Sunday Sermon
sunday morning 19th April 2009
Acts 8v26-40
Context
The good news is now spreading out of Jerusalem into Samaria due to the persecution that is happening. Philip is portrayed as the main evangelist at this time. Although all those who fled Jerusalem told the message wherever they went 8v4.
Many of the Samaritans believed the message Philip brought.
Next we see him witnessing to an Ethiopian.
What makes an evangelist?
Noting that telling the gospel is vital for the growth of the church, we need to address this great question of what makes a good evangelist?
Note too that we are all called to tell the message, men and women. Preaching the gospel in this sense is simply telling other people what God has done and every single believer has a responsibility to pass on the message.
Yes some are called by God to be teachers and evangelist of the message and are given specific gifts for that work but the basic preaching of the message is a responsibility we all share.
1) obedience
A) V26 Philip is given a command, v27 he starts to follow that command
The command is given by an angel! There are many references to angels in Acts, angels are Gods servants sent to do His bidding. Often the “Angel of the Lord” refers directly to the Lord Himself. Whatever the case the important thing to notice is that this is a divine message. It comes then with real authority, and leaves Philip with a choice – obey or disobey. Of course he obeys.
B) V29 the Spirit gives him another command, v30 again he obeys
Having started on the road of obedience into the unknown further direction is given.
Told to go to the chariot and stay near it: this obedience will take a bit more effort, means he has to run! He has to compete with horses in order to obey! (Jer12v5)
· APP
The first mark of an evangelist is obedience to the leading and guiding of God!
Now that means for us that there has to be a listening out for God.
God can lead and guide in many different way, here by an angel and then by the Spirit.
How do we then cultivate a listening lifestyle?
The answer is simple – watch and pray. Do all you can to keep close to Jesus.
Often we approach our relationship to the Lord with the “minimum requirement” attitude.
What is the least i can do! Our approach to Jesus has to be far more zealous than that!
Then the next step is following the direction that the Lord gives: obedience.
2) knowledge of the message v35
Philip was a man who knew his scripture, just as we saw with Stephen.
Beginning with that passage he was able to go on and tell the good news!
The message was all about Jesus! The whole of scripture points to Jesus.
· App
Evangelists proclaim Jesus from the bible. The message that we have to tell is to be grounded in scripture. It is the story of what God has done for the world, and we only know that story as it is revealed to us in the bible.
Yes, we can add our own experience to how we have responded to the Gospel, but the essential point is all about what God has done!
And the message is “Good News”. It is not bad news, it is about Gods love for the world, God’s forgiveness, the Saviour, life eternal etc.
The content of the message dictates the presentation of it. We are telling people good things! Our manner is important, our lifestyle needs to reflect the news we believe.
Doom and gloom and worry and woe should be no part of the Christian lifestyle.
We believe God has forgiven us, He is in control, He is totally good, Jesus is our Lord etc.
Trusting these things will enable us to live the Good News. And thus tell others.
But what of Hell and judgement?
Fundamentally the message is of good news, yet there also has to be space given for the bad news. Sin will be punished and the unrepentant will go to hell.
For the evangelist this dark side, this terrible unimaginable end should serve as a greater motivation to tell the good news! Always we must remember that judgement is Gods last resort, He would far rather all “men to be saved” 1Tim2v4.
3) eagerness/desire/wanting to tell the message v30
This is perhaps the most important qualification of an evangelist.
Philip had been told to go to the chariot – he goes, but then he does more.
He grasps the opportunity to witness with both hands – “do you understand....”
Philip desired to tell this man what God had done. He really wanted to do it!
And we know that this was his longing all the time, everywhere he went – in Samaria, on this desert road and then later from Azotus to Caesarea, v40.
He simply had this desire to tell the good news.
· App
This last point brings our obedience and knowledge together into actual evangelising.
If we are seeking to be obedient in all things, if we know the message of Good News, then all we need is the desire to just go and tell someone!
All the elements are necessary but desire is the quality that pulls it all together.
If we really want to tell the message we will.
Our wanting is all important! In almost all areas of life if we really want something we can get it or at least take steps to get it!
When it comes to telling the message, we must want to tell it!
We will want to tell it the more obedient we become, the more we grow in our relationship with the Lord. To know Jesus is to love Him, and if you love him you will want to tell of Him.
How? By focusing on Jesus and His love for the world.
Philip loved the Ethiopian in the love of Christ, that is Philip loved Jesus and he knew that Jesus loved this man, so he was able to love him too.
So he told him the message of salvation, and the Ethiopian went home rejoicing!
sunday evening 19th April 2009
Col 1v9-14
Last week we saw some of the prayer that Paul makes for the Colossians. We saw that they were a people who had the great Christian attributes of faith hope and love. And we saw the importance of learning the truth, the gospel in all its grace, in order to become such people. Next we will see more of Pauls prayer for them:
1) V9 – Pauls prayer for the Colossians:
What is he praying? That God would fill them with the knowledge of his will.
That is a knowledge of Gods desire. That they would know what God wants!
· What does God want?
Salvation of the world, consider Jesus often spoke of doing His Fathers will Jh6.38-40; obedience, he willed creation, we wills salvation.... etc
How is this knowledge given? “Spiritual” – that is as opposed to fleshly.
Spiritual knowledge is new born knowledge. This spiritual knowledge is wise and understanding – wisdom biblically speaking is knowledge that helps one lead a good life. ‘Understanding’ is the bringing together of all that we know that we might live well.
So Paul is praying that that they would know God’s will, which can only come to them spiritually, that is in their new born again nature, and then knowing Gods will they understand and act wisely.
APP
How highly do we prize the knowledge of Gods will?
In difficult times we often pray that God would show us his will, often meaning ‘help me do the thing that will work out best for me’!
The ancients cherished the knowledge of God as of far more worth than gold!
How do we go about getting this knowledge? By steeping our minds in scripture.
God’s mind, God’s will, is revealed to us in the bible, Pauls prayer that they may know Gods will was partly answered by the very words that he wrote to them, and also to us!
To be filled with a knowledge of Gods will is to know and practices the scriptures.
How highly do we cherish the Bible, for it is there that we find God’s will.
2) V10-11 Paul then gives the reason why he prays this for the Colossians:
A) This knowledge will produce a “walk worthy of the Lord”!
“walk”: symbolic for your living / behaviour / lifestyle / acting / way you go about, etc.
The Christian walk is very different from the unbelievers walk, they go in different directions. The Christian does God’s will, no longer my will! Ultimately my will and Gods will should become the same thing, as the believer conforms more and more to Gods likeness.
The Christian is to walk worthy of the Lord!
· Paul is praying for something that can actually be done.
We can live a life, have a walk, that is actually worthy of Christ!
Paul often calls his churches to this “worthy” living, action.
Our walk is to reflect our new life. It is to reflect Jesus.
Not only does this knowledge of God lead to worthy living / walking.
It actually leads to lives that please God!
· Again we stress Paul is praying for something that can be done!
This is not about life after death, when perfection comes, but life now. Fully pleasing God now. We think of ourselves very often as unworthy servants, Paul himself said he was the least of all the apostles, but there is this other side: we can actually live in such a way that we please God! That we bring him happiness!
APP
Your calling as a believer is to bring happiness to God.
What a positive outlook this can bring to our daily living, if we get up knowing that today we will seek to please God!
B) But it does not even end here, Paul prays for spiritual knowledge that will lead to lives that are worthy of the Lord and actually please Him, and further; this will lead to fruit bearing.
Productivity and value! This will bring meaning and reason into life! How do we bear fruit?
Through works! Good works are called forth from the believer. (see john 15, Eph2v10)
Good works are just simply that, anything that is good – helping one another, serving etc.
APP
If you know what is good to do then just simply do it!
Often our human motivation is that other people would see us, but the point is God has given us good things to do and he sees us, and so we should work for Him.
C) Further, as we so live and please God and work, Paul prays that they will continue to grow in their knowledge of God! This is the outcome of such a life – a greater relationship with God.
APP
This is bring us to the heart of the matter. The all important relationship of our life is our relationship with God. Knowledge of Him is experience of Him.
As we know His will and do it, so then our relationship will grow with Him. The other side of that is true too, as we disobey and turn from what he wants, so our relationship grows cold.
3) what will sustain us in seeking to know God and his will, in good works and pleasing Him?
v11 he prays this for them so that they would have great endurance and patience, that comes from Gods glorious might. That is from the Sovereign all powerful King.
APP
Paul knows that this is all hard work! It does not just happen overnight! Sometimes we just give up on God’s will. So Paul prays for endurance and patience in it all.
v12 further he prays all this for them so that they would joyfully give thanks to the Father, for what he has done!
APP
