Signs And Wonders Series

Introduction

John MacArthur wrote these words:

A perennial problem the church of Jesus Christ faces is a lack of focus on its mission (John F. MacArthur Jr., Acts, vol. 1, MacArthur New Testament Commentary [Chicago: Moody Press, 1994], 159).

He goes on to note that widespread confusion exists over what is the primary mission of the church.

Some churches insist that the mission of the church is to liberate the poor through social justice.

Other churches claim that the mission of the church is to impact the culture for good.

Still other churches believe that the mission of the church is to love all people and do good to as many as possible.

Then, more biblical churches stress worship, fellowship, and education. While each of these goals is important, none of them is the primary mission of the church. “Indeed,” MacArthur notes, “every one of them could be better accomplished in heaven” (John F. MacArthur Jr., Acts, vol. 1, MacArthur New Testament Commentary [Chicago: Moody Press, 1994], 159).

So, what is the primary mission of the church?

Jesus answered that question in his last commandment that he gave to his church in Matthew 28:19-20a. He said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

The primary mission of the church is to make disciples.

The church is to carry on the mission of Jesus who said in Luke 19:10 that he “came to seek and to save the lost.”

Making disciples is the only goal that cannot be done in heaven because there will be no unbelievers in heaven.

Jesus emphasized this mission just before his ascension into heaven. He told his followers that they would be his “witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

The church in the first century saw explosive growth.

When the Apostle Peter preached on the day of Pentecost, “there were added that day about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41).

In the days following Pentecost, Luke noted that “the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47).

A few weeks later, after Peter’s second recorded sermon, we read in Acts 4:4, “But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to about five thousand.”

This is the last time in the book of Acts that Luke recorded the number of disciples that belonged to the church.

Why was no count given of the size of the church in the months and years that followed?

No count was given because the church grew too rapidly for them to keep count.

Listen to Luke’s record of the church’s explosive growth in the rest of Acts:

• Acts 5:14: “And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women.”

• Acts 6:7: “And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.”

• Acts 9:31: “So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.”

• Acts 12:24: “But the word of God increased and multiplied.”

• Acts 16:5: “So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and they increased in numbers daily.”

• Acts 19:20: “So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.”

The church was so effective in accomplishing its mission that the Jews said of Paul and Silas when they preached in Thessalonica, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also” (Acts 17:6).

Why did the church grow so rapidly in the first century?

What were some keys to the accomplishment of the church’s mission?

Scripture

Let’s read Acts 5:12-16:

12 Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. 13 None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. 14 And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them. 16 The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

Lesson

Acts 5:12-16 shows us some keys to the accomplishment of the church’s mission.