The Marks of a Genuine Faith
INTRODUCTORY WORDS
We come today to a most interesting, and inside view of the lives and ministry of the early saints. May the impact of this message call each of us to a more blessed Christian walk. We who, as followers of the Lord, are living twenty centuries later than the first disciples, should have a deeper realization of our own relationship toward God, toward one another, and toward all men.
I. A UNITY OF HEART AND OF SOUL MARKED THE EARLY BELIEVERS
1. The expression "of one heart" suggests the tender affection that the early Christians had one for another. Christianity is not a cold, formal faith a mere federation and amalgamation based upon "duty."
Christianity is a warm, tender love of saints, a federation and amalgamation based upon heart-throbs.
John may have been, by nature, "a son of thunder," but when grace found him, he became the gentle and considerate father, who knew the deeper meaning of the word "beloved."
Paul may have been by nature, the austere youth filled with heartless cruelty toward the Christians of his day a self-seeker in every sense of the word. That was, however, when Paul was commonly known as Saul, of Tarsus. Paul the redeemed, and Paul the preacher of the Gospel, was of quite a different type. He could write to saints, "I have you in my heart"; and "I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ."
This is true to so great an extent, that the Spirit of God bore witness that a supreme test of real and vital Christianity is based on the prevalence of love. "We know we have passed from death unto life, because we LOVE the brethren."
The first believers manifested, therefore, the genuineness of their salvation, by the fact of their unity they were of one heart. They loved God and one another with a pure heart, fervently. They seemed to live, each for the other, and all for God.
2. The expression "of one mind" suggests the oneness of faith that pervaded the early Christians.
Schism and division had not yet separated the saints. When Luke wrote, in Spirit, that wonderful first chapter of his Gospel, concerning Jesus Christ and His Virgin Birth, he wrote of the "things which are most surely believed among us,"
Some of the Christians did not believe one story of the birth of Christ, and another group, another story. They were of one mind. They knew but "one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all."
Satan never worked better than when he began to divide Christians into various sects. One began to say, "I am of Paul"; another said, "I am of Apollos"; another, I am of Cephas, and another, I am of Christ. That spirit of contention, played havoc with the Church. It was brought about because men walked in the flesh and were carnal.
What grief is ours. Men have become followers of men. Today, fidelity is centered around denominational names with their distinctive creeds and operations, instead of around Christ. Christendom is torn by strife, while Satan stands off and laughs.
We would not for a moment decry fidelity to the faith, and we know that each one should remain true to their conceptions of truth. That is pleasing to God. However, why should we allow denominational names to divide us? We are firmly of this conviction, that, separated by different names, and walking under divisive creeds, multitudes of believers who in mind are one in the faith, are withal, sadly estranged.
We may well divide, separating ourselves from those who walk contrary to the great verities of the Birth, Death, Resurrection and Return of Christ. However, what right have we to separate ourselves from those who hold to the same vitals of faith.
When Christ prayed, "That they all may be one," He meant one in heart and soul. We join in His prayer and long for a return of all the orthodox under One Shepherd and in one flock.
II. A UNITY IN POSSESSIONS MARKED THE EARLY BELIEVERS
How strikingly strange are the concluding words of Acts 4:32. "Neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common."
These words are so foreign to the spirit that dominates us all in this period of latter-day self-seeking, that we feel we must stop and ponder. If there had been any Divine command for such a course, we would have marveled at the willingness with which so strange a precept was obeyed; but when we remember that there was no command, no orders from above, but that this action of the saints was born of a spontaneity of mutual love we marvel yet the more.
There are two outstanding sentiments in this Scripture:
1. A renounced ownership. "Neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own." To this we all readily agree. All that we hold is held under stewardship. The cattle on a thousand hills are the Lord's. The silver and the gold are His. The very land that composes our farms, or home properties are included in the word, "All things were created by Him; and for Him." The Lord divided unto the nations their inheritances. What have we that we did not receive from Him. Surely we are not our own, and nothing that we possess is, in reality, our own. "Lord, I am Thine, and all that I have is Thine."
When we tithe our income, and when we bring to God an offering beyond our tithes, we are only giving unto God of that which is His.
Theoretically, we suppose, all Christians acknowledge God's ownership of all of their possessions; yet, practically, we usually keep our hand tightly closed upon all that He has entrusted to us. That is to say, we acknowledge Divine ownership as long as it does not interfere with our own dogmatic authority in that we possess.
2. A renounced possession. "But they had all things common." This expressed a surrender of personal properties, and it was the climax of the reality of their position that all that they had was God's.
We do not take the position that all saints should follow this example, for even those early saints were not acting under Divine command. We do however, believe that the spirit that prompted the actions of the early saints should dominate us.
Christians hold their belongings too tightly. Those who labor should always labor that they may have to give to him that hath need. He who has this world's goods and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion against him, is acting altogether contrary to the spirit that dominated the love of God.
We believe that there should be a far more liberal bestowal of our bounty toward those who are in need.
There is a Scripture that runs like this: "For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that ye through His poverty might be rich." There is another Scripture which we delight in placing beside this one. Here it is, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ * * be with you."
If the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ caused Him to become poor for us, should not that specific manifestation of grace be found in us? Should we not also be willing to become poor, that others might be rich? Suppose we do give our all, did not Christ give His all?
He made many rich; for the most part, we make only ourselves rich. He gave, we hang on. Oh, yes, we give something, but we usually see to it that our gifts never impoverish ourselves. Out of our abundance we may give much, but these saints gave all.
III. A POWERFUL WITNESS FOLLOWED THE EARLY SAINTS
Acts 4:33 reads, "And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all."
A power backed the witness of the servants of God, who lived in those early days. They not only professed faith in Christ, but they manifested their faith. Their deeds went far to corroborate their testimony. They spoke that they did know; they testified what they had seen. They did not ask others to do what they would not themselves do. They practiced what they preached.
Would not the testimony of the church of our own day, be more vital, if the Church lived the life which the pulpit proclaimed. The true preacher may be ever so zealous for the faith, but unless the pew backs the pulpit with a consecrated and separated walk, the hands of the preacher are tied.
Some one may seek to remind us that the power of the witness of the early Church lay in the Holy Ghost. That is true. Yet, the Holy Ghost operates only in and through those who obey Him.
There is another great statement in this Scripture: The witness of the early Church was the witness of Christ's resurrection. This was the great undergirding theme which the early saints presented. Why was this? One should remember that the Lord Jesus had but a little while before been nailed to the tree. On that tree, He died. From that tree He was taken down and laid in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. The death of Christ had its miraculous manifestations; nevertheless, the shame and the sorrow, the mockings and the madness of the populace against the Christ as He hung on that cross, were abiding memories.
In the minds of the populace Christ had died forsaken of the Father, and disowned of men. In the tomb of Joseph where Jesus lay, was also laid all of the hopes of the disciples.
In the resurrection lay all that stood for victory. The empty tomb placed the approval of God upon the work of Christ. The empty tomb acclaimed Christ as Deity. The empty tomb approved of Christ as Saviour and Lord.
Therefore the theme of the resurrection put terror into the hearts of Christ-rejecters, and joy into the hearts of those who believed.
It was His resurrection, that made sure their own resurrection, and the resurrection of the dead who slept in Jesus.
The witness of the ever-increasing host of the saved as to the resurrection of Christ, was, during those first decades of Church ministry, an unchallenged witness. No man ever dared to deny that Christ had risen. With such power and assurance did the disciples give testimony to the resurrection, that even, the members of the Sanhedrin never dared, in any large way, to contradict their testimony.
IV. THE APOSTLES WERE MADE THE RECIPIENTS OF THE CHRISTIAN'S BOUNTY
Let us now read our final verses for this sermon.
"Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, "And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
"And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation), a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus, "Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet" (Acts 4:34-37).
Under the great grace that rested upon the Christians every man sold his land or his properties and brought the prices of the thing's that were sold and laid the money at the Apostles' feet, Judas, the only one among the twelve who was a thief, had hanged himself. The rest of the Apostles were men of unquestioned honor. They had no wealth of their own, yet, to them fell the responsibility of dispensing the wealth of others. That they dealt wisely and with consistent fairness, is seen in the expression, "Neither was there any among them that lacked." The reason is thus stated, "Distribution was made unto every man according as he had need."
One would have thought that Millennial blessedness had come, In those days every man will sit tinder his own vine and fig tree. The Lord will hear the cry of the widow and of the orphan. He will deal with equity and with righteousness. He will hear the cry of the poor.
The noble "communism" that prevailed among the early Christians, thus, antedated the Millennium by two thousand years. Their actions seemed a prophecy of good times to come.
It was not for long that this spirit dominated the children of God. However, we do read that the saints of Macedonia gave to their impoverished brethren willingly, of themselves. They gave as they were able, yea, and beyond that they were able, even intreating Paul and others to take upon them this ministering to the saints.
We would that a like grace might be upon us ail.
When the head of the great Salvation Army wanted, several years ago, to send greetings to America, he cabled the one word. Others. This should ever be the supreme aim of our lives Christ and Others.
How quickly would every problem of church finances be solved if the spirit of grace that fell upon the early Church, fell also upon us? May we examine our lives in the light of this call of God.