November 25, 2017

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Friendsgiving

Tribe Recap of November 25, 2017 | Acts 2:42

Shortly after Pentecost, Peter rose up and gave a powerful message about how the unexplainable power of God was directly related to this person named Jesus, providing compelling evidence from the book of Joel and the Psalms.  The scriptures pointed to Jesus as the Messiah, whom they had crucified, and the people were cut to the quick.
 
Some 3,000 souls were added to the Kingdom that day.  This was the birth of the Church.  God’s Spirit + God’s truth + open people = a community of Spirit filled members of the Kingdom of God ready to change the world.
 
And after this?  “And they were continually devoting themselves to the apostle’s teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” Acts 2:42
 
In a super-Spirit-filled environment the new believers gave attention to fellowship and breaking of bread.  They got filled with the Spirit and began to learn, pray, eat, and hang out.
 
It fascinates me that eating and hanging out get equal weight as teaching and prayer.  Teaching and prayer speak to our relationship with God; eating and hanging out speak to our relationship with each other.  God desires a direct relationship with us but he also desires that we have direct relationship with each other!
 
When we sit down to eat and talk together we are entering into the realm of the Spirit-filled activities of the early Church; we enter into something both divinely sacred and rhythmically ordinary.  If we elevate prayer and teaching more than eating and hanging out, we run the risk of emphasizing something we know but don’t actually become.  In other words...we run the risk of knowing a lot about God but not necessarily acting like him.
 
Becoming like God looks like a friendly time to be together and enjoy a meal. Isn’t this where we believers are headed? –  to a banquet table in heaven where we will raise a glass of wine to Jesus, have a feast, and laugh about our misfortunes as we become the best of friends?
 
Want to do something holy?  Invite some believers over, or even better, some people who think God equals the drab rules of religion, cook up some food or order some take out, open a bottle of wine, smile and put your hand on their shoulder and say, “I’m so glad you’ve come tonight!”
 
In doing this you become like your Father in heaven.  One day, you will see the Father raise a toast to his Son at the greatest feast ever thrown, and the wonder and joy of breaking bread together will become alive in brilliant glory right before your very eyes.
 
Acts 2 | Matthew 26 | Revelation 19