They Were a Growing Church (Acts 2:47c)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/22/2017 11:31 AM

My Worship Time                                                                Focus:  They Were a Growing Church

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Acts 2:47c

            Message of the verses:  “And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

            As we look back at the things that we have been looking at the qualities of the first church we can understand why it would be growing.  Nothing like this had ever been seen in Jerusalem before and people were drawn to it.  Now as we carefully look at what this verse says we see that it was the Lord who was adding to their number, and God was using the members in the church to accomplish this as they were telling others about the Lord.  Let’s compare this section with Acts 5:14 “And all the more believers in the Lord, multitudes of men and women, were constantly added to their number.” 

            John MacArthur writes “The imperfect tense of the verb translated ‘was adding,’ along with the phrase ‘day by day,’ indicates that people were continually being saved as they observed the daily conduct of the believers.  So united, joyful, and Spirit-filled were they that their very existence was a powerful testimony to the truth of the gospel.  True evangelism flows from the life of a healthy church.”

            He concludes this chapter by writing “This brief glimpse of the first fellowship gives valuable insight into what makes a healthy, growing church worthy of the name.  The proper devotion of the duties of the Sprit produces the proper character, which in turn produces a powerful and saving impact on sinners.”

            As members of a Bible believing church we have the duty to go out and seek those who are lost, we are to trust the Lord to lead us to those who will listen to the truth of the Bible and will then confess their sins, and then turn to the Lord for salvation.  It is my prayer each and every day that people who read these Spiritual Diaries who are in need of salvation will come to know the Lord as their Savior.

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “They brought two young pigeons, the offering of the poorest” (Luke 2:24).

Today’s Bible question:  “Who said ‘Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown’?”

Answer in our next SD.

8/22/2017 11:46 AM