Note 5 at Acts 2:44: This was an amazing demonstration of the work of God in the lives of these new converts. As Jesus had said, "by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (Jn. 13:35) To give of one's own prosperity to help another is one of the greatest ways of showing that love (1 Jn. 3:17).

It would appear that the believers still retained their homes by virtue of the fact that they met daily from house to house (v. 46). It would also appear that this was not a long term arrangement and there is no indication in scripture that this type of communal living was repeated in other places where large numbers were converted to Christ. In fact, just a few years later, Paul took up a collection for the poor saints in Jerusalem (Rom. 15:26) implying that the communal system had either failed or been abandoned.

This sharing was totally voluntary as can be seen by Peter's statement in Acts 5:4. Many attempts have been made to duplicate this same type of sharing but they all have and will fail unless there is a genuine work of love in the heart of the person who is giving. Unless the heart is right, that person's giving will profit him nothing, spiritually or physically (1 Cor. 13:3). Therefore, emphasis should be placed on the condition of the heart that this generosity exhibited and not on the action itself.