Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / The Jagged Edge of Authentic Ministry │ Msg 1022

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The Jagged Edge of Authentic Ministry │ Msg 1022 · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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Speaker 1: I want to read some selections out of the 13th
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Speaker 1: and then the 14th chapters of the book of Acts.
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Speaker 1: If you'll turn, please. We'll sort of follow along through
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Speaker 1: this first journey Paul took with Barnabas. Or Barnabas took
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Speaker 1: with Paul, however you prefer to say it. Let me
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Speaker 1: just sort of pick excerpts through this. May I do that?
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Speaker 1: Acts 13, 1. Now there were at Antioch in the
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Speaker 1: church that was there prophets and teachers, Barnabas and Simeon,
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Speaker 1: called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene and Manan, who had
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Speaker 1: been brought up with Herod the Tetrarch and Saul. By
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Speaker 1: the way, this Saul is the same one as Paul
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Speaker 1: the Apostle. His name is changed according to verse 9
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Speaker 1: from Saul to Paul. Now back to verse 2. While
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Speaker 1: they were ministering to the Lord and fasting, the Holy
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Speaker 1: Spirit said, Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for
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Speaker 1: the work to which I have called them. Then, when
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Speaker 1: they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them,
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Speaker 1: they sent them away. If you like marking your Bible,
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Speaker 1: you can put right above verse 4, beginning of first journey.
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Speaker 1: With verse 4, we begin the first of several missionary journeys.
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Speaker 1: So being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went
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Speaker 1: down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus.
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Speaker 1: When they reached Salamis, they began to proclaim the word
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Speaker 1: of God in the synagogues of the Jews. They also
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Speaker 1: had John as their helper. Verse 6, when they had
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Speaker 1: gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they
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Speaker 1: found a magician, Jewish false prophet, whose name was Bar-Jesus.
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Speaker 1: By the way, that means son of Jesus. Interesting, this
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Speaker 1: false prophet named himself the son of Jesus, who was
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Speaker 1: with the proconsul Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence. This
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Speaker 1: man summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the
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Speaker 1: word of God. Verse 12. Then the proconsul believed when
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Speaker 1: he saw what had happened, being amazed at the teaching
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Speaker 1: of the Lord. Now the journey continues. Verse 13. Paul
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Speaker 1: and his companions put out to sea from Paphos, and
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Speaker 1: they came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John left them
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Speaker 1: and returned to Jerusalem. But going on from Perga, they
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Speaker 1: arrived at Pisidian Antioch. And on the Sabbath day, they
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Speaker 1: went into the synagogue and sat down. After the reading
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Speaker 1: of the law and the prophets, the synagogue officials sent
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Speaker 1: to them saying, Brethren, if you have any word of
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Speaker 1: exhortation for the people, say it. That was a little
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Speaker 1: like telling prophets. A bulldog to sick him. Because Paul
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Speaker 1: at that moment stood up. And he preached. All the
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Speaker 1: way down through verse 51. He is delivering the goods.
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Speaker 1: And let's begin at verse 52. And the disciples were
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Speaker 1: continually filled with joy. And with the Holy Spirit. They
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Speaker 1: have now come through that area all the way to Iconium.
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Speaker 1: And in Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews.
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Speaker 1: and spoke in such a manner that a large number
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Speaker 1: of people believed, both Jews and Greeks. Persecution follows, and
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Speaker 1: then they move on, verse 6, to the cities of Lyconia, Lystra,
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Speaker 1: and Derbe, and the surrounding region, and they continued to
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Speaker 1: preach the gospel at Lystra. They preach, and verse 19
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Speaker 1: tells us of what happened to Paul at Lystra. Jews came.
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Speaker 1: From Antioch and Iconium, having won over the crowds, they
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Speaker 1: stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing
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Speaker 1: him to be dead. While the disciples stood around him,
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Speaker 1: he got up and entered the city. The next day
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Speaker 1: he went away with Barnabas to Derbein. And then they backtrack.
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Speaker 1: Verse 21, they returned, the end of the verse says,
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Speaker 1: to Lystra, Iconium, and to Antioch. Verse 24, they passed
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Speaker 1: through Pisidia and came into Pamphylia. When they had spoken
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Speaker 1: the word to Perga, in Perga they went down to Atalia,
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Speaker 1: that's the coastal harbor, and from there they sailed back
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Speaker 1: to Antioch where they started. Notice their response when they
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Speaker 1: got back home. When they arrived, verse 27, and gathered
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Speaker 1: the church together, they began to report all things that
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Speaker 1: God had done with them and how he had opened
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Speaker 1: a door of faith to the Gentiles. And they spent
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Speaker 1: a long time with the disciples. See that reference to
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Speaker 1: opening a door of faith to the Gentiles? That was
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Speaker 1: the beginning of your and my forefathers' hearing of Christ.
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Speaker 1: the door opened from the Jews and reached out now
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Speaker 1: to the Gentiles. What an amazing message of grace, which
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Speaker 1: seems appropriate for our day, but in that day it
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Speaker 1: was altogether unique. May we pause for just a few
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Speaker 1: moments of prayer. You bow with me, please. Thank you, Father,
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Speaker 1: for the honor you give to your word and for
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Speaker 1: the way you bless its proclamation, whether in the first
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Speaker 1: or 21st century. whether from someone as gifted and capable
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Speaker 1: as Paul or someone as needy and in deep dependence
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Speaker 1: on you as I. Thank you, Father, for the way
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Speaker 1: you honor the proclamation of truth. We pray that if
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Speaker 1: we gain nothing more today than a reminder of the
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Speaker 1: value of the word of God, We pray that that
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Speaker 1: will be cemented into our hearts. That we will hear
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Speaker 1: of the hope it offers. That we will gain courage
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Speaker 1: from its truths. That we will be lifted above the
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Speaker 1: drag of grudges and offenses and disappointments and misrepresentations of
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Speaker 1: this day. And we will be able to see clearly
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Speaker 1: how precious your word is and how appropriate and relevant
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Speaker 1: it is for the times in which we live. Thank
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Speaker 1: you for those who leave today to begin another year
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Speaker 1: at college, at their university. We pray that you will
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Speaker 1: go before them and be with them in a special
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Speaker 1: way and use those who know you to make the
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Speaker 1: message known in dorms, in sorority and fraternity settings, in
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Speaker 1: places that right now they have no idea where they'll
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Speaker 1: be used. We pray you would encourage all the students
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Speaker 1: who began their schooling this year. And tomorrow, as they
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Speaker 1: begin their classes, we pray that you would go before them,
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Speaker 1: strengthen them, encourage the parents, and make this a grand
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Speaker 1: new school year for all of them. And we as
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Speaker 1: a church, our Father, find ourselves again dependent upon you
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Speaker 1: for blessing and for provision. And we wait upon you
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Speaker 1: for that. Our Father, you have begun this ministry. You
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Speaker 1: are sustaining it by the gifts of your people. And
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Speaker 1: even today, we pray that you will cause us to
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Speaker 1: be generous in our response as we give out of
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Speaker 1: the abundance of your many provisions. Thank you for the
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Speaker 1: privilege of hearing the preached word. May your spirit ignite
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Speaker 1: this time together as we center and focus our attention
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Speaker 1: upon yourself. In the name of Jesus Christ, we ask this.
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Speaker 1: And everyone said, Amen. Well, in case you've forgotten, we're
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Speaker 1: engaged in a study, a biographical study of the life
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Speaker 1: of Paul, known in some circles as St. Paul. And
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Speaker 1: often there are stories that swarm around his life that
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Speaker 1: are legendary and mythological and sometimes fascinating and eye-opening, but
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Speaker 1: often those aren't truthful. And that's why we focus our
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Speaker 1: attention on the biblical account of Paul, not only because
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Speaker 1: we will always get the truth when we turn to
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Speaker 1: the Bible, Because God promises to bless those who spend
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Speaker 1: time in his word. He's never promised to bless those
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Speaker 1: who read novels. There's nothing wrong with a novel. He's
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Speaker 1: never promised to bless those who earn a PhD. There's
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Speaker 1: nothing wrong with a PhD. Or to go into some
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Speaker 1: special career. There's nothing wrong with any one of them.
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Speaker 1: But he has promised to bless the proclamation of his word.
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Speaker 1: So whenever you want to do a serious, truthful analysis
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Speaker 1: of any character mentioned in the Bible, that's the place
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Speaker 1: to go. You turn to the Word of God for information. instruction. Also,
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Speaker 1: you turn so your faith will be deepened. Romans 10,
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Speaker 1: 17 assures us that faith comes by hearing and hearing
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Speaker 1: by a word from Christ. And so it is when
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Speaker 1: we open our Bibles to the book of Acts that
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Speaker 1: we understand find again what God promises to bless. Since
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Speaker 1: I've been away for several Sundays, this is a good
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Speaker 1: time for me to affirm one strong conviction we have
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Speaker 1: had since we became a church back just a number
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Speaker 1: of months ago. All of us who founded the ministry
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Speaker 1: were committed to the expository preaching of the Bible. We
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Speaker 1: said to one another, we are deeply committed to the
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Speaker 1: word of God and not reacting against something else or
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Speaker 1: someone else, but when we've established a place of ministry,
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Speaker 1: at the heart and center of that ministry will be
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Speaker 1: the faithful and uncompromising, consistent teaching of the scriptures. That's
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Speaker 1: why earlier I thanked those who stood here in my
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Speaker 1: place while I was away because they are so committed
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Speaker 1: to that. And I love that. I was, while I
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Speaker 1: was away, able to catch up on some reading. And
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Speaker 1: one of the pieces I read was an article found
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Speaker 1: in the journal, the theological journal that has been a
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Speaker 1: part of Dallas Seminary's life for decades. The journal is
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Speaker 1: called Bibliotheca Sacra, and it's Latin for the divine or
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Speaker 1: sacred book. And in Bib Sac, as we commonly call it,
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Speaker 1: I came across a wonderful article called The Power of
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Speaker 1: Biblical Preaching, an Expository Study of Jonah 3, 1 to 10.
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Speaker 1: And because it's so appropriate for this morning, I wanted
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Speaker 1: to read it to you. A couple of paragraphs. Much
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Speaker 1: of evangelical preaching has become strangely impotent. And sadly, too
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Speaker 1: few realize it. Like Samson, from whom the Spirit departed
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Speaker 1: without his knowing it, many pastors seem to have little
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Speaker 1: awareness that God's power has vanished from their once dynamic pulpits.
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Speaker 1: Rather than preaching with renewed fervor, they are preoccupied with
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Speaker 1: pouring their energies into secondary strategies, such as pursuing the
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Speaker 1: latest church growth programs. alternative worship styles, and corporate marketing
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Speaker 1: plans to build their churches. While some of these augmentations
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Speaker 1: may have a place in the church, the crying need
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Speaker 1: of the hour is for divine power to be restored
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Speaker 1: to evangelical pulpits. He adds, at the heart of this
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Speaker 1: crisis is a lost confidence in God's power to use
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Speaker 1: his word. While many hold to the inerrancy of scripture,
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Speaker 1: some pastors do not seem convinced of its sufficiency when
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Speaker 1: preached to bring about God's desired results. They reason that
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Speaker 1: biblical preaching is outdated, archaic, and irrelevant. In some churches, drama, dialogue,
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Speaker 1: film clips, and similar means are taking the place of
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Speaker 1: solid Bible exposition. These are not necessarily bad in themselves,
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Speaker 1: but expository preaching should never take a backseat to these
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Speaker 1: secondary means of communication. And then he concludes, at least
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Speaker 1: from my reading, pastors would do well to revisit the
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Speaker 1: ministry's of God's servants in the scriptures, and heed their
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Speaker 1: examples as proclaimers of God's word. He is so right.
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Speaker 1: When you go to the scriptures to look for models,
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Speaker 1: you find those whom God blessed in special ways were
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Speaker 1: those who were committed to and faithful about the proclamation
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Speaker 1: of his word. Classic example is, of course, Saul of
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Speaker 1: Tarsus when he was converted. And with that in mind,
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Speaker 1: and without hesitation, let me ask you to open your
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Speaker 1: Bibles again to the 13th chapter of the book of
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Speaker 1: Acts as we continue our study of the life and
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Speaker 1: times of Paul. While you're finding your way there, let
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Speaker 1: me do a little review. Remember Saul? The Saul we
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Speaker 1: have studied for several messages already. The first glimpse of
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Speaker 1: him is at the end of chapter 7 and the
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Speaker 1: first part of chapter 8, where Stephen is being stoned
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Speaker 1: and Saul is standing alongside in hearty agreement with putting
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Speaker 1: him to death. In fact, the clothing of those, the
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Speaker 1: outer tunics of those who were stoning Stephen were placed
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Speaker 1: at the feet of young Saul, the Pharisee, as he
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Speaker 1: watched the act with a smile. If that wasn't bad enough,
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Speaker 1: by the time you get to chapter 9, he is
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Speaker 1: fully engaged, leading the charge of persecution against Christians. And
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Speaker 1: if you wanted to band yourself up with those or
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Speaker 1: join yourself up with those in the band of persecutors
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Speaker 1: of the church, you would join Saul's band. He was
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Speaker 1: the one saying, we're on our way to Damascus even
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Speaker 1: to persecute Christians. And those who live through that, we
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Speaker 1: will bring bound back to Jerusalem, put them on trial
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Speaker 1: and throw them in prison. This man was bound and
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Speaker 1: determined to put Christians away. And you know, If you
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Speaker 1: remember our study on the way to Damascus, a light
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Speaker 1: comes from heaven and blinds him. And he in a
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Speaker 1: blinded state is converted to Christ of all things. This
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Speaker 1: remarkable conversion is more than many can even believe. Ananias,
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Speaker 1: whom we don't meet again in the scriptures, comes out
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Speaker 1: of hiding and is dispatched by the Lord to go
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Speaker 1: to Saul and to have a hand in the healing
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Speaker 1: of the blindness and to probably be the one who
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Speaker 1: baptizes him and gets him underway in the Christian life.
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Speaker 1: Saul makes an attempt to break into the circle of
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Speaker 1: Christians and they don't They doubt the sincerity of his faith.
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Speaker 1: And thanks to Barnabas, he is allowed to enter the
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Speaker 1: circle and fellowship with them. But it isn't long before
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Speaker 1: the Lord takes Saul and sends him to Arabia. Remember,
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Speaker 1: three years. Three years in hiding. What he did in Arabia,
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Speaker 1: we're never told. But we assume it was there. Revelations
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Speaker 1: were given by the Lord there. and he experienced in
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Speaker 1: the solitude and silence of the desert a whole transformation
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Speaker 1: of his inner being, so that when he did finally
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Speaker 1: come to terms with his calling, he, we would say today,
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Speaker 1: hit the floor running. By the time Barnabas brings him
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Speaker 1: to Antioch, which is the place of a brand new
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Speaker 1: revival that's breaking out north, far north of Jerusalem, He's
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Speaker 1: brought in to teach and to preach, and he's being
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Speaker 1: used in a wonderful way. Now, that's where we pick
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Speaker 1: up the story. Out of the blue, something happens. Verse
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Speaker 1: 2 of chapter 13 tells us, while they were ministering
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Speaker 1: to the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, set
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Speaker 1: apart for me Barnabas and Saul. Hold your place and
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Speaker 1: look back at verse 1. The first man mentioned in
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Speaker 1: the group of prophets and teachers is Barnabas. The last
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Speaker 1: one mentioned at the end of verse 1 is Saul.
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Speaker 1: So like bookends, the Holy Spirit picks the one that's
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Speaker 1: mentioned first and the one that's mentioned last, and he
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Speaker 1: puts them together and he says, I have plans for
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Speaker 1: them that I don't have for the other three teachers.
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Speaker 1: Set them apart for the work to which I have
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Speaker 1: called them. Let me pause here. and add this thought.
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Speaker 1: Entering into ministry is not choosing just another career or
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Speaker 1: selecting a profession to follow. It's a calling. And it's
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Speaker 1: so significant a calling that God makes certain when his
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Speaker 1: called ones are set apart that they get their priorities straight.
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Speaker 1: I remember when I applied for my first year at
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Speaker 1: Dallas Seminary. I was fresh out of the Marine Corps,
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Speaker 1: about 40 pounds lighter, flat top. I was lean and mean.
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Speaker 1: And I sat down in the registrar's office and Cynthia
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Speaker 1: sat beside me as we were being interviewed by Dr. Campbell,
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Speaker 1: who was Donald Campbell, who was the registrar at the time.
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Speaker 1: I remember he looked at me over the top of
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Speaker 1: his glasses he said young man which is a great
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Speaker 1: thought now for me to think about young man would
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Speaker 1: you be happy doing anything else with your life than
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Speaker 1: serving christ i thought about it i'd never been asked
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Speaker 1: a question before and i said to him in all
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Speaker 1: sincerity no sir I would not be happy doing anything
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Speaker 1: but this. He told me a year later that they
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Speaker 1: would never have accepted me if I had had any
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Speaker 1: other answer. I think that's a great reminder to all
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Speaker 1: of us. If you can be happy doing anything else,
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Speaker 1: do that. Because in ministry, as we're going to learn,
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Speaker 1: there is a jagged edge that is not known by
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Speaker 1: the general public. Most folks think you work on Sunday
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Speaker 1: and hide out all the rest of the week playing
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Speaker 1: golf and fiddling around with all your buddies. And anybody
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Speaker 1: in ministry rolls his eyes and says, are you kidding?
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Speaker 1: And those out of ministry say, yeah, what's the big deal?
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Speaker 1: I mean, just you learn how to get on your
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Speaker 1: feet and talk and you got it made. I mean,
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Speaker 1: that's it, isn't it? No, that's really not it. There's
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Speaker 1: a jagged edge of authentic ministry that I'm going to
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Speaker 1: introduce you to. And it comes right out of the
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Speaker 1: chute in this first journey. that most people never think about.
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Speaker 1: Most folks never think that there are that many pressures
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Speaker 1: or that many responsibilities connected with handling the word of God.
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Speaker 1: I can tell you in brief, and now we will
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Speaker 1: see it before us in Paul's life, as soon as
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Speaker 1: you commit to serving Christ as a result of being
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Speaker 1: called to the work for which he's called you, you
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Speaker 1: open the gates of hell against you. The adversary despises
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Speaker 1: everything you love and works against everything you attempt by
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Speaker 1: the power of the Spirit to achieve. It isn't a
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Speaker 1: work of fun and games. It is a calling, however,
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Speaker 1: wonderfully rewarding and as fulfilling as anything I can imagine.
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Speaker 1: But if you can be happy doing anything else, do that.
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Speaker 1: I think at this point, Saul and Barnabas would have
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Speaker 1: said to the Lord, this is exactly what we want
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Speaker 1: to do. We want to go where he has called
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Speaker 1: us and we want to do the work he would
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Speaker 1: have us do. And they had no idea what that meant.
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Speaker 1: That's always true. You never know what's in front of you.
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Speaker 1: If you knew, you'd never go. And so in his case,
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Speaker 1: he says, I'm ready to do what the Spirit of
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Speaker 1: God directs. And the Spirit began to lead them. Now,
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Speaker 1: I want you to do something I've asked you to
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Speaker 1: do before. I want you to find a map of
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Speaker 1: the first journey of Paul. Can you do that? If
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Speaker 1: you have a Bible that doesn't have maps, you're using
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Speaker 1: the wrong Bible. You need to get yourself a Bible
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Speaker 1: that has a set of maps in the back. I
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Speaker 1: happen to use Charles Ryrie's. I got to look on
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Speaker 1: the mark on the binding. Here's what it is. Study
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Speaker 1: Bible expanded edition of the new America standard. So I
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Speaker 1: have a little map right in front of me at
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Speaker 1: the beginning of chapter 13. You may not. Be so blessed.
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Speaker 1: So you'll have to find your map in the back
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Speaker 1: and find your map and kind of be ready to
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Speaker 1: go back and forth because I want to do a
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Speaker 1: little geographical journey with you through this first trip that
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Speaker 1: Paul took. Okay, you find the one on the missionary
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Speaker 1: journeys of Paul. Okay, look to the far right and
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Speaker 1: you will locate a place called Antioch. You'll see Jerusalem
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Speaker 1: down there in Israel. Work your way north all the
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Speaker 1: way up, almost to the turn of the land, and
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Speaker 1: you will find Antioch. That's where it all starts. Got it?
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Speaker 1: Everybody on the same page here? If you're on the
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Speaker 1: exodus of Moses, you're not going to find Antioch. So
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Speaker 1: you've got to locate the first missionary journey of Paul.
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Speaker 1: Look at that, Esther, I can't find it. So look
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Speaker 1: at the first journey of Paul and you'll see Antioch
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Speaker 1: on the right. Okay, now we're going to go back
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Speaker 1: and forth. Look at verse... 4. End of the verse.
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Speaker 1: They went down to Seleucia. Wait a minute. Look on
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Speaker 1: your map. You'll see the harbor city just to the
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Speaker 1: west of Antioch was Seleucia. Got it? That's where they
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Speaker 1: went as they got ready to get in the water
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Speaker 1: in this sailing vessel, and they sailed to Cyprus. Okay,
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Speaker 1: that's the island. The large island right there in the
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Speaker 1: northeast corner of the Mediterranean. You got Cyprus? You'll see
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Speaker 1: two cities mentioned on your map, Salamis and Paphos. That's
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Speaker 1: the first work that was done of cold turkey evangelism
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Speaker 1: in the journey, the first journey of Paul, right there
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Speaker 1: on the island of Cyprus. Why Cyprus? Barnabas was a Cypriot,
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Speaker 1: according to chapter 4 of Acts. Maybe Barnabas... suggested the
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Speaker 1: first place was to go by home and make the
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Speaker 1: gospel known. Maybe he knew Sergius Paulus, who was introduced
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Speaker 1: to the Lord Jesus according to verses 6 through 12
25:05
Speaker 1: when he came to Christ. Now, notice verse 6 of
25:10
Speaker 1: chapter 13. Hold your place in your map. Look at
25:13
Speaker 1: verse 6. When they had gone through the whole island
25:19
Speaker 1: as far as Paphos, Now, it's easy for us to
25:22
Speaker 1: get sidetracked on a lot of little details, but there
25:25
Speaker 1: were no trams or trains and there were no flights.
25:33
Speaker 1: They walked. How long it took them, we're not told.
25:38
Speaker 1: If they did take any kind of transportation, it would
25:40
Speaker 1: be on the back of a horse or maybe sitting
25:42
Speaker 1: in the back of a cart that was on its way.
25:45
Speaker 1: Maybe they hitchhiked to get across the island. We're not
25:48
Speaker 1: told how they got there, but they had gone through
25:50
Speaker 1: the whole island and they stopped at Paphos. And it
25:53
Speaker 1: was there they led this man, the proconsul, to the
25:59
Speaker 1: Lord Jesus. And then they left Paphos. Look at verse 13.
26:05
Speaker 1: Paul and his companions put out to sea from Paphos.
26:10
Speaker 1: and came to Perga in Pamphylia. Okay, let's look again.
26:13
Speaker 1: You go north of Paphos, and you will come up
26:16
Speaker 1: to Perga. See it? Right there on the coast of
26:19
Speaker 1: the Pamphylian shores, you'll see Perga. Okay? There, many scholars
26:28
Speaker 1: believe that Paul contracted malaria, or some dread coastal disease
26:34
Speaker 1: that haunted him the rest of his life. It could be.
26:38
Speaker 1: Maybe his ophthalmia. Maybe his problems with his eyes began there.
26:43
Speaker 1: We also know, according to the end of verse 13,
26:46
Speaker 1: they were deserted by one of their companions, John. I
26:50
Speaker 1: failed to mention at the end of verse 5, John
26:53
Speaker 1: went along as their helper. That's important. John helped carry
26:56
Speaker 1: the baggage. John would help with the cooking. John would
27:00
Speaker 1: be of assistance to these two men as they did
27:02
Speaker 1: the proclaiming. And now they lose their helper. Why John left,
27:06
Speaker 1: we're not told. Paul and Barnabas argue about that later,
27:10
Speaker 1: and it becomes a stimulating discussion, which we'll get into
27:13
Speaker 1: at the end of chapter 15. But John left them
27:17
Speaker 1: when they really needed him, and at a time of
27:22
Speaker 1: perhaps great physical stress. The Pamphylian coastline is rugged to
27:27
Speaker 1: this day. It's inhospitable. It is southern Turkey, not a
27:31
Speaker 1: place where many cruise ships stop. It is not a
27:36
Speaker 1: visual feast to spend time along that rugged coastline. And
27:40
Speaker 1: it certainly wasn't in the first century, but it was
27:42
Speaker 1: there they were called. You don't go to where it's
27:45
Speaker 1: comfortable and you don't go where you prefer to go.
27:47
Speaker 1: You go where you're called when you're in ministry. And
27:51
Speaker 1: so the Lord led them to go up to Perga
27:53
Speaker 1: at Pamphylia. John deserted them. And then they began to
27:57
Speaker 1: work their way around what we know today as southern Turkey.
28:01
Speaker 1: So let's look at the map. They go up from Perga.
28:04
Speaker 1: Now follow your arrow up to Antioch in Pisidia. See that?
28:08
Speaker 1: Due north of Perga, you will see Antioch. That's not
28:12
Speaker 1: the same as Antioch where they started, of course. Same name,
28:15
Speaker 1: different province, different country, really. Now, from there, they go
28:20
Speaker 1: across due east, east-southeast, to Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. While
28:29
Speaker 1: they are in Lystra, a fascinating thing happens. Let me
28:33
Speaker 1: go back for a moment to this chapter, chapter 14.
28:37
Speaker 1: I want you to see it. Look at 1422. After
28:40
Speaker 1: he had removed... He raised up David to be their king.
28:50
Speaker 1: Paul is preaching this message concerning whom he also testified, said,
28:54
Speaker 1: I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man
28:56
Speaker 1: after my heart. I'm in the wrong chapter. Isn't that fun?
28:59
Speaker 1: Chapter 14. I thought that's great reading, but it has
29:04
Speaker 1: nothing to do with what I want to say. Here
29:08
Speaker 1: it is, verse 9. Course, chapter 14, verse 9. The
29:12
Speaker 1: man was listening to Paul as he spoke, who, when
29:15
Speaker 1: he had fixed his gaze on him, had seen that
29:17
Speaker 1: he had the faith to be made well, said with
29:19
Speaker 1: a loud voice, Stand on your feet. He leaped up
29:21
Speaker 1: and began to walk. Now watch the crowds in Lystra.
29:24
Speaker 1: When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised
29:27
Speaker 1: their voice, saying in the Laconian language, The gods have
29:30
Speaker 1: become like men and have come down to us. That's
29:36
Speaker 1: a very tempting moment for a preacher. When the people
29:39
Speaker 1: believe your message so greatly, they think you're a God
29:42
Speaker 1: from heaven and you're tempted to believe that until you
29:46
Speaker 1: talk with your wife about it. And that changes everything.
29:48
Speaker 1: But verse 12, they began calling Barnabas, Zeus and Paul Hermes.
29:55
Speaker 1: Zeus is the mightiest of the gods and Hermes is
29:58
Speaker 1: the God of oratory. And they had heard Paul preach
30:01
Speaker 1: and they had watched Barnabas minister and they thought Zeus
30:03
Speaker 1: is and Hermes have come down to live among us.
30:07
Speaker 1: And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside
30:11
Speaker 1: the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and
30:14
Speaker 1: wanted to offer sacrifices with the crowds. I mean, these
30:19
Speaker 1: people are being adored by these pagan idol worshipers, mixing
30:25
Speaker 1: their message with the mythological gods of the heavens. Watch
30:30
Speaker 1: the response. This is beautiful. But when the apostles, Barnabas
30:35
Speaker 1: and Paul, heard of it, they tore their robes and
30:38
Speaker 1: rushed out into the crowd crying, Men, why are you
30:41
Speaker 1: doing these things? We are also men of the same
30:45
Speaker 1: nature as you and preach the gospel to you that
30:47
Speaker 1: you should turn from these vain things to the living God.
30:52
Speaker 1: Isn't that great? The one who made the heavens and
30:55
Speaker 1: the earth and the sea and all that is in them.
30:58
Speaker 1: And he goes on to describe the gospel to them.
31:01
Speaker 1: Verse 18. Remember, they were just worshiping them. 18. Even
31:06
Speaker 1: saying these things with difficulty, they restrained the crowds from
31:10
Speaker 1: offering sacrifices to them. But before that ink is dry
31:17
Speaker 1: in verse 18, Jews came from Antioch and Iconium having
31:21
Speaker 1: won over the crowds. They stoned Paul. Welcome to the ministry.
31:27
Speaker 1: One moment they're worshiping. The next moment they're stoning. One
31:33
Speaker 1: moment they want to raise you up as some kind
31:35
Speaker 1: of Greek God. Another moment, I mean, how low a
31:39
Speaker 1: guy can you be having done such and such, so
31:42
Speaker 1: and so. I'm having a little fun with you, but
31:44
Speaker 1: I want you to see the jagged edge of an
31:46
Speaker 1: authentic ministry. I love it that they didn't accept the worship.
31:52
Speaker 1: And I love it that Paul didn't give up when
31:54
Speaker 1: they stoned him. I want you to see what he did.
31:56
Speaker 1: This is fabulous. They stoned Paul, dragged him out of
32:00
Speaker 1: the city. By the way, in those days, after stoning,
32:03
Speaker 1: they dragged you out to the garbage dump, hoping that
32:06
Speaker 1: the wild animals would eat you. They dragged him out
32:09
Speaker 1: of the city and supposing him to be dead. For
32:11
Speaker 1: a moment, stop. I know it's hard to do in
32:14
Speaker 1: an air-conditioned building. It's hard to do sitting there, dressed
32:17
Speaker 1: up as we are. Imagine being stoned. Imagine being that hated.
32:27
Speaker 1: People literally picking up rocks and striking you with them
32:31
Speaker 1: until you're unconscious. And left for dead. Verse 20. While
32:40
Speaker 1: the disciples stood around him, he got up and entered
32:45
Speaker 1: the city. The next day he went away with Barnabas
32:49
Speaker 1: to Derby. Wait, stop. Did you see what I just saw?
32:56
Speaker 1: He spent the night where they had stoned him. He
33:02
Speaker 1: went into, he entered the city and the next day
33:06
Speaker 1: he went away to Derby. Let me ask you something.
33:10
Speaker 1: If they stoned you in Abilene, are you going to
33:12
Speaker 1: stay in Abilene overnight? You're going to take as quick
33:19
Speaker 1: a flight, there aren't many, you take as quick a
33:22
Speaker 1: flight as you can out of Abilene to get as
33:25
Speaker 1: fast as you can to Ottawa or some point beyond.
33:29
Speaker 1: You don't want to be within thousands of miles of
33:31
Speaker 1: where they're starting, unless, of course, you're called. Then you
33:36
Speaker 1: stick it out. You stay right there. You face it.
33:43
Speaker 1: You go to sleep trusting in the same God who
33:45
Speaker 1: got you up the previous morning and knowing that he
33:48
Speaker 1: is sovereign over whatever is happening, and you don't stop.
33:53
Speaker 1: Welcome to an authentic ministry. I love it. Spent the
34:01
Speaker 1: night the next day, and look at what he did
34:04
Speaker 1: the next day. Verse 21. You'd think at least he'd
34:08
Speaker 1: be a little cautious about his message. They had preached
34:12
Speaker 1: the gospel to that city. After that, they had made
34:15
Speaker 1: many disciples. They returned. To Lystra. That's the place where
34:19
Speaker 1: they stoned him. He went all the way to Derby,
34:22
Speaker 1: preached the gospel. People came to Christ. They found a church.
34:25
Speaker 1: They turned right around. Let's not miss Lystra. We got
34:28
Speaker 1: people there interested in the gospel. But what about those
34:30
Speaker 1: that stoned you? Can't worry about the people that stoned you.
34:32
Speaker 1: You got to press right on through. You got to
34:34
Speaker 1: go right on into this. Face it head on. Let
34:39
Speaker 1: me tell you something. A ministry that lasts is a
34:41
Speaker 1: ministry that will go right through times of enormous persecution.
34:45
Speaker 1: It is not fickle. It does not need the applause
34:48
Speaker 1: of people and it rejects being enshrined and turned into
34:52
Speaker 1: a God. It is a ministry that delivers faithfully the
34:57
Speaker 1: truth of God. That brings me to the first of
35:00
Speaker 1: four observations about Paul's ministry on this first journey. By
35:07
Speaker 1: the way, they returned finally to Antioch and gave a report.
35:10
Speaker 1: Let me get to these characteristics of an authentic ministry.
35:15
Speaker 1: There are four. I may not have time to get
35:17
Speaker 1: them all in, but we'll come back to it next time.
35:19
Speaker 1: So here's the first one. Paul's ministry was saturated with
35:23
Speaker 1: the Word of God. Paul's ministry was saturated with the
35:29
Speaker 1: Word of God. Listen to this. Fifteen times in chapters
35:35
Speaker 1: 13 and 14, God's Word, the Word of Truth, the
35:39
Speaker 1: teaching of the Lord... the law and the prophets, the
35:43
Speaker 1: good news are mentioned 15 times. You want proof? 13.5, 13.7, 13.12, 13.15a, 13.15b, 13.32, 13.44, 13.46, 48, 49, 14.3, 14.7, 15, 21, 25.
36:08
Speaker 1: Fifteen times there's a reference to the Word of God.
36:12
Speaker 1: Paul took with him on that first journey just enough
36:15
Speaker 1: to live on, just enough clothes to cover his nakedness,
36:20
Speaker 1: a heart full of hope in God's truth, and a
36:25
Speaker 1: knowledge of the Word of God. That's what held him together. Application.
36:33
Speaker 1: Chances are very good that you've gotten a little soft
36:36
Speaker 1: on through the past few months and your time in
36:40
Speaker 1: the scriptures. I can't say with dogmatism because I haven't
36:44
Speaker 1: been watching, but I know human nature. I know how
36:49
Speaker 1: easy it is for that to happen to me. But
36:54
Speaker 1: I must warn you, especially if you're getting ready to
36:56
Speaker 1: go off to school somewhere or if you're getting ready
36:59
Speaker 1: to take on a new kind of calling or profession,
37:04
Speaker 1: or step into a new direction, or certainly if you're
37:07
Speaker 1: getting ready to step into seminary, your time in the
37:10
Speaker 1: Word of God is the most valuable time of your day.
37:13
Speaker 1: Don't omit it. I don't care if you work 15
37:18
Speaker 1: hours a day, you have a few moments before the
37:22
Speaker 1: 15 hours start. Go to the Word of God. I
37:26
Speaker 1: don't care how pressurized your life may be, you have
37:29
Speaker 1: segments during the day when you can break open God's
37:33
Speaker 1: Word to and pour over it. 10 minutes, 15 minutes.
37:41
Speaker 1: One man writes this, which I think will be challenging.
37:43
Speaker 1: Every servant must be reading the scriptures daily. Many of
37:49
Speaker 1: God's most used servants have made such reading and meditation
37:53
Speaker 1: a part of their lives. George Mueller read the Bible
37:56
Speaker 1: 200 times. David Livingston read it four times in succession.
38:05
Speaker 1: while he was detained in a jungle town. He lived
38:11
Speaker 1: out Spurgeon's dictum, a Bible which is falling apart usually
38:15
Speaker 1: belongs to someone who is not. William Evans, who in
38:21
Speaker 1: the early part of this century meaning the 20th century
38:25
Speaker 1: when this was written, pastored college church in Wheaton, Illinois,
38:30
Speaker 1: had memorized the entire Bible in the King James Version
38:35
Speaker 1: and the New Testament in the American Standard Version. Billy
38:41
Speaker 1: Graham says that his medical missionary father-in-law, Nelson Bell, made
38:46
Speaker 1: it a point... to rise, quote, every morning at 430
38:51
Speaker 1: and spend two to three hours in Bible reading. He
38:55
Speaker 1: didn't use that time to read commentaries or write. He
38:59
Speaker 1: didn't do his correspondence or any of his other work.
39:03
Speaker 1: He just read the scriptures every morning, and he was
39:07
Speaker 1: a walking Bible encyclopedia. Some of you are thinking, man, uh,
39:15
Speaker 1: I don't have two or three hours of deployment. Of
39:17
Speaker 1: course you don't. I don't either. Let's start with 10 minutes.
39:22
Speaker 1: That would be 10 minutes more than some have done
39:25
Speaker 1: in a long time. How about 15 minutes a day?
39:30
Speaker 1: How about cutting the lunch break a little short so
39:33
Speaker 1: you've got time on the other end to spend time
39:36
Speaker 1: in the Psalms or one of the New Testament letters
39:39
Speaker 1: or working your way through a section of the Scripture?
39:42
Speaker 1: I read of a moving incident in the life of
39:44
Speaker 1: a man named Dr. John Broadus, who was at one
39:47
Speaker 1: time president of the University of Virginia. Don't forget that.
39:51
Speaker 1: He was also a founding professor at Southern Seminary of
39:54
Speaker 1: the Southern Baptist up in Louisville, Kentucky. Just three weeks
39:59
Speaker 1: before Broadus' death, he stood before his class. The scripture
40:04
Speaker 1: reading was Acts 18.24. which reads, Now a certain Jew
40:10
Speaker 1: named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came
40:14
Speaker 1: to Ephesus, and he was mighty in the scriptures. After
40:20
Speaker 1: Brodus read this verse, he went on to say, Gentlemen,
40:24
Speaker 1: we must be like Apollos, mighty in the scriptures. A
40:31
Speaker 1: student later said, A hush fell upon the class for
40:34
Speaker 1: the next few minutes, as Brodus said, stood and repeated,
40:40
Speaker 1: mighty in the scriptures. Mighty in the scriptures. Mighty in
40:51
Speaker 1: the scriptures. As Spurgeon once said, our very blood ought
40:59
Speaker 1: to be bibline. I love that. Next time I have
41:04
Speaker 1: a doctor take my blood and ask about the type,
41:06
Speaker 1: I'm going to say it's bibline. He's going to say, well,
41:10
Speaker 1: it's not on your chart. And I'm going to say,
41:12
Speaker 1: put it on the chart. It's Bibli. If Paul could
41:17
Speaker 1: saturate his life in the word of God, you and
41:20
Speaker 1: I can too. Maybe not to such an extent as Dr.
41:24
Speaker 1: Nelson Bell. Maybe not like John Brodess, who stood before
41:28
Speaker 1: his class and spoke with such eloquence, but like you.
41:32
Speaker 1: And you are touching some lives no one else will
41:35
Speaker 1: touch in your sphere of influence. Be known for your
41:40
Speaker 1: biblical counseling. Be known for your biblical advice, your biblical
41:47
Speaker 1: frame of reference, your biblical stand on moral values. Establish
41:52
Speaker 1: that and become saturated with the word of God. Here's
41:58
Speaker 1: the second observation I make on Paul's first journey. His
42:03
Speaker 1: message emphasized the gospel to the lost and grace When
42:12
Speaker 1: I read through the messages that Paul preached on his
42:15
Speaker 1: first journey, I find two prominent themes running concurrently like
42:21
Speaker 1: threads in a sweater. They're woven into the tapestry of
42:25
Speaker 1: his ministries. When he's with the lost, he gives the gospel. 13,
42:30
Speaker 1: verse 38. Look at that with me. Let it be
42:34
Speaker 1: known to you that through him forgiveness of sins is
42:37
Speaker 1: proclaimed to you, and through him everyone who believes is
42:40
Speaker 1: freed from all things from which you could not be
42:43
Speaker 1: freed through the law of Moses. Wouldn't it be a
42:47
Speaker 1: great goal for us that we not let one week
42:50
Speaker 1: pass for the rest of our lives when we have
42:53
Speaker 1: not shared Christ at least once to someone else? It
42:57
Speaker 1: was a pleasure this past week for me to sit
42:59
Speaker 1: across from a man, a businessman, and to sort of
43:02
Speaker 1: outline on a napkin how his life has been involved
43:06
Speaker 1: in one island full of debris, and he longs for
43:09
Speaker 1: the island that is full of peace and relief and forgiveness.
43:13
Speaker 1: My comment to him was, you know, you've just taken
43:16
Speaker 1: the wrong bridges. And you've therefore gone to the wrong islands.
43:21
Speaker 1: This religion, that religion, this area of good works, that
43:24
Speaker 1: area of self-help. There's only one bridge that leads you
43:28
Speaker 1: to the one island you need to be on. And
43:31
Speaker 1: the bridge is Christ. And in the simplest of terms,
43:34
Speaker 1: I described to him how he could come to know Christ.
43:38
Speaker 1: He didn't at that moment believe. But for all I know,
43:41
Speaker 1: in the hours that followed, he will. What we do
43:45
Speaker 1: is we invest the gospel in the lives of the lost,
43:48
Speaker 1: just like the apostle Paul, and we leave the results
43:51
Speaker 1: with him. And that's exactly what Paul did. The second
43:57
Speaker 1: emphasis is on grace. Just as the lost don't understand
44:01
Speaker 1: the gospel, the saved don't understand grace. I find that
44:05
Speaker 1: all the time. I find that dear saints of God
44:08
Speaker 1: trying to live under the law, trying to please the
44:11
Speaker 1: people around them, living under the legalism of demands and
44:15
Speaker 1: expectations that come from certain spiritual leaders, so-called. And I
44:20
Speaker 1: think the grace has freed you from that. It has
44:24
Speaker 1: freed you to walk in love and obedience to Christ.
44:28
Speaker 1: I love the way it happened in Paul's life, 1343,
44:30
Speaker 1: when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up. Look
44:34
Speaker 1: at what happened following the church service. Many of the
44:37
Speaker 1: Jews and of the God-fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas,
44:41
Speaker 1: who speaking to them were urging them to continue in
44:44
Speaker 1: the grace of God. Isn't that great? Paul, Barnabas, keep
44:48
Speaker 1: telling us about grace. Keep preaching grace. Look at 14
44:52
Speaker 1: verse 3. Same theme. They spent a long time there
44:57
Speaker 1: speaking boldly with reliance upon the Lord who was testifying
45:02
Speaker 1: to the word of his grace, granting that signs and
45:05
Speaker 1: wonders be done by their hands. Verse 26, same chapter.
45:10
Speaker 1: From there they sailed to Antioch from which they had
45:13
Speaker 1: been commended to the grace of God for the work
45:16
Speaker 1: that they had accomplished. Think in terms of giving the
45:20
Speaker 1: gospel to those who don't know Christ and think in
45:23
Speaker 1: terms of relieving people of guilt and shame-based religion, introducing
45:28
Speaker 1: them to a grace way of life. You will do
45:31
Speaker 1: the greatest service for fellow Christians if you'll help them
45:35
Speaker 1: understand grace, the gospel, grace. While we were away, one
45:39
Speaker 1: of the things Cynthia and I did was attend a concert,
45:42
Speaker 1: as some of you have done, to listen to the
45:44
Speaker 1: three tenors as they sang over in Fort Worth It
45:48
Speaker 1: was wonderful. Lornell Harris, Steve Green, Steve Amerson. Wow. It
45:54
Speaker 1: just doesn't get much better than that. I thought, Lord,
45:57
Speaker 1: you missed your chance to come back. I mean, this
45:59
Speaker 1: is the moment right now into this concert. We all
46:03
Speaker 1: get caught up. But, you know, what do I know?
46:05
Speaker 1: So I afterwards, therefore, go in the back room and
46:08
Speaker 1: meet with the guys and their friends. And it was
46:10
Speaker 1: a great reacquainting with one another. And I said to
46:14
Speaker 1: one of them, I noticed two themes tonight. I heard
46:18
Speaker 1: the gospel. It's still the cross. People need the Lord.
46:23
Speaker 1: And can it be down from his glory? And it's grace.
46:30
Speaker 1: Were it not for grace. Amazing grace. This must be
46:34
Speaker 1: the place. And Dottie Rambo's well-known piece, he looked beyond
46:38
Speaker 1: my faults. Isn't that a great piece? You know why
46:41
Speaker 1: you love it? Because it's about grace. Doesn't deny your faults.
46:45
Speaker 1: He just looks beyond your faults. And I said to
46:49
Speaker 1: those men, whatever you do, don't stop singing the gospel
46:56
Speaker 1: and proclaiming grace. Don't stop doing that. That is a
47:01
Speaker 1: balanced ministry if you're ever going to be exposed to balance.
47:06
Speaker 1: The lost need to hear how they can come from
47:08
Speaker 1: the bridge, from the island of debris and lostness and
47:12
Speaker 1: misery and guilt to the island of peace and relief
47:17
Speaker 1: and forgiveness. And building that bridge is a simple matter
47:21
Speaker 1: of sincere, authentic communication. You don't have to have a
47:25
Speaker 1: seminary degree. You don't have to know a lot of
47:28
Speaker 1: the vocabulary. But in love with Christ... You help them
47:34
Speaker 1: understand what they are missing as you describe the island
47:37
Speaker 1: that is not a part of their life. And you
47:39
Speaker 1: help them build a bridge from darkness to light, from
47:44
Speaker 1: death to life, from guilt to forgiveness. It's wonderful. And
47:50
Speaker 1: then once they're on the island, release them. Don't try
47:56
Speaker 1: to strangle them. Release them. Let them live. Tell them
48:03
Speaker 1: about the wings of grace that will let them fly
48:05
Speaker 1: beyond the legalism of the law. You will do for
48:08
Speaker 1: them the greatest service on this earth, the gospel and grace.
48:14
Speaker 1: Let me give you one more point, then we'll finish
48:16
Speaker 1: the rest next time. The third observation I'll make about
48:20
Speaker 1: Paul's ministry is though the public's reaction was mixed, his
48:25
Speaker 1: response was mature. Though the public's reaction was mixed, his
48:33
Speaker 1: response was mature. Examples, when he needed to be firm,
48:40
Speaker 1: he was. When he was invited to speak, he did.
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Speaker 1: When he was refused and rejected, he didn't quit. When
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Speaker 1: he was unrealistically admired and adored, he humbly resisted such praise.
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Speaker 1: When he was despised and even stoned, he persevered. When
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Speaker 1: with fellow believers, he encouraged and affirmed them. And when
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Speaker 1: he was with the church body, he was accountable as
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Speaker 1: he came back home. I mean, what a list. What maturity.
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Speaker 1: You say, man, the results must have been magnificent. I mean,
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Speaker 1: he must have led thousands to Christ. I'm not sure.
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Speaker 1: I'm not sure. Because numbers are never mentioned. That's another
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Speaker 1: thing I ought to ride a horse on, but I'm
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Speaker 1: not going to take time right now. Forget the numbers.
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Speaker 1: Don't tell me you just have a class of 15 people.
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Speaker 1: I said I wasn't going to get on it, so
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Speaker 1: I'm not going to get on it. Stop right there.
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Speaker 1: Whatever the results will be, that's in the Lord's hands.
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Speaker 1: Dream big, but remember it's a jagged ministry. And an
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Speaker 1: authentic ministry that's jagged will have a lot of surprises
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Speaker 1: along the way. There will not be things that result
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Speaker 1: as you expected. I close with a classic example. There
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Speaker 1: is a sentence in the diary of a man named
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Speaker 1: James Gilmore. Pioneer missionary to Mongolia. Pioneer missionary to Mongolia.
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Speaker 1: The diary sentence is written at the sunset of his career,
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Speaker 1: which speaks to the point. The journal entry reads, quote,
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Speaker 1: in the shape of converts, I have seen no result.
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Speaker 1: I have not, as far as I am aware, seen
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Speaker 1: anyone who even wanted to be a Christian. What adds
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Speaker 1: some pathos to that statement is to go back to
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Speaker 1: the early part of his journal and read his dreams.
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Speaker 1: Among his dreams in the first part of his journal,
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Speaker 1: this entry appears. Several huts in sight, When shall I
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Speaker 1: be able to speak to the people, O Lord? Suggest
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Speaker 1: by the Spirit how I should come among them, and
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Speaker 1: in preparing myself to teach the life and love of
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Speaker 1: Christ Jesus. That was his dream. In the end of
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Speaker 1: his journal, I have not, as far as I'm aware,
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Speaker 1: seen anyone who even wanted to be a Christian. When
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Speaker 1: I speak today about the jagged edge of an authentic ministry,
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Speaker 1: I'm not in any way promising success in human terms.
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Speaker 1: I'm not saying because you are faithful to proclaim the
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Speaker 1: word of God, your church will be packed. Some of
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Speaker 1: God's faithful people are preaching his word in places where
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Speaker 1: the church is not growing. And the great temptation is
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Speaker 1: to turn to some of the other stuff. That I
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Speaker 1: began this message with. Don't turn. Don't change. Stay at it.
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Speaker 1: God is in it. Some are called to minister in Frisco, Texas.
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Speaker 1: Which is my privilege. And some are called to the
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Speaker 1: outermost part of Mongolia. Where he doesn't even know of
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Speaker 1: one interested in the message. He is no less called
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Speaker 1: than I am. And my respect for him knows no bounds.
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Speaker 1: Wherever you may find yourself in this message, pull closer
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Speaker 1: to the Apostle Paul's model. Saturate yourself in the word
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Speaker 1: of God. Commit yourself at least once a week to
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Speaker 1: the sharing of the gospel with someone lost and the
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Speaker 1: message of grace to someone who's saved but still trapped
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Speaker 1: in self-works. And though the people's response will be mixed,
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Speaker 1: respond with maturity. He's a model that follows Christ's model
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Speaker 1: perfectly and beautifully. I'd like us to bow together for
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Speaker 1: a few moments of quietness. I'd like you just to
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Speaker 1: sit there with your thoughts for a few moments. I
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Speaker 1: know what time it is and I'll not linger needlessly here.
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Speaker 1: I find sometimes the most sensitive part of a message
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Speaker 1: comes after the sermon has ended. That God's word lives on.
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Speaker 1: Maybe your heart's been pricked today over a statement made
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Speaker 1: regarding time with God and his word. Maybe that's what
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Speaker 1: you take from this message and you include in your
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Speaker 1: journal before the day is over. Lord, by your strength
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Speaker 1: and help, I'm going to get back into the The
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Speaker 1: reading of your word. Give me the discipline. To begin immediately.
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Speaker 1: With time alone with you. Maybe you're going through a
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Speaker 1: really tough time. And you feel like they're coming after you.
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Speaker 1: Kind of like those people who followed Paul like a snake.
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Speaker 1: And you may have been focusing more on those against you.
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Speaker 1: Than the one who is with you. Be a good
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Speaker 1: time for you to release that burden. And just in
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Speaker 1: your own words, in your own way, your own thoughts, Lord,
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Speaker 1: I give you this pressure. I release this to you.
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Speaker 1: Take this for me. And strengthen me to go on
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Speaker 1: without the applause and encouragement of others. Hey, you may
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Speaker 1: be connected to someone who doesn't know Christ. And this
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Speaker 1: is your moment. I mean, what better time than now?
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Speaker 1: You built a relationship, a friendship. Maybe it's time for
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Speaker 1: you to sit there at that restaurant with that napkin
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Speaker 1: as a little object lesson and draw your two islands
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Speaker 1: and tell them about the bridge. Just do it in
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Speaker 1: your own way, in the most natural way in the world.
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Speaker 1: Nobody's going to be embarrassed. Just pray for timing and direction.
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Speaker 1: Or maybe grace. Maybe you need to Encourage some Christians
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Speaker 1: that are living under the demands of blame, guilt. I
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Speaker 1: got to tell you, if you've never come to know Christ,
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Speaker 1: that's what the end of our service is dedicated to.
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Speaker 1: It's offering you the gift. I won't embarrass you. I
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Speaker 1: couldn't force you if I tried. Coming into the family
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Speaker 1: of God is between you and him. But the only
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Speaker 1: way you're going to get there is to go across
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Speaker 1: the bridge of the cross. The song says, Jesus paid
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Speaker 1: it all, all to him I owe. Sin had left
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Speaker 1: a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. I
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Speaker 1: invite you to come to Christ this very day. Now, Father,
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Speaker 1: thank you for the pleasure of authentic ministry, for the
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Speaker 1: joy of worship that turns attention away from people and
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Speaker 1: focuses attention on the Savior and the word that he
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Speaker 1: has left in his legacy. Thank you for the gospel
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Speaker 1: that delivers us from the horrors of a life lost
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Speaker 1: in sin. And for grace that frees us to fly.
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Speaker 1: Above the demands and pressures of others. Thank you Lord
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Speaker 1: for the maturity that you're able to bring to us.
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Speaker 1: And we ask you for it. Encourage those who've taken
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Speaker 1: time this day to hear the word of God. And
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Speaker 1: to participate in our worship. Encourage them on their way home.
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Speaker 1: And in the work that unfolds before them this week.
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Speaker 1: bring to our attention again and again the importance of
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Speaker 1: time spent with you. And may this be the beginning
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Speaker 1: of a whole new way of life for many. And
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Speaker 1: now unto him who is able to guard us from
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Speaker 1: stumbling and to present us faultless before the presence of
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Speaker 1: his glory with great joy, to the only wise God,
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Speaker 1: our Savior, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, now
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Speaker 1: and forevermore. In the name of Jesus Christ, all God's
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Speaker 1: people said, Amen. Amen. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication
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Speaker 1: of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.