[0:00] but my God shall supply all of your needs according to his riches and glory in Christ Jesus.
[0:15] He will supply. I believe that. I struggle to believe that sometimes, but I believe, and I know you do too.
[0:27] We believe. We trust in him. And it's not about the size of our faith. It's about the size of our God. Oh, I want great faith, but I got a great savior.
[0:40] And that my little faith in the great savior, well, let's just say he will supply. So can I encourage you in that?
[0:51] Can I encourage you to trust in him? Whatever it is, he will never leave you nor forsake you. And I need that message.
[1:02] Don't you? Father, we come to your word now. We believe you will supply even now that you would speak a word to your people.
[1:17] Whether they came to hear that word or not, you will speak a word. And you will find us wherever we are. Lord, you will find us. And you will help us. And you will supply what is needed through your word.
[1:31] You will show us Jesus. So Lord, we come. And we humbly ask that you will supply through the preaching, the frail preaching of your word that is powerful because it is your word.
[1:47] So use your frail, messed up servant to preach this wonderful, amazing, powerful word of God, this gospel holding up Jesus and all of his benefits and glory.
[2:01] And may we see him. And may we never be the same. In his name we pray. Amen. Amen. Acts chapter 2, verses 42 to 47.
[2:14] We did a kind of a sweeping, kind of an overview last couple weeks ago. Understanding of the coming of the Spirit. And now we're going to dive into the passage and work our way through.
[2:26] Allow me to read the entire passage so you can keep everything in your heart and mind. Beginning at verse 42. And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.
[2:44] And awe came upon every soul. Many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together, had all things in common.
[2:55] And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people.
[3:14] And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. That is the word of the Lord. Praise to you, God.
[3:25] Please be seated. Thank you, praise team, once again. I'm very appreciative. We began a few weeks ago looking at this amazing passage by realizing what happens when the Spirit of God comes upon the church in power.
[3:50] We call it revival, don't we? Historically, we call it revival. Revival. And revival. But these are revivals, which are not just a church deciding to hold services through the week.
[4:01] That's what sometimes we refer to those as revivals. I've been doing revivals over my lifetime. I ain't into that. But a more biblical definition of revival, you'll see it kind of here in this passage.
[4:14] They are the sovereign act of God, not man or woman. The sovereign act of God will pour out the Spirit on an entire church or churches or community to renew his people.
[4:27] Revival is about renewing the church. The church has degenerated. The church has gone dry. The dry homes have been up as the earth.
[4:39] And God pours out his Spirit to renew his people that now they can truly have a lasting impact on the community. It produces, as one writer said, a people saturated with God.
[4:56] And all revivals that historians know of have been preceded by times of fervent prayer. As God's people seeing that something's not quite right.
[5:11] But we need some extra help, as it were. When God's people feel pressured and feel dry, they begin to pray and they say, Lord, we need you.
[5:24] We don't need a program. We don't need more ministries. We need you to minister to us, to make us live. And my contention is that revival, when the church is full of the Spirit, looks like this passage.
[5:41] If a church is going to be healthy, this is the vision that we have to have before God, saying, this is what we want.
[5:53] This is what you've shown us what you want. In other words, we want what you want, Lord. Will you help us? This is the model we must seek after.
[6:06] And whatever the church context is, it may look a little different based upon each church's context, but there's still some basic parts to it.
[6:19] Some basic similarities that we'll always see. We've got to pray for this. And trust God for it in Jesus.
[6:30] Now, we have to turn to, as we go through the passage, turn to the Spirit's specific priorities for his church. As we ask God to show up in our context, here is what we must humbly set aside as essentials for our pursuit.
[6:50] As we look at the Spirit's priorities, we must ask ourselves, what are our priorities? We've got to ask ourselves, you've got to ask yourself, what are your priorities as you look at what God's Word says the Spirit's priorities are.
[7:12] So let's dive in. Remember where we are, just briefly. Acts 2 is the day of Pentecost, a Jewish festival. The Apostle Peter has preached this sermon, and the New Covenant Church is being born here.
[7:27] Then the Spirit of God, moving among his people, began to manifest his presence among them.
[7:39] He formed them into a community. He formed them into what Paul would later call the body of Christ. He formed them to be, we're going to talk about fellowship, because there's really one big idea about this whole section.
[7:54] It's what the fellowship of the church looks like. But there are specifics. It's a community of believers, and some things I want to show you are going to be unique to them in their context.
[8:10] But there are some things in here that are universal. That is, for all time, and all two churches of God need to pursue them. So what did or what does the Spirit produce?
[8:26] The Spirit calls and equipses us to be devoted to the Scriptures. That's where we're going to be today. Because everything flows from this.
[8:37] Everything flows from this devotion to the Scriptures, which Luke says is the Apostles' Doctrine. First of all, the word devotion, key word, because it means it goes through everything in verse 42.
[8:54] They were devoted to the Apostles' Doctrine, to the, and notice the articles, the, the. That means it's specific. The Apostles' Doctrine. The Fellowship.
[9:05] The Breaking of Bread. The Prayers. We'll talk, as we go, you'll see. But first of all, devotion. What does he mean, devotion? It means that they held fast too.
[9:20] They were continued, they continued in. They persevered in these things. And implies they did this, this continual persevering with intense effort in spite of the difficulties.
[9:42] And I was, something was going on pushing back. And so this devotion was needed. And first of all, they were devoted to the Apostles' teaching. Meaning, no other teaching was allowed to supersede or even compete with the Apostles' teaching as they taught the Scriptures.
[10:02] They saw that the, now they didn't have the New Testament yet. We see that the entire Bible is the supreme authority in the life of the church and the believer.
[10:15] Nothing is allowed to supersede the authority of the Bible in the life of this people, in the life of this church.
[10:26] Now you have to, now you have to, now if you're like me, you ask questions. I always ask questions. And that's how I preach. I try to ask a question and answer a question. Here, here's the question.
[10:37] Why did they need that devotion? There are always, listen, there are always other voices competing for our hearts and allegiance.
[10:52] Politicians, politicians, professors, social media, news outlets. On whatever side of, whether it's CNN or Fox News, whatever side of the aisle you're on.
[11:09] The latest book idea. Friends. There are always other voices constantly speaking to us, to you and I as believers.
[11:25] And every voice has an angle they want to buy into for how to do life and how to think.
[11:36] And what to love. And what to seek. What you must have. All of these voices are constantly speaking. What does it mean to be male or female?
[11:52] Who's a true American? How do we deal with racism? What's the best way to help the poor? What should you do with your money?
[12:04] Does God exist? If so, which one? Was it all of them? What does it mean to be spiritual?
[12:18] Voices. What happens when you die? Voices. We're all hearing voices.
[12:32] Voices. And those voices. Most of the time. Are pushing.
[12:42] On. Our understanding. Of the scriptures. We are. And we are used to doing life.
[12:54] According to the voices of our culture. Before we met Jesus. The Bible. We talk about being worldly. Now. There are two.
[13:05] Some people are worldly. And they travel the world. You know. They're like. I like that kind of worldly. I want to be that kind of worldly. But the Bible's use of the word worldly.
[13:15] Speaks about the system of thinking. And living. That all fallen. All people in sin. Fallen human nature. It covers the world. And it leaves.
[13:26] It's a way of thinking and living. That says. I don't need the one true God of the Bible. Don't need him. And we lived in that.
[13:37] Before you came to Jesus. Before he came to you. You lived. That's the way you thought. In this. It was just. Air you breathe. Now you are in Christ.
[13:48] Now he has snatched you for himself. Now he's taking you to be a son. Or daughter. To stay with Acts. He's poured out his spirit. And brought you to himself.
[14:00] But you still. Have. That worldly. Way of thinking. That you've been used to. Hanging on. And even if you came to Christ.
[14:11] As a young child. You are still being bombarded. Every day. With these. Voices. We're no different than. The first church here.
[14:25] Only a serious. Devotion. To God's word. Will allow us to think. And live.
[14:36] And love. The new kingdom life. That Jesus gives. Think. Live. Love. This new kingdom life.
[14:50] We've got. To be devoted. To the scriptures. To the apostles. Doctrine. Romans 12. 1 and 2.
[15:00] Tells us why. Do not be conformed. To this world. But be transformed. By the renewal. Renewal. Of your mind. Why? That by testing.
[15:12] You may discern. You may understand. You may have some wisdom. What is the will of God? Meaning what is good.
[15:22] And acceptable. And perfect. You see. There. The word. Is what renews. Our minds. Paul says it again.
[15:33] In a different way. In Ephesians 4. 23 and 24. He says. Be renewed. In the spirit. Of your minds. And to put on.
[15:44] The new self. Created. After the likeness. Of God. In true righteousness. And holiness. In both those passages.
[15:55] He repeats himself. About needing to have. Our minds. Renewed. You see. Our minds. See. We're. Western. When you read the Bible.
[16:06] You have to remember something. We're Western. And we can't read the Bible. In general. At first. Like Western people. We've got to understand.
[16:18] How they thought. And they're not Western. Western people talk about. The head. And the heart. The mind. And the emotions.
[16:30] And you know. That kind of thing. They didn't really do that. It. They talked about. The heart. And the mind. Is in the heart.
[16:41] The ambitions. The desires. The imaginations. The will. They're all part of. What the Bible says. The heart. And that's why the Bible says. Above all else.
[16:52] Guard your heart. It is the wellspring of life. It's the center of your being. Guard your heart. Because all of these. Other entities. Are there. There. So when Paul talks about.
[17:03] Renewing the mind. That implies. Therefore. That he is saying. The heart. Will be affected. Because that's the issue.
[17:14] Can I put it to you this way? I've been working on this for years. And I. Who knows. I could be wrong. I don't know. But. I'm trying. I figure. The heart. Like a house. What's the house?
[17:25] And then you got doors. And windows. On the house. Now what's most important? What's the big idea? The house. The house. That's the big idea. But how do you get in the house? Most of us go through the door.
[17:39] The guy who goes through the window. Is usually a thief. On occasion. You left your keys. I understand. I've done that once or twice. But in general. The way into a house. Is through the door. I think of the mind.
[17:50] Is the way into the heart. But the issue. Is still. The heart. The mind. Is not central. The mind. Is not. Is not. The big issue.
[18:01] Is the heart. But how does. But Paul keeps saying. Renew the mind. I think he believes. That's how we get to the heart. That's why we have a.
[18:13] That's why we've been given. A Bible. Which. Has. Words. And which we are called. To read.
[18:24] Got to think. You got to imagine. And then you imagine. Right. It's all connected. You see. You read it. And you begin to imagine it.
[18:34] And you begin to want it. And it's all. And the heart. The whole. The whole heart. Is being affected. That's why I don't use. Lighting techniques. On you.
[18:45] And you know. Some churches. I've been in there. They'll dim the lights. Light the cross. Sing just as I am. 50 times. That's.
[18:57] Going after the emotions. But I don't think. That's the way into the. The most legitimate way. Into the heart. I'm saying it can be. But he didn't say.
[19:08] Renew the emotions. He said renew our minds. Now you can disagree with me. On that amen. And send me all kinds of emails. But point to the scriptures please.
[19:18] I'm just trying to figure it out. Like you. Renew our minds. The apostles doctrine. Is what renews.
[19:30] Our minds. So that our hearts. Can be set aflame. It's not just the mind. Because you can know the doctrine. And your heart not be affected.
[19:42] Come on somebody. A head foot. You can know the doctrine. And still miss the heart. But you still need to know the doctrine.
[19:55] That's the way in. Submission to the doctrine. To truth. Mind. Paul is telling us. That mind and heart renewal. Leads to life transformation.
[20:06] So I don't believe. That the apostles. Doctrine. Is first. As an accident. It's not an accident. He puts it first.
[20:17] Jesus makes us new people. As we humbly. Open. His. Word. And listen. To. His word. In faith.
[20:30] So a good check. Think about it. A good check. Of ourselves. Might be. How. How about this. How am I showing devotion.
[20:41] To the scriptures. And Christ. Transformation. In my life. How are you. How are you. Demonstrating. A heartfelt. Devotion.
[20:52] To the scriptures. And therefore. Transformation. In your life. Now someone might object. Shouldn't they have been. Devoted to Jesus first.
[21:02] I mean. He didn't mention Jesus there. They were devoted. It says. And it doesn't mention Jesus. I mean.
[21:12] Somebody. Has to ask that question. I think. Here's what I think. The apostles. Teaching. The apostles. Doctrine. Puts us. In touch. With Jesus.
[21:24] So. Therefore. We have to give ourselves. To the reading. And the study. And the hearing of his word. Doctrine.
[21:35] Has a purpose. The doctrine. Leads us. To Jesus. All that you know. About Jesus.
[21:48] Is doctrine. Means teaching. By the way. All that you know. So. So. So. I. You know. Years ago. I remember. Hearing Christians. Talking about. I'm throwing out all my doctrine.
[22:00] I'm going to build it up. And I think. I think that idea. Has probably come back. As people sometimes. Talk about. Deconstructing. Their faith. Can I just encourage you.
[22:14] If you throw out. Doctrine. You don't have anything. You don't have anything. If you say.
[22:24] Jesus is Lord. That's doctrine. And everything. That we know. About Jesus. Comes through.
[22:36] The apostles. Teaching. Matthew. Was an apostle. John. Was an apostle. Mark. Was a companion. Of Peter. Whom most scholars. Believe. Gave him information.
[22:47] To write his gospel. Luke. Was a. Luke. Who wrote. Luke. And the book of Acts. Was a companion. Of the apostle Paul. And Luke. Beneth. Tells us himself. That he did a detailed study.
[22:58] To understand. The history. That he wrote. So the. The apostles. Teaching. And then of course. You got Paul's letters. And Peter's letters. The apostles. The apostles. Everything we really know about Jesus.
[23:10] The most important stuff. That we know about Jesus. Really comes. In general. From the apostles. Doctrine. They taught us the words.
[23:21] And the works of Christ. And God. Caused those letters. To be written down. And preserved. That we may have them. For all posterity. Without. So.
[23:32] Without. Without. Jesus. Of course. There is no church. And it's the apostles. Doctrine. That brings us. To Jesus. That we might be devoted.
[23:42] To him. Listen. If you. They showed the world. Jesus. Profoundly. Look at. Look at Peter's sermon. We're going to. Kind of. Just one little quick peek.
[23:53] Look at Peter's sermon. In Acts chapter 2. Right here. Over to verse 22. Through 24. Just a couple of verses. Look at what Peter says. Men of Israel. Hear these words.
[24:04] Jesus of Nazareth. A man attested to you by God. With mighty works and wonders and signs. That God did through him. In your midst. Watch this. As you yourselves know.
[24:16] They are witnesses. They are eyewitnesses. This Jesus. Now hallelujah comes back. Just make sure they understand. This Jesus. Delivered up according to the definite plan.
[24:27] And foreknowledge of God. You crucified and killed. By the hands of lawless men. God raised him. This Jesus. Up.
[24:38] Loosen the pangs of death. Oh I love this phrase. Because it was not possible. For him to be held by it. Woo hoo. Man. Do you feel that?
[24:49] Man that's good stuff. It was impossible for death. To keep his hold on Jesus. Jesus. Hmm. That's the Jesus. That they're talking about.
[25:02] And our Lord Jesus. Grounded all his teaching. In what we call the Old Testament. In Matthew chapter 4. You know that passage. Where Jesus is being tempted by the devil. When he said.
[25:13] What does he say? It is written. He's quoting for the most part. The book of Deuteronomy. Jesus defeats the devil. By himself referring to.
[25:25] The scriptures. Jesus again. Talking about the scriptures. Matthew 5.17. Do not think I have come to abolish the law. Or the prophets. I have not come to abolish them.
[25:36] But to fulfill them. The scriptures. Point. To Jesus. As the fulfillment. And then Jesus said himself again.
[25:47] In John 5.39. This is one of my favorites. He says. You search the scriptures. You search the scriptures. Jewish people in particular. Because you think that in them.
[25:59] You have eternal life. It is they. That bear witness. About me. Wow.
[26:12] The Old Testament. Is about Jesus. The apostles. The apostles. Were devoted. To the scriptures.
[26:23] Their. All of their doctrine. Is was. In some way. Part of the Old Testament. And then being fulfilled. In Christ. They wrote down.
[26:35] Stuff for us. Which we call. Epistles. And gospels. And all of it. Points. To Jesus. To Jesus. Who fulfills it.
[26:46] And is the center of it. Even the Old Testament. Jesus. Is the. We call it. The Old Testament. Is Christ-centric. Christ-centered. He's the big idea.
[26:59] In shadow. He's the big idea. Of the Old Testament. So we come. So when we come. To the New Testament. We see Jesus. We shine the new. Back onto the old. And we say. Oh there he is.
[27:11] There's Jesus. In the tabernacle. There's Jesus. In the sacrifices. Oh there's Jesus. Saving people. There is. There is Jesus. He. When Abraham was going to kill.
[27:22] Isaac. Oh. I see Jesus. I mean. You start seeing him. Everywhere. Not in every verse. But in every scenario.
[27:33] In every problem. Being dealt with. Jesus somehow shows up. As the answer. To the question. The answer. To the real.
[27:44] Heart. Problem. Being shown there. In the passage. He shows up. So. By being devoted.
[27:55] To the apostles. Teaching. The early church. Was being devoted. To the words of Christ. His words. Were true. His words.
[28:07] Interpret. The old testament. For us. So. Ask yourself a question. What about this one? When you read the bible. Do you look. For.
[28:19] What you're learning. About God. About Jesus. Not just facts. Are you looking. For a person. Are you looking.
[28:31] For a person. Because God. Is speaking. To you. From the book. And he's. Showing you. His son. In particular. When you read.
[28:43] The scriptures. Are you looking. For him. Are you listening. Are you listening. For his voice. Now. I guess. The last question.
[28:54] I want to ask is. Well. Last point. I want to make is. What are some of the key. Specifics. Of the apostles. Teaching. If they gave themselves. To the apostles.
[29:04] Doctrine. What is it? What's some of the key. We can't have time. To cover all of it. But what is some of the key. Thoughts. Of the apostles. Doctrine. What did they teach? And again.
[29:15] The best sampling. Is Peter's sermon. Peter's got like three sermons. Throughout the new. Throughout the book of Acts. I'm going to focus on the one. In chapter two. Which is right in front of you. If you have your Bible. Open. This sermon.
[29:27] Led to revival. In the church. In the beginning. Of the new covenant age. Peter preached. He taught. Like I just read. For you. In 2022.
[29:39] He taught. The power. Filled. Life. Death. And resurrection. Of Jesus. Watch this. By the predetermined.
[29:50] Sovereign plan. Of God. Did you notice that? In verse 22 to 24. I mean. It didn't just happen. But verse 23 says. He was delivered. Up.
[30:01] According to the definite plan. And foreknowledge of God. They didn't just happen. To crucify Jesus. When they did. That was God's timing.
[30:14] Jesus was sent. By the father. At that time. For that moment. In history. He didn't send him. During the 20th century. Or 19th. Or 21st century.
[30:25] He sent him back then. At that time. We talked about this. A long time ago. When the Romans. Ruled the known world. In that era. And it was one common tongue.
[30:35] And the gospel. Could spread. Like wildfire. That's one reason. The gospel spread. Like wildfire. Through. And it says. Through wicked men. Jesus was put to death.
[30:47] That was part of the plan. They taught this. Can I just give you. A quick application. That might be helpful. What about your sufferings?
[30:59] If the sufferings of Jesus. Were according to the predetermined. Sovereign plan of God. And that God was with him.
[31:11] In the midst of those sufferings. Upholding him. Even bringing him back to life. I can guarantee you something right now.
[31:22] That he's with you. And you're pain and suffering too. And you're pain and suffering. When you were down front. I was praying for you. Your pain and suffering. You are not alone.
[31:34] He is not. You are not out of control. Your life is not. If you are a Christian. If you are walking with Jesus. Your life is under. The divine control of God. Literally. And personally.
[31:47] And your pain is in his hand. And he's going to uphold you through it. Even as he upheld his own son. Through his time. Of mortal distress.
[31:59] And danger. And death. Believe me. And you and I are not suffering anything like Jesus. If he's with him. He's with you. I said.
[32:11] I mean. I need that. They taught that his resurrection. Was foretold. In the Old Testament. Verses 25 to 35 here.
[32:22] They taught. In other words. When they taught that. You know what that said? That said that the Bible. Displays the inspiration of God.
[32:34] Because we're talking about prophecy now. We're talking about hundreds of years. That prophecies were made. Through Isaiah and Jeremiah.
[32:45] And other prophets. David. In the Psalms. Foressaw. The suffering of Christ. And it came about. Just the way. They said.
[32:58] It points. It tells us. Of the. The doctrine. Of the. Inspiration of scripture. It's not really. Not merely the word of people.
[33:09] This is the word of God. They taught. Peter's sermon teaches. That Jesus is both Lord. God in human flesh. And Christ. The promised Messiah.
[33:19] Verse 36. Who is Jesus? Is he only a human being? That's important doctrine.
[33:29] Because our culture will keep telling you. That Jesus was just a man. And if you read some literature. And watch certain movies. They'll tell you.
[33:40] He was married. Had a wife. Had a baby. It's amazing. I was in a bookstore years ago. When the Da Vinci Code came out.
[33:52] Some of you remember the Da Vinci Code. If you don't. Don't worry about it. It's trash anyway. Don't worry. But I'm in the store. And I'm. I'm in the Christian books section. I don't know how I found my way there.
[34:03] Anyway. I was in the book section. And this guy. This lady was looking for. Looking for something to read. And the clerk was helping her. And he was trying. And the Da Vinci Code was new. And he was saying. You got to read this book.
[34:15] And I was standing over going. No. I think I spoke to her later. But I was like. No. Don't read that trash. And it's interesting.
[34:26] Interesting fun stuff. I like the movie with Tom Hanks. I enjoyed the movie. I really did. Fiction. Pure fiction though. The apostles doctrine. People are always trying to tell us.
[34:39] Who Jesus is. Scholars are trying to tell us. Who Jesus is. But they leave out. The apostles doctrine.
[34:50] They leave out the history. That they wrote down. We can't. Right. We're glued. We're glued to the apostles doctrine. He.
[35:01] Peter taught in this sermon. Repentance and faith in Jesus. For the forgiveness. Of all our sins. Meaning. Salvation is not by what you do.
[35:12] You can't earn it. But it's by faith. And what Christ did. On your behalf. We call that justification. By faith. Dick's raised.
[35:23] I know. But you'll see it later. In Paul's writings. He taught that we're given. The holy. The gift of the Holy Spirit. By God's grace. Through Christ's death. On the cross. Verses 38 and 39.
[35:34] Which means. Sanctification. That's a big word. But it simply means. That the spirit of God. Lives in all believers. To work in us. And progressively change us.
[35:45] So that we look more like Jesus. In other words. We begin to look like the family. God is our father. Jesus is our elder brother. We begin to look. A little bit more like him.
[35:56] As the years go by. And he taught God's judgment. Upon those who fail to repent. And believe in Jesus. That's a summary of verse 40.
[36:07] And Peter did it time and time again. In chapter 3 he does it. In chapter 4 he does it. In chapter 10 he does it. The life. Death. Resurrection of Christ. Forgiveness of sins.
[36:18] Judgment to come. Were common themes. In the preaching of the apostles. And the doctrine of the apostles. And they have to be common themes. In our understanding as well.
[36:30] And then they apply these things. To people's lives. If these things are so. How are we to live. In light of them. They taught them.
[36:45] The doctrine of the kingdom. That's what Jesus taught them. We talked about that in the first. In the summary. The first series. The first message on this series. Chapter 1.
[36:56] He taught. They. Jesus taught them. The kingdom of God has come. He went through all the villages and cities. Proclaiming and bringing. Good news of the kingdom of God.
[37:06] Luke 8.1. Acts 1.3. To them he presented himself alive. After his suffering by many proofs. Speaking about the kingdom of God. He always brought them back.
[37:18] Jesus kept teaching them about the kingdom. That's what they went on to preach as well. Acts 8.12. When they believed Philip.
[37:29] As he preached good news about the kingdom of God. And the name of Jesus Christ. They were baptized. They kept talking about the reign of Christ.
[37:40] The reign of Christ over all creation. The reign of Christ that's being revealed right now. The reign of Christ that says. He is Lord. He is in control. Meaning. Meaning. Listen. This is important.
[37:50] Meaning. What does this mean? That the kingdom has come. And is yet to come. Don't forget. Don't worry about it. When he comes again. The kingdom will be revealed in all of his fullness. But the kingdom is here now. That's why we preach it.
[38:01] What does this mean? It means that Christ reigns over everything. In no area of our lives escapes his care. We do family in his name.
[38:12] We do art in his name. We do science in his name. We do politics in his name. We do our jobs. Whatever we do. In his name.
[38:23] And by name. That means we do everything for his glory. Not our own. And according to his word. I can't do anything in the name of Jesus.
[38:35] If I'm violating what his word says. So another couple good questions. Before we kind of wrap this up. How well do you understand.
[38:47] Or are seeking to understand. The important doctrines of the Bible. Are you learning the doctrines of the Bible? I mentioned justification by faith.
[38:59] What does that mean? Do you know? Do you understand? Do you understand? So we have Sunday school classes to help you. We have small groups that can maybe help you. We have books. I'm preaching on these doctrines. Here and there. All the time.
[39:10] Are you spending time reading on your own. To understand the doctrines. And then. How are you seeing Christ reign. In your life daily.
[39:22] If we preach the kingdom. Then the kingdom should be manifest. In how you do life. Are you living under the reign. Under the rule.
[39:34] Under the word. Of Christ. Well something's coming up. In our church. That reflects this kingdom ideal as well.
[39:44] Pastor Billy mentioned it earlier. We have this. Every year. We have this. Big meeting at Bayberry Apartments. Now keep in mind. We're doing things in.
[39:55] With Bayberry throughout the year. More and more. As we can. Many of them come. Some of them. Some of our dear neighbors. Will come and ask for help. And need help. We do that. We're trying to do things.
[40:06] On the campus itself. Why do. Why do we do this? Because Galatians 1, 9 and 10. When the. When the. When the. When the. When Paul.
[40:17] Was examined. By the apostles. They wanted to check his doctrine. So Peter. And the apostles got together. And they said. Bring this boy in. And they brought Paul to Jerusalem.
[40:27] And they. And they. They did what they did to me. At Presbytery. They examined him. And they found that he was okay. He was. He had the gospel right. But they said one thing to him. Remember the poor.
[40:39] And Paul said. I was going to do. I was doing that anyway. Of course. Remember the poor. That's a biblical concept. That's an Old Testament theme. That we remember. And doesn't mean remember. By thinking about them.
[40:49] But remember the poor. By serving. And helping to alleviate. Some of their conditions. That's why we go to Bayberry. That's why we continue to serve.
[41:00] That's why we give away. Lots of money throughout the year. To people who are in need. Because they're struggling. And we are coming alongside. Them in the name of Jesus. And I have to tell you.
[41:13] Many churches don't remember the poor. And we can forget too. We're not immune. But we fight to remember the poor. We fight to continue to serve.
[41:25] And we're not seeking just to give the poor a helping hand. Our goal is to give them hands up. Jesus hands up. To disciple the poor out of poverty.
[41:37] To help people. Some of these young men develop good sound work habits. And work skills. To work with hope for the inner city. As we do. And one of our small groups.
[41:48] Goes over the hope. And works with them throughout. Listen. This is why we do these things. And that's why we want to invite you in. Because it's part of the apostles doctrine. That we claim we believe.
[42:01] Remember the poor is not a minor matter. If the apostles made sure that Paul did it. They wanted to make sure.
[42:11] You don't leave a hand until we get this clear. Remember the poor. That speaks to me. I hope it speaks to you. Remember the poor by washing the feet.
[42:26] By serving. One another. And those who are in need. Outside of our church. Can I ask you a question? How can you wash the feet of a brother or sister in Christ baby?
[42:40] But also. How is God calling you to serve in your community? There are people in need in your community. Maybe they're not poor. Maybe they are.
[42:51] But there are people in need in your community. And you know they're in need. Because you saw. You've seen things. Heard things. Maybe God is calling you to serve in some way.
[43:02] Are you listening? It might be something as simple as picking up the trash on your block. Or it might be going over to a neighbor's house.
[43:12] Who the ambulance took away. And now they're back. And you're going over to say. Hey. How are you doing? Whatever.
[43:25] Are you serving? Because we are serving those who are in need. We're called to serve. Jesus said. He washed the disciples' feet.
[43:35] He said. If I washed your feet. You ought to do likewise. How are you washing feet? I hope we're not too good to wash feet. Don't dismiss doctrine as unimportant.
[43:52] Don't talk about action. We want to do something. Pastor Kevin. We got to do more. I want to know what you believe. I want to know.
[44:03] Which. Are you grounded. In the truth. Because I've seen so many people. Talk about cultural transformation. And go out doing causes.
[44:14] And just give themselves. And then they slip away from the faith. Why? Because they weren't grounded. In the apostles doctrine. If you're not grounded. In the apostles doctrine. You're not.
[44:24] You're not going to do well. Because you're going to either slip away from the truth. Or burn out. Flame out. Because the culture.
[44:36] Remember the voices. The voices are always there. And they're telling you. How to do everything. And if you're not grounded in doctrine. This happens all the time.
[44:48] We begin slipping into those voices. And in the end. We're not so Christian anymore. And we're not making the impact. That we thought we were going to make.
[45:01] And we're not making the impact. We're out. The apostles doctrine. Is essential. To doing action. You need both.
[45:13] You need both. But one leads to the other. Father. In the name of Jesus.
[45:24] Help us. Oh Lord. Ground us in the apostles doctrine. In the teaching. So that Lord. We might be faithful. To stand against the voices. That come against us.
[45:35] In our culture. Time and time again. That we might have wisdom. And discernment. To know what is true. To know what your will is. So that we can do it. And stand upon it. We can't do it on our own.
[45:47] Thank you. That Jesus. Has poured out his spirit. On us. Transforming us. Through faith. Renewing our minds. So that Lord. We can follow. So help us.
[45:58] Help us. To trust in his work. Every day. To trust in who he is. Every day. And to find life.
[46:10] And hope in him. In Christ's name. Amen. Amen.