Be a Berean
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Introduction
Sermon Introduction
Good Morning, Church.
I hope it is well with you all on this Lord’s Day.
Please turn your Bibles to the Book of Acts.
We will be conducting our study in Chapter 17.
And we will be examining verse 10 through 12 in our message this morning called “Be a Berean”
Opening Prayer
Opening Prayer
Before we consider our text, please join me in prayer...
Opening Illustration
Opening Illustration
Many of you may not know this...
But my very first job was of a Bank Teller.
During our training we learned how to best detect a counterfeit bill.
Now, in our training, we never studied the counterfeit bills.
There was just too many fakes out there and people would always come up with new ways to produce fake currency.
Instead, we dedicated our efforts in studying the genuine bills.
The more you know what an authentic bill looks like, the more likely you can easily spot a fake.
Attention to detail is vital.
A good fake will include many accurate features of say a hundred dollar bill.
However, harder to replicate details, like the hologram and how the blue strip illuminates in pink under UV light, will help identify a fake and the real McCoy.
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Take the preaching of God’s Word for example.
There are many who preach biblically.
Unfortunately, many more are more interested in tickling ears and growing their pockets.
Just because a “pastor” quotes the Bible and says a few accurate statements doesn’t make them genuine or even a Christian for that matter.
Remember church, even Satan quoted Scripture when he tempted Jesus.
So, what are we to do beloved?
Well, we have to be on high alert.
We have to take the preaching of God’s Word seriously.
We have to be trained to spot false doctrine and false teachers.
We have to be Bereans.
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Now this is a great time to transition to our text for today:
Reading of the Text
Reading of the Text
10 The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue.
11 Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
12 Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.
Background
Background
Verse 10: The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue.
Let’s start with the location of this passage.
Berea was located approximately 45 miles west of Thessalonica.
So, it was about a three-day journey by foot.
It was also another major city in the Roman province of Macedonia.
Now you may be wondering how did we get to this point in the story?
Basically, what happened to lead Paul and Silas being quickly rushed to Berea?
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Well, we just need to go back a few verses at the beginning of the chapter to see what happened.
The first 3 verse of Acts 17 reads:
1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.
2 And Paul went in, as was his custom, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,
3 explaining and proving that it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus, whom I proclaim to you, is the Christ.”
So, Paul was doing what Paul does.
He went to Thessalonica and started preaching Christ at the synagogue.
Notice what else Paul did.
He relied on Scripture to preach the Gospel.
This is always a good sign of a biblically solid teacher if they rely on Scripture faithfully to a communicate there message.
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Next we read in verses 4 and 5 that:
4 And some of them were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a great many of the devout Greeks and not a few of the leading women.
5 But the Jews were jealous, and taking some wicked men of the rabble, they formed a mob, set the city in an uproar, and attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring them out to the crowd.
Although a good number believed the gospel, the Jews in Thessalonica became hostel to Paul and Silas.
This is another attribute of preaching the truth.
It is always accompanied by strong emotions that can be hostel.
Why?
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Because those who love sin hate righteousness.
Is this not evident in our world today?
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Let’s see what happen’s next in verses 6 through 9:
6 And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also,
7 and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”
8 And the people and the city authorities were disturbed when they heard these things.
9 And when they had taken money as security from Jason and the rest, they let them go.
Notice that the Jews made the accusation that Paul ans Silas “turned the world upside down.”
If you stand for God’s truth, the “truths” of the world will not be in you.
Take for instance this month.
What is the world celebrating this month?
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Exactly, they call it pride month.
It is a celebration of sin.
They take the symbol, a rainbow, that God created that He would promise not to flood the earth again.
And they use it as their own.
They take the deadliest of sins, pride and make it something to celebrate.
It is pure evil and in rebellion to our God.
Simply stating that you believe in a biblical definition of marriage is now equated to hate speech and bigotry.
Yet, the world is okay with a cartoon targeting 3 to 5 year old kids featuring a drag queen leading a gay parade while singing a song that is indoctrinating our children to the doctrines of Satan.
The world says we must bow down to the new norm.
I saw, we turn the world upside down.
Church, we need to turn the world upside down by proclaiming the Gospel message to the lost world.
Why?
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Because as A.W. Tozer once said, “We need preachers who preach that hell is still hot, heaven is still real, sin is still wrong and the Bible is God’s Word!”
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So, you can see that Paul and Silas had to be moved out of town quickly.
Yet even when they went to Berea, the naysayers still followed them:
13 But when the Jews from Thessalonica learned that the word of God was proclaimed by Paul at Berea also, they came there too, agitating and stirring up the crowds.
So, now that we got the background covered, lets start the sermon shall we?
Our first take away from the first part of verse 11 is to be on guard regarding what you hear.
1) Be on Guard Regarding What You Hear
1) Be on Guard Regarding What You Hear
Verse 11a: Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica;
The Greek word for “Noble” originally meant “of noble birth” or “well born.”
However, over time the word was also applied to people who exhibited noble behavior...
People who had an open-mind, were fair, and thoughtful.
So, Luke saw the Bereans as “more noble” in their receiving Paul’s message than the Thessalonians.
Why?
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Because, they were looking to the written words of the Old Testament as their final authority.
They were not swayed by tradition, or the logic or philosophy of the day.
In other words, Luke means that the Berean Jews allowed no prejudice to prevent them from giving Paul a fair hearing.
And this should be our approach to any teaching we encounter.
This is not the same as just memorizing or quoting Scripture any way we like.
Remember what Jesus said to the Pharisees:
Satan probably has more Scripture memorized than you.
Some of these False teachers, they can quote the Bible pretty good too.
Church, I beg you, do not be lead away by smooth talkers who twist the Word of God.
Many of them are more motivational speaker than preacher.
Be on guard.
Just because someone salable it Christian does not mean it is Christian.
Just because it appears on a Christian network or Christian radio does not mean it is Christian.
You have to be discerning.
Remember Matthew 10:16
16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.
We must use the wisdom God gave us.
Voddie Baucham once said, "There ought to be a sign posted in every 'Christian' bookstore that reads, 'The views expressed in these books do not necessarily express the views of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.'"
Be on guard, church.
Be a Berean.
And this takes us to our next point, be excited by the Word of God.
2) Be Excited by The Word of God
2) Be Excited by The Word of God
Verse 11b: They received the word with all eagerness,
Church, we must be excited about the Word of God.
How can Jesus be our Lord and Savior and we have no eagerness for the Bible.
Imagine your spouse when you where still courting or a person you are dating.
Imagine if all your communication to this person is made by a friend of yours.
Imagine you never spend any face to face time with this person you claimed to be in love with.
Instead you learn everything about this special someone from your friend.
You never question anything and don’t bother to see or speak to this person directly.
Whatever your friend says is good enough for you.
Is that the model of a loving relationship, church?
Is that a relationship that will lead to an engagement and marriage?
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Is it even a relationship at all?
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Does this relationship have any eagerness or excitement?
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Of course not.
If you are going to marry someone and spend the rest of your life with that someone, you need to know them.
You need to get excited to learn all about them.
And you want to know about them directly from them, not someone else.
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The same is true for God.
If you claim to love Him and follow Him, then His Word should excite you.
Ask yourself?
Does the Scriptures excite you?
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Do you look forward to reading your Bible or is it a task?
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Fall in love with the Scriptures for it is God’s Word.
Remember this:
15 And all Judah rejoiced over the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and had sought him with their whole desire, and he was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest all around.
May your whole desire be for the Lord.
And May you echo the Prophet Jeremiah:
16 Your words were found, and I ate them, and your words became to me a joy and the delight of my heart, for I am called by your name, O Lord, God of hosts.
If you don’t have this desire, then surrender your life to the Lord.
He is the only one that can turn a heart of stone that is cold to the Word of God...
Into a heart of flesh that of your own joy do you love the Word of God.
Be a Berean.
Our next point will be to be in Scripture daily.
3) Be In The Scriptures Daily
3) Be In The Scriptures Daily
Verse 11c: examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.
To better understand this verse, lets do a quit word study.
The Greek word for "examining" can also be rendered as follows:
Call to account, hear a case, discern, examine closely, interrogate, investigate, test, search out, and evaluate carefully.
So, we really need to dissect and study Scripture.
By commending this activity, of examining the Word of God, Luke encourages this searching of the Scriptures as a pattern for all believers to follow.
So, it is not just the Theologians and Scholars and Pastors that need to study the Scriptures deeply.
Anyone who claims to be a follower of the Way needs to be doing this.
This passage also gives support to the doctrine of the clarity of Scripture and the idea that the Bible can be understood rightly, not only by scholars but also by ordinary people.
This is true as long as those who read the Bible do so eagerly and diligently and with conscious dependence on God for help.
This also gives support for the doctrine of Sola Scriptura or “Scripture alone.”
Our authority for all our doctrinal beliefs is found in the authority of Scripture and Scripture alone.
Scripture is above any tradition or man-made practice or doctrine.
And Scripture is so vital to the life of a believer we should be immersed in it daily.
Remember what the psalmist said:
2 Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them.
So, if you delight in the Lord, you will produce the good fruit of studying His Word.
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Church, would you like another reason to study His word?
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It is timeless and lasts forever.
89 Forever, O Lord, your word is firmly fixed in the heavens.
And:
8 The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.
And Jesus said:
34 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.
35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
Many of the things we spend our time on will not last.
Your house, one day will be gone.
Your car, one day will be gone.
Your job, one day will be gone.
and the list goes on.
But the Word of God will never fade.
So listen to the counsel of Paul as he writes to Timothy:
14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it
15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.
Stand on the solid foundation of Scripture.
Stand on this foundation and you will never be disappointed.
If your faith is built on something else, then you are building on sand.
And your home will come crashing down one day.
Man made will fade away.
But God breathed will stay forever.
And ALL Scripture is God breathed.
Not some.
How much,church?
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Yes, all Scripture is God breathed.
And what is is used for church?
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16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.
All Scripture gives you all you need to be complete.
All Scripture gives you all to need to be equip for everything.
Stop looking outside of Scripture.
There wolves hunting you down.
You need to be ready and equip.
You need to be in the Word of God.
And it has to be part of your daily habit.
You have to make a practice of it.
Again look at what Paul said to Timothy:
15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress.
16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
This is not a time to be lethargic church.
You are in a race.
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.
25 Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.
26 So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.
We have a race and a prize that will never go away.
We have to grow in our sanctification.
Grow from being baby Christians to Mature Christians.
For it is children, who may be new to the faith that may be mislead if not careful but as mature believers, we have no excuse to be deceived by false doctrine.
Beloved, equip yourself.
Grow in your study of the Word of God.
11 And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers,
12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,
13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,
14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes.
Remember, be a Berean.
And our final point is to be convicted by what you read in the Word.
4) Be Convicted By What You Read In The Word
4) Be Convicted By What You Read In The Word
Verse 12: Many of them therefore believed, with not a few Greek women of high standing as well as men.
Studying Scripture is not meant for you to show off your knowledge or to use it to manipulate people.
Genuine study of Scripture will lead to a genuine relationship with God that will continue to grow deeper over time.
Don’t be like the Pharisees that studied Scripture only to miss the whole point of it.
Remember what Jesus said:
39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me,
As you are reading Scripture, I want you to realize something...
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All of Scripture, as a whole, points to Jesus.
All of it is ultimately about Him.
Scripture is not about you.
You are not the lead character.
Scripture is about Him.
And He is the lead character.
Sure we are in the Scriptures.
But it is not the most faltering picture.
We are the Israelites that complain even thought we saw miracle of miracle being preformed by the hand of God.
We are the scared Israelites that cowered in fear of a taunting giant.
We are the crowd that followed Jesus when He multiples bread and fish and walked away when He said that He is the bread of life.
We are the impressionable ones who cried out both “Hosanna” and days later “Crucify Him”
We ripped the flesh off His back when He was scourged nearly to death.
We took the hammer in our hands and drove the nails in His hands and feet.
Thank, God the Bible is about Him.
Because, He is not just the lead character.
He is love, and He became a curse for us in the name of love.
He is not just the lead character.
But He is the good shepherd that went out and found us when we where lost in in a mess of our own creation.
He is not just the lead character but He is our Savior who is the Way, the Truth and the Life.
And He does not leave us on our own.
Remember, we have been sent the Helper.
26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.
And.
13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.
We not only have God’s Word.
We not only have a Lord and Savior who purchased us.
We have the Holy Spirit that helps us understand God’s Word.
We have the Holy Spirit that points us to the finished work of Christ.
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Church, remember this saying:
1 My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you,
2 making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding;
3 yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding,
4 if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
Receive the Word of God.
Treasure His commandments.
Make your Ear attentive.
And you will find true wisdom.
Wisdom this world will never be able to give you.
The knowledge found in Scripture leads to the fear of the Lord.
And the fear of the Lord id the beginning of understanding.
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Beloved, be like the good soil:
15 As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.
If you honestly embrace the truth found in Scripture then you will bear good fruit.
You will have eternal life.
Jesus said:
4 But he answered, “It is written, “ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”
The Word of God is true food.
So eat up.
If you don’t yet know the Lord, then accept the truth found in His Word and surrender to Him.
Peter said:
23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;
So, be born again if you aren’t already.
And be a Berean.
Closing Illustration
Closing Illustration
Church, I want you to imagine something.
I want you to think of the most important and largest purchase you ever made.
Now imagine, when getting ready to pay for your purchase, you come to the shock of finding out all the funds you have are counterfeit.
All your hard work in saving up your money, wasted because the currency you hold in your hand is worthless.
Imagine the regret you would have for not being more careful in making sure your money was genuine.
But the regret you would have at that moment, regardless if the purchase was for a car or home...
Nothing would compare to the regret you would have if you got the Gospel message wrong because you listened to false teachers.
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So, be a Berean and study the Word of God.
4 For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.
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Be a Berean and study the Word of God daily.
Be a Berean and study the Word of God day and night.
Be a Berean and Examine the Word of God.
Be a Berean and Meditate on the Word of God.
Be a Berean and Memorize the Word of God.
Church, be a Berean.
And you too will share these words spoken by Paul in 2 Timothy 4:7
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.
All the Glory to God.
Amen.
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Now if you will all stand to your feet...