4.1.27 6.2.2019 "Every Nation Under Heaven" Acts 2.

The Masses & the Misses...

▾ Start:

• Series Opener:Welcome to church. Your church. Christ's Church. Every year I try and plan my preaching so as to highlight different portions of scripture, elements of the gospel,

• Series Opener: Welcome to church. Your church. Christ's Church. Every year I try and plan my preaching so as to highlight

nature of our collective ministry, and our purpose in our community. Every year I generally preach at least for a short time from the book of Acts because it speaks to the purpose of

different portions of scripture,

elements of the gospel,

the church as a whole very clearly. This year we will focus on people. It is people who need the Gospel. It is people who hurt and hide and hope. People are our audience. We are

nature of our collective ministry,

and our purpose in our community.

Every year I generally preach at least for a short time from the book of Acts because it speaks to the purpose of the church as a whole very clearly. This year we will focus on people. It is people who need the Gospel. It is people who hurt and hide and hope. People are our audience. We are people. We deal with people as individuals and in groups. The masses and the misses. Overwhelming mobs and singles. We live in a world with people of all colors, ethnicities, backgrounds, socio-economic status. They come to our country and we go to theirs. For leisure, labor, love, luck. To hide to start over.

people. We deal with people as individuals and in groups. The masses and the misses. Overwhelming mobs and singles. We live in a world with people of all colors, ethnicities,

backgrounds, socio-economic status. They come to our country and we go to theirs. For leisure, labor, love, luck. To hide to start over.

• Entice: The church's immersion in the masses begins at the beginning. When the Spirit first moved and the gospel was first preached every nation under heaven was represented. Every. Nation. Under. Heaven. In it was pious Jews who came to the temple. Today?

• Entice: The church's immersion in the masses begins at the beginning. When the Spirit first moved and the gospel was first preached every nation under heaven was represented.

Every. Nation. Under. Heaven. In it was pious Jews who came to the temple. Today?

• Engage: We encounter the masses as emigrants, Legal & illegal. They come for economic prosperity, do we share the love of Jesus with them or shun them? We encounter the

• Engage: We encounter the masses as emigrants, Legal & illegal. They come for economic prosperity, do we share the love of Jesus with them or shun them? We encounter the masses as foreign students/exchange students. The come for an education. Do we tell them the story of Jesus? We encounter the masses on vacations and business trips. Do they think of us first because of our nation, or our faith?

• Engage: We encounter the masses as emigrants, Legal & illegal. They come for economic prosperity, do we share the love of Jesus with them or shun them? We encounter the

• Engage: We encounter the masses as

masses as foreign students/exchange students. The come for an education. Do we tell them the story of Jesus? We encounter the masses on vacations and business trips. Do they

think of us first because of our nation, or our faith?

emigrants

• Expand: The fallen masses of this world need Jesus! Whether they are our neighbor or a new arrival. We need to be prepared to share the gospel, to tell the story, to give them a

Legal & illegal. They come for economic prosperity, do we share the love of Jesus with them or shun them?

reason for our hope in Jesus.

We encounter the masses as guest

students.

The come for an education.

Do we tell them the story of Jesus? as

as tourists

tourists

Do they think of us first because of our nation is so rich, or because our faith is so powerful?

• Excite: Like so many other aspects of our life in Christ is the first place the scriptures provide a model for how to behave. The church's job is to bring the masses to the

• Expand: The fallen masses of this world need Jesus! Whether they are our neighbor or a new arrival. We need to be prepared to share the gospel, to tell the story, to give them a reason for our hope in Jesus.

• Excite: Like so many other aspects of our life in Christ is the first place the scriptures provide a model for how to behave.

message, to immerse strangers in the story.

The church's job is to bring the masses to the message, to immerse strangers in the story.

• Explore: To reach the masses we have to master the story and pay attention to our audience.

• Explore: To reach the masses we have to master the story and pay attention to our audience.

Explore:

To reach the masses we have to master the story and pay attention to our audience.

• Explain: From day one we have had some very practical guidelines for impacting the masses.

• Explain: From day one we have had some very practical guidelines for impacting the masses.

▾ Body of Sermon:

1 Answer their questions.

▾ 1 Answer their questions.

1.1 What's Going on?

Acts 2:5–11 ESV

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.”

Acts 2:5–12 ESV

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?”

▾ 1.2 What Should we do?

1.2 What Should we do?

Acts 2:37 ESV

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Acts 2:37 ESV

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

Everything about our gospel is suspended between those two questions…What's going on? and what should I do?

Transition…People do not seem to be very curious anymore. The church's approach to the world has become routine. How can we surprise people who seem to have seen everything? How can we create an environment in which they ask those two questions which ultimately lead to salvation?

everything? How can we create an environment in which they ask those two questions which ultimately lead to salvation.

The next guideline is to

2 Address their Need.

2.1 God's Spirit is Active!

• 2.1 God's Spirit in Action. This is that:

God's Spirit is Active!

Acts 2:16 ESV

16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

• 2.2 God's Son Alive!

This is that, God’s Spirit is active bringing salvation through the story of Jesus.

Acts 2:17–23 ESV

17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’ 22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.

Acts 2:17–20 ESV

17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day.

Acts 2:17–21 ESV

17 “ ‘And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; 18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.’

2.2 God's Son is Alive!

Acts 2:23–24 ESV

23 this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.

• 2.3 God's Strategy Advanced. .

2.3 God's Strategy Advances!

Acts 2:32–36 ESV

32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. 33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says, “ ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, 35 until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’ 36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

▾ 3 Announce the Solution.

3 Announce the Solution.

Acts 2:37–41 ESV

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.

3.1 Preach the Gospel.

3.2 Proclaim the Promise

3.3 Promote the Church

▾ Questions for the Ages…

Questions for the Ages…

In 2019 the questions might be texted or sent in an Email, perhaps even a meme. All humans at one point or another will ask those two critical questions of the spirit. What's going on? What should I do?

• In 2019 the questions might be texted or sent in an Email, perhaps even a meme. All humans at one point or another will ask those two critical questions of the spirit. What's going

on? What should I do?

• When that time comes there will be many answers. Many voices will volunteer solutions that will make the masses feel satisfied but for a brief moment. I want the voice of Jesus to be heard-proudly announced by His church as it has been since day 1.

• When that time comes there will be many answers. Many voices will volunteer solutions that will make the masses feel satisfied but for a brief moment. I want the voice of Jesus to

be heard proudly announced by His church as it has been since day 1.

• In this place, at this time we must listen with His ears, hear with His heart, we must speak with His voice.

• In this place, at this time, we must be His voice. We must listen with His ears.

• If you are asking that question, the ultimate question in your heart this morning, let me tell you the same thing Peter told the masses in sermon #1: Repent, be immersed, be filled with the Spirit, be forgiven…and, don't wait.

• If you are asking that question, the ultimate question in your heart this morning, let me tell you the same thing Peter told the masses in sermon #1: Repent, be immersed, be filled

with the Spirit, be forgiven…and, don't wait.