"I need more joy in my life" a friend said to me one day.  She was absolutely certain she had not discovered the way to find joy otherwise she would have more of it evident in her life.  It brought to mind the old adage JOY= Jesus first, Others second, and lastly You.  It makes for a wonderful motto (and it wasn’t the case for her), but it is much harder to live that out in our lives because everything we hear or see today is geared toward ME and I.  I want a new car, good job, pretty girlfriend, the latest fashions, a trip to Hawaii.  My boss should give me a raise, better benefits, more time off, or an extra personal day.  Even some our praise songs tend to put ME and I first (which when I’ve pointed this out, I’ve ruffled a few feathers!) and Christians are known to come to or leave a church because of "what it does (or doesn’t do) for me".  The self-centered focus of our culture has crept into the contemporary church in many ways and sadly no one really seems to be willing to take a hard look at how and where.

            Throughout the pages of Scripture, and especially among the faithful spoken of in it, there is a different focus.  It is not on the individual but on the community.  If you have ever watched an ant colony or a beehive you will have a good image to grasp this concept.  Although made up of many individuals, these insect groups thrive and strive for their colony.  Each member has a goal to help the colony grow and each member continually does their part to reach the goal.  In Old Testament times we can see this characteristic in the way a person noted which tribe and clan they were a member of, particularly when land was concerned (Josh. 13:1-24:33; 1 Ki. 21:1-3).  In New Testament times that association was still true but one’s country of citizenship were also important.  Paul is the most noted example of this aspect of one’s identity in the Roman Empire (Acts 21: 39; 22:22-29; Phil. 3:4-6).  In both Testaments individual were still important, but the prominent marker of who you were came from the community to which you belonged.

            After the birth of the Church at Pentecost in the opening chapters of Acts we can see the early believers approaching their new identity in Christ in the same way.  While many of them came from a variety of places and backgrounds (Acts 2:5-11) they came together as one with one purpose and one goal (Acts 2:42-46; 4:32-33).  In this day and age it’s every man for himself but, in contrast, the behavior of those early believers is truly amazing.  We read in Acts 4:32 that individuals "did not claim anything belonging to him to be his own, but all things were common property to them."  This common property was used to help other believers who were in need.  Two examples follow this passage and are in contrast to one another.  The first example is Barnabas who sells a tract of land and gives all the money to the apostles with very little fanfare (Acts 4:36-37).  The second is Ananias and Sapphira, a husband and wife who sell their land but then lie about the amount they received for it when they present the proceeds to the apostles.  Not only did their actions defraud the community, their lie did not go unnoticed by God either (Act 5:1-10).

            It's not always easy to put others and their needs before our own.  But it was to be at the center of worship at the Temple.  Psalm 133 illustrates this.  As a "song of ascents" it was to be sung as the Israelites made their way through the Judean hills and upward toward Jerusalem.  As they reached Mount Zion and the Temple came into view, the words, "Behold how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity" reminded them that although they came from different tribes, they gathered in Jerusalem to worship God as His people.  In Jerusalem, though they were many individuals they also became one.  The unity that they experienced as a nation under God was a blessing like the beautiful land where they lived and it was pleasing to God (1 Kin. 4:20:-25).  Were the people always successful in working together in unity?  No.  Sadly their leadership failed in maintaining that unity and King Solomon, the second king to rule over the united kingdom was succeeded by his son who was responsible for dividing it (1 Kin. 11:41-12:33).

            The early believers needed to be reminded of this aspect of their faith-community.  But how does a group of individuals come together as one?  John instructed them to "walk in the light" as Jesus Himself did (1 Jn. 1:7).  Modeling our faith after Him produces fellowship with one another.  Paul reminded the Philippians of the same thing when he told them to have the same attitude as Christ (Phil. 2:5-8) who gave the ultimate self-sacrifice when He died on the cross.  When times get tough, as they have in recent months, our first reaction is to hold on to as much as we can and to save what we have for a rainy day.  But the Biblical model is community-minded.  It not only meets the needs of others, it brings glory to God and people to His kingdom.  Times can quickly change from bad to good or bad to worse.  But believers with a community mindset can not only persevere, they can become a testimony of what God does when He brings a wide variety of people together as one (Mt. 5:13-16; Acts 2:46-47).

Ann H. LeFevre, M. Div.
https://www.annhlefevre.com; Olivetreeann@mail.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/annhlefevre; https://www.facebook.com/ann.h.lefevre
 

            As some of you may know, I earned my bachelor’s degree at a small college in the northern panhandle of West Virginia.  I did not choose that school because of its academic program, its location, or its resources for life after college.  I chose it because I sensed God was leading me there, and for no other reason!  To say there was a definitive moment which explained why God wanted me there while I was studying there would not really be true.  But 43 years after the fact, I can certainly see some of the benefits from being there, and surprisingly, they are not academic!  Instead, Bethany College probably contributed more to my spiritual life than my professional development.  And the place where that growth took place was in a campus ministry called Agape.  We met on Wednesday evenings with guitars and Bibles, filled the meeting room with song and laughter, and dug deeply into God’s Word with the intent to live out its lessons in our dorms, our classrooms, during our activities and even in the cafeteria!

Agape, like small group Bible studies, youth groups and Sunday school classes are all grounded in the Biblical principal of “koinania”, a Greek word which simply means to share in, fellowship with or participate together.  Since the Old Testament was written in Hebrew we don’t see the word appear there, however, the concept of koinania is present in the relationship between God and humanity.  While in classical Greek this word was used to apply to things held in common, Genesis pictures this aspect in a negative light when it records the rupture of fellowship with God followed by the loss of unity among humans (Gen. 3-4).  Although sin broke the fellowship between God and humans, God's activity in forgiving, saving and preserving did not cease.  Through covenants with Abraham, the people of Israel, and David, God in His mercy bridged the gulf between Himself and humankind.
Since it is written in Greek, one would expect the word koinania to appear throughout the New Testament, but surprisingly, the word koinania is absent from the Gospels.  However it does occur 13 times in the writings of Paul.  Of course the most well known illustration of koinania appears in Acts 4:32-37.  In this passage Luke records a picture of the early church’s practice of sharing their goods among the believing community and their devotion to being together.  We are always impressed by their unity, but we often forget that in Acts 2:42-47 koinania was an essential part of a life of worship.  The unity of their fellowship proved God was in the midst of them.  When Paul uses the word koinania in his letters he never uses this word in a secular sense.  It is always in a religious context.  For Paul koinania refers strictly to the relation of believers who share a faith in Christ (1 Cor. 1:9, 10:16; 2 Cor. 6:14; 8:4; 13:14, 17; Gal. 2:9; Eph. 3:9; Phil. 1:5) and the kingdom activities of those who belong to Him (Rom. 15:26; 2 Cor. 9:13; Phil. 2:1, 3:10; Phile. 1:6; Heb. 13:16; 1 Jn. 1:3, 6-7).

Jesus may not have taught specific lessons on the subject of koinania but He certainly modeled it with the disciples.  Not too long ago it was easy in today’s technologically saturated world to isolate ourselves from one another.  Busy schedules, text messaging, work demands and commuting pulled us away from coming together and we often came up with excuses for not finding the time to be with fellow Christians.  Covid 19 changed all that.  It forced us to recognize how important the mutual support and encouragement that we receive from being together helps us to cope and get through life’s difficulties which were especially prevalent during the initial restrictions and loss of both life and freedom in the early days of dealing with the virus.  Thankfully many churches found creative ways to put the technology that once separated us to work at keeping us together.  More importantly, one of the greatest aspects of koinania is that when we are gathered together, Christ is in the midst of us (Mt. 18:20) and although viewing faces on Zoom or other social platforms was not exactly the same as being in the same room, we still experienced and are experiencing koinania in this way!

At the end of my freshman year at Bethany College, Agape held a picnic.  I told everyone that my mother’s recipe for potato salad was the best in the world and I was assigned the task of making it for the entire group.  I called my mother, got the recipe, and set about making the potato salad.  On the day of the picnic everyone raved about the taste and consumed the entire bowl.  But something was terribly wrong in my opinion.  I’d never seen my mother’s version look so brown, or taste so crunchy.  Yet my friends insisted it was perfect!  So afterwards I called my mother.  I told her I chopped the potatoes, celery, and hard-boiled eggs and put them in the bowl.  I mixed the mayo and the milk and then blended it together.  Why did it turn out so brown and so crunchy?  “Did you cook the potatoes?” my mother asked.  “Oh, you have to cook the potatoes?!” was my reply.  I don’t know if anyone ever figured out I’d fed them raw potatoes, but the sweetness of koinania certainly overpowered their taste buds that day!  Are you in koinania (virtual or otherwise)?  If not, you might be missing out on some awesome potato salad and fun stories to go with it!

Ann H. LeFevre, M. Div.
https://www.annhlefevre.com; Olivetreeann@mail.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/annhlefevre; https://www.facebook.com/ann.h.lefevre

          Next to the Ascension, the Day of Pentecost as it is recorded in Acts 2 is the grandest event in the Book of Acts.  While some may argue that Paul’s conversion is more important in terms of the spread of the Gospel, I would argue that the amazing turnaround of someone bent on destroying the “Church” overshadows something far more significant- that there was a “Church” at all!  But to understand why this is so significant, one must delve into the Biblical history of this festival.  Pentecost begins in the Old Testament under the name Shavuot.  The commands concerning Shavuot are found in Leviticus 23:15-22.  Along with Passover and Sukkot (The Feast of Tabernacles), Shavuot is one of the Shalosh Regalim.  These three pilgrimage holidays were the days when all Jewish males would journey to Jerusalem bringing their annual offerings to worship at the Temple.  Shavuot means weeks (Ex. 34:22) and the holiday was so named because the passage of time between Passover and Shavuot was marked in weeks.  By Jesus’ day Shavuot was also known by its Greek name, Pentecost, which instead of signifying weeks, records the number of days between the two holy days (penta=50; cost=days).

          The Temple services for Shavuot followed much the same pattern as that of the Feast of First Fruits (and many teachers/translators incorrectly combine the two) since both days were celebrated with first fruit offerings (Shavuot dealt with the wheat harvest whereas First Fruits dealt with the barley harvest).  However, the offering of Shavuot was unique because it consisted of two long, flat, leavened loaves of wheat bread (Lev. 23:17).  These loaves were not burned as a sacrifice as many other offerings were because the Lord had forbidden leaven on the altar (Lev. 2:11).  Instead they were set aside “for the priest” (Lev. 23:20) to be used in a festive meal.  The loaves, along with two lambs brought as a peace offering, formed a wave offering.  The priest waved them before the altar forwards and backwards, then up and down in recognition that it was the Lord who would provide the coming wheat harvest. 
          
           As the saying goes, “Timing is everything” and when Luke takes note of the “time” or day (when the day of Pentecost had come) of this event, he is actually linking it to two events he wrote of in his Gospel.  The first was Christ’s crucifixion which took place during Passover.  The second was Christ’s resurrection which fell on the Feast of First Fruits according to the Levitical calendar (Lev. 23:9-14).  With two significant events occurring on the two previous holy days, the Lord is about to do something on the third- Shavuot.  Luke records that a noise like a rushing wind filled “the house” and “tongues of fire” were distributed amongst the believers.  Compelled by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the disciples and those gathered with them joined the throng of worshippers in Jerusalem who were amazed to hear Galileans speaking in their native languages.  This gathering included people from all over the Roman Empire; some Jewish and some proselytes, that is Gentiles who had converted to Judaism.  They heard the proclamation of God’s mighty deeds (Ac. 2:11).  The occurrence of wind and fire are linked to numerous times in the Old Testament where these elements represent God’s presence and judgment (Gen. 19:24; Ex. 9:22-26; Ps. 11:4-7; Ps. 18: 7-15; Is. 30:27-30).  The crowd that heard these words understood that connection but they weren’t sure of what it all meant (v. 12).  Although naysayers tried to discredit the event (v.13), Peter explained to them that they were witnessing the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (Ac. 2:16-21; Joel 2:28-32) and that the Promised Messiah had come (vv.22-36).  The result of Peter’s skillful and Spirit-led dissertation is the birth of the Church (vv.37-41), which was made up of the unique combination of both Jew and Gentile- a very unexpected twist!
  
          The combination of Gentiles and Jews who came together at the birth of the Church matches the imagery of the two leavened loaves of bread joined together on that day of Pentecost.  While the previous offering of First Fruits was unleavened as Christ was sinless, the Church is filled with finite people who still struggle with sin (Rom. 6:1-14).  But it is also significant that God joined together a body with such far reaching geographical locations.  Track down a Bible atlas and look them up!  God is still working in His Church today in much the same way (Eph. 2:10-22).  It is filled with an amazing assortment of people and when we get to know others outside the faith community and what makes them tick, in essence we are learning their language and hopefully we are bringing the Gospel into their world.  The Christians of Acts 2 carried the Gospel back to their homelands where the Good News took root.  You are called to carry on where they left off.  Where will you take the Gospel so that it can take root (Mt. 28:19-20)?

Ann LeFevre, M. Div.
https://www.annhlefevre.com; Olivetreeann@mail.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/annhlefevre; https://www.facebook.com/ann.h.lefevre                                                                                                                      

            Have you ever thought about your life as a book or a series of books?  When I was in elementary school I loved the Laura Ingalls Wilder books.  I read them all and if memory serves me correctly, the first book, Little House in the Big Woods, remained my favorite.  Laura’s story was not complete by the end of that first book.  She and her family had many more experiences and so each place they lived became the next in a series that recounted her life and is now treasured by many.  I don’t know if my life would warrant a series of books but I can think of how it might be divided into segments ranging all the way from my childhood to becoming a grandparent.  Being a grandparent has taught me that life really does have connective tissue even though it’s not a body like our own flesh and bones.  One author who was also strongly aware of life’s connective tissue was Luke, the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Book of Acts.  He begins the Book of Acts with these words, “In the first account I composed…” and continues to explain to his reader, “Theophilus”, that the work of Jesus and the authority connected with it was now being transferred from Jesus to the 12 apostles which He had chosen to represent Him (Acts 1).

            The connection of authority lies completely in the role Jesus assigns to 12 of His followers- apostolos- which literally means “sent one” or one who is sent.  What were these men sent to do?  They were to be witnesses, a legal term which was associated with bearing testimony in an event or of a person.  Therefore the apostles were to the ones who would bear witness of Jesus’ life, His death, and most importantly, His resurrection.  In Jewish law, an apostle (shaliach in Aramaic) was a person who had the full authority of the one they represented in business or legal transactions (see Jn. 13:16, 20 or Jn. 20:21 as examples).  Luke recorded this selection in Lk. 6:12-16 as Jesus began His most intimate and intensive training program with them.  Now, within the first verses of Acts, Luke makes note that Jesus has passed on both His mission (establishing the Kingdom of God) and His power to accomplish it on to the “sent ones” (vv. 1-8).  The number 12 is not unusual.  It harkens back to the 12 tribes of Israel whose patriarchs became the initial subset of leadership under Joshua when the nation settled in the Promised Land.  And like those 12 “heads of state”, the apostles would also be entrusted with guiding the new community of believers after Christ’s Ascension.  Talk about tough shoes to fill!  But the apostles are not left blowing about in the wind like a hapless flag.  Jesus promises them the additional help of the Holy Spirit which will come upon them while they are in Jerusalem (v. 5) another aspect of this event which is connected to the Old Testament (Is. 44:3; Joel 2:28-32).

            But there is a slight problem- the apostles are one man short!  Peter takes the initiative to address those who are gathered together and suggests a replacement be named for Judas.  Luke points out that the number of people equaled the number required by Jewish law to establish a community with its own ruling council.  In essence Luke is demonstrating that Jesus has both personally and legally passed on His purpose and mission to this newly formed community.  Peter begins by recalling the somewhat gruesome end of Judas.  Note that Peter does not say Judas is no longer an apostle.  He cannot do that since it was Jesus who appointed that role to Judas.  But in what seems to be a rather unusual process, Matthias is “elected” to fill the vacant spot.  The method of casting lots (rolling dice) to determine God’s will concerning a decision was common in Old Testament times (1 Chr. 26:13 for example).  Prov. 16:33 sums up the mindset behind this stating that God is the one who determines how the dice will fall, not chance.  However the passage is the only time casting lots in mentioned in the New Testament which emphasizes the unique situation but not necessarily endorsing this method as the way to determine what God wants you to do!  Prayer remains the same, but it is the Spirit who guides us now.

            It is important to take note of the historical sequence of the events in the Book of Acts.  While the first chapter has some fascinating glimpses into the early believer’s connections to the Old Testament as seen in the casting of lots and the fulfillment of Scripture, it also has an exciting dose of anticipation with the promise of the Spirit yet to be fulfilled.  How are we connected to this transitional time?  We are the beneficiaries of what is about to happen in Chapter 2- the empowering of the Holy Spirit.  And the work that began under Jesus’ earthly ministry which He passed on to those early believers now falls into our hands.  We too are sent into our homes, our neighborhoods and anywhere else we find ourselves to be a witness as to what Jesus has done in our lives.  Jesus has given you a mission.  How are you measuring up as a witness?

Ann H. LeFevre, M. Div.
https://www.annhlefevre.com; Olivetreeann@mail.com; https://www.linkedin.com/in/annhlefevre; https://www.facebook.com/ann.h.lefevre