It's Good To Share Series

IT’S GOOD TO SHARE

Text: Acts 4:32-37

Introduction

1. Illustration: When we pray together and work together in fellowship there is a strengthening bond that forms. There is strength in numbers. Vance Havner said: “Snowflakes are frail, but if enough of them get together they can stop traffic.” If we are all praying together and working together nothing can stop the fellowship and unity of the Lord’s church.

2. I am convinced that there is no more powerful thing on earth than a unified church. When the church is united in heart and mind the Holy Spirit rests on that church, and his power is seen there in unimaginable ways.

3. Nowhere is this better illustrated than in the early church.

4. Read Acts 4:32-37

Proposition: A unified church works together to make a difference in their community.

Transition: The first thing we see about a unified church is…

I. Unified Church is a Sharing Church (32).

A. United in Heart and Mind

1. The early church in Jerusalem was growing rapidly, and a big part of the reason for this was their unity.

2. This powerful spiritual unity was not only causing them to grow, but it was also causing them to do things that were uncommon and even unheard of in any society.

3. Luke tells us in v. 32, “All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had.”

a. First, they were united in heart, which means to “be in tune,” or “in sync” with one another. They were all going the same direction spiritually.

b. Second, they were united in mind, and in the original Greek this means “to breathe,” or “to breathe spiritually” (SFLSB, 1391).

c. “As John Wesley put it, “Their loves, their hopes, their passions joined.”

d. What joined them was not simply a common affiliation to the church.

e. There was a spiritual unity and a unity of passionate commitment to a mission” (Ajith Fernando, Acts, The NIV Application Commentary, 179).

4. They were all together and they were all rowing in the same direction.

a. As a result, “they felt that what they owned was not their own, they shared everything they had.”

b. Some might say, “well isn’t that communism?” The answer to that question is “no.” There are several reasons why.

c. First, it was completely voluntary; no one told them they had to do it, they did it because they wanted to do it.

d. Second, private ownership continued in the church.

e. In other words, this was not a commune, it was just people who loved God and loved each other sharing what they had with those in need.

5. The major point here is unity. The point is that without unity the church cannot survive.

a. This unity results from a love for God, his Word, and each other.

b. It was this sense of unity that encouraged the early church to take care of one another.

c. They shared everything they had because they felt a sense of community within the church. A sense of family, that we are all in this together.

B. Fellowship Together in the Spirit

1. Illustration: Unity is a heart condition of a regenerated believer that is empowered by the Holy Spirit and bears the fruit of kindness, compassion, peace-making, forgiveness, humbling ourselves and esteeming others more highly than ourselves.

2. The unity of the Holy Spirit causes us to work, love, and care for one another.

a. Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from his love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? 2 Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. 3 Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. 4 Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. (Phil. 2:1-4)

b. Paul talks about the “fellowship together in the Spirit.”

c. That word “fellowship” means “to share in something.”

d. It can also be translated “partnership.”

e. A church that is unified in the Spirit cares about one another.

f. A church that is unified in the Spirit works together to accomplish their goals.

g. A church that is unified in the Spirit sees one of their members in need and they do whatever they have to do to meet that need.

h. A church that is unified in the Spirit is more than a church group, more than a denomination, it is a family!

Transition: Next, a…

II. Unified Church is a Witnessing Church (33).

A. Testified Powerfully

1. There’s more to being a NT church than simply taking care of those in need physically. We also need to see to their spiritual needs.