Template:Allthingscommon

The early Church and the Congregation of the Christian community was a sharing society which was persecuted because they would not apply or pray for nor eat the free bread of the rulers of Rome. They practiced Pure Religion according to the teachings of Abraham and Moses and their living altars. There was the Church in the wilderness and the Early Church appointed by Christ who took the kingdom of God away from the Pharisees and appointed it to His Little flock to bear fruit. They were not socialists but a free society which was dependent upon individual choice under what Paul calls the perfect law of liberty. What did it mean when they said in Acts 2:44 that they had All_things_common?

All things common

Jesus preached that we should seek His kingdom of God that he promised to take from the Pharisees and appoint to those who would bear fruit. He called out some to become His disciples training them to be ministers of that kingdom, requiring them to sell their property and eventually appointed that little flock a kingdom as is clearly stated in the text.

• Acts 2:42 47 And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles. And all that believed were together, and had all things common; And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. 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, Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

There is a lot of confusion created by the quote in Acts about believers having all "All things in common".

Acts 2:44 "And all that believed were together, and had all things common;" the word translated "all things" is ἅπαντα hapanta which actually means "all" while the first word all which we see in the sentence is Πάντες, pantes meaning "Everybody" from pas which means collectively as each individual.

Acts 2:45 "And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need." We know that the apostles were taking care of the needy, receiving the freewill offerings or sacrificed of the people and in the vey next verse they are rightly dividing the bread from house to house. Yet people want to be live that early Christians were socialist and that Jesus was preaching some form of socialism by taking Act 2:44 out of the context of all His other teachings and the whole Bible.

The word "had" is the word that means to have i.e. own, possess.

So, where else do we see the phrase "all things common"?

• Acts 4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any [of them] that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

It is here they talk about Joses, a levite, becoming one of them but Ananias failing the test of faith succumbed to a mysterious death.

That all has to do with the called out apostles appointed by Jesus and not the people in general. Everyone was not required to give up all they had and give it to the poor to follow Jesus. This was a requirement for those who wanted to be disciples or student ministers. This has nothing to do with Jesus being a socialist. Jesus was just the opposite and even condemned the Pharisees for their socialist system of Corban.

The early Church and the Christian community was a sharing society dependent upon individual choice under what Paul calls the perfect law of liberty. Those choices included the free assemblies "of the people" living by faith, hope and charity providing social welfare fueled by a daily sacrifice "for the people and by the people". These charitable practices through the ministers of the Church, who were a public servant, providing a daily ministration that bound the people by love instead of force, hope instead of entitlements and faith instead of allegiance.

While love, which comes in the form of charity, is imposed by God and Jesus Christ, the enforcement is through the spirit and not men like Cain, Nimrod, or Caesar of the world. . Those who misinterpret the "all things common" quote incorrectly fail to understand the separation of the Church and state. Originally the power of the State was the power of the people held individually by the people in a Natural state. The ministers of the Church composed first of disciples and then called Apostles or ambassadors and ministers were separate from the general population of the people.

They were not better or rulers but like Christ, they were people who came out because they were called out to serve as shepherds of Gods flock, his people, his nation.

Like the Levites of old, Moses and Jesus created a system of self-government where the ministers were separate and titular. They could not exercise authority one over the other like the Benefactors of the world in fact they were to be in the world but not of the world or depend upon its benefits as members.

While they owned all things in common they did not exercise authority one over the other. The people did not belong to the body of Levites but individually belonged to God Himself or so is the intention of God. The ministers of the Church in the wilderness and the early Church belonged to God as bond servants and therefore they owned all things common but the people were to be returned to their possessions and their families.

The same as the Church in the wilderness the early Church as a group of appointed ministers called out of the world of Rome to minister to the Kingdom of God at hand was composed of men and women who belonged to God like the Levites before them. To say they were not of the "world" and were assigned to feed his sheep just as the Levites served the tents of the congregations of a free people by providing a Daily ministration through the righteous Corban of Christ. The sacrifice of the people given as Freewill offerings which the New Testament calls charity was the key to the kingdom. They, the Church and His ordained ministers, held things as joint heirs of a society with a mission of charity as unhewn but lively Stones from which the living Altars of God may be built to set all men free who repent and seek His Way.

The sheep of Christ hear His voice and live by charity not by force. The appointed shepherds of Christ's Kingdom of God at hand provide a network of charity in service and a daily ministration of righteousness according to The Way of Christ as one body in the world but not of it.

Understanding the church in general and the Church specific will also help people understand why those rich men and the disciples who wanted to become appointed ministers of this unique form of free government as the called out of Christ had to give up "all their property" and hold all things in common.

John the Baptist was against the use of force in creating the altruistic society of Christianity. Christ forbid the use of force for all Christians in providing the benefits of society and warned against covetousness through the Ten Commandments in His directives about Eternal life and Corban of the Socialism of the Pharisees.