The Church: All or Nothing - Acts 4:32-5:11

Risen Church NC

In Acts 4, we find the Disciples praying for boldness after displaying an extraordinary brand of bravery. However, as the story continues we find that they were just getting started… In fact, the boldness within their Church community may be the most humbling trait of early Christianity. Acts 4:32-37 details the selfless and sacrificial heart of the early Church. Perhaps what’s most striking is, that there was no mandate that required this level of generosity, yet every believer was moved by God to follow suit. The Disciples quickly find that giving up all to build God’s Church was far more fulfilling than possessing all the riches in the world. The more they made Jesus everything, the more they realized they didn’t need anything but Him. If this kind of joy and contentment is available for us, why aren’t we embracing this model? Why do we still yet cling to the ways of this world and hold fast to its views on wealth and fulfillment? God so desire that the early Church get all that He had for them, He wouldn’t settle for less than an “all or nothing” brand of discipleship. This episode climaxes with a contrast between one who gave up everything against popular sentiment and two who held back on God. The aftermath sent shockwaves through the whole community. As for our observation of this text all of these years later, whether or not we need to fear similar consequences for our own greed and consumption is only part of the resolution. Rather, we should fear our own nature’s tendency to hold on to things over God, and make sure that we aren’t at risk of missing out on God’s Kingdom and true, eternal riches.