Troublesome Topic: They Were Winsome Without Evangelistic Strategies

Acts 2:46

Translation

and continuing steadfastly

in the temple every day with one mind,

and breaking bread

in each house, and partaking of food with hearts [full of] exuberance and without stumbling stones,

Paraphrase

and they were persistently fixated on [being together] in the temple [courts] with a singular, united purpose, as well as remembering the sacrifice of Jesus together in home meetings, and eating meals together with overflowing joy for what God had done and without any of the things that damage relationships,

They Were Winsome without Evangelistic Strategies

It appears that they were not making special efforts to convince people to follow Jesus, rather their transformed lives were so winsome that they won the favor of everyone who observed them closely and persuaded many of them to also follow Jesus. It was the Lord who was doing this work while they focused on doing what they needed to be doing to maintain a close relationship with God and with their fellow believers. It’s not that they did not care about others; they did. They were glad to tell others about Jesus. They were willing to be witnesses to what they had seen and heard even if it cost them their lives. What this passage is saying is that they were clear about their purpose and their priorities; they stuck with those priorities and God made their number grow. In part God used the examples of their changed lives and His Holy Spirit also worked as only He can work.

(The next section in this topical study is called Leadership in the House Churches of the New Testament. You can go to the first lesson of that section by clicking on this link: How Was the Leadership of These Meetings Determined?)

Footnotes

1

This is a compound word that comes from the preposition “towards or with” and the verb “to show steadfast strength.” It can be rendered “to persevere, continue steadfastly, endure, prevail, stay fixed in one direction, keep on, persist, to continue to do something with intense effort, give constant attention to something.”

2

This word means “one passion;” “one mind” is a close parallel. It speaks to unit of purpose and focus.

3

Once again, the phrase “breaking of bread” probably refers to celebrating what we call “the Lord’s Supper, Communion, or Eucharist.”

4

This word means “without rocks, smooth, without stones on which to stumble, without encumbrance or hindrance.”