Focal passage: Acts 2:41-47
After my grandparents retired, they did quite a bit of traveling – Yellowstone, Alaska and Canada, just to name a few. I never joined them on these trips, but I often found myself sitting downstairs with my cousins, watching slideshows and listening to stories of their adventures.
There was nothing special about my grandparents’ basement, but when the lights were turned off and tiny slides were inserted into the projector, something magical happened. A rickety and unremarkable white screen in the corner of an ordinary basement was transformed, brilliantly displaying the glories of some faraway landscape.
Human beings sometimes remind me of a projection screen. In the same way my grandpa projected his slides, God has lavished His great love on us through Jesus Christ.
And, like the screen reflected the slide, we respond to God’s love by reflecting it – loving God and loving others as He has loved us.
According to Acts 2:41-47, the early church expressed their love for God by loving others in a variety of practical ways. Devoting themselves to fellowship and prayer, they strove to meet the spiritual needs of their friends and family. In an effort to meet the physical needs in their community, these men and women sold their “property and distributed the proceeds to all, as anyone had a need” (Acts 2:45).
Such radical love didn’t escape the notice of those watching from the outside. Instead, it opened doors for sharing the gospel.
The people worshiped and served with sincerity, “And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.” (Acts 2:47).
Today my grandpa’s projector is collecting dust on a shelf. Why view slides when you have smartphones and YouTube? Unlike those slides, however, God’s plan for His followers has not changed. We are still called to respond to God’s great love for us by loving those around us. And as we meet spiritual and physical needs, God will provide opportunities for us to share about His Son as well!