An Overview of Right Division. Part 2

[0:00] The message this morning is called An Overview of Right Division, Part 2. And I'd like you to turn to one of my favorite books of the Bible, the book of Hebrews.

[0:22] And please turn to chapter 9 in the book of Hebrews. And we'll be looking at the first 14 verses of Hebrews chapter 9.

[0:45] Now even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship in the earthly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread.

[1:08] This is called the holy place. Behind the second veil there was a tabernacle which is called the holy of holies.

[1:20] Having a golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant.

[1:45] And above it were the cherubim of glory, overshadowing the mercy seat. But of these things we cannot now speak in detail.

[2:00] Now when these things have been so prepared, the priests are continually entering the outer tabernacle, performing the divine worship.

[2:12] But into the second, only the high priest enters once a year, not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance.

[2:31] The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy place has not yet been disclosed, while the outer tabernacle is still standing, which is a symbol for the present time.

[2:49] Accordingly, both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, since they relate only to food and drink, and various washings.

[3:09] Regulations for the body imposed until a time of reformation. But when Christ appeared, as high priest of the good things to come, he entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood.

[3:40] He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling those who have been defiled, sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, offered himself without blemish to God, cleanse our conscience from dead works, to serve the living God.

[4:19] Highly explanatory passage of Scripture, to be sure, one of the most coveted in all of Scripture, because it sets forth the enormous contrast between the Old Testament Levitical worship, the sacrifice of animals, and the finality that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ brought to it.

[4:43] This is the very heartbeat of biblical Christianity, and it was the very heartbeat of Judaism, too, when it was first established.

[4:54] This is why we can say without equivocation that Judaism is the cradle of Christianity. And if you understand both, you will appreciate the fact that when you move through the Old Testament, and into the New Testament, there is an anticipation, well, actually, even before the New Testament begins, but there is an anticipation in the Old of the Messiah who was to come.

[5:26] And then when he arrives on the scene in the Gospels and becomes a substitutionary sacrifice for the entire human race, we see the fruition of that Old Testament and all that it was pointing to, even as we studied this morning at the 9 o'clock hour.

[5:43] And by the way, those who were here at the 9 o'clock hour had the advantage of looking at the layout, the physical layout, of the tabernacle and all of its items of furniture and gained a perspective from it that's very difficult to do just from reading it in the Scriptures.

[5:59] But the contrast is so obvious. If you have any association or connection with any Jewish people who have come to faith in Jesus Christ, as I have over a number of years, it is interesting that virtually none of them refer to themselves as converted Jew.

[6:24] They rather think of themselves as a completed Jew because in reality, that is precisely what they are. So we are working our way through some glorious concepts that God has provided in his word.

[6:41] And the value and the purpose of this book is not provided for us in order that we might worship it, the book. And that is, by the way, what some Bible believers have been accused of doing.

[6:55] Well, you people who spend so much time in the Bible and studying the Bible, you've made the Bible into your God. and the Bible is become your God.

[7:05] Well, that's complete nonsense. But the truth of the matter is, there is no such thing as the intelligent worship of the God that is apart from the Scriptures.

[7:20] With creation, which is commonly referred to as general revelation, you can know just from the things that are made, you can know.

[7:31] And you should know. That God is. But you cannot know the God that is apart from the Scriptures, the written revelation that he has given us.

[7:43] This is why we have it. The revelation of creation is wonderful and we all enjoy it, but it is not adequate. So God has inscripturated what he wants us to know in a book.

[7:58] And this book has been preserved for our blessing, our benefit, our information. In addition to that, he has inscripturated his word in a person and he sent him here to be for us in the flesh what the word is in writing.

[8:16] And that's called the incarnation of Jesus Christ. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. So there are only two vehicles provided for the knowledge of God.

[8:29] In one, the general revelation, the things that are made. And two, the written revelation, which of course incorporates the person of the living word as well in the person of Christ.

[8:40] Writer of Hebrews tells us that God at sundry times and in diverse places spoke unto us by our fathers, by the prophets of our fathers in times past, hath in these last days spoken unto us through his son.

[8:55] And that's the opening of the book of Hebrews, a marvelous, marvelous opening. The written revelation is a gradual, progressive unfolding of a grand plan called redemption.

[9:10] redemption. And it is to be realized by the deeds of a redeemer. As simple a statement as that is, it is absolutely amazing on how many people it has lost.

[9:26] The written revelation is a gradual, progressive, unfolding of a grand plan called redemption.

[9:37] redemption. And it is to be realized via the deeds of a redeemer. I do not know why it is because I cannot recall that there was a time when I looked at it this way as well as a relatively new believer.

[9:52] I just saw the whole Bible as just one massive book. All of which was to be believed and applied and in my naivete I just kind of plunged in and my initial response as a new Christian and I was just you know 21 years old at the time and still in the army and newly married I just kind of thought whatever this book says that's what you're supposed to do.

[10:25] And it never occurred to me what we're talking about now and what has become so apparent to Bible believers especially grace believers that this story has a gradation to it.

[10:40] It has a very early primitive beginning where God is revealing himself more and more as you move through the book until you get to the person of Christ and in the gospels and even then the revelation goes beyond in the book of the revelation.

[10:56] So from stem to stern from Genesis to Revelation it is doctrine on the move and if you try to incorporate the entirety of the Bible into your game plan or into your life you're going to be a nervous wreck.

[11:11] In the first place you're not going to be able to do it because you just you know like the proverbial person God guide me this is what I'm supposed to do today and well that's just complete nonsense.

[11:28] there is a method that needs to be applied because it was given for a specific purpose and its unfolding is designed to show how God has increasingly revealed more and more about himself as time goes on and we've already pointed out to you and bears repetition perhaps that in the very earliest of mankind we have real elemental stuff everything is physical and hands on and materialistic and that's the way God communicated himself to people in the Old Testament times and the farther back you go the more literal it was God walking with Adam in the cool of the day how did he do that I think with two legs he walked with Adam in the cool of the day in the Christophany but this kind of material is something that seemingly is just lost on a lot of people and I well remember when I first came into some of these truths and was so excited about it and would try to tell other people about what I found about the progression of Revelation and about what God is doing now and the mystery that God communicated to Paul that hadn't even been thought of before and you ask people what they think about it and they say well seems like you're making a lot of Paul

[12:48] I take the whole Bible well that's kind of frustrating and discouraging but I think you know what I'm talking about because some of you probably encountered the same thing all of the Bible every word and every line is provided for us but not everything in the Bible is directed to us that's not really that hard to understand because if it is when did you sacrifice your last bullock and that's just the beginning and yet for some strange reason people just seem to be standoffish to this truth and what we have discovered is just well just the most amazing liberating thing that I have ever found next to my salvation this is the thing that I have appreciated the most is understanding the nature of progressive revelation and frankly

[13:57] I guess I prefer that even more than the concept of rightly dividing the word of truth because you'd be surprised how that's a turn off to people oh you're saying I wrongly divide it then huh well I'll tell you if you don't rightly divide it there's nothing left but wrongly dividing it or wrongly mixing it and that too is just a turn off to people because it makes it sound like you're some special kind of cadre that has inside information that nobody else has but that's not true this information is in this book and has been there for 2000 years admittedly for my first 15 years as a new Christian I didn't see it didn't grasp it didn't understand it but when I did it was just like well not too long ago I had cataracts taken off both eyes I cannot believe how white the bathtub was really I don't remember that bathtub being that white well you're seeing with a different pair of eyes and when you come into the truths that we're going to be talking about even this morning it changes your perspective it is like a wake up call and it just increases your appreciation admiration for the word of God and what he has provided more than anything else so we've noted humanity in its infancy with all of its physicality and simplicity

[15:22] Israel's sacrificial system and by the way we're in that up to our eyeballs in the nine o'clock class because we're going through the bible chronologically and this morning we were in Leviticus so the whole the whole of the Jewish sacrificial system was intended to prepare humanity for a future finality and it was provided through the nation of the people who would produce the redeemer that is the Jewish nation and from the time this redeemer was promised until he arrived in Bethlehem's manger 4,000 years had lapsed think of it I don't doubt at all that there were probably some Jews who were probably discouraged and thinking my from the time God inspired Moses to write that in Genesis chapter 3 and verse 15 about the seed of the woman crushing the head of the serpent promising that he would send a redeemer and it would be the seed of the woman and we've been waiting 4,000 years for this one to come along you suppose we've got it all wrong maybe God didn't mean that at all or maybe somehow this chosen seed has already arrived and left and we didn't recognize him or know what he was all about or what what's going on no doubt some had probably lost sight of that promise he was going to get to him in a insignificant little village called

[17:02] Nazareth up near the northern border of Israel a young Jewish maiden probably a teenager had a visitation from an angel by the name of Gabriel and it just scared her to death because all of a sudden where there was nobody just like that there was somebody standing there and she was startled and the first thing the angel said is the first thing angels almost always say is fear not fear not she was scared terrified behold I bring you tidings of great joy he told her about the fact that she was going to be the mother of that long awaited long promised Messiah how can this be I've never known a man she wasn't terribly informed but she was informed enough to know how babies were made and she knew that she didn't have anything going on like that how can this be and the angel explained to her that hers was a very special case the power of the highest was going to overshadow her and that holy thing that shall be born of her shall be called the son of God flabbergasted and she said be it unto me according to your word wow this has got to be one of the highlights of all human history called the annunciation and Mary's response in the magnificat she says she's just overwhelmed with joy my soul doth magnify the lord my spirit rejoices and my soul doth magnify the lord he has chosen me humble servant and she was just beside herself so from the time this redeemer ascended back to heaven to our present day 2000 years have passed so as I've told people anybody who is discouraged and thinking that the second coming might not happen because we've been waiting 2000 years just remember that the

[19:29] Jews waited for 4000 years before he came the first time so we've only waited half as long as he has and his coming among us was punctuated via the cross that changed everything it changed the nation through whom he came from a nation that anticipated his arrival to a nation that rejected him how's that for a contrast amazing is it not they waited 4000 years for him to come and when he came they said nope he's not the one it's he was the stone which the builders rejected the same has become the chief cornerstone just absolutely amazing so we've got the rejection of their Messiah and an entirely new front and a whole new paradigm was opened up and I'd like you to turn if you would please first of all to Romans chapter 11 well let's stop at

[20:34] Acts on our way back and see the bridge of this Acts chapter 13 let's go there first this is just stunning stuff I wish there were some way that we could capture the atmosphere and the mood that must have existed when this took place this is on Paul's first missionary journey and bear in mind if you will at the time that Paul made this first journey with Barnabas he had been a believer for about 15 years as far as we know he had been living most of that time in Tarsus and it wasn't until about 14 or 15 years after his Damascus road experience that he is called upon by God to go with Barnabas they laid hands on them and they set sail there for their first missionary journey and just for the text let's go to chapter 13 and verse 13

[21:36] Paul and his companions put out the sea from Paphos and came to Perga and Pamphylia John left them returned to Jerusalem that's another story but we won't stop there but going on from Perga they arrived at Pisidian Antioch and on the Sabbath day which of course begins Friday with sundown until Saturday sundown they went into the synagogue and sat down now this is a Gentile area and the Jews who lived there would have definitely been in a minority and the Jews are almost in a minority everywhere they are except in a place like Israel they've been scattered and these people are the result of the diaspora the scattering and they are scattered because God told them that he was going to scatter them as a result of their disobedience to him that he's going to scatter them throughout the nations but he also promised them that in the end days he's going to regather them and bring them back so now

[22:42] Paul is on this first missionary journey and he is going into the synagogue which of course is where the local Jewish people meet for their worship and after the reading of the law and the prophets the synagogue officials sent to him sent to them saying brethren if you have any word of exhortation for the people say it now this is a little different than the way we would conduct things because I wouldn't feel comfortable doing this here but they did and in the first place you wouldn't have come into that Jewish synagogue to visit or to be there for service at all unless you were a Jew or a God fearer a God fearer was a Gentile not a son of Abraham Isaac and Jacob he was a Gentile but he was a Gentile who had come to the conviction that Jesus the Messiah of Israel was the son of

[23:44] God and he had come to faith in this Messiah in this Jewish Messiah as his own that was unusual not very many Gentiles did that at the first Cornelius was another this Roman army officer in Acts chapter 10 he was a God fearer and here is Paul along with Barnabas and when they arrive in the synagogue they go in and I'm sure they go through the usual amenities and they take a seat and then someone who is assigned goes to the Torah the ark they call it an ark and it's just a cabinet that is attached to the wall and they open the cabinet and inside the cabinet are the scrolls and the scrolls are wrapped in material they take the scrolls out and unwrap them and then unroll them and the leader of the synagogue or ruler of the synagogue or someone assigned reads the scripture and then they put it back and then somebody expounds on it this is exactly what

[24:46] Jesus did in Luke chapter 4 but in this case Paul and Barnabas are two strangers in the synagogue and they recognize of course that they are fellow Jews and the leader of the synagogue gave them an invitation to stand and address the congregation if they had something to say it was just a courtesy that was extended to visiting Jews and it was one that the people often look forward to because they got to hear somebody different somebody with a different voice somebody with a different kind of message and they turned to Paul and to Barnabas and said would you fellows have anything that you'd like to say would you like to address the assembly and Paul stood up and motioning with his hand he said men of Israel and you who fear God here he's recognizing there may well be some Gentiles here who are God fearers and that's why you're here you are not full-fledged

[25:48] Jews because a God fearer is one if he is a male a God fearer is one who has not submitted to physical circumcision and has not presented himself to the rabbi of the assembly for official entrance into Judaism but they were welcome just because they had embraced the God of Israel as the true God and they were God fearers so Paul says men of Israel and you who fear God listen the God of this people Israel chose our fathers and almost every time that expression is used in the New Testament plural our fathers not talking about their father and their grandfather they're talking about the patriarchs Abraham Isaac and Jacob they are referred to as the fathers chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt and with an uplifted arm he led them out from it and for a period of about 40 years he put up with them in the wilderness and I can just see these

[27:03] Jews sitting there listening to these two strangers who just come to town and they're going on about the God of Israel and they're just sitting there listening to this and they're following he's giving a real brief historical sketch of the history of Israel and it's not lost on these people this is not news to them they're familiar with it but they like to hear it recounted again and again and that's exactly what's happening he's making a case here and when he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan he distributed their land as an inheritance all of which took about 450 years and I can just see these fellows sitting there nodding yes yes they're just in agreement with everything he's saying and they asked for a king verse 20 and after these things he gave them judges until

[28:04] Samuel the prophet and then they asked for a king and God gave them Saul the son of Kish a man of the tribe of Benjamin for 40 years and after he had removed him he raised up David to be their king and I can see a smile break across the face of these people because David was a favorite of all the Jews he had a thing about David and yes David raised up David to be their king concerning whom he also testified and said I found David the son of Jesse a man after my heart who will do all my will from the offspring of this man according to promise God has brought to Israel a savior Jesus now you need to understand that between David the king of whom they're speaking to Paul's identifying Jesus of Nazareth there's 1,000 years in between these and if you want to fill the space of 1,000 years all you need to do is read the genealogies that are found in

[29:15] Matthew chapter 1 and in Luke chapter 3 and there it is spelled out as to who those people were during the interim of that thousand years between David the king and David's greater son the Lord Jesus and remember when he came into town on Palm Sunday the people were shouting Hosanna to the son of David they recognized his genealogy they acknowledged that he was a direct descendant of David the king because Joseph who was Jesus adopted father was a direct descendant of David the king through Solomon and Mary his mother was a direct descendant of David the king through Nathan so he's got a parentage that is just really striking from the offspring of this man according to promise

[30:17] God has brought to Israel a savior Jesus after John had proclaimed before his coming a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel now much of this much of this is new to these people they are far removed from Israel they are in Antioch of Pisidia and they're hearing some of this for the first time there may be some who had been at Pentecost and who had heard the message about Jesus being raised from the dead that Peter delivered and they were there from all over the Mediterranean basin and when that time was over they all went home because all of these Jews were there in Jerusalem in Acts 2 for the express purpose of keeping the feast of Pentecost and it was required by the law of Moses that they do that so now the feast is over and they all return home and it's entirely possible that some of them were from this area here because they saturated and spread out all over the

[31:20] Mediterranean basin so that there were Jews scattered just to all the people of Israel and that too is a very striking thing that we won't take time to develop but it is very critical to the ministry of Jesus because John was prophesied to introduce him and while John was completing his course he kept saying do you suppose that I am I am not he and on different occasions they asked John are you are you the Messiah no no any kind of noises he was telling the people that they needed to repent because the king was coming and that must have been an electrifying message delivered exclusively to

[32:22] Israel because it wouldn't mean anything to anybody else John denied that he was the Messiah and he said behold one is coming after me the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie John was Jesus second cousin and yet he knew that he was not worthy to even untie or tie up the sandals of Jesus feet this is why he said he must increase I must decrease John had a considerable number of disciples because this message he was preaching was just stunning I mean this looked like this looked like this looked like this was it remember back in Exodus 19 and verse 6 where God speaking through Moses said I am going to make the people of Israel a kingdom of priests what does that mean that means all

[33:28] Israel going to be priests the whole nation is going to be priests well for well over a thousand years they functioned with just one tribe being the priestly tribe that was Levi but the prophecy is I'm going to make a kingdom of priests of the whole nation and of course it is to other nations that they are going to fulfill that priestly function they are going to provide light to the Gentiles and the whole nation of Israel is going to serve as priests that's what these people thought was getting underway because when Jesus when John came on the scene throngs came out to be baptized of him and John was new into the priesthood because you didn't become a priest until you were 30 years of age and then you into the nation of Israel and John was six months older than

[34:29] Jesus and when Jesus came along six months later he was 30 years of age now it's time for Jesus to be baptized as a priest but it won't be after the order of Levi or Aaron it will be after the order of Melchizedek that's an entirely different thing so Jesus is going to function as a prophet a priest and a king he is the only one who can fulfill all three offices with no fear of corruption and by the way I don't know if you know it or not but this is the basis upon which our founding fathers established the three part control of our government a legislative a judicial and an executive because they knew that you do not invest power in any one source it has to be spread out so there can be a check and a balance our founding fathers were astute men of the scriptures at least many of them were and they knew that no individual could be trusted with that kind of power so they came up with that three fold system of government each of which is equal and serves as a check and balance on the others so

[35:44] Jesus is going to be prophet priest and king and here here in this text when John was baptizing there's no indication that John ever asked anybody now of course you want me to baptize you and you are ready to repent of your sin and to be baptized you are of course of the tribe of Levi aren't you most of them weren't tribe of Levi was just one out of the twelve that's the whole point John was baptizing everybody that came to him didn't make any difference what tribe they were from because they were going to be priest to all the nations and these people were so excited they came out in droves to John and that's why John was asked hey you must be the Messiah John said no no no I'm not the Messiah I'm not even worthy to untie the shoes of the

[36:46] Messiah he who comes after me is greater than me and he he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire and of course he was pointing to Jesus and this is exactly what Paul the apostle is talking about I am not he one is coming after me the sandal whose feet I'm sons of Abraham's family I know all of you are except for those of you who might be God fearers but most of you are sons of Abraham's family and those among you who fear God to us the word of this salvation is sent out for those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers recognizing neither him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath fulfilled these by condemning him fulfilled these by condemning him this is

[37:50] Isaiah 53 he was wounded for our iniquity bruised for our iniquities chastisement of our peace was upon him with his stripes we are healed all of this is in reference to Jesus the Messiah they did not recognize him Paul said they if they had known they would not have crucified the Lord of glory but they had a they already had a prefixed idea of what this Messiah when he came what he would look like and where he would be from and do you know where Jesus is from Nazareth good grief that's on the other side of the tracks that's where the riffraff live do you realize how close Nazareth is to Gentile territory and you're saying that the Messiah is the and Philip said can any good thing come out of Nazareth well that was the thinking he was the stone that the builders rejected recognizing neither him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every

[39:04] Sabbath they fulfilled these by condemning him and though they found no ground for putting him to death they asked Pilate that he be executed and when they had carried out all that that was written concerning him they took him down from the cross and laid him in a tomb but God raised him from the dead and I can can you not see these people sitting there especially in the front row stroking their beard God raised him from the dead what is he saying God raised him from the dead and Israel didn't recognize the Messiah and put him on a cross this can't be for some of these maybe for most of these this was totally strange I mean this was really weird stuff where did you say these guys are from where did they get this is that could that possibly feature but you know everything they recounted from the

[40:19] Old Testament about our history they were spot on with that we agreed with that what what what is this now they're saying many days he appeared to those who came with him from Galilee to Jerusalem very ones of whom are now witnesses to the people and we Paul is saying Barnabas and myself verse 32 we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that he has raised up Jesus as it is also written in the second psalm thou art my son today I have begotten thee that can't be I always wonder what that verse meant could that be what that verse is referring to and the wheels are turning and light bulbs are beginning to pop on and these people are hearing something that is absolutely stunning you talk about a historical occasion this is it as for the fact that he raised him up from the dead no more to decay he has spoken in this way

[41:46] I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David therefore he also says in another psalm thou wilt not allow thy holy one to undergo decay for David you think David said that about himself listen David after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation fell asleep and was laid among his fathers and David underwent decay his body corrupted broke up disintegrated just like all human bodies do when they been in the grave wasn't speaking of David he was speaking of David's greater son and he brought him back from the dead before his body succumbed to corruption thou wilt not allow thine holy one to see corruption therefore and this therefore boy every preacher

[42:47] I've ever known has known this line and I'm going to give it to you again when you see the word therefore or where for always stop to see what it's there for because it always serves a purpose therefore it means here's my wrap up in light of what I've said up to this point this is the bottom line this is where it's going therefore let it be known to you brethren that through him this one who never saw decay in the grave through him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you and through him everyone who believes is freed from all things from which you could not be freed through the law of Moses what are you kidding me do you know what then that does to the law what category it puts the law in it's gone it's defunct it's no longer operative the law served its purpose and it's over with it's done no more sacrifices no more animals that's all passe the

[44:14] Romans the Hebrews 9 thing that we just read not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins but this man after he had offered himself without spot to God shed his own blood wow this is monumental stuff from which you could not be freed through the law of Moses take heed therefore listen carefully you don't want listen you don't want what happened to these people to happen to you and this is what he's saying so that the things spoken of in the prophets may not come upon you behold you scoffers and marvel and perish for I am accomplishing a work in your days a work which you will never believe though someone should describe it to you don't let yourself be the fulfillment of that that that's what he's saying don't make the mistake that they made years ago and as

[45:18] Paul and Barnabas were going out the people kept begging that these things might be spoken to them the next Sabbath I can just see some of these people coming up to Paul and Barnabas listen you guys you got to come back next week you can't you can't leave now with this this this this this is really we've never heard this before this is something can you stay can you come back we can arrange to have you put up and all everything that went with it they are so excited about what we need to hear more and he has really piqued their interest when the meeting of the synagogue had broken up many of the Jews and of the God fearing proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas who speaking to them were urging them to continue in the grace of

[46:21] God and the next Sabbath verse 44 nearly the whole city assembled to hear the word of God this is just amazing stuff electrifying these Jews had heard this and they were all talking about it couldn't get over it and they're talking about it among themselves and when they hit the door they go out in the community and they say you're not going to believe what we heard of the synagogue the other day what what are you talking about because they're just used to same old same old you should have been there I'm telling you I've never heard anything like this and what's more these guys are going to be there next Sunday you've got to come and the word went around and people are inviting people and you couldn't find a seat in that synagogue the next Sunday the whole city assembled to hear the word of God and when the Jews saw the crowds they were filled with jealousy and began contradicting the things spoken by

[47:30] Paul and were blaspheming yeah we heard what these guys said that's just a bunch of baloney you can't believe that who are these guys anyway what schools have they graduated from what are their credentials they just come in here making all of these claims that are outlandish and ridiculous and some of these people that don't know they're buying into this stuff and it's terrible these guys are a bunch of con men all kinds of criticism is going on accusations are being thrown around and they're trying to get more and more information and they're talking about it weighing it among themselves evaluating it and the Jews hey we never draw crowds like this nobody ever came out to hear our rabbi preach like this and these people so one of two things it's got to be one of two things either these men and their message are right on track or the whole thing is a con you can't have it both ways and there is no middle ground what they are telling us is either true or it's the greatest bunch of nonsense that ever came down the pike make up your mind you have to make a choice and you know nothing has changed 2,000 years later audiences all across the country are put in the same position a presentation is made and a decision has to follow and to make no decision is to make a decision what a time this was and

[49:18] Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said I love that spoke out boldly you know what that means they stood their ground they're not going to be intimidated they're not going to be scared off they're not going to be threatened where do you get this kind of boldness it has to come not only from what you know but from knowing what you know and knowing that it is true and it doesn't make any difference what the opposition is you know where of you speak nothing will put a ramrod in your backbone more than knowing that you know what you're talking about not the opposition not the criticism not the ridicule not the accusations none of it will affect you because when you know what you know and you know that you know you've got a boldness that just won't quit and you know something that's why so many of them paid for it with their life they wouldn't knuckle under they wouldn't cave they wouldn't yield they wouldn't give up they just kept in there nothing motivates like the truth and when you know you have the truth all of hell and its legions can stand against you and it doesn't make any difference because you know what you know

[51:03] Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly and said it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first Jewish constituency since you repudiated and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life in other words you don't consider yourselves even worthy of the salvation that God has provided for it's kind of like a cliche at the time behold we are turning to the Gentiles and that opens a whole new vista that is just absolutely unimagined and unheard of up to that point in time because this God of Israel had been the exclusive property of the seed of Abraham Isaac and Jacob and who are these that are uncircumcised what business do they have of coming to this

[52:10] Jewish Messiah and what is this all going to portend this was an electric time and very confusing lots of upheaval going on lots of questions lots of controversy lots of searching lots of denial and all of it going on at the same time wherever he he says to he says god has raised me up to be the apostle to the Gentiles to the Gentiles what the Gentiles got to do with anything what the

[53:13] Gentiles have to do with is the fact that Jesus Christ died for Gentiles too not just Jews and he died for you.

[53:24] Have you done business with that truth? Would you pray with me, please? Father, this message in many respects is so clear and yet there are aspects of it that escape us.

[53:40] We admit that. How thankful we are for the simplicity that is built into it. How that the ages gone by testify to the validity of it.

[53:53] That human hearts that have been transformed and turned from darkness into light and turned from vileness into honesty and sobriety testify to it.

[54:08] And our prayer today is that anyone who may not know this magnificent Savior is one who came to justify humanity from all things that the law could never justify us from or the Jew from.

[54:27] And yet he did that himself and took the full measure of that upon that cross where he actually bore the wrath of God and the wrath of man so that the full penalty due violation of the law by all of humanity could be paid.

[54:47] Thank you for such a Savior who balanced the moral scales of the universe in a way that we don't understand but we love and appreciate. And our prayer for anyone right here who's never made that decision, who's never really come to grips with who Jesus Christ is and what he did and why it matters so much that they may acknowledge their need before you simply by saying in the quietness of their heart, God, I know that I'm not all that I need to be.

[55:18] I'm not all that I want to be. I'm not all that you require me to be. And that's why Jesus died for me. And as best as I know how, I simply want to embrace him.

[55:33] I want to take him as my Savior. I want to thank him for paying the penalty for my sins. I want to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and receive your forgiveness and your eternal life.

[55:46] So here's my heart. Take and seal it. Seal it for thy courts above. Thank you for allowing me to hear the truth that Jesus loved me and gave himself for me.

[56:03] And I want to give myself to him right now. Dear friend, if you've made that your prayer, God will hear you. God will save you. He's never cast out any who've come to him.

[56:15] And you ought to tell someone of your decision so they can rejoice with you and encourage you in the faith. Thank you, Father, for the simplicity of the message. Thank you most of all for the reality of it, for the truth of it, for the privilege of proclaiming it and hearing it.

[56:31] In Christ's name. Amen. You are dismissed.