“And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.” Acts 2:47b
We need to follow the lifestyle of the first churches if we long for the great things that happened to them also happen to us in these end times. The first churches experienced addition in their congregation daily and they experienced signs and wonders wherever they went.
What did they do to make those things happen?
- They repent, give themselves to be baptized and are filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:41)
Here we learn that the lifestyle of the first church brought them to repentance; they received Christ as their LORD and Savior and they were filled with the Spirit. This is what the Apostles did to the first churches – not only water baptism, but also the Holy Spirit baptism, with speaking in Spirit as a sign.
- They are diligent in the teaching (Acts 2:42,46)
The first churches knew that repentance and receiving Jesus Christ as their LORD and Savior is the first step of spiritual journey. They realized that they need the Word of God to grow spiritually mature and become like the image of Christ, so that they may know what they need to do daily. This is written in Acts 2 twice – it means they did this often, and their lives and testimonies were powerful before others, Acts 2:43.
- They like to be in a fellowship – praying, praising and worshipping GOD (Acts 2:42. 46-47)
They loved to meet together to pray, praise and worship God consistently. The Bible uses the words “always,” “diligent,” and “each day” to explain this lifestyle.
Let us start to do this diligently and if you would like to develop this lifestyle more, be involved in LIGHT cell groups of IBC Church.
- They serve one another (Acts 2:44-46)
They realized that since they became followers of Christ, they became family with one another. Everyone who are believers become one or – in unity! What they have is for the needs of one another. If there is someone who is need, they will be helped immediately. Isn’t this an amazing thing? It started with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, and when the church was filled with the Holy Spirit, they no longer saw their own needs but instead, they tried to fulfill the needs of others.
Here we see that a life filled with the Holy Spirit is important. The Holy Spirit gives us spiritual gifts not for our own good, but it is so that we can be a blessing for others. The Holy Spirit will change our perspectives – from only focusing on ourselves to caring for others.
Let us practice the lifestyle of the first churches so that we can also experience the amazing things they experienced. God bless.
Source : Article from GBI Gatot Subroto, Jakarta
Source : Article from GBI Gatot Subroto, Jakarta