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God's Pattern For His Church

The document summarizes key characteristics of the early church described in Acts 2:22-47, including that it was united, committed, powerful, and militant in spreading the gospel. It then contrasts this with characteristics of the modern church, saying the modern church is divided, uncommitted, powerless, not militant, and not feared. It calls Christians to faithfully reflect the pattern of the early church.

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203 views3 pages

God's Pattern For His Church

The document summarizes key characteristics of the early church described in Acts 2:22-47, including that it was united, committed, powerful, and militant in spreading the gospel. It then contrasts this with characteristics of the modern church, saying the modern church is divided, uncommitted, powerless, not militant, and not feared. It calls Christians to faithfully reflect the pattern of the early church.

Uploaded by

enixma71
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Acts 2:22-47

GOD’S PATTERN FOR HIS CHURCH

Intro:
 The Day of Pentecost was an amazing day.
 On that day, the Holy Spirit was given, and the Lord’s church was born.
 The church that came into existence that day was a sight to behold.
 What in the world is Pentecost?
o The word “Pentecost” designates the 50th day after Passover, which was a Feast Day.
o Also known as the Feast of Weeks or Feast of Harvest.

 It was on this day, in the Book of Acts, that the Holy Spirit was poured out on 120 Followers of Christ who
were gathered in an Upper Room in Jerusalem.
 It was on this day that the Church was born in a Blaze of Glory.
 From a historical point of view, Pentecost is the day on which the church was started.
 Sadly, the modern church, the church with which we are all familiar, is far removed from what that church
was.

LET’S FIND OUT WHAT THE CHURCH WAS DURING THAT TIME:

1. The church in Acts was united - Act 2:44-46; Acts 4:32-37


- The people loved one another.
- They were being persecuted for their faith, and many were losing their jobs.
- Others were forced from their homes.
- Many were poverty stricken.
- The people in the church rallied together, sold their possessions, and gave to meet the needs of other
believers.
- Acts 2:46 says they were “in one accord.”
- Acts 4:32 says “they were of one heart and one soul.”
- They held their faith in common.
- They were stood with one another and not against one another.
- They presented a united front to the hostile world in which they lived.

• The church in Acts was committed - We are told that “they continued daily,” Acts 2:46.
- They were so committed to their worship of the Savior that they came together every day to worship and to
honor the Lord.
- Get that in your mind! They didn’t just go to church on Sunday; they came to church every single day! That’s
commitment.
- They were committed in the face of persecution and hatred.
‣ Stephen was stoned to death for his faith, Acts 7.
‣ John and Peter were arrested and beaten for their preaching, Acts 4-5.
‣ The whole church operated under the threat of persecution, jail, and death, Acts 8:1-3; Acts 9:1-2.

• The church in Acts was powerful - The early church enjoyed the power of God in their midst.
- They saw people saved on a daily basis, Acts 2:47.
- They witnessed miraculous conversions as first 3,000 and then 5,000 were saved by grace and brought into
their number.
- They saw God deal with hypocrisy in their midst by judging guilty members in the presence of all, Acts 5:1-
10.
- They witnessed many miracles and many manifestations of the power of God.
- They were hated by the world, but they had the power of God on their ministries.
- There was so much spiritual power on this church that they were said to have “turned the world upside
down,” Acts 17:6.

• The church in Acts was militant - They carried the Gospel to everyone they met.
- Peter and John shared the Gospel with a crippled man in Acts 3. When he was healed and saved, a crowd
gathered, Acts 4. Peter and John preached the Gospel to that crowd and 5,000 people were saved.
- They sent out missionaries to carry the Gospel to the world.
- They witnessed were they lived, and everywhere they went.
- They literally fulfilled Acts 1:8, which says, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come
upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto
the uttermost part of the earth.”
- They had the Gospel and they did not hesitate to use it!

• The church in Acts was feared - While they were hated by the word, they were also feared.
- When Ananias and Sapphira were killed for lying to God, fear fell on the people because of the power of
God that rested on His church.
- Acts 5:13a says, “And of the rest durst no man join himself to them.”
- The world around them knew something was different about this church.
- Many feared the church because God’s presence was so real.

In our day, the church is a mere shadow of what it was designed to be. The modern church lacks many of the
characteristics that made the early church such a wonder to behold.
• The modern church is divided
- The modern church is so fractured that there can be little cooperation on issues that matter.
- Denominations, doctrines, problems real and perceived, all combine to divide the church into small, isolated
groups that refuse to accept those who are different.
• The modern church is uncommitted
- Most people in our generation treat the church like it is expendable.
- Their commitment to the church is conditioned on their schedules, their routines, their convenience, the
whims of the moment.
- There is no real commitment to the mission of the church, the worship of the church, the outreach of the
church, or the needs of the church.
- The modern church is afflicted with a “take it or leave it” attitude.
- Often those in positions of leadership are the worst offenders.
- Sunday School teachers, Deacons, preachers, and other leaders should set an example of faithfulness for
the rest of the church.
- If they don’t they should resign from their positions.

• The modern church is powerless


- Lost people come into our churches and there is little to no conviction.
- In many cases, the people in the pews are not so different from the lost people in the world around them.
- Church members give little attention to prayer, daily worship and devotion, and personal holiness.
- As a result, when we gather for our meetings, they are often lifeless, powerless, and lacking in the manifest
presence and power of God.
- Lost people come into our churches and see no difference between us and them.
- The church today is doing everything in its power to make itself more attractive to the lost world.
- We lower our standards, water down our sermons, adopt a more modern style of music, and do all we can
to make the church attractive to the lost.
- It should not be that way!
- When the world steps into the church, they ought to feel as though they have entered an alien world.
- The way we talk, the way we dress, the way we worship, the way we preach, should all leave them with the
impression that we are different.
• The modern church is not militant
- We hold in our hands the precious, inspired Word of God.
- We have been entrusted with the Gospel message, the very message that every lost soul in the world needs
to hear.
- Instead of taking that message to the world and engaging them with the Gospel, we tell no one.
- Then we wonder why no one is being saved.
• The modern church is not feared
- The world mocks us.
- They mock our Bible, our worship, and our God.
- When hollywood or television portrays a Christian, they are usually pictured as some simpleminded lunatic,
a child molester, or a psycho nut job.
- They laugh at our powerlessness.
- They find humor in our Gospel.
- They believe we are all hypocrites, and in far too many cases they are right.
- The world doesn’t fear us; they have no reason to.
- When I say “fear us,” I mean there should be something “other worldly” about the church.
- There should be such power on the people of God that while the world may hate us, but they cannot deny
that we have been with the Lord, and that He stands with us, Acts 4:13.

Conc: How well does Calvary fit the pattern?


• Are we the kind of church God can use and bless for His glory?
• A better question, since the church is not this building, but the people, is how well do we as individuals fit
the pattern?
• Are we the kind of individuals God can bless and use to make His church was He designed it to be

I challenge you to look inside yourself right now.


• Are you saved? If not, come to Jesus right now!
• Are you surrendered to the Lord? If not, come and surrender all to Him now.
• Are you faithful to the church? If not, repent of that sin and get faithful to the Lord.
• Are you committed to the ministries of the church? If not, repent of that sin and get busy.
• Are you a servant of the Lord and His church? If not, repent of that sin and go to work.
• If you are in a position of leadership, are you doing what you need to be doing? If not, repent of that sin and
set the right example for the rest of the church and for the watching world.

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