Episode Transcript
[00:00:02] Welcome to the Chroma Charge podcast.
[00:00:08] So we said this year we were talking about big family. And some of you might go, yeah, but Steve, you tricked us.
[00:00:17] You said we would talk about big family. And then you've talked about money for four weeks.
[00:00:23] And the reason is if you have a big family, you need resources. Otherwise you can't feed the family. And you've got to get family in order. And we're going to continue talking about our giving and our resources. But this week, I want to talk a little bit about what kind of family we are.
[00:00:45] Sometimes there are different types of families. Some families just sit in front of the tv, feet up with a cigar, and they just watch tv. Other families are out their families.
[00:00:56] And I guess what, what I want to say is, what kind of family are we going to be? Are we going to just, you know, come to church, put our feet up, or are we going to get out there with the message of Jesus Christ? And I hope and my prayer is the latter. So what we're going to do is we're going to pick up where we left off in Acts just before Christmas, chapter 17. And what we. The place we're picking up is Paul has been dramatically released from prison.
[00:01:26] And so what does he do next?
[00:01:30] He is supernaturally been delivered from the jailer. What does he do? Does he go and get a book deal? Does he go on a tour? Does he go around telling the story of how God set him free from prison?
[00:01:46] No. He presses further in to uncharted territory to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. And what I want to say to you this morning is when the going gets tough, the tough press in. Okay? When it's hard, the tough press in. So Paul and Silas and Timothy have been on mission. And we read at the beginning of chapter 17, they've been explaining and demonstrating the kingdom, the word and the Spirit. The gospel must always be accompanied with signs and wonders. Jesus was a word worker, okay? He. He did what he said and he said what he did, okay, that that was the. What marked Jesus from all the other teachers. You know, Jesus would cast a demon out, and they say, what is this new teaching? He hadn't even taught, but what he'd done is he demonstrated the kingdom, what it's like when God moves in. And we read that they were explaining and demonstrating the kingdom, turning the world upside down. That's how they described Paul, Silas and Timothy. These are the men who have turned the world upside down.
[00:03:07] Are there any people here who would like to turn the world upside down? Yes.
[00:03:16] Pay attention to the, to these men, because that's what they did. So we've got a picture and a map. Let me just show you where they, where they are. So obviously they've come up from Jerusalem to Antioch, and then they've gone to Pisidian, Antioch, and over to Troas, and now they're in Berea. Well, Thessalonica first, because it's actually Thessalonica, and then Berea right over here. And then Paul is going to be in Athens. Now, what I. I want you to realize, they. They didn't have airplanes, mobile phones, or cars or the Internet.
[00:03:58] They've done this by foot and sea and pedal bike. I don't think they had pedal bikes either.
[00:04:07] And as they arrive in Thessalonica and Berea, the. They're both received and run out.
[00:04:15] So people love them, but they also chase them out of the cities.
[00:04:20] And what I want to say to you is, when you're breaking new ground, you are rarely received well by everyone.
[00:04:29] You know, as we've tried to break new ground here and, you know, going after the presence of God, you know, for instance, some people say you just worship for so long. Well, that's because it's the main event.
[00:04:40] You know, it's downhill from now on. We've just been in the presence of the Lord.
[00:04:46] That's why we gather. We gather around his presence and he comes and walks amongst us. And some people love it, some people hate it.
[00:04:56] You want to take my money? No, I don't want to take your money.
[00:04:59] But I want you to get your thinking right on money so you can thrive in life, salvation.
[00:05:05] Why are we winning all these people to Jesus? Yeah. Well, because they need.
[00:05:10] Without Jesus in their life, they're heading for destruction. These are really important things. But some people love it. And they go, you know, oh, that's amazing. I'm assuming most of you love it, otherwise you wouldn't be here. But many have run out. Oh, we don't want to be here. This is foolish. This is silliness.
[00:05:29] You see, if you're going to break new ground either in the church or the world, you will have opposition. That's a prophetic word. Some will love you, some will hate you. Some will stay, some will leave. But if you hold your ground, you will see the glory of God in the place that he sent you and in the thing that he has told you to do. Too many people give up because it's just too hard. I just can't do this anymore. And all I can say is when I've been at those places where I just can't go on. That's when he's the closest. That's when he's there with me.
[00:06:11] And normally he hardly speaks. He just smiles. And it's normally that look on his face where I've been waiting for you to get to this place. I've been waiting for you to get to the end of your strength so now I can take you in my strength. And we find ourselves at these places. So here we're going to pick up. Paul finds himself alone in Athens. Silas and Timothy have stayed back in Berea, and to be honest, there are not many people that would keep believing and going. Paul has been beaten, stripped naked in prison, and he's still going for Jesus Christ.
[00:06:54] Now, alone in Athens, he needs to reach not inside of himself, but from the resources of heaven.
[00:07:04] And if you want to know what will keep you going, it's the call of God upon your life. What has he said? What has he told you to do? Old orders are good orders until you get new orders. And you'll hear me say that a lot. Old orders are good orders until you get new orders. Well, I want some new orders. The old ones are still good until you get the new ones.
[00:07:29] You know, you will find yourself in times of absolute despair if you're walking with Jesus and you go, what? You told me if I give my life to Jesus, everything would change and my sin would be forgiven and I would be walking on a cloud for the rest of my life.
[00:07:45] I never said anything about the cloud, ever. I said lots about your sin being forgiven and eternal life. I never said anything about a cloud.
[00:07:56] You see, you will find yourself in times of despair. The difference now is you're not on your own. The difference now is when you find yourself in those places, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead has made his home in you.
[00:08:10] And now you have options.
[00:08:14] Now you have him by your side. I remember, you know, when we were younger, you know, some of you guys get married, you're producing babies. Good job on both accounts. Getting married and producing babies. We just celebrated in first service couple who's celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this week. How cool is that? So, yeah, so I remember when we were young, we were church planting, you know, we were learning how to walk with Jesus and Joel was born. We got married, and he arrived like yesterday. I mean, it was so quick. I thought we'd agreed five years. Juliet thought five minutes. And that was my first lesson in marriage communication. Very Important. Anyway, Joel arrived, and when he was born, he. He caused some damage in the birthing process. I'm not going to give you any more information than that. You don't want any more. And so we had a stretch of three years, nearly four years. Yeah, three years where we were having trouble having. Well, Juliet was having trouble carrying babies. And so we lost two babies, and we had two stillborn babies, Jesse and Jake, who we never known, but one day we will be united with in heaven. And I remember, you know, at the same time we were doing church, and we do know, kind of, you know, just trying to trust God. And people would say, you know, does this not knock your faith in him? And I go, no, I don't have any answers, but I know he's good and I know he's with me. And he took us by the hand and walked us through that. And then Juliet was pregnant again with Emma. And Emma came nearly three months early. So. And so she was. She was born. I forget what she was born at, but she, you know, 210. But then she went below 2, because in the inquiry beta, I've got a picture size of my. My fist. And, you know, I was pretty useless in the birth of Joel because I couldn't feed him. But I would. When Emma was in hospital. She was in hospital for three months. I got. I got to do the night shift and feed, and Juliet would express milk, and I overdid, put the tube down and check with the litmus paper and check it was in her stomach, not in her lungs and all. I learned all sorts of stuff. I mean, I'm. I'm nearly a doctor, and I remember being in that season and the Lord being so close to us. And I remember one night, it was about midnight, we'd done something at church. Juliet had gone home to get some rest. I was at the hospital. It was about, you know, and we were sitting with some nurses and doctors, and we were all around and we were just talking about life and they were quizzing me. They knew what I did, and they wanted to know about God and eternal life and stuff like that. And I remember, you know, we talked into the early hours of the morning and praying for them. And I remember one of the nurses later had twins, and her twins were premature. And she turned up at our church and she said, do you remember we prayed in the hospital? Well, look, I've got two. Two twins. And why am I telling you that is sometimes life is hard. Sometimes it's difficult. And it doesn't mean that the presence of God has lifted off. He's just taking us through a trial, but that's where he is holding us and looking after us.
[00:11:51] So here in Athens, a city given over to idols. It's an intellectual metropolis, probably one of the cultural cities of the world.
[00:12:06] What should Paul's reaction be? Here he is surrounded by non Christian ideology, surrounded by false religion. A city that's morally decadent.
[00:12:18] Well, if you want to find out, turn to Acts 16, because this is what he does. So why don't you grab your Bibles and stand? We're going to stand as we read the word of the Lord.
[00:12:33] Chapter 17, verse 16. Now, while Paul waited for them in Athens, his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols. Therefore he reasoned in the synagogue with the Jews and with the Gentile worshipers and in the marketplace daily with those who happened to be there. Then certain Epicurean and Stoic philosophers encountered him. And some said, what does this babbler want to say? Others said, he seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods because he preached to them Jesus and the resurrection.
[00:13:08] And they took him and brought him to the Areopagus saying, may we know what this new doctrine is and of what you speak, for you are bringing some strange things to our ears. Therefore we want to know what these things mean for all. The Athenians and the foreigners who were there spent their time in nothing else but either to tell or hear something new. Amen. Take a seat. Okay, I've got four really quite quick and simple things. The first one is, what did Paul see when he's in Athens on his own? What does he see? He sees a city full of idols and temples. A city who worship the God of this world.
[00:13:56] It's really important to know. He doesn't take his shoes off, go sightseeing around all the temples, taking photos, saying, how beautiful are these temples. And I really want to encourage you, when you go on holiday, don't take your shoes off and walk around foreign temples. You are worshiping other gods. They are not beautiful. They worship the prince of the power of the air. And I just really want. Because I think sometimes we just don't think about this. And it's like as Christians, we switch off our brain, our spiritual brain, and when we're unholying. Oh no, it's. No, it's just beautiful. No, it's not.
[00:14:38] Paul starts to talk about Jesus in the synagogue and in the marketplace. He wants the Jews to awaken and he wants the Greeks to encounter and he meets two arguments in both the synagogue and the marketplace. You see, the synagogue has taken on the philosophies of the marketplace. And I want to say to you today, so much of the church, and we are the church, the church is a body. It's one. So much of the church has taken on the philosophies and the culture of the world, and it's time to repent. It's time to change. And the first ones he meets are the Epicureans. They believed the world was ancient and random. There was no afterlife, therefore no judgment, so you could indulge in pleasure and find happiness. Today, we'd probably call them secular humanists. And then there's the Stoics and their philosophy a little bit more floaty, you know, get in line with the universe, love nature, hug trees and find contentment. Life is what it is. The hands you've been dealt with, just make the best of it you can. We'd probably today call them Buddhists.
[00:15:55] Let me give you a life lesson. This is from Ecclesiastes 1:9. There is nothing new under the sun. There are no new philosophies. There are no new religions. There are no new ideas. Just the same. Demons regurgitating falsehood. 1 Timothy 4:1.
[00:16:14] It's just the same stuff.
[00:16:17] Paul does not see a beautiful city. He sees a city worshiping demons that needs the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only Jesus can set a people free. That's number one. Number two, what did he feel? Verse 16 says his spirit was provoked. It was distressed.
[00:16:36] I don't know if you recognize what Paul saw, but how do you feel when living in Leicester? You know, I don't believe you can be a Christian in Leicester and not feel the heartbreak of God over the falsehood and the idolatry and the false religion. But I also believe you can't be a Christian here and not see the opportunity he invites us into of reaching the nations of the world. So we feel his heartbreak, but also we see the incredible opportunity we have of reaching the world. I was in the Apple store in the week I managed to lose my iPad, and there was a young Sikh guy serving me. And, you know, he's. We were looking for my account and he saw Cromer Church and he said, oh, what do you do? And I said, oh, I work for a church. I'm like a minister or vicar or whatever trying to explain it to him. And he says, what do you think about demons?
[00:17:37] This is the first line. And I said, really? And I said, how do you mean? He Said, well, I'm a Sikh and we don't believe in the afterlife. The problem is I see demons all around me.
[00:17:48] And he said, I wonder what Christians felt.
[00:17:51] And I thought, excellent.
[00:17:59] Sometimes we're like, oh, God, give me an opening, please. I mean, he's like, yeah, yeah, well, let's talk about the risen Jesus Christ.
[00:18:07] Let's talk about Jesus.
[00:18:11] God sent Jesus so that we could know what he's like and we could see him and experience him. And he went to the cross to die for us so that there was an afterlife, eternal life.
[00:18:28] And we just talked.
[00:18:31] You see, Paul's spirit was provoked. By whom? The Holy Spirit within him. That young Sikh was getting provoked by whom? The Holy Spirit in me.
[00:18:45] You see, hear this. All religion does not lead to God. In fact, completely the opposite. People are walking off a cliff.
[00:18:57] Someone has to go, stop, don't do that.
[00:19:02] You're going the wrong way. Jesus says, I'm the way, the truth and the life. Most people do not come to the Father except through me. He doesn't say that. He says, no one comes to the Father except through me. No one. No one. There is only one God and there is only one Savior. And all religions don't lead to God. It's Jesus Christ, and he came so that people could know him. And it's changing our thinking. And I know we want to be nice and we want to love everyone, but the message of the God of the Bible is, this is my son that I've sent to the earth for you so that you can know who I am and you can be set free by his life, his death and his resurrection.
[00:19:58] You see, we need to move quick. On Tuesday, we had a visit from a couple. Every Tuesday we meet and pray. It's the highlight of my week. I love Sundays, but I really love Tuesday nights. And we just worship and pray. And as we. There was a couple that came, and basically it was her birthday and she'd said to her husband, for my birthday, I'd like to go and pray at Cromer Church. So they drove from Liverpool to come here.
[00:20:34] Hunger for Jesus.
[00:20:37] Now, this lady, we. We didn't know she'd spoken to someone in the office and is an intercessor.
[00:20:45] And, you know, I got some people to go and pray and prophesy because I think Tolly whispered in my ear that they were there. And Juliet, both Juliet and Emily went. And as they walked towards her, they felt almost pushed back by the presence of God.
[00:21:02] Why? Because she'd been with Jesus, the resurrected Jesus in Her life. She's someone that knows Jesus. She said, I've come to bring a flag. And she brought a lion flag for Juliet. And just she said, I want to encourage you all.
[00:21:20] And this is where I wanted to come and pray for my birthday. And I want to say, you know, God is moving and there is a hunger coming for the presence of God and be hungry.
[00:21:39] She drove. I don't know how many hours it is there, but I said, somebody offered, hey, do you want to stay with us? She goes, oh, no, we'll be all right. We're just going to drive home for a prayer meeting.
[00:21:49] When people are driving two and a half hours for a prayer meeting, God is on the move. Okay, you see? Yeah.
[00:21:57] Friends, it's time to be deeply provoked. The Holy Spirit is moving across our land. Don't assume you know what it's going to look like, but when you are provoked, respond to what he says. Number three, really quick, what did Paul do? Verse 22. Paul stood in the midst of the Areopagus and said, men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious. For as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription to the unknown God. Therefore the one whom you worship without knowing Him, I proclaim to you. So the Areopagus was a court of debate.
[00:22:37] And what Paul is doing is he's being brought to people that are searching. They don't know for what or whom, but they love to talk about all the new things, but they also know they need something or someone. And he says, I see you're really spiritual people, but you're looking in the wrong places because you either believe there is nothing beyond this life, so we just need to make ourselves happy, or you believe happiness is found in surrendering to creation.
[00:23:10] But there is something in you that is telling you there's more. Like my young Sikh friend, there's something in him that said, there has to be more. So you've built an altar to an unknown God.
[00:23:26] Everyone has an altar to an unknown God. Doesn't matter if you're an atheist, an agnostic, wherever you are, people always have an altar to an unknown God. Why? Just in case. In that moment of trouble, just in case. That's why atheists pray. The old days, we used to talk about a God shaped hole, something that within us that yearns from God and that can only be filled by Him. You know, there is this yearning inside us that he's put in us that we would know our Creator and we would know the person of God who made us who we are.
[00:24:03] And what Paul does is he looks for who is asking the questions, who is seeking, and then he introduces them to Jesus. And you know, I would really encourage you wherever you are, look for the ones that are asking the questions and introduce them to the Lord Jesus. Jesus, who came in the form of man, yet fully God, so that this yearning inside, you know, I read, I say this verse, probably most weeks. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come into him and indict him with him and he with me. That's the, the heart of Jesus.
[00:24:39] And Paul understood that we may not all be evangelists, okay, but we are all his witnesses. Not all of us can debate in the areopagus like Paul, but we can all be like Philip who says to Nathaniel, we found the Messiah.
[00:24:57] And he says, can anything good come out of Nazareth? And Philip says, come and see. Come and see my Jesus. Come and meet my Jesus. You see, I'm just a simple church planter. That's all I do, all right? I make a little space where people can meet Jesus.
[00:25:14] And I just know that if you're sick, if you're in financial difficulties, if you're work problems, if you've got issues in family, come and meet the risen Jesus. He can help. He's helped me. He's the only solution. I don't have anything else in my pockets, you know, I've got a phone that's really useless when you're going through the big troubles of life. But Jesus, Jesus, he comes in and he takes us by the hand and he walks with us. And then finally what does he say? And we're done.
[00:25:46] Verse 24. God who made the world and everything in it, since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made of hands, nor is he worshipped with men's hands as though he need anything, since he gives to all life, breath and all things. And he has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their pre appointed times and boundaries of all their dwellings so that they should seek the Lord in the hope that they might grope for him and find him, though he is not far off for any of us. It's the hunger for Jesus. It's the hunger that would cause someone to drive two and a half hours to come to a prayer meeting. You know my, my life verse. When I gave my life as a. A new. When I was 13 years old I gave my life to Jesus. Somebody wrote this verse in the front of my bible. It's Jeremiah 29:13. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.
[00:26:47] And I found that, that when I run after Jesus, when I seek him with all of my heart, there he is always. Verse 28 says, for in him we live and move and have our being, as also some of your own poets have said, for we are also his offspring. Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that divine nature is like gold, silver or stone, something shaped by art and man's devising. Truly, these times of ignorance, God overlooked. So what he's saying to them is, you know, you've been worshipping the things of your hand, your cars, the airplanes, your houses, whatever it is your little gods you've made. But now he commands all men everywhere to repent, to change direction, because he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he ordained, Jesus. He has given assurance of this to all by raising him from the dead. You see, the resurrection of the dead is the proof of the creation, the life to come, and the judgment of God, because Jesus is alive. If Jesus isn't alive, there's no proof of that. But because Jesus is alive, it's a proof that you are created. It is a proof of the eternal life to come and the judgment of God. And it is only through him that we live and move and have our being.
[00:28:12] But men and women need to repent and turn direction, to put their idols away and turn to the living God. And so when Jesus invites us to pick up our cross and follow him, he leads us into life. But through sometimes some really tough situations, he hasn't left us. When we find ourselves in these situations, he's right there leading us through them. But it's in these seasons that we experience the resurrected Jesus.
[00:28:46] When it gets tough, the apostle Paul presses in and I want you know, what kind of family are we?
[00:28:54] When it gets tough, will we together press into the presence of God? Because we know in him we have life and move and have our being.
[00:29:06] You see, you don't come to Jesus for an easy life. You come for eternal life.
[00:29:15] Really important.
[00:29:17] You come that you would know him.
[00:29:22] If you're going to be a world changer, if you're going to take the gospel to the ends of the world, it's not all going to be easy. You're going to be in dire, tough situations that you're going to need to press on through and trust him and believe him. But he will take you by the hand and he will lead you through and you will see the glory of God.
[00:29:46] Thanks for listening to the Chroma Charge Podcast. If you enjoyed this message, you can like and subscribe. You can also join us in person or online every Sunday at Cromer Church. For more information about us, including our ministries, events, worship and how to donate, visit our website at Cromer Church.
