1 00:00:03,840 --> 00:00:08,119 This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark 2 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:12,240 Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland, 3 00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,400 County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he 4 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:18,720 continues teaching through God's Word. 5 00:00:37,040 --> 00:00:39,960 They had a unity. There was no division and 6 00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:43,360 complaining, I don't want to do it this way, We're going to do 7 00:00:43,360 --> 00:00:45,280 it this way. No, this is my ministry. 8 00:00:45,480 --> 00:00:47,880 This is my vision. This, there was none of that 9 00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:49,760 stuff. There was one vision and it was 10 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:53,200 Christ in his glory. And anything that we had an 11 00:00:53,200 --> 00:00:57,320 opportunity to do back then as well as now is a privilege. 12 00:00:57,320 --> 00:01:00,120 It's not a right, it's a privilege to serve the Lord. 13 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:04,000 And we, we serve him together. We don't serve him independently 14 00:01:04,000 --> 00:01:06,960 of one another. We endeavour to try to do things 15 00:01:06,960 --> 00:01:10,880 as a team. Unity in Christ is like a choir 16 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:15,800 singing one perfect song, each voice blending for His glory. 17 00:01:16,400 --> 00:01:19,880 In today's message, Pastor Clark conveys how the early believers 18 00:01:19,880 --> 00:01:23,720 shared a single vision, free from complaints or personal 19 00:01:23,720 --> 00:01:26,760 agendas. You see no one claiming this is 20 00:01:26,760 --> 00:01:31,560 my ministry, my way. Their focus was Christ alone, 21 00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:35,720 shining in His glory. Serving him is a privilege, not 22 00:01:35,720 --> 00:01:37,720 a right. And you're called to do it 23 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:42,360 together, not solo teamwork. And faith reflects his heart. 24 00:01:42,760 --> 00:01:46,480 Are you serving Christ in unity with others and embracing it 25 00:01:47,120 --> 00:01:49,320 now? Here's Pastor Clark in the book 26 00:01:49,320 --> 00:01:53,240 of Acts Chapter 2 with today's edition of Living Waters of 27 00:01:53,240 --> 00:01:55,960 Grace. Jesus said by this people will 28 00:01:55,960 --> 00:01:59,480 know you're my disciples by the love you have for one another. 29 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:04,080 Nope, your criticism or judgmentalism or holier and thou 30 00:02:04,080 --> 00:02:06,720 thank God we're not going down those paths here. 31 00:02:07,920 --> 00:02:09,520 None of us are better than each other. 32 00:02:12,080 --> 00:02:16,920 Well, the purpose of the church, the fellowship is that right? 33 00:02:17,000 --> 00:02:19,720 Helping one another. And sometimes you might not want 34 00:02:19,720 --> 00:02:21,720 to be helped because you think you can do it yourself. 35 00:02:21,720 --> 00:02:25,000 Well, you, you need help. That's what it is. 36 00:02:25,000 --> 00:02:28,080 It's a blessing to serve people. It's not an inconvenience, is 37 00:02:28,080 --> 00:02:30,040 it? That's what we do as Christians. 38 00:02:30,040 --> 00:02:32,360 We care for one another. We love one another. 39 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:34,400 We want to help each other. We want to be there for one 40 00:02:34,400 --> 00:02:36,720 another. That's the fellowship. 41 00:02:37,120 --> 00:02:40,840 You know, being together. Some of you make a practice of 42 00:02:40,840 --> 00:02:43,560 getting together with different people, whether it's dinner, you 43 00:02:43,560 --> 00:02:47,080 have them in your home, you have a coffee or you go to a Bible 44 00:02:47,080 --> 00:02:50,440 study or you know, doing life together, fellowshipping. 45 00:02:50,920 --> 00:02:52,680 That's what they did in the early church. 46 00:02:52,680 --> 00:02:55,400 They were in the word and they fellowship like we do. 47 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:00,400 And then it says in the breaking of bread and that is the Lord's 48 00:03:00,400 --> 00:03:02,520 Supper. Some people say, well, why do 49 00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:04,360 you guys have the Lord's Supper every week? 50 00:03:04,360 --> 00:03:07,000 I'm used to only having it once every six months. 51 00:03:07,640 --> 00:03:10,080 Well, the early church had it every time they gathered. 52 00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:13,400 So I'm not going to, like, try to reinvent anything, are you? 53 00:03:13,640 --> 00:03:17,000 Let's just do what they did. We won't go wrong if we follow 54 00:03:17,000 --> 00:03:20,280 what the ingredients are in the beginning stages of the New 55 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:23,040 Testament church. The farther we get away from the 56 00:03:23,240 --> 00:03:26,680 principles of the New Testament church, the weaker the church 57 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:30,720 becomes. And so they broke bread together 58 00:03:30,720 --> 00:03:34,800 and they had this remembrance of what the Lord has done for them 59 00:03:35,320 --> 00:03:38,400 and the death of Christ and his burial in his resurrection. 60 00:03:39,000 --> 00:03:43,000 And then it says in prayers and in prayers, as the church was 61 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:47,920 Jewish, they had certain times of the day of of prayer. 62 00:03:48,400 --> 00:03:52,280 And so they followed their tradition of the times of prayer 63 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:55,240 during the day. And so there were certain 64 00:03:55,480 --> 00:03:59,240 prayers that they remembered from their upbringing as Jewish 65 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:02,440 people. In regard to worshipping the 66 00:04:02,440 --> 00:04:09,160 Lord God Jehovah, prayer is the foundation of the power of God 67 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:11,640 in the church. Without prayer, there is no 68 00:04:11,640 --> 00:04:14,600 power. Pastor Lewis, every Sunday he 69 00:04:14,600 --> 00:04:16,880 comes, he says, has anybody prayed for you yet? 70 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:19,800 I said no. He says, I feel bad for you, let 71 00:04:19,800 --> 00:04:22,200 me pray for you. No, you guys are all praying for 72 00:04:22,200 --> 00:04:23,680 me. Before you come, you pray for 73 00:04:23,680 --> 00:04:25,200 me. While I'm preaching, you pray 74 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:27,120 for, you know, we're so grateful for your prayers. 75 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:31,040 But you know, Ted prays for me in the hallway every Sunday. 76 00:04:31,040 --> 00:04:35,200 He meets here early to pray and hold up the church and you guys 77 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,240 and me and everything that happens in the ministry. 78 00:04:38,600 --> 00:04:42,320 Lewis, Pastor Lewis lays hands on me and prays for me. 79 00:04:42,840 --> 00:04:44,960 Without prayer, I can't do anything. 80 00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:49,760 And without prayer in the church, God is quenched. 81 00:04:49,760 --> 00:04:53,200 His Spirit is quenched. I can't emphasize it enough. 82 00:04:53,360 --> 00:04:57,040 All all week long, we get text 2020 of us on the prayer line. 83 00:04:57,800 --> 00:05:00,600 This person needs prayer. This happened, this crisis, this 84 00:05:00,600 --> 00:05:04,680 praise, this answer. It's just wonderful to see this 85 00:05:04,680 --> 00:05:07,800 church being a place of prayer and the people let us know how 86 00:05:07,800 --> 00:05:09,480 they're doing because of the prayer. 87 00:05:09,880 --> 00:05:12,240 The prayers that have been answered, the miracles that have 88 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:16,120 occurred, the healings that the Lord has done, the people who 89 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:19,680 have gotten saved, the people who have turned away from wicked 90 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:23,360 ways because of prayer. I mean this answers and answers 91 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:28,440 and answers prayer and then it says in verse 43, then fear came 92 00:05:28,440 --> 00:05:33,240 upon every soul and many wonders and signs were done through the 93 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:36,960 apostles. The apostles had special power 94 00:05:36,960 --> 00:05:40,840 from God. I'm not an apostle, I'm a pastor 95 00:05:40,840 --> 00:05:44,600 teacher. I believe God does miracles and 96 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:48,400 I've seen him do miracles and I've received miracles, but I am 97 00:05:48,400 --> 00:05:50,680 not the agent of miracles for you. 98 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:55,480 So only Christ can do a miracle, but he chooses to do miracles 99 00:05:55,480 --> 00:05:58,760 through each of us. That's not a pastor or a teacher 100 00:05:59,000 --> 00:06:01,280 through the body of Christ. You praying for someone? 101 00:06:01,440 --> 00:06:03,240 Some of the pastor. Can you pray for me? 102 00:06:03,240 --> 00:06:06,360 Yeah, But you can get anybody in this church to pray for you. 103 00:06:06,360 --> 00:06:08,520 Their prayers are just as effectual as mine. 104 00:06:08,760 --> 00:06:12,760 So we don't have apostles today. Some people claim to be 105 00:06:12,760 --> 00:06:17,160 apostles, but they're not false Apostles everywhere trying to 106 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:20,120 RIP people off of their resources. 107 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:25,880 But these men in the early church, these 11 plus Matthias, 108 00:06:25,880 --> 00:06:30,960 who they had voted on, were involved in this foundation of 109 00:06:30,960 --> 00:06:33,800 the church. And the church is built upon 110 00:06:34,280 --> 00:06:37,400 Jesus Christ being the chief cornerstone, right? 111 00:06:38,080 --> 00:06:39,840 He's the one that holds it all together. 112 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:45,480 And upon that cornerstone, that foundation is the apostles and 113 00:06:45,480 --> 00:06:47,840 prophets. And it says there's no other 114 00:06:47,840 --> 00:06:52,120 foundation that can be laid then this foundation, which is the 115 00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:56,720 Church of Jesus Christ Christ, the chief cornerstone and the 116 00:06:56,720 --> 00:06:58,680 foundation of the apostles and prophets. 117 00:06:58,840 --> 00:07:03,000 So as corporately as believers in New Testament churches, we're 118 00:07:03,000 --> 00:07:06,840 not reinventing the wheel. We're not changing the the, the 119 00:07:06,840 --> 00:07:08,640 system. We're not saying, well, we need 120 00:07:08,640 --> 00:07:12,480 a different cornerstone, let's get Allah in there or let's get 121 00:07:12,480 --> 00:07:16,920 Buddha or Muhammad or whatever. No, Jesus is the only one that 122 00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:18,600 can make this work. It's his. 123 00:07:18,760 --> 00:07:22,480 And we're not looking for new apostles and new prophets to, to 124 00:07:22,680 --> 00:07:25,240 tell us how to do this. No, we're depending on the 125 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:28,520 apostles that are written in the Bible and the prophets that are 126 00:07:28,520 --> 00:07:31,600 written in the Bible, period. Anybody that thinks they have 127 00:07:31,600 --> 00:07:33,600 new revelation or new information. 128 00:07:33,920 --> 00:07:36,720 I completely say that there's a door head on on. 129 00:07:37,280 --> 00:07:40,600 We don't need anything else but what we have here right Sola 130 00:07:40,600 --> 00:07:44,880 script or so the the Holy Spirit was moving in the church. 131 00:07:44,880 --> 00:07:48,120 Miracles are happening because of what's being done in the 132 00:07:48,120 --> 00:07:52,240 church is brand new. The Lord, if you may advertise 133 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:56,240 his power through these signs and wonders, where people were 134 00:07:56,240 --> 00:08:00,520 all the sudden overwhelmed and in fear of this holy God that 135 00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:04,080 showed up in these meetings and did wondrous things. 136 00:08:04,800 --> 00:08:09,000 And then it says in verse 44. Now all who believe were 137 00:08:09,000 --> 00:08:13,440 together and had all things in common and sold their 138 00:08:13,440 --> 00:08:17,600 possessions and goods and divided them among all as anyone 139 00:08:17,600 --> 00:08:20,600 had need. Now this was not something that 140 00:08:20,600 --> 00:08:26,160 was being advocated by the Lord per SE, that every generation 141 00:08:26,160 --> 00:08:28,600 does this until Christ comes again. 142 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:32,559 But they were in Jerusalem at the time, unemployed, the 143 00:08:32,559 --> 00:08:36,280 majority of them, and they needed help from one another to 144 00:08:36,280 --> 00:08:39,000 get by. So the way they got the eye is 145 00:08:39,000 --> 00:08:42,640 that they pulled their resources together and they helped each 146 00:08:42,640 --> 00:08:45,080 other and they shared, and they had all things in common. 147 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:48,960 This didn't continue very long after this because the church 148 00:08:48,960 --> 00:08:52,640 was spread out through the persecution and they went all 149 00:08:52,640 --> 00:08:55,440 over the place. But they had such a heart in the 150 00:08:55,640 --> 00:08:59,240 early stages of the church that whatever was mine was yours and 151 00:08:59,240 --> 00:09:02,440 whatever was yours was mine. And we would figure it out so 152 00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:05,640 that there was no one that was without and everyone had food 153 00:09:05,640 --> 00:09:09,280 and everyone had shelter and everyone was being taken care of 154 00:09:09,560 --> 00:09:12,360 and they distributed it out as anyone had need. 155 00:09:12,880 --> 00:09:15,840 Now, the way it works, people give offerings in the church and 156 00:09:15,840 --> 00:09:19,880 the offerings are budgeted by the man who handles the finances 157 00:09:19,880 --> 00:09:22,680 in the church. And there's finances that are 158 00:09:22,680 --> 00:09:25,520 set up for the radio station. There's finances that are set up 159 00:09:25,800 --> 00:09:27,920 for paying the salaries of the church. 160 00:09:27,920 --> 00:09:31,360 There's finances that are set up for paying the utilities and the 161 00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:33,120 rent. There's finances that are set up 162 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:36,520 for the benevolent need of people who are in the church, 163 00:09:36,520 --> 00:09:39,520 who are in crisis, that need help for a period of time. 164 00:09:39,560 --> 00:09:42,960 So we do the same thing, but it's done independently of us 165 00:09:43,040 --> 00:09:45,240 doing it all together. We're throwing all our stuff in 166 00:09:45,240 --> 00:09:48,120 one pot. We give what we're able to give 167 00:09:48,320 --> 00:09:50,600 to the work of the ministry, and we put it in the offering 168 00:09:50,600 --> 00:09:52,480 bucket. Should we mail it in or however 169 00:09:52,480 --> 00:09:56,000 we do it online. This is how the church works now 170 00:09:56,000 --> 00:10:00,680 in regard to sharing the needs financially that may arise 171 00:10:00,680 --> 00:10:04,160 within the community. The church and verse 46 it says 172 00:10:04,360 --> 00:10:08,200 so continuing daily with 1 accord in the temple. 173 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:11,040 They had a unity. There was no division and 174 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:13,760 complaining. I don't want to do it this way 175 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:16,280 We're going to do it this way. No, this is my ministry. 176 00:10:16,440 --> 00:10:18,800 This is my vision. This there was none of that 177 00:10:18,800 --> 00:10:20,680 stuff. There was one vision and it was 178 00:10:20,680 --> 00:10:24,640 Christ in his glory and anything that we had in our opportunity 179 00:10:24,640 --> 00:10:28,000 to do back then as well as now is a privilege. 180 00:10:28,000 --> 00:10:31,400 It's not a right, it's a privilege to serve the Lord and 181 00:10:31,400 --> 00:10:34,560 we we serve him together. We don't serve him independently 182 00:10:34,560 --> 00:10:37,480 of one another. We endeavour to try to do things 183 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:42,240 as a team, as a, as a body of believers, that we have oneness, 184 00:10:42,240 --> 00:10:46,680 that we have unity of, of the Spirit, doing things according 185 00:10:46,680 --> 00:10:50,280 to the word of God, by the instruction and teaching of the 186 00:10:50,280 --> 00:10:53,360 Spirit of God. And they broke bread from house 187 00:10:53,360 --> 00:10:55,040 to house. They had meals together, they 188 00:10:55,040 --> 00:10:58,240 gathered together, they took the Lord's Supper together in each 189 00:10:58,240 --> 00:11:00,880 other's homes. They ate their food with 190 00:11:00,880 --> 00:11:03,320 gladness and simplicity of heart. 191 00:11:03,960 --> 00:11:05,920 Boy, isn't that a beautiful simple vision? 192 00:11:06,760 --> 00:11:09,560 Ate their meals with simplicity and gladness of heart. 193 00:11:10,040 --> 00:11:13,560 We can learn something from how these people live their lives in 194 00:11:13,560 --> 00:11:17,200 simplicity, not complexity. Do you ever feel like life gets 195 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:20,360 way too complicated? Yeah, well, we're, we're really 196 00:11:20,360 --> 00:11:22,320 good at doing that, unfortunately. 197 00:11:22,600 --> 00:11:25,520 But just to get back to some simple basics of this, being 198 00:11:25,520 --> 00:11:29,320 grateful for the daily bread that the Lord provides for us 199 00:11:29,320 --> 00:11:32,280 and not take it for granted. When you look at the people in 200 00:11:32,280 --> 00:11:35,880 Ukraine right now that are being dispersed everywhere and they 201 00:11:35,880 --> 00:11:39,280 have a backpack of a few belongings on their back and the 202 00:11:39,360 --> 00:11:42,040 communities are devastated and the infrastructures are 203 00:11:42,040 --> 00:11:45,040 destroyed. You know, the the food issue is, 204 00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:48,840 is in crisis, man. It doesn't take too long after 205 00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:52,520 watching some of those news feeds that you are grateful you 206 00:11:52,520 --> 00:11:55,760 don't live in Ukraine. And then they were praising God, 207 00:11:56,640 --> 00:11:58,480 which is what we desire to do here. 208 00:11:58,480 --> 00:12:03,160 Praise God and having favor with all the people. 209 00:12:04,200 --> 00:12:07,520 And that's what we want to have. We want to have God's favor and 210 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:10,880 we want to have favor one another in this church as we do 211 00:12:10,880 --> 00:12:14,120 his work together. Because when we have favor from 212 00:12:14,120 --> 00:12:19,840 God, then wonderful things occur in our lives and in our 213 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:22,960 families. To live life without God's favor 214 00:12:22,960 --> 00:12:27,000 is a disaster. But they had favor with all the 215 00:12:27,000 --> 00:12:28,840 people. And because of all this, we're 216 00:12:28,840 --> 00:12:33,160 reading here, it says, and the Lord added to the church daily 217 00:12:33,600 --> 00:12:37,240 those who were being saved. It wasn't man that added to the 218 00:12:37,240 --> 00:12:40,240 church. It was the Lord who added to the 219 00:12:40,240 --> 00:12:43,120 church. I had nothing to do with you 220 00:12:43,120 --> 00:12:45,600 being here today. The Lord drew you here today. 221 00:12:46,760 --> 00:12:49,120 The Lord's the one that grows the church. 222 00:12:49,480 --> 00:12:55,840 And a church that's growing is rooted in the teachings of the 223 00:12:55,840 --> 00:12:58,880 principles that we're looking at here today. 224 00:13:00,080 --> 00:13:03,240 It's not the number of people that come to the church that 225 00:13:03,240 --> 00:13:07,320 make the church powerful. It's the kind of people that 226 00:13:07,320 --> 00:13:11,120 come to the church that make the church powerful. 227 00:13:11,760 --> 00:13:16,120 People who are filled with God's Spirit, people who love God and 228 00:13:16,120 --> 00:13:20,000 love other people, people who are humble, people who have a 229 00:13:20,000 --> 00:13:24,920 desire and a thirst for the Word of God and the things of God in 230 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:30,520 each one of your lives are being impacted by one another. 231 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:33,680 And as you go out into your world and your life and your 232 00:13:33,680 --> 00:13:38,760 community, you and the Lord go together and you have an impact 233 00:13:38,760 --> 00:13:42,920 on other people's lives, your neighbors, your relatives, the 234 00:13:43,000 --> 00:13:46,760 coworkers. Some of them then ask you, well, 235 00:13:46,760 --> 00:13:52,160 what is different about you? What makes you different? 236 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:55,320 And you tell them about Jesus, right? 237 00:13:56,080 --> 00:13:59,360 What he's done for you. And then sometimes they're 238 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:01,760 curious. Would you go to church? 239 00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:03,480 Yeah. Where's it at? 240 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:05,480 Can I go with you? What's the address? 241 00:14:05,480 --> 00:14:09,000 When do they meet? How do I have to address or 242 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,320 whatever? They want to know a little bit 243 00:14:11,320 --> 00:14:14,880 about where you hang out and where you learn about God. 244 00:14:15,280 --> 00:14:18,920 And the Lord then adds to the church daily those who were 245 00:14:18,920 --> 00:14:22,200 being saved. You know, I don't save anybody, 246 00:14:22,720 --> 00:14:25,440 and you don't either. Only God can save people. 247 00:14:25,760 --> 00:14:30,640 We can point people to the message of the gospel and 248 00:14:30,640 --> 00:14:33,480 salvation, but it's God that does the work of salvation. 249 00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:38,880 It's not any of us who led you to the Lord, the Holy Spirit. 250 00:14:39,840 --> 00:14:42,200 He's the only one that can lead us to the truth. 251 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,200 Now Peter and John in chapter 3, they went up together to the 252 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:49,920 temple at the hour of prayer, the 9th hour, 3:00 in the 253 00:14:49,920 --> 00:14:52,640 afternoon. So they're still following a 254 00:14:52,640 --> 00:14:55,200 little bit of the tradition of of being Jewish people. 255 00:14:55,200 --> 00:14:58,520 The Gentiles really hadn't come on the scene yet in a dominant 256 00:14:58,520 --> 00:15:01,280 way. And a certain man, lame from his 257 00:15:01,280 --> 00:15:04,240 mother's womb was carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of 258 00:15:04,240 --> 00:15:07,800 the temple, which is called beautiful, to ask alms for those 259 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:10,760 who entered the temple. So this man, about 40 years old, 260 00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:12,760 was always lifted up and taken up. 261 00:15:13,160 --> 00:15:15,080 This was one of the gates at the temple. 262 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:19,760 They say it was about 75 feet high, double doors, brass, just 263 00:15:19,760 --> 00:15:21,720 beautiful. The sun glistened off of it. 264 00:15:22,000 --> 00:15:25,160 It was the best place to sit if you were a beggar because most 265 00:15:25,160 --> 00:15:29,120 of the people came through this gate into the temple and he 266 00:15:29,120 --> 00:15:31,520 would ask alms from those who entered the temple. 267 00:15:31,800 --> 00:15:34,840 Alms were something that Jewish people did because it was part 268 00:15:34,840 --> 00:15:37,280 of their ritual and part of their way of worship. 269 00:15:37,280 --> 00:15:39,960 So you wouldn't walk by a beggar and ignore them. 270 00:15:40,200 --> 00:15:42,280 You would be compelled to give them something. 271 00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:46,160 So I'm sure the guy was taken care of from the graciousness of 272 00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:48,000 the people that entered into the temple. 273 00:15:48,640 --> 00:15:53,600 And fixing his eyes on him with John, Peter said, look at us. 274 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:56,600 And so the man's used to just someone dropping something in 275 00:15:56,600 --> 00:16:00,360 there, clinging the cup. And Peter looks at him and says, 276 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:03,640 look at us. Just don't look at the hands 277 00:16:03,640 --> 00:16:07,760 that are going by throwing money into the basket or whatever. 278 00:16:07,760 --> 00:16:13,720 He had to collect his offerings. They were compelling this man to 279 00:16:13,720 --> 00:16:18,200 look at them, Peter and John, and so he gave them his 280 00:16:18,200 --> 00:16:21,560 attention, expecting to receive something from them. 281 00:16:21,960 --> 00:16:25,320 Then Peter said silver and gold I do not have. 282 00:16:25,960 --> 00:16:27,480 So this guy's probably hearing that. 283 00:16:27,480 --> 00:16:30,560 Why you want me to look at you? The only reason I'm here is that 284 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:33,200 I need money, and you're telling me you don't have any. 285 00:16:33,200 --> 00:16:36,400 So what's in it for me? But they didn't stop there, they 286 00:16:36,400 --> 00:16:40,160 said. But what I do have I give you in 287 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,920 the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. 288 00:16:44,160 --> 00:16:46,640 And he took him by the right hand and lifting him up, and 289 00:16:46,640 --> 00:16:50,760 immediately his feet and his ankle bones received strength. 290 00:16:51,400 --> 00:16:54,120 Only a doctor could communicate what's happening here. 291 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:58,640 Specifically something with the ankles, something with the feet 292 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:02,200 were out of whack. And Luke is telling us, Doctor 293 00:17:02,200 --> 00:17:07,240 Luke here, who wrote the book of the act, that this was a miracle 294 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:11,480 physiologically. That also could be explained 295 00:17:11,480 --> 00:17:14,480 medically here, that this guy's feet and ankle weren't hooked 296 00:17:14,480 --> 00:17:16,440 up, right? It's a miracle. 297 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,960 It says in verse 8, he leaps up, stood and walked and entered the 298 00:17:20,960 --> 00:17:24,520 temple with them. They didn't give him crutches or 299 00:17:24,520 --> 00:17:26,680 a Walker. I mean, this guy was fully 300 00:17:26,680 --> 00:17:31,200 healed instantaneously walking, leaping and praising God. 301 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:34,920 And all the people saw him walking and praising God. 302 00:17:35,200 --> 00:17:38,680 Then they knew that it was he who sat begging alms at the 303 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:42,440 beautiful gate of the temple. And they were filled with wonder 304 00:17:42,440 --> 00:17:44,880 and amazement at what had happened to him. 305 00:17:45,520 --> 00:17:49,440 Think about all these people, all these years that were going 306 00:17:49,440 --> 00:17:54,440 into the temple, seeing this guy day, day in and out, week in and 307 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:56,520 week out, year in and year out, nothing changing. 308 00:17:56,520 --> 00:18:00,360 The poor guy just can't move. He can't walk, he's lame. 309 00:18:01,240 --> 00:18:05,240 And now they all recognize him as the one who was lame. 310 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:09,600 It's no longer lame. The power of God moving by the 311 00:18:09,600 --> 00:18:13,000 Spirit of God and the lives of the people of God. 312 00:18:14,080 --> 00:18:17,320 People don't follow the Lord because of miracles. 313 00:18:17,800 --> 00:18:21,080 Many times Jesus did miracles and they would forget about Him 314 00:18:21,080 --> 00:18:23,960 and never go back and praise Him for what He had done. 315 00:18:25,040 --> 00:18:28,400 But one thing about a miracle, when it occurs in your life, 316 00:18:28,400 --> 00:18:30,880 there there comes a testimony out of a miracle. 317 00:18:31,680 --> 00:18:34,680 And whenever you can tell someone something that God has 318 00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:39,760 done for you that was unexpected, it gets people's 319 00:18:39,760 --> 00:18:42,840 attention. The Bible says that they're 320 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:45,320 redeemed to the Lord. Say so, whom He's delivered out 321 00:18:45,320 --> 00:18:48,360 of the hand of the enemy. And I could, I don't have the 322 00:18:48,360 --> 00:18:51,080 time, but I could tell you times that God has touched me 323 00:18:51,080 --> 00:18:54,640 supernaturally, physically, by His grace. 324 00:18:55,240 --> 00:18:58,040 And sometimes I wanted a touch and I didn't get a touch. 325 00:18:58,720 --> 00:19:02,000 But God does all things after the counsel of his own will, not 326 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:03,920 my will. And we always have to have that 327 00:19:03,920 --> 00:19:06,240 humility. We can ask God for the miracle 328 00:19:06,720 --> 00:19:09,640 and if it comes praise Him, but if it doesn't praise Him too 329 00:19:10,440 --> 00:19:13,320 because we have to be like Jesus and say not our will but your 330 00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:18,800 will be done right and be OK with that knowing that He knows 331 00:19:18,800 --> 00:19:20,640 what's best for us and he loves us. 332 00:19:21,240 --> 00:19:25,240 He's our ABBA father. I've been studying lately about 333 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:30,040 this father heart of God and how much he loves us, how much he 334 00:19:30,040 --> 00:19:34,000 loves you. He doesn't love you for what he 335 00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:37,960 wants you to become. He loves you right now for who 336 00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:41,400 you are right now. God won't love you anymore 337 00:19:42,160 --> 00:19:46,800 tomorrow than he does today. And he doesn't love you any more 338 00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:50,400 than when you become more holy than you are tomorrow than you 339 00:19:50,400 --> 00:19:53,520 are today. And that's hard for us to grasp, 340 00:19:53,520 --> 00:19:55,440 isn't it? Because we're all used to 341 00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:59,840 measuring things in life, and more must be better. 342 00:20:00,080 --> 00:20:06,200 But no one can really wrap their mind and their hands around this 343 00:20:06,400 --> 00:20:10,000 love of God, because it's. It surpasses human 344 00:20:10,000 --> 00:20:14,480 understanding, the love of God. So you're here, and God doesn't 345 00:20:14,480 --> 00:20:16,960 want you to be ashamed. He doesn't want you to feel 346 00:20:17,440 --> 00:20:21,120 unloved or rejected or not good enough. 347 00:20:21,440 --> 00:20:24,680 He wants you to know that He loves you right where you are, 348 00:20:25,480 --> 00:20:27,480 right with what you're dealing with right now. 349 00:20:28,360 --> 00:20:31,720 You may be in a bad place and you know it, but God isn't 350 00:20:31,720 --> 00:20:36,000 turning His face from you. His face is pointed right at 351 00:20:36,000 --> 00:20:37,880 you, waiting for you to come to Him. 352 00:20:38,640 --> 00:20:41,120 He's wanting to draw you closer to himself. 353 00:20:41,640 --> 00:20:46,680 He's a merciful God, and He's a God who's patient, and He's a 354 00:20:46,680 --> 00:20:50,160 God who's gracious. There's not one of us in here 355 00:20:50,160 --> 00:20:54,680 today, including myself. That's exactly where I should be 356 00:20:55,640 --> 00:20:59,840 all the time with God. We're all works in process, 357 00:20:59,840 --> 00:21:02,760 aren't we? We're all growing in the grace 358 00:21:02,760 --> 00:21:05,360 and the knowledge of God. None of us are perfect, right? 359 00:21:06,200 --> 00:21:11,480 He's perfect and he loves us with a perfect love, an 360 00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:16,760 unconditional love. His love is never based upon 361 00:21:16,760 --> 00:21:21,320 what I've done or I've not done. The Bible just simply says God 362 00:21:21,320 --> 00:21:24,480 is love, doesn't it? And we have a hard time handling 363 00:21:24,480 --> 00:21:28,640 that because somehow we think we got to pay him back somehow and 364 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:32,240 we could never pay him back enough, right? 365 00:21:32,760 --> 00:21:35,920 He just simply wants us to have our arms open to him and say, 366 00:21:35,920 --> 00:21:41,280 Lord, have your way in my life. Fix what you know needs to be 367 00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:43,200 fixed. Change what you know needs to be 368 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:46,760 changed. I'm willing, Lord, I just want 369 00:21:46,760 --> 00:21:49,400 to be close to you. I want to worship you. 370 00:21:49,800 --> 00:21:52,160 I want to magnify you. I want to honor you, Lord. 371 00:21:53,120 --> 00:21:57,200 And I'm so thankful, Lord, for what you've done for me. 372 00:21:58,960 --> 00:22:01,960 If you're here today and you're without Christ today, you can 373 00:22:01,960 --> 00:22:08,400 just say, Lord, forgive me for everything I've done in this 374 00:22:08,400 --> 00:22:14,120 life that I know has been wrong. Forgive me and cleanse me and 375 00:22:14,120 --> 00:22:20,040 Lord save my soul and he will. Faith in the Lord. 376 00:22:20,760 --> 00:22:25,960 Repentance is a change of mind, a change of direction, a 377 00:22:25,960 --> 00:22:29,760 willingness to go God's way and not your way. 378 00:22:30,720 --> 00:22:34,080 Lord, when we come before you now, we just want to thank you 379 00:22:34,600 --> 00:22:37,000 today for what it is you've done for us. 380 00:22:38,800 --> 00:22:41,440 We want to thank you, Lord, that there's never been a time that 381 00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:45,400 you haven't forgiven us. There's never been a time where 382 00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:50,400 you've given up on us. There's never been a time when 383 00:22:50,400 --> 00:22:55,800 you've spoken evil about us. Lord, we're your kids. 384 00:22:55,800 --> 00:23:00,280 Lord, we're tender, tenderly loved by you, our heavenly 385 00:23:00,280 --> 00:23:03,920 Father. I pray, O God, that you would 386 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:09,880 help us as a church, to be a church, Lord, that understands 387 00:23:09,880 --> 00:23:14,440 the greatness of your love. And because of that love that 388 00:23:14,440 --> 00:23:17,800 we've received, that we would show that love to one another, 389 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:23,720 that we would love, Lord, our enemies, that we would love 390 00:23:23,720 --> 00:23:26,600 those who hate us and say, O manner of evil about us for your 391 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:30,840 namesake, Lord, that your love would so overcome your bride, 392 00:23:30,840 --> 00:23:36,360 your church, that it would the shine with hope to a world that 393 00:23:36,360 --> 00:23:40,840 is hopeless, Lord and people who desperately need hope and 394 00:23:40,840 --> 00:23:44,600 Savior, protect us from dead religion. 395 00:23:44,600 --> 00:23:49,640 Lord, protect us from ritual. Protect us from things that 396 00:23:49,640 --> 00:23:54,280 don't bring life. Lord, fill us afresh today with 397 00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:58,760 your Holy Spirit. Thanks for joining us on today's 398 00:23:58,760 --> 00:24:02,440 edition of Living Waters of Grace, a ministry of Calvary 399 00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:05,800 Chapel, Westmoreland. Today, Pastor Clark is teaching 400 00:24:05,800 --> 00:24:08,960 about the book of Acts. And as we learn more about Acts, 401 00:24:09,240 --> 00:24:12,360 it becomes clear that the early church didn't miss a single 402 00:24:12,360 --> 00:24:16,920 opportunity to share the gospel. In nearly every chapter, you see 403 00:24:16,920 --> 00:24:20,640 apostles like Peter and Paul stepping into conversations, 404 00:24:20,880 --> 00:24:25,040 crowds, and crises with boldness, ready to proclaim the 405 00:24:25,040 --> 00:24:28,560 name of Jesus. Their example challenges us to 406 00:24:28,560 --> 00:24:32,520 consider how we might step into gospel moments in our own lives. 407 00:24:33,120 --> 00:24:36,600 What doors might God open this week for you to speak truth, 408 00:24:36,920 --> 00:24:40,040 offer hope, or live out your faith in a way that points 409 00:24:40,080 --> 00:24:43,200 others to Him? The story of Acts reminds us we 410 00:24:43,200 --> 00:24:47,360 are part of the same mission. Today, let's live with eyes open 411 00:24:47,360 --> 00:24:51,040 and hearts ready to respond. We hope you are challenged by 412 00:24:51,040 --> 00:24:54,040 today's message. If you're in the Greensburg, PA 413 00:24:54,040 --> 00:24:58,320 area, we'd love to see you in person this Sunday at 10:30 AM 414 00:24:58,440 --> 00:25:02,360 at 400 E Pittsburgh St. Unit 6B. 415 00:25:02,880 --> 00:25:06,480 For more information, visit calvarychapelonline.com. 416 00:25:06,720 --> 00:25:10,360 You can also join our e-mail list, give online, or submit a 417 00:25:10,360 --> 00:25:12,320 prayer request right from the site. 418 00:25:12,880 --> 00:25:16,040 If you can't make it in person, be sure to tune in on the 419 00:25:16,040 --> 00:25:18,640 Calvary Chapel Westmoreland YouTube channel. 420 00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:21,680 Subscribe so you never miss new teachings. 421 00:25:22,120 --> 00:25:25,840 If you were in the Greensburg area, you can listen to Grace FM 422 00:25:25,840 --> 00:25:31,000 on the new 91.7 frequency. Pray about helping financially 423 00:25:31,000 --> 00:25:34,360 support the new station that will reach thousands more 424 00:25:34,360 --> 00:25:37,320 listeners. Send financial gifts to Grace 425 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:43,640 FMPO Box 716, Greensburg, PA 15601. 426 00:25:44,200 --> 00:25:46,800 Once again, we're so grateful you joined us today to be 427 00:25:46,800 --> 00:25:50,800 inspired by God's Word. Please tune in again for more 428 00:25:50,880 --> 00:25:52,600 Living Waters of Grace.