Real Christianity: The Model of the First Church — Part 3

Pastor Rick Warren closes his series on the first church in Acts chapter 2 by describing eight characteristics of what he calls "real Christianity" — as opposed to "phony, fake, pseudo-Christianity." The central argument is that the early church's practices were radically different from much of modern church life, and that recovering those practices would produce the same kind of supernatural power and exponential growth today.

Joyful worship as celebration, not commiseration

The sixth mark of real Christianity is joyful worship. Warren argues that worship should be a celebration — "a festival, not a funeral." He points out that people are naturally drawn to joy, and that the gospel literally means "good news." His concern is that many churches have become places of cold formality where emotion is suppressed. He tells a story about a Saddleback member who moved to Texas and joined a formal church where she was told to stop clapping after songs because "we don't do that here." When she explained she was "just so full of the joy of the Lord," the usher replied, "Well, you didn't get it here."