Sermon Notes from September 17

Sermon Text: Acts 2:42-47

We started a new sermon series where we will be walking through the first half of the book of Acts, looking at the beginnings of the New Testament church.  This week we looked at the first 2 chapters of Acts.  In these chapters, Luke highlights the events that led to the beginning of the New Testament church being formed.  

In these events, we looked at three specific traits that shaped the formation of the church.  

1. Directives from Jesus - Jesus had ordered the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the Holy Spirit to come upon them.  In the midst of the unknown, probably feeling much fear and anxiety, they had a directive from Jesus to wait, and they obeyed. 

2. Indwelling of the Spirit - After waiting, Pentecost came and the Holy Spirit fell upon the disciples, indwelling them and empowering them.  They became emboldened and the miraculous was happening as they were declaring the mighty works of God in other tongues.

3. Preaching of the gospel - When others noticed what was happening, they assumed the disciples were drunk.  But Peter stood up and proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ to those who had gathered and 3,000 people were saved.

And just as the foundation of the early church was built upon these traits, so will Christ Central Church.  Our church is not built upon some slick programs or some clever statements.  Our church will be built upon the traits of an unwavering foundation: directives from Jesus, the indwelling of the Spirit of God, and the preaching of the gospel.

Next, we looked specifically at Acts 2:42-47 and saw how this new church with 3,000 new converts functioned.  We looked at the traits that marked the life of this new community and what they mean for us today:

1. Teaching of the Scriptures - Rooting ourselves in the Word keeps us from drifting away from the gospel into self-righteousness or self-loathing.

2. Common Life - Committing ourselves to the common life and fellowship of God's people keeps us from drifting into individualism and thinking that my life and my stuff is what matters most.

3. Joy-filled Worship - Devoting ourselves to the joy-filled worship of God in the routines of daily life in this community keeps us from drifting toward apathy.

And what was the result of this church being marked by these traits?

We saw that all who were a part of the new community had a sense of awe and fear and wonder at what was going on.  They were experiencing something they had had never known before and they were in awe.  And in the midst of this wonder that was happening in the new community, those who saw it from the outside were drawn in and day by day the Lord was adding to their number those who were being saved.  

This is my prayer for Christ Central Church, that we would devote ourselves to the teaching of the Scriptures, to a common life rooted in love with one another, and to a joy-filled worship.  And that as we do so, the Lord would create within all of us a sense of awe at what He is doing and that He would add to our number day by day those who are being saved.