Well, I should warn you, this morning I'm not just going to preach a sermon.
As if that weren't bad enough, I'm actually going to preach a sermon on a sermon.
So, it's going to be doubly worse this morning.
I'm kidding.
I promise you this.
I promise you that this sermon is far from boring.
Not mine, but the sermon that we're going to look at in Acts 13, Paul's synagogue sermon
that Luke records for us here.
I mean, just listen to an outline of this sermon.
This is what Paul has to say to them and to us.
That the long story has come to its climax, and that your greatest problem has been solved,
and that the future is breaking in.
Those are huge claims.
That the climax to the story has come, that your problem is solved, and that the future
is breaking in.
Aren't you at least a little curious about how that could be?
Well, let's look then at how Paul begins.
This is Acts 13.
Let's pick up in verse 13.
Paul and Barnabas are on their first missionary journey, and Luke picks it up like this.
He says,
Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen.
The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay
in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted army led them out of it.
And for about 40 years he put up with them in the wilderness, and after destroying seven
nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance.
All this took about 450 years.
And after that he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet.
Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of
Benjamin for 40 years.
And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and
said, I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart who will do all my will.
Of this man's offspring, God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised.
Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.
And as John was finishing his course, he said,
What do you suppose that I am?
I'm not he.
But behold, after me, one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I'm not worthy to untie.
The novelist Flannery O'Connor once said,
In the long run, a people is known not by its statements or its statistics, but by the stories
it tells.
Now you might think, well, she was a novelist.
Of course she would say that.
But think about it.
You know, in the ancient Near East, in the third and second and first millennia B.C., there
were kings and kingdoms who amassed great military strength and built massive buildings and conquered
and ruled vast empires, statements and statistics that could fill volumes.
But of all those kingdoms that came and went, there was one little people whose political
independence was actually pretty short-lived in comparison.
And whose military might wasn't actually much to speak about.
And whose architectural achievements were pretty small.
And yet, it's that people that we remember.
Why?
Because what they had was this powerful story.
The true story of the one God who created all things and who made humanity in his image.
And who after the ravage of human idolatry and rebellion, who, when humans had gone their own way into misery,
was going to make things right.
The story to the story of the one true God.
The story to which the people of Israel held fast and held forth was that this one true God had put into motion a rescue plan.
A plan that through one family, salvation, total healing and restoration would come to the whole world.
That's the story Paul is retelling in these verses.
And when you look at it, what a gripping and, quite frankly, really gritty story it is.
Verses 17 through 22 take us from Abraham through the Exodus, from the wilderness to the promised land, from the judges to the kings, and through it all,
God was taking the initiative in grace to call and preserve a people through whom his blessing would come to every nation on earth.
And as the history went forward, God's promises more and more began to converge and narrow on the hope of a king.
A king in the line of the great King David.
Now, if you go back to the beginning of the story, these promises actually began in Genesis.
That's where Paul begins.
God tells Abraham, in your offspring, the world's going to be blessed.
That's Genesis 22, 18.
And then isn't it interesting that a thousand years later, in 2 Samuel 7, when God makes his promise to David,
that he will establish his house and his throne forever,
again, he picks up the language of offspring.
I'll raise up your offspring after you, and I will establish his kingdom forever.
Coincidence?
Well, nearly all the Hebrew prophets saw the connection.
That what God promised would happen through the offspring of Abraham would be fulfilled in God's renewed promise through David's offspring.
That this coming king would not only restore Israel, but unleash God's blessing, his healing and restoring reign into the whole world.
And friends, we could go through the prophets and cite passage after passage after passage,
where that connection is made between this worldwide blessing that God promised to Abraham,
and what God would do through his coming Davidic king.
Isaiah 55, that we read earlier, is just one of them.
Come, Isaiah says.
Come and drink.
Come and eat.
Come and be made totally new.
Why?
Because the king at last has come.
Now, you can imagine, as Paul's sort of recounting the story, the whole synagogue sort of nodding in approval.
Yes, that's right.
That's our history.
That's right.
But imagine how surprised they must have been when he concluded this sort of well-worn narrative
with what he says in verse 23 of this man's offspring, David's offspring.
God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised.
Can you imagine what that must have been like?
How many jaws dropped?
How many eyes grew wide?
How many people who were sort of drifting off to sleep suddenly jolted awake?
What did he just say?
Did a murmur start to ripple through that ancient synagogue?
Or was it so quiet that you could have heard a pin drop?
What did he just say?
Well, he just said that the story, the story of the one true God, the creator God of heaven and earth,
and the covenant God of Abraham and David, that God has done it.
That the story's reached its climax, and it's reached it in Jesus.
Friend, I wonder what story you live by.
As humans, it's almost impossible not to do that.
What narrative is running underneath the sort of assortment of your days?
Maybe it's not something you've really thought about or articulated to yourself.
Maybe you've just sort of absorbed it from the culture that we live in, a story of finding personal fulfillment,
maybe in love or in achievement, or perhaps making a difference, leaving the world a better place.
But go a little deeper.
What story do you really live by?
Now, perhaps the big story that you say you believe doesn't have much room for God, or not much need for him.
And yet, doesn't your story still include those elements about the enduring value of love,
and the importance of our actions, and the concept, the very concept of making a difference?
Friends, let me ask you, do those elements really make any sense in a story where all we are is just time and chance and matter?
Do they make any sense in a story without God?
Could it be that the story that this passage is inviting us into actually makes more sense of reality as we know it,
and as we experience it, than all the other stories that we so easily absorb?
A story that actually makes sense of our longing for love, and our longing to see things put right,
and our sort of intractable valuing of what we do.
To be sure, the story that's beckoning to us here is an invitation into something so much bigger.
Something that takes us from our small desires up into something that's shot through with grandeur.
It's calling us to step into the story of God for which we were made.
At the end of the Chronicles of Narnia,
forgive me for always using illustrations from the Chronicles of Narnia,
I've been reading it to my son in the evenings,
so it's fresh in my mind.
But at the end, the very end,
Lewis describes a little stable,
a small little shed,
that from the outside looks shabby,
and tight,
and confining,
and dark.
But when the characters actually go inside,
they find just the opposite.
That it opens up into a vast world
that's actually more real,
and more fulfilling than anything they've ever known.
From the outside,
it looked confining,
but inside,
it was what they were created for.
For life,
and freedom.
So often,
Christianity from the outside
can seem like that.
A humble little stable,
maybe even a little tight,
and confining.
But if you humble yourself,
and step in,
you actually find
just the opposite.
It's not something that takes away
your best,
not something that diminishes you,
or diminishes your view of reality,
but something that finally
brings it to life.
And opens it up in ways
that you could have only dreamed.
And at the center,
bringing it all together,
at the climax of it all,
is the person of Jesus.
That he is the one
who will fulfill and complete,
not just the threads of Israel's story,
but of yours and mine as well.
That's what verse 23 means.
And think of all the other
implications of that verse.
We could probably preach
this whole sermon on that verse.
Doesn't that verse tell us
that first,
God is very faithful,
that he keeps his promises,
that after 2,000 years,
he didn't let one of them
fall to the ground,
that this is a God
that you can trust,
even if it takes a long time.
And second,
that isn't Paul telling us here
that all those promises of God
find their yes,
as Paul will say in 2 Corinthians
a little later,
in the person and work of Jesus.
That he's the center
of the Old Testament
as well as the New Testament,
that all of it led to him.
Christian,
do you read your Bible that way?
Do you read your Bible
not primarily as a long list of rules
that we have to keep
or a bunch of sort of
old, dusty, irrelevant stories,
but as the single great drama
that's come to fulfillment
for all of us in Jesus?
Another thing that this verse
means for us is that,
you know,
if the climax of God's story
has come through the events
of Jesus' life,
then what's at stake here
is actually something
that we can investigate.
We can look at the historical evidence
for his life
and for his death
and for his resurrection
that we can go to the sources
and see for ourselves.
And that's good news
if you're exploring Christianity
or if you're spiritually curious.
No one is asking you
to make a leap in the dark.
Instead, consider the claims.
Look at the evidence.
The very book that we're studying
this morning,
the book of Acts,
is actually the second part
of a two-volume work.
The first part,
the Gospel of Luke,
is Luke's own orderly account
of the life of Jesus
based on eyewitness accounts
and his own historical research
written well before the end
of the first century.
That is,
in the lifetime
of the followers
of Jesus themselves.
Luke's Gospel
is a great place
to begin
your investigation
of who Jesus is.
If you want some other suggestions
on where to begin,
there's a book stall downstairs.
I'd be happy to make
some recommendations
to you after the service.
But you know,
there's another implication
of Jesus being the climax
of this story.
And Paul alludes to it
in verse 24
with his reference
to John the Baptist.
That might have seemed
like a bit of an odd thing
to throw in there.
But you know,
we know that the news
of John the Baptist's ministry
had actually reached
all the way
to Asia Minor
where Paul is now.
In fact,
a little later
in chapter 19,
we're actually going
to meet some disciples
of John the Baptist
who made it all the way
to Ephesus,
which is like on the western coast
of modern-day Turkey.
That's a long way
from Jerusalem
and the Jordan
where John was ministering.
So you see,
Paul's audience
in Pisidian Antioch here
would have been familiar
with John the Baptist's
reputation and character.
And Paul's reminding them here
that John came preaching
a baptism of repentance
to all the people of Israel
to prepare the way
for this coming one.
In other words,
John's message
was that everyone,
even good religious Israelites,
had a deep problem
that only God could solve.
And that actually brings us
to the next big point
of Paul's sermon here.
That Jesus is not only
the climax of the story,
but because of that,
He's also the answer
to our greatest problem.
Let's read verses 26 through 43.
Paul continues,
Brothers,
sons of the family of Abraham
and those among you
who fear God,
to us has been sent
the message of this salvation.
For those who live in Jerusalem
and their rulers,
because they did not recognize Him
nor understand the utterances
of the prophets
which are read every Sabbath,
fulfilled them
by condemning Him.
And though they found in Him
no guilt worthy of death,
they asked Pilate
to have Him executed.
And when they had carried out
all that was written of Him,
they took Him down
from the tree
and laid Him in a tomb.
But God raised Him
from the dead.
And for many days
He appeared to those
who had come up with Him
from Galilee to Jerusalem,
who are now His witnesses
to the people.
And we bring you
the good news
that what God promised
to the fathers,
this He has fulfilled
to us, their children,
by raising Jesus.
As also it is written
in the second Psalm,
You are my son,
today I have begotten you.
And as for the fact
that He raised Him
from the dead,
no more to return
to corruption,
He's spoken in this way,
I will give you
the holy and sure
blessings of David.
Therefore, He says also
in another Psalm,
you will not let your Holy One
see corruption.
For David,
after he had served
the purpose of God
in his generation,
fell asleep
and was laid with his fathers
and saw corruption.
But he whom God raised up
did not see corruption.
Let it be known to you,
therefore, brothers,
that through this man
forgiveness of sins
is proclaimed to you.
And by him,
everyone who believes
is freed from everything
from which you could not
be freed
by the law of Moses.
Beware, therefore,
lest what is said
in the prophets
should come about,
Look, you scoffers,
be astounded and perish,
for I am doing a work
in your days,
a work that you will
not believe,
even if one tells it to you.
As they went out,
the people begged
that these things
might be told them
the next Sabbath.
And after the meeting
of the synagogue
broke up,
many Jews
and devout converts
to Judaism
followed Paul and Barnabas,
who, as they spoke with them,
urged them to continue
in the grace of God.
In verse 39,
Paul points us
to the greatest problem
that we all have.
Look again at that verse.
Do you see the little
superscript number
after the word freed?
That's telling you
to look down
in the bottom of the margin.
And there it tells you
that that word
literally means justified.
To be justified
means to be pronounced righteous.
In other words,
it means to have
a verdict
declared over you,
pronouncing you
not just innocent,
but in the right,
totally acceptable,
totally approved.
approved.
In January,
the New York Times
ran an article
called
A Race to the Front Row.
Did any of you
read this?
And the article
was basically
about how people
in exercise classes,
in spinning classes
in particular,
have become obsessed
with getting a spot
in the front row
of the class.
I've never been
to a spinning class
myself,
but apparently
in some of the
higher intensity classes,
the instructor
will actually pick
who gets to ride
in front.
According to the article
for these avid exercisers,
a place up front
is a status symbol
akin to sitting
front row
at a concert
or a fashion show.
It shows you're fit enough
to keep up
and confident
in your ability
to lead a class.
So it's actually
become a thing,
I guess,
to strive
for the front row,
to get the instructor
to publicly affirm
that you've got
what it takes
to ride in front
of everybody else
and set the pace.
Listen to how
one person
describes the feeling
of having the instructor
select her
for the front row.
I remember seeing
the front desk staff
confer with the instructor
and he glanced over
at me
and then looked back
at them
and nodded.
I was so honored
and excited
that he recognized me
as a strong rider.
And then the article
goes on to say,
she's still starry-eyed
about it.
I kept looking at myself
in the mirror
during class
thinking,
I feel strong
and beautiful.
But apparently
at some gyms
there's a step
even higher
than the front row.
This is how
that article ends.
For those
for whom
the front row
isn't VIP enough,
one gym
has a new badge
of honor,
riding the podium,
a.k.a.
the instructor's bike.
The gym equivalent
of being Courtney Cox
pulled on stage
to dance
with Bruce Springsteen.
One rider
who started out
as a back row rider
was recently invited up.
She said she's not
the selfie-taking type,
but after class
she nonetheless
took one
and shared it
on Facebook
where it became
her most liked
picture of 2014.
She said,
you can see
the joy
and pride
in that picture.
It's like
I was chosen.
Now of course
this is a bit
of a silly thing,
isn't it?
But I think
it points us
to something
pretty deep.
What is it
about us
as humans
that makes us
crave some kind
of verdict
over our lives?
What will make
us transform
even a spinning
class
into a place
where we crave
and strive
and long
to get public
affirmation,
to get a verdict
of our worth
and worthiness?
It's probably
not spinning
for you.
It's not for me.
But it's probably
something
or someone.
Your peers,
your parents,
your spouse,
your children.
Each one of us
looks to something
as our judge
that will pass
an external verdict
over our lives,
a verdict
that we hope
will be positive.
Why is that?
Is it because
we're psychologically
maladjusted?
Did our parents
not reinforce
good self-esteem
in us?
No.
Look,
you can have
the most awesome
parents,
but you're still
going to live
your life
looking for
something
or someone
to justify you.
You see,
friends,
according to
the Bible,
we,
all of us,
have a righteousness
problem.
And it's our
biggest one.
And the fact
that we can
turn anything,
even a spinning
class,
into an opportunity
for justification
is a deep sign
that something
has gone wrong.
And this is it.
You see,
we've lost
the most important
verdict of all,
the verdict
of the God
who created us.
We were made
to have His
approval
and His delight,
to have His
word of favor
spoken over us.
But because of sin,
we've lost it.
And now,
instead of standing
under God's approval,
we stand under
His just
condemnation.
And no amount
of good works
could ever get it back.
At the end of verse 39,
Paul says flatly,
the law can't
free you.
That is,
it can't justify you.
Why?
For the simple reason
that we don't keep
the law.
That we break it
over and over
and over.
And somewhere,
somehow,
we got this strange idea
that we could build up
good works that will
cancel out our bad works.
As if any human judge
would let you off the hook
for robbing a bank
because you let an old lady
cross the street.
No,
there's no hope
of solving our
righteousness problem
through our own
law keeping.
We can't get God's
good verdict that way.
It's got to come
from outside of us.
And that,
Paul says,
is exactly what God
in Christ
has done
for us.
He lived a life
that always pleased God.
And though no guilt
could be found in him
at all,
he was condemned,
verse 27 says.
And he was executed,
verse 28.
And he was buried,
verse 29.
But though Jesus
didn't deserve death,
you see,
this death wasn't
an accident
or a mere tragedy.
No,
even this
was actually part
of God's plan
foretold in the prophets,
Paul says.
Written of him
in the scriptures
hundreds of years before.
Why did Christ
undergo such a death?
The answer is actually
found in verse 29,
but it's easy to miss.
When Jesus was executed,
it was by Roman
crucifixion on a cross.
So why in the world
does Paul call
the cross a tree?
Well, remember
that Paul is speaking here
to a Jewish audience
steeped in Old Testament
scripture.
And when Paul says
that Jesus died
on a tree,
he's actually making
an allusion
to a verse
in Deuteronomy
21, 23
that they would have
all known,
where it says
that a man
hung on a tree
is cursed
by God.
Jesus on the cross
was bearing
God's curse,
God's condemnation,
not for his own sins,
but for ours.
On the cross,
Jesus stepped
right into the middle
of our righteousness
problem,
and took the verdict
our sins deserve
in our place.
And then three days later,
God raised him
from the dead
to demonstrate
that the full
condemnation for sin
had been exhausted
and satisfied
and put away.
To declare publicly
that Jesus was indeed
God's son,
to confirm the promises
to David
and make them sure,
to ensure that Jesus,
this holy one,
would never see corruption
but reign as king
on David's throne
forever.
God foretold
all this in the verses
Paul cites
in 33 through 35.
You see,
because Jesus conquered
sin through the cross,
he then could conquer
death
in the resurrection.
Because Jesus took
all the condemnation
of sin on the cross,
he could then
break forth
into God's justification
in his resurrection.
God declaring imperfect,
innocent,
and righteous.
And that's why
Paul can say
in verse 38,
through this man,
Jesus,
through him
as your substitute,
as your representative,
forgiveness of sins
is proclaimed
to you.
Everyone who believes,
Paul says in verse 39,
is justified,
declared righteous,
by God.
Because believing
unites us to Christ,
wherein his death
becomes a death
for our sin,
and his resurrection
becomes a verdict
over our lives,
the verdict of justification.
So friend,
how are you trying
to answer
your righteousness problem?
Paul lays out
three options here.
They're pretty comprehensive.
First,
in verse 38 through 39,
you can answer it
once and for all
through Christ.
You can finally stop
trying to justify yourself
through your own efforts,
and you can trust
wholly in Christ.
And that invitation
is for everyone.
No matter what
your background,
no matter how successful
or unsuccessful
you are
at playing
whatever game of life
that you're in,
in Christ,
God will forgive
your sins
and free you,
justify you
instantly,
utterly,
and completely.
Second,
in verses 40 through 41,
Paul gives a warning
against rejecting
the message of Christ.
You see,
you can try
to answer
your righteousness problem
by going back
to the same old things
that you've done
all your life.
You can jump back
on the hamster wheel
of your own performance
and try to find
a verdict
that will bring
your soul peace.
Whether it's
at spinning class
or whether it's
from your spouse
or whether it's
from your peers
or whether it's
from your colleagues.
Or worst of all,
you can live in denial
and try to pretend
that you don't actually
do any of that.
That you don't need
anyone's verdict.
And then you'll live
tragically unaware
of what's really going on
at the most fundamental
level in your life.
And you'll have no idea
why you can't stop
working late.
You'll have no idea
why you're crushed
with jealousy
when your co-worker
is promoted above you.
You'll have no idea
why your friendships
always seem to disappoint you
and make you miserable.
You'll live in total denial.
Having no idea
that under all of these
you're searching
for a verdict
over your life
that only God
and Christ can give.
Third, in verse 42
through 43,
Paul gives advice
to open-hearted seekers.
Maybe like these people
who follow Paul
out of the synagogue,
you're not believing
in Jesus yet,
but your interest
is sparked
and you want to hear more.
You're honestly seeking
and Paul says,
continue in the grace
of God.
Thankfully,
God works through means.
He says,
put yourself
in the path
of God's grace.
How do you do that?
You keep coming on Sundays
to hear the message
of Jesus
taught from the Bible.
You start reading
the Bible yourself.
You grab a friend
and ask them
to tell you more.
You pray
and you ask God
to tell you the truth
and to make the truth
about Jesus clear to you
and to give you
humility before Him.
And above all,
you remember
that it's all about
God's grace.
One of the biggest
barriers to belief
that we all have
is our own pride.
Our own pride
and our own desire
to want to be
acceptable to God
based on our own
performance.
You know,
at the end of the day,
you don't actually need
God to prove Himself
to you.
You need to admit
your need for grace.
So how are you trying
to answer your
righteousness problem?
Scoffing?
Living in denial?
Are you seeking?
Or are you believing?
Paul wants to see
that the one
who brought God's story
to its climax
is the only one
who can answer
that problem
once and for all.
Well, friends,
I hear the drums.
So we should end quickly.
Jesus isn't just
the climax of the story
and the answer
to the problem,
but because of that,
He's brought God's future
into the present.
The inbreaking of the future.
Let's look at 44 through 52.
The next Sabbath,
almost the whole city
gathered to hear
the word of the Lord.
But when the Jews
saw the crowds,
they were filled with jealousy
and began to contradict
what was spoken by Paul,
reviling him.
And Paul and Barnabas
spoke out boldly,
saying,
It was necessary
that the word of God
be spoken first to you.
Since you thrust it aside
and judge yourselves
unworthy of eternal life,
behold,
we're turning to the Gentiles.
For so the Lord
has commanded us,
saying,
I've made you a light
for the Gentiles
that you may bring salvation
to the ends of the earth.
And when the Gentiles
heard this,
they began rejoicing
and glorifying
the word of the Lord
and as many as were appointed
to eternal life believed.
And the word of the Lord
was spreading
throughout the whole region.
And the Jews incited
the devout women
of high standing
and the leading men
of the city,
stirred up persecution
against Paul and Barnabas
and drove them
out of their district.
But they shook off
the dust from their feet
against them
and went to Iconium.
And the disciples
were filled with joy
and with the Holy Spirit.
You see, friends,
the Old Testament prophets
all foresaw a time
when the Gentiles
would come streaming
into the people of God
and hear Luke saying,
look, it's actually
starting to happen.
Almost the whole city
shows up.
Is Paul being a bit,
or is Luke, excuse me,
being a bit hyperbolic?
Is he exaggerating a little?
Maybe.
Maybe not.
The point is,
is that God's great future
is breaking in now.
And Paul's had this
in view the whole time.
Did you catch how he addressed
not just the men of Israel,
not just the women of Israel,
but also you who fear God?
These Gentile God fearers
who hadn't quite converted
to Judaism
but were there at the synagogue.
Paul says,
it's for you too.
And here he's talking
about eternal life.
That is life
of the age to come
that has no end.
The future's breaking in now
and almost the whole city
shows up
to hear this message
of salvation.
You imagine how thrilling
that must have been.
And friend,
do you believe
that the same God
who worked powerfully then
to bring almost
the whole city
to hear the message
is the same God
who can work powerfully now
when and where he chooses.
And what's more,
this passage tells us
that in this,
that in this in-breaking future
as God's ripping open
the present
and pouring in,
we've got a part to play.
Look at verse 47.
In 47,
Paul quotes Isaiah 49.6.
Now what's thrilling
about that verse
is that in the context
of Isaiah,
that verse is describing
the servant of the Lord.
It's primarily talking
about what Jesus
would come and do.
But what does Paul do here?
He applies it to himself
and to Barnabas.
Isn't that incredible?
Paul is saying
that we now
have the great privilege
of taking part
in the very mission
of Jesus
to bring light
to those in darkness
and salvation
to those in despair.
And friends,
if our mission
is really an extension
of the mission
of the risen Christ,
how much boldness
ought that to give us?
If we come
not in our own name,
our own strength,
but as ambassadors
of one who conquered
sin and death
and brought life
and immortality
to light,
what genuinely
do we have to fear?
But Luke also shows us here
that this in-breaking future
in which we have a role
to play
is also a contested future.
In verses 45 and 50,
we see that tragically
some will still persist
in clinging
to their old stories
and refusing to see
that the climax has come.
You know,
when people are sick
and their bodies
are failing,
sometimes a sick body
will reject
an organ transplant
meant to bring it life.
In the same way,
those who persist
in living according
to the patterns
of the present age
often reject
the life-giving future
that God begins,
that He's bringing
into being
through the Gospel.
That we'd rather
have our own
self-centered stories
where our own
righteousness is praised
and our own tribe
is exalted
rather than give way
to the righteousness
of Christ
that's freely offered
to everyone
who believes.
Of course,
we know that Paul's
reaction to his fellow
Jews here
is actually to weep
and to pray
for their conversion.
We see that
in Romans 9
and we should too.
But friends,
also,
we shouldn't expect
that everyone
will gladly accept Christ
and accept us
as His ambassadors.
Following Jesus
will be costly at times.
We might lose friends
and we might lose reputation.
But,
there's one thing
Luke says
that you won't lose.
Because even though
this future is contested,
he shows us
at the very end
that this is a future
of indestructible joy.
even in trial
and hardship,
they're filled
with the Holy Spirit
and experience His joy.
These new disciples
in Christ
had something
that their circumstances
couldn't shake
and that their emotions
couldn't shake.
They had come
to know the truth
about God
and Jesus Christ.
They'd come to know
His sovereign grace.
Luke highlights it
in verse 48.
Did you catch that?
As many as were appointed
to eternal life
believed.
Now, up to this point,
Luke has stressed
the very real,
genuine human response
of the gospel demands
of each one of us.
We're all called
to turn and trust in the Son.
But now Luke
sort of fills in
the picture.
And here we see
that the fountainhead
of our desire for God
is His previous desire
for us.
that those who believe
don't have their own belief
to thank for their salvation
because even believing
is a gift of His grace.
And in that joy,
they spread the gospel
to the whole region.
And in that joy,
they endure trials
and persecutions.
And in that joy,
they glorify the word
of the Lord.
And that sort of joy
is for all
who believe.
In the long run,
a people is known
not by its statements
or its statistics,
but by the stories
it tells.
Friend, how do you want
your life to be known?
How do you want
our church to be known?
By statements
or statistics?
Things that won't last.
Or the story
of Jesus Christ.
His death
and resurrection.
His spirit.
His future.
And the joy
that He brings.
May that be the case.
Let's pray.
Amen.
Father, we pray indeed
that by Your Spirit
You would again
open our eyes
to see the beauty
of Christ.
And Lord, now as we sing
and as we give praise
to Him,
Lord, make this song
that we sing
a prayer
of response,
confession,
and commitment to You,
we pray.
Amen.
Let's stand
and let's sing together.
Amen.
AMP S tasted Him
Amen.