I don’t often think about the number of decades I’ve lived.  It’s not that I don’t want to face them or wish that I was still in my twenties, thirties or even forties (!) because I am quite satisfied with the life that the Lord has given me and I’m happy to be where I am.  If I’m thinking about the past I’m usually comparing the general make up of something by looking at what it is “now” and what it was like “then”.  Simply put, I’m nostalgic!  There is a tendency to think that any movement or organization in its initial stages was better, purer, more altruistic than it is now and that the people who initiated it were more competent, dedicated, honorable, and untainted by sin and compromise.  That was the thought behind someone who lamented that many Christian performers today are just that- performers.  But as I reflected on some of the figures that first propelled this genre into the American consciousness, were they really that much better?  Truth be told, they were not.  Some were still addicted to drugs or became addicted to drugs during their rise to stardom; some had affairs or their marriages were destroyed by infidelity; and some sold out to the highest bidder when the “offer was too good to refuse”.  I am not naming names here because that is not my intent, but I saw some of it first hand during my days as an assistant to a DJ at a local radio station.

            We like to think of the “Church” this way too.  We read through the Book of Acts and land on the passages where believers sell their goods to assist the community and think “Wow- believers would never do that now!”  We look at the different ministries our church is running and may think, “That really helps our congregation but are we reaching the needs of the community we live in like they did in Jerusalem?”  It would be great to say that the early days of “The Church” were better, purer, more altruistic, and untainted by sin and compromise than it is now, but we would be wrong!  The truth is wherever there are humans involved with the Lord’s work, there’s going to be issues!  It’s simply a fact of our fallen human nature- although we don’t like to focus on that nowadays.  Acts 4 closes with the idyllic scene of believers bringing gifts and offerings to the Apostles for the betterment of the community (Acts 4:32-37).  Awesome!  Chapter 5 begins with the false donation of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) while Chapter 6 acknowledges that prejudice and mismanagement were depriving certain widows of their daily needs (Acts 6:1-6).  NOT so awesome!

            It was customary for the Jewish community of the 1st century to take two offerings every Friday before sundown.  The first was the kuppah (meaning basket).  It was a monetary donation that was divided among those in need and was meant to provide them with 2 meals a day for the coming week.  The second was the tamhuy (meaning tray).  It consisted of goods that were then given to those with the most pressing immediate needs.  Most scholars believe that it has been about 5 years since the birth of the Church in Acts 2 by the time distribution troubles come up in Acts 6.  It appears that although the collections continued to be made the distribution of funds and goods made its way to only certain widows.  Uh oh!  Prejudice, discrimination and mismanagement in the Early Church!  Say it isn’t so!!  The church had barely come together and it’s already divided.  Jews of Hebraic descent (those in Jerusalem that spoke Aramaic) and Jews of Grecian descent (those who came from the Diaspora whose main language was Greek) naturally drew together for fellowship, prayer and study according to their language and customs.  Archaeology has even borne this out.  The widows of either group were particularly vulnerable in the first century but it appears that the Hellenist widows were being slighted because of their heritage and the matter is brought up before the Apostles (v. 1).  The solution was to form a panel of overseers (v. 3) and the office of “deacon” (the root of the Greek word means “to serve’) was created.  Problem solved.

            It is tempting to say this was just one incident and the Church was more good than faulty but a truthful reading of Acts proves that they continued to struggle with human frailty.  However they didn’t give up, they didn’t quit and they didn’t abandon each other when they failed.  Perhaps then, we shouldn’t be looking at what’s wrong when we encounter struggles in our own congregations, rather we should be asking, “How can we make this work?” if we find ourselves facing similar situations in the Church of today.  Nostalgia never fixes anything.  Jesus does.  And in His words, problems just mean it’s time to put your hand to the plow (Lk. 9:62).

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

            THE JERUSALEM TIMES: NISAN AD 28.  Two men were arrested today in the Court of the Gentiles at the Temple when they proclaimed a lame man had been healed “in the name of Jesus”.  The men known as Peter and John were followers of the former rabbi who was recently crucified under Roman law due to the instigation of an unruly crowd and the betrayal by one of his followers.  According to witnesses Peter and John claimed Jesus had resurrected after his death which came about not through Roman law but because of the rejection of the Jewish leaders, namely the members of the Sanhedrin.  They also claimed that this same Jesus was the reason for the lame man’s miraculous healing.  A preliminary trial followed the arrest and resulted in a warning that this preaching should cease and desist.  However sources close to the Council report we have probably not heard the last of Peter or John.  Peter was quoted as saying, “Judge for yourself whether it is right in God’s sight for us to obey you rather than God.  For we cannot help but speak about what we have seen and heard.”  This reporter will continue to follow the story as it unfolds.  (Acts 4:1-31)

            Sometimes I like to imagine the scenes I read about in the Bible hence the imaginary article above.  The events of Acts 4 may seem foreign to most of us.  We rarely hear of believers standing in public places, preaching about Jesus and testifying about miracles which occur in His name (We think that kind of behavior belongs on the mission field but not in our life!).  It is also uncommon, but not unheard of, to hear of Christians being jailed for such activities.  Some Christians have been maligned in courts for practicing Christian principles in the workplace or concerning their own homes, but SO FAR, these are rare events.  The climate of our country, even most of the world, has been changing over the last decade so we may see the numbers of this type of (dare we say it?) persecution rise in the next 4 years as laws are put into place under the Socialist/Marxist ideologies of those currently occupying the presidential and judicial branches of our government.  Therefore, paying close attention to our faithful predecessors in the Book of Acts can help us not only to prepare for what MIGHT lie ahead, but also to encourage us to be as bold as they were in testifying to what we know is true now.

            Peter and John had been visiting the Temple on a daily basis- after all they were good Jewish boys!  Like the Lord they served they were empowered by their Heavenly Father to preach the Good News and to heal the sick.  In Acts 3 a man who had been lame for most of his life was healed by Peter and the city was all abuzz with wonder and curiosity as to how this could have happened (Acts 3:1-16).  Peter took the opportunity to testify about the “Who” and “how” (Acts 3:17-26).  The message caused concern among the powers that be- particularly the Sadducees, an aristocratic segment of the Sanhedrin whose pedigree and wealth was their ticket to power.  Working alongside the Romans to keep their status in tact was actually their main reason for having Peter and John arrested although they thoroughly disagreed with their proclamation that Jesus had risen from the dead too.  This is emphasized by their inquiry into “whose name”, i. e. whose authority, this miracle and message were being spoken by (Acts 4:7).  Peter’s eloquent and convicting answer surprised them because they assumed he was “uneducated”.  This does not mean he and John were illiterate or stupid.  It refers to the fact that neither Peter nor John had been trained in a synagogue or rabbinical school.  While Peter remains respectful to those questioning them he finishes with a phrase that simply states, “I answer to a Higher Authority, so I decline to follow your rules” (vv. 19-20).

            I take away 4 points from this account.  1) If I truly believe what Jesus has done for me and for countless others, I must not be afraid to speak up on His behalf.  A testimony is just that- testifying to what I know is true for me (v. 20).  2)  I do not have to know exactly what to say.  I should know what I believe and why, but when the time comes to speak, the Lord will give me everything I need to know and the best way to say it (vv.8, 13).  3)  I answer to a Higher Authority.  IF the climate of freedom we as Christians have in this country should become restricted and outlawed in the future, I should be prepared to speak anyway.  While I do not relish the thought that I might be called out for my faith, I would feel even worse to disappoint my Lord by not speaking up for Him (vv. 8-11, 19).  4)  And lastly, humankind, and human power brokers, may attempt to thwart the Lord’s work, but it’s useless.  Peter proclaimed the Gospel to the Sanhedrin (Acts 4:12).  When he and John were released their fellow believers recognized God was at work throughout the entire ordeal (Acts 4:23-31).  He will be at work in whatever happens to me as well (Phil. 2:12-13).

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
 

            When my son Christopher began playing soccer I became a part of a special group of women- Soccer Moms.  This dedicated group of women spend a lot of time driving to and from practices and games (usually in a minivan or SUV), are experts in energy boosting snacks and are also known for their enthusiasm on the sidelines, sometimes a little too much enthusiasm!  At first I would sit among them at the games and do my part in cheering the team and my son on to victory.  But over time I started to notice that some of the moms were far too vocal about the job the coach or the referees were doing and they would become quite critical of what they felt were their inadequacies and failures especially concerning their the treatment of their children.  If they disagreed with a call they would heckle the ref.  If they didn’t like the fact their son or daughter was on the bench they would speak to the coach afterwards.  That was not my style and I felt uncomfortable being associated with it.  One time I asked Christopher and some of his teammates what they liked to hear coming from the sidelines.  “We like to hear stuff like ‘good job!’ and ‘go team!’ they said.  They were embarrassed by the catcalls and negative cheering.  So I devised a way that enabled me to leave the bleachers without standing out for doing so.  I started taking statics for the team: shots on goal, who took them, how many assists and passes each player had and so on.  The kids loved it, the moms liked the fact their kids could see their improvement and I was able to encourage the team in a positive way.

            If there is any one person in the Bible who is associated with the “ministry of encouragement” that person would be Barnabas.  His actual name was Joseph and he was a Levite who originally came from Cyprus.  He is one of the early “stars” in the Book of Acts as an active member of the early church and earned the nick-name “Son of Encouragement” (Bahr- son of, nuh-buhs- consolation/encouragement) from the disciples because of his generous and supportive nature (Acts 4:36-37).  He welcomed Paul into fellowship when others had reservations about him (Acts 9:26-27), was excited to see God working among Gentile converts in Antioch (Acts 11:19-30), served both as a missionary and relief worker (Acts 13:1-3, 42-43; 14:8-18), took part in the Jerusalem Council on behalf of the Gentile converts (Acts 15:1-34) and took a stand against Paul concerning the status of John Mark (Acts 15:35-41).  I’m sure the decision to separate from Paul weighed heavily on his mind when Paul would not change his opinion, but in the end the Gospel spread further because of it.  I think Barnabas would have been encouraged by that.  (And a satisfying footnote to the story appears in 2 Tim. 4:11.)

            The Scriptures consider encouragement to be a trait all Christians should posses.  We are admonished to fill our speech with grace (Col. 4:6), encourage and build each other up (1 Thes. 5:11), encourage the faint-hearted (1 Thes. 5:14), and to encourage one another to avoid an unbelieving heart (Heb. 3:12-13).  When encouragement is evident in the body of Christ it glorifies God the Father (Rom. 15:1-6; Heb. 10:19-25).  The life of Christ encourages us to strive for humility and unity (Phil. 2:1-11) and Paul considered encouragement to be a major component of his ministry (1 Thes. 2:1-12).  It saddens me when I’m with a group of Christians who have embraced the humor of the world by teasing one another with put-downs and caustic remarks.  Their language is no different than the latest hit comedy and I wonder, “Why do we think this is funny?”  I know most people take it on the slide, but are we really supposed to be making fun of each other this way?  Have we become so immune to this form of sarcastic humor that we don’t even realize we’re doing it?  Is that what we’re supposed to sound like?

            Christopher now coaches soccer at the university level.  While we were visiting once we attended a game.  I was sitting on the bleachers before the game started and noticed that the women’s soccer team who had come to cheer the men’s team on, had a Scripture verse printed on the back of their T-shirts (Heb. 12:11-13).  I knew it had something to do with training and how a person carries themselves on or off the field in this case.  During the game a couple of the women started poking fun at an opponent.  The words were meant to pull his focus off the game and therefore give an advantage to the home team.  While the tactic is typical of any sport, the words were unkind.  After a few cat-calls, another young lady turned around, caught the eye of the hecklers and admonished them to find a better way to cheer for the men’s team.  “Yes Mom!” they joked.  But they stopped.  And that was encouraging to me!  I think if you’re going to put a Scripture on your back, you most definitely want to walk in a manner worthy of the One who called you (Col. 4:6 and 1 Thes. 2: 12 in action) and “Mom” was right to call them out on it!  We should all be that attentive to our speech.  So, I challenge you to take a cue from Barnabas and watch your words this week.  Instead of embracing the humor of today’s pop culture, go against the norm and use your words to be an encouragement to someone (Ps. 19:14; Prov. 16:24; Col. 3:5-8).

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