The greater power for us after the
resurrection is the Holy Spirit.
That same Spirit that raised Christ
from the dead shall work in us, dwell in us and work through us!
I don't know about you but that fires
me up!
Many of us miss the message of
training in the days between Easter and Pentecost.
God the Father and God the Holy
Spirit raised Jesus from the dead, the risen Jesus didn’t leave in a hurry: He continued His commitment to His
disciples and put the finishing touches on three years of training.
He wants to do the same for us.
On the Day of Pentecost, (fiftieth
day) there was great rejoicing for the freedom that the Holy Spirit brought.
1.
He still brings us freedom today.
2.
We no longer have to live in any kind
of captivity; neither does the world around us.
God wants people to be free.
1.
Jesus spoke these words:
Luke 4:18-19 NLT [18] "The Spirit of the LORD is upon
Me, for He
has anointed Me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim that
captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed
will be set free, [19] and that the time of the LORD's favor has
come."
Release and freedom.
Those held captive would be released
into their purpose, freed from their sin and bondage.
1.
Released and freed to proclaim the
second coming of Jesus Christ.
2 Corinthians 3:16-18 NLT "[16] But whenever someone
turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. [17] For the Lord is the Spirit, and
wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. [18] So all of us who
have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. And the
Lord-who is the Spirit-makes us more and more like him as we are changed into
His glorious image."
Illustrate here:
Need a box and cover for box and a flash light illustration for Sunday.
1.
We're going to restore faith in our
community, don't believe me just watch.
2.
We are going to restore confidence in
the church, don't believe me just watch.
3.
We're going to restore the name of
Jesus in our hearts, in our city, in this nation, in this globe, don't believe
me just watch.
4.
We're going to ignite passion like
never before in this body of Christ, don't believe me just watch.
5.
We're going to worship in spirit and
in truth like never before don't believe me just watch.
6.
We're going to reach children,
students, college students,
single adults, married couples and the lost like we never dreamed, don't
believe me just watch.
7.
We're going to grow this church with
new believers, new converts, and people who are far from God, don't believe me
just watch.
God the Holy Spirit gives us a
glimpse of the future and what it will look and be like.
What Jesus began we are to finish.
The very first verse in Acts 1:1
teaches us that the gospels were “about
everything Jesus began to do and teach”
the rest of Acts teaches us that Jesus was still doing them.
He continues to teach us in the days,
weeks, months, decades,
centuries, and millenniums after the gospels.
The gospel message has never changed!
The power of the gospel has never
changed!
Grace has never changed!
Forgiveness has never changed and the
Holy Spirit has never changed!
1.
What God was He still is and what He
was doing He's still doing!
2.
He's on task until the end.
Acts 1:1-8 NLT "[1] In my first book I told you,
Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach [2] until the day He
was taken up to heaven after giving His chosen apostles further instructions
through the Holy Spirit. [3] During the forty days after He suffered and died,
He appeared to the apostles from time to time, and He proved to them in many
ways that He was actually alive. And He talked to them about the Kingdom of
God. [4] Once when He was eating with them, He commanded them, "Do not
leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift He promised, as I told you
before. [5] John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be
baptized with the Holy Spirit." [6] So when the apostles were with Jesus,
they kept asking Him, "Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and
restore our kingdom?" [7] He replied, "The Father alone has the
authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. [8]
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be
my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere-in Jerusalem, throughout
Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
The work of the first century church
was, is, and will always be the work of Jesus.
Is that still true today in us?
1.
It’s all too easy to substitute our work
for His, to engage in ministry apart from His direction.
2.
What is Jesus doing and teaching in
our day?
1.
The same things.
Jesus’ message in the 40 days of
resurrection was no different than His message during His three years of
ministry: the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3).
It’s worth noting that the book of Acts
opens and closes with the Kingdom of God front and center.
The very last verse in the book shows
us Paul, three decades later, still proclaiming the Kingdom of God.
Acts 28:31 NLT "boldly proclaiming the Kingdom of God
and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ. And no one tried to stop him."
The gospel accounts end with Jesus
saying, “Go!”
In Acts, Jesus says, “Wait!”
1.
What was so important that Jesus told
his disciples to stay in Jerusalem?
1.
We can be familiar with the mission
of Jesus Christ to go into all the world and blow right past the revelation of
the power to do it, which is through the Holy Spirit.
2. Jesus
said, in effect, “Don’t go anywhere, or do anything
until you receive all that I have for you?”
1.
We can work for God without any
special empowerment.
2.
We cannot work with Him apart from
the Holy Spirit.
Jesus told His followers there were
some things we would not know, especially regarding the times and the seasons
of the last days.
Yet this very topic is of great
interest in the church today: the true illness is a church preoccupied with an
exit strategy when our mission is stay and represent the Kingdom of God,
preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Biblically speaking, we’ve been in the “last
days”
for 2,000 years.
Jesus tells us to focus on the
mission, not the culmination of the mission (Acts 1:7-8).
The angels who were present at the
ascension asked a great question:
Acts 1:11b “Why
are you standing here staring into heaven?”
1.
There is more to the mission than
just going to heaven.
2.
There's a world to share the gospel
with and a generation that is desperately searching.
John the Baptist prepared the way for
Jesus.
That's me, that’s us, that's the mission.
John 3:16
God so loved the world: don't believe
me just watch?
1.
I will give Jesus and He will give
His life to rescue all mankind.
Illustrate here:
put chairs out to represent religion, knowledge, money, success, education,
unbelief, atheism, hedonism, agnostic, astrology, mythology, removing the
obstacles to see Jesus.
We are going to have to work to
remove every obstacle, level every high place down, raise every low place up,
and preach truth to every mindset.
Reaching out to every man, woman,
boy, and girl in our area that they might know and experience Jesus Christ and
eternal life.
I believe we are in the greatest hour
of the global church and I want to destroy the kingdom of darkness and exalt
the Kingdom of God!
1 Corinthians 15:3-4 NLTb "Christ died for our sins,
just as the Scriptures said. [4] He was buried, and He was raised from the dead
on the third day, just as the Scriptures said."
The gospel is not simply that Christ
died.
The gospel is that Christ died for
our sins.
It is not just His death, but also
the purpose of His death that we believe.
Then His resurrection puts Him in a
class prepared, created, and matchless against all other men, gods, or
religions.
1.
A class all by Himself.
There is not one other person that
has been prophesied for hundreds of years by hundreds of people, Priests,
Levites, Pastors, Reverends, unbelievers and leaders all over the world.
His birth was prophesied about, His
life was prophesied about, His death was prophesied about, His burial was
prophesied about, and His resurrection was prophesied about.
You know what else was prophesied
about His Second Coming.
1.
I believe, I am ready, His word is
true, and His word has been true and His word will always be true.
2.
I am a believer.
1.
I am working to prepare the way for
others, Jesus is coming, and He is returning for His people, don't believe me
just watch!
None will ever compare or be able to
purchase salvation but Jesus Christ.
There is none other.
There is no other God, there is no
other Savior, there is no other way, it is Christ and Christ alone.
Isaiah 43:10-13 NLT [10] "But you are my witnesses, O
Israel!" says the LORD. "You are my servant. You have been chosen to
know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God. There is no other
God-there never has been, and there never will be. [11] I, yes I, am the LORD,
and there is no other Savior. [12] First I predicted your rescue, then I saved
you and proclaimed it to the world. No foreign god has ever done this. You are
witnesses that I am the only God," says the LORD. [13] "From eternity
to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo
what I have done."
I am His witness, and I have been
placed in protective custody.
Luke 1:37 KJV "For with God nothing shall be
impossible."
If a woman testified her son was
virgin born would you believe it?
1.
I would if the place of His birth,
the manner of His life and death, His burial and resurrection had been
predicted as much as 4,000 years in advance.
2.
If He lived a perfect life and even
His enemies who hated Him severely, could not find fault in Him, I would
believe Him to be virgin born.
3.
If He could walk on waves and still the tempest.
4.
If He could heal the sick and open up
blind eyes.
5.
If He could read the inner most
thoughts of the heart through the divine will and purpose of All Mighty God, I would believe He was
virgin born.
6.
If at the hour of His death the sun,
moon, and stars refused to shine and the earth began to seize and convulse
itself as dead people literally came out of the grave, I would believe it.
7.
If the Roman Empire stood and said we
will not let Him live again and they stationed 60 Roman guards there to secure
the tomb.
8.
If they sealed it and it was illegal
for anyone to break the seal.
1.
But they could not keep His body in
the grave and He tore down the bars of death and went down to the pits of hell
and conquered Satan and took the keys of death, hell and the grave.
9.
If He got up out of the grave and
lived and walked and was seen for forty days.
10.If that were the
case I could believe He was virgin born.
11.If after His
resurrection an unlearned fisherman preached a sermon and 3,000 souls were
dynamited into the kingdom of God.
12.If trusting in
His name would make a murderer kill no more, make a thief steal no more, make a
drunkard drink no more, and make a liar lie no more.
13.I would surely
believe He would be virgin born.
14.If darkness, sin and
ignorance vanished at the mention of His name, I could believe anybody could be
virgin born if they possessed that kind of power.
15.But since only
one man did that I believe that only one man was virgin born.
1.
I believe that man is Jesus.
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