The very earliest Christian church was formed in Jerusalem right after Jesus returned to heaven and the Holy Spirit came down in a special way on Pentecost. If we were able to be part of that congregation there are some things we’d recognize (the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, communion, and prayer). Others are not so common in today’s church (meeting every day in the temple courts and in homes, along with signs and wonders performed by the apostles).
Another unique feature of that Christian group was that everyone had everything in common, and some of the believers even . . . . sold properties and houses in order to give to others in the congregation! I’m not sure if that type of radical sharing among Christians has ever been practiced since then in the same way throughout the two-thousand-year history of Christianity.
Some have even pointed to those accounts in Acts as the first examples of a “socialist” way of life. Of course, it’s one thing to have sharing imposed by a government, and it’s another thing to have sharing come out of the gospel. The sharing among the early believers was most definitely the work of God: And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them.(Acts 4:33-34).
The understanding that we don’t really own anything is from the Word. The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it (Psalm 24:1). We see in our congregations a great deal of sharing in faith, knowledge, support, and material possessions.
The specific way the early believers had things in common is an example, not a direct command from the Lord. However, given that we’ve been redeemed for eternal life and have had our eyes set on what is above, can we grow in sharing the abundance we’ve received and making sure everyone’s needs are met?
All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. (Acts 4:32)