There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.” vss. 34-35
Acts 4:32-35
There are probably no other verses in the New Testament that have been so thoroughly discounted as these. Especially in the United States even socialism, not to mention communism, has been thoroughly demonized through our unquestioning worship of capitalism and free enterprise. It is almost impossible for us to wrap our materialistic minds around the teaching of the early believers that all things should be held in common. Most people have come to see taxes as governmental overreach, and resist the notion that individuals have any responsibility for the common good. The sad thing is that our obsession with the protection and the accumulation of material goods has pulled us away from the clear teachings of Jesus. Too many people have come to regard success as having more “stuff” than anyone else, and, amazingly, they then wonder why they have become spiritually bankrupt. Jesus’ words to the rich young man who yearned for eternal life still ring true, “Sell what you have and give to the poor.” The man walked away in sadness! Regardless of the economic system we live under, the key to spiritual good health will always be radically generosity!
Thought for the Day: How radical is my generosity?
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