The Heart of the Church (The Book of Acts #6)
Let me start with a question. Think of the most caring person you have ever known.
It’s Mother’s Day, so many of you will say Mom, and that’s fine. And some of you, because you’re in church, will feel the pull to say Jesus — so let me amend it: who is the most caring person you’ve ever known after Jesus? We’ll give Him the top spot.
When people share those answers out loud, you hear the same categories. Mom, obviously, today. A friend. A spouse. A health care worker.
Now do something with that person in your mind. Imagine you haven’t seen them in two or three years. It’s been a long stretch. And then, unplanned, while you’re on vacation, you walk into a room and there they are.
What do you do?
Do you keep walking and pretend you didn’t see them? Turn around and leave? Walk up and act like you just saw them five minutes ago — oh hey, how’s it going?
No. You rush over. You probably hug them. You ask how they’ve been.
Why? Because we want to be in the presence of people who care about us.
Today in Acts 4 we’re going to see what that looked like for the early church — because when they had a heart for Jesus, they had a heart for caring. And we’ll see what that caring heart produced both inside the church and outside it.
The Text
Open to Acts 4.
Last week we covered all of chapter 3 and half of chapter 4, because it was one long story, and we ended at verse 22. Normally we’d pick right up at verse 23, since it’s sequential and tied to what we heard. But I’m saving that section for next Sunday — I have a specific purpose, and I’ll explain then.
So we’re jumping to verse 32. And once I started studying this week, I realized it was a far better passage for Mother’s Day anyway.
Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.
There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.
Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
The Sibling Passage
A few weeks ago my wife and I were running errands and stopped at a restaurant. The woman who came to help us was someone my wife recognized as a former student, so she immediately said hello — and you could see on the young woman’s face that she didn’t recognize us.
Have you ever seen someone out of context and not been able to place them? That’s what I assumed was happening. So my wife said, “It’s me,” and used her name.
And the young woman said, “Oh — no, that’s my sister. My name is —.” My wife was mortified. And the young woman said, “Don’t worry about it. People confuse us all the time. We look so much alike.”
If you were reading Acts 4:32–37 and thought haven’t we heard this before? — you’re right. This is the sibling of the passage at the end of chapter 2.
Second Timothy 3:16 tells us all Scripture is breathed out by God, so all of it matters. But when God repeats Himself, there’s a purpose behind it.
Back in chapter 2 we looked at what the church was doing — I called that sermon the function of the church. We walked through our discipleship pathway: gather, grow, give, go. The first church gathered for worship. They grew by devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching. They gave of their finances, influence, skills, and time. And they went — into their neighborhoods and workplaces, living and sharing the gospel.
That was the function. What we get here is the heart behind it. The why. The culture and the attitude underneath.
A Quick Bible Study Method
To help you find this yourself, let me walk you through a basic method. There are many; if you want more, our website has a blog series called How to Study the Bible that covers several.
Today we’ll use the inductive method, which asks three questions:
- Observation — what do I see?
- Interpretation — what does this mean?
- Application — what should I therefore do?
Start with observation. One useful tip: look for repetition and patterns. Repeated words, repeated ideas, synonyms — and progressions.
This past Wednesday our youth group was in Psalm 1. Verse 1 says: Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers.
As we talked about it, the group immediately spotted the progression: walk, stand, sit. And one of the students named what it meant — you get more and more comfortable with people who are opposed to God, and the more comfortable you get with them, the more comfortable you get with their mindset, until eventually you adopt it as your own.
They got all of that just by observing.
What I Saw in Acts 4
So observe this passage. What repeated words or ideas do you see? Any progressions?
For me this week there was a giant flashing neon sign I couldn’t get away from: the caring heart of the church.
The dictionary defines care as “the provision of what is necessary for the health, welfare, maintenance, and protection of someone or something.”
That is exactly what’s happening here. And notice — not just the apostles. The people. Providing for and protecting the emotional, spiritual, and physical needs of everyone.
Whose Job Is This?
This past Wednesday, one of our elders led our meeting in a discussion about visitation.
A month or two ago his grandmother passed away, and through that whole process the pastor from her church came and simply stayed — for about three hours. It made a real impact on him. And because he takes his role as an elder seriously, he started wondering whether that’s something he ought to be doing here. And then whether it’s something our whole elder team should be doing.
So it went on the agenda, and this past Wednesday we got to it. He opened by reading James 1:26–27:
If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
He said that verse had been sitting on him — he couldn’t get away from it. This idea of visiting the afflicted, identified chiefly as widows and orphans, the unprotected and unprovided for. Going to them. Being with them. Helping them.
And as we worked through it, something dawned on us. This is not written to pastors and elders. It’s written to the church.
There are passages addressed specifically to church leaders — Paul wrote three pastoral letters, two to Timothy and one to Titus, and Peter speaks directly to elders in 1 Peter 5. James does not do that here. He’s addressing the church in general. Anyone who claims to follow Jesus needs to be practicing this kind of care toward the afflicted, the overlooked, and the ignored.
Which is precisely what we see in Acts 4. It didn’t start and stop with the apostles. It was the entire church — a whole culture of care. Or as I’d put it today: a collective caring heart.
Here are four things that collective caring heart does.
1. A Collective Caring Heart Brings Unity
Verse 32: the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul.
There’s no caveat. No “except for that one or two percent.” The full number, of one heart and one soul.
This theme isn’t confined to Acts 4, or even to Acts. Unity runs through the whole New Testament. Ephesians 4 tells us to be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Romans 15 prays that the God of endurance and encouragement would grant us to live in such harmony with one another. And Jesus Himself, in His high priestly prayer in the garden just before He’s arrested, prays “that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you.”
You’ll find it in Philippians, in 1 Corinthians, in James. It’s everywhere.
But what Luke wants us to see is that this kind of unity comes from the caring heart of the people.
Think about it: selfish hearts push people away. Caring hearts draw people in.
I’ve been off social media for about three or four weeks — taking a break. I know, shocking. Miracles still happen. Which means I’ve been out of touch with the world, and my wife has been telling me the news for once, which is a complete inversion of normal.
So I figured I should at least scan some headlines. I opened a news app and scrolled, and clearly I’d already gotten past the important material, because I landed in what I’d call junk news — mostly celebrity and culture pieces.
And one headline jumped out because of what I was preparing: “The 34 Best and Worst Interactions With Celebrities.”
Before I even opened it, I knew what I’d find. And there was the proof.
People described wonderful interactions — and what made them wonderful? The celebrity was kind. Took a selfie. Asked them questions. Gave them extra time. Stayed late. Just a caring heart, and these people were drawn in and permanently impressed.
And the negative ones? This person was rude. A jerk. Talked down to me. Or — notice this — the way they treated their staff and the people around them. And the reaction is: I want nothing to do with them.
If you’ve been part of a church, you already know this. When people get selfish and demanding — whether they’re in leadership or not — you can feel the unity of that church crumbling. And new people don’t want any part of it. They can sense it.
But walk into a church where you sense that these people genuinely love and care for one another and that they want to care for you — and you want to be there.
2. A Collective Caring Heart Focuses on Others
The second half of verse 32: no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.
It’s inspiring to read — and we do not live this way in America. We are so individualistic and materialistic that what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is yours.
And Luke is telling us the church lived as though none of it was theirs.
We got to experience a small version of this last weekend. Our son finished his first year of college, which meant moving him home — the university isn’t going to let him live there for free.
Over the year he’d joined the triathlon club, and since he didn’t have a good road bike, the club let him borrow one and bring it home. Which meant two bikes. And once we added everything else up, we became certain it wouldn’t fit in our minivan.
So my wife reached out to a family here and asked whether we could borrow their truck. Without a moment’s hesitation: you bet. And then they added, “Saturday’s going to be busy for us — could we borrow a vehicle back?” Absolutely. Here’s our van.
They have teenage drivers. So do we. Nobody hesitated. Because the mindset wasn’t that’s our truck. It was: this is ours. They were willing to focus on others.
3. A Collective Caring Heart Gives Generously
When you focus on others, you start seeing their needs — and you can’t help wanting to be part of meeting them.
Verse 34: There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.
This is not handing over twenty dollars while tens of thousands sit in the bank. This is extreme generosity. Selling land. Giving up a house. Selling the car sitting unused in the driveway because I don’t actually need this, and they do.
But you’ve heard that a picture is worth a thousand words. We can talk about generosity and even be inspired by it, and sometimes we need to see it. Luke seems to know that — so he gives us one.
Verses 36 and 37: Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Why does Luke stop to name him? Plenty of people were doing this — that’s verses 34 and 35. And in a couple of weeks, in chapter 5, we’ll meet a couple who attempt the same thing. So why two full verses for Joseph?
Because a picture is worth a thousand words. Joseph was actually doing it — and doing it so consistently, living out this caring heart so vividly, that he got a nickname for it.
We usually nickname people for how they look, or as a play on their name. Joseph got renamed for who he was. Barnabas — which Luke translates for us: son of encouragement.
How would you like a nickname given to you simply because of how you treat people?
I suspect Luke also names him because we’ll meet Barnabas repeatedly in Acts, so this is his introduction. But he is the picture of what was happening in the whole church. He typified the caring heart that was producing unity, focusing on others, and giving generously.
Pause: What Does This Mean, and What Should We Do?
Before the fourth observation, let’s go back to the method. We’ve been observing. Now: interpretation and application.
What does this mean? We’re reading about how the first church lived. And we are a church. Which means we should be a church that is unified, that focuses on others, that gives generously.
What makes this easy to preach is that I’m genuinely thrilled to be part of a church that wants to live these things out and is working at it. I don’t lie awake at night over arguments and factions here, and I’m deeply grateful for that.
But here’s the sharper point. If this is written to a church — and the church is the redeemed people of God, living under the headship of Jesus, on the mission He’s given them — then it’s written to individuals.
I can’t hide behind “the church should do that.” For the church to do it, I have to do it.
Which means there are times I have to set aside my preferences for the sake of unity. Times I have to set aside my own desires to focus on someone else. Times I have to sacrifice something I have in order to give generously.
And now let’s be brutally honest, because that’s hard.
It’s relatively easy in the short term. I can set my preferences aside for this season. But this passage is describing a lifestyle. Long term.
Sure, I can focus on someone else — but what about when it feels like nobody is focusing on me? Sure, I can give generously to one campaign — but what about when you’re worried about retirement, or you’re not sure you can fill the gas tank?
How do you do this day in and day out, not just for a season?
And what complicates it further is that we live in a culture constantly telling us to be true to ourselves — to prioritize our own mental and physical health.
I am not asking you to neglect your mental or physical health. But too often we use that as a shield — an excuse to avoid unity, to avoid focusing on others, to avoid giving. I’m just taking care of me.
I think there’s a way to care for yourself and still do these things. And I think it’s found in the fourth observation.
4. A Collective Caring Heart Comes From Jesus
Verse 33: And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.
Everything they taught, everything they said — and I’d argue everything they did — was pointing at Christ.
Have you ever met someone and, on first impression, immediately sensed what they’re about?
Sometimes we’re badly wrong, and we need those humbling corrections. But sometimes you meet the guy with the big bushy beard, the bandana, the leather vest, everything in black — and you simply know he rides. Or you meet someone and you know instantly this is their sport, or her politics, or his hobby, or her genre. Everything about them — how they talk, how they dress, the stickers on the car — is announcing what they’re about.
The apostles were living and teaching in such a way that the announcement was: I am all about Jesus.
So my question — not to lay guilt on you, but as a challenge — is this: does everything about you say I follow Jesus?
That question is for anyone who’d say, “I’m a Christian. I believe Jesus died on a cross and rose from the dead, and that identifies me.”
I’m not asking you to be obnoxious. I’m not asking you to take up a bullhorn on a street corner or change what you wear so it’s loud. I’m asking whether your demeanor, your presence, and your words reveal that you are all about the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Great Grace
And here’s the outflow when your life is genuinely about Christ. The last half of verse 33:
And great grace was upon them all.
Read it again. Great grace was upon them all.
I want this to be a place of great grace. A place where His grace is on all of us, and where you can see it in how we treat each other.
Where we don’t define people by what happened in their college years, or last year, or last week. Where nobody gets laughed at for not understanding something about the Bible or about Christianity. Where we don’t overlook or judge the struggles people are carrying.
We can be that kind of place — because God has given us great grace.
Too often we compare ourselves to the worst. What God asks is that we compare ourselves to the best — and the best was Jesus. And Scripture is clear that all of us fall short of God’s glorious standard.
He is the standard. And when you realize He forgave you even though you fell so far short of it, then you can extend that grace to the person next to you.
Because when you live with that kind of great grace, you begin to reflect the heart of God — and the heart of God is a caring heart.
It’s that great grace that produces unity. It’s that great grace that lets you focus on others while trusting God to handle your situation. It’s that great grace that lets you give generously, trusting that God will provide what you need.
For us to be this kind of church, it starts with Jesus. And every one of us gets to be part of it.
Because Jesus did everything we just watched the church do. He longed and prayed for our unity. He focused on others rather than Himself — the God of the universe, and He still put you first. And He gave generously: not just financially, not just His time and teaching, but His very life.
