Essentials Of The Faith / Sunday Morning Sermon Series / Acts: Enlarging Our Vision

By building the kingdom of God…together Part 2 05/31/09

Sermon Series: Acts: Enlarging our Vision

Title: 'By building the kingdom of God…together' Part 2   Text: Acts 18

Introduction: A six-year-old and her father had gone to church one Sunday and were talking on the way home. "I want to have my name changed?" she said. "Changed," "Why would you want to do that? Your mother and I thought long and hard about what to name you. We finally settled on the name of your grandmother. Why would you want to change it?" "Because of what the pastor said." The girl responded "What did he say that would make you to want to change your name?" "Shirley, I am with you always. And since Jesus said he would always be with Shirley, I want my named changed to Shirley" (Wally Seibel)

She had the right idea.

On March 2nd 1791 John Wesley opened his eyes and exclaimed for the very last time, upon his deathbed, these words: ‘The best of all is this: God is with us’. He could have said a lot of different things, but he said that the best of all is this: God is with us. (Dean Courtier)

He too had the right idea. So did King David.

There was a time in David’s life where things were dark and he felt far from God. Can you relate? Maybe you’re in a place in your life where God seems distant. This was David’s heart cry from Psalm 63:

Read: Psalm 63:1-2 ‘O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.’

There was a day when Christians would go to church, not just to sing songs about God or to hear stories about what God did in the past, but to meet with God, to see His power and His glory, to encounter His presence.

·       Friends, we need to experience God’s presence, not just here on Sundays but every day.

·       We need to have a daily encounter with the One who sustains our lives…because we so often stumble and fall and need His hand to pick us up and remind us that He loves us.

·       We need to be assured over and over again that God is with us because there are times we feel lonely and overwhelmed by everything that is going on around us.

Luke reminds us that even the Apostle Paul felt that way and it made him afraid.

Transition: Open your Bibles to Acts 18:9 (pg. 847 in the Bibles under the chair in front of you) For it’s there we’ll continue to discover we enlarge our vision of God by building the kingdom of God…together.

IV. Acts 18:9-11   Paul, God

Read: Acts 18:9-11

God told Paul to stop being afraid. The Apostle Paul…afraid? Yes. In fact he writes about it in both of his letters to the Corinthians.

Read: 1 Corinthians 2:3 ‘I came to you in weakness and fear, and with much trembling.’

Read: 2 Corinthians 1:8 ‘We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life.’

What was Paul afraid of? At least two things

·       Fear that his message of hope in Jesus would be rejected

·       Fear of further physical harm

While it is great to receive encouragement from friends, sometimes we need more. Paul needed more. God saw his fear and said ‘Paul, do not be afraid any longer.’ Why you might ask? ‘Because I will be with you.’ And if that weren’t enough

…and by the way, it should be, God gave him two more assurances:

·       No one will harm you

·       You are not alone in this city, there are many who are mine

Have there been times in your life when you needed a special word from God; the promise of His presence, the assurance that you are not alone? Have you spoken to Him about it?

Read: Psalm 37:4 ‘Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.’

‘…the desires of your heart’ Remember King David’s desire when he felt alone? Let me read it again.

Read: Psalm 63:1-2 ‘O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry andweary land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.’

David’s desire was for more of God’s presence in his life. God always answers that prayer in abundance. God promises ‘I am with you’ I will walk with you and be your God.

God promised to be with Paul so Paul stayed longer in Corinth than in any other city he planted a church in. Because he had the assurance that God was with him…he could endure the rejections, and the threats on his life.

It helps me to know that the Apostle Paul, a spiritual giant, could be discouraged and even afraid when serving God.

·       Even the Apostle Paul needed to be reassured that he was in the protective grace of God.

·       Even the Apostle Paul needed to be reassured that he was not alone.

·       Even the Apostle Paul needed to be reassured that he was not in the fight alone.

There are times I need to be reassured of that too…how about you?

Transition: However, as we will read, God’s promise does not mean there won’t be trouble.

V. Acts 18:12-17        Gallio

Read: Acts 18:12-17

Sometime during Paul’s stay in Corinth, the Jews couldn’t take anymore and they take Paul to the Roman proconsul (like a judge) with the charge that he was speaking falsely about their God.

I can just read Paul’s mind…ok God, remember you promised to be with me and no harm will come to me…just reminding you.

And surprise…unlike Pilate in Jesus’ trial, Gallio wanted nothing to do with it. It was a Jewish religious matter…handle it yourself, he said In other words, let him alone.

Hun…what a coincidence that Paul got such a lenient judge...No it was God keeping His promise.

So the text tells us the angry mob takes Sosthenes, the new ruler of the synagogue and beats him up on the steps to the courthouse.

Sosthenes…I remember that name from somewhere. Yes, It’s someplace else in Scripture.

Read: 1 Corinthians 1:1 ‘Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes’

It seems as a result of getting beat up for apparently no reason, Sosthenes, the leader of the synagogue, rethought what Paul taught and believed in Jesus as his Savior. And later he served on Paul’s evangelistic team.

Transition: Paul stays a while longer in Corinth and determines it’s time to leave.

VI. Acts 18:18-21       Paul, Aquilla, Priscilla

Read: Acts 18:18-21

It is interesting that Aquilla and Priscilla didn’t know exactly what they would do in Ephesus, but they believed it was God’s will for them to be a part of Paul’s team. Responding to God’s call, out of our comfort zone, is an important step for Him to use us.

Sidebar: What’s with Paul and his haircut? Not many haircuts make it into the Bible…but this one does. Why? Well to be honest… we’re not told.

Most scholars believe Paul had made a vow to God of some kind and a haircut signaled the end of the vow. Usually, such vows were taken in thankfulness to God for past blessing, or in anticipation of future blessings. Certainly would make sense here considering the success of the Gospel in Corinth.

Transition: Paul leaves Aquilla and Priscilla in Ephesus and heads out on his own again…what’s up with that? I thought he learned about teamwork?

VII. Acts 18:22-23      Paul, the church

Read: Acts 18:22-23

While Paul was alone on this trip, his ministry focus changed from evangelism to edification. Paul wasn’t really alone, he not only had God with him, he was constantly with the Church…he was with other Christians.

He went from church to church (the ones he planted) to encourage the new believers. Perhaps because he had felt so encouraged by God, Aquilla and Priscilla, Silas, Timothy and Luke.

Paul learned that…we can be more successful at building the kingdom of God when we do it…together.

Transition: Back in Ephesus, Aquilla and Priscilla were beginning to get a glimpse of another aspect of being part of a team.

VIII. Acts 18:24-28    Aquilla, Priscilla, Apollos

Read: Acts 18:24-28

Apollos was a gifted speaker and well versed in the Old Testament. He also was aware of John the Baptist’s teaching on repentance and the need to accept Jesus as the Messiah. But it seems his teaching was…incomplete…because John the Baptist’ died before Jesus. He was right in what he was teaching, but he needed a little more depth.

When the text says Aquilla and Priscilla ‘…explained the way of God more adequately’ it means they filled in the blanks he was missing about Jesus’ life after John the Baptist died.

I imagine Aquilla and Priscilla lovingly and patiently told Apollos the major events of Jesus’ life and ministry on earth.

·       His sacrificial and substitutionary death on Calvary’s cross for the sins of the world,

·       His victorious resurrection from the tomb and glorious ascension into heaven,

·       the necessity for personal salvation from sin by faith in His finished work,

·       the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost,

·       the birth of the Body of Christ,

·       Just to name a few.

Aquilla and Priscilla were willing to invest the time necessary to take Apollos under their spiritual care and pour into his life the things of Christ.

Apollos leaned from Aquilla and Priscilla and he became an effective servant of God whom some of the Corinthians later placed on the same level as Peter and Paul. 

One of the many things I learn here, is the need to be humble and teachable. Building the kingdom of God…together, means we humbly learn from each other.

Although cultured and well educated, Apollos humbly sat at the feet of these common tentmakers to learn about Jesus. He was smart enough to know he did not know it all, that learning is a life-long process and that he can learn from anyone.

ILL: The great preacher, D.L. Moody, once said that every time he heard the old county pastor Henry Drummond preach, he had to go home and burn some of his old sermons.

Can you recall someone, a pastor, Sunday School teacher or friend who challenged you to go further on your spiritual journey than you would have on your own?

Remember, we can be more successful at building the kingdom of God when we do it…together.

Conclusion

ILL: One hot day, Herman Trueblood, all clean and cooled off by a nice swim in the ocean, saw a sweating man and his two sons trying on a hot day to push his disabled car up an incline. Two voices started yelling at each other inside him.

·       One said, "There is an opportunity for service; you ought to help them push."

·       The other voice protested, "Now that is none of your business. You will get yourself all hot and dirty. Let them handle their own affair."

He finally yielded to his better impulse. He put his shoulder to the task. The car moved and kept moving.

A simple thing then happened which Trueblood never forgot. The father stuck out his dirty hand, and Trueblood stuck out his dirty hand. The father said, "I am very glad that you came along. You had just enough strength, added to ours, to make the thing go."

Trueblood said "Years have passed since that hot day, but I can still hear that man saying,  ‘You had just enough strength, added to ours, to make the thing go.’  (Scottie Pitts)

·       It takes more than great programs to build the Kingdom of God…and for our size, we have many great programs here at CBC.

·       It takes more than hard workers and sacrificial servants to build the Kingdom of God…we have that and last week at the Lion’s Fair proved it.

·       It takes more than big offerings to build the Kingdom of God…we have been blessed, for our size, to do as well as we do in supporting local ministry and kingdom building all around the world.

·       It takes more than talented teachers to build the Kingdom of God, and God has blessed us with many faithful and talented teachers here at CBC.

·       It takes more than a great looking Pastor to build the Kingdom of God…but you could always keep praying and perhaps one day you’ll have one!

It takes all of us,

·       serving side by side,

·       learning from each other,

·       and expecting God to be in our midst,

to build the Kingdom of God and we are on our way to doing just that…together.