The Unstoppable Gospel

In 2010, there was a movie that came out about a runaway train that they could not stop. It starred Denzel Washington. I loved the concept of the movie that they struggled so hard to stop the train. They couldn’t just go and flip a switch or turn a knob to stop the train. But it was nearly unstoppable. This is a word that can be used to describe the gospel of Jesus Christ. We will see in our passage today, that the schemes of man cannot be stopped.

In our passage today, what we will see is that the gospel cannot be stopped when believers are obedient. (repeat - Main point). Even when we have rulers standing in front of us threatening to kill us, the gospel cannot be stopped when believers are obedient.

Acts 5:34–42 ESV

But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men. For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice, and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

False Gospels will Fail

Have you ever seen something that you just have full confidence will not work? I can remember countless times that this would happen to me when I worked building mobile homes. For much of my time working in construction there, I was the one who was designated to train new people in our department. Many times, people might would grab the wrong nail gun or the wrong tool to try to do something. I would many times let them try so that they could learn that wasn’t the way to do it.

But there would be other times when it wasn’t the tool that was the issue. Sometimes it was just the employee all together. They had a habit of hiring people that would say that they could do things, but they really couldn’t. I would end up spending time with new people that said they had worked construction for years, and I would have to teach them how to read a tape measure. Many times, after several weeks or maybe even months, there would be a point when I would come to the realization that this wasn’t going to work out for them.

The same is true for false gospels. There comes a point where they will not work out anymore. And a man named Gamaliel gives us these examples. But first, he gives the council a warning.

Acts 5:34–35 ESV

But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men.

He takes the time to speak to the council without the apostles in front of them. And he warns them to really think about what they are doing. This is wise council on his part. Just think back. This will be the third time that they have been brought before them. The first two times, they still continued to preach the gospel. So this is something that the council must consider. It seems that their attempts to silence the apostles is not working. I am not sure that I need to compare myself to the Pharisees here, but I am thankful for people in my life who can see that I am about to do something that I am not supposed to and pull me aside to tell me. This is a picture of accountability. Although, it is with people who are trying to stop the gospel, we can learn from Gamaliel that sometimes we need to have tough conversations with our friends when we see them drifting.

Gamaliel then gives these examples. “36 For before these days Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. 37 After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of the census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered.”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ac 5:36–37.

Seemingly, Gamaliel had a lot of respect from the council. He was very persuading to them in the matter of how they were handling the apostles. He was a very smart, very wise man, and we even know by Acts 22:3 that he was the one who taught Paul, when Paul tells us that he was educated at the feet of Gamaliel. We know that Gamaliel was well respected.

English Standard Version Chapter 5

38 So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail;

He tells them that if this movement is because of man, then it will fail. What wonderful advice for us today even. If you are like me, you know that when we try to do things in our power, most of the time it doesn’t work out. This shows us the sovereignty of God. And when we rest in the fact that God is sovereign, then we can have faith and trust that if things are not of God, then they will one day fall. It is just like false gospels. We have these stories here in our passage of these two “movements” that began. And what happened when their leaders passed away? The movements stopped.

Now, I am not saying that this is the formula that will always happen with false teaching. In our time, even after the leader has passed, it seems like the movement continues. I have said a lot about false gospels and you may wonder what these gospels consist of. If we are to stand against false gospels, then we need to know what they are and what they teach. Maybe you can think of some that you have seen go away over time. But SEBTS put out an article a couple of years ago that lists 3 false gospels that are thriving right now in our world.

Prosperity Gospel - This one is very obvious and if you have been coming here regularly, you have heard me speak against this. This gospel tells us that Jesus is an avenue to becoming healthy, wealthy, and prosperous instead of being the savior that reconciles us to God. The sad reality of this false gospel is that it is a common teaching in the church today. We must fight against this and stand for the true gospel that Jesus came to rescue us from our eternal situation instead of our current situation.

Self-help Gospel - This gospel is centered around us. It focuses on sermons that are about us and how we can improve ourselves. Who doesn’t want to hear a sermon about themselves, right? They say in the article, “Self-help preaching tends to look more like a motivational speech or an inspirational monologue than it does a proclamation of the Word of God.” I can see this type of gospel really showing itself in music. When we are singing what we call “Christian songs”, take the time to listen to the words and see who it talks about more, you or Jesus. I see this as the reason that many worship services are no longer worship services but a means of being entertained in church. That is why we want to sing songs here that are uplifting to the name of Jesus and theologically accurate. It doesn’t matter if it was written 500 years ago or 5 months ago. This gospel takes the focus off of Jesus and puts the focus on man.

Political Gospel - This gospel takes the emphasis off of what God’s word says and puts in on what will best help the world that we live in. They tell us in the article, “The things we place the most value on will have the most of our heart. If a political outcome is more important to us than the eternal outcome, these misplaced priorities will be evident in the way we engage the world around us.” We need to keep the main thing the main thing, which is the true gospel. We should not associate Christianity with a political party. And we definitely shouldn’t let our political views shape our faith, but instead let our faith shape our political views.

For us to understand the difference between false gospels and the true gospel, we need to know what they teach. And that brings us to the second point for today.

True Gospels will Triumph

We have talked about false gospels and I even gave examples of the ones today that have the largest reach. But as we talk about the true gospel, it is important for us to know what that is as well. You hear me say the gospel each and every week. There are reasons behind this.

First of all, we gather together as believers of the gospel. We need to be reminded of this gospel every time we gather. We leave here and go into a broken world that tries to tear us down. We need to be reminded every chance we get of the change that has taken place in our lives. So if you think that my sermons are boring and you don’t get anything out of them, then you at least get reminded of the gospel every week.

Also, we learn from repetition. So when you hear the gospel said in a plain and clear manner, you will become more and more comfortable when it is time for you to share with others. You get gospel training each and every week when I go over the gospel. This is to help you build confidence in yourself when it comes time for you to share it.

And finally, we must proclaim the gospel to unbelievers. And each and every week, there is a chance that there is someone here who does not believe the gospel. Here, in the sermon every week, they will hear a gospel presentation and also a call to repent and believe.

So let us be reminded today and hear what the true gospel is. (gospel presentation)

That brings us to the difference of the true gospel compared to false gospels. In the case of the context of this passage, Gamaliel tells them that there will be a way to tell if this is a movement of man or a movement of God. Acts 5:39

Acts 5:39 ESV

but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice,

He tells them that they will not be able to overthrow them. Not a chance. The true gospel, the gospel of Jesus Christ will stand against all opposition because it is from the power of God. And the council found this to be true. They seemingly did not want to be found opposing God. They claim to be servants of God, so they want to keep that up. So they listened to him. But they still went into business for themselves even after this. They didn’t just release the apostles.

English Standard Version Chapter 5

40 and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

They beat them, again, and charged them to stop speaking in the name of Jesus, again. I think we can agree, if this movement were a man-made movement, it probably would have ended here. These men were brutally beaten for what they were saying. But because these men had experienced the gospel of Jesus and they had encountered the risen savior, there was not way that they were going to stop doing this. And we see this as we continue.

Acts 5:41 ESV

Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.

They were not discouraged by the events they were going through. They were instead rejoicing in the fact that they were suffering because of the name of Jesus. They were suffering and because of this suffering, they were rejoicing. Maybe we need to ask ourselves when the last time we rejoiced in our suffering was. We are told in James 1:2-4

James 1:2–4 ESV

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

If we are being obedient to God and being proclaimer of the name of Jesus, then we should expect suffering and trials. When I think of this, I think of the idea of earning patches and awards in the military. The most prestigious award that our military has it the medal of honor. Now, they don’t just hand these out like they are candy. There are things that people go through that make them looked upon to receive this award. In fact, since its inception in 1863, only 3,525 people have received this award. Just like the apostles, they were worthy of their award.

I think of a man that served in WW2, named Desmond Doss. Many of us may know this name. He was the very first conscientious objector to receive this award because, for religious reasons, he refused to carry a firearm. He served as a medic. According to Wikipedia, during the battle of Okinawa, Doss single-handedly entered enemy lines to retrieve 75 casualties. He later, on separate occasions, rescued a man 200 yards on the same escarpment, treated 4 men within 8 yards of an enemy's cave, treated and administered plasma to an injured artillery officer while continually under fire, and treated and carried another soldier 100 feet to safety. Then, while tending to soldiers injuries, he himself was injured in the legs by a grenade. He tended his own wounds while he waited for his fellow soldiers to bring a litter. When they arrived, he saw another soldier injured worse and directed the bearers to rescue him first. While waiting for their return, he was shot in the arm. He strapped a gun stock to his arm as splint and crawled the 300 yards of rough terrain to the aid station.

Just as a soldier, we are in a battle. We must serve at the pleasure of our commanding officer, Jesus, and do his orders which is to make disciples. With this may come suffering. When it does, we need to count ourselves worthy to suffer dishonor for the name of Jesus. Just as the apostles did. And when we do, we need to continue to remember the mission as they did.

Acts 5:42 ESV

And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the Christ is Jesus.

This is our mission. To teach and preach that Jesus is the Christ. He is the one who came to die for the sins of man. That without repentance and belief in Jesus Christ, you will spend eternity in hell separated from the grace of God. There is no mission that has ever been more urgent that this. And when we are obedient, the gospel becomes unstoppable.

Conclusion

I think that each and every sermon should have some sort of application to our lives today. There are many things that we could get out of this sermon like being obedient, expecting persecution, or living a persistent gospel life. We have heard many of these things at length over the last few weeks. So here is the application for us today. Be reminded of the gospel. I said earlier that one of the reasons that the gospel is clearly spoken in each of our sermons is for us to be reminded.

So, today, if you are someone who has not repented of your sins and have faith in Christ as savior, I want you to hear this. The gospel is this. That we are born sinners because of the sin of our father Adam. And because of that, there is separation between God and man. We need to be brought back. And there is nothing that we can do. It is only because of Jesus, coming in the form of man, living a perfect life, dying in our place on the cross, and defeating death that we can be made right with God. And when we repent (turn) and believe that Jesus came and did this for you. If you do this, then you are saved. You are a new creation in Christ, the new has come and the old has passed away. And we want to walk with you in this journey. Let us know.

If you are a believer who has been saved by the gospel of Jesus Christ, then dwell upon that today. Be reminded of the gospel. That you are a sinner who deserves judgment and condemnation. But God. But God sent Jesus to the cross in your place so that you could have new life in Him. Dwell upon this today.