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If The Church Was Established Before Pentecost

Introduction: There are people that claim their “church” was established before the Day of Pentecost. Some claim that John the Baptist established the Baptist Church . Keep in mind that John died before Jesus died on the cross.

I)  If the church was established before the Day of Pentecost then….

A) Jesus Did Not Recognize It! Matthew 4.17; Mark 9.1

1. Jesus was speaking of His church in the future sense and not in the present.

2. Matthew 16.18 Jesus said He will build His church, not He had built His church.

          a. He is speaking of the church in the future tense and not past or present.

          b. The church was not spoken of in the present tense until the Day of Pentecost.

B) The Church (Body of Saved Believers) Would Not Have Had the Blood of Christ

1. Matthew 26.28 Jesus shed His blood for the remission of sins.

2. Was Jesus dying because man’s sins were remitted or in order for man’s sins to be remitted.

3. John 19.34 His blood was shed on the cross which was before the Day of Pentecost.

4. Therefore, any church established before this would have nothing to atone for the sins of the people.

5. Ephesians 1.7 our redemption is through His blood, therefore, they would not have anything to redeem them. There would be no redemption.

6. Hebrews 9.22 there could not have been remission before the blood of Jesus was shed on the cross.

7. The word “church” means called out. What would have separated them from the rest of the world or the Jews?

C) The Church Would Not Have Had Jesus As Its Head

1. Head meaning authority and leadership.

2. Jesus was not made Lord and Christ (Savior) until He ascended back to God, Acts 2.36

3. Ephesians 1.20,22-23 what happened when God raised Jesus from the grave? Before Jesus was raised He was not head of His church, His spiritual body.

4. This would have required the church to either not have had a head (authority) or someone else to have been its head.

D) The Church Would Not Have Had Jesus As Its High Priest

1. High Priest in the Old Testament was appointed by God from the tribe of Levi. He went before God to offer the sacrifice for the sins of the people. Hebrews 7.14

2. Jesus was not our High Priest until He was raised up to heaven, Hebrews 8.1-2

3. Jesus serves continually as our High Priest before God.

4. We read of one man trying to be both King and Priest was King Saul, 1 Samuel 13.7 and he was condemned.

5. Who would have been approaching God in heaven or on earth during this time?

E) The Church Would Not Have Had the Gospel of Christ

1. Could not have preached about the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.

2. Could not have preached that Jesus is sitting as the right hand of God.

3. Could not have preached remission of sins through the blood of Christ, Luke 24.46-47

4. The New Covenant was not in force until after Jesus died, Hebrews 9.16-17

II) Any Church Established Before The Day of Pentecost

A) Would Not Have Had the Holy Spirit

1. When did Jesus promise to send the Holy Spirit? John 14.26; 15.26; 16.7,13

2. When did the Holy Spirit come? Acts 1.8; 2.4, 16-17

3. The Holy Spirit came to deliver all truth, perfect remembrance, the authority of Christ.

4. Why would anybody want to be a member of any church without these things?

B) Would Not Be The Church Established By Jesus.

1. What law would the church have been under?

2. They already had the Law of Moses and it was not sufficient to forgive man of his sins.

3. The Law of Christ was not established yet. Would it of been a lawless church?

III) What If Christ Did Not Establish His Church On The Day of Pentecost?

A) Then people were added to something that did not exist, Acts 2.47

B) Then Paul could not have persecuted the church, Acts 8.1

C) The church would not have been scattered

D) The church would not have met at Antioch for a whole year and its member would not have been called “Christians” Acts 11.26

Conclusion: The church established on the Day of Pentecost is made up of the saved. Entrance was dependent on one believing Jesus being the Messiah. They had to repent of their sins and be immersed for the remission of their sins. It is the body of Christ. Are you a member of that church? If not you can be this morning by doing what they did on the Day of Pentecost as we stand and sing.  

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