Acts 2:41–47; Hebrews 10:23–25

Bible Studies for Life
Chair and Armstrong Professor of Religion, Department of Religion, Samford University

Life Together
Acts 2:41–47; Hebrews 10:23–25
The story of the church in Jerusalem is filled with a vibrancy that often seems remote from the 21st century. The one theme that occurs over and over again in these verses is that of commitment and community. We discover that the members believed, were baptized and devoted themselves to the apostles teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread and the prayers. Their lives found refreshment in their encounter with the life of the Spirit. This is what Christianity is all about. The living, risen Jesus still changes lives when people “believe” and commit their lives to Him in and through the life of the local church.

Commitment to Christ (Acts 2:41)
Over the years, one of the greatest privileges I have had is baptizing a whole variety of people who have come to living faith in Jesus Christ. Many of those people have been young. Michael, the very first person I baptized, was 13. But others have not been so young. Mrs. Biggar and her friend were in their 80s. Then there was Margaret, a young mother who had such a fear of water that she had never been able to even go to the salon to have her hair washed, but she was determined to be baptized. They had all experienced God’s love filling their lives and longed to express their faith by committing themselves to their Lord and living out their faith in the community of His family.

Commitment to the Community (Acts 2:42–47)
The church members’ commitment to Christ was linked to their commitment to the life of the Christian community, and they therefore “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers.” Baptists are people who love to study the Bible, seek to understand it and live their lives according to its teachings. When the early Anabaptists met in Zurich, Switzerland, Conrad Grebel wrote, “After we took Scripture in hand, too, and consulted it on many points, we have been instructed somewhat.”  

Churches live and grow by God’s Word; they wilt without it. Baptists have followed the old Reformation principle of “freedom of access to the Scriptures and freedom of interpretation of the Scriptures,” believing in the priesthood of the believers seeking to understand more and more of the Bible.

Linked to the study and preaching of Scripture is a strong focus on fellowship, even to the extent of sharing our possessions with one another, according to perceived need. As Christians and churches, we are called by Christ to have hearts set on fire by the spiritual needs of those who are lost (without Him) and filled with love for the physical and emotional needs of a world that is hungry, poor and homeless.

These church members also gave themselves to the “breaking of bread,” a phrase that relates to sharing Communion, taking bread and wine in the context of worship, being spiritually nurtured through a remembrance of all that God has done in and through Christ’s death and resurrection. Rather than this being an event that was infrequently celebrated, the New Testament suggests that the early church celebrated Communion on a regular basis, rejoicing in each opportunity to be moved by the wonder of the cross.

The members also were sustained by prayer. Prayer was the church’s lifeblood, and over and over again, we find the church in the place of prayer, crying to God to pour out His Spirit upon its evangelistic activities and bring men and women into an experience of His love. No wonder a church so focused on Scripture, fellowship, worship and prayer discovered that “day by day, the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.”

Considering Others (Heb. 10:23–25)
One of the great dangers of being a Christian is that we become so consumed with our own spiritual development that we forget what the Christian life is all about — thinking of and serving others. Every time we neglect the life of the Church, we neglect the needs of our sisters and brothers in Christ. In meeting together for worship and fellowship, we are given the opportunity to “provoke one another to love and good deeds.”