We're on a Mission from God
First B Jackson
2013-07-07

Automatically transcribed. Where this and the recording disagree, the recording is the record.

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Feel like I'm doing double duty today. I don't usually I don't usually do it. I hope that y'all don't mind because I I... We love singing every time that we get... Even the prayer meeting broke out into a song service last I have been preaching out of Acts for the last little while and I wanted to go back to acts again today.

Although, all that talk of membership and all of the discussion that we've going over with that folks coming up last week, I think it was a good time for us to have hiatus on a couple of weeks I think we're probably gonna take a little hiatus out of that although the next few chapters of that are about just this, it's about how do we administer it, how do we do this. So it's gonna be probably a study coming up in a couple of weeks. But right now we're gonna go to Acts five. But before that, I want you to just listen for a second and see I want you to imagine in your mind and think about this. Think of a man that's been set free from bondage.

He's been set free from captivity by almighty God. He's been released. He's been given a chance to grow. Now, this is not somebody who knows Jesus. This is not somebody who knows God, but he's been mercifully given a chance to get away from something that had entangled.

Not really by choice, this man goes back and revisits all that he knows of God. He finds it unsatisfying, just a dead religion. The way that he had been brought up was just a dead religion, but an old friend speaks some truth into his life and says, no, you really need to give this a fresh chance. So he reluctantly opens himself up to God's direction and then God moves with great power. The man was not even expecting it, but he saw the light.

God reveals to him his mission. His eyes are open so much and he... God expands his understanding of himself, of God. He's so totally convinced that he convinces his brother that he is to be there and with him and that this is gonna be a shared mission and they're to bring others into the mission. Are you all with me so far?

With singular focus, they set about accomplishing the mission that God has given. Worldly philosophies rise against them, The authorities rise against them. In opposition, it makes their mission seem like it's gonna be impossible. It's not a small thing because the opposition takes many forms. Pursued by their past and their present enemies And even the police, they encounter unbelievable opposition, yet their mission is clear.

They know it's God given, they know he's in control. As they roll with the punches and carry on, he makes miraculous provision for it repeatedly just to see his mission accomplished. And in the end, at great personal cost to them with much effort expended and inspired and supplied by God almighty that the mission is actually accomplished. Now that is a plot. That's a plot that you can see echoed many times over in different places.

I was reading acts this week and this kept coming up into my mind that this framework is something we can see in a lot of different places. It could have been John Wesley and Charles Wesley that actually fits them. They could... It was these guys though. That's what I was thinking about.

It's J. Melwood. If y'all have not seen this movie, I'm not recommending you out by the unrated, uncut version of it. Don't get me wrong. The TBS edited version is better for the language and everything, but when these guys say, we're on a mission from God, they say it in Chicago accent.

When they say that, mean. Now for them to say it because they knew that it was true and they believed it, it's not blasphemy. Now when they said, they were accused of that in the movie a couple of times, Aretha Franklin, don't you blaspheme him. She said, of course. But they just...

They knew that it was true. Peter in this passage right here, when he's speaking to some of these guys, he's telling them, we're on mission with God. That's what he's saying. And it's true. Now to them, it was blasphemy.

That's what I was thinking of because it keeps coming up because acts five twelve through 42 presents exactly the same pattern. We have already seen it now three times. This is the third time that we've seen it in the book of Acts. So in Acts one, Jesus tells them, you're gonna be my witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and utmost parts. He said that it is an encouraging affirmation that that this is gonna come fast.

This is gonna happen. God moves with power. His word interprets. Opposition arises, and I love the parenthesis and is thwarted, and then the witness advances. That's what we're gonna talk about.

We're gonna do it from Acts five twelve through 42. So last week, if you remember though, we talked about the positive example of the early church in Jerusalem where Barnabas, the Cyprian Levi came and he offered what he had, how like he sold a piece of land and offered all that he had as a positive example of people given to God's mission, his cause and then the restoration of the apostles. And then we have that negative example of Amonas and Sapphira who kind of faked it, didn't give all and lied about it, and then experienced God's judgment right there. So this is where we're coming in. It's right after that happened.

It's in Jerusalem, and we're gonna read... Diane, can you just click on the scripture to get down to the scripture? If not, tell me. I'll go through these real fast. We're working through a new computer system right there.

Is that a note? Here we go. I'll get to it. Okay. 12.

Acts five twelve through 42. I'm gonna read it, and I'm gonna interject at various points, but then we're gonna go back and look at those things. God moving with power, his word interpreting, opposition arising, and the witness advancing. I want you to look for those things as we go to. The apostles were performing many miraculous signs and wonders among the people.

And all the believers were meeting regularly at the temple in the area under Solomon's Colony. If y'all seen representations of the temple, this is kind of around outside band, it's a shady spot. It's it's a colony, but no one else dared join them. Why do you think no one else dared join them? Because Ananias and Sapphira just got struck dead, word to spread, prophecies and other things, but they did not join because they didn't wanna be struck dead.

That's one of the reasons. Yet, let me see. But no one else there joined them. Even though all the people had high regard for them, they were bringing people to the apostles. We'll see that in a minute.

Yet more and more people believed and were brought to the Lord. Crowds of both men and women. As a result of oath, that's not cool. That's interesting. Now this, our monster does.

Alright. There we go. See, people were brought out into the streets on bed and night so that Peter shadow might fall across some of them as he went by. Crowds came from the villages around Jerusalem. And where did Jesus say that we're gonna meet his witnesses?

In Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and outermost parts. What's surrounding Jerusalem? Judea. Jerusalem is the city. Judea is a greater geographic area around Jerusalem.

The land of the Jews is what Judea means. So crowds came from the villages around Jerusalem. That would be from Judea, bringing their sick and those possessed evil spirits, and they were all healed. Do you see God moving with tithe? Yes.

The high priest and his officials who were of the sadducees were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and they put them in the public jail. But an angel of the Lord, Lamanite, opened the gates of the jail and brought them out. Then he told us, and this is an angel speaking. He told them, temple, give the people this message of life.

What is the message of life? What is it? It is the gospel. This passage is covered up with what we call keryma. It's the Greek word for proclaiming the actual facts of the gospel.

It's not about just the love, just the teachings of Jesus, just about how to get along with your neighbor. It is actually about the cross. It is actually about the body and blood of Christ, immediately they began teaching. When the high priest and his officials arrived, they're getting in the morning from minister office. They convened the high council, the full assembly of the elders of Israel, Then they sent for the apostles to be brought from the jail for trial.

But when the temple guards went to the jail, the men were gone. So they returned to the council and reported, the jail was securely locked with the guards standing outside, and this was the public jail. But when we opened the gates, no one was there. When the captain of the temple guard and leading priest heard this, they were perplexed. That's further they confused.

Perplexed is absolutely just bum puzzles, I would say. Wondering where it would all end. Isn't that great? They were perplexed just wondering where it would all end. We thought we got rid of this guy and we beat these people already.

We told them not to do this. Where's the command? Then someone arrived with startling news. The man who put in jail was standing in the temple teaching the people. The captain went with his temple guards and they arrested the apostles, but without violence for they were afraid the people would stone them.

Then they brought the apostles before the high council where the high priest confronted them. Didn't we tell you never again to teach in this man's name? This guy won't even say the name of Jesus. You recognize that? This man's name?

Instead, you fill all Jerusalem with your teaching about him, and you wanna make us responsible for his death. And who's responsible for the death of Jesus? They were... We are. All of us are.

The sin in our life is what required the only sinless one to have that. You wanna make us responsible for his death, but Peter and the apostles replied, we must obey God rather than any human thought. The God of our ancestors, when he says our, the God of all the sadducees, all of the pharisees, all those guys. It's it's your God too. This is our God.

The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on the cross. Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand. He raised him up, the Greek says, as prince and savior. He did this so the people of Israel would repent of their sins and be forgiven. We're witnesses of these things so is the Holy Spirit.

It was given by God to those who obey him. When they heard this, the high council was furious and decided to kill them. But one member, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was an expert in religious law and respected by all the people, stood up in order that the men be sent outside of the council chamber for a while. Then he said to his colleagues, men of Israel, take care of what you're planning to do with these men. Sometime ago, there was that fellow who pretended to be someone great.

About 400 others joined him, but he was killed. And his followers went their various ways. The whole movement came to nothing. And after him at the time of the census, there was Judas of Galilee. He got people to follow him, but he was killed too, and his followers were scattered.

So my advice, this is from Gamaliel, the teacher that all people respect. Leave these men alone. Let them go. If they're claiming and doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown. But if it's from God, you may not be able...

You will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God. The others accepted his advice. They called in apostles and had to flog. He said, let them go.

Right? We're gonna flog them anyway. Why? Why not? They're here.

Then they ordered them never again to speak the name of Jesus. That was for the second time, and they let them go. The apostles love the high council rejoicing in God, and counting them worthy to suffer disgrace by the name of Jesus. And every day in the temple and from house to house, they continue to teach and to preach this message that Jesus is the Messiah. God, we please bless your word, Lord, this morning as we read this long passage, just getting the...

A glimpse this story of the early church, how it happened, Lord. Would you apply it to our lives and let us see how it should affect us today? Would you please do that? In Jesus' name. Amen.

So acts five twelve like I said I've already told you it is presented that way. Thank you Diane, you're slick back there. You got it. There you go. I want to show you a chart.

My professor William Larkin, told y'all about him Doctor. Larkin the way and about 30 this way and we call that the Greek grammar in the head chart. You're supposed to remember all 600 of these things. But this, I want you to see how this pattern has presented itself already. Chapter two, we saw God move a great power at Pentecost and when he did, there was his word interpreted.

Peter saw what was happening and there was opposition arising from the beginning. The guy said, oh, they're just drunk. But Peter says, no. They're not drunk. This is what happened.

He let God's word interpret. He goes back to Joel. He went back to Psalms. Deuteronomy. So God moves with the power of Pentecost.

His word interprets. This is what Joel proclaimed. It's God pouring out his spirit on us. The opposition was there and the witness advanced as that was where they got together and they did not cease. They were teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.

It's almost the same as acts five forty two. Chapter three, we have the same thing when when they heal the beggar. God moves with great power, and Peter points back to the Bible and says, this is not me. This is God that's doing this, and this is so that you will believe. Opposition arises.

They get thrown into the clink again, you know, that first time. And then the witness advances anyway. Chapter five is exactly that same thing. So we're gonna go forward. God moves with power.

Where does he do that? Y'all can see it. Verses 12 to 16, it's obvious because the apostles are healing many, it says, and that happens by the power power of of God. God. Peter has already made sure that everybody knew it was not his power that was doing that.

Even though they thought that it was Peter's shadow, he knew that it was God's power and he was constantly... He and the other apostles were constantly proclaiming the gospel and that it was an authentication of miracles. I'll say this, this part, God moving with power is his horizon. You can't control when God moves with power. Does that make sense to you?

There are folks who are preaching these days that you hear from time to time that will say, if you'll just do this, then God will do what you want for him to do. Like, can twist God's arm by doing some certain thing, and that's just not true. The seed money, you put that seed money in there. God's gonna grow into this mighty oak, you know, come back to you seven fold or a 100 fold. I think that's that's convenient for the one who's receiving this evening.

It's God's prerogative to bless or not bless and he does it at unexpected times. He doesn't always do it the way that we think. For some people, a blessing from God is showing them the person that they are to marry. For the other, it is showing them that they are not to marry this person. For some, it is keeping them from going to jail or other than getting them into that jail.

God moves with power in our lives. The way that he moved with power originally back at the cross of Calvary or even originally back to creation, he moves with power. That's what God does, and he does it at his own perilous. We cannot control that. We can pray for it.

We can pray for his blessing, and we can do we can do as he has commanded. We can do that, but even if you do everything right, that does not guarantee that God is gonna do anything. Look at the story of Job. It's God's priority to move when he moves. So God moves with power.

That's what he does. He's God. His word interprets. This one... In this passage, it's a little bit it's a little bit harder to notice exactly what has happened in this passage.

I'm gonna go with verse 29 to 32. But Peter and the apostles replied, we must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him behind him on the cross, then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as a prince and savior. When when you look at that, that may not seem like anything you recognize from scripture that you're terribly familiar with because he's not quoting like he did in other places. He quoted from Joel, he quoted from Psalm, he quoted from Deuteronomy.

These are paraphrases, but they're the same in the Septuagint, the Greek version of the Bible. Psalms one zero six, he references Psalm one eighteen, Isaiah 63, Jeremiah 17, Joel two, and Judges two. All of those are contained in those few verses, those three verses right there. The four verses right there. When he says that God raised Jesus and exalted him, those were messianic terms.

When he raised him, it's like he raised up the judges. He raised up people, prophets. God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as prince and savior. When he said savior, that was a messianic designation too. Acts is kind of a bridge book and Peter is saying, this is what's happening.

What's interesting about it is that as soon as he said, we must obey God rather than men, he starts presenting them with the gospel. Again, he did this the last time he confronted. So Peter's not holding any rancor for the sadducees. He's not holding any kind of anger for the pharisees. When he's proclaiming it to him, he's saying, there's still time.

Get on this bus. This is the way to go. This is Jesus. You know all the front end of the story. You put him in place and the the rest of it goes from here.

Trust us. This is Jesus. So his word is interpreted. That's our spiritual responsibility. As children of God, as believers, it is our spiritual responsibility to pay attention to what his word says and apply that to how he is moving, how he is moving in our life right now.

So God's prerogatives first, His word interpreting. If Peter had not stood up and said those things or if he had not known those things, that would have been great calamity. God knows what he's doing. He is in control, but he he has given us propositional truth. He's given his objective truth to us in the form of the Bible.

And if we know it and apply it to our lives, God is moving with power to be interpreted in our lives and through our lives by his word. Opposition arises and is important. I love this. Actually, I wanna go back. I won't know.

I'll start with it. No. I'll go back. His word interprets. This is a great book I don't wanna skip.

John Scott. John Scott is a pretty renowned Christian theologian and writer, and he had a commentary on that. And I say this because last week, what did you love for? And because we are Americans and and wherever we are, whether it's in Kenya doing mission work or Mexico doing mission work, Costa Rica, wherever, I've been in Morocco, whatever. If the John Scott's quote is this, it's the same.

It follows along with the line of we must obey God rather than any human authority. There's an humble way to do this, but John Stotts says this, if the authority concerned, whatever the authority is, misuses its God given power to command what he forbids or forbid what he commands and the Christians do just to disobey the human authority in order to obey gods. That's tough. For somebody who who believes that we are to be humble and we are to to not throw a fit, basically, all the time. When we see places in the law, there's a legal and good civil way to do this.

But when we see that things are headed in the wrong direction, we need we need to speak up. We need to disobey. It was worth going back for. Think anyway, his office... Opposition arises and is ordered.

Where we see this in verses seventeen and eighteen. In verses seventeen and eighteen, we see the high priest and officials who were sadducees. Now I've mentioned the sadducees before. They were filled with jealousy. The sadducees, you remember I did this last time?

They were way left for y'all. This is way left. Right? Yes. Way, way left.

They believed in human responsibility and did not really believe that God moved so watchmaker or the divine that has set it up and has spun it into motion and then he was absent and it was up to us. Everything was up to us. So you can imagine how the sadducees felt about the apostles because they knew God was working. They're preaching the resurrection all the time. They had seen it and knew it.

It could not be convinced otherwise. But the sadducees did not like him, so they're filled with jealousy. Seventeen eighteen says, they arrested the apostles, put him in jail, but then we see the thwarted, rested and put him in jail, and immediately the next following pauses, and they became golden light for the mountain. Opposition rises and is ordered. 21 b through 26 says, when the high priest and officials arrived at that whole deal, they get there and they were perplexed.

The men you put in jail are standing in the temple teaching and preaching. Thirty eight and forty was Gamaliel's response. After he explained about the two different rebellions that had started, he spoke and said, is it but? Now Gamaliel's worthless man because he was a pharisee. He was way far right, believed in the Torah and keeping God's law, but it says he was respected by all, all across this whole spectrum.

The sadducees all the way across trusted that this man knew what he was talking about. He may have just been a pragmatist, he may have been a believer. Some people in some commentary believe that he might have been an early Christian that just had not fully developed his faith at this point or that he was just being a sneaky Christian and trying to get those guys off in the church. I'm not sure which it was, but I do know Gamaliel did not go far enough. When Gamaliel said, my advice is to leave these men alone, let them go.

If they're planning on doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overturned. That's true. Men's, you know, dynasties and reigns and everything else, they come and go. But if it's of God, he says, you will not be able to overthrow it. You may even find yourself fighting against God.

As the Pharisees say this, he doesn't feel like God moves. These guys don't really believe that, but they're pregnant... Pragmatic in a way too and they think maybe he knows what he's talking about so they accepted his advice and then they flock it, why not? Just might as well. The opposition arising in the guarding.

This is not within our ability to control. That's what I want you to know. If you see how to move power, you let his words interpret, and you live your life according to those two things, you are going to be opposition. Period. That's gonna happen.

Jesus promises it. And John 16 says, you know, you will have trouble traveling this world but take heart and overcome the world. That's the authority of it right there. It's not within our ability to control how opposition will arise, whether it will be from external forces or from within the body, sometimes that arises. It's not within our ability to control opposition that comes against us.

But the witness advances anyway. This great job is what we're... This is really really good stuff. I like this. If you check out verse 16, I already told you about that.

Jerusalem and they're bringing them from all the towns around Jerusalem, that's Judea. Christ said this would come to pass. You will be my witnesses. It was applied to the apostles and applies to all of you that are within that line of the apostles that believe this message and carry forward. You'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts.

Forty one and forty two. I think my favorite verse in acts 42 is is acts five forty two. The first time I remember it leaping off the page to me was on the way home from my first mission trip to Mexico. I'm not reading through... I read through the whole book of acts and that just stuck in my head.

It's acts 41 though. It says, the apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus. That's admitting that opposition and the thwarting of God and rejoicing that he allowed them to do that. That's good. You know when you're being flogged and you're rejoicing that you've got a good product.

You know what I'm saying? That's great. 42, it says, and every day in the temple and from house to house, they were continually... The Greek verb there is a continuous action verb. It means they were continually always doing things.

It was the normal manner of life for them. Continually, they were teaching and they were preaching this message that Jesus is the Messiah. That is how things keep going. That's how things keep going. This little section of witness advancing, it is by God's hand that he moves and the gospel advances, but it is through our sustained obedience that he uses us to do that.

That makes sense? He says if we don't move the rocks and hills, we'll cry out. Right? This is about our sustained obedience to what he's asked us to do. So the application for this sermon, I I kinda hit it along the way, but I want you to think about this.

Where are you on that progression? Have you seen God move with a great power? Now he did. I've already explained it. He did the Calvary.

He did that already. He's moved with great power, and it applies to your life. It can apply to your life if you will believe Where are you in the progression? Have you ever seen God move with power? If not, call out to it.

Go to what you know of and and start there. I started off with a ridiculous did an old friend. He's a huge senior at the church. James Brown had to be pastor at this church. But when he was preaching, he started to see, this is right.

This is good. God spoke to him. It was a time when he was not expecting it. I know that that's just an illustration of the story, but that is the way that God works. When you're least expecting it sometimes, if you will reach out to him, he will open up things for you.

He'll allow you to see that. So if you're here today and you have, you are a believer, you have taken that step, you believe the truth of the gospel, I'm asking you to study the word, to look at it and see how it applies to your life today. I'm asking you to allow God's word to interpret where he would have you, what he would have you doing, step out in faith and allow him to show you where he had you with. And if you've set about doing it, expect the opposition. You're probably already in the middle of it.

Know that it will happen. You will have it. Jesus promised that you would, but look to God in the midst of that opposition and let him advance his kingdom through your life. Just keep stepping the way that he's shown you to keep stepping. He will do it, believer, and I'll go back, quote the movie.

You're on a mission from God. So I will have you... If you would come back up in the sky, when you come back, where the next song is actually acapella. If y'all understand, we're gonna go into a time of communion, the Lord's supper right now. And so I'll ask if the if the frontlines anyone else would come forward and do the...

And do... Get ready to do the communion. We're gonna sing through creating me a clean heart. If you don't know it, come along. You'll know it.

And Lord, to die. That's why you came, Jesus. I pray that you would unite us, Lord, that we would be one together, seeing you move, interpreting your word. God, that we would be going forth and doing what you've asked us to do in the midst of opposition so that your kingdom may advance. God, we come together right now confessing our sin at this time, Lord, individually, asking that you cleanse us from all unrighteousness, Thank you, Lord, for your for your body, for your blood.

Your body is broken for us, Lord. For our seed from the Lord that I also delivered to you that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed, he took bread. And when he had given thanks, he broke and he said, take, eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me.

Lord, we are thankful. We ask you to unite us as we remember your broken body, Lord. We remember our brokenness, ourselves, and lord, we ask that you would unite us into one body. That we would be your body, lord. We ask you to bless this cup as a symbol of your blood.

In Jesus name, amen. In the same manner, he also took the cup after supper saying, this is... This cup is the new covenant in my blood. This do as often as you drink in remembrance of me. This also goes on to say, for as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

God has moved with power. He has. And he is continuing his witnesses advancing doing it through you. We're gonna sing