Bible Notes: Acts 4:32-37

Acts 4:32-37

32And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. 33And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. 34For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales 35and lay them at the apostles' feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need. 36Now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means Son of Encouragement), 37and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.

There are several things to be gleaned from this passage of God's Word. First is that the Church should be unified, and act as one body. I haven't seen much of this in the American church, but for the past couple years I have noticed a movement towards it. So unity in the Church is something we need to be praying for. The next thing I want to point out is a little more complicated. Verses 34 and 35 say that everyone shared their wealth, and that resulted in there not being "a needy person among them." In modern political terms, that's redistribution of wealth. Now, as a Conservative, redistribution of wealth is someting I consider to be really stupid. But, here it is, in the Bible, God's Word. So, am I wrong to oppose it? No, I'm not, and the explaination is simple. This redistribution of wealth was within the Church, no imposed by the Government. Basically, the Church is filled with the power of God. The Holy Spirit frees us from the chains that shackel us to selfishness. Because of this, we can overcome our natural inclinations, and share our wealth with others. Of course, the American Church has not done very well at this, but I think we can learn to. In contrast, the unsaved world will never be able to overcome the sin that makes redistribution of wealth fail. People are naturally selfish, and if you take away their money that they work hard to earn, they will stop working hard. Eventually any system based on redistribution of wealth will fail. We've seen that with Communism. And the reason for it's failure, was sin. In conclusion, as Christians, we should seek to learn to share everything we have with our fellow believers. If they need help, and you can help, give them what they need. Even if it inconveniences you tomorrow, remember God is in charge of tomorrow, we only need to think about today. We also must make sure that we are not deceived into abdicating the responsibilities God has given us to the Government.

Submitted by david.reagan on