CHURCH OUTSIDE THE WALLS
The beginning of Acts goes like the following:
Acts 1-4
- Acts 1, Jesus promised the Holy Spirit. (vs 8 “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”)
- Acts 2, they were together and received the promise. Jesus’ Word came true by the evidence.
- Acts 2, the crowd responds with both amazement and criticism.
- Acts 2, Peter seizes the opportunity to share the Gospel of Christ & the Church is birthed – 3k were added!
- Acts 3, Peter & John heal a lame man which opens the door for the Gospel outside & the church grows again! (More evidence)
- Acts 4, Peter & John are arrested and threatened.
This leads us up to Acts 4:23-31. They pray for Boldness…why? Does it take boldness to proclaim the truth of Christ in the church? Hopefully not, you’d hope the “choir” is in one accord and they are not afraid to stand strong for Jesus amongst each other. It was fear that was trying to hold them back from going outside the walls of the church. They knew that it was the Holy Spirit that opened this opportunity. Jesus promised the Holy Spirit, they received that promise which led to people opening their hearts up to hear the Gospel.
The big idea here is that the Supernatural is not found in the timid. It’s a bold faith that opens the doors for the Holy Spirit to move outside the walls of the church. In Mark 6:5-6, Jesus could do no mighty miracles all because of a lack of faith. The implications of this are, if the church fails to cry out to God in one accord for a greater boldness, we risk:
- Being Ineffective –
- Becoming Complacent –
- Being “ME” Centered –
In other words, if we only see and do ministry within these walls, who are we really reaching Are we just scratching our own backs? Why did Peter & John not just go back to their people and say…well, we tried, now let’s have church and forget about them. Something in them felt urgent about this. Something in them yearned for others to know the truth about Jesus.
Several years ago, we sold our house and part of that process included inspections, of which, we had to do a chimney inspection and it was discovered that our friendly neighborhood birds took up residence in between my chimney pipes. A place where there is a gap of just inches. This lovely bird’s nest stood between me and the successful close of my house because they were not going to give the new owners an occupancy permit if it wasn’t taken care of. The chimney inspector informed me that the only solution was to cut a hole in the wall and get to it from the inside…several hours later and three pints of sweat later…we found our solution and it didn’t include cutting holes in the wall. (Can you say, “Thank you Jesus!”) As we did this, my dad said something to me that really struck me, he said, “it’s in the greatest desperation that the greatest solutions come.”
What could happen if God’s people had a greater desperation to love the lost more than ourselves. Fear tends to hold too many back from ever being the church that God has called us to be. I wonder what would happen if we confronted our fear with prayers for boldness; boldness to overcome the fear of persecution in our homes, schools, and workplaces; prayers for boldness to overcome our fear of people; prayers for boldness to overcome our selfishness; prayers for boldness to overcome our passivity.
Dream with me for a moment, instead of asking why the church doesn’t do_______. Instead ask, where am I not going because of a lack of boldness? What if God answered your prayer for boldness, where could you go with the help of the Holy Spirit?
As a church, let’s raise our voice in one accord as they did in Acts 4:24-30, …they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, who by the mouth of Your servant David have said:
“Why did the nations rage,
and the people plot vain things?
The kings of the earth took their stand,
and the rulers were gathered together,
against the LORD and against His Christ.”
“For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.”
The righteous are as bold as a lion. It can also be said, the people of Deer Flat are as bold as a lion. Let us roar for Jesus!!!
Pastor Ryan
A few more things:
If you have any interest in a potential trip to Israel in June, please plan on attending the informational meeting:
Saturday, March 12th at 9 am in the Lobby.
We have had several people ask about ways to help with needs in Ukraine. We have identified several worthy organizations that we have donated to already. You can give to DF Missions HERE (choose missions) or you can give directly to the Free Methodist Bishops Fund (designate it for Ukraine).
Don’t forget to “Spring Forward” Saturday, you do not want to miss Sunday morning!