“The Need for Godly Leaders”

Scripture:   Judges  2:6-23

Lesson #1, from the Book of Judges

 The LORD had chosen Joshua to succeed Moses as the leader of Israel.  In Deuteronomy 3:26-29 we read that God was angry with Moses, and he had been denied the right to enter the Promised Land.  We aren’t told what the actual reason for the anger was, but it may have been Moses’ decision to listen to 10 of the spies he had sent to scope out the Land before entering, instead of listening to the LORD.  It was only Joshua and Caleb who believed that God’s presence was all that the nation needed to succeed in their new home.

 Moses had been a faithful servant for many years, but this one failure to trust was very possibly his downfall.  And the next leader, Joshua, would be filled with wisdom and strength to become God’s man in the new nation.  (Deuteronomy 34:1-9)

 Why is this story so important for us today?  In Romans 13:1-7, we read that God has established all authority, and that all who are in authority are God’s servants.  It would seem that all who serve in leadership positions, whether in government, or business, or community organizations, or especially in the church, are not the ultimate authority – the LORD is over even them.  So every leader should be following God’s desires and commands, and everyone else should be following the leadership of God’s servants!  And all will be held accountable for their individual faithful, or unfaithful, service.

 Moses followed, Joshua followed, and each of the Judges who were faithful  followed.  So what is there to learn about faithful service from these leaders?  That is what this series is intended to consider!  So for the next several weeks, we will be examining the lessons that we can learn from the book of Judges.

 Read Judges 2:6-10

 Obedience to God was of vital importance for the people of Israel.  Throughout the ages, we read that when they obeyed, life went well for them, but when they failed to follow, the result was never pleasant.  Failure, of course, wasn’t always followed closely with a negative consequence, but in time, it always has.  God gives everyone a chance to repent from their disobedient ways, but unfortunately, few do.

 During the time of Joshua’s leadership, there was generally faithful living by the people of Israel.  They weren’t perfect, but for the most part, the vast majority had been witnesses to all that their faithful God had done for them, and they did the best they could to follow as their LORD God Jehovah expected them to.  But as our passage explains, and as the leadership began to pass away from this life, the new generations had only stories to lean on, but no actual witnesses to Jehovah’s support and blessings that had come to rest upon the nation.

 If you have ever wondered just how important our testimony may be for others, now you know!  God’s work within our lives isn’t always as obvious as we might expect it to be.  When the LORD’s presence isn’t so apparent, and without a solid faith to support us, trust in God can easily begin to slip.  And when our faith begins to deteriorate, the change in us will be seen by others, and they may begin to doubt as well.

 Read Judges 2:11-15

 And wherever there is a void in faith, evil will always become a destructive flood.  This is reminiscent of Israel’s time in Egypt.  We remember that Joseph, following his difficulties with betrayal after betrayal, he rose to prominence in the nation, and became a favorite with Pharoah.  He even brought his family to this land where he had become an honored leader.

 The family of Israel lived a good life for years, until the nation’s leadership no longer remembered what Joseph had done to feed the nation during a terrible famine.  It was then that “evil” entered the picture, and Israel was turned into slaves instead of honored relatives of Joseph.  Egyptian leadership had forgotten all that they owed to Joseph’s family. (Exodus 1:1-14)

 Relationships are always built upon knowledge – knowledge of who each other is, knowledge of what the other has accomplished and what it means for you, knowledge that not only makes the relationship worthwhile, but also important and special.  After about 400 years, the current Pharaoh had never learned how important and special the efforts and memory of Joseph was for Egypt.

 And this is what had happened to Israel – they had forgotten how important God was to them individually, as well as for their nation.  And even more important is the fact that the most basic foundation of faith is a firm relationship with God.  And without the inherent love and trust of God in their, and in our, lives, evil will always have full reign over us.

 Read Judges 2:16-19

 The LORD again brought mercy to His people and sent new leaders to show them the way of God.  He gave the Judges wisdom and truth to lead the nation in Godly ways, and was their guide and advisor during their tenure of office.  Why would God be so generous to such a rebellious crowd like Israel?  God’s love knows no bounds, and His compassion has no equal.  But it appears that even though the people followed each of the Judges, their hearts just weren’t in it!  Judges weren’t with the people as a permanent and successive office.  As the tenure of each expired, the LORD gave the nation another chance to follow his way obediently, and each time, they not only reverted to the old ways, but scripture tells us that they became even more “corrupt”!

 God’s intent with the establishment of Judges was not only that they would lead the nation and administer His laws, but that they would be examples to the nation of what Godliness in this life is all about.  The problem, though, with using humans as examples of what God desires for our life, is that humans are just as imperfect as the subjects of their leadership are! As good as our leaders try to be, we are never as good as the LORD would have us be, and never as good as the people think we should be!

 And even if we listen to the Godly lessons of our leaders, the pull that evil has on our lives is still so strong that we very easily submit to the easier, more familiar, and much more rational way of earth, which is exactly what Israel did.

 Read Judges 2:20-23

 In these few verses, it almost seems as though God gives up on Israel, and in His anger, decides to use others to punish the errant nation.  However, God is not a vindictive God, and as far as I know, He never gives up on us!  He does test us from time to time, though, to see if we have learned His lessons.  At least He has in my own life, and I seem to learn as much from the tests as I do from the teachings themselves.

 What these 4 verses tell me is that when we refuse to follow the way of our Almighty God, there comes a time when He will step back, and let us try life our own way.  And again, whenever I am allowed to go my own way, it never seems to work out very well!  I guess that is part of God’s testing, which just goes to prove that the test is more for the student to learn from, than it is for the teacher to grade us on!

 So what are the lessons that Judges brings to us today?  Here are some, and you may have even learned a few others:

 1.  We are all teachers – whether it is of God’s word and will, or the way that earth would have us go.  And this life will be the proof of which we are advocating for.  So we should always be a witness for Godliness, and not of anything else.

 2.  We need to constantly work to improve the relationship that we have with the LORD and His ways, and not work to bring His ways into line with our own!

 3.  A Godly leader is not only a guide and administrator, but more importantly, must be an example of what a faithful follower of Christ should be about.

 4.  And finally, we must always do our best on the tests that come our way, and never think that we get to grade God’s divine exam, or even that He grades on a curve!  There is only one Judge for our life, and there are only 2 test grades – Pass or Fail.

 May we never fail our glorious LORD.

 

“Faithful, Right to the End” (#17)

 Scripture:   Acts28:17-31

 Today will be lesson #17, our last from the Book of Acts, and it takes us to the last entry in Luke’s report on Paul and the ministry that he had carried to the Gentile world.  But while this may be the end of this Book, it is only the beginning of the Christian Church.  Within a very few years, the Way of Jesus Christ would have to separate from Judaism; persecution would transfer from the hatred that the Jews had for Jesus, to the perfected forms of oppression and torture that the Romans had become known for; and in spite of it all, the word of Jesus would begin spreading beyond all measure. 

 But the greatest aspect of the Christian faith would be the strength and commitment that resided in all who believed in Jesus Christ.  Neither hardships, nor hatred, nor lies, nor cruelty could stop the word from touching lives from Asia, to India, to Spain, and beyond.  And the Holy Spirit would be at work through each and every one who came to believe.

 In our lesson for today, we find the apostle Paul – the one who followed the LORD’s call to minister to the Gentiles (Isaiah 49:5-6 & Acts 9:15-16) – under Roman control, awaiting his own execution.  There was a day when Paul was the hater and oppressor of Christians, and soon, he would suffer the same fate as he had subjected others to. 

 But until that day and moment arrived, he was still the apostle of Jesus Christ, and would do nothing other than share Jesus with all who would listen.

 Read Acts 28:17-20

 Paul was under arrest in Rome, but as a Roman citizen, he was allowed to stay in a private residence, under the promise that he wouldn’t escape!  And it gave him the opportunity to minister in a city that he had never been to before.  And as his custom, he began with the Jewish community that had grown up in Rome.  He would explain the reason for his being there, but that he was innocent of all charges, both those that the Jews accused him of, and those that brought him to Rome.

 And he tells the leaders of the synagogues that he comes to speak to them because of the “hope of Israel” that has bound him with a chain.  What is he talking about?  First, the “hope” that he mentions is God’s promise of Messiah’s redemption of Israel.  It wasn’t that Israel didn’t believe in the prophecy, it’s just that few could see that it was being fulfilled through Jesus!  The second issue is that the “chain” he mentions is his faith in Jesus Messiah, and it includes his commitment to lead others to the faith that can be their hope, too.

 Have you ever thought of faith as being as strong as a chain – not like a slender, ornamental chain, but like a huge, strong logging chain – unbreakable, powerful, and indestructible.  That is what is holding Paul to Jesus and the leading of the Spirit of God, and this is the same glorious power that will show us the way to serve in the name of our LORD.

 Read Acts28:21-24

 These Jewish leaders respond to Paul in an unexpected way.  First, that they haven’t received any guidance from Jerusalem regarding Paul and his new ideas.  As a matter of fact, they haven’t even heard any rumors that new arrivals from Jerusalem had brought with them.  It’s hard to believe, but it’s possible.  And second, they actually want to hear more about this new faith from Paul because they are hearing a lot of negative comments about Jesus, and they are wondering if there is any merit to them.

 Apparently, they hadn’t heard any details about The Way, even though the rumors were all negative.  So they want to get it straight from the “horse’s mouth”, so to speak.  They pick a date to meet with Paul, and on that day, not only do the leaders come, but many others join in to hear the Good News of Jesus.  The meeting lasted all day, while Paul made the connection between the kingdom of God and the coming of Jesus; he explained how Jesus has fulfilled the Law of Moses (not all of the additions and clarifications that had been added through the years though); and how the prophets had spoken about him over and over again.

 And as had happened many times in the past, some listened to Paul and accepted the truth of Messiah, while others decided to remain in the old ways.  And I expect that each of us have had that same experience – that some will listen to our words about Jesus, and what faith in Him has meant for our lives, but that others either refuse to even listen, or actually ridicule us for even believing that God could ever be that personal.

 And how do we react to the disappointing response?  Do we persevere and keep on trying with other people?  Or do we decide that it’s too embarrassing to share Jesus, so we never try it again?  The next time you find yourself in a similar situation, ask yourself, “What would Paul or Peter do about these folks?  Would they quit?  Would they give up?  Would they turn tail and run?”  Let’s see how Paul reacted.

 Read Acts28:25-27

 He got right in the face of the doubters, didn’t he!  He even pulls the words of the prophet Isaiah down upon them!  The Prophets were special in the life of Israel, and their words were always recognized as commands from their precious Jehovah God.  And these words would have struck very close to home for these Jews. (Isaiah 6:9-10) 

 Had they truly closed their ears to the word of God?  Had their vision blurred to all that Jehovah had done for them?  Had their hearts turned to stone?  And then, Paul’s next words must have pierced even their hardened hearts! 

 If they had seen with their eyes and understood what God was truly all about; if they had heard His words with their ears and accepted the truths that had come to them through the Prophets, and through Jesus; if their hearts had embraced the great gift of redemption that Jesus had won and paid for by his love, Paul says that they would have turned away from the lies that they had followed in the past, and the great Messiah Jesus would have healed their lives, and would have restored them to God’s glory.

 It almost sounds as if Paul is washing his hands of the Jews.  Of course the LORD never will, but He tells us, in Mark 6:10-12, that if a people won’t welcome us or our words, then we are to shake the dust from our feet as we leave, that we are to take nothing of them or their community with us.  We have to admit that the stubbornness that settles upon others does cause a great deal of frustration in us!  But we also need to remember that perseverance is a gift from God.  In Romans 5:1-5, we read that the struggles that come our way bring, first, perseverance, then character, then the hope of God that will never disappoint us.  In other words, if we stay the course, God’s hope will thrive within us.

 Read Acts28:28-31

 Paul tells the Jews that if they won’t relax their grip on the law, and begin holding on to the hope of Jesus, then he’ll turn to the Gentiles, and offer them the hope of Christ. And for two more years - Paul’s final two years of life - he continues the Gentile mission that his LORD Jesus Christ had called him to (Acts 9:15-16).  Everyone would be welcome to come and hear him proclaim the truth of God, just as it had been revealed in the life, sacrifice and resurrection of Christ. 

 And the final lesson that Paul offers us is this – never give up, never fear the mission and ministry that God calls you to, never stop sharing Jesus with others, never doubt that your efforts will make a difference in the life of someone else, and never believe that someone else could do far better than you could.

 Remember Jesus’ words to Thomas – “Stop doubting and believe.” (John 20:27).

“Testify to All – Great and Small Alike”

 Scripture:   Acts 26 (Selected)

Every Sunday morning in worship, we take time to offer testimonies as to how God is working His mighty ways in and through our lives.  Many have witnessed to God’s work, and we all have been blessed by being reminded that our God is an active and powerful God.  But are we willing and anxious to be a witness to the LORD’s working with those who are walking outside of the faith?

 In Matthew 24:10-14, Jesus tells us that our witness to His work and words is vitally important – that this is the means to salvation for many in the world.  It will also be a precursor to the LORD’s return – in verse 14 we read “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”  It seems that when the word of Jesus is spread throughout the world, that will signal the time for His return!

 And Jesus also speaks about those who proclaim false testimonies in Matthew 15:19 – that they (their words) are just as evil as “murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, and slander.”  So even though we are called to share Jesus and His ways with others, we are also cautioned not to fabricate anything!

 Today, in this our 16^th lesson from the book of Acts, we consider what the apostle Paul thought about sharing the word of Jesus throughout the world.

 Read Acts 26:4-8

 In today’s passage, we will read of a couple of names that most may not be familiar with.  The first is King Agrippa, also known as Herod Agrippa II, king of Israel, and a descendent of King Herod the Great – the one who ruled during the time of Christ’s birth.  The second will be Festus, who was the Roman governor of Judea during this time.  These two men were the most powerful rulers in the region, and we will soon discover how Paul treated this opportunity to testify regarding Jesus.

 King Agrippa had been invited to be present during Paul’s trial before Festus.  He had been given permission to speak before both, and he starts by establishing his former life as a Pharisee.  Agrippa would have known about his past, but this side of Paul may have been new to him.  So the apostle sets the stage by first speaking about his life as a faithful Jewish man.

 But then he associates his new found faith in terms of Jewish law – that he is well founded in all that the nation’s religion, as well as the words of the prophets, have meant for Israel for ages.  The implication, without actually saying it, is that God’s word has always been among them – it’s just that only a few have actually been following it!  He isn’t trying to make his Jewishness more Christian, but rather how Jewish his Christian faith is!  The law that their Jehovah God had set down had never changed – it was only the changes that the Jews had made that had led them in a different direction.

 One of the struggles that had developed was the promise of resurrection.  The Pharisees had held to that belief, but the Sadducees had lost that understanding.  And he charges his accusers with actually opposing the basis that the LORD had established thousands of years before.  For many, the promise of resurrection in the last days was still firm – it’s just that they didn’t see it based in the Messiah, in Jesus. 

 Paul was narrowing down the specifics of the differences that had grown up between the elite of Israel and the followers of Jesus’ Way.

 Read Acts 26:9-11

 Now he confesses, as part of his testimony, that once he was walking in the same shoes that the Jewish legalists wore, but by implication, he is letting the king and governor know that that way no longer held any truth for him.  He now knows the Messiah – the giver of eternity.

 Paul, through skillful testimony, is explaining that it is Israel who has left the way of Jehovah and His Messiah, not the followers of Jesus Christ.  The truth is that even Christians can find themselves in this same morass!  If we get too comfortable with our faith, and begin to take it for granted, we, too, can so easily find ourselves interjecting false thoughts into our semi-dependence on scripture!  I’m sure that you have heard others say that the Bible has to be updated to be brought into the 21^st century - that this is the only way to reach out to those who find scripture antiquated and far too simple for their taste.  Some things never change!

 Paul knows that the ancient days, when God set down the ways He wanted His chosen nation to follow, were still true to form.  But the problem was that as the prophesies of many years previous began to be revealed, the nation wouldn’t believe.  He shows the fallacy of the way he used to live, and will, as his speech continues, confirm the truth of Jehovah God that is living through Jesus Messiah now.  He doesn’t deny what had once been, but shows the unbelievers that what they had become, was not what the LORD desired for them.

 Read Acts 26:19-22

 Between this, and the previous passage that we read, Paul expands on the fullness of his testimony through those happenings on the Road to Damascus, as well as that which he learned in the city itself.

 He confesses his journey away from Jehovah, and then the way he was led back into the truth of Jesus.  This is what a witness is all about.  Consider the witness that John Newton offers in the first verse of his famous hymn “Amazing Grace” – “Amazing grace!  How sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me!  I once was lost, but now am found; was blind, but now I see.”  See the similarity?  Newton proclaims God’s saving grace, then confesses that he once was lost in the darkness of his soul, once was blind to the truth of his God, but that grace had brought him back to life, and had restored his vision of the LORD!

 Paul has done the same thing.  He confessed the old; revealed the new that had come to him, and now is sharing what he is doing with all of the revealed truth that is finally within him.  And he lets both the king and governor know what he now is doing about this new-found faith – he is sharing it with Jew and Gentile alike.  His attitude is exactly what Jesus’ was – He lifted up both Jews and Gentiles; He taught both men and women; He loved all people, and treated no one differently than He did anyone else. 

 And he never distinguished between any of the classes - whenever he had the chance, he shared Jesus with everyone he met - the upper classes and the lower, the great and the small, the mighty and the weak, the wealthy and the poor, the exalted and the subjugated – no one was going to miss out on Jesus, if he had anything to say about it.

 So in Galatians 3:26-29, Paul tells us that all who believe in Christ belong to Him, and will know the grace and glory that John Newton wrote about.  No longer Jew nor Gentile, slave nor free, male nor female – all are one in Christ Jesus.  This is also an important aspect of our testimony – that all are welcome.

 Read Acts 26:24-29

 Festus still doesn’t believe, because he doesn’t have that Hebrew background in his life.  But Paul doesn’t give up – not with the Roman governor, and not with the Jewish king.  And in the last verse for today, our apostle tells us that time doesn’t matter either.  He will proclaim Jesus as long as he possibly can!

 And he makes another interesting point– that when we offer our testimony, it isn’t just for those who we are speaking to, but also for those who may over hear our words.  The Roman court would have had guards in attendance, as well as other officers and officials.  And when our attention is touched, we tend to listen with interest – hearing, learning, considering, drawn, and possibly even called!  When we offer a witness to who God is in our life, when we are faithful to what the LORD desires from us, the Spirit will then begin to work miracles like we could never imagine! 

 Paul never hesitated to share his LORD Jesus Christ wherever he was, whoever he was with, whenever he possible could, and however he felt that the words would sink into the hearts of those who would hear.

 And so must we.

“Confession + Testimony = Empowerment”

 Scripture:   Acts 22:1-21

In today’s lesson, Paul has just been arrested by the Romans because of a near riot in the streets of Jerusalem.  It happened when other “Jews” falsely accused him of desecrating the temple by bringing a Gentile into the inner courts.  Actually, the arrest was more of a rescue mission, as the people were intent on killing Paul, and it was only by action of the Romans that they didn’t succeed! 

 He was taken to the Roman barracks for questioning, where he asked that he be allowed to address the crowd, and the request was granted.  We have to remember just who Paul was – he was a Roman citizen, probably from his father’s side, and a Jew, from his mother’s.  He would have been highly educated in both Jewish and Roman law, and his former life as a Pharisee had positioned him with the elite of Israel.  When he came to the way of the LORD Jesus Christ, even though he had previously hated that way, the skills and knowledge that he had now received would be transformed into love and dedication to the true way of God.

 Interestingly, in his former life, Paul would never have admitted that he had made a mistake!  Now he saw it as a privilege.  In the past, he was totally focused in adhering to the law of Moses, but now it was the law and grace of God that guided his life.  Whether it was confessing to the weakness and failure of his former life, or praising the LORD for the new opportunities and completely new message that he now proclaimed – Paul never hesitated to offer both.

 In this, our 15^th lesson that the book of Acts offers us, we discover just what Paul’s new openness did for him, as well as the nations he ministered to, and what this same change can do for each of us.

 Read Acts 22:1-5

 Paul was a linguist who was fluent in a number of languages.  He spoke Greek and Latin when addressing the Roman authorities, and being a Jew, he spoke Hebrew and Aramaic when conversing with other Jews.  And with the ministry that he had in other nations, he very possibly spoke other languages. 

 He also mentions that much of his religious education was under the tutelage of one of the premier rabbis of that day, Gamaliel.  In Acts 5:33-42, we discover that Gamaliel was a highly respected Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin.  He was not, by any means, an adherent of the Way of Jesus, but he did believe that persecuting those who followed the LORD would gain them little, if anything, and that in time, they would just fade away into obscurity.

 And Paul’s confession continues – he not only speaks of his extremism against the early Christians, but he implicates the high priest and the Sanhedrin in the plots to wipe out all believers in Jesus Christ.  He didn’t include these others to shift any blame from him to them, but simply to show the extent that this hatred had spread throughout the hierarchy of Israel.

 Paul wanted the residents of Jerusalem to understand how despicable he once had been. He offers no justification for his actions, and seeks no forgiveness – he simply sees the need for public confession of the “old Saul” before he begins to share who the “new Paul” had become.

 Read Acts 22:6-11

 Now he begins, not to tell of his renewal, but to share how his change of heart came to be.  First, the sin that had controlled him, and now the power of God at work through Jesus, and then what He, the LORD, was doing for this confessed sinner.  He begins with the time and place when he met Jesus, and all that transpired in that time, that he was stopped dead in his tracks with an incredibly bright light, a voice that accused him of persecuting Jesus, and instructions on what he was to do next.

 Why was it important that his testimony include this meeting with Jesus on that road?  First, to show that the change in him wasn’t his doing, but totally within God’s great plan for his life.  And second, to lend a sense of reality and truth to the event that he was describing. 

So why would this detail be so important in our own testimony?  For the same reasons!  The purpose of our personal witness is to reveal the change that God has made in our life, and to encourage others to let Him do the same for them.

 God has a great plan for us all, and Paul goes on to say that the LORD told him to continue his journey to the city of Damascus where he would be told what to do next.  There is no limit to what God will do to get our attention and our obedience to His word.  Paul was blind from the intense light, and as he was led to his destiny by his traveling companions, he must have been recounting all that had just happened, and was trying to imagine what these next “instructions” would entail.

 He knew that the days of his vendetta against the people of the Way were over, but what would replace them?  Would there be reciprocal persecution?  Would there be a divine punishment?  What would God possibly want to do with someone who had hated his people so intently?

 Read Acts 22: 12-16

 And now he knows!  No punishment, no persecution, no divine condemnation!  And the answer was far beyond anything that he could have imagined – he was to turn away from the law of Moses, and begin following the way of God!  But what will this mean for his life?

 Think about your own experience when you came to the LORD’s way – was it an easy, pleasant transition, or was it more abrupt, even traumatic as mine was?  This can be an important part of our testimony, just as the rest of our journey to God’s way is.  Paul names the faithful servant who delivered the assignment, and the direction that the assignment was to take him in. 

 He would come to know God’s will, he would see and hear Christ’s word that was to be shared, and to top it all off, he was to share that word, as well as his experience with the LORD, with everyone he encountered.  But before he started, he was to “Get up, be baptized and wash [his] sins away, calling on [the name of the LORD].”  Paul, the oppressor of God’s people, was remembering the forgiveness and other preparation that he received for the mission that was about to begin.

 But I’m sure that he was also thinking - what about those who I used to work with, those who encouraged and enabled me in my efforts against the people of the Way, who will soon discover that I not only know everything that they did, but who know all that I have done!  However, we also know that God is not only the God of persistence and surprise, but He is also the God who will not be denied. 

 Whatever others may decide to bring against their former associates, the LORD will see to it that nothing will ever interrupt the plan that He was putting into motion.  And that is exactly what would happen. 

 Read Acts 22:17-21

 God warned Paul that a plot was developing to attack him, and that he was to leave town immediately.  Paul had a task to do, and nothing was going to keep him from his faithful work.

 Ministry for Paul would be nowhere near Jerusalem – he was going to become a missionary to the very people who he had managed to avoid for most of his life!  Now some might relate this to the old saying that “God has a sense of humor”, but I would rather say that He finds joy in the most unusual and unexpected of twists that this life could ever take!  When we surrender our wills and desires, in favor of immersing ourselves in His, that will be our part of the equation, while the LORD will care for all the details.  In Matthew 11:27-30, we read that if we are tired of living the same old way, if we are struggling with what the world is demanding of us, we can always come to the LORD and His ways, and when we do, we will discover rest and purpose for our life, no matter what or where God may be leading us.

 May we all follow Paul’s example, and when the LORD Jesus gets our attention, and calls us to a task founded in His Holy Name, don’t question it, don’t hesitate - just follow.  And we must always be ready to share our testimony, including the story of the life that we used to live, and when we do, power and truth will come to rest upon our life, and glory will surround the throne of God, because of our faithful service.

 Trust Him, let it all out, and all will be revealed.  Amen.

 

“Even the Demons Know”

 Scripture:   Acts 19:1-22

How many people know the name “Jesus”, but have never accepted a relationship with the LORD?  How many people speak the name of “Jesus”, but never in a glorious or even respectful way?  How many people are Christians, but are more apologetic about it than joyful?

 There’s an old story about a man who was asked “If you were taken to court, charged with being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?”

I would guess that, if the truth were known, that there would be a lot of folks who would cringe at the very thought of having to share what the Christian faith is really all about!  Think about it – would you be comfortable in explaining the significance of the Triune God, of the importance of Christ’s crucifixion, or the power that comes through the Blood atonement?  Would you be comfortable in telling others what faith in Jesus Christ means for their eternal future, or even more importantly, what a lack of faith will mean for them?

 Today, in this, our 14^th lesson from the Book of Acts, we will be considering these last two issues - what understanding, and what the lack thereof, mean for Christians of today, and what they will mean for this world’s people when the Lord Jesus returns.

 Read Acts 19:1-7

 So the first part of today’s lesson is this – is there really a difference between simply a water baptism, and a baptism of faith that brings the Holy Spirit into our lives? (John 3:3-6)

 John took baptism as a sign of repentance, of turning away from the worldly and sinful life.  It signified the cleansing of evil from a person’s life in preparation for the arrival of the Kingdom of God, and as he learned more about the truth of Jesus, it became a preparation for receiving him into a person’s heart and life.  In Matthew 3:1-6, we read that the people “confessed their sins”, repenting of the life they had been living, and it was only then that they were immersed in the Jordan. 

 But as Paul explained to the Ephesians, John’s baptism was only the beginning - it was only about repentance, it was only preparation for receiving the baptism that faith in Jesus brings.

 John Wesley would agree.  He wrote “baptism is not the new birth: … for what can be more plain than that one is an external and the other an internal work: that one is a visible, the other an invisible thing, and therefore wholly different from each other. … There may sometimes be the outward sign, where there is no inward grace.” 

 And this is what Paul was describing for the people, that baptism by water must be  the outward sign of new birth that comes only from Jesus.  2 baptisms – one by water for repentance, one through Christ for spiritual gifts.  This is the problem with immature and insufficient teaching – you can so easily miss out on the fullness of baptism! 

 Water is the outward sign, the Spirit is the inward gift, and without faith and surrender to the way of Jesus, baptism will always be incomplete.

 Read Acts 19:8-12

 Paul was still encountering persistent and adamant opposition to Jesus as the door that leads us into the Kingdom of God.  The New Interpreters’ Bible tells us that “… the hardened heart not only symbolizes the steadfast refusal to repent but also the loss of divine blessings that results”.  One of the hang ups that the Jewish leadership had was that they were still focused on the outward signs, on the things they had to do, on the Law of Moses, instead of faith in the Christ.

 So Paul decides that the synagogue, even after a couple of attempts, is still not the place to teach about Jesus, so he leaves for a more neutral venue – the hall of Tyrannus – a school of sorts.  He had spent 3 months in the synagogue with practically no success, but would stay for 2 years at the school, where he had access to both Jews and Gentiles alike. 

 And as the word of Jesus began to spread, so did the miracles that the LORD was able to accomplish through Paul.  Even touching objects that had touched the apostle were sufficient to heal, and cure, and free the people.  Sound familiar?  In Matthew 9:18-22 a woman was healed from a long-term issue of blood by believing that if she just touched the hem of Jesus’ cloak, she would be well.

 Second lesson for today - Jesus works by faith, not by the Law.

 Read Acts 19:13-16

 The issue at play here is that some were attempting to accomplish the same miracles that Paul was able to be part of, but these others were trying to do it without a relationship with the Christ.  This is a similar problem to the one surrounding water baptism without the baptism of Jesus – their efforts are inadequate and incomplete!

 And the sons of Sceva weren’t just attempting exorcism without faith, they were fostering a lie to create the illusion of a discipleship with Jesus! -  no faith, no relationship, and therefore, no authority!  And without the authority of Jesus at work, the demons take matters into their own hands!

 Interestingly, the demon knew who Jesus and His apostle Paul are, but doesn’t know the sons of the High Priest!  And for some unexplained reason, the demon takes control and exacts punishment on the 7 men.  But the question is this – why would the demon know and acknowledge the One he opposed, but not the ones who were already in his grasp?  Apparently, they knew the One who had once been their Master, the One who had cast them out of heaven when they chose Lucifer instead of God!  And because they know Jesus, they also know who His disciples are, including us!

 The sons of a High Priest were an especially choice target for the demon, and they are chased away – not from Satan, but from even pretending to be disciples of the LORD.  A shallow faith is, apparently, too much for evil, but it is never enough for God!  It’s no good for anyone!

 Read Acts 19:17-20

 It would appear that the demon’s attack on the sons of Sceva backfired!  Instead of diminishing the influence that Jesus, and His man Paul, had on the populace of Ephesus, it only served to heighten it!  When faith grows, the desire to follow the LORD more closely will also become stronger in our life.  And when our trust in Christ is firmly established, we develop a desire to turn away from the old ways that had always attracted us.

 For the people of Ephesus, Christ had become so strong within them that they began confessing their sins, and repenting of those past lives.  The problem with repentance is that it is so easy to fall back, but the LORD was so powerfully established within the people that they even began destroying the tools of sin that had been such an important part of their trade.  Remember?  First repentance, then a commitment to the way of Jesus.

 So the final lesson for today is this – that if the understanding that the demon had of Jesus could have such a far-reaching effect on these lives, think about how much more we could do by faith!  Repentance is the start, but faith in Christ brings the power of the Holy Spirit to bear.  That is the difference – the demons only know about Jesus, but we can believe in Jesus as the Son of God, as the Savior for all the earth, as the hope of eternity for all who will trust enough to put their lives in the love and glory of God’s presence.

 Don’t just know who Jesus is – believe in all that He can do through faith!