Will anyone elaborate on Act 2:42-47?

Answer 1

Acts 2:42 "And they continued steadfastly in the apostles doctrine and followship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."

The apostles doctrine, is what Peter had just taught them. It was the Words of Christ, and the Words of the prophets. The apostles doctrine is everything that is written in God's Word; that is what they steadfastly followed. The apostles were sent for by Christ to teach His doctrine, they are one and the same. Friend, look out for those creeds and oaths that are different then the doctrine that Christ taught.

The breaking of bread is our communion service that we take in remembrance of Christ broken body, and His shed blood on the cross. You take the communion when you believe in your heart that Jesus is the Son of God, born of a virgin, suffered and died for your sins, and on the third day arose from the dead, and now has ascended into heaven and sits on the right hand of the Father, as our advocate. That is what you take the broken bread, and the cup of communion for, to remember what Christ has done for you.

Acts 2:43 "And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles."

"Fear" is a poor translation. In "ah" and reverence came upon all those there. The other is a statement by men, the translators. The wonders and signs were done by almighty God Himself. It is not even applied here that the apostles were making their own religion.

Acts 2:44 "And all that believed were together and had all things common;"

The whole church body of the early church thought as a unit, one for each other. In the doctrine of Christ, and in the Holy Spirit, there were no divisions amongst them at this time.

Acts 2:45 "And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men as every man had need."
Acts 2:46 "And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread with gladness and singleness of heart,"

They took communion together as a body of Christ, in singleness of heart. They all thought alike, with a common caring for each other. What it is talking about is the fact that it was not safe to teach the doctrine of Christ openly in the Temple, therefore they held home meeting. Remember the same Kenite religious leaders that killed Jesus, and plotted the murders against Him were still in charge of the temple. There was no writings of the New Testament at this time, so they had to carry the Word by mouth from one to another.

There were people that had the gift to teach, and they were sent from home to home in their teaching ministry, and they did not need a house, but lived where they ministering. Today the ministry is different in the methods being used. Today one can stay in one location, and thus possess properties, and use many different teaching tools to preach the gospel openly and boldly.

They sold all to be teachers of the Gospel, and the possibility of returning once you started to teach, was very slim. You became a marked person that was not popular in the Temple, nor amongst the Jews. So they went from house to house taking the Gospel.

Acts 2:47 "Praising God, and having favour with all people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."

Did you catch that, "The Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." It is not meant that all should have ears to hear, or eyes to see the plan of God, and be saved. Within that plan of God is the simplicity of salvation, not only to Israel, but as we will see in later chapters to the Gentiles. The Church started on Pentecost Day with these one hundred and twenty men and women, and on that first day, three thousand souls were added to the Church, the body of Christ. The church started to grow very fast.

Answer 2

“42 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.”

The 3000 that became Christians, all had heard the same message, understood it the same way, and all obeyed it the same way. In verse 42, it indicates they continued in the type of unity that Paul pleaded for in 1 Corinthians 1:10. They continued in the same doctrine, fellowship, observing the Lord’s Supper, and prayers.


"43 And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles."

In Mark 16:20 it says the Word was confirmed by signs and wonders. Here is an example. The New Testament was not written yet, so the apostles did miracles so those hearing would know they spoke from God. In the KJV it says, “And fear came upon every soul”. This may be better understood in the NASB, “And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe!”


"44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,"

These verses talk more about their unity. These early Christians cared for each other, and made sure they took care of the needy. They not only worshiped together, but they ate together and met together daily. This type of togetherness would help to encourage each other, especially in times of persecution.


"47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved."

Those who were being saved, were added to the church by God. There is no record of becoming a Christian and then joining a church later. When you believe what they believed, and do what they did, then you will become what they became and God will add you to His church. These people were Christians – nothing more, nothing less, nothing else. They were members of no denomination. In fact no denomination even existed at that time.

This is a Biblical example of the unity we should strive to have! (1 Cor 1:10-13, John 17:20-21)

Answer 3

About 3,000 people became new believers when Peter preached the Good news about Christ. These new Christians were united with the other believers, taught by the apostles, and included in the prayer meetings and fellowship. New believers in Christ need to be in groups, where they can learn God's Word, pray, and mature in the faith.

Recognising the other believers as brothers and sisters in the family of God, the Christians in Jerusalem shared all they had so that all could benefit from God's gifts. When one has material wealth it is tempting to cut oneself off from others, concerning ourselves with only our own little piece of the world. But as God's spiritual family, it is our responsibility to help one another in every way possible. God's family works best when it's members work together.

A common misconception about the first Christians who were Jews was that they rejected the Jewish religion. But these believers saw Jesus' message and resurrection as the fulfillment of everything they knew and believed from the Old Testament. The Jewish believers at first did not separate themselves from the rest of the Jewish community.. They still went to the Temple and synagogues for worship and instruction in the Scriptures. But their belief in Jesus created great friction with Jews who didn't believe that Jesus was the Messiah. Thus, believing Jews were forced to meet in private homes for Communion, prayer, and teaching about Christ.
By the end of the first century, many of these Jewish believers were excommunicated from their synagogues.

A healthy Christian community attracts people to Christ. The Jerusalem church's zeal for worship and brotherly love was contagious. A healthy, loving church will grow in numbers.

Answer 4

That verse was talking about the good old days when Christianity was a hippie cult. Then the suits took over and everything went down hill fast.

Answer 5

From my understanding, it talks about the people's responses to the miracles performed by the apostles through the power of God. You may want to read the entire chapter to get a more clear understanding;it often takes more than once.

Answer 6

It basically says that many believed and many were baptized. That's what I get from it anyway. Read the preface at the top of the site listed below and the last section of that says what it means. Makes sense to me when I read the verses and then the preface section...

Answer 7

The early church lived under conditions that had them
at extreme odds with the establishment. As Christianity gained
acceptance, they didn't have to rely on communilism to survive!

Answer 8

the apostles continued to spread the good news of Christ and more people began to believe. God bless.

Answer 9

3000 ppl became new believers when Peter preached the good news about Jesus!

Answer 10

Simple it is exactly what a church is (suppose to be) .

God bless from Texas <><