The earliest Christians were not perfect.  But they do help us think about… Meeting together, Part 4 

It is normal for pastors and church leaders to be idealistic about church, as we want our churches to be all that God wants us to be. In pursuit of the ideal, we often look to the early church as perfect. They were not perfect. But they definitely give us an excellent example, especially about how to meet together. Let’s travel back to the very beginning of the church to learn how the first followers of Jesus met together.

In Acts 1, verse 12, the scene begins just outside the city of Jerusalem. It’s about a month and a half after Jesus died on the cross and rose again.  In the verses just prior to verse 12, the disciples are having their last day with Jesus.  Verse 12 tells us what happens right after he leaves them, ascending to the Father in heaven,

“Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.”

This is a liminal time for the 120 followers of Jesus. They are in between. Their years as disciples of Jesus have concluded, but their new mission as apostles has not yet begun. Jesus told them to wait in the city until they are empowered by the Spirit.  Then they will commence the mission of the Kingdom.  Observe how those first followers of Jesus meet together in this liminal moment.

They joined together constantly in prayer.  This is an incredibly important period of patiently waiting together. Waiting for the Spirit.  I encourage you to meet together with others in your church family, joining in prayer together. 

Does your church have prayer gatherings? Faith Church has a prayer meeting on Wednesday evenings.  I don’t believe Christians have to attend a prayer meeting.  It is not a requirement.  Perhaps you could your church’s prayer gatherings.  I don’t attend mine every time. But I do think it is a good thing, and one way to meet together to pray just like the early Christians did.

Back to those early Christians. What else did they do when they met together?  After about 10-14 days of praying together constantly, everything changes. 

At the beginning of Acts chapter 2, the Spirit arrives and fills them with power, just as Jesus said. His followers start preaching about Jesus, and 3000 people are added to their number.  Then what did they do?  In Acts 2:42-47, we have the earliest description of the church’s regular meetings. Count up all the ways they met together.

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he 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.”

Consider all the ways this passage describes how the first Christians meet together: they meet to hear the apostles’ teaching.  They meet together for communion and prayer.  They meet together to help those in need.  They meet in large groups in the temple.  They meet in small groups in homes to have meals together.  They meet to praise God. 

There is no mention here at all of individual faith, of going it alone, of being isolated, as we learned in the previous post that can be especially problematic for us American Christians.  The first followers of Jesus were together.  They practiced a meeting together kind of faith.  Meeting together was vital, meeting together is vital.

We Christians are people who meet together, because God is a community, a Tri-Unity. We Christians are people who meet together because when we meet together, Jesus is there among us.  We see ourselves as a community, then, a community of Jesus’ people, together, supporting one another, sacrificing for one another.  Our meeting together is to go deep. When we meet together, we cannot settle for shallow relationships. 

Check back to the next and final post about meeting together, as we learn what Scripture has to say about moving away from shallow relationships in church families.

Photo by Terren Hurst on Unsplash