Pentecost: God is at Work in You!

Pentecost: GOD is at work in YOU!

Acts 5:12-21a

Introduction: Today marks one of the less remembered days of the church calendar: Pentecost.  The first Christian Pentecost, 50 days after the resurrection of Jesus, was the birthday of the New Testament Church. Pentecost is also the pivot point, the theological and spiritual foundation of the story of the early church in Acts. And remember, we have the Book of Acts not only as an historical account about what happened then and there, but it is given to encourage and motivate us here and now. The presence of the Holy Spirit to guide and empower the church is a reality that sets this age, from Pentecost to Parousia, apart from the rest of human history.  Why God is here in the Spirit is linked to the question of why He has left us here in the world. Acts 1:8 is a kind key verse that summarizes what we see in the rest of the book. Jesus told His disciples, “…You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses for Me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth.”

Last week I heard again the story of the most infamous sea disaster, the sinking of the RMS Titanic. As you know, after the ship struck an iceberg and it began to take on water, there was panic, and as the reality sunk in that the ship was going down, the life boats were deployed, many of them were launched only partially filled. When the ship went down, many went down with it, but hundreds of passengers and crew were left in life jackets, floating in the icy north Atlantic waters. And hundreds perished.  They didn’t die because the ship went down, but they died because the people in the life boats didn’t respond to their cries for help and turn back to rescue them from the frigid water.  Self-preservation overruled the desperate need of the perishing.

Why are we here? An old episode of “Everyone loves Raymond” had Ally ask that question of Ray, her father, and he was stunned into silence. “Daddy, why are we here? Why did God put us in the world and not take us right to heaven?” His reply, “W-w-what???”  It’s a question every believer should consider and also a question that we have been trying to think through as a church over the last couple of years.  What is our mission, and how can we be more effective?

Some of us who are involved in leadership went to a pastors’ conference at Berean Baptist Church in Brunswick. Ron Hutchcraft was the speaker. His messages were relevant to where we are as a church and to our current study in the book of Acts.  He was talking about sharing an unchanging Christ in a changing world.  One of the things that he emphasized is the urgency of the task that has been entrusted to us, that God has saved us for a purpose. He used the analogy of rescue stations that were established up and down the east coast, and made the argument that churches need to view themselves from that perspective. We are not here simply to bask in the joy of being forgiven, we are here to carry on the mission of seeking the lost and bringing the message of life.  When a swimmer or a boat is in trouble, rescuers put themselves at risk to go out to seek and save those who are in peril.   We are not called to be “resters” but rather we are called to be “rescuers.” 

Context: We’ve been away from our study of the book of Acts for a few weeks. The Big Idea of Acts is that Jesus is working to build His church through the Spirit empowered witness of His followers (that’s us!). We initially see explosive growth in the first three chapters as the apostles preach the message of Jesus. But Jesus has warned his disciples in the upper room that opposition would come. He said “in the world you will have tribulation.” The healing of the lame man in Acts 3 get the attention of Jewish ruling council, and starting in chapter 4 we entered a section in Acts that shows that the church grows through testing. The church had just come through it’s first major internal threat, the sin of Ananias and Sapphira.  Now the pressure from outside rises again. How would the believers respond? What affect would the threats and hatred of the leaders have on this team of followers that Jesus left in the world?

The Big Idea: The day of Pentecost reminds us that we have the promise of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.  Here we see that, if you are walking in the Spirit people will begin to notice. Some will be attracted, many will be repelled, but God’s work will be accomplished. 

I. Good News: If you are walking in the Spirit people will notice (12-16)!  God’s work in us will produce fruit that people can see in our lives. Now we have tried to make the point in our study of Acts that the apostles did have a unique calling, gifting, and ministry. They were the authorized representatives of Christ, inspired by the Spirit to bring His word to the world.

Notice that the Bible says, “Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico.” (12).  One of the striking features of the early church is that the apostles’ ministry was accompanied by miracles done in the name of Jesus. They were “signs” because they testified to the authority of the apostles. We read a little later in Acts, “So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands” (Acts 14:3). God has saved us and called us, but we are not “apostles” in the sense that these men were.       

The miracles done at the hands of the apostles were “signs,” but they were also “wonders” because they awed the witnesses who saw them. People could see that something was going on, something supernatural. Well these kinds of miracles do not normally happen today, at least not in the same numbers. Notice that “all” who came were healed. There is no doubt that God still does miracles and that He still heals. But there is also no doubt that the apostles’ ministry was unique, it was foundational.

In the apostolic period, as the church was being established and as the New Testament was being written, the miracles God did at the hands of the Apostles validated their authority to speak for Jesus. The miracles were evidence of God’s seal of approval on their teaching in His name. As the apostles brought the Word of Christ they had a unique authority.  We also see in the New Testament another kind of a sign, one that happens all around us to this day, that is, the transformation of lives that come to Jesus in faith. Later in Acts we’ll read of the conversion of a young rabbi names Saul, one who had been a brutal persecutor of the church. Then we see in Acts 9:20-23,  

“And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, "He is the Son of God."  ²¹ And all who heard him were amazed and said, "Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?"

The change in Saul’s life (who would later be known as the Apostle Paul) could not be denied, it was evidence that demanded a verdict. The believers in Jerusalem at first found it difficult to believe that Saul had come to faith in Jesus. And his conversion was an embarrassment to the Jewish authorities. Paul was their protégé who sought to destroy the church, now he was preaching Jesus as Messiah! So they later sought to kill him.

The supernatural work of God evoked an attitude of fear and trembling: “None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem” (v.13). Remember the “sign” that had just happened in the immediately preceding context: the miraculous, divine judgment of Ananias and Sapphira. No wonder people stayed away! There was no easy-believism, no “come join the club” kind of attitude. Remember the scene in the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe when Lucy asks Mrs. Beaver if the Lion, Aslan, was “safe.”  She replied, “Safe? He is not safe! He is the King! He is not safe, but he is good.” There is risk in following Jesus, we’ll see more of that as this passage unfolds. Jesus warned His disciples from the start: “If you want to be my disciple, deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow me.” Notice there are really two groups of “signs” happening here, conversions and miracles:

“And more than ever believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women,  ¹⁵ so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them.  ¹⁶ The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all healed.”

Jesus continued to work, testifying to the words of the apostles through the signs that were done at their hands.  And listen, the Spirit is still present, Jesus is still building His church. Why does He have us here in the world? There are souls that will be rescued by the life saving message of Jesus. As that mission is carried out, God will be glorified.

            The overriding message of Acts seems to be that God was working in and through the Spirit empowered church to bring the message of Christ to the world. Jesus is building the church, and that truth continues to be true. In some way, our life is light to the truth that God is not dead, that Jesus is Lord. We are called to go and tell. The old hymn says, “Rescue the perishing, care for the dying…”  The Titanic has struck the iceberg, and we know the way to the lifeboats! We are not called to step into the boat and rest, we are called to point the way to those around us. Yes, if you are walking in the Spirit people will begin to notice. Some will be attracted, many will be repelled, but God’s work will not be disrupted. The Good News is that if you are walking in the Spirit people will notice. And the…

II. Bad News: If you are walking in the Spirit people will notice (17-18)! Some will notice, and not in a good way!  Those of you who came to faith as adults probably can think of people who were friends, but who suddenly wanted nothing to do with you! Getting serious about your faith is not a guarantee that you will be popular, it involves risk.

“But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with jealousy  ¹⁸they arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison.”

Another “but” this time with negative connotations: “But the High priest rose up, and all those who were with him…” God was working, He was revealing himself, but the human opposition rises against the church. The leaders had warned the apostles to stop preaching about Jesus in Chapter 4, and here they are, right back at it!  The disciples had said when they were arrested the first time, they had to obey God rather than man. They knew they were placing themselves in danger, but the task was urgent, they were called to be rescuers, to bring the good news of the Way, the Truth, and the Life to those who were perishing.

        The disciples surely were not surprised by opposition. After all, Jesus had been opposed, and ultimately killed by those who rejected Him. Jesus had told the disciples “don’t be surprised if the world hates you, it hated me first!”  There is a cost to discipleship.  A rescue swimmer is required to go out, not to come back. There is risk involved if we accept the calling to be a “rescuer” and not simply a “rester.”  Chuck Colson well said that God doesn’t require our success, He requires our obedience. If He has us here, in this world, we are to have a part in His mission. Obedience may well come at a cost. Remember Jesus said, “if you want to be my disciple, take up your cross, and follow me.”  Pentecost reminds us that we can experience the Spirit-filled life.  And if you are walking in the Spirit people will begin to notice. Some will be attracted, many will be repelled, but God’s work will not be disrupted.

III. Great News: If you are walking in the Spirit, God’s will will be accomplished (19-21a)!

             First we see a supernatural deliverance (v.19). “But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out…” Direct, divine intervention.  The view of the world called “Deism” accepts the idea of a creator God, but looks upon the universe like a giant clock that God set in motion, but after creating it He just watches as it continues on, an endless series of cause and effect.  The story of Acts makes it clear that God intervenes in human history to accomplish His good purpose.  The leaders arrested them and cast them into the prison, “But during the night…” The God who is, the great I AM, has involved himself in our story. Here He sends an angel who miraculously opens the prison door and sets them free.

             Then the angel speaks, and gives a counterintuitive command (20). “…and said,  ‘Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this Life.’" Had you been there, you might have wondered, “Now wait a minute, that is what just got us in trouble!” Isn’t there a less offensive way to carry out this mission?  Remember why we are here. God hasn’t called us to be “resters.” Rescuers accept danger, as they seek and save the perishing, they understand that there is risk yet still they go out into the water or they run into the burning building.  

             God’s presence means the promise of an ability to obey, even if it is difficult (21a). “And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach.”  The angel said go and speak, they went and spoke. This is what we are here for, this is why God has us in the world! We are not here to survive as a church or to be comfortable with our possessions. We are a rescue station. A lighthouse of Grace and truth to be sure, but more than that, a team of rescuers called by God to bring the message of life to this community and the world. And the point here, as we see God working in these men, is that He will use us.  The Spirit will go before us to prepare hearts and will speak through us the Words of this life.

What is God saying to me in this passage? If you are walking in the Spirit people will begin to notice. Some will be attracted, many will be repelled, but God’s work will not be disrupted.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Have you wondered lately, what in the world you are here for?  God could have saved you and brought you straight to heaven, but he didn’t. And He didn’t leave you here to be a “rester,” sitting on the sidelines, watching, singing , soaking in the truth, content to be in the life boat. Rather than a “rester,” he called you to be a rescuer.  We all have a part in the mission that God has entrusted to the church.

   1) We have resources for you to access and give out.

   2) You can link our website, or our Sunday messages on your facebook page. 

   3) You can look ahead to events like our upcoming God and Country day (July 6^th), and invite someone to be your guest.

   4) You can review your “most wanted list,” four or five people that you know and interact with that you believe need to know Jesus. And then pray, asking God how He might use you to point them to Him.

   5) Ask God to give you the heart of a rescuer, and then ask him to give you eyes and ears to see those around us who desperately need to know Jesus. 

Remember that Jesus left the glory of Heaven to come to this planet and to seek and to save the lost. He died so that we could live. He is still building His church. And He has chosen to use us in the process.   AMEN.