No one had need

Now all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need. – Acts 2.44-45

Amongst all the other things the early church did was this ability to make sure that no one in the church ever had to do without. We have to remember that the early church was in one of the poorest regions in what we now call the Middle East. Daily life was a struggle. Everyone lived in a way that we today would call paycheque to paycheque.

Many early Christians didn’t even have that much. There were some wealthy believers, but there were many, many, who barely got by.

But now they were one body, one family, and one church. If one part of the body suffers they whole body suffers. Those who had gave to make sure that those who had not could get by. It was so dramatic here that those who had often gave all to give to a common purse so that everyone shared – no one had too much and no one had to little.

The church today still is one body. We still ought to take care of each other. There is no cause for anyone to do without. It is our job to take care of each other. In our modern culture we have passed much of that responsibility on to governments.  We pay taxes in part to help others.

But at the end of the day, when it comes to our brothers and sisters in Christ, it is our job, not the government’s job.

No one has need ought to be as true for us as it was for the early church.