Dealing With Rumors
Text: Acts 21:15-25
Introduction
1. The perfect pastor preaches exactly 10 minutes.
He condemns sin roundly but never hurts anyone’s feelings.
He works from 8am until midnight and is also the church janitor.
The perfect pastor makes $40 a week, wears good clothes, drives a good car,
buys good books, and donates $30 a week to the church.
He is 29 years old and has 40 years experience.
Above all, he is handsome.
The perfect pastor has a burning desire to work with teenagers,
and he spends most of his time with the senior citizens.
He smiles all the time with a straight face because he has a sense of humor
that keeps him seriously dedicated to his church.
He makes 15 home visits a day
and is always in his office to be handy when needed.
The perfect pastor always has time for church council and all of its committees.
He never misses the meeting of any church organization.
and is always busy evangelizing the unchurched.
The perfect pastor is always in the next church over!
If your pastor does not measure up,
simply send this notice to six other churches that are tired of their pastor, too.
Then bundle up your pastor and send him to the church at the top of the list.
If everyone cooperates, in one week you will receive 1,643 pastors.
One of them should be perfect!
2. Well so now everyone know that I'm not the perfect Pastor. However, another thing that I've had to deal with as a Pastor are rumors.
A. Here at New Life I've had to deal with rumors that we're a cult because we speak in tongues.
B. I've also had to deal with the rumor, believe it or not, that we sell teenage girls into slavery.
C. Just to be clear, neither of those rumors are true.
D. But there is a way to deal with false rumors that takes care of the problem and glorifies God.
3. When we deal with rumors it's imperative that we...
A. Always give God the glory
B. Always live out the truth
C. Never compromise the truth
4. Let's stand together as we read from Acts 21:15-25
Proposition: Living out the gospel always dispels false rumors.
Transition: the first thing to remember is...
I. Always Give God The Glory (15-20a).
A. The Things God Had Accomplished
1. As Paul and his companions continue their journey to Jerusalem, some good things happen.
2. Luke continues the narrative with, "After this we packed our things and left for Jerusalem. 16 Some believers from Caesarea accompanied us, and they took us to the home of Mnason, a man originally from Cyprus and one of the early believers."
A. "We packed our things" probably means they saddled up horses.
B. Then Paul and his companions along with some of the disciples from Caesarea went up to Jerusalem.
C. These brothers from Caesarea knew a believer, Mnason, who, like Barnabas, was from Cyprus and "one of the early believers," that is, one of the 120.
D. Like Barnabas also, he would be sympathetic to Paul's ministry and not object to entertaining Gentile believers.
E. He was known as one who delighted to entertain strangers (foreigners).
F. The Western reading has Mnason's house between Caesarea and Jerusalem.
G. This indicates the journey "was broken at least once, and this is certainly more credible for a journey of at least sixty miles" (Horton, Acts: A Logion Press Commentary, 349).
3. Then in vv. 17-18 we read, "When we arrived, the brothers and sisters in Jerusalem welcomed us warmly. 18 The next day Paul went with us to meet with James, and all the elders of the Jerusalem church were present."
A. At Jerusalem "the brothers and sisters," including Mnason, welcomed them "warmly" (Gk. asmenōs, "joyfully"—they were very glad to see them) and, as the Greek indicates, entertained them hospitably.
B. The next day Paul took Luke and the rest of his companions to see James, the brother of Jesus.
C. "All the elders" of the Jerusalem church were also present.
D. But it is worth noting that the apostles are not mentioned.
E. Probably, as much Early Church tradition says, they were already scattered, spreading the gospel to many different locations (Horton, 350).
4. However the key to understanding how to deal with rumors lies in that Paul does next. In v. 19 and the beginning of v. 20 it says, "After greeting them, Paul gave a detailed account of the things God had accomplished among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 After hearing this, they praised God..."
A. After greeting these elders, Paul gave them what must have been a rehearsal of his second and third missionary journeys.
B. Specifically, he told them everything that had happened since his being with them at the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15 (Horton, 350).
C. Accomplish: To make, do, create, produce, work, accomplish, perform, act (The Complete Biblical Library Greek-English Dictionary – Pi-Rho, Under: "4020).
D. Paul deliberately gives God the glory, as he had always done.
E. It was never about what Paul did, rather it was about what God had done.
F. "Whatever doubts still lingered in the minds of the Jewish minds about the Gentile mission, it was guided and planned by God" (Marshall, Acts, 343).
G. It's hard for people talk bad about you when you give God the glory for everything!
B. Direct People To Jesus
1. Illustration: David Brainerd said to Jonathan Edwards once: "I do not go to heaven to be advanced but to give honor to God. It is no matter where I shall be stationed in heaven, whether I have a high or low seat there, but to live and please and glorify God.... My heaven is to please God and glorify Him, and give all to Him, and to be wholly devoted to His glory."
2. Now matter what amazing things happen in your life always give the glory to God!
A. Acts 15:12 (NLT)
Everyone listened quietly as Barnabas and Paul told about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.
B. If it is a talent that you have give the glory to God.
C. If it is a gift that you have give the glory to God.
D. If it is a financial blessing give the glory to God.
E. If someone gets healed give the glory to God.
F. If the church grows and people are saved and filled with the Holy Spirit give the glory to God.
G. With out Him we would have nothing so give the glory to God!
Transition: In addition to giving God the glory...
II. Always Live Out The Truth (20b-24).
A. Go With Them To The Temple
1. While the church in Jerusalem was overjoyed to hear what God had done in Paul's ministry they had some concerns.
2. In v. 20 it says, "...And then they said, “You know, dear brother, how many thousands of Jews have also believed, and they all follow the law of Moses very seriously."
A. James and the other elders "praised God" because of all He was doing among the Gentiles. But there was another matter of deep concern that was affecting the Jerusalem church.
B. "Many thousands," literally tens of thousands (Gk. muriades), among the Jews in the Jerusalem area had believed on Jesus as their Messiah, Lord, and Savior.
C. Yet they were still "zealous for the law": eagerly devoted to the law of Moses.
D. They considered themselves Jews who had found the true Messiah (Horton, 350).
3. Here was their concern, false rumors! It says, "But the Jewish believers here in Jerusalem have been told that you are teaching all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn their backs on the laws of Moses. They’ve heard that you teach them not to circumcise their children or follow other Jewish customs."
A. False teachers, probably Judaizers or else unconverted Jews from Asia Minor, Macedonia, or Greece, had come among the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem.
B. They had been telling the Jerusalem believers that Paul was teaching "all the Jews who live among the Gentiles" not to circumcise their children.
C. They also had said that Paul taught them to stop conducting their lives according to their (Jewish) customs.
D. This was nothing but slander. Paul had had Timothy circumcised; he had recently taken and fulfilled a vow himself and had observed Jewish feasts. He had even now traveled far to observe the Feast of Pentecost.
E. His letters show he did not ask Jewish Christians to stop observing their customs (Horton, 351).
4. So the leaders wanted to head off the problem. So they ask him, "What should we do? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 “Here’s what we want you to do. We have four men here who have completed their vow. 24 Go with them to the Temple and join them in the purification ceremony, paying for them to have their heads ritually shaved. Then everyone will know that the rumors are all false and that you yourself observe the Jewish laws."
A. The elders recognized that these accusations were false. But everyone in Jerusalem had heard them again and again.
B. Now, since all in Jerusalem would surely hear that Paul had come, what should be done?
C. James and the elders had a suggestion that they hoped would avoid a split in the Church.
D. They saw a way to stop the rumors and show they were false. Four of the Jewish believers had taken a vow upon themselves, obviously a temporary Nazirite vow.
E. By this vow any Israelite man or woman could declare their total dedication to God and to His will.
F. Usually the vow was taken for a limited period of time.
G. At the close of the period they had chosen, they would offer rather expensive sacrifices, including a male and female lamb, a ram, and other offerings.
H. Then they would shave their heads as a sign that the vow was completed.
I. Paul did not have to take the vow himself. But he was asked to go through ceremonies of purifying himself along with them and pay for the sacrifices so they could complete the vow and shave their heads.
J. This would show the believers and everyone in Jerusalem that Paul did not teach Jewish believers to go against the customs of their fathers.
K. It would also answer all the false things said about Paul and would demonstrate that Paul himself was "living in obedience to the law" (Horton, 351-352).
B. If You Have To Use Words
1. Illustration: Francis of Assisi said, "Go out today and preach the gospel and if you must use words!"
2. Our actions have to match our words!
A. Matthew 5:16 (NLT)
In the same way, let your good deeds shine out for all to see, so that everyone will praise your heavenly Father.
B. It's imperative that we speak the truth, but just as important that we live the truth.
C. We cannot say one thing and do another.
D. We must live what we preach.
E. We must walk the walk as we talk the talk.
F. Our actions must speak just as loud as our words!
Transition: Most importantly, however, we must...
III. Never Compromise The Truth (25).
A. What We Already Told Them
1. Now James and the other elders reiterate what they had already told the Gentile Christians.
2. They said, “As for the Gentile believers, they should do what we already told them in a letter: They should abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality."
A. Then James and the elders confirmed the decision of the Jerusalem Council of Acts 15, a decision Paul had already carried to the Gentile believers.
B. That is, though they wanted Paul, as a Jewish believer, to show he did not ask Jews to live like Gentiles, they were still willing to accept Gentile believers without asking them to become Jews (Horton, 352).
C. The fundamental freedom of the Gentiles from the Jewish law had already been established by the church back in Acts 15, which is now reaffirmed by James and the other elders (Marshall, 346).
3. There are certain things that are negotiable and other things that are non-negotiable. It's the Word of God that is the final authority on these things.
B. According To The Word
1. Illustration: Dietrich Bonhoeffer is quoted as saying, "One act of obedience is better than one hundred sermons."
2. We must live our lives consistently according to the Word of God.
A. James 1:22-25 (NLT)
But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
B. We cannot hear the Word and not do what it says.
C. We cannot read the Word and not do what it says.
D. We cannot quote the Word and not do what it says.
E. If we are going to be people of the Word we must live it consistently day in and day out.
F. If we are going to be people of the Word we must live it in such a way that people see Jesus by the way we live.
Transition: If we live according to the Word of God we make it difficult to spread false rumors about us.
Conclusion
1. When we deal with false rumors it is imperative that we...
A. Always Give The Glory To God
B. Always Live Out The Truth
C. Never Compromise The Truth
2. If we live out the truth in our lives we make it difficult for people to spread false rumors against us.
3. Are you living out the truth on a consistent basis?
