Sermon Tone Analysis

Series: On the Move: Overcoming the Obstacles to Growth

Title: The Obstacle of Clarity

Text:

ATTN

Lighthouse

Two Indians who had been watching a lighthouse go up came over to see the thing open on the big day.

It was all set up with the lights and the bell and the horn; but the day it was due to open, the worst fog of all fogs came in.

One Indian said to the other, "Light shine, bell ring, horn blow, but fog come in just the same."

We've never had more lights shining, and bells ringing, and horns blowing in the church than we have today.

We've never had more fog.

In fact, today churches are filled with uncommitted members paralyzed by the fog of a contradicting culture.

And just like the rising sun burns away the evening fog, so gospel clarity melts the mist of religious confusion.

Ok, some of you are asking, “What did he just say?

What do you mean by gospel clarity, Rusty.”

BACKGROUND

Well, I’m glad you asked because I believe that being clear about the gospel was an obstacle that even the early church had to overcome.

You see, they reach a clear crossroads in Acts chapter 15.

Now, we’ll talk about that crossroads in more detail in a minute, but for now I just want to show you the conclusion that the early church reached about what the message of the gospel was.

Peter, addressing a group of early church leaders, said it like this in :

That was quite a statement for Peter to say and for the Jerusalem Christians to hear.

It was a powerful statement of grace.

Having been saved as Jews, those Jerusalem Christians had not fully appreciated what Christ’s death and resurrection meant for their observance of the ceremonial Jewish law.

Many of them still went to the temple and may have even offered sacrifices.

This says that nothing in the law saves them, it is only by faith in the Grace of God through Christ’s death on the cross.

It was a statement of grace . . .

And it was a statement of irony.

Notice how the statement ends: But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, we shall be saved (watch!) in the same manner as they.

When Peter says “they,” to whom does he refer?

He is talking about the Gentiles and he is saying that our salvation will come in the same way that their’s comes.

The Jew thought HE was in control of salvation and had the privilege of setting the agenda.

Peter is telling them that both the Gentile, who doesn’t keep the law, and the Jew who has abided by it consistently will be saved in the same way.

In saying this, Peter is seeking to be very clear about what the gospel is.

He is specifically identifying what is needed for salvation.

He is echoed by Paul in .

Paul says there,

3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, Now it was extremely important that the early church nail this down.

Now it was extremely important that the early church nail this down.

NEED

And maybe you’re kind of shaking your head, inwardly at least.

You’re saying, “Ok I can see why the early church needed to get this hashed out, but I don’t think that this is the problem of the church today, at least not in THIS church.

If there is one thing Peace church is clear about, it’s the gospel.”

Well, maybe—but I have to tell you that these people probably thought they had the gospel nailed as well.

They could have told you what the gospel WAS, but what the gospel was, wasn’t their problem.

Their problem was that they were adding some requirements to the gospel and by adding what the gospel wasn’t to what the gospel was, they lost the gospel!

And the truth is, today’s evangelicals may make a few additions of their own!

Some add Christian ordinances and rituals to salvation.

There’s a whole denomination that teaches that, unless you are baptized, you do not go to heaven.

Others say that you must measure up to certain behaviors before you are saved.

(Of course, salvation will bring life change, but not as a prerequisite to faith in Christ.

The change comes AFTER salvation, not necessarily before.)

Others think that you must have a certain political stance of you can’t be saved.

ordinances and rituals to salvation.

There’s a whole denomination that teaches that, unless you are baptized, you do not go to heaven.

Others say that you must measure up to certain behaviors before you are saved.

(Of course, salvation will bring life change, but not as a prerequisite to faith in Christ.

The change comes AFTER salvation, not necessarily before.)

Others think that you must have a certain political stance of you can’t be saved.

And the result of all these “additions” to the gospel is nothing but the fog of confusion that hides the truth and destroys the opportunity to grow.

And just like the rising sun burns away the evening fog, so gospel clarity melts the mist of religious confusion.

So, today, I want to explain why I believe the Bible teaches that gospel clarity is so imperative to growth.

You see it in our text.

Read it with me:

And certain men came down from Judea and taught the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question.

3 So, being sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, describing the conversion of the Gentiles; and they caused great joy to all the brethren.

4 And when they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders; and they reported all things that God had done with them.

5 But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”

TRANS

TRANS

What are the benefits of gospel clarity?

Well, in the first place, gospel clarity:

Gospel clarity defeats legalism.

D1: DEFEATS LEGALISM

EXP

Chapter 14 ends with Paul and Barnabas completing their first missionary trip evangelizing the Gentiles and returning to their sending church in Antioch, a city of primarily Gentiles.

Evidently the news of their success reaches the church in Jerusalem and some of the people are pretty upset.

They think that Paul is compromising the gospel to reach the Gentiles and a group of people come to Antioch to set them straight.

Of course, if you understand Judaism, you know that circumcision was the outward sign that you were Jewish and, for the Jew, it was a non-negotiable prerequisite for anyone who wanted to go to heaven.

The Christians in Jerusalem believed this and they also were probably afraid that the rapid progress of the gospel to the Gentiles threatened their Jewish beliefs.

If things continued as they were going, pretty soon there would be more Gentile believers than Jewish believers so these conservative Jewish Christians had the answer: Those Gentiles who wanted to become Christ-followers had to become Jewish first.

They had to be circumcised and obey the law.

They preached that this was necessary in order to be saved.

And these sincerely mistaken believers were having an impact.

Imagine being a Gentile and being told about the wonderful grace of Jesus and what He did for you on the cross.

Under the powerful conviction of the Holy Spirit, you might have turned to the person who was sharing Christ with you and asked: So what do I have to do to be saved?

Their reply: “O, it’s no big deal, we just have to circumcise you.”

That would have been confusing to say the least.

Jesus gave His life to save you by faith, but, before you can receive the gift, you have to DO something first.

You would have been left with a dilemma: Either you would have been circumcised and actually and have to DO a WORK to be saved, or you would have rejected the message because you just didn’t want to submit to becoming Jewish.

But, even if that explanation would seem so foreign to our ears, it had an impact on the church.

In fact, the book of Galatians, which deals at length with this controversy throws open a window on the church and shows you what was going on.

Here’s how the NLT translates :

Paul had to stand up to this heresy and he does.

Finally this controversy comes to a head in and the church has to decide the issue once and for all.

The conclusion that they reach is what Peter states in v 11: But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved.

It is gospel clarity that delivers the early church from the trap of legalism.

But when Peter came to Antioch, I had to oppose him to his face, for what he did was very wrong.

12 When he first arrived, he ate with the Gentile believers, who were not circumcised.

But afterward, when some friends of James came, Peter wouldn’t eat with the Gentiles anymore.

He was afraid of criticism from these people who insisted on the necessity of circumcision.

13 As a result, other Jewish believers followed Peter’s hypocrisy, and even Barnabas was led astray by their hypocrisy.