The early church began with a group of 120 disciples and quickly grew and spread throughout the then known world. It would thus be important to learn from these early disciples what common means of grace they used in order to live out the great commission. The passage above gives us a hint of how they were able to be so successful – they were devoted to certain things. First and foremost, they were devoted to the Word of God, herein captured as the apostles’ teaching. God’s Word must be central in our interaction if we are to have any meaningful discipleship.

Fellowship and breaking of bread follow suit. This means that the believers were constantly in each other’s space and regularly ate together, including sharing in the Lord’s table together. In fact, the subsequent verses from Acts 2:43-47 show that the believers would regularly meet together in the temple and then from house to house. In other words, they had the large group gathering in the temple and then the small gatherings in their homes. In our case, it would be the Sunday worship services and the home group fellowships. These gatherings provide space for instruction and accountability. It is especially in the small group fellowships that we can confess our sins and receive freedom from our struggles (James 5:16).

The other thing that the disciples were devoted to was prayers. We cannot strain enough the importance and necessity of corporate prayers – believers gathering for the purpose of praying together and praying for each other. In fact, so crucial are prayers offered together that Paul says that God answers the prayers of many (2 Corinthians 1:11). Meaningful discipleship, therefore, cannot happen devoid of prayers. In the words of Colossians 4:2: “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful.”

1. In what ways does your life reflect these four practices?

2. What obstacles stand in the way of you devoting yourself to these things?

3. How will your life change based on what you have learnt today?