Don’t drop your hands

“You dropped your hands.”

How would you respond if you heard that? Would you think, “How am I supposed to pick them up?”

The little girl to whom that was addressed on Sunday said, “Thank you,” and then she picked up the construction-paper hands she had cut out in Sunday School.

You didn’t know how to respond because you didn’t know the context in which that was said. I had a little fun pulling the sentence out of context, to illustrate an important point: You need to know the context to understand what’s really being said.

That’s why I don’t like it when people take Scripture verses or passages out of context. And these days, some passages are almost never seen in context.

One of those is Acts 2-6. The passage paints a great picture of the growth and the impact of the early church in Jerusalem, a picture that a lot of people see as a model for the church. It’s the pet passage of the church growth folks.

But what’s the context?

What’s the book of Acts about? Acts is not about one particular local church. It’s the story of the beginning of the work that would spread the Gospel far and wide, and see churches planted and disciples made among many, many peoples.

What precedes Acts 2? Luke quotes Jesus telling his disciples they will “be witnesses unto Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

What follows Acts 6? The persecution that scattered the people from the church in Jerusalem and began the spread of the Gospel, the planting of other churches, the making of disciples.

It’s true that the church in Jerusalem was dynamic and making a huge impact on its community. But what does that mean in context?

Does it mean this is a model to emulate?

Or does it mean that, even if you have a dynamic church that makes a huge impact on its community, it means nothing if you neglect the Great Commission?

There are some great things we can learn about the church in Acts 2-6, but let’s not miss the main point.

Explore our site, or the NTM website, and find out how you can get involved in the Great Commission.