Fans and Followers - Part 8

Acts 4:1-22

Going | Fans & Followers

Intro

When it comes to being a true follower of Jesus and not just a fan, here is what Jesus says...

Message

Context for Acts 4

Acts 2- Captures the day of Pentecost, the pouring out of the Holy Spirit. 3,000 people were saved, and day by day, they continued to add more.

Acts 3- Peter and John go into the temple, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, Peter heals a lame man.

In a walkway on the eastern side of the temple, people saw this miracle and gathered around Peter and John, and Peter again preached a gospel message. 

This brings us to Chapter 4, our text for today. Let’s read.

Acts 4:1-22

Summary

V.1-3- The Saddeucess came to arrest Peter and John because they were proclaiming the gospel.

V.4- 5 thousand men believed as a result of their preaching.

1. Going is empowered by God through the Holy Spirit for the salvation Jesus gives. 

Peter and John were brought before a council of religious elites and officials called the Sanhedrian. Many people use their imagination to picture what this would have looked like, and when looking at paintings of this scene, you can see Peter and John in the middle of a room of one or two hundred other people.

The council asked Peter and John, “By what power or name did you do this?” Luke, the writer of Acts says, “Then Peter, filled by the Holy Spirit, said…”

• He proclaims that the man was healed in the name of Jesus, “whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead– before you well. 11 Jesus is “‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.’ 12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”
• As we go, we must remember how we are empowered and what we are empowered to do. 
• Last week, we talked about the prosperity gospel and how people teach and do things in the name of the Holy Spirit that are actually counter to God’s purposes. 
• From what we see in this passage, the Holy Spirit was not a means for Peter and John to have financial abundance and flourishing. The Holy Spirit, God’s Spirit in us, gives us power to proclaim the name of Jesus in hopes that people would hear his name and be saved!
• We’re empowered by God through the Holy Spirit to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. 

1. Going does NOT require special qualifications(v.13)

In verse 13, the council was astonished by their boldness, even though they were common and uneducated. 

• To share the Gospel and to go expanding God’s kingdom does not require you to have a particular degree, be a certain type of person, be in a particular socioeconomic level, have a certain size house, and do certain activities.
• This is one of the issues that we have in America: we’ve tied faith to the American Dream. So, in order to be effective for the Kingdom of God, you have to have a certain social & economic prestige.
• For Israel, it was all about how well you can appear to be righteous on the exterior.
• This is a popular saying—kind of cliche, but very true. God does not call the qualified; he qualifies the called. If you are a believer in Jesus, you are called to share the Gospel and make disciples. Jesus supports you in this calling by giving you the Holy Spirit to empower you for this task.

I love the second part of this verse, which says of the council, “they recognized that they(Peter & John) had been with Jesus.

• When people look at your life, can they tell that you have been with Jesus?
• This is where we go back to the “Being” part of this sermon series. Every aspect of the Christian life flows out of abiding in Jesus through the reading of His word, time spent in prayer with Him, and fellowship with His body of believers.
• A quick test you can take is to consider this truth: “If you have not been seeing Jesus, people will not see Jesus in you.”
• Three ways I can tell if you’re truly a follower of Jesus and not just a fan: 1. Where is your time going? 2. Where is your money going? 3. What do you talk about most?
• When people see our life, they need to be able to say, “They’ve been with Jesus.”

1. Going is about serving God rather than pleasing man.

• Peter and John answered the council and said, “Look, if you think we should listen to you rather than God, your gonna have to make that judgment for yourself.” They’re like, “We know what we’re supposed to be doing; the issue is between you and God.”
• As a believer, you kind of have to have a holy grit about you. This resolves that you are going to please God and serve him despite what people may say or do to you.
• In high school, I was bold about my faith. People knew that I was rocking with Jesus, and I didn’t want their weed and their parties, so they didn’t invite me. I had people grow to be dissonent with me because we were friends but were surprised that I didn’t condone sinful behavior. I had other believers come to me and say, “Man, I wish I was as bold about my faith as you were.” To them, I would respond similarly to Peter and John, “I can’t but speak of what I’ve seen and heard.”
• Can you not help but speak what you have seen and heard?

1.  Going flows out of our testimony.

• Revelation 12:11 says that we overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. 
• If God has saved you, you have a personal witness to God’s power to bring death to life and save you from your sin.
• You may say, "Well, I’m not as bold as Peter and John," but remember: you have the same powerful Holy Spirit in you that they had.
• As believers in Jesus, we speak and proclaim what we’ve seen and heard with that message: “What God did for me, he can do for you!” And we don’t do this in our own strength, we utilize the power given to us by God’s Spirit dwelling inside of you.
• We trust God, and we take the next step of obedience, knowing that he will establish our steps. He will help you!

Now, this message has mostly been about personal application, but I want us to take a macro perspective and talk about the church as a whole. Going and making disciples is the sole purpose of the church, and everything else is secondary. 

Across the street from where I went to church, there is a beautiful stone Presbyterian church. It has a huge campground with cabins, a pool, and other amenities. At one time, it was a bustling church. However, for the past two years, I’ve checked their live stream periodically, and you can see pretty much the whole room. Now, inside of a 500 to 600 person sanctuary, there are roughly 25 to 30 people. It looks like a chapel service at a funeral home with no life or conviction in the worship and teaching. Arguably, in 5 to 10 years, that church will likely be no more. Is that church making disciples? No.

We’ve been given the incredible opportunity here at our church to take a detour from that and see God bringing life to our church. In order to see the Gospel proclaimed and God’s kingdom expanded in Forest Park, we have to be serious about going! Currently, we have great attendance to events and activities here at the church, but we’ve not been doing well collectively in participating in community events. How are we going to catch fish if we’re not going to the pond?

Before we close, I want us to take a look at Matthew 18:19-20 in conjunction with Acts 1:8

Jesus says Go make disciples of all nations, baptize them, and teach them. Now, that may seem like it’s only talking about overseas missionaries, but this is the task of all believers no matter where they are. In Acts 1:8, as Jesus is about to ascend into heaven, he says that we will receive power from the Holy Spirit and we will be witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the end of the earth.

• For these followers Jesus was talking to, He is saying you GO be a witness for me in your city, in your state, in your region, and throughout the whole word to all people.
• Going isn’t just for pastors. Going isn’t just for missionaries. To be a believer in Jesus is to go.

I have decided 

• I have decided to GO. 
• This week, we have 2 community events you can come be a part of. One on Monday and one on Friday.
• If you haven’t been coming to Role Model Revolution, come and start pouring to other people.