They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Acts 2:47
Praising God and enjoying the favour of all people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:47
Praising God and enjoying the favour of all people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:47
The first behavior - It was a learning church. (Vs42a They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching...)
Although all were filled with the Holy Spirit they still regards the apostles in submission and yearn for their teaching. The Holy Spirit leads the people of God to submit to the word of God.
A Spirit-filled church is an apostolic church, anxious to believe and obey what Jesus and his apostles taught.
The second behavior - It was a loving church. (vs42b ...and to the fellowship,...)
Just as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit have fellowship with each other, the people of God are also called to have fellowship together. Supporting each other and relieving the needs of the poor. A Spirit-filled church is a loving, caring, sharing church.
The third behavior - It was a worshiping church. (vs42c ..., to the breaking of bread and prayer.)
The people of God worshiped him in the temple and in home, in the Lord's supper and in prayers, with joy and with reverence. A Spirit-filled church is a worshiping church.
The fourth behavior - It was an evangelistic church. (vs47b .... And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.)
The lord did it through the preaching of the apostles, the witness of church members, the impressive love of their common life, and their example as they praise God and enjoying the favour of all people. No self-centered, self-contained church (absorbed in its own parochial affairs) can claim to be filled with the Spirit. A Spirit-filled church is a missionary church.
Do we behave like the Christian and church when they were filled with the Holy Spirit during the Pentecost? When we claim that we are Christian that are filled with the Holy Spirit, how are we living our life publicly and privately? All of us individual has a part to play to make the church a place where others are able to see that it's a Spirit filled place, not some social club of us to go to at our free times and to relieve our bad feelings when we do wrong things. Our responsibility is to humble ourselves before his sovereign authority, to determine not to quench him, but to allow him his freedom. For then our church will again manifest those marks of the Spirit's presence, which many young people are specially looking for.
QT materials from The Message of Acts by John Stott (The Bible Speaks Today)
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