“The Work of the Spirit, Part 2: The Community of the Spirit” by the Rev. Dr. Don Wahlig, April 26, 2026, Year A / Easter 4 – Psalm 133:1-3 ¨ Acts 2:41-47
THEME: The Spirit inspires a faith community that grows closer to God and cares deeply for one another.
Have you ever been church-shopping? Maybe you found yourself living in a new place and you needed to find a new spiritual home? What kinds of things were you looking for? Good preaching and music, of course. Friendly, welcoming people, naturally. Programs for you and your family. Overall, a place that would fit you perfectly and where you could grow spiritually. Did I miss anything?
There is just one problem. The church you were looking for does not exist. Even if it did, you should definitely not join it. There is an old saying, “If you find the perfect church, do not become a member. If you do, it will no longer be perfect.” The point is that, as long as a church has members, it will never be perfect. That is because none of us is perfect. And yet Luke seems to be showing us just that kind of church. He is painting a picture of the ideal Christian community.
This first church that we read about here in Acts was formed by the Holy Spirit. As we saw last week, the Spirit first transformed the disciples’ hearts and minds. It changed the things they sought after, and the things that gave them fulfillment. Now, they are oriented to God’s purposes, rather than just their own. Luke is showing us what this new Spirit-inspired orientation looks like in the gathered community of the faithful. In their life together, they are living out both parts of Jesus’ Great Commandment. They stay connected to God, through the work of the Spirit. Their connection to God reshapes their relationships with one another.
Their God connection is strong, first and foremost, because they are grounded in the gospel. Together, they learn Jesus’ message of new life in him, a life of faith, hope and love. In addition to study, they nurture their connection to God through prayer. This first group of Jesus-followers in Jerusalem was still very much connected to the Temple. When they prayed, that is where they went. The power of this Spirit-inspired God-connection extends far beyond the Temple. It overflows into their daily lives through inclusive fellowship and mutual concern for their fellow disciples. When they gather, they do what Jesus commanded his disciples to do. They eat and drink in remembrance of him. It is a eucharistic feast every time they get together for a meal. Just as Jesus included everyone in his ministry of table fellowship, this feast of the disciples is open to all. No one goes hungry and no one is left out.
Such extraordinary mutual care and concern carries over into temporal matters, too. When one of them has needs that only money can resolve, others share what they have in order to meet that person’s need. This Spirit-led communal living produces profound peace and joyous praise among its members. Their fellow Jews outside the community cannot help but notice. They are amazed when they see how the Spirit has empowered such a radically new and different way of living.
Soon enough, the outsiders are moved to become insiders. Peter’s band of faithful disciples welcomes them and baptizes them. They, too, receive the Spirit. As a result, this very first congregation of Jesus-followers grows steadily in number. To those of us who live in a modern, consumer society where individualism and materialism are the dominant ethos, this sounds improbable and even naive. It sounds too good to be true. And, in fact, it did not last. As time went by, ethnic grievances and the reluctance of some members to share their material wealth created tension and division. This does not mean, however, that Luke’s model of the ideal Christian community should be thrown into the circular file under the heading of “Unrealistic and unsustainable models of church”.
This early community of Christians was convinced that the end times had arrived. They believed that Christ’s return was imminent, and so was the time of judgment. Under that assumption, this model of church is eminently reasonable and desirable. If Jesus is coming back tomorrow, who cares how much money we have, right? As time went by and Jesus did not return, however, the early church had to adapt to the realities of its long-term existence. In doing so, it never lost its emphasis on those same two core principles of the first community of Christians. This is the story of the rest of Acts, and the rest of the New Testament. It is the story of the geographic explosion of the church under the leadership of Peter, John, James, and Paul. Wherever they planted a new congregation, they guided these new faith communities to stay connected to God, through the work of the Spirit. Their connection to God then reshaped their relationships with one another. That is how the church spread throughout the Roman world, and beyond.
2,000 years later, these two core principles are as foundational as they were to the early church. This is the kind of church we aspire to be, a community of the faithful where the Spirit guides us to deepen our connections with God through worship, study and prayer, and to deepen our relationships with one another through mutual care and concern. This is God’s vision for us that our Session discerned several years ago: to become more of a grace-filled family of faith sharing Christ’s love with all. I have been a part of five churches in my lifetime. In my opinion, none have been as faithful as we have been in living out these two fundamental values of the early church.
We might be tempted to think that we – the staff, the officers, the volunteers – are the ones who are forming this community. But it is not our work. It is the work of the Spirit. We are simply the vessels through which the Spirit works. In other words, it is not so much about us and our capabilities. It is about humility and our willingness to lean on the Spirit to help us serve God by serving others in the name of Jesus Christ. This is why, when I hear folks talk about church shopping, I stop and wonder. Should the focus really be finding personal satisfaction, comfort, and entertainment? Yet so many Christians persist in seeking that. We shop for churches like we shop for a vacuum cleaner. We look for the one with the most options and greatest features—one that will best meet our needs—while asking as little as possible from us in return.
It reminds me of the old joke about a couple looking for a church in their new hometown. After visiting the fifth church, the husband says, “We liked the church, but we're going to keep looking. The pastor preaches from the newest translation of the Bible, but we're really looking for a KJ-only church. We want a 12-piece praise band, a full traditional choir, and a pastor who is under 30 but has 40 years of experience." It’s funny, but it brings up a serious question for all of us, members and non-members alike. On balance, are we primarily a consumer of spiritual goods and services, or are we more of a contributor? We have all been trained to be consumers by the culture in which we live. When it comes to church, that approach is appropriate at the beginning of our faith journey. But, as we grow in faith, we have to become contributors. This is one of the surest signs of spiritual maturity.
Yet, so many lifelong Christians continue to look only at what they can get from a church, without considering what they can contribute to it. It never occurs to them that God has called them to a particular faith community not only to be served, but to serve others. So, they never make the leap from spiritual consumers to contributors. Jesus is clear about which he is, and which he wants us to be. He said he came not to be served, but to serve. That was never more clear than at the last supper. After washing his disciples’ feet, he said,
“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.”
Friends, how about you and me? What is God calling us to contribute to this community of faith? What gifts has he given us to serve others? How is the Spirit working to inspire and guide us to do that? As you think about these questions, let them propel you to take a new inventory of your gifts, and a fresh look to see where they are most needed. The kind of Christian community Jesus wants us to be is one where the Spirit not only draws us closer to God, but also moves us to serve one another, both those inside our walls and those outside. This is what those early Christian communities were, if only imperfectly.
This is what we are to be, too.
May it be so.
