The Church Is Not a Social Club
From Gospel Translations
By John Piper About Church & Culture
Audio Transcript
Listen to this simple word from Acts 4:34. It should reverberate through all the churches in recessionary times. “There was not a needy person among them.” That doesn’t mean they were all rich. In fact, Paul is raising money because there’s so much poverty in Jerusalem.
It means that when one was struck, everybody pitched in. Folks, that’s not a two-thousand-year-old idea. That’s real or I’m out of here! You don’t have Christians in need while other Christians have plenty. You don’t. That’s what the church is. That’s what it’s for. We will be there for each other.
Folks, what are you going to do when there’s nothing at the grocery store and mobs rule the streets? We’re going to be there for each other. Then we’ll find out who the church really is. Every member will have his needs met at Bethlehem if I have anything to do with it. God is going to test us. Are you a church or are you just a club?