Three thousand people join the newly created Church. They were saved. When we are saved, we become new creations. If the only thing that changes in your life when you are saved is that you now go to church more regularly and volunteer at church more, then you haven’t been made into a new creation.

Salvation is regeneration. We are created new. The old passes away. The new comes.

Again, this new faith shows in what we do. We don’t just say we have faith. Faith without works is dead. If you have saving faith, your faith works. You do the works of faith, not to prove we are saved but because that’s the natural response to being saved.

What works were evident in the new faith-filled believers?

They were devoted. They were devoted to each other and to the teaching of the Word from the apostles appointed by God, whom God showed were His by performing signs and wonders through them. They were also devoted to prayer.

What does it mean to be devoted in these ways? It means they were devoted to God, which looked like talking with God because they were relying on Him and looking to Him for salvation, and like wanting to know God more so you learn His word and seek understanding, because to know Him is eternal life (John 17:3).

It also looked like being devoted to Christ by being devoted to the Body of Christ. They met together. They broke bread together and remembered what Christ had done for them. They gave freely to each other. They had all things in common. Needs were met by fellow believers.

The believers praised God. They had glad and generous hearts.

People saw and liked what they saw. Day by day more believed.

They had favor with all people, in the beginning.