Shalom Aleichem...
Reflections is a weekly Christian Teaching Ministry. Each week we will talk about the Bible and lessons we can put to use in our daily life. We will try to, on a weekly basis, provide to you stories, thoughts, and just easy ways to live your life on a straight path.
THIS WEEK'S TEACHING....April 29, 2019
Over the next 12 weeks, I want to take you all on a journey through the beginning of Christianity. After Jesus was crucified, buried and raised up, He went on to lead His band of rag-tag disciples to the greatest Commission the world has ever witnessed.
We did this over the past few years, looking at the Book of Acts and how those few, 12 to be exact, raised up an army of which the world has never seen before.
Acts 1:1 I wrote the first narrative, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day He was taken up, after He had given orders through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen. 3 After He had suffered, He also presented Himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during 40 days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 While He was together with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “This,” He said, “is what you heard from Me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” 6 So when they had come together, they asked Him, “Lord, are You restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by His own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” 9 After He had said this, He was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. 10 While He was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them. 11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven.” 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem—a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 When they arrived, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. 14 All these were continually united in prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.
The Book of Acts was written around 62-63 A.D., and may be best described as a history of the founding and growth of the early church. The book was written by Luke, the same writer of the Gospel of Luke and you might want to think of it as a continuation and even a sequel to that Gospel.
Found as the 5th book in the New Testament, the Book of Acts can best be split into two parts; the first part dealing with the home church and its mission and the last concentrating on foreign missions. The book begins with the Ascension of Jesus and goes on through Paul’s jail time in Rome, which opens his ministry to the church at Rome. In this book we see the first mention of the dispensation of the Holy Spirit and Jesus’ command to take His gospel to all the world.
During our last series, we looked at the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and what that means to us. Now, as we begin to look at the Book of Acts, we see the early church putting into practice and living out the commands that Jesus give them. In other words, the Mission of God that Jesus has given to all Christians....
WHAT IS THE MISSION OF GOD?
The Mission of God is to be a WITNESS - The primary mission that God has given us is to be a witness.
What is a witness?
A witness is a person who testifies about things they have personally experienced or have personal knowledge of.
It is interesting to note that the greek word we translate as witness in the English language is "martys" - the same root word from which we get the word "martyr."
This is a reminder that it might cost us to be a witness for Christ. The early church certainly understood this truth. They suffered intense persecution including for many believers imprisonment, and even execution. Yet they remained faithful witnesses for the Lord in spite of the persecution. Can God count on you to be a faithful witness?
What are we to testify about?
Luke 24:47 and repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
The core of our message is very simple - Christ died on a cross to pay the penalty for our sins and all who repent and place their faith in Him can receive forgiveness and salvation. That's it. It really is that simple.
It's that simple message that you heard at some point in your life. It's that simple message that you believed. It's that simple message that saved you and changed your life forever. And, it's that simple message that we are to share with everyone who does not know Christ, starting right where you are with the people you are closest too, then carrying this simple message everywhere we may go.
(One beggar telling another beggar where to find food)
Being an effective witness is both a lifestyle and intentional.
Matthew 28:19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
Here in this passage Matthew records the master plan that Jesus gave the church - to make disciples of all people. Notice also that the first command Jesus gives us in that statement is to GO. Being an effective witness requires ACTION. It requires us to make the necessary effort to carry the message to those who need to hear. It requires work to teach new believers how to serve God. There's no place for laziness in the Kingdom of God! We must dedicate our lives to being a witness for all that Christ has done in our lives and reaching those who don't yet know Him!
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Here in this passage we see a pattern that includes our witness as a part of our everyday life and as an intentional plan of evangelism. (Jerusalem - Judea - Samaria)
HOW CAN WE ACCOMPLISH THE MISSION?
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
We Can Only Accomplish the Mission in the Power of God!
Jesus said His followers would “receive power” when the Holy Spirit came upon them, and directly connected with that power would be their work of being witnesses of Him, starting in Jerusalem, then spreading throughout Judea and Samaria and ultimately to the end of the earth.
Christ made it clear that the Holy Spirit is connected with power. The Greek word translated “power” is dunamis. It is translated “power,” “mighty work,” “strength,” “miracle,” “might,” and “mighty.” It is the same Greek root from which we get modern English words like dynamic, dynamo and dynamite. These all refer to power, just as the root term.
Why do we need the power of God?
Because we are weak! The simple truth is that we cannot do the work of God in our own strength.
(Thomas Aquinas) Entering the presence of Innocent II., before whom a large sum of money was spread out, the Pope observed, “You see, the Church is no longer in that age in which she said, ‘Silver and gold have I none.’”—“True, holy father,” replied Aquinas; “neither can she any longer say to the lame, ‘Rise up and walk.’”
I want to remind you that we need the power of the Holy Spirit! Today, people are dying without Jesus because of a lack of power in our churches. Churches and church members are drying up due to a lack of power. Sin, in this society, is running rampant because there is no manifest power and presence of God among His people. We see the changes daily in many news stories on television.
We Need the power of the Holy Spirit!
The first step to being filled with God's power is to realize how weak and powerless we are without it, and understanding just how necessary His power is to us!
Romans 8:26 In the same way the Spirit also joins to help in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with unspoken groanings.
We can trust that even in our weakness, God can make us strong through the power of the Holy Spirit!
There is no limit to the power of Almighty God! He has the ability to do whatever needs to be done!
Eph. 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do above and beyond all that we ask or think according to the power that works in us--
We need the power of God working in and through us if we expect to effectively accomplish the Mission of God!
HOW DO WE PREPARE FOR THE MISSION?
Acts 1:14 All these were continually united in prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.
Notice that Luke says of the early church that they were "united in prayer." Unity and Prayer are two of the most powerful tools that God gives to His people. When they are combined together, such as we see here in the early church, the power they bring to the church is multiplied many times over!
Let's look at each one of these principles separately:
If there is to be power in the church, there must be unity.
Eph. 4:3 diligently keeping the unity of the Spirit with the peace that binds us.
1 Cor. 1:10 Now I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, that there be no divisions among you, and that you be united with the same understanding and the same conviction.
One of the main reasons there is no power in many churches is because there is no unity. We must practice christian unity! This is why I am so excited about our joining forces with Impact Fellowship, New Hope Town, and New Hope Aloha Pau'ole churches to form that christian unity. We witnessed that unity during our Easter celebration.
One of the reasons why we share with you so often the Mission, Vision, and Core Values of C4, is so that you can know what we are all about. We have certain values or convictions that are non-negotiable. Not everyone who comes here will be in agreement with our Mission, Vision, and Values, and that's okay…but, these things define who we are as a church and those of us who belong to this local church should be unified around those convictions. We don't have to agree on every little detail, but we must be united around common goals and convictions.
If there is to be power in the church, there must also be focused prayer.
When God's people dedicate themselves to sincere, focused prayer all things become possible!
Mark 11:24 Therefore I tell you, all the things you pray and ask for—believe that you have received them, and you will have them.
James 5:16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The urgent request of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours; yet he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the land. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the land produced its fruit.
Are you beginning to understand yet, just how powerful prayer can be? When we seek God diligently through prayer - He will fill us with His power!
Now, remember earlier, I told you that when the principles of unity and prayer are in operation together, the power they bring to the church are multiplied.
Look at this example from the early church of just how powerful unity and prayer can be:
Acts 4:29 And now, Lord, consider their threats, and grant that Your slaves may speak Your message with complete boldness, 30 while You stretch out Your hand for healing, signs, and wonders to be performed through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.” 31 When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak God’s message with boldness.
I wonder what would happen if when we prayed the very building we're in was physically shaken by the power of God? I believe there would be some folks getting right with God don't you?
This is the kind of power God wants to unleash within this church and in your life! It's God's will that we receive all the power necessary to carry out His mission in the world today - but, we must prepare ourselves by practicing unity and dedicating ourselves to prayer.
Are you ready to live the Mission of God? Are you ready to be the witness He called you to be? Are you ready to seek God for His power to accomplish the mission?
Let us dedicate ourselves to unity and prayer so that we can be filled with the power of God we so desperately need to accomplish the mission of God!
Next Week...we continue our journey through the Book of the Acts of the Apostles...
DID YOU EVER WONDER???
WHAT MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME
My mother taught me RELIGION: When I spilled grape juice on the carpet, she instructed, "You better pray the stain will come out of the carpet."
My mother taught me LOGIC: From her decisive words, "Because I said so, that’s why."
My mother taught me FORESIGHT: "Make sure you wear clean underwear, in case you are in an accident."
My mother taught me IRONY: "Keep laughing, and I’ll give you something to cry about."
My mother taught me about STAMINA: "You’ll sit there ’til all that spinach is finished."
My mother taught me about WEATHER: "It looks as if a tornado swept through your room."
My mother taught me THE CIRCLE OF LIFE: "I brought you into this world, and I can take you out."
My mother taught me about BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION: "Stop acting like your father!"
My mother taught me about ENVY: "There are millions of less fortunate children in this world who don’t have a wonderful Mom like you do!"
THANKS, MOM!
BOOKS OF THE BIBLE...A TEACHING
This week, the Book of Acts....Yes this was planned...
Who wrote the book?
The title of the book of Acts comes from the Greek word praxis, a word often used in early Christian literature to describe the great deeds of the apostles or other significant believers. This title accurately reflects the contents of the book, which is a series of vignettes chronicling the lives of key apostles (especially Peter and Paul) in the decades immediately following Christ’s ascension into heaven.
Luke’s identification as the author of this work was unquestioned throughout ancient times. It shows a clear progression from the gospel according to Luke, picking up just where that book left off. An ancient prologue to Luke’s gospel indicates that Luke was first a follower of the apostles and then became close with Paul.1 This is exactly how the book of Acts unfolds, beginning with Peter and ending with Paul. Luke even began to speak in the first person plural in the latter portion of Acts, as he traveled the Roman Empire alongside Paul (Acts 16:10).
Where are we?
Acts ends abruptly with Paul imprisoned in Rome, waiting to bring his appeal before Caesar. It is worth noting that in this history of the early Christian church, Luke mentioned neither Paul’s death (AD 64–68) nor the persecution of Christians that broke out under Nero (AD 64). More than likely, Luke completed the book before either of these events occurred, sometime between AD 60 and AD 62, while Paul sat in prison, awaiting the resolution of his appeal.
Why is Acts so important?
Acts is the only biblical book that chronicles the history of the church immediately after Jesus’s ascension. As such, it provides us with a valuable account of how the church was able to grow and spread out from Jerusalem into the rest of the Roman Empire. In only three decades, a small group of frightened believers in Jerusalem transformed into an empire-wide movement of people who had committed their lives to Jesus Christ, ending on a high note with Paul on the verge of taking the gospel to the highest government official in the land—the Emperor of Rome.
What's the big idea?
Acts can be neatly divided into two sections, the first dealing primarily with the ministry of Peter in Jerusalem and Samaria (Acts 1–12) and the second following Paul on his missionary journeys throughout the Roman Empire (Acts 13–28). Acts is significant for chronicling the spread of the gospel, not only geographically but also culturally. It records the transition from taking the gospel to an exclusively Jewish audience—with Peter preaching to a small group in the Upper Room—to the gospel going out among the Gentiles, primarily under the ministry of the apostle Paul. The transition is best illustrated by Peter’s vision in which he heard a voice telling him, “What God has cleansed, no longer consider unholy” (10:15). This led Peter to then share the gospel with many Gentiles. The lesson? God wants His message of hope and salvation to extend to all people—“in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth” (1:8).
How do I apply this?
What opportunities for sharing the gospel can you take advantage of in the days to come? This question should ring through your mind as you page through the book of Acts. In virtually every chapter, apostles such as Peter and Paul powerfully present the gospel to individuals and groups of people. The apostles portrayed in Acts shine with evangelistic zeal, showing a striking transition from the often misguided disciples of the Gospels. Clearly the apostles’ faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus produced a noticeable change in their hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Too often, our own lives do not reflect that sort of change. We struggle with fears over how others will react to our faith or with breaking out of our own routine long enough to invest in the life of someone else who needs the gospel. Allow Acts to encourage you to walk more closely with God so that you might make Christ’s name known with the boldness and the zeal of the apostles.
HAVE A SAFE AND BLESSED WEEK:)
Ho'omaikaʻi ka Pua iā kākou