Empowered By The Spirit: Taking the Gospel to The Ends of The Earth
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INTRO
INTRO
Speakers in my car: should have just went with what dad had already provided. He was going to help me get that job done.
We have a greater task that Jesus has given us, to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Here is the main idea of the text:
Introduce the main idea: The Holy Spirit empowers the church to take the gospel to the ends of the earth.
Mention three ways the Holy Spirit empowers: He Calls, He Conveys, He Carries.
Up until chapter 13 we’ve slowly seen how Jesus’ promise to the disciples that they will be His witness to the ends of the earth is taking place. Up until now we have primarily been discussing how we can reach out to our neighbors. But in chapter 13 there is a huge shift in the book of Acts. Church sends it first missionaries out. This is where the Gospel goes to the nations. The call to take the Gospel to the ends of the church was not just for the church then but it is still a call for you and me and for Mission Hill. So let’s unpack how the Holy Spirit will empower us to do this.
He Calls
He Calls
He empowers us to go by “calling people”
Understanding The Call. The entire church is involved
That word means to be “ear marked” set apart
What does it mean to be called?
Called to work/a special vocation that God has called you to
The Holy Spirit’s idea, not just us our own
“called for Him” to work for Jesus
for the glory of God and not our own.
not about making our platform more great but making Jesus’ name great
2/5 of Leadership team went
God can call whoever He wants whenever He wants to wherever He wants
The church exists for the mission of God, “by the Holy Spirit” We belong to Him
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
How does He call? Not just understanding the call, but how to be attentive to HIS CALL
Through prayer/How do we discern His call? Is this me or is this the Lord?
“as the church was worshipping and praying the Holy Spirit said”
It wasn’t like the church had a plan to do this then prayed, the text describes how as they were praying and worshipping the Holy Spirit spoke to them.
The entire expansion of the Gospel to the Gentiles to the Roman Empire began in a simple prayer meeting. Think about that.
This word “worshipping” some of your translations might use “ministering” because that is what the word means, when we pray we minister to the Lord. It’s actually the word where we get “liturgy” from.
How many of us equate the word liturgy with exciting? When I think about the expansion of the Gospel, and seeing the nations reached for the glory of God, I don’t think about
liturgy.
What is Luke drawing our attention to?
It is so easy for us to think that the Holy Spirit only uses the big, exciting, flashy, high emotion moments to call us to go. Even today we have this massive conferences, which are great, and I naturally assume that it will be in one of those settings that God will speak and the Holy Spirit will empower people to go. But actually Luke says here God often uses the normal mundane spiritual disciples of our lives to start something extraordinary. Normal things like prayer and fasting. “as they were worshipping”
While they were praying & fasting the Holy Spirit spoke.
Some of us might be waiting on a word for the Lord and I think we are looking for that in the wrong places. I wonder how many of us are missing or not aware of how the Holy Spirit might want to send us and use us, because we aren’t do the simple practices of prayer and fasting.
When you look at revival history, most movements started with a prayer meeting.
Here are some examples:
Great Awakening started by a prayer movement
The awakening in Herrnhut started by the round the clock prayer meeting that lasted 100 years until the Great Awakening there was launched.
The revival movement our of Azuza Street began in a simple prayer meeting
The Korean church revival that saw 100 churches planted every year for 100 years was started by the simple Korean practice of early morning prayer.
Joel would agree with me on this that we are really good and faithful at bible teaching and study here at Mission Hill. But one thing we believe we can continue to grow in is the centrality of prayer(praying at the end is a start)
“Is prayer your steering wheel or your spare tire?” Corrie Ten Boom
Here’s the strategy for Global missions: worship pray and respond to the call of the Holy Spirit. It’s not complicated.
500.50.5
Are you available? Are you willing?
internal vs external call
us going to Austin?
Application
He Conveys
He Conveys
Both through the power of the Word and the power of the Spirit
this is the promise of Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Declaring the message of the Gospel and displayed the power of the Gospel
Both the power of the Word and the power of the Spirit.
“filled with the Holy Spirit”
Holy Spirit will give us the words to speak in whatever context He has called us to.
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
we see this happening in these two chapters.
Context vs. Content
3 Different Contexts:
Paul in Cyprus(Barnabas’ home town)
This would be like San Francisco or something like that, very unchurched, pagan environment
In Antioch of Pisidia, it was more of a bible belt town (military administrative center for this region)
In Lystra back to Roman paganism
So whatever context God has called you to, He has given you the power and the means to contend for the Gospel, to be a witness
3. Every two days now we create as much information as we did from the dawn of civilization up until 2003
Content
Changing contexts but unchanging content
Message was the same: all of it was “good news” (Acts 13:32, Acts 14:15)
The first recorded sermon by Saint Paul is found in Acts 13. It’s dominated by the subject of Christ’s resurrection.
The message that the church has been given to see Jesus’ church advance to the ends of the earth is the message of the Gospel
We don’t compromise the message of the Gospel because of the context we are in.
Being in Taiwan not wanting to talk about sin because it is a word in Chinese that means guilty......yeah....that’s the point, but it is an incredibly shameful word for Chinese culture to use. There was a temptation to try and explain the Gospel without using that word to make it more acceptable. Do know what happened? I had a lot of people who wanted to follow Jesus because He could give them inner peace or joy, but not because He was a Savior for their sins.
Even in our own culture, the desire to be relevant has left us powerless, not be a coward but to convey the message of the Gospel.
Tom Holland agnostic historian says the world needs the weird, robust, empire shattering Christian faith. Don’t water it down.
Conveys By Displaying the Power of The Gospel
4 miracles recorded in these two chapters alone(apart from the miracle of faith)
Signs and Wonders
There is meant to be a marriage between the Word and the Spirit
Meant to be a sign pointing towards Jesus.
Miracles in the Bible: Over 267 miracles in the Bible.
"Miracles are a unique, extraordinary display of God’s power that points to His presence and purposes in the world, revealing His character and drawing us closer to Him." - John Piper
God has given us the power of His Spirit
Jesus’ promise to His church in John(greater things)
In the same we would never want to compromise the message of the Gospel, we don’t want to compromise the power of the Holy Spirit.
Marriage between Word and the Spirit(vs 12)(HUGE CONVERSION STORY)
Intelligent and powerful yet God used both to bring him to faith.
Jeff Vanderstelt story of speaking in Spanish. Writes books on the Word and the Gospel but understands we need the power of the word and the Spirit.
Why don’t we see more miracles today?
40 miracles in the book of Acts, 39 of them happen outside the normal church gathering. Basically as the kingdom advances
We need both if we want to be a part of reaching the nations
APPLICATION: where do we tend to compromise here? Do we have a tendency to water down the Gospel because of the context we are in? Ask the Holy Spirit to give you the right words, do you have tendency to downplay the necessity of the power of the Spirit to work miracles so people might know Him? To pray, to ask?
He Carries
He Carries
Understand how there will be suffering
You could have just titled this message, hey it’s going to be hard.
Through many trials you will enter the kingdom of God
7 references to suffering or trials in these two chapters.
When we think about missions or Jesus building His church, do we have an adequate view of endurance and suffering?
We must acknowledge the reality of suffering and trials in mission work
Luke shows us that
Suffering does not mean that God is angry at you or you’ve done something wrong
Suffering could mean that you are actually preaching the Gospel and people are just angry
Peter says don’t suffer for doing wrong, but if you are suffering for Christ’s sake then count yourself blessed
Following Jesus many times brings greater opposition and more suffering not less.
The Holy Spirit’s role In Endurance
Holy Spirit carries us through suffering
Look at 14:19
“he went on” they went on repeated throughout these verses. (13:14, 13:51)
The Holy Spirit will carry you will help you endure through trials and suffering.
Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.
But then look at 21 and 22
He went back to the very place he was stoned at. He was almost killed. Why and how would someone do that?
Only through the power of the Holy Spirit.
The gospel is more about growing THROUGH hard stuff than getting OUT of hard stuff. Transformation trumps triumphalism." - Scotty Smith
"Suffering is never for nothing. In the hands of God, it is meant to shape us, refine us, and draw us closer to Him. It is through the furnace of affliction that our faith is tested, our character is strengthened, and our dependence on God deepens. Embracing suffering with a surrendered heart allows us to experience the profound work of God's grace in our lives." - Elisabeth Elliot
maybe with your family(Taiwanese examples) my own examples?
When we were called to Taiwan my parents weren’t thrilled.
He gives joy while we suffer
how many times “Counted as joy to suffer”
Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.
And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
"Joy is not the absence of suffering, but the presence of God's grace in the midst of it. When we anchor our hope in Christ and trust in His sovereignty, even the darkest moments become opportunities for us to experience His unshakable joy that transcends our circumstances. - Tim Keller
It might not give you happiness but you will have joy. The world offers comfort, Jesus offers contentment and joy in the Gospel. AS the Holy Spirit calls you HE will continue to carry you and help you endure every trial.
APPLICATION
JOHN MARK
JOHN MARK
maybe you’ve been the John Mark of the story
Barnabas’ cousin
follow his life to the end where he ends up writing a Gospel, being with Paul, and getting martyred for his faith(According to tradition, he died a martyr’s death at Alexandria, Egypt, in the eighth year of the emperor Nero.)
“All God's giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on God being with them.”
Give yourself to God. As an instrument for righteousness.
The more that I live into the lie that the more I live for myself the more joy and freedom I will have the more death hand bondage it will bring. Our current society offers us autonomy and freedom but the result is greater isolation and bondage to these things that enslave us.
Jesus tells us that if we seek to save our lives, if we spend our talents, time, and treasure only to secure ourselves, to make our lives better, we will lose our life. But if we, for the sake of the Gospel, lose our lives, we will find it.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
Recap the three ways the Holy Spirit empowers the church for gospel mission: He Calls, He Conveys, He Carries
Encourage the congregation to seek the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in their own lives and mission endeavors
Challenge them to be available, willing, and faithful in responding to the Spirit's leading
Remind them of the joy and fulfillment found in living out the mission of God with the power of the Holy Spirit.