Continuing in Acts, Morning Praise (9)

June 23, 2013 · Acts

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Series · Acts · Week 4 of 120

Scripture referenced 6 passages

The passage this message was preached from, in full, with every other passage it reached for.

Acts 1:8 Jesus tells the disciples they will be his witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts, cited as an encouraging affirmation rather than a command

8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth.”

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Acts 2

report of what happened at Pentecost and Peter's recognition and bold proclamation of Jesus

1 Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place.

2 Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

3 Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them.

4 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.

6 When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language.

7 They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans?

8 How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?

9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,

10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

11 Cretans and Arabians: we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!”

12 They were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

13 Others, mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.”

14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea, and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

15 For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.

16 But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

17 ‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams.

18 Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.

19 I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.

20 The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.

21 It will be that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him among you, even as you yourselves know,

23 him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;

24 whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.

25 For David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before my face, For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.

26 Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope;

27 because you will not leave my soul in Hades, neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.

28 You made known to me the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

29 “Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

30 Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,

31 he foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that his soul wasn’t left in Hades, and his flesh didn’t see decay.

32 This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.

33 Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this, which you now see and hear.

34 For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand,

35 until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

36 “Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

37 Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

38 Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

39 For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”

40 With many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

41 Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls.

42 They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and prayer.

43 Fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.

44 All who believed were together, and had all things in common.

45 They sold their possessions and goods, and distributed them to all, according as anyone had need.

46 Day by day, continuing steadfastly with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread at home, they took their food with gladness and singleness of heart,

47 praising God, and having favor with all the people. The Lord added to the assembly day by day those who were being saved.

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Acts 3

Peter heals the lame man outside the temple and seizes the opportunity to preach Jesus

1 Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.

2 A certain man who was lame from his mother’s womb was being carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask gifts for the needy of those who entered into the temple.

3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive gifts for the needy.

4 Peter, fastening his eyes on him, with John, said, “Look at us.”

5 He listened to them, expecting to receive something from them.

6 But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have, that I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!”

7 He took him by the right hand, and raised him up. Immediately his feet and his ankle bones received strength.

8 Leaping up, he stood, and began to walk. He entered with them into the temple, walking, leaping, and praising God.

9 All the people saw him walking and praising God.

10 They recognized him, that it was he who used to sit begging for gifts for the needy at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. They were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

11 As the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.

12 When Peter saw it, he responded to the people, “You men of Israel, why do you marvel at this man? Why do you fasten your eyes on us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk?

13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.

14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,

15 and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, to which we are witnesses.

16 By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which is through him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

17 “Now, brothers, I know that you did this in ignorance, as did also your rulers.

18 But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.

19 “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord,

20 and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before,

21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.

22 For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you.

23 It will be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’

24 Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days.

25 You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘In your offspring will all the families of the earth be blessed.’

26 God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to you first to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your wickedness.”

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Acts 4:1-22

noted as the passage Carl preached the previous week, covering the arrest of Peter and John and the declaration that there is no other name whereby we must be saved

1 As they spoke to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came to them,

2 being upset because they taught the people and proclaimed in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.

3 They laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was now evening.

4 But many of those who heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.

5 In the morning, their rulers, elders, and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem.

6 Annas the high priest was there, with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and as many as were relatives of the high priest.

7 When they had stood Peter and John in the middle of them, they inquired, “By what power, or in what name, have you done this?”

8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “You rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,

9 if we are examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed,

10 be it known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, in him does this man stand here before you whole.

11 He is ‘the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.’

12 There is salvation in none other, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!”

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled. They recognized that they had been with Jesus.

14 Seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.

15 But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,

16 saying, “What shall we do to these men? Because indeed a notable miracle has been done through them, as can be plainly seen by all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we can’t deny it.

17 But so that this spreads no further among the people, let’s threaten them, that from now on they don’t speak to anyone in this name.”

18 They called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.

19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, judge for yourselves,

20 for we can’t help telling the things which we saw and heard.”

21 When they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people; for everyone glorified God for that which was done.

22 For the man on whom this miracle of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

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Acts 4:23-31

the passage preached through in this sermon, covering the believers' prayer for boldness after Peter and John's release

23 Being let go, they came to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them.

24 When they heard it, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, “O Lord, you are God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all that is in them;

25 who by the mouth of your servant, David, said, ‘Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing?

26 The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take council together, against the Lord, and against his Christ.’

27 “For truly, in this city against your holy servant, Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together

28 to do whatever your hand and your council foreordained to happen.

29 Now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with all boldness,

30 while you stretch out your hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of your holy Servant Jesus.”

31 When they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were gathered together. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.

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Psalm 2

quoted within the believers' prayer: why were the nations angry and why did they waste their time with futile plans, identified as a messianic psalm looking forward to the time of the Messiah

1 Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing?

2 The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take counsel together, against Yahweh, and against his Anointed, saying,

3 “Let’s break their bonds apart, and cast their cords from us.”

4 He who sits in the heavens will laugh. The Lord will have them in derision.

5 Then he will speak to them in his anger, and terrify them in his wrath:

6 “Yet I have set my King on my holy hill of Zion.”

7 I will tell of the decree. Yahweh said to me, “You are my son. Today I have become your father.

8 Ask of me, and I will give the nations for your inheritance, the uttermost parts of the earth for your possession.

9 You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”

10 Now therefore be wise, you kings. Be instructed, you judges of the earth.

11 Serve Yahweh with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

12 Give sincere homage to the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish on the way, for his wrath will soon be kindled. Blessed are all those who take refuge in him.

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Recap

The message in order, in a few minutes of reading.

This message worked through Acts 4:23-31, the prayer the early believers lifted together after Peter and John were released and threatened by the Sanhedrin. The pastor connected that passage to a step of faith the congregation was being asked to take, and called First B to pursue boldness in proclaiming the gospel the same way those first believers did.

What was said

When Peter and John were freed, they went straight back to the other believers and reported the threats. The whole group responded not by making plans or arguing tactics, but by praying together. They addressed God as "sovereign Lord," the Greek word being despotes, from which we get "despot," meaning the one who holds all authority. The pastor noted that wherever a person lands on questions of God's sovereignty and human responsibility, when you pray, you are asking God to act, and that is exactly what the believers did.

The prayer quotes Psalm 2, a messianic psalm, and applies it to what had just happened in Jerusalem. The nations, kings, rulers, and peoples of Israel had all aligned against Jesus, yet the prayer says everything they did was determined beforehand according to God's will. The pastor sat with the difficulty of that, the crucifixion being the thing the disciples would have called the most catastrophic failure imaginable, and yet God used precisely that to accomplish his purposes. Scripture, he said, holds both full sovereignty and full human responsibility without resolving the tension.

What the believers did not pray for is as telling as what they did pray for. They did not ask for protection, for their enemies to be removed, or for political circumstances to change. They asked for boldness to keep preaching the word, and they asked God to stretch out his hand in healing through the name of Jesus. The healing they wanted was not something they would produce by their own boldness. They were opening themselves to God's direction and movement.

After that prayer the meeting place shook, they were filled with the Holy Spirit, and they preached the word with boldness. The pastor pointed out the simple cycle: something happens, someone recognizes it lines up with scripture, they preach Jesus, and they ask the sovereign God to do his will. God grows people. God grows churches. The role of the congregation is to be open and willing.

The pastor was transparent about a congregational vote coming the following Sunday on a budget change that would move Carl from youth pastor to associate pastor and bring Renzi into the youth director role. He said he resists agenda-driven preaching, and that working through Acts 4 simply kept showing him the same thing. The step is a financial stretch. It requires faith. But the believers in Acts were not riding a wave they had generated. They prayed, God moved, and they went with it. That, he said, is the same posture First B is being asked to take.

Doing a Bible study?

Here is a guide we have prepared for you: the passages in order, questions for the group, and room to write.

Peter and John responded to threats from the Sanhedrin not by asking for protection or for their enemies to be removed, but by praying for boldness to keep preaching. What does that tell us about what they thought mattered most, and how does that challenge the way we tend to respond when we face opposition?
The prayer in Acts 4 opens with 'O Sovereign Lord, creator of heaven and earth.' The pastor pointed out that wherever you land on the question of God's sovereignty and human responsibility, when you pray you are asking God to act. How does starting with who God is change the way you pray about hard or uncertain situations?

and 3 more questions in the guide

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Find in this transcript

0:21 Speaker 2All right, good morning everybody.

0:22 Speaker 3How are we? You look good

0:24 Speaker 2this morning. Was it hard to get up this morning? No. I'm loving it. Sunshine, longer days, this is good.

0:34 What do you say we stand out and just begin by worshiping, praising God?

0:55 Speaker 3Hands. For the joy of the Lord is astray. We bow down and worship him now.

4:48 Speaker 2Lord, that's we declare this morning that you are holy, you're good, and there is none like you. You're the Lord and so we are here to to give ourselves to you and worship and I pray that we wouldn't hold anything back that we truly worship you with our our whole heart, mind, our soul, our strength, everything that we are.

9:42 Speaker 1Amen. God almighty, we worship and adore you. We're thankful for you this morning and for showing yourself to us. We pray that you would allow us lord the privilege of feeling your presence this morning. In a very heady way, we know that it is true but God ask you to fill each one of us and let us know who you are, how you are, allow us to reflect your light.

10:05 It's in Jesus name, lord, we pray. Amen. Y'all may be seated. Welcome to First B. I'm glad that somebody welcomed me back to First B.

10:15 We had Tanya and I went on a little vacation and I was gone for about a week and a half, and I ate 19 barbecue sandwiches probably, some somewhere along that line. I actually found out about a day and a half after I was gone that I was incredibly homesick for here. And up to the point of the trip, I had not been at all homesick for home there. So, this is home and I I really appreciate being back. I'm supposed to do the announcements and not be seppy.

10:47 But I we had a great time. It was it was a time of refreshing. We had some folks come out to visit us out here from there a few weeks ago. They rented a 15 passenger van and drove out here from Georgia and they turned around and they went back in that van. We went through Yellowstone.

11:02 We did all of that and they they put 5,500 miles on that van. It was unlimited mileage. That's very good. We went to Georgia to visit family. We got an Email yesterday from our rental car company.

11:15 We put 4,009 miles on our just visiting people while we were there. So, we were rolling pretty much the whole time but we went from place to place and had a had a really really good time. I think because I've been away from the pulpit for a week. I think it's going to come up in several illustrations. Just warning you.

11:33 So, the announcements this morning, there are couple of different things. I want to say thank you to all of VBS workers. I was not around but I heard that it was a fantastic time. A 110 kids the first day grew from there. But there's a video and since I don't know what I'm talking about, I'll let the video talk about.

11:58 Hopefully.

16:13 Speaker 3That was such a powerful week.

16:16 Speaker 2It was great. This place is just full of life and energy, and it it was just so cool to see. And yeah, that was me in the dunk tank and that was still fun. So, I think we're going to take a moment here and greet one another.

16:28 Speaker 1Yep and we've got a couple of other announcements. Next week, there will be a congregational meeting. I'll mention that probably a little bit more in the sermon too but it'll be a congregational meeting between services. If you really want to know more information about what the whole meeting is about, it's probably easier to explain. In between services today, we'll fill you in on that.

16:45 There are couple of pages back there that you could pick up if you'd like to read over a kind of a timeline of what's brought us to this point but so that's next Sunday, June 30. I feel like I'm forgetting something. The VBS Everywhere Fun Fair was a theme. Y'all could see that and it will be picking up stakes, I guess, as it were and taken off to August. Taken off to Africa in August.

17:10 So y'all can still be praying for that. We've got a practice run here and we'll get to go. The gals are 19 ladies are gonna be going there. Monday nights at 06:15. Thank you very much.

17:23 Monday night, six 06:15, we'll have meal music and a message as we do every Monday night here at First B and let's get back into it. Everybody, get up if you would. Greet one another and the band will bring you back together.

22:06 Speaker 3This life we will find, we will be yearned. This life we will find, In this life we will find, we will be searching. In this life, we will find, the world won't satisfy.

26:12 Speaker 2Lord, how true. You truly are that well that does not run dry. We can't tap you up. You're the creator and sustainer of all things and you give us life and meaning and purpose and for that, we're thankful. Lord, who else is there that offers eternal life?

26:29 It's you and you alone. Lord, we give you thanks. Amazing grace. That's how we're saved. Our free gift of God.

30:52 Not by our works. We're not boasting in anything and but you this morning. Yes. Knowing that it's your work on the cross that's made us right with you and our faith in your work. Thank you.

31:02 We thank you for that. And as we enter here in the worship of giving, this is just a way for us to worship as well. To say what you've given, we give back. We give with an open hand and with a cheerful heart. We pray in Jesus name.

31:17 Amen. You can have a seat. Good morning. We're so blessed to be here today.

35:53 Speaker 1Amen. Thank you. Well, I'm getting back into the saddle here today. I I was thinking about, I don't know what Carl preached last week. As far as what his points were and what his slides might have been and all of that sort of stuff but I know what the passage was and I know he stuck close to that and so I thought, that's awesome.

36:21 We can come together with one spirit. That's great but to come together and know we have one objective truth, one objective word of God. That's fantastic because I don't need to know what he said about it because I know what it says and so as I went back through, I I am resisting every urge to re preach because it's so good. What he preached last week, that part, that one verse in there, there is no other name whereby we must be saved except that one, Jesus Christ. I'm going to get into Acts four and he last week covered chapter four from one up through verse 22.

36:56 I'm going to start in verse 23 and I'm going to go just to 31 instead of 37. It just was too long. Sorry. It's all good. The thing about this is, it is a narrative and we know from the very beginning, Acts one, Luke tells us what he's doing.

37:10 He's telling Theophilus, this is my second volume and I'm going to give you an accurate history of how this whole thing got rolling. He gives us right off the bat. Acts one eight, Jesus is encouraging affirmation. It's not a command in Acts. It's not a command when Jesus says, you will be my witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts.

37:33 It is a command in Matthew. It is a command in Mark. It is a command in lots and lots of places. It's throughout the Old Testament telling us that we need to be a light to the nations but Jesus gives them an encouraging affirmation at the beginning of Acts and says, oh, it's going to happen. You will be my witnesses.

37:51 Stay in Jerusalem until you're imbued with power from on high and in Acts two, we see that happening. Acts two, we get the report of exactly what it was that happened and then, we see what Peter recognized. He recognized what had happened and he knew his Bible and he brought them and said, this is what's going on right here and he proclaimed Jesus boldly. Chapter three, no silver and gold have I none. That's the one.

38:17 Last one that I preached was about this. There's a crippled man outside of the temple and Peter walks by and says, silver and gold have I none but what I do have, I'll give you and as he was reaching down and lifting the man up, the man was healed. So, God's work done again and then, what does Peter do? Peter do, the preacher do. Seizes the opportunity.

38:37 Peter, seeing his opportunity began to preach and it says, and he went on for a long time. He was preaching Jesus the same message because that's the message. Today, we're going to read through this. I'm going to kind of preach through the passage. The points, I have points.

38:56 Trust me. You might, you may find them hard to detect because we're preaching through the passage but I have a couple of other stories that I want to throw in there too. In this past week, while we were gone, we were we went to visit my folks first and it was good to kind of tap back into my roots and see where I grew up. I got a chance to go see the pastor who's the pastor for sixteen years of my childhood. His wife had had a knee replacement.

39:23 I was kind of on a busman's holiday. I went to the hospital to visit this lady who had just had a knee replacement. It was my old pastor's wife and we sat together and he told me of all these years, he's been a pastor since 1949 and tapping into those roots and thinking how awesome that was and then we went from there to the beach and honestly, I was having a hard time getting away from here. I was thinking about everything that's going on. Just we're we're doing some crazy new things.

39:53 New stuff is happening. New things are afoot here. And it's not you know, there's nothing new under the sun. We went over Ecclesiastes. But just seeing that, I got out in the ocean.

40:02 My favorite thing to do this not a preacher story, my favorite actual activity to do outside is body surfing. I love it. And so when we got to Florida to visit a man and uncle, I got out in the waves, Pascal and Tanya were playing on the beach. I got on the waves and I just looked out at the horizon and relaxed and just waited. And the flag says, calm seas with with jellyfish.

40:26 But calm seas, it's worth it for body surfing. So I got out there and I was just sitting there and it really was kind of calm. I'm watching, watching, and I'm thinking, I'm feeling a little bit of this. If you like the body, I know all of y'all are skiers and it's not a normal probably thing activity here but body surfing to me, you just kind of sitting there. It's rocking in the cradle.

40:47 It's really relaxing but when the waves are chopping and the waves are coming, there's a power that is inexplicable. Even when it's you're a surfer. Even when even when there aren't big waves, it's still you feel like you're being carried along back and forth a little bit. And when the waves start to get bigger, then, you're like, whoo. But if it doesn't have any kind of momentum back towards it, you can't ride with that wave.

41:15 I don't understand it. I don't know what the exact details are are on that, why it works, why it doesn't work. But the draw, the drawing out is what tells you that's going to be a good way. Okay, that was Panama City near Destin in between the two and that's where we were and it was great and I was riding a wave here and there but it was calm seas. I have had another story.

41:38 I won't go into it at length. I was nearly killed in Costa Rica at Playa Hermosa and it was the same thing. I was feeling this. I looked down the beach and I saw, oh, there's a guy down there in the water. Well, he's down there.

41:52 I can get out there too. Of course, he was looking back up the beach and going, well, he's in the water. I can stay out but I got drawn out completely. I got kind of caught in a rip and I found myself way deeper, way in over my head. I could not find my way back.

42:08 So I had to ride a wave back in. When you have to ride one back in, it's not nearly so much fun. But that's the way to get in. So I waited and I felt this one's drawing and it's smaller than the rest of them. It wasn't an enormous wave, but it was way bigger than I normally would serve.

42:27 Anyway, the thing drew me in and it dumped me and I was nearly killed. I hit hard enough that I thought I was going to be paralyzed. That's a hard feeling. Both of them got me back to the beach. Both of them got me where it was going but it can be kind of hard.

42:46 When I was praying through just everything, the passage right here, I I did the study before I left on the vacation. I was going to try to just preach it just like that and when I got down there, I thought this is so much like what's going on right now. Some of us feel like we're being kind of carried along and there's a drawing towards this and people are in agreement that this is a good thing and I'm not trying to be vague but the next week, we're going to be voting on is congregational approval of the budget change But really what's happening is Carl will be moving officially from the youth pastor position to an associate pastor position and the youth director position will be filled by Renzi Reno. Renzi, right now, is driving a group of high school girls to a basketball, something, the basketball team in Laramie. He's doing that right now.

43:38 It's who he is already. What Carl is doing up here is who he is already. And we are all, I think, all of you included, all of us are kind of feeling that going back and forth and you're just feeling it and we want to ride it. We want to ride the wave. So, I'm asking for you to prayerfully consider just like you have been but as I was considering the scripture, it seemed to me to be right there in line.

44:05 I don't see anything political and I hate agenda driven preaching. Does this make sense? Tanya is looking at me right now. It doesn't look like you hate it, it looks like you're doing it. I promise you that I'm not.

44:16 This is not agenda driven. I just cannot help but see it in the text. And it's not that there are two forces. I don't think that there are any opposing forces as far as I see but we all do feel like we're just trying to figure out what's going on but the thing is is in the middle of the ride, you lose all that. You drop all of that and if we're all praying the same direction, God, for your will to be done, the just will live by faith.

44:38 We're taking a scary step. It's scary to jump into the wave but once you get in it, I wish I knew skiing analogies but y'all know it. Glory bowl or whatever. I don't know all that stuff But when you know it's right, it's right and when you get to going, it is. There are couple of things that make it scary.

44:57 One thing is, it's a new staff position and that means that we have to pay that person. And right now, at this place, at the normal budget level, we would not have the money to pay that person. So it is a step of faith. What I said, I hate agenda driven preaching. It seems like whenever a capital campaign for a building starts, you get a lot of messages that line up with that.

45:20 Stewardship and faithfulness and financials. This is the normal course of where we were supposed to be this week and to me, it just blessed me all week long. It was like that encouraging affirmation in Acts one eight where Jesus says, you will be my witnesses. I believe that that's what first speed is going to be for the youth of this community. When I ask you a while back and now we have visitors too.

45:40 I'm glad you're here. When you go back home, please pray for the youth of this community because this is a very tough place to be a young person. Everywhere is but this is a particularly tough place. So, now, we're going to preach. Acts four one four twenty three through 31.

46:00 So, remember the story. They've healed the guy. There's no doubt about it. They haul him in and arrest him. It's primarily the sadducees.

46:07 The reason it's primarily the sadducees is because of political stuff. The sadducees are a far left religious group and they don't believe in the resurrection. They absolutely don't. In modern day Judaism, there are modern day sadducees who do not believe that there is a resurrection. Fairly, politically, liberal.

46:27 There are also the Pharisees that are conservative. They definitely believe that there's a resurrection. And they're the chief priest. At this time, the chief priest were more towards the sadducees. Herod was a Jewish leader but he's under Roman control.

46:43 So, I'm just getting back to this. If you read these names that were in Carl's sermon, you're going to recognize they're the same ones that were involved in the crucifixion of Jesus. All the same names, all the same players and so this is only a few weeks later. They arrest Peter and John. They bring him in and they warn him not to preach in this name.

47:03 Don't preach resurrection and don't do it in Jesus name. They knew by Peter's preaching that they were complicit in Jesus' death but they just didn't want it to spread. So, as soon as they were freed, Peter and John returned to the other believers and told them what the leading priest and elders had said, primarily sadducees, the ones who are against resurrection because it was not their theology. Ain't that interesting? It wasn't their politics and it wasn't their theology and because it wasn't, they told him, they warned him not to do it.

47:34 So, and when they heard, these are the other believers present. When they heard the report, all the believers lifted their voices together in prayer to God. This does not necessarily mean it was unison but they all prayed this type of prayer or they said a hearty amen agreeing with it at the end and they start off and this is, oh sovereign lord, the Greek word there is despotess. Despotess, the way we get the word despot. What it is is all powerful one.

48:05 The one who has the authority to rule and to do this. So, I've heard from a fellow a while back. He said, wherever you fall out on the Calvinist and Armenian scale, wherever you see yourself shaken down on this sovereignty of God versus the responsibility and free will of man. When you pray, you're praying for God to do something. You're praying for him to act and when they fall down, they are adoring him and admiring him and saying, oh, sovereign lord, you are the one, the creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them and that everything in them.

48:41 I kept saying, I am in this thing right now, lord. You are the creator of all of this as far as that horizon can see, as far as I can see, and way way beyond that. The sea and everything in em. You spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant, saying, why were the nations? Your version may say Gentiles, the word there can be Gentiles because basically, Gentiles, every nation that's not Jewish.

49:08 Every nation that is not Israel is it's this word. Why were the nations so angry? Why did they waste their time with futile plans? The kings of the earth prepared for battle. The rulers gathered together against the Lord and against his messiah.

49:26 That's actually from Psalm two. It's a messianic Psalm. It's looking forward to the time of the Messiah but he's saying that everyone who has ever allowed themselves against Messiah, their plans were ultimately futile because this is how God wins. This is how God will win. In fact, this happened here in this very city.

49:52 So, let's look this over for just a second. We've got the nations. We've got the kings. We've got the rulers. And then it says, Peter saw that.

50:06 He knew his Bible. Like I said, he looked back on this and he saw that this is the truth from scripture and then he said, in fact, this happened here in this very city. So, the nations, he's saying, happened here, this nation. For Herod Antipas, Herod was a king. Remember when Herod was trying to kill Jesus because he thought he was born king of he was born king of the Jews.

50:30 Herod was the king. Pontius Pilate, what was he? A ruler. Nations, king, ruler. Then he says, the Gentiles, that's also the same word for nations.

50:41 So, it's all the nations, everybody and we've said before that in Jerusalem, people were gathered from all over, everywhere. So, all the nations were gathered in one place. So, all the Gentiles but it says, people in the New Living Translation, it says, people, I actually got a chance to talk to Doctor Larkin about this which is cool. When we were in Florida, we were headed to South Carolina and I went up there and I visited the seminary when I went to school just to say hello and almost nobody was around because it's summertime but one of the professors directed me and told me that Doctor Larkin is dying of pancreatic cancer. You may have seen that on your bulletin.

51:19 He still took the time. I stopped by to to pray with him. He still took the time to sit down with me and I was talking about this. I knew that it was plural in the Greek. I knew it was and we talked about why that might have been and he, humble, humble man said, the peoples of Israel probably is lining up with the parallelism of that previous slide and I said, could it have been though that they were just such a divided people that the sadducees and the Pharisees and the other factions, the zealots.

51:53 Those who are complicit with the government were just such a divided people that the peoples of Israel made more sense at that time because they were not united around God and he said, yeah. Actually, that's a really good way to look at. I thought, yay. Doctor Larkin says, yes. And I also told him that how much I appreciated this that I'm reading through this as I'm doing this series and he very graciously said, I said, I know that you're not able to get out the house much right now but you're a part of what's going on still for God's kingdom and he said, and he he knew that and he said, it is a mercy of the good sovereign lord to be able to help people properly appreciate scripture.

52:42 That's a long way. That's Doctor. Larkin talk for it is good to just help people understand what's going on. So, again, the peoples of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed, but everything that they did was determined beforehand according to your will. That's a hard truth.

53:06 That is that whole predestination. Oh my goodness. I can't even think about that. It turns my mind inside out. Is God completely sovereign?

53:12 He is. Is man completely responsible? He is. Scripture affirms both. You have a very real choice when God says, whosoever, he means it all the way through our John study.

53:24 It said, it's about what you believe. But he will use absolutely everything to do his will, absolutely everything. So when it says, everything that they did was determined beforehand. It's everything that they worked the best that they could do. What is the absolute, most catastrophic failure?

53:47 Absolutely, most catastrophic failure and horrible thing to even consider if you're one of the disciples. In the last six months of Jesus' life. What could you just think? He might take over. He might do this.

54:03 Would it ever have? Even though he said it over and over, would death on the cross ever have entered your mind as the best thing that could happen? No. Abject failure is what you would consider it. Absolutely awful.

54:19 And now, oh Lord, hear their threats. This is the Sanhedrin. This is the council, the sadducees, the chief priest, the elders, they're threatening them and saying, don't do this again. They've already arrested them. They threatened to beat them.

54:32 Oh Lord, hear their threats. And it doesn't say protect us. It doesn't say, kill em lord. Get rid of em. Change the parties.

54:44 It doesn't say, switch this up. It says, now, oh Lord, hear their threats and give us your servants. Great boldness in preaching your word. That's what they prayed for. Was courage to continue doing exactly what they've been doing this whole time.

55:00 That's what we need. That's exactly what we need is great courage, great boldness, in preaching the word. And this is cool too. This is another very affirming thing from scripture. Stretch out your hand with healing power.

55:16 May miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant, Jesus. Peter stretching out his hand to that man who was lame and picking him up. What they're praying for is that God will stretch out the hand but they're praying for him to do it through them, through their bold proclamation of his word. It's not through necessarily any bold move, bold political move because they've already kind of covered that the peoples and the politics and the agendas are all conflicting and not necessarily in his line. What they're opening themselves up to do and to be is open to God's direction and his movement in their lives.

55:56 Now, lord, hear these threats and give us your servants great boldness in preaching your word. They want to preach and teach from a place of confidence, not from a place of fear. Stretch out your hand with healing power. May miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant, Jesus. And after this prayer, the meeting place shook.

56:16 They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and then, what did they do? They preached the word of God with boldness. That's what they were praying for. They were praying that God would allow them to do that and then, that's what he allowed them to do. That's it.

56:33 Just making sure. I think that it's great that we see this cycle repeated over and over and it was true history but it is something happens, someone recognizes that this lines up with scripture. They preach Jesus boldly and they ask for a sovereign God to do what he will and he does. The in gathering of 3,000 that day. In this passage, I think the one that Carl preached last week, it said and there were 5,000 at this time, not including women and children.

57:07 So, 5,000 adult males. God is the one who grows. God is the one who grows us in our lives. God is the one who grows churches. God is the one who grows his capital C church but we should be open to doing his will and stretching out his mighty hand.

57:25 I'm not saying there's a side to this. There's not. It's just let's preach with boldness. Let's all do it. So, and ride the wave for crying out loud.

57:36 That's the thing. It is so much fun to be doing that and to look around. When I was back and I'm talking to Doctor Larkin, he said, how are things going? And I said, we're seeing people come to Jesus. We're seeing people who have been hurting that are not hurting.

57:53 Emotionally, spiritually, even physically. I said, we're seeing people who have been addicted. See their addiction subside. God is at work. He is doing it.

58:05 I want to give you the encouraging affirmation that you will be his witnesses in this community and to the youth of this community particularly. It is going to take some effort on our church's part to to get behind this and do it. However, it is. However, it is that God wants it done is the way we want to do it. So, I'm going ask Carl if you'll come back up and lead, band, everybody and we are going to sing a song.

58:32 I'll ask you to pray for Doctor Larkin. Either for great comfort and encouragement or for healing. He didn't care which. I praise God for him. I'd also ask for you to pray for for just traveling mercies for Renzi and them but that he and Kale would be able to proclaim God's word with boldness on this trip.

59:00 The reason we put so many miles on that car is because it's a great time to just talk and get together with people. So, I'm going flip on the I will follow. We'll sing this. If you'd like to come down front and pray, that's what I'm going to do. If you want to talk to me, I'll cut my microphone off, tap me on the back, and I'll join you.

59:17 Alright, stand if you would and sing.

59:23 Speaker 2And part of being bold is our willingness to follow, obviously. And so as we sing this song, this whole message of being bold, it starts with really and truly following Christ. Getting on board with him, what he's doing. Let's sing it together.

1:02:46 Speaker 1Amen. God, that is our prayer this morning that we will follow you. We just will leave it aside and follow you. In Jesus name, amen. Y'all dismiss.

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Acts 4 Bold Prayer God'S Sovereignty Riding The Wave Step Of Faith

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