Sermon 2025-01-12 Acts 4:23-31

Good morning. It's instrumental important to recognize that our duty this morning is to continue to study. What God has to say. This is his word and he will add nothing to it. But what you need? This isn't for life and godliness. They tells you importantly who got is and when you see God for who he is, you end up finding out who you are your purpose and place in this world and this morning will be no different. So I asked if you pay attention, don't be distracted, don't be too hungry. Don't think about lunch. Think about what God has to say in his word. So Acts chapter 4. We're going to pick up reading in verse 23, through 2, verse 31. If you're willing and able, would you please stand with me as we read this text together, so Acts chapter 4? Starting again in verse 20. 3.

When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and Elders had said to them. And when they heard that, they lifted their voices together to God and said, Sovereign, Lord, who made the heaven. And the earth and the Sea and everything in them, who's through the mouths of Our Father? David your servants said by the Holy Spirit. Why did the Gentiles rage and the people's plot in vain, the kings of Earth set themselves? And the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against his anointed for truly. In this city, there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus. Whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel to do, whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place, and now Lord look upon their threat and Grant to your servants, to continue to speak your word with all bulbs. Why you stretch out your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus and when they had prayed the place in which they were gathered together was shaken.

And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with bold. Let's pray this morning. Oh Lord, we come to you in the same attitude and hard of data. Isn't that of the other church? We desperately need boldness in the hour that we are called to. What we need Clarity of mine, we need a lack of anxiety to provide a trust deeply in your Sovereign will. And way, Lord, these moments that we've been called to as your people are not by accident but on purpose and they're For Your Glory and as we wrestle with the world, we are not the first ones to do it. We likely will not be the last and you will continue to work through your people, to show yourself off. You are at work today, and I pray that our hearts would be stirred to remember that, that we wouldn't be in passion that our passions would be founded in the truth of your word, and that we would be the kind of people who are at rest and what you are accomplishing. So this morning God, I pray that you would bring tensions together and help us to see more clearly with wisdom in Jesus name. Amen.

You know, if you have forgotten where we are, we we took like 6 sermons to get through Pentecost. So that was a little bit of a journey and now we've taken five sermons to get through Acts chapter 3 and 4. And we're going to have to take one more sermon to continue to get through it and all of these stories of the early church, I really think it's important for us to realize that it's weaving itself into the big story that I will. Maybe that's something that you've been picking up as I've been teaching through this, that acts fits into the larger story of the Bible. And every time you turn around in the pages of the book of Acts, you see God's word from the Old Testament showing up, not by accident, put on purpose intentionally, as the apostles are teaching and and pushing us toward towards Clarity of a Christ. Luke, as he's recording, it wants to see that. These are things that we can attest to in and look to as true and As these people pray for boldness, which is the big epicenter of this text, they're praying for continued boldness. It's happening out of a story out of the story. And so I want to remind you of the story that we've been in so far. If you remember back in chapter 3, we started the story about a lame man and actually didn't start with a lame man who starred with Peter and John going to the temple in the evening for evening prayers. They run into a lame man at the beautiful gate and as they're walking by him, he has Lowered Expectations for what God would do, what is offered to him is something Beyond his wildest imagination and that's healing. He's experienced This new creation balm if you will that's going off in his life. And he who wants could not walk for 40 years is now running around the temple dancing and praising God for what's taken place. In all of this, there's a transformation. Even what's going on in the temple as they are teaching or participating with the Community of Faith. In Solomon's Portico questions, seem to arise, what's up with this guy? We recognize him and Peter has to explain this didn't happen because I'm fancy or a holy man or have tricks up my sleeve. This is happening by the power of Jesus and it's a visual sign for you to see and the temple itself is being transformed into a place of generosity and prayer. When it had become a place of wickedness and boring people off and keeping people out and distraction Jesus confronts Us in his own day and it's as if the apostles were confronting the same problems that Jesus did and back their Imaging. Jesus, yet again through this miracle that happened over this lame, man. And as this takes place, it's as if the religious leaders and rulers, don't get what's going on. And what they decide to do is to arrest these guys, the same way, they did Jesus. And the same crowd shows up in the kangaroo trial that showed up in Jesus's trial, and Peter has an opportunity to stand re1 spell as Peter stands firm. Speaks the truth with boldness, and talks to these fellows about the Jesus that they crucified. And this man as a sign of it, they want him to be quiet. So they huddle together as a counsel of Wicked. And say hey what are we going to do about this? I know what, let's tell him to be quiet. And they decide that that's what they're going to do and they're going to do it by being severely scary. like, you better not And what follows is the words of Peter. His says, I'm, you know, I think I'm going to pay attention to God cuz he's resurrected and he's at the right deck. Jesus at the right hand of the father, he's going to win, he's going to win in this situation. Having nothing further to do, they decide to release them. And this is where we find ourselves in the context of a story that pushes the people of God towards prayer for sprayer. It's one of our stories is doing the same. We are encountering things that are happening that need to be read in light of God's word, and understood in like manner, we're not free to take our life and do what we want with it. When so often are temptation, is to do just that often what we are experiencing is prayerlessness because we're not taking account of our life and recognizing just how serious the moments that were in our. We forget to pray for boldness because we are having boldness in all of the weirdest places places that aren't really, with a boldness, that we're required to be bold, places of self-righteousness that comes off as boldness, but it's really just arrogance. And as we pray, we are reminded of the big story that were in and how we're submitting to the Lord Jesus and all of our lives. So I want to talk about a few things as we pray for God's boldness, that will help encourage us and give us strength. You know, orders a beautiful thing, it really is at I love it when my home is in order. Hopefully you like it when your home is in order when things are put away properly, and as I've gotten older, I realized that I was disheveled and I blamed it a lot of times on creativity when what was happening as creativity was stifled by the disorder of my messiness. Come on Nathan ice. When you have an orderly meal and things come on. I know I'm talking about food, right? Before you eat my bad. What day is there is something to eating food? That's been well, prepared and cooked. Well, what we enjoy that in the creation itself is an order. It's beautiful and it's well-designed and every time God spoke about it, he said and it is good. And it is good and it is good. So, the question for us is how do we begin? With being reminded of the story of God that it begins with it. Being good to reflect his gourd, his his goodness, his glory and the good order with, which he established it. There's an importance to this and all of our life and there's a power in the friendship that we've been given that is good for us. Do you realize you've been given companionship because it's not good. According to God, for humans to be alone from the very beginning of our creation experience. With God, we were given friends to partner with in the life that we live. This is been redeemed in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. As we experience this entry in our churches and then our families were not meant to walk alone, right? Meant to be alone and write out of this situation that's happening in the temple. That was meant to reflect the created order of God and to be a model of the world. There's this experience where what do Peter and John do. They go to their friends. They go to their family. That is the church. It's very important and not to be missed the proper order. You can think when you experience certain things like, what should I do, I'm just going to go home. That was painful. I'm going to hide in my house or I'm going to isolate and be by myself. Sometimes that's the way we feel. Maybe you felt like that yourself. It's like, hey when I've experienced something that fell a little bit, trying things that I'm going to do is hide from all of y'all, cuz I know how dangerous you are.

What Peter and John do at the threat of this wickedness, is they run to the church praying together. As a people, reinforces our continual needs to place ourselves properly in this world. sharing in the truth of the gospel story and our place in it, secures us from drifting and gives us the honest support that we need

So, what will start this time of prayer? Let's look at it. In the beginning, if you will verse 23, when they were released when they were released, which let's be clear about this. They have no promise of actually being released. The religious leaders could have started a whole Riot. They could have done, so they could have not released them and put them to the same pain of Jews have no, promise that being released was guaranteed to them, but that's what happened in this particular circumstance and situation. They were really. So when they were released they went to their friends. Know, this isn't literally their friends in the text. It's in fact what it says has their own I think that's beautiful as well, but what they're trying to do as they translate, this text is communicate to you. That these are Intimate Relationships. So when they're saying their friends or to their own, it's as if this is a familial context, this is a deepening context. The people that they belonged to the people that they were in unified Community like direction of with it says, instrumental as well because these people needed to know. So, they went to their friends and report it. This is huge. I think it's one of the things that we face today that we can get so confused about. We need As the body of chloride Christ, the Church of God United on the mission of God. We need your report.

We're desperate for it. We need your self disclosure your participation. We we we don't need you to hide who you are. We don't need you to hide your real struggles. We don't need you to hide your pain. We don't need to hide. You to hide your stories of how God's at work right now in your life. You're not, you're not to run somewhere and isolation like the god of the universe can't find you or to put on your fig leaves your being chased down Often by God in your circumstances and say, hey what's going on with you? What, what's going on? Where are you? Who told you that? This is what we need. We were were desperate to disclose now I know as soon as I say that come on, how many of you have disclosed something? And that God damaging because someone didn't carry it. Well, as the church, we also have to be the people who can share Burns appropriately and immediately turn to God's word to Define. It noticed, what they do? They reported what the religious leaders said to their friends to their own to their community of believers. They are coming live, made this report to them and what they told them is this story of redemption. That's why we're praying. Number one, as we share in God's Redemptive story, That's what we do. This sharing in this Redemptive story is happening in real time as we've experienced Redemption, according to the biblical Redemptive story. And, and the book of Acts is happening as it's being recorded as a part of the Redemptive story, I find that fascinating. This report is a sharing of information and it's not just a weird business meeting at church, this much money given and we've got a smooth, very boring and talk about our report. This is a report of the events of a lame man getting up and walking look, here he is. And as they're talkin about that, they say, this is what they told us. What's going to be the church's remediate? Let's response. What are they going to do? Are they going to go? We better be quiet. We're about to get in real trouble with the religious leaders in town. I guess we better shut her mouth now. This is a tense moment, if we're paying close attention, what will, how will they respond? Peter, and John were bald and they got released. But what's going to happen to us? We better not be so bold. They got out this time but they got lucky. It is that the way you read the situation in the circumstances,

I think you might read it that way. if you run to your isolation, And you don't share in the Redemptive story with the Church of the Lord Jesus.

Many times in our life, we can't see what our life has to do with the gospel. And we need other believers to come alongside of us and help us. And I know from personal experience that when we share those moments of vulnerability that he can recreate the biggest outlandish responses from Humanity because we don't like to admit I need help. Each one of us in this room needs help holding fast to the Redemptive story of Jesus Christ. And we were never meant to walk in that on our We need to discipleship culture called a church to participate with because we're not stand alone like going to fix the world that dude's name is Jesus and he's forming a community of people who are dependent on him and you're going to get off the beaten path from time to time. You're going to need somebody to come chase. You down and find you. You're going to need to disclose your heart and you're genuine struggles. So that other people can make the gospel make sense in your circumstance. You may find yourself in places where you can't see. This is beautiful. God is at work in this situation and he's drawing his people to himself because the first thing they're going to do is they're going to pray. So we're praying as we sharing, God's Redemptive story and they're going to pray, according to God's word, and they're going to start in the beginning. They're going to start into getting in there going to remind themselves that the world was once form for God's glory and working for God's glory and all things were good. And that may not be where we are at right now, but we should be reminded of the goodness of God in his creation and all that he's given us is exactly where they move in the texts of scripture, look at it with me. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, no to notice that impulse is immediately as a people. When they heard it, this is their response. We're going to pray God's word back to him. They go to Psalm 146 in a minute. We'll talk about some too, but Psalm 146, which I actually read Psalm 147 days. Sober. 146, is where they immediately turn to God's word to frame them to have an interpretation of. This is the god who made all things. They're doing this in a communal action. It's happening not in the isolation of just their closet. To course, there are times where Jesus instructs his church to pray in the club. But they're doing this as a communal open response. They're praying together. They're using God's word to do it. To be obedient to Jesus means to move in this way. As we share with one another in God's Redemptive rescue. Their prayer at their prayer starts with praise and in the knowledge of god, notice, what they pray Sovereign, Lord, they start with the fact that God, the situation that we are finding ourselves in is not by accident. We're not here by accident. We're here on purpose. This isn't something that's out of control. This is something that's intentional and you've brought us to this moment. We want to start by acknowledging that and then we're going to move who made the Heaven and the Earth in the sea and everything in them as they say this together, they're giving you an interpretation of the Bible that epic that's found in faults on 146. That's moving to this circumstance that situation than what it means is. This the created order is yours, the temple is yours. The Earth is Yours. We are yours were made in your image. Everything we see around us is made for you, and your glory. There's nothing that is made, that was not made by you. An end has been divided that are wise and orderly, the where the dry land has been separated from the sea.

That's amazing. It's amazing because it instructs how we should be seeing the world.

And so often what we do when we pray according to God's Redemptive story, we head back to the beginning is we need to be reminded of that. Because we can lose. That's where we come from, and that's where we're going.

God personally makes the world and is personally involved with making us and is personally involved in remaking us? And is personally making the world work for his glory. Who made the world will bring it to its proper end?

What we should be like it's Christians as we walk around with one another as we ought to say that that was for God's glory OU your for God's glory, this building, it was made for God's glory. Do the food that I eat. That's for God's voice. When I go to bed tonight, that's for God's glory. When I do my workout, that's for God's glory. Nothing that exist around me or that I can see is made for anything. But God and His glory, because it belongs to him, and I'm a steward of the opportunity of moments that I face on a daily basis. And I need to pray this way because I forget I forget.

Our prayers need to be reminded like we need to be reminded. It starts with God's creative initiative, that brings us to the moment of prayer. This Sovereign, activity, of God brought his people to this moment. Even when they say Sovereign Lord, it was God's Sovereign moment in his creative work to bring his people to the moment where they would Valor knees and pray. There's been many times in our own life's where we've been stiffed need. If you will, when it comes to prayer or we won't move towards prayer and God has to move in our story to get us there because he loves us and that's where our good. Some of us need a crisis. Should we be conformed to the image of Christ?

Oh, don't wait for that crisis. You could pray now.

You can pray continually. Our impulse to create comes out of the joy of all. We've been given by this, creating God, who is making all things ultimately new in Jesus Christ. don't wait start now See people around you is made in the image of God to reflect his glory and be a part of their life. Find your friends.

God is working to design and redesign the world are souls. Should crave that as we're experiencing the Fallen this of attack right here. And now we're looking forward to when the world will be good. Very good knowing that it will that one day we will walk in the communal relationship with the Lord. The way, Adam, and Eve did from the beginning, They were afraid this together as a people, and Luke would have recorded it, and it would have been in this would, this is good for us. That think about this, this becomes even a template, even for later for people to go home. This is how you pray. O Sovereign, Lord maker of heaven and earth and the sea.

It is God who is making and making all things new?

Ask yourself the question. What do I have in my hands? And how am I using it for God's glory? What do I have? What am I doing with this life that I've been given this opportunity these moments that I live in are they drenched with meaning? Or I'm am I living as if God is not present.

Got calling you into deeper function in reality within his body at the church where you can live this out as friends and not as foes. So what we're doing as a people, as we're praying, as we share in God's, Redemptive story were also praying, as we acknowledge God's sovereignty. Over opposition, you know, Genesis 3 is where we are after Genesis 1 and 2, and we've been there for a long time. We live in a Genesis 3 world, where everything seems to Echo this horrifying fall, and Brokenness of creation, or man has to fight the ground to get anything good out of it. And women give birth to children and pain and suffering and childbearing and over and over again. There is just nasty conflict that is erupting with in this world that even plays itself into Genesis for right there is war and conflict and Brokenness and sinfulness. I just abandon We live in a conflict oriented world one work. We're often dealing with our own disappointment and anger and bitterness. One where we're dealing with the disappointment and anger and bitterness of others where people explode in ways that you can't even make sense of. And it's like, why is this happening when death seems to just rain in situations, like Lord why we live in a very Genesis 3 world That's part of the story of God's Redemptive plan and work as Jesus is, I've been listening to these lectures by this dude. God name Neil Gaiman and he talks about this. He's a, he's a fictional writer and his idea is to capture. He wants to tell the truth with his lies. He even says it that way, which is hilarious, cuz he's writing fiction. Right? So it's not the truth. You know, who these people is a human says, like to know these people exist, they don't even exist buddy. I'm telling the truth in a way that will get to people's Souls because it's actually the it's a story and they're going to pay attention or clue in and then they're going to see the way it relates to real life and what he says he loves getting characters, this is the best way to get people's attention in his mind is to get characters and have them have two separate desires and watch them dance together. Write two separate, completely bins and desires. They do one of them wants this and the other person wants that if you're the kind of person who wants desperately God's glory and that's what your been to is in direct opposition to a world that wants glory for itself. And that's the dance. We've been having in this world, there's a reason why that fiction writer connect that to real life because we're all experiencing conflict. We understand the complex. Sometimes we enjoyed conflict in a fiction story because we'd like to just escape the conflict and experience were feeling conflict with our families conflict with different people thinking that does early church. What they do is they recognize that they're in this conflict during an epic battle, this God who made the world for his glory? And his good has a group of people who are the rebellion of that and they're fighting for their glory and that is the sources of quarrels and fights Among Us. What is it? That's bending in, on our souls. And what are we actually about? What, what do you pray as we acknowledge the sovereignty of God over opposition? Man, we Face following us and rebellious against God and its creation. And we often say this, we say this together. If we're paying attention and we're interpreting things, right? This is actually I thought it may be for me what is a dude that I've ever felt that way you're watching people in Rebellion against God's created order and his goodness in this world and they're just fighting it almost at every turn and you're hardly responses like why? That seems so rebellious that you're just being nuts, that has to hurt. Maybe this is just the way I felt, but it's interesting that this seems to be the way that we felt all along because he I want to make this and paint this for you very clearly Christianity, isn't a crutch to avoid the world's problems like we're accused of it's not, it's actually the embracing of a cross to go through them. We need prayer as a people so that we won't avoid thinks we want a void that will actually walk right into them. And it's see the truth about them because we're involved in a great and epic conflict. And, as we ask the question, why would we do? Why would you do that? We're reminded o because you're about your glory. And it's going to hurt. You were meant to live for God's glory and that will ultimately be satisfying. But take care of your conscience. You you could not be walking and interpreting things and a Genesis 3 kind of way and just look to Genesis 1 and 2 and can lead to all kinds of folly for you. You can over realize that from time to time and say well I'm good, I'm doing great and you're just avoiding the truth about yourself. All that situation. It's fine. Nothing to worry about. Okay, we are in a Genesis 3 situation. And then at the same time, what we are reminded of, is there these moments of explosion where what's happened with the lame man, it's as if he's been resurrected and Genesis 5 has been overturned, and he died and he died, and he died and he died. And he died. Notices verse 25 on the people of God's lips as they pray.

God made everything who threw the mouths of Our Father. David your servants said by the holy spirit. This is instrumental in the introduction of what they're praying and soul into. What they're going to do is they're going to go to songs to this is come out of the mouths of David, but it's been inspired by the. Holy Spirit has been carried along as Peter would say, and now he has spoken so long to nice spoken some to about himself, but he's also spoken in it about his greater son. David's, look back. The Redemptive history and he's found himself in the same opposition as God's people were in the beginning. But he has a position and he has the equipment by the spirit to interpret the situation that he's in. Because he's been a good King and he followed what the book, A book of Deuteronomy sad. And he made a copy of tour for himself and he's been reading at Bernice's. Aha, the Lord has anointed me. This is my position as his anointed to be the king, I'm going to have to deal with Saul who's a wicked King. And ultimately I'm going to have to deal with a dude. Like Goliath, who is a wicked brawler? And I thought, and I'm dealing with these things on the story, David goes. But even like, if we were to a take a second, examine, the story of Goliath and David, David shouldn't win. Did that story is not about how like you two Can Knockdown Giants. That's not if you read it like that. Oh my goodness. That stories about like hey it takes God, to do something here. The Lord was at work in this story bringing about Redemption and what David was bringing in the face of glass was God's going to be true. His promises ultimately to me and I am not worried about you even though I look like I'm about to eat it. Think about how that would have informed, the early church as they faced persecution and hatred in harm. They had courage to do so not because they were fixing to whoop them. But because even if you woke me and took my very life the way they're fixing to take Stevens, it's going to be okay cuz Jesus rose from the dead

This is forming in framing. The early Church in the line of David Zone stories. He fought with fallenness in his day before that. He look back and he saw the story of pharaoh and gods Rescue of his people and said, look at that, would you look at that? Got rescued his people back then, in the face of a wicked King and he brought his people out and Bryce people home so, this position of servant King that David's aunt is pointing to the ultimate servant, King that Jesus is David, a servant. He's a father figure to these, as they look to him, they owe their strength there but nothing like the strength that's coming in Jesus and that's what they're fixing to fixing to help us. See? we need to recognize and count, Rebellion around us recognize it counted pay attention to it, share it with one another in the church, grow in your response to it by looking to the one who overcame human Rebellion, Jesus, As the church reads their Bible, they read it in light of what Jesus has done. They're not defeated. Because God will defeat his enemies and you will finally defeat his enemies. Not noticed as we go on a 26 and 25 and 26 here.

Why did the Gentiles rage and the people's plot in vain, the kings of the earth set themselves and their rulers were gathered together against the Lord and his anointed? This is David speaking about himself. And speaking about his future coming King who would eternally Rule and Reign on his throne, according to 2nd, Samuel chapter seven and six all that business. Rights of this hope that David has is in the face of his enemies as they seek to wipe him out. They don't want him to exist but they couldn't stop David from ascending to his throne and they're not going to stop Jesus from doing the same.

This story of conflict. Starts with the question, doesn't it? Why are you doing that? That's foolish.

They came was reading a book this week. They pursue their flimsy front. Thrones Wednesday, Thrones. That's what we're after. In this world, we try to establish our own Rule and Reign and the Gentiles road rage, if you will, and they plot in vain because your plan won't work in the face of God's ultimate plan for this universe for his glory at work, where we are what we're seeking to do as a people without a landline or cell to God's Sovereign plan for our life, in Christ to maximize his glory on this Earth, and it brings Comfort to the soul and we do it with God's people because we need help to see that when we Face the really tough stuff. The really tough stuff can make us. Think we're Gods office plan. No. Whatever you face, whatever you're actually going through, God is at work. And we need help to pray this way. Notice, that's their personal interpretation of their situation bleeds out from Psalm 21 verse 27. For truly in the city, mini Jerusalem, there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed both Herod and Pontius Pilate along with the Gentiles and the people of Israel to do whatever your hand and your plan had predestined to take place so much for your plot employee. Religious leaders you failed. Jesus rose from the dead. That's what they're saying you failed. In fact that you United yourself with Herod and pilate, which I love and Luke's gospel. What is Luke? Say about Herod and Pilate. That in their rebellion and rejection of Jesus. They became buddies. What isn't that? Special? They formed a little community of hatred.

This is a real experience in this world. We often are at war with the plots of evil people doing evil stuff. And how are we going to win by submitting to the fact that even in the most wicked plot and plan of evil people? God's going to get his glory. We can look to Jesus who defeated all of that and he want And we can suffer well, but we're going to need to pray with one another to Suffer. Well. it's going to take a concerted effort, to count the wickedness of those plots and plans in this world, And what we want to plan is more for God's glory. More for God's glory. We don't want to join up and become friends with people over their hatred for Jesus.

You know. When all seems lost and seem scary and it seems like the people of God might lose. It's exactly the place where they're winning. The winning.

You know, God rescued his people and signs and wonders, he did. And he was two people through. Moses were rejected according to pharaoh and it seemed as though they were losing and it was a war over sonship Pharaoh was fighting with a hard, hard, hard ultimately, to the point where he was willing to drown in the sea rather than listen to God. And often what we feel like is we're about to drown in the voices of our enemies with our backs up against the wall, how will we escape Rejoice and your situation to be like Jesus and follow him. Your situation is not your enemy, it's an opportunity to image Christ to a hating and rejecting world and to do so, with peace and comfort in your heart, knowing that God is rescue before and he will rescue again.

Why would you do that? Why would you drown in the water of the sea?

I pray that this morning and we would repent of our hard-heartedness and turned yet again, more deeply to Jesus and what he is doing in this world. Temptation is to follow after those of this world, stop counting the evil around us and embrace the evil around us, because what can you do?

Oh that we would war against it bind ourselves to one another as the church pray with one another and help each other to see clearly our foes at work. Not because we need to get wore out by them but because we need to embrace the cross as we follow Christ and follow through because we we are already resurrected in him. Like the life that is the cross that we face is often trying and troubling and we need each other. We need our friends. Or will start making friends with the world like a pilate and Herod?

So we need to pray together as we share and the Redemptive storing share a life with one another. We need to pray and it's we acknowledge God's sovereignty over opposition. We also need to pray as we find boldness in our mission. That's our third thing. This morning, we pray, as we find boldness in our mission, in every one of these things. If you've noticed this is about Discovery because we don't just get there, we're not just like and we arrived. I totally recognize God's sovereignty over opposition and all the things in my life. I bet you don't because when you jam your toe, this past, we got that you said a word or two. And I'm just being ridiculous. But, you know, you know what I'm talking about when we missed, we miss our life, as if it's not real. And we start dissecting, we will be very adjusted people on Sunday morning. What are Monday to Saturday is just join it?

So we need boldness and we need to discover. If we need to find boldness in our mission, this week is very famous talk than going all around the internet of Westhoff talking to if you don't know, Wesley Papa's, you should check it out. Talking to Joe Rogan, Joe Rogan is a very famous podcaster, has a lot of listeners and all this stuff and Wesley gets on there. No, fair warning. Joe Rogan cannot stop himself from cussing his mouth off. He cusses sweat Jojo and he takes a lot of rabbit Trails West. Does a brilliant and fantastic job of engaging with him over all kinds of subject matter. It's very interesting subject matter to say the least most of us as Christians would care. I would think but it's the stuff you learn. As a second, your Seminary Student in your apologetics. Coarser as you're studying how to learn to read the Bible in Greek and Hebrew. Here's our manuscript evidence and it's a lot of stuff like that, that I don't want to fill the room with this more. What it said, it's important stuff. And at times, it's helpful for us as Christians to know that we have Arguments for the crazy things that people say in the world and Wesley doesn't really concise and good job at answering a lot of silly stuff. It's just that's so dumb. But that, but this is the world we live in where people have a microphone and I get to say all the dumb stuff they want to say, despite his credibility or ability to be checked out the thing I find interesting about this conversation is it went on for 3 hours plus And in this 3 hours, Wesley time and time again, shows him. Here's an, this is actually the truth of this and Joe was like, well what about this? And Wesley goes, well, then there's this answer and even when Joe does the weirdest stuff and it gets Way Off Track and he says, just not see stuff that we was when we was at. Wesley doesn't know. It's you're this back around. I love it because he get after this three-hour conversation that started because Wesley smashed an opponent that was just being very arrogant and he smashes it gets on a YouTube video there's a whole debate that happens between the two of them and he just really embarrassed the guy cuz the guy didn't know what he was talking about. He tried to talk about languages and stuff, you didn't know and it became apparent, you don't know what you're talkin about. So Josie's, this invites him on the show. Okay. And it gets worked three hours after regarding all of this stuff, Joe can ask him any questions. Do even that has even said, hey, I looked and went and watch some of your videos and stuff is pretty good. Wesley says this to him. So what are you going to do about Jesus?

In this moment. After all of this argumentation, Joe's, going to repent and place his faith in Christ. No, not at all the same guy that the guy beat The Smithereens, because that's the human heart. It's this wicked. You can argue with it, you can prove all of this stuff, you can say things, and you can defeat them in the, in their boldness of holding onto their wickedness. They can't let go and Joe could not let go. Well, damn. What are you saying? Can Joe not be saved? Oye can There's a God is definitely at work in this insane rebellion. And then, who knows? What's going to come out of that story? Who knows? I say all this to say to you is we need boldness in our own mission that we are, we are connected to the truth. We what they pray for and this opportunity in this moment when they're being threatened, is a freeness of speech to speak about Jesus.

That's what we need to use you. As you gather together with God's people, you need to pray together that you would have a boldness to speak to people about the truth of Jesus. Because if you don't do that, you'll stop counting the simple things of this world, you become friends with it. You will stop seeing the world is properly ordered. You need the church to help you with the word of God, to point you to it, and all of your struggles and situations in this life. And you don't want to develop a hard heart because you will look fool. You foolish and your responses, you will God gives disability by grace to his people and what they're asking for is give us more strength than Moses think about this. Remember the story of Moses what was Moses's whole thing. How could you do it? I'm too weak, I can't speak. And there's a profit that rose up that was better than Moses. Moses even tells us about that in the independent took but watch this develop from God's word first 29. And now this is the request in the prayer. Lord look upon their threats And don't just eject us out of it cuz we like to ignore it and run away as far as we can, right? So this isn't a crush. People are looking for a crutch or a way out or way to avoid now look upon their threats. And Grant your servants to continue speaker world word, with all bold freeness of speech. Don't let that antagonism and attack silence are words because often and are life. What we experienced when we are attacked personally, or we're told some of this is what's fixing to happen. We we want to run and hide and we don't hold firm to the faith that we know to be true. And we run, we run embrace the Cross of Christ suffer and gentleness be at peace. God has already won and he's called you to this moment. You're not in the moments like this by accident, put on purpose. See this whole church. What do they desire? Clear interpretation to see everything in rejection as a part of an opportunity to speak much of Jesus. That's going to continue to work itself out in the book of Acts. They are given and granted in their request, amazing things notice as it moves on. While you stretch out your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your servant Jesus. What we're going to do is the same thing that Peter and John did with boldness and speak, truthfully about what's going on, in the events of your work, it was God. That raised the lame man up to walk, and he did. So as a sign to God's people and what did they do? In their Hardness of Heart? They decided to remain rebellious and what they're asking for is Lord help us to continue to stand. Bold in that kind of rebellion and hatred where they want to silence us. Lord, give us freedom of speech. And Lord continue to do things to give us opportunities to be that bold. I know a lot of times it's like I was bored. I'm glad I'm over with that. I don't have to be bold today was bold yesterday. No, that's not what the church's think. They're saying give us more opportunities to possibly suffer for the sake of your name. I'm willing. I want to follow after you Lord. Give me another chance. Give me another chance. It's not that they're not rest asking for God to rescue the captors of wickedness, who would attack them? And ultimately that will work itself out as well. And notice what God does in verse 31 as he answers and when they had prayed the place in which they were gathered together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continue to speak the word of God with boldness. Gives by his grace, what they request. And I want you to notice this as David recorded in his own day by the spirit of God, the truth of the antagonism, he felt Peter earlier and Acts chapter 4 was filled with the spirit and able to speak. And this has been granted to all the church to speak with bone. This is a gift to you to speak boldly about Jesus as you experience, both your life events and yours you interpret the scriptures. Well, you want to speak boldly about Jesus. You need to make requests of it before the Lord because your Temptation will be too coward instead of follow Christ. We need the spirit of God to help convict us of our sin point us to the solution for that sin. That is Jesus. And give us the ability to make big advances in the world for the sake of his glory.