The Gospel on The Move

[0:00] Amen. Remind you again that it is perfectly fine to do this.

[0:33] This will not in any way get in my way. And remind you again that in the southern part of the United States, this is normal. And people will say, well, and preach it, Pastor.

[0:46] So you can do that if you're so inclined, okay? Okay, since the beginning of June, we have been making our way through the action-packed, energizing, challenging, and stretching New Testament document we call Acts.

[1:06] And I have found great joy hearing different preachers handle the different texts. Andrea Tischer on Acts 2, Tim Kipfer, who will soon be our new senior minister on Acts 3, Neil Reddenbaugh on Acts 5, Abraham Hahn on Acts 6.

[1:25] And I know that we will be well-served in the weeks to come by Justin Kim and Bob Swan and Suki Decker and Bob Barr and then Abe again. As we read the text before us today, I think you could feel that the action has now shifted into high gear.

[1:47] Someone has put his foot onto the accelerator big time. For with the story in the first half of Acts 8, the gospel of Jesus Christ is now on the move.

[2:03] The gospel of Jesus Christ is now breaking out of the confines of Jerusalem and moving into the world. Jerusalem will always be home base for the gospel.

[2:17] For Jerusalem is the place where the heart of the gospel takes place. Jerusalem will always be home base. For it is there that Jesus is crucified. It is there that he is resurrected from the dead.

[2:31] And it is from there that he ascends to the throne of the universe. But the gospel was never meant to stay in home base.

[2:43] The gospel was always meant to move out from the holy city into all the world. It is Jesus' promise. Three concentric circles of mission.

[3:17] Jerusalem and Judea. The immediate environs of Judaism. Samaria. The place despised by the Jews.

[3:28] And the ends of the earth. Syria. Asia Minor. Greece. Rome. Spain. The British Isles. And Canada.

[3:38] In the text we read. A disciple named Philip. One of the first deacons called to serve the church.

[3:49] Takes the huge step out of Jerusalem and Judea. Into the no-no land of Samaria. And as I read this story.

[4:02] I think I hear God speaking Isaiah 52 7 over Philip. How beautiful are the feet of him.

[4:13] Who brings good news. Who announces peace. Who brings good news of good. Who announces salvation saying your God reigns.

[4:25] I think God is speaking that text over you and me. As he calls us. Into our city and province and nation. With the good news of Jesus Christ.

[4:36] How beautiful are the feet that bring good news. In Acts 8. Through Philip the deacon. The gospel moves out from home base.

[4:50] With great joy. Which is a surprise given the circumstances. Great joy and redemptive power. So I invite you to dwell with me in this story in three ways.

[5:04] I invite you to consider first. The catalyst. For the gospel. Being on the move. Second. The content. Of the gospel that is on the move.

[5:17] And third. The consequences. Of the gospel on the move. The catalyst. The content. And the consequences. The catalyst.

[5:28] For the gospel on the move. In a word. Persecution. The early church. Comes under severe persecution. Leading to hundreds.

[5:40] Perhaps thousands of people. Being scattered. Into the regions of Judea. And Samaria. The first. Great. Great. Missionary.

[5:50] Movement. Of the church. Was catalyzed. By persecution. Not by. Love. For the world.

[6:03] Eventually. Mission. Would be. Catalyzed. By love. But not at first. Not by. Wanting the name of Jesus. To be glorified. In the world. Eventually.

[6:13] Mission. Would be. But not at the first. Not by. The simple fact. That as Peter says. In four. Acts 4. 12. There is no other name. Under heaven.

[6:23] By which we must be saved. Eventually. Mission. Mission. Would be so driven. But not at the first. The first. Great. Missionary. Move. Of the church.

[6:34] Resulted. Because. People. Were. Forced. Out of. Home base. By persecution. Persecution. Interesting.

[6:45] No. The persecution. Had arisen. Because. Of a sermon. A man. Named. Stephen. Another. Of the first. Deacons. Preached.

[6:56] The sermon. Is recorded. In Acts. Chapter 7. Stephen. Preached. This sermon. Before. The ruling. Council. Of. Very. Angry. Religious.

[7:06] Leaders. In it. Stephen. Reviews. The history. Of God's. Dealings. With his. People. A history. Of resistance. And stubbornness.

[7:18] A history. Of religion. Consistently. Missing. The point. A history. In which. The living. God. Again. And again. Was showing.

[7:29] His people. That he does not. Dwell. In a temple. Made by hands. That the living. God. Wants. To dwell. Among. And in his people. So much.

[7:39] So. That he chooses. To come down. In person. As Jesus Christ. And then. Come. To dwell. Among us. And in us. In the spirit. Of Jesus Christ. It was too much. For them.

[7:50] To bear. The authorities. Are furious. They gnash. Their teeth. Says Luke. And they take Stephen. The preacher. Outside the city. And begin. To pelt him.

[8:00] With rocks. Until he is dead. And then. They start. Going. After. Any. And all. Who named. The name. The name. Of Jesus.

[8:12] The persecution. Is taken. To violent extremes. By one of those. Standing by. Holding the robes. Of those. Throwing the stones. Saul.

[8:23] Is his name. Who would become. The apostle. Paul. Luke says. He was ravaging. The church. It's an intense. Violent. Word. Saul.

[8:34] Says. Luke. Was entering. House. After house. Dragging. Off. Men. And women. And putting them. In prison. Literally. Throwing them. In prison.

[8:45] Some of them. Then. Dying. Leaving. Blood. On. Saul's. Hands. A fact. Which he always. Regretted. But Luke.

[8:55] Wants us. To know. Who. Is behind. This persecution. Yes. Angry. Religious. Authorities. Yes. Zealous. Misguided. Terrorists.

[9:07] But also. The evil one. The arch enemy. Of Jesus. Who is behind. All persecution. Of any kind. In the world. Luke.

[9:18] Wants us. To realize. That the assault. Against the early church. Is the assault. From hell. It's an assault. Against Jesus. The arch enemy.

[9:28] Of Jesus. Hates. Jesus. And wants to destroy. Jesus. And everything. Jesus creates. But the assault. Did not work.

[9:40] Oh. It inflicted. Deep. Pain. And suffering. And I don't want to minimize. That pain. And suffering. But. The assault. Did not. Work. For one thing.

[9:53] Jesus. Loves. Saul. The zealous. Misguided. Terrorist. And he goes. After Saul. On the road. To Damascus.

[10:03] And he makes. Out of Saul. The greatest. Missionary. Theologian. That. Has ever lived. And for another. Jesus. Uses. The persecution.

[10:13] To advance. His gospel. Believers. Are forced. To leave. Home base. Believers. Are thrust. Into the world. They are scattered.

[10:24] Says Luke. Luke. Uses. The verb. Twice. Scattered. Like seed. And as John Stott. Put it. The scattering. Of the Christians.

[10:34] Was followed. By the scattering. Of the good seed. Of the gospel. The forced. Eviction. Led to sowing. The good news. In Judea. And Samaria.

[10:46] Or to change. The analogy. Jesus. Took the salt. Shaker. And shook. The salt. Into the world. You are the. Salt. Of the earth.

[10:57] He calls. His disciples. In his sermon. On the mount. Salt. Does. No good. Just sitting. There. In the shaker. So Jesus. Picks up. The shaker.

[11:08] And he starts. Shaking it. Everywhere. That is. Jesus. Turned. His enemies. Assault. To the advance.

[11:18] Of the gospel. As he. Always. Does. Persecution. Never. Wins. Oh. It appears. To win.

[11:29] At first. But appearance. Is seldom. The whole. Of reality. Persecution. Never. Wins. The greater. Obstacle. To mission. Is complacency.

[11:41] Also. Inspired. By the evil. One. Acts. Eight. Four. And those. Who had been. Scattered. Went about. Preaching. The word. The verb.

[11:51] Translated. Preaching. Literally. And simply. Means. Good. Newzing. Good. Newzing. Those who were scattered.

[12:03] Went about. Good. Newzing. And the pattern. Has been repeated. Hundreds. Thousands. Of times. Most. Dramatically.

[12:14] Since the middle. Of last. Last. Century. In China. When. Mao. Tse-sung. And the. Communists. Took over. China. In 1949. They expelled.

[12:25] All foreign. Missionaries. The China. Inland. Mission. Was hit. The hardest. 637. Of their. Workers. Had to leave. And many.

[12:36] Christian. Christian. Leaders. Around. The world. Began. To fear. The worst. I took. My first. Course. In missions. At seminary. In 1970.

[12:47] And I. Remember. The professor. Lamenting. That the. So-called. Cultural. Revolution. Was destroying. The church. In China. And many. Feared.

[12:57] That there. Would be. Few. Believers. Left. But again. Appearance. Is never. The whole. Of reality. We live. By faith.

[13:08] Not. By sight. For one. Thing. Of the. 637. Workers. From. Evicted. From China. 286.

[13:18] Of them. Were redeployed. Into southeast. Asia. And Japan. With very. Fruitful. Ministries. But. For another. The church. In China.

[13:29] Did not. Die. It went. Underground. And when it went. Underground. It grew. Oh. How it. Grew. So much.

[13:40] So. That when the. Cultural revolution. Ended in. 1976. It turned out. The church. Had grown. By millions. Of disciples. And has continued.

[13:50] To grow. Last week. I met with a. Chinese theologian. Who teaches. In a seminary. In Hong Kong. And he told me. That there are. So many.

[14:01] Seminaries. Emerging. All over. China. That there are. Not. Enough. Professors. To fill them. One seminary. With 700 students.

[14:12] Another. With 1500. Students. And most of them. In the very cities. Where the church buildings. Are being. Confiscated. And where the.

[14:23] The crosses. Are taking. Off the churches. That still exist. Persecution. Never. Finally. Wins. It is not. Winning. In Syria.

[14:36] It is not. Winning. In Iraq. We are hearing. Of thousands. Of people. Coming. To faith. Because. Of the way. Christians. Under persecution.

[14:48] Are reacting. Christians. Are not. Seeking. Revenge. In fact. They are blessing. The persecutors. As Stephen. The first. Martyr.

[14:58] Did. Who. Under the barrage. Of rocks. Prayed. Lord Jesus. Receive my spirit. And then. Amazingly. He prayed. Lord. Do not. Count.

[15:08] This sin. Against them. Someone. Has said. That persecution. Is like. Hitting a nail. With a hammer. It only drives.

[15:20] The nail. Deeper. Into the wood. Someone else. Has said. Persecution. Is like. Wind. Blowing. On a smoldering. Fire. And fanning. It into flame. Those who were.

[15:31] Persecuted. Were scattered. And went about. Good. Newsy. So. Consider now. The content. Of the gospel. That is on the move.

[15:43] What is the good news. That Philip. And the others. Who were scattered. What did they. Good news. Acts. 8. 12. 8.

[15:54] 12. But when they. The Samaritans. Believe Philip. Preaching the. Kingdom. Of God. And the name. Of Jesus Christ. They were baptized.

[16:04] Preaching the kingdom. Of God. And the name. Of Jesus Christ. Preaching the kingdom. Of God. In the name. Of Jesus Christ. Jesus. And the kingdom.

[16:15] The content. Of the gospel. Being scattered. Into Samaria. Is Jesus. And. The kingdom. Now. It's the gospel. Around which.

[16:26] Luke. Builds. The whole book. Of Acts. In Acts. 1. The opening. Scene. Of the book. For 40 days. After his resurrection. Jesus.

[16:37] Is teaching. The things. Concerning the kingdom. Jesus. And the kingdom. And then. Acts. 28. The closing scene. Of the book. Paul. The former persecutor. Is finally.

[16:47] In Rome. In Rome. Awaiting trial. Before Nero. And he's. Preaching. The kingdom of God. And teaching. Concerning the name. Of the Lord. Jesus Christ. The last line.

[16:57] Of the book of Acts. Preaching. And teaching. Jesus. And the kingdom. And then. Right in the middle. Philip. And the other. Scattered disciples. Preaching. And teaching. Jesus. And the kingdom.

[17:08] Jesus. And the kingdom. Why? Because it is. Jesus gospel. That's why. The question. The church.

[17:19] Must always. Ask itself. Is. What is the gospel. Jesus. Preaches. Answer. The time. Is fulfilled. The kingdom. Of God. Has come near.

[17:29] Mark. 1. 15. The time. Is fulfilled. The kingdom. Of God. Has come near. Repent. And believe. This gospel. He preaches. That. Before his.

[17:40] First. Official. Sermon. In the synagogue. In Nazareth. Where he says. The spirit. Of the Lord. Has come upon me. He's anointed me. To preach. The gospel. To the poor. To proclaim. The year. Of the Lord's favor.

[17:50] Before that. Great manifesto. On mission. Jesus. Preaches. His gospel. The time. Is fulfilled. The kingdom. Of God. Has come near. The good news.

[18:01] According to Jesus. Of Nazareth. Is that. In him. And because of him. The long. Awaited. Kingdom. Of God. Has come near. It is breaking. Into the world. In him.

[18:12] And because of him. What was thought. To only come. In the future. Is now spilling. Over from the future. Into the present. Jesus ministry. Is all about the kingdom. And his father.

[18:23] Because the kingdom. Is the kingdom. Of his father. What is the theme. Of most of Jesus. Parables. The kingdom. The kingdom.

[18:33] Of God is life. What is the theme. Of Jesus famous. Sermon on the mount. The kingdom. Kingdom values. Kingdom character. Kingdom behavior. Kingdom desires. Seek first. The kingdom of God.

[18:44] And what is Jesus. Teach us to pray. Our father. Cause your kingdom. To come. Where? On earth. As it is in heaven. Philip. And the other scattered.

[18:55] Persecuted. Move into Samaria. Faithful to the master. Their good news. Is Jesus. And the kingdom. Jesus. And all that name.

[19:05] Means for the world. And kingdom. And all that that means. For the world. So. One of my favorite mentors. Leslie Newbegin. Who lived most of his life.

[19:16] In ministry. In India. Used to say. The gospel. Is a name. And an event. Pretty cool. The gospel. Is a name.

[19:27] And an event. The name. The Lord Jesus Christ. The event. In him. And because of him. The glorious. Recreating. Reign of God.

[19:38] Is breaking. Into the darkness. And injustice. And brokenness. Good news. Indeed. Good news. Everyone. On the face of the globe. Is dying. To hear.

[19:48] The Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ. Now. In light of what we have seen. Thus far. In the journey. Through Acts. This all raises. An important question.

[20:00] Thus far. We have seen. Luke. Emphasize. The coming. Of the Holy Spirit. So much so. That we've suggested. That you could give. The title to Acts. The Acts.

[20:11] Of the Holy Spirit. Now. If. The gospel. Is. Jesus. And the kingdom. Where does the coming.

[20:21] And ministry. Of the Holy Spirit. Fit in. Great question. With a great answer. Ready. The coming.

[20:33] Of the Holy Spirit. Is. The coming. Of the kingdom. The Holy Spirit. Is the one. Who makes the kingdom. Real. He is the. Realizer.

[20:43] Of the kingdom. Where the spirit. Is. There. Is the kingdom. Where the kingdom. Is. There. Is the spirit. The coming. Of the spirit. Is the coming. Of the kingdom. The coming.

[20:54] Of the kingdom. Is the coming. Of the spirit. So Jesus said. On one occasion. If I cast out demons. By the spirit. Of God. You may know. The kingdom. Of God. Has come among you. Paul says.

[21:05] In his letter. To the Romans. The kingdom. Of God. Is righteousness. And peace. And joy. In the Holy Spirit. The kingdom. Of God. Is where God. Is king.

[21:16] The kingdom. Of God. Is where God. The king. Is in action. Or. As Dallas Willard. Put it. The kingdom. Is where. What God.

[21:27] Wants. Done. Is done. I like that. The kingdom. Is where. What God. Wants. Done. Is done. Done. Bring it on.

[21:38] Jesus. Jesus. And that kingdom. Is made real. In the world. Through the presence. And power. Of the Holy Spirit. Those who were scattered. Because of the persecution. Went about sowing.

[21:49] The gospel. Of Jesus Christ. Jesus. And the kingdom. Are you with me? Now. Here is a puzzling thing. If.

[22:00] That is the gospel. Of the early church. In faithfulness. To the master. Here. If that is the gospel. The early church. Good news is.

[22:12] Why is this gospel. Not more consistently. Sounded. In church history. Our creeds. Emphasize Jesus.

[22:22] Thank God. But they. Barely. Mention. The kingdom. The Nicene Creed. Which I love. Mentions it once.

[22:33] But only at the end. Relegating it. To a holy. Future time. And his kingdom. Shall have no end. The apostles. Creed. Which I love. Doesn't mention. The kingdom. At all. Puzzling.

[22:45] No. So my. Most. Favorite. Mentor. E. Stanley Jones. Could write. In the last century. A note. A very.

[22:57] Important. Note. Has dropped. Out of the. Christian. Faith. A note. A very. Important. Note. Has dropped. Out of the.

[23:07] Christian. Faith. And then he writes. A crippled. Christianity. Went across. Europe. With a crippled. Resolve. I would add. A crippled.

[23:18] Christianity. Then. Went across. North America. And into Asia. With a crippled. Resolve. Jones continues. The kingdom of God. Was pushed into the inner.

[23:28] Recesses of the heart. As mystical experience. Now. And pushed beyond the borders. Of this life. Into heaven. As a collective experience. Then. Between the inner.

[23:40] Mystical experience. Now. And the heavily. Collective experience. Then. Vast. Areas. Of life. Were left. Out. Unredeemed.

[23:52] The economic. The social. And the political. And then. He writes this. A vacuum. Was created. In the soul. Of Christendom. And.

[24:03] Into. The vacuum. Moved. Human. Totalitarianism. And. Took. Over. An. Important.

[24:14] Note. Dropped. Out. Of. The Christian. Faith. Resulting. In a vacuum. In the soul. Of Christendom. And. Into. That. Vacuum. Human.

[24:25] Totalitarianism. Totalitarianism. Moved in. And. Took over. Nazism. In Christendom. Germany. Communism. In Christendom.

[24:35] Russia. Apartheid. In Christendom. South Africa. And now. Consumerism. And militarism. Narcissism. And the celebration.

[24:46] Of. Gratuitous. Violence. In Christendom. North America. Philip. Bless his heart. Did. Did. Not. Let. Jesus. Gospel.

[24:56] Get. Muted. He. And the other. Good. News. The whole. Gospel. Jesus. And his. Kingdom. Now. Here's where things.

[25:07] Get really exciting. As Philip. Preached. Jesus. And the. Kingdom. People. Believed. And received. The Holy Spirit. Who is the. Realizer. Of the. Kingdom. But.

[25:19] Not. Right away. In Samaria. You might have noticed that. Not. Right away. Why? For the gospel. Moving. Into. Samaria. Was.

[25:29] Such. A. Radical. Development. The Samaritans. Coming. To. Faith. Was. Such. A. Surprise. That. The pillars. From Jerusalem.

[25:40] From home base. Needed. To come down. And validate. Things. First. Peter. And John. Came. To make sure. That the Samaritans. Whom the Jews. Had despised.

[25:51] All their life. Were truly. Converted. And when Peter. And John. Realized. That the Samaritans. Really were. In Jesus. The spirit. Could come. You see.

[26:02] Had the spirit. Come. Before the pillars. Came down. From Jerusalem. There was the potential. Of two. Very different churches. The Samaritan church. And the Jerusalem church.

[26:12] And to head off. That possible schism. Jesus. Sends. Peter. And John. To validate. The conversions. To then lay their hands. On the disciples. To receive. The Holy Spirit.

[26:23] And enter the kingdom. Now. Here's where things. Get really exciting. Acts. 8. 16. Acts.

[26:34] 8. 16. The spirit. Had not. Yet. Fallen. On them. But once. Peter. And John. Laid hands. On the new believers. The spirit. Did. Fall.

[26:44] On them. This verb. Fall. Upon them. Is. Epipipto. Now. Those of you. Who know me well. Know that. I love this verb. It's. It's becoming. My favorite.

[26:55] Verb. In the new testament. Epipipto. Pipto. Fall. Epi. Upon. Epipipto. Fall. Upon.

[27:05] Bruce. Mill. One of our former pastors. In his. Wonderful. Commentary. On acts. Argues. Rightly. I think. That the verb. Should be. Rendered. Fall.

[27:16] All. Over. Not just. Fall. Upon. But. Fall. All. Over. Hallelujah. Indeed.

[27:27] Luke. Uses. This verb. A number of times. For instance. In acts. 20. Verse. 10. This young man. Named. Eutychus. Falls. From. The balcony. Because. Paul. Has been. Preaching.

[27:37] Too long. On a hot. Day. Paul. Runs. Over. To him. He falls. All. Over. The boy. And his life. Is restored. Acts.

[27:48] 20. Verse. 37. Paul. Gives. His. Farewell. Message. To the elders. Of the church. At Ephesus. As he. Preaches. They're. Grieved. That he's. Leaving them. And in their.

[27:59] Grief. They. Fall. All. Over. Him. And keep. Kissing him. And. Luke. 15. 20. In Jesus. Famous. Parable. Of the. Prodigal.

[28:09] Father. The son. Returns. Home. Only. To discover. The father. Has been. Waiting. For him. And the father. Runs. Down. The road. Throwing. His. Arms. Around. Him.

[28:20] Falling. All. Over. Him. That is. What the. Holy. Spirit. Loves. To do. Fall. All. Over. Believers. He. Will.

[28:30] Do. It. Again. In. Acts. 10. When. Peter. Takes. The gospel. Now. Beyond. Samaria. And. Into. The Gentile. World. At the house. Of. The Roman.

[28:41] Centurion. Cornelius. Acts. 10. 44. Listen. While. Peter. Was. Preaching. The Holy Spirit. Fell. Upon. Those.

[28:51] Who. Were. Listening. While. He. Was. Preaching. Jesus. And. The kingdom. The Holy Spirit. Fell. All. Over. Them. Mercy.

[29:02] And. Grace. And. Life. It. Happens. When. The gospel. Is. Preached. And. Received. When. Jesus. And. The kingdom. Are. Good. News. The.

[29:13] Realizer. Of. The kingdom. Comes. And. Falls. All. Over. Us. Filling. Us. With. The life. And. Love. Of. Jesus. You know. There's. A. Powerful. Story. Of.

[29:23] Redemption. In. This. Acts. Eight. Story. Did. You. Notice. That. It. Is. John. Who. Is. Sent. From. Jerusalem. To. Check. Before.

[29:39] Jesus. Death. And. Resurrection. John. Wanted. To. Call. Down. Judgment. On. The. Samaritans. Luke. Nine. Fifty. Four. John.

[29:50] Says. To. Jesus. Do you. Want. Us. To. Command. Fire. And. Come. Down. From. Heaven. And. Consume. Them. Fire. And. Come. Down. And. Consume. These. Samaritans. And.

[30:01] Now. There. He. Is. Laying. His. Hands. Might. Receive. The. Living. Fire. Of. The. Living. God. From. Heaven.

[30:12] That. The. Spirit. Might. Come. And. Fall. All. Over. Them. And. Give. Them. Eternal. Life. And. Bring. Them. Into. The. Kingdom. Of. God. So. Now. Consider. The.

[30:22] Consequences. Of. This. Gospel. On. The. Move. Luke. Says. Many. Folks. Were. Healed. And. Many. Folks. Delivered. From. Unclean. Spirits. But. But. Of. Course. The.

[30:33] Kingdom. Of. God. Is. All. About. God. Restoring. Human. Beings. Into. The. Image. Of. God. As. Hans. Kuhn. Used. To. Say. The. Kingdom. Is. Creation. Healed. And.

[30:44] Luke. Tells. Us. About. One. Man. A. Man. Named. Simon. A. Magician. He's. Not. Like. The. Fiddling.

[31:01] With. The. Reality. Itself. Or. Trying. To. He. Was. Fiddling. With. The. Spirit. World. He. Was. Seeking. To. Manipulate. The. Spirit. World.

[31:11] And. He. Was. Having. Some. Success. That's. Because. The. Spirit. World. Always. Welcomes. Anyone. Who. Tries. To. Manipulate. It. The. Manipulator. Then. Gets. Caught. Now.

[31:22] Why. Does. Luke. Spend. So. Much. Time. Telling. Us. About. Simon. There. Were. Other. People. Whose. Experience. He. Could. Relay. To. Us. Why. Simon. To. Show. Us. Just. How. Transforming. The.

[31:33] Gospel. Is. The. Gospel. Brings. Forgiveness. Of. Sins. Praise. God. The. Gospel. Works. Reconciliation. Between. Us. And. God. And. Between. Us. And. Us. Praise. God. The.

[31:53] Need. To. Control. Reality. Ah. We're. Talking. Miracle. Big time. Now. Aren't. We. Freedom.

[32:05] From. The. Need. To. Be. In. Control. Which. As. Is. The. Case. With. Most. Of. Us. Took. Some. Time. For. Simon. I.

[32:16] Believe. He. Came. To. Truly. Believe. He's. Not. Just. Amazed. By. What. He. Sees. About. The. Kingdom. Reality. And. Philip. I. Believe. He's. Really. Drawn. To. Jesus. I. Believe. He. Is. A. Sincere. Believer.

[32:27] When. He. Goes. Into. The. Waters. Of. Baptism. But. He's. Still. Struggling. With. The. Need. To. Control. His. Own. Life. So. Much. So. That. He.

[32:37] Wants. To. Buy. This. Spiritual. Life. From. Philip. That's. Not. So. Hard. To. Imagine. Is. It. We. Do. This. All. The. Time. The.

[32:47] Holy. Spirit. Does. A. New. Work. In. Some. Church. In. The. World. And. We. Quickly. Package. It. And. Sell. It. On. The. Internet. But. Luke. Tells. Us.

[32:58] About. Simon. To. Give. Us. Hope. We. Will. Be. Freed. From. The. Need. To. Control. Reality. And. Therefore. Freed. To.

[33:08] Freely. Flow. With. The. Holy. Spirit. In. The. Kingdom. Of. God. Go. Back. Just. For. A. Moment. To. The. Catalyst. For. The. Gospel. Moving.

[33:18] Into. The. World. Notice. The. Phrase. In. Acts. 8. 2. Except. The. Apostles. They. Were. All. Scattered. Because. Of. The. Persecution.

[33:30] Except. The. Apostles. Now. Why. Were. They. Able. To. Stay. At. Home. Base. Luke. Does. Not. Tell. Us. But. What. Luke. Wants.

[33:40] Us. To. Know. Is. The. Implication. Of. This. And. It. Is. This. Those. Who. Did. The. Good. New. New. New. Of. The. Gospel. In. Samaria. And. Then. In.

[33:50] The. Roman. Empire. Were. Not. The. New.

[34:02] New. But. It. Was. The. Ordinary. I. Don't. Like. The. Ordinary. Because. There. Are. No. Ordinary. People. But. It. Was. The. Ordinary. Members. Of. All. These. Churches. Who. Did. The. Good. New.

[34:12] New. New. New. The. Roman. Empire. Was. Turned. Upside. Down. Not. By. The. Professional. Evangelist. But. By. Ordinary. Disciples. Speaking.

[34:23] And. Doing. The. Gospel. The. Gospel. Is. Going. To. Move. Into. The. Realm. Of. Law. Through. Good. New. New. Lawyers. The. Gospel. Is. Going.

[34:33] To. Move. Into. The. World. Of. Medicine. Through. Good. New. New. Doctors. And. Nurses. The. Gospel. Is. Going. To. Move. Into. The. Construction. Business. Through. Good. New. Contractors. And. Carpenters.

[34:44] And. Plumbers. And. Wallboard. Finishers. The. Great. Good. Newser. Himself. Scatters. His. People. Into. All. The. World. And. As a.

[34:54] Result. The. Kingdom. Comes. Tomorrow. Afternoon. Sharon. And. I. And. Yelena. Pocomava. Who.

[35:04] Was. My. Assistant. For. A. Season. Are. Flying. To. Mexico. City. And. Then. Down. To. A. Convention. Center. In. Wax. Tekepec. Where. I. Have. The. Wonderful. Privilege. Of.

[35:15] Preaching. For. The. World. Assembly. Of. The. International. Fellowship. Of. Evangelical. Students. Known. In. Canada. As. Intervarsity. Christian. Fellowship. I. Get. To. Serve. 1,150.

[35:27] Staff. Workers. From. 165. Countries. Of. The. World. The. Mission. Statement. Of. IFES. Is. Students. Reaching. Students. With.

[35:37] The. Good. News. Of. Jesus. Christ. Students. Reaching. Students. Not. Staff. Workers. Reaching. Students. Although. Staff. Workers. Love. To. Reach. Students. But.

[35:48] Students. Who. Are. In. The. Trenches. With. Students. Reaching. Students. As. A. Way. To. Bless. You. And. Encourage. You. Let. Me. Read. Just. A.

[35:59] Few. Of. The. Names. Of. The. Countries. In. The. World. Where. The. Gospel. Is. Moving. Among. Students. You. Can't. See. Those. Names. On. That. Map. Behind. You. I'll. Read. Them. To. You. Just.

[36:09] These. Are. Just. A. Few. Names. I'm. Doing. This. To. Bless. You. In. The. Caribbean. Antigua. Barbados. Belize. French. Guyana. Guadalupe. Guyana.

[36:20] Haiti. Jamaica. Martinique. Saint Lucia. Suriname. Trinidad. And. Tobago. In. East Asia. Hong Kong. Indonesia. Japan. Malaysia. The Philippines. Singapore.

[36:30] South Korea. Thailand. In. English. And. Portuguese. Speaking. Africa. Angola. Botswana. Ethiopia. Gambia. Ghana. Kenya. Lasueto. Liberia. Malawi.

[36:41] Mozambique. Nambia. Nigeria. Nigeria. Sierra Leone. South Africa. Sudan. Swaziland. Tanzania. Uganda. Zambia. Zimbabwe.

[36:52] In Eurasia. Armenia. Georgia. Moldova. Russia. Ukraine. Kazakhstan. In Europe. Albania. Austria. Belgium. Bosnia. Bulgaria. Croatia.

[37:02] Czech Republic. Denmark. Estonia. Finland. France. Germany. Great Britain. Greece. Hungary. Iceland. Ireland. Italy. Latvia. Lithuania. Macedonia.

[37:13] Malta. Netherlands. Norway. Poland. Portugal. Romania. Serbia. Montenegro. Slovakia. Slovenia. Spain. Sweden. Switzerland. In French.

[37:24] In Francophone Africa. Benin. Burkina. Burundi. Cameron. Central African Republic. Chad. Congo. Democratic Republic of Congo.

[37:35] Gabon. Guinea. Madagascar. Mali. Aturias. Niger. Rwanda. Senegal. Tago. In Latin America. Argentina. Bolivia. Brazil. Chile. Colombia.

[37:46] Costa Rica. Dominican Republic. Ecuador. El Salvador. Guatemala. Honduras. Mexico. Nicaragua. Panama. Paraguay. Peru. Puerto Rico. Uruguay.

[37:57] Venezuela. And then in the Middle East and North Africa. Egypt. Israel. Jordan. Lebanon. The United Arab Emirates. North America. Canada. Both in French and English. The United States.

[38:09] Southeast Asia. Bangladesh. India. Nepal. Pakistan. Sri Lanka. And in the South Pacific. Australia. Fiji. New Zealand. And Papua New Guinea. That's only 130.

[38:19] The gospel. Has gone into the whole world. And Sharon and I. And Yelena. Get to watch the spirit.

[38:30] Fall. All over. Workers. Who are equipping. Thousands. Of students. To reach students. We live by. Faith.

[38:41] Not by sight. You will receive power. When the Holy Spirit. Comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses. In Jerusalem. Judea. Samaria.

[38:52] And to the ends. Of the earth. So. What should we do. This morning. I think. Each of us should say. Lord Jesus.

[39:04] Here I am. Sweep me up. Sweep me up. Sweep me up. In the moving. Of the gospel. In this place.

[39:15] And in our time. And if you want to. You can move me. Out of home base. To wherever. You can use me. In the world.

[39:25] In the world. Thank you.