The Apostles’ Doctrine

Greetings in the name of Jesus! This is Rob Haymes. This is 15 Minutes With Jesus. Wherever two or three are gathered together in My name, Jesus said, there am I in the midst of them. To those of you who love Him in truth: mercy unto you and peace and love be multiplied. (Jude 1:2)

Thank you Lord. We thank you for this program; Father, we thank you. I pray now, Father, in Jesus’ name, that you would open our ears to hear what you are saying; that you would open our understanding, as we speak about The Apostles’ Doctrine. In Acts 2:42 & 43 it is written, concerning the early disciples, And they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers. Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. They continued steadfastly: the word means, earnest towards, to persevere, to be constantly diligent, to adhere closely to, or to attend continually upon; that’s what we need to do with the apostles’ doctrine. 

I’m going to be speaking a lot from the Epistle to the Ephesians, so if you would like to turn to Ephesians, chapter 1,  Eph 1:1-23, Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 

He has made us accepted in Jesus by His grace. 

In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in Heaven and which are on Earth—in Him. In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. In Him you also trusted, after you heard the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. 

The Holy Spirit is given to us as a down payment on our inheritance, until the redemption of the purchased possession. That is the first resurrection, when Jesus returns in the clouds: the hope of glory, when all the dead in Christ will be raised from the dead, incorruptible, and we will be joined together with the Lord, and thus we shall ever be with the Lord.

Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, 

That’s what we need. We need a Spirit of wisdom and revelation, by the Holy Spirit, in the knowledge of Jesus. 

the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all. 

Because He humbled Himself, Jesus, to the death of the Cross, the Father has given Him a name above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow, in Heaven, on the Earth, and under the Earth, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Glory! 

Chapter 2, verses 1-10, And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 

in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.

That’s where we were: dead in trespasses and sins.

But God, who is rich in mercy, Hallelujah!, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

and remember what we just read, far above all principality, power, might and dominion, and every name that is named ! Hallelujah! 

that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. 

We are not saved by our good works, but, once we are saved, God will give us good works by His Spirit; He will lead us by His Spirit in doing good, especially to those who are of the household of faith, and to the poor. 

Verses 19-22, Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit. 

That is the Church: a holy temple in the Lord; a dwelling place of God. 

Chapter 3, verses 14-21, For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in Heaven and Earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 

and this is the only way that this is going to work, you have to be rooted and grounded in love,

may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. 

Chapter 4, verses 11-16, And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 

They’re out there: many false prophets. Jesus said, Take heed that you be not deceived.

but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ—from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. 

Chapter 5, verses 1-11, Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. Verses 15-21, See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God. 

This is the apostles’ doctrine. If we are going to receive our inheritance, our glorious inheritance in Jesus Christ, we must continue in it steadfastly. These words in the epistles of Paul and Peter and John, and the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke, James and Jude, are God’s Words, which He gave by His Holy Spirit. Holy men of God wrote as they were moved by the Holy Spirit. They are God’s Words. It is His doctrine, which He has graciously preserved for us who are called in Him, that we might read it and understand it, with the help and instruction of the Holy Spirit, and give ourselves wholly and diligently to it, that we might be partakers of His grace through the Gospel, and receive our inheritance in His glorious Kingdom: the riches of of the glory of His inheritance in the saints: Christ in you, the hope of glory. Let no man deceive you with empty words, as Paul said, the wrath of God is coming upon all the children of disobedience. In Romans 2, he said,  who will render to every man according to his works. 

2 Cor 5:15, and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Know the love of Christ, which passes knowledge, that you might be filled with all the fullness of God.

Thank you for reading this message from 15 Minutes With Jesus at roberthaymes.com .

May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you who love Him in truth, Amen. (2 Cor 13:14)