The Nature of the Didaché
apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers."
And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Acts 2:42
The word translated "teaching" is didaché . From the first moment of the Church's existence, doctrine was not optional. The three thousand who were baptized did not scatter into individualized spirituality. They were immediately enrolled in a school. The curriculum was the apostles' doctrine, and their devotion to it is placed first in Luke's summary of the Church's life. The structure of Acts 2:42 is deliberate. Teaching precedes fellowship, breaking of bread, and prayer. Not because communion and prayer are inferior, but because without right teaching, fellowship becomes sentiment, the Supper becomes ritual, and prayer becomes uncertain.
The apostolic didaché was both Christ-centered and comprehensive. It declared who Christ is, what He had done, and what He now required of His people. It was rooted in the Old Testament Scriptures, interpreted through the lens of Christ's death, resurrection, and exaltation. Peter's sermon had already modeled this method, moving from Joel, to Psalms, to the historical events of Jesus of Nazareth. The apostles did not preach a Christ detached from the Scriptures, nor did they teach Scriptures detached from Christ. The didaché was the pattern of sound words that united both.
The Nature of the Didaché To grasp how the apostles transmitted doctrine, we must first define it. The didaché was not abstract theology for scholars. It was the authoritative, normative instruction of the Lord Jesus delivered through His apostles.
Several characteristics emerge from the New Testament usage.
1. The Didaché Was Received Paul tells the Romans, "But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed."
But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed.
Romans 6:17
The phrase "standard of teaching" translates typon didachés , meaning a "pattern" or "form" of doctrine. Doctrine is something to which believers are handed over. The image is of a mold. The convert is pressed into a shape. The Church did not create its teaching. It received it. This is foundational. The apostles themselves continually emphasized that they were delivering what they had been given. The content was not theirs to edit. Their authority was derivative, not original. It was Christ's own teaching, extended through His authorized representatives.
2. The Didaché Was Fixed and Definable Because it was a "standard" or "pattern," the didaché had recognizable content. It could be compared against counterfeit versions. Paul could write to the Romans about those who "cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught."
I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.
Romans 16:17
Doctrine could be identified. Deviation could be detected. The early church was not swimming in ambiguous spirituality. They had been taught a body of truth, and they knew when something stood "contrary" to it. The didaché included instruction about God, Christ, the Spirit, salvation, the church, ethics, and the final judgment. Hebrews 6:1-2 lists elementary principles:
"repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment."
Therefore let us leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, and of instruction about washings, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.
Hebrews 6:1-2