#Church Life

Acts 2:42–47 NASB95

42 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. 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 with gladness and sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.

INTRO: Do you believe that the local church is practical and important? There’s likely quite a few Christians (some probably here or sometimes here) who like the idea of church, but if you pressed them on why, they might say,

Church helps me feel closer to God.

Church gives me a chance to learn something.

Church is something we should do but it’s not a priority.

And, to be fair, there are many congregations who are content only to meet occasionally and go about life as they always do. But is that what Christ intended?

In Acts 2:42–47, we get a clear snapshot of what Jesus actually intended the church to be — and it’s nothing like casual religious attendance. It’s not spectators sitting in rows; it’s a people living life together. It’s devotion, not just attendance. It’s participation, not just consumption.

So today I don’t just want to ask, ‘Do you go to church?’ I want to ask, ‘Are you living the church life the Bible describes?

Last week, we looked at the church Jesus envisioned and learned that the local church was empowered and commissioned for transformative work. Today, we look back to the NT church in Acts and get a glimpse of what the local church meant for the early Christians.

Now, just to be clear- the church is NOT a building or event. The church is NOT a pastor or a program. The church is made up of baptized followers of Jesus Christ who covenant together in local communities in order to live out the commands and mission of Christ.

Another way of thinking of this is that we have to be real; we have to be authentic in our relationship with both Christ and with one another.

ILL: Let’s be open and honest about this. When we gather on Sunday mornings, and especially if you ONLY gather on Sunday mornings, we are very restricted on the depth of any relationship or conversation we claim during that time. We cannot truly know one another and the thoughts of belonging, being vulnerable or holding one another accountable are impossible.

To overcome this means that church life cannot be sequestered to a piece of property or a time slot. Instead, church life is ingrained as part of who we are. So, what does that look like? What does that mean for you and me in 2025?

In our time together this morning, we are going to look at three attributes of authentic church life. The message is titled, #ChurchLife. I encourage you to follow along using the sermon guide in your bulletin and also to allow God to speak to you. If Christ is Lord, then our lives are not our own.

The first attribute of authentic church life is

Consistent Devotion (42)

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Now, I want to first point out that this was not simply the actions of an individual. This was the church- “they”. It was a community exercise.

We’ve talked about how important it is to have an environment that fosters Christian living- we can be influenced by so many factors, but it should be that in our local church, we are together consistently devoting ourselves to the things of Christ.

ILL: This has a practical aspect. For instance, if you are wanting to get stronger, it helps to have at least one gym partner to work out with. It’s even better if you have a group that works out consistently and encourages one another. That community helps you get out of the bed when you don’t want to. It helps you choose to eat the right proteins and push yourself to become stronger.

Right? You don’t get abs by watching fitness videos. And you won’t get spiritually stronger by watching church happen at a distance.

So what specifically did the NT church devote themselves to? There are 4 things listed in v. 42:

The apostles’ teaching

The NT books are filled with the teaching of the apostles. Of course, we must understand that their teachings are rooted in the OT and the life of Jesus, who fulfilled the OT Law and prophecies.

Today, the local church body (all of us) should consistently devote ourselves to the Word of God together. One way we do this is through regular preaching and bible studies.

Heb. 10:25 reminds us that we should not forsake this gathering together. When we are consistent here on Sundays, and in our small groups or mid-week studies, we are together encouraging one another not only to hear the Word or to study the word, but to live the word!

Fellowship

Did you know that fellowship is something that the NT church was intentional about? YES! Because the authenticity of our relationship is based not just on being around one another during a bible study or worship service. It’s about getting to know one another.

The Greek word is koinonia - which means ‘sharing’ not just hanging out.

Our ability to encourage one another to live Christlike lives is built upon authentic relationships. If you cannot relate to someone or if you don’t understand their life, their struggles, their triumphs- how can you work and grow together?

Breaking of bread

This is referring to the taking of the Lord’s Supper. The Lord’s Supper is an ordinance that reminds us of our unity in Christ and our mission from Christ, who suffered, died, and rose again. His victory is our story and we devote ourselves to this practice regularly to remind us that our life is not our own.

The joy of Christ who gave Himself for our sake is ours to share as a church. Having been buried with Christ, we are now raised to life as new creatures.

Prayer

The NT church prayed together and individually. What we see here though is an emphasis on the gathered prayers. This is where the church aligns our hearts to God’s heart.

Corporate prayers bring us to agree of our need for grace, our yearning for God’s will in our lives, and the desire for God’s Kingdom to come on earth as it is in heaven.

All of these communal acts of devotion helped the NT church to grow mature in Christ. And their example is one that the church in 2025 should seek to emulate.

Now, I want you to imagine if the NT church had not been devoted in these ways? What would have happened if they acted like many churches today, where it’s simply an activity or appointment?

Let me ask you: On a scale of 1-10, How consistent is your devotion to the things of Christ?

One step I encourage you to make is to commit to consistency. Make church life a priority. Join a small group and attend consistently. Be here on Sunday- come early, study the text for the sermon, stay after and fellowship, pray for one another. Church life is about consistent devotion. And listen, that consistent devotion is part of our witness- it’s what protects us from being hypocrites.

Now, I can hear some of you in my head: you are introverted or you have been burned by church or church members before. I understand. But hear me: devotion is not personality-based; it’s obedience-based. Isn’t Christ worth it?

But devotion, without love, can be twisted into legalism or some other self-righteous activity. The NT church understood this, and Luke tells us that another key attribute to authentic church life is a:

Generous Attitude (43-45)

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The NT church, because of they had received Christ’s forgiveness and grace, saw their lives differently than before. Before, they concerned themselves with their social influence and the riches they could have to their name and legacy. Now, they saw things like Jesus did.

Paul explains Jesus’ attitude in Philippians 2:6–7 “who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men.”

The NIV says it a bit more plainly: "He, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness"

What I’m trying to tell you is that the NT church recognized that they were the body of Christ- commissioned to live in such a way that the gospel would be proclaimed and modeled so that the world may be reconciled to God through Christ. This meant that they no longer lived for their selfish ambitions, but for the ambitions of Christ.

This text tells us that they were even willing to sell their possessions to meet the needs of others. They saw people who needed clothing, and they made it happen. Those who needed a place to live, and they took action. They took care of those who needed medical attention, food, a home repair, etc.

Why were they willing to do so? Because they had a treasure that was far more valuable in Christ! You see, when you realize that God has given you so much, it’s natural that you will be generous because you have a new perspective. Suddenly, meeting a temporal need becomes a joyous occasion because in so doing, you display the generous nature of our Lord.

The righteousness that we become through Christ’s sacrificial death works itself out in our sacrificial generosity to others. A lack of generosity calls into question whether or not we have truly received the righteousness of God.

David E. Garland

Now, we can easily see a contrast in the interaction between Jesus and the rich young ruler in Mark 10: 17-22. That young man went away grieving because he owned a lot of stuff. He did not see the value of living a life unto Lord. Following Jesus sounded good at first, but he loved his stuff more.

For the Christian, a generous attitude reveals that our treasure is stored in heaven.

So let me ask you, on a scale of 1-10, how generous are you? If you feel tension here, that’s good. The Holy Spirit is working and I want to encourage you to take a simple step this week. Ask God to show you someone who you can demonstrate generosity towards- maybe you buy a meal for a young couple, maybe you give sacrificially towards a ministry. Maybe you fund a mission project…

The authentic church life is includes consistent devotion and a generous attitude.

Finally, authentic church life is not complete if we do not acknowledge God moving in and through us. The final attribute is:

Genuine Worship (46-47)

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This passage describes a lifestyle of worship- all the devotion we talked about as a body, unified in mission and determined to give God all the glory.

Now, I want to make a quick observation here: v. 46 says they were going to the temple and house to house in their worship and devotion. But, if you look back up to v. 41, there are at least 3000 people in this church body. I don’t know what kind of house you have, but my house don’t have room for 3000 people!

Here is where we understand that even though there are limitations to our gatherings- we have a seating capacity, we can only know so many people really well, etc. BUT, when we are have placed ourselves in genuine surrender to Christ and live in adoration and worship of His glory, He brings us into His gladness.

Genuine worship means that our life - all of our lives- every minute of every day of our lives - is lived for the glory and honor of Christ.

It means that when we are at work, we are working to the glory and honor of Jesus.

It means that when we are at home, we parent and love our spouses to the honor of our Lord.

It means that when we are alone, our thoughts and intentions are aligned with God’s will because we are His!

Look back to our church in Acts here- (47) This church sought to glorify Christ and God gave them favor among one another. You don’t think they didn’t have arguments? Of course they did! You don’t think they didn’t still struggle with temptations? With gossip and all that? Of course, but when we are truly surrendered in worship to God, He will do a unifying work among His saints! But even more than that, God multiplied His church (47b)

Genuine worship in our lives allows God’s presence to be seen. It allows the gospel to be heard and responded to.

ILL: It’s humbling to think that the way we glorify Jesus both in this place and out in the community will impact whether or not someone decides to explore the God of the Bible. Imagine if someone visiting our church looked at the way we worship- in song, in attentiveness and devotion to the word of God, in our giving, etc. and they used our worship to gauge whether or not this whole Christianity thing was worth their time.

So, let me ask you this morning: On a scale of 1-10, how genuine is your worship? Is your life a testimony of God’s glory?

A simple step I want to encourage for you this morning is to proclaim the gospel to yourself. God, the creator of all things, who is holy and righteous, knows you. He knows that you are far from perfect and that you are carrying struggles, wounds, and sins. And He loves you anyway. He came to rescue you and deliver you from the shame and judgment of your sins.

Scripture tells us that Jesus took the penalty of our sins upon his own body, and though he died, he raised up from the dead and now lives. Jesus has said that if you repent - turn to Him- agree with Him, submit to Him, then you will be forgiven, and made new; a child of God who will live eternally in heaven, fully perfected from the strife of this world.

You see, when we receive the Gospel- when we allow God to lead us out of our mess, we can live the authentic church life with each other. Look around. Many in this room have received the gospel and we’ll all live together forever with Christ. Don’t wait til you die to start living the church life!

The early church changed the world not because they had better programs — but because they lived differently together. Church is not just something we attend. It’s something we become. [REPEAT] So don’t just go to church. Live the church life.

[PRAY]

Discuss: The early church prioritized teaching, fellowship, breaking bread, and prayer. Which of those comes easiest to you? Which one do you tend to neglect?

Discuss: What would it take for a church to reclaim this kind of shared life seen in Acts 2:42-47?

Discuss: Verse 45 shows radical generosity — they met needs as they arose. How do we discern the difference between “that’s someone else’s problem” vs. “God has positioned me to help”?