Untitled Sermon
In 2:41, Luke had noted that as a result of mass conversions among the Jews living in Jerusalem, about three thousand people who had repented and committed their lives to Jesus were baptized. In the incident of 2:42–47, Luke now describes what effect their conversion to faith in Jesus had for these new followers of Jesus.
they worship God in public and in private
they worship God in public and in private
they worship God in public and in private
the significance of Jesus
This is Luke’s second of Luke’s summary statements about the life and the activities of the new followers of Jesus.
The purpose of the summaries which Luke includes in Acts are
there was a need at the beginning to describe the identity and ministry of the church. An important function of Luke’s summaries is to generalize and thus to make the experience of individuals normative.
a summary of the essentials of the life of the Jerusalem church
the effect that the growth of the church and the miracles of the apostles had on the people of Jerusalem,
Luke explains the list of the essentials of the life of the church,
includes another comment on the effect of the life on the people of Jerusalem
notes the continued growth of the church (v. 47c–e).
The apostles’ teaching focused on Jesus’ life, ministry, death, and resurrection, and on his significance in God’s plan.
The apostles’ teaching focused on Jesus’ life, ministry, death, and resurrection, and on his significance in God’s plan.
from material selfishness
As the phrase “the teaching of the apostles” describes the entire preaching of the apostles, both the instruction of the followers of Jesus as well as the missionary proclamation before unbelievers may be in view here.
The second characteristic of the church in Jerusalem is “fellowship” (κοινωνία), which should be understood as the personal, fraternal coherence of the individual members of the congregation, the followers of Jesus who live in community “brought into existence by the shared experience of the Spirit.”
The second characteristic of the church in Jerusalem is “fellowship” (κοινωνία), which should be understood as the personal, fraternal coherence of the individual members of the congregation, the followers of Jesus who live in community “brought into existence by the shared experience of the Spirit.” In 2:44 fellowship is explained as “being together.”
The term “fellowship” can thus be described as “the participation in the salvation that has been opened up by Jesus; it is the specific social place of this salvation where all are linked with each other, as sinners who have been saved, by the Holy Spirit in agape.”
The term “fellowship” can thus be described as “the participation in the salvation that has been opened up by Jesus; it is the specific social place of this salvation where all are linked with each other, as sinners who have been saved, by the Holy Spirit in agape.”
there is the distinct possibility that it refers to both. The “breaking of bread” is best understood as a reference to the ordinary meals which the believers regularly shared, during which they remembered Jesus’ death on the cross for the forgiveness of sins and for the establishment of the new covenant, linked with the command to remember Jesus and his sacrifice during meals (cf. Luke 22:14–22).
In Acts 2:46–47 Luke clarifies that these meals took place not only in private homes but also in the temple precincts.
Luke does not clarify whether private or communal prayers are in view, but 1:24 and 4:23–31 indicate that the latter are certainly included.
the Jewish heritage behind Christian prayer had two distinct patterns: one related to the course of the sun, and the other according to the times of the temple sacrifice.
the Jewish heritage behind Christian prayer had two distinct patterns: one related to the course of the sun, and the other according to the times of the temple sacrifice.
the Jewish heritage behind Christian prayer had two distinct patterns: one related to the course of the sun, and the other according to the times of the temple sacrifice.
Luke points out repeatedly that the prayer of the church was a significant factor in the life and ministry of the earliest Christians.
Luke comments here on the effect that the life of the believers and the ministry of the apostles had on the people living in Jerusalem.
Luke now gives a more extended explanation of the life of the earliest believers in Jerusalem, after his brief statement in 2:42.
Luke first comments on the harmonious unity of the followers of Jesus—all believers “were together” (ἦσαν ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό).
Second, Luke explains that the unity of the believers expressed itself in very practical ways: the believers shared their possessions.
Or it can mean that they remained owners of their property while being willing to use their possessions for the common good of the fellowship of believers. In view of the details given in 2:45 and 4:32–5:11, the second meaning is preferable.
Jews in the ancient world did not regard the adjectives “private” and “public,” when related to property, as mutually exclusive as we do today, but thought in verbal terms which were not mutually exclusive.
Jews in the ancient world did not regard the adjectives “private” and “public,” when related to property, as mutually exclusive as we do today, but thought in verbal terms which were not mutually exclusive.
Property that an individual “had” can be understood to “be” both for the individual and for the group.
Theirs was not a utopian vision, but the expression in real life of the love and care that believers in Jesus extend in very practical terms for one another.
The connection of the summary in vv. 42–47 with the account of the coming of the Spirit of prophecy in vv. 1–42 suggests that the specific reality of the community of believers was the result of the transforming power of the Spirit who was in the process of bringing about the renewed society that the prophet Joel envisioned,
The verbs in the imperfect tense here signal ongoing activity
The Jerusalem believers did not share their goods—they sold their goods to support the needy. Luke does not describe a community that denies the appropriateness of private property (as in a monastic order), nor does he propagate a world-denying “communism of love.” Rather, Luke presents a pragmatic ethics concerning possessions in which the needs of the poor take center stage. The motivation to sell possessions and share the proceeds with believers in need was grounded in their concern for the poor and their needs (χρείαν εἶχεν), as well as in Jesus’ teaching about not hoarding material possessions (Luke 6:30–36), but renouncing them (Luke 12:33–34).
In other words, the believers in Jerusalem shared meals both on the occasion of their daily visits to the temple and in private houses.
It was only in the privacy of their homes that the new believers could know the other believers, learn about their needs, and have fellowship that included sacrificial giving and sharing.
The reference is not to simple meals (which they probably were), but to simple hearts—they were generous when they shared from their possessions, they were modest when they accepted contributions from others. They were not double-minded with envy or with calculation.
The Christians of Jerusalem “enjoyed the respect” (ἔχοντες χάριν) of all the Jewish people (λαός) living in Jerusalem. The phrase also shows that the followers of Jesus were recognized as a specific group early on.
The personal and practical fellowship which was practiced in the private homes of believers had missionary consequences. The meetings of the believers in the temple and in their homes were so attractive that unbelievers started to attend.
The effect of the proclamation of the gospel and of the life of the church “is related not only to the salvation of many individuals but also to the local congregations as a whole, as they become larger.”
Luke’s formulation carefully preserves the primacy of God in the “success” of the Jerusalem Christians. It is the Lord who increased the number of believers (ὁ δὲ κύριος προσετίθει). God is the author of the salvation of the new converts (note that σῳζουένους is a passive participle).
Luke’s extensive summary of the life of the Jerusalem church is not only a historical statement about the first months of the Christian movement. It is also a theological statement about the presence of God in the community of believers, an ecclesiological statement about the priorities of an authentic church, and a missiological statement about the process of church growth.
An authentic church is a church in which God is present.
An authentic church is a church whose priorities are set by the gospel.
The first priority of the church is “teaching.”
The second priority of the church is fellowship.
It is the latter that is a most dramatic manifestation of the reality of Christian fellowship, which integrates being together with loving and helping each other. It has been observed that “the ancient world, with its association of κοινωνία and φιλία, accepted the principle; the Christians put it into effect.”
The third priority of the church is “the breaking of bread.”
The fourth priority of the church is “prayer.”
An authentic church is a church which continues to grow.
Luke’s summary in 2:42–47 is preceded by a statement on mass conversions in Jerusalem (2:41), and it ends with the comment that the church in Jerusalem continued to grow at a regular pace (2:47). The growth of a church happens when the church has the right priorities. This is not a question of strategy or method, but, most importantly, a question of reckoning with the power of God.
Churches grow when the gospel is proclaimed. The priority of the “teaching of the apostles” concerns not only pastoral instruction for believers, but also includes evangelistic outreach to unbelievers—this was the primary calling of the Twelve as witnesses of Jesus, commissioned to preach the good news of Jesus from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth.
The priority of the “teaching of the apostles” concerns not only pastoral instruction for believers, but also includes evangelistic outreach to unbelievers
Churches grow when the church is a fellowship.
Churches grow when they acknowledge the power of God.
Numerical growth is authentic church growth only if and when people find faith in Jesus, the crucified, risen, and exalted Messiah and Savior, and when they receive the presence of the Holy Spirit of God, who visibly and powerfully transforms their lives.