TITLE: COMMUNION, CONSECRATION, AND COMMISSION
SCRIPTURE: ACTS 13:1-4
It is a distinct honor and privilege to be here this afternoon to celebrate the Marriage of Church and its new Under Shepard, my brother and friend, Pastor Bernie Kidd and the St. Paul Baptist Church of Binger, OK. I don’t believe the Church could have called a more dedicated Man of God. I am also excited that Pastor Kidd will move into the ranks of a full time Pastor. Pastoring two churches in two locations, with that comes many great responsibilities. I look forward to a rewarding relationship between this Church and the PPWC Church family where we are located in Bethany, OK.
I want to get right into our text this afternoon and hear what God has to say to us. In our text, those at Antioch were men and women who did not mind being in the service of the Lord. The text gave the names of those who were there at that particular, time at that little Church found at Antioch. The Bible identifies them as - BARNABAS – SIMEON – LUCIUS – MANAEN - SAUL - they were all Prophets and Teachers that gave structure to the Church at Antioch. They continued in fellowship at Antioch seeing the move of God and being used of God. They were not settled with what the Lord had done there at Antioch, because they believed the Lord had greater things for them and the Antioch church to do. So they continued to exhibit Christian fellowship and worship.
There is no structure if a Church does not have God ordained leaders in their proper place. Many churches fail today because of a lack of structure in God’s house.
• Structure does not begin in the Pews
• Structure does not begin with the Deacons
• Structure does not begin with Financial Ministry
• Structure begins with the Spiritual Leaders God calls and equips being in place
Can I footnote early on in this message? Oftentimes we don’t fully digest the message because we don’t pay attention to the details found in the text. God does not use words aimlessly. Five men mentioned – BARNABAS – SIMEON – LUCIUS – MANAEN – SAUL. What do we glean from these brothers mentioned in the text? Sadly most Churches can be put in a category as:
• White Church
• Black Church
• Spanish Church
• Rich Church
• Poor Church
• Country Church
• Southern Church
• Shouting Church
• Quite Church
Too often churches will:
• Support a Missionary serving in Africa – but don’t welcome black people to their church
• They will send money to Missionaries in Mexico, but want all Hispanics deported
• Will send Textbooks to Haiti – but won’t hire a Haitian to teach in our Public Schools
• This is the Height of Hypocrisy
But that was not the case with the Church found in Antioch. Can I prove by identifying characteristics of these Five men named early on in the text?
• Barnabus – He was a Levite who was born in Cyprus who would have understood the Greek culture
• Simeon who was called Niger – His name meant “black” this may have been the same one mentioned in the Crucifixion account
• Lucius – Who was born in Cyrene which was located in Northern Africa
• Manaen – which had been brought up with Jeord the Tetrarch
• Saul – a leader in the Jewish religion and was from Tarsus
• You want to talk about a multi-cultural Church just study the Church in Antioch
Because of the welcoming spirit of the Church, they reaped the benefits:
• Barnabus was a kind and generous man who was responsible of good works
• Simeon who probably carried the cross of the Lord was a man who had been to Calvary
• Every Church needs people who have been to Calvary, and who have not gotten over the experience
• Lucious, some think was won to Christ by Simeon when he returned home to Cyrene
• Manaen knew the importance of compassion because of the deeds of Herod
• Saul, they all understood that God makes new creatures and did not hold his past against him and he became one of the greatest Christians and servants
• If a Church says it has a welcoming spirit, I would simply ask – “What’s Your Story?”
• The Proof Ought to be in the Pudding
Ok, let’s move through the text. There are some Key Principles that we can extract from our text in an effort to hear what God is saying to us this afternoon. Let’s firstly, put our text in proper perspective. I want you to observe three sets of statements in our text. The first set of statements is found in VS.2 that says, “AS THEY MINISTERED TO THE LORD, AND FASTED...” and in VS.3 that says, “AND WHEN THEY HAD FASTED AND PRAYED....” These two statements describe the first requirement for this Installation that we shall call COMMUNION. We will come back to this in more detail momentarily.
The second set of statements is found in VS.2 that says, “THE HOLY GHOST SAID, SEPARATE ME BARNABAS AND SAUL.” VS.3 that says, “AND LAID THEIR HANDS ON THEM.” These two statements describe the second requirement for Installation that we shall call CONSECRATION.
The Third set of statements is found in VS.2 that says, “FOR THE WORK WHEREUNTO I HAVE CALLED THEM.” and in VS.3 that says, “THEY SENT THEM AWAY” as well as in VS.4 that says, “BEING SENT FORTH BY THE HOLY GHOST....” These statements describe a third requirement for Installation that we shall call COMMISSION. -- COMMUNION – CONSECRATION - COMMISSION.
Let us look at the first requirement for Installation that we call— COMMUNION - VS 2 “As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted...” VS 3 = “And when they had fasted and prayed...” Who are “THEY?” According to VS 1 they are the “PROPHETS” and “TEACHERS” in the church of Antioch.
• These people are the leaders of the church
• Paul and Barnabas belong to this group of leaders of the Church
• The point I am making is Paul and Barnabas are men of prayer
• Pastors must likewise be men of prayer
• Paul and Barnabas were fasting and praying, along with the other leaders of the church
• Praying is talking to God
• Another term for the act of praying is Communion
• We are Communing with God
• I know we don’t like to talk about this aspect, but, Fasting is simply Praying in a Higher Dimension
The apostles declared, “We will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word” - ACTS 6:4.
• Prayer is the first ministry of the early Christian leaders
• E.M. Bounds says, “What the Church needs today is not more machinery or better, not new organizations or more novel methods, but men whom the Holy Ghost can use--men of prayer, men mighty in prayer”
• Alfred Lord Tennyson observed, “More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of”
The Church needs to understand the top three priorities of your Pastor - “Prayer is the first thing, Prayer is the second thing, and Prayer is the third thing necessary to be an effective Minister of the Gospel. Pastor, as you take on this additional responsibility and privilege of serving God’s people, I encourage you to pray, pray, and pray some more.” E. Stanley Jones explained what prayer does to a Pastor:
• Prayer is surrender -- surrender to the will of God and cooperation with that will
• If I throw out a boathook from the boat and catch hold of the shore and pull, do I pull the shore to me, or do I pull myself to the shore?
• Prayer is not pulling God to my will, but the aligning of my will to the will of God
Prayer is that wonderful means provided by God to meet the NEEDS – DIFFICULTIES – TRIALS – ADVERSITIES - TEMPTATIONS - PROBLEMS of life. There is nothing more important in the Christian life than the times of prayer. Likewise, there is nothing more important in our Christian service than prayer.
• Prayer is the power behind our Service
• Prayer is the power behind our Witnessing
• Prayer is the source of power behind our Preaching
• Prayer is the means by which we share our Burdens, Worries and Concerns with God
• Prayer is the means we enter into the lives of others and share their needs before the throne of God
“THEY” in the text is also the Church Body. Isn’t it sad to see how slothful we the new millennial church has become in comparison to the early church? The early church hungered and thirsted after the Word of God and to minister in His presence, but the new millennium church hungers and thirst after the things of the world and a convenient way to hear the Word of God. The early church did not have the comfort of air conditioning or plush cushioned seats, but they gathered for fellowship wherever they could, often bearing the heat of the day. But the new millennium church with all the creature comforts, would rather make fellowship secondary in their lives regardless of all the convenient comforts the building has, and what amazes me there are those that they can spend hours upon hours in the heat for recreation but do not want to spend two hours in worship in an air-conditioned church.
• Complain Pastor preaches too long
• Complain Praise and Worship is too long
• Complain we don’t need Praise Dancers and all that, it takes too long
• I tell you we have placed Christian fellowship way down a long list of things to do
• But at the church in Antioch there was true fellowship going on with sincere people of God shaping the foundation of the worship
• They understood the value of COMMUNION
The first requirement is COMMUNION, the SECOND IS CONSECRATION. VS.2 - “The Holy Ghost said, ‘Separate me Barnabas and Saul...” VS.3 - “And laid their hands on them...”
• The Greek word translated “separate” is APHORIZO and it means to distinguish from the others, to single out, and to set aside for a special service
• The Holy Spirit wants Paul and Barnabas to be different, to be special, to be dedicated to God
• Laying of hands is an act of consecration
Laying of hands is also an act of sanctification or setting aside for a Holy Purpose. This is the most important part of the Installation of this New Pastor that will marry this Church today.
• Sanctification is the great measure, according to the purity and perfections of the instrument
• Sanctification seals the success
• It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus
• Many talented men and women fail in the Pastorate
• Many talented men and women fail in their attempt to lead Gods people
• Many talented men and women fail and succumb to temptations and lusts
• You can’t teach Sanctification in Seminary or Bible College
• You can’t study and emulate Sanctification
• Can I tell you - A Holy, Sanctified minister is a Powerful Weapon in the hand of God
So the first requirement is Communion, the second requirement is Consecration, the THIRD is—
COMMISSION. VS.2 = “For the work whereunto I have called them.” VS.3 - “They sent them away.”
VS.4 - “Being sent forth by the Holy Spirit...” The Greek word translated “called” is PROSKALEOMAI” and it means to summon, to invite, and to call to oneself. God has called you to Himself for this purpose of leading, not your people but God’s people.
• God commissions you to be His servant
• Not the servant of the church
• Not the servant of the deacons
• Not the servant of the wealthy financiers
• There is nothing as tragic as hearing a Pastor refer to his flock by saying “I was telling my people”
• Or “My people travelled with me last Sunday”
• We don’t have any people, they don’t belong to us
• We serve God’s people!
If you do not lose sight of this, you will be in good shape. God will continue to grow this ministry beyond what you think even today. I am reminded of JOHN SUNUNU, who served as the 75th GOVERNOR OF NEW HAMPSHIRE and would then go on to serve as the WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF of the first George Bush. I recall he was once asked by a reporter –
• “Your job is very difficult, isn’t it?”
• He answered, “No, it isn’t”
• The reporter thought John Sununu had misunderstood him, so he asked the question again
• John Sununu answered more emphatically, “No, it isn’t. I only have one constituent.”
• He meant, “I only have to please one person, the President”
• It is the same with us, we only have to please God
• Your ministry is people, not programs
• Unless the programs are simply tools in your ministry to people
• Since your Ministry is to People, People will get upset with you Pastor
• People will turn on you Pastor
• People will let you down along the way Pastor
• You will be the conversation at their dinner table Pastor
• Always remember, Your Job is to Please God not Man!
Because our ministry is people, the results are eternal. Daniel Webster succinctly puts it –
• If we work on Marble it will perish
• If we work on Brass, time will efface it
• If we rear Temples, they will crumble to dust
• But if we work on men’s immortal minds
• If we imbue them with high principles, with just fear of God and love of their fellow men
• We engrave on those tablets something, which time cannot efface, and which will brighten and brighten to all eternity
Your commission Pastor, is to Preach the Word. Not to try to Fix the Members or Get Them Told. The Word of God is your message. We are entrusted with it. There is no substitute to the Word of God. Preach the word in season and out of season. The Word of God has eternal values. Don’t hide it. Broadcast it to the world. Sadly enough this is the weakest area of many of our Churches today.
• Churches are full - but Weak on the Word
• Praise and Worship team is great – but Weak on the Word
• Praise Dancers are the best – but Weak on the Word
• Too much Entertainment in the Church – Weak on the Word
• A lot of Conferences for Men, Women, Youth – Weak on the Word
• The main attraction every Wednesday evening and Sunday must be on the Word
• Not the Pastor’s Personality – but the Word
• Not what the Pastor has on or how Sharp he looks - but the Word
• When the Honeymoon is over Pastor Kidd and St. Paul Baptist Church
• Trust me that day is coming, sooner than you think
• In Season and Out of Season – Preach the Word
I BELIEVE MANY IN THE CHURCH TODAY ARE BIBLE RICH AND APPLICATION POOR – because of lack of Preaching the Word and too much preaching our agenda. Let me give you more detail as to what I mean.
• The average person in a modern congregation really does not know what it means to seek the Lord’s guidance
• They might know the motions to go through in seeking His guidance but they do not know the patience and the loneliness of waiting on the Lord and presenting His vision to a people that feel that enough has been done in their lives and church
• This was not the case with this young church in Antioch
• With the prophets and teachers of the Way on board, they sought the Lord for the next move of God for the church
• St. Paul Baptist, don’t get stuck on how you used to do things
• St. Paul Baptist, don’t get satisfied with us few and no more
• St. Paul Baptist you have called this Pastor who will lead you into the next move of God for this Church
The text is clear the first thing the Church did was minister to the Lord. We have a selfish sense of SELFISH SENSE OF CHRISTIANITY TODAY, WE WANT GOD TO MINISTER UNTO US! In other words, the Antioch Church ministered to the Lord through their worship. I ask how many of us actually minister to the Lord during worship? I mean simply forgetting that anyone is around and actually partition the Lord for His next move for the church or to pray that the Lord would deliver someone during the service.
• Now most of us know that everyone has their own way of worshiping Him
• That statement is an excuse for our complacency
• But I’m talking about worshiping Him the way they did at Antioch
• Can I ask something?
• How come we all can feel and respond to pain alike, but we cannot worship our King alike?
• Sports fans cheer for their favorite team alike
• Party people celebrate alike
• Drunkards drink alike
• Complainers complain alike
• Gossipers Gossip alike
• I just want to know why the church cannot celebrate our Savior alike?
Many times Worship gets Bogged Down because of a disconnect between Congregation and the Pastor.
• Church must recognize for Worship to be Powerful you must allow the Pastor to be the Pastor
• “Separate Barnabas and Saul for the work unto which I have called them”
• Holy Spirit said Separate them for the Work I have given them
• Not work Deacons have given the Pastor
• Not work Trustees have given the Pastor
• Not work Tithers have given the Pastor
• Holy Spirit directs the Pastor
• Pastor has been given full Authority and Power to do the Work
• When God’s work is being done in this Church, there should be some High Praise on Sunday Morning
--Follow the Pastors Vision for this Church and there will be Praise
--Don’t hinder the Pastor as he is called to share the Vision of this Church – Just send up some Praise
--God has tremendous Blessings in store for this Church
--Can I tell you though – When the Praises Go Up the Blessings Come Down
--Can I tell you St. Paul Baptist Church the importance of Lifting Up Your Pastor for this Journey
--Can I tell you that Gods Favor and Anointing can Rest, Rule, and Abide in this Place
--Let’s Install this Pastor that the Journey May Begin
