The early church met at the temple,  not to carry on their lives according to the Old Law, but it was where people were and they went to there to teach the sinners about the Gospel, Acts 3:1.  The early church met at Solomon’s Portico which was, my understanding anyway, a public meeting place for friends and for discussion, Acts 3:11.  This was the way to take the Gospel out “out of the church building”, so to speak, so that it crossed paths and intersected with the lost world.  That being said, where is your “Solomon’s Portico” where you live?  Where do you mix with sinners so you can save some of them? 

“9 I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; 10 I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world.” 1 Cor. 5:9,10

“10 Then it happened that as Jesus was reclining at the table in the house, behold, many tax collectors and sinners came and were dining with Jesus and His disciples. 11 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to His disciples, “Why is your Teacher eating with the tax collectors and sinners?” 12 But when Jesus heard this, He said, “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick. 13 “But go and learn what this means: ‘I DESIRE COMPASSION, AND NOT SACRIFICE,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.“, Matthew 9:10

“5 When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 And he hurried and came down and received Him gladly. 7 When they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.“, Lk 19:5-7

Years ago I had a preacher tell me he spends 40 hours a week in the office working on his sermons. He said his job was not to evangelize but to preach.  I was a young Christian but it didn’t sound right to me. Not that he shouldn’t spend quality and quantity time on preaching, but I understood then that being light in the dark world and being salt and that confessing was not going to be very effective if it’s only done in the safety of the church building.  How can the Preacher preach that Christians ought to evangelize if he excluded himself from it?  I would like to think that every Christian, including the Preachers and Elders, are living lives that intersect with the sinful world so that some in the world will be saved.

I offer this humbly because I’m a work in progress. Sound off and share with where your Solomon’s Portico is.  – Dan

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