The believers also grow in the church. Just as children grow in a family, so the believers grow in the church life. To grow in the church is to have the genuine growth of life, which is the increase of the element of God, the increase of the stature of Christ, and the expansion of the ground of the Holy Spirit within us. The increase of the element of God means that more of God Himself is blended into us, is gained by us, and becomes our element. The more we love Christ, seek Christ, and allow Christ to live in us, the more the stature of Christ increases within us. Furthermore, the more we grow, the more we allow the Holy Spirit to gain ground within us.
In 1 Corinthians 3:6 Paul says, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God made to grow.” Here the believers are symbolized by plants. With plants there is the need of planting, watering, and growth. The planting and watering are done by the apostles, but the growth is given only by God, who is the source of life.
The believers, as God’s plants, are planted in the church, which is God’s farm (1 Cor. 3:9). In the farm of the church God gives growth to the believers. According to the first three chapters of 1 Corinthians, the life with which the believers grow in the church is the crucified and resurrected Christ. The more we experience and enjoy Christ in the church, the more we grow in the divine life as God’s plants.
In the church life the saints have their material possessions in common. This is not the practice of a so-called communism; it is the sharing with our needy fellow saints what God has given to us. Out of love we care for one another and also for the church’s general expenses.
Acts 2:44 and 45 say, “All those who believed were together and had all things common; and they sold their possessions and properties and divided them among all according as anyone had need.” In these verses having all things common is not merely a sign of love; it is a sign of Christ’s dynamic salvation that saves the believers from greediness and selfishness.
Acts 2:45 tells us that the believers sold their possessions and properties and divided them according to need. This also is an evidence of the Lord’s dynamic salvation, which caused the believers to overcome their earthly possessions, which occupy, possess, and usurp fallen mankind (Matt. 19:21-24; Luke 12:13-19, 33-34; 14:33; 16:13-14; 1 Tim. 6:17). Although the dynamic salvation of God caused the believers to forget about earthly possessions, having all things common did not become a formal practice in the church life.
In 2 Corinthians 8:12-15 Paul says that we should give willingly according to what we have. Those who gather much will have no excess, and those who gather little will have no lack. The result of such giving and receiving is what Paul calls “equality”: “At the present time your abundance for their lack, that their abundance also may be for your lack, so that there may be equality” (v. 14). Equality equals having everything common. God’s principle is to have equality. Even in the Old Testament there was the divine way to balance social wealth. None of the Jews could sell their property forever. At the most, they could sell it only for fifty years. In the year of jubilee everything was returned to the original owner (Lev. 25:8-17). God’s way is to keep equality.
The principle of equality is illustrated by the receiving of manna in the Old Testament (Exo. 16:18). Paul refers to this in 2 Corinthians 8:15, saying, “As it is written, He who gathered much had no excess, and he who gathered little had no lack.” If an Israelite gathered more, God sovereignly arranged for him to have no excess. If someone gathered less, by God’s sovereignty that one had no lack. Those who were rather feeble and were not able to gather much manna did not have any lack. In the case of those who gathered an excess of manna, perhaps wanting to store it up for days and weeks to come, God caused the excess to be taken away (Exo. 16:20). The divine way is that those who gathered little had no lack and those who gathered much had nothing over. This is the principle of equality, God’s heavenly way of balancing the supply among His people. We should follow this principle today concerning material possessions. Those who have been favored by God with material things should be faithful to use them to care for the needy saints and for the full-time workers. As the saints share their abundance with others, there will be equality.
Having material possessions in common, following the principle of equality, is a strong sign that we have overcome the usurping power of enticing and deceiving riches (1 Tim. 6:9-10, 17-19; Matt. 13:22). Riches are very enticing and deceiving. However, by Christ as our victory in His overcoming life, we can overcome the usurping power of enticing and deceiving riches.
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