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Why God’s Good News Is Great
Acts 16:16-34
Sermon by: Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - July 11, 2010
*If you came to the United States from another planet last week, you might think the greatest thing in the world was basketball superstar Lebron James going to the Miami Heat.
A Google search for “Lebron James decision” gave 12,700,000 results.
*Today we are talking about the most important thing in the world and it’s not the NBA.
The most important thing in the world is the gospel of Jesus Christ!
*That word “gospel” simply means “good news.”
So the gospel is the good news about God’s salvation through His son Jesus Christ.
And we must never underestimate the power and importance of the gospel.
It is so important that God directly speaks about it over 100 times in the New Testament.
*The Apostle Paul understood the power and importance of the gospel.
-In Romans 1, Paul felt that he owed everybody the great blessing of hearing the gospel, and he declared:
15.
So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also.
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.
-In 2 Timothy 1, Paul encouraged and challenged his young friend with these words:
7. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
8. Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God,
9. who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,
10. but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel,
*That is the greatness of the gospel, and we see it lived out in Acts 16.
-Here in God’s Word we find at least 4 reasons why the gospel is so great.
1. First: The gospel is stronger than our worst enemies.
*In Acts 16, Paul and his mission team were trying to find out where the Lord wanted them to go next.
Then in vs. 9&10:
9.
A vision appeared to Paul in the night.
A man of Macedonia stood and pleaded with him, saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us.''
10.
Now after he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go to Macedonia, concluding that the Lord had called us to preach the gospel to them.
*So they went to Philippi, and began to share the gospel.
But starting in vs. 16, they ran into some serious opposition.
16.
Now it happened, as we went to prayer, that a certain slave girl possessed with a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much profit by fortune-telling.
17.
This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.''
*Friends, we still have the same enemy at who was work in vs. 16-17.
-This poor slave girl was as real as you are.
-That evil spirit was as real as you are.
-Satan and his fallen angels are our enemies.
*How do they work?
-Well, they can still possess nonbelievers, especially those who seek that evil.
-And they can still pretend to be a believer’s friend.
-The devil can pretend to be your friend.
-And he still promotes his lies by tying them to the truth.
*The devil is our enemy.
But most Americans don’t believe that today.
According to a Barna survey in 2007, only 24% strongly believe that Satan is a real spiritual being.
(1)
*But Satan is real whether we believe it or not!
Many years ago a man went to revival preacher Charles Finney and said: "I don't believe in the existence of a devil."
The preacher replied: “Don't you?
-- Well, you resist him for a while and you WILL believe in him.”
(2)
*David Holwick says that Satan is more than a symbol.
Jesus believed in him.
*Your devil is too small if he is consigned to long-ago times and faraway places.
-Job 1:7 tells us that Satan roams over the whole earth.
-John 12:31 and John 14:30 call him “the ruler of this world. .
.”
*Your devil is too small if you decide he is not capable of performing miracles.
-The Bible says he can in 2 Thess 2:9 and Rev 13:13
*Your devil is too small if you assume he leaves Christians alone.
-1 Peter 5:8 tells us: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”
The Devil tried to tempt Jesus.
And he will try to tempt you.
He cannot steal your salvation, but he can ruin your spiritual effectiveness.
(3)
*And he will try.
As Priscilla Shirer says, “The enemy knows he can't destroy you.
But the rest of your life he will be trying to distract you.”
(4)
*We have fierce enemies.
But the good news is that they no match for our God!
-We see this in vs. 17&18.
17.
This girl followed Paul and us, and cried out, saying, "These men are the servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to us the way of salvation.''
18.
And this she did for many days.
But Paul, greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.''
And he came out that very hour.
*Most of us might not feel too confident commanding an evil spirit to come out in the name of Jesus.
But if the need ever arises, God will give you all the confidence you need.
*And here is some more great news from James 4:6-7:
6.
He gives more grace.
Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble.''
7. Therefore submit to God.
Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
*We know that the gospel is great, because it is stronger than our worst enemies.
2. And because it is worth the worst suffering.
*Many of the greatest heroes of our faith have suffered incredible hardship for the good news about Jesus.
We see a good example starting in vs. 19:
19.
But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.
20.
And they brought them to the magistrates, and said, "These men, being Jews, exceedingly trouble our city;
21. and they teach customs which are not lawful for us, being Romans, to receive or observe.''
22. Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods.
23.
And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely.
*Some of God’s best have suffered the worst for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
*During the Communist tyranny of the 20th century, many Christians in Russia were forced into prison camps because of their faith in Jesus Christ.
Russian pastor Georgi Vins told of meeting a young woman named Galena.
She had been arrested for teaching at a Vacation Bible School.
*Can you imagine that?
-- We had a wonderful VBS here just a few weeks ago.
Can you imagine being sent to prison for helping in VBS? -- But Galena was.
*The prison camp was filthy.
Food was scarce.
Medical care was nonexistent.
And the women were forced into hard labor.
Galena's hair and teeth fell out.
Painful boils broke out all over her skin.
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