Sermon Tone Analysis

Acts Series #38

Back to the Beginning: When Church was Church

*Don't Break My Heart*

*Acts 21:13*

 

Well … folks if you've been following with us in the book of Acts you will find that contrary to popular opinion or theology, being a follower of Jesus Christ is not rosy, or easy.

Paul is chased from one town to another

He has been stoned and imprisoned

 

And now he is making his way to Jerusalem …

 

Doc preached from the latter part of chapter 20 last week.

Today let's begin reading in Acts 21

 

*READ 21:1-13*

 

There are two things that break my heart …

What breaks my heart are

#1 people who refuse to be set free by surrendering to Christ

And #2 is people who have embraced Christ but refuse to let go of the reigns, refuse to follow Christ into the difficult places, who refuse to forsake all for the sake of taking the gospel to the world.

These people around Paul were given divine inspiration about what was ahead in Jerusalem, but they didn't have the faith or the insight to get the point of the Revelation.

Don't be confused here, there ARE times recognize danger and be sensitive to the Spirit's direction to avoid the danger, but THIS was NOT the time.

The disciples in Tyre sensed from God's Spirit that Paul faced difficulty in going to Jerusalem, but that is NOT what God had in mind for Paul.

Then they go to Caesarea and stayed in Deacon Philip's house.

Now it's been 20 years since we last saw Philip.

Then Agabas agrees that the Holy Spirit is revealing that Paul will be facing imprisonment by the Romans in going to Jerusalem.

But they didn't understand the Revelation

 

Difficulty for the sake of the gospel doesn't mean we avoid it or run from it

 

Yet they, including our writer, Luke, PLEADED with Paul to avoid it.

Even though godly people may tell you to avoid challenge, trust the Spirit when he calls you to proclaim the gospel.

I LOVE verse 13, I love Paul's response, “what are you crying about?” “Why are you breaking my heart?”

“I am ready not only to be bound, but also to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”

Then verse fourteen says “when he would not be dissuaded, we gave up and said, 'the Lord's will be done.'”

Why was Paul able to deal with difficulty and the promised of bondage and potential death on his way to Jerusalem?

Because he was already a bondservant to Christ

 

*1.

Bound *

 

Are you in chains for Christ to Christ or for yourself and to sin  

 

We are bound to tradition when we should be bound to the gospel and doing whatever it takes to reach people with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Paul wasn't afraid to die …

 

Tradition says “protect yourself”

 

But Theology says “run to the battle”

 

GO … that is the theology of the gospel

 

Paul was not afraid to be bound because he was already bound, bound to Christ, bound to men for the gospel of Jesus Christ

I Cor 9:19-23

/Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible/

 

The KJV says it this way /I made myself servant until all, that I might gain the more/

 

Paul was not worried about himself he was worried about being obedient to God and “gaining the more”

 

I heard one preacher on Sunday say about this passage … “we have to believe that MORE IS POSSIBLE”

 

That same preacher reminded us that a servant is bought for the purpose of being pushed around …

 

The Greek word for “bound” here is the word /deo/ which means /to tie, to fasten with chains, to put under obligation, duty to the law, to compel/

 

If we are

 

To what are YOU bound?

*A.

bound to sin* -

    if you are bound to sin … you are a slave to it because you obey it and Paul says in Romans 6:16 that slavery to sin leads to death … but even churches, even believers are slaves to sin and do not live in the blessing of God because we fail to obey his command to GO and tell … no matter the cost, no matter the casualty

* *

  *B.

bound to the past* - sometimes we do not move forward with Christ because we are bound to our past.

That may be a good past or a bad past.

So many churches today are living in bondage to their past.

Perhaps in their past there was sin in the camp, there was bad leadership and that bondage keeps them from moving forward bound to Christ.

So many churches have had past successes, past glory and they are still living in the past and the safety of past successes and they don't go forward bound to Christ.

But Paul said /“forgetting what is behind, straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal … /

/ /

*  C.

bound by traditions* - too often tradition becomes theology and we fail to reach our world for Christ because we are bound to tradition.

“Well it was good enough for grandpa …”

There is an old song that says “gimmie that Old time religion” … it was “good enough for Paul and Silas” and it's good enough for me”

I heard someone say, about the King James Translation of the Bible, /“if it was good enough for Paul and the Peter, it's good enough for me”/

 

>>>> that's NOT the “translation” of Paul … it was GREEK and Hebrew

 

Well LISTEN … the SAME GOSPEL is good enough but the same expression and methods may NOT be.

When we are bound to the gospel and the people we will reach … we are willing to do whatever it takes.

We will get free of traditions and inclinations and styles and preferences, and ask the question … what will it take to reach people with the gospel?

Paul's custom was to go to the synagogues FIRST with the gospel, but in Athens he went to where the philosophers were throughout Greece he went to places of education, theater, market places, homes, whatever it took to present the gospel.

I've got news for you, the only tradition we need to worry about following and maintaining, is found in this inerrant, infallible word of God.

The command to GO, Teach, and Baptize, is the ONLY tradition we need to be bound to … everything else is negotiable

 

*  D.

bound to unbelief* -

Rick Warren said to us on Sunday night that we need to be people who live with Possibility --- he called it the “faith factor” …

Mt 19:26 - /with man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible/

 

If you think about it, the greatest sin of all is UNBELIEF

Failing to receive Christ is unbelief

As a believer, failing to trust God for great things is unbelief

Warren said to us, God is doing in your life~/church what you are letting him do … let us not be bound to unbelief

 

Not bound to unbelief

Not bound to tradition

Not bound to past

Not bound to sin

 

*  E.

bound to Christ *

when you are bound to Christ you will do what he says, you will go where he leads, you will NOT believe your eyes, you will not believe your past experience you will believe the call and command and promises and plans of God

Rom 6:22 /but now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life/

2 Cor 4:5 /we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake/

2 Cor 6:4/ as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: in great endurance; in troubles, hardships and distresses/

Gal 1:10/ am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God?  Or am I trying to please men?

If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ/

 

The great preacher, Vance Havner said /Our Lord never put discipleship in the fine print of the contract.

He called on us to forsake all, take up our cross, deny self, love him more than anything else.

We are not our own, we are bought with a price, the personal property of Jesus Christ with no right to anything.

'love so amazing so divine demands my soul, my life, my all'/

 

Paul was not worried about the warnings …

Besides if these prophets knew what lay ahead for Paul, do you think Paul didn't know as well?

But …

Not only was Paul already a bondservant, bound to Christ … but he was ready to die because he was already dead.

This is the most basic teaching of Christ

Luke 9:23 /If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me”/

Paul's attitude is found in Galatians 2:20