New Hope Bible Chapel
April 6
  • Hymn Of Heaven
  • Draw Me Close
  • Here's My Heart
  • Acts 4:23–31 NKJV
    23 And being let go, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said to them. 24 So when they heard that, they raised their voice to God with one accord and said: “Lord, You are God, who made heaven and earth and the sea, and all that is in them, 25 who by the mouth of Your servant David have said: ‘Why did the nations rage, And the people plot vain things? 26 The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord and against His Christ.’ 27 “For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together 28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done. 29 Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, 30 by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
    I absolutely love this passage of scripture! I get goose bumps when I read it. It brings back some fond memories of the many trips made to Haiti stretching back 20 years. For many years we planned summer trips with teams of folks from our church in Worcester. Some of the most unusual things happened on these trips. I know that my friends who accompanied us on those trips would testify today, that we saw God do things we never experienced here in the states. I believe it was our first trip to Port-au-Prince, a trip to help in an orphanage. We were sifting sand in 100 plus degree heat with 80 % humidity. The group had been doing this for a couple of days eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. They were getting testy and grumpy. But we had a desire to share the good news of Jesus with the community outside the orphanage (never done before) we petitioned our host and he was a bit reluctant but with a lot of praying, we had an opened door. But what would we do? We collectively put our heads together and decided we would do some kind of a VBS. We had nothing with us but our Bibles, but knew God would provide. During our trips we had no access to TV or any media. We had nothing distracting us, and spent our evenings by the pool doing Bible studies and spending hours in prayer. Well God had a plan. We met a man named Steve who happened to be staying at our outpost during the week. He did puppet ministry to children in hospitals in the city. For some reason (God), he was not able to do his ministry for a few days, and after hearing about what we wanted to do, lent us his puppets for the rest of the week! We had a plan to share the word, and were praying fervently, now all we needed were children. The next day we got to the orphanage and asked the youth worker at the orphanage if we could go out and invite children to come in and he came with us with a megaphone. In one hour we had hundreds of children from the village coming into the walls of a privileged school that never opened its doors to the community before. Every day we ministered to over 300 children in the court yard, many trusting Jesus and being blessed.
    When Peter and John returned to the church they prayed for God to give them boldness to speak the word, and see miracles taking place in peoples’ lives. The place was shaken and they spoke the word with boldness. In the dozens of trips that I have made to Haiti, I’ve never not seen the power of the Holy Spirit at work. Times of personal safety where my life was in danger, or God moving people to suddenly allow me to walk through customs with a duffel bag of school books which was contraband at the time. We just need to know what is important and be willing to give God our whole heart, and we also will find our places shaking with the power of God.
    Introduction:
    Today, I see the state of the church in an anemic posture.
    The better part of the twentieth century has caused a sort of paralysis in the Body of Christ.
    Many Bible conferences, revival meetings, books, and theologies, have been advanced that have brought the spiritual into a pragmatic system void of any true spiritual power.
    More variations of Christian sects have appeared during the last hundred fifty to two hundred years polarizing Christians and weakening the Body.
    The advancement of medicine in our western culture has done more damage to the Biblical concept of healing than anything in two thousand years.
    In short, we have become an intellectually accessed faith group, with little or no spiritual power or ability.
    Many of my own peers, have written off the supernatural and have bought into the idea, that God does not do supernatural things anymore.
    Today, I wish to change your mind concerning these things.
    Today, I want us to clearly think through this dilemma and confess our sin before God and acknowledge that the Holy Spirit is alive and well in us and through us.

    I. Three pivotal moments that defined the church.

    A. A mighty rushing wind.
    Acts 2:2–4 NKJV
    2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
    Here, at least one hundred twenty people were waiting in the upper room at the command of Jesus in Acts 1:8.
    They were most probably in prayer, because they usually didn’t assemble for any other reason, when there was a sound of a mighty rushing wind.
    They didn’t ask for it, it’s what Jesus said would come - the power from on high.
    This is what catapulted the church into overdrive and resulted in three thousand people saved.
    B. The building shaken.
    Acts 4:31 NKJV
    31 And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
    This being one of the first times the disciples would face persecution, after let go the apostles led a prayer meeting where all gathered, and after they had prayed…
    The building did not just shake because God likes to shake buildings or thinks the sensational is cool.
    The disciples did not pray that the building would shake.
    God shook it to signify that He hears their prayer and He answered it with great boldness.
    C. The foundations were shaken.
    Acts 16:26 NKJV
    26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.
    Unlike the first two mentioned, this event was pivotal in the outreach to the gentiles.
    Again, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns, when a great earthquake shook the foundations.
    They didn’t ask for it, God gave it as a sign for the jailor, the prisoners, and the city.
    These three pivotal moments in the book of Acts, declare not the rarity of earth moving moments, but that God will move mountains and hearts and change situations when His people really pray!
    We also should be aware from these three pivotal events, that the role of the Spirit in these three was to bring the church together in power for the advancement of the gospel.
    We will explore that further in the next point.

    II. The purpose and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

    John 16:5–15 NKJV
    5 “But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, ‘Where are You going?’ 6 But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. 7 Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin, because they do not believe in Me; 10 of righteousness, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. 12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. 14 He will glorify Me, for He will take of what is Mine and declare it to you. 15 All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you.
    In this great discourse of the Lord, Jesus makes some compelling arguments.
    A. He is our helper.
    Jesus gave us the Spirit and said He would be in us as He seals us unto the day of redemption (John 14:7; Eph. 4:30).
    He helps us in every way and represents the Spirit of Christ as is mentioned in Romans 8:10.
    B. He convicts the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment.
    As with the new methodologies today, there is no conviction of sin, because the culture is embracing an empty gospel.
    But He is with us to convict the world of sin, to establish righteousness, and bring everlasting judgment as the god of this world has already been judged.
    C. He is the Spirit of truth that will guide us into all truth.
    Amazingly, many run today establishing their own brand of truth.
    Why?
    Because there is a void of the Spirit in their lives.
    D. He will tell us things to come.
    Now we know that the early church was the recipient of many prophetic utterances, but to think they had nothing else is just foolish.
    It was the Bereans in Acts chapter seventeen that searched the scriptures to see if the things said by Paul were true.
    They had the Law and the prophets, and were quite able to use them unto truth.
    They also were quite convicting as far as sin, righteousness, and judgment were concerned.
    E. He speaks and glorifies Christ.
    If He’s not speaking and glorifying Christ, then it’s not He that is speaking.
    Now, having seen what the purpose and ministry of the Holy Spirit is, we must ask some poignant questions.
    Has He been replaced today?
    Is there any place the scriptures say that He is no longer with us?
    Why do we think His power is diminished?

    III. The present need of the Spirit.

    As we get into this last section of the message, I want you to think about how you pray for something very important.
    Let’s say, someone in the room has a serious health diagnosis that involves medication or even surgery.
    Seeing as we already have many, you might even be thinking about one of them now.
    But, without mentioning anyone, let’s just move through this exercise.
    Imagine now, they you are asked to pray for their healing.
    What’s the first think you think about?
    What to say. Exactly!
    Our first thought becomes a quick assessment of what we can say and what we should say.
    If we are praying out loud, we certainly feel the pressure of balancing faith with reality.
    Words like -
    “God heal them according to your will”
    “Father, we know you can do anything, but…”
    How about-
    “Lord allow the doctors wisdom and allow the operation to be a success”
    Now, there is nothing wrong with any of that, and it may be completely sensible and warranted, however, is it the prayer of faith?
    This kind of praying is the result of a Holy Spirit denial in our lives.
    Because -
    Hebrews 11:6 NKJV
    6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
    If the Holy Spirit is present with us, then how can He be diminished in His ability?
    He simply cannot be, it is us who are diminished in our belief and understanding.
    Therefore, the present need of the Spirit demands -
    A. We are in a spiritual battle.
    The intellectual pragmatic attempt to fight this battle is flawed by the flesh.
    No amount of intellect or business acumen or talent will even nick the gates of hell.
    No amount of Bible reading or quoting verses will storm the gates of hell.
    No advanced medical treatments or technology will even knock on Hell’s doors.
    How will we make a dent in the enemies armor by any means other than prayer?
    Ah, but the cry of God’s people is that we’ve tried praying but God does not seem to hear, or He doesn’t answer, or praying just doesn’t work!
    No! a thousand times no!
    It’s because we don’t really pray and we don’t pray in faith!
    The second demand is that -
    B. We need divine assistance.
    At this point we need to look at the facts:
    We have the Spirit of God living and abiding in us.
    We have been given the weapons (prayer and faith) needed to fight.
    So now I ask you, what is our problem?
    I believe it is two fold.
    We don’t live like the Spirit’s in us.
    We are unskilled with the weapons we’ve been given.
    This is the tragedy of the western church.
    We are trying to fight against a tank division with spears.
    So, what do we do?
    1. We begin praying with purpose.
    Purpose means praying (conversing with God) about an issue or need, and seeking His wisdom in it.
    Purpose also means that I walk with Him in unity and in obedience (holiness).
    2. We begin praying in faith.
    Here is a simple remedy for lack of faith.
    Ask yourself this question.
    Are we praying for a miracle or the modus operendi of divinity?
    Don’t get distracted by what I said, I’m asking if what we are praying for is believable to us.
    Because -
    The God who created everything from nothing has no problem reversing the growth of cancer cells.
    The God who created everything has no problem convicting a heart to change.
    The God who created everything can raise the dead.
    What’s the problem?
    Our inability to realize this connection.
    And if after this, we still can’t believe that He can do anything, then perhaps we don’t believe He actually created it all from nothing.
    Maybe we just don’t really believe in Him, but only an idea of Him?
    3. We keep praying until God answers.
    In thirty five years of following Christ, I have learned that the whole reason God wants us to pray, is not because He can’t do it without us, but that He desires communion with us, and desires to bless others through us.
    Now, there are many other reasons that He calls us to pray that I will not go into at this time.
    But let’s just look at the whole reason of communion.
    Communion is where we, mortal beings, commune with the Lord of glory.
    This is primarily where God wants us.
    It is a redemption issue.
    You see, before the fall, mankind enjoyed a walk with God in the garden, on a daily basis.
    God enjoyed these times with Adam and Eve, but could have no more of it after the fall.
    In Christian redemption (not just the soul but the entire being), we can once again walk with God in the garden of His presence.
    This is prayer - Communication - Not just a one way conversation where I do all the talking, but where I also listen to Him.
    If I am listening properly, I will know where He wants me to go and what He wants me to pray for.
    And if I know what He wants me to pray for, then I know it is the will of God, and I can be assured that this is something He wants me to pray about.
    I may not know how He will answer, but I can be assured that He wants me to pray as He moves things into place for His own glory and not mine.
    This is why many times we do not get the answer we desire, but the answer He desires, neither can we know all that he is doing through this time of prayer.
    But here’s the point - I must keep on praying and pray more until the whole matter is finished.
    This is why when we pray for the salvation of family, friends, or acquaintances, we must sometimes continue for years.
    God is moving things into place and binding the enemy, if we cease praying, then God may cease working.
    If we cease praying, He knows then that we are not in it with Him.
    Conclusion:
    I will conclude where I began.
    The Many incredible things I have witnessed God do while on mission trips, whether, Haiti, Mexico, or Guatemala, were comprised of times of deep personal and corporate prayer and communion with God.
    There were no other distractions but just time to spend with the Lord.
    And here’s the common denominator between those times and our scripture text today, we were on mission!
    Our emphasis was on the kingdom of God and God was doing mighty works.
    Perhaps our problem here in the states is that we are not on mission for the kingdom of God, but on mission for our own selves.
    Our prayers are selfish and greedy, not “Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in Heaven.”
    We need a change of perspective.
    Perhaps if we find that place in our lives here, pushing out the distractions of life as we know it, and really seek the Lord’s face in prayer, we will see great and mighty things from God, as we break down the gates of hell!
  • It Is Well With My Soul
New Hope Bible Chapel
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