Acts: The Revolution of FaithSample

The Early Church

“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.” Acts 2:46-47

How did the church begin? At the end of Luke's gospel, Jesus is crucified, rises from the dead, and appears to the first disciples over a 40-day period, teaching them about the new world order called the Kingdom of God. At the end of Luke's gospel, Jesus is crucified, rises from the dead, and appears to the first disciples over a 40-day period, teaching them about the new world order called the Kingdom of God. Before His ascension to heaven, Jesus told the disciples to wait in Jerusalem because God the Father was going to give them a gift, the Holy Spirit. As promised, the Holy Spirit came down upon the 120 disciples who were huddled together in the Upper Room. Filled with the Holy Spirit, the disciples exited the room out into the busy streets of Jerusalem, right in the middle of the celebration of Pentecost, which would have brought thousands of Jewish people from all over Jerusalem.

Peter, who now had the Holy Spirit empowering him, boldly told Jesus' story. From that single sermon, 3,000 new believers were baptized.

There were now 3,120 believers in Jerusalem. Where in the world would they gather? We are told they gathered in homes. Historians tell us that the average home at that time would hold about thirty people. So, if you do the math, 3,000 divided by 30 equals 100 homes. The church was honeycombed throughout the city of Jerusalem.

Now, what did they do when they met together in these 100 homes? Take a look at Acts 2, beginning in verse 42. "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 people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." Many people see the church as primarily a human-led organization. Churches hold worship services, ask for offerings, do weddings, and bury people. Though this might be true, there is so much more. Churches are Holy Spirit infused living organisms that are dynamic, alive, and changing the world around them.

Countless people think of the church as dying or dead. The truth is, the global church is growing, expanding, and still fulfilling the mission Jesus declared two thousand years ago. There are more followers of Jesus in the world today than in any time in history and there is a larger percentage of Americans who attend church now than there were at the turn of the twentieth century.

Some people see the church as a remnant of the past that will soon evaporate and disappear into the rear-view mirror of history. God sees his church as a revolutionary movement that will continue to bring global transformation until Jesus comes again in glory.

Now that we are coming on the other side of the pandemic, it seems, at least anecdotally, that the church has lost a significant number of fringe participants. But those who have stayed with it have come back stronger than ever with a deeper commitment to following Jesus. Not only is the church growing, but we have created enormous blessing for America, not just for Christians but for everyone, even atheists.

As you dive into his Word and pray in community like these early Christians, you, too, are becoming more and more like Jesus. In this way, you are fulfilling the destiny God set out for you even before you were born.

Prayer

Father God, thank you for sending Jesus to die on a cross for our sins. I want to serve you and share Jesus with others through my local church.