A Sharing Church (Acts 2:44-46a)

 

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/18/2017 10:12 AM

My Worship Time                                                                              Focus:  A Sharing Church

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 2:44-46a

            Message of the verses:  “44 And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; 45 and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. 46 Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together”

            I wish to quote John MacArthur here as I mentioned something about these verses in our introduction to this section that he happens to agree with.  “In these early days, before strife and divisions affected the church ‘all those who had believed were together.’  They possessed not only a spiritual unity but also a practical oneness.  That they had ‘had all things in common’ does not, as some imagine, indicate communal living.  The first Christian fellowship was not a commune, nor does the passage offer support for such a notion.  The family, not the commune, is the basic social unit in God’s design.”  This being true it is no wonder that the devil is causing so much trouble for families in our country today.  The family is suppose to be on man and one woman having children, children who know from birth that they are either a little boy or a little girl, and for those who are confused about this all they need to do is look at their birth certificate.

            An example of what was going on in this first church can be seen in the different feasts that Israel had when many thousands of families came to Jerusalem to celebrate these feasts.  There was never enough room for them in the inns of that day and so they would stay with other families who lived there in Jerusalem and they would share food and lodging with these families.

            What we talked about in our introduction to verse 44 was that this was not a primitive form of communism as some have believed it was and this “is evident from the imperfect tense (denoting continuous past action) of the verbs translated ‘selling and sharing’ (cf. 4:34).  They did not at any point sell everything and pool the proceeds into a common pot.  Such a principle for Christian living would have obviated the responsibility of each believer to give in response to the Spirit’s prompting (cf. 1 Cor. 16:1-2).  Further, it is clear from verse 46 that individuals still owned homes.”  What happened was that people who had land were selling it to get money in order to help those who were in need as seen in verse 45.  This was done because of the love that people in the early church had for each other not because they had to do it, but because they desired to do it. 

            The sharing of material possessions was not the only thing that was going on as verse 46 speaks of spiritual things that were going on as they would meet in the temple for spiritual teaching, as they were hungry to hear what the Word of God had to say to them.  Not so sure that people have that same hunger in our world today as it seems like other things seem to get in the way.  Now as far as meeting in the temple that all ended in 70 A.D. when it was destroyed by the Romans. 

            John MacArthur writes “The phrase with one mind again expresses the unity the first fellowship experienced.”  He is speaking of the spiritual aspect in that statement.

            They not only meet in the temple, but as verse 46 also states the meet in people’s houses “and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together.”  This refers to having the communion service in the homes.  John writes the following in 1 John 3:16-18 which shows why this all happened in the early church as seen in our verses from today:

“16 We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 17 But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him? 18 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.” 

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  It is all about love, the love that the Holy Spirit gives to all who belong to the Lord. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Be open to that love that the Spirit has given to me and use it for the cause of Christ.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Bernice” (Acts 25:13).

Today’s Bible question:  “The Jews were under the rule of what nation during the time of Christ?”

Answer in our next SD.

8/18/2017 10:42 AM