The Price of Pentecost, pt. 4
Acts 1:15-26
Time magazine medical section: a man went to psychiatrist/complaining of voices in his head/oh boy!/what kind of voices?/sound like radio broadcasts/how about right now?/clearly!/what’s on?/Rudy Valley broadcasting live from Atlantic City/that’s odd!/pulled out his own radio/sure enough, it was on!/…man worked at a glass factory and had gotten some silica crystals caught in the cavities of his teeth/the combination of silica crystals, saliva, and bridgework had literally transformed the man into a walking radio receiver!/was referred to a dentist who removed the crystals and the man immediately went “off the air!”
A lot of churches have gone “off the air” w/ God/used to be tuned in to a heavenly frequency, but over time they’ve moved in small increments, or allowed disunity to scramble the signal! And now you could write over their door, “the church of the blessed memory!” Their memories are greater than their dreams…they have substituted motion for direction [going thru the motions]/gatekeeping for trailblazing/are keepers of aquarium rather than fishers of men…
We’ve been talking from Acts 1 about how to stay “on the air” w/ God/in tune w/ His signal…it costs quite a bit to receive the signal…the price of Pentecost! Acts 2 cannot exist w/out Acts 1!
Great churches don’t just happen by accident/not determined by location, facilities, or the economy--any more than by climate or skin color!
Great churches occur when God’s people become willing to pay the price…of Pentecost!
Great churches are made up of great families and individuals…and great families have 4 traits of greatness: obedience, unity, prayer, and leadership…churches, too, acc’d to Acts 1…we’ve looked at the first 3…
Now, what it all rises and falls upon, leadership:
Judas turned out to be a devil, forsook the Lord, committed suicide, and then there were only 11.
Had to be 12 for a reason: had to correspond w/ 12 tribes of Israel [another sermon altogether]
Today consider: what kind of leader were they looking for? And what kind of leaders do we then need to have in order to be a powerful, spirit-filled church? [acts 2]
When I say leaders, don’t think we’re just talking about church staff…we’re talking deacons, s.s. teachers, workers, cmte. members, those who serve in any capacity…Jesus said servants are the true leaders…those who get out of the boat/realize we’re not saved to sit but to serve!
In sign language, the gesture for a servant is hands out in front with palms up, moving back and forth between the signer and the signee. This simple motion communicates powerful component qualities about a servant and servant-leadership: trusting, being open, offering help, caring and being willing to be vulnerable.
3 qualities of a Biblical Leader:
A. Leaders must be genuinely converted
v. 22 isn’t it a tragedy the way some churches recruit leadership? On basis of personality/talents/or just willingness!/social status…
…first and foremost, a leader must be born again…genuinely converted!
How many have I talked to? I do the youth! I’m a deacon!…you guys seeing many saved? Umm…what do you mean?
The 11 remaining are being very careful, because they got burned by Judas! A tare among the wheat…a counterfeit Christian…a fake!
And he was a leader! One of the 12!
Evangelist Bailey Smith gave some statistics after 30 years of ministry:
57 pastors saved/69 pastor’s wives/139 deacons/171 deacon’s wives/17 missionaries!
You can be any leader at any level…but you still must be born again!
It’s one thing to profess Christ/another to possess
Claim His Name/another to submit to His person!
One of those wives Smith told about was 69 and had doubted her salvation for years, but for pride would not deal w/ it [afraid jaws would hit the floor]…then God spoke to her, “what good is pride in a lake of fire?”
Leaders must be genuinely converted…
B. Leaders must have conviction
15-16 powerful verse!
Notice 3 things Peter believed about the Bible:
1. Authority of God’s Word [Judas’ betrayal was prophesied hundreds of years prior!…it must needs be fulfilled/it had to happen!]
Every leader must believe this or step down, do the honorable thing…otherwise it’s the blind leading the blind!
There’s no such thing as a growing, soul-winning church that is not also a Bible-believing church!
Oh, you can draw a crowd in several ways w/out the Word of God, but you cannot build a true church on anything less… “How Firm a Foundation, ye saints of the Lord, is laid for your faith in His excellent Word!”
The bottom line is not getting people into the building, it’s what we do once they’re in the building! Isn’t it a tragedy today that so many churches are filling up buildings and preaching a soft-shoe gospel w/ no repentance, no conviction, no new birth, and no preaching on sin…hungry sheep walk in and out of the fold unfed.
Panty-waste preachers are replacing the exclamation points that used to follow the word of God w/ question marks! God is not the one blessing a church like that!!
Sometimes the truth hurts, and genuine seekers are looking to have their toes stepped on, not their backs patted!
G. Campbell Morgan, a great preacher of last century, said he was raised all his life believing the Bible was the Word of God, but he left home, and the agnostics, atheists, liberals, planted doubts in his mind…he got confused!
Started reading as much as he could on both sides of the Bible issue…when he got done he was more confused than ever…decided to do something different and just read the Bible itself/asked God to reveal it to him if this is His Word! He said, when I walked out of that room I didn’t think it was the Word of God, I knew it!
Godly leaders must believe in the authority of God’s Word…
2. Authorship of God’s Word
v. 16 the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake!…
[the dual authorship of the Bible!] [breath thru instruments]
Men writing what God told them to write by Inspiration!
2 Peter 1
1:21
For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
40 men from different backgrounds, over 1,600 years, wrote 66 books which have come together as the all time best selling, literary masterpiece, w/ 1 common theme: redemption of mankind, 1 common hero: Jesus Christ!
It’s only possible by there being 1 Author overseeing the whole project! God Almighty!!
2 Timothy 3
3:16
All scripture is given by inspiration of God…
Godly leaders must believe in the authority/authorship of God’s Word…
3. Accuracy of God’s Word
v. 16 …concerning Judas!
If Judas had ever bothered, he could have read about himself in the Bible…and so can we! [dividing asunder!]
Psalms 41
41:9
Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.
Every jot/tittle comes to pass! [2 whole messages on How we can know the bible is the word of God/irrefutable proofs]
But for Judas, only 1 passage he needed, the one about himself!
Let me tell you precisely why so many people avoid Bible preaching churches: they don’t want to be confronted by the mirror of God’s Word, because they don’t want to see themselves as they really are!
Since I’ve been here we’ve had people leave for numerous reasons, among them:
Preaching on sin too much/tithing/outreach/homosexuality/ trying to get people to the altar!/confronting them about gossip, sowing discord/trying to reconcile them to a brother who had hurt them/preaching salvation by grace!
Some have said, we’d have over 200 by now if no one left…oh no we wouldn’t! And if we did, it wouldn’t be because we built on the foundation of the Word!
Many don’t want to be confronted w/ their sin/lack of obedience…just keep that mirror of the Word away from me…ignorance is bliss…if I don’t look into the mirror I don’t have to worry about what I look like!
Joke—mountain man from TN/never seen civilization, or a mirror/came upon a vacated campsite/people had left some food, supplies…and a mirror!/looked into it, and it scared him…I’ll be, a picture of my old pappy!/sentimental, wanted to keep it/tho’t wife wasn’t looking, hid it under the mattress/wife HAD seen!/when he was gone, she went and got it, looked into it!/startled her, too/said, so, that’s the old hag he’s been running around with!
I hope you’re here to see yourself as you really are…not playing church [hospital for sinners, not display case for saints!]
If we are going to be the church God wants us to be, we have to have leaders of conviction about the authority/authorship/accuracy of God’s Word. [action]
Leaders must be converted, convicted…
C. Leaders must be Committed [may have to be!]
v. 21 “all the time”
They weren’t looking for someone there one week and gone the next! But “there all the time”! When up, when down, they show up/consistent, committed!! They’re on board, in unity, and if not, have the decency to go to authority and try to make it right, or step down!
Ill.—treasurer who wouldn’t go to s.s./evening services!
Leaders are to be examples, in the public eye! If you won’t practice it, don’t preach it!/don’t walk it, don’t talk it!/not willing to follow leadership over you, don’t expect to be able to lead anyone/don’t tithe, don’t volunteer to collect it!
You can’t build anything w/ uncommitted people…not a chicken house, much less a church!
When I say that, my mind goes to all the committed people we have here, who have caught the vision, and believe it’s going to happen, and just want to be a part.
Of course, there’s always gonna be some who aren’t committed…it pretty much has to be that way…but YOU don’t have to be one of them!
We have some committed leaders…we need some more!
Been splitting s.s. classes, now up to 8 adult classes, and need to start a 9th…we need a leader…that’s a good problem to have!
Children’s workers/nursery workers/accompanists/singers/ children’s s.s. teachers/vbs workers/building maintenance needs…these are all good problems to have!
Disciplers to pair up w/ so many new converts/touch team members to follow up on interested visitors!
In 4 sermons, we have seen 4 prices to pay to bring along Acts 2 kind of blessings/to always stay in tune, stay on the air w/ God!…Obedience/unity/prayer/leadership.
Leaders must be converted…we all must!
Christians: are you committed?/obedience/unity/prayer …need to step out of the boat and be a leader/servant?
