And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women. Acts 5:14
Do you remember English class and learning about collective nouns? Collective nouns are names for a collection or a number of people or things. For example, a group of rhinos is called a crash; a group of kangaroos is called a mob; a group of whales is called a pod; a group of owls is called a parliament; a group of camels is called a caravan; a group of starlings is called a murmuration. We also talk of a pandemonium of parrots, a bloat of hippos, a business of ferrets, a congress of baboons, a conspiracy of lemurs.
A collective term for referring to Christians in the book of Acts is the word “believers”. For example:
All the believers were together and had everything in common. Acts 2:44 (NIV)
All the believers were one in heart and mind. Acts 4:32 (NIV)
And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women. Acts 5:14 (NKJV)
In his Gospel John told us his reason for writing. He said:
But these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. John 20:31 (ESV)
Do you believe Jesus Christ is who the Bible says He is, and are you trusting Him as your Saviour?
Jesus promises:
“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.” John 14:12 (NKJV)
“Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it shall be granted him.” Mark 11:23 (NASB)
“He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. ” John 7:38 (NKJV)
Are you a ‘he/she who believes’? Can you say with Paul:
I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. 2 Timothy 1:12 (KJV)
“Whom,” Paul says. Quite another thing from “what”. “I know what I have believed” – that is good. “I know whom I have believed” – that is the essence of faith. Paul’s faith is about the relationship he has with Christ. “I know … and I am persuaded” leaves no room for doubt. His belief affected his behaviour on a daily basis. It wasn’t just a creed; it was a commitment to live each day in the way which reflected God’s image and interests. Faith must make a difference to how we live. As Brennan Manning said:
The greatest cause of atheism is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny him with their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.
Let us live out our faith today knowing whom we have believed and doing His works, seeing the mountains move and the rivers of living water flow from within us. May our faithfulness be the result of our faith; may our witness be winsome and may we see believers “increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women”.