THRIVING
CHURCH
Acts
2:42-47
Introduction: A
recent Pew foundation research suggests that mainline Protestant churches in
the U.S. continue to experience decades-long decline, while the memberships of
Pentecostal traditions are on the rise, according to new figures compiled by
the National Council of Churches.[1]
Another discouraging statistic. Sadly, only 28% of younger Americans between 23
and 37 attend churches. Other generations range between 43% and 52%. This is a
significant drop in generational attendance and a large reason why many
churches are seeing a decline in attendance. The cause is because churches are
having a hard time changing with the needs of younger generations.[2] Have
you wondered why we see the decrease in Protestant Mainline Churches and what
is causing growth among the Pentecostals?
The
trend of growth and decline is normal in the life cycle of any Church. In the
life of any church there is a time for growth, and at some point, it reaches
its peak and then plateaus. Any Church which merely exists, for the sake of
existing soon will start to decline, but when radical steps are taken and change is introduced
that church will begin to thrive and grow.
While many reasons can be attributed to the decline, only
one reason can be stated for growth, it is the work of the Holy Spirit. Where
the Holy Spirit is honored, respected and given prominence there we see both
qualitative and quantitative growth. The Holy Spirit was at work in the
early Church in Jerusalem, so the Church grew in numbers. If we want to see Hope
Church thrive and grow, and become impactful, what radical changes are we ready
to make? I title this message, “THRIVING CHURCH.” Acts 2:42-47
Before we look into the early church Model, let’s
understand our vision statement; Glorifying God by becoming devoted followers
of Christ a few weeks ago we looked at. The early Church understood
what Glorifying God means both personally and corporately together as a church.
They followed a few principles that were inspired by the Holy Spirit fervently.
Acts
Chapter two, begins with the fulfilment of a 9th century BC prophecy
of Joel, “Then afterward I will pour out my spirit on all flesh; your sons and
your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young
men shall see visions. Even on the male and female slaves, in those days, I
will pour out my spirit.” Joel 2:28-29.
As
promised, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended upon a group of
120 disciples, and several thousands of on lookers from all over the world.
That day changed the history of the world forever. Under the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter
preached a powerful sermon and 3000 people were saved and got baptized. That
was the First Church in Jerusalem. For our study we will call this Church, “The
Acts 2 Church.”
In
my study I noticed five guiding principles that guided the Acts 2 Church. My
prayer is that Hope Church will apply those principles if we want to become
relevant and fruitful in today’s world. They are: 1. Discipleship 2 God exalting
Worship. 3.Connecting through Fellowship 4. Serving the Community. 5.
Evangelism.
I. DISCIPLESHIP:
Vs 42
It
must have been very fresh in the disciple’s mind, the mandate of Christ to, “Go
and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have
commanded you.” Matthew 28:19.
So,
from the day one the early church took discipleship very seriously. Vs 42,
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and prayer.” The new believers were eager to hear, learn and
grow from the apostles and their teaching. It was an individual choice and no
one forced it upon them. It was not a one-time event but an intentional,
ongoing discipleship program which is still going on in many churches. The
early believers were devoted to the teachings of the “Apostles” The word
apostle here was referring to the twelve disciples that Jesus designated the
term apostle (Mk 3:14) later on Paul was also included in the list. The early
Apostles still speak to us through their teachings in the NT.
Here
at Hope Church I am happy to share that we take discipleship seriously. We want
all our members to grow in the knowledge of God’s word. We have a committed team
of teachers, every Sunday teach Bible times, for men, women, children, and
teens. This past week I was delighted to get a call from one of my lost disciples.
“He went to through a real tough time, stopped reading the bible and attending
the church. He told me, pastor one day I was desperate, and I picked up my
Bible, and there I found a one-year reading plan you gave me, I began to read
it, now I am at the 90th day. Bible reading is giving me strength to
face the challenges of each day. Now I want to study the Bible again with other
believers.”
That
is the power of God’s word. The word of God is life giving, it reveals God’s
plan for our lives, and it gives us strength to face the attacks of the enemy. Jesus
knew God’s word and used is wisely against the devil. He urged his disciples not
to live by the earthly food alone but by every word that proceeded from the
mouth of God. The early Church was devoted to the teachings of the apostle,
prayer, fellowship and God exalting worship.
II. GOD EXALTING
WORSHIP:
Vs
46, “Day by day, as they spent much time together in the temple…. praising God. In our recent study we learned that, a
healthy disciple is the one who engages wholeheartedly in meaningful,
God-focused worship experiences on a weekly basis with the family of God.
Talking
about true worship to the Samaritan woman Jesus explains what kind of worship
blesses God’s heart, “when the true worshipers will worship the Father in
spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. John 4:33 There
is something powerful that happens when believers come together and engage in
God-exalting Worship. In the early Church the believers went to the temple to
worship God on a daily basis.
In
this time and age going to church every day may not possible, but can we give
one day the first day of the week, Sunday to the Lord? In the N.T Church, the
disciples would gather on the first day of the week for worship, and for breaking
of bread. “On the first day of the week, when we met to break bread,” Acts 20:7
They would also take up offerings every week. “Now concerning the collection
for the saints: you should follow the directions I gave to the churches of
Galatia. On the first day of every week, each of you is to put aside and save
whatever extra you earn, so that collections need not be taken when I come.” I
Corinthians 16:1-2.
We
are living in the last days. Many people’s love for the Lord is growing cold, due
to the increase of wickedness in our world. The only way we combat this
Luke-warmness is by being committed to a church where we come to worship. Paul
writing to Hebrews, emphasizes the need for a regular gathering of the saints.
“Let
us hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who has
promised is faithful. And let us consider how to provoke one another to love
and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but
encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
Hebrews 10:23-25. Let’s honor our Sabbath rest. I strongly urge you to make it
a habit of attending church every Sunday. Let’s show our friends and neighbors we
are the followers of Christ and we go to church on Sundays to worship and
fellowship with fellow believers. Let’s together build a strong worshipping
community.
III.
CONNECTING THROUGH FELLOWSHIP
Vs 42 & 46, “They devoted
themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship…Day by day, as they spent much
time together in the temple, they broke bread at home and ate their food with
glad and generous (sincere) hearts. The Greek word for fellowship Koinonia means:
To have fellowship with, participation in communion, arms-giving etc. The
essential meaning of koinonia embraces concepts of community, communion, joint
participation, sharing and intimacy. Koinonia can therefore refer in some
contexts to a jointly contributed gift. The word appears 19 times in the Greek
New Testament.[3]
To
put it in simple words. The early disciples loved to hang out together.
Whenever they came together, they took part in communion and ate their meals
with gladness and sincere hearts. In other words, there were no fake relationships,
the early disciples genuinely enjoyed one another’s company. They connected
with each other through fellowship.
For
the past eight weeks, we have practiced a form of Koinonia at Hope
Church. We met Wednesday nights in our Life Groups, over a simple supper.
Different ones prepared meals, we ate together, worshipped, studied from the
word and prayed. That is what a Christian community ought to be. There is
strength, when we connect with each other through our fellowship.
IV. SERVING THE
COMMUNITY
Vs
45, “they would sell their possessions and goods and distribute the proceeds to
all, as any had need.” The early disciples served to meet the needs of their
own community and also the needs of the larger community. Voluntarily they sold
their possessions, goods, lands and brought the money and laid it at the
apostle’s feet, and they in turn distributed to anyone who was in need. The
poor and the needy in the community were taken care by the generosity of the
believers. What ways can you serve Hope Church community and the community of Sharon?
V.
EVANGELISM:
Vs
47, “praising God and having the goodwill of all the people. And day by day the
Lord added to their number those who were being saved.” Though this verse
doesn’t directly talk about Evangelism, sharing the good news of our Lord Jesus
Christ the early Church was very intentional about Evangelism. The goal of their
discipleship, worship, connecting through fellowship, and the acts of service
was to lead people to Christ. As they lived out their Christian faith
intentionally, day by day the Lord added to their number those who were being
saved.
I
see here a powerful model of Evangelism. We often think, evangelism is only
done when we go out and preach the gospel to a crowd of people or go to door to
door distributing literature. Unfortunately, the times have changed where that
type of evangelism is not welcomed in our society. Under such circumstances,
how do we evangelize people? Last week we were encouraged by Ken Milhous, that ministry
is all about, building relationships. It may be a slow and laborious process,
but it can produce lasting results. I
see this kind of evangelism happening all the time in the New Testament.
Consider
this model: Jesus, reached out to Andrew, Andrew went out and reached out to
Simon Peter and we know from the Acts 2 account, Peter preached the gospel and
3000 people were saved. They in turn went out and reached others. Many in the
world are craving for love and human touch. It’s our job to reach out and touch
people with God’s love. Let me reiterate the five guiding principles in
closing: Discipleship 2 God exalting Worship. 3.Connecting through Fellowship
4. Serving the Community. 5. Evangelism.
If
we want to take Hope Church to the next level of growth and see it thrive what
changes are we willing to make? My prayer for Hope Church is that we will
continue to excel in the above mentioned five aspects of ministry, and trust the
Lord to give us the increase. Amen
