What If?

For the first part of this summer, we have been focusing on the stories of the early church that we find relayed in the New Testament book, Acts of the Apostles. We have considered the stories of:

•    The resurrection of Eutychus

•   Phillip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

•   Saul’s Conversion on the road to Damascus

•   Miracles done in the name of Jesus by His Followers

In the next few weeks we will also hear about

•   Peter’s Vision that changed our understanding of who is part of God’s Kingdom

•   The story of Stephen’s ministry, martyrdom, and message

•   God caring for those imprisoned for carrying His message

Throughout the start of the early church, we see amazing stories of God’s followers leading incredible, faith-filled lives. These early church stories show God at work in powerful ways through his people. Things happened that just could not have occurred without the presence of God, and without the people’s faith in their God.

Through their faith, the people of the early church found God working through them, and the results were incredible. Healings, resurrections, miraculous occurrences, as well as the church growing by leaps and bounds as more and more people heard the message of Jesus Christ in these powerful ways.

I wonder, what things would be like today, if we were more like the early church? What would it be like if we consistently seek God’s guidance in all that we do, in our lives, in the lives of our church, and in the lives of our community?

I believe we would see God working through His church in incredible, unimaginable ways. People would see that our faith in God is what sustains us, empowers us, and drives us to be His church in the world today, and they would want that for themselves as well. I believe that we would see the church grow, not for the sake of growth and numbers, but because more people are coming to realize how God has worked to bring salvation to them through His son, Jesus Christ.

Wouldn’t that be just amazing?

What would you need to do, to allow yourself to be used by God in powerful ways, like the early church?

In Him,

Pastor Jon