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A famous statement in the bible proclaims “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever.” (Hebrews 13:8) For those of us who believe in Him these are powerful and encouraging words. So no matter how discouraging local and world events may seem, He is yet at work in this world and among His people. It has become my conviction that the Hand of God can be seen by those who look for and are expecting Him. He is at work in places and in situations that I may never see. I am thankful that my limitations do not limit Him!
You may have heard this saying: “The largest room in the world is the room for improvement.” By asking the question, “What can we learn from the First Century Church,” I am suggesting that with all of our progress over the past 2,000 years, there might be a great amount of room for improvement in Christian circles. Even Paul, the apostle of Christ sought to put the past behind him and press forward in His pursuit of Christ. (Philippians 4:13-14). How can we so easily settle for less of Him?
At times I have read some of our modern customs and practices into the stories in the book of Acts. Only when I saw how some of these customs and practices created problems, did I go back and re-read the story. I was amazed and shocked to find that many of my traditions are simply not there. Don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting that we today can or should precisely reproduce everything we see in Acts. I am suggesting that we can learn valuable lessons — not only can but should learn from them. That I believe is the very reason the Holy Spirit inspired Luke to write this book!
Acts opens with the last few days that Jesus had with His disciples after His resurrection. Just as it was during the entire last 3 1/2 years of His life and ministry, His concern was things pertaining to the Kingdom of God. (Acts 1:3). Then, before He was taken up into a cloud, He commanded them to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Holy Spirit. (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4) The entire book of Acts could be summed up in these final words:
“And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power, but you shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth. (Acts 1:7-8)
He had already reminded them of what John the Baptist told them. John came baptizing in water but Jesus would baptize them in the Holy Ghost and fire! Here was the reason for this baptism, this emersion in the Holy Spirit. It was to empower them to live as He lived, bearing witness to His resurrection by lives that show what God intended for us from the beginning!
Everything that follows in the 28 chapters of Acts could only be made possible by the power of the indwelling Spirit of God! They waited until 50 days after the Passover, and the power of the Holy Spirit came. Soon afterwards a great number of hearts were turned to Christ!
In this a principle was established. Jesus would no longer be physically present with His followers, but He would lead them just the same. The key to their success was in their obedience to Him. In Acts and throughout the bible we find examples of people who did not trust in their own abilities but in the mysterious guidance of the Holy Spirit. Lord help us to remember their examples every day, as well as those of the multitudes who up to our day have through faith seen your wonders performed in Your Name.
The church in the book of Acts did not have telephones or the printing press, let alone radio, tv and the internet. Yet after Jesus ascended their numbers grew from the 120 that gathered in Jerusalem to 5,000 in a short time. Within 3 centuries Christianity became a dominant force in the Roman Empire. God has often chosen to use the few and the weak according to this world. He has also chosen to use you in a special capacity that belongs to you alone!
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