Pigs, Chickens And The Acts 2 Church

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)

That's quite a picture of the Church, isn't it?

Today is "Donate A Day's Wages To Charity Day" (and yes, that's a real thing). Because of this, I went into this morning's devotional thinking about sacrificial giving. It's a tough concept -- to actually give more than what you think you can conveniently offer. But that is, after all, what makes it a sacrifice. But in searching the Scripture (I was actually looking for the story of the widow's mite, found in Luke 21:1-4, but didn't remember exactly where it was), I stumbled across -- or was led to -- Acts 2:45. "They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need." And, in fact, we can learn similar lessons from each. The widow in Luke 21 can teach us about the spirit of our giving. 

The Widow's Mite, art by James Christensen

As Jesus looked up, he saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. “Truly I tell you,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.” 

For so many of us, giving is an obligation. For the widow, it was a commitment. It is this same spirit we find in the Church of Acts 2.  Today, we say we're part of a church because we show up once or twice a week and (maybe) give up 10% of our incomes. 

Meanwhile, the early church was, by necessity, committed to its cause and to its members. Each person in the church was committed to his or her brothers and sisters as fellow members of the Body of Christ. Committed, in fact, to the point where they not only shared what they had, but went out of their way to offer sacrificially to the aid of another member in need. 

What we learn in Acts 2 is that a church isn't a building -- or even merely a group of believers. A church is a family -- a single organism. A church is a body -- The Body -- who truly loves one another as Christ Himself loves them. 

A pastor once asked how church members were like a ham and egg breakfast. Some members, he said, were like the Chickens, and some like the pigs. The difference, he said, was that while the Chickens were involved in the breakfast, the pigs were committed.  

We bemoan the state of the world -- how our culture becomes more and more secularized and depraved. But Scripture itself teaches us what we can do about it. Acts 2:47 says, "the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."

Daily. 

How did they do it? Simply by being the Body of Christ.  

Happily Ever After

It's a classic tale of good versus evil: a White Knight, a King, rides from His kingdom into a dangerous wilderness, His one goal to rescue His beloved. It's a story of charity, grace, and self sacrifice. It is, of course, the story of Jesus Christ. A King who left His kingdom to live among us, to teach us how to love, and to rescue us from the dragon of our own sinful natures.

No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”
 
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.  This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil.  Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed.  But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. (John 3:13-21)

We are, all of us, in a high tower built by our own hands, and awaiting release. Our burden is twofold, then: first, to recognize our prison for what it is, and second, to recognize the One who can set us free. This Jesus, so great was His love, he willingly allowed Himself to be lifted up -- nailed to a cross -- and killed as an atonement for our sin. He offers His forgiveness, the price for everything we've ever done or ever will, paid in full, and asks nothing in return but that we love Him back.

Today is "Read a Fairy Tale Day." So why not start with the greatest of all of them -- greater still because it really happened, and is happening today -- the story of a God who loved us so much, He sent His son, a King, to bring us back to His side. It doesn't get any more "happily ever after," after all, than an eternity at the side of a God who loves you enough to die.