The First Century followers of Jesus
were called “People of the Way of Jesus” or just “People of the Way”. At first, it was a derogatory term for those
who did not follow the established, institutional religion as Judaism had
become, but later it was a reference to a people who had influenced the world
around them by living the TEACHINGS and EXAMPLES of Jesus. The followers of Jesus worshiped, to be sure,
but they were noticed and known for how they lived Jesus’ COMMANDS (Imperative
statements), as He taught them and as were reflected in the four Gospels they
now had in written form. What others saw
in them was very different from what they saw in the world, even from those who
claimed to be people of God in other, institutionalized faith practices. They saw the Agape Love (active
commitment/committed action on behalf of the other) that Jesus commanded and
claimed was how people would know that they were His followers, being lived in
the world. The focus of these believers
was not on keeping the religious institution going, but rather about living
what Jesus TAUGHT (especially what Jesus COMMANDED) and EXEMPLIFIED in how to
live in this part of God’s Kingdom. It
was about sharing the Good News of Jesus by LIVING IT in the world, acting in
an Agape Loving way with others. They
kept that focus until between 325 and 380, with Christianity’s adoption as the
“official” religion of Rome because of the conversion of Constantine. The mission to share and LIVE The Good News
of Jesus remained among a remnant of followers of Jesus, as their focus, as it
does today.
What happened in the First Century
because of that was a RADICAL expression of the commanded Agape Love of Jesus.
They met in homes, as the disciples of Jesus were commanded to do when
they were with Him. We meet in our home.
Jesus commanded, “You give them something to eat.” His disciples fed the
5,000. In the First Century, an Agape
Meal was provided with each worship service to feed those who did not have
food. We serve an Agape Meal as a part
of every worship.
Jesus commanded, “Do this in remembrance of me.” His disciples shared The Lord’s Supper every
time they worshiped. We share in the Grace
of God in the Lord’s Supper every time we gather.
Jesus commanded that His followers live Agape Love and proclaim healing
for the sick. Peter made himself
available and God healed even those on whom his shadow fell (Acts
5:12-16). It was an expression of
Radical Love. We believe we have been
made more complete and whole by the shadow of others’ lives that have touched
us, and we are available so that the shadow of our lives may in some way make
others around us whole.
Jesus prayed to the Father that all would be one with each other and
God, and commanded those who followed Him to be concerned for the poor in their
actions. The First Century followers
came together and shared in Radical Community out of Agape Love (Acts 4:32-37),
even to the point of sharing of their abundance with those who had little or
nothing in their lives. We share 70% of
our own offerings and those others choose to give, for community outreach here,
and 20% for national and international sisters and brothers in need. This Radical Sharing was practiced in the
First Century (Acts 11:27-29), and we believe we are called to practice it
today.
Jesus said that those who were not against us are for us, and that we
should live Agape Love even with stranger and enemy, including others in the
community based on Radical Love. His
Apostles not only included those who were of a different ethnic background and
religious heritage in the community, but also in the leadership of the
community (Acts 6:1-8). We pray for
others to join us who want to serve rather than be served, and who want to walk
with us as partners in radical community.
Jesus included Gentiles, women and those recognized by society as
sinners in His fold. The First Century
followers did the same, even with those who were ethnically, religiously and
sexually different and excluded by the Law of Moses (Acts 8:26-40). We are inclusive of ALL and ANY who would
join us sincerely to learn and live the teachings of Jesus, especially the
living of Radical, Agape Love in this community.
Jesus commanded that we not judge others. His Apostles sometimes got that right and
sometimes did not, but a Radical Freedom to live one’s life in good conscience
by one’s beliefs was maintained (Acts 10:9-16), and people of different ways
were accepted into the Radical Community built on Radical Love. We welcome people of ANY faith or non-faith
background for sincere sharing in Agape Love around our table.
Jesus said that He came to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the
Apostles practiced Radical Liberation spiritually and socially (Acts 27). We work toward the empowerment of ALL people
to be free from any bondage to things that keep them down in life, standing
with them as advocates out of Agape Love in Radical Community. We work to bring equality in Education,
Employment, Housing, Healthcare, Transportation, and Justice for ALL people in
this community.
We are People of The Way of Jesus. We
are in this community for good. Stop by
and see us sometime. We open our hearts
and home to you. And if you ever want to
experience this new/original way of being followers of Jesus’ Teachings and
Examples in the world around you, we will welcome you in that, too. 3pm Sundays 649 Peeples Street SW
Atlanta 30310
Rev.
Jamie Kaufman 404-353-0387
Check us out on FACEBOOK for more information on what we are about…
No comments:
Post a Comment