Devotion:
Read Acts 4:32-35.
We often read in John Wesley’s sermons and other writings his exhortation for the Methodist movement to learn from and emulate the practices of the “primitive” church. By this, he simply meant the early church as described in verses like today’s passage. Whenever we seek to emulate the church in another time, we must look closely at the context that drove its practices, sort out the ones that were limited to that time, and embrace the timeless values and principles that apply to us. For example, the communal lifestyle of sharing all their possessions was driven by the conviction that Christ’s return was imminent. We learn from later writings that the early church in Jerusalem suffered persecution and famine, and their communal lifestyle was simply not practical for the long haul.
While we are not called to pool all our possessions today, we are called to share what we have. It is a sad fact that people collectively have enough wealth that, if it were shared generously with the poor, there would be no hunger in the world, none! When we give our hearts to Christ and open our lives to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we are drawn to behave in our time with the same sense of generosity, love, and care that characterized the early church.
Personal Worship Option:
Thank you, Almighty God, for the early church and for the lessons of Christian love and care we can glean from those faithful believers. Touch my heart with your Holy Spirit and help me to see my possessions, not as something to grasp and cling to, but rather as blessings you have entrusted to me in order to help others. Lead me to do that more and more, in Christ’s name. Amen
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