Obey God
Acts 3:1-4:20
Sermon by Rick Crandall
McClendon Baptist Church - June 14, 2009
*This past week we had a great Vacation Bible School! Everything ran like clock-work, but it wasn’t easy. Raymond McHenry told about a mom who brought her son to VBS for the first time. This boy was extremely active, very curious, and had the energy to outlast most adults.
*When Mom came to the part of the enrollment card called “Remarks,” she wrote in big, block letters, “BRACE YOURSELF!” (1)
*VBS is never easy, and we should have great gratitude for those who helped. This year our VBS kids took a trip on the Boomerang Express, where it all comes back to Jesus. They found out that we should follow Him, worship Him, confess Him, serve Him and obey Him.
*Today Peter will help us see some great ways to obey the Lord. Our Scripture takes place after Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead, after Jesus returned to Heaven and sent the Holy Spirit to the church on the Day of Pentecost. The story starts in Acts 3:1-8. Think about obeying Jesus, as we stand in honor of the Word of God.
1. Now Peter and John went up together to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.
2. And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask alms from those who entered the temple;
3. who, seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, asked for alms.
4. And fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, "Look at us.’’
5. So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them.
6. Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.’’
7. And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength.
8. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them walking, leaping, and praising God.
1. Peter is going to show us some great ways to obey the Lord. First: obey Jesus by praying to the Lord.
*In Acts 3:1, Peter and John went together to the temple for the hour prayer. Devout Jews had three special hours set aside for prayer each day. In these verses, Peter and John went to pray at 3 in the afternoon.
*Peter and John went to pray, and a man born with a serious birth defect was miraculously healed. Peter and John went to pray, and chapter 4 will tell us that 5,000 people got saved! All of these great things happened, because Peter and John were obeying God’s command to pray. Great things happen when God’s people pray! I am quite sure this is one of the reasons why VBS went so well this year. God’s people were praying.
*There is no question that God commands us to pray.
-In Matt 6: 6, Jesus said, “when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”
-In Matt 5: 44 Jesus said, “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.”
-Matt 9:37-38, He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”
*On the night before the cross, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane and prayed in agony to the Father. In Matt 26:40-41, Jesus came to the disciples and found them asleep, and told Peter, “What, could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
*1 Thess 5:17 tells Christians to “pray without ceasing.” But there are also special times to pray:
-Like the Prayer Walk we had for VBS last Sunday night.
-Men’s Prayer Meeting every Sunday morning at 7:30 in Fellowship Hall.
-And our weekly Prayer Meeting on Wednesday night.
*One of the best ways the Lord showed His love for children was by praying for them. We see this in Matt 19:13-15:
13. Then little children were brought to (Jesus) that He might put His hands on them and pray, but the disciples rebuked them.
14. But Jesus said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.’’
15. And He laid His hands on them and departed from there.
*Jesus prayed for children, and so should we. After the terrible bombing in Oklahoma City, Ina Hughes wrote a touching prayer for children. Please bow and pray along with me this morning as I read part of Ina’s prayer:
*Heavenly Father: We pray for children who bring us sticky kisses and fistfuls of dandelions, who hug us in a hurry and forget their lunch money.
-And we pray for those who never get dessert, who have no safe blankets to drag behind them, who watch their parents watch them die, who can’t find any bread to steal, who don’t have any rooms to clean up, whose pictures aren’t on anybody’s dresser, whose monsters are real.
*We pray for children who throw tantrums in the grocery store and pick at their food, who shove dirty clothes under the bed, who squirm in church and scream in the phone, whose tears we sometimes laugh at and whose smiles can make us cry.
-And we pray for those whose nightmares come in the daytime, who will eat anything, who have never seen a dentist, who aren’t spoiled by anybody, who go to bed hungry and cry themselves to sleep.
*We pray for children who want to be carried and for those who must, for those we never give up on and for those who don’t get a second chance. -- For those we smother, and for those who will grab the hand of anybody kind enough to offer it. Lord Jesus, we pray for children right now. Most of all that they will come to know and love You. -- In your name, Amen. (2)
*Obey Jesus by praying.
2. But also obey by giving for the Lord.
*That man in vs. 2 was lame from the day he was born. He had never been able to run as a child, never able to take a step, never able to take care of himself. He was reduced to begging outside the temple, and he tried to beg from Peter and John, but in vs. 4-8, God used Peter to give that man more than he ever dreamed:
4. Fixing his eyes on him, with John, Peter said, "Look at us.’’
5. So he gave them his attention, expecting to receive something from them.
6. Then Peter said, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.’’
7. And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up, and immediately his feet & ankle bones received strength.
8. So he, leaping up, stood and walked and entered the temple with them walking, leaping, and praising God.
*God wants His people to be givers. Give what the Lord has given you. For Peter that day, it was a special gift of healing. And the Lord wants you to give what He has given you. A little boy gave his lunch, and 5,000 were fed. A widow gave her two mites and the Lord said it was the biggest gift of the day. Give what the Lord has given you. Peter had to say, “Silver and gold have I none.” But most of us can say that God has given us a great abundance.
*Lord willing, in a little over two months, we will be moving into our new Children’s Building. Many people have given sacrificially to make this dream come true. Talk to the Lord about what He might want you to give. And give what the Lord has given you.
*One of the most precious things God has given us is our time. What if Peter had told that man, “Hey, we’d like to help you, but we’re just too busy.”? God wants you to invest your time in the things that last forever: His Word, His church, and people.
*Give what the Lord has given you, but always be careful to give the glory to God. The people there that day quickly realized that something amazing had happened, but Peter was very careful to give the glory to God. In vs. 9-16:
9. All the people saw him walking and praising God.
10. Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple; and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
11. Now as the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch which is called Solomon’s, greatly amazed.
12. So when Peter saw it, he responded to the people: "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Or why look so intently at us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk?
13. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.
14. But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
15. and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses.
16. And His name, through faith in His name, has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which comes through Him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
*Give what the Lord has given you, and always give the glory to God. This is a great way to obey.
3. But also obey Jesus by telling people about the Lord.
*In vs. 17-21, Peter kept telling people about Jesus. Peter said:
17. “Yet now, brethren, I know that you did it in ignorance, as did also your rulers.
18. But those things which God foretold by the mouth of all His prophets, that the Christ would suffer, He has thus fulfilled.
19. Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
20. and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before,
21. whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”
*The story continues in Acts 4:1-12, where again Peter kept telling people about Jesus:
1. Now as they spoke to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees came upon them,
2. being greatly disturbed that they taught the people and preached in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
3. And they laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening.
4. However, many of those who heard the word believed; and the number of the men came to be about 5,000.
5. And it came to pass, on the next day, that their rulers, elders, and scribes,
6. as well as Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander, and as many as were of the family of the high priest, were gathered together at Jerusalem.
7. And when they had set them in the midst, they asked, "By what power or by what name have you done this?’’
8. Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "Rulers of the people and elders of Israel:
9. If we this day are judged for a good deed done to the helpless man, by what means he has been made well,
10. let it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, by Him this man stands here before you whole.
11. This is the `stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the chief cornerstone.’
12. Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.’’
*We must tell people about the Lord, because “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
*The most wonderful thing about VBS this year is that so many children got saved! One reason why is because more people were involved in the one-on-one follow-up with the kids. On Wednesday the teachers prayed in Fellowship Hall while James and Elaine shared with Grades 1-5. Then after the Bible lesson, the teachers followed-up.
*Follow-up continued on Thursday. It happened to be my 58th birthday, and it was one of the most memorable I have ever had. First the kids sang “Happy Birthday” to me. Then I asked one of the 2nd graders how old she thought I was. She said, “80!” That was memorable. But the thing I remember most is that I got to talk to a little girl who was confused about her relationship with God. And I got to help lead one of our 9-year-old boys to the Lord. What a great birthday present for me!
*God will surely give you opportunities to speak to people about Jesus. And we must, because “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Obey Jesus by telling people about the Lord.
4. But also obey by being with the Lord.
*Acts 4:13 is crucial: “Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus.”
*There was nothing special at all about Peter and John -- except for one thing: They had been with the Lord. They had spent a lot of time with Jesus. Have you? How is your relationship with God? The first step is to trust in the Lord.
-You have to believe what the Bible says about how God loves you in spite of your sins.
-You have to believe that Jesus came into the world to die on the cross for your sins, and that He rose from the dead.
-You have to believe that He will save you, if you will turn away from sin and trust Jesus as your Savior and Lord.
*God will surely forgive your sins and save you, if you will put your faith in Jesus. But this is not just a one-time decision. It’s the commitment of a lifetime. God wants you to spend time with Him and fellowship with Him every day. God wants you to draw closer and closer to Him, walking with Him every day. Nobody is standing still in life. Each day you are either getting closer to God or further away. You are either getting better or worse.
*This past Wednesday, an 88-year-old man named James von Brunn walked into the Holocaust Museum in Washington and mortally wounded one of the guards. The guard died the next day. He died on my birthday.
*The guard’s name was Stephen Johns. He was a gentle giant who was loved by his family and friends. Stephen was holding the door open for the shooter when he opened fire.
*At 88, James von Brunn was a Christian hater, Jew Hater and George Bush hater. He is a “9-11 was an inside job” nut and a socialist. He once stated that the Apostle Paul destroyed Rome by undermining its pagan virility. (3)
*This is a mind-boggling thing. How does someone get filled with that much hate? When he was a little boy, do you think his parents thought, one day you will grow up to kill an innocent man? -- Of course not.
*James von Brunn is an extreme case. -- But nobody is standing still in life.
-Each day you are either getting better or worse.
-Each day you are either getting closer to God or further away.
*God wants our lives to be headed in the right direction. That can only happen when we are walking with Him. Micah 6:8 asks, “What does the Lord require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
*Are you walking with the Lord? Are you spending time with Jesus? Obey Jesus by being with the Lord.
5. And by taking a strong stand for the Lord.
*In vs. 14-20, Peter and John took a rock-solid stand for the Lord:
14. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.
15. But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,
16. saying, "What shall we do to these men? For, indeed, that a notable miracle has been done through them is evident to all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it.
17. But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.’’
18. And they called them and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19. But Peter and John answered and said to them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.
20. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.’’
*In other words: “It is impossible for us to keep quiet about Jesus!” Christians, we have to take a stand for the Lord -- even when it is hard. And it is getting harder.
*Just a couple of weeks ago a 7-year-old from Oakley, CA was told that she couldn’t sing in her school’s talent show, because she wanted to sing a Christian song. Little Bette Ouellette’s dad has taken this travesty to a Christian group that stands up for our freedom of speech. But that little 2nd grader was not allowed to sing her song. (4)
*I am inspired by the story of Brenda Nichol. Six years ago Brenda was working as a teacher’s aide in Glen Campbell, PA. She was suspended for one year, without pay, for wearing a necklace with a cross. At the time the PA Public School code prohibited employees from wearing religious symbols. For years Brenda had been told not to wear the cross, and that she could be fired for another offense, but she was willing to pay the price. (5)
*Brenda was willing to stand up for Jesus, and God calls on us to do the same. Peter and John were never sorry for obeying the Lord. And at the end of the day, you will always be glad you did what the Lord told you to do.
*Obey Jesus.
-By praying to the Lord.
-By giving for the Lord.
-By telling people about the Lord.
-By being with the Lord.
-And by taking a strong stand for the Lord.
*You will always be glad you did.
1. Baptist Standard, June 7, 1995, p. 7 - (I believe I found this story on “McHenry’s Quips, Quotes, and Other Notes” by Raymond McHenry - Published by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.)
2. Adapted from “A Prayer for Children” by Ina Hughs. - Wm. Morrow and Company, NY., 1995. Pgs XIV-XV.
3. Information found in various online articles, including:
http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-06-11T19%3A34%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=20
http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-722-Conservative-Politics-Examiner~y2009m6d10-Holocaust-Museum-shooter-von-Brunn-a-911-truther-who-hated-neocons-Bush-McCain
http://www.examiner.com/a-2061726~Elderly_gunman_opens_fire_at_Holocaust_Museum.html
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/us_world/2009/06/12/2009-06-12_big_guy_big_heart.html
4. BRAVE NEW SCHOOLS - WorldNetDaily Exclusive - Sorry, no Christian talent allowed - 7-year-old blocked from using religious song in sign language performance - Posted: June 13, 2009 - 12:05 am Eastern - By Drew Zahn - http://www.wnd.com/index.php?fa=PAGE.view&pageId=100917
5. “No Crosses Allowed” - AP - April 23, 2003 - Found in www.sbclife.org - June, 2003 - SBC Mosaic
