Thanks for reading the YESTERDAY section of my Substack, where Monday morning posts are notes adapted from Sunday morning’s message.
In our summer mini-series called Why We’re Here: Unpacking Our Purpose, we have carefully examined the purpose statement we recite at the beginning of every Sunday’s sermon.
We are here to lead people on the journey to authentic faith by loving God, loving our neighbors, sharing Jesus, and growing in grace together
As we bring the series to a close, recall one last time that there are five growth elements, drawn from Scripture, that we incorporated into our purpose.
Stronger through worship—loving God
Broader through ministry—loving our neighbors
Larger through evangelism—sharing Jesus
Deeper through discipleship—growing in grace
Warmer through fellowship—together
Keep all that in mind as we enjoy one final dip into the wonders of AI. I fed every message of this series so far into Google’s Notebook LM, asking it to create a video summary with AI-generated voices and slides. I have to admit, the take it took was pretty cool. Check it out below.
The last word of our purpose statement, together, is the fellowship element of our reason for being here. Fellowship evokes memories of my childhood, when I attended New Harmony Baptist Church in Equality, AL. (Fun Fact: In the Deep South, churches with the words “new” or “harmony” in their name were often the result of a church split, so it was a split of a split.) We met in a tiny brick structure nestled in the woods not far from Lake Martin. Just to show you how old I am and how nostalgic it was, I remember the day they put in a restroom. Before that, we walked a little trail to an outhouse. My whole family on my dad’s side went there. My grandparents and my dad’s two brothers, with all their kids.
Once a quarter, everyone brought covered dishes for dinner on the grounds, where some of the best cooking known to man was enjoyed. Casseroles, fried chicken, collard greens, ambrosia, potato salad, and a host of other delicacies were placed on long cement tables lined under shade trees next to the church.
These “fellowships”, as we called them, always included a bit of drama. One family was known for living in, well, let’s just say, less than sanitary conditions. Many unsuspecting congregants found out the hard way that the Babcocks shared their home with a small army of long-haired dogs. Whenever we had dinner on the grounds, spies observed what Mrs. Babcock brought and reported to others which dishes to avoid. That, of course, meant her contributions went untouched, except for one courageous person—Pastor Ronnie, who didn’t want her feelings hurt. This elevated him to a higher category of holiness in our eyes (like Mother Teresa or something).
As you probably know, historically, fellowship in Baptist churches of the South involved food. The fellowship we are talking about in our purpose statement includes that, but it’s so much more. Once again, we go to the Bible for clarity and guidance.
The first occurrence of the word fellowship in the NT is found in a familiar text, one that I’ve either preached on or referred to numerous times. Our purpose statement is drawn from it. It’s in the book of Acts, chapter two, where the birth of the church is recorded. Just after that, Luke gives us a snapshot of what the early church was like. This snapshot encapsulates what true, biblical fellowship is like.
42 And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers. 43 And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. 44 And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; 45 and they began selling their property and possessions and were dividing them up with all, as anyone might have need. 46 And daily devoting themselves with one accord in the temple and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number daily those who were being saved. Acts 2:42–47 (LSB)
We will center on verse 42 this morning, where the first thing we note is the newborn church’s devotion.
42 And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers. Acts 2:42 (LSB)
The Greek word devoted is translated from implies “continuous and persistent tenacity.” Those first Christians were tenacious about:
(1) The apostles’ teaching
One commentator writes, “Just as the apostles had been instructed by Jesus, so they passed along that instruction to the new Christians. … this would have included such subjects as his resurrection, the Old Testament Scriptures, the Christian witness, and surely their own reminiscences of Jesus’ earthly ministry and teachings.”1
The apostles’ teaching in that day is the New Testament Scriptures in our day. Plus, we have the OT to boot. This is why the Bible holds such importance for us. We are also able to devote ourselves to the apostles’ teaching through the preaching and teaching ministries of a local church. This means that we are meant to learn God’s word together.
They were devoted to the Apostles’ teaching, and they were also tenaciously committed to,
(2) The fellowship and the breaking of bread
Fellowship here does include the sharing of meals, but it’s more than that. The Greek word for fellowship is koinōnia and can be translated “contribution,” “sharing,” and “participation” in the NT.
Fellowship, koinonia, conveys the notion of sharing and participating in, as well as contributing to, a profound commonality among a group of people. Have you ever noticed how hunters, fishermen, golfers, and football fans all have passionate fellowship? They are so excited about their sport that they almost have their own language.
“The breaking of bread” refers to coming together on the first day of the week (Sunday) to sing hymns and celebrate what we call the Lord’s Supper. They shared a meal in someone’s home where everyone brought what they could (kind of like a potluck!). That’s the origin of what we do today. These believers bought into the gospel so deeply that it permeated their minds and hearts, shaping how they thought, spoke, and spent their time. Their lives revolved around their faith. This means we are meant to worship together.
Finally, they were tenacious about,
(3) The prayers
JB Polhill clarifies, “The presence of the article in the Greek text before prayers has led some interpreters to see this as a reference to their keeping the formal prayer hours of Judaism in the temple. They may well have done so to some extent, for their faithfulness in attending temple worship is noted in [Acts]. The reference, however, is probably much broader and involves primarily their [praying] together in their private house worship.”2
The book of Acts is filled with examples of the church praying. Our version of a prayer meeting probably wouldn’t impress them, but, nonetheless, we are meant to pray together.
The early church was passionate about, tenaciously devoted to, the apostles’ teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and the prayers. JD Greear, in a sermon on this text, talks about how he has often heard someone say, “I quit going to small group (or a church) because I just wasn’t getting that much out of it.” But look at the way this is phrased: they “devoted themselves” or put another way they “gave themselves away” to these things. He says the point is not really how much you’re getting out of it. The point is to start giving yourself away, to start investing yourself into it.3
We are meant to learn God’s word together.
We are meant to worship together.
We are meant to pray together.
This togetherness implies, above all, unity and solidarity. The church was the only place in the 1st Century Roman Empire where people from different social strata—poor and rich, powerful and insignificant, slaves and free, men and women—gathered around a table in fellowship. This radical unity is the distinguishing mark of Jesus’ disciples, merging God’s people across barriers of race, custom, gender, or class.
It’s so important that our Lord prayed for unity among his followers in his great high priestly prayer.
22 “The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; 23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. John 17:22–23 (LSB)
NT Wright asks, in commenting on this text,
…what is Jesus praying for, as he thinks about you and me and all his other followers in this and every generation?… that we should all be one. United.
This unity isn’t to be just a formal arrangement. It isn’t just an outward thing. It is based on, and must mirror, nothing less than the unity between the father and the son, that unity [which] much of the book has been explaining and exploring. Just as the father is in the son, and the son in the father, so we too are to live within that unity. That can only mean that we ourselves are to be united…
“This is how all people will know that you are my disciples: if you have love for each other.” Unity is vital… Sometimes we experience it, when for a moment we meet Christians from a totally different background and discover that, despite our many differences, and the traditions that keep us apart, we know a unity of love and devotion that cannot be broken. But just as often, alas, we experience, sense and know that Jesus’ prayer for us has not yet been fully answered.
As in any human relationship, unity cannot be forced. There can be no bullying, no manipulation. But in a divided world, where the divisions have often run down so-called ‘religious’ lines, there is no excuse for Christians not to work afresh in every generation towards the unity Jesus prayed for. If we are, essentially, one in faith, there can be no final reason why we may not be one, also, in our life and worship.4
Togetherness also implies presence. The idea of being a Christian and not being part of a local fellowship of believers wouldn’t have made sense to the early church, and it shouldn’t today. Listen to what the late Dr. Tim Keller preached on our Acts text.
These people could not get enough of each other. These people were always coming together. They came together every day. They were hungry for each other. Regular life was seen as an interruption. They couldn’t be kept apart. That’s the reason why the word together is not so much something they did. It was something they were. That’s why it says they were together, not just that they came together, not just they met together, though they did come together, though they did meet together. They were together. They were each other. They entered into a whole new mode of existence.
So you see how radical this change is. They were together. They’ve become together. They were apart; now they’ve become together. They were individuals; now they’ve become together. Here’s what’s so interesting. Surely some of you over the years have been subjected to ministers (like me) laying either subtle or not so subtle guilt trips on people, especially on Christmas and Easter, saying, “Why don’t you come to all the meetings? Why don’t you come to church every week? Why don’t you come to this? Why don’t you come to that?”
You’ll never see this in the book of Acts. I’m not saying it’s wrong to urge people, but you don’t see the apostles doing it. They never say, “Why don’t you come out more often?” They couldn’t stop them. The people wanted to. They were hungry to... You see, here’s why. It’s a sign of life. You don’t tell a baby, “Cry! Come on, honey. Cry.” You don’t do that. If the baby is alive, it cries.
You don’t have to tell people who have the new life to come together, not if the new life is high, not if the new life is flourishing. You don’t have to. They don’t come together as a response to a command. They don’t come together as a response to a duty, though it is a duty and it is a command. They don’t come together as a response to tradition or family or civic virtue or anything like that. They come together as a response to the life … the same reason the child cries. That’s the sign. That’s radical. That’s new. It’s a sign of life.5
The unity, solidarity, and presence of togetherness are in and through and by the Lord Jesus Christ. He, and he alone, is what binds us. Paul wrote,
3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 4 I thank my God always concerning you for the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in everything you were enriched in Him, in all word and all knowledge, 6 even as the witness about Christ was confirmed in you, 7 so that you are not lacking in any gift, eagerly awaiting the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will also confirm you to the end, beyond reproach in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, through whom you were called into fellowship with His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. 10 Now I exhort you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. 1 Corinthians 1:3–10 (LSB)
Now that’s a fitting end to this message and our series. Thanks for taking this journey with me.
Polhill, J. B. (1992). Acts (Vol. 26, p. 119). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
Ibid.
Greear, J. D. (2017). The Coming of the Spirit and the Birth of the Church: Acts 2:42–47. In J. D. Greear Sermon Archive (Ac 2:42–47). Durham, NC: The Summit Church.
Wright, T. (2004). John for Everyone, Part 2: Chapters 11-21 (pp. 99–100). London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.
Keller, T. J. (2013). The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive. Redeemer Presbyterian Church.