Good Ol’ Days
As Peter traveled about the country, he went to visit the Lord’s people who lived in Lydda. There he found a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had been bedridden for eight years. “Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and roll up your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up. All those who lived in Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.”
No matter what I do I just can’t help but romanticize the “good ol’ days” of the early church described in the book of Acts. People repenting and turning to Christ en masse as the fire of the Holy Spirit roared through the Roman Empire by means of the mouths and lives of the apostles and these earliest believers.
Acts 4:32-34 describes it this way: “All the believers were one in heart and mind... they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them.”
And in the verse just prior to this miraculous story about Peter & Aeneas the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria is described as enjoying a time of peace and being strengthened, increasing in numbers as they lived in the fear of the Lord and were encouraged by the Holy Spirit. (Acts 9:31)
Frankly, it makes me jealous, and it raises some serious questions within me. Like: if we are a part of this same New Testament Church why don't we see and experience Christian life like this? Where is this kind of peace & harmony amongst believers? Where are all the mass conversions and the incredible healings?
Anybody else with me here? I highly doubt that I’m alone in saying that my experience with Christianity and the Church and its interaction with the world today is entirely foreign and/or even totally unrecognizable at times compared to what is described here in Acts chapter 9. But why is this?
Don’t get me wrong. I know the Church worldwide is still growing. The Holy Spirit is still working and God is still doing miracles in the hearts & lives of people around the world. But what is so different about 21st century Christianity compared to the 1st century?
To be honest, I don’t know that I have a good answer to these questions. And I’m certain if I did, it would be too multi-faceted and nuanced for this devotional. So, perhaps I’ll just continue asking some questions inspired by the historical account of these 1st century saints and in so doing may we find some application for ourselves today.
In the Church (let alone VCRC) are we truly of one heart & mind - that is the heart & mind of Christ? Is God so powerfully at work in you (and me) that I am willing to give everything I have so that there is no one in need? Are we living in fear of the Lord and being encouraged daily by the Holy Spirit? Am I testifying to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus by word and deed?
I believe that if and when we can answer “yes” to these questions, then we are truly living in the “Good Ol’ Days.”
Prayer: