공동체와 양육

Growing Deeper Through Discipleship (Acts 2:42-47)

2008.11.09Rev. 에디 변

Discipleship means giving Christ our everything: growing in Christ through the word, prayer, and the Lord's Supper, growing through community, and wholly committing our lives to Him. Acts 2 shows the early church devoted to these things.

Devoted to growing in Christ through the word, prayer, and the Lord's Supper (42-43)

The early disciples in Acts 2:42 devoted themselves to four things: the apostles' teaching, the fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer. Daily intake of God's word nourishes and strengthens us in a way nothing else in this world can, because we do not live on bread alone. Devotion to fellowship means praying for and protecting one another rather than gossiping. The Lord's Supper leads us from remembering Christ's sacrifice into worship, and prayer keeps our lives in line with God's will. Spiritual disciplines bring freedom, just as practice turns the friction of writing with the wrong hand into fusion and then freedom.

Daily and weekly disciplines shape a life led by the Spirit, not the flesh

Before the busyness of the day, we must create space to be still in God's presence, hear His word, and remember that we are His beloved. When I skip this time, I find myself reacting to irritations in the flesh instead of responding as the Spirit leads. Our prayers should include both frustrations and joys, and audio Bible or sermons can fill everyday tasks and commutes. I set a focus for each day of the week, such as missions on Mondays, leadership on Tuesdays, and worship on Sundays, so that I keep learning as a student of Christ. Each year, we should look back and ask whether we have grown more like Christ.

Growing through community as the fruit of the Spirit appears among others (44-47)

The believers were together, shared everything in common, met daily, and ate together with glad and sincere hearts. Some fruit of the Spirit, such as patience and kindness, can only be developed in community, because God places imperfect people around us to shape us. Alone, we cannot know whether love or patience is truly growing in our hearts. Through our everyday interactions, others can taste this fruit and see that God is good. Like branches, we bear fruit only when we remain connected to the Vine, who is Jesus.

Making Christ our everything, not one option among many

In Matthew 8, a teacher of the law offered to follow Jesus, but Jesus answered that the Son of Man has no place to lay his head. Discipleship is not about comfort, glamour, or security, and God uses humble and frail people so that He receives the glory. When another disciple asked to bury his father first, Jesus called him to follow Him first, because Christ must be supreme in all areas of our lives. Discipleship is not a one-time decision but must be renewed regularly, since it is easy to drift off track. Counting the cost means recognizing that everything, including money, family, dreams, and time, belongs to Christ.

A life wholly given to Christ can be used across generations

Henry Varley's words that the world has yet to see what God can do through a man wholly consecrated to Him changed D. L. Moody's life. Moody gave up his work as a shoe salesman and ministered to outcasts in Chicago, eventually leading a Sunday school of over 600 children. The wordless book he helped develop is still used around the world for evangelism. The Moody Bible Institute he founded still trains ministers today. God does great things through disciples who are greatly committed to Him.

Apply to Life

  • Let us devote ourselves daily to God's word, prayer, and the Lord's Supper.
  • Let us begin each day in God's presence before the busyness of our schedules.
  • Let us bless those who annoy or oppose us through prayer, as Christ did.
  • Let us remain connected to the Vine by growing together in fellowship and community.
  • Let us renew our commitment today by placing our everything in Christ's hands.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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