Sermon Don’t get too comfortable
Jose Rodriguez, a bank robber who lived in Mexico, but preferred to rob American banks.
In the wild days of the west before Donald Trump built his wall, Jose would slip across the border into Texas, rob a few banks and flee back into Mexico.
One day, a Texas Ranger caught up with him in a saloon. The Ranger pulled his gun and threatened to shoot Jose if he did not tell him immediately where he had hidden all the money he had stolen. The problem was Jose did not speak English. The Ranger did not speak Spanish, and he kept screaming
louder and louder, "I'm gonna blow your head off if you don't tell me where the money is."
Finally, a young man came over and offered to translate. "Okay," said the Ranger, "tell him I want to know where all of that money is or I am going to blow off his head."
The young fellow translated the Ranger's words, and Jose said in Spanish, "Tell him not to shoot. The money is in a dry well at the end of town. If he removes the bricks with moss growing on them, he will find a million dollars hidden in the well."
When Jose was finished, the Ranger said to the young man, "What did he say?"
"Oh," said the translator, "he dares you to shoot."
Unlike Jose Rodrigues’ translator we are called to faithfully proclaim the Jesus Word of God to those who know nothing about Jesus.
The Swiss missionary-theologian, Emil Brunner, likened the church’s involvement in missions to the relationship that exist between fire and burning:
“The church exists by mission as fire exists by burning.”
In other words: No burning, no fire. No missions, no church.
The Mission that the Lord has for his Church is to preach the Gospel to all nations.
And I would like to base my comments on the reading we have just had from the Book of Acts.
When Jesus died on Good Friday almost two thousand years ago, conventional wisdom said that this was not a great way to start a world movement.
So how did an obscure carpenter from Nazareth, who
never wrote a book,
never held high office,
never led an army and
died an ignoble death on a Cross
become the man to have affected civilization more profoundly than any other?
The key reason for the spread of Christianity lies in the fact that Christian followed God’s calling in their lives to share the Gospel with others
The Book of Acts tells the story of how Christianity spread from Jerusalem - an obscure outpost of the Roman Empire to Rome - the very capital of the Empire itself ROME.
In the opening chapter of Acts Jesus recommissioned his church to preach the Gospel first in Jerusalem, then in Samaria and to the ends of the world.
You recall what Jesus said in Acts 1:8
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
And once that power from on high came as recorded in Acts 2, we see the Church growing very quickly in Jerusalem
However after a while it seems to me that the Church was content to be in Jerusalem, respected in the Community.
And we read the Church was not only respected but was feared not least because of the judgement of God on Ananias and Sapphira.
You may recall the story where Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold a piece of land and brought the money to the apostles saying this is the full price but holding back SOME FOR THEMSELVES.
There was nothing wrong with keeping a bit back for themselves. Rather it is because they lied to the Holy Spirit that God entered judgement immediately upon them
However once the church in Jerusalem became comfortable and settled down - as the Church did in Jerusalem – infighting started
And they took their eyes of the rest of the Commission Jesus gave them - which was also to preach the Gospel to Samaria and all nations and not just to preach the Gospel to the dwellers in Jerusalem.
It was then that the Lord allowed persecution to stir the church up.
Jesus didn’t want the Church to simply be a comfortable sect of Judaism.
He had a greater plan.
The Church had to grow and the Gospel had to be proclaimed in all nations.
At the end of Chapter 7 of Acts we see the martyrdom of Stephen, the lead deacon of the seven deacons and the honeymoon period for the Church in Jerusalem is over.
Persecution begins in Jerusalem and the Church are forced out to take the Gospel to the Gentiles, starting with the Samaritans who were looked down on by the Jews as being half-caste and not being pure Jews.
(Hence the sting in Jesus’ story of the Good Samaritan)
We have had a Muslim convert to Christianity live with us for about six months and although he is thoroughly converted to Christ, his Muslim culture still remains. If Maddy asks him to do something he ignores her (not out of rudeness but his culture). If I say the same thing he does it.
The apostles were so thoroughly Jewish that they had real problems in preaching the Gospel to non-Jews such as the Gentiles and the Samaritans and the big issue for the Early Church which came to a head in the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 was - do Gentile converts have to become Jews - and the answer given is clearly - no.
God gave his Church power to take the Gospel from Jerusalem and Judea next to Samaria and then to the end of the earth.
And that is where our reading is today
Philip is taking the gospel to the Samaritans – and also to the rest of the world through the Ethiopian Eunuch.
It is interesting that the Samaritan mission was not conducted by Peter, James and John, whose calling at that time was to teach the Jerusalem Church the word of God (see Acts 6:4) but by one of the seven deacons Philip.
But please note he is not the apostle Philip
We know little about Philip the Evangelist as he is known other than
i) He was one of the seven deacons called by the Church to look after the poor in Acts 6
ii) He led the Samaritan Mission (Acts 7)
iii) He brought the Ethiopian Eunuch who was the treasurer of the Candace (or Queen of Ethiopia) to faith and from the Ethiopian Eunuch. And it is from the roots of that encounter that the Ethiopian Coptic Church has its roots and
iv) Finally we see him living in Caesarea Maritime and visited by Paul and having four (4) daughters who were all prophetesses in the Church (see Acts 21.9)
Not much more is known about Philip.
Tradition tells us that he moved to the province of Anatolia (also known as Asia Minor ion Acts) now in modern day Turkey.
So what can we learn from Philip and his mission in Samaria?
God can use humble people who are
i) willing to listen to him and
ii) follow Christ’s calling in their lives.
In a military campaign, troops are deployed as their Commander in Chief needs to employ them
If we see God as our Commander in Chief on the battlefield of the world for the hearts and souls of man, then when we are asked to do something by God do follow his Orders?
And you never know where God might lead you and what mighty things you will be able to do in His Name.
Many of the great revivals have been brought to life not by the good and the great but humble people who are willing to be used by God.
May I leave you with this thought?
God doesn’t necessarily use the good and the great to do his work.
Rather he uses those who humbly follow their calling.
Philip following his calling and revival broke out in Samaria
Are we living out our calling?
Everyone has a calling not just the clergy
When I was at theological college I read a book about the History of the Church of England and in it the author Adrian Hastings said how in the 50s and 60’s an organisation called the Full Gospel Businessmen’s Fellowship International (the FGB) had positively influenced the Church of England
May I invite you to read the story of how God called an Armenian businessman called Demos Shakharian - whose family had fled the Turkish genocide in Armenia and came to the USA as a refugee - to found the FGB. Demos' obedience had led to an organisation which has had a great influence primarily with men.
Demos himself was a simple farmer but God used him in a mighty way
May I commend his book to you“The Happiest People on Earth.” By Demos Shakharian
I have a copy with me if anyone would like to borrow it.
If God could use Philip the Evangelist and Demos – why can't he use you or me?
We just have to be willing
We have just sung the second verse of Dear Lord and Father of mankind. Let's make our prayer
2. In simple trust like those who heard
Beside the Syrian sea
The gracious calling of the Lord
Let us like them without a word
Rise up and follow thee
Rise up and follow thee
