“Sharing and Community” by Robert Murphy


And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need(Acts 2:44-45)

Summit Church of Christ is a part of a historic movement dedicated to becoming more like the primitive Christians; Christians who had no building, no pews, no budget meetings. However, when I read the above verses, I am both challenged and troubled. How can we be more like these Christians who renounced consumerism and personal gain? How can we be more of a community? There are numerous obstacles blocking us from having the kind of fellowship we see in the following verse, where Christians met day by day in the temple and broke bread in each other’s houses (v. 46). We only meet once a week, or, if we make the extra effort, once more on Wednesday evenings. We only occasionally break bread in one another’s houses. Why? Because we are busy, we have not made it a priority or a habit. We spend far more time reading the vanities of social media than reading the Scriptures together as a community.

I am going to challenge myself to do better with this. I will spend more time with my brothers and sisters so that I can know and love them more. I will allocate more of my money to my heavenly family so that if there are any needs that arise, we can easily take care of them. I will buy less so I can give more. Will you join me in God’s calling to live more as a loving, Christ-centered community?