Acts 2:41-47 [The Living Bible]
And those who believed Peter were baptized—about three
thousand in all! They joined with the other believers in regular
attendance at the apostles’ teaching sessions and at the Communion
services and prayer meetings.
A deep sense of awe was on them all, and the apostles did
many miracles.
And all the believers met together constantly and shared
everything with each other, selling their possessions and dividing with
those in need. They worshiped together regularly at the Temple each day,
met in small groups in homes for Communion, and shared their meals with great
joy and thankfulness, praising God. The whole city was favorable to them,
and each day God added to them all who were being saved.
One of the authors of a book I’ve been reading over the last two weeks - Shane Claiborne - reminds us that there are over 36,000 Christian denominations! This clearly indicates how severely broken the "body of Christ" is, and yet none of these denominations appear to be searching for common ground!
He writes:
"Jesus'
longest prayer in John’s gospel was that we would be one as God is one (17:22).
With more than 36,000 Christian denominations, we have a long way to go.”
Back in June, Debbie and I attended the Harvest Conference’s Tri-Conference sessions in Dalton, Ohio, It was led by our area bishop, Kay Kolde, who reminded us that the number of FM churches in America have fallen from 1050 to 825 over the past fifteen years [a decline that is mirrored in most – if not all – Christian denominations in America].
To add to this drama, I know that in 2012, when we left for China, the number of Free Methodists in America was around 105,000. It startled me recently to discover that our number has now declined to a little over 69,000 Free Methodists in America AND CANADA!
Yet the Free Methodist denomination is rapidly expanding around the globe through vigorous evangelistic efforts! Currently we have 1.6 million Free Methodists globally with a mere 4% of those being in the United States!
Now, before you get discouraged, let me assure you that these trends are not exclusive to Free Methodism; they are reflected in every Christian denomination in America.
Observations:
· The Pew and Gallup polls indicate that about 20% of Americans attend worship weekly at least three times a month. However, a Washington Post breakdown of America’s faith habits reports that as few as 5% of the population regularly attends religious services.
· Many denominations are finding it difficult to find enough pastors to lead their churches.
·
It
is estimated that 15,000 churches closed in 2025.
Why do churches close?
Well, the answer is easy: it’s because they’re failing at their God-given mission!
When we examine churches that have closed – or are about to – we tend to find that they’re:
- not growing by convert growth.
- plateaued or declining in attendance.
- not invested in their community.
- or, they’re in a state of internal conflict.
And, by the way, WHO is driving the WOKE agenda?
Our spiritual enemy!
In reading through Job he doesn’t hesitate to name this enemy. Satan was hounding believers in Job’s day and he hasn’t stopped! Jesus didn’t try to hide from this conflict. He openly addressed it!
Consider Matthew 4, where Satan Himself came to Jesus while He was fasting and praying for forty days in the wilderness. He came at Jesus’ weakest moment and tempted Him in areas where He was most vulnerable:
- The temptation to eat
- The temptation to test His Father’s love for Him, and
- The temptation to gain all the kingdoms of this world and all their glory
But each time, Jesus quoted scripture to rebuke His enemy!
The result?
1.
Satan
left Him alone!
2.
Angels
came and ministered to Him!
I wrote recently in a blog article that I posted:
“I
never want to be a part of a church that is not a threat to Satan and his
kingdom! We’re not propping up an institution! We’re the living body
of Christ! We are His representatives intended to influence
those who are lost and distracted! Broken churches lose their sense of
mission! ‘Conflict passion’ replaces ‘evangelism passion’!”
Studying the New Testament Church in its earliest days is a good way to find out how on-track or off-track we are as a church in the twenty-first century.
What were the characteristics of the church when it began?
We’re talking about the church that exploded into the streets after receiving the Holy Spirit in that upper room where 120 people had prayed for ten days! That was the day that Peter preached in the streets and the other disciples discovered that they could suddenly speak in languages that they had never studied! The massive crowd gathered in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost, so people were present from many nations – and most of them heard the gospel that day!
That day alone, 3,000 people became followers of Christ! Then, Luke gives us a graphic description of how this church grew and operated in those early days!
1. The first thing we need to notice is that the New Testament Church had NO BUILDINGS! So, in many cases, we have a HUGE advantage over the NT Church! Being generous with our building and property would send a pretty positive message that would likely draw people to us!
2. Our second observation is that the New Testament Church studied and grew together in small groups! Since they didn’t have buildings, a lot of these gatherings probably took place in homes!
Also, they didn’t have Bibles! The New Testament was just coming together during that first century. If they were in the right place at the right time, they might have at least heard one of Paul’s letters being read.
What they did do, however, was to sit under the teachings of the apostles and their associates.
3. Our third observation is that they met together regularly for fellowship! All their activity was not spiritual in nature. They learned to love one another – as Christ had instructed them. This meant knowing one another and enjoying one another’s company! Apparently they ate together a lot! During some of these meals they even celebrated the Lord’s Supper as a part of their gathering!
This concept has almost been lost to the American Church! We only meet for church or an occasional Bible study. These believers became like extended family to one another! They enjoyed being together! They loved one another!
4.
Our
fourth observation from this passage is that the New Testament had gatherings
that were just for prayer!
Prayer aways has been and always will be the engine that drives the growth and outreach of the church!
5. And finally, our passage mentions one last area - KOINONIA. In the New Testament, the Greek word κοινωνία (koinónia) is translated into English in several ways, depending on context. The most common include: fellowship, sharing, participation, communion, partnership, and community. It is a word for which we have no single replacement. Rather, it includes aspects of all of these we’ve just mentioned.
But
Luke – the writer of Acts – goes on to describe the implications of this word
in verses 44-46:
And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.
These
new followers of Christ were:
- together – apparently this means common ownership of some things
- sharing their possessions with one another based on need
- having contact with one another day by day
- eating together with some regularity
- praising God together in all of the above!
There’s a pretty big hint here as to why the Church in America doesn’t resemble the New Testament Church as described in its earliest days!
Today’s American followers of Christ:
- rarely, if ever, share possessions with one another
- rarely, if ever, see one another during the week
- almost never go into one another’s home
- almost never enjoy meals together
- only praise God together during our once-a-week meeting on Sunday morning
There is one more VERY IMPORTANT factor that characterized the New Testament Church, and that was the constant incorporating of new followers of Christ!
Based on church reports: An average American church of 85 people [which IS the average sized American church] tends to report one convert per year!
This statistic tells us that there is a very low demand for training and discipling new believers in most American churches, because they simply are not seeing many new believers!
The American Church has VERY LITTLE in common with the New Testament Church described in the early chapters of Acts!
The Book of Acts records the rapid expansion of the early Church from Jerusalem to the ends of the known world, showing both numerical growth and spiritual vitality.
I can speak most authoritatively about my own denomination – Free Methodism. There are distinct reasons why the American Church is shrinking while Christianity around the globe is exploding!
Our missions’ department has divided the globe into five areas: Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Middle East. According to our World Mission page, we have an active presence in 99 countries [WHICH IS AWESOME!!!!]!
The Asian
area has set a goal to see a million new believers this year! We observed earlier: "Currently we have
1.6 million Free Methodists globally with a mere 4% of those being in the
United States!"
Here’s our assignment:
1. How can we open our buildings to others in a way that promotes our caring for this community?
2. How can we generate prayer groups and Bible study groups that will help us to grow as well as get better acquainted with one another?
3. How can we create times when we get together for fun and pleasure so that we can grow in our loving and caring for one another? How can we plan occasional meals together that allow us to mingle and get to know one another’s families better? [Eating together lowers inhibitions!]
4. How can we generate prayer gatherings that are not boring but ARE genuinely effective?
5. How can we retrain our brains to be more outspoken about our faith?
Are we content to just be a gathering of Christian people, or do we want to be a threat to Satan’s kingdom?
I have great difficulty believing that God is pleased
with the American Church – with some exceptions, of course! I believe with all
my heart that God wants something of significance to happen here, and there are
signs that it has begun! It will continue and flourish – IF WE PRAY AND INITIATE
A NEW TESTAMENT ZEAL IN OUR CHURCHES!
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