This is the third installment in our series on what it means to be the church. In the first installment, we studied what it means to be a disciple making church family. In the second installment, we studied what it means to be a devoted church family. This week we are looking at what it means to be a generous church family.

THE EARLY CHURCH WAS A GENEROUS FAMILY

Though we touched on this briefly last Sunday, it seemed good for us to spend an entire week being challenged on this topic. I must admit that the topic of generosity is probably one of least favorite topics for most of us to discuss. When we think about generosity, we automatically think about money, and most of us here probably do not feel like there is enough money to go around; many of us come from poverty or barely make it into the middle class, in terms of social economic wealth.

But I do not think we should think of the people in the Bible as being super wealthy either; most of them were no different than many of us. Since God often chooses the weak to shame the wise, it seems like he often chooses the poor to preach the wealth of the gospel to the world. 

While there are wealthy people sprinkled throughout the stories of the Bible (Job is one of them and Barnabas in our passage seems to be another), most of the original apostles were poor fishermen, and much of church history coming out of the book of Acts paints a picture of an impoverished people being entrusted with the message of the gospel.

With that said, our passage today is once again located in the book of Acts. The book of Acts is the second half of Luke’s gospel, and it follows the four gospels known as Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. In the four gospels we have the account of all that Jesus did while he was here on earth and then in the book of Acts, we see everything that the Spirit of Christ continued to do in and through the church immediately following Jesus’ ascension to Heaven.

The bottom line here is that the book of Acts records – like a history book – the exciting events of God building his church on the testimony of the Rock of Ages – the Crucified, Risen, and Returning Christ – as the Spirit of God enabled the disciples to be his witnesses from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. All throughout the book of Acts, the Spirit of God moves in miraculous ways.

The disciples become full of courage, the gospel is proclaimed in the face of persecution, people become Christians by the thousands, church families begin to sprout up in every community, and the kingdom of hell is put on notice: You may have crucified the Messiah, but his Spirit-led family – known as the church – has become a battering ram that the gates of hell will not withstand! And one of the telltale signs that the Spirit of God was moving among this early church family was the fact that they were unified in their generosity. Look at the passage with me…

32Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. 33And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold 35and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. 36Thus Joseph, who was called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

#1: THEIR GENEROSITY WAS UNIFIED (V. 32)

Verse 32 tells us that “the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common”. Simply stated, these early believers were united in their commitment to practicing generosity.

It was not just the few wealthier folks that practiced this, because Luke tells us that “the full number of those who believed” practiced generosity. It is almost as though a defining mark of being a Christian, or one of the most visible fruits of being a believer, was witnessed in a person putting their money where their mouth was.

Every one of these early believers “were of one heart and soul” or literally “had everything in common” and were completely united in the belief that nothing “that belonged to [them]” were their own; they literally knew that they did not own anything they possessed because God owns everything.

This principle of God’s ownership and our role as stewards of what does not belong to us is the bedrock of Christian generosity. From the beginning, Adam was placed in charge of what did not belong to him in the Garden of Eden, and he was instructed to care for it and steward it as he established God’s kingdom throughout the earth (Gen. 1:26-31, 2:15-17).

This very same principle works its way through the Old Testament Laws that teach us to tithe for the advancement of the gospel, and to give over and above that tithe to help the poor and the needy among us (Num. 18:21, Deut. 14:22-29).

There are plenty of places throughout the Old Testament where God disciplines his people for their disobedience in this area of generosity as the temple ministry fell into ruins and the poor were abandoned. In Malachi, God rebukes his people for withholding their tithe, he tells them that their disobedience is the foundation for their misery, and he calls them to test him by faith in their giving to see if he will throw the doors of provision wide open for them (Mal. 3:8-10).

Later in the New Testament, Jesus never tells people to stop tithing or to stop taking care of the poor; on the contrary, he rebukes them for their attitudes when they do practice their religion for the applause of the people (Matt. 23:23). The apostle Paul also seems to have no problem asking for financial help to do his ministry, and he even asks for more money to help the impoverished churches in his area (Rom. 15:25-27, 1 Cor. 16:1-4, 2 Cor. 8-9, Phil. 4:10-20).

Why does all of this take place throughout God’s economy? It happens simply because, believers understand the principle of God’s ownership and human stewardship (1 Tim. 6:17-19)! When we get this straightened out, when we begin to practice unified generosity, gospel ministry gets unleashed like a wildfire, which is exactly what happens next in the text.

#2: THEIR GENEROSITY UNLEASHED GOSPEL MINISTRY (V. 33)

Verse 33 tells us that “with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all”. Once again, simply stated, the generosity of the early church unleashed gospel ministry throughout the region like a wildfire. The gospel literally spread because of the unified generosity of the early church.

Did the apostles draw paychecks like modern day preachers? Probably not exactly. But it is not a stretch to believe that their living expenses were paid for so that they could devote themselves to preaching, teaching, praying and leading the church. We would do well to note that in Acts Chapter 2, the church exploded as 3,000 new believers were added on The Day of Pentecost; that is a lot of people to shepherd!

But the apostles never missed a beat because not only were their expenses covered (in my opinion), but the needs of the people were covered as well, which would lighten the ministerial load on these young leaders. Why did this happen? Why did this kind of radical generosity take place? I think it took place simply because these early believers came face to face with grace in the person and work of Jesus Christ.

When it says that “great grace was upon them all” I think it literally means that these early believers had had an encounter with the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and it radically transformed them into the most generous people on the planet. And the outcome of their grace driven, unified generosity, was that the gospel spread like wildfire, unhindered, and fully ablaze! And the beauty in all of this is that their radical generosity actually met the felt needs of other believers in their midst.

#3: THEIR GENEROSITY ACTUALLY MET FELT NEEDS (VV. 34 – 37)

Verses 34 – 37 tell us that “There was a not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet”. The reality of what we see happening here is that there was a gospel partnership between the believers and the apostles that was designed to meet the actual felt needs of the church family.

If the church practiced this kind of radical generosity – where the actual felt needs of every church member were met – there would be no need to rely on a secular government to provide for their needs. This kind of gospel partnership was focused on gospel proclamation, gospel advancement, and gospel provision. The gospel is not just for salvation; it is for sanctification – helping us to become all that God wants us to be, which necessarily includes us being generous as we encounter an immensely generous Heavenly Father.

I have to camp out on this for a moment. All too often, the church in West has become more like a business with CEO’s for pastors, with members for shareholders who drive the consumeristic programs of the church. That is not gospel driven partnerships in generosity. In our passage, we see true gospel driven partnership centered around radical generosity. These early church members loved and trusted one another – leaders included – and the outflow of that love and trust was made visible in their radical generosity as the gospel was advanced to the ends of the earth.

“There was not a needy person among them” because everyone practiced radical generosity in partnership together as they sold off their surplus, “and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet” so that it could be “distributed to each as any had need”. If that is not the picture of partnership that is centered on the gospel because of a deep and abiding love and trust towards one another, then I do not know what is! The question we have to keep asking, is “why was the early church such a generous family?”

WHY WAS THE EARLY CHURCH SUCH A GENEROUS FAMILY?

I think the early church was such a generous family because of what they did or did not believe. Let me say that differently. The only reason the early church practiced this kind of radical generosity, is because of what they believed or did not believe. 

This kind of radical unity in generosity that unleashes a gospel ministry that spreads like wildfire and meets the actual felt needs of the people, can only happen because of a radical belief system that understands ownership, grace, and a kind of partnership that is based on loving trust.

#1: The early church did not believe that they owned their resources.

They knew that God owned everything, and they knew that they were called to be stewards of what had been entrusted to them. They believed Psalm 24:1 when it says that “The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof.” And they also believed Deuteronomy 10:14 where it says, “To the Lord your God belong the Heavens, even the highest Heavens, the earth and everything in it.” And they also believed Colossians 1:16 where it says that all things were created through Christ and for Christ.

Regarding stewardship, these early believers believed Proverbs 3:9 – 10 where it says that we are to “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first-fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing.” They also believed Matthew 6:19-21 where it says, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

The bottom line here is that the early church practice radical generosity because they believed that God owned everything and that we are called to steward what he has given us for the advancement of his Kingdom.

#2: The early church believed the gospel of grace.

They believed that they did not deserve anything that had been given or entrusted to them. They did not live in bondage to entitlement because they had been set free by the grace of God. They believed Ephesians 2:8 – 9 when it teaches us that we have been saved by grace apart from any of our good works.

They believed Romans 3:23 – 24 when it teaches us that God saves sinners and freely justifies them by grace through faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ. They also believed 2 Corinthians 12:9 where it teaches us that our power comes from Christ as we surrender our weaknesses to him and rely on his grace which is sufficient for everything in the life of the believer.

The bottom line for these early believers is that they had received what they knew they would never deserve and because of that experience of God’s grace, they embodied that grace in their radical generosity.

#3: The early church believed in a gospel partnership that was based on loving trust.

These early believers loved their leaders because their leaders faithfully preached the gospel to them. They trusted their leaders to be about the ministry of the gospel and to manage their shared resources for the advancement of the gospel. It was not like these early believers lived disconnected from their leaders throughout the week and only spent time with them on Sundays.

These church members and church leaders were together multiple days per week as they labored side by side to advance the gospel. Trust was earned and love was deepened as they observed one another laboring to advance the kingdom of heaven ton the very edges of hell and back. The practice of giving and receiving was built on the bedrock of mutual partnership amidst the soil of love and trust.

WHAT ENABLES US TO BE A GENEROUS CHURCH FAMILY?

I think the key to becoming more and more generous is simply wrapped up in the practice of exercising our faith. Faith literally means to believe and to trust. Our faith – belief + trust – must be exercised like muscles in the gym if we are going to become radically generous.

The reality is that most of us here will say we believe in Jesus; the issue is whether or not our trust aligns with our spoken belief. I could ask you all day if you believe this chair will hold you but until you agree to sit in it, you have not exhibited trust and therefore your faith is incomplete because you possess a belief that does not trust.

Another way of explaining this would be to tell the story of the man who walks out on a tightrope over the Grand Canyon with a camp stove, some utensils, a pan, and some food, and he winds up cooking a delicious breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, and hashbrowns and then he walks back over the tightrope and gives the meal to you.

So, there you are, eating the meal (like the good little consumer you are), and marveling at the miracle of what this man just did and the deliciousness of the meal itself when he appears again with a wheel barrel. He asks you if you believe that he can wheel you across that tightrope and you nervously say yes you believe he can do it. But when he asks you to get into the wheel barrel, you refuse to get into it because you do not actually trust him.

Your faith is fractured because your belief does not match your trust. This is how we often approach the topic of generosity; we say we believe God can do anything – especially saving a filthy group of misfits and outsiders like us – but then, by our actions, we prove that we do not actually trust him to get into the wheel barrel. 

CONCLUSION…

We need to get our beliefs aligned with our trust; we need to exercise an unfractured faith! We need to believe and trust that Jesus is the best owner of all things. We need to believe and trust that Jesus gives us more than we deserve. Until our believing and our trusting get into alignment with our profession of faith in Christ, we will always see our paychecks as something we deserve, something we need, and something we earned. And in that frame of mind, we reject the grace of God, and we lie to ourselves as we imagine that we own the things we actually do not own.

This is where the bloody cross, the empty tomb, and the promise of heaven comes crashing into our oftentimes fractured faith. When Jesus hung on that cross he gave everything in the most radical display of generosity you will ever see, so that you and I could experience the grace of God as the penalty, presence, and power of our sin was defeated once and for all.

When Jesus left that tomb empty on the third day, he freely offered his resurrection power to anyone who would kneel in submission to him so that we to can look forward to the day when we run out of our graves and join him in eternity. If that ain’t generosity, I do not know what is! When Jesus left us with the promise of eternity in his presence, it is like the wealthiest person who ever lived, making a promise to build us the perfect place to live where our every need will be met for all eternity.

It is this gospel message that unleashed the radical generosity of the early church which in turn unleashed the church like wildfire, to make war against the kingdom hell as they sought to rescue the lost and make disciples among the found. The message of the bloody cross, the empty tomb, and the promise of heaven became so rooted in the hearts and lives of the people as the Spirit of God sowed, planted, watered, and produced its fruit throughout the church, that the kingdom of hell began to tremble at its presence. This is what it looks like to be a generous church family! – Amen!!!

1 Unless otherwise specified, all Bible references are to the English Standard Version Bible, The New Classic Reference Edition (ESV) (Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, 2001).

2 R., Kent, Hughes, Acts: The Church Afire, Preaching the Word Commentary, (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 1996), 67 – 73. (This study was tremendously helpful to me)