Sunday Sermon
sunday morning service 20th Sept 2009
Acts 17v1-15:
Last week we noted with great delight the gospel reach Europe for the first time.
Today we will see two more places where the gospel had a powerful effect.
Paul’s journey into Europe seems to be taking a similar shape wherever he goes, there is the initial preaching of the message, then there are those who believe and those who reject, finally, Paul, then has to leave for another city!
· Remember, too, that these travels were no easy things, about 100 miles had to be walked to get from Philippi to Thessalonica!
Theme: witnessing / evangelising.
1) We have a Great Message to tell!
Preaching / explaining
· Thessalonica:
Reasoned with them from scripture v2
He explained and demonstrated that that Jesus is the Christ v3
He preached for a decision: some were persuaded v4
· Berea:
Paul again goes to the synagogue and presents the case for Christ.
They receive it with humble thoughtfulness – they want to know if it’s true.
App
a. The message is all important.
The church were to be witnesses 1v8 throughout the world to Jesus Christ.
They had to tell who Jesus was, and what he had done.
For us this means we need to be biblically knowledgeable.
Need to get people to see their personal need.
Need to present it at the level of truth.
· Do you know the gospel well enough to vocally tell someone?
b. the Power of the Spirit is all important:
The church were to witness in the power of the Holy Spirit.
That’s why the early church had to wait in Jerusalem before they went out to witness 1v8.
Paul preaches in the power of the Spirit 1thes1v5.
We are to witness in the power of the Spirit, that means we need to be much at prayer.
We need to wait on God, asking for the Spirit to be poured out on us!
· Do you pray for the Spirit to fill you for witnessing?
So we have a message to proclaim and a Person through whom to proclaim it!
· Our task is to make sure we know the truth, and pray for the Spirits blessing on us and our witness!
2) we will surely find opposition, it will not be easy.
Persecution:
As Paul preached the message there inevitably came opposition.
· Thessalonica
The unbelieving Jews were jealous! V5 Why? Because of the effectiveness of Paul work.
They start a riot in the city!
Go to the house where P&S were staying but did not find them so take Jason instead!
Charge them with saying they are troublemakers who are proclaiming a king other than Caesar v6-7. Such a charge led to mass confusion v8.
Charge Jason and the others and them let them off on bail v9.
· Berea
The Thessalonians can’t seem to leave P&S alone! Go down to Berea to riot again v13
App
a. Persecution is something that we are promised as Christians, John 15v20.
Jesus was persecuted, as his servants we will be too!
· If you have never been persecuted then should you wonder about your faith.
Persecution takes many forms, the laughing behind our back, the lack of taking what we say as serious etc. Not likely that in our culture we will be chased out of a place!
b. What then should keep us going if we are persecuted?
Mat 5v11-12, we are blessed because we are in the Kingdom!
We will have troubles and difficulties to face but we are in the kingdom! That’s it!
3) trust the Lord and seek new opportunities.
Moving on / escaping:
From both Thessalonica and Berea P&S have to take flight.
V10 there is a night time escape
V14-15, Paul has to escape to Athens.
It may seem like a failure to run but in fact, this trip was a great success!
Churches were established, the gospel flourished, many were saved and wherever Paul ran to he evangelised and saw conversions!
App
a. In all our witnessing for the Lord we need to have confidence in Him.
The results are not down to us!
We need to know the message, we need to pray, but at the end of the day it is the Lord who brings the increase.
B. If we are not getting anywhere with the people we are witnessing to, we maybe need to move on. There comes a point when we simply have to leave matters in God’s hands.
It may be that the next encounter will produce fruit.
Seek out new contacts, seek out new people to witness to.
There may be some Berean’s out there yet!
sunday evening service 20th Sept 2009
Philippians 1v1-11
Praying as saints and slaves.
1) who are we?
V1 Paul introduces himself as a slave of Christ.
But he addresses the church in Philippi as saints.
We are servants/slaves “of” Christ Jesus, just as every believer is.
A slave is someone who belongs to another, who has no rights of their own,
they have been bought at a price.
We are slaves of Christ.
But we are also Saints “in” Christ Jesus!
Slavery to a hard and uncaring master brings misery, slavery to Christ brings holiness – that is what ‘saint’ means, holy, set apart, special for God!
Our identity and our work are bound up closely together.
Christ is the unifying factor.
We are in him and we work for him.
App
A good understanding of who we are and what our role is in this world is basic to our peace and happiness. Who we are defines us. I am a saint, set apart by God for God.
Thus I live serving God.
(V2 gives the usual blessing that Paul has in most of his letters. Grace and peace.
He is expressing more than a desire for them to experience God’s blessing.
He knows that their salvation is by grace alone, Gods unmerited favour, and that because of His grace they now have peace. It is what they have, not just what he wished for them).
2) as Saints and Slaves what should we do?
Knowing who we are and what we are here for becomes more concrete in the life of prayer.
Two ‘’how’s” and two “reasons” for prayer:
Following the introductory comments Paul expresses his attitude towards the Philippians.
a. How does he pray for them? He is thankful for them and full of joy in prayer for them v3-4, deep emotional affection 8.
b. what Reasons does he have for being thankful, joyful, and emotional in prayer?
i. Because of their partnership in the gospel v5&7:
In a way it was easy for him to pray with this attitude because he knew first hand their commitment, service and attitude towards the work.
He was not dealing with a bunch of lazybones or turncoats, as in some other places!!
ii. because he is sure of their salvation v6.
Further he was able to pray this way because of his hope in God. Ultimately it was his hope in God that gave him such joy in prayer. He knew that God was more concerned and certainly more able to save than he was.
He rejoiced in the greatness of God that brings us the promise of v6.
App
The who we are, defines the what we do: we are saints, thus we serve, thus we pray.
Part of that service is prayer.
But how can our prayers be inspired, so that they are not just a going through the motions?
a. Recognise our need for one another.
This work of the gospel that we have been called to is something that takes all of us together! Paul rejoiced in the Philippians because he experienced so much of that joint effort.
b. Recognise God who is at work v6.
Our prayer can be inspired by the joy of knowing that God will answer our prayers because his aim is to finish His work of salvation!
3) what should we pray for one another?
V9 that their Christian love may grow. But how, through greater knowledge and perception/discernment/insight.
V10 if that happens the effect will be they will be able to know what Gods will is
V11 they will be fruitful and bring glory to Christ.
Growth in agapy brings a better understanding of God’s will, and through obedience to that there will be the production of fruit to the glory of God.
App
What is it we really pray for?
What do we want most for people?
· As a spiritual exercise is would do us no harm at all to sit down with a piece of paper and name the people we pray for and the things that we pray for them.
I reckon that much of our prayer life is conditioned by what we think and want, rather than what the bible reveals to be what God wants.
Paul in these last verse gives us a template for prayer requests:
a. pray for a growth in the knowledge of God, who is love. V9
Not just an academic knowledge but a knowledge that then works out in practice. Discernment is the ability to put our knowledge into practical daily living.
b. pray for the ability to actually put the knowledge into daily life v10.
c. pray that as the detail is worked out fruit may come and God may be glorified v11.
· Now take the piece of paper with the names on it and think how you can pray that template over their lives and situations.
Remember who you are and what you are here for. Prayer is part of your calling as a saint and a slave.
