Faithfulness in our Daily Routines
Acts (EMPOWERED TO WITNESS) • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
INTRODUCTION
Good morning church, I am pastor Kenny and I am honored to be with you this morning.
We spent the past two weeks looking at the glory of the cross of Christ, and His resurrection from the dead. We were able to celebrate our freedom from sin and death through baptisms and the Lord’s Supper, all because He is risen.
But Easter is not just a one and done day. It is actually a season of 50 days.
We fasted in the season of Lent for 40 days, only to feast in this season of Easter for 50 days. Just a reminder that the fasts will never out last the feast.
So, let us not be quick to move past it.
Ronald Rolheiser said,
“That our culture knows how to anticipate an event, but we do not know how to sustain an event.”
So we are going to be diligent about sustaining this event, and one of the primary ways we will do that is through receiving the Lord’s Supper each week.
But today we are moving back into the book of Acts, where we see the kingdom of God grow through imperfect people who trust the Word of the Lord over the worries of the world.
We paused at the end of chapter 2.
The Holy Spirit had just been gifted to believers, and Peter preached the first gospel centered sermon, where 3,000 people repented of their sins and believed. And the result of that is the beautiful picture of the church that we see in Acts 2:42-47.
They devoted themselves to prayer, to the Word of God and to one another.
They worshipped the Lord in awe and wonder.
They were radically generous, hospitable, and had favor with all the people.
And the Lord continued to add to their number day by day.
All because they heard the gospel, believed it, and repented of their sins.
This is how His kingdom still spreads. We preach the gospel and call for people to repent and believe.
And that rarely results in 3,000 people coming to faith in a day.
TRANSITION
But if we’re honest, that is what we want to see.
Miraculous movements of God where many people come to know Him quickly. I know I do.
But we can often forget that
God is continually at work through our faithfulness in the small, day in and day out moments of our lives.
There are times that He will convert thousands through our faithfulness, and there are times that He will add just one more.
Jesus tells us this in Luke 15. He shares with us a variety of parables about how God is seeking just one more.
The lost sheep that the shepherd leaves the 99 to rescue.
The lost coin that that the woman diligently searches and cleans to find.
And the lost son, who the Father welcomes home with open arms.
He sums this up in
Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
So successful growth in the kingdom of God is just one more.
In today’s interaction, Peter and John will demonstrate their trust in God’s Word, over their recent ministry successes.
Even though He just used Peter to bring thousands to faith, Peter doesn’t get hung up on that, but rather he remembers that great growth in the kingdom of God is just one more.
TRANSITION
Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. And a man lame from birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms.
So here we have Peter and John, two opposites in every way according to Scripture.
Peter is known for his boldness while John is known for his love, and God sends them on mission together. Why?
Because their differences show the beauty of God more than their similarities.
God gives His church spiritual gifts, and gives each of us different callings, backgrounds and personalities.
And our job is to exercise our gifts, not for our own benefit, but in order to help others be with Jesus, become like Jesus and do what Jesus did.
Peter and John understand that God has uniquely designed and wired them for their specific time and place, to walk in the good work He has called them to do.
TRANSITION
And the Word goes on to say that they are walking into the temple at the ninth hour to pray.
The Jewish people had 3 scheduled prayer times throughout the day. Morning, afternoon, and evening.
Their day was divided into 12 hours starting from sunrise. And the ninth hour was around 3pm. This was the evening prayer.
This was because during certain times of the year, areas in the Middle East began to get dark around 4:30pm. So for the safety of those traveling to the temple, the designated times of prayer were set during daylight hours.
So, Peter and John were faithfully observing the evening hour of prayer.
Even though God was shaking up the way they thought about religion and their practice of it, they didn’t neglect their scheduled times of worship, or the temple. They shaped their lives around it.
They were walking to the temple as part of their daily routine.
When God divinely appointed a beggar to talk with them.
Now he was not begging out of laziness, but out of desperation. If you were disabled at this time, it was a death sentence. If you couldn’t work, all you could do was beg.
So, here they are walking to the temple on their daily routine when they meet this man. They could have kept walking, but they didn’t. Something provoked them to stay.
What do your daily routines look like?
Maybe you go to the same gas station.
Maybe you stop at the same donut shop.
Maybe it is putting your children to bed or taking them to school.
Either way God has uniquely designed and wired you for your specific time and specific place to walk in the good work He has called you to do.
Whatever your daily routine is, are you sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s voice? Can you tell when He is provoking you? Or are you overlooking opportunities to enter in to the good work God has called you to?
We were talking this week in our men’s vine group about how we can be sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit.
We can do everything in our power to to silence His voice, or we can trust that God has been working and is directing us where to go.
We can be coming to church every Sunday, but it ultimately doesn’t matter if we are attending all the right religious events, if we are missing the needs all around us. This is what every prophet in the Old Testament warns Israel about.
God says, you might be sacrificing to me, gathering in my name, and observing my feasts, but you hate justice, you oppress the poor and you walk with a prideful heart. Therefore I will remove myself from you. What a terrifying promise.
So, are you sensitive to the Spirit’s voice and leading in your life, or are you comfortable following your own?
And Peter directed his gaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”
I love what Peter does here. So often when I encounter those who are struggling, my flesh wants me to put in my headphones and put on my blinders to remain in my comfort. It is much easier for me to escape than to engage. But our boys Peter and John do the opposite.
Instead of putting their blinders on, they turn their faces to this man, in his suffering, and say, “Look at us.”
Can you imagine approaching a homeless guy on the street and saying “Look at me.” You would have to think that they might be a little afraid of such boldness. Nobody talks to them like that. They are so used to be avoided and discarded, and because of that they begin to believe it.
But I love the faith of Peter and John. They don’t turn away when they encounter the suffering of a fellow human being, but they stare right at him and his suffering to let him know that he has value, and worth because he is an image bearer of the most high God.
Do we see those around us who are struggling as image bearers of the most high God?
If we do not, we very much have the tendency to disregard them as products of their own bad decisions. And we will distance ourselves because we don’t want their misfortune to rub off on us.
But here at this church we believe God changes people.
He leans into the struggle and brokenness of this world. He doesn’t turn away.
He calls sinners, of whom I am the foremost. We must always believe that we are the worst of sinners. It is when we begin to compare our sins that we can always find those who are doing worse than us.
Most people judging folks for their sins, have not come to understand the depth of sin in their own lives.
Jesus saves sinners. He tells us that, we are dead in our sin, but we can be made alive in Christ.
He asks do you want to be healed? Then believe.
He changes broken people through other broken people who live the gospel out in community.
So we must be willing to live out the gospel by looking at those who are suffering and turning their gaze toward Jesus.
TRANSITION
This suffering man only had his eyes set on the day in front of him. And what he needed to get through the day was money so that he could survive, which would get him to tomorrow, and then he would do it all over again. But Peter showed him what he really needed, Jesus.
But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!”
This man expected money, and Peter said your expectations are too low. Turn your eyes toward Jesus and be healed.
And like Peter, we may not have material solutions for those in need around us, but we can offer them the hope and power of Jesus' name and trust that it will always transform lives.
We partner with King Jesus on mission, delivering hope and healing by helping people look beyond their physical needs to their spiritual ones.
Money, food, drink. It all only satisfies temporarily. But Jesus satisfies eternally.
We are only afraid to share this truth, when we do not really believe this truth. Believe!
Scripture says that God can do abundantly more than we can ask or think or imagine, so it is not wrong for us to expect Him to do big things. I am always praying big prayers because we serve a big God.
But Scripture also says that God is at work in those places that we tend to overlook.
The birds of the air. The flowers of the field. The still, small voices. The manger. The cross. The lame man on the side of the road. And the faithful followers who don’t have any material wealth, but they do have Jesus.
So expect God to do big things, but also be faithful in listening for His voice in those small places we tend to overlook.
It is this faithfulness that changes things for our good and His glory.
We see this in
And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. And leaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God.
Remember this guy was lame from birth. He had never walked a day in his life, and as soon as Peter spoke this over him, God made him strong. He made him leap to his feet!
And the first thing he did was enter the temple with them. Now in the Old Testament, the book of Leviticus would not allow those with disabilities to proclaim the good works of God over the congregation within the temple. And as soon as this brother is healed, that is just what he does.
Why did God not allowed those with disabilities this privilege?
Remember that everything that God does is pointing to our need for Jesus. The one who is making all things new.
God is holy and set apart. And in the kingdom of heaven, there will be no pain, or disability, or death. And so God was showing that all of the struggles we face in this world, will not be allowed in the world He is preparing us for. This keeps us from looking to ourselves in order to make us whole, but instead keeps our eyes on the only one who can truly make us whole.
So, God is making all things new through the work of Jesus. He is fixing what is broken and allowing us to experience it to give us a small taste of heaven.
So not every believer’s disease and disability will be cured on this side of glory. Because He is not preparing us to remain in this broken world, but in the perfect one to come.
He is making all things new.
He is healing the broken so that they might enter the temples and proclaim His glory. What do you think I’m doing here?
This is all to fulfill His Scripture.
Say to those who have an anxious heart,
“Be strong; fear not!
Behold, your God
will come with vengeance,
with the recompense of God.
He will come and save you.”
Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,
and the ears of the deaf unstopped;
then shall the lame man leap like a deer,
and the tongue of the mute sing for joy.
For waters break forth in the wilderness,
and streams in the desert;
The Scripture has to be fulfilled.
Do you need to have the Bible memorized front to back in order to engage with the suffering in the world. Absolutely not.
Scripture is here to remind you, that if you believe that Jesus is who He says He is, you have the Holy Spirit, and can trust His voice as He leads you throughout your day.
Scripture is also here that you might test His voice.
This is because there will be other spirits trying to confuse you, but the Word of the Lord will not let them.
So be in His Word, so that His Word may be in you.
TRANSITION
This all results in us getting to see this newly healed man pointing the people of God back to the glory of the one they came to worship. They were inside the temple praying, and the Spirit showed up!
And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and recognized him as the one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Some had come that morning to pray just because it was their daily routine. But the glory of God showed up, and they were filled with wonder and amazement.
There is absolutely something to be said about being faithful to a daily routine.
You might have woke up this morning and wondered why did I come to church?
Or you may have come today because you came last week, and Easter was exciting and there were lots of people and lots of energy, but today you’re second guessing it because there’s less people and there’s less excitement. I get it.
But the encouragement the Lord gives us in this passage is to keep showing up and to keep seeking Him.
Peter and John just saw 3,000 people come to the Lord. They could have said, we ain’t showing up for anything less than 3,000 again. But here they are right after this big event, caring for just one more.
If we want to be a church who cares about reaching the many, we have to be a church who cares about reaching the one.
Who is your one more church?
Who are you faithfully praying for. That the Lord would call them out of darkness into His marvelous life.
I can tell you that there are many one more’s in this room.
I praise God that I was somebody’s one more. And now here I am proclaiming the Word of God because I cannot contain my praise!
Do not give up church.
Keep showing up.
Keep praying for your one more.
Be faithful.
For the one that you are seeking on their behalf is faithful.
Be praying for God to do big things. But do not feel like a failure because you are not seeing big events.
God can do incredible things through our daily routines.
Just show up and be sensitive to the sufferers and sinners around us.
Be sensitive to His voice which reminds us that His Word is true, and that He is making all things new because He keeps His promises.
God is continually at work through our faithfulness in the small, day in and day out moments of our lives.
There are times that He will convert thousands through our faithfulness, and there are times that He will add just one more.
And there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who gives their life to the Lord.
LET’S PRAY
If that is you today, we want this be a moment of invitation.
If you hear Him calling you today, do not harden your hearts. He is not far from anyone of us.
You are invited to come to the front and give your life to the Lord. If you don’t what that means and want to talk about it, I am here for you.
For the rest of us, Father God will you please help us to see those around us who might feel lost in the crowd.
Will you help us to remember that great growth in the kingdom of God is just one more. I pray encouragement over my brothers and sisters in the room this morning, that have been praying and praying and have seen no big events that they can share yet. I want to pray that they would keep showing up and trusting that you have uniquely designed and wired each one of us to be the person we need to be in each moment you have ordained us to step in. Help us believe that and receive that this morning.
We trust you. We love you. I love this church and pray blessings over every heart and household represented. In Jesus name. Amen
With that, I want us to prepare our hearts to receive The Lord’s Supper by coming to His table.
This is for believers to proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. If you are not sure whether you believe not, or parents, if you are concerned about if your kids should be taking this, an easy measurement would be baptism.
If you have not proclaimed your love and faith for King Jesus through the ordinance of baptism, it is ok to pause today and observe, rather than partake. Scripture says that we eat and drink judgment on ourselves when we take it in a manner unworthy of the Lord. We share this to honor the Lord and to honor you.
And in this moment as we prepare to receive the Lord’s supper, we ask you Holy Spirit, to bring to mind any unconfessed sins, or unresolved conflicts, so may we lay those at your feet this morning. For you tell us to examine ourselves before we eat the bread and drink the cup so that we do not eat and drink judgment on ourselves.
So give us a moment to do just that (pause).
Before we rise and come to the table let us remember what our Lord said.
On the night He was betrayed, He took bread and when He had broken it He said, “This is my body, which is for you, Do this in remembrance of me.”
In the same way, He took the cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, do this as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
For as often as you eat the bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.
So Father, meet us here this morning through the power of the Holy Spirit. We remember you. We remember our baptism. And we celebrate with your church.
COMMUNION & SONG
Church, read with me from God’s Word.
What is the significance of Peter and John going to the temple at the hour of prayer?
How can we practice being 'faithful in the small moments' in our daily lives?
How can we ensure we are sensitive to the Holy Spirit's leading in daily our routines?
How can your church community support each other in being sensitive to the Holy Spirit?
How can we be more intentional about looking for just one more in our lives?
