Acts 1:1–5

[0:00] A brief prayer. Heavenly Father, we bow in your presence. May your word be our rule, your spirit, our teacher, and your greater glory, our supreme concern, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

[0:15] Is God Dead? The infamous Time Magazine cover from April 8th, 1966. The cover generated the most letter-to-the-editor contributions to the magazine up to that point in time.

[0:30] In fact, the Los Angeles Times in 2008 named the cover one of the ten magazine covers that shook the world. The cover was immensely provocative. The words were in bold red and unaccompanied by any image.

[0:46] It was the first time the magazine had only printed text on the cover. Yet it was the question posed by the cover that drew the most intense reactions.

[1:00] The question was identifying a movement in North America about the departure of God from culture and even theology itself. Given the rise of secularism and the confidence in the sciences, God was being displaced, marginalized, and even removed.

[1:18] Is God Dead? Is God Dead was a pointed question that could be reframed in this way. Is God gone? Gone from society.

[1:30] Gone from human thinking. Gone from human learning. Gone from human experience. Perhaps this is the frame of mind that you have this morning.

[1:40] Your life experience has not shown the presence of God at all. He is not in your thinking or your learning. He is far from your vocabulary.

[1:51] Far from your heart. Your experience of God is encapsulated by maybe that stereotypical image of the lone figure on their knees, in the rain, screaming toward the sky.

[2:02] Are you there? Is anyone there? Is God gone? I'm sure some were asking that very question on that day as they watched the risen Lord Jesus ascend into the sky later on in this chapter.

[2:23] Verse 11. Is he gone? That's it? Three years of unrivaled teaching. Three years of witnessing the miraculous.

[2:34] Three years of exuberant expectation of peace and anticipation of the restoration of a brand new kingdom. And he's gone? What of my life now?

[2:46] I've spent three years fully invested in this show. In this movement. It was life changing and life altering. And what now?

[2:57] That Jesus is gone. There's a certain hint of this in verse 11. The angels actually confront the apostles. As they look up in the sky.

[3:07] And they're even rebuked subtly. Because their eyes are fixed heavenward. Wondering. Is God gone? The world we currently live in.

[3:19] Goes to great efforts. To displace God in all of human life. All activity in human life. We live next to an academy where there is pressure to avoid speaking of divine influence in history.

[3:32] Cosmology. Cosmology. Cosmology. Cosmology. And the physical sciences. On the heels of Harvey. And Mexico. And as Irma looms. We may actually be uneasy.

[3:43] To make statements that say God actually does much of anything. In this tumultuous world. And as we enter the book of Acts.

[3:55] You may actually possibly be embarrassed. Because for one thing. Acts. Doesn't shy away. From demonstrating God's influence in our world.

[4:08] You'll read of stories. Where Jesus' followers can actually heal people by touching them. And even having the sick pass in their shadow.

[4:20] You'll read of stories. Where people will see visions. Find themselves physically swept up. And miraculously dropped off in new cities.

[4:30] And even experience no ill effects of poisonous snake bites. You and I will read of these supernatural acquisition of new languages. Don't you wish that still happened.

[4:42] Various deaths. Imprisonments. Miraculous jailbreaks. Will encounter wizardry. Sorcery. Riots. Shipwreck. Even the raising of the dead back to life.

[4:55] You and I will read of early schism. Division in the church. Tension between those who desire to serve Jesus well. You'll peer behind the scenes of the ugliness of an imperfect Christian movement.

[5:08] Yet in it all. The assertion. Is that God. Is acting. He is involved in the unfolding history of the world through his people.

[5:20] Traditionally the book has been called the Acts of the Apostles. And then in 1913. Someone titled the book the Acts of the Holy Spirit. Making the argument that it's actually the Holy Spirit.

[5:30] Who is the primary character of the book. A book on my desk. Published in 2011. Is titled the Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus. All that to say. People continue to craft these titles.

[5:42] Because that seem appropriate to the book. Trying to highlight who the central figure is. The characters involved are numerous. The cities. Mentioned.

[5:54] Actually require a map. And many of our Bibles have that map. In the back. The accounts documented. Are movie worthy. All that to say. I'm going to throw in my title here.

[6:06] I'd like to propose. The title. Of the book. Should be called. The God Who Acts. The God Who Acts. He's a Trinitarian God. God the Father.

[6:17] The Son. And the Holy Spirit. All mentioned. In our first five verses. The Holy Trinity. Incidentally. The name of our church. Not. I mean. Possibly named after the Trinity. But.

[6:29] Yeah. Let's hope so. I think. That's what I hope so. Together. Father. Father. Son. And Spirit. Are acting. Involving themselves.

[6:41] In the affairs of the world. The God. Who Acts. Jesus had lived. Died. And rose again. And he is now ascending. And departing. What his followers had known.

[6:52] For three years. Will soon be withdrawn. His inner circle. Were sources of betrayal. Denial. And abandonment. The kingdom. They had all anticipated.

[7:03] Had yet to arrive. In the fashion. That they envisioned. You'll see that in verse six. Because they're asking. About it. It seems like a good place. To conclude. The story of Jesus.

[7:14] It can only be downhill. From here. Yet the reality. Of the fact. Is that God's plan. Is not thwarted. He was not done. He is not done.

[7:25] With humanity. And creation. As a matter of fact. We'll find. That he's just getting started. This morning. As we settle.

[7:35] Into the first five verses. Structurally. It probably belongs. To an extended introduction. That I would argue. Stretches through verse 14. Verses one to 14.

[7:47] Are largely. A recapitulation. Of the end. Of Luke's gospel. What is mentioned. At the end of Luke. Is mentioned here again. At the beginning of Acts. It would be worthwhile.

[7:59] To read on your own. This week. The concluding chapter. Of Luke's gospel. For it will only serve you. And give us. Give you. And I. A better understanding. Of how Acts begins.

[8:11] One writer. Describes. Verses one to five. As a resumptive. Preface. Meaning. Meaning. That it resumes. Where Luke. Had left off.

[8:21] In his gospel. And introduces. What will comprise. This second. Volume. It links. Luke. And Acts. Together. There are actually.

[8:31] Two volumes. In one. Story. And it will anticipate. What constitutes. The Christian. Mission. To make it memorable.

[8:44] Verses one to five. Can be broken. In two parts. Firstly. A look back. A look back. Verses one to three. And secondly. A look ahead. Verses four to five.

[8:55] A look back. And a look ahead. A look back. Luke presumed. The Luke. The presumed author. Refers to his former book. Namely. His gospel.

[9:06] The gospel of Luke. Both Luke and Acts. Are addressed. To an individual. Theophilus. Whose name means. Dear to God. Beloved of God. Some have proposed.

[9:17] That Theophilus. Was the one. Who commissioned Luke. To write these two volumes. He was to. Luke was to do. The historical research. For Luke. And Acts.

[9:29] In other words. Theophilus. Some have proposed. Was the one. Funding the research grant. Luke had received. It is important. To grasp. The purpose. For which Luke. Is writing. He has an aim.

[9:41] Which will be seen. In how he crafts. History. For Acts. Is a selective. Theological. History. It is not all. The history.

[9:51] Of the church. But it's. Carefully. Crafted. To communicate. And it's worthwhile. Since you have your Bibles. Open. To flip. Two books. Back to the beginning.

[10:02] Of Luke. And I just want to read. The first four verses. Because. The purpose. For which Luke writes. Both the book of Luke. And the book of Acts. Will pave. The way forward.

[10:15] Luke. Chapter one. Verse one. In as much. As many. Have undertaken. To compile. A narrative. Of the things. That have been accomplished. Among us.

[10:26] Just as those. Who from the beginning. Were eyewitnesses. And ministers. Of the word. Have delivered them. To us. It seemed. Good to me. Also. Having followed.

[10:37] All things. Closely. For some time. Past. To write. An orderly. Account. For you. Most excellent. Theophilus. Verse four. That you.

[10:49] May. Have. Certainty. Concerning. The things. That you have been taught. That you may have. Certainty. Concerning. The things. That you've been taught. The purpose of Acts.

[11:01] Is tethered. To the purpose. Of Luke. One gets the sense. That Theophilus. Was at a juncture. In his faith. Journey. He was a recipient. Of the ministry. Of the word. But there came.

[11:12] A point in time. That he needed. More assurance. More certainty. Concerning. What he had. Been taught. He's telling Luke. I've heard this. But can you go.

[11:23] Verify it. I've listened. To these accounts. But can you provide. More information. This is Luke's. Endeavor. In Acts. How did this all. Transpire.

[11:33] How did this all. Happen. How did this all. Take place. How did we end up here. In other words. Luke is writing. For certainty. He includes. Episodes. That move.

[11:44] The reader. To this goal. How. Can you. Be sure. Well. In the preface of Acts. Luke summarizes. That his first volume.

[11:55] You'll see in verse one. deals. Deals. With all. That Jesus. Began. To do. And teach. I pause here.

[12:06] Because this should jump off the page. Wait. You're saying. The gospel of Luke. Is summarized. By all that Jesus. Began.

[12:17] To do. And teach. Because my understanding. My personal understanding. Is this. Wait. That's the whole gospel. It's all in there. It's his.

[12:28] His birth. His life. His dying. His rising. His ascending. And you're telling me. In this first verse. That that's just. The beginning. You see.

[12:38] The ascension. Which we'll read about. Next week. It serves as a pivot point. For Luke. The writer. All that has transpired. Leading up to. The ascension. Is the beginning.

[12:49] Of Jesus's. Doing. And teaching. Ministry. And what is arresting. About this. Is if. The book of Luke. Is just the beginning.

[13:00] Of Jesus's work. Then the implication. Is that. The book of Acts. Is the continuation. Of Jesus's work. In other words.

[13:10] Jesus Christ. Is still active. He is still at work. On the cross. He finished the work. Of securing eternal life. For his people. But here in Acts. We will find.

[13:21] That the. Even after the completed work. Of the cross. He has commissioned. His people. To continue the work. Unlike other significant. Historical teachers.

[13:32] Who depart in death. And leave behind. These incredible writings. And their teachings. Jesus. Persists. You and I may study.

[13:45] The great works. Of. Greek philosophers. And religious founders. Others. But it would actually. Be an oddity. To say. That they are still active. Today. The message of Christianity.

[13:56] Is twofold. It is the message. Of what God has done. And completed. In Christ. And it is the message. Of what God is. Continuing. To do. In Christ.

[14:08] He is sanctifying. The believer. Building his church. Renewing creation. See. Christianity. The essence.

[14:19] Of. The foundation. Of Christianity. Is contingent. On the fact. That God. Is still. At work. In the world. This is the great assertion.

[14:29] Of the Christian faith. This is what we zealously. Seek to preserve. Jesus. And his work. Is not some distant. Historical life. That is merely studied. But Jesus. And his work. Are presently active.

[14:40] Saving. Near. And readily. Experienced. We are not those. Who only. Look back. But we are those. Who experience. The work of Jesus. Presently. That is what Dan.

[14:51] Stood for. I mean. What he said is. I cannot believe. That God. Would use. Someone.

[15:02] Like me. Today. Because the experience. Of the gospel. Is not only. Saved from the past. But there is a saving effect. That leads us. Into the future. The Bible.

[15:13] The Bible. Asserts. That humanity. Is actually. Headed. In a direction. One which will culminate. And terminate. In verse 11. That the promise. Of verse 11. Is as you guys. As the disciples.

[15:23] Are standing. Wondering. Is this it? The angels say. This is not it. There will come. An end. He will descend. To conclude it all. Luke recaps.

[15:33] What has taken place. Following Jesus. His resurrection. He is presented alive. In verse 3. That many heard. And saw Jesus. Following his resurrection.

[15:45] The apostle Paul. Used a similar line of reasoning. In 1st Corinthians 15. When he seeks to defend. The resurrection. And in those 40 days. As Jesus.

[15:56] Lingers on earth. The Bible tells us. That he reinterpreted. The entire Hebrew scriptures. For his disciples. It is the greatest sermon. Mentioned.

[16:07] But not recorded. In Luke 24. Jesus actually. Tells his disciples. That all. Everything leading up.

[16:18] To his dying. And rising. Concerns himself. And our prayer. As you spend. Your time here. With us. Sunday mornings.

[16:29] You will find. That this is. A goal. Or an aim. Of the pastoral team here. That Christ is the fulfillment. Of all the scriptures. And as Acts opens. The writer desires us.

[16:39] To take a look back. To take a look back. And secondly. He builds anticipation. By giving us. A look ahead. A look ahead.

[16:51] Verses 4 to 5. Verses 4 to 5. Are anticipatory. While with the disciples. Jesus commands them. To pause. In Jerusalem. They are ordered.

[17:02] To wait. It's incredibly ironic. Given the experience. Given their witnessing. Of the miraculous. Given the nature. Of all that. Has taken place. They are told.

[17:12] To stay put. To exercise. Some restraint. Some of them. May have been eager. To go out. And begin the work. To which they were commissioned. But. They knew.

[17:24] The fragileness. Of the bunch. Among them. Among them. Was Peter. The denier. Simon. The reckless. Activist. And zealot. James. The arrogant.

[17:35] Who demanded. Places of honor. There was Thomas. Who was known. To be doubtful. Doubter. They were a bunch. Who argued. About who was the greatest. Who prevented. They were. They prevented little children.

[17:47] From approaching Jesus. They were deserters. Abandoners. Of Jesus. In his greatest moment. Of need. They are not. An all-star team. By any definition. Rather.

[17:57] They were plain. Ordinary. Uneducated men. Common people. Fishermen. And tax collectors. In and of themselves. Ineffective. For any movement. So they were instructed.

[18:10] To wait. Wait. Don't go out. On the heels. Of enthusiasm. And experience. Don't go out. On zeal. And excitement. Wait. My wife and I.

[18:21] Recently. Began. Discussions. About removing. Our TV. From our home. I know. And one of our holdups. Is. Our love.

[18:32] For watching. Sporting. My love. For watching. For watching. Sporting events. But.

[18:45] My wife. Would. Would say. There's a few events. That. She. Desires. To watch. As well. Namely. The summer. And winter. Olympics. And probably. The world cup. These global.

[18:55] Events. During the summer. Olympics. One of my favorite. Events. Are the track. And field. Events. Humans. Are awesome. And they can. Accomplish. Incredible. Feats.

[19:06] Hurling. Objects. Jumping. Distances. And heights. And moving. At incredible. Speeds. And one of my. Favorite. Events. Has to be. That. The four. By. One hundred. Meter.

[19:17] Relay. One lap. Around the track. Divvied up. Between. Four people. The world record. Is currently. Under 37. Seconds. What I've.

[19:30] Observed. Is the key to the relay. Is not only speed. But the transference. Of that little stick. The baton. Transference. Seems to be everything.

[19:42] There's a small window. That takes place. In what they call. The changeover box. Where the. Passing of the baton. Happens. If you're. The second.

[19:52] Or third. Or anchor leg. Of the relay. There is a window. Where this baton. Takes place. And as spectators. You see it. Because the race starts. And the first runner. Is doing their quarter.

[20:03] Of. Their. Their 400. Their 100 meters. And. As the baton. Approaches. The second. Leg. Runner. Actually.

[20:14] Begins. To run. And accelerate. Anticipating. This exchange. However. It happens.

[20:25] In this short window. And the second runner. Though. Filled with adrenaline. Though. Surrounded by thousands. And watched. By millions.

[20:36] They have to. Exercise. Restraint. And wait. Wait. Wait. Because. If in haste.

[20:47] They accelerate. Too quickly. The exchange. Will be botched. The baton. Might be dropped. The team. Will be disqualified.

[21:00] And the race. Would be over. For them. See. Jesus. Had instructed. The disciples. To wait. Wait. For the baton. You won't be able. To finish.

[21:11] Without it. Wait. For the spirit. You. Need. Him. It begs. The question. How could this bunch.

[21:21] Of misfits. Be. Of any use. For a global movement. What promise. Does this crew. Have. In and of themselves. No promise.

[21:31] Whatsoever. But we will soon. Find. That though the vessel. Be fragile. And flawed. God's purposes. Will go forth. In spite of the vessel.

[21:43] Let me say that again. Though. The vessel. The human life. The disciple. You and I. Be fragile. And flawed.

[21:55] We will discover. That God's purposes. Will go forth. In spite of the vessel. It is the great. Assertion. Of the gospel.

[22:05] It is the unstoppable force. It is the. Triumphant. Word.

[22:16] Word. They are to wait. According to verse 5. For. An event. Namely. The baptism. Of the Holy Spirit. Admittedly.

[22:27] This is a loaded question. What is. The baptism. Of the Holy Spirit. The whole host. Of books. Have been written. On this subject. Denominations. Have been. Formed. Based on.

[22:37] How people. Are you. Based on. This experience. Needless to say. In the few minutes. I'm about to give it. It will not resolve. Issue. But because. It's in the text.

[22:48] And it's my duty. To say something. About it. What is. The baptism. Of the Holy Spirit. Firstly. We will see. According to verse 4. It is. A promise.

[23:00] It is a promise. A whole host. Of texts. Support this. Not. Particularly. Or. Particularly. In John's gospel. But it wasn't. Only. A New Testament. Promise. It was actually.

[23:10] Anticipated. In the Old Testament. And you. Because we just. Came out of Exodus. We know. The character. Moses. And as. Moses' workload. Increased. And as he. Governed.

[23:21] The people. Of Israel. There came. A moment. Where. He needed. To assign. Eldership. He needed. Other people. To delegate. To. And as. They are. Trying. To rule.

[23:32] And trying. To exercise. The government. Over the people. Of Israel. It's interesting. In Numbers. Chapter 11. Verse 29. Moses. Prophetically. Or even. Wishfully.

[23:43] Says this. Would not. All. Would. That all. The Lord's people. Were prophets. That the Lord. Would put his spirit. On them. And we begin.

[23:54] To see. Even as early. In. As early. As numbers. That. The desire. Or this. There's a desire. That God's spirit. Would fall. On all his people.

[24:06] In the upcoming weeks. You'll see it cited. In Acts chapter 2. Where. The prophet Joel. There's a promise. In the. In the prophet. Joel. It's a divine promise.

[24:16] That was. Conceived. Long before. Jesus arrived. On the scene. That his spirit. Would come. Upon. His people. We see that. The baptism. Of the holy spirit. Is a divine promise.

[24:28] Secondly. It actually. Subsumes. The meaning. Of John's baptism. Now. You'll see it. In the text. In verse 5. That John. Baptized with water.

[24:39] But you. Will be baptized. With the holy spirit. Not many days. From now. It seems to include. The meaning. Of John's baptism. It doesn't. Displace.

[24:49] John's baptism. It doesn't. Make it. Irrelevant. But it actually. Takes on. The meaning. Of John's baptism. Under it. It can't.

[25:00] Displace. John's baptism. John's baptism. It was. Of. Water. Signifying. Repentance. And cleansing. It doesn't.

[25:12] Displace. John's baptism. Because. Jesus himself. Was baptized. By John. Rather. The meaning. Of. Baptism. Under John. Is included. In the baptism. Of the holy spirit.

[25:28] It's worth. Saying this. That. John's baptism. Was one. Of expectancy. They were. Anticipating.

[25:39] The messiah. In the same work. John the baptist. Work. Was. Anticipating. The messiah. And here. We see. The spirit's. Baptism. Is actually. A fulfillment. Of that. Expectancy.

[25:50] Given. To those. Who receive. The work. Of the messiah. So you'll see. Later on. In the book of acts. That when peter. During his sermon. He tells them. To be baptized. They are.

[26:01] They're. To be baptized. In water. Almost as emblematic. Of receiving. The spirit. The two. The two baptisms. Are conjoined.

[26:11] In some sense. So we see. That it's a promise. It's. It's. The baptism. Of the holy spirit. Subsumes. The meaning.

[26:22] Of john's baptism. Thirdly. It is given. Without partiality. Baptism. Of the holy spirit. Is. Recorded. Explicitly. On four occasions. In the book of acts.

[26:33] We'll see it. In chapter 2. In 8. 10. And 19. And these are all accounts. Of particularly. Of particular people. Being baptized. By the holy spirit. Interestingly.

[26:44] The holy spirit. Comes along. Comes upon. Jewish. Believers. In chapter 2. It comes upon. Samaritan believers. In chapter 8. It comes upon.

[26:56] Gentile believers. In chapter 10. And then it comes along. Followers of john the baptist. In chapter 19. The emphasis of the text. Is moving. The reader.

[27:06] To understand this. About the baptism. Of the holy spirit. There is. An impartiality. With. With. How. God. Saves. This is how.

[27:18] Paul actually. Uses it. In first. Corinthians. Chapter 12. Remember the. Corinthian church. They're getting arrogant. They're getting proud. They're getting divisive. And dare we say it. They were.

[27:29] Exerting superiority. Over others. And Paul. Drops the hammer. And he cites. This. In first. Corinthians. Chapter 12. He says. Are you not. All.

[27:40] Baptized. In. One. Spirit. Brought. Into. One. Family. And so. We begin to see. What this.

[27:50] Baptism. Of the holy spirit. Looks like. It's a promise. From God. It takes on. This repentance. And cleansing. Identification. For the believer.

[28:01] It is. Given. Without. Partiality. And lastly. It is a source. Of power. Power. Primarily.

[28:13] For witness. I say that. Because it is not. A source. Of military power. I say that. Because it is not. A source. Of political. Power.

[28:24] I say that. Because it's not. A source. Of social. Power. It is. The source. Of power. For gospel. Witness. You'll see. In verses. Eight. And six. There's a contrast.

[28:35] The spirit. The spirit. Is given. So that they. Would be his. Witnesses. When the disciples. Wanted. Hey. When. When do we get. This political. Military. Kingdom. Established.

[28:46] Jesus is saying. No. No. No. The power. Is not. For that. The power. Is. For witness. This is what. Overtakes. Peter. An apostle. A fisherman. By trade.

[28:57] Infamous. For his. Threefold. Denial. He delivers. A sermon. That adds. Three thousand. To the kingdom. Of God. The spirit. Will be the impetus. For all. That will be accomplished.

[29:07] In the book of Acts. Therefore. They must. Wait. For the spirit. The great encouragement. Is that. The spirit. Is not only.

[29:18] For the disciples. But it's for you. And I. As well. The spirit. One writer. Has called it. God's crowning. Gift. On.

[29:29] His people. How did. A band. Of. Under educated. Misfits. Bring such. A disruption. Into the world. Both historically. And even presently. As Jesus ascended.

[29:41] The spirit. Descended. And the gospel. Of Jesus. Broke loose. So much. So that. Later on. You'll read. In the book of Acts. At least. In two cities. There's. The people.

[29:52] The cities. Themselves. Are complaining. That there's been. A disruption. To the social order. They're saying. There's another king. Named Jesus.

[30:04] It's. A. A pastor. A. British. A. Welsh. Pastor. Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones. Wrote this. It seems to me. To be simply ludicrous.

[30:15] To suggest. That such men. Without learning. Without any influence. Or authority. Without any money. Behind them. With none of the means. Of propaganda. That we are familiar with today. That such men.

[30:26] By their own efforts. And abilities. Could succeed. In doing. What we read. About in the pages. Of the book. How did this come about? There's only one answer.

[30:37] The world was turned upside down. Not because of what they did. But because of what God did. To them. In them. And by means.

[30:49] Of them. The world was turned upside down. Not because of what they did. But because of what God did. To them. In them. And by means.

[31:00] Of them. The question the unbeliever. Must always confront. Is how did.

[31:12] Christianity expand. And grow. To the point. Where it is now. In North America. You and I are fed statistics. That are at times alarming.

[31:23] We are fed. To statistics. That demonstrate. That Christianity's decline. Serving the university community. I hear it all the time. Do you. Aren't you worried.

[31:34] That all these university students. Are going to. To walk away. From the faith. And abandon. The faith. Of their childhood. We hear. We hear of young people. Leaving.

[31:45] And there. Though there may be truth. In these numbers. We needed to be reminded. That what happens. In this country. Is no indicator. Of what is occurring. Throughout the world. It may.

[32:01] Surprise. Some of us. That most. Christians. Throughout history. Who are now dead. Most Christians.

[32:12] Throughout the world. According. To a tweet. By Russell Moore. This morning. Are not white. Are not American. And have never heard. A word of English. Christianity.

[32:24] Is growing. And thriving. And triumphing. You read accounts. Of the global south. South America. Latin America.

[32:34] Africa. Asia. Asia. The numbers. Are astounding. The reality. Is that the work. Of Jesus. Is being accomplished. Through his people. By his spirit.

[32:45] It's an unstoppable. Force. People try. To explain it. People try. To. Number it. But the truth.

[32:55] Of the matter. Is. The spirit. Of God. Is at work. Through any means. He sees fit. To save. The people. Of God.

[33:05] It's documented. By numerous. Historians. And here. The pen. Of the writer. You'll find. At the end. Of the book.

[33:16] Of Acts. Concludes. With just. This fact. That Paul. The apostle. Paul. Who is coming. On the scene. He is.

[33:28] Proclaiming. The kingdom. Of God. Teaching. About. The Lord. The Lord. Jesus. And the text. Emphasizes. With all. Boldness. And without. Hindrance. This is not to say.

[33:39] There are no. Hardships. Or were no. Hardships. For. Paul himself. Was under. House arrest. But it is to. Affirm. This reality. The gospel. Will be.

[33:50] Triumphant. Triumphant. It will be. Triumphant. It will. Prevail. I mean. It's staggering. Because this movement. Starts in Jerusalem. Ends up in Rome.

[34:01] And 250 years later. There's an emperor. In Rome. Who cannot figure. What is going on. And deems. Christianity. The empire's. Religion.

[34:15] We don't need to talk about that. In detail. But. This is what happens. The gospel. Will. Prevail. Is God dead? Is he gone?

[34:25] Is he absent? No. Declares. The Christian. Faith. Christianity. Is dependent. On this assertion. That God is here. He's exercising. His rule. From heaven.

[34:36] While establishing. His kingdom. On earth. He does so. By summoning. A people. To himself. And commissioning. Them. Into this world. To be his witnesses. This is represented.

[34:47] By you and I. The church. Empowered. By his spirit. Equipped. With his word. Endowed. With purpose. And over the course. Lord willing. Of these next. 52.

[34:57] 54. 55 weeks. In the gospel. Of acts. It will be attested to. By the early church's history. It's going to be an exhilarating year.

[35:10] Because you and I. Are part of an unstoppable force. That is claiming. That is claiming. Men and women. On behalf.

[35:21] Of their king. And so I invite you. Don't miss a Sunday. And if you do. Thankfully. We have the internet. But the gospel.

[35:34] Will prove triumphant. In the same way. Triumphed over. It conquered. Your heart. It's out. To conquer others.

[35:44] As well. Let's pray together. Father we. Come to you. And. We're excited. We're excited. Because we.

[35:58] Will behold. Not only. The work of the Lord. In history. But our prayer. Is not only. For this year. But for all the years. That you give us life.

[36:09] That we will. Be witnesses. To the God who acts. The God who saves. The God who delivers. The God who rescues. And so father.

[36:20] We dare ask. That as we. Go out into this world. Infused by your Holy Spirit.

[36:31] That you would cause us. To rise up. And to bear witness. To the gospel. Who saves. To the gospel. Oh. Endow us. With your spirit.

[36:43] Endow us. With courage. May we be those. Who. Go out. With all boldness. Declaring. In you. That God.

[36:56] Reigns. And he rules. And he is alive. He asks these things. For Jesus sake. Amen. I invite you to stand.

[37:07] Amen. Amen. Thank you.