign that a congregation isn’t biblically sound if they don’t take it every Sunday.  In Acts 20:7, we see that the church, including the apostle Paul, gathered on the first day of the week to take the Lord’s Supper.  We are told to follow the example of the apostles (1 Cor 11:1).  In the New Testament, the church took the Lord’s Supper on Sunday, and we should, too.

On a separate but related note, we never see feet washing as a part of the worship service of the church.  Though there are examples of feet washing in the Bible, none of those examples are a part of congregational worship.  The church you are attending is failing to take communion when the Bible says to, and it is adding feet washing as worship when the Bible never teaches that… God warns against adding or subtracting from His Word (Rev 22:18-19).

5 minutes a day
5 days a week
1 New Testament in a year

There are 261 weekdays in a year, and there are 260 chapters in the New Testament. By reading one chapter, Monday through Friday, you will read the whole New Testament by the end of the year. The Daily Cup series is to help with that goal.

Happy Studying!

"The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup." -- Psalm 16:5

Click here for a pdf of the study schedule - CLICK HERE

If churches are meant to be local and autonomous, why did the apostles have a regional council in Acts 15 (Council of Jerusalem) to resolve a doctrinal issue?  If a local church interpreted the Bible and concluded Gentile members needed to be circumcised, why should they have been corrected by other church leaders?

Sincerely,
Can’t We All Just Work Together?

Dear Can’t We All Just Work Together,

The apostles held a council in Jerusalem because the false teachers came from Jerusalem.  The men that were falsely teaching that you had to be circumcised to be saved were from Judea (Acts 15:1).  They had traveled up to a Gentile congregation, and Paul and Barnabas were debating them (Acts 15:2).  The council was held in Jerusalem to decide whether these teachers that were from the Jerusalem congregation were right to be spreading the doctrine of circumcision (Acts 15:4-6).  The apostles were involved in the issue because they were in charge of all the teaching for the church (Rom 1:5), and the Jerusalem elders were involved (Acts 15:4) because they had a responsibility to dictate the teaching that was emanating from their congregation.

Ultimately, as long as the church had the apostles, there was a physical unifying leadership over all congregations, but the apostles knew they wouldn’t be around forever and tried to prepare every congregation to function independently without them (Acts 14:23).

5 minutes a day
5 days a week
1 New Testament in a year

There are 261 weekdays in a year, and there are 260 chapters in the New Testament. By reading one chapter, Monday through Friday, you will read the whole New Testament by the end of the year. The Daily Cup series is to help with that goal.

Happy Studying!

"The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup." -- Psalm 16:5

Click here for a pdf of the study schedule - CLICK HERE

What is atonement?

Sincerely,
Deferring To Definitions

Dear Deferring To Definitions,

The word ‘atonement’ means ‘to reconcile or pay the price for a wrong or injury’.  Jesus atoned for our sins with His own blood (Rom 5:10-11).  The word ‘atonement’ is used throughout the Old Testament, most often in association with animal sacrifices that were used to make reparations for sins (Lev 4:20).  Atonement is simply paying the price for something.