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Acts 28 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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Please take out your copy of God's Word and turn to the book of Acts chapter 28.
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While you're getting there, let me just say a few unscripted things about music.
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I appreciate Jordan kind of prompted this in my mind as he talked about how we don't come together to praise performance,
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but to praise the living God.
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Particularly if you're new to us, the way we do music on a Sunday morning
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may feel strange to you.
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And I just want it not to.
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I think the way we do music on a Sunday morning,
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and this is not me saying that we're more right than anybody else,
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but I think it ought to feel familiar to Christian people.
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When you go in amongst other Christian people to sing songs to God,
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I think it ought to feel more the same.
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And I don't mean lead from a guitar with a banjo and keys or any of that.
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I'm not talking about style and preferences of style.
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I'm talking about content.
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So we have a criteria for the songs that we sing together on Sunday morning,
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and that is as follows.
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First, the songs are true.
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So we want songs to be lined up with the truth of Scripture.
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In your time singing with us, if the words are odd to you,
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if the strangeness of it rings out,
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you probably don't read your Bible enough.
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Because the songs we sing are Scripture-saturated.
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There's so many direct Bible references in the songs that we sing together.
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So the songs need to be true.
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The next criteria is that the songs need to be deep.
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Now, I'm okay with a good repetitious chorus.
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Please know that.
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There may be a really great time for that.
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But we have a limited amount of time together.
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So how much depth of truth can we pack into our time?
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So most of the songs, not all,
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but most of the songs we sing together are wordy.
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And they're wordy for that reason.
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We want you to know the truth so that you can be changed by the truth.
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Have it dwell deeply within you.
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I'm really horrible at remembering song lyrics.
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I hope you're not like me in that way.
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But I will get a tune stuck in my head on a Sunday morning,
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which will force me to go look up the lyrics so that I can sing it,
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not just hum the same thing over and over and over again in my head,
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which presses me to biblical truth.
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And typically what I tend to do is go,
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oh, that's a reference.
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I know that's a reference.
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I've read it somewhere.
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And I begin to look up all the references that are found in this great hymn
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that gets stuck in my head.
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So songs should be true and they should be deep.
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And then lastly, they should be singable, right?
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Which is just really practical.
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We want to be able to sing songs together.
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And so I appreciate, if you've been here with us for a while,
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you know Wes and Liz Shelnut led us for many years
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and they've just recently moved to Utah.
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But the guys that have stepped in are doing the same thing.
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They're not trying to amaze us with their musical talent.
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And they have musical talent.
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But simply leading us to sing songs together.
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So true, deep, and singable.
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That's why we don't turn the music up too loud.
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There's a time and a place for a rock concert.
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I enjoy it as much as the next person.
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But you need to hear your neighbor.
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That's why we keep the lights on and we have windows.
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I didn't build the building, but we didn't cover them up.
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You'll note.
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We left them that we might sing and rejoice together
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and be God's people together, praising God in song.
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So, brief and off script.
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I want to encourage you though to join us and to sing well with us.
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Our text for today is Acts chapter 28, verses 1 through 16.
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We're getting very close to the end of our verse-by-verse exposition of the book of Acts.
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This will be my last sermon in Acts next week.
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Clay is going to finish it up for us.
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And this morning, as I did the last little bit of note preparation,
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I took this stack of commentaries that's been living for the last...
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Anybody know off the top how long we've been in the book of Acts?
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A year and a half?
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Does it seem about?
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Something like that?
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I took it and I put them all up on my shelf.
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There's this weird void on my desk right now that will soon get filled with other commentaries.
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But I'm grieving it a little bit this morning to leave the book of Acts.
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So, let's wring it out together.
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Before we read the text, you need a sweeping summary to get us to where we are in Luke's second narrative.
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So, beginning...
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We'll go back to chapter 21.
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We've observed Paul's arrest in Jerusalem, his various trials before various prominent men,
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his exercise of his Roman right to appeal to Caesar.
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So, he makes this appeal to go to the highest court as a Roman citizen.
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They grant that to him.
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So, his departure from Caesarea for Rome via a ship.
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And then we saw last week in chapter 27 this storm that leads to this shipwreck.
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On the island of Malta.
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So, our text today picks that story up as Paul and the other 275 souls that were on the ship are washed up on the beach.
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Before we read, beloved, this is God's word to us.
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It was written for his glory and for our good.
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Which means we would all do well to listen to it in order to believe its promises and obey its commands.
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Acts chapter 28, beginning in verse 1.
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After we were brought safely through, we then learned that the island was called Malta.
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The native people showed us unusual kindness for they kindled a fire and welcomed us all because it had begun to rain and was cold.
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When Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and put them on the fire, a viper came out and because of the heat and fastened on his hand.
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When the native people saw the creature hanging from his hand, they said to one another,
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No doubt this man is a murderer.
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Though he escaped from the sea, justice has not allowed him to live.
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He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
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They were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly fall down dead.
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But when they had waited a long time and saw no misfortune come to him, they changed their minds and said that he was a god.
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Now in the neighborhood of that place were lands belonging to the chief man of the island named Publius,
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who received and entertained us hospitably for three days.
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It happened that the father of Publius lay sick for fever and dysentery.
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And Paul visited him and prayed and putting his hands on him, healed him.
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And when this had taken place, the rest of the people on the island who had diseases also came and were cured.
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They also honored us greatly.
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And when we were about to sail, they put on board whatever we needed.
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After three months, we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island,
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a ship of Alexandria with the twin gods as a figurehead.
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Putting in at Syracuse, we stayed there for three days.
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And from there, we made a circuit and arrived at Regium.
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And after one day, a south wind sprang up.
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And on the second day, we came to Pute...
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Excuse me.
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I practiced this one.
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Puteoli.
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There we found brothers and were invited to stay with them for seven days.
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And so we came to Rome.
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And the brothers there, when they heard about us,
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came as far as the Forum of Appius and three taverns to meet us.
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On seeing them, Paul thanked God and took courage.
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And when we came into Rome, Paul was allowed to stay by himself with the soldier who guarded him.
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So for many chapters now, we've been waiting for this fulfilled promise that Jesus spoke to Paul and said,
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you will arrive at Rome.
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You must speak the gospel in Rome.
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And so we see that promise fulfilled here.
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But before we get into any part of this text, which I find meaningful for us this morning,
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we must first address the incident with the snake and then the healings that are happening on the island as well.
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We must ask about such implications of these kinds of events for our day.
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So what's the deal, right, with Paul gets bit by this venomous snake?
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Interestingly, there are no venomous snakes on the island of Malta today,
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but that doesn't mean that there weren't in that day.
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The people there seem to be convinced that he's going to die as a result of this particular snake bite.
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Nothing happens to him.
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He shakes it off into the fire.
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And then he goes and heals Publius' father.
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And the record is the rest of the people on the island who had diseases.
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So it would seem that at least for a period of time that the island of Malta was entirely disease-free.
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How does that apply to us today?
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Are there a whole spectrum of beliefs concerning the present nature of spiritual gifts?
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Are the gifts of prophecy and healing and tongues still active today?
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And I'll tell you honestly,
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that's a question I thought that I was going to have to answer definitively as we preach through Acts.
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And if you've been with us, you'll know that I have not.
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So I'm going to get into it a little bit more this morning to clear the field for you.
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But to simplify the matter, let's just consider healing, right?
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Which is what we see happen in our text today.
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Just consider healing this morning.
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Now, in the spectrum of beliefs,
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there are two most commonly held beliefs with some variations of them in between.
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They range from what are called continuationists.
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I think all of these gifts are still active today, right?
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Continuationists, the gifts have continued.
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To cessationists, which means they've ceased.
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Those gifts have ceased.
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So cessationists all the way to continuationists.
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And then just about every little variance you can think of in between
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someone has held at some point in history.
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Cessationists will say that the gifts of prophecy and healing in tongues ceased when the apostolic age ceased.
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As they were used, those gifts were used to validate the message that the apostles taught.
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You remember that the early church did not have the New Testament scriptures.
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They had the Old Testament.
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They had the text that attested to Christ's coming, right?
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But they did not have the New Testament that gave the full expression of his coming,
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told the story of his coming,
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and walked out for us the way we're meant to live in light of his coming.
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And so the apostles, these gifts accompanied them.
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We know for sure they accompanied them to give affirmation to the words that they taught.
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But did they stop when the apostolic age ceased to exist?
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Cessationists base their belief on a couple of texts.
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For me, the ones that are most convincing begin in 2 Corinthians 12.12.
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Well, Paul writes,
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The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience,
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with signs and wonders and mighty works.
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So Paul is saying,
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Paul, as an apostle, is saying,
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The signs of an apostle, a true apostle, were performed amongst you.
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Now, an apostle is someone who had walked with Jesus,
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had seen him after his resurrection,
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and were personally charged by Jesus to be an apostle.
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So, not just anybody that lived around Jesus and saw him after his resurrection.
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There's others in the scripture who are called disciples.
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Acts chapter 1, we see a group of disciples gathered.
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The apostles were a very specific group of men who met these criteria,
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walked with Jesus, seen him after his resurrection,
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and they were commissioned.
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Jesus said to them,
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You are an apostle.
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So, these gifts accompany these men to give affirmation to them and to their teaching.
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We can also look at Hebrews chapter 2, verses 1 through 4.
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The writer of Hebrews says,
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Therefore, we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard,
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lest we drift away from it.
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For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable,
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and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,
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how shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?
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It was declared at first by the Lord,
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and it was attested to us by those who heard, apostles,
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while God also bore witness by signs and wonders and various miracles,
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and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.
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So, the writer of Hebrews says the same thing.
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This message of salvation declared first by Christ,
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attested to us by those who heard,
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he's referring specifically to the apostles there,
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God gave witness to their witness in accompanying it with signs.
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Now, here's the challenge of cessationism.
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The Bible nowhere definitively says that the gift of healing or tongues or prophecy will cease.
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This definitively suggests, but doesn't definitively say that anywhere.
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However, we do only ever observe the apostles' healing.
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Consider that in the book of Acts.
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We don't see a record as it concerns healing of anybody other than an apostle healing.
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And because of these things, right, the evidences of this,
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and because throughout church history,
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the largely held view of the church has been that of cessationism.
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In fact, continuationism has really been on the rise in the past hundred years,
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but prior to that, at least most Baptist confessions were cessationist.
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But because it doesn't definitively say that the gifts stop,
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this is where I'm at.
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So, you ready?
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I'm priming you to know where I stand on the matter,
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at least for right now.
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I like to call myself a cautiously open cessationist.
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How about that?
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It's kind of like saying I'm a cessationist.
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Sort of that way.
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Which means I hold the cessationist view generally,
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but I'm willing to be wrong,
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and I'm willing to be shown that I'm wrong.
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But I'm going to do so with a great deal of skepticism and care
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in hearing about the telling of things that have happened,
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supposedly in the name of our Lord.
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Now, wherever you may be on the matter,
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possibly just confused,
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and there's a really brief presentation of those things,
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here's what I think becomes more important for us.
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Two things that I believe that we can know.
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With a confidence, we can know.
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Number one,
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the apostles did not go about seeking to heal people.
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This wasn't the thrust of their ministry.
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They seized opportunities when they were presented to them,
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but they didn't have, quote-unquote, healing ministries.
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They didn't hold, quote-unquote, healing services.
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This was not the thrust of what they were doing.
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What was the thrust of what they were doing?
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Preaching the good news of Jesus Christ, right?
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That's what they did, right?
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Their mission statement for their organization,
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I don't think would have even included healing.
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They would have been all about the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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Let me show you some places,
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just to Acts chapter 3, verses 1 through 8.
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This is the first healing that we see in the book of Acts.
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Now, Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer.
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Instead of going up to pray, the ninth hour.
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And a man lame from birth was being carried,
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whom they had laid daily at the gate of the temple,
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that is called the beautiful gate,
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to ask alms of those entering the temple.
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Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple,
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he asked to receive alms.
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So he just simply says,
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Can I have some money?
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And Peter directed his gaze at him,
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as did John, and said,
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Look at us.
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And he fixed his attention on them,
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expecting to receive something from them.
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But Peter said,
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I have no silver and gold,
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but what I do have I give to you
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in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
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Rise up and walk.
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So he seizes this opportunity,
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verse 7,
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and he took him by the right hand and raised him up,
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and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong.
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And leaping up,
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and he stood and began to walk and entered the temple with him,
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walking and leaping and praising God.
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And we'll talk about what happens next in just a moment.
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So again,
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seizes an opportunity,
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but doesn't go out seeking to do this activity.
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And then in our text today,
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Acts 28,
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verse 8,
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Luke says,
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It happened that the father,
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right?
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So they're invited to stay with this man named Publius,
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and his father is sick.
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And after he heals him,
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what happens?
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People keep showing up
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and want to be healed.
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And Paul obliges.
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So,
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they didn't go about seeking it.
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Secondly,
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when someone was healed,
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the gospel was always preached.
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When someone was healed,
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the gospel was always preached.
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Remember,
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healings were just meant to give credibility
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to the message that was being preached.
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And so you'll find today,
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if you want to fall into the black hole,
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people of YouTube,
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type in miracle healings,
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and start paying attention to what's happening,
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recorded,
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many,
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now I'm not,
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I haven't gotten too deep into that black hole,
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but many of those things
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are not accompanied by gospel proclamation at all.
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Not at all.
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When someone was healed,
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the gospel was always preached.
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Now,
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Luke doesn't make record of that reality in this passage,
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which could trouble you.
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But there's a really clear pattern of this
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throughout the book of Acts.
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And we've seen this pattern together.
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I've talked about it on multiple occasions.
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Let me give you a few examples
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in case you've forgotten that
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or you just haven't been with us
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for the entirety of our study.
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So,
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going on in Acts chapter 3,
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the story we just read about the lame beggar.
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Peter heals the lame beggar,
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and a crowd gathers,
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verses 11 through 26,
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and because of this,
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right,
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this man is leaping,
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everybody recognizes him,
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says he was laid daily
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at this gate called beautiful.
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Everyone recognizes this man who was lame,
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who's now miraculously jumping around.
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And what does Peter do?
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He preaches the gospel.
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He gathers a crowd,
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and he preaches the gospel of Jesus Christ.
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Acts chapter 5,
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verses 12 through 14,
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Luke records this for us.
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Now many signs and wonders
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were regularly done among the people
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by the hands of the apostles.
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And they were all together
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in Solomon's portico.
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None of the rest dared join them,
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but the people held them in high esteem.
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And then verse 14 says,
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And more than ever,
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believers were added to the Lord
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multitudes of both men and women.
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How were they added?
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By believing in the gospel preached.
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Right?
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They were believing the gospel
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that was being preached
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as they're also performing
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signs and miracles.
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Another example,
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Acts chapter 14,
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beginning in verse 8 and following.
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Now at Lystra,
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there was a man sitting
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who could not use his feet.
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He was crippled from birth
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and had never walked.
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He listened to Paul speaking.
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He's already preaching the gospel.
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And Paul,
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looking intently at him
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and seeing that he had faith
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to be made well,
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said in a loud voice,
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Stand upright on your feet.
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And he sprang up
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and began walking.
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And when the crowd saw
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what Paul had done,
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they lifted up their voices,
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saying in Lithuanian,
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The gods have come down to us
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in the likeness of men.
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Barnabas they called Zeus
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and Paul Hermes
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because he was the chief speaker.
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And the priest of Zeus,
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whose temple was at the entrance
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to the city,
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brought oxen and garlands
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to the gates
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and wanted to offer sacrifices
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with the crowds.
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But when the apostles
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Barnabas and Paul
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heard of it,
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they tore their garments
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and rushed out into the crowd,
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crying out,
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Men, why are you doing
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these things?
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We also are men
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of like nature with you.
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And we bring you,
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what?
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Good news.
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The gospel.
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That you should turn
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from these vain things
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to a living God
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who made the heaven
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and the earth
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and the sea
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and all that is in them.
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So at Lystra,
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they healed a man
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and they preached
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the gospel.
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So we should not go about
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seeking to heal people,
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but we should go about
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preaching the good news
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of Jesus Christ.
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And I'm really comfortable
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with that,
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whether cessationism
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or continuationism
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or something in between
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and it's the proper view.
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Whether I've got it right
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or not,
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I'm really comfortable
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seeing clearly
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that what we ought
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to be focusing
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our attention on
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is going about
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preaching the gospel
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of Jesus Christ.
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We ought to seek
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to see the most
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miraculous of things
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that has ever happened.
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Dead people,
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brought to life,
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cold hearts,
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warmed to God
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through His preached word.
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Don't neglect that.
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When somebody places
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believing faith
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in Jesus Christ,
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it is more miraculous
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than a lame man
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from birth
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being able to walk
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because God has changed
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their heart.
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It's an incredible thing
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that people gather
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to hear God's word preached.
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All of you,
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little miracles
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this morning,
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here,
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using your Sunday morning
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for this rather
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than something else.
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So,
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these are the things
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that we can know
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about this type
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of stuff happening.
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Someday,
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maybe one of you
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will prove me wrong
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and I'll be glad
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to hear your story.
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Now,
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Luke has been so careful
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to record
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gospel proclamation
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as the point of healing.
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Why doesn't he do so
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in today's text?
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It bothered me
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a little bit.
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Why did he not
22:19
do it in today's text?
22:20
Now,
22:21
I contend
22:21
that the gospel
22:22
did get proclaimed,
22:24
that it did,
22:24
in fact,
22:25
happen,
22:25
not only because
22:26
we've seen it patterned,
22:27
but church tradition
22:28
also holds
22:29
that a church
22:30
began on Malta
22:31
while Paul
22:31
and his companions
22:32
were there.
22:34
Traditions say
22:34
that a church
22:35
began when
22:36
he was there
22:37
and the wonderful
22:38
fruit of the gospel
22:39
being preached
22:39
is that churches
22:40
begin.
22:42
So,
22:42
why does Luke
22:44
not make that
22:45
the big deal?
22:46
That's what he does
22:47
all throughout
22:48
the book of Acts,
22:49
right?
22:49
He's all about
22:50
telling us the story,
22:52
right?
22:52
The second account
22:54
of his,
22:54
of the risen Christ
22:56
working by the power
22:57
of his spirit
22:58
in the lives
22:59
of the apostles,
23:00
primarily Peter
23:01
at the beginning,
23:01
now Paul
23:02
is the main character,
23:04
right?
23:04
Proclaiming the gospel
23:05
of Jesus Christ,
23:06
people coming to faith,
23:07
churches beginning.
23:08
Why does he not
23:10
make that the big deal
23:11
of this three months
23:12
spent on Malta?
23:17
Believing that Luke
23:18
wrote this account
23:19
under the inspiration
23:20
of the Holy Spirit,
23:20
we must believe
23:22
that there is
23:23
something else
23:24
that our attention
23:24
is meant to be
23:25
drawn to.
23:26
And I believe,
23:28
at least today,
23:29
at least in part,
23:31
it's meant to be
23:31
drawn to two things
23:33
from this text.
23:33
Number one,
23:35
hospitality,
23:36
and number two,
23:38
justice.
23:45
Number one,
23:46
hospitality,
23:47
number two,
23:48
justice.
23:48
So let's take a brief
23:48
look at these two
23:49
things this morning.
23:51
First,
23:52
hospitality.
23:53
Note the hospitality
23:55
of unbelievers.
23:59
Verse two,
24:01
the native people
24:02
showed us unusual kindness
24:04
for they kindled the fire
24:05
and welcomed us all
24:07
because it began to rain
24:08
and was cold.
24:10
And then verse seven,
24:11
now in the neighborhood
24:12
of that place,
24:13
the general area
24:14
of that place
24:15
where lands belong
24:15
to the chief man
24:17
of the island
24:17
named Publius
24:18
who received us
24:19
and entertained us
24:20
hospitably
24:21
for three days.
24:23
And then verse 10,
24:24
so notice the theme
24:25
working through
24:27
Luke's narrative.
24:28
Verse 10,
24:29
they also honored us
24:30
greatly and when
24:31
we were about to sail,
24:32
this is three months later,
24:33
they put on board
24:34
whatever we needed
24:36
for that journey.
24:38
So the 276 castaways
24:40
were shown
24:41
unusual kindness
24:43
as they were cared for
24:44
immediately
24:45
with a fire.
24:47
Think about the time
24:48
that they're traveling in.
24:50
It's past the fast.
24:51
We saw that last week.
24:52
This is going to be
24:53
late September.
24:54
It's starting to get cold.
24:55
It's starting to get windy.
24:56
They've just been
24:57
in the ocean.
24:58
They're all sputtering
25:00
up onto the beach
25:01
and the native people,
25:03
the people of the area,
25:04
build a fire for them.
25:06
And then they were hosted
25:07
for three days,
25:08
hospitably,
25:09
Luke says,
25:10
so probably very generously,
25:12
by Publius,
25:14
who was the Roman governor
25:16
of Malta.
25:18
And let us not miss
25:19
that they wintered
25:21
on the island.
25:22
So we see that they were there
25:23
for three months,
25:25
so they must have been
25:26
hosted further.
25:28
And so they stay
25:28
at Publius' house
25:29
for three days.
25:30
He hosts 276 people.
25:32
I imagine at some point
25:33
he said,
25:34
okay, that's a lot of people
25:35
to be at my house.
25:36
But then they had to go
25:37
somewhere for the following
25:39
three months, right?
25:40
They're wintering there.
25:41
It's getting very cold
25:42
and very harsh.
25:44
And so people of the island
25:46
must have put them up
25:48
for that time.
25:50
Now, I believe that many
25:51
of the people of Malta
25:52
were saved in this time, right?
25:54
Because church history holds
25:55
a church was started there.
25:56
Healing was happening.
25:58
Paul must have been preaching
25:59
the gospel of Jesus Christ.
26:01
So the line between
26:03
unbelieving hospitality
26:05
and believing hospitality
26:07
may be a bit blurry, right?
26:10
Maybe a mixture of the two.
26:13
But all the same,
26:15
the people of Malta
26:16
just may put you and I
26:18
to shame in keeping
26:19
the command to hospitality.
26:22
Here's a few of those commands.
26:25
We're to show hospitality
26:26
to one another.
26:27
Romans chapter 12,
26:29
verse 13.
26:30
Paul says,
26:31
contribute to the needs
26:32
of the saints
26:33
and seek to show hospitality.
26:36
Peter writes in 1 Peter 4, 9,
26:38
show hospitality
26:39
to one another
26:41
without grumbling.
26:42
So what is hospitality?
26:46
What are we talking about
26:48
when we say that?
26:49
It's the making someone
26:51
feel welcome.
26:53
So we could do that
26:54
on a Sunday morning here
26:55
in our gathering together
26:57
for people to feel welcome.
26:58
We have a hospitality team
27:00
which predominantly makes coffee.
27:03
But I feel very welcome
27:04
when there's coffee
27:05
ready to go for me
27:06
when I meet with someone.
27:08
They're the crew that scrambles
27:10
and tries to help you with seats.
27:12
Everyone in the back.
27:14
Somebody, I hope,
27:14
helped you with seats
27:15
this morning.
27:17
We can show hospitality
27:17
to our neighbors, right?
27:19
Inviting them over for dinner.
27:22
Somebody knocks on your door
27:23
unexpectedly.
27:25
You don't slam the door
27:25
back in their face
27:26
and go clean the house up
27:27
real quick.
27:27
You invite them in
27:28
and you make them feel welcome.
27:30
Sam and I are always
27:31
very tempted
27:31
to clean up our tiny house
27:33
before somebody
27:33
steps inside.
27:37
Showing hospitality
27:38
means giving of ourselves
27:39
to make others feel
27:41
like they are important.
27:42
That they belong
27:44
in the place
27:45
that we are.
27:46
And we're commanded
27:47
to it.
27:49
Not only are we to show
27:50
hospitality to one another,
27:51
those inside the church,
27:52
but we're to show
27:53
hospitality to others.
27:54
Those outside.
27:56
Hebrews 13.2.
27:57
The writer of Hebrews says,
27:58
Do not neglect
27:59
to show hospitality
27:59
to strangers,
28:01
for thereby some
28:02
have entertained
28:03
angels unawares.
28:06
Which is such a great word
28:07
that I feel like
28:07
doesn't belong in my Bible,
28:09
but it's there
28:09
all the same.
28:11
They have entertained
28:12
angels unaware.
28:14
So do not neglect
28:14
to show hospitality
28:15
to strangers.
28:18
But we are not always
28:19
to be hospitable.
28:20
Did you know that?
28:21
We are not to show
28:22
hospitality to those
28:24
who claim to be Christians,
28:26
but do not teach
28:27
what is orthodox
28:28
or practice righteousness.
28:32
How about that?
28:34
John writes in 2 John
28:35
verse 10 and 11.
28:38
If anyone comes to you
28:39
and does not bring
28:40
this teaching,
28:41
the gospel of Jesus Christ,
28:43
do not receive him
28:44
into your house
28:45
or give him any greeting.
28:47
For whoever greets him
28:48
takes part
28:49
in his wicked works.
28:52
Paul writes in
28:53
1 Corinthians 5.11,
28:54
But now I am writing
28:55
to you not to associate
28:56
with anyone who bears
28:58
the name of brother
28:59
if he is guilty
29:01
of sexual immorality
29:02
or greed
29:03
or is an idolater,
29:04
reviler,
29:05
drunkard,
29:06
or swindler,
29:07
not even to eat
29:09
with such a one.
29:10
And what Paul is saying
29:11
is if somebody professes
29:12
to know Jesus Christ
29:13
and then their life
29:14
lives in direct opposition
29:16
to that,
29:16
don't greet them
29:17
as a brother.
29:19
Don't show them
29:20
the hospitality
29:20
that you would show
29:22
to those who are
29:23
inside the faith.
29:26
So we're to show
29:26
hospitality.
29:28
And we see that
29:30
expressed even
29:31
by unbelievers,
29:33
which should be
29:34
an astounding thing
29:34
to us,
29:35
the way they're greeted
29:36
on the shore
29:37
of that island.
29:39
Second,
29:39
note the hospitality
29:40
of believers.
29:42
And in this case,
29:42
we can say
29:43
definitely believers.
29:44
We know that these
29:45
people are believers.
29:49
Verse 14
29:50
in Pudioli.
29:52
I got it right
29:53
the first time
29:53
that time.
29:54
we found brothers
29:56
and were invited
29:57
to stay with him
29:58
for seven days.
30:00
And so we came
30:01
to Rome.
30:03
So Paul
30:03
and his companions,
30:06
we have to assume
30:07
the Roman centurion
30:08
Julius,
30:08
who's been accompanying
30:09
Paul all along,
30:11
upon arriving
30:12
on the Italian shore,
30:14
drop in
30:15
for a seven-day stay
30:17
upon being invited
30:19
to stay
30:20
for such a time.
30:22
And likely
30:22
for such a time
30:23
because they
30:24
needed to gain strength
30:25
for their further
30:25
journeying on
30:26
to Rome.
30:28
So we have this
30:28
gracious extension
30:29
of the brothers.
30:31
And then verse 15.
30:35
And the brothers there,
30:36
the brothers in Rome,
30:38
when they heard
30:39
about us,
30:41
came as far
30:42
as the forum
30:42
of Appius
30:43
and three taverns
30:45
to meet us.
30:46
On seeing them,
30:47
Paul thanked God
30:48
and took courage.
30:50
The forum of Appius
30:51
was a marketplace.
30:53
It's sometimes called
30:53
the Market of Appius
30:55
and it was 43 miles
30:57
south of Rome.
30:59
So these believers
31:00
heard that this Paul,
31:01
he had written his letter
31:02
to the Romans already,
31:03
had sent that on
31:04
ahead of himself.
31:06
But the believer Paul,
31:07
the apostle Paul,
31:08
was coming to Rome
31:10
and they traveled
31:11
43 miles
31:13
by foot
31:13
or by some kind
31:14
of equestrian means
31:16
to go and to meet him.
31:18
And the three taverns
31:20
was a location
31:20
just 10 miles closer.
31:22
So it's 33 miles
31:23
south of Rome.
31:24
Perhaps these brothers
31:26
heard the news later
31:27
or they just got
31:28
a later start.
31:29
They had to wait
31:29
for somebody else
31:30
to show up
31:31
and meet them
31:31
in the parking lot
31:32
before they could
31:32
take off.
31:33
Right?
31:34
What a picture
31:35
of Christian love
31:37
this is.
31:39
Roman brothers
31:39
hearing that Paul
31:40
was arriving,
31:42
extend this great hand
31:43
of hospitality
31:44
in accompanying him
31:46
which we see
31:47
made Paul thankful
31:49
and encouraged him.
31:50
The end of verse 15
31:51
Luke records,
31:53
On seeing them,
31:54
Paul thanked God.
31:55
What did he thank God for?
31:57
For the brothers.
31:58
For the hospitality
31:59
of the brothers.
32:00
That they came
32:00
to meet him
32:02
and accompany him
32:03
to Rome.
32:04
Don't forget
32:05
what Paul was headed
32:06
to Rome for.
32:07
He was to stand trial
32:08
before Caesar.
32:10
That's what he was headed
32:11
to Rome to do.
32:12
And he's greeted by
32:13
a band of his family
32:15
that escorts him
32:17
back in to Rome.
32:18
So he thanks God
32:20
and he takes courage.
32:21
He took courage.
32:23
He was encouraged
32:25
by their hospitality.
32:28
Hospitality has distinguished
32:29
the Christian community
32:30
throughout the ages.
32:33
New Testament scholar
32:34
Abraham J. Moherbe
32:36
points out
32:36
that among early Christians
32:38
hospitality was not merely
32:40
a practical consideration.
32:41
It wasn't just about
32:42
providing for need.
32:43
But it was a theological one.
32:45
He wrote this.
32:46
The Christian practice
32:46
of hospitality
32:47
was not viewed simply
32:48
as a means of overcoming
32:50
practical problems.
32:52
Theological statements
32:53
by different authors
32:54
in the New Testament
32:55
show that it was
32:55
frequently viewed
32:56
as the concrete expression
32:59
of Christian love.
33:01
So if we love one another,
33:03
we'll be hospitable
33:05
toward one another.
33:08
Beloved,
33:08
let hospitality
33:10
distinguish
33:10
Christ Family Church
33:12
to Lonega.
33:14
Be hospitable
33:15
when we gather
33:15
on Sundays,
33:16
but not only on Sundays.
33:18
Open up your homes,
33:20
feed people meals.
33:21
College students,
33:22
you can pull this off too.
33:24
Mac and cheese
33:25
and hot dogs,
33:27
get it done.
33:29
Seek out ways
33:30
to show people
33:31
concretely
33:32
that you love them.
33:33
may we not be outclassed
33:36
by the unbelievers
33:37
of Malta.
33:40
So we see hospitality
33:41
in the first part
33:42
of chapter 28.
33:44
We also see
33:45
some expression
33:46
of justice.
33:49
Secondly,
33:49
justice.
33:52
Verse 4 says,
33:52
When the native people
33:53
saw the creature
33:55
hanging from his hand,
33:56
they said to one another,
33:58
No doubt this man
33:59
is a murderer.
33:59
Though he was escaped
34:00
from the sea,
34:02
justice has not allowed
34:03
him to live.
34:06
Now the assumption
34:07
of the Maltons
34:07
was that Paul
34:08
had done something
34:09
to deserve the bite
34:10
of the snake.
34:12
It is unclear
34:13
if Luke means
34:14
to tell us
34:15
that the Maltons
34:16
had a God
34:17
named Justice.
34:19
The ESV
34:19
capitalizes the word
34:21
for that very purpose.
34:22
Or merely that they
34:23
had a concept
34:24
of justice.
34:26
But either way,
34:26
they understood
34:27
vengeance
34:29
and believed
34:30
that Paul,
34:31
having escaped
34:31
from a shipwreck,
34:32
was still being
34:33
pursued unto death
34:35
by fate
34:36
or by a God
34:37
or whatever.
34:40
Why is this noteworthy?
34:42
It is worth our attention
34:44
because it is an example
34:45
of the law of God
34:47
being written
34:48
on men's hearts.
34:51
The native people
34:52
of Malta,
34:53
which, by the way,
34:54
only means
34:54
that they didn't
34:55
speak Greek or Latin,
34:56
not necessarily
34:57
that they were
34:58
uncivilized.
34:59
You don't need to see
35:00
on Malta
35:01
people in grass skirts.
35:04
It was being ruled
35:05
by Publius, right,
35:06
who was a Roman governor.
35:07
It just simply means
35:08
they didn't speak
35:09
Greek or Latin.
35:12
But these people
35:13
had an idea
35:14
of right and wrong.
35:17
They had no doubt
35:19
that Paul was a murderer.
35:22
Throughout history,
35:24
morality has taken
35:25
very similar shape,
35:28
hasn't it?
35:30
Why?
35:31
Because God's law
35:32
is on men's hearts.
35:36
In Romans chapter 2,
35:38
beginning in verse 14
35:39
and following,
35:40
Paul writes,
35:40
for when Gentiles
35:42
who do not have
35:44
the law
35:45
by nature
35:46
do what the law
35:47
requires,
35:49
they are a law
35:50
to themselves
35:50
even though
35:51
they do not
35:52
have the law.
35:54
So track what he's
35:55
saying there, right?
35:56
Gentiles,
35:57
those who are outside
35:58
of Israel,
35:59
who weren't given
36:01
the law,
36:02
still do things
36:03
that are consistent
36:03
with the law,
36:04
right?
36:04
Still live morally
36:06
to some degree,
36:07
right?
36:07
Still obey.
36:08
So here we see
36:09
the native people
36:10
of Malta
36:11
seeing that murder
36:12
is wrong.
36:13
They know this
36:14
to be true.
36:15
Verse 15 says,
36:16
they show that
36:16
the work of the law
36:17
is written on their hearts
36:18
while their conscience
36:20
also bears witness
36:21
and their conflicting
36:21
thoughts accuse
36:22
or even excuse them
36:23
on that day when,
36:25
according to my gospel,
36:26
God judges the secrets
36:27
of men
36:28
by Christ Jesus.
36:31
Now, if you're a student,
36:33
you may have taken
36:33
or will take a class
36:35
that will suggest to you
36:37
that morality is subjective
36:38
and will cite
36:40
some obscure example
36:42
of a civilization
36:43
deep in a jungle
36:44
that does not find
36:45
anything wrong
36:46
with, say, murder.
36:48
Have any of you
36:49
been in that class
36:50
already?
36:52
Two of you.
36:53
All right.
36:54
Maybe that's good
36:55
that you're avoiding
36:56
such classes.
36:58
It will likely happen
36:59
to you at some point,
37:01
some small, obscure
37:02
example of a
37:04
little tribe
37:05
that doesn't find
37:06
anything wrong
37:07
with murder.
37:09
Be really careful
37:11
when those things
37:12
are presented to you
37:13
when people want to say
37:14
that morality
37:14
is entirely subjective.
37:18
Their evidence
37:18
for such claims
37:19
is extremely weak.
37:23
The interviewing process
37:24
for these people
37:25
is almost nil.
37:27
In most cases,
37:28
they don't even speak
37:29
their languages.
37:30
They make assumptions
37:31
that they think
37:31
murder is right.
37:33
And it's at very best
37:35
anecdotal.
37:36
So you've got
37:37
one small group
37:39
of people.
37:40
Show me a nation state
37:42
that has taken morality
37:44
and made it
37:45
an entirely subjective
37:46
thing.
37:48
Could be the U.S. soon.
37:49
We're kind of heading
37:50
in that direction,
37:50
aren't we?
37:53
But deep down,
37:54
people know.
37:55
People know
37:56
what is right.
37:58
They know
37:58
what is wrong.
38:00
Paul tells us
38:01
and in our text
38:02
we see
38:03
that people
38:04
without the law
38:05
still by nature
38:06
do what the law
38:08
requires.
38:09
And therefore,
38:10
having kept the law
38:11
imperfectly,
38:12
even with the law
38:13
written on our hearts,
38:14
we don't keep it
38:15
perfectly,
38:16
their condemnation
38:17
is just.
38:19
God will
38:20
dole out justice
38:22
and He will
38:23
be right
38:24
in doing so.
38:27
Paul wrote this.
38:28
If you back up
38:28
into Romans 1,
38:30
verse 18
38:31
and following,
38:33
For the wrath
38:34
of God
38:34
is revealed
38:35
from heaven
38:35
against all
38:37
ungodliness
38:38
and all
38:39
unrighteousness
38:40
of men
38:40
who by their
38:42
unrighteousness
38:42
suppress the truth.
38:45
So the wrath
38:45
of God
38:46
will be delivered
38:49
to unrighteous
38:51
men.
38:52
Those who aren't
38:53
found perfect,
38:55
the wrath
38:56
of God
38:56
is due them.
38:57
It's a weighty
38:58
thing.
39:00
Verse 19,
39:01
For what can be
39:01
known about God
39:02
is plain to them
39:03
because God
39:04
has shown it
39:05
to them.
39:07
For His invisible
39:07
attributes,
39:08
namely His eternal
39:09
power and divine
39:10
nature,
39:11
have been clearly
39:11
perceived ever
39:12
since the creation
39:13
of the world
39:14
and the things
39:14
that have been
39:15
made.
39:16
So they
39:17
are without
39:18
excuse.
39:21
The native
39:21
people of Malta,
39:23
God's word
39:24
on their heart,
39:25
they had evidences
39:26
in the creation
39:27
that a God
39:28
exists who
39:29
gave them
39:29
such instruction
39:31
and so they
39:32
were without
39:33
excuse.
39:34
The native
39:34
people of Malta
39:35
needed the
39:36
gospel of
39:37
Jesus Christ.
39:39
They needed to
39:39
believe in Jesus
39:40
Christ and to be
39:41
clothed in His
39:42
righteousness,
39:43
to be found
39:44
perfect in
39:45
Christ because
39:46
without Jesus'
39:47
righteousness,
39:48
they would one
39:48
day stand before
39:49
the God of
39:49
justice and receive
39:50
their due
39:51
punishment.
39:51
God,
39:53
but praise God
39:54
that by faith
39:55
in Christ,
39:55
they,
39:56
I believe,
39:57
they,
39:57
I hope many
39:58
of them,
39:59
and you and
40:00
I can stand
40:02
before God
40:03
and be seen
40:03
as keepers of
40:05
the law because
40:06
Jesus kept
40:07
the law for
40:07
us.
40:09
Praise God
40:10
that by faith
40:10
in Christ,
40:11
they and you
40:13
and I can
40:14
stand before God
40:15
having our sins
40:16
cleansed from
40:16
us because Jesus
40:18
bore God's
40:19
wrath on our
40:20
behalf.
40:20
And now,
40:23
as followers of
40:23
Jesus Christ,
40:24
we boldly
40:25
proclaim the
40:25
good news of
40:26
His saving
40:27
faith.
40:29
This is what it
40:29
means to believe
40:30
in Jesus,
40:31
to believe in
40:32
His person,
40:34
that He is in
40:34
fact the Son
40:35
of God,
40:37
God Himself,
40:38
incarnate,
40:39
sent to earth,
40:40
and that He did
40:42
this work on our
40:43
behalf.
40:43
He lived a
40:43
perfect life,
40:45
fulfilling righteousness,
40:46
that He might
40:47
give that to us,
40:48
and He died a
40:49
sinner's death,
40:49
taking our
40:51
punishment in
40:51
His flesh.
40:52
This is what it
40:52
means to believe
40:53
in Jesus.
40:54
Place your
40:55
faith in
40:56
that.
40:57
Recognize your
40:58
sinfulness,
40:59
your just
41:00
condemnation.
41:02
God will
41:03
bring justice,
41:05
and He will
41:07
bring it to
41:07
those who
41:08
haven't placed
41:08
faith in
41:08
Jesus Christ
41:09
by pouring
41:09
His wrath
41:10
out on them.
41:11
He will
41:11
bring it to
41:12
those who
41:12
have believed
41:13
in Jesus
41:13
Christ because
41:14
He poured
41:14
His wrath
41:15
out on Christ.
41:15
Christ.
41:16
We escape
41:17
His wrath
41:18
because Jesus
41:18
suffered in
41:19
our place.
41:21
Beloved,
41:21
this is the
41:22
gospel of
41:23
Jesus Christ,
41:24
and your soul
41:24
is in a
41:25
desperate state.
41:27
If you
41:27
couldn't stand
41:27
before God
41:28
now,
41:29
clothed in
41:30
Christ's
41:31
righteousness,
41:32
there's nothing
41:33
we can do
41:33
to earn our
41:34
way to
41:34
heaven.
41:35
How will
41:35
you be
41:36
justified
41:36
before God?
41:37
You stand
41:38
before Him,
41:39
what will
41:39
be your
41:40
answer?
41:40
The only
41:41
answer that
41:42
will be
41:42
sufficient is
41:42
I am
41:43
clothed in
41:44
Christ.
41:45
I have
41:46
placed my
41:46
faith in
41:47
His
41:48
person and
41:49
in His
41:49
work.
41:51
So for
41:52
those of us
41:52
who are in
41:52
Jesus,
41:53
we need to
41:54
join with
41:55
Paul,
41:55
Romans 1
41:56
16,
41:57
for I am
41:59
not ashamed
41:59
of the
41:59
gospel,
42:00
for it is
42:00
the power
42:01
of God
42:02
for salvation
42:02
to everyone
42:03
who believes.
42:05
Let's pray
42:06
together.