What was The New Testament Church Like? {Acts 1-2}
12:00 AM
I’m honored to be given the
opportunity to introduce you to the Book of Acts! I think a better title could
be the Acts of the Holy Spirit! It's been perfectly placed in the Bible; just
after the four Gospels, for here we get to compare Jesus’ disciples and
followers before and after the Holy Spirit comes, and the differences are
amazing!
I loved how Jim Cyjmbala
describes the change in his book, Spirit Rising: Tapping Into the Power
of the Holy Spirit:
“The early church…was made up of simple men and women. The leaders were former fishermen and tax collectors who fled in fear when Jesus was arrested and needed them most. They weren’t courageous and faithful. In fact, they lacked faith and courage. They were the least likely to be put in charge of any Christian enterprise. Yet, after the events in Acts 2, when the Holy Spirit is poured out, those same nobodies were suddenly transformed. With courage and faith, they turned their community, and eventually the world, upside down (p27).
I wrote a post a few weeks ago about, The God of Small Beginnings and here once more The Lord is proving He doesn’t need great men and women to build His church, only ones who love Him and are willing to surrender to His leading.”
Jesus tells them as much in
Act 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and
you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem , and in all Judea and Samaria , and to the ends of the earth.” And throughout
this book we will see God’s Spirit working in and among His followers!
Today and tomorrow we will
be given a glimpse of just what God’s New Testament church looked like, and get to compare it to the churches today, or more specifically the church body you
are part of today.
In Acts 2:41 -47 we can find seven key elements of God’s new body
of believers that all church bodies should possess still,
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”
Baptism: “Those who accepted
Peter’s message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to their
number that day.”(v.2:41) The church was growing
quickly! Imagine if your church gained 3000 members in one week! What would you
do? Would you be ready to welcome them and help them start growing their newly
found faith? The New Testament church didn’t worry about a building for they
met in intimate groups in one another’s homes and in the outer courts of the
temple. And together they...
Worshiped (vs. 2:46 -47)
True
worship was reflected in the priority they placed on who God
was in their lives and where He
was placed on their list of priorities. True worship was a matter of their heart,
expressed through a lifestyle of holiness, and was evident through their devotion...
To the Apostles’ Teaching because
it meant something to them personally they were constantly seeking to learn
more of this new way of living, for it possessed the power to transform their
lives and others.
To Prayer:
corporate and individual prayers, for these were desperate times and the
persecution was fierce. The needs went far beyond what they were able to do in
their own strength, which drew them to depend on God for everything.
To Fellowship: “All the believers were together and had everything in common. They
sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.” They quickly
became like family and their possessions stopped being looked at as mine and
yours, but ours.
To the Lord's Supper: Everyone brought food and shared it.They
broke bread together, following their Master's instructions to remember His
death and resurrection (Luke 22:7-38). We're not sure if they celebrated the Lord's Supper every time they met, but
we do know it was very common.
To Evangelism: Because they
·
worship
God with sincere hearts
·
lived
in real community with each other
·
prioritized
their own spiritual growth
·
and
managed and shared their resources to minister to Body of Christ
They effectively reached the
lost with the Gospel. Their love, joy, peace…(the fruits of God’s Spirit) were evident
to others around them and it became contagious!
What amazes me is even though
their lives were in danger, they didn’t hunker down in fear, but actually prayed
for boldness to speak the Word of God (Acts 4:23 -31), and that's truly the evidence of the Holy Spirit's power within them.
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