Acts: A 'No Matter What' Community | Josh Harrison
Becoming a “No Matter What” Community: Lessons from Acts
It’s been a recurring theme in our recent reflections: the deep longing for a church community that truly echoes the beauty and power of the earliest followers of Jesus. In this week’s conversation, Josh turned our attention to Acts 2:42-47—a passage many of us have heard so often that its extraordinary significance threatens to fade into the background noise of familiarity. But beneath its surface lies a revolutionary blueprint for Christian community—one that, in its time, was anything but ordinary, and, if we’re honest, would still stop our world in its tracks today.
Recovering the Wonder of the Early Church
Let’s begin with the setting. Josh reminded us that the world of the first Christians was far from simple. Political upheaval, religious skepticism, and social fragmentation were as real then as they are now. Yet, in that unlikely soil, the Spirit of God moved in such disruptive fashion that new life burst forth. After Jesus’ ascension and the Spirit’s arrival at Pentecost, three thousand people were added to the fledgling church in a single day. This was not an orderly, gradual development. It was a story that defied expectation—a “page-turner.”
But what happened next is equally vital. The newly formed community devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to fellowship, to breaking bread together, and to prayer. These aren’t just churchy words; they signify a radical new way of living that captured the imagination and allegiance of thousands. Why? Because what they practiced was so compelling that people around them couldn’t stay away.
The Practices That Changed the World
Let’s take a closer look at these practices, not as bland obligations but as world-shaking experiments in the “kingdom of God.” The apostles began by teaching, not just with words but with lives patterned after Jesus—inviting everyone, regardless of background, into a shared pursuit of living out the kingdom ideals. The concept of “fellowship” (koinonia), which often conjures up images of coffee and donuts in a church hall, actually meant a kind of deep communion—a community where unity prevailed over every conceivable difference: race, language, socioeconomic status, gender.
This wasn’t by accident. It was a stubborn, persistent determination that nothing—absolutely nothing—would divide them. They practiced breaking bread as more than a ritual. It was the daily enactment of Christ’s self-giving, a “cross-shaped” life of laying down oneself for others. They prayed together, not as dry routine, but as people who expected God to actually show up, bringing signs, wonders, and answers that testified to God’s reality.
And, perhaps most startlingly, they practiced a kind of generosity that vaporized poverty in their midst—selling property, redistributing wealth, and ensuring no one was in need.
Why the World Paid Attention—And Still Would
Josh made plain that the impact of the early church did not flow from clever strategies or carefully orchestrated campaigns. Their “strategy” was simply to live out the teaching and presence of Jesus together, to be a “no matter what” people—devoted, come what may, to community, prayer, generosity, and unity. The result? The favor of the people. Daily growth. A movement that could not be ignored.
He noted, too, that our own era—post-Christian, jaded, and complex as it is—is still longing to see this kind of church. Many who have drifted from faith have not rejected a genuine Acts-like community, but rather a pale imitation of it. The task is not to invent new marketing schemes, but to recover the substance and stubbornness of this ancient way.
Four Key Lessons from Acts 2—And For Us
Devotion Transforms Ordinary Rhythms Into Revolutionary Witness: What appears “ordinary” in the life of the church—teaching, prayer, breaking bread, and fellowship—becomes extraordinary when practiced with courage and persistence.
Unity Across Difference Is the Most Compelling Testimony: The world is desperate to see a diverse yet unified community where grace trumps all dividing lines. The early church’s stubborn commitment to unity is our greatest apologetic.
Radical Generosity Makes Real Needs Disappear: The first believers eradicated poverty, not by accident but through sacrificial sharing that reallocated resources across the whole community.
The “No Matter What” Spirit Is Irresistible: Growth and impact flow not from clever strategy, but from a community stubbornly committed—no matter what—to the way of Jesus.
The challenge before us is not to dream up something new, but to devote ourselves, as they did, to living it—expectantly, courageously, and together. If we do, perhaps the story will startle us all over again.
