ReDiscover Church (6)

The Good News of the Gospel

One of the most mis-understood sayings of Jesus is what is often called ‘The Great Commission.’

For many years in church I heard pastors, missionaries, and even a few seminary professors quote Jesus’ words from Matthew 28 to challenge us to share the gospel with our friends and families.

What a great idea! Except that Jesus didn’t say ‘Share the Gospel.’ What He said is this:

Matthew 28:19 HCSB

Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

Luke records Jesus’ last words prior to His ascension into heaven in a similar way:

Acts 1:8 HCSB

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

So, what are we really all about as a gathering of believers?

The purpose statement of our church, included in our Constitution reads like this:

“Our purpose is to build a timeless ministry that equips believers to live an effective Christian life through:

promoting personal growth by loving God with all our lives;

meeting people’s needs by loving one another as Christ loves us; and

proclaiming Christ to our community and throughout our world, and loving the world as God does.

Put that on a business card or a t-shirt!

By looking at the church in Antioch as our model we are rediscovering what ‘church’ is really all about.

Next Sunday will conclude this series as I ask us to consider if our community would notice if we closed our doors.

This morning I want to explore three sentences Luke records about the growth of the believers in Antioch.

…proclaiming the good news about the Lord Jesus…Acts 11:20

The Greek language has a number of words that are often difficult to translate into English.

Most often we think of ‘preaching’ as the act of sharing the gospel. Yes, some ‘preaching’ is sharing the gospel. However - even in this century the gospel is not spread primarily by preaching.

Rather, the gospel is most effectively spread by ‘proclamation’ which is a different Greek word than the word for ‘preaching.’

Confused?

Luke tells us that people travelled from Jerusalem to Antioch (because of a severe persecution against believers INSTIGATED BY THE JEWISH RELIGIOUS OFFICIALS - see Acts 7:-8:2).

As they travelled they ‘proclaimed the good news of the Lord Jesus.

The verb ‘proclaim’ simply means to bring news. As used in the Greek world the verb ‘proclaim’ almost always had a connotation of good news, of joyous news.

Luke 8:1 HCSB

Soon afterward He was traveling from one town and village to another, preaching and telling the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with Him,

Jesus’ ministry was not about delivering sermons. Yes, He spoke in synagogues several times. As you read through the Gospels you don’t find Jesus sitting in a study, preparing a written document called a sermon.

We see Jesus traveling from place to place.

We see Jesus having meals with people (some meals were even attended by [gasp] sinners and tax-collectors).

We see Jesus at a wedding.

We see Jesus at funerals - though as Lazarus and his sisters learned, inviting Jesus to a funeral is likely to change everything!

We read of Jesus teaching - big groups, small groups.

We watch as Jesus heals all manner of physical and spiritual affliction.

And with every word, in every setting, sometimes with specific words, sometimes with actions, Jesus ‘proclaims’ good news - that God is indeed present, that God is indeed willing to intervene on behalf of all who will trust Him!

As these folks traveled from Jersualem to Antioch they didn’t set up tents have host revival meetings. They simply - by word and deed - let all who would listen know that Jesus - the One crucified by the Romans, buried by His own disciples, was raised from the dead by the power of God.

“The Lord’s hand was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord.” (Acts 11:21, HCSB)

Nowhere in either Old or New Testament are we told to save people.

One of the clearest invitations of Jesus is this one:

Matthew 11:29 HCSB

All of you, take up My yoke and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for yourselves.

‘Learn from Me.’ To be a disciple is to have awakened a hunger to know more, to hear more, to experience more of what the teacher has to say, more of the character and nature of the one doing the teaching.

In Matthew 28:19 the sense is not to ‘force’ people to learn from Jesus, but to present Jesus in such a way that people develop a hunger to know Him, that people around us want to hear what we have to say

As these people traveled from Jerusalem to Antioch they didn’t put up signs saying ‘Church Meets Here.’

Rather in their daily way of life, in the conversations in which they engaged people got a glimpse of Jesus, people got a taste of what Jesus can do in one’s life.

This is proclamation. This is how the gospel is spread - even 2,000 years later!

This is how the good news of Jesus is carried from place to place.

Note that as these people traveled and lived out their relationship with Jesus it was the power of God that opened people’s ears to hear and their hearts to believe.

The phrase ‘the hand of the Lord’ is used in both the Old and New Testament to describe the tangible sense of God’s presence.

Earlier in Acts God’s people gathered for prayer after Peter and John had been ordered Acts 4:18

Acts 4:18 HCSB

So they called for them and ordered them not to preach or teach at all in the name of Jesus.

After their release Peter and John joined other believers in a prayer meeting. Listen to part of their prayer:

Acts 4:27–30 HCSB

“For, in fact, in this city both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, to do whatever Your hand and Your plan had predestined to take place. And now, Lord, consider their threats, and grant that Your slaves may speak Your message with complete boldness, while You stretch out Your hand for healing, signs, and wonders to be performed through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”

They recognized that all that had occurred in Jesus’ life was because of the ‘hand of God,’ or we might better understand because of the power and presence of God.

They prayed specifically that God’s hand would be known in healing and signs and wonders.

When they prayed Luke tells us

Acts 4:31 HCSB

When they had prayed, the place where they were assembled was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak God’s message with boldness.

Open Doors...“After they arrived and gathered the church together, they reported everything God had done with them and that He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.” (Acts 14:27, HCSB)

A brief tour through the early months and years of the spread of the gospel:

Acts 2:47 HCSB

praising God and having favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to them those who were being saved.

Acts 6:7 HCSB

So the preaching about God flourished, the number of the disciples in Jerusalem multiplied greatly, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.

Acts 9:31 HCSB

So the church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace, being built up and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, and it increased in numbers.

Acts 11:18 HCSB

When they heard this they became silent. Then they glorified God, saying, “So God has granted repentance resulting in life even to the Gentiles!”

Acts 13:49 HCSB

So the message of the Lord spread through the whole region.

Acts 14:27 HCSB

After they arrived and gathered the church together, they reported everything God had done with them and that He had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles.

These accounts are not of Tent Revivals such as the one’s we’ve seen in vintage photos. Perhaps you have even attended such a service.

These accounts are not mass evangelism rallies like the Billy Graham Crusade.

No. these accounts are how the good news of Jesus Christ was being proclaimed by people whose names you and I will never read in a history book.

These places where the Word of the Lord spread are accounts of people going about their day to day life ‘proclaiming the good news about the Lord Jesus.

What motivated those escaping persecution in Jerusalem to ‘proclaim the good news about the Lord Jesus?’

It wasn’t guilt-

As a young pastor I received some assistance from our denomination for a few months. In order to receive the check I had to fill out a weekly report. One of the questions was: How many Gospel presentations did you make last week? I wasn’t allowed to count Sunday messages or Wednesday Bible studies.

The purpose of the funds and the question was to spur me to deliberately seek opportunities to share the good news about the Lord Jesus.

I confess. It didn’t motivate me.

I often heard pastors and visiting missionaries - and I have done the same thing - throw statistics of the # of people dying apart from Jesus in hopes that it will motivate others (and myself) to be proactive in sharing the gospel.

Honestly, the #s don’t motivate us.

I’ve even heard messages heaping guilt upon guilt trying to guilt me into proclaiming the good news.

Guilt makes me ashamed, but it rarely motivates me to proclaim the good news.

So, what motivated those people - fleeing for their lives, leaving behind jobs, friends, the comfort of a large fellowship of believers?

Let me suggest some possibilities - as we read Luke’s account of the beginnings of this thing we call church:

a). their entire life was reoriented around being with Jesus and being with others who were being with Jesus

Acts 2:42 HCSB

And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers.

Acts 2:46 HCSB

Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple complex, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with a joyful and humble attitude,

They ‘devoted themselves...’ With intense effort in spite of difficulty, these early followers of Jesus spent time with God in prayer, with Jesus as the apostles taught and shared their memories, and with others who were committed to spending time with God, with Jesus, and with one another.

b). What they experienced they wanted to share with others

Acts 4:32 HCSB

Now the large group of those who believed were of one heart and mind, and no one said that any of his possessions was his own, but instead they held everything in common.

There was an experience of connection with others, a shared sense of purpose, a common vision for the immediate future. This experience was so fulfilling, so positive, so life-sustaining that they couldn’t help but invite others to discover the kind of life they were living because of the Lord Jesus.

c). Believers experienced the power of the in-dwelling Holy Spirit

Acts 9:31 HCSB

So the church throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace, being built up and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the encouragement of the Holy Spirit, and it increased in numbers.

The primary reason many believers (including me) don’t experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit?

Because we don’t want to. We would rather live in our sin because confession would embarrass or shame us; because to be filled with the Holy Spirit might disrupt our rather comfortable pattern of life.

In 1995 at the early service at Coggin Avenue Baptist Church, in Brownwood TX, a student at Howard Payne University asked the pastor if he could share a brief word at the beginning of the service.The student read

Joel 2:12 HCSB

Even now— this is the Lord’s declaration— turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, weeping, and mourning.

Almost immediately many attending that early service made their way to the front of the auditorium where they got on their knees and began to share confession of sin, words of repentance, and powerful and emotional prayers.

As the 8:30 service was supposed to be ending and others were arriving for the Bible Study hour, the pastor said folks could stay or attend their Sunday School class. Most stayed. Many who had come for Bible Study and the 11:00am service entered the auditorium and joined those on their knees at the front of the auditorium.

The church broadcast their 11:00am worship service on a local radio station. That morning, at 11:00am, when the broadcast went live, the pastor was giving an invitation for people to come and pray, to confess and repent of sin, and instead of a ‘normal’ service, the radio broadcast was simply a broadcast of people weeping, praying, singing praises, and so on.

At 11:00am, about 40 miles away, a farmer who regularly attended Coggin Ave Church was dealing with a cow giving birth to a calf. As he and his farmhand were in a pickup heading to the barn, the farmer tuned in to hear the broadcast. The 50 year old ranch hand listened to what was happening and asked if he could be saved! He wanted to be baptized and there.

That same day, Jan 22, 1995, in nearby Santa Anna TX, FBC of Santa Anna saw 27 people confess Jesus as Lord and Savior.

A few weeks later Henry Blackaby, author of Experiencing God, spoke - between 1300 - 1400 people crowded into the auditorium and many responded with repentance and confessions of faith. That night churches from the area cancelled their own services and came to hear Henry speak. That service lasted more than 3 hours as people responded to what the Lord Jesus was doing.

Meanwhile the campus of Howard Payne University (an SBC school) was in the midst of a revival unlike anything in their hsitory.

Churches in the surrounding area began to see God’s presence.

Late February of 1995, Alvin Reid, then a seminary professor, was speaking in Houston TX and he saw God begin to move as people confessed and repented of their sin, people confessed Jesus as Lord and Savior.

(Drawn from FireFall 2.0: How God Has Shaped History Through Revivals, Malcolm McDow & Alvin Reid (Gospel Advance Books, Wake Forest N.C.: 2014), pp 292-following).

Regular church services were interrupted, college schedules were rearranged, African American churches and gang members began meeting with white churches in the region - a region torn apart by racial prejudices.

Notice it wasn’t the words of a sermon, it wasn’t a previously scheduled revival, that occurred.

People’s lives changed drastically - and they deliberately started spending time with God in prayer, deliberately spending time with others who were spending time with God, sharing a common vision that all should hear, that Jesus’ words were to make disciples ‘of all peoples…of all nations…of all tongues…of all colors....’

God, make it so again in our day.