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Acts 8:1-25 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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I'm so thankful to be back, and I hope you've come this morning to hear the Word of God and to submit yourself to it.
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We've been worshiping through song and through music, but just a reminder that we really believe here that you also worship God by listening to His Word and by heeding to what it says and being encouraged by it and obedient to it.
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And I'm worshiping along with you. We are here for this and not for any other reason to make ourselves known or to make anything else known but Jesus known.
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And so just join me again just in a word of prayer.
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Father, we love you. We thank you for the chance to gather this morning.
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We thank you for the redemption that we have in Jesus, and I pray that you would fight off all distractions and things like what we might eat later or who we might hang out with later,
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what we might do after this is over, but you would allow us to be all here, Lord, and to hear your Word and that you would be lifted up.
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In Christ's name, amen.
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So we're returning to the book of Acts this morning.
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We find ourselves in chapter 8, so go ahead and turn in your Bibles to Acts chapter 8.
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And in case you're new on the scene, and just sort of a reminder, I'm not going to give you a big overview of Acts,
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but just to remember that this is like the second book that Luke wrote.
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We have the Gospel of Luke, and then he wrote this as an account of the early history of the church and the Acts of the Apostles.
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And so Christ has resurrected.
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He has commissioned His disciples to go out and to make disciples.
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And then they literally watch Him ascend into heaven, and He empowers them to go out and to plant the church.
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The Holy Spirit comes.
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And so the apostles have been preaching the Gospel, making disciples in Jerusalem for the most part,
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in just the area of Jerusalem.
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So the Gospel hasn't quite gone out of the city yet in some ways,
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other than some others that have might have taken it out there.
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And two weeks ago, we looked at the martyrdom of Stephen, the first martyr of the church.
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Nathan preached on that.
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And just as a quick recap, he was arrested by the Jewish council for preaching the Gospel
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and for doing miracles in the name of Jesus.
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And so they bring him in front of this very intimidating council,
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and they ask him to basically give an account for what he's doing,
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whereon Stephen goes on to give this incredible explanation and exposition of the Old Testament.
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Like he walks literally through the Old Testament
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and says that the message that he wants them to see was all these Old Testament prophets
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and messengers from God, they were pointing to the Messiah,
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the Messiah that you just killed.
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And you're no different than the people who killed the prophets.
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You've ignored them, you've put them aside, and you're just as guilty.
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You've killed the Messiah.
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And then he offers them no repentance.
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It's just almost like an act of judgment.
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And then they're outraged.
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Obviously, they're very, very angry.
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And without even obeying the law of the day,
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they drag Stephen out and they stone him to death.
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And so, just interesting, the stoning that takes place,
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where we read it just in the previous chapter,
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that he was put to death.
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It's a very vivid word.
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It's a medical word that means like destruction.
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It reveals that like Stephen just wasn't killed quietly,
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it means that he was literally destroyed by these men.
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It wasn't an easy death, in other words.
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And very vivid word.
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It was horrific.
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It was utterly terrible as the stones fell on him
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and pretty much just mangled him to the ground.
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And he was the first martyr.
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And if you remember the very beginning of the book of Acts,
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when Jesus is commissioning his disciples,
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he says,
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You will be my witnesses.
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You will be my witnesses.
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And just as a reminder,
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the word witness that he uses is the word martyr,
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which means martyr.
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Like, you will be my martyrs,
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is what Jesus tells them.
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You will go out.
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You will die.
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You will be persecuted and executed and imprisoned for my namesake.
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So how would you like to get that commission?
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Many of us in our flesh would probably run from that.
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But they saw it as an honor to carry the name of Jesus.
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So Stephen became the first witness, really, in the church.
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And this execution, this martyrdom kind of sparks a large-scale persecution from the Jews in Jerusalem,
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from the leading Jews in Jerusalem.
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And it lasts for the next four chapters in the book of Acts.
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It's not necessarily from Rome.
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It's from the Jews.
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And so it just carries on.
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Stephen was the first.
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And so it goes on.
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And if we read,
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starting in our text today,
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in chapter 8,
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we're just going to go verses 1 through 25.
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So just follow along.
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This is just a story.
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So this is easy just to follow.
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And starting in verse 1 of chapter 8,
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it says,
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So just so you know,
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this word,
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devout men,
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it probably doesn't refer to other believers.
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It refers to probably,
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this is a term used for pious Jews,
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that probably spells that a lot of the Jews,
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some Jews there probably thought that the death and the execution of Stephen was wrong and unjust.
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And so they took Stephen's body away to bury it.
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In verse 3,
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But Saul was ravaging the church and entering house after house.
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He dragged off men and women and committed them to prison.
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Now those who were scattered went about preaching the word.
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Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ.
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And the crowds with one accord pay attention to what was being said by Philip.
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And when they heard him,
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they saw the signs that he did.
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For unclean spirits crying out with a loud voice came out of many who had them.
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And many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.
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So there was much joy in that city.
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But there was a man named Simon who was previously practiced magic in the city and amazed the people of Samaria,
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saying that he himself was somebody great.
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They all paid attention to him for the least to the greatest,
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saying,
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This man is the power of God that is called great.
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And they paid attention to him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic.
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But when they believed Philip,
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as he preached the good news about the kingdom of God in the name of Jesus Christ,
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they were baptized,
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they were baptized,
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both men and women.
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Even Simon himself believed.
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And after being baptized,
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he continued with Philip.
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And seeing signs and great miracles performed,
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he was amazed.
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Now when the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God,
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they sent Peter and John,
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who came down and prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.
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For he had not yet fallen on any of them,
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but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
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Then they laid their hands on them,
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and they received the Holy Spirit.
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Now when Simon saw the Spirit had been given throughout the laying on of hands of the apostles' hands,
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he offered them money,
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saying,
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Give me this power also,
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so that anyone whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit.
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But Peter said to him,
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May your silver perish with you,
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because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money.
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You have neither part nor lot in this matter,
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for your heart is not in the right before God.
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Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours,
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and pray that the Lord, if possible,
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the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.
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For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness,
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and in the bond of iniquity.
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And Simon answered,
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Pray for me to the Lord,
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that none of what you have said may come upon me.
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Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord,
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they returned to Jerusalem,
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preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.
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And that's our text today.
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And so, hopefully,
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we will be able to pull some good things out of this,
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and to apply to our lives today.
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But this persecution that started,
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it eventually ended up spreading the gospel.
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And that's what we have to see here.
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So we're going to kind of take a bird's eye view,
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and see the big picture is that persecution started,
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and because of that, the gospel moved out beyond Jerusalem.
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And then, it zooms in closer to the life of Philip,
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who wasn't an apostle, but a deacon,
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one of the deacons chosen in the previous chapters and acts,
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like Stephen was.
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And he was the first one, actually,
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in the scripture to be called an evangelist.
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In chapter 21, he's called Philip an evangelist.
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So as the persecution arose in Jerusalem,
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the gospel was taken out.
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So, to the Samaritans,
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and then later on in this chapter,
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that Nathan will get to eventually,
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an Ethiopian.
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So one of the first African converts.
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So praise God.
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And so that's what we're working with.
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So there's four things that we're going to look at today
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in the text.
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But the first one, number one,
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is that God uses persecution
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to spread the gospel.
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And you see that in the first four verses
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of this chapter.
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So what do you think at this point?
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If persecution started
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and you were being arrested,
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beaten, thrown in prison
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for the sake of Christ,
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what would you do?
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Would you panic and say,
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oh man, our religious freedom
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has been taken away,
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so we better be quiet
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and not talk about Jesus anymore.
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We better lay low
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and hopefully not be recognized
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by the authorities.
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What would be your reaction?
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Well, that didn't silence him.
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This didn't stop it.
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It actually fueled it.
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And so we see that
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in the verses
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they were scattered
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and they went about preaching the word.
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So, really cool.
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I've always said this
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to a lot of the college students,
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but I think that so many of us
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feel we use the term
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of the generation
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that I don't really like,
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but the word awkward.
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It's like a most overkill word
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in our language today.
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So, just try to use that
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in a good way.
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But, a lot of us think
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that it's awkward
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to share the gospel
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because it's become a method
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or a gimmick
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and you've divorced it
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from your real life.
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It's not just something
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that flows out of your life.
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It's something that
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you pull apart
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and say,
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I've got to do this method
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or this gimmick.
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It's not a natural outflow
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of your language
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and your life.
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But this implies,
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the Greek here,
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is the idea
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that they went gossiping
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the good news.
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Just happening
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in the natural way
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that conversations unfold.
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So, a small little narrative.
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There's this man
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and he shows up
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in Galilee, for example.
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And, like,
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everyone knows everybody
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and he comes up and says,
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hey, why are you here?
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We don't recognize you.
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And he says,
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I've come from Jerusalem
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with my family.
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Did you hear about
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what happened in Jerusalem?
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I know there's a lot of stuff
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going on about Jesus of Nazareth
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and that he might be alive
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and all that.
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And then the man says,
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well, he actually is alive.
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He's been seen.
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And Stephen was killed,
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one of our brothers.
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And this has started
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a persecution.
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So, if it was up to me,
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I would have just stayed
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and died with Stephen.
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But I had to think about
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my wife and my children.
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And so we fled
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and now we're here.
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So, you're willing
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to die for this?
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You actually believe this?
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And yes, I am.
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And here's why I believe that.
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And so,
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this is just the natural way
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the conversation unfolds.
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They went about gossiping
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the good news of Christ
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in just natural ways.
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So,
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question for us.
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Why didn't Operation
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Search and Destroy
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Christians succeed?
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Plenty of other movements
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throughout history
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have gotten a lot of hype
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and a lot of startup,
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but then they died.
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Many, many,
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actually.
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And so,
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why not this?
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Why did this little group
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of followers
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from a dead carpenter
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from Galilee,
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why did it not die out?
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Because
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God,
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it's God's mission
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to take Christ
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to the ends
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of the earth.
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It's God's mission
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to take the gospel
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to all the nations.
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This isn't a mission
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of man.
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It's a mission
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of God.
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As it said,
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as the rabbi
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pointed out
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in Acts 5,
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as they were talking
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about what to do
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with all these Christians,
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he says,
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in the present age,
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I tell you,
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keep away from these men
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and let them alone.
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For if this is a plan
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or undertaking of man,
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it will fail.
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But if it is of God,
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you will not be able
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to overthrow them.
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You might even be found
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opposing God.
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This idea that
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if man started this,
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it will fail.
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But if God started it,
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you won't be able
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to stop it.
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And you might even
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be found opposing God.
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Robert Coleman
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wrote the classic book,
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Master Plan of Evangelism.
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Listen to what he wrote.
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He said,
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World evangelism
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is the divinely ordered
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goal for us all.
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Not only is it attainable,
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it is inevitable.
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Whether or not
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we believe it,
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one day the gospel
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of the kingdom
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will be heard
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to the ends
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of the earth.
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The God of the universe
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will not be defeated
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in his purpose.
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Any activity
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not in step
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with God's design
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for humanity
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is destined
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to futility.
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The sooner we realize this
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and align our way
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with his,
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the sooner
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we will be relevant
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to eternity.
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He's saying
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it is inevitable.
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God's mission
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will accomplish
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what it set out to do
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and it won't be stopped.
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So our suffering
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is inevitable
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to reach the world
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but our mission
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is unstoppable.
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I want to just,
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there's several examples
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today.
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In 1985,
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there was a Bulgarian
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pastor,
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Horacio Kosevic.
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He was arrested
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for preaching
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the gospel
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in his church.
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I understand Romania
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is under the control
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of communist Russia
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at the time
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and communism
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is seeking to put out
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the gospel flame.
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So he was in prison
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for just about a year
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and while he was there,
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he shared Christ
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with the other prisoners,
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he shared Christ
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with his interrogators
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and his torturers
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and many came to believe
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in Christ
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while he was in prison.
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And this is something
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that he said,
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both prisoners
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and jailers
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asked many questions
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and it turned out
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that we had more
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fruitful ministry
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there in prison
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than we ever could have had
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inside a church.
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God was better served
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by our presence
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in the prison
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than if we had been free.
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And that's just
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how God works.
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He works
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through persecution
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to accomplish
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his will
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and it's something
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that can't be stopped.
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So,
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the message here,
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okay,
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is not just
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that God
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often turns
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our setbacks
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into victories.
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The message
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for us
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also
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is that sometimes
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our freedom,
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our safety,
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our comfort,
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our prosperity
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can often
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cause tremendous
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sluggishness
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and apathy
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to the gospel mission.
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Obviously,
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I'm not ungrateful
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for the liberty
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and the freedom
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we have.
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Most of you
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know me,
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know I have
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a family
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that have shed
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blood for this country
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and many friends
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that are today,
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so I'm grateful
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to live where we live
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and to have
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the religious liberty
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we do.
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But at the same time,
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often,
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a lot of the stuff
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that we think,
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like prosperity,
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wealth,
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we think those things
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will kind of speed
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the gospel mission.
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And sometimes it does,
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but more than often
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it doesn't.
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It actually,
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the very thing we think
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will help it
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ends up creating
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lethargy
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and weakness
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and apathy
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and a preoccupation
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with our comfort
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and our ease
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rather than
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going and taking
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the gospel forward.
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So millions
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of our brothers
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and sisters
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around the world
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still suffer like this.
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Just open your eyes.
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Like,
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it's everywhere.
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North Korea,
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China,
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North Africa,
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Middle East,
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India,
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Pakistan.
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Just open your eyes.
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Like,
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these are places
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where even today
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they're being killed
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in prison,
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persecuted
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by their family,
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by their neighbors.
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And this isn't
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impersonal to me either.
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A lot of my,
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I have a few friends
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that are in some
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very hard places
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right now.
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My friend,
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also,
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who some of you
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have met,
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he's from Kyrgyzstan.
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He's,
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I won't tell you
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where he is right now,
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but I'll just tell you
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he's in Central Asia,
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so figure out
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where he is.
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But,
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he came here
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many years ago
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and he spoke to
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a large group
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of college students
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right here
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and he said,
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you know,
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here in America
18:39
when you become
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a Christian,
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you walk an aisle,
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you pray a prayer,
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you take a seat
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and you just
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attend things.
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He said,
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it's very easy.
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He said,
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but in Asia,
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if you're going
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to become a Christian
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first,
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you're going to be
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kicked out
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of your family,
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you'll be ostracized
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by your family,
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your community
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will also turn you out
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and not take you in,
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and the government
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will either
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imprison you
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or kill you
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or not allow you
19:07
to work.
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And he's like,
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when someone says
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that they believe
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in Jesus
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and they want
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to follow Jesus,
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if they go through
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all of that
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and they're still
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trusting in Jesus,
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we know that
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they're a real Christian.
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That's like what he said.
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And that was just
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convicting to me.
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Never sell the gospel
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cheaply to anyone
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because it's costing
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many people their lives
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as it did in this time
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like Stephen and others.
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So,
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for example,
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this is a quote
19:38
by Charles Spurgeon
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and one that's like
19:40
been in my head
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for years and years.
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But he said,
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for the Christian,
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prosperity is much harder
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to bear
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than adversity.
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Many a man
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will pass through
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trouble and trial
19:53
and praise God
19:54
under it,
19:56
who,
19:56
when he who is
19:57
tried with no trouble,
19:59
will forget his God,
20:01
decline in grace,
20:02
and grow almost
20:03
a worldling.
20:05
Believe me,
20:05
there is no such trial,
20:08
no greater trial
20:09
than no trial.
20:11
And so,
20:14
prosperity,
20:16
you know,
20:17
we want to be thankful
20:17
for it,
20:18
but if we're not
20:18
using it for the
20:19
advancement of the gospel
20:20
and not being
20:22
graciously thankful for it
20:23
and using it for God's cause
20:24
and we make it an idol,
20:26
we put it on the throne,
20:27
God will deal with us.
20:30
So,
20:31
we possess so much
20:33
in this country
20:33
that has dulled
20:34
our senses
20:35
to the things of God.
20:37
In this Disneyland,
20:39
literally,
20:39
of a country sometimes,
20:41
Satan has Christians
20:42
focused on
20:43
what they can't take
20:44
out of this world
20:45
instead of Christ
20:46
being enough
20:47
and storing up
20:48
treasures for eternity.
20:50
So,
20:50
though persecution
20:51
can have harmful
20:52
physical effects,
20:53
it's just a well-known fact
20:55
that prosperity
20:56
tends to,
20:56
throughout the history,
20:57
slow down the mission
20:59
of Christ
20:59
instead of speeding it up.
21:01
So,
21:02
let's not be that way.
21:04
So,
21:05
the point
21:05
is not that we should
21:06
just seek out
21:07
physical persecution,
21:09
but the point
21:09
is that we should
21:10
just be very careful
21:11
and wary
21:13
of how we use
21:14
the wealth
21:14
that God has given us
21:15
to not allow it
21:16
to control us,
21:17
but for us
21:18
to control it
21:19
for the glory of God.
21:22
So,
21:23
that's the first one.
21:24
It's persecution
21:25
spreads,
21:27
right,
21:28
and the gospel
21:28
goes out.
21:30
So,
21:30
God uses persecution
21:31
to spread the gospel,
21:32
number one.
21:32
Number two,
21:34
the gospel
21:35
can save
21:37
persecutors.
21:39
This is verse
21:40
one and three.
21:41
We see that
21:42
Saul was there,
21:43
and most all of us
21:44
know who this is,
21:45
and he was approving.
21:46
He was like,
21:47
yes,
21:47
do this,
21:48
kill this guy,
21:50
silence him.
21:52
And then later on,
21:52
he was ravaging the church,
21:54
entering house,
21:54
dragging people off,
21:55
committing them to prison.
21:57
This is Saul of Tarsus.
21:58
So,
21:58
in the midst
21:59
of this persecution,
22:00
we get a brief glimpse
22:01
of the man
22:02
who would
22:03
become the apostle Paul.
22:06
Saul of Tarsus,
22:07
one of the most
22:08
religious elite
22:09
of the day.
22:11
He was educated
22:13
under the best,
22:13
and he knew it all,
22:15
and he was a Pharisee,
22:17
the most religious zeal,
22:20
but he was wrong.
22:23
Just because you're
22:24
religiously zeal,
22:24
it doesn't mean you're right.
22:26
And it says here
22:27
that he was ravaging
22:29
the church.
22:30
And this is an idea
22:31
of havoc.
22:32
It literally means
22:33
to exercise brutal,
22:34
sadistic cruelty,
22:36
is what this means.
22:37
It wasn't like he was like,
22:38
come on,
22:39
you Christians.
22:40
He was literally
22:41
brutalizing these people.
22:44
It's also used
22:45
in ancient Greek literature
22:46
of a wild boar
22:47
being on a rampage
22:49
and ravaging a vineyard,
22:52
and the idea of an animal
22:53
savagely tearing
22:54
somebody apart.
22:55
That's what this language
22:56
is used for.
22:57
This is what Saul
22:58
is doing.
22:59
And the church.
23:01
The same word is here.
23:02
So he was a scary man.
23:03
He could say that he
23:04
literally tore the church apart.
23:06
Not a man you'd want
23:07
to encounter.
23:09
Yet, we know
23:10
that as Saul
23:12
set out to annihilate
23:13
the church,
23:15
to annihilate the Savior
23:16
that he hates,
23:17
he ends up meeting Jesus
23:19
on the Damascus road,
23:20
and he's graciously saved
23:23
by the very man
23:24
he set out to destroy,
23:25
right?
23:25
And after these great
23:28
acts of evil,
23:28
as we've always seen,
23:30
free and willful
23:31
acts of evil,
23:32
God uses to serve
23:33
his purpose
23:34
every time.
23:35
And this is a great example.
23:38
So Christ saved this man
23:39
and made him
23:40
to be the Apostle Paul.
23:42
Made him a lover
23:42
of men.
23:45
A lover of Christ.
23:47
One of the most
23:47
radical conversions ever.
23:49
So, just briefly,
23:51
hold your hand here,
23:52
but look at 1 Timothy
23:53
real quick.
23:55
This story is coming up soon,
23:57
so I don't want to spend
23:58
too much time on it,
23:58
but in Acts 1 Timothy,
24:00
chapter 1.
24:05
Before I read this,
24:08
1 Timothy, chapter 1,
24:09
verse 12.
24:11
Before I read this,
24:12
I just want to ask you
24:13
a question.
24:15
Do you feel like,
24:16
I know there's people
24:18
here who do,
24:19
because in a room
24:20
this size,
24:21
there is no way
24:23
at all
24:24
that Christ
24:26
could save me
24:27
and forgive me
24:27
for the things
24:28
I have done
24:29
in my life.
24:31
I have felt
24:31
that way before.
24:33
I would be ashamed
24:34
even if people
24:35
knew what I have done.
24:37
And the fact that
24:38
this person
24:40
can just take away
24:40
my sin,
24:41
that's just an
24:41
overwhelming thought.
24:42
I just don't think
24:43
it's possible.
24:44
Well, this man
24:45
we're reading about
24:46
literally was going out
24:47
and ripping Christians
24:48
apart and hated Jesus.
24:52
And yet,
24:52
he found mercy
24:54
in Christ.
24:55
1 Timothy 1, 12.
24:57
Read this.
24:58
This is Paul,
24:58
the very man we read
24:59
about writing this
25:00
years later
25:01
after he was converted.
25:02
He says,
25:03
I thank him
25:04
who has given me strength,
25:06
Christ Jesus,
25:07
our Lord,
25:07
because he judged me
25:08
faithful,
25:10
appointing me
25:10
to his service.
25:12
Though formerly,
25:13
listen to this,
25:13
I was a blasphemer
25:14
and persecutor
25:15
and an insolent
25:17
opponent.
25:18
But I received mercy
25:19
because I acted
25:20
ignorantly in unbelief.
25:22
And the grace
25:23
of our Lord
25:23
overflowed for me
25:24
with the faith
25:26
and love
25:27
that are in Christ Jesus.
25:29
Here it is.
25:30
The saying is trustworthy
25:32
and deserving
25:33
of full acceptance
25:34
that Christ Jesus
25:36
came into the world
25:37
to save sinners
25:38
of whom I
25:39
am the foremost.
25:41
But I received mercy
25:42
for this reason
25:43
that in me
25:44
as the foremost,
25:46
Jesus Christ
25:46
might display
25:47
his perfect patience
25:48
as an example
25:50
to those who believe
25:51
in him
25:51
to eternal life.
25:53
You hear that?
25:53
He's like,
25:53
Jesus saved me
25:54
so that in the future
25:56
people like here today
25:57
can look at Paul
25:58
and be like,
25:59
if God has the grace
26:00
and power to save
26:01
a man like that,
26:03
I can also be saved.
26:05
That's what this
26:06
is saying.
26:07
To the king of ages,
26:09
immortal,
26:09
invisible,
26:10
the only God
26:12
be honor and glory
26:13
forever and ever.
26:15
Amen.
26:15
So listen,
26:16
there's no matter
26:16
what you've done,
26:19
you're not beyond
26:19
the tidal wave
26:20
of God's grace
26:21
to overtake you today.
26:24
In Isaiah,
26:25
it says,
26:25
Behold,
26:25
the Lord's hand
26:26
is not shortened
26:27
that he cannot save
26:29
or his ear so dull
26:30
that he cannot hear.
26:31
God can do it.
26:33
Alright?
26:33
So throw yourself
26:34
at Christ.
26:36
Come to him.
26:36
Alright?
26:39
Number three,
26:41
moving through
26:42
number two,
26:43
number three,
26:44
the gospel can save
26:45
outcasts.
26:47
The gospel can save
26:48
outcasts.
26:50
And we see this
26:50
when Philip takes
26:52
the gospel
26:53
to the Samaritans,
26:55
even just down
26:55
in verses five
26:56
through eight.
26:57
So,
26:59
most of you
26:59
Bible people
27:00
out here,
27:01
you know the Samaritans
27:02
are,
27:02
so I won't give you
27:02
a long,
27:04
boring history lesson
27:04
on how they became
27:05
Samaritans,
27:06
but just so you know,
27:07
they were like
27:08
half-breed Jews
27:09
because hundreds
27:10
of years before
27:11
when the Assyrians
27:12
conquered this area,
27:15
they put Gentiles
27:16
there who began
27:17
to intermarry
27:18
and mix with
27:20
the remaining
27:20
Jewish population
27:22
that was there.
27:23
And so,
27:23
Jews looked at them
27:24
as half-breeds,
27:26
unclean,
27:27
we don't want to
27:27
associate with them,
27:28
we don't like them,
27:30
and so,
27:31
they had their own
27:32
little form,
27:33
I guess,
27:33
of like Judaism,
27:35
they had their own
27:35
temple,
27:36
that they worshipped
27:37
that,
27:37
but it wasn't
27:38
really the truth,
27:39
it was sort of
27:39
a mix of a lot
27:41
of different things,
27:42
it really wasn't
27:42
the worship
27:43
of the real God.
27:45
And so,
27:46
Jews who hated
27:47
them,
27:48
right,
27:48
Philip goes
27:49
and he brings
27:50
the gospel to them,
27:52
the Samaritans,
27:52
the outcasts
27:53
of their society,
27:55
really,
27:56
and he followed
27:57
the footsteps
27:57
of Jesus,
27:58
really,
27:58
because Jesus
27:59
was also the one
27:59
who brought the gospel
28:00
to these people
28:02
in himself.
28:02
and what happens,
28:04
you see there,
28:04
there was much joy
28:06
in that city
28:06
because of what
28:07
happened.
28:08
So,
28:09
that shows us
28:10
that no matter
28:10
who you are,
28:11
if you feel
28:12
ostracized,
28:13
if you feel
28:13
outcast,
28:14
Christ is also
28:16
there for you,
28:17
to bring you
28:18
into the people
28:18
of God.
28:20
And so,
28:21
a brief note
28:21
inside of this,
28:23
because it's in our text,
28:25
but it's not the main
28:25
focus,
28:27
what's going on here
28:28
when it says,
28:30
you know,
28:30
they believe
28:31
and they are baptized,
28:32
but they didn't receive
28:33
the Holy Spirit yet,
28:34
because that seems
28:35
to be inconsistent
28:36
with what we believe
28:37
about baptism.
28:39
We believe here
28:39
that like when
28:40
the Holy Spirit
28:41
comes and regenerates
28:43
you,
28:43
causes you to be
28:44
born again,
28:45
when you hear the gospel
28:46
that he takes up
28:47
residence in you,
28:49
so,
28:49
which Nathan
28:50
will be speaking
28:51
about pretty soon
28:52
in the next part
28:53
of our chapter.
28:55
So,
28:55
why did this happen?
28:57
Well,
28:58
this seems to be
28:59
a very unique case
29:00
in the early church
29:01
where God,
29:03
in his wisdom,
29:04
chose to withhold
29:05
the giving of the Spirit
29:06
until the apostles arrived,
29:09
so that there could be
29:10
unity between the Jewish
29:11
church in Jerusalem
29:12
and the Samaritans.
29:14
And,
29:15
why though?
29:16
Like,
29:16
why is that important?
29:18
If this hadn't happened,
29:20
the Samaritans
29:21
might have continued
29:22
to think that they
29:23
were operating
29:23
spiritually apart from
29:25
the Jews in Jerusalem.
29:27
Or,
29:28
the believers in Jerusalem
29:29
might have not really
29:30
accepted them
29:30
as brothers and sisters
29:31
either.
29:33
So,
29:33
the Spirit had fallen
29:34
immediately when they
29:35
received Christ.
29:36
There had been no
29:37
connection between the two.
29:39
And so,
29:40
by the coming of
29:41
Peter and John
29:42
and the giving
29:43
of the Spirit,
29:45
the Jewish believers
29:46
are linked
29:46
with the Samaritan
29:48
believers.
29:48
believers.
29:49
So,
29:49
now there's not
29:50
two separate churches
29:51
but one church,
29:52
one covenant
29:52
member family
29:54
all together,
29:55
Jew and Gentile.
29:57
So,
29:57
that division
29:58
and that hatred
29:59
was healed
29:59
because of the gospel.
30:01
But,
30:01
it also established
30:02
the apostolic authority
30:04
of Peter and John
30:04
as the apostles.
30:06
They came
30:07
and they did this.
30:08
Jesus gave them
30:08
that authority
30:09
to do that.
30:11
So,
30:11
this healed
30:12
that division
30:13
that was there
30:13
so there wasn't
30:14
two separate things
30:15
going on.
30:17
So,
30:18
come talk to me
30:18
later more about that
30:19
if you want to know more
30:20
but we'll stop there
30:20
just to keep moving
30:21
forward.
30:23
So,
30:23
last thing,
30:25
number four,
30:27
the gospel
30:28
can be misunderstood
30:29
as it goes forward.
30:32
So,
30:32
this is verse 9
30:33
through 11,
30:34
18 through 24.
30:36
We get a picture
30:37
of this man
30:37
called Simon,
30:38
the magician
30:39
and he was called
30:40
the great one
30:41
and he was amazed
30:42
by the people
30:42
of Samaria.
30:44
He's just the word
30:45
sorcery here
30:46
which means
30:46
just magic
30:47
and it's just
30:49
sort of a religion
30:50
that came from
30:51
the Medo-Persian
30:51
empire,
30:52
sort of a combination
30:53
of astrology,
30:55
horoscope,
30:56
science mixed
30:57
with,
30:58
you know,
30:59
just superstition,
31:01
spells,
31:02
charms,
31:02
incantations.
31:03
Like,
31:03
if he had had
31:04
a 1-800 number
31:05
back then,
31:06
he would have
31:06
been the guy
31:07
to call.
31:09
So,
31:10
it seems like
31:11
he believed.
31:12
It says he believed.
31:14
Right?
31:15
Then later on,
31:16
Peter gives this
31:17
huge indictment
31:17
against him.
31:19
Peter responds
31:20
to him by saying,
31:20
like,
31:21
may your silver
31:21
perish with you.
31:24
It's almost
31:24
as if he's saying
31:25
to hell with you
31:27
and your silver
31:28
because you thought
31:30
you could obtain
31:31
the grace,
31:32
the gift of God
31:32
with money.
31:34
So,
31:34
Simon mistook
31:35
Jesus
31:36
as a bill of goods,
31:38
a cheap commodity
31:39
that he could add
31:39
the tricks
31:40
to his repertoire
31:42
that he had
31:43
already.
31:44
You can't buy
31:45
the grace of God.
31:47
You have to come
31:48
and lay down
31:50
all your pride
31:50
and all the stuff
31:51
that you think
31:51
you can do
31:52
to impress God.
31:53
You have to lay it down
31:54
and come to God
31:55
in God's way,
31:56
which is only
31:57
through Christ,
31:58
by grace,
32:00
through faith.
32:01
So,
32:02
he was only
32:02
obsessed
32:03
with the supernatural.
32:04
He thought this
32:04
would be a cool way
32:05
for him to add
32:06
some tricks
32:07
to the show
32:08
he put on.
32:08
Peter says,
32:11
you have no,
32:11
you neither part
32:12
nor lot
32:13
in this matter
32:14
for your heart
32:15
is not right
32:16
before God.
32:18
You have no share
32:19
in this.
32:20
Your heart
32:21
is crooked.
32:22
So,
32:22
then he calls
32:23
him,
32:24
repent,
32:25
right?
32:25
Repent of this
32:26
wickedness.
32:27
Maybe,
32:28
perhaps,
32:29
God may forgive
32:30
you.
32:32
And so,
32:33
repent,
32:33
we are familiar
32:34
with this term,
32:36
to turn away
32:37
from your sin,
32:38
to change
32:38
the thinking
32:39
about why
32:40
you do what
32:41
you do.
32:42
It's not just
32:43
changing your
32:43
actions,
32:44
so follow me
32:45
on this.
32:46
It's not just
32:47
changing your
32:48
thinking,
32:48
it's just changing
32:49
your feelings
32:50
towards that
32:51
action as well.
32:52
So,
32:53
example,
32:54
it's not just
32:55
saying,
32:55
stop acting
32:56
prideful,
32:57
it's saying,
32:58
hate your pride,
33:00
because not only
33:00
does it destroy
33:01
you and hurt
33:02
others,
33:02
but it dishonors
33:03
God.
33:04
So,
33:04
it's not just,
33:05
okay,
33:05
I need to come
33:05
across like I'm
33:06
not prideful,
33:07
you need to
33:07
hate and despise
33:08
your pride,
33:09
because it
33:10
dishonors the
33:11
Lord and it
33:11
hurts other
33:12
people.
33:13
That's what
33:13
he's saying,
33:13
repent,
33:14
turn away
33:14
from your
33:15
sin,
33:16
you're rotten,
33:17
you're twisted,
33:18
you're enslaved,
33:18
that's what
33:19
Peter tells
33:20
him.
33:21
And so,
33:22
then he says,
33:22
well,
33:23
may none of
33:23
this happen
33:24
to me,
33:24
we don't
33:25
really know
33:25
what happened
33:25
to him,
33:26
but,
33:27
just an
33:28
example,
33:29
that there
33:30
is in the
33:30
scripture,
33:31
a believing
33:31
that is not
33:32
real believing,
33:33
a faith that
33:34
is not real
33:35
faith.
33:37
we see in
33:38
Luke 18,
33:39
or Luke 8,
33:40
that is sort
33:41
of a picture of
33:41
the parable of the
33:42
soils where the
33:43
gospel goes out,
33:44
and Jesus says,
33:45
the ones on the
33:46
rock are those
33:48
who when they
33:48
heard the word,
33:50
receive it with joy,
33:51
but then they have
33:52
no root,
33:53
they believe for a
33:54
little while,
33:55
and in time of
33:56
temptation,
33:57
they fall away.
33:58
So it seems like
33:59
something good is
34:00
going on,
34:00
but then when trials
34:01
come,
34:01
temptation come,
34:02
they fall away,
34:03
it's not real.
34:05
So is your
34:06
faith in Christ
34:07
real?
34:08
Are you sure
34:08
of it?
34:09
Are you trusting
34:09
Christ,
34:10
loving Christ?
34:12
So in conclusion,
34:13
here's just a few
34:14
things,
34:15
like there is a
34:15
very strong
34:17
warning,
34:18
scattered throughout
34:19
the Old Testament
34:20
and New Testament,
34:22
that there are a
34:23
lot of people who
34:24
think that they are
34:25
right with God,
34:26
and they're not.
34:28
There are people who
34:29
genuinely think they
34:29
have Christ,
34:30
and they don't.
34:31
Jesus said that on
34:32
the judgment day,
34:32
many people are
34:34
going to come to
34:34
him and say,
34:35
Lord, Lord,
34:36
we did this in
34:37
your name,
34:37
we did this for
34:38
you,
34:39
and he will say,
34:40
I will declare to
34:41
them,
34:41
depart from me,
34:42
you worker of
34:43
lawlessness,
34:44
I never knew you.
34:46
Very scary words.
34:48
So how can you be
34:49
sure,
34:50
you can be sure,
34:52
that your faith is
34:53
real in Christ.
34:55
Luke's warning here
34:56
is that there is a
34:57
faith that is not
34:57
saved.
34:58
Make sure you don't
34:59
have that faith,
35:00
that you have the
35:00
real faith.
35:01
Come to Jesus on
35:02
his terms,
35:03
not your terms,
35:05
for your heart is
35:06
not right before
35:06
God.
35:08
Right?
35:09
Make sure your
35:10
faith is real,
35:11
and stop playing
35:12
games with God.
35:13
Repent of your
35:14
sin,
35:15
change the way you
35:15
think about these
35:16
things,
35:17
and submit to God.
35:19
You can't buy this
35:20
with money,
35:21
you can't buy this
35:22
by good works.
35:24
It's the free
35:25
grace of God.
35:27
This is a free
35:28
offer of salvation
35:29
in Christ,
35:29
and the last thing
35:30
we're going to look at,
35:31
just turn to Isaiah
35:32
55 real quick.
35:35
If Simon had read
35:36
this, it might
35:37
have helped him,
35:38
but Isaiah 55,
35:40
the very opposite
35:41
of buying the
35:43
grace of God,
35:45
there's a picture
35:46
here.
35:47
A call to repent
35:50
of our sins,
35:52
renounce it,
35:52
and turn to God,
35:53
and to lay down
35:54
your sin,
35:55
and lay hold
35:55
of Christ.
35:58
Isaiah 55,
35:59
verse 1,
36:00
this is an invitation
36:01
from God.
36:02
Come,
36:03
everyone who thirsts,
36:04
come to the waters,
36:05
and he who has no
36:06
money,
36:07
come,
36:08
buy,
36:09
eat.
36:10
Come,
36:10
buy wine and milk
36:11
without money
36:12
and without price.
36:14
Why do you spend
36:15
your money for that
36:16
which is not bread,
36:18
and your labor for that
36:19
which does not satisfy?
36:21
Listen diligently
36:22
to me,
36:24
and eat what is good.
36:26
Delight yourselves
36:26
in rich food.
36:28
Incline your ear,
36:31
come to me.
36:32
Hear,
36:33
that your soul
36:34
may live.
36:34
Jump down to verse 6.
36:36
Seek the Lord
36:37
while he may be found.
36:39
Call upon him
36:40
while he is near.
36:41
Let the wicked
36:41
forsake his way,
36:43
and the unrighteous
36:44
man his thoughts.
36:45
Let him return
36:46
to the Lord.
36:47
Listen to this.
36:48
So that he may
36:49
have compassion on him,
36:51
and to our God,
36:52
for he will abundantly
36:53
part.
36:54
God is ready.
36:55
Come,
36:56
eat,
36:56
buy for free
36:57
from God.
36:59
Come to Christ.
37:00
You're not coming to me.
37:01
I have no supernatural power.
37:03
You're coming to Christ.
37:05
I'm only a messenger
37:06
to tell you
37:07
that God loves you,
37:08
Christ died for you,
37:09
and that he will forgive you
37:10
and receive you now.
37:12
And so,
37:13
the last comfort
37:14
that we can look at
37:16
from this
37:17
for those of us
37:17
who are in Christ
37:18
is that
37:19
our mission
37:20
to the world
37:21
is literally
37:22
unstoppable
37:23
because it is
37:23
God's purpose
37:24
to take the gospel
37:26
to all the nations.
37:28
And just a story
37:29
that I can't,
37:30
I really think
37:31
I'm just supposed
37:31
to put it in here.
37:32
I was kind of
37:32
holding it in my hand
37:33
lightly earlier.
37:35
But also,
37:36
during the communist regime,
37:38
there was a man
37:38
named Joseph Son,
37:40
another Romanian pastor.
37:42
I recommend this book.
37:45
It's called
37:45
Suffering,
37:46
Martyrdom,
37:46
and the rewards
37:47
in heaven.
37:49
But,
37:50
he was being interrogated.
37:52
He was in prison
37:52
for a long time.
37:54
And he was doing
37:55
the same thing,
37:56
loving,
37:56
speaking Christ
37:57
to the interrogators.
37:58
And this is something
37:59
he wrote in the book.
38:01
He said,
38:01
during an early interrogation,
38:04
I had told an officer
38:05
who was threatening
38:06
to kill me,
38:08
Sir,
38:09
let me explain
38:10
how I see this issue.
38:12
Your supreme weapon
38:13
is killing.
38:15
My supreme weapon
38:15
is dying.
38:17
Here's how it works.
38:19
You know that my sermons
38:20
are on tape
38:21
and they have spread
38:21
all over the country.
38:22
And if you kill me,
38:23
those sermons
38:24
will be sprinkled
38:25
with my blood.
38:26
Everyone will know
38:27
I died for my preaching.
38:29
And everyone who has
38:30
a copy of that tape
38:31
will pick it up
38:32
and say,
38:32
I better listen to this again
38:34
because this man
38:35
sealed it with his very life.
38:38
So, Sir,
38:39
my sermons
38:39
will speak ten times
38:40
louder than before.
38:42
I will actually rejoice
38:44
in this supreme victory
38:45
if you kill me.
38:47
After I said this,
38:49
the interrogator
38:49
sent me home.
38:51
Another officer
38:52
who was interrogating
38:53
a pastor friend of mine
38:55
told him,
38:56
We know that Mr. Song
38:58
would love to be a martyr,
39:00
but we are not that foolish
39:01
as to fulfill his wish.
39:03
I stopped to consider
39:05
the meaning
39:05
of that statement.
39:07
I remembered how
39:08
for many years
39:09
I was afraid of dying.
39:11
I had kept a low profile
39:13
because I wanted
39:15
so badly to live
39:17
and I had wasted
39:18
my life
39:19
and inactivity.
39:21
But now
39:22
that I have placed
39:23
my life on the altar
39:24
and decided
39:25
I was ready
39:26
to die
39:27
for the gospel,
39:28
they were telling me
39:29
that I,
39:30
they would not kill me.
39:31
I could go wherever
39:32
I wanted in the country
39:33
and preach
39:33
wherever I wanted
39:34
knowing I was safe.
39:36
As long as I tried
39:37
to save my life,
39:38
I was losing it.
39:40
And now
39:41
I see dying
39:44
as gain.
39:45
You can't stop
39:46
a people
39:47
who believe that.
39:49
You let me live,
39:50
I'm going to preach
39:51
Christ everywhere.
39:53
Kill me?
39:54
That's what he says.
39:56
And the guy
39:56
obviously walked away
39:57
and set him free.
39:58
So,
39:59
this is God's mission
40:00
and that it's unstoppable
40:02
and we need to
40:03
throw ourselves into it.
40:05
We need to have
40:05
more confidence in this.
40:07
this is what
40:08
gives me courage
40:09
to go on the campus
40:10
to hard places
40:12
and talk to people
40:13
who are either hostile
40:14
or crazy
40:15
because it's God's mission.
40:16
What are they going to do?
40:17
Nothing.
40:18
They have nothing.
40:19
They speak wind, right?
40:21
This is the word of God.
40:23
Throw yourself
40:24
into the cause of God.
40:27
Let's pray together.
40:28
Let's pray together.