Jesus is Risen...Ruling...And Returning...
Acts 1:1-13
1 The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach...
2 until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen...
3 to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs... being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God...
4 And being assembled together with them, He commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father... "which," He said, "you have heard from Me..."
5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now..."
6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, "Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?"...
7 And He said to them, "It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority..."
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you... and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth..."
For the time we have together...This morning...
To expound on this Word of God...
I’d like for you to consider the topic...
Jesus is Risen...Ruling...And Returning...
PRAY...
Here we find ourselves...At the second week...
After the Resurrection of Jesus...
And I have some sobering news...
The average church-goer will... Over the course of their life...
Hear 4,000 sermons... Sing 20,000 songs...
Participate in 8,000 public prayers...
And lead zero sinners to faith in Jesus Christ...
It’s a sobering and sad statistic...
And I pray that none of us...Can relate...
I am sure...Noe of us. Present here this morning...
Can say...Yes...That’s me...
If you have never been a part...
Of bringing another soul to Jesus...Then you’ve missed...
One of the most precious experiences of this Christian life...
Sharing Jesus with another person...
And seeing the difference He makes in their life...
Is one of the most wonderful experiences...We can have...
Sadly...Many well intended...Church going folk...
Don’t know how to begin to introduce Jesus...To the unsaved...
I’m talking about...Church folk...
You know the ones...
They’ll stand up at testimony time and proclaim...
"First giving honor to God who's the head of my life...
"I'm saved...Sanctified...Holy Ghost filled...
Fire baptized...And I’ve got Jesus on my side...
And...I'm running...For my life!"...
They testify...
I’ve got a mighty burning fire...Down in my soul...
And it just keeps on burning!"...
Yet...The record states...Zero converts...
Church...
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
According to a recent study...
On average...
Within three years of a person becoming a Christian...
They will no longer have any close friendships...
With people...Who aren’t Christians...
Which happens because...Of multiple factors...
But the end result is...
That Christians are losing...
Evangelistic contact with other people...
Some might say...
That the goal of any Christian should be...
To place a separation between...The worldly friends...
And their Christin friends...And That might be true...
Except...Before returning to heaven...
Jesus gave His followers...
What is known...As The Great Commission...
He said... "Go...Make disciples of all nations...
Baptizing them...In the name of the Father...
And in the name of the Son...
And in the name of the Holy Spirit...
Teach them to do everything...I have commanded you...
And remember...That I am always with you...
Until the end of time..."
The Great Commission is a personal... Individual command...
It’s a personal... Individual command...
To every child of God...To go into their own personal world...
And share Jesus...With every person who will listen...
The apostles and other disciples took that command to heart...
And so should we...
They took the command to heart...
And the church in Jerusalem grew from just 120 people...
To well over 20,000...In just a few short years...Because of it...
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
The reading of Acts 1:3-11...
Allows us to discover...What made the difference...
What moved 12 ordinary men...
To turn the world upside down...?
These discoveries show...
That what made the early church so powerful...
Wasn’t just the message...No...Not just the words...
They were empowered by the Holy Spirit...
They lived with a sense of urgency...And were united...
In mission....And purpose...
If today’s church...Would truly embrace these principles...
We will be equipped...To turn the world...Upside down...
Just like they did...
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
After His death... Jesus showed Himself to His followers...
And proved in many ways...That He was alive...
According to our text...As He ate with them...
He told them not to leave Jerusalem...
He said...
"Wait here to receive the Promise...From the Father...
Which I told you about...
He illustrated...John baptized with water...
But in a few days...
You will be baptized...With the Holy Spirit..."
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
As they sat...They asked Jesus...
"Lord...
Are you now going to give the kingdom back to Israel?"...
Jesus said to them...
"The Father is the only One who has the authority...
To decide dates...And times...
These things...Are not for you to know...
But when the Holy Spirit comes...You will receive power...
You will be My witnesses... In Jerusalem...
In all of Judea... In Samaria...And in every part of the world..."
And here’s the diamond...
The Word says...After He said this...
As they were watching... He was lifted up...
And a cloud hid Him...From their sight...
As He rose...They were looking into the sky...
Suddenly...
Two men wearing white clothes...Stood beside them...
They said..."Men of Galilee...
Why are you standing here...Gazing up...Into the sky?...
This same Jesus...Whom you saw taken up...
From you...Into heaven...
Will come back...In the same way...You saw Him go..."
In other words... Stop standing around...
Stop goofing off...
Go... And be about...Your Father’s business...
New Life...As sure as I’m standing here...This morning...
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
In the next chapter of Acts...
Peter went on to preach the first...Christian sermon...
He preached with such passion...And urgency...
That three thousand people...
Responded to the Gospel...Of Jesus that day...
What was the difference in the evangelistic endeavors...
Of these Christians...Versus those of today...?
I don’t think...It was a matter of strategy...
It wasn’t that they preached...A different message...
It wasn’t that they gave the people...What they wanted...
Tickled their ears... NO...
In fact...It was just the opposite...
The difference...I think...Was their faith...
They believed...They were sold out...
They were truly convinced...
Of the things...That they had seen...And heard...
How about you...Has God done something for you...
And...Nobody can convince you otherwise...
"If God healed your body...When the doctors gave up...
Can’t nobody tell you...He ain't a Healer...
If He dried your tears...And touched your pain...
Can’t nobody tell you...He ain't the...Balm in Gilead..."
"Somebody oughta testify...That He's still...Jehovah-Rapha
The God...Who heals!"...
"If God paid your bills...When the money ran out...
Can’t nobody tell you...He ain't a Provider...
If He put food on your table...When you didn’t know how...
Can’t nobody tell you...He ain't the Bread of Life...
If He supplied your needs...According to His riches...
Can’t nobody tell you...He ain't a Way-Maker..."
"Ain't no recession in Heaven...My God...Shall supply!"...
"If God kept you...When the enemy...Had a plan for you...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't a Protector...
If He shielded your mind...When fear...Tried to take over...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't...A Strong Tower...
If He stayed the hand of death...One more time...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't a Keeper..."
"No weapon...Formed...Shall prosper...
When you're covered...By the blood!"
"If God picked you up...When life...Knocked you down...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't a Restorer...
If He gave you your joy back...After a season...Of sorrow...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't the Giver of joy...
Not just any ole’ joy...Joy unspeakable...
If He breathed new life...Into dead dreams...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...
He ain't the Resurrection...And the Life..."
"Tell somebody...‘It ain't over...Till God...Says it’s over!’"...
"If God washed you clean...When you were filthy...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't a Forgiver...
If He gave you...A second...Third...And fourth chance...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...He ain't a God of mercy...
If He loved you...When you couldn’t even love yourself...
Can’t nobody...Tell you...
He ain't a Friend...That sticks closer...Than a brother..."...
"If it had not been...For the Lord...On my side...
Where would I be?!"...
"I don't care...What the world says...
I don't care...What the haters say...
I don't care...What the doubters say...
My experience tells me...
He's real...
He's able...
He's faithful...
And can't nobody...Tell me otherwise!"...
Jesus is RISEN...RULING...And RETURNING...
This morning...
I want to point out three facts...
Of which the early Christians were convinced...
And how it affected them...And how it should...
These 2,000 years later...Should affected them...
To start with...They were convinced...
JESUS IS RISEN...
This gave them a message!...
Luke said that...”After His death...
He showed Himself...To them...
And proved in many ways...That He was alive"...
Paul later provides us with some details...
About who Jesus appeared to... Saying...
"He was seen by Peter...And then by the twelve apostles...
After that...
Jesus was seen by more than five hundred of the believers...
At the same time...
Then He was seen by James... And later by all the apostles...
Last of all... Paul says...
I seen Him too... I seent Him"...For myself…
The fact that a man died...And returned to life...
Three days later...
Is a message worth sharing...Over and over again...
Think back to the last time...
You received some really exciting news...
What did you do?...
Did you call everybody you knew...
Your friends...Your family...And your neighbors...
And tell them all about it...
Why can’t we do the same thing...
With the greatest news of all...?
"We don’t have a secret to be hidden...
But a story to be proclaimed...
The Gospel is not something we come to church...To hear...
It’s something we go from church...To tell"...
We have this amazing message...
This incredible story...God’s Story...
So let’s share it with everyone we know...
Let’s be intentional about telling folk...That...
Jesus is RISEN...That Jesus is RULING...
And that Jesus is RETURNING...
The first-century church grew...By leaps and bounds...
Because they could hardly hold it in...
They felt Compelled...Constrained...And Compelled...
To tell the story of Jesus!...
The disciples were filled...And they had to tell somebody...
They had to tell somebody...
They just couldn’t...Keep it to themselves...
Jeramiah said...
"It’s just like fire... Shut up... In my bones..."
Unfortunately...
Too many believers...Have allowed that fire...To burn out...
Seems like...
We’re not excited about sharing...The story of Jesus...
I can remember those soap operas that use to come on...
I bet if Jesus showed up on...
The Young and The Restless...
You’d run...And tell that...
I bet if Jill shared the Gospel with Mrs. Chancellor...
Instead of fighting her...At every turn...
Folk would run...And tell that...
I bet if Phyllis stopped meddling in Nick’s business...
And invited him to give his life to Christ...
All of Baltimore would get saved...
I bet if Nikki and Victor would stop...
Getting married...Then divorced...Then married again...
And recognized who the COVENANT KEEPER really is...
Don’t get me started...On The Bold and The Beautiful...
The sick...Deluded...And dysfunctionality of The Forresters...
The Logans...Sally Spectra...And The Marones...
Is enough to drive a sane man crazy...
If they would only humble themselves...Pray...
And seek the face of God...
If they would only...Turn from their wicked ways...
If one Friday...You know the good stuff happens...On Friday...
If one Friday...They would proclaim and declare...
How God can save...From the uttermost...To the gutter most...
I am convinced...That somebody would be compelled...
To run...And tell that...
If they would confess Christ...
The whole world would be turned up...Side...Down...
Somebody needs to know...That...
Jesus is RISEN...That Jesus is RULING...
And that Jesus is RETURNING...
The early Christians believed...Jesus was risen...
And it gave them a message!...
They also believed...JESUS IS REIGNING...
This gave them a mission!...
Before He ascended...
Jesus told them to wait...For the Promise...Of the Father...
He said..."You will receive power...
When the Holy Spirit...Has come upon you...
And you shall be witnesses to Me...In Jerusalem...
And in all Judea...And Samaria...
And to the ends...Of the earth..."
They KNEW that Jesus was not dead...
They knew He was not dead...
But alive...And reigning...At the right hand of the Father...
And that He had empowered them...To be His witnesses...
See Church...
This awareness...Gave them urgency...And purpose...
They weren’t just killing time...Till Jesus came back...
They had a mission to accomplish!...
And they went about it with passion...And power!...
Jesus is RISEN...Jesus is RULING...
And Jesus is RETURNING...
Can I tell you this morning...?
Jesus is still reigning!...
And the mission...Is still the same!...
He is alive!...
He is ruling...And He is reigning!...
He has called us...To be His witnesses...
Not just in Jerusalem...But in all Judea...
In Samaria...And to the very ends of the earth!...
You don’t have to go overseas...To be a missionary...
You just have to cross the street!...
You just have to speak to the Receptionist...
At the doctor’s office...
You just have to love your neighbor...Next door...
I’m not asking you to go inside and have tea with them...
Just tell them how good God is...
We have a mission...A message...About a Messiah!...
And the King of Glory...Is backing us up!...
But there’s one more thing the early Christians believed...
That made them unstoppable...
They believed...
JESUS IS RETURNING...
This gave them motivation...
As they stood gazing into the heavens...
Watching Jesus ascend...
But...Two angels appeared...And said...
"Men of Galilee...
Why do you stand gazing up...Into heaven?...
This same Jesus...
Who was taken up from you...Into heaven...
Will so come in like manner...
As you saw Him go...Into heaven..."
In other words...
Jesus is coming back!...
And He’s coming back...The same way...He left!...
Visibly... Personally...Powerfully!...
And they believed it would happen...At any moment!...
That belief motivated them to live holy lives...
It motivated them to keep their focus on eternity...
It motivated them to share the Gospel with urgency...
Because they knew the time was short!...
And if we really believed...
That Jesus could return at any moment...
Wouldn’t it change the way we live...
Wouldn’t it change...The way we pray...
Wouldn’t it change...The way we witness...
The way we love folk...
The way we forgive...
The way we give ourselves...To His work...
If we REALLY believed it...
We would run...Not walk...
To tell folk...About this Man called Jesus!...
We would live every day...Every moment...
Like it was our last opportunity...
To make a difference...For the Kingdom!...
The early Christians believed...
Jesus is RISEN...
Jesus is REIGNING...
And Jesus is RETURNING...
That’s what motivated them!...
That’s what turned the world...Upside down!...
And I came to tell you today...
If we’ll believe it too...If we’ll live like it’s true...
God will use us to turn this world ...Upside down again!...
I don’t know about you...But I want to be a part of that!...
I don’t want to be average...I don’t want to live my life...
And hear thousands of sermons...
And sing thousands of songs...
And pray thousands of prayers...
And never lead one soul to Jesus...
I wanna be a soul-winner!...
I wanna be a fire-starter!...
I wanna be a history-maker!...
I wanna be a devil-chaser!...
I wanna be a Kingdom-builder!...
I wanna hear Jesus say...
"Well done...Good and faithful servant!...
Enter into the joy of your Lord!"...
What about you...?
Will you answer the call...?
Will you take up the mission...?
Will you share the message...?
Will you live with the motivation...
That Jesus could come back...At any moment...?
The dying world is waiting!...
Souls are perishing!...
The fields are ripe for harvest!...
And the Master is calling!...
It’s time to rise up!...
It’s time to speak out!...
It’s time to be bold!...
It’s time to tell the Good News!...
It’s time to go and make disciples of all nations!...
The time is now!...
The harvest is ready!...
The workers are few!...
Will you be one...?
Will you be a laborer...In His harvest field...?
Will you be a witness...For Jesus Christ...?
Will you stand...And be counted...?
Will you say...
"Here am I, Lord... Send me!"...?
PRAY...
SALVATION CALL…
