"Peter said, 'Change your life. Turn to God and be baptized, each of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, so your sins are forgiven. Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. The promise is targeted to you and your children, but also to all who are far away - whomever, in fact, our Master God invites.'
He went on in this vein for a long time, urging them over and over, 'Get out while you can; get out of this sick and stupid culture!'
That day about 3000 took him at his word, were baptized and were signed up. They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers.
Everyone around was in awe - all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met.
They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added to those who were saved."
- Acts 2:38-47 {The Message}
* visiting Lisha's brand new Give Me Grace community *
What a delicious and refreshing post, Linda. No wonder you're friends with Lisha. I'll be visiting Creekside Ministries again! Blessings from CA
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you dropped in tonight, Pat! We celebrate Sabbath here with Scripture, pure and simple and oh so powerful ...
DeleteMay your weekend be blessed with joy.
Oh Linda, wouldn't it have been amazing to have been there THAT day! Lovely to meet you through our friend, Lisha!
ReplyDeleteWow! Talk about doing community with power, commitment, sacrifice and love ... what an incredible time and place.
DeleteThanks for sharing in these sacred words tonight, Heather!
I love the encouraging and uplifting spirit of this post. Thank you for sharing this passage with us.
ReplyDeleteBlessings and thank you for your kind words when you visited me at Renaissance Women.
~ Cassandra
Yep, Paul sure tells us how to do Christ-honoring community well. And, dare I say, many of today's churches could glean some lessons from these verses.
DeleteThanks for coming to visit, Cassandra. I hope that being here is an encouragement to you ...
I imagine those feasts so full of love and sharing. What an incredible day and time that must have been. God inspired....blessed community. Grateful for these words. Happy Sunday!
ReplyDeleteYes and amen. And thanks for hosting this new Give Me Grace community, Lisha!
DeleteCommunity at its finest, Linda. It's what we should aspire and work toward as the body of Christ, each and every day. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteFor sure, this is a day to day commitment, an ongoing connection. I appreciate you dropping by tonight, Alison!
DeleteGood thinking, good sharing. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThanks for wrapping up the weekend with us, my friend. I hope this evening finds you well and strong ...
DeleteThank God for the preaching of the gospel!
ReplyDeleteAnd they did it with courage, bravery, valor, love ... and exuberance!
DeleteOH, Linda---If ONLY we could "do" community as well!
ReplyDelete& all God's people said a hearty AMEN!
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