Naylor Community Christian Church
Naylor, Georgia
I. Introduction
-- turn in Bibles to Acts 1:8
Acts
1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will
be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth.”
-- one day, a mother walked by and
saw her young son struggling to put on his coat – try as he might, he just
could not get the coat to zip up – and she saw that he was getting more and
more frustrated, so she decided to step in and help
--
she kneeled down in front of him and took both sides of his coat in her hand
and she showed him how to do it – "The secret," she said, "is to
get the left part of the zipper to fit in the other side before you try to zip
it up." – and with that, she zipped the coat up before his astonished eyes
--
after trying so hard to do it himself and seeing how easily she was able to do
it, the boy looked at her quizzically and asked, “But why does it have to be a
secret?"
--
that's a good question, and we can relate it to our topic of discussion for today
– the title of today’s message is “Doing the Stuff”
–
if you remember last week’s message from Pentecost Sunday, I shared with you
the story of John Wimber and his question to the pastors in the churches he
started visiting right after he came to put his faith in Christ
--
looking around at what all of these churches were doing – how everyone was just
coming to church on Sunday and then sitting in the pew, singing a few songs,
listening to the sermon, and then going home – Wimber realized that it didn’t
look like what he was reading about in the Bible – and so he asked that famous
question, “When do we do the stuff?” – referring to the exciting and
spirit-filled lives of the early Christians and the remarkable things the early
church did through the power of the Holy Spirit within them
--
and when no one had the answer, the only thing that he could assume was that it
was a secret – and that’s the way that we have lived and functioned as the
church over the last two thousand years – as if all the stuff that the early
Christians did in the Book of Acts was just something they did
--
in fact, there are a whole group of Christians that explain away our failure to
do the stuff in our churches as part of their theology – these Christians and
churches call themselves “cessationists”
–
to quote from the internet, “Cessationism is the view that the “miracle gifts”
of tongues and healing have ceased—that the end of the apostolic age brought
about a cessation of the miracles associated with that age -- Most
cessationists believe that, while God can and still does perform miracles
today, the Holy Spirit no longer uses individuals to perform miraculous signs”
--
in other words – in answer to Wimber’s question, “When are we going to do the
stuff?” – these Christians respond, “We can’t – we’re not supposed to – that
was just stuff that the early Christians did in the Bible, but we don’t do that
anymore”
--
in their minds, all of the stuff we read about in the Bible was just something
those people did – and the ability and the secret on how to do it ourselves is
hidden from us
-- but what if it’s not? – what if the
ability to go out and do the stuff that we read about in the Bible is not a
secret? – that it didn’t end when the Bible was written – but that God expects
us to continue on doing the same stuff that we read about in the Bible
--
what if the direction and the instructions on how to do all this stuff has been
there all along – right in front of us – but we just didn’t see it or we just didn’t
believe we could do it?
-- last summer, a new Superman movie
came out – and everyone here knows the story of Superman – we’ve all seen the
movies or read the comics – we all know how Superman was really an alien who
came from a distant planet and was sent to earth as a baby to save his life
–
but then he found out that because he was living on this earth with a yellow
sun that he had powers that no one else did – he could fly and he could leap
over tall buildings in a single bound – he had great strength – he had x-ray
vision – he couldn’t be hurt by bullets or by other weapons that were formed
against him
--
but the important part of that story is that he didn’t use those powers for
himself – he didn’t hoard those abilities to make himself rich and powerful and
to make a name for himself as Clark Kent -- he started using those powers for
good – he started doing stuff to help those around him
-- well, I want you to understand
this – that story of Superman might be fiction, but there is some truth there –
and you and I are Superman – because we are not of this world, either – the
Bible tells us that when we put our faith and trust in Jesus for the
forgiveness of sins and for our salvation, that we are born again – we are new
creations – we are not part of this world but have become aliens and exiles in
this foreign land
-- we are God’s ambassadors – we are
His emissaries – representatives of His Kingdom living in the world and imbued
with power from on high so that we can do the “stuff” – so that we might point
people to the good news of the gospel and show them the way to God’s Kingdom
-- as John Wimber pointed out, we
should be doing the stuff that we read about in the Bible – but we haven’t been
– either because someone told us we couldn’t – or we’ve been lulled into
complacency through our religious traditions and practices
-- but this needs to end – it’s time
for God’s people to stand up and be the super men and super women that He has
called us to be through His supernatural grace and mercy in our lives
-- Jesus didn’t go to the cross and
die in our place so that we could spend a comfortable morning on Sundays just
singing and listening to stories about what other people have done
-- Jesus died and rose again and sent
His very Spirit to live within us so that we could go and do the stuff that He
wanted us to do – so that we could live lives different from those around us –
so that we could be His hands and feet in this world today
-- it’s time for us to get up and do
that – it’s what He commanded – it’s what He told us to do
II. Doing the Stuff
-- look back here at Acts 1:8
Acts
1:8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you
will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and
to the ends of the earth.”
-- “But you will receive” -- you
will receive what? – power – “but you will receive “power”” -- when? – “But
you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” – got that?
-- this is a promise from Jesus –
this is a fact that we’ve been missing -- Jesus says it right here – “But you
will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” – that is Pentecost –
that is the sending of the Holy Spirit to the church – that is the promise that
when you put your faith and trust in Jesus for salvation and eternal life and
the forgiveness of sins, He puts the Holy Spirit within you to give you power to
do the stuff
-- pay attention to what He is
saying here – Jesus says, “You will” – bold, italic,
underline that in your Bible – make sure you see what Jesus is saying here
–
“you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you”
– not, “you might” – not, “you could possibly” – not, “you will until the Bible
is written” – not, “you will until all the apostles have died” – no, there are
no conditions to that promise – His promise is not time-limited
-- what does Jesus say here? – “You WILL
receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you” – “You will” – it’s going to
happen – Jesus Himself tells us here that we’re going to get power when the
Holy Spirit comes on us
–
power for what? – to do the stuff!
--
look what it says here – “But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you” – and then what happens? – “And you will
be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of
the earth”
--
so, Pentecost marks the sending of the Holy Spirit to the church – to
Christians – to the people of God
–
and the Holy Spirit was sent to give us power – to empower us – to give us supernatural
strength and power just like Jesus had – and we are to use this power to do the
stuff – once again, Jesus says, “you WILL” do this – not,
“you might” – not, “you can” – but, “you Will”
--
so, what’s the stuff? -- Jesus says here that the “stuff” is what we do when we
go forth in the power of the Holy Spirit to be His witnesses in the world
--
and I want you to understand something about this verse – this verse is the
summary of the entire Book of Acts – this verse is an outline of the entire
book – it tells us what is going to happen in the Book of Acts – it gives us
the theme of the entire book and the game plan for the church
--
so, here in the beginning, Jesus is with His disciples – He has been teaching
them about the word of God for 40 days and about who He is and why He has come
– and then Jesus ascends up into heaven and sends the Holy Spirit down on the
day of Pentecost to fill the church with His power and presence so that they
can go forth and do the stuff
--
and the rest of the Book of Acts is simply stories about the church and the
apostles going out and doing the stuff – being His witnesses in Jerusalem and
Judea and Samaria and the ends of the earth
--
and get this – if we are Christians, then we are part of His church – and that
means that we are part of the story of Acts – the story of the church going out
and doing the stuff through the power of the Holy Spirit didn’t end when Luke
wrote the final words in Acts 28 – in fact, the end of the book leaves us
hanging – it leaves us wanting more – do you know why?
--
because the rest of the Book of Acts is about us – about you and me and all the
other Christians in this world – everyone who received power from the Holy
Spirit when they became Christians and put their faith and trust in Jesus and
who were called to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth
--
turn over to Acts 29 real quick and let me know when you’re there – everybody,
turn over to Acts 29 – did you find it? – of course not – it’s not there – and do
you know why there is not an Acts 29 in your Bible?
--
it’s because we are in the middle of Acts 29 right now – and we should be
writing the story about us going out and doing the stuff that Jesus called us
to do
--
and so, we need to ask ourselves two questions – first, what is the stuff that
we are supposed to do? – and, second, how do we do it?
-- let’s start with the question,
“what is the stuff?”
-- Jesus tells us here that the
stuff is us serving as His witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria
and to the ends of the earth
-- very similar to what He told us
in the Great Commission – flip over to Matthew 28:18-20
Matthew
28:18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth
has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am
with you always, to the very end of the age.”
-- Then Jesus came to them and
said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” – so,
Jesus has all the authority – that means that He is in charge – He has the
power – He has the mandate – He has the calling from the Father to serve as
Lord and King over all the earth – to administer the Father’s grace and mercy in
this world
-- Then Jesus came to them and
said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” – therefore,
go and make disciples of all nations…”
-- so, now we’re getting into some
of the stuff – we are to “go” – that means that we should be moving and active
and not just sitting on pews and doing nothing else, right? – that means we are
to actually get up and “go” because Jesus told us to and He has all authority
and power to command that of us
-- He says we are to “go and make
disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit” – what does that mean? – how do we make a
disciple? – what is a disciple?
-- a disciple is simply a follower
of Jesus – someone who has put their faith and trust in Jesus for their
salvation and the forgiveness of sin and eternal life – what we would call a
Christian – really, what a Christian should be
-- but to be a disciple means that
you aren’t just believing in Jesus with your head – that you have an
intellectual knowledge of Him and you affirm the truth of what the Bible says
about Him – if you just do that, it doesn’t mean that you’re a disciple – it
doesn’t mean that you’re a Christian – in James 2:19, it says, “You believe
that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that, and shudder” – so,
it takes more than just knowing the facts about Jesus to be His disciple – to
be a Christian
--
to be a disciple means that you’re all in – it means trusting Him with your
heart and your spirit – it means putting all your faith in Him – not only
knowing that He was God and that He died for our sins with our heads – but believing
and living in that knowledge through faith – trusting in the unknown and
believing that when you step towards eternity, Jesus will be there -- and then doing
what He says to do and following Him wherever He goes
--
I’m the type of person that has to see something to fully understand it and
believe it – I think that’s why I like movies so much, because I can see the
picture before me – and when I think about explaining to someone the difference
between believing in the facts of Jesus – the truth that He was real and died
on the cross and rose again – versus having faith in Jesus and putting your
life and your soul and your spirit in His hands – the best example I have found
is from a movie – Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
--
if you’ve seen that movie, Indiana Jones has finally come to the place where
the Holy Grail – the cup that Jesus used at the last supper – was located – it
has been protected by this monk for thousands of years – the only problem is
that there is a huge chasm – this huge empty space – between Indiana Jones and
the monk – and in order to get to the Holy Grail, he has to get across that
chasm
--
the monk tells him that there is an invisible bridge there – and that if he has
faith, that when he steps out into the void of that chasm – that he will not
fall, but can follow the bridge to the other side
--
and, sure enough, he does – he steps out and puts his foot in the air above
that chasm – and then lifts his other foot – and he doesn’t fall, but the
invisible bridge holds him up
--
that’s faith – and the difference between head knowledge of Jesus and heart
knowledge of Jesus is whether you trust in Him enough to take that step into
the unknown – whether you believe that He will hold you up if you step out into
nothing – like Peter believing that he could walk on water because Jesus told
him he could
--
to be a disciple, you have to have put all your faith and trust in Jesus – but
that’s not all it means
–
since the word disciple literally means “a follower,” that implies that you are
following Him – that you are active – that you are doing stuff – that you are
moving – that you have been changed by Jesus through the power of the Holy
Spirit – who He sent to give us power so that we could be His witnesses in the
world today – and you are following Him and doing what He has called you to do
– you are being obedient to His commands and His word
-- this is what a disciple looks
like – this is who we are to be – and this is what Jesus said we are to make
-- we make disciples by first being
one -- through faith in Jesus and then by moving and following Him and doing
the stuff – doing the stuff means living for Jesus ourselves –following Him and
doing His commands – living lives different from the world around us so that we
can be example for them – so that we can show them what a disciple should look
like and so that we can tell them how they can become a disciple, too
-- and then, when we make a
disciple, we are to baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and
of the Holy Spirit – if you remember from last week, to baptize someone is to
have them washed clean in the blood of Jesus – to have their whole bodies and
souls and spirits washed by Jesus – it means that we help others to put their
faith and trust in Jesus so that their sins will be forgiven and they will be
saved for eternal life in Him
-- it also means that we bring them
into the church – into community – into union – with us – they are moved from
being part of this world to being part of God’s kingdom – and we bring them in
and make them part of us – we show them how to live for Jesus – we teach them
what it means to do the stuff – and then we help them to do the stuff
themselves by teaching them to obey everything Jesus commanded
-- what does the stuff look like
beyond making disciples and witnessing for Christ with our lives? – it can be a
lot of different things – and it can be different depending on who you are and
where you live and how you are gifted
-- remember going through the series
on the spiritual gifts? – there was a reason for that – to let you know how you
are gifted – because when you know that, then you can do the stuff – and what
is the stuff?
-- elsewhere in the Bible we are
given broad pictures of what the stuff looks like in passages like Isaiah 1:17,
where we read we are to “learn to do right – seek justice – defend the
oppressed – take up the cause of the fatherless – plead the case of the widow”
– or in Luke 4:18-19, when Jesus said that He had been anointed by God to
“proclaim good news to the poor – freedom for the prisoners – recovery of sight
for the blind – to set the oppressed free – and to proclaim the year of the
Lord’s favor”
-- and in Micah 6:8, where we read,
“what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk
humbly with your God.”
-- when we do any of that, we are
doing the stuff – we are being disciples – we are being the witnesses of Christ
in this world today
-- that is our calling – that is our
mission – that is what we need to be doing if we are going to claim the name of
Jesus and call ourselves Christians
-- the Book of Acts is literally
filled with stories and examples of the apostles and the early Christians going
about and doing the stuff through the power of the Holy Spirit – and since we
are supposed to be the continuation of the Book of Acts right now – since we
are supposed to be writing Chapter 29 ourselves – it might be a good idea for
us to study the acts that are in this book and to seek to emulate them and to
follow their example
-- so, for the next little while,
we’re going to be journeying through the Book of Acts doing just that – looking
at the acts of the apostles and the early church – and considering how we might
go forth and do stuff like they did
-- for that is what Christ intended
for us – and that is what He expects of His church today
III. Closing
--
whether you know it or not, people today are looking for Jesus – in fact, there
was a recent story in the Wall Street Journal about how models who look like
Jesus are in high demand in Utah
--
for a growing number of people in the state, a picture isn’t complete without Jesus
being in the middle – so, a lot of people have started hiring Jesus look-alikes
for family portraits and wedding announcements
--
so, models who look like our conception of Jesus are showing up to walk with a
newly engaged couple through a field, play with young children in the
Bonneville Salt Flats, and cram in with the family for the annual Christmas
card as they get their pictures taken
-- Bob Sagers is one of these models
who is in high demand for pictures – he was walking around an indie music
festival in Salt Lake City when a friendly stranger approached and asked for
his number. “Has anyone ever told you that you have a Jesus look to you?” – and
that started a new career for Sagers
--
since the moment when he was recruited by the stranger at the festival to pose
as Jesus in a painting with his family, Sagers has posed as Jesus nearly a
dozen times – and he’s not alone
--
there are lots of models in Utah posing as Jesus -- charging about $100 to $200
an hour to pose with children, families, and couples at various locations in
the Beehive state1
--
but here’s the thing – just because someone looks like Jesus on the outside,
doesn’t mean they are like Jesus on the inside – and just because someone
claims to be a Christian, that doesn’t mean that they are a true disciple of
Jesus
--
true disciples of Jesus are those people who have had a supernatural experience
with Him – who have put their faith and trust in Jesus’ atoning death on the
cross and who believe in Him for the forgiveness of sin and eternal life – who
have been transformed and changed from who they were into people of faith as
evidenced by the fact that they are doing the stuff
--
I want us to be those people – I want all of us to be Superman – I want all of
us to be living our lives for Jesus as sold-out Christians who trust in Him and
who follow Him and who do the stuff that He has called us to do
--
we’ve spent quite a while this year going through what it means to be a
Christian – what it means to be filled with the Spirit and what the spiritual
gifts look like and how they are to be used
--
but it’s not enough to know the facts – we have to get up and go and do the
stuff that Jesus has empowered us to do through His Spirit
--
so, we’re going to start digging into the Book of Acts and look at the lives of
the apostles and disciples and the early church so that we might be like them –
true disciples who express our faith by doing the stuff
--
the very first thing we have to do, though, before we do the stuff -- is make
sure that we have a relationship with Jesus – that we have put our faith and
trust in Him for salvation and eternal life – that we’re not just getting by
with head knowledge and a reliance on facts
--
if you’re not sure if you are there or not, then I want to invite you to pray
to Jesus now – to ask Him to forgive you of your sins – to affirm that you
believe in Him – that He is the living God – and to put your faith and trust in
Him – to take that step onto the invisible bridge that is Jesus – to know that
your eternity is certain because you are depending on Him and Him alone
--
we’re going to close in prayer now, and if you would like me to pray with you,
I would be happy to do so – just come down front or catch me after the service,
and I will pray with you for whatever need you might have
--
with that, let us close now in prayer as we get ready to go and do the stuff
through the power of the Holy Spirit within us
--
let us pray
1 Source: Bradley Olson, “It Pays to Have
Long Hair and a Beard in Utah—Jesus Models Are in Demand,” The Wall Street
Journal (12-18-24)]
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