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Acts 1:12-26

Preparatory Pray

Good morning church, we are so happy you can join us

this morning.

We are going to continue in our study of the Book of

Acts, we will take on the second part of Acts chapter 1

starting in verse 12.

But before we do, I want to make some things clear

about our reopening next week.

Now, Pastor Joe put out some guidelines for our

reopening next week, if you have not seen them, they

are on our website under the heading “Regathering on

May 31st.”

Our President on Friday deemed church as essential,

and he is supporting our efforts.

What an incredible moment in history, especially in our

state, when we wonder if the basic understanding of

our Constitution is right, as our government takes

more of our freedoms.

What a sigh of relief to hear the top person in our

government, along with the top attorney in the land,

both assure us our understanding is in fact the correct

understanding.

We will open with those recommended guidelines, and

we will do our part to keep facility clean.

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But I want to echo something our country’s Attorney

General, William Barr told a group of pastors this

Thursday; that we are a nation that was founded on

the belief that we as individuals are capable of

governing ourselves.

We will not have a police state within this sanctuary,

our ushers will not become enforcers.

You all see the guidelines, and as at the other places

you go to during this time, you all are free to follow

them.

Our county is not enforcing face masks, it is up to you

if you want to wear one, we will have some available if

you desire to wear one.

Also, you will be responsible to social distance as you

sit here in the sanctuary, if the turnout is greater than

we expect, the Ushers will then begin to sit people,

and add seats as needed.

We want people to be free to worship Jesus.

Lastly, in your freedom, we ask that you choose to stay

home if you have any kind of sickness with flu like

symptoms.

This is common sense stuff, I do not want to insult you

by demanding these things upon you.

Just a reminder, Children’s Ministry will only be

available at 2nd service here at the beginning as we

need to rebuild our volunteer base.

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You younger people are needed, please pray where

God will use you in the ministry.

It is possible to serve Jesus even with a young family, I

have 6 kiddos in our home under 10 years old, Jess and

I still find joy in serving our Lord.

So, please be in prayer where you can be used.

Now, that is all I want to speak about it, next week, we

will gather on Pentecost, if you are not comfortable

with that, I understand, and our livestream will

continue on all formats for our 9am service.

You are still apart of the work here, and we look

forward to the day when things will be normal again.

I want to encourage you who choose to stay at home

to be our online presence, share the teachings, reach

out, and be bold for our Lord on that platform.

We all have a place in the work here.

So let’s pray, we have an important, and timely portion

of scripture before us this morning.

Well, as we go into the second half of chapter 1, we

will look at a waiting period for the disciples that will

take place between the Ascension of Jesus Christ to

the coming of the Holy Spirit.

The period of time was 10 days because as we will see

next Sunday, the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, also

referred to as the Feast of Weeks by the Jews.

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The Feast of Weeks was held 50 days after Passover,

meaning too, it would 50 days after the death of Jesus

upon the cross.

We learned last time, that for forty days, the Lord

Jesus was moving between heaven and earth at

random, readying the disciples for His ultimate

departure.

He instructed the disciples at His Ascension Luke 24:49

Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but

tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with

power from on high."

And they obeyed, which would not be easy for them,

understand Jerusalem was a hostile city to the New

Jesus movement, its leaders just killed Jesus, and Jesus’

disciples would be in danger.

Remember they were found scattering, we saw this

with the two disciples going home to Emmaus, and we

know that the disciples during that 40 day period,

many went home to Galilee.

But as news of the resurrection spread between their

numbers, and as Jesus randomly met with different

disciples at different times, and sometimes in groups,

the disciples found reason to obey.

What an exciting 40 days it had been, and now during

this 10 days of waiting after they witnessed Jesus

Ascend into heaven, it had to be such a thrilling time.

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And we will see this morning, this waiting period here,

was a preparatory period for the arrival of the Holy

Spirit.

We must understand the symbolism of the Holy Spirit

coming on Pentecost, you see the Feast of Weeks was

the Jewish time of year where they brought in their

first sheaves of the harvest.

The timing could not be more spectacular, as those

first Christians were steeped in the Old traditions, and

they without a doubt understood the meaning of the

timing once it happened.

They understood the Powerful Blessing they

experienced on that day with thousands of people

coming to faith, and they understood that it was only

the beginning, it was the first fruits.

From that moment, and that Day, the Gospel would

take this world captive, starting in Jerusalem, then

going to Judea and Samaria, and eventually to the ends

of the earth!

But, as we will see here, during this preparatory time

for the arrival of God’s Promised Power, we will see

there are some very valuable takeaways for us as a

church.

You know, even today, in our situation, there is no

formula to summon the Holy Spirit, I hear people today

inviting the Holy Spirit into their church services, and

that is weird to me.

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This is His Home, how would you like me to come to

your house and say, “John let me invite you into your

home.”

We don’t get to invite the Holy Spirit to come here, He

is either here, or what we are doing here is a lost

cause.

He invites us here each week, but to see Him manifest

His Power, now that is something to consider.

Revival has come throughout History, not by anything

man was doing or performing, the Spirit moves how He

wishes and when He wishes, when Revival hits.

We as a church cannot control His movement, but we

are instructed to enjoy the fullness of the Spirit.

Kent Hughes says, “Our situation is like that of the little

boy who asked his grandfather, ‘Grandpa, what is the

wind?’ ‘I cannot explain the wind to you,’ the old

fisherman replied, ‘but I can teach you to raise the

sails.’”

And the Book of Acts teaches us how to have the wind

of God’s Spirit in our sails, and this morning we will get

the attitude that made way for the fullness of the Holy

Spirit to come to the first disciples.

So let’s look at how the first disciples waited as God

prepared them for the Promised Helper.

Starting now in verse 12…

The Upper Room Prayer Meeting

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1:12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount

called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's

journey. 13 And when they had entered, they went up

into the upper room where they were staying: Peter,

James, John, and Andrew; Philip and Thomas;

Bartholomew and Matthew; James the son of

Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot; and Judas the son of

James. 14 These all continued with one accord in

prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the

mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

Now, immediately after the angel tells these star

gazers to get busy, we see their obedience as they

return to the dangerous city of Jerusalem.

We find something takes place here in these important

verses, God does not send the Holy Spirit immediately.

The Promise was theirs, but we see a waiting period, a

time of preparation.

Instead of moving right into Pentecost we see this 10

day period, which in their waiting, God will accomplish

some very important things.

These time periods are essential in our journey of faith,

but oh, they can be so difficult.

We are people of action, we like to be on the move,

and in our microwave culture, we like things to happen

now!

They might have been feeling like…

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The Holy Spirit needs to come at once!

We need to be preaching now!

But instead we see the disciples experienced a delay.

I don’t know about you, but these waiting periods can

be difficult for me.

I like to be busy, I like productivity, I need results, it is

how I am wired as a carpenter, I like to build, keep

moving, and at the end of the day have the satisfaction

of standing back looking at what our hands produced.

As I look back, this has been the most difficult thing for

me transitioning into the ministry.

Now, we work here, your pastor’s work harder than

most pastors I have known, but in ministry, you can

work all day, and at the end of the day, you stand back,

and sometimes there is no visible or tangible product

to look at.

And often times, our God is doing His greatest work,

when as far as we are concerned, it looks like He is

doing nothing.

And when God is doing seemingly nothing, we

naturally think something is wrong.

Things should be moving, and shaking if my faith is real

and alive, if my walk is where it needs to be and I am

on track with God, things should be happening.

But this is not always the case!

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God is always doing something even if we cannot see

what it is, perhaps He is working on our character,

maybe He is healing a relationship, maybe He is

dealing with a struggle in our life, or He is dealing

something that might hinder for what is next in His Will

for our life.

But as we look at these verses we see that these days

of waiting for the Promised Power, were actually days

of productivity, spiritual activity was taking place, and

although God seemed silent, God was readying them.

This was a period of preparation, and we get a neat

picture of what we should be doing during these times

of waiting and seemingly silence.

We see the first thing the 11 Apostles do is regathered

together, many think in the same Upper Room where

Jesus spent the Last Supper with them.

They put their own fear aside and regathered.

Now, think of what could have been taking place here,

in their waiting they could have been dwelling on each

other’s mistakes.

They could have sat in that Upper Room, and started

picking each other apart.

I think some Christians think it is their duty to pick

apart what they consider other Christian’s mistakes.

Think of this group in the Upper Room, their supposed

leader had denied Christ 3 times, they all scattered,

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John could have pointed out that at least he stayed

around for Jesus to charge him to care for Mary.

The women could have looked down upon cowardly

men, they could have all just got nasty with each other,

pointing fingers at past errors.

“Perhaps you the reason the Holy Spirit has not

come?”

But that is not what we see, no Luke records that these

all with ONE ACCORD continued in prayer and

supplication.

We see too Jesus’ once disbelieving family was there

too, gathered in this group, and no scorn was shown

toward them by the disciples.

One accord, unity, a group bonded together by their

faith in Jesus, and their obedience to one of Jesus’ final

commands.

John 13:34-35 "A new commandment I give to you,

that you love one another; as I have loved you, that

you also love one another. 35 By this all will know that

you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

Now, this kind of love is supernatural, it is not easy,

these men in the world would have nothing to do with

each other, some were higher class, like the Tax

Collector, and many were lower class, and none were

extraordinary, but severely ordinary men.

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There was nothing in themselves that should hold

them together.

But we see in their obedience to Christ, their bond

deepened, their love increased, and their prayers were

electrified.

Not only will their prayers prove to be powerful, but

we see a key to the Powerful Effective Prayer of this

group.

They prayed expectantly.

Jesus had spent forty days priming their faith, and now

for these ten days their hearts burned with a “flaming

anticipation.”

They prayed with a hopeful optimistic belief as they

expected the Power to fall on them any day.

It was an uncertain expectation, but we can imagine

the energy and tone in that Upper Room was

awesome.

Through this time, God healed their hearts, healed

their hurts, healed their doubts, and prepared them

for the arrival of the Helper.

They were hoisting their sails, and preparing for the

Wind to blow.

This expectancy is key…

You know, I have told you all many times, I am an

extreme introvert, I am not comfortable in crowds, or

speaking in front of 3 people let alone hundreds.

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The early years of ministry were torcher for me, as I

was often tongue tied and mumbled through my

presentations, and the best part of any talk in front of

a group for me, was when my duty was over and I was

saying amen.

But the relief was only momentary, and soon I was

overcome with dread, realizing that I would have to

start preparing for the next torturous teaching.

When I began here, there were Sunday mornings,

Pastor Josh would end with worship, and I would be

waiting for the Pastor to go up, and remember, “Oh

yeah, that’s me.”

But there came a time when something changed for

me.

I am still very much an introvert, I still very much do

not enjoy being in front of people, but there was a day

I realized that when I stood up to handle God’s Word,

that there was Another, who stands by my side.

The Helper is so faithful to show up week after week,

and He gives me the strength and the ability to preach.

Now, I stand down there during worship, and as I

assess myself before I come up, I am as inadequate as

ever, but now my inadequacies excite me.

Because I know what ever good, and what fruit may

come from the teaching of God’s Word, the results are

His.

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I just need to get as far as I can out of the way, and I

simply expect the Helper to show up.

I think sometimes, “what if He doesn’t this week,” well,

we would all be in trouble, but I look back, and never

once has He failed to show up.

And I must admit, as I study throughout the week,

there is now a joy that comes over me, as I think of

what He might do through this text.

Like Paul, I can say as He did in… 1 Cor. 9:16 For if I

preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for

necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not

preach the gospel!

It is a weird reality that in myself I am not capable of

doing this, that creates a natural worry, but as I expect

Another to Help, it creates a great expectancy.

Church, do you pray expectantly, or flippantly.

Do you throw a prayer up, hoping God hears it,

wondering if it made past the ceiling, or do you expect

God to hear, and act?

Church, do you really expect Christ to fill you with His

Holy Spirit and to empower your lives?

Expectant prayer is key.

And notice, they did not think their efforts were futile

as the days went on, their expectation remained, as

they remained persistent in their prayers.

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Remember Luke ended his gospel by recording that

they Luke 24:53 were continually in the temple

praising and blessing God.

Whether they went to the Temple, or they were in the

Upper Room, wherever they were, in each place, they

prayed as their days went on.

They remembered Jesus’ instruction in Luke 11:9-10

9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek,

and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks

finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened."

The context of which was in…

Luke 11:13

"How much more will your heavenly Father give the

Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!"

For these 10 days these men prayed, in unity and

expectantly and persistently.

Some very important key takeaways here.

And we will see next over the course of sometime

during these 10 days their number grew to 120...

Now, there is no telling who these 120 disciples were

exactly, no doubt they included the 11, the women,

Jesus’ family, and perhaps Nicodemus, Joseph of

Arimathea, the two on the way to Emmaus, perhaps

Martha, Mary, and Lazarus of Bethany.

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Maybe even many who were healed by Jesus during

His ministry.

But we see as their faith increased, so did their group.

And this will be the nucleus of the beginning of the

Church.

Understand here, through this picture, as we look to

the Book of Acts as our template we see something

that is vital for the church.

The people of God, need other people of God.

This is the human element of our earthly sojourn, we

need each other to draw from one another.

One of the most unhealthy things a Christian can do is

isolate himself or herself from one another.

We draw so much from each other, we cause each

other to grow intellectually in the Word, we need

social engagement for our spiritual walk.

Prov. 27:17 As iron sharpens iron,

So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

We need others, Christians need other Christians.

When you become a believer in Jesus Christ you enter

into a family, the Body of Christ, and we are meant to

do life with one another.

I was just talking to Pastor Joe about a very sad reality

about the kids we send off to college.

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I always try to emphasize to them, that more

important than anything else when they get settled in,

they need to find the Christians and immediately

identify themselves with them.

I have noticed the ones that within that first couple

weeks make that effort to do so, and they find the

prayer groups and Bible study groups, they make it out

usually with their faith intact.

But those who get caught up in the busyness of the

college life, and all that it demands, and put it off, they

soon find themselves drowning in secularism, and it is

not long before they go through a transformation, and

they begin buying into the viewpoints of their

progressive professors.

They need that peer contact immediately, they need to

identify immediately with the Christians, and God will

work through them to hold them accountable to build

them up in their faith.

This is not only something for college students, but

also when people move away, and they are relocating,

I often times help search for the church that they will

move into.

It does not take long in a new environment, to put off

looking for your new church, before it becomes an

afterthought, and your spiritual walk begins to falter.

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We need each other, one of the most important things

in this life, is to be among that Body of Believers that

God has called you to grow with.

Understand, there are no perfect Christian groups, all

are full of fallen men and women, clinging to God’s

Grace.

So if you are looking for a perfect church, I am sorry to

be the one to disappoint you, this one is not it.

We sometimes hurt one another, we sometimes let

each other down, and we are sometimes very

disappointing.

But one thing that you can count on, is we will love you

imperfectly, we will commit to grow in the Lord with

you, and we will come alongside you to do life with

you.

And if you do not have a place like that to grow in, we

ask that you pray if this place is the dysfunctional

family of believers that God would have you join to.

It is essential that Christians grow with other

Christians.

So let’s look now, as one disciple emerges as the leader

here, and they use this waiting time to take care of

some administrative details.

Matthias Chosen (cf. Ps 109:8)

15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the

disciples (altogether the number of names was about a

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hundred and twenty), and said, 16 "Men and brethren,

this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit

spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas,

who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; 17

for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in

this ministry."

18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of

iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the

middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it

became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so

that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama,

that is, Field of Blood.)

20 "For it is written in the Book of Psalms:

'Let his dwelling place be desolate,

And let no one live in it';

and,

'Let another take his office.'

We see evidence here as to what else the disciples

were doing during this waiting period…

As Peter stands up to speak about the refilling of Judas’

leadership position we see he quoted two Bible Verses.

Also, too when Peter stands up on Pentecost,

scriptures will come flowing from his heart.

This must mean Peter and the others were studying

God’s Word through this time, searching for answers,

after all isn’t this where Jesus pointed these men?

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Remember the two on the Road to Emmaus, we are

told, in Luke 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the

Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures

the things concerning Himself.

Also, the others Jesus too pointed them too God’s

Word as Luke recorded in Luke 24:45 And He opened

their understanding, that they might comprehend the

Scriptures.

You see two things go hand in hand in our Christian

walks, prayer for which we talk to our God, and Bible

reading, for which our God talks to us.

James Montgomery Boice says here “Prayer is of great

importance. But somebody once said, ‘I think wisely,

that when we’re talking to God and God is talking to

us, we had better let God do most of the talking.’ In

other words, we should spend most of our time in

Bible Study.” P. 35

And these guys had the Old Testament, and Jesus’

Words as God’s Word, and they must have been

reading and writing what they remembered Him

teaching urgently.

And as Peter was in His devotions God spoke clearly

about what must happen with Judas’ position.

He must have been in the Psalms, because he first

quotes Ps 69:25 Let their dwelling place be desolate;

Let no one live in their tents.

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And then he quotes Ps 109:8 And let another take his

office.

And from those two verses he is prompted to lead that

early group in replacing Judas.

And something that will continually stand out to us as

we study through the Book of Acts, is the emphasis

that the Apostles and the early church put on God’s

Word.

You know, the church is busy about a lot of things

today, but if we truly want to be blessed of the Lord,

we need to make sure we are busy about what is

important to Him.

God blesses a people that seek to know Him through

His Word.

Listen, if you are in a season of waiting, nothing will

redeem the time more than Bible Study, become a

more diligent student and as you come to know God’s

Word, you will come to know our God more deeply

and wonderfully.

And it is essential, that you not only read it, but believe

it, and proclaim it.

Nothing solidifies my faith more, than when I share

God’s Truth with others.

The more you talk about what you are reading, the

more you believe it.

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So Peter, through his Bible reading recognizes the need

for leadership, and now he will take steps to meet that

need, and fill the void.

Let’s pick it up now in verse 21…

21 "Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us

all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among

us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day

when He was taken up from us, one of these must

become a witness with us of His resurrection."

23 And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas,

who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 24 And they

prayed and said, "You, O Lord, who know the hearts of

all, show which of these two You have chosen 25 to

take part in this ministry and apostleship from which

Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own

place." 26 And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on

Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven

apostles.

Now, some have been critical of the disciples here.

Some have said that they limited God with two options

here, and perhaps neither of these men were God’s

Choice, and some argue that since this is the first and

last time we learn of Matthias that God must not have

chosen him.

Those of this camp believe the Apostle Paul was God’s

Choice.

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They say casting lots was not a way to find out God’s

will, and that was more of a pagan practice.

Now, others argue that none of that is true, that Paul

was not the only one listed as an apostle, Barnabas will

be and others too, but they are different then the

Twelve.

See here, the in verses 21 and 22 we see the

qualification of this order of Apostle, they were with

Jesus during His ministry from John’s Baptism, to the

Day of Jesus’ Ascension, and they must have be a

witness of the Resurrection.

Paul declared his own class of Apostleship in…

1 Cor. 15:8 … as by one born out of due time.

The Twelve were even hesitant to admit Paul into the

Jerusalem fellowship, as we will see later on in Acts 9…

Paul was not of this original order of Apostle who had

seen the risen Lord face to face during those 40 days.

These who hold to this second idea, also argue that

casting lots was not pagan, in fact it was an Old

Testament practice.

It would have been a strong Jewish Tradition, for which

these Eleven were all Jewish.

And more than that this decision was made while they

were in prayer and Bible study, and they were led by

the Spirit to seek a qualified leader.

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As far as not hearing again of Matthias, we do not hear

of many of the Apostles again, some only briefly, but

the bulk of the record in Acts will focus on Peter, then

on Paul, most go nameless through this account.

So were the Apostles in the will of God here, both

arguments are plausible, I now lean toward the

second, that they were in the Will of God when they

chose Matthias.

I will not think any less of you if you believe the

Apostle Paul was supposed to be that man, I have

stood in the camp before as well.

Matthias fills the void here, and now they are 12

Apostles, 12 being a very significant number, in the Old

Testament there were 12 Tribes of Israel.

These Twelve will start their ministry ministering to the

12 Tribes of Israel, and the later class of Apostles will

come as the Word goes to the whole world.

So we will end this week with these 120 gathered in

that Upper Room, in one accord, in prayer and

supplication, and in their Word.

That is the making of Revival, we never get to choose

when or how Revival comes, it is a move of God’s

Spirit, but I know many of us, for years have been

praying and waiting.

I have seen glimpses, and I have always believed we

would see one last Revival before our Lord comes for

His Church, His Bride.

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We have been in a 3 month reset church, our lives

have come dramatically to halt, and we have had a

time of reflection and I know many of you have had

some serious and life changing encounters with God

during this time.

I was talking to an old friend this Thursday about the

quarantine, and about the last three months, and we

were talking about the good and bad out of this time.

One thing that he realized, is he and his family never

had time to eat dinner with each other, they were

going to baseball practices, gymnastics, and other

things throughout the week, and their busy lives

actually kept them separate.

He said this time has been revolutionary in his home,

as they are now eating together, spending evenings

together as a family, as everything in our lives was

stopped.

And we talked about how we really did not miss any of

that stuff that kept our lives running the rat race, in

fact he wished the quarantine would last longer for the

sake of his family.

I told him, “Hey man, or you can just make better life

decisions, don’t wish that upon us all.”

But anyway, on the other hand, there were

something’s we were both just missing dearly, we both

acknowledged how much we missed fellowshipping

with God’s People in church.

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People kind of took for granted church prior to this,

and you just don’t know how important and valuable

something is oftentimes until it is gone.

Church we have had a waiting period, we have had a

time to assess our lives, and what really matters, and

hopefully we have found more time to pray and to be

in God’s Word, and perhaps God has showed you the

importance of gathering together as a Unified Body of

Believers.

Church, next week is Pentecost, literally, and at the

same time in our Bible Study.

Why can’t we spend the next week with a Holy

Anticipation and Expectation that God will move

historically once again.

There is no formula to initiate Revival, but we can get

our sails ready, we can prepare for God to move once

again in and through His Church.

The reality is, we pray for Revival, and we sincerely ask

God to move in our lives and churches.

But if you have never studied Revivals in History past,

you might be ignorant to what happens in Great

Moves of God.

You will find, for us believers, Revival is demanding, it

costs us greatly, to facilitate daily, those who are

coming to the church to seek God, it would require a

great commitment of God’s Servants.

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In times of Revival people flock to the churches, and

they never want to go home.

If your idea of Revival, means that God moves, and

others can facilitate it, please stop praying for it.

But if during this time of waiting and preparation, God

has stirred your own heart to join in the work and to

get busy, to roll up your sleeves, then keep praying for

it.

The church is thick in arm chair quarter backs, who like

to stay home, who like to criticize every decision being

made, who like to complain to others about the

ministry, but what we need is not more arm chair

quarterbacking.

We need plowers, those who can put their hand to the

plow and no matter the cost, and without looking back

get busy in the work.

Listen, these disciples here in our studies are going to

be thrust into a world changing movement, and God

did not work around their schedules, and their lives.

In Revival Jesus will ask everything from us, He will ask

that we put our lives aside to facilitate His Agenda.

You know your heart better than anyone this morning,

if you are praying and desiring for Revival, but a Revival

for others to handle, you are praying amiss.

Church we reopen next week, and perhaps the Lord is

stirring your heart, I know He is stirring mine.

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God is moving in our nation.

This week, I got to listen in on a Zoom with our

President and his cabinet, and it was overwhelming to

hear them talk about our Lord Jesus.

To hear the president talk about the importance of

church, and the importance of prayer in this nation, is

a tell, that God is moving.

Church, Satan has many people bound by fear right

now, he is “What ifing” people like crazy.

What if I get sick, what if the government comes after

us, what if, what if…

I received an email this week, from a couple of people

who have seen a thing or two in this world.

They both have seen 9 decades of history, Pastor Paul

and Ruth Smith, who God used as the founders of this

church many years ago.

She wrote me this… “Pastor thank you for the

encouraging words that we will again be worshipping

as a loving Congregation. Your flock desire to hear

God’s Word, in person, and we desire to move forward

In the liberty that our constitution grants us. Paul and I

are in the ‘endangered species’ category because

of our age, but with your permission we will be in

Church Sunday to worship our Lord. God holds each

one of our futures, our days are numbered according

to His plan, how and when we go to be with

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Him, is His choosing. We refuse to live in fear. Scripture

teaches us “perfect LOVE casts out all fear”.

We chose to love Him together with our Church

family. See you Sunday, God willing. Ruth &Paul

What an encouragement Church, don’t make decisions

based on fear.

What I ask from you this week, spend the week in

prayer, in God’s Word, and allow Him to speak to you,

and prepare your heart for what is ahead.

As far as me and my wife, we are preparing our sails

for God’s Spirit to move, we are expecting Revival,

what else is there to hope for?

Pray about joining us in this expectation and this hope,

and seek God on where you belong in this Great Work.

Let’s pray

See you next week church!