It’s time for a series within the series to tackle the question that was always at the heart of this exploration of the church. Why do we need the poor? Sure, the poor have needs. But as children created in the image of their Father, they have worth and dignity and even glory beyond what we typically recognize. Why is it essential–even required–that the poor are part of the church?

This week our first answer comes from Acts 4.32-37. The church needs the poor so that we might have the experience of grace moving powerfully among us the way it did for the very earliest communities of disciples.