Pastor Rick’s Study Notes and Small Group Questions:
(PRT)
Acts 2:41-47
v. 41 Then those who accepted Peter’s message were baptized and around 3000 were added to their number that day. v. 42 What’s more, they faithfully and courageously pursued the apostles’ teachings, community life, breaking bread together and prayer. v. 43 All this created an immense and reverent awe in each person’s heart as both wondrous miracles and supernatural signs happened through the apostles. vv. 44-45 All who believed were in this together and held everything to be shared by all. They cashed out the property they owned and the resources they had at hand and distributed to each person according to their needs. v. 46 Every day faithfully they move forward together both in the Temple and in their homes breaking bread together; they shared meals with their hearts full of joy and sincerity. v. 47 They praised God and gained the good will from all the people, and all the while, the Lord kept on adding to their number all who were being saved each day.
v. 42 What’s more, they faithfully and courageously pursued the apostles’ teachings, community life, breaking bread together and prayer.
These freshly baptized Christ-followers needed the teaching that the Apostles had received from Jesus. This would be conveyed in the context of the Story, the account as Luke would call it. How could one talk about Jesus the Savior and Lord without talking about what they had seen and heard?
The “community” is that spiritual fellowship that made up the church and was in “communion” with the Savior and with one another. It’s the sense of partnership together in the message, the communion, and the mission. This word for fellowship or community is a broad as being in unity in the Spirit and as specific as sharing a meal with someone in need. This pervasive “communion” of believers believes the best of others, surrenders rights so others can be seen and heard, stands in unity with both the witness and the mission Jesus handed off, and does life with others in ways that validate the change they experienced to a watching world.
The breaking of bread became an early way of saying “the Lord’s Supper.” This was the celebration around which, along with baptizing new Jesus-followers every day, the community of the redeemed gathered. The practice followed what Jesus showed them, have a meal (break bread) and celebrate his gift (break bread). It would not be wrong for a small group of believers to enjoy a meal together and “break bread” in communion to celebrate God’s gift in Jesus. Echoes of the first church experience would resonate in this practice.
Prayer, the committed act of praying. Acts 3 has them praying in the Temple at the time of “prayers” and Acts 4 in spontaneous prayer in the homes. Too many practices are taken as “either/or” – habitual and spontaneous is the practice of the Christian.
v. 43 All this created an immense and reverent awe in each person’s heart as both wondrous miracles and supernatural signs happened through the apostles.
The word means “fear” or reverent awe and it’s modified with a “mega” word. The new Jesus-followers walked around in amazed awe that they would be called, redeemed and filled with the Spirit of the Holy God.
The word for “created” and the word for “happened” is the root word for coming as it active results – awe kept coming as miracles kept coming.
vv. 44-45 All who believed were in this together and held everything to be shared by all. They cashed out the property they owned and the resources they had at hand and distributed to each person according to their needs.
The resulting actions of this awe is to hold onto possessions lightly. In fact, those who had property committed it to this rapidly growing movement. And people who had come into Jerusalem took what possessions and resources they brought and liquidated these to help those who needed help. Like the women of resource who walked with Jesus, the Father used the people of resources to sustain such an outpouring of salvations. Just sustaining a revival can be costly; imagine that expanding it is moreso.
Some Christian movements have taken this as the norm and called for communes where everyone stayed together and surrendered property rights. But this is really the only example in the NT and was a necessity at the prompting of the Spirit of God for generosity. The church grew so much that people held their stuff with very loose grips.
v. 46 Every day faithfully they move forward together both in the Temple and in their homes breaking bread together; they shared meals with their hearts full of joy and sincerity.
Remember that the first Christians were also faithful Jews and the Temple courts were a natural place to teach, to meet new believers, and to practice the disciplines of the Jewish walk. But as a natural result of meals, fellowship, community, etc., the believers were drawn to homes to do life, to talk about the Account and learn from the Apostles. Word, I imagine, would get out: “Peter is coming by tonight” or “have you ever heard Andrew’s stories about Jesus?”
There was a sense of steady advancement of Kingdom evidence that propelled them forward.
They were filled inside with joy. Sincerity is also the word for simplicity. The word comes from another that means “free from rocks” – in other words, simply and smoothly. If there was anything about the life of the new believer in this first church, it was simplicity. Do life, pray for each other, share in the Lord’s Supper, worship in the Temple courts, tell the story.
The worship in the Temple didn’t include the Lord’s Supper and this could be done anywhere there were two or more.
Archaeological evidence shows that early church members’ homes had “worship” rooms that facilitated more people gathered to hear the truth and practice the disciplines of the faith (Lord’s Supper, Prayer, fellowship activity, teaching/reading letters from the first disciples).
v. 47 They praised God and gained the good will from all the people, and all the while, the Lord kept on adding to their number all who were being saved each day.
The community of common people were quite favorable toward these Jesus-followers. It was the religious leaders who couldn’t stand them. They received “grace, favor” from the throngs. They looked on them kindly and with a sense of respect and awe.
Small Group Study Questions:
Acts 2:41-47 Part One (Next week, we will study what made these new Christians strong.)
- How do you handle crowded places? Are you energized by crowds or do they scare you?
- If you gave out invitations to a party and 3000 people showed up, how would you make sure they were taken care of and made to feel welcome?
- What was the source of awe and amazement in the lives of these Jesus-followers in v. 42?
- Share about a miracle you have seen (not just heard about, but been present when it happened)? How did it make you feel about your faith?
- Share about a time you’ve been able to be recklessly generous to someone in need? Or, if you can, about a time when you were on the receiving end of reckless generosity?
- What need can we help meet tonight? How can we ask the Father to work in your life tonight?
ricksgreatideas 