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Hello, and welcome to Lechem Panim. We are glad you are with us today as we take a look at our next passage in our series on the book of Acts. Last week we started chapter 3, talking about the nature of a true disciple; which was to mirror your rabbi in his character, in his actions, and even in his authority. And here in chapter 3 we find Peter and John doing this together. They are following in the pattern of their rabbi. Now it says in…
Acts 3:1 (ESV)-- 1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. Peter & John Together-- Now [Peter and John are often found together in Scripture. They were partners in the fishing business {together} (Luke 5:10); they prepared the last Passover for Jesus {together} (Luke 22:8); they ran to the tomb {together} on the first Easter Sunday morning (John 20:3–4); and they ministered {together} to the Samaritans who believed on Jesus Christ (Acts 8:14). {And} Now that they were filled with the Holy Spirit, {they and really all of} the apostles were no longer competing for greatness, but were at last working faithfully together to build the church {of Christ} (Ps. 133).] Like Their Rabbi— But notice something else about these two men. Peter and John were two of the first three disciples Jesus had called to come and be like Him. And now their Rabbi has gone, it is up to them (and really to the Church as a whole) to demonstrate to the world who Jesus is. And it is so interesting how that imaging of Christ begins here, on the steps of the temple, with their doing exactly what their rabbi had done; allowing their schedule to be interrupted by a poor and needy person. It says in… Acts 3:2 (ESV)— 2 And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. The Beautiful Gate— So the man is laid down [at the Beautiful Gate. {Now} There were nine gates that led from the court of the Gentiles into the temple itself. Scholars are not agreed, but the Beautiful Gate was probably the “Eastern Gate” that led into the court of the women. Made of Corinthian bronze, the gate looked like gold, and it certainly was a choice place for a lame man to beg.] The Role of Alms in Jewish Society— Because remember that [The giving of alms was an important part of the Jewish faith, so beggars found it profitable to be near the temple.] And for them it was […the best site to operate because {(as we see when Jesus came to the temple and observed people coming to make their donations)} the daily throngs came to impress God with their pious good works, including offerings at the temple treasury.] But keep in mind also that this was around the time of Passover and Pentecost; so a much larger crowd was there than usual. So it was probably looking like it was going to be a good day for the beggar; though he had no idea how good of a day he was about to have. It says in… Acts 3:3 (ESV)--3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. Atrophied Asking-- Amazing to think that of two of the most important men in history; the two who had walked with Jesus the closest, this beggar asks for money. Now he simply didn’t know yet the power of God available to him through Peter and John. And so his asking is limited to what is only going to be the pavement in heaven when you think about it. But it leads us to wonder how often our asking is limited; how often our prayers are as atrophied as this man’s legs simply because we don’t know the power of God available to us. And yet God is merciful. Even when we don’t know the greatness of what He can provide, He is often already on the way to bring it to us. Eye Contact-- You know, I have been honored and blessed to have visited many different countries in the world; some of which were very poor or at least had very high poverty levels. But I don’t think I have ever seen anywhere else the level of homelessness I have seen in and around the Seattle area. I mean everywhere you go you find people begging on the street corners. And there are rules that we have learned (subconsciously often) about how to deal with the homeless. First of all, don’t look at them. Right? Don’t make eye contact. Because you know what will happen when you do. You pull up to that stoplight and there’s that guy with a sign looking for anyone who looks like they might be willing to give them money. You don’t want to make eye contact because either you don’t want to give them money or you feel ashamed of them; or you feel ashamed of yourself (maybe even a little bit guilty that you get to sit in an air-conditioned car while they have nothing). But I want you to listen to the next phrase in this passage and really let sink in how Luke chooses to phrase this verse; he’s very careful here. It says in… Acts 3:4 (ESV)— 4 And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” 5 And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. Peter Noticed— Peter and John looked; they directed their gaze. The text is very specific. They didn’t happen to make eye contact inadvertently. No, they looked intentionally. They allowed God to break into their schedule with a more immediately important divine appointment. And by the way, it is interesting that while Acts 2 (the Pentecost chapter) is filled with the mention of the Holy Spirit, in chapter 3 the Holy Spirit is not named one single time. NOT ONCE! And yet He’s just as present. Because while [No doubt thousands of people were near the temple (Acts 4:4), and perhaps scores of beggars, …the Lord {directed the gaze of Peter and John and} told Peter to heal …{THIS}… lame man lying at the Beautiful Gate.] And the fact [That Peter noticed …{THIS}… lame beggar is … evidence of the Spirit’s ministry.] Now the man sees that Peter and John have made eye contact. So naturally (like all beggars would) he expects that that means he’s about to get something. And so he’s probably already sticking out his beggar’s cup. But it says… Acts 3:6-8 (ESV)— 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” 7 And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. {Now catch this. It says} 8 And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. Jumping Before Walking-- Isn’t it amazing that the man jumped before he had even walked? Now keep in mind the man had never walked before. The Bible says he had been lame since birth. So he had little to no muscle tissue. His legs were not developed; they were atrophied. HE HAD NEVER EVEN LEARNED HOW TO WALK!!! His brain didn’t even know what to do; he had no muscle memory; any of the mental capability to walk, much less jump. And yet when Peter had lifted him to his feet, he felt his legs grow strong. And his mind was touched. He got his muscle memory (and the whole mental side of walking) straight from God; sent heavenly express mail right to his mind and legs!!! [Through the power of the name of Jesus, the beggar was completely healed, and he was so happy and excited that he acted like a child, leaping and praising God.] A Picture of Salvation— And I love what one author I read said on this. He said that [It is easy to see in this {(and in the joy and excitement) of this} man an illustration of what salvation is like. He was born lame, and all of us are born unable to walk so as to please God. Our father Adam had a fall and passed his lameness on to all of his descendants (Rom. 5:12–21). The man was also poor, and we as sinners are bankrupt before God, unable to pay the tremendous debt that we owe Him (Luke 7:36–50). He was “outside the temple,” and all sinners are separated from God, no matter how near to the door they might be. The man was healed wholly by the grace of God (Eph. 2:8–9), and the healing was immediate (Acts 3:7). He gave evidence of what God had done by “walking, and leaping, and praising God” (v. 8) and by publicly identifying himself with the apostles, both in the temple (v. 11) and in their arrest (4:14). Now that he could stand, there was no question where this man stood!] [Now that he could stand, there was no question where this man stood!] This man now stood for Jesus. And he is so filled with joy, he can’t stop walking and leaping and praising God. He himself could have sang (as we in my church sing on a regular basis), “On Christ the solid rock I stand.” And the whole crowd joins in. It says in… Acts 3:9-10 (ESV)— 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. A New Living-- Now God more than just gave this man’s feet back; but rather God (through healing his feet) completely transformed the way that he would live his life. Directing Our Gaze-- And that is what Christ does for us as well. He touches us and heals us; he regenerates the crippled-ness of our own hearts so that we might embrace a whole new way of living life; in holiness, free from sin and in love for our neighbor. He touches our minds as well as our hearts, transforming the way we think; elevating our thoughts so that we think as God thinks. Our calling is changed; our mission is changed. And we begin to truly see people; to truly care. We start directing our gaze to them and truly look. Because we have something far greater than anything they might think they need or be asking for. We have the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And being bearers of that Gospel, we have the power (the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven) to lead people from death to life in the name of Jesus. But it takes time; a willingness to allow God to interrupt our schedules; to allow Him to work in us and make us like Him (to make us true disciples); and to allow Him to use us to pour into the lives of those around us. And so let us be true disciples from this moment onwards. Let us turn our eyes upon Jesus and (having our hearts united with his) let us also turn our eyes upon those who need Him. Amen.
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Hello, and welcome to Lechem Panim. Thank’s for tuning in to us today as we continue our study of the book of Acts together. Today we will be beginning chapter 3, which opens with Peter and John’s healing of a lame beggar outside of the Temple gate called “Beautiful”. But before we get into the meat of our study, I would like to give you a bird’s-eye view of one of the central themes in Acts 3 and 4; and that is the name of Jesus.
Fruit Stand-- You know, it’s interesting. [When the 1960s ended, San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district reverted to high rent, and many hippies moved down the coast to Santa Cruz. They had children and got married, too, though in no particular sequence. But they didn't name their children {common names like} Melissa or Brett. {No,} People in the mountains around Santa Cruz grew accustomed to their children playing Frisbee with little Time Warp or Spring Fever. And eventually Moonbeam, Earth, Love and Precious Promise all ended up in public school. That's when the kindergarten teachers first met Fruit Stand. Every fall, according to tradition, parents bravely apply name tags to their children, kiss them good-bye and send them off to school on the bus. So it was for Fruit Stand. The teachers thought the boy's name was odd, but they tried to make the best of it. "Would you like to play with the blocks, Fruit Stand?" they offered. And later, "Fruit Stand, how about a snack?" He accepted hesitantly. By the end of the day, his name didn't seem much odder than …{Moonbeam’s}… or Sun Ray's. At dismissal time, the teachers led the children out to the buses. "Fruit Stand, do you know which one is your bus?" He didn't answer. That wasn't strange. He hadn't answered them all day. Lots of children are shy on the first day of school. It didn't matter. The teachers had instructed the parents to write the names of their children's bus stops on the reverse side of their name tags. The teacher simply turned over the tag. There, neatly printed, was the word “Anthony.”] It is amazing what can happen when we miss somebody’s name. Names are significant; names are important. And that is why we find so much emphasis in the book of Acts on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Name of Jesus Christ-- [The {overarching theme and} emphasis in Acts 3 and 4 is on the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 3:6, 16; 4:7, 10, 12, 17–18, 30). {Now} A name, of course, implies much more than identification; it carries with it authority, reputation, and power….If an order is given in the name of the President of the United States…, those who receive the order know that they are obligated to obey. If I were to issue orders at the White House…(even if I could get in), nobody would pay much attention because my name has no official authority behind it. But the name of the Lord Jesus has all authority behind it, for He is the Son of God (Matt. 28:18). {And} Because His name is “above every name” (Phil. 2:9–11), He deserves our worship and obedience. {Now this is important for us to understand because} The great concern of the first Christians was that the name of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, be glorified, and {we as} believers today should have that same concern {that (in everything we do) we are bringing glory to the name of Jesus}.] Dust of The Rabbi-- But how do we bring glory to the name of Jesus? Sometime I would like to talk about that in greater detail. But, to keep it simple and relevant to our passage today, just remember this. When a rabbi called a disciple in the 1st century world of Jesus, it was not so that the disciple would follow him around and simply learn what the Rabbi knew. All of us here have at one time been students. And being students we all had teachers in whose classes we (either willingly or unwillingly) sat because they or somebody else thought we should be there to learn what they know. And we had a whole string of teachers from whom we wanted to learn so that we could get the facts we needed to pass the tests and hopefully get into a good college and eventually go on to get a good job; and so on and so forth. But in Jewish culture, the Talmudim (the disciples of a Rabbi); their concern stretched far beyond that. It was about so much more than simply knowing what the Rabbi knew. No, it was about becoming what the Rabbi is. Now that has enormous significance for how we understand the call of Jesus. And I just don’t have the time to get too into it now. But for now, just remember that the call of a rabbi was a call to be like him in his practice, in his nature, in his character, and even in his authority. And disciples of a Rabbi would dedicate every moment of their lives to following and observing their Rabbi. It didn’t matter where he went; they would be right behind him. And because the ground was always dry and you would naturally kick up dust everywhere you went, there developed this concept that Talmudim would be so close to their Rabbi that the very dust he kicked up would cover them. And that is right where you wanted to be; covered in the dust of your Rabbi. That is the heart of what it meant to be disciple; to be covered in his dust because of your desire (and his promise to make you) to be like him. Now I say this because in the 1st century world, how would someone learn what a rabbi was like without ever meeting him? Well, they would look at the Talmudim; the disciples. And they could see in those disciples the very image of their rabbi. So let me ask you this, how is the world going to know what Jesus is like? By looking at us. "Christian": Little Christs-- In the coming weeks we will find that it is in Antioch that those of what was then known as “The Way” would first be called Christians, a title of mockery; but one which the early believers gladly accepted; because the word “Christian” means “little Christ”. And that’s exactly what the believers wanted to be. Why? Because they were Talmudim. They wanted the world to experience in them the very image of the Savior. So, let me ask you again, “How do we bring glory to the name of Jesus?” By being a miniature copy of Him. That is the whole idea behind this word “Christian”. It is a title in which the holder is claiming to be like Jesus. And so the question is “Are our lives characterized by what it means to truly be a Christian?” One excellent gauge of this is this: Do we care about who Christ cared about? Is the drive of His heart the drive of our hearts? If so, this mission statement of Jesus will be your soul-cry as well… Luke 19:10 (ESV)-- 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” The Diamond Chandelier-- Just the other day I watched a mystery show in which the criminal was searching for his victim’s stolen diamonds. And during the whole show everybody was looking for these diamonds. But then at the end of the show, the detective, leading the criminal into one of the victim’s rooms (which the criminal had been in many times) pointed up at the chandelier. And there (interwoven into that chandelier) was ten million dollars worth of diamonds; hidden right there in plain sight. Divine Interruptions-- You know, I discovered something a number of years ago that absolutely blew me away about the ministry of Jesus. It is something so obvious I overlooked it (like those diamonds hidden in plain sight). And that is this. Jesus embraced interruptions. In fact I read a quote several years ago by G.H. Morling that completely affected the way I saw much of Christ’s earthly ministry. It was a little pebble that started an avalanche of thinking in my own mind. He said… G. H. Morling: Jesus Interrupted-- [“A valuable study of the Gospels could be made, noticing how many times Jesus gave some of His greatest teachings in circumstances where he had simply been interrupted. How different this is from us; we hate to be interrupted. To Jesus, the importance seemed to lie in the person whose path had crossed His own. Things don’t just “happen” in the providence of God. The interruption may well be our highest task at that very moment.”] “The interruption may well be our highest task at that very moment.” Jesus’ Interruptions-- Now that was a life-changing quote for me. What would have happened if Jesus had not stopped for those who interrupted Him; what would have happened if He hadn’t taken time? Most of his miracles would have never taken place! Just think of [Jesus’ visit to Zacchaeus' house, the widow at Nain whose son was healed, and the man let down through the ceiling by his four friends who was both forgiven and healed?] Think of the healing of the bleeding woman. Jesus had interrupted His schedule to heal Jairus’ daughter. And then {(in the midst of that interruption)} he’s interrupted again by this woman who suffered from bleeding. He even allowed His interruptions to be interrupted!!! All these miracles were interruptions. But Jesus never saw them that way; He saw them as divine appointments! [The same went for His teaching. Yes, He did lay out systematic discourse in the Sermon on the Mount, the Kingdom parables, and the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 5–7, 13, 24, 25). {But} Look at a sampling, however, of what He taught as a result of responding to interruptions. An expert in the Law tested Him on “Who is my neighbor?” and we gained the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10). The Pharisees and the teachers of the Law muttered against Him welcoming sinners, and He responded with the stories of the lost sheep, lost coin, and lost son (Luke 15). We would have missed the discipleship of Matthew and Zacchaeus if Jesus had not interrupted His schedule. We would not have the teaching on the new birth had Jesus not taken time with Nicodemus (John 3), or the teaching on worship had Jesus ignored the Samaritan woman (John 4).] The fact is, if Jesus had never allowed His schedule to be interrupted, our Bibles would be pretty thin. Now what does that mean for us? Exactly what G.H. Morling said: “Things don’t just “happen” in the providence of God. The interruption may well be our highest task at that very moment.” Now I say all of this because of the context of this story that is given to us. It says in… Acts 3:1 (ESV)-- 1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. Our Flexibility-- You see, they were on their way to do the spiritual stuff. But (as we’ll see next week) they were willing to put that on hold in order to enter into the world of a crippled beggar and to bring him both physical and spiritual healing. And you know, one of the things I’ve learned in ministry (but you know, I think it applies to all of us) is that we have to allow our schedules to be interrupted; because those interruptions may be God’s divine appointments. And like with Abraham, Moses, and Paul, those divine appointments may even result in their (or someone else’s) commission. And so let us allow God to interrupt our schedules so that He can use us to meet the physical and spiritual needs of those who need Jesus. Let’s do so. Amen. Hello, and welcome to Lechem Panim. We’re glad you are here today. In our study of the second chapter of the book of Acts, we have been taking a look at some of the fundamental practices of the early Church that began to take place in the wake of the Holy Spirit’s coming. Devoting themselves to the apostles teaching and to the fellowship were the first two. And the temple was still very much the central place they would go together to to receive that teaching. But then we come to the next one: the breaking of bread together.
Breaking Bread— And this third fundament practice of the early Church continues to show the depth of their unity. And there is actually a lot of debate about whether this was a common meal they shared together or actually the Lord’s Supper. In Luke’s Gospel, [The {Greek} word…κλαω is used of breaking bread at the ordinary meal (Lu 24:30 ) or the Lord's Supper (Lu 22:19 ). {But} It is generally supposed that the early disciples attached so much significance to the breaking of bread at the ordinary meals, more than our saying grace, that they followed the meal with the Lord's Supper at first, a combination called αγαπα or love-feasts.] And I just think what a great concept, by the way; love-feasts. The fellowship of Jesus Christ is characterized by feasting together on a shared receiving of the love of Christ pictured by the body and blood of Christ! I LOVE THAT!!!! But it’s more than just the Lord’s Supper. To say it is just about taking communion together [is to…mar the picture of family life, which the text places before us as the ideal of the early believers”.] These early believers really saw themselves as family. They were regularly eating and fellowshipping together. Forgiveness-- Now there is something else I would like to add to this. In Jewish culture, to break bread with somebody was a very intimate thing. Keep in mind that you always laid down at table, with your head at the chest of whoever was sitting next to you. So you are very close, intimate and personal. And so you would only eat with people that you were one good terms with. Now keep in mind that Jesus intentionally ate with tax collectors and sinners; something that no self-respecting Jew (and especially a Rabbi) would do. Because to do that was a way of saying that they are part of your crowd; they are your friends; there is a special relationship you have with them, which is why the Jewish leaders reacted so strongly to Jesus’ eating and associating with people like that. But they were the very people that Jesus most wanted to reach; and so He breaks bread and eats with them. Now there is something else you need to know about Jewish custom in that time. If you had a fallout with someone and the relationship was broken and needed to be mended, you could verbally try to fix the situation. But in Jewish culture the forgiveness process was never considered complete until you actually shared a meal with that person. That was the outward sign that forgiveness had taken place. Zacchaeus’ Reconciliation-- This is part of what makes the story of Zacchaeus such a radical thing. Because remember that Zacchaeus was a wicked, cheating tax collector; and yet Jesus invited Himself to Zacchaeus’ home, which meant that he was going to break bread with Zacchaeus? Do you begin to see now what Jesus was visually communicating to everybody and why Zacchaeus was probably bawling his eyes out in joy. Because Jesus was saying (with a picture) that forgiveness had taken place. Now how did the people react? They went crazy! ARE YOU KIDDING US JESUS?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? And yet Jesus says in… Luke 19:9-10 (NIV)-- 9 Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house {which by the way implied that God had forgiven Zacchaeus his sin}, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Zacchaeus Excited-- Can you begin to understand why Zacchaeus reacted to this meal the way that he did? He knew what it meant for him personally and spiritually. Now I say all of this because here (and throughout the book of Acts) you have people from all over the empire (from different walks of life; different social statuses; different races; different political alignments; democrats; republicans; men, women, boys, and girls; barbarians, scythians, slaves, and free) who are all breaking bread together. What does that tell you? Forgiveness and healing has been made between them all at the deepest possible level. And where does this take place? AT THE VERY TABLE OF CHRIST JESUS. Coming To The Table-- Now I don’t know how much that impacts you. But let me tell you, THAT is the key to healing culture. Social reform? We need it. Fighting for a good government? That is our responsibility (especially in the United States where we have a say in who comes into office). But let me tell you, our differences are never going to be reconciled and true healing is never going to happen until we are willing to come together to the very table of Jesus Christ. Christ and Christ alone is the starting point of true forgiveness and healing; because He offers reconciliation with God Himself out of which comes the overflow of healing in all our earthly relationships as well. Prayer-- Now the fourth practice is one of the biggest things that brings us into unity with one another. And sadly it is something that we often neglect. And that is [Prayer. Prayer was a constant practice in the early church (1:14; 3:1; 4:23-31; 6:4; 10:4, 31; 12:5; 16:13,16). The apostles prayed for those they ministered to.… But prayer was not only in response to crises and needs. Because of the references to worship, we can assume that prayers of praise were a significant part of the community life of the early church.] The air of prayer was the lifeblood of the Church. And these [prayers {were made both} in house meetings and likely also in the temple (vv. 42, 46).] So all these Christians are eating together, worshiping together, and praying together. And it’s interesting; anywhere in life you find lack of prayer, you will always find tension. From Hate to Love through Prayer-- A number of years ago my wife and I went to Dublin, GA for our former denomination’s annual conference. And after one of the evening services we headed for the fellowship hall. And there we had the privilege of talking with a couple (the Pastor and his wife of a local Church there in Dublin). And they were obviously deeply in love with one another. And during our conversation with them they told us that they were celebrating their anniversary. They had been married for over 30 years. And I asked them what their secret was; because it seemed to me that they had the perfect relationship. But then his face grew very serious. And he confessed that during their first years of marriage; there was actually a lot of tension. And it actually led them to hate one another. That’s the word he used. But then he said everything changed when his wife was led by God to begin praying for him more. And she said that as she did, not only did God bring about change in his life, but God began revealing her own faults as well. And then he began praying fervently for her. And their marriage grew to becoming totally and completely healed. And now they experience true unity and true love in their marriage. The Secret To Unity-- What is the secret to unity in the Body of Christ? Prayer with one another and for one another. And that ought to lead us to ask ourselves, “Are we lifting one another up before the throne of grace on a regular basis? Are we interceding before God on behalf of one another?” If we want to be a Spirit-filled Church, we have to pray. Prayer always precedes healing and transformation. Just look at what it produced in… Acts 2:43-45 (ESV)— 43 And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. “I Have A Dollar-- Once there was a Junior Sunday School Teacher who was teaching her kids. And [The Junior Sunday School Teacher asked her eight eager 10 year-olds if they would give a $1,000,000 to the missionaries. “Yes!” they all screamed! “Would you give $1,000?” Again, they shouted “YES!” How about $100?” “Oh, yes we would!” they all agreed! “Would you just give a dollar to the missionaries?” she asked. The boys exclaimed, “Yes!” just as before, except for Johnny. “Johnny,” the teacher said as she noticed the boy clutching his pocket, “Why didn’t you say ‘yes’ this time?” “Well,” the boy stammered, “I have a dollar!”] How great is our attachment to those things we have? Generosity and Service-- The fifth practice of the Early Church that we see here is: [Generosity and Service. The sharing of personal belongings and financial resources among members of the early church was impressive. {And} This generosity was not dictated. There was no obligation to pool their resources, as in modern Communism, or to unselfishly serve each other or reach out to strangers. Rather, it was voluntarily done for the sake of those in need (see the example of Barnabas in 4:36, 37, and later the Macedonians in 2 Cor. 8:1-4).] By the way, you can tell a lot about the level of someone’s salvation by observing their relationship with their stuff. What comes first? People and the fulfilling of the ministry and mission of Jesus? Or their stuff? A Release of Possessions-- You know, some ancient groups (like the Pythagoreans) rejected having private property altogether. But Christianity (interestingly) never went there. It was okay to have your personal property and possessions. Rather [the early Christians {(when it was necessary)} sold property whenever anyone had need (4:34–35 ); they valued people more than property without rejecting private property altogether.] This was incredibly rare during that time; and what made it even more rare was that it wasn’t something done just by a small group of radicals, but was something that was characteristic of all the followers of Christ. And what this shows us is that when we walk in the Spirit, we cease to see our possessions and our money as our own; it’s God’s. And when we see our possessions like that, we allow God access to them in order to do with them what He wills. The question is, “Is all that we have accessible to God to meet the needs of another person?” If not, they need to be. Joy Overflowing as Evangelism-- Now the sixth practice we see is [Joy Overflowing as Evangelism. Whether corporately in the temple or within each other’s homes, the believers lived “with one accord” and “with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved” (2:46, 47). {And what I want you to note here is that} Evangelism wasn’t a program in the Jerusalem church; it was a way of life. The believers’ lives and behaviors created such favor with the population of Jerusalem that people were drawn to the Lord.] And that is why [In our churches today, we should examine our mission {and practice in order} to ensure these basic tenets are being fully lived out before {anything else}. Whenever a group of believers return to their foundation {(as lived out in these foundational, life-giving practices)}, they find the strongest connection to the heart of Christ. And seeing His heart on display will draw others to Him.] “Day By Day”-- Now I want you to notice three final words given to us here that ought to re-shape how you and I think about Church. It says in verse 46 that they were doing these things together day by day. Not once a week, but daily. The Secret Service-- Once there was a church service that took place; and [At the end of the service the minister was standing at the door of the church shaking hands. He grabbed a man by the hand and pulled him aside and asked him, “Are you a soldier in the Army of the Lord?” The man replied, “Why, yes I am.” The minister then asked, “Then why do we only see you at Christmas and Easter?” The man quickly whispered, “I’m in the Secret Service.”] Now we laugh at that, but what we need to ask ourselves is “Are we true Koinonia Christians or are we Secret Service Christians?” Are we fighting to make our faith, our Church, and our abiding in fellowship with one another a DAILY reality? Because what we see here in this [daily sharing…is {so} unusual in antiquity and most resembles how people treated members of their own family.] But you know that is exactly how we are supposed to think of the Body of Christ; we ARE TRULY the FAMILY OF GOD! And so Christ’s challenge to us today is for us to live our faith together in community in a real and powerful way. Let us be a Church made of people who have allowed themselves to be filled with the presence of God; a Church that shares together; a Church that prays for one another; a Church that seeks to be united towards that single purpose of embracing the God who loves us; and let us be a Church that is reaching out to the lost so that they might also experience His presence. Let’s do so. Amen. Hello, and welcome to Lechem Panim. It is so good to have you with us today as we continue our study of the book of Acts.
“It wasn’t THAT good!”-- I’d like to open by sharing with you a story of a small church that met not too long ago. One particular Sunday, [The pastor was greeting folks at the door after the service. And a woman said, “Pastor, that was a very good sermon.” The pastor says, “Oh, I have to give the credit to the Holy Spirit.” “Oh,” she immediately responded, “It wasn’t THAT good!”] Now Peter’s sermon here in Acts chapter 2 (thankfully) WAS that good because he was filled with the Holy Spirit of God. And verses 40-41 reveal what can happen when we speak with the anointing of the Holy Spirit. It says in… Acts 2:40-41 (ESV)— 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. Early Christian Practice-- Now immediately after these early Christians were baptized and received the Holy Spirit, they entered into community with one another; a community that was marked by the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit of God. And in that community we begin to see expressed the fundamental practices of the Church. We see Doctrine, Fellowship, The Lord’s Supper, Prayer, Generosity and Service, and Joy Overflowing as Evangelism. The Most Important Things-- And all these practices may seem basic without any higher hierarchical Church structure, but that doesn’t mean they are somehow less important. Picture them [like eating, breathing, and sleeping are to an infant]. Basic? Yes, but absolutely necessary to the growth of the Body of Christ. And they remain the most important things for mature Christians as well, which is why it doesn’t say that these disciples just made them a part of their lives (like some kind of tacked-on thing). No, it says they devoted themselves to these things. They became the absolute new foundation for their lives. And today we’ll be beginning to explore these practices one by one. Now the first thing it says they devoted themselves to was Doctrine. It says in… Acts 2:42 (ESV)-- 42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching… Doctrine-- Now I find it interesting that the first practice listed was not fellowship, prayer, or evangelism. No, the practice that is mentioned first is Doctrine (what the Apostles were teaching). And that is because all those other things are meaningless without right doctrine. Many religions (including the cults) practice fellowship, prayer, and evangelism. And those things are important to the Christian faith as well, but the content of our belief is just as important as the practice. What we believe (doctrine) was and is of utmost importance. In fact, unity actually needs to come second to truth. Spurgeon: Truth before unity— Charles Spurgeon points out that you’ll hear a lot of preachers say, ["To remain divided is sinful! Did not our Lord pray {to the Father}, that they may be one, even as we are one"? (John 17:22). A chorus of ecumenical voices keep harping the unity tune. What they are saying is, "Christians of all doctrinal shades and beliefs must come together in one visible organization, regardless... Unite, unite!" Such teaching is false, reckless and dangerous. Truth alone must determine our alignments. Truth comes before unity. Unity without truth is hazardous. Our Lord's prayer in John 17 must be read in its full context. Look at verse 17: "Sanctify them through thy truth; thy word is truth." Only those sanctified through the Word can be one in Christ. To teach otherwise is to betray the Gospel.] Not always agree— And you know, he’s absolutely correct. We cannot compromise on the essentials, or we will betray the Gospel. Now does this mean we have to agree on every theological point? Of course not. Even the early Church was comprised of people who occasionally had different opinions on things; but they had agreement on the essential points of the Gospel. They knew that their fellowship must be anchored in the truth of the Word of God and in sound theology and doctrine. And this was why the teaching of the Apostles was so vitally important because remember that [In the time of Acts, there was no written NT. The earliest letter from the apostles (probably either James or Galatians) did not appear until two decades after the birth of the Church at Pentecost. {Imagine being a Christian without having a New Testament! What would you do? You’d devote yourself to listening to eyewitnesses who could verbally convey the accounts and teachings of Jesus to you, as well as explain how Jesus was the hope and “consolation of Israel” (Luke 2:25) promised in the OT. And so that is what we see;} …the church in Jerusalem took in the apostles’ teaching on Jesus of Nazareth as…the promised Jewish Messiah. {And} Their Bible was the OT, supplemented by what Christ had taught them. {Now} As the various epistles of the apostles were written and delivered to churches established beyond Jerusalem, their authority came to be recognized alongside the OT (“they were} “the rest of the Scriptures”; 2 Pet. 3:16).] But at this point the verbal teachings of the apostles were absolutely essential as the means by which they could be established doctrinally. Fellowship-- Now the second fundamental thing the believers in the early Church devoted themselves to was the fellowship. “Fellowship” in Context— Now some have taken this concept of fellowship to mean that all the early Christians drove Hondas. And I understand where they’re coming from. The text does say (elsewhere in numerous places in and throughout the book of Acts) they were all in one Accord. However (like good Biblical scholars) I think we need to put that word against the backdrop of it’s historical context. Because when we do, we see that the word here actually means has to do with the kind of “fellowship” they shared with one another. One Accord: OT-- [In the Old Testament, the phrase in one accord is always used to describe unanimous participation in a particular action. In Joshua 9:2, the pagan kings “gathered themselves together to fight with one accord against Joshua and Israel” (LEB). Speaking of the conversion of heathen nations, Zephaniah 3:9 says, “For at that time I will change the speech of the peoples to a pure speech, that all of them may call upon the name of the LORD and serve him with one accord” (ESV){, which in the Hebrew is}…translated…literally…“with one shoulder.” It likely comes from the practice of yoking oxen together for plowing. The NIV translates the idea with a similar English expression, “shoulder to shoulder.”] So we are to be one of shoulder with one another. One Accord: NT— Now [In the New Testament, in one accord is used to emphasize the internal unanimity{/unity} of a community. In Acts 12:20, that community is “the people of Tyre and Sidon” who are angry with Herod. In Acts 8:6, it describes the crowd of people who are listening to Philip’s teachings: “And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did” (ESV). It illustrates how the community of Christian believers worshiped, prayed, and fellowshipped together (Acts 1:14; 2:46; 4:24; 5:12; Romans 15:6).] Koinonia-- Now we use the word fellowship often merely to describe social activities in the context of congregational life.] If it happens in our Fellowship Halls at Church, then it must be fellowship, right? Well, often that is the case. But the word here that we translate “fellowship” is the Greek [word koinonia {and it} signifies oneness or commonality—true community. (The adjective form of the word is found in 2:44: the believers “had all things in common [koina].”] And this type of community takes things to a whole new level because fellowship was more than just their talking together, joking together, or even just about discussing the latest sermon. No, it was about being united in mind, body, and spirit with one another as they were united with Christ. You will remember how [Jesus prayed that his followers would be one with Him and the Father, just as He and the Father are one (John 17:11, 21-23; 1 John 1:3, 6, 7).] Now we could spend weeks just beginning to unpack what that means. But suffice it to say, this kind of koinonia fellowship goes so much deeper; so much higher than what we typically mean by fellowship and is in fact the key to moving not only individuals, but the whole body of Christ on into maturity and fruitfulness. It is not just a group of people having a good time together; no, it is a common bond that drives that group to complete a desired task. This is why the NIV sometimes translates koinonia as “partnership” (which we see in Philippians). It is kind of like a sports-team; it is task-driven; it is goal-oriented. It is a kind of fellowship that exists when all who partake in that fellowship are driven to fulfill the same task; to accomplish the same goal. Now there may be some disagreements at times (and we will read of some of them here in Acts) but these early Christians were able to work through those growing pains because they were focused on the prize. They shared this like-minded desire to attain the prize. And so they learned to work together and utilize each other’s gifts because (to put it bluntly) THERE’S A GAME TO WIN!!!! THERE’S A MISSION TO ACCOMPLISH!!!! Souls (people’s eternities) were depending on their unity and strength. Our Unity-- And you know, the same is true today, which is why I think Satan is working overtime to try to divide and even fracture the Church by sowing division. And some of those issues are displayed in how we are reacting to Covid-19. Do we wear masks or do we not wear masks? Do we open our Church doors again or do we stay closed? Do we challenge a government that in so many ways has set itself against Christianity? Or do we practice submission to authority? Or do we do both? And so many people have different opinions on this; and I find myself amongst a group of Church leaders and pastors who honestly are trying to please people on both sides of the spectrum. But what concerns me the most (and I thing what concerns God the most) is whether or not we are keeping centered on His Word; and on maintaining the kind of unity with one another that Christ Himself prayed for; where instead of looking out for our own wants and desires, we are compassionately looking to meet the needs of those around us. What the world sees of Christ during these tumultuous days is greatly dependent how we choose to deal with these crises we are currently facing. Will we allow them to divide us; or will we stand together as the single body of Christ? Remaining Devoted-- This passage’s challenge for us today is to remain devoted to sound teaching and to the preservation of the fellowship. If we can do that, then not just us (but the whole world) will come out of this more blessed and much stronger for having experienced Christ in us. Let’s remain devoted to sound teaching and to the fellowship. Amen. Hello, and welcome to Lechem Panim. It’s so good to have you with us as we continue to embark on our journey together through the book of Acts.
The Meaning of Life-- Today’s topic is on the meaning of life. Now that may seem a little too ambitious of a topic to cover in such a short radio segment. But actually for the Christian, the question of the meaning of life is not all that complicated. In fact, you can sum up the meaning of life in three very simple statements. 1) To know and receive God’s love for you made available through Christ Jesus, 2) to allow that love to enable you to love Him with all of who you are through the Holy Spirit, and 3) to join with God in His work (which on earth is focused primarily on making disciples of all nations). Those three elements constitute the meaning of life. And note that God is foundational to all three of those. He’s not just one of many categories. No, all the things we consider dear to us (friends, family, personal fulfillment, our sexuality, our future) all fit under and are rooted in one or more of those categories: Receiving God’s love for us through Christ, loving Him wholeheartedly in return in the Holy Spirit, and joining His work (which on earth involves making disciples of all nations). Building On Each Other-- But notice how each of these builds upon the other. You cannot have a heart broken for the world until you have a heart like Christ’s. And you cannot have a heart like Christ’s until you love Him with all of who you are. And you cannot love Him with all of who you are without first recognizing and receiving His own love for you. And so knowing God’s love for you; that’s the starting point. And that is where Peter begins here in his first sermon here in Acts chapter 2; he begins with the death of Jesus at the hands of the very people that he’s preaching to. Christ died for them and (even though they killed Him) Peter promises a path of forgiveness which must have sounded unthinkable; that God would ever forgive us for killing His Son. But Peter promises that not only will God forgive, but will also pour out His Spirit on those who receive Christ. It says in… Acts 2:38-39 (ESV)-- 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” Is Our Love Enfleshed?-- And so the first step of salvation is receiving the love and forgiveness of God made available to us in Christ Jesus. That is the starting point of salvation. Because once we receive His love for us and the Holy Spirit enters into our lives, then the Holy Spirit can enable us to love God with all of who we are. And if we then love God with all of who we are, then out of that relationship with God will also come a love for others that will drive us to share the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them, so that they too might experience the love of God and the transformation He can bring to their lives. But if there is no evangelistic drive in our hearts, then there is something wrong in one of those three areas, even if you might feel that deep down you really do care about the lost. Because a true love for God will always work itself out in loving and ministering to others. There cannot be an inward work without producing external fruit. That is why when Jesus washed the feet of the disciples, He met with such resistance from Peter. Was Peter too humble to have Jesus wash his feet? Is that why he said, “Lord, you will never wash my feet.”? Maybe. But what is more likely is that Peter recognized the power and the implications of what was happening to him. And Jesus points this out. He says… John 13:14-15 (ESV)— 14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Does Love Move Us Into Mission?-- And so we see that our service, our love, and our mission of evangelism is the outflow of what Christ first did for us. It says in… 1 John 4:19 (ESV)-- 19 We love because he first loved us. Compassion Enfleshed-- We are called to make disciples of all nations because Christ first loved us enough to make us disciples of Him. We are to be shepherds of other peoples’ souls because He first shepherd our souls. So the question is “have we (in our own lives) experienced God’s transforming love in such a way so as to move us into joining with Him in making disciples of all nations? Are we moved? Is our love and compassion an active love and compassion?” Just as Jesus had to become enfleshed in order to become God’s instrument of love in our lives, so also our love and compassion need to become enfleshed by what we actually say and do. Because it is in-so-far as our love is enfleshed and lived out that it really becomes real. Screwtape’s Concentric Circles-- Now Satan doesn’t want our love to become real; He wants to keep it in the realm of our feelings; in our minds. C.S. Lewis stresses this so strongly in his book The Screwtape Letters. In it he describes a Christian as being a set of three circles; each inside the other. The innermost circle is our will (our actions), the next circle out being the intellect/mind, and then the outer circle as our imagination (or fantasy). Now what Satan’s strategy is is not to eliminate our love and compassion, but merely to paralyze them. Lewis says that while there is always going to be kindness in a Christian’s soul no matter what he does, he says that what Satan does is he tries to get us to move that kindness from our immediate neighbors whom we meet every day and to push our kindness out to groups of people in general (in a non-personal sense), and then eventually into the realm of fantasy. And Lewis is right on point here; and he masterfully points out that it is only in so far as the virtues in our life reach the will and are there embodied in habits that they actually become a threat to Satan. Loving Mankind But Not Liking Men-- You know, someone once pointed out how [a philanthropist {(a person who seeks the welfare of others)} may give money and/or time to help humanity but then treat individual men and women like dirt, loving mankind but not liking {individual} men {or women}. Charles Dickens paints a picture of such a person in Mrs. Jellyby, one of his memorable characters in Bleak House. Mrs. Jellyby is working on starting a philanthropic project at "Borrioboola-Gha, on the left bank of the Niger {River}.” And this engages her attention to the extent that, in her first scene in the book, one of her children gets his head caught in a railing and another tumbles down the stairs — yet she never notices. Dickens says her eyes seem "to look a long way off. As if . . . they could see nothing nearer than Africa!" {Now there’s nothing wrong with missions to Africa. That’s not his point. His point was that} She loves the idea of serving mankind corporately, but she fails to serve even her own children individually.] Fantasy Love-- Now I say all of this because many Christians (myself included); we love the idea of ministry and missions generally or corporately, but not individually; with our hands and our feet (which is what we see here in this early fellowship (koinonia) of the early Church. For many Christians today, it’s all in the mind. But it needs to get to the hands and the feet. But it can’t do that without first going through the heart. Until your heart is united with Christ, it will never be broken for the lost as His heart was broken for you. It is having the heart of Christ that moves us to reach a dying world. God Loved Us With His Will— God doesn’t love you corporately or in a general sense. No, He loved (and still loves you) individually. Seeing you redeemed was more than a nice idea in His head. No, His love became enfleshed. He entered into our sickness; into our death; He washed our feet; He touched our wounds; and He even allowed Himself to be executed on our behalf in order to pay for our sins. God’s love for us was enfleshed in the provision of Jesus for our sins! Isaiah 53:5 (ESV)— 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. Are We Desperate-- And so the question is, what about our love. Is our love enfleshed in the lives of those around us? If it is Godly love, then it has to be. Are we desperate enough to see those around us find Christ? Are we willing enough to change our environment; to change our profession; to leave our worldly dreams behind in order to become instruments of salvation in another person’s life? John 1:14 (ESV)-- 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. Not Ritual, But Heart Change-- It is so interesting how often, when I am talking with a person about their faith, when I ask about their relationship with Christ, how they will tell me how often they go to Church; or how they grew up in the Church; or when or where they were baptized. And you know, that bothers me because that is Pharisee talk; that is “Hey, I’ve got the temple; I’ve done the rituals; I am impervious to the judgment of God.” When It Becomes Real-- Let me tell you, while all those things are important, they will not do you one whit of good if you have not allowed God to touch you in the realm of your heart. It is when He touches your heart that everything becomes real; when you come to realize His love for you. Because then that love moves you to love Him with all of who you are (with a united; whole; complete heart); and then finally that love for Him moves you to seek to join with Him in His work. It all starts with the heart. The question is, has the Gospel truly reached our hearts? Because when it does, living out the Great Commission becomes as natural as breathing; because we will not be able to contain the love we have found in Christ Jesus. The question is "Are we there yet? What circle does our love fall into? Has your inner circle been touched by the Holy Spirit? Change Me— I want to encourage you today, if you have not yet experienced the kind of transformation we’ve been talking about, ask for the Holy Spirit to apply (or to apply anew) the death and resurrection of Christ to your life. Tell the Holy Spirit that you (now, in this moment) want to give full control of your life to Him. Ask Him to make you altogether new. If you receive that work of grace in your life today, every corner of your life will be forever changed and there will be no telling the lives that will be touched for the Kingdom of God. Please do so. Amen. |
Rev. Cameron Ury graduated from Asbury University in 2007 with a B.A. in Bible and Theology. From there he continued his studies at Wesley Biblical Seminary in Jackson, MS. It was there that he met his wife Tanya, who graduated from WBS with her M.A. and M.Div. degrees. Cameron and Tanya got married in 2009. Cameron then graduated with his M.Div. degree with a pastoral concentration in 2011.
After shepherding churches in both Mississippi and Ohio, they joined the ministry team at Renton Park Chapel in January of 2018, where Cameron serves as Senior Pastor and Teacher. Cameron is also the founder and host of Lechem Panim, a weekly radio show that airs on KGNW 820AM "The Word Seattle". The ministry of Lechem Panim is centered around leading people into the life-giving presence of God in and through Bible study, prayer, and active discipleship with the aim of ministering to a world that is in desperate need of the healing touch of Jesus Christ. Archives
September 2021
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