Who was I that I could withstand God

[0:00] Thank you for tuning into this message by David Entry. Every true revival is a product of the strong preaching of God's word.! May you receive a word from this message that will spark a revival in you.

[0:14] Acts chapter 10, reading from, I would like to read from verse 42. Actually, we are going from verse 44, but let me just go back.

[0:25] And he commanded us to preach unto the people. And to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the judge of the quick and the dead.

[0:40] To him give all the prophets witness. And through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all them which heard the word.

[0:56] And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished as many as came with Peter. Because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost.

[1:09] For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God. Then answered Peter, can any man forbid water that these should be baptized?

[1:22] Which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days.

[1:33] Chapter 11. And the apostles and brethren that were at Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.

[1:45] And when Peter was come up to Jerusalem, they that were of the circumcision contended with him. Saying, thou wentest into men uncircumcised and didst it with them?

[1:58] But Peter rehearsed the matter from the beginning and expounded it by order unto them, saying, I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw in a vision a certain vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, led down from heaven by four corners.

[2:19] And it came even to me, upon the which when I had fastened my eyes, I considered and saw four-footed beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air.

[2:33] And I heard a voice saying unto me, Arise, Peter, slaying it. But I said, Not so, Lord, for nothing common or unclean hath at any time entered into my mouth.

[2:45] But the voice answered me again from heaven. What God has cleansed, that call not thou common. And this was done three times.

[2:57] And all were drawn up again into heaven. And behold, immediately there were three men already come into the house where I was, sent from Caesarea unto me.

[3:10] And the Spirit bade me go with them, nothing doubting. Moreover, these six brethren accompanied me, and we entered into their man's house. And he showed us how he had seen an angel in his house, which stood and said unto him, Send men to Joppa, and call for Simon, whose surname is Peter, who shall tell thee where's by which thou and all thine house shall be saved.

[3:37] And as I began to speak, the Holy Ghost fell on them, even as on us at the beginning. Then remembered I the words of the Lord, how that he said, John indeed baptized with water, but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost.

[3:54] For as much then as God gave them the like gift as he did unto us, who believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, what was I that I should withstand God?

[4:07] Verse 18. When they heard these things, they held their peace and glorified God, saying, Then has God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life.

[4:19] Here ends the reading of God's word. Please let's pray. Father, we thank you for bringing us to this moment where your word will be taught. We pray that as your word is taught, let our hearts be encouraged.

[4:30] As your word is taught, let faith come alive. We pray grant us access into yourself through the teaching of your word. By the supply of your spirit, I submit myself under your influence, O Holy Spirit.

[4:45] Let my speaking be your speaking. Let me declare not the opinions of men or the ideologies of people, but let me speak the word of God into our generation, that your word will spread and prevail in our church, in our city, in our country, and in this generation and everywhere.

[5:06] Thank you, Lord, that wherever this word is heard, manifestation of your power will accomplish it. All to the glory of your name, in Jesus' name. Amen.

[5:16] Amen. Thank you, Lord. Hallelujah. Amen. Well, we thank God for yet another opportunity to get into his word.

[5:29] And as I always will do, we stopped last week where Peter declared and he preached the word of God to the house of Cornelius.

[5:42] And I was trying to underscore the point last week that it happened in his house, not a hole, not somewhere else, because what we just read in the chapter 11, Peter was telling them as we entered his house in the chapter 11, when Peter was narrating the story from the beginning, he told them that the Spirit said he should go.

[6:06] And verse 12 says that, And then verse 14 says, That's what a man was saying, Now who shall tell thee ways?

[6:19] Verse 14 says, Whereby thou and your house, you know, shall hear the word. So, obviously, you can tell that it was in the house they went, not at a venue, because God likes working with households.

[6:35] They said, What must we do to be saved? Acts chapter 16, verse 30. Men and brethren, what must we do? Verse 31 says that, Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved.

[6:46] Thou shalt end thy house. Let's all say, end thy house. End thy house. So, God is interested in houses and homes, not buildings, please.

[6:57] I mean, when we talk about a house, a person dwelling with the people that live there, that's in that context. So, Cornelius gathered his family into his house, and we heard Peter didn't tell them his testimony.

[7:13] He told them about Christ. The content of the gospel is the virgin birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the virtuous living of our Lord Jesus Christ, the vicarious death of our Lord Jesus Christ, the victorious resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, the visible ascension and the visible return of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[7:41] These are the contents of the true and the sound gospel. Without these contents, you have disabled the gospel.

[7:52] And the gospel cannot save. Salvation is not a feeling. Salvation is a belief based on facts.

[8:03] I believe in facts that have been communicated. What are the facts? The facts about Jesus Christ, who he is, and his works. So, you cannot divorce his works from his person.

[8:19] And you cannot say, okay, we are only concerned about his person. Ignore his works. Like the Rastafariahs would say, it's just his teachings that are important, not his works.

[8:30] No, his works validated who he was. John chapter 10, verse 25. It says that the works with the Father.

[8:40] Jesus has said, I told you and you did not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name, the works. They bear witness of me.

[8:52] John chapter 5, from verse 32. John chapter 5, from verse 35. It says, Jesus tells them about, if I bear witness of myself, anyone bears witness, it's believed that if you are only one who can tell about yourself, there's something questionable about your witness.

[9:11] But Jesus says that my Father who sent me also bear witness. Go back to the previous verse. He says that if I bear witness of my Father, my witness is not true. He says, I'm not the only one.

[9:22] The Father who sent me bears witness. Then verse 35 says, John the Baptist also bear witness. You sent to him, and he is the same, the bear witness. So my Father bears witness.

[9:34] John the Baptist bears witness. And he says, the greatest witness of all is the works the Father does in me. He says that, but I have a greater witness than John the Baptist.

[9:44] The works which the Father gives me cannot separate the works. And the culmination of the works of Jesus is the cross of Christ. He didn't just come to heal the sick.

[9:58] He didn't just come to open the eyes of the blind. He didn't just come to raise the dead. He came to die. The cross of Christ is what culminates his works.

[10:11] And so the point is, you cannot separate the person. Because he wasn't the only one who died on the cross. But the kind of person dying on the cross mattered.

[10:23] Even on the day he was crucified, two others were crucified with him. Two others were crucified with him. And so it's not just the dying on the cross that made him special.

[10:39] But it was who he was that made the dying on the cross something to look into. Something to look into. It's interesting that the cross, when he prayed in the garden, all these things happened outside of town.

[10:53] We got into trouble in the garden. We got into trouble in the garden. Adam, Eve, got us into trouble in the garden.

[11:05] And Jesus got us out of trouble in the garden. Oh yes. We got into trouble by a woman called Eve. We got out of trouble by a woman called Mary.

[11:18] We got into trouble by how they handled the tree in the garden. We got out of trouble by what he did on the tree. We got into trouble by a man called Adam.

[11:30] We got out of trouble by a man called Jesus. Praise God. The gospel that is about the person of Jesus.

[11:44] Who he is. He is the son of God. He is God in the flesh. God in his fullness. In every sense of the word.

[11:54] Not a downgraded version of God. The full version of God. Yet captured in the full version of man. Without mixture. So he was fully or truly.

[12:06] In the sense of truly God. And he was actually in the sense of the word. Truly man. Both in one person. So when we talk about the gospel.

[12:17] We are talking about the person of Jesus Christ. You can't ignore the person of Jesus Christ. And have God. So Peter said. Jesus of Nazareth. How God sent his word. Peter when he started preaching to them.

[12:28] It's of a truth. God is no respecter of a person. But whoever fears him. And that's righteousness. Is accepted of him. Then he began to tell them. How John the Baptist has always featured some way. One way or the other.

[12:40] Because he was such an important person. Who came to introduce Jesus Christ to us. Remember on the cross. They told him. In fact. When he called. Eli. Eli.

[12:50] Lama sabachthani. They said. Look. He's calling on Elijah. Let's see if Elijah will come. Because the Jews had the tradition and belief. That when a genuine godly person is in trouble.

[13:01] And they call on Elijah. Elijah will come and deliver them. So they had that. So when he said. Eli. Eli. Lama sabachthani. They said. He's calling. Let's see if Elijah will come. Elijah will come and deliver him.

[13:14] Elijah didn't have to come. And take him off the cross. Because Elijah already came. And prepared him for the cross. On the mount of transfiguration. Moses appeared. Elijah appeared. And Jesus told them.

[13:25] John the Baptist. Is Elijah who has come ahead of time. Bible say Elijah will come again. He has come again already. John the Baptist. He came to prepare him from the cross. He's not coming to take him down from the cross. Because the cross is why.

[13:36] Jesus came on earth. The cross. Someone say the cross. And so you can see that. The gospel has everything to do with. The person of Christ. And the person of Christ.

[13:48] Not just his person. But the works that this person did. Peter said. John the Baptist opened this whole thing up. And then in verse 37. He says that. That word. You know.

[13:59] Which was proclaimed throughout all Judea. Beginning from Galilee. After the baptism. Which John preached. John preached baptism. So.

[14:10] After the baptism. There's a word that started being proclaimed. Then. It says that. How God. This is the word. How God. Anointed Jesus. Who went about doing good.

[14:21] And healing all the way. The presence of the devil. For God. Talked about. These are works. And he's the anointed one. And this is works. Then. He went on to tell them. That. We are witnesses of all these things. We saw it.

[14:32] We are witnesses. He did both in the land of the Jews. And Jerusalem. Whom they killed. And hung on a tree. They killed him. And hung him on the tree. So we're there.

[14:43] But it says that. God raised him on the third day. And showed him. These are the content of the gospel. He showed him openly. Then he went to. Not all of people. But. To those of us. Who were witnesses. Who are chosen by God.

[14:54] Even to us. Who ate and drank with him. As I resurrected. So after the resurrection. We actually stayed with him. He saw. Then look at the next verse. He says that. And Jesus command. Say command. Command. He commanded.

[15:05] Matthew chapter 28. Verse 20. Go into the world. And preach the gospel. Acts chapter. Chapter 1 verse 2. Look at Acts chapter 1 verse 2. It was a command. Acts chapter 1 verse 2 says that. Until the day in which.

[15:16] Jesus was taken. After he threw the Holy Spirit. Had given commandments. To the apostles. Who he had chosen. He gave them commandments. Said don't stay here.

[15:26] You got to go. When the Holy Ghost comes. So. He commanded us to preach. And not only. Ask. Not only to preach. Look at this. He says that. He commanded us to preach to the people.

[15:39] And to testify. We are preaching. And we have a testimony that. This. What are we saying? Not. What he has just done for us. What we have experienced.

[15:50] We have. He said. Testify that you have experienced. What the prophets spoke about. What the prophets spoke about. To testify that it is. He who was ordained by God.

[16:01] To judge. The living and the dead. Not only the dead. The living as well. Said the time is coming. When God has committed all judgment to the son.

[16:12] The time is coming. John chapter 5 verse 22. And 27. John chapter 5 verse 27. He says that. And has given him authority. To execute judgment also. Because he is the son of God.

[16:24] He said the time is coming. When those in the grave. Shall hear his voice. Oh yes. Yes. Yes. He said. John chapter 5 verse 25. Most assuredly I say. The hour is coming. And now is.

[16:35] When the dead will hear the voice of the son of God. And those who hear will live. The next verse. Those who hear will live. For as the father has life. As I saw the father. He has granted the son to have life in himself.

[16:46] He is the carrier of life. We testify. And that God has appointed this one. To be the judge. Of the living and the dead. Romans chapter 14. Verse 9. Romans chapter 14 verse 9.

[16:59] To this end that Christ died and rose again. Rose and live again. That he might be the Lord. Of both the dead. And the living.

[17:11] You can't escape. Whether you die. Or you live. You know. He is the Lord of the dead. And the living. That means that when you are dead. That is not the end. There are only two categories of people.

[17:22] In God's plan. Those who are alive. And those who are dead. But they are all there. Okay. They are all there. He can work with them. And he will deal with them.

[17:33] So Jesus Christ. So we are testifying that. He is the one who has been appointed. To be the judge. Of the dead. And the living. 43 says that. Of him. To him. Oh this is too good.

[17:45] Please. I have to comport myself. Okay. To him. All the prophets. Say all the prophets. All the prophets. How come somebody is a prophet.

[17:56] He is not pointing to Jesus. He is pointing to unnecessary things. Who will win football match. That is so. Downgraded way of.

[18:09] Downgraded use of puppets. It is actually an abuse of. The sacred altar. To be standing behind the altar. With the professor. Who is going to win football match.

[18:24] It is abuse. Of the sacredness of the altar. This altar is reserved. For the delivery of God's word. Not even for self-help advice. Not for motivational speech.

[18:37] No political campaign. No. It is reserved. This. When we come together. This. It is reserved. For the delivery. So in the. Authorization. Like I think Methodist.

[18:47] Oppressed. The puppet. Is at the top. It is exalted. You have to climb. And go. And say you don't move around. Like the way I am running around. You stand. You don't move.

[18:57] Yeah you have to. Because that is where. God speaks. To the congregation. It is a witness box. Most of the things that you see. In the. Traditional church buildings.

[19:09] Even the. Everything has a theological meaning. Everything. The design. The shape. And everything. This is meant. This place. Is meant for the.

[19:19] It is meant. It is not meant for defense. To come and defend myself. To come and make up. No no. Pastor. Don't use this puppet. To. Sell your case.

[19:32] The puppet. Is only for one purpose. Is the delivery. Of God's word. Did that go. Preaching. And teaching. Usually.

[19:43] Usually. Unbelievers. They preach. They preach to them. Kerygma. Preach to unbelievers. But the believers. They taught the believers. They teach the believers. And Bible says.

[19:54] They exhorted them. They speak. Regularly. Even though we preach. And teach at the same time. This is meant. For the delivery. Of God's word. Very important.

[20:05] So he says that. To him. All the prophets. Witness that. Through his name. Whosoever believes. In him. All the prophets. In Acts chapter 3.

[20:17] Verse 18. In Acts chapter 3. Verse 24. Acts chapter 3. Verse 18. He says that. But those things. Which God. Beforehand. Shoot by the mouth.

[20:27] Of all. All his prophets. God has been speaking. He has been speaking. Long time ago. Long time ago. By the prophets. He has fulfilled.

[20:39] Verse 24. He says that. Ye. Yes. And all. Say all the prophets. All the prophets. There was not one exception.

[20:50] Oh. The validity of a prophet. Is the Christ in their mouth. All the prophets. From Samuel. And those who followed. As many as have spoken.

[21:02] Have all foretold. These days. All the prophets. In Acts chapter 26. Verse 22. Therefore having obtained. I was reading King James.

[21:13] Having therefore. That's a nicer one. It sounds very deep. Having therefore obtained. Help of God. I continue.

[21:25] Unto this day. What am I continuing doing? Witnessing both. To small. Nobody's useless. Nobody is unimportant. To hear the gospel. And nobody's too big.

[21:35] To preach the gospel to. Oh. This one. This one is a special. It's a special. Celebrity. So. Don't. Don't. Don't. Don't try to preach. Excuse me. Great and small. Great and small. Saying none other thing.

[21:47] Than those things. Which they are prophets. Church. And Moses. Did say. Should come. That's the message. So the message. Is nothing new. Anybody who decides to preach. Who tells you.

[21:58] What I'm going to preach. No one. I said. This is a new thing. You have to watch it. That's. Heresy is about to come. Something dangerous about. Your alarm bells must go up. What's new? Because this thing.

[22:09] We are preaching. Has been preached for. You know. What I'm preaching. Some people. Are even preaching it better. Some pastors. And some teachers. And men of God. Are preaching better. Last year.

[22:19] This year. Others are preaching. Last year. Last 10 years. 20 years ago. 100 years ago. 200 years ago. 500 years ago. 1,000 years ago. 2,000 years ago. They've been preaching. And not even.

[22:30] Not yet. Even before Jesus came. They were preaching these things. The message is the same. From Genesis to Revelation. It's one message. And it's always been preached. Because the work of the cross.

[22:41] Is an eternal work. It's not just restricted to time. So that means that. It's efficacy. It's impact. Transcends time. Whatever period in time.

[22:52] It happened. Is not as essential. As what it actually is. So that's why. His death. On the cross. Could save Abraham. That's why they're saying that.

[23:03] You haven't seen Abraham. You haven't seen Abraham. And he said. Abraham saw your days. John chapter 8. Verse 58. He said. Before Abraham. I am. Before Abraham.

[23:14] He said. Verse 56. He says. Told them. Your father Abraham. Rejoiced to see my days. And he saw it. And he was like. I said. You are not yet even 50. And you are saying. He said.

[23:24] Before Abraham. He didn't say. I was. I am. Ego in me. I am. Before Abraham. This message has been. Timeless. It's been there.

[23:36] From the garden. It's been there. It says. In Revelation chapter 13. Verse 8. It says that. Let me start again.

[23:52] And all who dwell on the earth. Will worship him. Whose names have not been written. In the book of life. Of the lamb. And all that dwell upon the earth.

[24:03] Shall worship him. Whose names are not written. In the book of life. Of the lamb. Slain from the. When was he slain? It wasn't. It wasn't.

[24:14] On the Calvary cross. That it just happened. This thing is eternal. It's been activated. That is why. When Cornelius. Peter came to Cornelius. And then.

[24:25] The angel says that. Your. Prayer and Ab's given. And Peter says. I now. Understand. The verse 34. I offer truth. God is no respect of. But in every nation. Those who.

[24:35] Those who. Fear him. And those. Ratcheted. Are accepted of him. The angel. Talk on. In chapter 10. Again. In the verse. For.

[24:46] Your prayers. Have come. On what grounds. An unbeliever. And a gentile. On what grounds. It's on the grounds. Of the eternal work of Christ. Because he has been.

[24:57] Appointed. Unto salvation. And so. All the prayers. That are coming. It is moving. Things towards his salvation. Because. I'm going to show you. Where we just read yesterday.

[25:09] That. Or today. We've just seen it. He was. Peter. I ought to call it. Cornelius. Was accepted. By God. Because he feared God. And he died.

[25:20] Righteousness. But it didn't mean. He had. Salvation. And I'm going to show you. In just a few moments. But the point. I want you to understand. Here.

[25:30] Is that. The prophets. Have been preaching. And I've been saying this. And if I. Romans chapter 3. Verse 21. Says that. Salvation. Justification. But now. The righteousness of God.

[25:42] Without the law. Is manifested. Being witnessed by. The law. And the prophets. The prophets. Had a message. And the message. Is not separated. From what.

[25:53] Peter was preaching. So Peter. After he explained. Jesus. Listen to this. He was preaching. To Gentiles. Gentiles. Gentiles. That was not. The first Gentile.

[26:03] To hear the gospel. As I mentioned. But this is the first group. Of Gentiles. They were all. Gentilic Gentiles. It was a group of them.

[26:16] Peter was preaching to. Peter was preaching to them. And Peter. Said to them that. Told them about. Jesus Christ. Then told them about. This Jesus Christ.

[26:27] The prophets. Have prophesied. I can tell. You are being a nice person. Cornelius. You believe in. Kind of the Jewish God. You accept. How do you know about. The Jewish God. The prophets told.

[26:38] And he said to them. The prophets. I've been talking about. This one. He has fulfilled. So as soon as Peter. Finished. The Holy Spirit. That's where. Actually. The Holy Spirit. Says. Step aside.

[26:48] In fact. I've left one word. Important there. Look at the verse 43 again. Remission. Say remission. Say remission. Remission. That's another word for it. Is forgiveness of sins.

[27:00] Forgiveness of sins. Is. A basic element. Of the gospel. This is so important. It's a basic element. Of the gospel. If the gospel. Has been.

[27:10] Received by any person. The first thing. That will happen. Is forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness. Is the basic element. In Luke chapter. 24. Verse. 47.

[27:21] Jesus told them. To be. Go and preach. And he says. And then. Repentance. And remission. Of sins. Should be preached. In his name. Amongst all nations. Beginning at Jerusalem.

[27:32] So when he went to different nations. Outside of Jewry. Or Jew. He went to preach. The gospel. Remission of sins. To all nations. So Jesus said. Remission of sins.

[27:43] Forgiveness of sins. Everybody say forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness of sins. Please say it again. Forgiveness of sins. Listen. That's what will guarantee. Access to heaven. When somebody says.

[27:54] I don't believe in Jesus. One of the questions. I want to ask them. What are you going to do. About your sins. Because you have it. You have a lot of it. People may not know. People may think. You are very nice.

[28:05] Including Cornelius. Who. Feareth God. And doeth righteousness. I told you two things. That you have. If you are God. And doeth righteousness. He didn't have forgiveness of sins.

[28:16] So Peter had to come. And preach to him. So that he can receive. Forgiveness of sins. You can be accepted. Accepted of God. But does it mean. You are going to heaven. Accepted of God. So forgiveness of sins.

[28:27] Can come to you. That's why. And angels can preach. Forgiveness of sins. It must be human beings. That's why Peter had to go. And preach. Forgiveness of sins. Jeremiah chapter. 31.

[28:38] Verse 34. It says that. And they shall teach no man. Every man is. They shall teach no more. Every man is neighbor. And every man. His brother. Saying. Know the Lord.

[28:49] For they shall all know me. From the least. Of them. Unto the greatest of them. Sayeth the Lord. I will forgive. Their iniquities. Now. God is a forgiving God.

[29:01] I think this is nice. To preach to somebody. Sitting right beside you. Who needs to hear this. Tell somebody. God is a forgiving God. God is a forgiving God. God is a forgiving God.

[29:12] God forgives sins. Acts chapter 5. Verse 31. God forgives sins. Forgiveness of sins.

[29:23] He said. God has exalted him. With his right hand. To be a prince and a savior. For to give repentance to Israel. And forgiveness of sins.

[29:35] First John chapter 2. Verse 12. We have forgiveness of sins in his name. I write to you little children. Because your sins.

[29:45] Ah. That is the good news of the gospel. The good news of the gospel. Our sins are forgiven. Christians are the only group of people whose sins are forgiven.

[29:58] Because forgiveness of sins can only be made possible by death. Because God cannot forgive arbitrarily. Ah. You.

[30:08] Okay. No, no. It can't happen like that. It must be judicial. It must be judicial. There must be. There must be a legal process. Justifiable process.

[30:21] And so God forgives sins. But he never lets sin go free. God will always punish sin. He always will. I've been saying this. Don't forget that.

[30:32] God will. Look at some of you. I'm not comfortable about this. I think this is a good one to talk about. God. He will. Always.

[30:43] Not once in a while. Always. He will never let sin go. Ask somebody.

[30:54] Do you understand what the pastor is saying? Some of you are not saying it. I don't. I guess. Today is Sunday morning.

[31:05] Only God knows yesterday. God. Will never leave sin unpunished. He will never leave sin unto you.

[31:15] The Bible says, by no means, Exodus, he will by no means bear the guilty. Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquities and transgressions and sins, and that he will by no means clear the guilty.

[31:33] If you are guilty, there's no way God will say it's okay. God will definitely, always, offer necessity without fail, punish sin.

[31:48] That's why Jesus said, unless you believe I am he, you will die in your sins. John chapter 8 verse 24, I think so.

[31:59] It said, I said therefore unto you that ye shall die in your sins, for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die. Now, that's where the problem is.

[32:11] Death is not a problem, but how you die. On the cross, I said it recently, three people were dying on the cross, three crosses. One was dying for sins.

[32:23] One was dying in sin. And the other one was dying to sin. You can either die to sin now, so you don't die in sin.

[32:39] Because there is a problem. It's not that you are a bad person. No, no, no, no, no. You are no bad. Look at other people, how bad they are. No, you are premium.

[32:50] You are too good. Too good. Look, other people are too bad. I mean, Hitler. How can anyone compare? You can never do what Hitler did. No, no, you are too good. But the problem is, the little sin on you.

[33:04] God cannot let any sin go unpunished. So what you going to do about that sin? And if you die with that sin, you will wake up on another side where sins are punished.

[33:23] And since your sin cannot be separated from you, that means they are you and your sin. The only way you can escape from sin is by putting your faith.

[33:36] Watch this. When we say in Jesus, in his name, what do we actually mean? Putting your faith in the fact that you know you are a sinner. And he died for sins because God punished the sins that were supposed to be.

[33:49] The Bible says that Galatians chapter 1 verse 4. That who gave himself for our sins. Do you see what he did on the cross?

[34:00] He was actually, that's called vicarious death. He wasn't meant to die because he was sinless. But he went to the cross to die our death so that when we come to him, we will live his life of righteousness.

[34:16] And when we appear before God, after we die, we tell God, I don't come in my name. I come in the name of the sinless one because he took you.

[34:28] God, you can't punish me anymore. No, no, no, no. You can't punish me twice. I've paid the debt on the cross. He said, let's die. It's finished. It is finished.

[34:40] I don't know how many of you have ever finished paying your credit. Your credit card. When you finish paying the credit card, he said, let's die. Hallelujah. When you finish your course, this is at your course and you've been, once you finish it, what do you do?

[34:56] Let's die. It's done and dusted. You cannot move it. When an engineer comes to fix a boiler in your house, which was giving you a problem, an engineer finishes, there's something called commissioning.

[35:09] When you commission, that means that it's not finished to use. Let's die on the cross. Jesus said, take the last time. Whatever sin that is supposed to be given to you or punished in you, I have absorbed it all.

[35:23] 2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 21. He, God, made him who knew no sin to be seen for us. 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verse 3.

[35:34] Christ died for our sins. That's the gospel. Cornelius needed to hear that, to believe in that.

[35:48] Because if you say, I believe in Jesus, this is what it means. I believe that he died for my sins. If you say, you believe he died for your sins, by implication, you are meaning you know you have sins.

[35:58] That's right. That's right. That's right. You're admitting. You're admitting that you are not righteous enough. So you have sins. And that's why he died for my sins. So you are telling the justice of God that, permit me to use it in a lighter sense, back off.

[36:16] The justice of punishment from God stays from you. Why? Because it has already come on him. He cannot pay twice. You don't pay a loan twice.

[36:28] You don't pay twice. So, Peter explained it to him, that forgiveness of sins is in Jesus. Forgiveness. All the prophets have been talking about this.

[36:40] To him, all the prophets witnessed that through his, did you see that? Let's just reference. 1 John chapter 2 verse 12. Did we read it? 1 John chapter 2. Look at it again. Little children. 1 John chapter 2 verse 12.

[36:52] I write unto you, little children, because your sins are forgiven you for his name's sake. Acts chapter 4 verse 12.

[37:03] There is no name given. Neither is there salvation any. For there is no other name. Name. In John chapter 21 verse 30.

[37:14] It says there are so many things Jesus did. But this was written that you will believe. John chapter 21. There are so many things Jesus did. Verse 31. But these are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ.

[37:29] The one that he's talking about. The Christ. The son of God. And believing he might have life through his name. So, when you say believe in his name.

[37:40] That's what he actually means. You are believing in who he is and the work he accomplished. So, when you say believe in his name. You are saying that whoever he is. That is why much of your Christian life or the entirety of your Christian life should be spent discovering Jesus.

[37:58] Because his riches are unsearchable. You can't come to a place that I finish learning about him. No, no, no. Paul said the unsearchable riches of Christ. To preach the unsearchable riches.

[38:11] Chapter 3 verse 8. Ephesians. To preach that. You can't exhaust the knowledge of Christ. He said, Oh, the depths of the wisdom. Romans chapter 11 verse 33. Oh, the depths.

[38:21] Oh, the depths of the riches. Both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgment and his ways are past finding out. You can't finish exhausted.

[38:31] So, all your Christian life is meant to be spent in knowing Jesus. That's why Paul, after many years of preaching, he said, That I might know him. That I might know him.

[38:43] Unbelievers need to know him savingly. Christians need to know him increasingly. Got to know him. Know him. Know him. Know him. Peter told them remission of sins. After he said this, you know, the gospel is finished.

[38:55] That's all God wanted. God bypassed him now. And while Peter yet spoke, these words, the Holy Ghost fell on certain type of people.

[39:08] All those who heard the word. Faith comes by hearing. How shall they believe in him of whom they have known? Romans chapter 10 verse 14.

[39:20] How shall they believe in him? So, when they heard it. When they heard it. What you are hearing will determine the impact of your future. What you are hearing matters.

[39:31] That's why you have to be careful who you're listening to. When they heard these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard him. And day of the circumcision. That's another subject.

[39:46] Day of the circumcision. What does that mean? You remember in Genesis chapter 17 from verse 9 to 14. God gave Abraham a covenant. He said, my covenant with you. And God said, thou shall keep my covenant.

[39:58] Therefore, thou and thy seed after thee in their generations. And what's the covenant? God gave him the covenant of circumcision.

[40:09] That to keep my relationship with you alive. There are things you have to do to separate you from all other people on the earth. So, the Jews were known as the circumcision.

[40:22] So, sometimes in scripture, they are referred to as they of the circumcision. Acts chapter 11 verse 2. They of the circumcision. Do you understand that?

[40:33] They are those who are the circumcised. But they began to give problems. And in Titus chapter 1 verse 10. Look at how he puts it.

[40:43] The circumcision. For there are many unruly and vain talkers and deceivers. Especially they of. Did you see that?

[40:53] They of the circumcision. They are unruly and many vain talkers. They of the circumcision. Colossians chapter 4 verse 11.

[41:05] So, God gave the Jews, Abraham particularly, the covenant of circumcision in Genesis chapter 17. And commanded that it's kept throughout the generations.

[41:17] And so, that's what made them the Jews. In fact, in Romans chapter 4, I remember how Paul was making a case that Abraham is not only the father of the circumcised.

[41:29] But those of us who have faith in Christ is also our father. So, he says that, and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of righteousness of the faith which he had yet been uncircumcised.

[41:45] So, he wasn't circumcised when he received that instruction. But he had faith. So, his faith helped him to relate with God. And God gave him the covenant of circumcision. So, what he's saying is that he had faith even yet when he was not circumcised.

[42:01] Yet uncircumcised. He says that, so that was the seal. That he might be the father of not only those who believe. Though they be not circumcised, that the righteous. So, he says that even though we might not be circumcised by faith, whilst we have faith in Jesus Christ, Abraham becomes equally our father.

[42:20] Not only the Jews. So, he calls the, the point I'm making this, he calls the Jews circumcision. So, the Bible, several places is called, they are called Colossians chapter 4 verse 11. Did you read that?

[42:32] Colossians chapter 4 verse 11. Jesus, okay. Jesus, who, which is called justice. So, there are a lot of other people called Jesus in those days. Who is called justice? Who are of their circumcision?

[42:46] Do you see that? So, circumcision is that the group of, they are Jews, the normal Jews who practice Judaism. Now, but let's listen to this very carefully. By the time Jesus came, now it has even just gone further.

[42:59] It has just become a tradition. So, their heart was not connected. And they were just practicing what their heart was not in. So, it became a legalistic thing that was actually, now it eventually became the problem of the spreading of the gospel rather.

[43:14] What God gave Abraham to keep in his generations, now they are deviated from God so much that what God gave them to help his work has started.

[43:28] They are now using it to help his work. Galatians chapter 6 verse 12 and 13. See how he puts it. The next verse.

[43:46] The next verse. So, now they are beginning to impose circumcision on the Christians.

[44:00] Which was not part of the deal that God gave. In Acts chapter 15 verse 1, it says that, And certain men came down from Judea and taught their brethren, this brethren in Antioch, taught them, Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.

[44:20] See how far they are taking it. Now, the circumcision that God gave Abraham to keep them in relation has become a problem for the church. They are using it to block the church.

[44:32] In Philippians chapter 3 verse 2. See what the circumcision could do against the church. Beware of dogs. These are strong words. Beware of dogs.

[44:44] Beware of evil workers. Beware of the mutilation. King James. Beware of dogs. Beware of evil workers. Beware of their concision.

[44:54] What's that? Mutilation. Concision. They mutilate you because your heart is not in the thing. New America standard version. I will go to English. New international version.

[45:06] Beware of dogs. Beware of evil workers. Same thing. Beware of false circumcision. So, he's talking about circumcision. He's mutilating you unfairly. English standard version, then NIV, sorry.

[45:19] English standard version. Look out for their dogs. Not their animals. These dogs are not referring to animals. Look out for their dogs. Look out for their evildoers.

[45:30] Look out for those who mutilate the flesh. NIV. He also is mutilators of the flesh. They hurt you.

[45:41] Just religious practice. Anyway, so, having understood that, day of the circumcision, as many as came with Peter, when they saw, verse 45, when they saw, when they of the circumcision, which believed, were astonished, as many as came with Peter.

[45:58] Because the gift of the Holy Ghost had been poured out on gifts. He said, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved. Men and brethren, what shall we do?

[46:09] Acts chapter 2. What shall we do? Verse 38. Peter said, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Repent. Peter said, repent. And let everyone be baptized in the name. Now, when you see in the name of Jesus, you know what I mean.

[46:21] The name. It captures everything. It's working. For the remission of sins. And you shall receive what? The gift of the Holy Spirit. That's what it takes. Watch, this is very important.

[46:32] That's what it takes to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. Repentance and remission of sins. But as Peter was speaking, it looks like Cornelius believed in his household.

[46:45] They believed. They accepted the message. And they repented. And so, all these things happened while the preaching was going on. As I'm preaching, I know somebody's repenting. As I'm preaching, I know somebody's believing.

[47:00] You know. I might not know. But you know. And God knows. Something is called the work of grace. The irresistible work of grace. The work of redemption is going on in somebody's heart.

[47:13] As I'm preaching, something is happening to somebody. So, whilst Peter was preaching, these guys repented. And received remission of sins. Because he told them for remission of sins. After he had remission of sins. I believe that.

[47:23] When he read in between the lines. So, yeah. I believe. I believe. Thank you, Jesus. I believe. You are the Lord. I accept you. I believe. So, they received remission of sins. So, Peter was still talking. And then, the Holy Spirit fell on those who heard the word.

[47:39] So, the circumstances were surprised that the Holy Spirit has also the gift has been given. Poured out. Remember, I'll pour out. My spirit. O Paul.

[47:50] Acts 2, 17. Had been poured out upon the Gentiles also. So, they were surprised. The Gentiles also. How?

[48:02] It's like repeats of Pentacles. Pentacles repeated here. Pentacles. The day. See, these are two major times. Where Jesus himself calls it baptism of the Holy Spirit.

[48:16] Baptism of the Holy Spirit. It's only used twice in the Bible. In the Acts. One is Acts chapter 1 verse 5. Where Jesus said, you shall. John said, then John truly baptized.

[48:28] But you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So, baptizing with the Holy Spirit. It's just there. That's the first one. And the second one is where the text we are in.

[48:39] They were astonished as many as has come with Peter. Because the gift of the Holy Spirit was in Paul. How did they know it? Verse 46. Verse 46. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.

[48:54] Magnify. In Luke chapter 1, I think verse 46 says that. My soul does magnify the Lord. When God does work of redemption in your heart.

[49:04] It brings gratitude. That's right. Brings gratitude. Is it today's reading or yesterday's reading? I was reading today's reading. Yeah, I think today's reading. Where Jesus said. I think the verse 17. He said, my word.

[49:16] You'll receive my word. And your joy will be full. Wow. He said, when you receive. You'll receive. I've spoken these things to you. That your joy will be full. Full joy.

[49:26] comes through genuinely getting access to God's word. Anyone who doesn't. Is it verse 11? He said, yeah, verse 11. These things have I spoken to you. That my joy may remain in you.

[49:37] And that your joy may be full. Until the word of Christ really comes to you. You will never be truly joyful. Let alone to be truly happy. And so, they magnified God.

[49:50] When the Holy Ghost came upon them. They spoke with tongues. And magnified God. The issue of tongues. Is always. Ah. Master, tell us about tongues. That was not private tongues.

[50:02] Those of you say. You should be speaking it privately. That wasn't private. That was because. The circumcision. They heard them speak with tongues. And when the Holy Ghost came. On the day of Pentecost.

[50:12] They spoke with tongues. And Bible says. The people heard them glorifying God. Praising God. And magnifying God. You know. Genuine tongues. Is always embedded in gratitude. When the Holy Ghost comes on people.

[50:24] There is always one sign. Gratitude. In the heart. Hallelujah. Anyway. Quickly. So. They heard them speak with tongues. And glorifying God. Then Peter said.

[50:35] This is very important. Can anyone forbid water. That these should not be. Baptized. Who have received the Holy Spirit. Just as we have. It is a very strong phrase.

[50:47] Just as we have. God didn't make distinction between them. The Gentiles. And we the Jews. God has not made any decision. The way we receive. The same way. But we work with Jesus directly.

[50:59] That's why you don't have to go to Jerusalem. To be baptized. River Jordan. Before your baptism. Is authentic. No. No. No. No. No. You don't have to be saying.

[51:09] I wish I was living in the days of Jesus. Your days are better. Your days are better. Because God knows why he brought you. Bible says. He has appointed their times.

[51:20] And their boundaries. So God appointed when you should be born. So if you say. I wish I was living in those days. You are trying to say. I am smarter than God. And you are not grateful for life.

[51:32] Our days are the best of days. For us. Oh yes. This is the best time. You can ever be alive. This is the best time. Listen. These are the best. I am telling you.

[51:42] This is the best time. You can ever live. Jesus Christ was equally valid to the apostles. Who walk. The Holy Spirit. Equally. To the apostles who walk with them.

[51:54] The same way. To those who came after us. No distinction. God did not put a distinction. So Peter said. What stops us from baptizing them with water?

[52:05] Sin. Should baptize them with water. Can anyone forbid water? That they should not be baptized. Who have received the Holy Spirit. Just as we have.

[52:17] Just as we have. No. No. What does it say? This is quite important. There are four things that make the Christian birth complete. Number one is repentance. Number two is believing.

[52:28] Alright. So you repent. You believe. You are baptized. Number three is baptism. And number four. Receive the Holy Spirit. It's like rabba.

[52:39] R-B-B-R. I've taught this before. That's what to make you remember. R-B-B-R. Repent. Believe. Baptize. Receive. These four.

[52:51] Some people have a problem. You are in church. But you have not gone through the four. You say you're a believer. You haven't been baptized. Uh-huh. After you believe. Uh-huh. I have a problem over there.

[53:02] The Bible has a problem. Your birth process. There was a midwife-free defect. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh.

[53:13] Uh-huh. You understand? There's a birth defect. Because you're... That's why some people... People also become... They believe in Jesus, but they haven't actually properly repented. That's why they'll be in church and fighting with everybody and they're problem- there.

[53:27] There's a defect. And it can affect the entirety of your Christian life. Their normal Christian birth have not been properly embraced. So, you need to repent. You need to believe in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[53:40] You need to be baptized and then you need to receive. Now, the first two are essential. Repentance and believing. The last two have to follow after you have repented.

[53:54] Now, this is important because... But it doesn't have to be in a particular order. The first two, without that, you can't be actually properly born again. Then you are baptized.

[54:04] It can be done later. So, when you look at the scripture very carefully, when Peter went to Jerusalem chapter 8, Acts chapter 8, after the preaching of Philip, Samaria received the word.

[54:18] Bible says that and they that received the word were baptized. I think verse 11. Acts chapter 8, verse 11. They were baptized. Okay. All who received from 10 and 11, all of them were baptized.

[54:29] Can you put it on the screen, please? All of them, but verse 12, when they believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, both men were baptized. But this baptism happened before, look at verse 14.

[54:43] When Jerusalem heard that they have received the word, they sent Peter and John who, when they came, prayed that they will receive the Holy Spirit. So, you see, they were water baptized before the Holy Spirit. But in Cornelius' house, if God waits for Peter to say, let me baptize you first, he will never do it.

[54:59] Because he didn't believe that Gentiles would be, let me just preach to them, but I don't think they can be saved. Now, you see where I'm coming from? Because the day of the circumcision don't believe that you can be saved without all these rituals.

[55:11] So, Peter was having a problem. That's why he said, I can't eat this. No, no, I can't do this, God. I can't do this. God said, eat. He said, oh, no, no, I can't eat three times. He said, I can't do it. And then when those in Jerusalem, when they heard that Peter had gone to Caesarea, now, remember this.

[55:27] Do you know where Philip was living? I mentioned it. He was living in Caesarea, but God didn't use Philip. He had to send for Peter because if Philip, Philip was a junior in the leadership of church, they might find it easier to say, Philip, you are wrong.

[55:41] but because Peter was too senior, even with him, they queried him in Acts chapter 11. Acts chapter 11, verse 1 and 2. See what it says.

[55:52] Acts chapter 11, verse 5 and 2. Now the apostles and the brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles also have received the word of the Lord. Look at that. And when Peter came into Jerusalem, those of their, oh, see the circumcision.

[56:03] Those of their circumcision contend them with it. They challenge him. You are spoiling this beautiful work. You are spoiling the church. Pastor, you are spoiling this church. They challenge him that you went into, say you went into uncircumcised, you see the circumcision and uncircumcised men and ate with them.

[56:22] How? How? Peter knew they were right in what they were saying because he would have done the same. That's why God didn't wait for them. Look at Peter's answer.

[56:33] He said, but he explained it. No. Verse 4. But Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning. Let's take it systematically. Because he knew that what he was dealing with, he has gone into something he shouldn't go into.

[56:49] Because not the law of God, but Judaism. Their tradition would not allow it. And he had done it. So he had to now find a way explaining himself to them.

[57:00] And he knew that the guys were in a certain sense right. So he took it from the beginning and now he repeated the whole story. That, let's go on, verse 4. I was in the city of Joppa and I fell into a trial.

[57:12] I saw a vision and a ship descending and the four corners tied and all manner of creeping things and four footed beasts and a voice came from heaven. Did you see that? He said, I saw a vision from heaven.

[57:24] And then a voice came from heaven. He was pointing them because if we say we want to obey God, he said he came from heaven and I heard a voice saying to me, rise, kill and eat.

[57:34] The next verse says that, but I said, not so Lord, for nothing common or unclean has at any time but the voice said again unto me, from heaven, what God has cleansed, you must not call uncommon.

[57:48] By this time the people will be thinking, wow, this is interesting. This is interesting. You must not call uncommon. But the voice has said, what God has called, don't call common. Now, this happened three times and it was withdrawn to heaven.

[58:01] It came from heaven. I heard a voice from heaven. It was withdrawn to heaven. It looked like something is happening here. So that's why I had to tell them from the beginning and look at it. I like this text so much. And then it said that at that very moment, three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent from Caesarea.

[58:18] Okay. Then the spirit told me, the spirit, you people are calling me, the spirit told me to go with them doubting nothing.

[58:29] Obviously, I would have doubted. But the spirit said, just go. Just go. After this vision. Just go. You see, the process God went through to bring the gospel to we Gentiles.

[58:41] Because the Jews wouldn't have allowed us to come in. The Jews, the circumcision would have blocked you from becoming a Christian. Yes. They would block any appeal. They would block you.

[58:52] Look how, let me digress and say this beautiful thing and then move on and finish it. I like talking about the cross, you know. The thief on the cross, one of them said, Jesus.

[59:03] The other one was just accusing him. He said, can you help me to escape? Get me out of here. I'm not interested in heaven. Just get me out of the cross. He was thinking about now, now, my prosperity, now, my marriage, now, my breakthrough, now.

[59:16] Jesus, just do something for me, now. He was, sort me out now. The other one said, shut up, shut up. They were all asking for help, but the other one said, not here, in your kingdom.

[59:28] The man who had the luckiest day ever. Yeah. In the morning, he came out of prison with death penalty. He was going to, not death penalty, he was actually going to be executed.

[59:42] Yeah, so he was going, when he was leaving the prison, he was going, midday, the same day. So one day, he got out, he was going to be executed. He died, midday, he died on the cross.

[59:54] By the end of the day, he was in heaven. I mean, this was the bad guy in your school. The bad guy, you remember that guy?

[60:05] The bad guy in your school and finished school, didn't become anything and fighting everybody, murdered people, fought people and creating problems in the neighborhood. It was a madness. It was there.

[60:15] And if anyone should be saved, you know that it's not this one. You know, not this one. Some of you, after you go see people are surprised. Ah, you too? You are in this thing? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

[60:26] The guy said, Jesus. Look at this, look at this. I ready for this. His disciples who worked with him, watch this.

[60:38] They worked with him for three and a half years and Peter said, you are the Messiah. They knew he was a king, they worked with him. But when you go to the cross, say, oh, okay, we thought he was a king. They ran away.

[60:50] They ran away. But the guy on the cross said, I know you are the king. Even when everybody has turned their back against you and don't accept your kingdom, I know you are a king. You have a kingdom. So remember me when you come into your kingdom.

[61:08] Sir, Jesus didn't say, okay, okay, I got you. You tried. You know what? I'm going, but wait, wait.

[61:19] When I go, you know you're a bad guy. You're a bad guy. You can't come in yet. So, I'll go and make some arrangement and they'll pass you through the back door. They'll wash you a bit and sneak you into paradise from the back door.

[61:35] Jesus didn't say that. Because you know, some people, you can't take them into some places. You have to find a way of smuggling them in. Jesus said, I'm not going ahead than you come.

[61:47] He said, I'm going with you. You shall be with me. You shall be with me. You shall be with me in the royal garden having dinner in tea.

[61:57] You shall be with me. God has not put demarcation, no restriction. All he takes, that's why that man didn't die in his sins.

[62:11] One of the cross, redemption was happening on the cross. The other cross, rejection was happening on the cross. The other cross, reception was happening and the one who received redemption walked with Jesus into paradise.

[62:24] That same day, that same day, he woke up a convicted criminal. He was executed on the same day and he was in heaven the same day. Hallelujah.

[62:39] Well, so he said, I believe that God is no respecter of person. Peter has told us and then he said, the Holy Spirit came upon us. So he started telling them, I went to Cornelius' house, just to write it up. I went to Cornelius' house, verse 11, Acts chapter 11, verse 11.

[62:52] Acts chapter 11, verse 11. And at the very moment, three men stood before my house and they told me they'd been sent from Syria. The verse 12 says that the Spirit told me, go, don't ask questions, just go.

[63:03] And so six other brethren accompanied him. It was good they came, they are witness. So six, he went to, because he wasn't sure, what if these guys gung on me and beat me? So he went to six other guys.

[63:14] Verse 13, watch this, verse 13. And he told us how Cornelius told them how angels appeared to him and all that, told them the story. Verse 14 says that, and who, he said, go and bring Peter, who will tell you words by which your household, you and your household will be saved.

[63:33] Worse, angels can't say it. The angels say, go and bring Peter. All right, let's go to the next verse. Ah, that's it. As I began to speak, the Holy, you see, the beginning, he hasn't finished speaking.

[63:45] So he just gave Jesus' message and he was about to take it, explain it, break it down. Holy Ghost said, all that, don't try and convince their minds. Speak to their spirits and get, make sure you are clear enough.

[63:59] You are bold enough. You are clear enough for them to understand. You are bold enough for the message to go and I'll do the rest. So once I began to, the Holy Ghost fell on them. This is the same word.

[64:10] As upon us at the beginning. Now this leads me to the title of my message. The next verse. Then I finish. Okay. Then I remember the word of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[64:23] How he said, John did baptize with water but you shall be baptized and he said, baptize with the Holy Spirit. Now, verse 70 is my message.

[64:33] The title. If therefore God gave them the same gift as he gave us when we believed, when he comes, after believing, when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ.

[64:48] Now the title of our message is, who was I that I could withstand God? Don't try it.

[65:02] You cannot tell who cannot be a Christian. You cannot tell who God cannot use. You cannot tell who is not qualified. Stay out of it. It's above your pay grade.

[65:13] You know a lot about somebody but better shut up. God, allow God, who, who was I? Ask the word, who was I? To come and judge you today.

[65:25] Who was I? Who was I? Who was I? Who was I that I should withstand? Who was I? Who was I? One of the versions, I think, English standard version or American standard version, he doesn't use withstand.

[65:40] One of the versions, give us new English standard. I could stand, no, American standard. Hinder. One of the versions, we know we stand.

[65:51] One of the, NIV, no, it can't be NIV. One of the versions said, that I should hinder, that I should oppose. He said, who was I to think that I could oppose God?

[66:03] You can't oppose God. You can't oppose God. You can't hinder God. Yeah, the version I'm looking for, he said, interfere with God. Who was I?

[66:14] That I should interfere with what God is doing. What version? They amplified. All right. So, if God gave them all that, who was I to interfere or stand in God?

[66:27] You are standing in my way. God said, listen, you, grant you, you are standing in my way. You are standing in my way. I know you are a politician, but you are standing in my way. I know you are a business owner.

[66:38] You are standing in my way. I know you are an ex-husband. I know you are an ex-girlfriend. You are standing. Who was I? Who was I?

[66:50] That I should stand in the way of God. Stop judging people. God can use anybody. If that thief could make it to heaven, to paradise, God can use anybody. So, if God gave the spirit to them, just as he gave to us at the beginning, it is no difference.

[67:06] What? This is a conundrum. How? Peter, this is just it. Who was I to stand? Then, verse 18 finishes up by saying that, when they heard these things, they became, and they rather glorified God, saying, then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life.

[67:28] Two things. Peter didn't only preach repentance, say, we speak to you, the words of life. They had repentance, forgiveness of sins, and they have also life from death. The gospel brings both forgiveness and life.

[67:44] Repentance from our sins, redemption, and then we are dead. When you don't have Jesus, you are dead. God has therefore granted the Gentiles, who was I?

[67:55] Who was I? Who was I? Did you receive something? Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Give Jesus praise. God's love.

[68:08] Thank you for listening to this message by David Entry. We pray you have been revived towards God. You can connect with David Entry on all relevant social media platforms, including Instagram and LinkedIn.

[68:20] You can also hear more messages from David Entry on all relevant streaming platforms and the Karis Church app. Don't forget to like and share the message. Be blessed. God bless.

[68:30] God bless.