Sermon Central
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Actstivities Of The Early Church
Contributed by Sean Harder on Sep 6, 2013 (message contributor)
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1. Come Holy Spirit
Contributed on Sep 6, 2013
Acts is a continuation of the Gospel of Luke. Luke's 1st letter describes the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. This being his 2nd letter, he describes the beginnings of the church after Jesus ascends to heaven and sends the Holy Spirit
Why do we need the Holy Spirit? Do we have the Holy Spirit living in us? Do we want the Holy Spirit living in us? You are not saved unless you do you know. Romans 8:9 “But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living in ...read more
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2. The Beginning
Contributed on Sep 13, 2013
The Church of Jesus Christ is probably one the longest lasting institutions in the history of mankind. over the next few weeks we get to be a part of it's beginning and hopefully find a way to bring that kind of excitement and power into the church today
I think what we are going to immerse ourselves in today is the beginning of probably the most exciting part of human history, certainly for Christians. The Church of Jesus Christ is probably one of if not the longest lasting institutions in the history of mankind, and over the next few weeks we get ...read more
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3. The Real Enemies
Contributed on Sep 19, 2013
We begin chapter 4 by seeing that the real enemies of Christ show up to put a stop to what Peter and John are saying. They’re kind of OK with the healing, but they are not OK with whom they are giving credit to for the healing
Peter and John, the rock and the one Jesus loved most, the two men who were without a doubt closest to Jesus when he walked the earth. Just walking down the street outside the MTS centre in Winnipeg, they see a crippled beggar outside the arena asking them for a few bucks. They don’t turn ...read more
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4. Don't Lie
Contributed on Sep 26, 2013
Do we hate what God hates, do we love what God loves, do we want what God wants? That’s the question today, please take time to consider it in your own heart.
One of the great things about the early community of believers is the open practice of love and unity. ALL the believers were united in heart and mind. What that means is that they all had the same agenda. They weren’t clones, but they all wanted the same things and thought the same way about ...read more
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5. Nothing Can Stop Us
Contributed on Oct 4, 2013
Have you ever thought, “There’s got to be more to being a Christian than this?" Apparently there can be, and by studying the book of Acts, hopefully we can learn how to get more out of our Christian life.
Have you ever thought, “There’s got to be more to being a Christian than this?” Coming to church, singing some songs, trying to stay awake through a sermon. Apparently there can be, and that is what we are seeing in the book of Acts, and hopefully today we can see how to get more ...read more
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6. Leaders & Martyrs
Contributed on Oct 11, 2013
For the first few chapters of Acts we have heard about the beginnings and growth of the early church in Jerusalem after Pentecost. Now we start to see some of the growing pains and the spread of the church over the next several chapters.
Alistair Begg, one of my favourite preachers who spoke daily in Chicago when I was there in May, shared a story from a pastor’s conference he held at his church last year. The theme of the conference was, from our passage today, “we will devote ourselves to the preaching of the word and ...read more
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7. Leaders & Martyrs
Contributed on Oct 25, 2013
We have gotten so used to novelty in the church that a common response to this theme, was a rather sympathetic gesture inferring, “What, have you run out of good ideas?” Preaching and prayer just don’t seem that innovative and frankly to many, are the boring part of church.
For the first few chapters of Acts we have heard about the beginnings and growth of the early church in Jerusalem after Pentecost. This was done almost exclusively through prayer and preaching. And Satan was working hardest through the religious leaders, not to stop miracles and such, but to stop ...read more
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8. Thankfulness In The Face Of Trouble
Contributed on Oct 25, 2013
Stephen has just been stoned, Saul is ravaging the church, and many believers are going to rancid prisons getting beaten and fighting off the rats, just because they love Jesus. is the basis for my Thanksgiving sermon. Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Bear with me.
Here in chapter 8 of the book of Acts we are finally introduced to this Pharisee named Saul. Perhaps no other religious person in Israel had more of a zealous hatred for Christ and Christians. Let’s pay close attention to the very first verse of Acts chapter 8: “Saul approved of his ...read more
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9. Can God Use You?
Contributed on Oct 31, 2013
Some of you will walk away today completely untouched or even offended by what you heard, others will be positively convicted. Either way you and I need to make a decision about how we want to be used. Like Saul, or like Paul?
The truth is God is using you. Whether you are a Christian or not, whether you know it or not, the sovereign God of the universe knows everyone and is orchestrating everything either by intervening or by taking his hands off. He uses all human beings to fulfill His purpose. The question becomes is ...read more
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10. Perplexed Peter
Contributed on Nov 8, 2013
I want to start today by reading the eighth verse of Acts chapter 1. The disciples were listening to Jesus just before he was about to ascend into heaven. No doubt eager Peter was up at the front when Jesus gives his great commission.
There was a man in Boissevain who was paralyzed in a farm accident and was bedridden for the last 8 years. This guy just came to town late last week out of nowhere and healed him. The formerly paralyzed man obviously started walking around town and being a small town just about everyone saw him ...read more
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11. Membership Not Required
Contributed on Nov 21, 2013
We may not say there are membership requirements to be a Christian in our churches, but does our behaviour say otherwise? Membership requirements don’t have to be verbally stated, they can be communicated with a look, with avoidance, and so on.
Back in the mid-nineties I was working in the golf business for a couple years. One course I worked at in Vancouver required $75,000 to join and there was about a 3 year waiting list, then it was about $350 a month for monthly dues as well. In the winter I went down to a very exclusive private ...read more
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12. "The Church Goes Viral"
Contributed on Nov 29, 2013
I want to make the illustration of what it means to go viral on the internet. This happens all the time because people of our generation practically live on the web. As we continue in Acts chapter 11 we see that the church had already grown very rapidly.
There’s a saying online when something gets really popular, that it goes “viral”. Not too long ago there a was 4 minute video posted on Youtube by a fellow named Jefferson Bethke. It was poem entitled, “Why I hate religion but Love Jesus”. In less than two years it was ...read more