Author: missionspaul

With all boldness and without hindrance
28:31
The end of the book of Acts says that no man was able to stop Paul.
No man can stop you either.
But where is Paul? He is under house arrest. He is not in the stadiums and open market places. He is held back. But the gospel isn’t!
Let the Acts of the Spirit carry on in every generation till Christ comes again.
Who is trying to stop you today?
You may be not where you want to be but the gospel message will never be stopped. The Acts can and will carry on!

Lessons from the sea
Acts 27

1. Life is not plain sailing, v4,7
Things do go against us at times, circumstantial winds beat against us.

2. Listen to experience
Trust those who have been through the worst, v10.
He was speaking from experience. In 2 Cor 11:25 he tells us that he had been shipwrecked 3 times and spent a night and a day perhaps clinging to some floating wood.
People who can be best described as walking with a limp because of life’s experiences can be trusted far more than those who have had perpetual victory.

3. Everything will change because of the storm.
You will lose what was important to you, v16, 18, 19, 20.
But one thing will never change: the position of God towards you.
v22 He still has a promise
v23 He still has a presence
v24 He still has a purpose.

Chains are not necessarily harmful.
Paul You are mad!
Acts 26:24
Festus is pointing out how pathetic Paul looked.
You may not have a crown or a gown, you may be in a plain prisoners clothing, there may be nothing special about you. In fact, you may even have a stigma of social disgrace, you can have chains and hindrances that mean you are contained and limited to be what other people take for granted. Yet you can stand and dominate the environment you find yourself in with Christlike dignity and confidence knowing the outward chains of your life are small in comparison to the chains that the people around you are facing.

These chains can open doors of opportunity.
When Paul lifted his hand like a great orator (v1) we can imagine his chains lifted too. He is about to preach to a king and queen, “I consider myself fortunate,” and “These chains have given me the greatest opportunity.”
Your disability, your suffering, your hindrances are tools in the hands of God.

It is who is with you in the chains not who is facing you that matters, v22, “God has stood by me (Msg).

Chains can be the best thing that ever happened to you.

The importance of empty hands.

Acts 25:1-22

God does more to shape us when we have not than when we have.

Paul experienced the empty hands of waiting, 24 v27
Waiting when there seems to be no reason. Two years spent waiting in jail. God had promised him he would be in Rome but here he was in Caesarea.
Little did Paul realise this was actually his greatest protection.

Paul experienced the empty hands of not being in control, v19-22
He has no control of the accuracy being given and has no say in the decisions being made about him.
Agrippa was from a line of Herods, one had murdered the babies at the time of Jesus’ birth and Agrippa’s father had executed James. Beatrice, his sister who had previously been married to her uncle was according to historians in an incestuous relationship with Agrippa. Paul had written earlier, “there is no authority except that which God has established.” (Romans 13)

Paul’s empty hands revealed Christlikeness.
v19 “a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive.” The issue was Jesus.
Jesus who stretched out his empty hands on a cross is your Lord and Saviour and is asking you for empty hands.

We were not always known as ‘Christians’ which means ‘follower of Christ’.

Acts 24: 14, 22.

We were known as followers of the ‘Way’. Probably to honour the fact that Jesus called himself The Way.

The Way: we haven’t arrived but we are heading there.
The Way: we don’t know it all but we humbly seek for more.
The Way: we are not pursuers of answers but that of direction.
The Way: we do fall on this journey but we get back up and walk again.
The Way: we joined at different times but we will all get there together.

Paul has been beaten by a mob, bound in chains and nearly suffered a Roman flogging. He has not slept, eaten or had any physical care. He is weary, bruised and burdened. The message from God is ‘Take courage’ Acts 23 v11.

1. Courage is needed when your day fails.
He had failed to convince the Sanhedrin of his innocence, v1
He had failed in his anger, v3
In prison alone, with no one to comfort him, guilty for missing his gospel chance because of his outspokenness. This was the end.
But Christ brought him courage and removed the pain of failure, v11.

2. Courage is self-control
The greatest influence will always be the presence of the Lord.
“The Lord stood near Paul” v11
In your darkest hour the Lord will be standing near you. As He does, prisons become refuge places, caves become security places, the dark nights become days of light.
It is the self-control that comes from changing oneself not the circumstance.
The self-control that comes from listening to only one voice. We need to develop the ability to listen to the Lord. For that, maybe we need to train ourselves to be deaf to certain voices. Perhaps only then will we hear ‘Take courage!’

3. Courage will re-appoint you.
“You have achieved” Jesus is reminding Paul what he has done, ‘you haven’t failed’
“You will achieve”. Paul always believed, always wanted to get to Rome with the gospel. Before this taking of courage Paul must have realised the uncertainty of this now. Jesus’ words reawaken this desire within him with a “you must”.

Our 3 important commands …
Acts 22
GET UP v16
With this command comes the ability to do just that.
I have seen those in self-pity get up, those who used to have passion for Jesus get up, those who gave away their potential get up, those paralysed by a stronghold in their life get up, those in the grip of sin get up. This seems to be the constant call of the Spirit: GET UP. God is the God of the resurrection.

BE BAPTISED, v16
Though I know this was water baptism and I am a promoter of this discipline, baptism has much more significance for me. It is the plunging into the identity of God. This also is the Spirits call to us. Let people see the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in you.

GO, I SEND YOU, v21
Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. He is continually opening the way. GO to others. You may like to read about being sent but it’s not the same as saying YES. Jesus came during a time when Judaism had been consumed and preoccupied with being blessed themselves. Jesus came with a message to a leading Jew, shaking him from complacency, saying GET UP, BE IDENTIFIED and GO.
And this is still the message today.

Gospel carriers …
Acts 21
Gospel carriers will get hurt, v1,5,6,13
The gospel is always more important than the emotional ties of people. Too many are more afraid of upset than the gospel. Sometimes you have to say goodbye.

Gospel carriers need patience, v1-3
In these short verses there are 6 places on the journey. Life can appear to be quite mundane but every stop is significant, every conversation is important, you need to be where you are today, be patient.

Gospel carriers will face contradictions, v4, 11-12
There was a mixture of the Spirit and people urging Paul not to travel. What was happening here was that Paul’s friends thought the Spirit was speaking to keep Paul safe. Your loved ones will always speak this way.

Gospel carriers need the next prophetic generation, v10
Paul stayed several days in a prophetic house of young people. We need a new younger generation to remind us that all things are still possible.

Gospel carriers go through suffering, v11-13
There are times when we are not led down wonderful paths but we are trapped, limited and led down a path of suffering.

Gospel carriers surrender, v13
Surrender or safety, this is always the option. Jesus stuck to the task and so did Paul. They surrendered. You will always have people who say don’t surrender, don’t apologise, don’t forgive. Surrender is only where you can go, you cannot take anyone with you.

Gospel carriers simply trust, v14
God’s will is good, pleasing and we know is perfect (Romans 12:1)

Be a Gospel carrier today!

The missionary Paul gives the proof of a true follower …
Acts 20: 13-27

I’m known by others, v18f
• I’m different
There were many intinerating just like Paul and yet were more interested in making a living rather than the real interests of those they were serving. Paul is making sure that after he has gone he is not lumped in the category of some of these professional ministers and also that the leaders don’t fall into this category either. He is saying I am different. More than that, “You know I’m different”

I know Him, v22-23
• I’m compelled by Him
It is the word used for bring chained or tied up like a prisoner, but here to the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit applying force on to you, to lead you in a certain direction.
• I’m secure in Him
He knows its not going to get easier for him. But He also knows God is in it with him.

I know myself, v24
• I’m not important to me
Jesus refused to let go of the cost and fell to the ground in the garden.
I want to be the man who never runs away at any price? ‘I am willing to trust You. I trust you with my life. I am not sure where it is going and it is mightily uncomfortable right now and I wish I could live a different type of life and I wish you would take this away from me if you were asking me for a choice but I fall on my knees in submission because I surrender to you, whatever you have got for me– it is Your will over my will.

• I know my true aim
His true aim was to fulfil what God had called him to do.
Michaelangelo worked on 44 statues in his life. Thirty were never finished. These unfinished works, the unfulfilled potential of a great genius will never be completed.
There are works of God in your life still to be finished. There is potential that is not being realised.

Acts 19
When there is spiritual revival there will be ..
Disciples who are growing, v1-5
The gospel being shared effectively, v8-10
The acts of God, v11-12
The honouring of the name of Jesus, v13-17
An increase of the price to pay, v18-19