Sermon 3.1.21 4.19.2020 Acts 1 When the Spirit Comes to Town He Affirms Leaders

New Normal

///Series Introduction///

During the last month we have done ministry in unanticipated ways. Preachers and leaders have learned new skills, tactics, methods, and tools so that this church, and virtually all others can continue worshipping, ministering, teaching, and celebrating Jesus.

Soon we will reassemble. At that point we will be learning a new, post-virus, normal. As I considered my sermon calendar I asked myself whether I should abandon what I had planned and adopt something more "of the moment."

My next scheduled series is entitled

When the Spirit Comes to Town

Taken from the book of Acts it is designed to equip, engage, and enlist the Church in the ongoing mission of Jesus. As I struggled with whether or not the preliminary work I had invested should be counted as a sunk cost prior to moving on to something more timely, relevant, and with-it...I thought it would be terribly ironic to abandon what I knew to be Spirit-led, prayer-bathed, slow-roasted material about how the Holy Spirit leads the church...to be led by my own short-sighted infatuation with the "now."

Entice: In the end...we all have to remember that the Church has constantly been coming to terms with "new normals". The embryonic church was confronted with their first new normal when they communed with the risen Christ. And just as they grew accustomed to having the glorified Savior in their midst-boom! He's gone again; though He left them with a promise and a purpose.

Engage: How do you think they felt? Did they just say like many resilient folk "well we'll just have to adjust to a new normal!" Perhaps. Today's text at least implies that a couple of angels had to give them a boot to the bottom to get them off the snide.

Expand: Acts 1 makes it clear that Jesus was always preparing for the transition from His direct ministry to the Spirit-led ministry of the Church. The 11 may not have anticipated it, expected, or even wanted it. But Jesus was ready.

Jesus always knew

they would live through a new normal,

and that

new normals,

would be the

new normal...

pretty much forever.

Excite: Every era has a new normal. It is in attention to the Word, attachment to the Spirit, and adoration of the Father that we extend the witness of the Church to a fallen world. This process begins with leaders led by and equipped by the Holy Spirit to navigate normal, new or otherwise.

Explore:

Regardless of whatever normal will be the Holy Spirit will affirm leaders for the Church and assist them In Service.

Explain: In today's text we follow the story of how God's Holy Spirit affirms leaders to move us towards our Mission.

1. The Spirit Reaffirms the Call

Acts 1:1–5 ESV

1 In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. 4 And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; 5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

1.1 Affirmation & Action.

1.2 Continuity & Discontinuity.

2. The Spirit Restructures the Mission

Acts 1:6–11 ESV

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” 9 And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”

2.1 Kingdom Flows from Witness.

The way we get to what it is that Jesus persistently spoke about in the gospels is by bearing witness. Some have seen this as a bug not a feature. (Jesus spoke about the Kingdom...and the Church came.) This is a feature not a bug, this is the divine design to proclaim the rule of the risen King-bearing witness to that new reality. It's not a change, its not something different-

It's how Kingdom happens!

This is also important because we are being taught not only what we are supposed to do, but what the Spirit will not do---->Work without witness. In other-words the Holy Spirit will not do what we are supposed to do aided by Him.

2.2 Witness Structures ministry.

Pattern of the Work

Persistence...(What are you doing?)

3. The Spirit Replenishes the Team.

Acts 1:12–26 ESV

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away. 13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers. 15 In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, 16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. 17 For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.” 18 (Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. 19 And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 “For it is written in the Book of Psalms, “ ‘May his camp become desolate, and let there be no one to dwell in it’; and “ ‘Let another take his office.’ 21 So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.” 23 And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen 25 to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” 26 And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

3.1 Discerning.

The Problem (What=replacement, When=now, Why=Judas betrayed Jesus and then died.)

The Solution

Share in this ministry

"office"

Witness to resurrection

Ministry & Apostleship

3.2 Defining.

(Who)

Following disciple,

Beginning--->"end"

Qualified to give testimony to the fact of resurrection.

3.3 Deciding.

(How)

Evaluate

Pray

Choose

Shut Down:

Over the next several weeks and months we will be tempted to go overboard. Churches like ours have learned new skills and have moved more nimbly than we could ever have imagined. We will be tempted to push more boundaries than are necessary, or more accurately push them for the wrong reasons.

The Holy Spirit dwells within and works within us. He works to reaffirm the call (the what of Ministry), restructure the mission, (the How and Why of Ministry), and to replenish the team (the who of Ministry).

One of the signal tasks of the Church is to be constantly incarnating and enculturating our call, our mission, and our team...without missing the prompting of the Spirit and the guidance of the scripture.

In the end...our new normal will to be continue the Mission of declaring the Old, Old story. We will use new strategies, tactics, methods, and tools. But this team, will follow our call to live the mission in our world.