Please take your copy of God's Word and join me in Acts chapter 16.
! The book of Acts chapter 16.
!
The record of Jesus' earthly ministry, now His second being the record of Jesus' ascended ministry,
through the agency of the Holy Spirit in the lives of His church.
See in chapter 1, verse 8, the command for them to be still,
and when they receive power from the Holy Spirit,
that they'll be Jesus' witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
So, we find this happening.
We find ourselves in the midst of this narrative.
The Gospel witness of Stephen in chapter 7
finds him at the end of chapter 7 as the first Christian martyr.
And a man named Saul, who we are now calling Paul in our text,
his Roman name, stood and gave approval of such a thing.
And this event scattered the church abroad.
It was the hinge on which the gates swung open.
And now, Paul himself, having been saved by grace some chapters later in our narrative,
is a major agent in this to the ends of the earth effort of the ascended Christ
by the agency of the Spirit in his life.
So, we find ourselves here witnessing a portion of Paul's second missionary journey.
He's completed the first with Barnabas.
They found themselves back in Antioch.
And we saw in the past couple of weeks,
Paul part ways with Barnabas in Antioch
and take Silas with him to Derbe and Lystra,
where they pick up Timothy to join them.
So, the missionary band of two becomes three.
And we saw last week,
Timothy exercised his freedom in Christ
for the sake of the souls of those Jews in the region
by being circumcised.
And we concluded in verse 5,
so the churches were strengthened in the faith
and they increased in numbers daily.
And so, that's the stage set for verses 6 through 10.
And so, before we read it,
let me remind you that this is God's Word to us.
It was written for His glory and for our good.
And we would all do well to listen to it
in order to believe its promises
and obey its commands.
And I begin reading in verse 6 of Acts chapter 16.
And they went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia,
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit
to speak the Word in Asia.
And when they had come up to Mysia,
they attempted to go into Bithynia,
but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.
So, passing by Mysia,
they went down to Troas.
And a vision appeared to Paul in the night.
A man of Macedonia was standing there,
urging him and saying,
come over to Macedonia and help us.
And when Paul had seen the vision,
immediately we sought to go on into Macedonia,
concluding that God had called us
to preach the Gospel to them.
So, let's continue to set the stage a bit
so as to wrap our minds around
where Paul and his companions are traveling
before we consider what we should
and what we shouldn't learn from such a text.
And so, in the hopes of serving you,
I've got a map we're going to put up here,
although the details of it are tiny.
I have a laser pointer pen whose batteries are dead,
so I was going to point for you.
If you're using the ESV translation of the Bible,
you likely have this exact same map in the back.
So, if it helps you to be able to see it
a little bit better,
to give you some help.
First, this is Paul's first and second missionary journey,
both of which started in Antioch,
which is up in the northwest corner of Syria.
You can actually see it labeled starting point
if you can read that from where you are.
The little word bubble says starting point there.
The first missionary journey,
they set out him and Barnabas
and went to Cyprus first,
and they worked in this clockwise direction
going through Lystra, Iconium, and Derbe,
and then they cycled back around back to Antioch.
Chapter 14, the Jerusalem Council.
They're back in Antioch now.
They've likely been there for about two years.
Paul and Barnabas part ways,
and this time, Paul leaves with Silas,
and he goes counterclockwise
through Tarsus to Derbe and Lystra.
I can't, I can't, I can't mind.
I'm just going to walk up a point.
I'm not that tall.
So you're seeing the region of Galatia comes down,
reaches down in there,
and you're seeing the two cities at the bottom of that,
Derbe, Lystra, Iconium, just north of that.
So that's where they've picked up Timothy
in this region,
and they're now beginning to travel around Galatia,
and Phrygia is what our text says for us.
Now, Phrygia, you may or may not be able to see
as running, they've got the word running parallel up like this.
It was a sub-region of Galatia.
So complicated ancient times, Roman rule,
they're always dividing and pushing lines out
and having governors of various regions.
So it's a sub-region of Galatia, right?
And they're traveling around in this area,
and the text says,
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit
to speak the word in Asia.
Now, if you will track with me
and note the way the solid arrow goes up from there, right?
It goes up through where?
The region of Asia.
So isn't it interesting in our text
that the text records they were traveling about
in Phrygia and Galatia.
Our previous text from last week,
the beginning of Acts chapter 16,
says they were going about
and they were preaching the gospel
in the form of delivering this letter
that the Jerusalem Council had formed
to inform the Gentile believers
that they didn't need any further burden,
meaning they didn't need to be circumcised
to keep the Old Testament commanded of circumcision.
So they're going around strengthening churches
in these places.
So when you read it, it's interesting
because the way the ESV punctuates it,
it seems like they're traveling
in the regions of Phrygia and Galatia
because they've been forbidden
by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.
But then quickly after that,
they go into Asia.
Isn't that interesting?
I'm not sure that the punctuation follows.
Maybe it does,
and we don't need to get into it this morning.
But in brief, it almost seems like it should say,
and they went through the region of Phrygia
and Galatia, period,
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit
to speak the word in Asia,
and when they had come up to Mysia.
Are you tracking my logic there?
Because they're in a region
and they're about to move through a region.
The way it's punctuated in the ESV,
if we read it that way,
would mean that they were staying
in the region of Phrygia and Galatia
until they decided to move through Asia.
But nonetheless, this is what's happening.
This is where they are and what's going on.
Asia, also a region.
And you find it here on the map.
Modern day Turkey,
not Far East Asia,
as most of us would think of.
So this would have been the region of Asia.
And you see the sub-region
above the word Asia there of Mysia.
So that's where they are heading through
to the sub-region of Mysia.
And they attempt to go into Bithynia,
which is another region north,
just there south of the Black Sea.
But they are, again,
prevented,
but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them.
So they pass by Mysia.
They skirt it to the north.
And they find themselves in the town,
in the coastal town of Troas.
Okay?
So they went down to Troas.
It means they went downhill to the sea.
They went down to Troas.
And it is in Troas that Paul sees a vision,
likely in a dream, right?
It says that at night,
so likely in a dream,
a Macedonian man saying,
urging him and saying,
come over to Macedonia and help us.
Now it's interesting at this point in our text,
in Luke's narrative,
Luke switches from third-person narrative
to first-person plural narrative.
It's likely at this point in his record
that he joins up with the missionary troop.
He's been writing now,
looking back to these events,
gathering accounts of it,
but now he's first-person.
He's there, first-person.
You'll see the third-person narrative
signified by the pronoun they
in verses 6,
verses 7,
verses 8,
and the pronoun him
in verse 9.
But in verse 10,
you see the switch
to first-person plural narrative
signified by the pronoun we.
When Paul had seen the vision,
immediately we stopped to go into Macedonia,
concluding that God had called us,
another plural pronoun,
to preach the gospel to them.
So it's likely this is where
Luke joins them
and begins to accompany them
on their missionary journey.
Note also in our text
that when they consider
a request for help
seen in the form of a vision,
their proper assumption
is that the help requested
is a desire for the gospel
to be preached.
So this vision,
the Macedonian man does not say
come and preach the gospel to us.
He says come and help us.
And so they go to meet
the Macedonian's real need
and not any felt need,
and the real need
is for the gospel of Jesus Christ.
This event in the book of Acts
is significant.
It's very significant
in that it takes Paul
and his companions'
!
missionary efforts to Europe
for the first time.
Macedonia is modern day Greece.
So it takes it across
into another continent
for the very first time.
Caleb, you can take the map off
there now.
So as we witness these events,
remember this is historical narrative,
so we're just seeing
the record of events.
We should glean out of it
what we can learn,
but before we do that,
I want to talk about
what we shouldn't learn
from such a text.
So what might we be tempted
to learn from this text
that we shouldn't learn
from this text?
There's a phrase in our text
accompanied by general activity
of the Holy Spirit
that our generation tends
to make many mistakes with.
And that phrase is this.
God had called.
And the general activity
of the Holy Spirit
is His forbidding in verse 6,
His not allowing in verse 7,
and His giving of a vision
in verse 9.
Now I will not deny
that God has specific intention
for them to travel to Macedonia.
The Spirit of God gives a vision,
a very specific calling
for them to travel to Macedonia.
They were correct
in their conclusion
from Paul's vision.
And I will not deny
that God works
through the agency
of the Holy Spirit
to accomplish His intention.
What I want to keep us from doing
with this text this morning
is taking Luke's ambiguity.
Like he's not very specific
about how it is
that the Spirit forbids
and does not allow.
Specific about the vision,
but not specific
about the prevention
of their moving
and sharing the gospel.
I don't want us
to take that ambiguity
about how exactly
the Spirit forbid
and did not allow
and turn it into a license
to feel our way
through God's calling
for our lives.
An incredibly common
Christian phrase
in our day is,
I feel called by God
to fill in the blank.
Go here,
marry this person,
take this job.
I feel called
to do such and such.
Many of you have said
something very much like this.
I have myself.
But what does it mean
to feel called?
Can you describe
to me said feeling?
How do I know
when I am feeling called?
This is dangerous,
extra-biblical language.
And I see two common,
all too common,
unfortunate results
from such thinking
and use of language.
Number one,
these are the two errors
I see most often,
which are at least
in part a result
of this kind of speaking.
Many Christians
do nothing at all
waiting for some
unknown feeling.
We live in a culture
of people saying
that they feel called
to things
and I haven't felt that,
so I do nothing
until I wait
for this feeling
that everyone's
talking about.
And that's happening
both passively,
people who just do
nothing at all,
waiting for that,
or actively
in that people
are always trying
to figure out
exactly what
their feelings are.
Have you ever
used language like,
I just don't feel
a piece about this?
Not biblical language,
beloved.
The Bible doesn't
speak in those terms
to us,
that we feel like
something's the right
decision to make
and therefore
we make that decision.
Let me give you
a bit of an example.
We also use the
language of doors
being opened,
which is biblical
language,
praise God,
but I think we use
it too often
in unbiblical ways.
Paul says in 1 Corinthians
chapter 16,
verses 8 and 9,
this.
He's talking about
his longing to come
see the church
in Corinth.
He says,
but I will stay
in Ephesus
until Pentecost,
the future,
the celebration
of Pentecost.
Verse 9,
for a wide door
of effective work
has opened to me.
So there's that
biblical use of the
language of why
door has been opened.
Like Paul is saying,
look, I have so much
ministry I can do
in Ephesus.
And most of us
kind of stop there
and we think
that doors being
opened means easy.
Right?
There it is.
It's a thing.
And you've heard
that sometimes God
closes the door
and he opens up
a window.
Right?
That you don't,
the easiest route,
right?
We follow the easy
path like water does.
But the rest of
verse 9,
Paul says this,
and there are
many adversaries.
And there are
many adversaries.
So we may not
feel like something
is going the way
it ought to do,
but it could very
well be the very
right thing to do.
And we'll talk
about how we
establish that.
And it may be
sometimes that we
have to kick
the door down
because it is
what God
has called us
to.
So I see
many Christians
who just do
nothing at all
whether passively
or actively
because of
feelings.
And secondly,
some Christians
are left
confused
because the
thing they
felt called
to
doesn't work
out the way
they thought
that it would.
Some of you
may know somebody
who has felt
called at some
point in their
life to world
missions.
And the
circumstances of
life prevent
them from
ever taking
their feet
off American
soil.
And they're
confused.
What was this
thing that I
felt that
didn't get
accomplished?
Young people,
some of you
probably have a
friend or may
be guilty of
feeling called
to date somebody
and that person
disagrees with
you.
And suddenly
we don't know
who hears
God.
You're just
feeling your
feelings.
We are not
instructed anywhere
in the Bible
to feel our
way through
life's decisions.
Praise God
for that.
My feelings
are way
too fickle
to be any
source of
direction.
And if you
know me for
very long,
you know I'm
not much of
a feeler.
I'm much
more cerebral
in the way I
function,
but my
feelings are
not to be
trusted.
Most of
this week,
up until some
moments ago,
I did not
feel like
preaching.
I didn't
feel like it.
I would have
gladly canceled
this morning
for inclement
weather,
or asked
someone to
take the
task from
me,
but I am
convinced in
my mind by
the instruction
of the
scripture of
the centrality
of preaching
for the good
of God's
people.
And I am
moved by that
truth to
prepare,
anyway,
and to
pray that
God would
have me
feel what
I ought
to feel
when I
come to
preaching.
But it
does not
change what
I do.
I pray that
my feelings
would be
consistent with
the truth
of my
calling.
I don't
always feel
like serving
my wife
and my
children.
Have you
ever felt
like doing
dishes?
But we
do it
anyway.
There's
many times
I don't
feel like
getting on
the floor
and playing
with my
kids.
I am
tired and
I am
getting
older and
it hurts
to be on
the floor.
But I
am a
dad.
And of
this I
can be
sure that
God is
giving me
the
responsibility
to love
my
children.
many of
you
did not
feel like
getting up
this morning.
An alarm
went off
way too
early and
it was
storming
outside and
it was
cloudy.
It was so
much darker
than it
should have
been this
morning for
us to
wake up.
You didn't
feel like
doing it but
you did it
all the same
because you
didn't want
to neglect
the command
for us to
gather
together.
There are
some people
who are not
here with us
this morning
because they
didn't feel
like being
here.
Many are
traveling but
some just
didn't feel
like being
here this
morning.
In our
text this
morning I'm
convinced that
Luke does not
tell us exactly
how the
Spirit forbid
and did not
allow because
that is not
the point of
the text.
It's not the
point of the
text and so we
should not learn
that.
From the
text that
the Spirit
is working
in some
strange
mysterious way
and we look
at that and
we look at
our experience
and our
culture and
go well it
must be that
they didn't
feel like they
should preach
the gospel in
Asia or they
didn't feel like
they should go
to Bithynia.
We don't know
what intervened
in those cases
but I can tell
you this because
of the larger
context of the
Bible it was
not because
of their
feelings.
So it leaves
the question
I hope that
the phrase
that they
were concluding
that God
had called
them to
preach the
gospel gives
you some
hope.
God's given
us general
call but
he's also
working the
specifics out.
Very
specifically
God is
having them
move through
a region in
order to
get to
a place
and we
get to see
so much
of what
unfolds in
that place
God's
good
sovereign
purpose
but to
hang on
that to
go ooh
God's
calling in
very specific
ways
we should
consider that.
So what
can we learn
from this
text about
God's
calling for
our lives?
Can we
know with
specificity
what God
would have
us do
with our
lives?
And there
is much to
be said
about this
so this
will be
in
brief
this
morning.
I want
to encourage
you to
continue to
consider the
biblical
teaching on
these things
beyond this
morning but
in brief
let's talk a
little bit
about that.
Can we
know with
specificity
what God
would have
us do
with our
lives?
And in
considering
that question
my attention
was drawn
to the title
that Luke
uses for
the Holy
Spirit the
second time
that he
mentions him.
He mentions
him first
in verse
six but
secondly he
uses this
title for
the Holy
Spirit in
verse seven
the Spirit
of Jesus.
The Spirit
of Jesus.
Luke seems
to be giving
possession of
the Spirit
to Jesus.
You could
say Jesus'
Spirit
did this
thing.
Now that
is not a
name often
used for the
Holy Spirit
in the New
Testament.
In fact it
is only used
here in this
exact form
the Spirit
of Jesus
but also
we won't
be too
picky
the Spirit
of Jesus
Christ
in Philippians
chapter 1
verse 19
and the
Spirit
of Christ
in 1 Peter
chapter 1
verse 11
and in
Romans
chapter 8
verse 9
which we're
going to look
at momentarily
Romans 8
verse 9.
Let me say
this to you
a valuable
hermeneutic
principle
right?
Hermeneutics
is the study
of how to
study the
Bible.
A valuable
hermeneutic
principle
is that
where
Scripture
is less
clear
we use
more
clear
text
to
Scripture
to
interpret
it.
So when
something's
a head
scratcher
and I
would suggest
to you
that these
verses
are these
five
verses
we need
to look
in a
broader
context
and what
the Bible
says
in more
clear
ways
to help
us
understand
what's
happening
here
in
this
narrative.
So let's
explore this
title
the Spirit
of Jesus
a bit
further
by looking
in the book
of John
at another
title given
to the Spirit.
So I'm coming
away from the
Spirit of Jesus
title but to
help us
understand it
I want to
look at
another title
given to
the Spirit
this time
by Jesus
turn to
John
chapter
16.
You can
mark
Acts
16
We're
going to
be away
from it
for a
little
while
though.
Now the
book of
John
in a
sense
places
Jesus
on
trial.
John
is a
follower
of Jesus
Christ
but the
way
in which
he
presents
the
book
of
John
is
meant
to
drive
us
to
understand
that
Jesus
is
the
Christ
and so
he
in
very
specific
ways
brings
out
witnesses
the first
12
chapters
of
John
this is
what
he's
doing
and
he
states
for
us
much
later
in
the
book
in
John
chapter
20
verse
31
these
words
are
written
so
that
you
may
believe
that
Jesus
is
the
Christ
the
Son
of
God
and
that
by
believing
you
may
have
life
in
his
name
so
the
book
of
John
is
filled
with
the
language
of
witness
and
testimony
it
is
in
this
context
that
John
records
Jesus
farewell
discourse
you
really
should
study
Jesus
farewell
discourse
chapter
14
15
and
16
in
John
chapter
16
verse
7
Jesus
says
the
following
to
his
disciples
I
tell
you
the
truth
it
is
to
your
advantage
that
I
go
away
for
if
I
do
not
go
away
the
helper
will
not
come
to
you
but
if
I
go
I
will
send
him
to
you
so
now
the
English
word
helper
some
of
your
translations
might
say
comforter
is
the
word
paraclete
and
there's
been
a lot
of
debate
about
what
this
word
means
I'm
going
to
read
to
you
a
brief
quote
from
Sinclair
Ferguson's
book
the
Holy
Spirit
this
is
one
of
the
best
treatments
of
the
topic
of
the
spirit
so
if
you
really
want
to
know
more
and
I
hope
you
do
about
the
third
part
of
the
trinity
this
would
be
a
!
book
to
pick
up
so
he
writes
this
much
attention
has
been
devoted
in
Johannine
studies
of
John
Johannine
studies
to
the
meaning
and
identity
of
the
paracletos
a
compound
of
kaleo
to
call
and
para
alongside
the
term
denotes
someone
who
is
called
to
one's
aid
or
defense
a
paraclete
is
in
the
older
sense
of
the
word
a
comforter
someone
who
comes
to
strengthen
so
we're
all
familiar
with
that
kind
of
idea
of
the
spirit
of
God
comes
along
as
a
comforter
as
a
helper
brings
strength
acts
one
eight
however
it is
now
more
generally
recognized
that
in
John
the
term
has
a
forensic
connotation
not
important
phrase
the
spirit
is
the
witness
advocate
who
testifies
to
Christ
it's
we've
come
to
understand
right
through
much
study
not
our
study
other
people
study
that
the
word
paraclete
means
to come
alongside
and to
serve
as a
witness
so in
the
context
of
John's
letter
being
about
being
a
witness
to
Jesus
as
the
Christ
can
be
understood
that
the
spirit
is
Jesus'
witness
Jesus'
advocate
that does not nullify
the strengthening
and the comforting
and the helping
that the spirit
is to
us
but here
what
St.
Claire Ferguson
is suggesting
is that
the helper
is
Jesus'
helper
more than
it's
our
helper
so how
does
the spirit
serve
as the
witness
advocate
of
Christ
back up
a little
bit
in
John
chapter
16
I'm not
sorry
don't
back
up
go
forward
verses
8
through
15
and
when
he
comes
this
is
the
helper
the
paraclete
spirit
of
Christ
he
will
convict
the
world
concerning
sin
and
righteousness
and
judgment
concerning
sin
because
they
do
not
believe
in
me
so
he
will
come
those
who
have
not
placed
their
faith
in
Jesus
Christ
the
helper
the
witness
advocate
of
Jesus
will
bring
about
conviction
for
people
who
have
transgressed
the
law
which
is
everybody
right
verse
10
concerning
righteousness
the
perfect
requirement
of the
law
our
need
of
righteousness
to be
accepted
by
God
because
Jesus
says
I
go
to
the
father
and
you
will
see
me
no
longer
right
him
living
out
the
perfect
righteousness
of
God
before
them
he's
leaving
so
the
helper
is
going
to
come
and
bear
witness
about
his
perfect
righteousness
and
our
need
of
it
he'll
be a
witness
to
the
world
in
that
way
verse
11
concerning
judgment
because
the
ruler
of
this
world
is
judged
because
when
Jesus
died
right
the
death
knell
had been
told
for
Satan
he has
yet to
die
completely
but
he
has
been
judged
and
judgment
will
one
day
come
to
the
world
so
the
paraclete
the
spirit
of
Christ
serves
to
defend
Christ
as
a
witness
to
the
world
but
not
just
that
look
on
in
verse
12
through
15
Jesus
says
I
still
have
many
things
to
say
to
you
but
you
cannot
bear
them
now
when
the
spirit
of
truth
comes
another
title
now
given
to
the
paraclete
when
the
spirit
of
truth
comes
he
will
guide
you
into
all
the
truth
for
he
will
not
speak
on
his
own
authority
but
he
will
glorify
me
for
he
will
take
what
is
mine
and
declare
it
to
you
all
that
the
father
has
is
mine
therefore
I
said
that
he
will
take
what
is
mine
and
declare
it
to
you
so
the
paraclete
also
is a
witness
to
us
of
what
Christ
Jesus
that
he
is
the
Christ
that
the
gospel
is
true
and
the
primary
way
that
he
does
this
is
!
he
!
in
men
a
book
that
tells
us
all
that
we
need
to
know
about
Jesus
and
all
that
we
need
to
know
to
follow
him
so
the
paraclete
witnesses
!
to
the
supremacy
of
Christ
to
us
and
to
the
world
through
us
before
Jesus'
declaration
in
John
16
7
John
draws
a
parallel
for
us
between
the
spirit
and
the
apostles
Jesus'
words
Jesus
says
John
chapter
15
verse
26
and
27
I
hope
I'm
not
losing
you
in
the
midst
of
all
this
when
the
helper
comes
there
again
paraclete
when
the
helper
comes
whom
I
will
send
to
you
from
the
father
the
spirit
of
truth
who
proceeds
from
the
father
he
will
bear
witness
about
me
and
you
also
will
bear
witness
because
you
have
been
with
me
from
the
beginning
so you
see
through
the
recorded
words
of
Jesus
John
draws
this
parallel
for us
between
the
spirit
and
the
apostles
and now
us
as the
church
of
Christ
on
earth
so this
is the
function
this is the
primary work
and we've
said this in
other terms
in past
weeks
right
the primary
work of
the spirit
of God
is what
the
exaltation
of Jesus
Christ
and as
we've
worked
through
signs
and
wonders
I've
been
trying
to
set
up
for
you
the
filter
that
is
things
we're
witnessing
now
are
they
Christ
exalting
or are
they
supposedly
spirit
exalting
because the
spirit
would never
do
such
a
thing
right
the
spirit
is
always
about
the
exaltation
of
Jesus
Christ
and
here
we
see
this
in
John
right
him
being
called
the
helper
the
paraclete
the
witness
to
who
Jesus
is
and
what
he
did
okay
now
to
Romans
chapter
8
and
you'll
want
to
turn
there
as
well
I'm
trying
to tie
this
together
for you
I'm
also
missing
an hour
of sleep
Romans
chapter
8
beginning
in
verse
8
those
who
are
in
the
flesh
cannot
please
God
and
he's
speaking
metaphorically
he's
not
talking
about
us
physically
being
but
in
the
flesh
existing
in
the
flesh
verse
9
you
however
are
not
in
the
flesh
but
in
the
spirit
if
in
fact
the
spirit
of
God
dwells
in
you
so
we're
in
the
spirit
if
the
spirit
in
us
anyone
who
does
not
have
the
spirit
of
Christ
there's
that
phrase
verse
9
Romans
chapter
8
anyone
who
does
not
have
the
spirit
of
Christ
does
not
belong
to
him
but
if
Christ
is
in
you
although
the
body
is
dead
because
of
sin
the
spirit
is
life
because
of
righteousness
so
track
the
logic
for
you
through
that
we
are
in
the
!
spirit
if
the
spirit
of
God
is
in
us
we
belong
to
Christ
if
the
spirit
of
Christ
is
ours
if
the
spirit
of
Christ
is
ours
then
Christ
is
in
us
and
so
you
see
how to
call
the
Holy
Spirit
the
spirit
of
Christ
or
the
spirit
of
Jesus
as
Luke
does
is
really
right
and
proper
so
we're
followers
of
Jesus
Christ
if
we
are
pleasers
of
God
then
we
are
so
because
of
the
spirit
of
Christ
so
how does
this answer
the question
that I asked
at the very
beginning
you may be
wondering
can we
know
with
specificity
what
God
would have
us
do
with
our
lives
yes
to
know
Christ
and
to
make
him
known
is
the
large
and
general
and
specific
call
on the
life
of
all
people
we
would
know
him
and
that
we
would
make
him
known
the
spirit
of
Jesus
will
always
lead
us
in
this
way
I
suggest
to
you
this
morning
that
this
is
why
Luke
gives
us
such
ambiguous
details
and
uses
this
title
for
the
Holy
Spirit
because
what
he
wants
us
to
see
in
the
very
early
stage
of
the
second
missionary
journey
he
wants
us
to
see
them
going
he
wants
us
to
note
that
they're
going
verse
six
they
went
verse
seven
I'm
back
in
Acts
16
by
the
way
verse
seven
they
had
come
they
attempted
to
go
verse
eight
passing
by
they
went
down
and
then
in
verse
10
we
sought
to
go
they
never
stop
they
just
continue
the
mission
that
Christ
had
given
them
why
because
the
spirit
of
Jesus
is
the
one
that's
guiding
them
all
along
the
way
so
in
our
going
we
should
want
to
know
Christ
and
to
make
him
known
and
then
beloved
the
details
don't
really
matter
that
much
don't
believe
in
what
John
MacArthur
called
a dot
theology
that it's
your task
as a follower
of Jesus
Christ
to perfectly
discern
the will
of God
so that
you can
get
from point
A
to B
to C
to D
this is
not the
way the
Lord
works
in our
lives
pursue
him
with
all
that you
have
and then
in the
details
do what
you want
to
take
the
job
you
would
want
to
and
marry
who
you
would
want
to
and
go
to
the
school
and
major
in
what
you
would
want
to
provided
that
you're
putting
the
kingdom
of
God
first
those
things
work
themselves
out
they
work
themselves
out
Luke
wants
us
to
see
them
going
so
that
we
will
go
so
that
we
will
go
now
!
because
I
don't
want
to be
logically
inconsistent
we
do
see
the
spirit
directing
some
things
specifically
here
do we
not
you're
going
wait
a
second
Nathan
hang
on
you
started
setting
this
whole
thing
up
and
you
didn't
answer
the
question
well
let me
answer
the
question
for
you
in
part
right
but
largely
right
largely
know
Christ
and
make
him
known
what
about
the
particulars
right
what
about
the
particulars
here
are
just
a
few
guiding
principles
!
that
should
navigate
some
of
the
particulars
of
our
life
as
we
put
the
kingdom
of
God
first
and
foremost
so
first
practice
the
revealed
will
of
God
for
your
life
practice
this
large
overarching
revealed
will
for
your
life
if
you're
not
a
follower
of
Jesus
Christ
repent
and
believe
repent
and
believe
know
him
be
restored
to
God
because
of
his
person
and
his
work
on
your
behalf
then
and if
you
already
know
Christ
then
exercise
the
habits
of
grace
do
those
things
in
the
scripture
that
we're
commanded
to
do
for
our
good
college
students
I
hear
so
many
of
you
whining
about
what
you're
supposed
to
do
next
and
you
don't
do
the
good
things
that
God
has
already
told
you
to
do
start
there
habits
of
grace
like
Bible
reading
memorization
meditation
prayer
privately
and
corporately
you may
remember
some
months
ago
we
framed
that
up
as
your
gospel
conviction
fellowship
meeting
with the
church
it's
good
that
you
guys
are
here
with us
today
it's
your
gospel
community
obedience
in
all
things
that
God
has
commanded
begin
to
pursue
holiness
by
the
grace
that
God
provides
your
gospel
character
and
gospel
proclamation
this is
the commission
that has
been given
to us
by God
begin
to do
those
things
the
revealed
things
and
you'll
find
that
your
heart
will
be
joined
to
God's
and
you'll
figure
out
the
little
bits
and
the
details
of
your
life
secondly
do
what you
are doing
until God
tells you
to do
otherwise
do what
you are
doing
until God
tells you
to do
otherwise
right
we see the
missionary
troop
traveling
about
and then a
vision
comes along
and they
decide to
get out
of the region
they're in
and to
sail
across
an inlet
and arrive
in
Europe
in
Macedonia
right
Romans
chapter
12
verse
1
and
2
excuse
me
just
verse
2
Paul
says
do
not
be
conformed
to
this
world
but
be
transformed
by
the
renewal
of
your
mind
that
by
testing
you
may
discern
what
is
the
will
of
God
what
is
good
and
acceptable
and
perfect
do
what
you're
doing
until
God
tells
you
to
do
otherwise
and
enrich
your
thinking
not
your
feeling
so that
you'll
know
when
it's
time
it's
time
to
do
a
different
thing
you'll
hear
the
voice
of
God
speaking
to
you
don't
expect
a
vision
don't
look
for
a
sign
we'll
say
to
you
that
this
is
not
beyond
God
but
certainly
not
the
most
common
way
that
God
is
going
to
communicate
to
you
a
narrative
example
of
this
transforming
of
the
mind
can
be
found
in
Acts
chapter
15
verses
24
through
28
Clay
preached
on
this
a
number
of
weeks
ago
this
is
the
results
of
the
Jerusalem
council
this
is
the
letter
that
they
sent
back
to
the
Gentile
churches
!
words
unsettling
your
minds
although
we
gave
them
no
instructions
here's
this
phrase
verse
25
it
has
seemed
good
to
us
it
seemed
good
to
us
right
we
have
studied
and we
have
heard
the
report
and it
makes
sense
that we
would
send
to you
a
letter
verse
25
goes on
to say
having
come
to
one
accord
collectively
deciding
together
to
choose
men
and
send
them
to
you
with
our
beloved
Barnabas
and
Paul
men
who
have
risked
their
lives
in
the
name
of
the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
we
have
therefore
sent
Judas
and
Silas
who
themselves
will
tell
you
the
same
things
by
word
of
mouth
in
verse
28
for
it
has
seemed
good
to
the
Holy
Spirit
and
to
us
to
lay
on
you
no
greater
burden
than
these
requirements
and
he
goes
on
to
give
some
description
of
what
those
requirements
are
so
be
about
the
work
of
renewing
your
mind
being
reasonable
and
make
decisions
accordingly
and
number
three
and
finally
seek
wise
counsel
one
of the
things
I
despise
about
the
language
of
feeling
called
is
that
no
one
can
refute
such
a
thing
if
they
also
are
wrapped
up
in
that
belief
system
you
can
go
and
say
I
feel
called
to
jump
off
the
roof
of
the
church
building
and
someone
else
who
goes
oh
I
have
also
felt
called
to
do
things
would
not
tell
you
to
stop
if
they're
being
consistent
I
would
no
that's
dumb
don't
do
that
whatever
you're
feeling
is
probably
sad
but
you
should
not
jump
off
the
roof
of
the
church
building
and
so
people
feel
called
to
do
things
all
the
time
I
know
quite a
few
men
who
have
felt
called
to
be
pastors
and
they
have
no
business
teaching
other
people
the
word
of
God
none
!
whatsoever!
our
southern
baptist
seminaries
graduate
lots
of
men
who
have
no
business
teaching
the
word
of
God
and
it's
not
the
seminary's
fault
it's
the
individual's
and
the
church's
fault
for
ever
allowing
them
to
go
we
need
to
say
to
each
other
brother
this
is
not
your
thing
what
you're
feeling
should
not
be
the
basis
for
your
decision
let's
find
a way
to
channel
the
energy
that
you
have
for
the
sake
of
the
king
in
a
way
that's
going
be
most
effective
for
the
kingdom
so
seek
wise
counsel
and
we
see
that
here
right
Paul
has
a
vision
we
don't
get
the
details
of
this
but
he
goes
to
them
and
they
together
conclude
that
God
called
them
called
us
to
preach
the
gospel
to
the
Macedonians
and
so
they
go
as
a
faith
unit
together
to
this
work
that's
ahead
of
them
so
as
we
witness
texts
like
this
right
driving
purpose
historical
narrative
God
is
continuing
to
press
the
gospel
proclamation
out
further
and
further
and
further
right
it's
on
its
way
to
the
ends
of
the
earth
we
are
gracious
recipients
of the
work
that's
happening
here
as
the
gospel
continues
to
go
forth
this
is
our
history
we
should
praise
the
lord
for
his
good
work
driving
them
through
Asia
and
into
Macedonia
to
spread
the
gospel
further
and
further
and
we
should
be
careful
what
we
do
with
such
a
text
as
it
applies
to
our
lives
beloved
let
us
be
those
who
are
going
who
are
practicing
the
revealed
will
of
God
and
all
of
those
habits
of
grace
who
are
being
transformed
by the
renewing
of
our
mind
and
who
are
seeking
wise
counsel
for
how
we
can
obey
in
the
particulars
of
our
pursuit
of
Jesus
let's
pray
together