Acts 3:13 The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up… 16 And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong,
They were a people of the name, that when they called upon that name, realized that they were calling upon all the power of heaven.
They more than just a Jesus name people, they were a people that believed in and applied the power of that name.
They were a church that believed that when they breathed the name of Jesus that situations were changed, that the supernatural was poised to happen at the mention of that name
They were a people that firmly believed that by the name of Jesus, anything was possible.
And they never hesitated to declare the power of that name.
On another occasion in Acts 4:10 Peter declared, “Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole. 11 This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. 12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”
It’s high time we exercised the power of the name of Jesus.
It has become the most common curse word in Hollywood, but it remains a power to be yielded by a Book of Acts Church!
It is high time we called upon that name, expecting God to do wonderful things.
That name is yours, you took it on you in water baptism.
If anyone has the right to speak it with power and authority, you do!
When you speak that name, all of heaven listens.
When you speak that name all of hell trembles
At the mention of that name, sickness has flee, demons have to surrender ther trophies, when that name is spoken power and authority is loosed.
There is, within that name the power to bind and to loose!
The power of that name that worked in a first century church still works in the church today!
It still has power in the 21at century, it still has the power to set at liberty them that are bound, the power to heal a sin sick soul
There’s power in that name, it’s high time we put it to use in our lives.
When we call upon that name, we should expect god to move!
A people of prayer.
The first century church was a church of prayer.
They were people of prayer.
When Peter and John stood before the elders and scribes and the High Priest in Acts 4, the bible tells us that when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were uneducated common men they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
They were a church that spent time with Jesus.
They invested themselves in prayer and fasting, walking with God, spending time in His presence, and it showed!
In Acts 4:31 they prayed until they moved heaven which shook the earth!
They prayed until the holy Ghost fell!
When James was killed with the sword and Peter was imprisoned, they didn’t incite a riot and storm the prisons, instead they gathered together and went to their knees in prayer!
They realized, our warfare is not with flesh and blood, but we do war with powers and principalities.
We win our victories on our knees.
We win our battles not in courts of law, but in the courts of the King of all Kings!
A 21st Century Book of Acts church will be a church of prayer!
It will be a church that recognizes much more can be accomplished by an hour shut away in the presence of God than could ever be accomplished by the mere might of mortal men.
There are so many other principles of the first century church that need to be applied to a 21st Century church.
They were a people of unity.
- Acts 4:31 says that those who believed were of one heart and soul.
- They were a church that understood that if one can set a thousand to flight and two can set ten thousand to flight, to unified body of believers nothing is impossible.
- A 21at Century Book of Acts church will be a Church that is united for the cause of Christ!
They were a giving people.
- They sold what they had to contribute to the work of God.
- I believe that there is a 21st Century application here, I don’t believe we have to return to communal living to see it fulfilled.
- But I do believe it’s time we broke the yoke of finances.
- Contrary to the way the world thinks, the key to financial blessing lies in giving!
- It’s time we became a giving church!
They were a separated church
- In Acts 2:40 They preached, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.
- When Saul sought to persecute them he went looking for those that belonged to The Way.
- Can I tell you that even in the First Century there was a noticeable “way” that marked the people of God.
- They lived a certain way, they walked a certain way, there were things they wouldn’t do, places they wouldn’t go.
- It was so evident that Paul was certain he would be able to recognize those that belonged to “The Way!”
They were a persecuted church
But their persecution became the catalyst for their revival
They were pressed but they weren’t defeated
They were overcomers!
There is so much more, but I don’t have time tonight…
Both Luke and Acts are addressed to Theophilus.
It has long been thought that this may be a person that was an acquaintance of Luke.
The name comes from the combination of two Greek words, Theos and Phileos
Theophilus – The Greek combination means “God Lover”
I recently discovered that there are those that subscribe to the idea that Theophilus was not an individual but that his was intended to be a designation that marked the First Century Church.
In a day and age when it was dangerous to be called a Christian, these books were addressed to the God-Lovers!
This phrase may have been chosen by Luke because it was the best single designator for those that belonged to “The Way.”
It seems to me, this evening, that, if we are to be a 21st Century Book of Acts church then we must first be Lovers of God!
We must know Him.
We must pursue Him.
We must walk with Him and talk with Him.
He must leave such an impression upon our lives that we can be clearly recognized as God Lovers!
If it is your desire tonight to become a Modern Day Book of Acts church, can I humbly submit to you that this may be the pace to start.
Before we can excel in these other areas we must first order the priorities of our lives.
We must become, first and foremost, Lovers of God!
Why don’t you find a place at alter and rekindle your first Love
Why don’t you find a place in his presence and fall in love with Him all over again!
