Let the Secret Out
Notes
Transcript
What happens here is not mean to stay here. Let the secret out.
What do I want them to know? To tell people about Jesus
Why? People want to be connected to their Abba
What do I want them to do? Tell people about Jesus
Why?
ME
I made a BIG mistake on my very first night leading youth group as YOUTH PASTOR.
I did something you are not supposed to do, I broke an unwritten rule, a rule many of us live by AND BECAUSE I DID IT IT ALTERED SOMEONE’S LIVE in not a in a good
If I did this to you, you probably would not be very happy with me.
What did I do? What did you do that was so bad?
Context to what I did to set us up to were I ended.
Some of the youth leaders and I decided on the first night of youth group for the new school year that would introduce the youth leaders to the youth group as a fun way from them to get to know the youth leaders.
We will have the youth leaders fill out a form describing a little about them.
The form had questions about their family, what they liked to do for fun, Cubs or Sox fan, favorite snack, and embarrassing moment.
Then the Dave the other youth pastor would have the form and call the youth leader to the stage and read some of the things that the youth leaders wrote down, “Here is John he likes the Sox, loves to fish, loves sunflower seeds, and his most embarrassing moment is that his fly was down while he was in front of the whole church on a Sunday he did announcements.”
We had youth leader after youth leader come up.
Things were going really good until Dave called Jill up,
Dave called Jill up, at the moment I had that sinking feeling in my stomach, the utoh.
Why might you ask?
I forgot to tell Dave that Jill did not want her embarrassing moment shared, and it was a good one.
o This is Jill
§ She loves cooking, kickboxing, the white sox, and then Dave laughs as he shares her embarrassing moment.
o Jill put her head in her hands and walks off the stage....what was so embarrassing you might ask? I am not telling you...
- She was embarrassed, hurt, and thinking about quitting that night being a youth leader.
- She didn ‘t want to talk to me…another woman youth leader had to console her.... She could not believe I let her secret out a secret she asked me not to let out!
- By letting her secret out, a secret she did not want out,
I altered her life for a short period.
What makes it worse is I did not just let a couple of people know,. I told a bunch of student and fellow YOUTH LEADERS something she did not want anyone else to know.
WHAT I LEARNED AND WAS REMINDED ABOUT WAS “Letting a secret out has leaves an impact an impact that is so big that at times it can alter someones life or our relationship”
It is not oh life just goes on
BY THE GRACE OF GOD IN SITUATION THE NEGATIVE IMPACT WAS SHORT LIVED.... NEWS IS RECONCILIATION DID HAPPEN
I profusely apologized
WE
We’ve all been in my shoes, or in Jill’s shoes, right?
We shared a secret (on purpose or on accident) that someone did not want us to share. IT IMPACTED THEIR LIFE and your relationship with them.
Or someone shared your secret.
Sometimes it was short lived....sometimes it lasts a long time, they are really mad at you.
As a teenager it might be that your shared your best friends secret about who he likes.
Impacted and altered their life and your relationship with them.
He was so mad at you and embarrassed
Someone told your deep dark secret that you wanted no one to know
your friends shared it with the what felt like the whole world
Crushed you, how could someone do such a thing
Someone told a secret to your boss that you were thinking about leaving the company, they did this so that person could get ahead.
You boss called you in
Do I lie or tell the truth
It almost cost you your job.
What we have discover is that sharing a secret leaves an impact that can alter someone’s life and our relationship with that person in a negative way
It is not, oh life just goes on.
TENSION
So does mean that ALL secrets are to be kept secret?
Every SECRET you have you need to keep it in and not let the world know.
Because they can at times lead to some VERY negative consequences
Or I wonder could there be SECRETS that should not be kept SECRET....that the releasing of the secret will lead to POSITIVE, LIFE GIVING results.
That if this SECRET IS NOT SHARED IT WILL BE MORE DEVESTATING TO PEOPLE IF IT IS KEPT?
GOD
This is where we find the disciples at in Acts 1.
What happens in Acts 1?
What happened 40 days prior?
They have seen Jesus crucified, raised from the dead, and have been with Jesus for 40 days.
And a SECRET has been REVEALED, the Bible calls it a the mystery of the Gospel, a part of the mystery of the Gospel
What’s the mystery?
Col 2:2
that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance of understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, which is Christ,
Jesus is Lord
Jesus is the suffering servant in Is 53, He is the Lamb of God as John 1:29, He is the Messiah, He is the Lion and Lamb Rev 5:5
Jesus is LORD
People were wondering who is the Messiah or who is the Messiah going to be.
IT IS JESUS
NOW THE QUESTION IS, “What do are the disciples and we to do with the is secret?” The mystery revealed.
If we look at recent history, “What happened the, 40 days earlier, when Jesus declared publically that He was the Messiah, the King of Kings? last time this SECRET was let out PUBLICALLY, WHEN Jesus DECLARED HE WAS THE MESSIAH?
Do the religious and Roman authorities throw a celebratory party.... The Messiah is here!!! The King is here!
NO! They crucified Jesus
So if you are the disciple what are you possibly thinking you should do with the SECRET you have about Jesus being the Messiah?
Maybe would be thinking “I should keep this SECRET about Jesus, a SECRET, where only a few people know who Jesus really is.”
On top of that they were thinking they were at a different place in the church’s timeline. (We see this in Act 1:6)
Where did the disciples think they were in the church’s timeline? Where Jesus resurrection put them at?
In His first coming, Jesus was the suffering Servant the Lamb of God. In His second coming, Jesus will be the conquering King.
The first coming Jesus hung on a Cross, in the second coming He will come with a Crown.
2nd coming of Jesus
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”
Is this now the beginning of 2nd coming where you are going to FULLY RESTORE ISRAEL? Build this massive Kingdom? A kingdom like David?
Is this were we are in the churches timeline?
What does Jesus say?
yes, this is the 2nd coming, the kingdom will be restored to Israel?
NO
Twofold answer
He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
When I come back is not for you to know
- It will happen but not it is not now
We are not moving forward on the churches timeline.
o This is not the second coming
This is not restoring the kingdom to Israel time
Second, Jesus says,
Do you want to know what time it is?
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.”
Jesus says it is not over....we are not building physcial Israel....this is not the second coming....it is far from over.....
AND GUESS WHAT THERE IS A SECOND PART OF THE MYSTERY OF THE GOSPEL: THE GENTILES ARE INCLUDED
The mystery of the Gospel is not just for you, that is part of the mystery, the other part of the mystery is as Acts 1:8 says and Eph is that God is for the whole world not just the Jews
This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
Great mystery is that Gentiles are also to be apart of the family of God, it is not for Jews
Fulfillment of the promise given in
Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.
And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
It is FAR FROM OVER....you are now being SENT to be witnesses to the whole world.
The disciples were thinking the WHOLE WORLD!?!
Yes
EASY TASK!?!
Some of them had to be thinking I can’t do that!!!
No, they couldn’t in their own power…they cannot reach the world in their own power.
that’s why you need the power of Holy Spirit.
I think sometimes God calls us to do and we say “I can’t do that” so we walk away....Matt 19:26
But Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”
Do you think MOSES parted the Sea in His power?
Do you think PETER walked on water in His power?
BUT GOD IS SAYING WITH MY POWER YOU CAN.
The story of those who follow God is that in your life time He will take down impossible paths to see if you will trust Him to do the impossible.
What Jesus says to these disciples is yes, you CANNOT DO THIS IN YOUR OWN STRENGTH.
BUT YOU CAN WITH THE POWER OF HOLY SPIRIT
The power that created the world, moves mountains, heals people, melts the hearts of men
Romans 8:11 says the same power that conquered the grave lives within you
- Do we realize the power of God that is within us?
Do we realize that God’s power is in us? Does the scripture say a small in amount power? NO, SAME POWER
Or do we just think we are ordinary human beings
We are God empowered human beings, the Imago Dei
WE NEED HOLY SPIRIT TO ACCOMPLISH THE MISSION....WE CANNOT DO IT ON OUR OWN
Many of us know this, we tried to do thing in our own strength, our own power
What happens?
It does not work
My power is made perfect in your weakness
GOD GET’S THE GLORY WHEN THEY SEE THAT WHAT WAS ACCOMPLISHED THROUGH YOU WAS ONLY AN ACT OF GOD.
WHAT DOES JESUS CALL THEM TO DO?
BE A WITNESS
Witness to the world the mystery of the Gospel
- To be a witness
“But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.
And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning.
- What’s a witness?
- It is a person testify to something or about someone in word.
How do we witness? By opening our mouth about Jesus
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
Proclaim, witness, testify to the world the reason for your hope.
I DON’T KNOW WHAT TO SAY!
for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
GOD WILL GIVE YOU THE WORDS TO SAY
How many of us have had those moments were Words came out and you did not know where they came from???
WHERE JESUS CALL THEM TO GO?
Nice and safe places
Places that is so happy in their flesh to hear about Jesus
1 Cor 1:23
but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles,
Jerusalem
o What happened in Jerusalem 40 days earlier?
- Jesus was crucified.
Do you not remember that this the city where you were crucified?
o They do not like Christians in Jerusalem, neither the Romans nor the Jews
o Jesus even said, in
O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!
o You want us to go there!?!
o But this is where Jesus is sending them
o We find out in Acts 2 that this is where the disciples go and Peter gives the first sermon of the church and power of the Holy Spirit descends upon them and 3000 people come to Christ
Judea
- Let the secret out in Judea
- Jerusalem was the major city
- Judah was a major tribe inside Israel.
- Again this area is full of Jews who do not like Jesus, but this is where God is calling them to be a witness in word and deed
- The Gospel moves forth
Samaria
- Go forth and let the secret out in Samaria.
- Samaria!?!
- Jesus Jewish people don’t like Samaritans and they don’t really like us either.
o Tell the people who you don’t like and they don’t like you about the love of God….
Tell you enemies about Jesus
- This is the place in Acts 8 Stephen is martyred killed in Samaria.
Ends of the Earth
- The secret is to be told to the ends of the earth, the rest of the world. The secret is to get out.
- The word of God continues to ends of the Earth
- Acts 10 Peter goes to the Gentiles
o The secret mystery of the Gospel is that the Gospel is to be proclaimed amongst the Gentiles
- Paul is a religious Jew is converted and lets the secret out all over the middle east and Europe.
- For many of us in this room the reason we are here in this room right now is because Paul did not keep the secret to himself.
o We have life because of Paul!!!
- Do we get the secret is to get out?
-
WHY WOULD THEY DO SUCH A THING?
Why would they go to these hostile places?
PEOPLE NEEDED TO HEAR THE GOOD NEWS THAT JESUS IS LORD
John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
WHAT WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THEIR VERY LIVES WAS THAT PEOPLE MOVED FROM DEATH TO LIFE.
EVEN IF IT COST THEM THEIR VERY LIFE
THE DISCIPLES HEART WAS SO PASSIONATE ABOUT THIS THAT DID WHATEVER IT TOOK TO LET THE SECRET
In fact, the Greek word for witness is martus, where we get the word martyred
BLOOD OF THE MAYTERS IS THE SEED OF THE CHURCH
§ History tells us that most of the disciples were martyred for the faith.
§ Peter was crucified upside down on a cross
§ Matthew was martyred in Ethiopia
§ James was thrown down from the temple by the scribes and Pharisees; he was then stoned, and further beaten by a club until he died
§ It is said that Roman emperor Domitian commanded that the apostle John be boiled to death in oil, but John only continued to preach from within the pot.
DO WE HAVE THIS SAME HEART?
I need to let the mystery of the GOSPEL out?
My neighbors, my family members, my city, my work place needs Jesus
Whatever I do in this life I need to let my friends, family members, neighbors know about Jesus?
WHERE IS JESUS CALLING YOU TO BE A WITNESS BY HIS POWER?
Bill
Friends
Community
For Jeff and Beze, he is going to share the call God put on his life.
WE
Who needs to hear the reason for the hope that you have?
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
I don’t know what to say? be encouraged
for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
Then he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts.
LIFT PEOPLE UP IN PRAYER
