April 30, 2023 - There is Power Week 3

Introduction:

Peter do you love me? How many times in a row did Jesus ask this of Peter after Christ arose from the dead?

Link:

In the study that the deacons are dining on Tuesday mornings, This same question has come up multiple times in the past week or two. Just the plain question of, “DO YOU LOVE ME?”

What does loving God really look like? To love Him means to Fear Him. Not in the sense of I’m going to run away and hide b/c of the scary man whose trying to hurt and kill me, but a Biblical fear, which means to lay aside my wants and desires and to do the things that God has asked, commanded me to do. Fear means reverence, to revere someone, in this case God. A feeling or attitude of deep respect for someone or something. Again this someone being God.

Fear:

So when we look at verses in Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction. and Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. We see where it talks of the “FEAR OF THE LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” Or it could be stated, the reverence of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. To fear God is to Love God, and to Love God is to fear God. But I must love God w/ all my heart soul & mind.

The MacArthur Bible Commentary C. Theme (1:7)

The fear of the Lord is a state of mind in which one’s own attitudes, will, feelings, deeds, and goals are exchanged for God’s

Link 2:

Peter was a man who learned this. Jesus had asked him several times, do you love me. I think this is a question we need to allow the H.S. to ask us on a regular basis and I am going to challenge you to let Him ask this to you again today. But before we do that, lets turn in our Bibles to another lesson of Peter and what he was like after Jesus asked him that question:

Some time had passed, Jesus had already went back to Heaven, Saul was now Paul and now Peter shows up on the scene here in Acts 9:32-43.

What were going to see in Peters life here is that when someone loves God, they will fear Him and this will produce in them not only wisdom but availability. These things all kinda work together. Like an engine, there are so many different parts. They cant really do anything on their own but together they function and power is made, things happen.

Peter was AVAILABLE

Acts 9:32-43

32 Now it came to pass, as Peter went through all parts of the country, that he also came down to the saints who dwelt in Lydda.

Lydda (modern day Lod) was located about 10 mi. SE of Joppa (Jaffa today), it was a hub servicing roads from Egypt to Syria and from Joppa to Jerusalem.

33 There he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years and was paralyzed.

The MacArthur Study Bible Chapter 9

Use of “certain man” to describe him means he was an unbeliever

So from this, we see that Aeneas, was both unsaved and paralyzed. Not much is known about him other then this. But when Jesus healed Aeneas, those around him, saw and knew the miracle to be true and that Jesus was alive and powerful, There is power in JESUS! This ended up convincing those around Aeneas that the Gospel is alive and powerful and many trusted in Christ.

34 And Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus the Christ heals you. Arise and make your bed.” Then he arose immediately.

The Apostles, once again, never hesitated to give the glory to Jesus. They were faithful. Sometimes we can fall into wanting to take the glory for ourselves. However when we do this, it can make us prideful, it is stealing and it can push folks away from the Lord as opposed to bringing them to him.

Like we talked about last week, sometimes God wants to use us in a particular way to reach others for him, to bring the wandering sheep back to Him. But we need to be faithful to be used of God where He wants us. The folks in Lydda & Sharon as well as Aeneas are grateful for the faithfulness of Peter, even yet today, b/c they are in Heaven with Christ.

Application 1: One thing that we see here and we are going to continue to see with Peter and even Paul is that they did fear the Lord because of their love for Him. Again this is what God is calling us to do in our relationships with Him. Both of these men realized that God was inviting them to do amazing and wonderful things with Him.

When God called them or moved them form where they were, they freely went.

God also wants the same from us.

35 So all who dwelt at Lydda and Sharon saw him and turned to the Lord.

The MacArthur Study Bible Chapter 9

Sharon. The plain surrounding Lydda and Joppa and extending N to Caesarea.

36 At Joppa there was a certain disciple named Tabitha, which is translated Dorcas. This woman was full of good works and charitable deeds which she did.

Tabitha's Greek name was Dorcas, both names mean gazelle.

37 But it happened in those days that she became sick and died. When they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room.

This was different then normal customary procedures. Typically they would, bury the dead body immediately. However they had different plans here then normal.

38 And since Lydda was near Joppa, and the disciples had heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him, imploring him not to delay in coming to them.

Lydda and Joppa were about 10 miles apart.

39 Then Peter arose and went with them. When he had come, they brought him to the upper room. And all the widows stood by him weeping, showing the tunics and garments which Dorcas had made while she was with them.

Dorcas did much to help the community. She loved the Lord. The women standing by showed Peter the tunics and garments that she had made.

40 But Peter put them all out, and knelt down and prayed. And turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up.

41 Then he gave her his hand and lifted her up; and when he had called the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

42 And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed on the Lord.

43 So it was that he stayed many days in Joppa with Simon, a tanner.

God used this situation to bring Peter here, he ended up staying with another fellow named Simon, who was a tanner, and lived by the sea (Acts 10:6).

In this situation we see a few things:

God was using Peter to break down a cultural barrier by staying with a tanner, this was an occupation that was despised by the Jewish society at the time, b/c it dealt with dead animals. The local synagogue probably shunned Simon for his occupation.

This indicates that either Jewish law on this practice had relaxed by this era, or else that Peter was already enjoying freedom from the Jewish law because of his liberty in Christ

Application 2: Just looking back, we see all the amazing things that God did not only through Paul but through Peters life, b/c they Loved God, they feared Him and joined Him where He called them to be. The question I posed to ask was the same one that Jesus asked Peter, the same one I've been asked several times this past week. Do You Love God? With this love, a love that you revere and respect God. You lay aside your will and desires. When God ask you to do something with Him, you join Him.

It doesn't matter who its, You, me or anyone. If we don’t respect Him, submit to Him, fear Him, then we don’t really love Him, not the way He has called us to.

Notice Peter didn’t get it right at first either. Even after 3 years with Jesus, Jesus had to talk Him through it again.

Is Jesus talking to you through it again as well today? Do you Love Jesus?

Challenge: Do You Love Me?

Saved:

Unsaved: Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.”

Closing Song: My Jesus I Love Thee