And they’ve devoted themselves to the Apostles teaching and the fellowship, the breaking of bread and the prayers.
-Acts 2:42
And this is a simple summary of what the earliest church did. So the gospel was just preached and at Pentecost thousands of people have just come to Christ. They’ve been baptized.
Acts 2:42 reminds us to devote ourselves to God’s Word.
And so, from the very beginning, what are they devoting themselves to? They’re devoting themselves to the Apostle’s teaching. The teaching of God’s Word through these apostles who represented Christ and his authority. That is what we see in the pages of the New Testament. They devoted themselves to that teaching.
They devoted themselves to fellowship. This community with one another. These were people who were separate, in a sense, from one another up until this point. Now they’re united together in Christ, reconciled to God. And they’re devoted to community with one another. To “the breaking of bread” is likely a reference to the Lord’s Supper and this memorial meal that Christ had given so that from the very beginning his people would always look back and remember his body and his blood and feast on the mercy and grace that are found at the cross. They devoted themselves to that.
This verse reminds us to devote ourselves to prayer.
And the prayers. They were devoted to praying, to seeking God together. And so I read that and I just think, “That’s such a simple picture.” So in my life, in your life, in our churches today are we devoted to these things? Are we devoted to the Word? Just the pure teaching of the Word. Not entertainment value and a talk or this or that just … We want the Word. We want to be taught the Word of God. The authoritative Word of God. We’re devoted to it.
Acts 2:42 reminds us to devote ourselves to fellowship.
And the fellowship. Devoted to community with other followers of Christ and loving and caring and serving one another and encouraging one another and building each other up. Are we devoted to this memorial meal? Is it a regular practice? I think, oftentimes, we forget how central the celebration of the Lord’s Supper is intended to be among God’s people. So we need to remember continually to examine our hearts and our lives in light of the bread and the cup and remember that one day Jesus is going to come back. We’re going to drink that cup together with him.
We proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. And then devote ourselves to prayer. Not just like at the beginning of a meeting or here or there in a service, but really are we devoted to prayer? So, may these things that they were devoted to in the very beginning be things that were devoted to today. “They devoted themselves the Apostles teaching in the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and the prayers.” So let’s pray.
This verse leads us to ask God for help.
God. Help us to devote ourselves to these things. May we be people today in your church who are devoted to the teaching of your Word, to fellowship with one another, to the breaking of bread remembering of the sacrifice of your Son on the cross, and may we be devoted to prayer. And may prayer not be supplemental in our lives and your church. May be fundamental in everything we do. In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen.
David Platt serves as a Lead Pastor for McLean Bible Church. He is also the Founder of Radical, an organization that makes Jesus known among the nations.
David received his B.A. from the University of Georgia and M.Div., Th.M., and Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. Some of his published works include Radical, Radical Together, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Don’t Hold Back, and How to Read the Bible.
He lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with his wife and children.
