"Don't forget to Celebrate!" (Acts 15.22-31)
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Then the apostles and the elders, with the consent of the whole church, decided to choose men from among their members and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers,
with the following letter: “The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the believers of Gentile origin in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings.
Since we have heard that certain persons who have gone out from us, though with no instructions from us, have said things to disturb you and have unsettled your minds,
we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth.
For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to impose on you no further burden than these essentials:
that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
So they were sent off and went down to Antioch. When they gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.
When its members read it, they rejoiced at the exhortation.
Judas and Silas, who were themselves prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers.
After they had been there for some time, they were sent off in peace by the believers to those who had sent them.
But it seemed good to Silas to remain there.
But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, and there, with many others, they taught and proclaimed the word of the Lord.
Intro:
It’s amazing what conflict can do.......
........especially if it goes unaddressed!
(pause)
And Freedom....
the number one question that I’m asked when I’m counseling is.....
“How do we deal with conflict?”
(pause)
Because......
.......nobody teaches us how to respond to conflict from a healthy perspective.
(pause)
......We just have to figure it out
......and hope we get it right!
(pause)
But what I love about God’s word......
......is that it is “FILLED with CONFICT”
(pause)
Pastor......
Why are you excited about a CONFLICT filled bible....?
(slight pause)
Well....
......the first reason is that it means,
We aint the first one to go through this.
And then secondly......
....because if we look at how they handled CONFLICT in the scriptures maybe we can use some wisdom in how we deal with our own issues!
(pause)
Let me show you some Conflict in the text in the first part of this chapter 15.......
(Summarize the conflict that arises in verses 1-21)
(pause and shift)
And now we pick up in verse 22 where they are sending a letter from the Jerusalem Church to the churches of Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia.....
The Apostolic gifting combined with the Pastoral gifting of these leaders has been guided by the Holy Spirit....
(pause)
Look at it now....
Then the apostles and the elders, with the consent of the whole church, decided to choose men from among their members and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They sent Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, leaders among the brothers,
The first thing we can learn about dealing with Conflict is that........
All confict must be Faced!
The leaders and the church courageously proceeded towards this conflict with the motive of communicating a “SOLUTION”
(pause)
And the reason that I believe this is critical is because.....
.....whenever we are dealing with conflict
.....the ultimate goal is to do our best to resolve the conflict.
(pause)
And watch this now.........
I did not say that the goal is to do our best to “WIN” the conflict.
(pause and optional expound)
And notice........
I did not share that the goal is to “Compromise” values to make the conflict go away.
(pause)
But in my spiritual imagination....
I see these leaders coming together and seeking the Holy Spirit’s direction to come out of this saying....
“We’ve got to resolve this.....
.....and remain true to the standard that God has set for the church!”
(pause)
And sometimes......
.......it takes this kind of courage to make a decision like this in the middle of a conflict!!
(pause and expound)
watch the text....
with the following letter: “The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the believers of Gentile origin in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings.
Since we have heard that certain persons who have gone out from us, though with no instructions from us, have said things to disturb you and have unsettled your minds,
we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Here it is Freedom......
The next thing we learn in the text when dealing with conflict comes out in verse 24.....
(pause)
In other words.....
Conflict has to be attacked with the “Truth”
In my spiritual imagination the letter says......
“Some people who are from our Church have been going out saying some stuff......
.......that they aint got no business saying!”
(pause)
See at the end of the day......
Conflict involves so much confusion.......
......that the only thing capable of straightening it out
....is the TRUTH!
(pause and expound)
And the letter went on to say.......
We know what they said has “DISTURBED” you.....
Gk - to throw into confusion
Freedom.....
I wonder if anybody has ever had a Conflict that has “thrown you into confusion?
(pause and expound)
The letter continues to say......
We also know that what they said “UNSETTLED” your minds....
Gk - Upset your mind or create mental instability
(slight pause)
.........you see Conflict doesn’t stop until it has stopped you from thinking with assurance!
.....it tries to cause all of your thoughts to become misdirected
(pause)
And that’s why I don’t play with Conflict........
......When Conflict shows up in my life
.......its about to go down!
(pause)
Because.....
.......what I learned is that you can’t play
......when you’re in a fight without getting beat up!
(pause)
And so.....
.....when Conflict shows up in my life
.......I do not welcome it into my mind to get comfortable
But instead....
......I start searching for TRUTH so that I might counterattack whatever its sending my way to my mind!
Never let Conflict get comfortable in your mind
(pause and expound)
Look at it now.....
we have decided unanimously to choose representatives and send them to you, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,
who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Freedom....
.....notice how the way all of this drama started
.....surrounded on somebody sharing a message that had not been sent....
(pause)
But this time the apostles are saying......
.....this message aint just coming from anybody
(slight pause)
We are all on one accord in who we chose to show up to you
And here’s what that means......
We spent some time praying about who has the gifiting and the heart.......and the things necessary to bring solution to this conflict!
(pause)
And so I believe the next thing the text teaches us in dealing with conflict....
is that.......
You don’t just send anybody to deal with CONFLICT
.....some folk can’t get the message right
(slight pause)
.......some people don’t have the right heart or gifting
(slight pause)
........and in my spiritual imagination
.....I see these apostles saying,
“This is too big for us not to get this right!”
........so lets look at all the details of what needs to happen and choose somebody who can make this happen!
(pause)
Because......
......If they don’t get this right
.....and entire population of people who have already been saved through the Gospel of Jesus Christ
......will walk away completely confused about their spiritual journey.
(pause and expound)
Look at who else they sent now...
We have therefore sent Judas and Silas, who themselves will tell you the same things by word of mouth.
The text says.......
Just in case there was any skepticism around this letter being fake.....
.......Judas and Silas shows up to validate the letter orally
(pause)
And in my spiritual imagination I see them saying....
.....We’re closing the backdoor on Conflict via gossip
......so that it can’t come back another way and try to slow us down in resolving this issue.
(pause and optional expound)
Now watch verse 28 family....
For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to impose on you no further burden than these essentials:
According to the text........
They wanted to make it clear that.....
The Holy Spirit has a major role to play in their decision making in terms of how they move forward....
(pause)
And Freedom......
I don’t know about you.....
......but I refuse to be a part of a Church that makes decisions without the leading of the Holy Spirit!!
(pause)
And that doesn’t mean that we don’t make plans.....
.....it just means that our plans are a part of a bigger plan!
(pause)
And so.....
....the Jerusalem Church
.....is passing this instructive conclusion to its daughter churches that has been revealed to them by the Holy Spirit
(pause)
And here’s the next thing we learn about Conflict resolution...
- Never throw a solution at your conflict until God puts it in your hand!
(pause and expound)
When man thinks he’s got things covered........
.........something always gets missed
(slight pause)
But.......
........when God covers a thing
.......it shows up in color
......it appears with exclamation
(pause)
Because........
God doesn’t stop where the conflict stops
........but because God is God
.......God advances our steps beyond our conflict!
(pause)
That’s why......
David knew he could handle the philistine Giant Goliath!
Because when God pushed him passed his conflicts as a shepherd boy.......
..........he knew that God didnt just get him through one conflict and leave him
(pause)
.........but God gave him an advancement that would carry him through future conflict!
(Psalms 23 is his revelation)
(pause and expound)
Watch this now......
…the text says
“The Holy Spirit has guided our decision making to say,
“We don’t need to put more burdens on you!”
(pause)
Now I’m not the Brightest match in the box.......
.......but I got enough sense to know that
..........if the Holy Spirit is guiding them to not put more burdens on the Gentiles..
(slight pause)
.......that must mean that the Conflict/traditions that the Pharissees were trying to put on them were going to be a burden.
(pause)
And the Holy Spirit says........
"I only need you to do what is strictly NECESSARY!”
.....and this suggests to us that
.......some of the stuff that starts our conflicts are filled with a capacity that aint even necessary!!!
(pause)
And this is why......
......we have to be led by the Holy Spirit
.........because any other way
.......will have us sitting under a weight that’s not even necessary!
(pause)
watch the text now.......
that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well. Farewell.”
The text says.......
You’re already Justified through Grace by Faith in Jesus Christ........
(slight pause)
But if we’re going to talk about what’s necessary........
.......what you need to do now is build on that
And.......
......begin walking out your Faith through Sanctification
Meaning......
.......you need to start setting a standard by setting yourself apart with your life decisions....
(pause and expound)
Now Freedom......
You would think that this part of the letter would kind be like.....
....raining on their parade
(slight pause)
Because.........
.............while the letter clears them of the need to be circumcised
.........it still holds some essential things that need to be done
(pause)
But let me show you the difference between
........when man says something
............and when the Holy Spirit speaks
(pause)
Here it is..........
So they were sent off and went down to Antioch. When they gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.
When its members read it, they rejoiced at the exhortation.
.....when they delivered this letter the bible says...
that the attitude of the Church shifted!!!
(pause)
And Instead of going down.......
The spirit of the people in the room went UP!
(pause)
And that’s when it hit me Freedom!
When we read our LETTER...........
When the Holy Spirit gives us instruction.....
And.......
When the Holy Spirit confirms you are who you thought you are
(pause)
When.........
.......we finally get passed the CONFLICT
(pause)
.........the Lord told me to tell somebody
“Don’t forget to CELEBRATE!”
(pause)
.......you lost too much sleep
.......you cried too many tears
........you were disturbed for too long
(pause)
But........
..........that was when man was talking!
(pause)
Now that God’s got the MIC!
...........Don’t forget to CELEBRATE!”
Thank you for fixing this Jesus
Thank you for FREEING my mind
Thank you for healing my heart
Thank you for lifting my burdens
(pause)
You got through it..........
.........but you forgot to CELEBRATE when you read your letter
(pause)
But I came to remind somebody in this gathering.....
Your Marriage is still together
Your children are experiencing what you prayed about
Your life is finally getting on track
(pause)
But don’t you open that letter......
.........and forget to SHOUT!
THE CONFLICT........
.......is RESOLVED!
(pause)
And so now......
It’s time to........
“Give him what you owe him!”
Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors!
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is the King of glory?
The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord, mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, O gates!
and be lifted up, O ancient doors!
that the King of glory may come in.
Who is this King of glory?
The Lord of hosts,
he is the King of glory. Selah
..................Expound/Close.................