Daily Scripture
“And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. And awecame 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.”
Acts 2:42-47
Daily Devotion
This portion of Acts, often titled “The Fellowship of Believers”, is an exciting time for the early Church. Jesus had recently ascended into heaven and left the Apostles with the charge to “go and make disciples”. But He did not leave them alone. He delivered on his promise of sending the Holy Spirit at Pentecost to give them power to fulfill their mission of being witnesses of what they had seen and experienced. What an exciting and amazing time this must have been!
These early believers, some followers of Christ for a while and many new converts, “devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship”. They were all in! This was a day-in, day-out lifestyle for these believers. They had experienced miraculous things, and their response was to commit themselves to the mission and each other.
We can learn so much from these early believers. First, how important it is to share what God has done in our lives with others. He has changed us as believers, and we are charged with sharing that to further His kingdom. Second, being with a community of believers is vital to our growth in Christ and being able to fulfill our mission. We are not meant to walk alone! And finally, when we share what Christ has done in our lives and work with other followers, God will use us to do amazing things to further His Kingdom, just like He did with His early church!
Emmie Martin