Some Interesting Dynamics

Scripture – Acts 5:7-16: ⁷About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. ⁸Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?” “Yes,” she said, “that is the price.” ⁹Peter said to her, “How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.” ¹⁰At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband. ¹¹Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.

¹²The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. ¹³No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. ¹⁴Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. ¹⁵As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. ¹⁶Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were healed.

Reflection: – Some interesting dynamics were developing in the life of our early church. People regarded this group of believers highly. Yet they were afraid to join them. I think a lot of people today are simply afraid to come to a typical church worship service. There are all kinds of reasons for that. You know what many of them are better than I do. What can we do about that? Should we do anything about that?

Another interesting thing was, “more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number.” In spite of themselves people were still drawn into this group.

At the same time, the church itself was becoming a transforming presence in the local community. People were being healed. Lives were being changed.

How do you see these dynamics at work today? How should the perspective of non-church and/or non-Christian people affect the way the church operates?

Reading for Sunday, July 6:

Scripture – Acts 5:17-21: ¹⁷Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. ¹⁸They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. ¹⁹But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. ²⁰“Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people the full message of this new life.” ²¹At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people.