Acts Lesson 3 – 2:41-47

 

INTRODUCTION: Last week, in Acts 2:1-15, we studied the birth of the church, known as the day of Pentecost, a Jewish feast day that drew as many as 180,000 Jewish pilgrims to Jerusalem from all over the Roman Empire. On that day 120 believers in Jesus (including the apostles) were gathered in an upper room, when suddenly, by a great noise like wind and tongues of flame, God sent the Holy Spirit to each one as the new people of God-the church; and they immediately left the room to go out among the crowds to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. When these disciples began their proclamation, the Spirit gifted them speak it in the foreign languages of all the people in the crowds, who were amazed and after hearing it, asked, "What does this mean?" It meant that God had launched a new era in the administration of the human race-an age of salvation by grace alone and the gift of the Holy Spirit to all who believe in Jesus Christ as Lord.

     Today, in Acts 2:41-47, Luke moves from the day of Pentecost to what happened in the early Jerusalem church afterward. We are skipping Peter's sermon, reported v. 14-36, which I urge you to go back and read this week. We are also skipping v. 37-40, but I will give you a synopsis that will forms the introduction to today's text: When Peter finished his sermon, many in the crowd ask him and the other apostles, "Brethren, what shall we do?," which tells us that those who asked this question believed Jesus is the Son of God who had died for our sins. Peter replied that they should repent and be baptized so they would receive the Holy Spirit. And this brings up to today's text.

Note: Before you ask, the sound doctrine of the NT teaches that eternal salvation happens at the point of faith and that baptism is an outward symbol of already being saved. The passages most often used to teach that water baptism is essential do not even speak about water baptism, but rather about spiritual baptism. (1 Corinthians 1:14-17 15:1-4; Romans 3:28-30).

 

 

 

v. 41: Right after Jesus ascension, his apostles and followers, consisting of only 120 people, gathered in Jerusalem, but on this day-Pentecost-3,000 more people became believing Christians. Their numbers in just one day had risen by a factor of twenty-five! Many of these people were Jews who lived in other countries - Jews of the Diaspora who had come to Jerusalem to celebrate the Pentecost festival. (Note: many of the forebears of these Jews had been either exiled or dispersed during successive conquests by the Assyrians, Babylonians, Hellenists [Greeks], and finally Rome.) When they return home, these people will be like seeds scattered to the four winds-believers who will share the good news of Jesus Christ not only in their own households and but in the communities where they live. You might remember that the church in Rome is thought to have been established by Jewish pilgrims who returned there after hearing Peter at the Pentecost.

 

 

 

v. 42a: "...continually devoting themselves" - Starting with this verse, Luke moves from describing the day of Pentecost to a more general description of life in the early Jerusalem church. The term "continually devoting" suggests that these new Christians were probably meeting on a daily basis.

v. 42b: "to the apostles' teaching" - The "apostles' teaching" would have included the OT Jewish Scriptures as well as the teachings of Christ during His earthly ministry, together with all the revelations He gave to them during His appearances for 40 days after the resurrection. This tells us that this early Jerusalem church gave top priority to the revealed Word of God (and so should we).

v. 42c: "to Fellowship" - The word for "fellowship" (Gk. koinonia) literally means sharing things with others. At this stage it was fellowship within Judaism. Although this fellowship extended to material goods, its main emphasis most likely focused on a sharing of ideas, attitudes, purposes, and mission.

v. 42d: "to the breaking of bread" - This term probably included observing the Lord's Supper as well as the sharing of ordinary fellowship meals with one another.

v. 42e: "and to prayer" - The prayers of these new believers surely praised and gave thanks to God and included petitions for further guidance. While the definite article "the" implies a time of formal prayer, it probably included personal petitions for various concerns within the body.

 

 

 

v. 43: The feelings of "awe" from the very obvious working of God in their midst was a constant inspiration to the believers in Jerusalem. The wonder-working miracles performed by the apostles clearly pointed to God's hand at work, and it kept this spirit alive in the church. And the apostles who are working these wonders and signs were themselves completely awed by the power being wielded by their own hands. And they know it's not their power but God's power, and that they are under a responsibility to use it only in ways that give all the credit to God. The OT uses the phrase "signs and wonders" to demonstrate God's revelation of Himself, and that emphasis continues in Jerusalem with a focus on the revelation of Christ and the salvation that is available through Him. Wonders would typically be miraculous events, while signs are activities that clearly point to a higher reality or truth. Not the least of these "wonders" must have been the remarkable unity and self-sacrifice that was so evident in these early believers of the Jerusalem church.

 

 

 

v. 44a: "And all those who had believed were together" - These early believers in Jerusalem had frequent, perhaps daily, contact with one other.

v. 44b: "and had all things in common" - This was not a type of First Century communism. Modern communism is a top-down atheistic system that forces people into communal living arrangements, regardless of their preferences. However, in the early church, communal living was completely voluntary and usually only temporary. No other church practiced communal living to the extent the Jerusalem church did and, indeed, the NT nowhere commands communal living. in fact, Acts does not mention it again after Chapter five.

 

v. 45: "and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need." - First, we must recognize that the community of believers in Jerusalem now numbered over 3,000 people, some of whom were evidently in desperate need of help just to survive, whether due to financial circumstances or health-related disabilities. The Jewish people already had a tradition from the Torah of helping those in need. We should recall Jesus' words, "Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 10:28). The willingness of these Jerusalem believers to sell their possessions (probably included both personal property and real estate) to help others in need truly exemplified Christian love for one another.

 

 

 

v. 46a: "Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple," - Before this, Luke closed his gospel by telling us that the disciples "were continually in the Temple, praising and blessing God" (Luke 19:45-45), and now he tells us that they are continuing that tradition. These new Christians in Jerusalem were also undoubtedly aware that their participation in Temple gave them access to large numbers of other Jews with whom they could witness the gospel of Jesus Christ.

v. 46b: "and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart," - These new believers in Jerusalem met with one another daily, enjoying their unity of Spirit. It's likely that these Jewish believers saw themselves as the true 'remnant' of Israel until they began to realize the distinctive of the church and it call to all people. They most likely observed the Lord's Supper and shared meals together in their homes. What we see in this is true fellowship, a common commitment, free from any pretentiousness or selfish motives.

v. 47a: "praising God and having favor with all the people." - The new life made available by salvation in Christ became a joyous song of praise and thanksgiving to God by those who had been delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the kingdom as a child of God. And the phrase, "having favor with all the people" tells us that Christianity drew from a very broad spectrum of social classes of people-coming from every walk of life: young - old, rich - poor, educated - ignorant, etc. But as we know, this golden era would end, to be followed by an era characterized by persecution and tribulation. Even Jesus had warned his apostles to beware of popularity (Luke 6:26).

v. 47b: And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved." - Yes, the disciples of Jesus were doing everything right-taking care of each other, living in harmony, and worshiping together; but it was the Lord who was adding to their numbers. One commentator noted that the early church, which grew exponentially, did not devote themselves so much to evangelism, but to preaching, teaching, fellowship, worship, and acts of caring for others in the body. God honored and rewarded their faithfulness by "adding to their number day by day."

 

1. These early Christians set the proper example for us to follow in "continually devoting themselves" to the four basic elements of church life. The four basic elements were "continually devoting themselves to were: (1) the apostles' teaching, (2) fellowship, (3) to the breaking of bread, and (4) to prayer." Being followers of Christ is to be first and foremost with the other things of life added to that and not the other way around. It's safe to say that many professing Christians today do not follow this example. They make a false distinction between what's secular and what's sacred so that "church life" is separate and distinct from the rest of life. They claim that being a Christian is part of what they are, but it is not the focus of their life.

 

2. Any group that is unified apart from the Apostles' teaching can be called many things, but they are not a church. The body of Christ is unified by having one Spirit, one hope of its calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism and one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:4,5). Only doctrine can define what God, which Jesus, what hope and what faith is commonly believed.

 

3. True fellowship goes way beyond socializing to sacrificially ministering to one another according to how God has gifted you. Many people think of fellowship as just getting together and talking, which is actually just socializing. But True fellowship is putting into practice all the "one another" verses, that include love, devotion, building up, encouraging, accepting, forbearing, admonishing, caring, being kind, helping, esteeming, comforting, etc.

 

4. The "breaking of bread" in verse 46 refers to the Lord's Supper. Some take this to mean eating meals together, but the phrase used here actually has the article attached so that it is literally translated as "the breaking of the bread." It is actually a reference to a celebration of the Lord's Supper, which in the early church was often included as part of a common meal shared together that was called a "love feast" (Jude 12).

 

5. These early Christians fully understood the importance of coming before the Lord in prayer to seek His leading and blessing. Jesus had ascended to heaven, and they could no longer see Him, touch Him or talk to Him face to face, but they could still talk to Him through prayer, and He would still communicate to them through the Apostles' doctrine and the moving of the Holy Spirit who now dwelt in them.