In the Church and within every local congregation, I have a theory that there are very rarely real shortages in resources.  Instead what I’ve witnessed is a lack of resolve to share what we have – each one of us – our time, our talent, and our treasure.

I’ve witnessed firsthand how needs get met, problems get solved, and obstacles are overcome when those who are in the room begin to open their hearts, minds, and hands – deliberately sharing insights, surrendering talents, investing their own resources in some cause!  

I’ve seen firsthand the surprising and miraculous ways God sustains a community committed to sharing and taking care of one another!  There are no leftovers and none left out!   One’s abundance is for another’s lack so there is equity!

I know such talk can make some of us nervous, since we are so often preoccupied with our own goods, but hear me when I say that there is rarely a lack when we learn to share!

This is the witness of the first Church.  Are we paying attention?

⁴⁴ And all who believed were together and had all things in common. ⁴⁵ And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.  

Acts 2:44-45

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

I have always wondered what the tipping point was for the early Church.  When did things shift from being about praying together, praising God, teaching, and caring for one another?

When did we allow the weight of our programs, our proclivities, and our property to displace God’s plans, God’s purposes, and God’s promises?

I think when we prioritize private, personal faith over the public practice of faith that demands compassion and justice, we lose our point of reference.

This is when subtle idolatry of individualism and selfishness erode the relationships that form the beloved community that the Church is supposed to be.  When we  cease to have all things in common, we inevitably  descend  into competition and comparison that breeds not only conflict but contempt. 

We may do well to remember this simple phrase that marked the attitude and atmosphere that permeated the first Church: 

⁴⁴ And all who believed were together and ^fhad all things in common.

Acts 2:44

Our ancestors understood this when they said things like, “I am because WE are… and because WE are, therefore, I am…”  

Good Morning, I love you all!

Ihs,

just adam

There’s no doubt that we have complicated and convoluted the simplicity of the Gospel with our attempts to make it ‘cool’ or keep it relevant. And as a result, the Church, rather than being God’s idea, has become our own.

The Church is a virtual vending machine of options presented to the world where all that is required is an appetite.

So,rather than holding to the simple teachings of Christ (the apostle’s teaching), we invent and edit our own. We waver at every whim and wish dream that arises and contort ourselves into a caricature of who we are supposed to be.

We surrender sacred traditions and spiritual disciplines for trends that delight for a season but are as transient as technology.

We abandon grace and community when we disagree with one another, we dilute our strength by dividing ourselves over doctrines that God didn’t intend. We mistake uniformity for unity and miss opportunity for the creative and constructive critique that enables growth and resilience.

We call swelling growth, and call crowds congregations, while neglecting again the simplicity of the Gospel and how we live it out faithfully…

We have the witness of scripture and the gift of the Holy Spirit as our guide… How about we listen?

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
Acts 2:42

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,
just adam

When I consider the simplicity of Jesus’ teaching, I laugh at the lengths to which we go (preachers and church folks) trying to make the Gospel catchy or provocative.

When you think about it, Jesus’ story and teachings are actually pretty good, pretty compelling, without us trying to dress them up, huh?

Once upon a time before I learned to cook a good steak, I was often guilty of overcooking and overdressing it. If you have never had a well-prepared steak, it’s understandable that you might reach for some steak sauce or ketchup. Oh, but when you have a good one, you realize you don’t need it – just a little seasoning to accentuate what is already there!

When the Church was in its infancy, it was the simplicity of Jesus’ teaching through the power of the Holy Spirit that nourished and nudged them toward growth…

It was their embrace of the Gospel and their struggle and study to understand it, while expressing it faithfully and practically, that inspired their growth…

Oh, that we might possess such a passion for the message of Jesus and the power of the Gospel.

This type of devotion, even among church folks, seems so rare…

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching…

Acts 2:42a

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

We are often mistaken, I think, when we imagine what unity looks and sounds like.  Our mind too frequently goes to envisioning uniformity and monotony.

At the Pentecost we encounter the very opposite.  Yes, the disciples – women and men – are all gathered in the same place, for the same reason, and on one accord, but this crowd is anything but uniform, and they are certainly not monotonous! Have you read the Gospels? 

It must not be forgotten that the crowd outside the upper room was perhaps even more diverse! From all over the known world, Jews from the diaspora were gathered. But because of the deliberate unity of the disciples and the ensuing outpouring of the Holy Spirit, each of these pilgrims was addressed in their native language. Wow!

When God’s people deliberately gather, and devote themselves to prayer, the Holy Spirit demonstrates an amazing power that draws those outside closer… Get that?

When God’s people deliberately gather, and devote themselves to prayer – this unity becomes the pretext to a powerful witness that allows those present to hear God speak in ways they can understand!  

What amazing grace, and awesome power, what compassion the Father shows us through Christ and the Spirit – that God would draw near to us and speak to us in ways we can understand!

Oh, that we may become Christ’s witnesses!

And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.  

Acts 2:6 

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

At Pentecost, the disciples were all gathered together in one place, on one accord, devoting themselves to prayer while they waited on the promise of the Father.

Fifty days after Jesus’ Resurrection, and ten days after His Ascension, the Spirit descended with the sound of rushing wind and holy fire and filled the house.  

And then in a demonstration of spontaneous order, everyone in the house was filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages!

Everyone in the house was filled. Everyone.

Imagine that. The entire assembly was filled and empowered by the Spirit to do something that none of them was equipped to do on their own.  Did you catch that?

Everyone was filled, everyone spoke, and everyone operated in order… wow!

Typically, when I read about the Pentecost, I typically get caught up on the power of the Holy Spirit, or the mystery of tongues.  As I read more closely, however, I am intrigued by the awesome miracle of spontaneous order, the overwhelming absence of confusion, and the amazing distribution of spiritual power demonstrated by everyone in the room.

This is what can happen when God’s people choose to be together, choose something bigger than themselves, pray together, and then wait on the LORD…

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.  

Acts 2:4

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

The Holy Spirit (5)

After Jesus told His disciples to go and wait – to stay in the city until they received the promise of Father – the disciples obeyed Him.

So they went and waited, and while they waited they were together praying. 

Sadly, in our times and for many of us, prayer is dismissed as either doing nothing or as an act of desperation – a last resort. 

But prayer is one of the ways we prepare our hearts for what is to come!  Prayer is a prerequisite to the promise of the Father – the power of God to be who we were created to be, and to carry out the plans He has set before us!

The magnitude of the mission before them would require more than excitement and emotion  – they would need more than adrenaline and activities ! 

While we are waiting for our help to arrive, or discerning what’s next for ourselves , we needn’t neglect to devote ourselves to prayer – AND – we don’t isolate ourselves. 

Power and help are on the way!

All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.  

Acts 1:14

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam