Hearts Aflame: A Passion for Church … Acts 2:42-47
This evening we are turning to one of the most
that’s where church can make a mega difference –
significant chapters in the Bible – yes, it’s all about
when we have tasted and seen that the Lord is good,
Pentecost, the day the church as we know it came into
we’re all on the same footing. You’re no better than
being. She certainly wasn’t born with a whimper, she
me and I’m no worse than you. We’re family, we’re
was birthed with a bang. And two millennia later, the
friends.
church goes marching on. One day, in the unfolding
Church isn’t for Lone Ranger believers, it’s not a
purpose of God, when the trumpet sounds, the church
motley crew of individualists; when our hearts have
militant will become the church triumphant.
been captured by grace, this is our God-given support
When we talk about ‘church’ it’s obvious that a lot of
system.
people have a lot of different ideas – some see it as
A pastor went to see a man who didn’t attend church
bricks and mortar, tall spires, stained glass windows,
very faithfully. The man was sitting before a fire,
padded oak pews, the smell of incense, and all that.
watching the warm glow of the coals. It was a cold
But that’s not how the New Testament sees ‘church’.
winter day, but the coals were red hot, and the fire was
According to Paul and Doctor Luke, here in Acts, you
warm. The pastor pleaded with the man to be more
can have a church and not have a building! You see,
faithful in meeting with the people of God, but the man
‘church’ is people – a community of real people,
didn’t seem to be getting the message.
people like you and me. Ordinary folks who are
So the pastor took the tongs beside the fireplace,
bonded together by faith in Jesus Christ.
pulled open the screen, and reached in and began to
If you’ve ever been to California, you’ll know that one
separate all the coals. When none of the coals was
of the most amazing sights is the huge redwood trees.
touching the others, he stood and watched in silence.
They are the tallest trees in the world. Some of them
In a little while, they were all cold … the man got the
are 300 feet high and more than 2500 years old.
message.
That’s some height and some age! You would think
That’s why at the end of Acts 2 we are encouraged to
that trees that large would have a tremendous root
have a passion for church, a contagious zeal for the
system, reaching down hundreds of feet into the earth.
fellowship of believers. You see, when we talk about
I have to tell you, they don’t!
church, we should be really excited and enthusiastic;
They actually have a very shallow root system –
there’s nothing else on earth quite like it! And,
however, their roots are intertwined. They are tied in
wonder of wonders, all because of amazing grace, you
with each other, they are interlocked. So, when the
and I are part and parcel of it.
storms come and the winds blow, the redwoods still
The challenge we all face today is this: how can a good
stand. Their unique root system means that they
church become a great church? I believe Luke gives
support and sustain each other.
us ten traits that mark a top-of-the-range assembly, and
The bottom line, they need one another to survive …
they’re all here in Acts 2. What we have here then is a
and so do we! We can’t do without each other, we’re
picture of ‘church’ as God says it should be. A church
in it together. And, that’s what church is all about!
painted with vivid and vibrant colours.
There’s something in all of us that needs to feel a sense
One, it was a saved church. The people we’re talking
of belonging, the need to be a part of something, the
about here are those who said ‘yes’ to Jesus Christ.
need to experience mutual care and concern. I reckon
They responded to Peter’s preaching in a big way, we
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read about them in verse 41. Not only were they
they shared in their common experiences of joy and
wonderfully saved, they were baptised; so from Day
deep sorrow and they shared with one another their
One they were willing to nail their colours to the mast.
material gifts and words of love and encouragement.
They were happy to be identified as followers of Jesus.
So, we share in, and we share out!
It seems to me these new converts were introduced to a
Their fellowship was an expression of vibrant
whole new world – a world of new friends, new
Christianity in action. It was spontaneous. That’s why
relationships, new challenges, a new lifestyle; it was
Paul focuses so often on the ‘one anothers’ in the Bible
all new, but nothing that they and God couldn’t handle
– we are to pray for, care for, love, support, honour,
together.
live in harmony with, edify, encourage, accept, greet,
We see the genuineness of their faith because Luke
serve, bear with, forgive, consider, live in peace with,
tells us ‘they devoted themselves’ – these folk not only
offer hospitality to, be humble with …
started out well, they kept on going. Despite the
Four, it was a Christ-centred church. Luke refers in
hassles they faced, in spite of the opposition they
verse 42 to the breaking of bread, they celebrated the
encountered, they plodded on – they continued; they
Lord’s Supper and they did it as often as they could.
were extremely keen to avail themselves of the means
That enabled them to keep their hearts and minds
of grace.
focused on Jesus. When we do gather around the table
Two, it was a biblical church. I love this about them,
to remember the Lord, it’s a kind of spiritual therapy
here was a people who loved the word of God.
for burdened souls; we are surrounded with the love of
Teaching heads the list in verse 42 – it was teaching
Christ, and it restores our sense of purpose.
from the heart of the Old Testament, teaching from the
We all too quickly forget, hence the need to be
words of Jesus; that was their staple diet. It’s what the
reminded over and over again. It was the cross that
apostles fed the brand new converts for they were just
made a difference in our lives. Again, it’s a powerful
so hungry; they were thirsting after God. The
reminder that the ground is level at Calvary – we’re
preachers gave them truth in bite-size chunks,
only able to eat and drink because of our Saviour. The
something they could sink their teeth into.
cross tells me that church isn’t about me, it’s all about
In some circles, the proclamation of God’s word may
Jesus.
be out of fashion, but I tell you, it is not out of date. It
Five, it was a praying church. They prayed! Read the
has to be said that there is no substitute for a rich
book! And, you know, things happen when God’s
biblical ministry, a ministry that is solidly based on the
people pray! Don’t ask me how prayer works, I just
plain truth of Scripture. The principle is this: the Spirit
know that it does. Prayer is the slender nerve that
of God leads the people of God to submit to the Word
moves the muscles of omnipotence. It seems to me
of God. The big question is, do we have a heart for
that the people in the early church prayed about
God and an unquenchable desire to hear his truth
anything and everything – it didn’t matter how little it
explained?
was, or how big it was, they prayed! And when they
Three, it was a fellowshipping church. There was a
did, they watched and waited for the answer to come.
sense of partnership in the church family – koinonia is
I believe the church that prays together is a church that
the Greek word; it comes from a root word that means
stays together. This is what the priesthood of believers
‘common’. It means the early Christians shared a
is all about – we have immediate access to the throne
commonality with one another based on their faith in
of grace, we can storm the gates of glory, we can take
Jesus Christ. That showed itself in a couple of ways:
all our cares and concerns to the Lord and leave them
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there. God loves it when we come to him like that.
realise the kingdom is bigger than any one of them so
The good news is, it’s not a dial up connection like an
they pull together; there’s a commitment to one
old BT phone line, this is broadband, 24/7. He’s only
another; you can see a depth in their interpersonal
a prayer away – when they prayed, they prayed for
relationships, nothing is too much trouble for them;
each other and they prayed with one another. That’s
there was a spirit of unity in their midst; they
what church is for!
genuinely cared for each other, we see that in their
Why is the prayer meeting usually the worst-attended
generosity. You can’t make people do it, they have to
meeting in the church? Can you explain that to me? It
want to do it. You can take a horse to the water, but
should be the powerhouse! It was said by Spurgeon
you can’t make it drink. But, in the right environment,
when someone asked him the reason for his successful
it just happens. It’s one of those God-things that can’t
ministry that he replied: ‘My people pray for me.’
be explained, but … neither can it be explained away!
Six, it was an inspirational church. This is what Luke
Eight, it was a joyful church. These people had great
describes so graphically in verse 43: ‘everyone was
times in the Lord’s presence. They were bubbling,
filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous
they were bright and cheery. There was quiet
signs were done by the apostles’ – what a fantastic
contemplation as they reflected on the cross, there
church that must have been! A place where the wind
were times when the mood was one of elation and
of God was blowing. It happened when they took on
celebration when they realised the Lord is risen. It’s
board the apostles’ teaching and applied it to their own
all there in verse 46b. It seems to me that the sound of
lives; it happened when they absorbed the ministry of
laughter was often heard in the early church – they
God’s precious Word.
knew how to have a good time.
The place was God-saturated. There was a real sense
One of the reasons why there was so much joy is
of God among them, an overwhelming realisation that
because Luke says their hearts were ‘sincere’. That
God was doing something truly special; there was an
word comes from the root word that means ‘smooth’
increased awareness that God was in it from start to
or ‘free from rocks’. The inference is that their
finish. One of those God-moments.
worship meetings were free from contentiousness,
Ah, the apostles pulled back the curtain and the people
there were no emotional rough edges. There were no
caught a glimpse of God’s brilliance, they felt it, they
stones of selfishness in their hearts. When we seek to
saw it; there were signs and wonders, but they were no
exalt the Lord and magnify our Saviour, there will be
more than God honouring his promise and confirming
joy; joy comes to those who give God glory.
his Word; at the end of the day, it appears that these
Nine, it was an attractive church. I think that’s the
very ordinary folk were swept off their feet with the
thought in Luke’s mind when he says in the middle of
sheer omnipotence of an awesome God. O yes, it was
verse 47 that they enjoy ‘the favour of all the people’.
inspirational, because they were conscious of the
These folks were far from perfect, they were flawed in
supernatural.
many ways, they had their ups and downs like the rest
Seven, it was a sharing church. This is the drift of
of us, but they were open and transparent, there was a
what Luke writes in verses 44-46a. I think this pays
warmth in their fellowship, there was reality in their
eloquent tribute to what happens when God’s people
faith, they were one in heart and mind – there was so
experience fellowship. It expresses itself in so many
much that commended them that people sat up and
different ways – they didn’t always see eye to eye but
took notice.
they had a love in their heart for each other; they
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Ten, it was a growing church. This is tremendous.
‘Then … why do you do it?’ asked the general. ‘Sir, I
‘And the Lord added to their number daily those who
do it because I want to be around guys who love to
were being saved.’ They were not shrinking at all;
jump!’
they were growing every day as more and more folk
I think that’s the secret … when it comes to church,
were trusting the Lord and joining hands with them.
it’s you and I being around people who love to jump!
This was real conversion growth. Here’s a church on
People with fire in their bones, people with passion – a
fire for Jesus. Yes, their faith was a day by day reality,
passion for change, a passion to see God turn the
not a once a week routine. What a phenomenal
ordinary into the extraordinary, a passion to see
blessing!
something good become something great; it’s young
Churches grow when people reach out, churches grow
and old with hearts aflame – we need people ignited by
when people pray and seek God’s face, churches grow
the fire of God’s Spirit.
when people put God first, churches grow when people
Here’s the mega challenge: ‘If every church member
love each other. It seems to me that churches grow
was just like me, what kind of church would my
when people have a passion for God and a passion for
church be?’ Only you can answer that! In light of
fellowship.
your response, are you willing to pray: ‘Lord, send the
There are three principles that emerge from this
fire, and let it fall on me!’
section: one, what God begins supernaturally must
operate supernaturally – in other words, let God be
God and let God do what he does best; two, when the
church functions in the Spirit, its ministry may be
unexplainable – it’s when we say with humility: ‘Hey,
buddy, I don’t know how it happened, but I know Who
did it!’; and number three, when the church ministers
with godly power, the results are undeniable.
Historians have preserved for us a resolution. It was
written and signed by all the builders of the famous
Seville Cathedral, built in Spain in 1401. It read: ‘Let
us build here a church so great that those who come
after us will think us mad to have ever dreamed of
building it.’ That’s the attitude we have right here at
the end of Acts 2!
The story is told of General William Westmoreland –
one day he was reviewing a platoon of paratroopers in
Vietnam. As he went down the line, he asked each of
them a question: ‘How do you like jumping, son?’ ‘I
love it, sir!’ was the first man’s answer. ‘How do you
like jumping?’ he asked the next. ‘The greatest
experience in my life, sir!’ exclaimed the paratrooper.
‘How do you like jumping?’ he asked the third. ‘I
absolutely hate it, sir. I don’t like it at all,’ he replied.
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