167 Sermon Illustrations on Obedience

Joseph, the husband of Mary, is the forgotten man of Christmas.

He never speaks a word in the biblical record. He is Joseph the silent. He ranks only slightly higher than an extra in the cast.

Although 15 cities in the United States are named for Joseph, he remains the forgotten man of the Christmas story.

But Joseph deserves more than that.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "What you do speaks so loudly I cannot hear what you say." Of Joseph we might say, "What he did speaks so loudly that there was no need for him to say anything." Joseph is remarkably simple, but he also is simply remarkable.

It would be difficult to imagine a more complicated and devastating situation than the one in which Joseph found himself. He had a bride who was pregnant because of a strange involvement with God. Joseph bore the condemnation and pressure of a community that would not and could not possibly understand. He was a northern Palestinian cabinetmaker who was told by God to go to Bethlehem and then suddenly instructed to flee to Egypt.

Joseph's response can be stated in a single, simple word: obedience.

He obeyed God immediately. God spoke and Joseph married Mary.

He obeyed God in painful circumstances. Mary and Joseph were betrothed or engaged. According to Jewish tradition, step one was the consent phase. Consent was usually reached when the girl was 12 or 13 years of age. During this time, the girl continued to live with her parents. However, this was considered a legally ratified marriage. The second step was the formal transferal of the bride to the husband's home where he assumed her support. She was to be taken to his home chaste, a virgin. Between steps one and two, Mary was found to be pregnant. All kinds of thoughts and options must have flooded Joseph's mind. To be the object of suspicion and back-street criticism in a little town like Nazareth was not easy.

He obeyed in spite of fear. Joseph was terrified to learn of his wife's virgin pregnancy. God told Joseph, "Fear not." In spite of his fear, Joseph obeyed.

He obeyed God by staking everything on God's word alone. Joseph received a word from God that came to him in a dream. He believed God and staked his life and future on that conviction. When instructed by God to flee to Egypt with Mary and Jesus, Joseph did as he was told. He accepted the consequences of obedience because he trusted God.

While Joseph is often the forgotten man of Christmas, his example can be an enormous challenge, blessing and inspiration to us all.

May our heart's desire this Christmas be obedience to God.

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Monty Robbins tours the country demonstrating an interesting technique in breaking in horses which have never been ridden. He explains to his audience that through a series of words, hand signals, and eye contact he will communicate with the horse and ultimately gain the trust of the horse. The traditional way of breaking a horse is to weight the horse down for hours and sometime even days until the will of the horse is broken. This "language" he uses gains the trust of the horse as he and the horse are reconciled together. He will demonstrate his technique by telling his audience that he will reconcile with a horse which has never been ridden, saddle, and ride the horse within 30 minutes. And he does so every time. Once he has ridden the horse he will ask the crowd, sometimes of 2,000 or more people, to begin screaming, stomping, and making loud noise at his command. The crowd will do as he says, causing the horse to panic and run wild. As the horse runs wild he will once again "communicate" with the horse and the horse will come over by his side and Monty will get on the calm horse while all of the noise is going on. Monty explains that this is because he has reconciled with the horse and gained the trust of the horse.

The world and Satan weighs you down and breaks you with sin, guilt, and death. Yet, the voice of the cross says that the weight of sin and the pressure of the world has been overcome. When Jesus was lifted up, Satan was cast down.

More than 90 people conducted an all-night search for an eight-year-old boy named Dominic. While on a skiing trip with his father, this little boy apparently had ridden a new lift and skied off the run without realizing it. They hoped to find Dominic somewhere on the snowy mountain slope before it was too late.

As each hour passed, the search party and the boy's family became more and more concerned. By dawn they still had found no trace of him. Two helicopters joined the search, and within fifteen minutes had spotted ski tracks. A ground team followed the tracks which changed to small footprints. The footprints lead to a tree where they found the boy at last.

"He's in super shape," the area search and rescue coordinator announced to the anxious family and press. "In fact, he's in better shape than we are right now." A hospital spokesman said the boy was in fine condition and was not even admitted.

The rescuer explained why the boy did so well despite spending a night in the freezing elements: His father had enough forethought to warn him what to do if he became lost, and his son had enough trust to do exactly what his father said.

Dominic protected himself from possible frostbite and hypothermia by snuggling up to a tree and covering himself with branches. As a young child, he never would have thought of doing this on his own. He was simply obeying his wise and loving father.

I often marvel that God made the world creatively enough to have pets. They supply seemingly endless hours of entertainment. They are loyal (usually). And they provide a comforting companionship, even on emotionally draining days.

For many the chief of pets is the dog. And for me, the chief dog in my household is my Pembroke Welch Corgi. Everyone is partial to their own dogs. At any given time, I will hear dog-owners delivering uncompromising truths about dog-ownership that would rival the local priest's own dogmatism. Even before we received our dog, the endlessly free 'advice,' which often contradicted another's, was available to us.

Apart from dog owners, our Corgi, Lady Lucia, has taught me new ways to see the world. Even in Scripture we find examples of watching animals and discovering truths. I am reminded of Solomon's wisdom in his observation of ants - the need to be diligent lest poverty come. Or the metaphor gained in the eagle - the speed at which riches can disappear. Or the example of the ox - the strength needed to gather the harvest. In all of these reminders I take liberty to see what God has presented me in these ordinary days with my dog.

Lucia's eyes are eager when she catches her breath at the open gate. A whole world lies beyond a few planks of wood. She knows little about that world, apart from the trails we pathfind on our walks. She knows the distant sounds of barking and the peek of wide stretches beyond the yard.

If she were a person, I wonder how often she would reflect on the goodness of home. Food is always available at meal times. The yard is expansive enough for a hearty run. Even the cats come by for an occasional romp. The fence keeps the predators out?oyotes are known to prowl in these parts. And, best of all, her owners dance about with squeaky toys and scratch behind her ears. But her little dog self, from what I perceive, reflects little on the good life within the gate.

Her attention is on the unknown - the wilderness of asphalt and machine. When the gate is left open or a hole is dug under the fence, she is quick to flee. When she sprints under my watchful eye, I hurry and shout after her, preventing her from the oncoming traffic and gathering her to the safe backyard. After my eloquent stern tone of rebuke, she trots around the yard again, barking at birds, and lapping from her water bowl.

The perspective switch to see the world through her eyes allows me to look again at my world through my eyes. There is much that is unknown about the wilderness beyond. Yet God's has spoken in his Word about the boundary lines of reality. He has told us of the dangerous places. He reminds us of the safety within his backyard, and the desolation that comes from beyond the border. How often do I gaze into the wild, holding onto empty wishes, simply because I've lost the gratitude and wonder of the shelter of God's good places? How often does God shout while I wander off?

Unlike my near-sightedness over Lucia, the Psalmist tells us that there is no place we can go that escapes the eyes of God (Psalm 139). No matter where we are, He is already there. He meets us in the remotest of places, even places where we've tried making the garden of our lives out of asphalt and machine. He does this, not so that we will grow used to the wilderness, but so that He can bring us home.

Even today, in what areas of our lives are we wandering off? No matter where we are, our good depends on heeding the Master and following Him all the way home.

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Copyright © 2004 Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM). Reprinted with permission. "A Slice of Infinity" is a radio ministry of Ravi Zacharias International Ministries.

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[Original illustration here was a duplicate in HolwickID 25837-26027]

The High Calling

If God has called you to be really like Jesus He will draw you into a life of crucifixion and humility, and put upon you such demands of obedience, that you will not be able to follow other people, or measure yourself by other Christians, and in many ways He will seem to let other people do things which He will not let you do.

Other Christians and ministers who seem very religious and useful, may push themselves, pull wires, and work schemes to carry out their plans, but you cannot do it, and if you attempt it, you will meet with such failure and rebuke from the Lord as to make you sorely penitent.

Others may boast of themselves, of their work, of their successes, of their writings, but the Holy Spirit will not allow you to do any such thing, and if you begin it, He will lead you into some deep mortification that will make you despise yourself and all your good works.

Others may be allowed to succeed in making money, or may have a legacy left to them, but it is likely God will keep you poor, because He wants you to have something far better than gold, namely, a helpless dependence upon Him, that He may have the privilege of supplying your needs day by day out of an unseen treasury.

The Lord may let others be honored and put forward, and keep you hidden in obscurity, because He wants to produce some choice fragrant fruit for His coming glory, which can only be produced in the shade. He may let others be great, but keep you small. He may let others do a work for Him and get the credit for it, but He will make you work and toil on without knowing how much you are doing; and then to make your work still more precious He may let others get credit for the work which you have done, and thus make YOUR REWARD TEN TIMES GREATER WHEN JESUS COMES.

The Holy Spirit will put a strict watch over you, with a jealous love, and will rebuke you for little words and feelings or for wasting your time, which other Christians never feel distressed over. So make up your mind that God is an Infinitely Sovereign Being, and has a right to do as He pleases with His own. He may not explain to you a thousand things which puzzle your reason in His dealings with you, but if you absolutely sell yourself to be His love slave, He will wrap you up in Jealous Love, and bestow upon you many blessings which come only to those who are in the inner circle.

Settle it forever, then that you are to DEAL DIRECTLY WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT, and that He is to have the privilege of tying your tongue, or chaining your hand, or closing your eyes, in ways that He does not seem to use with others. Now, when you are so possessed with the living God that you are, in your secret heart, pleased and delighted over this PECULIAR, PERSONAL, PRIVATE, JEALOUS GUARDIANSHIP AND MANAGEMENT OF THE HOLY SPIRIT OVER YOUR LIFE, then you will have found the vestibule of Heaven.

I may not understand what Jesus Christ says, but it is dangerous to say that therefore He was mistaken in what He said. It is never right to think that my obedience to a word of God will bring dishonour to Jesus. The only thing that will bring dishonour is not obeying Him. To put my view of His honour in place of what He is plainly impelling me to do is never right, although it may arise from a real desire to prevent Him being put to open shame. I know when the proposition comes from God because of its quiet persistence: When I have to weigh the pros and cons, and doubt and debate come in, I am bringing in an element that is not of God, and I come to the conclusion that the suggestion was not a right one. Many of us are loyal to our notions of Jesus Christ, but how many of us are loyal to Him? Loyalty to Jesus means I have to step out where I do not see anything (cf. Matt. 14:29); loyalty to my notions means that I clear the ground first by my intelligence. Faith is not intelligent understanding, faith is deliberate commitment to a Person where I see no way.

Are you debating whether to take a step in faith in Jesus or to wait until you can see how to do the thing yourself? Obey Him with glad reckless joy. When He says something and you begin to debate, it is because you have a conception of His honour which is not His honour. Are you loyal to Jesus or loyal to your notion of Him? Are you loyal to what He says, or are you trying to compromise with conceptions which never came from Him? "Whatsoever He saith unto you, do it."

A church member told his pastor that he was going to the Holy Land. He said that it was his intention to visit Mount Sinai. “In fact,” he told the minister, “I plan to climb to the top of that mountain, and read the Ten Commandments aloud when I get there.”

Thinking this would please the pastor, he was surprised to hear, “You know, I can think of something even better than that.” The man responded, “You can, Pastor? And what might that be?”

He replied rather bluntly, “Instead of traveling thousands of miles to read the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai, why not stay right here at home and keep them?”

God wants us to read His Word, of course. But more important, He wants us to obey it. So, as we open the Bible each day, we should pray not only for illumination to understand it but also for a willingness to obey it. Hearing and doing must go hand-in-hand (James 1:22).

When Saul heard Jesus speaking to him on the road to Damascus, he asked, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” (Acts 9:6). That’s a good question for us to ask whenever we read the Bible or hear it read.

Let’s be “doers of the Word.” — Richard De Haan

We take delight to read God’s Word,

We say, “Ah, yes, it’s true!”

But we must go beyond mere words

And seek His will to do. — D. De Haan

The Spirit of God enables us to obey the Word of God.

The principle of Christ’s lordship is the “master key” that “unlocks every other doctrine,” Roger D. Willmore, president of the Alabama Baptist State Convention, said at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

“I believe that our understanding of and response to the lordship of Jesus Christ affects the whole of our life and the whole of our ministry,” said Willmore, pastor of Deerfoot Baptist Church in Trussville, Alabama.

A person’s confession of Jesus as Lord involves the unseen spiritual aspects of life as well as the physical aspects of life, he said. “If you don’t know this yet, you will learn that the major battlefield is ... in your mind, in your heart.

“The decisions made in your heart and in your mind will invariably and inevitably be displayed in your life,” Willmore said, preaching from Luke 9:57-62, where Jesus is called “Lord” three times.

Noting Christ’s lordship over a person’s physical life, Willmore recounted in his Oct. 24 message at the Fort Worth, Texas, seminary how Adrian Rogers, as he lay in his bed each morning, consecrated each part of his body to Christ’s service. Willmore then asked the seminarians whether Christ is Lord of their actions, attitudes, language, relationships, entertainment and possessions. Christ is not the Lord of a person’s life, Willmore said, unless He is Lord of everything.

Noting the implications of Christ’s lordship, Willmore said Christians have been bought at the price of Jesus’ blood. As such, Christ’s lordship implies ownership. Referencing Florence Nightingale, the renowned nurse who at the age of 30 submitted her life completely to Christ’s lordship, Willmore said she was asked late in life about the secret to her fruitful career. “I held nothing back from God,” Nightingale answered.

Second, Willmore said, Christ’s lordship implies obedience. The Luke 9 passage, he said, reveals three tests of obedience: the test of poverty, the test of urgency and the test of sovereignty.

In the first test, a man offers to follow Jesus, but Jesus replies that He, “the Son of Man,” does not even have a home.

In the test of urgency, another man offers to follow Jesus after his father’s death. Jesus, however, urges the man to follow Him immediately. “Delayed obedience is disobedience,” Willmore said. “When God calls, He calls now. When He sends, He sends now. When He gives you an assignment, there is a ‘nowness’ about it that has an urgency about it.”

In the test of sovereignty, a man offers to follow Jesus but desires to bid farewell to his family first. Willmore said the man had divided loyalties: He was hesitant to give up his allegiance to his family so that he could give his allegiance fully to Christ.

“I submit to you that if [Christ’s lordship] is the master-key doctrine, then we should be preaching the lordship of Christ,” Willmore said.

“In a day when the preeminence of Christ is challenged and debated, we need to preach the lordship of Jesus. In a day when Christians are malnourished and spiritually anemic ... in a day when we seek to be culturally relevant rather than Christ-honoring ... in a day when Christians are more concerned about satisfying self and seekers than they are the Savior, we need to preach the Lordship of Jesus.”

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[Original illustration at this number was a duplicate of HolwickID #20936]

To choose to suffer means that there is something wrong; to choose God’s Will even if it means suffering is a very different thing. No healthy saint ever chooses suffering; he chooses God’s will, as Jesus did, whether it means suffering or not. No saint dare interfere with the discipline of suffering in another saint.

The saint who satisfies the heart of Jesus will make other saints strong and mature for God. The people who do us good are never those who sympathize with us, they always hinder, because sympathy enervates. No one understands a saint but the saint who is nearest to the Saviour. If we accept the sympathy of a saint, the reflex feeling is — Well, God is dealing hardly with me. That is why Jesus said self-pity was of the devil (see Matt. 16:23). Be merciful to God’s reputation. It is easy to blacken God’s character because God never answers back, He never vindicates Himself. Beware of the thought that Jesus needed sympathy in His earthly life; He refused sympathy from man because He knew far too wisely that no one on earth understood what He was after. He took sympathy from His Father only, and from the angels in heaven. (Cf. Luke 15:10.)

Notice God’s unutterable waste of saints, according to the judgment of the world. God plants His saints in the most useless places. We say — God intends me to be here because I am so useful. Jesus never estimated His life along the line of the greatest use. God puts His saints where they will glorify Him, and we are no judges at all of where that is.

Nothing stirs so many questions as does the birth of Christ. The innkeeper too busy to welcome God-did he ever learn who he turned away? The shepherds-did they ever hum the song the angels sang? The wise men who followed the star-what was it like to worship a toddler? And Joseph, especially Joseph. I’ve got questions for Joseph.

What was he thinking while Jesus was being born? He’d done all he could do — he’d made Mary as comfortable as she could be in a barn and then he stepped out. She’d asked to be alone, and Joseph has never felt more so.

In that eternity between his wife’s dismissal and Jesus’ arrival, what was he thinking? He walked into the night and looked into the stars. Did he pray?

I wonder what he said …

This isn’t the way I planned it, God. This doesn’t seem right. What kind of husband am I? I provide no midwife to aid my wife. No bed to rest her back. Her pillow is a blanket from my donkey. My house for her is a shed of hay and straw.

Did I miss something? Did I, God?

You’ve stood where Joseph stood. Caught between what God says and what makes sense. You’ve done what he told you to do only to wonder if it was him speaking in the first place. You’ve stared into a sky blackened with doubt.

If you are asking what Joseph asked, let me urge you to do what Joseph did. Obey. That’s what he did. He obeyed when the angel called. He obeyed when Mary explained. He obeyed when God sent.

Just like Joseph, you can’t see the whole picture. Just like Joseph your task is to see that Jesus is brought into your part of your world. And just like Joseph you have a choice: to obey or disobey. Because Joseph obeyed, God used him to change the world.

Can he do the same with you?

There was no sign of wind. Nothing to indicate an approaching storm. The clouds had not gathered. Still, Noah believed God. Therefore, he prepared for a downpour.

Against the advice of friends, he built an ark. To their jeers and shouts of disbelief, he turned a deaf ear. He gathered gopher wood -- lots of it. We know it as cedar or cypress wood, which is nearly indestructible by water. Noah had a plan.

The ship's cargo would be chosen carefully: two by two. His family was to be included in the count. It was not a joyful time for Noah. He had witnessed the growing wickedness of those around him. His urgings for them to turn back to God were met with laughter and disgust. No one listened except his immediate family who worked at his side. They had not heard from God, but they believed that Noah had.

The Lord said to Noah, “The end of all flesh has come before Me; for the earth is filled with violence because of them; and behold, I am about to destroy them with the earth” (Genesis 6:13).

Obedience is the cornerstone to our faith in God. Just as Noah's obedience led to God's blessing and reward, the disobedience of those who lived during Noah's day led to their destruction.

At the time of the flood, the physical salvation of mankind fell to Noah and his willingness to be used by God. The ark was a mere foreshadowing of the eternal salvation from sin that is ours through Jesus Christ.

It was Noah's faith that saved him and his family, and the same is true for us today. We are saved by faith and not by good deeds done well. Building the ark did not bring Noah any closer to the Lord, but his obedience and faith in God did.

When we look at Noah's life from this perspective, we also realize that a lack of obedience indicates a lack of faith. Noah was mighty in spirit because he dared to trust the Lord by setting his heart on obeying God even when disobedience was the law of the land.

Obedience is not always the popular thing to do. But Noah did not yield to the pressures surrounding him. He remained committed to the course that God had given him. No matter what the emotional climate of his day, Noah knew he could not go wrong following the Lord.

Genesis 6:22 tells us that “Noah did; according to all that God had commanded ....” He did not waver in his faith even though it took 120 years to complete the ark's construction, which was an estimated 450 feet long, 75 feet wide, and 45 feet high, with a displacement of about 43 tons.

Noah simply was not afraid to do what God had called him to do, and the Bible tells us that he “found favor in the eyes of the Lord” (Genesis 6:8). When God gives us a task to do, He always gives us the ability to do it!

Sadly, however, after Noah and his family disembarked from the ark, his faith waned. He had gone through a very difficult time and come away the victor. But without warning, the very temptation that had spurred God's wrath and led to the flood claimed another victim. (Genesis 9)

Oswald Chambers reminds us that we should “remain alert to the fact that where one person has turned back is exactly where anyone may be tempted to turn back .... Beware of thinking that the areas of your life where you have experienced victory in the past are now the least likely to cause you to stumble and fall....

“Unguarded strength is actually a double weakness, because that is where the least likely temptations will be effective in sapping strength. The Bible characters stumbled over their strong points, never their weak ones.”

Noah was a righteous man -- one who was loved and chosen by God. In fact, the “salvation of mankind” came through the ark that he had built. He faithfully completed the task God had given him. He followed the Lord's instructions perfectly. However, in the end, he allowed temptation to rob him of the joy that was his through God's mercy and abundant grace.

If you have come through a difficult time and, like Noah, find that you have yielded yourself to sin, know that there is hope. You can say no to the tempter and yes to Christ. He is aware of your desire to love and obey Him. When you give Him your life and ask for His forgiveness, He will provide the strength you need to finish victoriously the course that He has placed before you.

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Originally published by InTouch Ministries. http://www.intouch.org/myintouch/mighty/noah_36774069.html

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Acts 10:1–23a — “Peter & Cornelius: 2 Visions” (outline by F. F. Bruce, NICNT) « Leader information shown in this fashion »

{A.} The Birth of the Church (1:1–5:42)

{B.} Persecution and Expansion (6:1–9:31)

{1.} Stephen (6:1–8:1a)

{2.} Philip (8:1b–40)

{3.} Conversion of Saul of Tarsus (9:1–31)

{C.} The Acts of Peter and Beginnings of Gentile Christianity, 9:32-12:25

{1.} Peter in West Judaea (9:32-43)

A. Peter at Lydda: the Healing of Aeneas (9:32–35)

B. Peter at Joppa: the Raising of Dorcas (9:36–43)

{2.} The Story of Cornelius (10:1–48)

A. Cornelius the Centurion Sees a Vision 10:1–8 (NKJV)

1. 1 There was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, 2 a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always. 3 About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius!” 4 And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, “What is it, lord?” So he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter. 6 He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must do.” 7 And when the angel who spoke to him had departed, Cornelius called two of his household servants and a devout soldier from among those who waited on him continually. 8 So when he had explained all these things to them, he sent them to Joppa.

2. Think back to where we left things last week: Peter tour of West Judaea had him ministering where Philip the Evangelist had led campaigns shortly before. Peter stayed in Joppa at the house of Simon the Tanner

3. Did Cornelius need to know the salvation that Jesus gives? How do you know? « — Yes »

a. Acts 4:12 « – there is none other Name giving salvation »

b. « God sent an angel to get Cornelius pointed to knowing Jesus »

c. « There was yet something which Cornelius must do (v. 8) »

4. Then what good, if any, were all of Cornelius’ righteous acts?

a. Psalm 34:18, 51:17, Isaiah 57:15 « – these were the marks of a a man whose spirit was humbled before God »

b. Hebrews 11:6 « – these were the evidences of the faith that is a prerequisite to those seeking God to find Him »

5. Is there a lesson here in our approach to religious people?

a. Acts 17:22 « – Paul commenting how religious the Athenians were; but then goes on to supply their lacking knowledge »

b. 1 Peter 3:15 « – the gentle and respectful witness to others »

c. Romans 10:2 « – recognize their spiritual desire; take them to the One who can satisfy that appetite »

d. « Many sects and denominations provide a perverted gospel, one that rests on self-effort; keep in mind that these groups encompass sincere seekers who need to hear the truth »

6. The Roman army had officially prescribed religious observances and feast days; what would induce Cornelius to be a God-fearer (describes a non-proselyte worshipper of Jehovah) « – emptiness of idolatrous paganism; attractive piety of the common Jew »

7. What was significant about the time (compare Acts 3:1)? « — it was the hour of prayer; and a time of God’s answering prayer »

8. How did this soldier regard the message he had received? How do you know? « – as a command from higher Authority; right away he took action to obey what he had heard »

B. Peter, the Apostle, Sees a Vision 10:9–16 (NKJV)

1. 9 The next day, as they went on their journey and drew near the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray, about the sixth hour. 10 Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance 11 and saw heaven opened and an object like a great sheet bound at the four corners, descending to him and let down to the earth. 12 In it were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, creeping things, and birds of the air. 13 And a voice came to him, “Rise, Peter; kill and eat.” 14 But Peter said, “Not so, Lord! For I have never eaten anything common or unclean.” 15 And a voice spoke to him again the second time, “What God has cleansed you must not call common.” 16 This was done three times. And the object was taken up into heaven again.

2. When is the sixth hour? What was significant about that hour (see Psalm 55:17, Daniel 6:10)? – « noon; though not prescribed for public prayer, it was a time that faithful Jews prayed »

3. Why did Peter need a different message than Cornelius? « – it would be nothing for a Gentile to go to a Jew, but against his culture for a Jew to enter a Gentile home; Peter needed to have that prejudice removed (you will find godly Hebrews in the Old Testament; e.g., David, had no compunction in this regard) »

4. What was the lesson that Jesus taught in Mark 7:14–19? « – that all foods are clean? It was the fact that Gentiles did not follow the dietary laws that made them unclean; cf., Daniel 1:8 »

5. How is that extended here (see verse 28)? « – it applies to people; this theme will be repeated a number of times in subsequent chapters in Acts and it also emerges in the epistles. »

C. The Two Visions are Connected 10:17–23a (NKJV)

1. Peter’s Perplexity (10:17a)

a. 17 Now while Peter wondered within himself what this vision which he had seen meant,

b. God does not give any explanation to Peter of what he sees; so what is the vision’s purpose? « – it is to prepare Peter to accept something which was in direct conflict with his upbringing, his culture, his attitude (and to which he reverted at times); that his proper Jewish attitude to the Gentiles was not God’s attitude – Ezekiel 4 relates a similar experience of that prophet »

c. How does it first accomplish that purpose? « – it sets Peter to thinking about the question of clean versus unclean »

2. The Messengers from Cornelius Arrive at Joppa (10:17b–21)

a. … behold, the men who had been sent from Cornelius had made inquiry for Simon’s house, and stood before the gate. 18 And they called and asked whether Simon, whose surname was Peter, was lodging there. 19 While Peter thought about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are seeking you. 20 Arise therefore, go down and go with them, doubting nothing; for I have sent them.” 21 Then Peter went down to the men who had been sent to him from Cornelius, and said, “Yes, I am he whom you seek. For what reason have you come?”

b. The Holy Spirit speaks to Peter (note that this shows that He is a Person and not an influence or power) but does He answer what is perplexing Peter? « – not directly; God does not answer our questions in our time but His; and often, as here, by the unfolding of circumstance rather than words »

c. What is the Holy Spirit’s purpose in speaking to Peter? « – that he may be assured that those who have come and the reason for their coming are in accord with the divine will and purposes; what is happening is of God, not of man »

3. The Beginning of the Explanation (10:22–23a)

a. 22 And they said, “Cornelius the centurion, a just man, one who fears God and has a good reputation among all the nation of the Jews, was divinely instructed by a holy angel to summon you to his house, and to hear words from you.” 23 Then he invited them in and lodged them. On the next day Peter went away with them, and some brethren from Joppa accompanied him.

b. How would this short speech of the three messengers answer any of the questions that were floating in Peter’s mind?

(A) « why the vision about the clean and unclean ? – well a Gentile was involved »

(B) why were these three men coming? « – well this was a Gentile who was God-fearing, God-seeking »

(C) why were they come to him? « – this was God at work »

c. Note in this chapter the diversity of ways in which God reveals His will and gives guidance; name some.

(A) « the clear vision to Cornelius »

(B) « the angel’s words to Cornelius »

(C) « the hunger and trance with its vision to Peter »

(D) « the Lord’s voice to Peter, commanding to eat »

(E) « the Holy Spirit’s words of assurance to Peter »

And the angel of the LORD said unto her, Return to thy mistress, and submit thyself under her hands. (Genesis 16:9 AV)

And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word. And the angel departed from her. (Luke 1:38 AV)

Although Hagar had acted in self will, God did not give her up. She had brought herself into trouble; God did not leave her to get out of her difficulty as best she might but treated her in grace. An angel brought her a message which she must have found hard to obey; but obye it she did and through her obedience came blessing. That message was summed up in two words: "Return, Submit." They may be a message to our own souls if in any particular we have taken our own way. If we would learn to rule we must first be ruled; if we would wield authority we must cultivate a lowly mind; if we would be free we must learn to serve.

Lord, let me wait on Thee alone, my joy be only this,

To serve Thee, here on earth unknown, then share Thy heavenly bliss. – J. N. Darby

”Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and do this or that.” James 4:15

The Apostle Paul was travelling from his last mission trip to Jerusalem. Two [many] times he received prophecy that he would be bound in chains in Jerusalem. Two times people encouraged him to not go to Jerusalem. He went anyway. When He reached that holy city, he went to the holiest place of all — the Temple — where he fulfilled a vow he had previously made. Then he was arrested, bound in chains and cast into prison. Why? Why did Paul not listen to the prophets? Why did he not stop somewhere else until the prophets said it was OK to proceed. Why didn’t he return to Galatia, or Corinth, or … anywhere but Jerusalem?

Paul had learned a lesson. The Lord told Him to go to Jerusalem — and so he would. The Lord told him he would go to Rome — and so he did … from Jerusalem … in chains … with Rome picking up the travel expenses! But the prophets? Wasn’t their word valid? Yes, they were right. Paul was bound in chains. But why didn’t Paul stay away? Because God told him to go. You see, Paul’s lesson was that he was in the hands of God. Whatever God wanted, Paul wanted. Whatever God said, Paul did. If God said, “Go to Jerusalem.” To Jerusalem he went. If God said, “You will be bound in chains.” That didn’t bother Paul. It had happened before. It would probably happen again.

James says that we should not say “I will do this and that.” (my paraphrase.) Instead he says, “If the Lord wills, we shall live and also do this or that.” Note the difference . . . it’s found in four little, single syllable words, “if the Lord wills . . .” If the Lord wills, I will become a millionaire. If the Lord wills, I will be a teacher. If the Lord wills, I will be healed. If the Lord wills, I will marry. If the Lord wills, I will . . . be bound in chains and cast into prison. That was Paul’s attitude. It should be ours. I fear that we think entirely too much of ourselves and our ability. How often to we presume to tell God how to run our lives — or the lives of others? What if His will is different? Is it any wonder that some of our prayers go unanswered? How can God answer our prayer if it is in direct opposition to His will? Why do we ever think that we know more than the God of the Universe — the God of Creation? When God speaks, we need to respond with the words of Jean Luke Piccard Captain of the USS Enterprise, “Make it so”, Lord.

OBJECTS: A remote control

THEME: God is in control

SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 41:10, Philippians 4:13

Preparation: Beforehand, prepare at least two things to happen when you point a remote control in that direction.. Get the person in charge of the lights to dim and brighten the lights when you point the remote at them. Get the pianist to play a short song when you point the remote at him/her. In our church, the youth group sits in the center section right down front. After doing the first two things mentioned here, I said, “I wonder if I can get our youth group to stand with my remote control?” Even though I had not coached them, they stood and sat down “on cue” as I pointed the remote at them.

Good morning boys and girls. [Pull out the remote control.] I’m sure that all of you recognize what I have with me this morning. It is a remote control. We have remote controls that can turn on our TV, change the channels, and turn the volume up or down. I have a remote control that can open my garage door. I even have a remote control on my key chain that can unlock my car door, open the trunk, or honk the horn. Just about anything you think of can be made to work by remote control.

Do you think I could make those lights dim with my remote control? (Point the remote control at the lights and the usher hits the dimmer switch.) Wow, that was great wasn’t it? Do you think I could get that piano over there to play a song with my remote control? (Point the remote at the piano and the pianist begins to play.) Hey, this remote control really works, doesn’t it? Hmm....I wonder if I could make all of those young people sitting over there stand up with my remote control? Hey, this remote control is really great. If I lay my remote control down over here, do you think I can get it to do anything? You are right, I can’t. Before my remote control can do anything, it has to be in my hand.

Did you know that you are like a remote control? You are. God has some special things for you to do in your life -- some really special things. But the only way you can do them is if you are in God’s hand. To do what God wants us to do, we must place ourselves in God’s hands. Let’s pray now that today we would put our lives in God’s hands so that He can use us to do some very special things this week.

Dear Lord, help us to remember that we need to put our lives in your hands so that you can use us to do the things that you have created us to do. Amen.

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Copyright © 2001-2006 Sermons4Kids. All rights Reserved.

*

Mr. Sankey tells the story of his boy who was with him, when a little fellow, in Scotland, and for the first time he possessed what in that country is known as a top-coat. They were walking out one cold day, and the way was slippery. The little fellow's hands were deep down in his pockets. His father said to him: "My son, you had better let me take your hand," but he said you never could persuade a boy with a new top-coat to take his hands from his pockets. They reached a slippery place and the boy had a hard fall. Then his pride began to depart and he said: "I will take your hand." and he reached up and clasped his father's hand the best he could. When a second slippery place was reached, the clasp was broken and the second fall was harder than the first. Then all his pride was gone, and raising his little hand he said: "You may take it now"; and his father said: "I clasped it round about with my great hand and we continued our walk; and when we reached the slippery places," said he, "the little feet would start to go and I would hold him up." This is a picture for the Christian. I am saved not so much because I have hold of God as because God has hold of me, and He not only gives me shoes with which I may walk and which never wear out, but Christ holds my hand in His and I shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck me out of His hand.

-J. Wilbur Chapman

Obedience must be the struggle and desire of our life. Obedience, not hard and forced, but ready, loving and spontaneous; the doing of duty, not merely that the duty may be done, but that the soul in doing it may become capable of receiving and uttering God.

-Phillips Brooks

Years ago a famous children's specialist said to me: "When it comes to a serious illness, the child who has been taught to obey stands four times the chance of recovery that the spoiled and undisciplined child does." Those words made a lasting impression upon me. Up to that time I had been taught that one of the Ten Commandments was for children to obey their parents. Never had it entered my mind that a question of obedience might mean the saving or losing of a child's life.

The following quotation is from the pen of D. L. Moody:

"I suppose that if you had asked the men in Elijah's time what kind of man he was, they would have said, 'He is very peculiar.' The king would say, 'I hate him.' Jezebel did not like him; the whole royal court didn't like him, and a great many of the nominal good people didn't like him; he was too radical. Be willing to be one of Christ's peculiar people, no matter what men may say of you."

In Teaching to Change Lives, Howard Hendricks tells about an 83-year-old Michigan woman he met at a Sunday school convention in Chicago.

"In a church with a Sunday school of only 65 people, she taught a class of 13 junior high boys. She had traveled by bus all the way to Chicago the night before the convention. Why? In her words, 'to learn something that would make me a better teacher.'

"I thought at the time, most people who had a class of 13 junior high boys in a Sunday school of only 65 would be breaking their arms to pat themselves on the back: 'Who, me? Go to a Sunday school convention? I could teach it myself!' But not this woman.

"Eighty-four boys who sat under her teaching are now in full-time vocational ministry. Twenty-two are graduates of the seminary where I teach."

Discipleship Journal

We have two dogs. These two mixed-breed mutts are lovable but they can cause a lot of problems. For one thing they like to escape and play with the neighbor's dogs and kids, so we have to keep them penned up when we're not out in the backyard.

But those dogs don't like that pen. They'd rather run free. When we first started training them it was a hassle to drive them into the pen. Often we'd get one in the pen and then try to get the other in. When we opened the gate, the first one would run out as we put number two in.

Then Lynn discovered a secret which she shared with me. The secret: it's easier to lead those dogs than to drive them.

With two doggie treats we walk outside. The dogs can smell the food and get excited. We walk ahead of them and say "night-night." They usually beat us to the pen. People are like sheep! The Bible tells us this (Psalms 100:3). You cannot drive sheep. You have to lead them.

Likewise, you cannot drive non-Christians into becoming Christians-you must lead them. You cannot drive Christians into obedience-you must lead them! (1 Peter 5:1-5). In our dealings with family and friends (both inside and outside the church), let's learn this valuable lesson. Leading means doing our best and providing an example to follow. Leading is teaching with both our words and our actions.

-Larry Fitzgerald

Shew me thy ways, 0 Lord; teach me Thy paths. — Psalm 25:4.

That which is often asked of God, is not so much His will and way, as His approval of our way. — S. F. Smiley.

Thy way, not mine, 0 Lord, however dark it be;

Lead me by Thine own hand, choose out the path for me.

I dare not choose my lot; I would not if I might;

Choose Thou for me, my God, so shall I walk aright.

Not mine, not mine the choice in things or great or small

Be Thou my Guide, my Strength, my Wisdom and my All! — H. Bonar

If God has spoken, then the highest human aspiration must be to hear what the Creator has said. Revelation is necessarily a personal matter. To hear the voice of the Lord God is not merely to receive information, but to meet the living God. Last week, we considered five realities that should frame our thinking in light of the fact that God has spoken. Here are three more.

Sixth, because God has spoken, we must obey. This is not a word submitted for our consideration. The living God allows us to hear His voice from the fire and survive. He has demands to make of us, as Creator speaks to creature. And in the giving of the Torah, and the entire body of law, there is the requirement of obedience. This is repeated over and over again. It is stated in the form of a positive principle: Israel is told, “If you obey, you will be blessed and you will live. You will prosper in the land that I am giving you.” The demand of obedience is also stated in the negative: “If you disobey, you will be cursed. You will bear my wrath. The nations of the world will cast you out. You will go out before them, to be taken as their exiles. You will be cast out of the land.”

The demand of obedience is very clear, and it is central to Deuteronomy chapter four. Even as the Lord God through Moses is preparing His people to enter the Promised Land by reciting again the law, He says to them, “It is about obedience. I’m not giving you mere information. I’m not letting you hear my voice for your intellectual stimulation. It is not so that you will have an epistemological advantage over the pagan peoples around you! It is so that you would obey.”

Seventh, if God has spoken, we must trust. “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.” We know that song, or at least some previous generations knew that song. But it really is a matter of trust, a hermeneutic of trust, an epistemology of trust, a spirituality and theology of trust. If God has spoken, we trust His Word because we trust in Him. Woe unto anyone who would sow seeds of mistrust or distrust of the Word of God. For to fail to trust this word is, as Israel was clearly told, to fail to trust in God Himself. Paul Helm, one of the most faithful Christian philosophers of the day, points to trust as the new apologetic. He refers to an apologetic of trust, understanding that in the end, the character of God is what finally anchors not only our epistemology, but our redemption and our hope.

Eighth, if God has spoken, we must witness. Deuteronomy chapter four has a counterpart chapter in Deuteronomy 30. There, as Moses now prepares to die, the Lord speaks through him and says, “For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach. It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it that we may observe it?’ Nor is it beyond the sea that you should say, ‘Who will cross the sea for us to get it for us and make us hear it that we may observe it?’ But the Word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart, that you may observe it. See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; in that I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the Lord your God may bless you in the land which you are entering to possess it. But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life. Choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants by loving the Lord your God and obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him.”

Now consider Romans 10. The Apostle Paul refers to this very text. Romans 10:8 reads: “But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” -- that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; for ‘Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? How will they hear without a preacher? How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!’ However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our report?’ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing from the word of Christ.”

So faith comes from hearing -- hearing and yet surviving. This too explains why we are here. Because in the very formula and logic of Romans chapter ten, somehow we heard. Not one of us was at Horeb, but yet we have heard. Someone had to tell us. God spoke, and someone had to speak to us. Therefore there is, as the Word of God makes so very clear, the mandate to go and to tell. If God has spoken, then we do know. If God has spoken, then we are accountable. If God has spoken, it is by mercy and for our good, and if God has spoken, it comes with a commission and a command, which makes a difference in the life of a Christian.

The difference for the church is that we understand what it means to gather together as the ones who by the grace and mercy of God have heard. The church gathers under the authority of the Word. It makes a difference also for a seminary. We are not making this up. Our task is not to go figure out what to teach. Our task is not to figure out where to find meaning in life. It is to be reminded continually that we have heard the voice of God speaking from the fire and have survived, and thus we teach.

This is the mercy of God -- to hear and yet survive. It is the mercy by which we live every day and experience every moment and evaluate every truth claim and judge every worldview and preach every sermon. We work and we live under that mercy. One cannot help connecting Deuteronomy 4 -- the experience of Israel hearing the Lord God speak from the midst of the fire and yet surviving -- with Hebrews chapter one, which in the prologue tells us that God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers and the prophets in many ways, has spoken to us in these last days by His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, and through whom also He made the world. We are here because God has spoken, not only in the fire, but in the Son, in whose name we are gathered and in whose name we serve.

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This is the third of a three-part edited transcript of the Convocation message given at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary on August 24, 2006.

Isaiah 50: The Servant Responds to God’s Call

Background

• 49:1-7 — The character of God’s Ideal Servant

° pure from birth; of pure birth

° given to prayer

° of godly speech

° singleminded in His work

° not overcome by apparent failure (vv 4-5)

• 49:8-21 — God’s people to be restored (esp. vv 14-15)

• 49:22-26 — Their enemies to be hjmbeld

° history; Jews’ expectations with respect to Romans (v 23)

50:1-3 God’s Words — why Israel was punished

• (1) God did not turn from them …

° the faithless wife (collectively)

° the prodigal child (individuals)

• (2-3) It was not from a failure of God’s power

° Verse 2, NIV:

'When I came, why was there no one?

When I called, why was there no one to answer?'

50:4-9 Servant’s WOrds — obedient contrast to Israel

• His education (4a)

° from God (John 8:28, 40) — learned ‘of one who has been a disciple’

° school of obedience — Hebrews 5:8

° experience — weariness, John 4:6; not a superman, Hebrews 4:14-16

• He deals with weariness

° Genesis 3:17-19 — a result of sin

° Isaiah 40:30-31 — common lot of man

° Hebrews 2:10 — Christ’s suffering

• verse 5: hears and hearkens — Philippians 2:5-11

° verses 6-8: the self-emptying of the Son of God

° verses 9-11: the exaltation of the Son by God the Father

° — which leads to …

• verses 6-7: powerful meekness

• verse 6: faithful unto death, even death on the cross — Mark 14:65

• verse 7: the arrow (49:2), straight to its mission

° confidence in God to carry Him through

° determination (flint forehead vs brass brows (48:4)

— Luke 18:31-34 — Christ's reveals His plans

— Matt 23:37-38 — Chrrist knows how the people will receive Him

• verses 8-9: being in the will of GOd, He has confidence

° Romans 8:28-39 — something we can share as His heirs

50:10-11 A Gracious Invitation and Warning

• God provides a light to those who trust in Him

° King George VI’s speech “I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year… “ (Kerux illustration #15192)

• those that live by their own light will be confounded — Judges 21:25

The Master is come, and calleth for thee. As soon as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came. — John 11:28, 29.

Thomas Spurgeon tells us of an epitaph in a little English cemetery that lacks nothing in simplicity. The headstone over the little mound bears just these words: “Freddy!” as if some-one called, and underneath, “Yes, Father,” — as if someone answered.

Till it comes, 0 keep us steady,

Keep us walking in Thy ways;

At Thy call may we be ready,

On Thee, Lord, with joy to gaze,

And in glory

Sing Thine everlasting praise.