SERMON: Fighting for God or Against God (acts 4:32-5:42)

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Acts 4:32-35

 

Acts 4:32 All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. 33 With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all 34 that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales 35 and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need.

 

            -- several years ago, Kim and I watched a show that quickly became one of our favorites of all times -- when it comes to TV and movies, we gravitate towards spies and mysteries and similar dramas -- this show was called, "The Americans" -- hopefully, you had the opportunity to see it yourself

-- to sum up the plot, “The Americans” is the story about a typical suburban family in Falls Church, Virginia in the early 1980's -- but this typical suburban family has a very non-typical secret -- you see, the husband and wife in this family are not what they seem -- they are actually Russian spies

            -- as the story unfolds over the six seasons it ran, we learn that the husband and wife in this family are not really Americans -- they were recruited in Russia to give up their lives and to come to America to live a secret life -- to be married and to have children and to appear to be, for all intents and purposes, normal suburban Americans

            -- they look like Americans -- they talk like Americans -- they go to work like Americans -- they socialize like Americans -- they take their kids to soccer practice and dance recitals and drop them off at the mall -- just by looking at them, no one can tell that they are actually undercover Russian sleeper agents

 

            -- every time I open the news and read a story of a church scandal or when I see people I know acting in very non-Christian ways, I think about this show – it is a poignant reminder that our churches are made up of people – and not everyone who comes to church or attends church is truly a Christian

            -- surveys by the Barna Research Group and other pollsters reveal that only about 20-30% of people in any given congregation are considered committed, highly-engaged, believers – these would be the people that are born-again – that have a personal relationship with Jesus – those who have put their faith and trust in Jesus for eternal life and the forgiveness of sins and who have committed to living sanctified lives of obedience to Christ’s commands

            -- between 40 and 60% of attendees are considered nominal or cultural believers – these would be the people who might call themselves Christians, but who have not fully put their faith and trust in Jesus

-- this group would also include the cultural believers – those who think they are Christian because they are Americans or because their parents or grandparents were Christian

-- these are the people we associate with in our daily lives who look like Christians and talk like Christians and do all the normal things that Christians do -- they may go to our churches on a fairly regular basis -- they may even put Jesus fish on the back of their cars and tell everybody on Facebook that they are Christians -- but in reality, they are not true, committed believers in Christ

-- in a very real sense, they’re only pretending to be believers -- and it could be they've lived this lie so long they have started to think it’s true -- if you were to ask them if they were Christians, they would tell you, "yes," even though they don't have a personal relationship with Jesus

-- the rest of the people in a congregation – about 10-20% of the attendees – are the non-believers and visitors – these include the seekers – people who are curious about Christianity and are coming to learn more about our faith – this category also includes those people who come only because they are closely associated with someone in the church or in a community, but who have no real interest in religion – for instance, family members who may come with their families to services from time-to-time but who have no true spiritual faith in anything

 

-- now, keep in mind that these are generalized statistics, and you may see different percentages based on what poll you look at – Rick Warren always said that in his experience, 30% of the church were committed Christians, 30% were nominal Christians, and the rest were what he called, “the crowd” – unbelievers and seekers – but he pastored in California, which certainly has a different demographic than we do here in the Bible Belt

– also, I expect that the percentages in each category vary based on the size of the church – more than likely, you have a greater percentage of non-believers and nominal Christians in larger congregations – where it is easier to get lost in the crowd – than in a small church, where the fruits of the Spirit and the evidences of faith are more easily discerned by the other members

 -- the point that I am trying to get you to see, though – the truth that I want you to grasp -- is that in any congregation, there is a mosaic of belief – there is a gradient of faith in a church that runs from unbelievers or cultural Christians to the fully committed, born-again believers

– that means that in any church, there are some people who truly believe and some people that are either in the beginning stages of belief or who are unbelievers, even though they may be members of that church and may call themselves Christians

 

            -- the passage we opened up with -- Acts 4:32-35 -- points to the ideal state for the church – it gives us the picture of a community of believers who were one in heart and mind – they were all committed to their new faith in Jesus as the Messiah – and they put into practice His teachings and the commands that He passed on to the apostles

-- they did life together in a way that we do not see in the world today – sharing all things with each other – taking care of each person as if they were their own family, such that there were no needy persons among them – and sharing their resources communally so that everyone in the community was provided for

-- this is what we should be striving for – both personally and corporately – ideally, this is who we should be in our personal spiritual lives – and this is what our churches should look like – not just on the surface, but in our heart of hearts

-- believers who live in koinonia – true biblical fellowship – being one with each other in heart and mind – and sharing our lives with each other as we follow Christ in all our ways

 

-- but even in this idyllic New Testament Church – which certainly had a higher percentage of true, born-again believers within it – there were those who were not what they seemed – even in the first church, there were sleeper agents among them who were not true believers and who continued to live for themselves while calling themselves believers

-- as we move on in our series in the Book of Acts, we find ourselves in a section here from Acts 4:32 through the end of Chapter 5 where we see these differences in the church come to the forefront

– in this section, battle lines are drawn and people have to decide whether they are truly going to place their faith and trust in Jesus and unify around the testimony of Jesus’ death and resurrection and live in the power of the Spirit or if they are going to hold onto their worldly religious practices and materialistic lifestyles while claiming to be believers

-- in other words, the people have to decide -- do they stand for God or do they stand for themselves in their lives and in their practices?

-- in this section, we see three clear examples of people who made that choice – two groups chose to live for themselves – to hold onto their religious traditions and practices and their materialism – while one group chose to stand up for God and live for Him instead

 

II.  Ananias and Saphira (Acts 4:36-5:11)

            -- let’s look at the first example here – look at Acts 4:36-5:6

 

Acts 4:36 Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (which means “son of encouragement”), 37 sold a field he owned and brought the money and put it at the apostles’ feet.

 

Acts 5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property. 2 With his wife’s full knowledge he kept back part of the money for himself, but brought the rest and put it at the apostles’ feet.

 

3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some of the money you received for the land? 4 Didn’t it belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, wasn’t the money at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”

 

5 When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened. 6 Then some young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.

 

            -- this section opens with the story of Barnabas – the same Barnabas that we recognize from the missionary journeys of the Apostle Paul

            -- Barnabas was a truly faithful and committed member of the early church – and he was moved by the Spirit to sell a field that he owned and to give the proceeds from that sale to the church

            -- here’s a case where we can read between-the-lines and know what is going on, even though we are not told in black-and-white – while the Scriptures do not tell us how the church and the apostles reacted to Barnabas’ sacrificial act of giving the proceeds from the sale of his land to the church, we can assume that he was praised by the apostles for this act

            -- there was obviously some type of public recognition that called attention to what Barnabas did – and when Ananias and Saphira saw the recognition that Barnabas received, they wanted it, too -- the desire for similar laud and praise drove them to act in a way that brought about their ultimate downfall

            -- just like Barnabas, Ananias and Saphira had a piece of property, too – and after seeing him sell his property and give the money to the church, they decided to do the same – however, instead of giving all the money from the sale of the land to the church, they held some back – which was not wrong – it was their right – no one would have faulted them for that

            -- but here’s where they got into trouble – they lied through omission – and when Ananias brought the money and gave it to the apostles, he let them believe that he was giving them the entire amount that he received from the sale of the land, even though he was keeping some of the money back for himself

            -- he wanted the recognition and the applause for doing just like Barnabas, but in his heart he was lying to the church and to God

            -- Ananias, in collusion with his wife Saphira, chose to take a stand for himself – to pretend to be wholly sold out as believers while living a lifestyle of his own choosing

            -- and for this lie – and to make clear the distinction between true faith and nominal belief in an idea – God struck Ananias down and killed him in the presence of the entire congregation

 

            -- verse 7

 

Acts 5:7 About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 Peter asked her, “Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for the land?”

 

“Yes,” she said, “that is the price.”

 

9 Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! The feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”

 

10 At that moment she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these events.

 

            -- just a few hours later, Sapphira came to the place where the church was meeting and was confronted by Peter about the money she and Ananias had offered to the church -- he asked her point blank, "Is this all the money you got for the land?"

            -- Sapphira looked Peter in the eye and said, "Yes, it is" -- and the same judgment that fell on her husband fell on her -- Sapphira dropped dead on the spot and was carried out and buried next to her husband

            -- battlelines were drawn – decisions were made – rather than committing themselves to faith in Christ and following His commands, Ananias and Sapphira decided to live for themselves and to allow their desire for praise and recognition, along with their material greed, to color their relationship with God

 

            -- the other two examples of decisions to either follow Christ or follow self occur in an event very similar to the passage from last week

            -- look at verse 12-17

 

Acts 5:12 The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13 No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14 Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15 As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16 Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.  17 Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy.

 

            -- now, skip down to verse 27-29

 

Acts 5:27 The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28 “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.” 29 Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!

 

            -- and let’s finish up at verse 41-42

 

Acts 5:41 The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. 42 Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

 

            -- in the first example, we see Ananias and Sapphira holding on to the desire for material things – in this case, money – and the desire for praise and recognition instead of giving themselves fully over to faith in Jesus

            -- in the second example, we see the high priest and his associates, the Sadducees, and the Sanhedrin – choosing to hold onto their religious practices and traditions instead of turning to Jesus as the promised Messiah

 

            -- when Peter and John and the other apostles continued to preach and teach the good news of salvation and the forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ – and when God affirmed their teaching with signs and wonders through the power of the Holy Spirit – we read in verse 17 that the high priest and his associates were filled with jealousy

            -- as the leaders of the Jewish community and as those in charge of worship in the Temple, the high priests, the elders, and the Sanhedrin were accustomed to being recognized and lauded for their holiness and righteous way of life

            -- because of this, the worship of Yahweh, the Lord God Almighty, had become more about practicing religious traditions and rituals than worship of the Father in spirit and truth – and as the leaders who mediated the presence of God to the people, the high priest and his associates basked in the praise of the people of Israel

            -- when Jesus appeared in Judea and began preaching and teaching the good news of the Kingdom of Heaven, proclaiming Himself the long-awaited Messiah – this did not set well with the high priest and his associates – their desire for praise and recognition were being usurped – and their religious practices and traditions were being threatened – and so they had Jesus put to death on the cross by Pontius Pilate

            -- when they cried out before Pilate to let Jesus’ blood be upon them, they made the decision to stand for themselves and their positions in the community against the Messiah – they put their religious practices and traditions above all else so that they would continue to enjoy the praise of the people

 

            -- and now, even after Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and the obvious power that the church enjoyed through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, the desire of the high priest and his associates continues to be praise and recognition from the people – and when the people begin to turn to Peter and the other apostles in response to their teaching – when the people start paying attention to someone other than the high priest and his associates and the religious order of the day – they became jealous

            -- just like we read in last week’s passage, they tried to quench the move of God in their midst by arresting the apostles and having them appear before the Sanhedrin

            -- once again, they demand that Peter and John and the other apostles stop preaching and teaching in the name of Jesus

            -- just like Ananias and Sapphira, a choice has been made – a battleline has been drawn – and the Jewish religious leaders, from the high priest to the Sanhedrin – choose themselves and religious tradition above the plain truth that the Messiah has come

 

            -- but we see in this passage another way – another choice – in the example of Peter and the other apostles – just like last week, Peter stands before the religious right of his day and states in verse 27, “We must obey God rather than human beings”

            -- and then in verses 41 and 42, we read that he and the apostles walked out of the court proceedings with the Sanhedrin and never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah

            -- another choice was made – another battleline was drawn – but in this case, Peter and the apostles chose to stand for God

 

III.  Closing

-- in 1836, a pivotal event occurred in the Texas Revolution against Mexico – about 100 Texans under the command of Colonel William B. Travis and James Bowie were garrisoned at the Alamo Mission in San Antonio

-- on February 23, about 1500 Mexicans marched into San Antonio as the first step in Mexico’s campaign to retake Texas – Travis and Bowie and his men retreated into the Alamo, where they faced an onslaught of battle from the determined Mexican army, led by General Santa Anna

-- fighting claimed the majority of the Texans – and after several days of the siege, it became obvious that the remaining men would not be able to hold off the Mexicans much longer – they knew it would only be a matter of time before the wall was breached and all of them put to the sword – it was an impossible situation

-- on what became the final day of the siege, Colonel Travis took his sword and drew a line on the ground, and he issued a call -- he said everyone who is willing to fight for Texas, come and stand with me behind this line, knowing that it may cost you your very life -- the rest could leave and surrender to the Mexicans and save their lives

-- there was a moment of silence as each man pondered the decision in their hearts -- and then, as one, every single man remaining in the Alamo took a step and crossed that line and made their choice

-- they chose to do what was right, despite the personal cost -- they chose to stand up for what they believed in, despite the fact it could cost them their life -- and, in the end, every Texan in the Alamo that day was killed

 

-- throughout the Bible, we are faced with a similar call – a choice that we all have to make – battlelines are drawn – and we have to decide which side we will stand on

-- on one side is the cross – on the other is the world

-- on one side is the choice to live our lives based on faith in Christ for salvation and eternal life – on the other is the choice to live for ourselves and our own personal desires

-- in this section from the Book of Acts, we see three separate groups facing that choice – Ananias and Sapphira, the high priest and his associates, and Peter and the apostles

-- two groups chose the world – they chose self – they chose to live into their desire for praise and recognition – for material wealth and religious practices and tradition – over Christ and His kingdom

-- one group – Peter and the apostles – chose the way of Christ

 

-- this same choice is before us today, for the Bible tells us that we must make the choice every single day to get up, pick up our cross, and follow Christ

-- every morning when we rise, we face a line in the sand – and every morning, we have to choose how we will live that day – which side of the line we will stand on

-- that choice is before us now

 

-- as we close in prayer, we need to make a decision as to who we are going to be – how we are going to live – and what we are going to choose to believe

-- this same decision has to be made every single day

-- I pray that you will choose the path of Christ, and that you will stand for Him in this world above all else

-- so, let us close now in prayer and consider the examples that are before us in Scripture – and let us choose the path that we will take

            -- let’s pray    

 

SERMON: BE BOLD -- ACTS SERMON SERIES

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Acts 3:11-16

 

Acts 3:11 While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. 12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.

 

            -- in the foreword to Nik Ripken’s book, “The Insanity of Obedience,” about Christians boldly standing up for God in persecuted regions, Brother Andrew shared a personal story about the faith of two of his Muslim friends, who he called S and Q to protect their identities and the identities of their families

            -- he first met the men in 2002, when he was staying in a hotel in a radical Muslim region – the men came to his room secretly at night to meet him and to share their stories

            -- S came from a religious family, with both his father, his grandfather, and two of his brothers serving as Muslim imams – prayer leaders and spiritual teachers – in the local area

            -- S followed suit, becoming an imam himself -- teaching religion at a government school and leading prayers in the neighborhood mosque – as a very young man, S had memorized the entire Qur’an in Arabic and was known in his community as a devout Muslim and dedicated follower of Allah

            -- the teaching job gave S access to a library, where he found other religious books besides those dedicated to Islam – he began to read about Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity, learning more about each of these religions

            -- one day, another imam recognized S’s desire for knowledge, and he began meeting with him to discuss religion – as they met to discuss which religion was true, it soon became evident that this new imam was secretly a follower of Jesus Christ – and after several conversations comparing Islam to Christianity, the imam shared a copy of the New Testament with S – which was illegal in their country

            -- S began reading the Gospels and realized that Jesus was the true revelation of God on earth – in fact, S came to believe that Jesus was God in the flesh – he quickly became a Christian and stopped serving as an imam and teacher of Islam, causing him to struggle to earn a living

-- on top of that, once his brothers learned that he had become a Christian, they vowed to kill him – so S was forced into hiding and had only sneaked out so that he could meet Brother Andrew

-- Andrew asked him what he was going to do now that he faced such persecution – he proudly announced, “I am going to be an imam for Jesus!” – and after a brief time of prayer, he and Q left Brother Andrew’s room

-- a couple of years later, Brother Andrew heard from a ministry colleague that S had been serving Christ covertly in a region where a fierce fundamentalist Muslim group was in charge – he had planted several house churches and had led them to grow in faith in Christ – but, he had just been captured by the fundamentalist group – no one, not even his family, ever saw him or heard from him again after his capture -- Brother Andrew’s colleagues believed that S had been martyred for his faith and his bold witness for Christ in a hostile land

 

-- Q was just as bold in working for Christ and the death of S did nothing to dampen his passion – after S was captured, Q took over his ministry -- he traveled the same route as S and took over care of the house churches that S had founded – he taught the Christians in those underground churches the way of Christ – and continued to lead them in their Christian walk

-- Like S, he continued to share the gospel with people in the community when he could,  narrowly evading a couple of attempts on his life by radical Muslims who sought to silence him -- But after a few years, his “luck” ran out and Q was also captured and killed

-- Brother Andrew closed his story by talking about the grief he still had for these two dear brothers he had lost – but, at the same time, he said that he stood in awe of their example

-- like us here in this room, Brother Andrew said he could freely cross the street and knock on someone’s door and share the message of Christ with them – they might slam the door in his face, but he didn’t face the threat of being kidnapped and tortured or killed for talking about Jesus, like S & Q had – but even with this freedom, Brother Andrew admitted that he didn’t go and share his faith as Christ commanded

-- his unwillingness to share the gospel stands in contrast to the boldness of S and Q – who woke up every morning eager to tell people about Jesus, even though they knew it could cost them their lives that very day – they stood boldly against the fear of death, and continued to be faithful witnesses of Christ in lands hostile to the gospel -- eventually, they paid the ultimate price and lost their lives as martyrs for Jesus

-- S and Q followed the way of Jesus – they boldly witnessed for Christ with their lives and with their words – and they stand before us as modern day examples of bold and faithful Christians -- this is the way of the cross – this is the way of Jesus – this is what Jesus commanded us to do

-- how would our world change today – how would our country change today – if we could but have the boldness of S and Q – faithful witnesses who took up their cross and followed Jesus in order to share the good news of the gospel with all, regardless of the cost?

 

II.  Becoming Bold

-- this morning, we are continuing in our sermon series on the Book of Acts – Being Bold Witnesses for Christ

-- our goal in this study is to grow in our faith and become bold witnesses of Christ who go forth to do the stuff that He has called us to do – to share the good news of Christ as we follow the examples of the men and women that we read about here in the Book of Acts and that we see modeled for us in the lives of men like S and Q

-- our key verse – our guiding light – throughout this series is 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”

 

-- we are currently working through the first major area in the Book of Acts that I am calling, “A New Hope – the Beginning of the Church of Christ on Earth” – this section will go through the first part of Chapter 8

-- so far, we have discussed the scope of the Book of Acts, looking in detail at Christ’s promise in Acts 1:8 and the Great Commission from Matthew 28:18-20 – including looking at the sending of the Holy Spirit to the church at Pentecost and the realization of the power of Christ within us to accomplish His purposes in the world today

-- and let me remind you that if you missed those messages, you can find the transcript on our blog – onlyimagine.blogspot.com – the link is pinned to the top of our Facebook page

 

-- this morning, we are in Acts 3 and 4, where we are starting to see how the disciples are engaging with the presence of the Holy Spirit within them – and how they are learning to be empowered through His presence to be bold witnesses for Christ, even in the face of adversity and persecution

-- as this passage opens up, Peter and John have come to the temple to worship and to share the message of Christ with those present – as they were entering the temple courts, they passed through the gate called Beautiful, and they were met with the cries of a lame beggar – who came everyday asking the passers-by for money

-- Peter and John, moved by the Spirit, witnessed to the lame beggar and instead of giving him money, healed him through the power of Christ within them – the now-healed man followed them into the temple courts -- walking and jumping and loudly praising God – the commotion he made drew a crowd, who surrounded Peter and John as they came to see what was going on

 

-- look back at verse 11

 

Acts 3:11 While the man held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. 12 When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Fellow Israelites, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. 14 You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. 15 You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. 16 By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has completely healed him, as you can all see.

 

-- as the crowd surrounds Peter, he is filled with the Holy Spirit and begins to share a bold message of faith to the people in the temple – he asks them why they are surprised – why do they stare in astonishment at him and John – for it wasn’t they who did the miracle of healing that day, but Jesus Himself who had healed the man and made him walk

-- he shares with them the story of Jesus – His death and resurrection – and he ends by telling them that it was by faith in the name of Jesus that this man had been healed –that this faith is what set him free

-- and then he goes on to tell the people how they, too, can be set free from that which binds them and has made their spirits lame – verse 17

 

Acts 3:17 “Now, fellow Israelites, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. 18 But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Messiah would suffer. 19 Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, 20 and that he may send the Messiah, who has been appointed for you—even Jesus. 21 Heaven must receive him until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. 22 For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. 23 Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from their people.’

 

-- so, I want you to get the whole picture here – the whole scope of what has just happened -- Jesus promised in Acts 1:8 that His followers would receive power when the Holy Spirit came on them, and that they would be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth – what we are seeing here is the fulfillment of this promise

-- after healing the man at the gate called Beautiful, Peter boldly stands up in the middle of the temple courts and proclaims that Jesus is the Messiah – that He had been put to death by the Jews – specifically, the priests and the Sanhedrin – and that He had risen from the dead on the third day and ascended to heaven – that through Jesus, salvation and the forgiveness of sins and healing of the body, soul, and spirit were available to all through faith in Him as the Messiah

-- as he says in verse 19, all they have to do is “repent, then, and turn to God, that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord”

-- and the people are amazed at the message that Peter has shared – for not only do the words that he shared ring true, but the proof is right before them in the presence of the healed beggar who continues to stand and jump for joy and praise God before their very eyes

 

-- but here’s something that we often miss in this story – the true miracle that day was not the healing of the lame beggar – the true miracle that day was the example of Peter standing there before that crowd of people, sharing a bold message of faith

-- let’s put this in perspective – we don’t know the exact timing of this event, but it was not long after Pentecost – after the Father sent the Holy Spirit to indwell and empower the church on earth

-- Pentecost was 50 days after the Passover, which was when Jesus died on the cross – so, it’s only been a few weeks since Jesus died and rose again and ascended to heaven – it’s only been a few days since the Holy Spirit came on the believers at Pentecost – and I want you to grasp that, because the change in Peter is nothing short of miraculous

 

-- do you remember Peter and what he did on the night Jesus was betrayed? – do you remember Peter after Jesus’ arrest? – do you remember his denials?

– three times in the courtyard of the high priest – when the servant girl and the others around the fire accused Peter of being one of Jesus’ followers -- Peter denied that he ever knew Him – he refused to say that he was a follower of Jesus – he feared for his life and turned away from Jesus

 

-- and then we have the scene after the resurrection, when Jesus appeared to the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Galilee – when Jesus turned to Peter three times and asked him if he loved Him

-- flip over to John 21:15 or listen as I read that passage

 

-- verse 15

 

John 21:15 When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?”

 

“Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

 

-- when Jesus asks Peter here if he loves Him, He asks him, “do you agape me more than these?” – do you love Me with all your heart and soul and mind and strength – do you love Me unconditionally – with the love of God

-- and Peter replies, “I phileo you” – I love you like a brother – Peter is unable to love Jesus as Jesus wanted

 

-- verse 16

 

John 21:16 Again Jesus said, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

 

He answered, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Take care of my sheep.”

 

 

– again Jesus asks Peter if he loves Him – if he agapes Him – and, once again, Peter can’t say, “yes” – he responds again, “I phileo you” – I love You, but not like that

 

-- verse 17

 

John 21:17 The third time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”

 

Peter was hurt because Jesus asked him the third time, “Do you love me?” He said, “Lord, you know all things; you know that I love you.”

 

Jesus said, “Feed my sheep.

 

– finally, Jesus asks Peter if he can at least love Him like a brother – instead of asking if Peter agapes Him, He says, “Do you phileo Me?” – and it hurts him to say so, but Peter replies that yes, he does love Jesus as a brother

 

-- now, put those two events together – first, we see Peter trying to be bold – proclaiming before all the disciples in the Upper Room that he would never deny Jesus – that he would never turn away from Jesus – but a few hours later, he does – three times, in fact, he denies knowing Jesus

-- and then, after the resurrection, Jesus comes to Peter and asks him if he loves Him – Jesus wants to know if Peter can love Him with the same agape – unconditional love -- that God has – that God wants from us – but Peter confesses that he doesn’t

-- not that he doesn’t want to – he just can’t – it’s not in him – he doesn’t have the power to do so

 

-- now, consider what we just read in Acts 3 – this man who is boldly standing up in the face of the priests and the Sanhedrin – who boldly shares the message with everyone there that Jesus was killed by the Jews and raised by God on the third day to offer salvation and the forgiveness of sins to all who believed and repented and trusted in Him in faith

– this man who has just healed a lame beggar in his forties who had been laid at the gate called Beautiful for decades

– this man is the same man who denied ever knowing Christ on the night He was betrayed and who wasn’t able to love Jesus with an agape, unconditional love, even after the resurrection – it’s only been a few weeks – a few days

-- so, what changed? – what happened to turn Peter from a cowering coward before the crucifixion and from a weak follower after the resurrection into the bold man that we see standing up for Christ in front of a hostile crowd in this passage?

-- the Holy Spirit

 

            -- that is what happened at Pentecost – that is the importance of that day – for it is the fulfillment of the promise of Acts 1:8 – it is power coming in the presence of the Holy Spirit to indwell Christians – to indwell the church – and to make it possible for them – and us -- to stand boldly in the face of adversity and persecution and witness to the truth of the gospel of Christ

            -- Peter is still the same man he was before the death and resurrection of Jesus – he still has that same desire in his heart to follow Jesus and to stand for Him and to not deny Him or turn away from Him

            -- the only difference is that now he actually has the ability to do that through the power of the Holy Spirit within him – now he can be who he wanted to be – now he can live up to who Christ has called him to be – and that is true for all of us, as well

 

            -- empowered by the Holy Spirit, Peter can now stand up and proclaim a bold message of faith in Christ before the same priests and temple guards he feared just a few weeks before – in fact, when they have him and John stand before them and command that they not speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus, Peter refuses – look at Acts 4:18

 

Acts 4:18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

 

21 After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. 22 For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

 

            -- Peter is a changed man because of the Holy Spirit within him -- but Peter is not the only one who has been empowered to boldly stand for Christ

            -- look at verse 23

 

Acts 4:23 On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. 25 You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:

 

“‘Why do the nations rage

    and the peoples plot in vain?

26 The kings of the earth rise up

    and the rulers band together

against the Lord

    and against his anointed one.’

 

27 Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. 28 They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. 29 Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. 30 Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

 

31 After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

 

            -- a bold message is followed by a bold prayer – empowered by the Spirit and emboldened by Peter and John’s defiance of the high priest and the Sanhedrin – the believers turn to God and raise their voices in praise and faith as they recount the great things that He has done and ask Him to enable them to continue to speak His word with boldness and to perform signs and wonders in His name

            -- there is a difference in the disciples now – where before, they cowered behind locked doors in fear of the Jews – now they gather together without fear of what man might do to them – they boldly proclaim the Lord’s name in their speech and their conduct and their prayers

            -- the power of the Holy Spirit has made all the difference – and He makes all the difference in our lives, too

 

III.  Closing

            -- I opened this message with the story of S and Q and their bold witness for Christ – but I want you to understand that neither of them did what they did on their own – neither of them boldly stood up as witnesses for Christ in a hostile land in their own strength or through their own knowledge and education in the faith

            -- S and Q were able to stand up for Christ solely through the power of the Spirit within them – and that same Spirit that enabled them to be bold witnesses for Jesus – that same Spirit that empowered Peter and John to heal a lame beggar at the gate called Beautiful – that same Spirit who gave Peter the bold message of faith that he shared with the crowd in the temple courts that day – that same Spirit who moved the church to pray with boldness and faith in the face of persecution – that same Spirit is within you right now

 

            -- so, the reason we are not doing the stuff that we read about in the Book of Acts is not because of who we are – it’s not because we’re not strong enough or knowledgeable enough – it’s simply because we aren’t trusting in the Holy Spirit to work in us and through us like He has these other people

-- the presence of the Holy Spirit is what changes us and enables us to live for Christ and to be His witness in the world today – just like with Peter – just like with S and Q -- the Spirit allows us to become who God has called us to be – and with His strength working through us, we too can have a bold message, bold prayers, and bold hearts – because through Him, we have all that we need to go and do the stuff that He has called us to do

-- so, the reason we’re not doing the stuff today – the reason we don’t see God working in His church like He did in the Book of Acts – comes down to two things:

 

-- first, it is a lack of faith – we read about the Holy Spirit indwelling and empowering us – we believe it is true – but we don’t trust Him to do so – we don’t believe He can do in us what He did in Peter and John and S and Q

-- we quench the ability of the Spirit to work in us because we don’t have faith in Him – and without faith, we have nothing – without faith, we can do nothing

 

            -- and, second, the other reason we don’t see God working in us and in the church today is disobedience – we simply are not trying to do what He has called us to do – we are not following His commands

            -- as Brother Andrew pointed out in his foreword to Nik Ripken’s book, even though we have nothing to fear in this country but rejection and slamming doors, we don’t take the initiative to share the word of God with those around us – we sit passively and wait for them to come to us first

– we don’t take the initiative to do what Jesus told us to do – to go forth and make disciples – to baptize them and to teach them to obey everything that He has commanded us to do – because we are not doing what He has commanded us to do

            -- and until we start doing what Jesus wants us to do – until we start going and doing – we’re not going to see anything happen in our lives – we’re not going to see anything happen in our churches – we’re not going to see the stuff

 

            -- in his book Radical, David Platt has a chapter entitled "Beginning at the End of Ourselves -- The Importance of Relying on God's Power”

-- let me share with you a quote from that chapter:

 

"This is where I am most convicted as a pastor. I am part of a system that has created a whole host of means and methods, plans and strategies for doing church that require little if any power from God.

 

“I am frightened by the reality that the church I lead can carry on most of our activities .....never realizing that the Holy Spirit of God is virtually absent from the picture.”

 

            -- this is exactly why we are not seeing the stuff in our churches and in our lives today – it is because the Spirit is not there – He may be inside of us, but we have quenched His presence and His power through our lack of faith and our willful disobedience

 

            -- do we want to be bold witnesses of Christ today? – do we want to see Him move in us and through us? – do we want to experience our church doing the stuff that we read about in the Book of Acts?

            -- if so, it has to start with us – first, let us be aware of the presence of the Spirit within us – and let us learn to put our faith and trust in Him and in His power to make us into the people who Christ has called us to be – let us pray to the Spirit and ask that He transform and change us as He transformed and changed Peter and John – S and Q

            -- and then we have to get up and go – we have to start moving – we have to go across the street and knock on the door and share the message of Christ with others – we have to get out there and get our hands dirty by ministering to those in need in Jesus’ name – we have to stand up for justice in the face of injustice – to take care of the orphan and the widows – to advocate and care for the poor and needy – to be the voice and the hands and feet of Jesus

            -- we’re never going to see Jesus and the Spirit do anything through us until we get up and move and ask Him to empower us to do it – and trust through faith that He will

 

            -- so, as we close in prayer, let us turn to the Spirit and ask for His power and His presence to be made manifest in our lives and in this church – and let’s get ready to go forth in His name with a bold message, bold prayers, and bold hearts

            -- let us pray

SERMON: DOING THE STUFF -- Acts Sermon Series

 

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)]