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28

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

Acts 2:37-47 Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call. And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls. And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

I have been here at Ohana Baptist Church now for 8 months and there is something specific I thoroughly enjoy about our church that sets it apart from other churches. I have visited many churches across the Mainland while traveling with a youth program called Neighborhood Bible Time and I have been in a few churches while in the Philippines. Many churches have different things that set them apart. Many would say Ohana is known for its diversity or its military presence and I do love that about Ohana but there is one thing I really enjoy about our church. I love how after the evening service we go and flood the NEX. I usually get there pretty late and when I walk in I have to rub my eyes to check if I accidently drove in circles back to the church because of the huge presence of people from our church. It is truly a blessing seeing so many people going out to fellowship with one another. I’m sure some churches around the world do something like that but no way on the scale of Ohana. I believe by many of us going somewhere like the NEX after church it is something very pleasing in the sight of our Lord.

In verse 44 of our passage the Bible says, “And all that believed were together, and had all things common.” We find the Jews, after the day of Pentecost and after Peter giving his message concerning Christ being the messiah, fellowshipping with one another. We see it said of the Jews and I believe we can say here at Ohana that they, “continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.” They were a church just like ours today and what I find interesting is in verse 47 the Bible said of the church that they had, “favour with all the people.”

I believe our passage tells us exactly why this church had “favour with all the people.” It is said of them, “all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.” This church was united and spent time together. How often do we see some people on their way home right after the service instead of seeking ways to be together? I believe people who are at the NEX and not a part of our church is amazed by the testimony of our unity. I believe it shows that we want to be together and that we want to fellowship. Than the Bible also says that they “had all things common.” The Bible is not saying here that they had things in common so they fellowshipped but rather they were willing to give of their possessions to help others. We as a church are to be seeking those who are struggling whether financially, physically, emotionally, or whatever the case may be. I believe the church had favor with the people because they knew it was a place where they could go into and be loved and cared for. In what ways are we seeking out to show people the love of Christ?

I love going to the NEX after church and not just for the food but also the fellowship I get to take part of. I believe a church that is unified will seek out ways to be together even outside of church. May we in the process of going to the NEX gain “favour with all the people” by showing love and care for those around us. Perhaps God has opened up the NEX after church for us to be a witness for Him to those who are there. We go to a place in the world and it is funny because we are the majority. May we be a blessing and help those in need. Then also in verse 47 before it says they gained “favour with all the people” it says that they were, “Praising God.” What is our conversation about while at the NEX? Is it focused on the business of the week or is it focused on the Savior? May we be a church like we find here in our passage.

Love you all!!!

Pastor Mike



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