SF239 - CAN YOU HEAR THEM CALLING (Acts 16 6-10)
CAN YOU HEAR THEM CALLING?
Acts 16:6-10
INTRODUCTION
We live in what has been termed the information age. We are inundated with information. Vance Havner was right when he said that all we have added to life is noise. As a result, we suffer from a selective deafness; we hear only what we want to hear. We often suffer from spiritual deafness because of the din of noise in this world. We live in a world that is crying out for the gospel. The voices come in many different languages and dialects. Yet too often they go unheeded and unheard.
We need to be awakened to the voice of God as He calls us to a world of people who desperately need Him. The IMB reports that “today six times more people have never heard of Christ than were alive when Jesus gave that commission. We still have 1.7 billion people who do not have access to the gospel. To put that in perspective, if you could tell one person a second, it would take 54 years to share Jesus’ name with them.” We live in the greatest age of opportunity to share the light of the gospel and yet the world has never been darker.
Who will hear them call? Where are the believers like the missionary Sam Elliot, who like Elliot, will give their lives in order to take the gospel to the lost of South America. Where are the committed Christians, who like Bill Wallace, will lay aside the promise of wealth and comfort to follow God’s call to a far away land to share the gospel. A call that in Wallace’s case ended in a martyr’s death. Where are the Baptists, who like Lottie Moon, will leave their homes, families, and comfort zone to travel alone to a distant land and give their lives for Christ.
Where are those who like the apostle Paul, refuse to settle for anything less than God’s call and God’s commission. We need to listen carefully today. The Lord is calling us to a lost world. But to before we can answer the call we must hear the call. In our text we learn four truths that will help us hear God’s voice, we learn about the kind of person God uses, the type of motivation God provides, the message God sometimes gives, and the mission we are called to fulfill. First of all let us see the type of person God will call to take His gospel to the world.
1A. THE MAN: PAUL
1B. Paul’s conversion. (Acts 9:1-8)
Paul’s experience on the road to Damascus changed his life completely. Paul did not simply make a “decision” to become a Christian, he experienced a complete change in his life, he experienced a work of grace that resulted in the new birth. That is why he could write in 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NASB) “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” For three days Paul was blind so he might hear. Paul was a converted man. We must be born again if we ever hope to hear the God’s call and be used of God.
2B. Paul calling.
Beyond the call of God to salvation, Paul had experienced God’s call to service. In Acts 9:15 (NASB) we are told, “But the Lord said to him (Ananias), ‘Go, for he (Paul) is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel.’” And in Acts 13:47 (NASB) Paul states, “For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed you as a light for the Gentiles, That you may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
Paul experienced God’s call on his life. He knew he had been chosen to take the gospel to the Gentiles. Has God called you? If so to who has He called you take the gospel? You may ask how can I know God has called me? The scriptures tell us that every believer has been called to bear witness concerning God’s grace in their lives. Acts 1:8 (NASB) “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
When we experience God’s grace through conversion we will naturally want to share God’s grace through confession. In Acts 4:19-20 (NASB) we read “19But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; 20for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.’”
3B. Paul’s convictions.
Paul was convinced that Christ was the only means of salvation. He agreed with Simon Peter who said, Acts 4:12 (NASB) “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
Paul was convinced that salvation was a work of God’s grace. He wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB) “8For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Paul was convinced that God alone could keep his salvation and that indeed He would do just that. 2 Timothy 1:12 (NASB) ”For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
4B. Paul’s character
It has been said that, most people do not come to church because they know someone who does. Paul’s character helped and did not hinder the spread of the gospel. He could honestly say, “(2 Thessalonians 3:7 NASB) For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you,.” Paul lived the kind of life that could be set forth as the way to walk. If we are to be the kind of people God will call and use we must have a godly character.
2A. THE MOTIVE: PURE
1B. Paul’s emphasis.
The purity of Paul’s motive is evident in the emphasis of his life and ministry. Paul was not concerned about who would notice him or what others thought of him. Paul could care less about church politics or who was in charge. Paul was interested in only one thing, fulfilling his mission and his mission was to share the gospel with as many people as possible before the Lord called him home. His method was simple he wrote, (1 Corinthians 9:22).”I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.” Paul’s emphasis was on people not programs. He was determined to do whatever it took to reach his world with the gospel of Jesus of Christ.
2B. Paul’s endurance
The purity of Paul’s motives is seen in his endurance. Paul was not a fair weather Christian. Paul understood what it meant to suffer for the sake to the gospel. He summarized his trials in 2 Corinthians 11.
2 Corinthians 11:24-28 (NASB) 24Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.
Unlike so many today Paul endured. He did not spend his energy looking for an easier way, he spent his life proclaiming the gospel. Paul believed so strongly in God’s sovereignty and providence that he was convinced that wherever he found himself was where God wanted him to serve. So whether he was before the scholars on Mars Hill or in the dungeon in Philippi he proclaimed the gospel. He refused to allow his circumstance and situations control him. He simply did not allow his life situations to rob him of his joy. In fact one of his most joyful letters (Philippians) was written from a Roman jail cell.
3B. Paul’s end.
The purity of his motives is seen in the way he ends his ministry. In his last days on earth he wrote to Timothy his preacher boy. For a number of years the Jews had hounded him and for the past few years the Romans had imprisoned him. He had been deprived of the opportunity to be with his friends and visit the churches he had started. He had not been able to travel to his beloved Jerusalem to worship with the other surviving apostles. His missionary journey to Spain had been cut short and he had been condemned to spend his last days in a cold, damp, Roman jail chained to a solider. Life had not worked out as Paul had envisioned it but he was not bitter or broken quite the contrary he was victorious.
He wrote young Timothy, 2 Timothy 4:6-:8 (NASB) 6For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing. Far from being defeated Paul faced death at the hands of Caesar with a sense of fulfillment and victory. In the world’s eyes Paul’s life was a tragedy but in God’s eyes it was a triumph.
3A. THE MESSAGE: PAUSE (Acts 16:6-7)
In this passage God tells Paul "no" twice. First, when Paul attempts to go east to Asia and then a second time when he wanted to go north to Bithynia. Paul was the same man, his motives were pure, so why would God prevent him from going to Asia or Bithynia? Why did God cause him to wait? Why does God sometimes seem to put us on hold when we are ready to serve Him? Two reasons come to mind.
1B. To develop us.
Sometimes God will cause us to pause so he can prepare us for what is ahead. God does nothing in a vacuum. Everything He does is designed to accomplish his purpose. God uses every experience in our lives to make us more like Him for His glory.
Peter was referring to God’s work in us when he wrote, 1 Peter 1:7 (NASB) “so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” Nothing you are facing or will ever face is out of God’s control. He not only allows it, He determines and controls it. So that He might receive glory in and through our lives.
2B. To direct us
Often God causes us to pause so that He can direct us in the way we are to go. We live too fast. We rush around at a maddening pace and wonder why we do not get anything done. Perhaps God is calling you aside during this holiday season to give you some clear directions as to where to go.
4A. THE MISSION: PHILIPPI
1B. The plea we need to hear. (Acts 16:9)
The appeal Paul heard was an urgent plea for help. The scriptures literally tell us that the man in Paul’s dream was pleading with him to come. Today people eastern Europe who spent their lives hearing the lies of the communist party plead for the liberating truth of the gospel. Children in third world countries who will go to bed hungry tonight plead for the bread of life. Men and women who live on the streets of Pittsburgh plead for the shelter of the Rock of Ages. Families living in the lap of luxury, who have everything, money can buy are pleading for the Pearl of Great Price that cannot be bought with the currency of the world. It is an urgent plea because in Pittsburgh today some one will die without Christ. They are calling and the plea is urgent.
Not only is the plea urgent it is too often unseen. Paul’s call came in a dream, seen only by him. The plea was supernatural in origin and spiritual in nature. The same is true today. Much of our world has become invisible to us. We no longer notice the clerk at the store or the attendant at the gas station. We do not see the family four doors down or the homeless man on the street. They are there we just do not see them and their need for Christ.
2B. The people we are called to reach. (Acts 16:10)
The people of Macedonia were a pagan people. It was a Greek and Roman stronghold. The idolatry and lewdness of the Greek and Roman gods dominated the area. Paul would find no Jewish synagogues there. He would not find an appreciation for the Jewish scriptures. Macedonia was a hard place a place where no one wanted to go but it was the place where God had called him. How like Pittsburgh Macedonia must have been.
But although the people were unreached and pagan, they were precious to God. The Lord had his chosen ones even there among the hard and idolatrous residents of Macedonia. God always has His people. Later God would encourage Paul by telling him that had “many people” in Corinth one of the most ungodly of all the cities in this region.
God’s people are precious to Him so much so that Simon Peter wrote, 2 Peter 3:9 (NASB) “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”
APPLICATION
Horton hears a “Who”
One of my all time favorite Dr. Suess stories is the story of Horton the elephant. Horton was like every other elephant except one day Horton heard something no one else had ever heard. He heard a “Who.” No one in Horton’s world even knew that “Whos” even existed. So when Horton proclaimed the presence of the “Whos” on a speck of dust no one believed him. In fact they tried to destroy the speck of dust. The rest of the story relates how Horton tries to “save” the “whos” from certain death and destruction and how he tries to convince his friends that they exist.
How strangely like our world is the make believe world of Horton and his “whos.” Like Hortons friends we live our lives as if those without Christ do not even exist. Like his friends we refuse to hear the cry of those around us who so desperately need Christ. We must become more like our friend Horton, we must train our ears and hear their cries. We must do all in our power to share with them the gospel of Jesus Christ for only Christ can save them from certain death and destruction.
CAN YOU HEAR THEM CALLING?
Acts 16:6-10
1A. THE MAN: PAUL
1B. Paul’s Conversion (Acts 9:1‑8)
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NASB) “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
2B. Paul’s Calling
Acts 9:15 (NASB) we are told, “But the Lord said to him (Ananias), ‘Go, for he (Paul) is a chosen instrument of Mine, to bear My name before the Gentiles and kings and the sons of Israel.’”
Acts 13:47 (NASB) Paul states, “For so the Lord has commanded us, ‘I have placed you as a light for the Gentiles, That you may bring salvation to the end of the earth.’”
Acts 1:8 (NASB) “but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
3B Paul’s Convictions
Acts 4:12 (NASB) “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
Ephesians 2:8-9 (NASB) “8For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Timothy 1:12 (NASB) ”For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.
4B. Paul’s Character
2 Thessalonians 3:7 (NASB) 7For you yourselves know how you ought to follow our example, because we did not act in an undisciplined manner among you,
2A. THE MOTIVE: PURE
1B. Paul’s Emphasis
1 Corinthians 9:22..I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.
2B. Paul’s Endurance
2 Corinthians 11:24-28 (NASB) 24Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. 25Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep. 26I have been on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my countrymen, dangers from the Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers on the sea, dangers among false brethren; 27I have been in labor and hardship, through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28Apart from such external things, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches.
3B. Paul’s End
2 Timothy 4:6-:8 (NASB) 6For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
3A. THE MESSAGE: PAUSE
God tells Paul "No" twice. Why does God say “no?”
1B. To Develop Us
1 Peter 1:7 (NASB) “so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
2B. To Direct Us
4A.THE MISSION: PHILIPPI
1B. The Plea (Acts 16:10)
It is and urgent plea.
It is and unseen plea.
2B. The People
They were pagan.
They are precious
2 Peter 3:9 (NASB) “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.”