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Acts 12:1-19 · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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  If you would, would you please open your Bibles and turn to Acts chapter 12.
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  !
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  I got to preach on Acts chapter 10 a little bit over a month ago.
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  And before we kind of go into where Nathan brought us last week and where we are right
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  now, I definitely want to draw attention to something that David said in his prayer.
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  David was praying that we would be participating in the service through our worship, through
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  the music, through our prayers, through the preaching, through the receiving of the word,
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  through our giving.
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  So, painting the picture that all of this is worship, not just the music that was played.
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  Even as you're listening right now, like you're honoring God in the way that you receive this,
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  in the way that you ask God and you're praying for Him to show you what you need to see about
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  this text.
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  So, all of this is worship.
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  I need your prayers while I preach.
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  I am so, I'm not infallible like God's word is.
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  Thankfully, God chooses to use us.
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  And so, I take that very seriously.
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  But, please pray for me during this time.
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  Be praying for other people here that are bringing completely different stories into the service
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  who need to hear God's word.
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  And God's word pierces us like an arrow.
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  So, and each person needs to hear this in a way that God is kind of preparing their hearts for.
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  So, be praying for me.
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  Be praying for each other.
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  Be remembering that all of this is worship.
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  It's not just the music on the stage.
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  So, with that, let's kind of talk about where we've been in Acts so far.
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  Last week, Nathan preached on finishing up Acts 11.
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  And we kind of have seen a lot of really big pivotal things happen in Acts so far.
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  We've seen the church grow from just a very, very small number, a couple hundred people,
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  to thousands of people being added daily.
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  And it just, it's crazy.
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  And so, then we're seeing persecution come.
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  We see Stephen martyred.
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  And then we have this other big event with the Gentiles being brought in.
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  And we talked about that in Acts 10.
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  So, there's a lot of really big events.
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  The church is growing.
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  Gentiles are being added into the church, which to us doesn't seem like a big deal.
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  But if you're a first century Jew, that's a huge deal.
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  And now, what we've been doing, where we were last week,
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  is we were kind of talking about Paul and Barnabas.
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  And they're in Antioch.
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  So, now what the author of Acts, Luke, is doing is he's bringing us back into Jerusalem.
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  And if you remember, where we left in Jerusalem was Stephen being martyred.
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  So, we're coming back to persecution.
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  And you're going to see that persecution is this really, really big theme of Acts.
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  And we're going to kind of hit it over and over and over again.
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  And something that you're going to see, if you're noticing,
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  is that where there's persecution, there's going to be gospel growth and gospel sharing.
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  Where there's gospel sharing, there's going to be persecution.
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  It's not so much a cause and effect, but think of it as two sides of the same coin.
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  If you see persecution, you're going to see gospel growth.
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  When you see gospel growth, gospel proclamation, you will see persecution.
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  And we know that persecution will come to the believer.
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  The text that we're going to look at this morning is 2 Timothy 3.12,
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  which says that all who desire to live a godly life will be persecuted,
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  which is not an easy thing to hear.
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  We also know that Satan is the enemy of the gospel.
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  We have an enemy, and it's not our neighbors or those who disagree with us politically.
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  It is a spiritual enemy whose desire is to stifle the gospel
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  and keep the believer apart from God.
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  We see that it's in Ephesians where Paul is saying,
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  hey, our struggle is not against flesh and blood.
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  So it's not against people, but it's against these principalities.
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  It's against these authorities of the spiritual world.
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  And so we know that Satan is the enemy of the gospel,
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  and Satan's drive, his goal, is to silence the believer,
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  to silence the proclamation of the gospel,
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  to keep the believer away from God.
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  So the question that I'm asking, that I'm posing to you this morning is,
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  it's not will you respond to persecution,
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  but how.
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  How will you respond to persecution when it comes?
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  So with that, we're going to read Acts 12, verses 1 through 19,
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  and then we're going to pray real quick,
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  and then we're going to go right into it.
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  Starting in verse 1.
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  About that time, Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church.
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  He killed James the brother of John with the sword,
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  and when he saw that it pleased the Jews,
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  he proceeded to arrest Peter also.
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  This was during the days of unleavened bread.
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  And when he had seized him, he put him in prison,
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  delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him,
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  intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.
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  So Peter was kept in prison,
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  but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.
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  Now when Herod was about to bring him out on that very night,
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  Peter was sleeping between two soldiers,
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  bound with chains,
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  and centuries before the door were guarding the prison.
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  And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him,
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  and a light shone in the cell.
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  He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying,
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  Get up quickly.
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  And the chains fell off of his hands.
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  And the angel said to him,
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  Dress yourself and put on your sandals.
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  And he did so.
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  And he said to him,
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  Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.
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  And he went out and followed him.
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  He did not know what was being done by the angel was real,
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  but thought he was seeing a vision.
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  When they had passed the first and the second guard,
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  they came to the iron gate, leading into the city.
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  It opened for them of its own accord,
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  and they went out and went along one street.
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  And immediately the angel left him.
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  When Peter came to himself, he said,
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  Now I am sure the Lord has sent his angel
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  and rescued me from the hands of Herod
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  and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.
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  When he realized this,
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  he went to the house of Mary,
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  the mother of John,
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  whose other name was Mark,
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  where many were gathered together and were praying.
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  And when he knocked at the door of the gateway,
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  a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer.
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  Recognizing Peter's voice in her joy,
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  she did not open the gate,
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  but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.
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  They said to her,
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  You are out of your mind.
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  But she kept insisting that it was so.
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  And they kept saying,
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  It is his angel.
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  But Peter continued knocking.
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  And when they opened,
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  they saw him,
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  and they were amazed.
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  But motioning to them with his hand to be silent,
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  he described to them
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  how the Lord had brought him out of prison.
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  And he said to them,
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  Tell these things to James and to the brothers.
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  Then he departed and went to another place.
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  Now when day came,
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  there was no little disturbance among the soldiers
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  over what became of Peter.
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  And after Herod searched for him and did not find him,
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  he examined the sentries
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  in order that they should be put to death.
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  Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea
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  and spent time there.
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  Pray with me real quickly.
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  Heavenly Father,
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  thank you for your word.
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  Thank you for giving it to us
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  that you speak to us through your word.
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  No other text can do that, God.
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  Only your word can.
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  Only your word can speak to us
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  in a unique way
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  that convicts us,
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  that encourages us.
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  And we pray that you would do those things this morning,
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  that you would use me,
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  God, a sinner,
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  that you would use me to proclaim your truth,
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  that there would be clarity this morning,
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  that we would all walk away
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  encouraged, convicted,
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  and changed by your word.
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  We ask this in Christ's name.
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  Amen.
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  Okay, so,
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  if you're taking notes,
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  one of the first things that we're saying right now
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  is that persecution will come to the believer.
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  Persecution will come to the believer.
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  That is seen in Acts chapter 12,
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  verses 1 through 2.
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  If you're looking at a text,
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  you can see about that time,
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  Herod the king laid violent hands
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  on some who belonged to the church.
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  He killed James,
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  the brother of John,
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  with the sword,
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  and when he saw that it pleased the Jews,
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  he proceeded to arrest Peter also.
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  So,
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  I want to take like a quick second
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  and just do a little bit of character clarification,
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  because if you're looking at the text,
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  it might be a little confusing who's who.
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  Okay, so James,
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  not the author of James.
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  Okay,
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  you remember,
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  if you recall,
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  Jesus is walking alongside the Sea of Galilee,
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  and he calls two men.
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  Do you remember their names?
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  It's James and John.
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  They're brothers.
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  That's the James that we're talking about.
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  So, this is,
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  while Stephen was the first martyr of the gospel,
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  this is the first apostle who's been martyred.
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  This is not James, brother of Jesus.
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  Okay,
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  that's the James who wrote the book of James.
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  Okay,
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  second thing,
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  his brother is John.
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  Later on in the story,
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  they talk about John Mark.
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  That's not James' brother.
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  Okay,
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  next thing I need to say,
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  when Peter asks about,
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  let's see,
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  verse 17,
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  he says,
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  tell these things to James.
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  It's not the James that just died.
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  So,
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  he knows.
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  He's talking about James,
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  Justice,
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  brother of Jesus,
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  who's now going to start kind of leading the church in Jerusalem.
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  Second thing is Herod.
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  There's a lot of Herods.
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  Okay,
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  there's Herod,
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  the one that tried to kill baby Jesus.
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  That's not the Herod we're talking about.
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  There's the Herod that questioned Jesus.
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  That's Herod Antipas.
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  Okay,
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  that's not the one that we're talking about here.
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  Herod Agrippa,
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  that's the one we're talking about.
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  He's the one who we're going to continue on with the story later on.
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  Okay,
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  so,
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  the couple things that we see here in the text.
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  Do you guys notice that James just kind of gets persecuted and killed with no trial?
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  Like,
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  there's nothing that happens.
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  There's no,
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  there's no,
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  like,
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  he goes before a public forum.
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  There's no,
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  there's nothing.
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  It's just James is,
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  at least that's the way that Luke describes it in the text,
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  is James is just killed.
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  Out of nowhere.
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  And then,
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  you'll see what Herod does,
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  is he kind of waits to see what the Jews are going to react to it.
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  So,
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  he kills James.
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  Herod is kind of looking for the applause of man in this.
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  And he sees,
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  okay,
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  well,
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  how are the Jews going to react to this?
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  And they react favorably.
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  And he's like,
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  okay,
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  I'm going to kill Peter next.
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  So,
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  he throws Peter in prison.
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  Again,
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  no trial.
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  Think about that.
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  That's you.
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  I mean,
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  no trial here.
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  And you're just,
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  there's no one to say,
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  no,
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  no,
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  no,
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  this guy,
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  he's a good man.
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  He should not die.
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  There's no one to do that.
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  If you were thrown in prison,
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  you would have friends who'd be able to come to your call,
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  and they would be able to voice their opinion for you,
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  and vouch for you,
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  and say,
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  no,
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  this is a good woman.
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  This is a good man.
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  That does not happen to James or Peter.
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  They don't get that opportunity.
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  So,
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  it's so,
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  it's so incredibly unjust.
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  And so,
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  Peter's next in line,
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  and the thing that,
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  the reason why he hasn't been executed yet,
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  is so that Passover can be honored.
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  There's this really tragic irony in upholding the law,
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  and upholding these feasts,
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  so that once those are done,
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  then we can kill our guy.
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  So,
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  again,
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  Peter's next in line to die,
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  and the only thing that's waiting on that,
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  is Herod's approval,
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  and the Passover being completed.
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  And so,
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  like James and Peter,
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  we're going to be persecuted just the same.
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  It's going to look differently,
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  and there's reasons why I would say,
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  we too will be persecuted.
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  The first reason is that Jesus is our master.
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  This is huge to get.
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  John 15,
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  20.
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  So,
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  Jesus is talking to his disciples,
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  and he says,
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  remember the word that I said to you,
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  a servant is not greater than his master.
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  If they persecuted me,
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  they will persecute you.
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  If they kept my word,
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  they will also keep yours.
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  Okay,
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  this is worth turning to,
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  2 Timothy 3.12.
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  Okay,
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  so,
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  Paul is writing this verse,
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  not from the comfort of freedom,
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  and the comfort of a library somewhere,
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  or a study.
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  Paul is writing this in chains,
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  knowing that his execution is near.
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  So,
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  Paul is writing this text,
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  and he says in verse 12,
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  indeed,
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  all who desire to live a godly life in Christ,
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  will be persecuted,
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  while evil people and imposters will go on from bad to worse,
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  deceiving,
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  and being deceived.
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  So,
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  that's huge to get,
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  because Peter,
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  Paul is not saying that from theory.
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  He's saying that from personal experience.
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  And,
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  so,
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  again,
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  the first reason is that Jesus is our master.
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  We're identifying with Christ,
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  we will be persecuted.
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  The second reason is that
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  we're foreign to the world.
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  Peter kind of exhorts his writers over and over again,
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  saying,
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  hey,
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  you guys are strangers and exiles.
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  And then we see that theme with Paul where he says,
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  hey,
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  you're to be in the world,
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  but not of the world.
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  So,
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  saying that
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  this earth is not our home.
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  The ways of the world are not our ways.
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  We are called out of this world.
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  We are called out of sin,
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  and we're called strangers and exiles.
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  So,
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  the world will see that we are,
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  we don't go with everything that the world goes with.
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  So,
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  that we're foreign to the world.
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  It's not a question of,
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  like I said earlier,
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  it's not a question of will we respond to persecution,
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  but how will we respond to persecution?
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  Because of these reasons,
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  Jesus is our master,
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  we're strangers and exiles to the world.
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  We're going to appear different,
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  because we've been called out of darkness,
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  so we no longer look like that darkness.
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  So,
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  how are we going to respond?
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  The first thing is that,
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  we can kind of look at,
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  the reaction of the church.
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  The church is persecuted,
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  and it doesn't shrink back,
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  but instead it goes forth of a message even more,
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  and it proclaims it even more.
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  It's that two sides of the same coin.
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  There's persecution,
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  there's going to be gospel proclamation,
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  and the church doesn't shrink back from that gospel proclamation,
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  and so,
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  as people who will be persecuted,
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  we respond by,
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  not being surprised,
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  when it comes.
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  The church isn't shocked by it.
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  And if they are,
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  Luke doesn't add that into the story.
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  It makes it very clear,
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  that the church,
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  responds to James being killed unjustly,
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  out of nowhere,
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  with no trial,
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  and Peter being next in line,
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  they respond with prayer,
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  they're not surprised,
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  they're not going,
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  and creating a mob,
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  and demanding justice.
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  They're counting it all joy.
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  And then they're praying.
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  We're going to get into that in a minute,
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  but that's the church's response.
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  Do you see that?
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  Like,
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  it's so important to see.
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  Okay,
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  persecution comes,
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  the church prays.
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  That's the church's response.
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  Not surprised.
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  Yes,
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  grieved.
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  I don't want to,
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  I don't want to understate that,
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  that the church is some machine,
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  that is so godly,
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  and so holy,
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  that when one of their own gets killed,
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  or someone doesn't get healed,
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  they're immediately like,
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  well,
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  God is good,
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  we're just going to pray,
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  and that's what we're going to do.
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  Like,
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  no,
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  I'm sure,
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  like,
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  by no means do I believe,
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  that the church was not mourning James' death,
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  and they weren't crying out.
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  Like,
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  I absolutely believe that.
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  So,
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  church is not mechanical in that.
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  But,
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  it isn't surprised,
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  and they respond in prayer,
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  grief,
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  and in prayer.
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  The thing that I want to ask is,
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  okay,
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  so what if we aren't seeing persecution in our lives?
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  This is a big question.
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  We're,
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  we're seeing the type of persecution here,
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  where someone's being executed,
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  and thrown in jail,
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  wrongly.
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  So,
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  we're not seeing that.
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  We're sharing the gospel,
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  but we're not seeing ourselves be thrown in jail.
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  And thankfully,
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  our,
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  our government protects us in that way.
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  But,
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  nonetheless,
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  the promise is true.
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  Right?
• 17:16
  The promise is true,
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  that all who desire to live a godly life,
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  will be persecuted.
• 17:21
  There is not,
• 17:21
  this,
• 17:22
  explanation that he gives,
• 17:24
  saying like,
• 17:24
  unless you're living,
• 17:26
  in a country that allows you to share the gospel.
• 17:28
  No,
• 17:29
  no,
• 17:29
  he's just saying,
• 17:30
  hey,
• 17:30
  all who desire to live a godly life,
• 17:31
  will be persecuted.
• 17:32
  So,
• 17:32
  what if we don't see that though?
• 17:34
  What if you're looking around,
• 17:35
  you're saying,
• 17:35
  well,
• 17:35
  we're not seeing that.
• 17:36
  Again,
• 17:37
  I'm not saying it's going to look exactly like the way it's looking in Acts.
• 17:40
  At least in this country,
• 17:41
  it won't.
• 17:42
  For now.
• 17:43
  But,
• 17:44
  I want to give a couple reasons,
• 17:46
  why I don't think we see persecution happen all the time.
• 17:52
  And,
• 17:52
  the first reason is that there are spiritual forces at work.
• 17:59
  So,
• 17:59
  like we said earlier,
• 18:00
  again,
• 18:00
  our struggle is not against flesh and blood,
• 18:02
  but it's against these spiritual forces.
• 18:04
  And so,
• 18:05
  Satan is happy to not persecute us,
• 18:09
  if it means that we enjoy our luxuries more than we do share the gospel.
• 18:17
  So,
• 18:18
  it's a particular challenge that we face in the West.
• 18:21
  Because we have all of our comforts,
• 18:23
  and we do have these freedoms and these liberties that allow us to not have to worry about gathering this morning and reading the Bible.
• 18:30
  But,
• 18:32
  Satan doesn't see a need for us to be persecuted if we're already doing what he wants us to do, which is silence.
• 18:39
  Which,
• 18:41
  if we're not proclaiming the gospel boldly.
• 18:43
  And,
• 18:44
  again,
• 18:44
  comforts are a blessing.
• 18:46
  Material things in and of themselves are not evil.
• 18:49
  But,
• 18:49
  they can be a distraction,
• 18:50
  right?
• 18:51
  Like,
• 18:51
  they can be a distraction from us knowing why we're here,
• 18:55
  getting caught up,
• 18:56
  getting caught up in everything that is happening in our season of life.
• 19:00
  Whether it is,
• 19:00
  like,
• 19:01
  you're in college.
• 19:02
  Like,
• 19:02
  things that Satan wants you to focus on,
• 19:03
  which is your schoolwork.
• 19:05
  And,
• 19:05
  making sure that you get through that.
• 19:07
  Making sure that you get the grades that you need.
• 19:08
  And,
• 19:09
  there's so many different stages.
• 19:12
  I mean,
• 19:12
  that we could kind of go on and on and on about.
• 19:14
  But,
• 19:14
  I'm just saying that our comforts can be a blessing,
• 19:17
  but they can be a distraction.
• 19:20
  And,
• 19:20
  I think that we can be Christians who are over-medicated by luxury.
• 19:28
  Remember,
• 19:28
  all who strive to live a godly life will be persecuted.
• 19:32
  We will be persecuted.
• 19:33
  It'll look differently,
• 19:34
  but we will be persecuted.
• 19:37
  So,
• 19:37
  the first reason we're saying that there's spiritual forces at work.
• 19:40
  The second,
• 19:40
  and this is also the third reason,
• 19:41
  so you're going to have to listen to both.
• 19:44
  The second reason is that,
• 19:45
  second and third is that,
• 19:46
  we either aren't striving to live godly lives,
• 19:50
  or,
• 19:51
  we aren't people who have God in our lives.
• 19:55
  So,
• 19:56
  we either aren't striving to live godly lives,
• 19:58
  or,
• 19:58
  we aren't people who have God in our lives.
• 20:01
  So,
• 20:01
  I hope that you're catching my heart,
• 20:03
  and what I'm saying with that.
• 20:04
  So,
• 20:05
  I think that,
• 20:06
  what's really happened is that we have,
• 20:08
  we hear that,
• 20:09
  we hear that phrase,
• 20:10
  that,
• 20:10
  that verse,
• 20:10
  all who desire to live a godly life,
• 20:13
  will be persecuted.
• 20:14
  And,
• 20:14
  we've redefined the word godly,
• 20:16
  to suit our lifestyles,
• 20:19
  to mean something different than what Paul is talking about here.
• 20:24
  And remember,
• 20:25
  it's two sides of the same coin.
• 20:27
  Persecution,
• 20:28
  and gospel proclamation.
• 20:29
  They go hand in hand.
• 20:30
  It's not a cause and effect,
• 20:31
  but what we're saying is,
• 20:32
  if there is one,
• 20:33
  there will be the other.
• 20:34
  I'm saying,
• 20:37
  yes,
• 20:38
  if you share the gospel at work,
• 20:39
  it's possible you might get passed over for a promotion.
• 20:43
  It's possible that,
• 20:45
  if you share the gospel at work,
• 20:46
  you might lose your job.
• 20:47
  It's possible that,
• 20:48
  if you share the gospel with your friends,
• 20:50
  that you might face social isolation.
• 20:54
  You might get passed over for things.
• 20:56
  It's possible that,
• 20:57
  you might share the gospel with your classmates,
• 20:59
  and suffer for it grade-wise.
• 21:04
  It's going to take different forms,
• 21:06
  but I'm saying that there is a cost to sharing the gospel.
• 21:08
  And when there is gospel proclamation,
• 21:10
  there is persecution.
• 21:12
  I am saying that it's possible that you could share the gospel,
• 21:16
  and not be persecuted,
• 21:17
  and not experience hardship.
• 21:18
  I'm saying it's possible.
• 21:20
  I just don't think that it's likely.
• 21:24
  I would be hard,
• 21:25
  you would be hard-pressed to find someone who is boldly proclaiming the gospel,
• 21:29
  and is not experiencing any problems with that.
• 21:34
  And here's the thing.
• 21:35
  We will bear fruit.
• 21:37
  If we're believers,
• 21:38
  and we've been changed,
• 21:39
  we will bear fruit.
• 21:40
  And to some,
• 21:41
  that'll taste like a peach.
• 21:42
  But to others,
• 21:43
  it'll taste like a lime.
• 21:47
  And the gospel will be a cold glass of water
• 21:49
  to someone who's in need of refreshing,
• 21:51
  and whose soul is weary,
• 21:53
  and they're thinking about spiritual things.
• 21:56
  It will be a cold glass of water to them.
• 21:59
  But to those who have no desire for it,
• 22:01
  who reject it,
• 22:02
  it will be a glass of vinegar.
• 22:03
  It's a polarizing effect.
• 22:06
  So what I'm saying is,
• 22:07
  if we're seeing little to no polarizing effect with our words,
• 22:11
  we're looking less and less like our Lord,
• 22:14
  and that should make us pause.
• 22:17
  And that should make us wonder
• 22:18
  if we actually do know and are communing with God.
• 22:21
  That should make us pause.
• 22:25
  That should make us ask,
• 22:26
  all right, God,
• 22:27
  am I desiring to live a godly life
• 22:29
  the way that you have defined that in the Bible?
• 22:37
  Okay, next thing that we're saying
• 22:38
  is that prayers should be made by the church.
• 22:42
  We've talked about persecution,
• 22:45
  and we're saying,
• 22:46
  okay, prayers will be made by the church.
• 22:48
  You see that as the response from the church
• 22:50
  that this event happens to.
• 22:54
  Look at verse 5 and 12.
• 22:56
  Verse 5,
• 22:57
  So James has been killed.
• 23:15
  Peter's thrown in prison,
• 23:16
  and he's scheduled to be executed by the end of the day,
• 23:18
  and the church is praying in response.
• 23:21
  Interestingly enough,
• 23:22
  there's one person who's not praying.
• 23:24
  Did you notice that?
• 23:24
  The guy who's about to die is not praying.
• 23:27
  He's, like, sleeping.
• 23:29
  And it's like,
• 23:32
  I feel like we've been here before.
• 23:33
  Something big is about to happen,
• 23:35
  and someone should be praying,
• 23:36
  and it's always Peter,
• 23:37
  and he's sleeping.
• 23:41
  It's like,
• 23:42
  he either, like,
• 23:43
  is the most relaxed guy in the world
• 23:44
  who's just not worried.
• 23:45
  He's like,
• 23:46
  God's sovereign in this,
• 23:47
  or that dude just loves him some sleep.
• 23:52
  Which I can identify with.
• 23:54
  The other interesting thing,
• 23:58
  just as a little side note,
• 23:59
  do you notice that,
• 23:59
  okay,
• 23:59
  the church is praying for Peter's release,
• 24:02
  but when Peter is actually released,
• 24:05
  they're surprised.
• 24:07
  Like,
• 24:07
  it's either,
• 24:08
  again,
• 24:08
  they were either surprised,
• 24:09
  like,
• 24:09
  they didn't think that what was going to happen
• 24:10
  was going to happen,
• 24:11
  or it didn't happen the way they thought
• 24:12
  it was going to happen.
• 24:14
  It's like,
• 24:15
  it's really,
• 24:16
  really odd.
• 24:16
  I'm not trying to critique the church too much there,
• 24:18
  but it's like,
• 24:18
  what?
• 24:19
  So,
• 24:20
  so Luke,
• 24:23
  the author,
• 24:23
  he takes significant time
• 24:24
  to talk about prayer in the story.
• 24:27
  Like,
• 24:27
  why,
• 24:28
  why did he go so much into this,
• 24:29
  why did he go into that story of,
• 24:31
  like,
• 24:31
  Peter shows up,
• 24:32
  the church is praying,
• 24:32
  and then the servant girl goes,
• 24:34
  and they're like,
• 24:34
  and she's like,
• 24:35
  hey,
• 24:35
  it's Peter.
• 24:36
  And they're like,
• 24:36
  no,
• 24:36
  no,
• 24:36
  it's not,
• 24:37
  and they keep praying.
• 24:37
  Like,
• 24:37
  why does,
• 24:38
  why does Luke go into that story?
• 24:39
  I think he goes into that
• 24:41
  to show,
• 24:42
  to talk,
• 24:43
  to make a significant point
• 24:44
  to talk about prayer.
• 24:46
  So,
• 24:48
  because of that,
• 24:49
  I'm saying that we should be praying collectively.
• 24:51
  That's what the church is doing in this instance.
• 24:54
  So,
• 24:55
  individual prayer should be happening,
• 24:56
  yes.
• 24:57
  But that should already be going on.
• 25:00
  And group prayer should be a knee-jerk reaction
• 25:02
  like it is here.
• 25:04
  And again,
• 25:05
  that's why Luke attaches that
• 25:07
  to this text.
• 25:08
  He's trying to make this point.
• 25:09
  They're persecuted.
• 25:10
  They're thrown in jail.
• 25:11
  Something like,
• 25:11
  unjustly,
• 25:12
  prayer's happening.
• 25:13
  Again,
• 25:14
  not mechanically,
• 25:15
  but it is a knee-jerk reaction.
• 25:16
  And it's important to remember
• 25:19
  that God uses man's prayers
• 25:21
  as a vehicle,
• 25:22
  as a means to accomplish his will.
• 25:24
  Does he need us?
• 25:25
  No.
• 25:25
  He's totally sovereign,
• 25:28
  entirely in control,
• 25:29
  but he uses our prayers
• 25:30
  as a vehicle,
• 25:31
  as a means.
• 25:33
  If you recall,
• 25:35
  Acts 10,
• 25:35
  you could flip over one page,
• 25:37
  and you could see that in verse 4,
• 25:41
  Cornelius,
• 25:42
  who's the centurion,
• 25:43
  he's praying to God.
• 25:45
  Listen to the way
• 25:45
  that God describes his prayers.
• 25:48
  He says,
• 25:49
  Cornelius is praying,
• 25:50
  and then this angel appears,
• 25:52
  and in verse 4 it says,
• 25:53
  and he stared at him in terror,
• 25:55
  and he said,
• 25:56
  what is it, Lord?
• 25:57
  And he said to him,
• 25:58
  your prayers and your alms
• 25:59
  have ascended
• 26:00
  as a memorial before God.
• 26:03
  That phrasing,
• 26:04
  another version says it's,
• 26:05
  your prayers have ascended
• 26:07
  as a fragrant offering to God.
• 26:09
  So it's like God,
• 26:11
  it's like you smelling something
• 26:12
  really, really delicious,
• 26:13
  and it's like,
• 26:14
  oh man,
• 26:14
  that gets me going,
• 26:16
  I love that.
• 26:18
  And that's Cornelius' prayers
• 26:20
  in this instance,
• 26:21
  and that's what we're saying
• 26:22
  with this text,
• 26:23
  is that our prayers,
• 26:24
  they please God.
• 26:26
  Our prayers please God.
• 26:28
  God uses them as a means,
• 26:29
  and they please him.
• 26:30
  But praying collectively
• 26:35
  is not a knee-jerk reaction for us,
• 26:37
  if we're honest.
• 26:40
  I think that individual prayer
• 26:42
  sometimes can be,
• 26:44
  and that most of us,
• 26:45
  our reaction is to pray,
• 26:47
  and that's good,
• 26:48
  but I don't want to leave out
• 26:49
  this piece of collective,
• 26:50
  group-wide prayer.
• 26:53
  Often it's not a knee-jerk reaction.
• 26:55
  The thing is that group-wide prayer,
• 26:57
  if you have noticed,
• 26:57
  if you are,
• 26:58
  is anyone here like a,
• 27:00
  like you love to people-watch sometimes,
• 27:02
  you love to notice trends
• 27:03
  and like the way that people do things
• 27:05
  and just the interesting things
• 27:06
  that go on during prayer.
• 27:08
  Have you noticed that it's awkward sometimes
• 27:09
  that we're easily distracted,
• 27:12
  and we feel pressure to impress
• 27:14
  in our prayers?
• 27:18
  It can feel forced, right?
• 27:20
  Like our group prayer,
• 27:20
  when we say like,
• 27:21
  okay, let's get together
• 27:22
  and let's pray,
• 27:22
  if you've been in your community groups,
• 27:24
  like you've probably experienced
• 27:25
  some difficulty in group prayer.
• 27:27
  Like it doesn't just flow like water,
• 27:29
  it's just,
• 27:29
  sometimes it's difficult
• 27:30
  and it's not as easy
• 27:32
  as you would hope it would be.
• 27:35
  And I think that reveals something
• 27:37
  about our view of God in prayer.
• 27:41
  Sometimes we view prayer
• 27:41
  as like a ceremony or a ritual
• 27:43
  that we have to go about.
• 27:44
  There's these certain rules
• 27:45
  that make up prayer.
• 27:48
  So what I'm talking about
• 27:49
  with the people-watching thing,
• 27:50
  some things that I thought about,
• 27:51
  like the rules that kind of affect prayer,
• 27:54
  here are the rules of prayer
• 27:55
  that I've noticed.
• 27:56
  If you're going to pray,
• 27:56
  you must always announce,
• 27:58
  all right, let's pray now.
• 27:59
  Again, none of these,
• 28:00
  I'm not critiquing them
• 28:01
  and saying they're really, really terrible.
• 28:02
  It's just showing something about like,
• 28:04
  I feel like we can all identify
• 28:05
  with different rules.
• 28:06
  So there's the,
• 28:07
  we have to announce
• 28:08
  that we have to pray,
• 28:09
  that we're going to pray.
• 28:10
  It's not like if someone
• 28:11
  was sharing something with me
• 28:12
  and I was like,
• 28:12
  man, that's really, really good.
• 28:14
  God, like what do you,
• 28:15
  like we want you to accomplish it.
• 28:16
  Like we couldn't just go into that necessarily.
• 28:18
  It would be like,
• 28:19
  okay, like let's all gather together
• 28:20
  and let's pray right now.
• 28:23
  Sometimes you'll get in that time
• 28:24
  where it's like,
• 28:24
  if we're going to pray,
• 28:25
  we're going to pray to the left
• 28:26
  and you're going to pray
• 28:27
  for the person to your left
• 28:28
  and they're going to pray
• 28:28
  and we're going to complete
• 28:29
  the circle here.
• 28:30
  And then the other thing is,
• 28:34
  if you've ever gotten in a situation
• 28:35
  where you're in a group
• 28:36
  and everyone's prayed
• 28:39
  but two people,
• 28:39
  it's like this unspoken agreement
• 28:41
  between that person and you
• 28:42
  that like,
• 28:43
  I won't have to pray
• 28:44
  if you don't pray
• 28:45
  and then we'll wait.
• 28:46
  We'll wait this thing out.
• 28:47
  We will like go through the storm here
• 28:50
  and then someone,
• 28:52
  someone else will say amen
• 28:53
  and so amen signals
• 28:54
  the end of our prayer time.
• 28:56
  It's like this unspoken agreement
• 28:57
  and it's just like,
• 28:59
  that's just human nature.
• 28:59
  Like that's okay.
• 29:00
  I'm not critiquing it
• 29:01
  and saying like that's the worst thing
• 29:02
  in the world.
• 29:02
  I'm just saying that sometimes,
• 29:04
  and I feel like other people
• 29:05
  can share more rules
• 29:06
  but it seems like there are rules to prayer
• 29:08
  which again is,
• 29:10
  I think it's reflecting something
• 29:11
  about our view of prayer.
• 29:12
  We view prayer
• 29:17
  as a ritual or a ceremony
• 29:18
  with certain rules
• 29:19
  rather than commuting
• 29:21
  with the Almighty.
• 29:26
  Hardly can we say
• 29:27
  prayer is a knee-jerk reaction.
• 29:29
  When was the last time,
• 29:30
  just as a gauge,
• 29:32
  when was the last time
• 29:32
  we prayed for more than 30 minutes?
• 29:35
  When was the last time
• 29:36
  that we cried out in prayer
• 29:38
  and showed emotion in our prayers?
• 29:40
  When was the last time
• 29:46
  that we did that?
• 29:47
  And I don't want to come down too hard
• 29:49
  but I do want to say
• 29:51
  I think this is a muscle
• 29:52
  that you have to work out.
• 29:54
  Just like anything.
• 29:55
  Like someone needed to show you
• 29:56
  how to read your Bible.
• 29:57
  Someone needed to show you
• 29:58
  how to share the gospel.
• 29:59
  And just like that,
• 30:00
  learning how to pray collectively
• 30:03
  is not an easy thing
• 30:04
  and we need,
• 30:05
  it's a muscle
• 30:06
  that we have to work out.
• 30:07
  So how do we do that?
• 30:09
  I have a really complicated plan
• 30:12
  for how we do that.
• 30:13
  We just start doing it.
• 30:16
  It's not something
• 30:17
  that we need to overthink.
• 30:19
  As you leave here,
• 30:20
  like are you praying right now?
• 30:21
  As you leave today,
• 30:22
  as you go over your meals,
• 30:23
  like are you thinking about
• 30:25
  how do we pray?
• 30:26
  How do we ask God
• 30:27
  that He would transform our hearts?
• 30:30
  It starts with,
• 30:31
  what about the one-on-one encounters?
• 30:32
  What about with the
• 30:33
  quarter group discipleships?
• 30:35
  Like are you making prayer a focus?
• 30:36
  I have noticed that
• 30:38
  in the times that I've discipled guys,
• 30:40
  prayer has not been a focus.
• 30:41
  It's been something that we do
• 30:42
  at the very, very end of our meeting.
• 30:43
  It is not the focus of it.
• 30:46
  And I feel like in some ways,
• 30:48
  I've failed certain guys
• 30:50
  by not showing them
• 30:51
  how important prayer is.
• 30:54
  By not letting that be a major focus.
• 30:57
  I let the content
• 30:58
  that we're going through
• 30:59
  be the main focus.
• 31:00
  And at the very end,
• 31:01
  we have like a quick little prayer.
• 31:02
  But rarely have I
• 31:03
  like gotten with these guys
• 31:05
  and be like, hey, like,
• 31:05
  let's cry out together.
• 31:06
  Let's really labor for the people
• 31:07
  that we are praying for
• 31:08
  and we want to see changed
• 31:10
  and transformed.
• 31:12
  So it starts there.
• 31:13
  It starts in your core groups.
• 31:14
  It starts in your community groups.
• 31:16
  And it's just something that
• 31:17
  we sometimes,
• 31:20
  and this isn't for every case,
• 31:21
  but sometimes we have to
• 31:23
  act our way into right thinking
• 31:24
  rather than think our way
• 31:25
  into right acting.
• 31:29
  And with that,
• 31:30
  we should be praying expectantly.
• 31:32
  Right?
• 31:33
  The church, again,
• 31:34
  the thing is that
• 31:35
  they are praying,
• 31:36
  but they,
• 31:37
  it's like there's some disconnect.
• 31:38
  Again, it's either
• 31:39
  they were praying
• 31:39
  and things didn't happen
• 31:40
  the way they thought
• 31:41
  they were going to happen
• 31:42
  or they didn't,
• 31:43
  or they just didn't think
• 31:43
  it was going to happen at all.
• 31:44
  There's something
• 31:45
  that's a little bit off
• 31:46
  in the church here
• 31:47
  in chapter,
• 31:48
  or verse 12 of chapter 12.
• 31:50
  So this verse that came to mind
• 31:52
  is James 1, 5.
• 31:54
  And if you want to turn there
• 31:55
  real quick,
• 31:55
  it'll be one of the last ones
• 31:56
  that you'll turn to.
• 31:57
  So,
• 31:57
  starting in verse 5,
• 32:03
  James is talking about
• 32:04
  praying for wisdom here,
• 32:05
  but the principle
• 32:06
  is still the same.
• 32:07
  He says in verse 5,
• 32:08
  If any of you lacks wisdom,
• 32:12
  let him ask God
• 32:13
  who gives generously to all
• 32:14
  without reproach,
• 32:15
  and it will be given him.
• 32:18
  But let him ask in faith
• 32:20
  with no doubting,
• 32:21
  for the one who doubts
• 32:22
  is like a wave of the sea
• 32:24
  that is driven
• 32:24
  and tossed by the wind.
• 32:27
  For that person
• 32:28
  must not suppose
• 32:28
  that he will receive
• 32:29
  anything from the Lord.
• 32:30
  He is a double-minded man,
• 32:32
  unstable in all his ways.
• 32:34
  So,
• 32:35
  James is touching on this point
• 32:36
  of like,
• 32:37
  hey,
• 32:37
  not doubting when you pray,
• 32:38
  believing,
• 32:39
  praying expectantly.
• 32:41
  How often is it
• 32:42
  that we pray for something,
• 32:43
  whether it's healing
• 32:44
  or a job
• 32:45
  or an opportunity
• 32:46
  to share the gospel,
• 32:47
  and then it doesn't happen,
• 32:49
  and it's like
• 32:49
  we're the first ones,
• 32:50
  God's like the first one
• 32:51
  that we do blame.
• 32:53
  We're like,
• 32:53
  oh,
• 32:54
  like why,
• 32:54
  or question,
• 32:55
  or just get frustrated with,
• 32:56
  like,
• 32:56
  God,
• 32:56
  why didn't you do that?
• 32:58
  But,
• 32:59
  when God does answer that prayer,
• 33:01
  it's almost like
• 33:01
  we write it off
• 33:02
  as like it was going
• 33:02
  to happen anyways.
• 33:04
  Like,
• 33:04
  I mean,
• 33:05
  I interviewed,
• 33:05
  well,
• 33:05
  like I prepared
• 33:06
  for that interview.
• 33:07
  And we're like,
• 33:07
  no,
• 33:07
  like,
• 33:07
  I mean,
• 33:08
  like the doctors knew
• 33:10
  what they were doing.
• 33:11
  They're like,
• 33:11
  they're great doctors.
• 33:12
  And like,
• 33:13
  we thank God,
• 33:13
  we like throw up a prayer to God
• 33:14
  and like,
• 33:15
  thank you.
• 33:15
  But it's not like
• 33:16
  it consumes us like,
• 33:17
  oh my gosh,
• 33:17
  we prayed that this person
• 33:18
  would be healed
• 33:19
  and God used the doctors
• 33:21
  and he was healed.
• 33:23
  Like,
• 33:23
  so we were the first ones
• 33:24
  to blame God,
• 33:25
  but when he does answer
• 33:26
  our prayers,
• 33:27
  like we often like
• 33:28
  skirt that joy.
• 33:30
  the other thing
• 33:33
  that I thought
• 33:34
  was something
• 33:34
  that we kind of
• 33:35
  might struggle with
• 33:36
  a little bit more
• 33:36
  in the reform camp
• 33:37
  and I have to say this
• 33:39
  very,
• 33:39
  very carefully
• 33:39
  and I ask you
• 33:41
  to hear my heart
• 33:41
  in this.
• 33:43
  So,
• 33:43
  we know about
• 33:44
  the sovereignty
• 33:45
  of God.
• 33:46
  We know that God
• 33:47
  is good,
• 33:47
  that he doesn't need us,
• 33:48
  that he's going to do
• 33:48
  what he's going to do
• 33:49
  and that he uses
• 33:50
  our prayers.
• 33:51
  We have a tendency
• 33:52
  to keep ourselves
• 33:54
  from truly praying
• 33:55
  expectantly
• 33:55
  in this way.
• 33:57
  And again,
• 33:58
  hear my heart in this.
• 33:59
  I think that
• 33:59
  we know that God
• 34:00
  is not the God
• 34:01
  of the wealth
• 34:02
  and prosperity gospel
• 34:03
  and we know that
• 34:05
  just because he doesn't
• 34:06
  give us what we ask
• 34:07
  for in prayer,
• 34:08
  we know that he's
• 34:09
  still good.
• 34:11
  But,
• 34:12
  and we know that
• 34:12
  it's right for Jesus
• 34:13
  to pray in the garden,
• 34:14
  hey,
• 34:15
  let this cut past
• 34:15
  before me,
• 34:16
  but your will,
• 34:17
  not my.
• 34:18
  Right?
• 34:18
  So,
• 34:19
  we get that concept
• 34:20
  that Jesus is saying,
• 34:21
  hey,
• 34:22
  I really want this
• 34:22
  to happen,
• 34:23
  but it's not my will,
• 34:24
  I'm submitting
• 34:25
  to your will.
• 34:26
  And I think that
• 34:26
  where we hurt ourselves
• 34:28
  when it comes to
• 34:29
  praying expectantly
• 34:30
  is that anytime
• 34:31
  that we pray for something,
• 34:32
  again,
• 34:32
  a job interview,
• 34:33
  healing,
• 34:34
  gospel sharing,
• 34:36
  we will ask for that
• 34:38
  and then we'll always
• 34:38
  follow that up with,
• 34:40
  but if it's your will,
• 34:41
  God,
• 34:42
  like,
• 34:42
  if that's what you
• 34:43
  want to happen,
• 34:44
  then make that happen.
• 34:45
  And,
• 34:46
  again,
• 34:47
  while I'm saying
• 34:47
  that that's right,
• 34:49
  because we're so quick
• 34:50
  to follow it up,
• 34:51
  I think that
• 34:52
  if we're not careful,
• 34:53
  it can be a subtle way
• 34:54
  for us to insulate
• 34:55
  ourselves from pain,
• 34:58
  that
• 34:59
  when God doesn't
• 35:02
  answer the prayer
• 35:02
  the way that we
• 35:03
  want him to,
• 35:04
  it's almost like
• 35:04
  we already protected
• 35:05
  ourselves,
• 35:06
  we saw that happening
• 35:07
  two or three steps
• 35:07
  down the line
• 35:08
  and we were like,
• 35:09
  but if it's your will
• 35:10
  to not let that happen,
• 35:12
  then let me be okay
• 35:13
  with it.
• 35:13
  And,
• 35:14
  again,
• 35:14
  I'm not saying
• 35:14
  that's wrong,
• 35:15
  I'm not saying
• 35:15
  that's bad,
• 35:16
  I'm just saying
• 35:16
  it is something
• 35:17
  that can subtly
• 35:18
  keep us from
• 35:18
  praying expectantly.
• 35:19
  It's good and
• 35:24
  biblical to say
• 35:25
  this,
• 35:26
  but while it can
• 35:27
  soften the blow
• 35:28
  of our disappointment,
• 35:29
  it can also
• 35:29
  stifle our praise
• 35:32
  for when God
• 35:32
  does answer
• 35:33
  our prayers.
• 35:34
  Do you see that?
• 35:35
  Like,
• 35:35
  it's super,
• 35:36
  super subtle,
• 35:37
  and I'm not saying
• 35:38
  don't pray for God's
• 35:39
  will to be done,
• 35:39
  I'm just saying
• 35:40
  it's something
• 35:40
  that we need
• 35:41
  to be on guard
• 35:42
  for.
• 35:42
  Like,
• 35:42
  okay,
• 35:43
  when I pray this,
• 35:43
  when I say,
• 35:44
  let your will be
• 35:45
  done,
• 35:45
  am I insulating
• 35:46
  myself from pain
• 35:47
  in case you don't
• 35:48
  give that to me?
• 35:48
  Because I think
• 35:51
  that that hurts us
• 35:51
  again in the way
• 35:52
  that we praise God
• 35:53
  when he does come
• 35:54
  through with those
• 35:54
  things.
• 35:56
  I'm not suggesting
• 35:57
  that we adopt
• 35:58
  a name it and claim
• 35:59
  it mentality
• 36:00
  when it comes to
• 36:01
  prayer,
• 36:01
  that's not what
• 36:02
  I'm suggesting.
• 36:03
  I'm saying that
• 36:04
  we pray expectantly
• 36:05
  knowing that God
• 36:06
  hears.
• 36:07
  We don't need to
• 36:07
  pray harder,
• 36:08
  you don't need to
• 36:08
  pray louder.
• 36:11
  We pray expectantly
• 36:12
  knowing that,
• 36:14
  we pray expectantly
• 36:15
  so that our praise
• 36:17
  or our hurt
• 36:18
  are not stifled.
• 36:20
  We let God
• 36:21
  work through that.
• 36:21
  Even in the painful
• 36:22
  moments,
• 36:22
  we still let God
• 36:23
  work through that.
• 36:25
  We still wrestle
• 36:25
  through that.
• 36:26
  We don't numb
• 36:27
  ourselves so that
• 36:28
  it doesn't hurt
• 36:29
  as bad.
• 36:31
  So let's pray
• 36:32
  expecting God
• 36:33
  to work in power
• 36:34
  because power
• 36:36
  will be displayed
• 36:37
  by God
• 36:38
  for his church.
• 36:41
  So this is my
• 36:42
  kind of last
• 36:42
  and final point
• 36:43
  is that power
• 36:44
  will be displayed
• 36:45
  by God
• 36:46
  for his church.
• 36:48
  How?
• 36:49
  We're saying it's
• 36:50
  for God's purposes.
• 36:53
  There is this
• 36:54
  interesting detail
• 36:55
  where James is killed
• 36:56
  but not Peter.
• 36:57
  There's much rejoicing
• 36:58
  over the fact
• 36:59
  that Peter
• 36:59
  is released
• 37:00
  miraculously
• 37:01
  but that miracle
• 37:02
  didn't come to James
• 37:03
  and God saw that
• 37:05
  it was good
• 37:05
  for that to happen.
• 37:08
  There were different
• 37:09
  outcomes
• 37:10
  for different men.
• 37:12
  One got to come
• 37:13
  home and one didn't.
• 37:14
  But God is good
• 37:16
  in both situations.
• 37:18
  God is glorified
• 37:19
  in the martyrdom
• 37:20
  of James
• 37:21
  and in the release
• 37:21
  of Peter.
• 37:24
  Could he have
• 37:24
  released James?
• 37:25
  Absolutely.
• 37:27
  100%.
• 37:27
  Like none of us
• 37:29
  are doubting that.
• 37:30
  God uses it
• 37:32
  for his purposes.
• 37:35
  We see that
• 37:36
  Peter's released.
• 37:37
  He encourages
• 37:38
  the church.
• 37:39
  He reminds them
• 37:39
  of God's sovereignty
• 37:40
  and God's
• 37:41
  continued plan
• 37:43
  to use Peter
• 37:44
  to advance
• 37:45
  the gospel.
• 37:47
  And the other
• 37:48
  thing that's great
• 37:49
  about God's power
• 37:50
  being displayed
• 37:50
  by God
• 37:52
  for his church
• 37:52
  is that God
• 37:53
  does this
• 37:54
  because of us
• 37:55
  but also
• 37:56
  in spite of us.
• 37:58
  So,
• 37:59
  their prayers,
• 38:00
  God uses those prayers.
• 38:01
  Those are
• 38:01
  the means,
• 38:03
  the vehicle
• 38:03
  that God
• 38:03
  accomplishes
• 38:04
  his purposes.
• 38:06
  But,
• 38:07
  Peter's sleeping
• 38:08
  and the church
• 38:08
  isn't praying
• 38:09
  completely expectantly.
• 38:11
  You know what I mean?
• 38:12
  Like those are the
• 38:12
  two things
• 38:13
  that are a little
• 38:13
  off about the situation
• 38:14
  but God still
• 38:15
  answers their prayers.
• 38:17
  So,
• 38:17
  God works
• 38:18
  because of our prayers
• 38:19
  but also in spite
• 38:20
  of our prayers.
• 38:20
  Like he does,
• 38:21
  he is sovereign,
• 38:22
  he is good.
• 38:24
  He doesn't need
• 38:25
  our prayers
• 38:25
  but he invites us
• 38:27
  in to have
• 38:28
  them be the means,
• 38:29
  that vehicle
• 38:29
  that drives his will.
• 38:33
  And then this is
• 38:34
  the why.
• 38:35
  Why does God
• 38:35
  use his power
• 38:36
  to be displayed
• 38:37
  for the church?
• 38:38
  This is
• 38:38
  the biggest point,
• 38:40
  guys.
• 38:41
  God is entirely
• 38:43
  devoted to
• 38:44
  the advancing
• 38:45
  of the gospel.
• 38:46
  He is relentless
• 38:47
  in it.
• 38:48
  Nothing
• 38:48
  will keep
• 38:50
  the gospel
• 38:50
  from being advanced.
• 38:53
  Okay,
• 38:53
  the miracle
• 38:54
  is awesome
• 38:55
  but there's
• 38:56
  a bigger purpose
• 38:57
  to it
• 38:57
  and I don't want
• 38:58
  to say
• 38:58
  don't pay attention
• 38:59
  to the miracle
• 38:59
  because just stop
• 39:00
  and think for a second
• 39:01
  like the insanity
• 39:02
  of this miracle.
• 39:04
  The fact that
• 39:04
  Peter is guarding,
• 39:05
  so what would have
• 39:06
  happened is
• 39:06
  he has a
• 39:07
  chain around
• 39:08
  one leg
• 39:08
  and a chain
• 39:09
  around the other
• 39:09
  and those are
• 39:10
  both connected
• 39:10
  to guards
• 39:11
  and there are
• 39:11
  two guards
• 39:12
  guarding the doors
• 39:13
  and there's
• 39:14
  four of these
• 39:14
  four man groups
• 39:15
  and they take
• 39:16
  different shifts.
• 39:17
  So it's like
• 39:17
  you would think
• 39:17
  that they were
• 39:18
  guarding the most
• 39:19
  valuable man
• 39:20
  in the world
• 39:20
  or the most
• 39:21
  violent man
• 39:22
  in the world
• 39:22
  but they're
• 39:23
  guarding Peter
• 39:23
  who's done
• 39:24
  no violence.
• 39:25
  It's an odd
• 39:26
  thing but
• 39:26
  nevertheless
• 39:27
  it's almost
• 39:28
  it's almost
• 39:28
  like God
• 39:28
  uses that
• 39:29
  uses man's
• 39:30
  attempts
• 39:30
  to prevent
• 39:32
  Peter from
• 39:32
  escaping
• 39:33
  just to show
• 39:34
  how big
• 39:34
  and powerful
• 39:35
  God is.
• 39:37
  Nothing
• 39:38
  stands in
• 39:39
  God's way.
• 39:40
  He suspends
• 39:41
  his own
• 39:41
  laws of
• 39:42
  physics.
• 39:44
  The laws
• 39:44
  that he
• 39:44
  created
• 39:45
  he suspends
• 39:47
  them.
• 39:47
  He says
• 39:48
  you will not
• 39:48
  hold this man
• 39:49
  any longer
• 39:50
  and the chains
• 39:50
  fall off of him.
• 39:52
  He shines
• 39:52
  this light
• 39:53
  in the cell
• 39:53
  and it wakes
• 39:54
  up Peter
• 39:55
  after touching
• 39:56
  him
• 39:56
  but not
• 39:57
  the guards.
• 39:59
  He walks
• 39:59
  through the gate
• 40:00
  the gate
• 40:01
  opens for him
• 40:02
  he walks
• 40:02
  out of the city.
• 40:03
  Like this
• 40:04
  is a big deal
• 40:05
  like God
• 40:06
  suspends
• 40:07
  all of these
• 40:07
  things
• 40:07
  all these
• 40:08
  things
• 40:08
  that would
• 40:09
  be impossible
• 40:09
  for the sake
• 40:11
  of God
• 40:12
  building up
• 40:12
  his church
• 40:13
  and advancing
• 40:13
  the gospel.
• 40:14
  That is the
• 40:15
  point of this
• 40:15
  miracle here.
• 40:16
  It's not
• 40:17
  just to say
• 40:18
  oh that was
• 40:18
  super cool
• 40:19
  and I think
• 40:20
  that God's
• 40:21
  neat
• 40:21
  and isn't
• 40:22
  he powerful
• 40:22
  no it's
• 40:22
  to say God's
• 40:23
  relentless
• 40:24
  in his pursuit
• 40:24
  of the gospel
• 40:25
  and he will
• 40:26
  accomplish it
• 40:26
  and he's
• 40:26
  using Peter.
• 40:30
  The physical
• 40:30
  properties
• 40:31
  bend their
• 40:32
  knees
• 40:32
  to God's
• 40:33
  purposes.
• 40:36
  God is
• 40:37
  entirely
• 40:37
  about
• 40:38
  the
• 40:39
  proclamation
• 40:39
  of the gospel
• 40:40
  entirely.
• 40:43
  So in
• 40:44
  closing thoughts
• 40:44
  I believe
• 40:47
  that Luke
• 40:48
  wrote this
• 40:49
  text
• 40:49
  to encourage
• 40:50
  the church
• 40:50
  to remain
• 40:51
  steadfast
• 40:52
  steadfast
• 40:53
  under persecution
• 40:54
  steadfast
• 40:56
  in prayer
• 40:56
  because of
• 40:57
  our belief
• 40:58
  in God's
• 40:59
  power.
• 41:00
  Steadfast
• 41:00
  in prayer
• 41:00
  that we'll
• 41:01
  believe that
• 41:01
  God will
• 41:02
  hear our
• 41:03
  prayers
• 41:03
  and he
• 41:03
  will
• 41:03
  accomplish
• 41:04
  his will.
• 41:06
  And it's
• 41:07
  easy to look
• 41:07
  inward
• 41:08
  I believe
• 41:08
  it's easy
• 41:09
  to look
• 41:09
  inward
• 41:09
  and be a
• 41:10
  little bit
• 41:10
  discouraged
• 41:11
  or maybe
• 41:13
  be discouraged
• 41:15
  or maybe see
• 41:15
  this as an
• 41:16
  indictment
• 41:16
  on our
• 41:16
  lack of
• 41:17
  prayer
• 41:17
  or our
• 41:18
  lack of
• 41:19
  belief
• 41:19
  sometimes
• 41:19
  or our
• 41:20
  lack to
• 41:21
  proclaim
• 41:22
  the gospel
• 41:22
  when we
• 41:23
  really need
• 41:23
  to
• 41:23
  because we're
• 41:25
  afraid of
• 41:26
  uncomfortable
• 41:26
  situations
• 41:27
  because
• 41:27
  a million
• 41:28
  different
• 41:29
  reasons
• 41:29
  it's easy
• 41:31
  to look
• 41:31
  in that
• 41:32
  and especially
• 41:33
  for myself
• 41:34
  I know
• 41:35
  that I
• 41:35
  fail so
• 41:36
  much of
• 41:37
  this
• 41:37
  like I
• 41:38
  am not
• 41:38
  the greatest
• 41:38
  of this
• 41:38
  I'm in
• 41:39
  that group
• 41:40
  I'm in
• 41:40
  that camp
• 41:41
  where I'm
• 41:41
  saying guys
• 41:42
  I've
• 41:44
  redefined
• 41:44
  godliness
• 41:45
  to mean
• 41:46
  something
• 41:46
  different
• 41:47
  to mean
• 41:47
  something more
• 41:48
  palatable
• 41:48
  for me
• 41:48
  something
• 41:49
  that's a
• 41:49
  little bit
• 41:49
  more
• 41:49
  comfortable
• 41:50
  for me
• 41:50
  so that
• 41:51
  I can
• 41:53
  still say
• 41:54
  that I
• 41:54
  am my
• 41:54
  own
• 41:55
  instead
• 41:55
  of saying
• 41:55
  I'm
• 41:56
  gods
• 41:56
  and I'm
• 41:56
  bought
• 41:56
  with a
• 41:57
  price
• 41:57
  and it's
• 41:57
  no longer
• 41:58
  me
• 41:58
  but it's
• 41:58
  Christ
• 41:59
  like I
• 42:00
  want to
• 42:00
  avoid
• 42:00
  that
• 42:01
  and I
• 42:02
  fail at
• 42:02
  this
• 42:02
  so please
• 42:03
  please
• 42:03
  hear me
• 42:04
  but
• 42:05
  in that
• 42:06
  even though
• 42:07
  it's easy
• 42:07
  to be
• 42:07
  discouraged
• 42:08
  the message
• 42:08
  is not
• 42:09
  try harder
• 42:10
  the message
• 42:12
  is not
• 42:13
  pray louder
• 42:13
  pray more
• 42:14
  or that
• 42:16
  you need to
• 42:16
  believe more
• 42:17
  or that
• 42:17
  your faith
• 42:17
  is little
• 42:18
  that's not
• 42:19
  the message
• 42:19
  that we're
• 42:19
  saying
• 42:20
  it would
• 42:21
  be a
• 42:22
  travesty
• 42:22
  to believe
• 42:24
  that
• 42:24
  to get
• 42:24
  that out
• 42:25
  of this
• 42:25
  message
• 42:25
  that okay
• 42:25
  we need
• 42:25
  to go
• 42:26
  home
• 42:26
  we need
• 42:26
  to pray
• 42:26
  more
• 42:27
  and we need
• 42:27
  to be
• 42:28
  more godly
• 42:28
  and we need
• 42:28
  to share
• 42:29
  the gospel
• 42:29
  more
• 42:29
  and like
• 42:30
  hoo-ha-hoo
• 42:30
  let's go
• 42:30
  like that's
• 42:31
  not the
• 42:31
  message
• 42:32
  and it
• 42:32
  would be
• 42:32
  like a
• 42:34
  travesty
• 42:35
  for us
• 42:35
  to go
• 42:35
  in that
• 42:36
  direction
• 42:36
  instead
• 42:39
  what we're
• 42:39
  saying
• 42:40
  is that
• 42:40
  god's
• 42:42
  power
• 42:42
  his
• 42:42
  message
• 42:43
  centers
• 42:44
  on
• 42:44
  himself
• 42:44
  nothing
• 42:46
  will
• 42:47
  stand
• 42:47
  in god's
• 42:47
  will
• 42:47
  nothing
• 42:48
  will
• 42:48
  stand
• 42:48
  in god's
• 42:49
  way
• 42:49
  of the
• 42:50
  gospel
• 42:50
  and that's
• 42:52
  not dependent
• 42:52
  upon us
• 42:53
  at all
• 42:55
  it's not
• 42:56
  dependent
• 42:56
  upon how
• 42:57
  good we
• 42:58
  are
• 42:58
  but
• 42:59
  god
• 43:00
  invites
• 43:00
  us
• 43:01
  to be
• 43:01
  a part
• 43:01
  of that
• 43:02
  so here's
• 43:04
  what i'm
• 43:04
  saying that
• 43:05
  the messages
• 43:06
  of this
• 43:07
  to you
• 43:07
  that we
• 43:08
  go home
• 43:08
  with this
• 43:08
  is that
• 43:09
  remind
• 43:10
  yourself
• 43:10
  of that
• 43:11
  daily
• 43:11
  remind
• 43:13
  yourself
• 43:13
  of that
• 43:13
  right now
• 43:14
  remind
• 43:14
  yourself
• 43:15
  of that
• 43:15
  as we're
• 43:15
  about to
• 43:16
  take the
• 43:16
  lord's
• 43:16
  supper
• 43:17
  remind
• 43:17
  yourself
• 43:17
  of what
• 43:18
  christ
• 43:18
  has done
• 43:19
  for us
• 43:19
  and how
• 43:20
  god
• 43:20
  has
• 43:21
  redeemed
• 43:21
  us
• 43:21
  from
• 43:21
  darkness
• 43:22
  and
• 43:22
  taken
• 43:23
  us
• 43:23
  into
• 43:23
  light
• 43:23
  and
• 43:23
  jesus
• 43:24
  is
• 43:25
  our
• 43:25
  master
• 43:25
  and
• 43:26
  we
• 43:26
  are
• 43:26
  formed
• 43:27
  the
• 43:27
  world
• 43:27
  that's
• 43:27
  what
• 43:27
  we
• 43:27
  remind
• 43:28
  !
• 43:28
  ourselves
• 43:28
  of
• 43:28
  !
• 43:28
  not
• 43:29
  try
• 43:29
  harder
• 43:29
  you need
• 43:30
  to pray
• 43:30
  more
• 43:31
  you need
• 43:32
  to believe
• 43:32
  more
• 43:32
  it's
• 43:34
  believing
• 43:35
  that god
• 43:36
  will accomplish
• 43:36
  his purposes
• 43:37
  and reminding
• 43:37
  ourselves
• 43:38
  of that
• 43:38
  and then
• 43:40
  reminding
• 43:41
  each other
• 43:41
  of that
• 43:41
  in your
• 43:42
  core
• 43:42
  groups
• 43:42
  reminding
• 43:43
  each other
• 43:43
  of that
• 43:44
  in your
• 43:44
  community
• 43:45
  groups
• 43:45
  that god
• 43:46
  is relentless
• 43:47
  about his
• 43:47
  pursuit of the
• 43:48
  gospel
• 43:48
  and he
• 43:48
  uses us
• 43:50
  and we
• 43:50
  get to be
• 43:50
  a part
• 43:51
  of that
• 43:51
  that
• 43:53
  is what
• 43:54
  i want
• 43:54
  us to hear
• 43:55
  out of this
• 43:56
  i want
• 43:57
  us to hear
• 43:57
  that
• 43:57
  god
• 43:59
  invites
• 43:59
  our
• 43:59
  prayers
• 44:00
  in
• 44:00
  persecution
• 44:00
  will
• 44:01
  come
• 44:01
  and it
• 44:02
  should
• 44:03
  come
• 44:03
  if
• 44:03
  there's
• 44:04
  gospel
• 44:05
  proclamation
• 44:05
  there's
• 44:06
  going to
• 44:06
  be
• 44:06
  persecution
• 44:07
  but it's
• 44:09
  all
• 44:09
  relying
• 44:10
  on
• 44:10
  it's
• 44:10
  all
• 44:11
  hinging
• 44:11
  on
• 44:11
  god's
• 44:12
  power
• 44:12
  believing
• 44:13
  that god
• 44:13
  will
• 44:14
  accomplish
• 44:14
  what
• 44:15
  he
• 44:16
  desires
• 44:16
  to
• 44:17
  accomplish
• 44:17
  let's
• 44:18
  pray