Feeling Empowered
Text: Acts 1:8
Introduction
1. Video Clip
2. This morning we're going to talk about having a vision for our lost world.
3. We see this "world vision" mentality in the book of Acts throughout the TV series A.D. In virtually every episode, the church is acting upon the final words of Jesus, given to them on His last day on earth.
4. If you had one last message to convey to your loved ones, you would probably take the time to clearly communicate your final wishes, right? You would tell them the most important thing on your heart . . . your last will and testament.
5. Well, if you will stand with me this morning, I will tell you the last thing that Jesus said before he left this earth. Let's read Acts 1:8.
6. Jesus promised us we would…
A. Receive Power
B. Be Witnesses
C. Tell People
Proposition: Jesus has commissioned us and empowered us to tell the world about him.
Transition: In Jesus last words he gave his church three promises. The first promise is...
I. Receive Power
A. You Will Receive Power
1. As we have mentioned before, in the OT God was very selective as to whom he gave his Holy Spirit.
A. He only gave his Spirit to people like priests, kings, and prophets.
B. He occasionally gave his Spirit to people he needed to do specific tasks, like the craftsmen who worked on the Tabernacle while they were in the desert for 40 years.
C. However, he promised through the prophet Joel that a time would come when he would pour out his Spirit on everyone.
D. Joel 2:28-29 (NLT)
“Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. 29 In those days I will pour out my Spirit even on servants—men and women alike.
E. Of course, we know that on the day of Pentecost God fulfilled that promise.
2. Another thing that we need to keep in mind is that the disciples on the day of Pentecost already had the Holy Spirit living in them.
A. John 20:22 (NLT)
Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
B. Either Jesus was a liar or they received the Holy Spirit and he was living inside of them.
C. We call this the regeneration of the Holy Spirit.
D. What happened to these people on the day of Pentecost was a second work of the Holy Spirit we call the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.
3. So in his last words on earth to his disciples, Jesus made them three promises. The fist one was, "But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you..."
A. This is the last recorded statement of Christ on earth. It is thus final, authoritative, and of utmost importance.
B. The Holy Spirit is a major theme in Luke and Acts and is the major point of continuity between the life of Jesus and the ministry of the church (Barton 474).
C. He had already commissioned them and given them the task of making disciples of all nations.
D. Yet he realized that this was an impossible task for them to accomplish on their own.
E. So he promised to send them all the power that they would need to accomplish the task that he had given them.
F. The word for "power" comes from a verb, which means "to be able," or "to have strength.
G. In Acts power refers to 1) the working of miracles, 2) power for bearing witness, and 3) power over the devil.
H. He knew that they were going to need the power to do all three of these things.
I. Luke 24:49 (NLT)
“And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.”
J. He is telling them don't try and do this on your own. Wait until I send the equipment that you will need.
B. Be Energized
1. Illustration: I want to share with you a question by Martyn Lloyd-Jones, who is certainly not known as a Pentecostal preacher. His doctrine and theology was that of the Reformed Church. When he was the pastor at Westminster Chapel in London, England, near the end of his life--and some say at the very pinnacle of his ministry--he asked his congregation a question. He said, "I want to talk to you today about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. You may call it what you want, but I want to know, have you experienced the fullness of the Spirit? I know all of you listening to me come as I do from a Reformed background. But it’s not good enough. I know that all of you would want to say to my question about the Holy Spirit, ’Well, we got it all at conversion; there’s no need for any more experience.’ Well," said Martyn Lloyd-Jones, "I have only one other question to ask you. If you got it all at conversion, where in God’s name is it?"
2. Have you been baptized in the Holy Spirit?
A. Acts 2:39 (NLT)
This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
B. Jesus has promised us this power to be able to do his will.
C. He has promised us the infilling presence of the Holy Spirit.
D. But have we done our part?
E. Have we asked him to fill us?
F. Have we come to the altar and asked to receive the Holy Spirit?
G. If you have received the baptism of the Holy Spirit when was the last time you asked for a fresh filling?
H. God has given you a promise, what are you waiting for?
Transition: The second promise that Jesus gives in this last words was that through this power you will...
II. Be Witnesses
A. You Will Be My Witnesses
1. Have you ever noticed that a promise has a purpose behind it even if it's not specifically stated.
A. If you say, "I promise to take out the trash," what you're really saying is I will take out the trash so you don't have to.
B. If you say, "I promise to mow the lawn," what you're really saying is I will mow the lawn so you don't have to.
C. If you say, "I promise to be a good boy," what you're really saying is I will behave myself so that Mom or Dad doesn't have to beat the tar out of me.
D. Your promise has an intended purpose behind it.
2. The same is true when it comes to Jesus promise about the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
A. This promise goes all the way back to the prophet Joel.
B. Jesus refers to it as the promise of the Father.
C. And Jesus said that this promise is so important that they shouldn't try and do anything without it.
3. Jesus also says that this promise has a purpose, and is, in fact, a promise unto itself. He says the purpose is, "And you will be my witnesses..."
A. Jesus words, "you will be my witnesses," has often been taken as a command, but it is not so much a command as a promise.
B. This promise is linked to their reception of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
C. When they receive the fullness of the Spirit, the power they receive will inevitably transform them into witnesses.
D. And bearing witness to Jesus will identify them as the people of God.
E. The empowerment for witnessing is described as the Holy Spirit's coming on them -- an expression closely linked to the idea of being "clothed with power," again from Luke’s gospel.
F. The Holy Spirit will enter them in a fresh new way, suggesting the continual powerful presence of the Holy Spirit (Arrington, 538).
G. Then their business was to be witnesses to tell what they had seen, heard, and experienced of Jesus.
H. The Greek word for witness, marture, is the word from which we get "martyr."
I. As His witnesses, believers must go out and spread the gospel to all nations regardless of the cost.
J. And as we shall see in little bit, it cost them dearly.
4. This promise gave them purpose, and that purpose was to be witnesses.
A. However, they were not the first to be given this purpose.
B. Isaiah 44:8 (NLT)
Do not tremble; do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago? You are my witnesses—is there any other God? No! There is no other Rock—not one!”
C. God had given Israel the purpose of being his witnesses, but they chose not to be.
D. So Jesus took up that purpose and passed it on to his disciples.
E. Now that same purpose is passed on to us.
B. Our Purpose
1. Illustration: "It’s not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfillment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by his purpose and for his purpose" (Warren, Purpose Driven Life, 17).
2. Are you being his witness?
A. Matthew 28:19 (NLT)
Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.
B. Here at New Life we have a purpose statement, or as I like to refer to it, the 5 W's.
C. Our purpose is to 1) worship, 2) walk, 3) work, 4) welcome, and 5) witness.
D. Are you being his witness?
E. Are you telling people about all that you have seen and heard about Jesus?
F. Are you going out of your way to be his witness?
G. A couple of months ago I talked to you about coming out of your comfort zone...have you?
H. You were created to be his witness, so be one!
Transition: The third promise that Jesus gave was to...
III. Tell People
A. Telling People About Me
1. Imagine what would have happened to the early church if the internet had been around back then. They would have done or said something and within seconds it would have been on Face Book, Twitter and Instagram.
A. Their job would have been so much easier. All they had to do was Tweet something out and millions of people would have seen it.
B. Can you imagine Peter, John and the lame beggar doing a selfie and putting it on Instagram?
C. #peterandjohnwenttopray
2. Well unfortunately they didn't have that option. No they had to go and tell people.
3. The third part of Jesus promise to them in his last sermon was, "...telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
A. The witness of the apostles is to begin in the same city in which Jesus was condemned and will not conclude until they have reached "to the ends of the earth."
B. Their mission can be summed up in three stages, 1) Jerusalem, where Jesus was crucified, 2) Judea and Samaria, where people had heard Jesus' preaching and seen his miracles, and 3) to the ends of the earth.
C. As they make their journeys, the people of God are Spirit-empowered and follow the example of their Spirit-empowered Savior, by proclaiming the Kingdom of God (Arrington, 538).
D. This program for witnessing also gives us a virtual table of contents for the Book of Acts: Beginning in Jerusalem (chaps. 1 through 7) they would carry their witness through Judea and Samaria (chaps. 8 through 12) and would continue "to the ends of the earth" (chaps. 13 through 28).
E. This beginning was to dramatically alter the course of history, and the spread of the gospel message has continued past Acts to reach all the earth.
F. Today, believers continue to have the responsibility for being Christ's witnesses throughout this world.
G. The sphere for witnessing is as extensive as the kingdom—all the world.
H. That was and is the mission for the church until Jesus comes.
4. But as I said before, carrying out this mission cost them everything. Besides the obvious example of Paul going to Rome, where he was beheaded, consider where tradition says the other apostles who did not die in Jerusalem uttered their last words:
A. Peter was crucified upside down in Rome.
B. Andrew was crucified in Greece.
C. Philip was hung upside down with hooks in his ankles in Phrygia.
D. Matthew died in Ethiopia.
E. Jude was clubbed to death in Iran.
F. John died in exile on the island of Patmos.
G. Bartholomew was crucified in Armenia.
H. Thomas was speared in India.
I. James (Alphaeus) died in Egypt.
J. Simon was sawed in half in Spain.
K. Matthias was crucified in Georgia.
5. Generally speaking, we can see that these men took Jesus at His word to go, left Jerusalem, through Judea and Samaria, and went to the ends of the earth with the Gospel.
6. Even Luke died by being nailed to a tree in Thebes, and Mark died in Africa. They all went out from their city, Jerusalem.
B. Everywhere
1. Illustration: During the time of the Iranian Hostage Crisis, Greg Livingstone was asked to give a "missions minute" at a large evangelical church on the East Coast. Since he had only one minute to speak, he decided to ask them only two questions. The first one was, "How many of you are praying for the 52 Americans hostages being held in Iran?" 4000 hands went straight up and he said, "Praise the Lord! Now, put your hands down and let me ask you another question…How many of you are praying for the 42 million Iranians being held hostage to Islam?" four hands went up. He said, "What are you guys? Americans first and Christians second? I thought this was a Bible-believing church!" This rebuke to the church by Linvingstone served as a wake up call and helped mission-minded Christians see the need for prayer for Muslims. This mission minute was used in a dramatic way to lead to what has been called by mission experts as "the ’decade of Muslims’ in praying Christians hearts." "More Muslims in Iran have come to Christ since 1980 than in all the previous 1,000 years combined."
2. Are you telling people everywhere about Jesus?
A. Mark 16:15 (NLT)
And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.
B. When was the last time you told a family member about Jesus?
C. When was the last time you told a neighbor about Jesus?
D. When was the last time you told a friend about Jesus?
E. When was the last time you told a classmate or a co-worker about Jesus?
F. What are you waiting for?
Conclusion
1. Wherever you are, and to whatever degree you are shining His light, make the effort to do even more with clearly presenting the Gospel to your lost friends and family, and start by just loving them.
2. Start making a concerted effort to share the Gospel and be involved in the Great Commission right where God has you today, in your Jerusalem, and be open to "ring out" even farther to your Judea or Samaria, or even to the ends of the earth.
