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focused on Jesus

Acts 2:42
"And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."

To our detriment, the practices described in today's verse are NOT replicated in modern Christian communities. The core principles of teaching, fellowship, the breaking of bread, and prayer remain essential for Christian life and growth.

The closer we can replicate their example, the more faithful we will be. We can't duplicate the gravitas the Disciples had with their firsthand lessons from Jesus and their eyewitness experiences to the resurrection and ascension. We usually don't have the urgency of the pilgrims. Having just been baptized, they have days to learn all they can before they have to go home.

We don't know all the details, but we can see that the 120 members of the first Christian church spent all their time pouring into the 3,000 newly baptized Christians. Their emphasis was on FELLOWSHIP (or koinonia in Greek.) They developed a deep spiritual connection and mutual support among believers. They had communal meals, shared prayers that united believers before God. Try to imagine just how focused on Jesus these people would be...

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