Acts 4:31 says, “And as they were beseeching, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and spoke the word of God with boldness.” In this verse, first there is the beseeching, the prayer; second there is the Holy Spirit; and third there is the word of God. Here we can see the three things which we shall consider in this message. These three things are prayer, the Holy Spirit, and the word of God. From the day of Pentecost the disciples were severely persecuted by Judaism. Under such persecution, they prayed to the Lord and were filled with the Holy Spirit. After this they spoke the word of God with boldness. In the account of Acts 4:31, on one hand there is prayer, and on the other hand there are the Holy Spirit and the word of God.
Acts 6:4 says, “We will continue steadfastly in prayer and in the ministry of the word.” Both the word and prayer are mentioned in this verse.
Jude 20 says, “But you, beloved, building up yourselves in your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit.” This verse begins with faith and ends with the Holy Spirit and prayer. In the New Testament the word “faith” has two meanings plus one additional meaning. Of the first two, one is objective and the other is subjective. The objective faith is our belief. It is the truths in which we believe, the contents of the New Testament. The Christian belief includes the whole Bible. We believe everything in the whole Bible. This is our belief. This belief is objective. The subjective faith is the act of our believing. It is the action and functioning of our believing. The third meaning of the word “faith” is found in Galatians chapter three. In verse 23 Paul says that in the Old Testament the law was at work to guard the chosen people of God like a fold, keeping the sheep until faith came (cf. John 10:1, 16). In verse 24 Paul likens the law to a child-conductor to watch over God’s chosen people until Christ came. Galatians 3:25 says, “But faith having come, we are no longer under a child-conductor.” When faith comes, the law is over. During the Old Testament time, the law came. During the New Testament time, faith came. It is difficult to define this faith which came in the New Testament time. For a detailed explanation of this faith, I would encourage you to read the messages in the Life-study of Galatians that deal with this matter.
Our belief is the contents of the New Testament. The New Testament tells us that the Lord Jesus is God incarnated to be a man. He lived on the earth for thirty-three and a half years. In His living there was also His work. He died on the cross. His all-inclusive death solved all the problems in the universe. Then He willingly walked into death and Hades. He stayed there for less than forty hours. After this He walked out of death and Hades, and He rose up with His physical body. In His resurrection He became the life-giving Spirit. He then ascended to the third heaven and was exalted by God to be Lord and Christ. He was crowned with glory and honor, He was made King of kings and Lord of lords, and He obtained the throne.
Furthermore, the Bible tells us that we, the descendants of Adam, are all sinners destined to death and perdition. Our spirit is dead, and we are wicked, fallen, and corrupted. Our behavior is offensive to God, and we are all condemned before God. Although this is our condition, God desires that we would repent and be saved. If we will repent, confess our sins, call on the Lord, believe in Him, and receive Him, our sins will be forgiven, and God will justify us. The Lord will enter into us to be our life, and we will be regenerated and saved. The Triune God will be in us as our life and everything. By faith we will enter into Him and have an organic union with Him, and in faith we will testify of our organic union with Him by baptism. He died, and we also died. He was buried, and we also were buried. He rose from the dead, and we also rose. We are one spirit with Him. In this one spirit we enjoy one life with Him and have one living with Him. In this way we become sons of God and members of the Body of Christ. When we come together, we are the Body of Christ. Here we practice the church life together and wait for His return. When He comes again He will transfigure us and make us His co-kings in the millennial kingdom. This kingdom will bring in the new heaven and new earth with the New Jerusalem. These are the crucial points of the New Testament, and this is our belief. Therefore, our belief includes every holy thing revealed from Matthew chapter one through Revelation chapter twenty-two. This is our most holy faith. According to Jude 20, we should build up ourselves in this most holy faith.