Latest / Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast / The Birth of a Movement

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The Birth of a Movement · Chip Ingram Sermon Podcast

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Today on Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram.
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I hear all the time people say, God has a plan
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for our lives. Well, let me ask you, what's his
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plan for you? Do you know what it is? How do
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you discover it? And once you know it, how do
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you do it? That's today on Living on the Edge.
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Have you ever been waiting for something and
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wondered, is anything actually happening? I'm
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Dave Drewy, and today on Living on the Edge,
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Chip Ingram continues his series, The Jesus Revolution,
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with a message from Acts chapter 2. The 10 days
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of waiting in Jerusalem was not God being absent.
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It was God preparing. And on the day of Pentecost,
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the dam broke and the church was born. Now, a
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little later in our program, we'll share details
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about a very special opportunity that's just
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getting underway. It's our mid -year match, and
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you won't want to miss it. So stay tuned. Well,
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here's Chip with a message titled, The Birth
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of a Movement. Do you realize that you're sitting
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in this seat today because approximately 2 ,000
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years ago, there was a group of about 120 Christ
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followers who had just seen literally Jesus ascend
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into heaven. And the last thing they remember
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he said was, don't go do anything, go to Jerusalem
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and wait. 120 mostly uneducated people. They'd
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followed Christ for 40 days. They had had conversation.
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Over 500 witnesses had seen the scars, the holes
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in his hands, the miracles. And he said, now
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don't go do anything yet. What I want you to
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do is I want you to wait. And I don't know about
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you, but I kind of read between the lines. Peter
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seems like a go -getter. You know what I mean?
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And I'm thinking like day one, he's thinking,
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okay. Day two. It's still okay. Day four, like
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I got a job. Like how long are we going to be
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here? And then outside those walls, I mean, Jesus
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was not a popular person and his followers weren't
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popular. So thinking there's fear and anxiety
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out there and there's hope and expectation. And
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then I bet like day seven or eight, they're thinking,
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now let me get this right. There's 120 of us
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in downtown Jerusalem and we're going to take
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the world, right? And they're looking at each
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other going. And then day nine, still nothing's
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happening. And then bang, something big happens.
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One of the most difficult things for me in my
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life and probably a lot of you is waiting. For
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some right now, it's like you're in a relationship
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and deep in your spirit, God says, no, wait.
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It's in the right time. Don't move forward. For
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others, you know, you're scrambling, you need
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a job, you're thinking about a different job
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and you're not really sure and everything just
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impulsively wants to say, you know, I'm just
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gonna make this happen. God says, no, wait. For
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some of you, you've prayed and you've said, oh
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God, you know, this is the time, this is the
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season, we kind of waited to have kids and now
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we're really ready. And apparently God isn't
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because you don't have any yet, right? And it's
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been a year, maybe two, and you start thinking,
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what's the deal? Waiting is really, really hard.
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I've read this over and over. It's out of a book,
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The Knowledge of the Holy. And he says, to believe.
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This is something to consider. This gives me
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perspective when I'm waiting. To believe actively
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that our Heavenly Father constantly spreads around
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us providential circumstances that work for our
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present good and our everlasting well -being
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brings to the soul a veritable benediction. Most
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of us go through life praying a little, planning
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a little, jockeying position, hoping but never
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being quite certain of anything, always secretly
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afraid that we'll miss the way. This is a tragic
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waste of truth and never gives rest to the heart.
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There's a better way, and then he gives it. It's
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to repudiate our own wisdom and take instead
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the infinite wisdom of God. It's to come to the
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point where you say, I believe there's an all
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-knowing, all -powerful, loving, compassionate
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creator who cares about me, and here's what the
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wisdom of God is. Here's classic definition.
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The wisdom of God is because he loves you and
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he's in control and has all power and knows all
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things actual and possible, he brings about the
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best possible results by the best possible means
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for the most possible people for the longest
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possible time. That's his plan for your life.
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God, in your situation, in your relationships,
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and in your work, and in your ministry, in the
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dreams that he's put in your heart and your future,
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he desires for you to say, I want to do life
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your way. And what he says is, I will take responsibility
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to bring about the best possible results in the
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best possible way for the most possible people
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for the longest possible time. But you need to
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trust me because sometimes it doesn't feel that
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way. Often it doesn't look that way. Those apostles,
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I'm thinking it didn't feel that way day number
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eight. I'm up in this room. I'm praying. I'm
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supposed to wait. I want you to remember that
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God's plans are perfect. Just write that down.
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It'll do something for your soul. Just remember,
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no matter where you're at, you know, God's plans
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are perfect. Second, God's timing is perfect.
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You may think it needs to happen now. Guess what?
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Often he's preparing you for something better,
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something bigger, something that's really right
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instead of just close. And third, can you guess
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what God's methods are? You got it. They're perfect.
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Very interesting little passages tucked in Ephesians
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chapter three. And it's one of those that, candidly,
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you know, I just, as I was studying for this,
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Paul writes in chapter three, verse eight, and
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it goes something like this. He says, this is
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a loose translation. I can't believe that God
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chose me. I'm the least deserving of all Christians
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to take this message of his love to all the world.
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But he chose me that I could share this great
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message in order that even the angelic principles
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and power, when they see the birth of the church,
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would see the manifold wisdom of God. See, God
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has a wise plan for you. He's got a wise plan
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for the planet. But the big thing on his agenda
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after Jesus died and was risen from the dead,
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was this birthing of this thing called a supernatural
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community. I don't want to use the word church
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because buildings come into your mind and history
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comes to your mind and religious activity. I
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want to talk about a relationship of a dynamic
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group of people connected to God. If you open
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your notes, what we're going to learn, we're
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going to see the wisdom of God as we watch. The
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Apostle Paul says, part of the whole plan was
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to reveal this manifold wisdom of God by how
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Jesus births his church. He's sitting at the
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right hand of the Father. And the very first
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thing Jesus does, he sent the Holy Spirit. This
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is the game plan. The Father, the Son, the Holy
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Spirit. The Holy Spirit is going to come. Come
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as prophesied. If you have your Bibles, open
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to Acts. Acts chapter 2. Are you ready? This
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is the story of the birth of the church. Chapter
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2, verse 1. When the day of Pentecost came, they
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were all together in one place. Suddenly, a sound,
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like the blowing of a violent wind, came from
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heaven, and it filled the whole house where they
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were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues
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of fire that separated and came to rest on each
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one of them. All of them were filled with the
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Spirit, and they began to speak in other tongues
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as the Spirit enabled them. Now, they were staying
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in Jerusalem, Jews from every nation under heaven.
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And when they heard the sound, a crowd came together
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in bewilderment because each of them were hearing
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them speaking in their own language or dialect.
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Utterly amazed, they ask, are not all these men
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who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that
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each of us hear them in our own language? Parthians
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and Medes and Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia,
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Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia,
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Egypt, and parts of Libya near Cyrene. Visitors
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from Rome, both Jews and converts or proselytes,
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Gentiles who became Jews, Cretans and Arabs.
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And then they declare, we hear them declaring
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the wonders of God in our own tongues. Amazed
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and perplexed, they ask one another, what does
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this mean? Like, what's going on here? Now, there
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was a second group. Some, however, made fun of
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them and said, they've had too much wine. Now,
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you need to understand, this is a festival day.
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To get the picture, I put in your notes, when
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did this happen? How did this happen? Why did
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this happen? When this happened, right now, it
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happened about nine o 'clock in the morning.
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Now, festival days, there were three major festivals.
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Think Woodstock that's holy, okay? I mean, thousands
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of people coming from everywhere. As you could
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see from all those locations into Jerusalem.
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It's packed. There's animals. There's sacrifices.
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And there were three major festivals. There was
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Passover. There was this Pentecost. And then
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later it was the Feast of Tabernacles. And so
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it's packed. So God waits for the perfect time.
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Pentecost. Penta, get it? 50? So it's 50 days
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after the Feast of Weeks, which was that other
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one. They celebrated the harvest. And so over
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time, Pentecost became the time where they celebrated
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the giving of the Ten Commandments. Out of Leviticus
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19, they had determined that this was just about
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the time when Moses gave the Ten Commandments.
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So God's timing and his wisdom is, on the day
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when the city is filled, with Jews and proselytes
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from all around the world exactly on that day
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when they're celebrating what? The first covenant.
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And the first covenant, now we're to the how.
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Do you remember how it came? The people were
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out of Egypt. They go to Mount Sinai. And then
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they're on Mount Sinai and Moses brings all the
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people together and they rope things off around.
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And then there's this blast. There's this sound.
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And the horn, it grows louder and louder and
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louder. And things begin to shake and the people
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hear this sound and they're trembling. And then
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pretty soon there's smoke that comes out and
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fire, right? Remember? From the mountain, Mount
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Sinai. And then there's an earthquake and then
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God speaks. You hear his voice. And in the first
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covenant, he gives a nation his word. He gives
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them the Ten Commandments. Moses leads them.
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And the goal for Israel is to be a blessing.
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to all the nations as God works his will through
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this nation, Israel. On this day where they're
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celebrating and remembering that, did you notice
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what happens? It's not that a wind blew. What's
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it say? It's the sound. Have you ever been when
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wind's blowing? I've been in Texas with, you
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know, tornadoes and stuff outside the door, you
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know, funnel cloud, and you just hear whoosh.
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It was the sound. And this sound, it says, and
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they heard, it's in a tense in the Greek that
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has to do with it. They started hearing it, and
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it escalated louder and louder. I think what
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happens, and they got out of the upper room,
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and they heard this sound. And pretty soon, they're
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looking at each other, and there's flames above
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them. The sound, the fire, and then pretty soon,
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what's happening? Out of their mouth, they're
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speaking in languages they've never learned.
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And 15 -sided different countries are there going,
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we're hearing the praises of God in our own language.
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So notice what God's doing. He's connecting.
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This is the why. He's connecting the first covenant
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with the second covenant. In the first covenant,
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the sound displayed God's power. The fire represented
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his presence. And the voice was his revelation.
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Using exactly the same things now, what? It's
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not a nation. Where's the fire? It's not on a
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mountain. It's in every individual. Jeremiah
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31 and Ezekiel 37 both promise that when the
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Holy Spirit comes, he would live inside of people,
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take up residence in them, and the new covenant
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would start. God's perfect plan, his perfect
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timing, and his perfect manner. Here's the lesson.
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God's timing and methods are wrought in perfect
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wisdom both then and now. Passage I memorized
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a number of years ago when I struggle with, God,
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what are you doing? I just don't get it. I just
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don't get it. I mean, as far as I know, I'm doing
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exactly what you told me to do and it is not
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going well. And then I remember Romans 11, 33.
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Oh, the depths of the knowledge and the wisdom
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of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and
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unfathomable his ways. I'm reminded that a lot
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of life is like looking at the back of a tapestry
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with all the threads and knots. And God in his
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perfect timing is orchestrating people. And sometimes
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I wasn't ready. And then you turn that tapestry
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over and you see something very beautiful that
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he's making. God's wisdom, his timing, his plan
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is perfect for you. But he wants you to trust
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him. If any man asks for wisdom, God says, I'll
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give it to it generously. But here's the condition.
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You have to come asking for wisdom like this.
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If you'll show me what to do in this relationship,
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If you'll show me what to do in this decision,
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if you'll show me what to do with my future,
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if you'll show me what to do in this financial
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issue, if you'll show me, I'm signing up in advance
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to do whatever you say. God says 100 % of the
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time he'll show you. With most of us, you know
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what the struggle is? I kind of want God's wisdom
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to decide whether I like it or not, right? Hey,
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God, do you really want me to date this girl?
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And if you say no, I'm going to do it anyway.
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Hey, God, do you really want to get my priorities
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in order and get out of debt? Well, if that's
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your will, I'm going to go with plan B still.
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God says, when you come like that, you don't
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get his wisdom. But who could know better for
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you than someone who's all -knowing, all -powerful,
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sent his son to die in your place, has a great
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plan for your life and mine? What we learn first
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is he sends his spirit, and he sends his spirit
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to display his wisdom. So my question for you
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is in what situation do you need to trust God's
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wisdom? I mean, just right now, if you jotted
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underneath there, right in the notes, would it
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be a relationship, a job, your future, timing,
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a big decision, healing, you know, a loss that
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you gotta work through? What is it that you need
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to say part of today, God's will is you say,
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God, I need your wisdom and if you'll show me,
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I'll do it. Second thing he does is the Holy
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Spirit spoke through an uneducated failure. The
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message of life. Now, this is amazing. Now, remember
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God's manner, his ways are perfect. I don't know
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about you, but I think if I was going to launch
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this tsunami wave of grace to reach the whole
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world, I'd find the best communicator, the most
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educated person. I'd do it at just the right
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time and, you know, maybe have big jumbo screens
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and everything. Instead, God chooses Peter. Peter
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betrayed him. Peter failed. And what we know
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later from this book is he was very uneducated.
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But God's ways are perfect, right? He knew we
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would come later. And he knew that he would put
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his message inside our hearts and he would want
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us in every walk of life to share with people
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and really love them and care for them. And he
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knew we would say things like this. Well, I'd
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really like to, you know, I really would like
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to share the love of Christ with some people.
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But I mean, if they ever found out, I mean, all
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the stuff I've done and how I've failed, I mean,
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God could never use me. And God says, no, no,
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no, no. My first message came through a guy who
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blew it as bad as you can blow it. And then the
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other one we say is, well, I'd really like to
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share and help some people, but I'm just, I'm
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not very educated biblically. Haven't been to
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Bible school, haven't been to seminary. Isn't
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it interesting? We're going to hear Peter's message,
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and his message is going to be about what? The
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resurrection. He's going to tell them, first
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of all. this thing that just occurred where your
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eyes are open and your jaw is dropping and you're
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hearing these wonderful works of God in your
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own language, first let me tell you why that's
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happening. I'm gonna explain that. Second, after
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you understand this phenomena that's happening
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in verses 14 to 21, starting in verse 22, he
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has a message. And as you can see in your notes,
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his message is about the proof of the resurrection
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and he's gonna give four specific proofs that
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Jesus actually has come back from the dead and
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therefore, What he said really is true. Let's
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pick up his explanation. Verse 14. Then Peter
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stood up, right? People are going, what's going
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on? And others are going, they're drunk. He stood
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up with the 11. He raised his voice. This is
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the guy that was afraid of the servant girl.
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Spirit of God makes a difference, apparently.
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And he addressed the crowd. Fellow Jews and all
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of you who are in Jerusalem, let me explain this
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to you. Listen carefully to what I say. These
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men are not drunk as you suppose. It's only nine
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in the morning. No, this is what was spoken by
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the prophet Joel. Now he quotes Joel chapter
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two, verses 28 and following. In the last days,
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this was a promise God gave Joel. I will pour
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out my spirit on who? All people. In the Old
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Testament, this Holy Spirit was given to certain
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people at certain time for certain jobs. That's
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why when David, remember when he sinned with
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Bathsheba? In Psalm 51, and he's confessing his
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sin, one of his requests are, please don't take
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your Holy Spirit from me. The Spirit of God did
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not live inside of every believer in the Old
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Testament. But he says, now all the people will
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be filled. Your sons, your daughters will prophesy.
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Your young men will see visions. Your old men
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will dream dreams. Even on my servant, both men
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and women, I will pour out my spirit in those
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days and they will prophesy. I will show wonders
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in the heavens above and signs on the earth below,
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blood and fire and billows of smoke. Then the
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sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to
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blood before the coming of the great and glorious
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day of the Lord. And everyone who calls upon
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the name of the Lord will be saved. Peter says
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two major things. He says, number one, this thing
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that you see, Those tongues of fire, that noise,
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hearing in different languages. This is exactly
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what Joel said. The last days have begun. The
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moment the Spirit comes, we are living in the
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last days. And then he talks about that's what
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you see right now. But Joel's prophecy has sort
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of a near fulfillment and a longer fulfillment.
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He starts and says in the last days, but at the
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very end, did you notice? It says in the glorious
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day of the Lord. That phrase, day of the Lord,
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all throughout the Old Testament, later we'll
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pick it up in the book of Revelation, that's
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the final judgment of God when Christ returns.
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And that's when some of these things about the
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sun being dark and the moon, they will happen
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then. And so first and foremost, he says, guys,
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all I want you to hear is God said this would
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happen. Now he starts his sermon, beginning in
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verse 22. Here's proof number one, the historical
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reality of Jesus. He's just going to start out
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and say, this phenomena, this event that we've
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had, I want you to know it's rooted in that person
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that about 40, 45 days ago or so, remember? So
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he picks it up. He says, men of Israel, listen
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to this. Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited
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by God to you by miracles and wonders and signs,
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which God did among you through him as you yourselves
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know. This man was handed over to you by God's
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set purpose and foreknowledge and with the help
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of wicked men. put him to death by nailing him
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to the cross. But God raised him from the dead,
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freeing him from the agony of death because it
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was impossible for death to keep its hold on
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him. Point number one, everything we're talking
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about is rooted in this historical person, Jesus,
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that you knew, and there were eyewitnesses, and
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everyone knew he did all those miracles. Point
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number two, they're going to say, look, this
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was prophesied. The Old Testament predicted that
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this would happen to the Messiah. And so what
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they're going to do, they're going to say, look,
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here's the Old Testament teaching about the Messiah.
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Over here is all the experience we've had about
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Jesus. And they're going to take this like a
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film and lay it over the prophecy and their experience.
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And they're going to say, Old Testament truth,
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Jesus, one and the same. So notice. They're going
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to give the Old Testament prophecy from David.
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You know, everyone is a Jew. David was a great
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hero. And so quoting Psalm 16, David said about
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him, speaking of the Messiah, I saw the Lord
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always before me. Because he's at my right hand,
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I will not be shaken. Therefore, my heart is
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glad and my tongue rejoices. My body also will
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live in hope because you will not abandon me
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to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One
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see decay. You've made known to me the paths
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of life. You will fill me with joy in your presence.
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Brothers, Peter says, he quotes that. He goes,
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brothers, I can tell you confidently that the
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patriarch David died and was buried and his tomb
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is here to this day. But he was a prophet and
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he knew that God had promised him on oath that
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he would place one of his descendants on his
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throne. Seeing what was ahead, in other words,
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David seeing what was ahead, he spoke of the
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resurrection of Christ. that he was not abandoned
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to the grave, nor did his body see decay. God
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has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all
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witnesses of this fact. And so he makes the point.
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It was prophesied in the Old Testament, and then
22:01
his third point is there's eyewitnesses. This
22:04
wasn't done in a vacuum. He's saying there were
22:06
500 of us over the last 40 days. I mean, in any
22:10
court of law, two eyewitnesses? It's true. There
22:14
were 500 of us. In fact, see these 120 people
22:17
with the fire on top of their head, speaking
22:19
languages they've never learned? Every one of
22:22
them is an eyewitness. In fact, I can just tell
22:24
you, 10 days ago, we were outside, and wow, we
22:27
watched him go up. And so he's making a very,
22:31
very strong case in this first sermon about why
22:34
you can actually believe that Jesus, in fact,
22:37
is the Messiah, that he died, and that he rose
22:39
from the grave. Now he's going to go on. Look
22:42
at verse 33. Exalted to the right hand of God,
22:45
he was received from the Father, and the promised
22:48
Holy Spirit has been poured out, and that is
22:52
what you see and hear. For David didn't ascend
22:55
to heaven, and yet he said, the Lord, Yahweh,
22:57
said to my Lord, Adonai, sit at my right hand
23:00
until I make your enemies a footstool for your
23:03
feet. He basically is saying, this event that
23:05
you're seeing, it's the fourth proof. And then
23:09
notice what he calls for decision. Therefore,
23:10
let all Israel be assured of this. God has made
23:14
this Jesus whom you crucified, both Lord and
23:18
Christ. And the word Lord there, you might circle
23:20
in your Bible. It's a word used for God. It's
23:24
in the phrase earlier. It talks, it's references
23:26
to Yahweh. And so they're making this point that
23:30
Jesus was in fact fully human, but fully God.
23:33
The Yahweh of the Old Testament. the Father,
23:37
the Son, the Holy Spirit. They're making this
23:39
point that he is in fact God and he is the weighted
23:42
Messiah. He was the hope of Israel. And so he
23:46
speaks to them and says, guys, you got a big
23:50
issue on your hands. What are you gonna do with
23:54
this truth? This spirit coming is evidence of
23:58
all that Jesus taught. The lesson here is that
24:01
the power is in the message, not the messenger.
24:06
You know, sometimes we feel like, if I could
24:09
just speak better, if I just knew more. The Apostle
24:12
Paul would say in Romans 116, for I'm not ashamed
24:14
of the gospel of Christ for it. The gospel, the
24:19
message, is the power of God to salvation, to
24:22
the Jew first and also to the Greek. What he's
24:26
saying is that, you know what, there's a reason
24:28
in God's wisdom that he picked an uneducated,
24:31
blue -collar worker, who really failed to be
24:37
the hero of the first message of the early church.
24:41
Because he knew a lot of us were going to follow.
24:43
And what he wanted us to know, it's not how well
24:46
you articulate things. It's not about your gifts
24:48
or your ability. The power is in the message,
24:51
not the messenger. And the reason a lot of us
24:54
aren't sharing what we know and loving people
24:56
and telling them the truth is we feel like, well,
24:58
I don't measure up. I'm not a good messenger.
25:01
The power is not in the messenger. It's in the
25:03
message. My biggest aha moment, I knew that intellectually,
25:07
but I got to experience it in ways I never dreamed.
25:10
Shortly after college, the first couple summers
25:12
after college, I played on Christian basketball
25:15
teams, players from all over the U .S., and we
25:18
traveled throughout every country in South America,
25:19
and then at halftime, we shared our faith, and
25:22
then afterwards, people would come down, and
25:24
we shared our faith and talked to them and partnered
25:26
with missionaries and all kind of great experience.
25:30
And the first two or three weeks was super fun
25:32
because you do a game in the morning with a not
25:34
very good team compared to us. I mean, we were,
25:36
you know, a guy from USC, a guy from New Mexico,
25:39
a guy from Oregon. Our front line was seven foot,
25:41
6 '11", 6 '10". Our point guard was 6 '6". I
25:44
mean, it was like, and that was back many years
25:46
ago. Let's not go there. But I mean, we played
25:50
all their national teams and beat all of a couple
25:52
of them. And so, but into week four, when you
25:55
play three games a day, And you know, you go
25:58
out to dinner with these guys. In South America,
26:00
you eat dinner like at 11 .30 at night and then
26:02
you talk with the players. And then they go to
26:04
bed and they get up late and they have a siesta.
26:06
We got on a bus or on a train or on a plane and
26:09
went to the next country. And so we're into like
26:11
week number four and I'm fried. And so this game,
26:15
we've gone all down through Chile and we fly
26:18
to the southernmost city, Punta Arenas. And so,
26:23
you know, it's really big, these Americans. We
26:24
had red, white, and blue uniforms, and the TV
26:26
cameras were there when we got to the airport.
26:28
And it was like, I'm done. Do you ever just get
26:31
like, I'm done? I mean, stick a fork in me. That's
26:33
how done I am. And so I remember we got there,
26:36
and I was usually pretty verbal. I'm sure you
26:38
can't imagine that. But I really wanted to share
26:40
my faith, and it was just like, I remember, I
26:42
literally went over, and all the players were
26:45
there, and TV cameras, and I put my feet up and
26:47
leaned against this couch or something, and I
26:49
said, God, if you want me to talk to someone,
26:51
you bring him to me, because I, it ain't in me.
26:56
I just, you know, I just, and you know, I'm feeling
26:59
sorry for myself, and I'm tired, and hadn't had
27:01
much sleep, and so this little kid comes over.
27:04
You know, he, I don't know, maybe he's 11, 12
27:05
years old, and I had memorized my, My testimony
27:09
in Spanish. I knew the four laws in Spanish.
27:11
And I had a couple years of Spanish. And after
27:13
four weeks, I mean, even I can start picking
27:15
up something. So this little kid, hey, senor,
27:17
how are you? So, okay. Look, kid, in Spanish,
27:22
God really loves you. Has a great plan for your
27:24
life. You've sinned. You're separated from God.
27:26
He rose from the dead. He loves you. You've got
27:28
to receive him personally. Get out of here, would
27:29
you? I mean, it wasn't much better than that.
27:33
I mean, it was just like, look, I'm obligated.
27:36
I said if someone came. Now, I'm not proud of
27:38
that. But I mean, it was the worst, most dispassionately
27:41
I've ever shared the gospel. It was like, just
27:43
get out of here. Well, then we play that night
27:46
and it's so cold. You know, our summer is their
27:49
winter. This is the farthest city. The next stop
27:51
is whatever. And so, you know, we warmed up with
27:57
gloves on. That's how bad it was. And then I
27:59
played poorly. So you fellow jocks know what
28:03
a good mood you're in when you play poorly. And
28:05
so we get done and I'm still having my pity party.
28:08
So I usually got out and talked to people and
28:10
instead I just stopped and sat down and I just,
28:13
again, I sat on the bench. I said, God, if you
28:15
want someone, you bring them to me. I'm just
28:19
tired. Had a lot of turnovers. I don't feel like
28:23
talking about you to anybody. Well, one person
28:27
came and another person came, another person
28:29
came. Pretty soon I got six or eight people around
28:30
me. And you know how the Spirit of God sort of
28:32
rebukes you like, well, you asked for it, right?
28:34
I said, okay, okay. You know, I repent. I'm really
28:36
sorry. I'm going to get with, you know. So I
28:38
get up and I'm energized. And pretty soon there's
28:40
20, 30, 40, 50 people. And I share the gospel
28:43
the best I can. And they're real responsive.
28:45
And I get to the end. I say, has anyone ever
28:47
taken God up on this amazing offer to have eternal
28:50
life that Christ paid for your sin and rose from
28:53
the dead? And in the back, I couldn't see it.
28:56
You hear this little voice going, aquí, señor,
28:58
aquí. You know, here, here, here. And so the
29:01
people kind of parted, and this little 11 -year
29:03
-old came up, and I said, hey, how you doing,
29:06
you know? And we're talking a little bit in Spanish.
29:07
He goes, I said, donde, when did you receive
29:09
Christ? Esa dia, señor. Cuando, remember over
29:12
at the aeropuerto? You mean when I just butchered
29:15
the gospel and didn't want you to be around and
29:16
said, beat it? Yeah. And you know what I learned?
29:21
Power's not in the messenger. Power is in the
29:23
message. It's not how cool you are. It's not
29:26
how hip you are. It's not how much you know.
29:28
It's not your personality. The power is in the
29:30
gospel. If you will share it, people trust Christ.
29:34
Because the Holy Spirit prepares them and the
29:36
Holy Spirit is speaking to them and God loves
29:38
them. He wants your mouth. He wants your heart.
29:41
He wants your hands. He wants your eyes. He just
29:43
wants you and me to love people and then to have
29:45
the courage to say, has anyone ever explained
29:47
to you how to have a personal relationship with
29:50
the God of heaven? Has anyone ever shared with
29:52
you how you can have eternal life that is actually
29:54
a gift? That's not about religiosity. It's not
29:57
about a moral code. It's not about philosophy.
29:59
That God actually loves you and he made you.
30:03
You know what you'll find? People will look at
30:05
you and go, no, no one ever has. Would you? And
30:08
then you'll think, well, I'm a failure and I
30:10
can't say it very well. And you'll think, great,
30:12
that's you and Peter. You're ready to roll. Question.
30:18
What's keeping you from sharing his message?
30:23
I mean, God placed you in a neighborhood. God
30:25
placed you in a home or with a roommate. He placed
30:28
you in a job or at least out looking for one.
30:33
And you are the answer to someone's biggest need,
30:37
their eternity. It's you. It's me. When you're
30:42
at 24 -hour or wherever you work out or when
30:45
you're sitting in a coffee shop or when you're
30:47
taking a walk with a dog in the neighborhood,
30:49
God's placing people all around you who the Spirit
30:53
of God has been preparing for a fellow failure
30:56
like you and me who maybe doesn't know all that
30:59
we should know. To hear the message of life.
31:06
Some of the reasons that people don't share is
31:07
one, your network. You need to be like the very
31:10
best friend to some people that believe absolutely
31:12
the opposite of what you believe and whose morality
31:15
is the opposite often of what you know is right
31:18
and they experience someone who loves them for
31:20
where they're at. You don't condone that stuff,
31:22
but they just scratch their head and think, man,
31:24
I know where you're coming from. Why would you
31:25
love me? Second, you need to have intentionality.
31:29
Some of us have a lot of Christian or non -Christian
31:31
acquaintances and you need some intentionality.
31:34
Where is this relationship going? And maybe you
31:37
give them a CD or you give them a book or you
31:39
have a conversation and you ask more questions.
31:41
Ask what they, where are you coming from and
31:43
why and care about them. Third is maybe it's
31:46
a confidence issue. Maybe you just don't really
31:49
believe the powers in the gospel. You think it's
31:50
all on you. And then finally, This is the one,
31:55
and I'm ashamed to admit this because after all
31:57
these years, it's just fear. The fear of man.
32:02
The Bible says the fear of man is a snare, but
32:04
blessed, happy is the person who trusts in the
32:07
Lord. I still have times where I realize this
32:10
is an opportunity and like I'm really afraid
32:13
of what this person's gonna think of me or to
32:15
be rejected. And then later I think, why? You're
32:21
telling someone there's a God who cares and loves
32:24
them, who died for them? So what is it? I mean,
32:27
and I realize it's just, Paul said he wasn't
32:31
ashamed. I think a lot of Christians are ashamed
32:34
of the gospel. They kind of want to have this
32:36
relationship over here, but you know, I don't
32:38
want to go too public with this. I'm glad someone
32:41
went public and told me, aren't you? Third, the
32:48
Holy Spirit. implanted eternal life of Jesus
32:52
within all who repented and believed Christ as
32:55
Lord and Messiah. Jesus' wisdom, first, he sends
33:00
the Holy Spirit. This phenomena occurs. Second,
33:04
he places in the mouth of this failure who's
33:06
uneducated this amazing message. And after he
33:09
gives this amazing message, he reminds us that
33:12
every one of us this week need to tell one person
33:14
about Jesus. At some point wherever you're at,
33:17
just tell one person that Jesus loves them and
33:20
cares for them and look for an opportunity as
33:23
ever short or long as that may go. And then third,
33:26
what happened was those people who heard the
33:30
message and repented, the word just means to
33:32
change your mind. Classical Greek, it meant just
33:34
intellectually to change your mind. By Koine
33:36
Greek, it meant to change your mind with the
33:38
sense of sorrow that led to a change of behavior.
33:41
So those people thought Jesus was just an itinerant
33:43
preacher. They need to change their mind. He's
33:46
the Messiah. He's the hope of the world. Repentance
33:49
is going down and thinking, my life goal is down
33:52
85 south. And you're driving 85 south and God
33:56
says, you know what? You got the wrong life goal.
33:59
It's 85 north. You know what repentance is? You
34:02
get off, go over the overpass. Now you're on
34:06
85 north. You do a U -turn. God brought some
34:10
of you in this room today to do a U -turn. And
34:16
whether you recognize it or not, you think success
34:18
or just that person or enough money or this or
34:21
that is gonna deliver the significance and security
34:23
and make you a somebody. And God's saying, I
34:27
brought you in this room to do a U -turn. I have
34:30
already made you a somebody and I love you and
34:33
I'll fill you with my spirit and I'll give you
34:35
life. But you gotta repent. You gotta change
34:39
your mind about me. You gotta turn from your
34:42
sin and you gotta believe and trust that what
34:44
I've done. And then what do you do? The Holy
34:48
Spirit gets implanted inside of you. And it's
34:50
the Spirit of Christ. In other words, before
34:52
it was, you know, Old Covenant, the Spirit, few
34:56
people now, it's every single person who believes,
34:59
the Holy Spirit comes and the very life of Jesus,
35:02
the life of Christ lives inside of you. And that's
35:05
why in parentheses, did you see in your notes,
35:07
what did I write? The eternal life of Christ.
35:10
See, if Jesus, the Spirit of Christ, is in you
35:14
and Jesus is eternal, you now have eternal life.
35:17
From the moment you trust in him forever and
35:21
ever and ever, what the scripture says is that
35:23
the moment you turn from your sin and trust in
35:25
him, you're justified by faith. And that means
35:29
all the sin in your column gets deleted and all
35:33
the righteousness of Christ gets imputed so that
35:36
the God of heaven, the Father, looks on you through
35:40
what Christ has done and you're righteous in
35:42
his sight. And you're born again. So you know
35:45
what's happened here? The church is born. The
35:49
church is born. In fact, listen. Listen to what
35:52
happens. Pick it up at verse 37. When the people
35:56
heard this, they were cut to the heart. Literally,
35:59
it means they were stung. It was like being stunned
36:02
with a gun. And they said to Peter and to the
36:06
other apostles, brothers, what shall we do? Peter
36:08
said, repent and be baptized every one of you
36:11
in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins
36:13
may be forgiven and you'll receive the gift of
36:15
the Holy Spirit. The promise is for you and your
36:19
children and for all who are far off, for all
36:22
whom the Lord our God will call. And then with
36:25
many other words, he warned them and he pleaded
36:26
with them, save yourselves from this corrupt
36:29
generation. And those who accepted his message
36:32
were baptized. And about 3 ,000 were added that
36:36
day. And so what happened was the church is born.
36:41
And if you have the spirit of God, you're a part
36:44
of this new thing called the church. Romans 8,
36:46
9 says, however, you're not in the flesh, but
36:49
in the spirit. If indeed the spirit of God dwells
36:51
in you. But if anyone does not have the spirit
36:54
of Christ, he doesn't belong to him. So if you
36:57
don't have the spirit of Christ living in you,
36:59
you don't belong to him. The second thing this
37:01
happened is this was the Spirit's baptism. Remember
37:03
he said, John will baptize with water, I will
37:06
baptize with the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul
37:09
would later look back and say, for by one Spirit
37:12
we are all baptized into one body, whether Jew
37:15
or Greek, whether slave or free, we were all
37:17
made to drink one Spirit. Baptism, the word,
37:20
has a literal meaning and a figurative meaning.
37:23
Literally, the word just means to immerse or
37:25
to dip. Figuratively, it means to identify with
37:29
someone. So if you were a non -Jew before all
37:32
of this happened at Pentecost, and say you were
37:34
a Gentile, and you met these Jews, and they said,
37:37
we serve the one true God, Yahweh. If you wanted
37:39
to become a Jew, you would come, you would actually
37:42
baptize yourself, saying my identity of my old
37:45
past, my old culture is gone. I now want to follow
37:47
and be a Jew. So when Peter is telling these
37:50
people, repent, change your mind, and Not that
37:54
baptism saved them. He's saying, your new identity,
37:57
you need to go public. And man, this would have
38:00
been huge for them. And so now they're going
38:03
to be baptized and have to declare that their
38:06
former thinking was wrong and they're going to
38:08
identify and literally be placed into this new
38:11
supernatural community called the church. Here's
38:15
the lesson. The lesson is that he that has the
38:18
son has life and he that has not the son of God
38:21
does not have life. This is so clear. The Apostle
38:28
Paul, I mean this intellectual, one secular historian
38:33
who wrote a history of mankind, describes the
38:37
Apostle Paul as the greatest intellect of that
38:40
century. And Paul would say in Galatians 2 .20,
38:44
I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live.
38:48
Yet not I, but Christ lives within me. And this
38:53
life that I now live, I live by faith in the
38:56
Son of God who loved me and gave himself for
38:59
me. So the question today is, do you have the
39:03
Son? Not do you intellectually believe in God.
39:07
Not are you a moral person. I got news for you.
39:10
Not is there some philosophy in Christianity
39:12
is one of the better ones. This is about relationship.
39:15
If you have the Son, you have life. If you don't
39:19
have the Son, you don't have life. It's that
39:23
simple and it's that clear. Later, John who wrote
39:26
that in 1 John 5, 11, 12 would talk about this
39:30
record. He said, these things I've written to
39:32
you so that you might know that you have eternal
39:35
life. God wants you to know. So let me ask you,
39:39
not do you quote believe in God, not are you
39:43
a good moral person. I mean, Peter was speaking
39:46
to a group of people that probably their morality
39:48
was just off the charts above most of ours. Do
39:52
you have the son? Because you can only be made
39:56
whole and perfect and forgiven in God's sight
40:01
by having the blood of Christ cover you and him
40:05
giving you as a gift the very righteousness of
40:08
Christ. I grew up in the church for 18 years.
40:12
Actually, I left when I was about 15 because
40:13
I couldn't take it. The hypocrisy, the junk,
40:17
the religiosity, the rules. The Christians I
40:21
met, unfortunately, were some of the worst people
40:23
I'd ever met. So I didn't think God even existed.
40:26
But when I began to explore what it really meant
40:28
to have a relationship with God instead of, quote,
40:30
church or Christianity and who Jesus really was,
40:33
I discovered the truth. And the truth is, God,
40:39
the Father, the Triune, God of all the universe
40:42
who made and created you and me and every human
40:45
being on the face of the earth, He loves us.
40:48
He's for you. He's not down on you. He loves
40:51
you and he sent his son to die in your place
40:53
and to prove it that he would rise from the dead
40:55
and he makes you an offer and the offer is eternal
40:59
life, the life of Jesus living inside of you.
41:04
Requirement on your part and mine, repent, turn,
41:07
empty hands of faith. Lord Jesus, I accept your
41:10
death payment for my sin, your resurrection,
41:13
the proof that it's true. Today, will you come
41:15
into my life? For me, that was 1972. Are you
41:22
100 % sure at this moment that you have the son?
41:27
And if not, could we just stop? I mean, I'll
41:29
get the fourth point. I'll knock it out quick.
41:33
But I have to believe God brought multiple people
41:35
in this room and the spirit of God is going,
41:37
you need the son. You need the son today. And
41:41
this is how your mind's going, oh man, if I need
41:44
the sun and I go this direction, that U -turn,
41:46
man, I got an addiction over here. I'm living
41:49
with someone over here. I got this issue going
41:50
over here and I've cheated over here. And tell
41:52
you what, God will clean up your life. Yours
41:55
is a, I'm turning from it. You don't have the
41:57
power to change. You ask the sun to come into
42:00
your life, forgive you for your sin. He'll give
42:03
you the strength with God's people to deal with
42:06
that stuff. Father, right now as we stop, you
42:09
know every person that you've brought because
42:11
you love them and you are prompting and speaking
42:14
deeply in their heart and life and something
42:17
inside of them is screaming despite all the conflict,
42:20
I want the son. I want eternal life. I need to
42:24
be forgiven. If that's you, just in your heart,
42:26
would you just pray along with me? And it's not
42:29
the words, it's you talking to God saying, dear
42:31
father, I admit today that I need you. I ask
42:38
today that you would forgive me for all my sins.
42:43
I believe and trust that you paid for my sin
42:46
by Christ's death. I believe and trust that his
42:52
resurrection proved that it's true. Will you
42:55
come into my life right now? Will you make me
42:59
your son, your daughter? Lord, thank you. Now
43:05
give me strength and courage to follow Jesus.
43:09
In Christ's name. Literally, millions of people
43:13
around the world, they prayed that prayer, they
43:16
were sincere, the Spirit of God came into their
43:18
life, and they heard somehow, that's it, that's
43:20
the big deal. That's not the big deal. That's
43:22
like going into labor and having your wife have
43:24
a baby and going, okay, we got that over with,
43:26
and you leave. I mean, the baby just got born.
43:29
When you're a spiritual baby, you need the milk
43:31
of God's word and the love of God's people. He's
43:34
got a life ahead of you. And by the way, can
43:36
I tell you something? Instead of that stuff you
43:38
hear on TV, it's really hard. Okay? It's really
43:42
hard and it's awesome. And it's really swimming
43:46
upstream. And it's blessed. And the joy is unspeakable.
43:53
And so, Once the Spirit of God, when you pray
43:56
and ask the Son to come into your life, He comes
43:58
into your life. And you're a new person. The
44:02
old has passed away. Everything becomes new.
44:03
But now you have to learn like a little baby
44:05
learns to walk and then learns to eat and then
44:07
learns to grow. He's going to conform you. He's
44:10
going to make you like Jesus. Five years from
44:12
now, your friends will go, what happened to you?
44:15
You used to be a selfish creep like the rest
44:17
of us. I mean, you hit it well. You were very
44:20
sophisticated, and you went to a great school,
44:21
so you hit it really well, but you were a selfish
44:23
creep like all of us, and you care for people
44:26
that no one cares about. Leads us to point number
44:30
four. Jesus' spiritual body began doing what
44:33
he did when he walked on the earth in his physical
44:36
body. See, that's the game plan. The genius,
44:40
the wisdom of God was when Jesus walked on the
44:43
earth, he not only revealed what God was like,
44:48
here's a need and he meets the need and here's
44:50
some people that need fed and he feeds them and
44:51
here's some truth and he gives the truth and
44:53
he lived and he loved in such a way and the wisdom
44:57
was, I'm gonna leave and go to the Father and
45:00
the Spirit of God is gonna come inside every
45:04
believer so we're not gonna have one Jesus, we're
45:07
gonna have a thousand and then a million and
45:09
then five million, then 20 million, then 30 million
45:11
and you know what their job is? Their job is
45:14
to stay connected to the Father and keep their
45:16
heart tender so we would live the way Jesus lived
45:19
and we would do what Jesus did when he was here.
45:23
So, basically, we're his spiritual body. And
45:26
that's why Jesus said the last night on the earth,
45:29
you will do greater works than I did. Not quantitatively,
45:33
but qualitatively. If you're a Christ follower
45:37
and his spirit lives in you, Jesus lives in your
45:39
house. That means he's at your work. That means
45:42
he's in your neighborhood. You are the light
45:44
of the world. Well, how does it work? Here's
45:48
how it works. What did they do? They did bio.
45:51
They didn't call it that then. What did Jesus
45:55
do when he was walking on the earth? He got before
45:58
God, didn't he? He went to the temple and he
46:01
worshiped. He said, I need to do life in community.
46:04
Even the son of man. So he had 12 guys that he
46:07
did life with. They didn't have some little Bible
46:09
studies. It wasn't like, well, Peter, what answer
46:12
did you get for question four? I mean, they're
46:15
doing life. And it was, you know, Lord, I'm struggling
46:17
with this. My mother -in -law is making me crazy.
46:19
And I'm really tempted with lust. And what do
46:20
I do with that? And Jesus would say, come on,
46:22
let's get in here, guys. And he taught them.
46:25
And then they're on mission. Okay, you guys ready?
46:27
You've learned enough. Two by two by two. Ready?
46:29
Go for it. You go to those towns before I get
46:31
there. And here's the power. I'll be right behind
46:33
you. They lived before God, they did life in
46:36
community, and they were flat on on mission.
46:39
Look at verse 42. They just began to do what
46:42
he did while he was alive. They devoted themselves
46:45
to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship
46:47
and to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Before
46:50
God, in community, the word fellowship, we get
46:53
koinonia. Apostles teaching the word before God.
46:58
They prayed. They're having meals together. This
47:03
wasn't some religious group. These were people
47:04
who were doing relationship with an eternal God
47:07
living inside of them. Everyone was filled with
47:11
a sense of awe and many wonders and miraculous
47:13
signs were being done by the apostles and all
47:15
the believers were together. And they had everything
47:18
in common, selling their possessions and goods
47:20
and they gave as anyone had need. And every day
47:23
they continued to meet together in the temple
47:25
courts. This wasn't like a once a week duty.
47:27
I mean, they're doing life together. And not
47:30
just big meetings. They broke bread together
47:31
in their homes and they ate together. How? With
47:33
glad and sincere hearts and they're praising
47:35
God and thanking God and enjoying the favor of
47:38
all the people. Non -Christians liked them. They
47:41
weren't known for what they were against. They
47:43
were known for how loving they were. And then
47:46
notice at the very end, and the Lord added to
47:48
their number daily, those that were being saved.
47:54
How did it happen? It was the Spirit's filling
47:57
ministry. They're filled with the Spirit. We'll
48:03
develop this later. The baptism of the Spirit
48:06
is a one -time event that occurs when you put
48:09
your faith in Christ, pray to ask Him to come
48:11
into your life, and you're baptized or placed
48:13
in the body of Christ. The filling of the Spirit
48:16
happens multiple times. In fact, in Ephesians
48:18
5 .18 where it says, do not be drunk with wine
48:20
for that's dissipation, but be filled with the
48:22
Spirit. Don't think of a cup and water being
48:25
poured in it. Think of a sponge that is filled
48:28
with something so when you push on the sponge,
48:30
it's what comes out. The word filling here means,
48:32
but be controlled by the Spirit. Allow the Word
48:35
of God and the truth of God and the Spirit to
48:37
have His way so that instead of being selfish
48:40
and self -centered and right -centered, you become
48:43
like this group. They were generous. They were
48:46
kind. They were sharing. Why? Because it was
48:49
the spirit of Christ living in them and the life
48:52
of Christ living through them. So they were filled
48:55
with the spirit. We're commanded to do that.
48:58
Here's the lesson is God's agenda for his people
49:03
has not changed and his power is no less available
49:06
today than it was then. But if I could give me
49:10
and you a gift, it would be that we would actually
49:12
believe that. But you will receive power when
49:15
the Holy Spirit has come upon you, Jesus said.
49:17
And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea,
49:20
Samaria, to the uttermost parts of the earth.
49:22
We're sitting in this room today because people
49:26
actually believed it and did it and many of them
49:28
gave their lives throughout the centuries. Now
49:31
think about this. Just do the math. God, the
49:36
Holy Spirit, raised Christ from the dead. God,
49:41
the Holy Spirit, when you prayed to receive Christ,
49:45
entered your mortal body. Now, he doesn't necessarily
49:50
have control. You can shut him off and you can
49:52
quench it. But if you'll let him, as you renew
49:55
your mind with his word, as you do life in community
49:57
with people, he will fill you and give you the
50:00
same supernatural power that the early disciples
50:03
had. And he then has an agenda for you. I mean,
50:07
isn't life more than just being successful and
50:09
being self -fulfilled and getting a good job
50:11
and being upwardly mobile and hoping everything
50:13
turns out and only to get to the end of your
50:15
life and go, I worked really hard, I did this,
50:17
I had this crazy schedule, I did this, my kids
50:19
got in these schools, I finally got married,
50:21
you know what, I got buffed up in my body and
50:23
I had money for surgeries later when I got older
50:25
so I still look kind of good and, you know, I'm
50:27
crazy and I'm either plugging or watching or
50:29
doing and get to be like 80 years old and go,
50:32
man, what a waste. This was all supposed to bring
50:35
security and fulfillment and joy. And I had to
50:39
have pills to get up and pills to go to sleep.
50:43
Do you really want to do that? Or do you want
50:47
to do what God made you to do and placed you
50:49
on this planet to do, to change the world? Well,
50:53
what's your dream? Shouldn't you have something
50:55
where... If the spirit that raised Christ from
50:57
the dead is inside of you, shouldn't you expect
51:00
him to do something supernatural in you and supernatural
51:02
through you that you would like Peter to go,
51:04
I can't believe this happened to a regular person
51:06
like me. What's your dream? I want to challenge
51:10
you. If you don't have one, ask God. As we close,
51:13
let me share mine with you. I have a dream, Lord,
51:18
that one day churches will be filled with warm,
51:20
caring, non -legalistic, non -self -righteous,
51:23
authentic, passionate followers of Jesus. That
51:27
the broken, the irreligious, the fallen, the
51:29
different, and the unlovely would be welcomed
51:31
there. That churches would measure success not
51:34
by the size of their budgets, the numbers in
51:38
their flock, or the beauty of their buildings,
51:40
but by the depth of their love. I'm dreaming
51:43
the day when Christians would stay married when
51:46
times are tough, when forgiveness is sought and
51:48
granted, and predictable struggles would result
51:50
in humbly coming to God and his word, and a wise
51:54
brother or sister for wisdom and help. I'm dreaming
51:57
of a day when parents model holiness and purity
51:59
and set boundaries for their children to protect
52:02
them from the seductive world system that promises
52:04
everything and delivers death. I'm dreaming of
52:07
a day when parents eat together and laugh and
52:09
tell stories of God's love at bedtime, tickle
52:12
each other to tears, spill popcorn on the floor,
52:15
pray about tests and lost friends and lost neighbors,
52:18
and make their house the most exciting, fun place
52:21
to be on the block. I'm dreaming of a day when
52:23
Christians know their neighbors' names and eat
52:25
hamburgers in the backyard, a day when we're
52:28
known by our love. I'm dreaming of a day when
52:30
churches work together to paint schools and clean
52:32
parks and build houses in the tough parts of
52:35
town and refuse to care who gets the credit.
52:38
I'm dreaming of a day when Christians will be
52:40
known. for what we're for more than what we're
52:43
against. A day when prayer would be viewed as
52:45
more powerful than politics and the people would
52:48
be valued and treated with dignity even if what
52:51
they believe is antithetical to all that we stand
52:54
for. I'm dreaming of a day when Christians would
52:58
cease to be so concerned about being cool and
53:01
hip and cutting edge and relevant and simply
53:04
be consistent and caring and committed to be
53:07
like Jesus and do what he says. I'm dreaming
53:10
of a day when nine out of 10 Christians would
53:13
think it abnormal and strange if they didn't
53:17
come before God daily, do life in community,
53:20
and be on mission 24 -7. This is a dream I can't
53:24
shake. It's a dream that Christians everywhere
53:26
in every culture, in every church, in every expression
53:28
of Christ's church would simply live like Christians.
53:33
Maybe it's because it isn't my dream at all.
53:36
Is Jesus divine? will and prayer for his church.
53:40
It's what he meant when he taught us to pray.
53:44
May thy will be done and thy kingdom come on
53:48
earth as it is in heaven. You're listening to
53:54
Living on the Edge with Chip Ingram and a series
53:57
called The Jesus Revolution. Join the movement.
54:00
Remember, you can revisit or share these messages
54:02
anytime by going to livingontheedge .org. And
54:07
speaking of joining the movement, Chip has some
54:09
exciting details on the mid -year match that's
54:12
just begun coming up in a moment. And by the
54:15
way, to make sure you don't miss any of Chip's
54:17
daily broadcasts, Monday through Friday, be sure
54:20
to subscribe to the Living on the Edge podcast
54:22
or find the Chip Ingram Sermon podcast for his
54:25
complete messages wherever you listen. As we
54:29
heard today, the early church sold what they
54:31
had. ate together, prayed daily, and looked out
54:34
for one another in ways that left the people
54:36
around them speechless and lost people noticed.
54:39
They weren't known for their positions or their
54:42
arguments. They were known for their love. That
54:45
picture in Acts chapter 2 isn't an idealized
54:49
past we can only read about. It's the template.
54:52
It's what Jesus intended the church to be all
54:55
along. And Chip's challenge today is really a
54:58
question. Does any of that describe the community
55:00
you belong to? Well, that question is worth sitting
55:04
with. And here's Chip with a vision for the kind
55:06
of community Living on the Edge exists to help
55:09
build and how your gift this June makes it possible.
55:13
Maybe you look at the culture and you feel kind
55:16
of a quiet despair. The world seems to be unraveling
55:19
fast and you wonder, is the church up for the
55:22
challenge? Well, here's what I want you to see.
55:25
The early church didn't launch into a friendly,
55:28
welcoming world. They launched into the Roman
55:30
Empire, a culture of power, corruption, sexual
55:34
immorality, and violence. Sound familiar? And
55:38
yet God used the early church to turn that world
55:40
upside down, not with political muscle, not with
55:43
cultural influence, but in the power of the Holy
55:47
Spirit and a willingness to live differently.
55:50
Radically committed people who said Jesus and
55:54
Jesus alone matters more than anything, more
55:58
than my life, more than my political party, more
56:01
than my nationality. Jesus, I will be loyal to
56:05
with all my heart, all my soul, and all my mind.
56:09
That's the message of the Jesus Revolution. Rome
56:12
didn't stop the early church, and this culture
56:14
won't stop this one. I believe that with all
56:17
my heart. And if you believe that too, then here's
56:20
my question. Will you join the movement by giving
56:23
to us this June and allowing the Word of God
56:26
to go forth here and all around the world? Help
56:29
Living on the Edge shout from the rooftops that
56:32
the Jesus Revolution is an unstoppable force
56:35
and that God is and will use it to change the
56:38
world. Don't miss out. The early church gave
56:42
radically because they believed in something
56:44
bigger than themselves. If that conviction is
56:47
alive in you right now, act on it. This is our
56:50
mid -year match, and every dollar given this
56:52
month is doubled by a group of partners who believe
56:55
in exactly what Chip just described. Go online
56:58
to livingontheedge .org or call us at 888 -333
57:03
-6003. Well, I'm Dave Drewy. Join us next time
57:07
as Chip Ingram continues studying the Jesus Revolution
57:10
right here on Living on the Edge. Today's program
57:17
is produced and sponsored by Living on the Edge.