All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had. Acts 4:32

 

Your money. Your thought life. Your priorities. Did you know that part of following Jesus is welcoming Him to change all these?

If you’ve decided to follow Jesus, you’ve realized that you need God. You’ve recognized your sin and admitted you need His help. Without this understanding, we might be religious, but we’ve never really surrendered to Jesus. Only an understanding of your need for God is going to lead you to say, “God, I don’t want to do it my way anymore. I choose to let you lead me wherever and however You will.” When we pray that prayer of surrender God gets to work immediately, shifting how we think and live.

A wealthy South African named Pieter shared how God did this in life. South Africa is one of many nations with a devastating history of racism and inequality. Today, it’s the most unequal country in the world. Incredible wealth is just around the corner from widespread poverty.

Before Pieter decided to follow Jesus, he mostly ignored poverty. He tried not to make eye contact with beggars right after he’d just spent thousands on luxuries. But after Pieter met Jesus, his conscience woke up! Pieter felt God’s compassion for people he’d never noticed. He wanted to give away almost all his fancy clothes. He wanted to downsize so he could buy a house for the man who’d worked for him for years.

This was exactly what happened in the Bible book of Acts. It says, “All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had” (Acts 4:32). Only Jesus can fundamentally change us like that.

What is Jesus challenging you about as you follow His way?