Growing churches are filled with people who are united
in their common goal to help each other get to Heaven
They are so busy doing the work of the Lord that they
have no time to waste in petty squabbles over things
that make no difference in regards to salvation
We need to get to Heaven, and we need to take a lot of
people with us, and as long as we continue to be loving
and peaceful brethren, we will continue to make a
difference in the world around us!
It helped that early church to keep on growing; will
help us as well.
A Growing Church
Please be turning to Acts...
I think all of us want to be a part of a growing church:
new people, excitement, activity…
Bible tells us about a growing church all throughout NT
book of Acts...

Acts 1:15; 2:41; 2:47; 4:4; 5:14
This morning I want for us to notice some things we can
readily see that contributed to that growth...
1. It was a growing church because it was a power-filled church.
3. It was a growing church because it was a praying church.
The early church was a church that was filled with the
Holy Spirit…

Acts 1:14, 24 (after Jesus / replacement for Judas)

Acts 4:31 (when threatened with persecution)

Acts 6:4-7 (when they needed servants)

Acts 14:23 (when they needed spiritual leaders)



Acts 1:8 They would receive power when the HS
came upon them
Acts 2, the HS came down upon the apostles, spoke
in languages never studied but understood, telling
people wonderful gospel message of Jesus Christ
Acts 2:38 we too receive gift of HS, not same
extreme miraculous measure, but still power and
strength to be and do as God desires

Ezekiel 37:24-27 (God wants His people to be holy)

Romans 8:6-14

Galatians 5:16-25
2. It was a growing church because it was a peaceful church.
Peace and unity in Lord's church is so important... Jesus
prayed for unity in John 17, that people would be one.
One of the reasons we see such great growth in the
early church is because we also see great unity in early
church...

Acts 2:44, 46; 4:32-33
I’m sure they had their disagreements at times
Remember from different places, diverse
backgrounds, cultures
Sure had different ideas about different things from
time to time
Didn’t let diversity keep from being loving and
peaceful brethren
Their peace, their unity, their working together
indeed helped grow
Christians today are not always as peaceful/united as
they should be…
There are congregations where fussing and bickering is
the norm
Places where personality differences cause problems,
people let trivial matters tear apart when ought to be
doing all pull together
When God’s people are prospering, it is always because
they are praying...
As Paul told the Thessalonians, we need to “Pray without
ceasing” (1 Thess 5:17).
As James, the brother of Jesus, said, “Draw near to God,
and He will draw near to you” (4:8).
4. The early church was growing church because proclaiming...
The Great Commission is recorded for us in Matthew
28:19-20, where Jesus said, “Go therefore and
teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,
teaching them to observe all things that I
commanded you; and lo, I am with you always,
even to the end of the age.”
The early church was a growing church because, first
and foremost, they went everywhere telling people the
good news about Jesus!
In Acts ch3, by the power of God, Peter + John had
healed a man who could not walk.
As result, a crowd gathered and Peter preached to them
about the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God
who sent His one and only Son Jesus, the One they had
crucified just a few weeks previous.
Then in ch4, Peter and John got thrown in jail for
proclaiming the gospel, and then were brought before
the Council.

Acts 4:18-20
“For we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen
and heard.”
That’s the real key...
when we are so filled with the love of Christ,
verwhelmed by the grace and mercy of God,
when this life in Him is everything to us...
Look at what Peter said in Acts 4:12…

the early church had a message of salvation

it had to be proclaimed

they knew had responsibility to be soul-winners;
even in persecution

V23-24a They had been commanded and threatened,
+ now prayed
Did they pray for comfort and safety so they could tell
people about Jesus without having to worry about being
threatened or thrown in jail?


Acts 4:29 “And now, Lord, take note of their threats,
and grant...”
Acts 5:18-19, 25, 27-29, 40-42; 6:7
That’s the secret to growing churches!
In spite of difficulties, the early Christians boldly
proclaimed the gospel. They were determined to be
soul-winners and so they worked harder and harder and
the church grew and grew.

Acts 8:3-4 (still being persecuted, now by a man
named Saul)
Today, sometimes it's difficult to proclaim the gospel; not
always popular, and we have a lot to compete with...
proclaiming the truth is never easy in the midst of a
world that is often more concerned with what
people want than what God wants
we need to be encouraged by example we find in the
early church
We too need to “go into all the world and preach the
gospel to all creation.”

Acts 8:5-6, 12 (need to be like Philip proclaiming)
Perhaps you’ve heard of Fritz Kreisler, the world-famous
violinist. He was born in Vienna Austria in 1875, and he
died in New York in 1962.
His extraordinary musical ability was discovered when
he was just 4 years old, and he was giving performances
starting at age 9. Throughout his lifetime, he earned a
fortune with his concerts and compositions, but he
generously gave most of it away.
One day, while on one of his many trips around the
world, he discovered an exquisite violin that he
desperately wanted to buy, but it was extremely
expensive. And so he started saving his money...
Finally he returned to the seller, hoping to purchase the
beautiful instrument. But to his great dismay it was too
late; it had already been sold to a collector. Kreisler
made his way to the new owner's home and offered to
buy the violin, but the collector said it had become his
prized possession and he would not sell it for any
amount of money.
Kreisler was very disappointed, and he turned to leave.
Then he paused and asked the owner, “Could I play the
instrument once more before it is forever consigned to
silence?” The owner granted permission, and the great
virtuoso filled the room with such heart-moving music
that the collector's emotions were deeply stirred.
“I have no right now to keep that instrument to myself,”
he exclaimed. “It's yours, Mr. Kreisler. Take it into the
world, and let people hear it.”
It is a wonderful blessing that we can gather here many
times every week and celebrate together the boundless
love of our God and our Savior Jesus Christ.
But that love must also compel us to reach out beyond
these walls. We have the most beautiful message
there has ever been, and we need to take it to the
world, and let people hear it.
And as long as we keep doing that, we will joyfully
continue to be a dynamic and growing church.
As we’re about to sing, there is great power in the blood
of the Lamb:
power to cleanse us from our burden of sin, and
power to help us live daily as God has called us to live