Title: Community-Koinonia Church (COIN-O-NIA)
Place: BLCC
Date: 2/26/17
Text: Acts 2.42-47;Acts 4.32-35; Acts 5.1-11
CT: Our fellowship with Christ and our fellowship with one another is what make the church.
[Screen 1]
Pachomius was an Egyptian soldier won to Christ by the kindness of Christians in Thebes. After his release from the military around A.D. 315, he was baptized. Serious about his new faith and determined to grow, Pachomius became a disciple of Palamon, an ascetic who taught him the self-denial and solitary life of a religious hermit.
In early Christianity, the model of devotion was the recluse dedicated to resisting the corruption of society. These hermits wandered the desert alone—fasting, praying, and having visions. Many went to extremes: eating nothing but grass, living in trees, or refusing to wash.
Such was the popular image of holiness: solitude, silence, and severity. And such was Pachomius's early spiritual training. But he began to question the methods and lifestyle of his mentors.
How can you learn to love if no one else is around?
How can you learn humility living alone?
How can you learn kindness or gentleness or goodness in isolation?
How can you learn patience unless someone puts yours to the test?
In short, he concluded, developing spiritual fruit requires being around people—ordinary, ornery people. "To save souls," he said, "you must bring them together."
Spiritual muscle isn't even learned among friends we have chosen. God's kind of love is best learned where we can't be selective about our associates. Perhaps this is why the two institutions established by God—the family and the church—are not joined by invitation only.
We have no choice about who our parents or brothers or sisters will be; yet we are expected to love them. Neither can we choose who will or will not be in the family of God; any who confess Jesus as Lord must be welcomed. We learn agape love most effectively in our involuntary associations, away from the temptation of choosing to love only the attractive.
So Pachomius began an ascetic koinonia, where holiness was developed not in isolation but in community. Instead of each person seeking God in his own way, with the dangers of idleness and eccentricity, Pachomius established a common life based on worship, work, and discipline.
In community with flawed, demanding, sometimes disagreeable people, followers of Pachomius learned to take hurt rather than give it.
They discovered that disagreements and opposition provide the opportunity to redeem life situations and experience God's grace.
Pachomius, while largely forgotten in church history, points out to us that as attractive as solitary sanctification may seem, it is life amid people, busyness, and interruptions that develop many of the qualities God requires. (1)
(1) Marshall Shelley, "Developing spiritual fruit requires being around people—ordinary, ornery people," Leadership journal (Spring 1993)
LS: I have heard people say they don’t need church. They would rather go it alone out in the woods before going to church. But how can we follow Jesus and his biggest command for us to love one another, without being together as His people, the church? How can we fulfill God’s mission as a recluse from the world?
This the fifth week in the series “Community”. I will be doing one more after this. The purpose I have for this series is to look at what God would think of the church today and what it is doing? What would Jesus want us to do as a church?
What would Jesus think of our service? What would he notice? Would he see a church that is self-absorbed with their music and performance and preferences? Would he see a church that is inwardly focused and concerned only about itself?
I pray He would not.
I pray He would see a church that is doing its best to follow his lead and reach out to others and encourage and build up each other in unity in Him and Him alone. I pray he would see a church that serves its community as it serves its Lord.
Today we look at koinonia or fellowship in the church and the importance of it.
Ok. Open your Bible to Acts 2. Koinonia makes its first appearance in [Screen 2]
Acts 2.42-47. But a lot had just happened right before this. Luke, the author of Acts has just described the events following the ascension of Jesus. Jesus had returned to heaven and had told them to wait in Jerusalem for the gift of the Holy Spirit.
After the spirit came, and that was a big deal in itself, Peter preached to crowds that included people from all around. He spoke and all understood him no matter what language they spoke. The Holy Spirit made this possible. This was the day of Pentecost. Peter preached a powerful sermon and three thousand responded and were baptized.
Our scripture today takes off at this point. It describes what they did next. It speaks of how they would relate to one another. It speaks of how they would live their faith. It speaks of how they would continue to grow. Acts 2.42
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
It is as if Luke is giving us a snapshot of the earliest church made up of those who believed and began to live like Christ in all they did. [Screen 3]
We find another snapshot in Acts 4.32-35.
32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.
Luke is showing in these two snapshots of the early church that [Screen 4] the church at its best offers life at its best.
We must realize as we look at these snapshots, they are the ideal we would all love for the church to achieve. But these churches were not perfect. To think they were may discourage us to the point we would give up trying to reach that ideal for us as a church. The first church in Acts had great times and it also made some mistakes that are also shown in Acts. Including both the good and bad should cause us today to not lose our love and commitment to the church today, even when it may seem to fall short of God’s ideal. Our dream must be to fulfill the dream of the community of Christ even if it may go against our own personal wants or desires. [Screen 5]
Where do we see koinonia today?
-In Sunday School when some one is struggling to make it because of some financial struggle due to tough circumstances. The rest of the class gets together to help out in any way they can. They give of their own time and resources. That is what we do as followers of Christ. We help our brother or sister in need.
-When someone in our church is down from being sick or surgery it is amazing to see the outpouring of food and help that is given. That’s what followers of Jesus do.
-When something great happens or prayers are answered we as followers of Jesus can’t wait to share it with our church family. That is what we as followers of Jesus do. We rejoice together. Nothing I love more than getting a call from one of you guys just to tell me something good has happened. Thanks for sharing and I mean that.
-In our small groups and friend circles we are not afraid to reveal our struggles to one another. We look for help knowing our brother or sister will not judge us but love us and try to help us overcome. That’s what followers of Jesus do.
-When we take time to visit the nursing homes and hospitals to encourage and pray for our brothers and sisters we are being followers of Jesus. We are to be His presence for those in need and ill.
-When we have meals and “get togethers” just to be with and love one another we are being followers of Jesus.
- And Yes when we come together at the Lord’s Table we are practicing the ultimate koinonia, fellowship there is. As Jesus’ followers we come to the table to be at one with Him and each other.
The biblical example of a follower who encouraged others is found just after our second text today in Acts 4.36-37: [Screen 6]
36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), 37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.
As followers we are to strive to be as encouraging and generous as possible. Help those in need and lift up those who are struggling. We need churches full of Barnabases.
The next bit of scripture does give us a warning. We must always do what we do for God’s glory and not our own.
[Screen 7] There was a couple that belonged to this early church and they had seen what Barnabas had done and they discussed it together. This is how I imagine it might have gone.
Ananias spoke first and said , “Sapphira, I’ve been looking at what Barnabas did and I believe that was pretty cool how everybody praised him so much.”
Sapphira said, “Yep that Barnabas is always getting spoke well of for something or another. Wouldn’t it be nice if people saw us that way?”
Ananais said, “Yea, why don’t we sell that old piece of property outside of town. Its not worth but a couple thousand dollars.”
But when they sold it, it brought way more than they expected because some developers had bid it way up.
Ananias and Sapphira were ecstatic. Sapphira started dreaming of a new beach house on the water and Ananias dreamed of that new camel he had been wanting.
They both looked at each other and finally Sapphira said, “We could keep the extra we got and give the original amount to the church.”
“I don’t know, we did pledge to give that piece of property to the church,” Ananias said.
“But with that extra money above what we had thought at the time we gave it would get us a new house and your new camel”, said Sapphira
They both looked at each other and said together, ”OK”
Their plan seemed flawless. No one would know any better.
But here is what happened when they went to take the money to Peter.
Reading from Acts 5.1-11.
1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.
3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”
5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened. 6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
Wow. Lying to God has some serious consequences here. 7Sapphirra didn’t know about this yet. Peter calls her in about three hours later and asks her a telling question
8 “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?”
Don’t you just want to say “NO Sapphira don’t lie to God!!”
She goes on and says,
“Yes, that is the price.”
9 Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
10 At 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. 11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.
Ananias and Sapphira could have given the original amount they had promised the land would bring and been appreciated and commended. But they wanted to look better than they really were and still get what they desired. They lied to God.
They wanted praise without the sacrifice it took. Their punishment came not from the lack of money they gave but that they lied directly to God.
Barnabas had personified koinonia by being in complete fellowship with other believers. A fellowship with others in Christ for Christ.
Ananias and Sapphira on the other hand personified the opposite of showing more concern for their personal acclaim than for other followers or for Jesus himself.
So what do we learn from the first church we have been shown snapshots of?
1. [Screen 8] Conversion and community. Becoming a baptized believer brings us into a new relationship with not only God, but also with other believers who follow his Son. We need to emphasize this today in church. We often teach new believers about individual relationships with Christ but fail to teach the responsibility they have in a relationship with other followers. Our conversion to follow Christ also relates to community incorporation. One becomes part of the body of Christ.
2. [Screen 9] We are called show we belong to the community by giving sacrificially to the community for it to serve Jesus. That means we are to be willing to use our time and resources to serve our Lord. After all if we are honest it is all His to begin with.
3. [Screen 10] We should move from a feeling of gratitude to a compulsion to generosity. We are compelled by the love of Jesus. We give because of what Christ has given.
All these have a great deal on the impact we will have as a church. A fellowship church. A koinonia church. Churches that have individuals that partner in Christ for Christ offer great joy, and have a significant influence in their community.
I guess the best question I have been asked to know if we are really an impactful church is this. [Screen 11]
Would our community notice if we were no longer here???
Are we the light on the hill that if it went out, people would miss it?
CT: [Screen 12] Our fellowship with Christ and our fellowship with one another is what make the church.
The church when it is working right. When it follows the example of Jesus is a beautiful and impactful thing.
It will change lives.
It will heal.
It will save souls.
Its power is unlimited because the Lord it serves is unlimited in what He can and will do.
Wont you come and become a baptized member of a fellowship church that serves our Lord Jesus Christ.
Bibliography:
Overdorf, Daniel. Rediscovering community: what the Bible says about the church. Joplin, MO: College Press, 2012. Print. Chapter SIX
