Steven A. Bush - April 30, 2017
The Church We Envision
On the Jewish Festival of Pentecost, 120 of Jesus' followers gathered in waiting for the Holy Spirit to come. Then suddenly He came like a rushing wind with tongues of fire, filling the hearts of all those present. Onlookers thought they'd drank too much wine for breakfast. But Peter, who'd denied Jesus three times just seven weeks earlier, stepped forward and preached the Gospel. In repentance and faith, 3,000 came to Christ and the Church was born. So what would this newborn Family of God look like? What would they do? How would they function? Acts 2:42-47 is the answer: "And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved." (ESV) What a glorious and epic event! Who wouldn't want to be a member of a church like that!