“THE FIRST CHURCH”
ACTS 2:42-47

I. Introduction
There is a church that is alive, and there is a church that is dead. In Revelation 2-3 Jesus speaks to seven specific churches – churches that actually existed in the first century. One of them (Philadelphia) was faithful to God and His word. One of them (Smyrna) was suffering for its faith. One of them (Ephesus) was losing its love and zeal for the Lord. One of them (Pergamum) was compromising the truth. One of them (Thyatira) was even willing to tolerate apostasy. And one of them (Laodicea) had become so blind to the truth that they didn’t even recognize it when they heard it.

But then there was the church at Sardis. Sardis is the Lord’s example of what happens to a church as it is dying. Listen to what Jesus said to the church at Sardis…
*Revelation 3:1b-3, 6
1b “I know your deeds, that you have a name that (says) you are alive, but you are dead.
2 “Wake up, and strengthen the things that remain, which were about to die; for I have not found your deeds completed in the sight of My God.
3 “Remember therefore what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. If therefore you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you.”
6 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

The church at Sardis presents us with both a sad picture and a powerful warning. In Sardis we see what can happen to a church when it forgets where it has come from, where it is going, and the reason for its existence. It is in mortal danger! By God’s grace, that will not happen to this church.

So what will keep Lighthouse Bible Church alive and well? It really isn’t that complicated. LBC – or any Bible-believing church, for that matter – will remain alive and well as long as it remembers and practices the principles laid down for the first church. We will see just what they are in this morning’s text in Acts 2.

There are three principles that are actually characteristic of all living organisms. Consider the fact that all living things consist of cells that need food, exhibit continual growth, and reproduce themselves. These characteristics can be metaphorically applied to the church.

Look back at Revelation 3:1. Obviously the church at Sardis was not functioning well. The Lord told them they were as good as dead. In v. 3 the church had stopped taking in spiritual food, that is, the Word of God. Or at the very least, if they had been hearing the truth, they had failed to keep it. And so, in vv. 2, 3, the Lord admonished them to “Wake up!”
In v. 6 Jesus told the church at Sardis to “…hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” They were in danger of losing their church. Since they were no longer eating their spiritual food, they were starving and their spiritual growth had become stunted. And as a result of that, they had stopped reproducing themselves. What had once been a strong and growing church was now a weak and stagnant church.

How does that happen? Maybe the better question for us this morning is, “How do we keep it from happening?” In Acts 2:42-47 Luke will tell us.
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II. Review
Everything that Luke has reported in Acts 2:1-41 has taken place within a matter of hours on that day. Now it is the Day of Pentecost in Jerusalem. Jesus has been resurrected and has ascended to heaven. The Holy Spirit has descended upon the apostles and filled them with the power of God. The crowds around the temple have heard the twelve apostles speaking to them in their own languages, but the unbelievers in the crowd have dismissed this miracu-lous movement of God as nothing more than drunkenness.

In Acts 2:14-21, the Apostle Peter has told the unbelievers that no one is drunk. Rather, they were witnessing the beginning of the fulfillment of OT prophecies. And he has told them that from this day forward, and until the Lord’s return to judge the world, “…it shall be, that everyone who calls upon the name of the LORD shall be saved (Acts 2:21).”

In vv. 22-36, Peter has identified Jesus as the Messiah. He has made it clear that Jesus came to suffer and die, and he has told them that their Messiah was murdered by the very people He came to save. But God has raised Him from the dead and He is seated at His right hand.

Last Sunday, in vv. 31-41, the power of the gospel became evident when those who heard it were convicted of their sin and their desperate need for a Savior. When they cried out to Peter, “What shall we do?” he told them to repent. That is to say, he told them to change their minds about who Jesus is and what He has done. If they would do so, their sins would be forgiven and they would be saved. As a result, in Acts 2:41, three thousand people gave their lives to the Lord Jesus Christ. All of that took place in a matter of a few hours.
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III. Text
That brings us to today’s text. Exactly how much time has elapsed since that Day of Pente-cost is not clear, but it really doesn’t matter. What matters is that the first church began to be populated with a great number of new believers.
*Acts 2:42-47 (Please stand with me in honor of reading God’s Word.)
42 And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
43 And 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 And 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.

Back in v. 41 Luke told us that “about three thousand souls” were saved. There is no doubt that each and every one of them were truly born again and saved to eternal life in Christ. If that were not the case, I believe the Scriptures would say so. But beyond that, does anyone really think that the Lord Jesus would plant His church and nourish it with unbelievers on the first day of its existence? If ever there was a true church, a pure church, this was it.

But admit it. When we see someone come to saving faith, we are happy for them, but we often wonder if their conversion is genuine, don’t we? We often wonder if they will remain true to the faith they claim to have embraced, don’t we? The fact is that time will tell.

Just as the new convert has a responsibility to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ, so too does the local church have an obligation to nurture the new convert. If we expect a new believer to be faithful to Christ and the church, then we must be faithful to Christ, the church, and the new believer!

How do we do that? We start by being the church Christ wants us to be. We start by com-mitting ourselves to doing precisely what the first church did. It kept itself alive and well by focusing on the things described in Acts 2:42.
*Acts 2:42
42 And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.

That’s it? Well no, that’s not all of it. But it is most of it! It is the center of it, the core of it, the heart and soul of it, if you will. It is the place from which everything else emanates. It is the place to which everything else is connected.

If “…the apostles’ teaching (the Word of God), fellowship, communion, and prayer” are not the heart and soul of the church, I would argue that what you have may well be called a church, but it is not a church as the NT defines it. It may function as a well-oiled machine, a safe gathering place, a warm and friendly social club, and a force for all sorts of good things in the community and the world. It may even be a place for vigorous religious and intellect-tual pursuits. But it isn’t a church that Jesus’ apostles would recognize.

The modern church is involved in a vast number of pursuits and peripheral ministries.
To be fair many, if not most of them, are good, useful, and valuable. But when those things move from the periphery to the center, when more time, effort, energy, and resources are put into them than into the teaching, fellowship, communion, and prayer upon which the first church was founded, then the modern church has lost sight of the reason for its existence.

Acts 2:42 tells us that from the first day of the first church the first believers knew exactly why they were there. It began with them “…continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching…” They devoted themselves!

Devotion to the Word of God and a heartfelt desire to hear it preached and taught are two of the marks of genuine salvation. Do you love the Word of God? Such love is one of the ways that you can know you are a Christian.
John 8:31-32
31 Jesus therefore was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;
32 and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

It seems obvious that a Christian church would consist of Christians. Yet that is not always the case. Entire churches and even entire church-planting movements exist for the purpose of building churches where non-Christians can be made comfortable. In such places it is very unlikely that the reality of their lost condition will be addressed. Neither will their sin be confronted. And the preaching of judgment and hell will be avoided like the plague.

May Lighthouse never become such a place! Let me be as clear as I can. The lost will al-ways be warmly welcomed in this church. Turning non-Christians away is as great a disser-vice to them as not telling them the truth when they do visit. But when they hear the Word of God preached, when they see how we love each other, and when they hear our prayers, I do not want them to be comfortable at all. I want them to be uncomfortable! I want them to be convicted of their sin, and their need for repentance, forgiveness, and a Savior.

Ask yourself this: What good is a church that strives to present itself in such a way that unbelievers are made to feel comfortable in their lost condition? Listen to the Apostle Paul as he speaks to a church that is filled with believers.
*1 Thessalonians 1:2-4, 8-10
2 We give thanks to God always for all of you, making mention of you in our prayers;
3 constantly bearing in mind your work of faith and labor of love and steadfast-ness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ in the presence of our God and Father,
4 knowing, brethren beloved by God, His choice of you…

8 For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you, not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but also in every place your faith toward God has gone forth, so that we have no need to say anything.
9 For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God,
10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come.

Do you detect any compromise in the church at Thessalonica? Do Paul’s words sound like he is speaking to a church that has been infiltrated and contaminated by unbelief? Of course not! But now listen to Jesus as He speaks to the church at Pergamum, a church that has been infiltrated and contaminated by unbelief.
*Revelation 2:14-16
14 “…I have a few things against you, because you have there some who hold the teaching of Balaam, who kept teaching Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit acts of immorality.
15 “Thus you also have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nico-laitans. (compromising with sexual immorality)
16 “Repent therefore; or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of My mouth.”

In Acts 2 we see that the first church was not at all like the church that would develop in Per-gamum; it was like the church that would develop in Thessalonica. The difference is easy to see, isn’t it? Pergamum was willing to compromise; Thessalonica was not. Why? Because the church at Thessalonica was devoted “to the apostles’ teaching.” (back to Acts 2:42)

What did the apostles teach? Certainly they taught the OT truths and prophecies that pointed to Christ, but they also taught the truths that they would later write down – the NT. Anyone who has been here for a while knows that we are committed to teaching the Word of God. “To Know God’s Word…To Do God’s Will.” But you can’t obey God if you don’t know what he expects of you. And you can’t know what God expects of you if you don’t know what He has said. Here is just some of what the apostles said about the Word they taught…
1 Timothy 4:16
16 Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things; for as you do this you will insure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you.
2 Timothy 2:2
2 And the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witness-es, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
2 Timothy 4:1-2
1 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom;
2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke,
exhort, with great patience and instruction.
1 Peter 2:2
2 …like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.

I’m reminded of a verse in Hosea. It speaks directly to the Jews, but the principle applies to all believers. It says, “My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6).” Oh, how we need to know God’s Word! (back to Acts 2:42)

Not only was the first church devoted to God’s Word, it was also devoted to fellowship and the breaking of bread. “Fellowship” is the Greek word “kŏinōnia.” It’s another mark of a true church. It can be seen in how Christians band together and share the things that mean the most to them. It doesn’t mean that we condone everything everyone says or does, but it does mean that we love our brothers and sisters in Christ. The reason is simple: Our Lord and Savior loves them.

Our love for each other is another one of the ways we can know that we are truly saved. John says, “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the breth-ren (1 John 3:14).” You might think of this fellowship, this “kŏinōnia” as a visible example of our “horizontal relationships.” It’s how we connect and commit to one another.

Then there is how we connect and commit to Christ. You might think of the Lord’s Supper, “the breaking of bread” as a visible example of our “vertical relationship” with Him. In fact, the word “communion” is translated from the same Greek word “kŏinōnia.” When we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, we are meeting together at the foot of the cross. We are sharing and we are communing with each other and with Jesus Himself.

Such fellowship, such communion can only exist among true believers. I would suggest to you that nothing else we do in the church illustrates our relationship with each other and our shared relationship with Christ more clearly, more visibly, and more forcefully than “the breaking of bread.” It speaks of a unity that the lost world cannot know.
1 Corinthians 10:16-17
16 Is not the cup of blessing which we bless a sharing in the blood of Christ? Is not the bread which we break a sharing in the body of Christ?
17 Since there is one bread, we who are many are one body; for we all partake of the one bread. (back to Acts 2:42)

The first church immersed itself in God’s Word and in fellowship with Christ and each other.
And it did something else – it prayed! It was deeply and regularly engaged in prayer. They believed Jesus when He said…
John 14:13-14
13 “And whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.
14 “If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.”
Is Jesus saying that He is some sort of celestial vending machine – you just drop you request in the slot and out pops you favorite candy? Absolutely not! What He is saying is that when you pray according to His will – not yours – when you ask Him for what He wants for you, then you may be assured that He will do it. “All right,” you say, “But how am I supposed to know what He wants for me?” Let me answer that question with three others.
• Are you in His Word and are you learning it?
• Are you regularly fellowshipping with Him and your brothers and sisters in Christ?
• Are you praying and asking for His guidance and direction in your life?

In other words, are you growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ? If the answer to those questions is, “No,” then I have two more questions for you.
• Why would you expect Him to reveal His will to you?
• Why would you expect Him to do what you want if you don’t even know what He wants?

Even though we do not have a regularly scheduled weekly prayer service, we have become a praying church. I know that some of you meet together for prayer. We often pray with each other over the phone. And I know that you pray when Uschi sends out a prayer request for various situations as they arise. That’s all good. Let me urge you to keep it up. And don’t forget that our prayers will be answered when we seek God’s will for our lives.

During the Civil War a young Confederate soldier wrote…
“I asked God for strength, that I might achieve;
I was made weak, that I may humbly learn to obey.
I asked God for health, that I may do greater things;
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.
I asked for riches, that I may be happy;
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.
I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.
I asked for all things that I might enjoy all things.
I got nothing I asked for but everything I hoped for.
I am, among all men, most richly blessed.”

A strong and healthy Christian is a praying Christian, and a strong and healthy church is a praying church. So the Christians in the first church devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching. They devoted themselves to fellowship with their Lord and each other. And they devoted themselves to prayer. What were the results of their devotion?
*Acts 2:43
43 And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were
taking place through the apostles.

The word “awe” is “phŏbŏs” from which we get the word “phobia,” meaning fear or terror. This is the fear of God in all of its holiness and reverence. The point is that the first church knew and understood that the wonders and signs the apostles were performing in their midst were proof of God exercising His power in order to accomplish His purposes.

In the weeks and months to come, this holy awe of God would been seen again and again as the Lord, through Peter, would heal a lame man in Acts 3, a paralyzed man in Acts 9, and later in that same chapter, would raise Dorcas from the dead.

God still performs miracles. The Holy Spirit who was with Peter, and later with Paul, is the same Holy Spirit who accompanies the preaching of the gospel today. Does anyone think that changing a spiritually dead sinner into a child of God is any less a miracle than those performed by the apostles in the first century?
*Acts 2:44-47a
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 And 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…
47a …praising God, and having favor with all the people.

In v. 44 being together and having everything in common is not communal living. Rather, it is an example of the outworking of “kŏinōnia,” of true Christian fellowship and the love of the brethren. The believers in the first church shared a spiritual unity in Christ, and they shared a caring and nurturing relationship with each other.

In v. 45 the selling of property and possessions was not a pooling of their individual wealth into a common pot. Rather, it was each one’s sacrificial giving in order to care for every other one’s specific needs. Some liberal theologians insist that these verses teach an early form of communism, but that simply isn’t true. The apostles neither had, nor did they exer-cise, any authority to demand anyone give anything. These believers gave voluntarily and they gave solely based on the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

By the way, tithing is one of the OT standards for giving. Tithing was not voluntary – it was required. But the giving described here in Acts 2:45 reflects the NT standard for giving.
2 Corinthians 9:7
7 Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver.

In Acts 2:46-47a the Christians in the first church shared more than their material wealth. They were united together with one mind so that when they came together for worship, they reveled in their common bond with the Lord.
Even when they weren’t “at church,” they spent time together enjoying the Lord’s Supper in their homes and taking other meals together whenever possible. The first church was filled with the joy of the Lord.

The end of v. 46 and the beginning of v. 47 tell us that this joy manifested itself in gladness, sincerity (or a “singleness”) of heart, and praise. “Gladness” is translated from a Greek word that means good cheer and delight. They loved each other. So it’s no surprise that they were praising God, is it? Furthermore, it should be no surprise that v. 47 also says that, at least in the beginning, these Christians found favor with all men. The persecution would eventually come. However, when it was born, the church began its life by proving Jesus’ words…
John 13:35
35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

And so the first church grew spiritually and prospered. It grew because the believers in it “…were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. The first church was alive if ever a church was so. And the results were easy to see.
*Acts 2:47b
And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.
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IV. Conclusion
Shouldn’t it be the goal of each and every one of us here at Lighthouse to be a church like the first church? Shouldn’t it be the desire of our hearts to have a church that the Lord adds to continually? Is there any greater joy than seeing someone come to saving faith and join with us?

This is what the true Church of Jesus Christ does: It preaches and teaches the Word of God, it has intimate fellowship with Jesus and with each other, and it prays. As I said at the beginning, it’s not complicated, but sadly, it is all too rare.

Yet when the church is obedient and follows the Lord’s instructions, He adds to it “those who are being saved.” He has been doing that for two thousand years, and He still is. Do you need proof of that? Just look around you. What a truly wonderful and awesome God we serve!

~ Pray ~