Unknown: Our text this morning comes from Acts, the Acts of the Apostles, also known as you know it now, The Continuing Acts of Christ, By the Power of His Spirit, through His apostles. We are working through this book.
Unknown: We are in chapter 13. We're going to begin in verse 13, and read to the end of the chapter through verse 52 before we read it, let's go to the Lord in prayer, Our Father. We come to you now and we pray to you now before we turn to your word, because we recognize and we know that we are fully dependent on the power of your Spirit to open up our eyes to see by faith, Lord, we know that we, as we have read through the Gospels, and even here in the Acts, people have seen Jesus, they have heard his teachings, and yet they remain blind.
Unknown: So, Lord, we ask that by the power of your Spirit, that you might open the eyes of our faith, that we might see and behold Him, that you might unstop deaf ears, that we might hear of him crucified for sinners like us, that You would break our hardened hearts, that we might receive and rest upon Christ by faith alone, not by works. Lord, be merciful to your people. Bless Your Word as it goes out, that you would strike us by it, that we might be healed and embrace you and have life. And it's in Jesus's name we pray, Amen People of God hear God's word for us from Acts chapter 13, beginning in verse 13.
Unknown: Now, Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga and Pamphylia, and John left them and returned to Jerusalem, but they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And on the Sabbath day, they went into the synagogue and sat down after the reading from the law and the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it so. Paul stood up and motioning with his hands, said, Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen the god of this people, Israel chose our fathers and made great people great during their stay in the land of Egypt with uplifted arm, he led them out of it, and for about 40 years, he put up with them in the wilderness.
Unknown: And after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance. All this took about 450 years, and after that, he gave them judges, until Samuel, the prophet. Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul, the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin for 40 years.
Unknown: And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, I have found in David, the son of Jesse, a man after My heart who will do all my will.
Unknown: Of this man's offspring, God has brought to Israel a savior, Jesus, as he promised. Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. And as John was finishing his course, he said, What do you suppose that I am? I am not he No, but behold after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie, brothers, sons of the family of Abraham and those among you who fear God to us has been sent the message of this salvation for those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him or understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him, and though they found in him no guilt worthy of Death, they asked Pilate to have Him executed, and when they had carried out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb.
Unknown: But God raised Him from the dead, and for many days, he appeared to those who had come up with him, from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people, and we bring you the good news that what God promised to the fathers, this he has fulfilled to us, their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm, You are my son. Today, I have begotten you. And as for the fact.
Unknown: Fact that He raised Him from the dead no more to return to corruption. He has spoken in this way, I will give you the Holy and sure blessings of David. Therefore he says also in another Psalm, You will not let your Holy One see corruption.
Unknown: For David, after he had served the purpose of God, and His own generation fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption, but he whom God raised up did not see corruption. Let it be known to you, therefore brothers, that through this man, forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him, everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.
Unknown: Beware therefore, lest what is said to the Prophet should come about. Look you scoffers, be astounded and perish. For I am doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe even if one tells it to you as they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath. And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them to continue in the grace of God the next Sabbath, almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord, but when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him, and Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying it was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you, since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal eternal life. Behold, we are turning to the Gentiles, for so the Lord has commanded us, saying, I have made you a light for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth. And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed and the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region, but the Jews incited the devout women of the high standing and the leading men of the city stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of the district. But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to aconium. And the disciples were filled with joy, with the Holy Spirit. He who has ears, let him hear the Word of God. Please be seated.
Unknown: You've just heard a summary of a sermon, but now you get to hear another sermon, because that is indeed what we have in our text, a sermon, and you will hear a sermon about a sermon.
Unknown: Now to begin, I just wanted to talk a little bit about promises. Have you ever had anyone make a promise to you, but they didn't keep it.
Unknown: Maybe in a relationship, maybe someone told you that they were going to help you move.
Unknown: They never showed up, or you made a promise to yourself, I'm going to stop eating those fiery Cheetos. But guess what?
Unknown: You ate those fiery Cheetos. I know the story. I've been there children.
Unknown: Maybe you know this, when your parents promise ice cream after dinner, and then something unexpected occurs, and guess what, no ice cream. You wanted that ice cream, didn't you? You were expecting it to come because Dad said there would be ice cream, but now there's no ice cream. A broken promise, and broken promises often leave us disappointed.
Unknown: Wondering, can I trust anything that anyone says. Are there any promises that will be kept, that must be kept, that always will be kept?
Unknown: Well, God has made many promises to us and in the scriptures, and they are promises eternally, better than ice cream, promises of redemption, promises of salvation, promises of forgiveness, promises of glorification in heaven.
Unknown: But can you trust God while we as people break our promises all the time. God never breaks His he always, always, always keeps His word. And all of God's promises, in fact, are fulfilled in the person work of the Lord Jesus Christ, as.
Unknown: Corinthians tells us they are yes and amen in Christ.
Unknown: Now in our text as we turn to it, and that's really what, before I actually get into the text, that's really the theme of Paul's sermon, that God has kept his promise in Christ and that salvation is offered to you. You don't have to look anywhere else for it. It is right under your nose now, in the Lord Jesus Christ, and all you have to do is receive it. That's the message Paul gives. God is faithful to His promises.
Unknown: Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and your sins are forgiven.
Unknown: That's it now. Paul and Barnabas, as you know, they have started on their missionary journey together.
Unknown: They were sent out by the Holy Spirit, and they are being supported by the church in Antioch in Syria. The church is not only praying and fasting for them, they are financially supporting this missionary journey, and it's going well so far. If you remember, in the last text, they were opposed by Bard Jesus, a fake Jesus, yet he kept Jesus's name, but it's a false savior, not the not the Jesus of the scriptures.
Unknown: However, in good news, the pro Council, Sergius Paulus believes the Word of God now in verse 13, where we find ourselves in the text today, Paul and Barnabas are on the move again. We are told at some point as they are on the move John, who is John Mark, leaves them and returns to Jerusalem. Now, we aren't ever told why John leaves the band here. We could speculate maybe he, you know, he was used to Barnabas being the leader, because Barnabas was the leader.
Unknown: Remember, Barnabas is the one that that got Saul over. Now Paul to Antioch, but now the roles are switching a little bit and Paul is taking the lead.
Unknown: Maybe he didn't like that, or it could be maybe John was afraid.
Unknown: Maybe he was feeling a little homesick. He wasn't ready to venture into the mission field.
Unknown: To be as bold as Paul and Barnabas had been. He wasn't comfortable in doing that. We aren't told exactly, but we are told in Acts chapter 15, that when John Mark wants to come back, it causes a sharp disagreement, actually, between Paul and Barnabas, so much so that it causes Paul and Barnabas to split ways, and we can make John Mark a whole sermon by itself, because I think John Mark is often like me, I think often like us, in many ways that we feel more like John Mark, rather than a Paul or Barnabas, where we feel weak, we feel a bit of a disappointment, unmet expectations, afraid, but God will use John Mark. He'll actually be the author of the gospel of Mark that we have through Peter and already reminded of that God keeps His promises, even through failed people like a John Mark who break promises, but God is keeps his word, and the Mission Continues to go forth. And that's good news, because God's promises are not dependent on us. He keeps his promises.
Unknown: Now Paul and Barnabas, they come to another Antioch. This is another Antioch.
Unknown: This is the Antioch in Pisidia, which is in modern day Turkey, as opposed to Antioch, which they had come from, which is in Syria. So hopefully that's not too confusing. We have that here in the United States, right.
Unknown: There is, like two Ohio's, different places in Miami's there's like a Miami, you know, somewhere else in Florida. And so the same thing, two different antiochs, hopefully not too confusing. And why did they come to this Antioch? This doesn't tell us exactly. We don't ultimately know the Scriptures don't reveal to us. However, there are some historians that note that Sergius Paulus happens to have relatives in this Antioch. So it could be that he suggested to Paul and Barnabas, or encouraged them to go there.
Unknown: We don't ultimately know. It could also be the reason why they why Paul is asked to speak in the synagogue. It could be that Sergius Paulus sent some message before them to let them speak. We also know that Paul is a well trained rabbi. He had been trained under Gamaliel, so Paul has an outstanding credentials in front of him that he can mention the people that.
Unknown: Also, too, might give him an opportunity to speak as they go into the synagogue.
Unknown: Now, they are looking for an opportunity to preach the Word of God, and they go to the synagogue on the Sabbath because they know how it works. At the synagogue, the ruling elders, they lead the service, a passage of the scriptures are read of the law and prophets, and then usually, one of the elders or a traveling visitor teacher would then be invited to share a sermon to give a word of encouragement, we're told. And when the rulers asked if Paul might give a word of encouragement as a traveling preacher, whether it was encouraged by Sergius Paulus, or if they just heard this guy is trained by Gamaliel. He's a visiting rabbi, and I would just like a break. Let's let this guy teach for this Sunday, May ask.
Unknown: And Paul just happens to say, you know, as a matter of fact, I do have a word, and he stands up and he begins to speak. Now we aren't told actually to what the passage was in the synagogue for that day, but if I were to guess it would be something about King David, because that will be a focus of where Paul gets to in his sermon. But also the text could have been about anywhere in the Old Testament, because Paul knows, as Jesus knows, all of the Old Testament is about Jesus. You know that, right? So it could have been anywhere, anywhere in the Old Testament.
Unknown: And guess what Paul's going to preach about Jesus? And every sermon that you hear, Lord willing, from this pulpit. Guess what? It's going to be about Jesus, and it doesn't matter where from scripture, it's always going to direct us to Jesus, because God's promises, all of them are yes and amen in Jesus. So Paul addresses two groups in his sermon. As he begins, he addresses the men of Israel. These are the covenant people of God. And they also addresses those who fear God.
Unknown: These are Gentiles who have come to want to know more about God, who maybe even have a very much of an interest in the scriptures and the things of God. But they haven't taken the step to get circumcised so they're not yet in the Israel, Israelite community. And he begins a sermon with a brief survey of redemptive history. He says, You are a people who are chosen by God. Nothing you did. You're stiff necked, small, little people. God chose you anyway.
Unknown: Out of his good, mere pleasure, he chose you, we're told. He then recounts the Exodus from Egypt. God delivered you from slavery. You were enslaved by the people of Egypt, and he brought you out by a mighty and outstretched hand.
Unknown: God has been so patient with you because he he delivered you from Egypt, and he then you were in the wilderness, and all you did was complain and grumble, and he was patient. He was also just.
Unknown: And then he gave you judges. He also gave you Samuel, the prophet, and then you asked for a king, and he was kind, and he gave you a king. He raised up Saul, but then he gave you the shepherd, King David, and then Paul begins his focus here on David. Now why does Paul begin his focus here on David? Well, God had made a promise to David.
Unknown: And what was the promise that God made to David? God told David and even the people of Israel, that through David, through David's offspring, God would bring a savior, a redeemer, a messiah, through it to the people of Israel through David and so far, the congregation knows this, everything Paul has set up to this point, they've heard this somewhat boring, and maybe that's how you're feeling.
Unknown: People are rolling their eyes.
Unknown: Okay, we've heard the story of redemption before. We've heard this.
Unknown: And they're even wondering, you know, yes, we've been waiting hundreds of years. Is God ever going to do this? But I don't know if you caught there's a shocking, actually little word that Paul says in verse 23 as he's preaching, he doesn't say, and God will bring about this Redeemer, and God will do this. Notice what he says. God has brought, has brought, has brought what you've been waiting for.
Unknown: Remember it's here.
Unknown: Stop waiting and open up your eyes and see Israel's savior is here. You don't have to wait for it anymore. Stop looking around.
Unknown: The promise Messiah is here and it is Jesus. It is fulfilled, and you're missing it.
Unknown: He's right here. Now, you can imagine the people waking up a little bit in the pews and focusing a little bit more and even being a little bit uncomfortable in what what Paul has been saying God is he's telling them God has kept his promise.
Unknown: The Messiah through David has come, the long expected one has come, and his name is Jesus.
Unknown: Every thing God had did for his people has been rooted in Jesus, and you're missing it. You're missing him. He then talks about John the Baptist. Remember John the Baptist? He was the forerunner, and he was telling you, he was pointing you to Jesus. He says, But Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Remember the lambs in the temple? Of course, you do. It was all pointing to Jesus. You remember the temple.
Unknown: Guess what that was pointing to Jesus? You know everything else in the Old Testament. What that was pointing to Jesus? And John was trying to tell you that, and he's telling you, I'm not even worthy to untie this guy's sandal.
Unknown: He's the King of kings and the Lord of lords. And you guys didn't listen to John. Then the leaders in Jerusalem, they didn't recognize Jesus as the Messiah either, though they read the Old Testament every Sabbath, they're reading the Word of God every Sabbath, but they're missing the fulfillment of the prophecies when he is right in front of them.
Unknown: Jesus told them he was the very Son of Man. That's what Ezekiel was talking about. Bell he had the vision of the Son of man coming down, standing at the right hand of God and coming down to us, but rather than praising and thanking God for finally fulfilling his promise and giving you a messiah in the Lord Jesus Christ, guess what the people of Israel have done.
Unknown: You condemned Him, you reviled him, you mocked him, You spat at him, you killed him, you hung him on a tree, a sign of curse and shame.
Unknown: And then I bet maybe you're even asking, Well, how could someone who is cursed and hung on a tree be the long awaited Messiah? How could that be possible if he's cursed?
Unknown: Well, Paul answers that, because God raised Him from the dead.
Unknown: If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then yes, he is an imposter, and you would still be waiting for the promises to be fulfilled. But he is not dead.
Unknown: He is alive, and he is reigning.
Unknown: And Paul points to eyewitnesses and those who have seen Jesus alive, the resurrection is not a private myth. It is a public fact that Jesus is alive.
Unknown: Then Paul turns again to the scripture to show that this resurrection of Jesus actually fulfills what the Scriptures promised and had always promised. And it's not only promises for us, but actually the promises for Jesus. Psalm two, you are my son. Today, I have begotten you. The sonship is tied to kingship and here it's he in Psalm two. It's showing us that today you are the king. Today you are vindicated. Today you are brought into everything that is yours. You're my son, you're the king. That's what Psalm two is telling us. It promised it, and God fulfilled it. Isaiah 55 the sure blessings of David are, guess what? Not found in David, but in the greater David, the eternal King who would reign with blessings that will never end.
Unknown: Psalm 16 is the next thing, the next psalm that he looks at you will not let your Holy One see corruption. And what does? Paul says, well, where's David? He has seen corruption. He's in the grave. But who hasn't the son of David? Jesus, because he's alive, death could not hold him. You keep looking at the promises, you keep looking at the shadows. But Christ is a living fulfillment of every promise, and it is better than you could have ever imagined.
Unknown: Children. It's like your dad promised the ice cream, and you just keep waiting for him to open up the freezer.
Unknown: What he's brought you to dairy joy. And he said you can have every flavor. You can have every topping. All your friends are here. But rather than rejoicing and being excited that the promise has been fulfilled, you just keep staring at the freezer. Is dad ever going to open it? Just opening your eyes, the ice cream is around. It's here. It's better, better than they could have ever imagined.
Unknown: That's what Paul's telling them.
Unknown: Open up and see it didn't happen as you maybe you thought, but God's promises are true and yes and amen.
Unknown: Also, I just want to note too, how amazing the sermon is coming from Paul, because this is the very message that he, too, wants completely and just utterly rejected. He despised this message. I also find it very fitting if you look at his message here, and you go back, and you look back in Acts chapter seven, where Stephen preaches a message. They're very, very close.
Unknown: You know, Stephen preached this message. He goes through redemptive history, and he says, Jesus is the one that you guys killed, but God's raised Him from the dead, and they gnashed their teeth at him, and Paul stands there approvingly of Stephen's death.
Unknown: But now God has worked in Paul's heart, and Paul is trying to help them, as Stephen has helped them to understand the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah and you're missing the whole point of the scriptures that God has given to you.
Unknown: You're missing salvation.
Unknown: I just love how Paul takes almost his mentor in the faith of Stephen and he almost preaches the same message to the people that God's called him to go to now and now. Paul, kind of asks, Why does all this matter?
Unknown: Well, verse 39 and 38 are really at the heart of the sermon.
Unknown: He says, Let it be known to you, therefore brothers, that through this man, forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. And by him, everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. That's why this matters, that through this man, Jesus, there's forgiveness of sins, not through what you can do, not through I've been okay person. I'm not that bad. It's not through that and purposely it says it's then the law can cannot fulfill.
Unknown: It's Jesus that can forgive your sins. And that's what's important. One of the most important question that you ought to be considering is, when you die, what happens to your sins when you stand before God, either you bear them all and you perish, you go to hell, or you rest and believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and your sins are forgiven.
Unknown: And who's this proclamation for?
Unknown: Well, Paul also makes it very clear to it's it's for everyone who believes.
Unknown: And the way to obtain this is by believing in Jesus. There's nothing you can bring to the table. Don't look to yourself.
Unknown: Don't look to your own doing.
Unknown: Just look to Jesus.
Unknown: Jesus can do what the law cannot do. The law cannot will not save you. It will condemn you. It has condemned you.
Unknown: Love the Lord, your God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength and your neighbor as yourself. And do it perfectly, perpetually, personally. Have you done it?
Unknown: No. The wages of sin is death, and the Cursed are you who do not fulfill every word of the law of God.
Unknown: But that's what Paul's trying to tell them.
Unknown: Christ not only goes to the cross, taking your curse upon himself, but he gives you that perfect record of righteousness.
Unknown: He did it, he did it. He did it, fulfilling the law every jot and tittle on your behalf, and all you have to do is embrace it by faith and believe in it. That is the good news. Why would you not? Why would you be so foolish to reject it?
Unknown: It is right before you the promises of God. Believe it when Paul ends his sermon with a sobering warning again, beware.
Unknown: Therefore.
Unknown: Four lest what is said in the prophet should come about. Look, you scoffers, be astounded and perish. For I'm doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe, even if one tells you. And sadly, the words of the prophets often are coming true that the word is proclaimed to you, and there are some here who will not believe it, even though it's right in front of you, it will be rejected and you will perish.
Unknown: There are two responses here that we see just at the end. And I'll end with this as well.
Unknown: Some believe and some oppose.
Unknown: And I think we end with asking, in some ways, which one are you?
Unknown: Some beg to hear the message again. The next Sabbath. Let me hear the Gospel again. Let me hear of Jesus again. Let me hear how Jesus is in this text.
Unknown: Again. I need the forgiveness of sins. I need Jesus. Let me hear it again, because the law is condemning me.
Unknown: And I need the gospel. I need freedom, but others were told contradict, they revile.
Unknown: And why do some believe and others don't? Is it because some are are wiser, some are better prepared, some are smarter. Now verse 48 tells us why some of even you might believe while others reject as many were appointed to eternal life believed. Everyone appointed to eternal life will respond to faith, sometimes not immediately, but eventually you will come. I pray Lord that there is no one here in these pews that will perish, but that they will have eternal life. You know, God's Word always has an effect, as we've learned even last week, you're never left neutral after hearing the Word of God.
Unknown: It strikes you. Remember as Peter was struck to salvation, Herod is struck to condemnation.
Unknown: We always see those two responses, remembering that our Father always keeps His promises. He will keep his promise as well.
Unknown: If you do not believe you will perish, that is a promise too, that God will keep. If you do not believe you will perish.
Unknown: That's a promise God keeps.
Unknown: But listen, listen closely. He says, If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. That's a promise.
Unknown: That is yours. It's right here in front of you.
Unknown: Will you embrace it? Will you believe it? God will keep his promise? Be saved. Be saved.
Unknown: That's why this passage ends in the way it does. In verse 52 the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit, not filled with joy in their circumstances, not filled with joy in their success, but in the unbreakable faithfulness of God, who keeps His promises to save the Savior has come and through him, forgiveness and freedom are proclaimed to you today. Will you embrace the fulfilled promises of God in Christ or reject it?
Unknown: Come to the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved? Let's pray, Father, I pray that by the power of your Spirit, you would enliven our hearts.
Unknown: Lord, that is our hope, Lord we see in the text. Or are those that the word is proclaimed to you and they remain hard hearted. Do not let that be us.
Unknown: Please, Lord, please work in our hearts.
Unknown: Help us to see Jesus stir in our hearts and affection and love for Jesus, the desire that our sins would be indeed washed away, and know that it is found in Jesus. We know that What can wash away our sins Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Unknown: Lord. We pray for your mercy upon our own hearts, for our friends, our family members, our children would be merciful to your people. That is our only hope.
Unknown: We thank you for giving us a savior. We thank you that you keep all of your promises.
Unknown: Forgive us for so often, doubting you, doubting if you are truthful, doubting if.
Unknown: If we can trust your word, strengthen our faith Lord in Jesus's name, we pray, amen.