1 00:00:03,160 --> 00:00:07,880 Thank you, Stacy Vuanasafiwe Canisa, praise the Lord Church 2 00:00:07,880 --> 00:00:11,080 in Swahili. We are the Whitmans, as Stacy 3 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:14,920 said, and been doing ministry for 30 years. 4 00:00:15,640 --> 00:00:21,040 Umm, they're getting the PowerPoint ready, but we started 5 00:00:21,040 --> 00:00:26,280 out in 1994 and I went to Albania even before we were 6 00:00:26,280 --> 00:00:30,080 buried as a missionary intern out of Bible school. 7 00:00:30,640 --> 00:00:34,440 So we can go ahead to the next slide. 8 00:00:35,160 --> 00:00:37,840 This Is Us through the years. We have two kids, Madison and 9 00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:40,400 Spencer. Madison's 25 now. 10 00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:44,760 She's a nurse and Spencer's 22. He does electronic media. 11 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:49,120 But you'll notice behind us the minaret of a mosque. 12 00:00:49,160 --> 00:00:55,200 So many people in Eastern Europe like this is in Macedonia, 1/3 13 00:00:55,200 --> 00:00:59,400 of the country is Albanian Muslims and the other 2/3 are 14 00:00:59,680 --> 00:01:04,319 Eastern Orthodox, which sounds like they might be Christian, 15 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:09,320 but most of them are just going through a ritual, the motions of 16 00:01:09,320 --> 00:01:11,200 Christianity. It's something they inherited 17 00:01:11,520 --> 00:01:15,760 from their parents and there's there's no real faith there for 18 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:22,040 the typical Orthodox believer. So we got there in time, just in 19 00:01:22,040 --> 00:01:27,000 time for two wars, the war in Kosovo, just 20 miles to the 20 00:01:27,000 --> 00:01:31,360 north of us, and also a civil war that broke out in Macedonia 21 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:34,200 between the Albanians and the Macedonians. 22 00:01:34,560 --> 00:01:38,400 We did refugee work for a while because we weren't, and this had 23 00:01:38,400 --> 00:01:42,920 been part of communist Yugoslavia, so we weren't 24 00:01:42,920 --> 00:01:47,440 allowed to go there as missionaries, but we were 25 00:01:47,440 --> 00:01:49,720 allowed to be humanitarian workers. 26 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:53,960 And there was, we did that for a while. 27 00:01:54,800 --> 00:01:58,600 There were very few churches. Most of them were just meeting 28 00:01:58,600 --> 00:02:03,920 in a house, really, really tiny. And on a typical Sunday, the 29 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:06,720 kids would be running around outside playing. 30 00:02:06,720 --> 00:02:08,520 I'm glad to see the kids in here. 31 00:02:09,400 --> 00:02:13,080 And you kids, you're behaving very well, too. 32 00:02:13,080 --> 00:02:16,840 Thank you. The kids would be running around 33 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:20,880 outside playing and I asked the pastor, what are they doing out 34 00:02:20,880 --> 00:02:23,200 there? Because, you know, I was raised 35 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:25,240 in the in the church in Fredericksburg. 36 00:02:25,880 --> 00:02:29,400 I had Sunday school teachers, children's church leaders and 37 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:34,080 youth group people that invested in me, taught me God's word 38 00:02:34,080 --> 00:02:36,440 until I believed and accepted Jesus. 39 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:41,000 And they said, well, they're small, they're squirmy, they 40 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:43,800 can't sit still. They disrupt the adults. 41 00:02:44,120 --> 00:02:46,680 Church is really for the adults, you know, is what they're 42 00:02:46,680 --> 00:02:50,120 telling me. And I said, how are they going 43 00:02:50,120 --> 00:02:53,080 to learn about Jesus? And they said, well, may I? 44 00:02:53,080 --> 00:02:56,000 We think when they're older and they settle down, they'll just 45 00:02:56,200 --> 00:02:59,320 kind of understand like the rest of us and become Christians. 46 00:03:00,280 --> 00:03:03,040 And so I said, you've got to have children's ministry. 47 00:03:03,040 --> 00:03:06,400 The devil's out there ready to snatch them up. 48 00:03:07,040 --> 00:03:10,240 And they said, well, you're the missionary, you do it, You 49 00:03:10,240 --> 00:03:16,040 started. So God LED us to start Royal 50 00:03:16,040 --> 00:03:20,240 Rangers over there, which is a lot of people compare it to 51 00:03:20,240 --> 00:03:23,680 Christian Scouts. You it's full of activities, 52 00:03:23,920 --> 00:03:29,320 scouting type activities, but it's got a heavy duty Bible 53 00:03:29,320 --> 00:03:32,600 curriculum. The disciple kids from 5 up to 54 00:03:32,600 --> 00:03:36,760 18 and the US it's for boys and I was in the program as a boy. 55 00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:40,040 So I thought, well, what are we going to do about the girls? 56 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:43,360 Well, I found out overseas Royal Rangers is for boys and girls 57 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:46,520 together. So we were able to start that. 58 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,720 We got the first religious visa ever granted in Macedonia. 59 00:03:51,040 --> 00:03:54,440 They recognized it as a program. They said we actually want this 60 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:58,720 for our children. God did a miracle there and we 61 00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:01,240 were able to introduce it in Macedonia and later into 62 00:04:01,240 --> 00:04:04,600 Bulgaria and it became the children's ministry for the 63 00:04:04,600 --> 00:04:08,160 church. Well, after a time we felt like 64 00:04:08,160 --> 00:04:11,560 God saying, you're done in Macedonia, they can do it for 65 00:04:11,560 --> 00:04:14,240 themselves, hand over. So we did. 66 00:04:14,720 --> 00:04:16,920 We had no idea where we were going next. 67 00:04:17,320 --> 00:04:22,000 And then we were asked to go to Africa to base in Nairobi, Kenya 68 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:26,920 and from there coordinate Royal Rangers across all of sub sub 69 00:04:26,920 --> 00:04:29,880 Sahara Africa. So there were nations that had 70 00:04:29,880 --> 00:04:32,240 never had it. There were nations that it was 71 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:34,400 just beginning that needed to develop it. 72 00:04:34,800 --> 00:04:38,640 So we got to base in Kenya and go all over Africa. 73 00:04:38,640 --> 00:04:41,840 And the next slide, I did stuff like this. 74 00:04:42,520 --> 00:04:46,440 What do you see behind me? I hope you see a lot of boys and 75 00:04:46,440 --> 00:04:52,680 girls, a lot of kids in Kenya. For example, 50% of the 76 00:04:52,680 --> 00:04:58,000 population of Kenya is 18 or younger That that is the perfect 77 00:04:58,000 --> 00:05:02,200 royal Ranger age, right? Half the population you can be 78 00:05:02,200 --> 00:05:04,200 reaching with this great curriculum. 79 00:05:04,200 --> 00:05:08,400 So that's a friend of mine, Commander Stephen, giving him 80 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:12,960 the stuff he needs to teach all those boys and girls and bring 81 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:16,840 them up in the gospel. And I'm wearing a jacket because 82 00:05:16,840 --> 00:05:20,000 it gets cold in Kenya. We were at something like 8000 83 00:05:20,000 --> 00:05:24,280 feet there in July, which July is scorching hot here. 84 00:05:24,280 --> 00:05:27,120 They're below the equator, so the seasons are flipped. 85 00:05:27,120 --> 00:05:30,280 That's winter. And it was like 40° up there on 86 00:05:30,280 --> 00:05:35,320 that mountain that day. But I got to do that for a long 87 00:05:35,320 --> 00:05:40,240 time and launch Rangers in places like Malawi, Madagascar, 88 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:43,640 helping Ghana and all over Africa, 10 different nations. 89 00:05:44,280 --> 00:05:49,240 Well, it came to a point where we were having a conference for 90 00:05:49,240 --> 00:05:52,280 all these leaders, and we're doing our business and 91 00:05:52,280 --> 00:05:55,400 fellowshipping and strategizing and all kinds of great stuff. 92 00:05:56,240 --> 00:05:59,640 And in the middle of that conference, I felt led to say, 93 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:04,160 if we're just doing this for the boys and girls of the church, 94 00:06:04,680 --> 00:06:08,200 then we're not really doing it right because we should be 95 00:06:08,200 --> 00:06:11,320 evangelistic. God's given us a great ministry, 96 00:06:11,320 --> 00:06:14,120 a great tool. There's lots of kids out there 97 00:06:14,120 --> 00:06:18,160 that will never come to one of our churches, but they might 98 00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:21,360 come to Royal Rangers and we can get them into Royal Rangers. 99 00:06:21,360 --> 00:06:24,480 They can hear about the gospel and maybe we'll eventually get 100 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,040 the whole family, which which actually happens. 101 00:06:27,960 --> 00:06:32,240 So I just shared that and I went on with the program, went back 102 00:06:32,240 --> 00:06:36,760 to Kenya, and about a month later a missionary from 103 00:06:36,760 --> 00:06:41,560 Madagascar found me in Kenya. And he said what happened in 104 00:06:41,560 --> 00:06:44,880 that conference. And Pastor, I was a little 105 00:06:44,880 --> 00:06:47,080 nervous when somebody says what happened. 106 00:06:47,560 --> 00:06:50,520 I was like, what kind of rumors are being spread about us? 107 00:06:51,040 --> 00:06:53,520 So I just tried to do the smart thing. 108 00:06:53,520 --> 00:06:57,840 And I said, what do you mean? And he said our guys from 109 00:06:57,840 --> 00:07:01,520 Madagascar came back and they have a fire lit under them. 110 00:07:01,840 --> 00:07:03,880 He said, do you know what they're doing? 111 00:07:04,480 --> 00:07:08,000 He said they're taking the Ranger boys and girls, they're 112 00:07:08,000 --> 00:07:11,600 going door to door, knocking on doors and telling people about 113 00:07:11,600 --> 00:07:16,120 Jesus and doing evangelism. And then they decided to pick 114 00:07:16,160 --> 00:07:20,840 unreached villages on our island, the 4th largest island 115 00:07:20,840 --> 00:07:23,800 in the world. Madagascar isn't just a silly 116 00:07:23,800 --> 00:07:28,480 movie, kids. It's a real place off the coast 117 00:07:28,480 --> 00:07:32,160 of Africa. And he said, they're going, 118 00:07:32,160 --> 00:07:34,800 they're setting up their tents, they're building their fires, 119 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:38,040 they're doing all their Ranger activities, and they're drawing 120 00:07:38,040 --> 00:07:41,520 huge crowds. And my pastor in Fredericksburg 121 00:07:41,520 --> 00:07:44,080 used to say, when you get a crowd, what do you do? 122 00:07:44,640 --> 00:07:47,720 You preach. And they're preaching to them. 123 00:07:48,000 --> 00:07:51,880 And he said, in some cases, we think they've LED every man, 124 00:07:52,240 --> 00:07:55,080 woman and child to Jesus in the village. 125 00:07:55,520 --> 00:08:02,080 He said we cannot find pastors, enough pastors coming out of the 126 00:08:02,080 --> 00:08:05,480 Bible college to go to all these churches that the Rangers are 127 00:08:05,480 --> 00:08:08,200 starting to this day. We think they've started at 128 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:14,200 least 20 churches in Madagascar. And that enthusiasm spread to 129 00:08:14,200 --> 00:08:17,440 Kenya where we were, and they began planting churches. 130 00:08:17,440 --> 00:08:21,200 I got to go back in November, dedicate a brand new church 131 00:08:21,200 --> 00:08:27,440 started and more are popping up. Well, Malawi, the Rangers in 132 00:08:27,440 --> 00:08:31,320 Malawi said we want to do this too, but before we take the boys 133 00:08:31,320 --> 00:08:33,799 and girls to the village, we're going to create a missions 134 00:08:33,799 --> 00:08:37,240 emphasis camp, take them for a whole weekend, study what God's 135 00:08:37,240 --> 00:08:40,960 word says about evangelism and pray and make sure we're 136 00:08:40,960 --> 00:08:43,840 spiritually ready. So they did that. 137 00:08:44,200 --> 00:08:49,640 They had 700 kids in their first camp and at the end of it, they 138 00:08:49,640 --> 00:08:53,920 hired a bus that's they had the money for one bus, which would 139 00:08:53,920 --> 00:08:57,960 only hold 50 people. So they picked 50 boys and girls 140 00:08:57,960 --> 00:08:59,720 that they thought were that were ready. 141 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:03,280 They next slide, they put them on a bus. 142 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:08,480 They began driving to a village that was known for witchcraft, 143 00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:13,360 for perversion, abuse. Everything wrong you could think 144 00:09:13,360 --> 00:09:17,800 of was there. And on the way, they stopped and 145 00:09:17,800 --> 00:09:21,840 they visited the tombs of the missionaries that had died, 146 00:09:21,840 --> 00:09:25,480 bringing the gospel to Malawi. And then they prayed. 147 00:09:25,640 --> 00:09:29,720 And then they said, God has passed the torch to us. 148 00:09:29,720 --> 00:09:33,520 We carry on the work now. And they got back on the bus and 149 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:36,400 they began heading to the village and they were praising 150 00:09:36,400 --> 00:09:42,520 God, worshipping, singing songs. And the Holy Spirit fell on that 151 00:09:42,520 --> 00:09:45,480 little bus. And every boy and girl that 152 00:09:45,480 --> 00:09:48,680 wasn't already filled with the Holy Spirit was suddenly filled. 153 00:09:48,680 --> 00:09:50,920 And they all began speaking in tongues. 154 00:09:51,720 --> 00:09:55,840 When they arrived in the village, they began began 155 00:09:55,840 --> 00:10:00,480 getting off the bus and finding people and talking to them and 156 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:03,160 finding sick people and praying for them. 157 00:10:03,600 --> 00:10:09,240 And God and his great power who takes the Kingdom of Satan head 158 00:10:09,240 --> 00:10:12,960 on, and great power and authority to demonstrate that 159 00:10:12,960 --> 00:10:16,800 deliverance, forgiveness, salvation has come, began 160 00:10:16,800 --> 00:10:22,920 healing people. And people all over the place 161 00:10:22,920 --> 00:10:26,120 were getting healed. They prayed for a lame man that 162 00:10:26,120 --> 00:10:30,040 was sitting begging, and he got up and he stood and he was 163 00:10:30,040 --> 00:10:33,120 healed. They found another homeless man 164 00:10:33,520 --> 00:10:36,400 sitting by the side of the road. They laid hands on him. 165 00:10:37,000 --> 00:10:41,760 They prayed and he suddenly got up and said God has healed my 166 00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:44,880 mind. He said for two years I haven't 167 00:10:44,880 --> 00:10:47,680 been home to my family. Tonight I'm going home to them. 168 00:10:47,680 --> 00:10:50,960 I'm sleeping in my own bed because God just healed me. 169 00:10:51,360 --> 00:10:56,040 And they began to draw a huge crowd and they began witnessing 170 00:10:56,200 --> 00:10:59,320 the people. They even witnessed to the 171 00:10:59,320 --> 00:11:02,440 police. And if you've traveled overseas 172 00:11:02,440 --> 00:11:05,800 to other countries, there's many places you'll find out the 173 00:11:05,800 --> 00:11:09,400 police are not your friend. But they were brave enough to 174 00:11:09,400 --> 00:11:13,320 witness to the police. And then people began receiving 175 00:11:13,440 --> 00:11:18,440 Jesus. 250 people in that village received Christ that 176 00:11:18,440 --> 00:11:21,400 day, including the village chief. 177 00:11:22,200 --> 00:11:26,200 And he gave them a piece of land and said, come and build us a 178 00:11:26,200 --> 00:11:31,480 church, Praise God, Amen. And you guys are supporting us. 179 00:11:31,480 --> 00:11:35,640 So we're we're all partners in these things because when you 180 00:11:35,640 --> 00:11:38,880 give the missionaries, you make things like this possible. 181 00:11:38,880 --> 00:11:41,720 It's a great thing that God has done in the Kingdom. 182 00:11:42,920 --> 00:11:47,400 And they totally among themselves raised enough money 183 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,520 to build themselves a little church, all indigenous. 184 00:11:50,520 --> 00:11:54,120 They did all the evangelism and the planting and the building of 185 00:11:54,120 --> 00:11:56,520 the church themselves. And that's in Malawi today. 186 00:11:57,560 --> 00:11:59,560 And it's amazing what God has done it. 187 00:11:59,960 --> 00:12:02,560 Some of you nodded your head when I talked about Royal 188 00:12:02,560 --> 00:12:04,920 Rangers. You seem to know what what it 189 00:12:04,920 --> 00:12:07,680 is. This was never part of Royal 190 00:12:07,680 --> 00:12:10,440 Rangers. This is something that the Holy 191 00:12:10,440 --> 00:12:13,280 Spirit did. This was even part of our vision 192 00:12:13,560 --> 00:12:17,040 as missionaries. God breathed us into them and 193 00:12:17,040 --> 00:12:22,160 and created just new ideas and new ways of sharing a gospel. 194 00:12:22,680 --> 00:12:26,520 It's amazing what he's doing. So that that's just a little 195 00:12:26,520 --> 00:12:30,800 snapshot we handed over in Africa. 196 00:12:30,800 --> 00:12:33,720 Eventually we did some work for Rd. 197 00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:37,920 Rangers USA from Springfield, MO, for a while now. 198 00:12:37,920 --> 00:12:40,880 We just transitioned to global university. 199 00:12:41,280 --> 00:12:44,680 We're a little older now, and we feel at this stage in our life 200 00:12:45,080 --> 00:12:49,240 that God wants us to teach the next generation of pastors and 201 00:12:49,240 --> 00:12:52,120 missionaries coming up. And we have a lot of Bible 202 00:12:52,120 --> 00:12:58,000 schools all over the world that need professors to come in and 203 00:12:58,000 --> 00:12:58,720 teach. They don't. 204 00:12:58,920 --> 00:13:01,640 They have a great building, but a lot of them don't have a full 205 00:13:01,640 --> 00:13:03,920 time staff. They depend on outside 206 00:13:03,920 --> 00:13:08,920 professors. So and then where we go to 207 00:13:08,920 --> 00:13:14,920 church in Missouri, this is a guy from Nepal named Mohan and 208 00:13:14,920 --> 00:13:19,800 he is planning churches so fast. And Nepal, which is Buddhist and 209 00:13:19,800 --> 00:13:22,800 Hindu territory, the gospel's exploding. 210 00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:26,760 And he says, I'm starting churches so fast, I don't have 211 00:13:26,760 --> 00:13:29,880 anybody to come behind me and disciple all these new 212 00:13:29,880 --> 00:13:32,120 believers. And that's something Global 213 00:13:32,120 --> 00:13:34,360 University does as well that we're part of. 214 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:38,600 Stacey and I can go to Nepal and disciple new believers. 215 00:13:38,600 --> 00:13:42,960 In some contexts, they need a man to be with the men and a 216 00:13:42,960 --> 00:13:48,120 woman to be with the women. And so that's one of the places 217 00:13:48,120 --> 00:13:51,360 we believe God's taking us. We also believe we're going to 218 00:13:51,360 --> 00:13:54,560 Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan very soon. 219 00:13:55,200 --> 00:13:57,240 Pray for us that we can pick up Russian. 220 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:00,280 Macedonian is a lot like Russian. 221 00:14:00,280 --> 00:14:02,040 We use the same Cyrillic alphabet. 222 00:14:02,880 --> 00:14:07,160 We can kind of read Russian, but when we hear it, we're like, I 223 00:14:07,160 --> 00:14:09,320 don't know what they're saying. It's a little hard. 224 00:14:09,640 --> 00:14:13,400 I'm like, OK, I understood that and that, but not all this. 225 00:14:13,880 --> 00:14:19,800 So please pray for us. And we're excited about where 226 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:22,160 God's taking us. And thank you for being a part 227 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:26,000 of it. And that reminds me, I want to 228 00:14:26,000 --> 00:14:31,160 put something in too. So let's go ahead now and pause 229 00:14:31,160 --> 00:14:33,760 a moment and pray and we'll get into God's work. 230 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:39,320 Heavenly Father, just thank you for this precious church. 231 00:14:39,320 --> 00:14:42,480 I thank you for Pastor Clark and his family and Salt Church. 232 00:14:43,240 --> 00:14:46,080 Lord, we thank you for everyone that's represented here today. 233 00:14:46,880 --> 00:14:52,200 Lord, may all of us be your missionaries and your evangelist 234 00:14:52,280 --> 00:14:57,080 and your preachers of the Word to the people around us. 235 00:14:57,080 --> 00:15:00,120 Lord, use us for your glory and your honor. 236 00:15:00,600 --> 00:15:04,600 Lord, speak to us by your Spirit through your Word today and 237 00:15:04,600 --> 00:15:07,800 change us a little bit more and make us a little bit more like 238 00:15:07,800 --> 00:15:10,560 your son. Jesus I pray and the name of 239 00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:18,320 Jesus we have prayed, Amen. Well, this message this morning 240 00:15:18,320 --> 00:15:22,720 comes from Acts. It's about divine appointments. 241 00:15:24,640 --> 00:15:28,880 God has given us some great divine appointments in this this 242 00:15:28,880 --> 00:15:33,360 book that are models for us as believers to follow. 243 00:15:34,720 --> 00:15:40,360 And I'm going to start first in Acts 1/8 and lay a little bit of 244 00:15:40,360 --> 00:15:45,640 background, because this is the foundation for witnessing that 245 00:15:45,720 --> 00:15:51,400 Jesus gave in Acts 1/8. He says, But you will receive 246 00:15:51,400 --> 00:15:58,560 power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my 247 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:05,720 witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the 248 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:10,000 ends of the earth. So notice that witnesses is 249 00:16:10,000 --> 00:16:14,400 followed by power. Power is given to be a witness, 250 00:16:14,400 --> 00:16:18,160 to be an effective witnesses. One of the reasons for the gift 251 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:22,160 of the Holy Spirit. And there's a pattern there. 252 00:16:22,440 --> 00:16:24,880 Jesus told them to start in Jerusalem, right where they 253 00:16:24,880 --> 00:16:26,800 were. Wherever you are, you start 254 00:16:26,800 --> 00:16:29,440 there. Then you spread out to Judea and 255 00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:31,880 Samaria. Kind of like when you throw a 256 00:16:31,880 --> 00:16:35,720 rock into a pond and you get these concentric rings, these 257 00:16:35,720 --> 00:16:39,720 ripple effects spread out and from there take it to the whole 258 00:16:39,720 --> 00:16:44,240 world. So he tells them that he ascends 259 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:46,440 into heaven. They're standing there looking 260 00:16:46,440 --> 00:16:49,600 what has happened. The Angel says, OK, stop looking 261 00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:53,400 into heaven, get busy. But unfortunately, they don't 262 00:16:53,400 --> 00:16:58,560 really get busy for eight chapters of Acts. 263 00:16:58,720 --> 00:17:02,880 They're not they, they start in Jerusalem, but they get stuck in 264 00:17:02,880 --> 00:17:06,920 Jerusalem and they're not going out from there. 265 00:17:07,640 --> 00:17:15,000 And Acts, interestingly, Acts 18 is not fulfilled until Acts 8-1 266 00:17:15,359 --> 00:17:19,119 after the stoning of Stephen. And after the stoning of 267 00:17:19,119 --> 00:17:24,280 Stephen, it says on that day, Acts 8, in the middle of Acts 268 00:17:24,280 --> 00:17:29,120 eight, one on that day, a great persecution broke out against 269 00:17:29,120 --> 00:17:36,520 the church where in Jerusalem and all except the apostles were 270 00:17:36,520 --> 00:17:42,240 scattered throughout, where Judea and Samaria, precisely 271 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:45,320 where Jesus had told them that they needed to go next. 272 00:17:46,400 --> 00:17:48,600 And then I'm jumping down to verse four. 273 00:17:50,080 --> 00:17:54,640 Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they 274 00:17:54,640 --> 00:17:56,600 went. Philip. 275 00:17:57,160 --> 00:17:58,760 And let's stop a moment and moment. 276 00:17:58,760 --> 00:18:02,800 Philip is we find him earlier in Acts. 277 00:18:03,120 --> 00:18:06,240 He's one of the deacons of the church when the church was 278 00:18:06,240 --> 00:18:10,440 growing so big and the disciples said, you know, we don't have 279 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:13,560 time to wait on tables. We need to appoint some deacons. 280 00:18:13,560 --> 00:18:15,560 First time deacons are ever created. 281 00:18:16,120 --> 00:18:20,440 He's one of the seven chosen to serve in the church. 282 00:18:21,040 --> 00:18:27,600 So this, this servant Philip went down to a city and city in 283 00:18:27,600 --> 00:18:33,560 Samaria and proclaimed the Christ or the Messiah to them. 284 00:18:35,000 --> 00:18:40,200 The crowds gave their undivided attention to Philip's message 285 00:18:40,280 --> 00:18:43,320 and to the signs they saw him perform. 286 00:18:43,480 --> 00:18:46,120 Perform. Because here's the gospel going 287 00:18:46,120 --> 00:18:51,120 forth in power, confronting the Kingdom of darkness, verse seven 288 00:18:51,120 --> 00:18:54,800 with loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who 289 00:18:54,800 --> 00:18:59,520 were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed. 290 00:19:01,240 --> 00:19:04,240 So there was great joy in that city. 291 00:19:05,080 --> 00:19:09,360 Why was there great joy? Because salvation had come to 292 00:19:09,360 --> 00:19:11,720 them. The message had reached them and 293 00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:17,160 people were being saved. And it's like a great revival 294 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:23,680 breaks out in in Samaria. Now jumping down to verse 14, 295 00:19:24,560 --> 00:19:29,920 when the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted 296 00:19:29,920 --> 00:19:34,280 the word of God, they sent Peter and John to Samaria. 297 00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:39,880 Who are Peter and John, two of the leaders of the early church? 298 00:19:39,880 --> 00:19:46,320 And in fact, Jesus named Peter as the rock upon the foundation 299 00:19:46,320 --> 00:19:47,520 that he was going to build his church. 300 00:19:47,520 --> 00:19:50,800 And that has double meanings because Peter had just confessed 301 00:19:50,800 --> 00:19:54,320 that Jesus was the Son of God. That is the foundation that the 302 00:19:54,320 --> 00:19:56,840 church is going to be built on. These are leaders of the early 303 00:19:56,840 --> 00:20:02,920 church, and it's like they come to take charge of what's 304 00:20:02,920 --> 00:20:06,560 happening there. Which is which is very biblical. 305 00:20:06,840 --> 00:20:10,040 Philip humbly sets aside let's the leaders come in. 306 00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:17,560 In fact, in first Corinthians 37 it says he who plants and he who 307 00:20:17,560 --> 00:20:23,520 waters are one in purpose and each will be rewarded according 308 00:20:23,520 --> 00:20:25,760 to his own labor. So they've come to take over the 309 00:20:25,760 --> 00:20:30,200 next step to begin discipling and organizing this community of 310 00:20:30,200 --> 00:20:34,360 new believers. And this, I believe, this very 311 00:20:34,360 --> 00:20:39,760 humble man that I see in the Scriptures, steps aside and lets 312 00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:45,040 them take over. But God wasn't finished with 313 00:20:45,040 --> 00:20:47,360 him. He had another purpose. 314 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:51,560 And I think it's just amazing what unfolds now. 315 00:20:52,640 --> 00:21:04,200 And Acts 826 now an Angel of the Lord said to Philip, go South to 316 00:21:04,200 --> 00:21:07,640 the road. It's important note here, the 317 00:21:07,640 --> 00:21:13,920 desert Rd. that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza, it's a desert 318 00:21:13,920 --> 00:21:16,840 Rd. It shouldn't be anything out 319 00:21:16,840 --> 00:21:19,000 there. I mean, what's the definition of 320 00:21:19,000 --> 00:21:22,960 a desert devoid of life and towns and and everything? 321 00:21:23,520 --> 00:21:29,080 But this man obeys. In verse 27, he started out and 322 00:21:29,080 --> 00:21:35,040 on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in 323 00:21:35,040 --> 00:21:39,680 charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of The 324 00:21:39,680 --> 00:21:44,440 Ethiopians, or some versions say Candace, which is another form 325 00:21:44,440 --> 00:21:46,720 of Candace. She was the queen of The 326 00:21:46,720 --> 00:21:50,120 Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem 327 00:21:50,120 --> 00:21:54,480 to worship and on his way home was sitting in his chariot 328 00:21:54,960 --> 00:21:58,320 reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. 329 00:21:59,080 --> 00:22:04,000 And at that time it's really a scroll of Isaiah the prophet. 330 00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:09,200 The Spirit told Philip, go to that chariot and stay near to 331 00:22:09,200 --> 00:22:10,920 it. The Spirit told him, So he's 332 00:22:10,920 --> 00:22:17,360 being led by the Spirit. And when he gets near to the 333 00:22:17,360 --> 00:22:22,480 chariot, then Philip, verse 30, Philip ran up to the chariot and 334 00:22:22,480 --> 00:22:25,200 heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. 335 00:22:25,960 --> 00:22:28,520 Do you understand what you're reading? 336 00:22:28,800 --> 00:22:31,840 Philip asked. And look at verse 31. 337 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:37,200 This always amazes me. How can I? 338 00:22:38,440 --> 00:22:42,120 He said, unless someone explains it to me. 339 00:22:43,320 --> 00:22:46,000 So invited to Philip to come up and sit with him. 340 00:22:47,120 --> 00:22:49,840 Look at this, look at what is happening here. 341 00:22:50,440 --> 00:22:55,360 This man, this precious African man, has been to Jerusalem. 342 00:22:55,760 --> 00:22:58,480 He has a scroll of Isaiah. He's interested in God. 343 00:22:58,480 --> 00:23:04,600 He's clearly interested in God. He has a copy of God's word, a 344 00:23:04,600 --> 00:23:07,800 piece of it, which was very rare in his day. 345 00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:10,600 In order to have a piece of God's word, that meant some 346 00:23:10,600 --> 00:23:16,280 scribe had labored for hours and days and weeks to copy it down 347 00:23:16,280 --> 00:23:20,200 by hand. Very few individuals had a piece 348 00:23:20,200 --> 00:23:22,520 of God's Word. He has his own piece of God's 349 00:23:22,520 --> 00:23:27,520 word and he's reading it and yet he doesn't understand it. 350 00:23:27,880 --> 00:23:33,480 He needs help. And God has seen this man in his 351 00:23:33,480 --> 00:23:39,240 moment and his seeking and his searching and in his his that 352 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:43,840 moment where he's ready and he paired him up with a servant. 353 00:23:44,400 --> 00:23:50,040 God had a servant that obeyed the voice of the Spirit, did 354 00:23:50,040 --> 00:23:54,080 something very strange, went into the desert and met this 355 00:23:54,080 --> 00:24:01,040 man. So, uh, he's reading words of 356 00:24:01,560 --> 00:24:07,320 and, and I'll add here that his words, how can I, unless someone 357 00:24:07,320 --> 00:24:09,680 explains it to me, unless someone helps me. 358 00:24:10,320 --> 00:24:14,480 Those words are reflected in Romans chapter 10 when Paul 359 00:24:14,480 --> 00:24:20,320 writes in verse 14 and 15. How can they they out there? 360 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:24,000 How can they call on the one in whom they have not believed? 361 00:24:24,760 --> 00:24:28,080 And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? 362 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:33,560 And how can they hear without someone to preach? 363 00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:37,480 And how can they preach unless they are sent as it is written? 364 00:24:37,480 --> 00:24:40,960 How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news. 365 00:24:40,960 --> 00:24:44,760 How are they going to hear unless you and I who know tell 366 00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:46,760 them? And all of us have been sent. 367 00:24:47,280 --> 00:24:51,240 Jesus commissioned every one of us to go into the world and 368 00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:55,320 bring this message. So I'm in verse 32. 369 00:24:55,320 --> 00:24:59,520 Now this is the passage of Scripture the eunuch was 370 00:24:59,520 --> 00:25:03,080 reading, and it's from Isaiah 53, very familiar to us. 371 00:25:04,440 --> 00:25:09,080 He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, as a lamb before its 372 00:25:09,080 --> 00:25:12,400 shearers are silent. So he did not open his mouth. 373 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:16,640 In his humiliation, he was deprived of justice. 374 00:25:17,200 --> 00:25:19,080 Who can speak of his descendants? 375 00:25:19,440 --> 00:25:22,280 For his life was taken from the earth. 376 00:25:23,160 --> 00:25:27,840 The eunuch asked Philip, Please tell me, who is the prophet 377 00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:31,200 talking about? Himself or someone else? 378 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:36,600 Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told 379 00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:41,040 him the good news about Jesus. And I think we all know the rest 380 00:25:41,040 --> 00:25:44,000 of the story. As Philip is talking to him, 381 00:25:44,000 --> 00:25:49,720 faith begins to rise up in this man's heart to the point where 382 00:25:49,720 --> 00:25:53,680 he recognizes who Jesus is, that he is the Son of God. 383 00:25:53,680 --> 00:25:58,560 He confesses, he believes, he receives, he even gets baptized 384 00:25:58,560 --> 00:26:02,080 there by the side of the road because he's a brand new 385 00:26:02,080 --> 00:26:04,760 believer and God made this happen. 386 00:26:05,800 --> 00:26:08,080 It was actually pretty easy for Philip. 387 00:26:08,160 --> 00:26:10,160 It was almost like it was handed to him. 388 00:26:11,120 --> 00:26:15,400 It wasn't hard. God orchestrated this moment. 389 00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:22,880 It's a divine appointment. And there's another very similar 390 00:26:22,880 --> 00:26:27,600 one that happens two chapters later and Acts chapter 10. 391 00:26:28,480 --> 00:26:35,440 This is Cornelius, the Roman centurion at Caesarea. 392 00:26:36,960 --> 00:26:41,960 There was a man named Cornelius in verse one, a centurion in 393 00:26:41,960 --> 00:26:44,880 what was known as the Italian regiment. 394 00:26:46,080 --> 00:26:51,680 He and all his family were devout and God fearing. 395 00:26:52,200 --> 00:26:57,040 He gave generously to those in need and prayed to God 396 00:26:57,080 --> 00:26:59,920 regularly. So this man that's come from 397 00:26:59,920 --> 00:27:05,720 Italy, this Roman soldier stationed and occupied Israel 398 00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:10,640 has obviously been influenced by the Jews and the Jewish 399 00:27:10,640 --> 00:27:14,000 religion. He's become what was called a, a 400 00:27:14,000 --> 00:27:18,960 proselyte, like a convert or at least a step on the way to being 401 00:27:18,960 --> 00:27:23,320 a convert to Judaism. And look at look at his list of 402 00:27:23,320 --> 00:27:26,880 deeds. These are incredibly good 403 00:27:26,880 --> 00:27:30,920 things. Devout, God fearing. 404 00:27:31,080 --> 00:27:36,040 This whole list, Many pastors in the church and a lot of churches 405 00:27:36,040 --> 00:27:39,040 I visited would be very happy if their people in the church were 406 00:27:39,040 --> 00:27:42,560 devout and praying regularly and giving generously. 407 00:27:43,200 --> 00:27:46,320 We would say that is a sign of a very, very healthy church. 408 00:27:46,760 --> 00:27:50,920 We all want to be there. Many Americans would look at 409 00:27:50,920 --> 00:27:55,720 this list and equate this list with salvation. 410 00:27:56,760 --> 00:28:01,440 They would say, wow, look at these deeds, He's got a stack of 411 00:28:01,440 --> 00:28:05,640 good deeds in his favor. Surely that merits salvation. 412 00:28:08,080 --> 00:28:11,160 Yet something very important was lacking. 413 00:28:12,120 --> 00:28:15,400 Think about that for a moment. What was lacking? 414 00:28:16,680 --> 00:28:20,200 One day, I'm in verse three now. One day at about 3:00 in the 415 00:28:20,200 --> 00:28:25,120 afternoon, he had a vision. He distinctly saw an Angel of 416 00:28:25,120 --> 00:28:28,760 God who came to him and said, Cornelius. 417 00:28:30,400 --> 00:28:33,920 Cornelius stared at him in fear. What is it, Lord? 418 00:28:33,920 --> 00:28:37,960 He asked. The Angel answered, Your prayers 419 00:28:38,440 --> 00:28:43,280 and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before 420 00:28:43,280 --> 00:28:46,200 God. And then again, at this point, a 421 00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:51,040 lot of Americans might say, wow, he's captured God's attention. 422 00:28:51,040 --> 00:28:53,160 Yet at this point, you might expect the Angel to say, 423 00:28:53,160 --> 00:28:58,640 congratulations, God just granted you eternal life, you've 424 00:28:58,680 --> 00:29:04,840 earned it. However, despite all the good he 425 00:29:04,840 --> 00:29:10,120 did, he was lacking in knowledge of Jesus. 426 00:29:10,400 --> 00:29:14,360 He understood a lot about Judaism and what God required of 427 00:29:14,360 --> 00:29:20,840 him, but he had no knowledge of Jesus Christ, Acts 412 tells us 428 00:29:20,840 --> 00:29:25,120 neither is there salvation in any other, for there is none 429 00:29:25,120 --> 00:29:29,400 other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be 430 00:29:29,400 --> 00:29:34,680 saved, and that's to King James. That's how I learned it and I 431 00:29:34,680 --> 00:29:36,960 like how it's worded. There no other name under 432 00:29:36,960 --> 00:29:41,600 heaven, no other way to God except through Jesus. 433 00:29:42,280 --> 00:29:47,560 He needed to know that and it's very interesting at this point. 434 00:29:48,280 --> 00:29:56,680 The Angel says, now send men to Joppa and bring back a man named 435 00:29:56,680 --> 00:30:00,240 Simon who is called Peter in verse six. 436 00:30:00,240 --> 00:30:03,760 He is staying with Simon the Tanner whose house is by the 437 00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:09,280 sea. The Angel does not share. 438 00:30:09,600 --> 00:30:14,240 Tell this man about Jesus. He doesn't preach and evangelize 439 00:30:14,280 --> 00:30:20,000 and do what we would do. He sends him to Peter to a 440 00:30:20,000 --> 00:30:27,120 person to hear the message, and this is amazing because God 441 00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:32,960 desires the people to learn about Him through His Word and 442 00:30:32,960 --> 00:30:35,920 from other people, not through angels. 443 00:30:35,920 --> 00:30:40,160 Angels do not appear to share this message. 444 00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:43,160 Now in Revelation, there's going to be an Angel that's going to 445 00:30:43,160 --> 00:30:48,080 be preaching and declaring the gospel in the Book of Revelation 446 00:30:48,080 --> 00:30:51,280 during the Tribulation period. And where will we be? 447 00:30:52,200 --> 00:30:53,680 We'll be out of here. We'll be raptured. 448 00:30:53,680 --> 00:30:57,080 We'll be gone. But right now, it's the 449 00:30:57,080 --> 00:31:01,880 privilege of people to take and share the gospel. 450 00:31:01,880 --> 00:31:04,720 Not a chore. It's a privilege to share the 451 00:31:04,720 --> 00:31:11,080 gospel. And so he sends men to find 452 00:31:11,080 --> 00:31:13,440 Peter. They bring back Peter. 453 00:31:13,440 --> 00:31:15,480 And I'm jumping ahead a bit of the story. 454 00:31:16,640 --> 00:31:20,400 And Peter preaches to them a little miniature version of the 455 00:31:20,400 --> 00:31:22,840 gospel. It's a really nice short version 456 00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:25,240 of the gospel that we could all study and use. 457 00:31:26,480 --> 00:31:31,000 And while he is preaching, what happens? 458 00:31:31,360 --> 00:31:33,880 He's preaching to Cornelius and his whole family. 459 00:31:33,880 --> 00:31:38,440 And faith begins to rise up in their hearts until the point 460 00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:42,200 where they suddenly begin speaking in tongues. 461 00:31:42,760 --> 00:31:46,680 And Peter is shocked. And also they have believed and 462 00:31:46,680 --> 00:31:49,520 received the message, accepted Christ in their hearts. 463 00:31:49,920 --> 00:31:53,560 And they've jumped over all these steps that we think is 464 00:31:53,560 --> 00:31:56,040 necessary. They've jumped over this, this 465 00:31:56,040 --> 00:31:58,920 coming forward to the altar and the sinner's prayer. 466 00:31:59,200 --> 00:32:04,880 They've jumped over like a discipleship program and baptism 467 00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:08,440 and membership in the church. And maybe later, you know, I 468 00:32:08,440 --> 00:32:10,440 think you're ready. You need to come and pray to get 469 00:32:10,440 --> 00:32:14,440 filled with the Holy Spirit. God in his wisdom jumped over 470 00:32:14,440 --> 00:32:17,120 all that. Peter has to backtrack and say, 471 00:32:17,120 --> 00:32:19,200 well now that you're filled with the Holy Spirit, we better 472 00:32:19,440 --> 00:32:23,280 baptize you. It's a big shock, but again, 473 00:32:23,280 --> 00:32:30,080 what has happened? God saw this precious man that 474 00:32:30,080 --> 00:32:35,840 wanted to know him, wanted to know the truth was seeking, and 475 00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:39,880 he paired him up with a believer, someone who knew 476 00:32:39,880 --> 00:32:43,400 someone who had been with Jesus, someone that had a testimony, a 477 00:32:43,400 --> 00:32:47,440 witness, and he brought them together and he made it possible 478 00:32:47,440 --> 00:32:52,400 for Peter to lead this man and his entire family to Christ. 479 00:32:53,240 --> 00:32:57,280 And I tell you, these things are still happening to this day, 480 00:32:57,680 --> 00:33:00,920 that God does not change. Things like acts are happening. 481 00:33:01,240 --> 00:33:05,880 When we were in Macedonia, one of the churches we worked with 482 00:33:06,640 --> 00:33:10,520 put together an evangelism team and they trained them and they 483 00:33:10,520 --> 00:33:14,840 got them ready. And then they sent them to the 484 00:33:14,840 --> 00:33:17,960 western part of the nation where all the Albanians lived. 485 00:33:18,520 --> 00:33:22,880 And when they arrived in this one particular town, an old man, 486 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:28,920 an old Muslim man, came up to them and said, are you the Jesus 487 00:33:28,920 --> 00:33:32,680 people? And they're like, well, that's 488 00:33:32,920 --> 00:33:35,760 that name. We don't use that name typically 489 00:33:35,760 --> 00:33:38,280 for ourselves, but yes, that fits us. 490 00:33:38,560 --> 00:33:40,480 You can call us the Jesus people. 491 00:33:41,320 --> 00:33:46,040 And he said a few weeks ago, I was sitting at the table in my 492 00:33:46,040 --> 00:33:49,080 kitchen and thinking about my life. 493 00:33:50,080 --> 00:33:54,720 And he said in my mind, I was talking to God, saying I have 494 00:33:54,720 --> 00:33:57,160 been a devout Muslim all my life. 495 00:33:57,480 --> 00:34:03,960 I've done everything that the Quran tells me to do and I've 496 00:34:03,960 --> 00:34:09,920 been faithful and yet I don't feel like I even know you, God, 497 00:34:09,920 --> 00:34:13,239 who you are. And he said as I was thinking 498 00:34:13,239 --> 00:34:17,520 this in my heart and saying it, he said at the other end of the 499 00:34:17,760 --> 00:34:23,440 of the table, an Angel appeared and the Angel said, get ready. 500 00:34:24,040 --> 00:34:28,080 The Jesus people are coming to your town and when they come, go 501 00:34:28,080 --> 00:34:31,360 and find them and they will tell you everything you need to know. 502 00:34:32,040 --> 00:34:35,480 So when he saw this group of people and they said yes, we're 503 00:34:35,480 --> 00:34:38,800 to Jesus people. He said, here I am, tell me what 504 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:41,400 is it that I need to know? And they led that man to Christ 505 00:34:41,400 --> 00:34:47,120 that day. And there are people all over, I 506 00:34:47,159 --> 00:34:52,080 can guarantee you just based on statistics that there are people 507 00:34:52,080 --> 00:34:55,199 here right now in Deltaville and the surrounding areas that are 508 00:34:55,199 --> 00:34:57,520 have are at the end of themselves. 509 00:34:58,080 --> 00:35:00,360 They are desperate, they are in despair. 510 00:35:00,840 --> 00:35:05,160 They're considering horrible things because they don't think 511 00:35:05,160 --> 00:35:07,280 there's any hope there's any answer. 512 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:11,440 And some of them are at the point where they're ready to cry 513 00:35:11,440 --> 00:35:13,400 out to God or listen to a Christian. 514 00:35:14,280 --> 00:35:18,640 And God knows and God has people right here in this church. 515 00:35:19,120 --> 00:35:22,120 Everyone of you has a unique testimony. 516 00:35:22,720 --> 00:35:27,920 You have unique experiences, you have special gifts and talents 517 00:35:28,120 --> 00:35:33,480 that God has given to you. And if you haven't been filled 518 00:35:33,480 --> 00:35:36,640 with the Holy Spirit, I pray that you will seek that and be 519 00:35:36,640 --> 00:35:40,080 filled with the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit will 520 00:35:40,160 --> 00:35:43,760 lead you to people just like these examples of the Bible at 521 00:35:43,760 --> 00:35:47,040 the right time, at the right moment in their lives. 522 00:35:47,040 --> 00:35:49,880 You won't have to force it. It won't have to be something 523 00:35:49,880 --> 00:35:52,200 unnatural. The Holy Spirit will reveal to 524 00:35:52,200 --> 00:35:56,440 you that the door is opening and that there's an opportunity 525 00:35:56,440 --> 00:35:58,240 here. And when you trust the Holy 526 00:35:58,240 --> 00:36:02,880 Spirit, he will even drop words into your mind and into your 527 00:36:02,880 --> 00:36:07,760 heart to speak directly to the words of life from the 528 00:36:07,760 --> 00:36:12,720 scriptures, from God to speak into their situation and lead to 529 00:36:12,720 --> 00:36:16,480 the, to the, to the, to the saving knowledge of Jesus. 530 00:36:17,200 --> 00:36:21,800 That's the kind of God we have. We can depend on him and trust 531 00:36:21,800 --> 00:36:25,840 him. So I just like to ask everyone 532 00:36:25,840 --> 00:36:31,680 here to take a moment and start thinking now about some people 533 00:36:31,680 --> 00:36:36,400 that you know, friends, colleagues, students, neighbors 534 00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:41,920 that don't know Jesus, and then start asking God and believe in 535 00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:44,960 God for divine appointments this week. 536 00:36:45,520 --> 00:36:49,720 That God will will make special things happen that you can share 537 00:36:49,720 --> 00:36:52,640 the gospel and trust God and depend on him. 538 00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:57,640 And I'm going to pray for all of us and then I'll hand it back 539 00:36:57,640 --> 00:37:02,360 over to Pastor Clark. Heavenly Father, we, we just 540 00:37:02,360 --> 00:37:05,840 thank you again for every precious person in this room. 541 00:37:06,760 --> 00:37:12,680 Lord, may all of us receive you as Lord and Savior, and may all 542 00:37:12,680 --> 00:37:16,120 of us be used for your glory and Your honor. 543 00:37:16,160 --> 00:37:20,880 Lord, we're praying specifically now, very specific for divine 544 00:37:20,880 --> 00:37:23,640 appointments for everyone in this church. 545 00:37:23,640 --> 00:37:27,760 I, I pray that you will fill them to overflowing with your 546 00:37:27,760 --> 00:37:32,360 spirit. Fill them up again, Lord, and 547 00:37:32,600 --> 00:37:35,240 lead them. May they be led by your spirit. 548 00:37:35,240 --> 00:37:37,280 May they feel the presence of your spirit. 549 00:37:38,440 --> 00:37:40,720 May they recognize divine appointments as they're 550 00:37:40,720 --> 00:37:42,400 happening. Lord, we believe you're going to 551 00:37:42,400 --> 00:37:45,560 give us opportunities this week to share the gospel. 552 00:37:46,240 --> 00:37:50,360 Lord, speak through US. May we be conduits and vessels 553 00:37:50,560 --> 00:37:55,040 to speak your words to others. And Lord, we're just praying and 554 00:37:55,040 --> 00:37:57,400 believing that people will be saved. 555 00:37:57,480 --> 00:38:00,080 Lord, it's your will. We're praying according to your 556 00:38:00,080 --> 00:38:04,880 will. And Lord, prepare our hearts to 557 00:38:04,880 --> 00:38:08,200 receive and do to be doers of your word. 558 00:38:08,880 --> 00:38:10,760 And it's in the name of Jesus we pray. 559 00:38:11,480 --> 00:38:14,720 Amen. Thank you, pastor. 560 00:38:14,800 --> 00:38:19,360 Thank you brother. I just want to continue to pray 561 00:38:19,360 --> 00:38:22,440 right now in that same vein that Andy was just leaving us. 562 00:38:22,440 --> 00:38:24,960 Heavenly Father, that is our desire. 563 00:38:24,960 --> 00:38:29,920 That is our request that you would give us even more desire, 564 00:38:31,080 --> 00:38:34,760 give us even more hunger, give us even more compassion for the 565 00:38:34,760 --> 00:38:37,560 world around us that we would be led to. 566 00:38:37,560 --> 00:38:40,440 Pray that your appointments would happen. 567 00:38:41,000 --> 00:38:43,120 Give us supernatural appointments this week. 568 00:38:43,520 --> 00:38:45,600 I pray that you would open up the eyes of our hearts to see 569 00:38:45,600 --> 00:38:49,320 and to notice, to get our eyes off of ourselves, to get our 570 00:38:49,320 --> 00:38:53,280 eyes up, to look around, to be available when that chariot 571 00:38:53,280 --> 00:38:55,880 comes, when there's the knock at our door, whatever the 572 00:38:55,880 --> 00:38:59,240 circumstance may be, in the middle of our schedule, in the 573 00:38:59,240 --> 00:39:01,560 middle of our plans, in the middle of our busyness. 574 00:39:01,920 --> 00:39:04,760 God, this is our purpose. This is the work that we are to 575 00:39:04,760 --> 00:39:08,080 do, greater than that of our career, greater than that even 576 00:39:08,080 --> 00:39:11,200 of the work of our household. You have a way of working all 577 00:39:11,200 --> 00:39:14,160 things together for your good. So we pray that you would 578 00:39:14,160 --> 00:39:17,560 connect us to those persons of peace, whether it's Cornelius or 579 00:39:17,880 --> 00:39:21,120 whether it's the man in the the Ethiopian eunuch who's in his 580 00:39:21,120 --> 00:39:23,760 travels, whether it's the family member. 581 00:39:24,640 --> 00:39:27,000 God, we pray that you would use us as workers in the harvest 582 00:39:27,000 --> 00:39:29,920 this week and give us that opportunity. 583 00:39:30,200 --> 00:39:32,480 Not the thing that we had to force or that we had to muscle 584 00:39:32,480 --> 00:39:35,520 our way into, but Holy Spirit where you would just pave the 585 00:39:35,520 --> 00:39:39,480 way by your power, by your presence God, by your sovereign 586 00:39:39,480 --> 00:39:43,400 will. Lead us with clarity, lead us 587 00:39:43,400 --> 00:39:46,440 with wisdom, and we trust you for the words. 588 00:39:47,360 --> 00:39:49,440 We trust you for everything that we need. 589 00:39:50,040 --> 00:39:53,480 Guide us, even prepare us more and more as the week goes on. 590 00:39:53,880 --> 00:39:56,640 Lead us through your word that we would be equipped for 591 00:39:56,640 --> 00:40:00,040 everything you've called us to, to do the work of the ministry. 592 00:40:00,560 --> 00:40:03,360 We thank you for it all in Jesus name, Amen. 593 00:40:04,400 --> 00:40:07,800 I just want to encourage you with what Andy was saying. 594 00:40:08,400 --> 00:40:13,160 About the passage there in Acts where Peter gives a, he gives 595 00:40:13,160 --> 00:40:15,320 that nugget of the gospel young, I don't know what I would say 596 00:40:15,320 --> 00:40:18,080 for the gospel. Well, Ephesians chapter 2, you 597 00:40:18,080 --> 00:40:20,960 can go right there and say what is the gospel, what is the 598 00:40:20,960 --> 00:40:23,400 simple truth? And it's the whole thing. 599 00:40:23,840 --> 00:40:27,600 It's not just one thing or the other thing, it's the whole 600 00:40:27,600 --> 00:40:28,720 thing. It's the whole truth. 601 00:40:28,920 --> 00:40:30,880 So you got multiple places. If you would say I don't know 602 00:40:30,880 --> 00:40:33,320 the gospel, you have no excuse to ever say that again. 603 00:40:34,840 --> 00:40:36,200 I'm saying that with sternness to you. 604 00:40:36,200 --> 00:40:38,840 If you would say I don't know what that is, then you have 0 605 00:40:38,840 --> 00:40:41,400 excuse to repeat that after 10:00 tonight. 606 00:40:42,000 --> 00:40:43,560 How could you dare ever say that? 607 00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:48,120 So open up your Bible and go read the Scriptures and say this 608 00:40:48,120 --> 00:40:49,880 is what it is. Well, I forgot what it was. 609 00:40:50,080 --> 00:40:52,120 Write it down. Stick it on your bathroom 610 00:40:52,120 --> 00:40:53,600 mirror. This is what growth looks like. 611 00:40:53,600 --> 00:40:55,760 This is what a practical this isn't. 612 00:40:55,960 --> 00:40:58,000 Remember we talked recently about legalism, right? 613 00:40:58,040 --> 00:41:00,160 And what a Pharisee would do and say this is the rule. 614 00:41:00,400 --> 00:41:03,000 And yet they're also wise practices, aren't there? 615 00:41:03,000 --> 00:41:05,360 There's also some wise helpful disciplines, aren't there? 616 00:41:05,680 --> 00:41:08,200 So this would be a good thing for us to do and go, I'm well 617 00:41:08,200 --> 00:41:10,360 equipped. I can tell you what the Word of 618 00:41:10,360 --> 00:41:11,880 God says. I can tell you what his Kingdom 619 00:41:11,880 --> 00:41:13,720 is like. So be prepared. 620 00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:16,360 If you're going to pray that way, expect the opportunity to 621 00:41:16,360 --> 00:41:19,960 come and then also be prepared and be suited for it isn't. 622 00:41:19,960 --> 00:41:21,640 It's not complicated, it's simple. 623 00:41:21,640 --> 00:41:24,480 It's good you get to share the best news ever. 624 00:41:24,960 --> 00:41:27,280 Heavenly Father, I thank you so much for your precious people. 625 00:41:27,520 --> 00:41:29,760 God, we thank you for Andy and Stacy and the work you're doing 626 00:41:29,760 --> 00:41:32,480 in them and through them. And as you continue to equip 627 00:41:32,480 --> 00:41:34,880 them for your work. God, we pray that you would send 628 00:41:34,880 --> 00:41:38,000 in resources that you would use us other churches, that you 629 00:41:38,000 --> 00:41:41,640 would send other ministries and other people and other believers 630 00:41:41,840 --> 00:41:44,000 to support the work that you're doing throughout the earth. 631 00:41:44,280 --> 00:41:47,280 And even as they equip, even as they go into a season of 632 00:41:47,520 --> 00:41:51,360 equipping others to continue to do the work to equip others, so 633 00:41:51,360 --> 00:41:54,480 that this thing becomes this beautiful virtuous cycle where 634 00:41:54,480 --> 00:41:56,600 the Kingdom expands in an exponential way. 635 00:41:56,840 --> 00:41:58,880 God, I ask that this will be a sweet season for them. 636 00:41:59,120 --> 00:42:02,080 I said it would be a season of powerful anointing that they 637 00:42:02,080 --> 00:42:04,360 would be so blessed in their marriage, that they would be 638 00:42:04,360 --> 00:42:06,760 blessed in their family, that their children, their adult 639 00:42:06,760 --> 00:42:10,600 children would still receive the benefits of his godly household 640 00:42:10,600 --> 00:42:13,360 and the work that their parents have done and instilled in them. 641 00:42:13,720 --> 00:42:16,240 God, we pray for your highest and your best and all that they 642 00:42:16,240 --> 00:42:19,040 would have fruitful ministry so that the Kingdom would be 643 00:42:19,040 --> 00:42:21,120 impacted. And God, these are just the 644 00:42:21,120 --> 00:42:23,320 stories that they know of that their ministry has done. 645 00:42:23,520 --> 00:42:26,680 How much more have you done that that will never reach their ears 646 00:42:26,680 --> 00:42:30,200 until they reach the other side. We thank you, God, we ask you to 647 00:42:30,200 --> 00:42:33,120 continue to glorify your name through your faithful Saints. 648 00:42:33,600 --> 00:42:37,400 And now God, as you look upon your people, would you bless 649 00:42:37,400 --> 00:42:40,000 them? I know you do according to your 650 00:42:40,000 --> 00:42:42,400 word. So it's in the name of Jesus 651 00:42:42,400 --> 00:42:47,800 that I bless you, the Lord bless you, the Lord keep you, the Lord 652 00:42:47,800 --> 00:42:51,000 make his face Shinedown upon you, and be gracious to you. 653 00:42:51,560 --> 00:42:54,280 The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you great 654 00:42:54,280 --> 00:42:57,120 peace in Jesus name, Amen.