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43 Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. 46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved. ~ Acts 2:43-47
Today, we conclude our study of Acts 2 where the promised Holy Spirit has arrived who indwells every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. On that Pentecost celebration three thousand Jews were added by the Lord to the early church. In Psalm 27 we read, "Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain who build." Many wrongly refer to the building that Christians meet in to be the Church. The word "church" literally means "called out ones." The Church is made up of those who are learning to repent from their dependence upon themselves to get life right to trusting the Lord to live His life to and through them. Even though there was one point in time that we were "born again," the Lord daily is calling us out of the world.
In v.43 of today's passage we read, "Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles."
The word "fear" means "awe." Those who were added to the Church that day were in awe at what they experienced. God can't help but doing awe inspiring things because He Himself is awesome. Those early believers in Christ were amazed at the "many wonders and signs that were done through the apostles." A wonder is a miracle while the sign reminds us of the wonder. It makes no sense to be more in awe of what God does than it is to be in awe of who He is. The more we stand in awe of God the more we will know a greater degree of intimacy with Him. It is only when the awe of God rules our hearts that we see the things of this world for what they truly are.
There are 163 miracles in the Bible. Half of them are found in the New Testament which spanned about 80 years. The 83 miracles in the Old Testament spanned 4000 years! Spread evenly that would be 1 miracle in the whole world every 48 years. It seems to us on this side of it all that a lot more miracles took place during biblical days than now. Not so! However, there is something to be said about the Jews demanded signs and wonders. All the while the Lord Jesus pointed out that those who have not seen Him with their eyes are more blessed than those who did along with His miracles. The real issue is our heart.
In 1 Corinthians 1:22-25 we read, "For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men."
The Lord Jesus performed signs beginning with the turning of water into wine and culminating with His resurrection. When asked by His mother to perform the miracle the Lord Jesus said to her, "My hour has not yet come." Everything the Lord Jesus did was in light of that coming hour which always points us to His cross. When we recognize this, we will find ourselves in awe of Him. And yet, despite all the proofs that He was the promised Messiah, the Jews rejected the message that accompanied the signs. Miracles, signs and wonders do not change hearts, only the Word of God changes us from within. It is most often through the agency of awe that we understand and receive His Word.
In v.44-45 of today's passage we read, "44 Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, 45 and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need."
These first century believers were motivated from their hearts to sell all they had so that they could help their more needy brothers and sisters in the faith. Some have said that the early Christians gave up their "capitalism" and became "communists." But that is not what this passage demonstrates at all. They retained their right to private property. They bought and sold as they had before. They did not embrace a new government or a new economic system. Due to the needs in the community they established a common fund from which they could help the needy among them. To do it, some of them sold some of their property and gave them up to have an adequate fund to help others. This is Christianity in action, to be concerned about the needy. This is the heart of the God of the Bible and this is the most awe inspiring about Him.
In v.46-47 of today's passage we read, "46 So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved."
Here, we are given a picture of what it looks like for God to be at work in the midst of His people. When God is having His way in our hearts we naturally yield worship to Him. It is like the spokes on a bicycle tire, once they're in place everything else on the tire works as it should. The best worship of God is seen through our concern for the needy. Those early believers were redeemed through the Lord Jesus, empowered by the Holy Spirit and committed to the teaching and the practice of God's Word. They were known for their generous hearts. They did all of this through "simplicity of heart" which means they were humble. This is one of the characteristics of the believer that will be evident once he is growing in intimacy with God. Their oneness was a product of God's love for them and theirs for Him. The Church with the proper content will yield to the leading of the Holy Spirit to do God's will. It is in the context of our obedience to Him from our hearts that will realize His blessing throughout each given day.
Today's passage ends with: "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved."
Most believe a church is built after they find a pastor who’s a good speaker, and they bring in a worship leading team, and they find a building. This is not found in the Bible. Just as God built the church in the New Testament, He builds it today, and the Church is made up of the people who are being called to the Lord, not the building. I am convinced that everyone has the same story with God. We all have been wooed by Him to believe on His Son. Through His Word and His Spirit and our conscience God convicts all of sin. How we respond to that conviction and the gospel message will determine whether we are added to the Church for whom the Lord Jesus died to save.
