The MAKING Of CHRISTIAN CAMARADERIE-II—Acts 2:36-47
Attention:
We began this short series as a salute to those who were & are veterans in one or more of our United States military conflicts.
As we celebrated Veterans Day, we found that there are experiences that only soldiers have in common. And there are experiences that soldiers of particular conflicts have in common.
And we found that stateside(& elsewhere), soldiers have available at least two groups that foster the camaraderie of those soldiers.
Likewise, there are experiences only soldiers in the Lord’s service—God’s people— have in common. And that camaraderie should be fostered thru the Church.
‘Camaraderie’—“A spirit of friendly good-fellowship.”—Merriam-Webster Dictionary. OR--“Mutual trust & friendship among people who spend a lot of time together”—New Oxford American Dictionary.
*For our purposes today, ‘Camaraderie’ is—“Mutual trust, friendship, & good-fellowship among people with a shared experience.”
Today we will apply the camaraderie that is shared among veterans, to The Bond of Christian Experience, by describing:
The MAKING Of CHRISTIAN CAMARADERIE—Acts 2:36-47
Luke records the shared & positive response of receiving Jesus as Savior & Lord.
The Camaraderie/Bond of Christian experience is shared.
*What Camaraderie is shared among Christians?
12 definers of Christian Camaraderie.
We previously found that:
Christian Camaraderie is built upon a shared...
1. PERSONAL FAILURE(:36)
2. AUTHORITY(:37)(apostles)
3. HEART’s CONCERN(:37)
4. RECONCILIATION With GOD(:38)
5—Christian Camaraderie is built upon a shared...
GLOBAL PROMISE(:39)
Explanation(:39):
:39—“For the promise is to you & to your children, & to all who are afar off, as many as the Lord our God will call.”
“The promise” is NOT limited to or by existing Geography/Language/Gender/Skin Color/Political boundaries/Belief systems/entrenched Societal norms, etc..
1)On one side of the same coin, the “promise” of God is—the HOLY SPIRIT Himself(:38), Who SUPERCEDES any attempted governance by any part of the created order. God the Holy Spirit does nothing apart from the knowledge & approval of God the Father & God the Son.
2)On the other side of the same coin, “the promise” encompasses everything associated with the remission of sins!(:38) That is, “the promise” also entails all that is subsumed under the totality of God’s Kingdom, encompassing everything it touches...which is actually everything involving truth!
“as many as the Lord our God will call.”
•The Global Promise must be shared by you, with others.
Jn. 1:12-13—“But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
Again, the ‘promise’ of “the promise” is not about gimmicks to get people into the church-house, it’s rather about GETTING JESUS INTO THE PEOPLE who are outside(& inside) the church-house!
6—Christian Camaraderie is built upon a shared...
RELEASE(:40)
Explanation(:40):
:40—“And with many other words he testified & exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.”
“And with many other words he testified & exhorted them”
Peter was urging his audience which was already in Jerusalem celebrating ‘the Feast of Weeks’(Ex. 34:22—beginning of the wheat harvest) AKA--‘Pentecost’(fifty days from Passover).
?Why does the preacher drone on-&-on? Because in his heart of hearts, he has been & is praying that something he says, in some other, different, or particular way he says it, will awaken someone’s mind, heart, & soul to God!
Peter’s purpose was to REMIND God’s people of God’s truth. Peter’s purpose was ALSO to INFORM those who are ignorant of God’s truth.
2Pet. 1:12-15—“For this reason I will not be negligent to remind you always of these things, though you know & are established in the present truth. Yes, I think it is right, as long as I am in this tent, to stir you up by reminding you, knowing that shortly I must put off my tent, just as our Lord Jesus Christ showed me. Moreover I will be careful to ensure that you always have a reminder of these things after my decease.”
“Testified/Testify/Solemnly Testified/Warned/Earnestly Testified”—diamarturomai—Verb—1) To testify—1a) Earnestly, religiously to charge; 2) To attest, testify to, solemnly affirm—2a) To give solemn testimony to one, 2b) To confirm a thing by testimony, to testify, cause it to be believed. Strong—to attest or protest earnestly, or by implication--Hortatively. Used 15X.?From—dia—Through, With, In, Throughout, During, By, the means of; The ground or reason by which something is or is not done; On account of, Therefore. Strong—Through(in very wide applications, local, causal, or occasional); a primary preposition denoting the channel of an act.—&—marturew—To be a witness, To bear witness, To give a good report, Testify(literally or figuratively).
“Exhorted/Exhort/Exhorting/Pleaded”—parakalew—Verb—1) To call to one's side, call for, summon; 2) To address, speak to(call to, call upon), which may be done in the way of exhortation, entreaty, comfort, instruction, etc.—2a) To admonish, exhort, 2b) To beg, entreat, beseech—2b1) To strive to appease by entreaty, 2c) To console, to encourage & strengthen by consolation, to comfort—2c1) To receive consolation, be comforted, 2d) To encourage, strengthen, 2e) Exhorting & comforting & encouraging, 2f) To instruct, teach. Strong—To call near, i.e. Invite, invoke(by imploration, hortation or consolation).?From—para—From, of at, by, besides, near. Strong—properly--Near, i.e. From beside; At(or in) the vicinity of; To the proximity with; Beyond or opposed to; On account of.—&—kalew—To call(properly--aloud).
“he testified & exhorted them,...
“saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.”
•Being “saved” is a ‘Release’ or deliverance from the influence of worldly “perversities” that, prior to conversion, are completely trusted. “Perverse” here describes the worldly “crookedness”(skoliov) that influences every land, & which gives the ‘powers-that-be’ or the ‘talking heads’ Of EVERY LAND, the purpose & directives that ARISE FROM FLESH!
•Without Christ, you are immersed & awash in secular political intelligentsia & double-talk.
•Without Christ, the solutions to your deepest concerns & your most nightmarish fears, change continuously with the tide of the land/world.
Mk. 8:34-38—“When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, & take up his cross, & follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake & the gospel’s will save it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, & loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For whoever is ashamed of Me & My words in this adulterous & sinful generation, of him the Son of Man also will be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
•This describes a lack of Release...a lack of Deliverance...the absence of salvation.
“Be Saved”(See :47)—swzw—Verb—1) To save, keep safe & sound, to rescue from danger or destruction—1a) one(from injury or peril)—1a1) To save a suffering one(from perishing), i.e. one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health—1b1) To preserve one who is in danger of destruction, to save or rescue, 1b) To save in the technical biblical sense—1b1) negatively—1b1a) To deliver from the penalties of the Messianic judgment, 1b1b) To save from the evils which obstruct the reception of the Messianic deliverance. Strong—To save, i.e. Deliver or protect (literally or figuratively); from a primary swv(contraction for obsolete saov"safe").
“From”—apo—Preposition—1) Of separation—1a) Of local separation, after verbs of motion from a place i.e. Of departing, of fleeing, ..., 1b) Of separation of a part from the whole—1b1) Where of a whole some part is taken, 1c) Of any kind of separation of one thing from another by which the union or fellowship of the two is destroyed, 1d) Of a state of separation, that is of distance—1d1) physical, of distance of place, 1d2) temporal, of distance of time; 2) Of origin—2a) Of the place whence anything is, comes, befalls, is taken, 2b) Of origin of a cause. Strong—a primary particle; “Off,” i.e. Away(from something near), in various senses(of place, time, or relation; literal or figurative).
“Perverse/Untoward/Corrupt/Crooked”—skoliov—Adj.—1) Crooked, curved; 2) metaph.—2a) Perverse, wicked, 2b) Unfair, surly, froward. Strong—Warped, i.e. Winding; figuratively--Perverse. Used 4X--Lk. 3:5; Acts 2:40; Php. 2:15; 1Pet. 2:18. English=‘Scoliosis’.
Argumentation:
Heb. 2:14-18—“Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh & blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, & release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage. For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful & faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted.”
2Cor. 6:14-7:1—“Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness? And what accord has Christ with Belial? Or what part has a believer with an unbeliever? And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell in them And walk among them. I will be their God, And they shall be My people.” Therefore “Come out from among them And be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, And I will receive you.” “I will be a Father to you, And you shall be My sons & daughters, Says the LORD Almighty.” Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh & spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.”
1Pet. 5:8-9—“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world.”
Rev. 18:1-5—“After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, & the earth was illuminated with his glory. And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, “Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, & has become a dwelling place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, & a cage for every unclean & hated bird! For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, & the merchants of the earth have become rich through the abundance of her luxury.” And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of her, my people, lest you share in her sins, & lest you receive of her plagues. For her sins have reached to heaven, & God has remembered her iniquities.”
Ps. 1:1-2—“Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day & night.”
Illustration:
Our dog Hershey claims the territory of ~1 1/2 city blocks on either side of the road that bisects the church property & runs in front of the pastorium/He regularly watches & patrols the area sniffing out the ‘bad guys’ & anybody that happens to walk or ride by/He gets especially fired up about bicycles/But he also likes to stand in the middle of the road at it’s apex so he can view all in his domain/However he is only somewhat wary of getting out of the way of approaching cars/He will slowly move out of their way, so that if some ‘doo-dah’ decides to fly down the road without paying attention, then Hershey would probably be splatted!/Hershey wears a shock collar with three settings—sound, vibration, & electricity/Now suppose I see a car coming & Hershey is in the road & I warn him by sternly calling & ‘beeping’ Him/Suppose He doesn’t move/I then ‘vibrate’ him but he still doesn’t obey/I then shock him but he still doesn’t obey/All those warnings are for naught!/He doesn’t know the RELEASE, the deliverance, the salvation that could have been his had he listened!/RELEASE
Application:
?Is YOUR Christian Camaraderie built upon God’s having RELEASEd you from the perversity of this world?
?Is OUR Christian Camaraderie built upon God’s provision in Christ Jesus?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
There are experiences that only soldiers in Christ have in common.
Action:
Christian Camaraderie is built upon a shared...
5. GLOBAL PROMISE(:39)
6. RELEASE(:40)
1. PERSONAL FAILURE(:36)
2. AUTHORITY(:37)
3. HEART’s CONCERN(:37)
4. RECONCILIATION With GOD(:38)
Pt#s 5-6 Presented 01/10/2021am to:
1BCCbelle(Video to YouTube shared to Facebook @ ‘Byron Sherman’ & ’First Baptist Church Carrabelle’)
206 SE Ave A(Storrs Ave.)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
