On A Mission: Border Crossing

Introduction:

· Acts isn’t just a travelogue, but rather describing how the mission of God unfold

LET’S LOOK AT HOW THE GOSPEL IS CULTURALLY TRANSCENDENT, PERSONALLY TRANSFORMATIVE, AND LIFE ALTERING.

I) The Gospel Is Culturally Transcendent

A. The Gospel Crosses Cultural Borders

i. A short trip but a Vast Distance (vs. 11)

1. Paul’s trip from Troas to Samothrace to Neapolis is not far (MAP)

2. …BUT: Christianity moves from mid-east to “western” (PICTURE)

ii. Unlike Other Religions, the Christian Message is not culturally confined

1. Unlike other religions (LDS; Islam) Christianity is not culturally-confined/defined

2. EXAMPLE: Worshiping in a church in Liberia…and a hotel in LaPaz

3. APPLICATION: guarding against defining faith by our culture

B. The Gospel Transcends Social Barriers

i. The Gospel at the Riverside: (vv. 12-13)

1. Paul’s normal custom is to visit a Synagogue…but he can’t

2. So he travels 1.5 miles outside the city, to this river (PHOTO)

ii. The Gospel Comes to those we’d least expect: Women!

1. To appreciate the power of this, know this Jewish Prayer

2. But instead of moving on to somewhere else, Paul engages this group!

NOW, BEFORE WE MEET LYDIA, LET ME TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PHILIPPI.

II) The Gospel is Personally Transformative

A. Before: We Define Ourselves by...

i. We define ourselves by…status markers:

1. Philippi is a city where national identity ran strong (vs. 12)

2. Lydia is a wealthy, cosmopolitan woman (vs. 14)

3. EXAMPLE: She’s Beverly Hills (and we too define identity this way!)

ii. We define ourselves by… our Performance

1. A God worshipper: A Gentile who has been drawn to the God of the OT

2. This means Lydia probably reads her OT the way most of us do: “how do I live a good life in order to secure blessings from God…”

B. The Gospel Transforms us By Grounding our identity in Christ’s Righteousness

i. The Gospel Gives us an Identity Rooted in Our Relationship With Christ (VS.14)

1. We don’t know what Paul said exactly – but consistently, he is point to Jesus as the central figure in the story

2. APPLICATION: Lydia found the one who lost his beauty to make her beautiful; the one who gave up his wealth to make us truly rich

ii. We are who God says we are: The answer to shame, anxiety…

1. Some of us obsess over…what we earn; what we wear; Social media; Shame tells us we aren’t doing enough or being enough; we’re anxious…

2. Paul would write to the Philippians: “I am who Jesus says I am.” (Philippians 3:8)

Philippians 3:8 ESV

Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ

THE GOSPEL IS THE ANTIDOET TO THE SHAME AND ANXIETY IN OUR WORDLD AND LYDIA DISCOVERS THIS; IT NOT ONLY CHANGES HER, IT CHANGES HOW SHE LIVES

III) The Gospel Is Life-Altering

A. The Gospel Promotes Hospitality

i. Christians extend hospitality as a response to the Gospel (vs. 15)

1. When Lydia believes: “She won’t take no for an answer.”

2. EXAMPLE: A Bolivian clock, an airport run, and fried chicken

ii. Christians extend hospitality as an expression of the Gospel

1. Hospitality: welcoming someone into your life as God welcomed us

2. QUOTE: “The Hallmark of the Christian church was Christians risking their lives to share their lives.” – Rosaria Butterfield

B. The Gospel Enables Hospitality

i. “But…” we think:

1. Some of us want to do this – but we worry: “What will others think?”

2. See how quickly we default back?

ii. The Gospel gives us the security to practice this Love

1. If the gospel is true, we’re free from this worry to extend love

2.

Transition:

Conclusion

Hospitality lived large