And they continued. This scripture follows the landmark sermon of Peter in Acts 2 that convicted the masses, bringing thousands to the point of repentance and earnest seeking after God upon hearing the soul-stirring gospel of Jesus Christ. The thousands assembled around Peter and the eleven other apostles sincerely sought how to move forward into salvation. “Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38). That same day, three thousand souls were baptized (Acts 2:41). What I love of this passage of scripture is hidden between Acts 2:41 and 2:42. Between these two verses is the implication of some unknown amount of time. Though the verses happen sequentially, what we see here is the passage of time between baptism and continuation so that those who received the truth of Jesus Christ, were baptized in His name, could now grow in His name. Time for teaching, time for impartation, time for patterning behavior, time for regular fellowship and feasting. Time to mentor, time to challenge, time to correct, time to rebuke, time to love into righteousness, time to guide into holiness. Between these two verses we see the implied time it took for those who knew nothing of Jesus nor the apostles to now learn how to model their lives after Christ based on the continuation of the apostles’ teaching. How do I come to see this? Because how else could these newly baptized people continue in the doctrine, or teaching, of the apostles if they did not have time to be students? How could they continue the practice of fellowship if they did not spend time learning how to be a community? How could they continue in breaking of bread if they did not spend time sharing meals? And how could these new believers continue in the teaching of prayer if they did not spend time in the school of prayer?
Presider’s Letter
My brothers and sisters, this is why this verse is so important to the future of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, our dioceses and our churches—we must continue stedfastly, without losing momentum or consistency, that which we were taught through the Word of God. However, we must each in turn model lives that can teach those coming behind us what it means to be an Apostolic believer—in word and in deed. We must not stray from consistently sharing the Word of God, guiding and loving, cultivating and creating, a strong community of Apostolic believers, for tomorrow and the days to come until the LORD cracks the sky. As God revealed these things to me, I understood all the better the importance of remembering the past to move towards the future. I understood the imperative on my life, on our lives, to bring together people from all walks of life to teach and guide into all truth. This is our burden for 2023 and beyond. I would love if you would join Mother Brooks and I at the 2023 Summer Convention of the Pentecostal Assemblies of the World, Inc. as we live out the declaration: And They Continued. We are looking forward to a mighty move of God in St. Louis, MO on July 16- July 22, 2023. Our auxiliaries and departments have been given their marching orders. Auxiliaries have robust and thoughtful programming developed, while our Convention Management departments work diligently to provide you with a first-class experience. Please stay connected to our social media pages, follow us on Facebook and Instagram, and keep an eye on our website at www.pawinc.org for organizational and event updates. Above all else, let us remain in a posture of prayer. Prayer is what has kept us, and it will be prayer that sustains us—as an organization, as dioceses, as churches, communities and as individuals. Prayer is the key, prayer is our foundation and prayer is our future. Stay connected as we share information regarding organizational prayer initiatives and how you can stay involved. Mother Brooks and I are always praying for you and your families. We love you to life.
THE CHRISTIAN OUTLOOK THE CHRISTIAN OUTLOOK
“AND THEY CONTINUED” “AND THEY CONTINUED”
JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2023 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2023
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