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00:00 new year. Uh let me first uh wish the Chinese members of the
00:06 congregation sing the enquiler. I was once told that it is not so appropriate
00:11 to to use the greeting especially between fellow believers
00:18 because it sounds too materialistic. After all many of us here have not fatai
00:26 yet. So what is there to kungi? If you're non-Chinese speaking, farai
00:32 means getting rich and kungi means congratulations. Perhaps we should all be looking for our
00:38 tie within the pages of scripture because our Lord Jesus uh tells us in
00:44 Matthew 6:20, "But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moths and vermin do not
00:52 destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal."
00:57 Anyway, we are in the midst of a series on the book of Acts and we are at the fourth installment of this series this
01:04 morning focusing on uh Acts chapter 4 verse 1-31.
01:10 Acts 41-31 which was uh read to us just now. Thank you Brendan. And the topic
01:15 given for this morning's message is um handling obstacles to growth. Handling
01:22 obstacles to growth. Now the text before us itself uh does not address the issue of obstacles to
01:29 growth directly but we will still try to pick up some uh lessons on uh Christian
01:35 growth and the means to achieve growth. I propose to divide the sermon into two
01:40 parts. Firstly we will uh examine what happened here in this uh passage uh 31 verses and
01:48 then in the second part I will touch generally on the on the subject of growth and the and some points for
01:54 application. Shall we commit this time to the lord in prayer?
02:04 Our father in heaven, the psalmist once wrote that your word is a lamp for our feet and a light on our path.
02:13 May your spirit minister to us this morning and brighten up the way before us so that we will all walk and live
02:21 according to the eternal purpose that you have ordained for each one of us here. For we ask this in the precious
02:27 name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
02:33 Now, some time ago, my wife Lean and I had the good fortune
02:38 of uh spending a couple of days in Jerusalem. And one of the highlights of the trip is
02:44 a visit to Yadvashm.
02:51 Yadbashim is the Holocaust Museum dedicated to the to preserving the
02:58 memories of the millions of Jews who were persecuted and murdered during World War
03:04 II. The name Yadvashim itself is taken from Isaiah uh 56:5.
03:13 To them I will give within my temple wall temple and its walls a memorial and
03:19 a name. Yat means memorial and shem means name because most of the victims
03:27 were just faceless names, millions of names.
03:33 Now I cannot tell you precisely what the experience was like visiting Yadvashim. I cannot say that I enjoyed the visit
03:40 since the place is not a place for fun and recreation. I can only think of one
03:46 way to describe uh the experience. It was to say the least emotionally
03:53 overwhelming. I have been to all kinds of museums all over the world but I had never been so
04:01 uh moved so affected by the exhibits by the photos and the personal belongings
04:08 on uh on display inside Yvashim that told the story of the suffering and the
04:14 persecution of the Jews at the hands of Nazi Germany.
04:19 And here we are, Lean and I, at the entrance to the museum. We don't look so emotionally affected
04:26 because when this picture was taken, we have not gone inside yet.
04:31 I also want to clarify that the color of my shirt and pants matches with what my
04:37 wife was wearing, but we didn't exactly plan to color coordinate.
04:43 But more interestingly, the color of our clothes matches the color of the building and the pavement.
04:50 That was also a coincident for information.
04:56 On one of the vertical columns behind us where we stood, I noticed a verse
05:02 inscribed on the wall taken from Joel 1:es 2 and 3.
05:09 Has the like of this happened in your days or in the days of your fathers? Tell your children about it and let your
05:15 children tell theirs and their children, the next generation. When I saw this
05:21 verse, I thought, "Wow, how appropriate for a museum like this."
05:27 Now across the front courtyard in front of where we stood in the first picture there was there were more even more
05:34 vertical columns and there was another verse on top of
05:39 these columns from Ezekiel 37:E14.
05:45 Now let me zoom in for you to see more clearly. This is the verse from the well-known
05:50 passage in Ezekiel about the valley of the dry bones. It says, "I will put my
05:56 breath into you and you shall live again and I will I will set you upon your own
06:02 soil." Now, this verse is full of intrigue. I don't know what the Israeli authorities
06:08 were thinking when they decided to put up this text in at the atm.
06:14 But for some years already, Ezekiel 37:14, this verse has been at the center of the end time debate. Some theologians
06:23 uh believe that the second part of this prophetic verse has already been fulfilled in 1948
06:28 when the modern state of Israel was formed against all odds. I will set you
06:34 upon your own soil is thought to be referring to the founding of Israel 3
06:39 years after the end of World War II. At the same time, these theologians also believe that the first part of the verse
06:47 has yet to be fulfilled and will soon be fulfilled in the near future. That is, I
06:53 will put my breath into you and you shall live again. To them, I will put my
06:59 breath into you points to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. And they believe that based on this prophecy, the Jewish
07:06 people will come to the saving knowledge of Jesus during the end time.
07:12 Now, this is not a sermon on end time events. And so, I'm going to put aside Ezekiel 37:14 for a while and but we
07:19 will come back to this verse towards the end of the sermon. I do have a few more photos from Yabashim to show you. Now,
07:26 I'm not allowed in to take pictures inside the museum. So, I cannot show you what's inside, but there is something
07:32 outside in something interesting outside the main building that caught my attention.
07:37 It is the avenue of the righteous among the nations. Avenue of the righteous
07:43 among the nation. Just outside the main building. Actually, it is more like a garden where many trees have been
07:50 planted. Each tree in this garden is dedicated to an individual who has been
07:57 conferred the title righteous among the nations.
08:03 Now, this is an example of two trees side by side in the garden for two individuals.
08:10 But who are these so-called righteous among the nations? They were non-Jews or
08:16 Gentiles who risked their lives to save or to protect Jews during World War II.
08:23 Jews who were systematically being rounded up by the by the Nazis to be sent to the death camps.
08:30 Now, if you look closely at this picture, you will notice a small plaque near the bottom of the tree trunks to
08:37 the left. Let me zoom in and let's see what what's written on this plug.
08:43 Now, I to this picture with a 10 megapixel resolution, but even so, if you zoom in too much, it's not no longer
08:49 so clear and sharp. But can you make out the names? Oscar and Emily Schindler
08:59 and below it Germany. Barely you can make it out but it's still legible. And some of you may have
09:06 watched or have at least heard about the movie Shindler's List directed by Steven Spielberg. The movie 1993, I think,
09:15 which won seven Oscars, is about this brave German couple, Oscar and Emily
09:21 Schindler, who saved the lives of 1,200 Jews from certain death during World War
09:28 II by employing them in his factory.
09:34 By now, some of you may be asking, what has Yat Vashim or the Shindlas got to do with the text with us uh before us this
09:41 morning? What has all this got to do with handling obstacles to growth? Now, let me keep you wondering for a little
09:47 while, but I shall come back to Yadbashim and Oscar Schindler later in the sermon. Now, let's get started with
09:53 the text before us. And we see that Acts chapter 4 opens with the arrest and
09:58 detention of Peter and John. It says here in verse two that the religious
10:04 authorities were very disturbed by the actions of Peter and John. And actually what is hap what is happening here in
10:10 Acts chapter 4 is the result of what happened in Acts chapter 3. Now Acts
10:16 chapter 3 is not in not included in our series on uh on Acts. But since we don't
10:21 have time to read through Acts 3, let me briefly tell you what happened in that chapter.
10:27 In Acts chapter 3, Peter and John met a man at the temple grounds who was lame
10:33 from birth. The the man asked the apostles for assistance of the monetary kind.
10:42 The man asked the apostles for money. But instead, Peter and John healed him
10:48 in the name of Jesus. Now, you may say that he asked for arms,
10:54 a ls, but instead he got back his legs. If you can catch the pun, arms and legs.
11:02 The man who was healed then went running around the temple leaping and shouting and praising God. A large crowd then
11:08 gathered because of this amazing miracle and Peter took the opportunity to preach
11:14 to them the gospel of Jesus which takes up about twothirds of Acts chapter 3 the previous chapter. The next thing we know
11:21 is that the authorities confronted Peter and John and put them in a lockup overnight because it was evening when he
11:26 was arrested. And that's how Acts chapter 4 starts with the arrest and detention of Peter and John. And now to
11:34 put this in chronological context, we are barely in the first few weeks of the
11:39 birth of the early church. Now earlier on the the church was established in Acts chapter 1 verse 15 just after the
11:48 ascension of Jesus when about 120 believers gathered to select Matias to
11:54 replace Judas. That is clearly uh uh explained in detail in Acts chapter 1.
11:59 Not more than a week after that they gathered again in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost on the day the Holy Spirit
12:06 descended and many were baptized on that day. By the time we come to Acts chapter 4 here,
12:13 not too long after the Pentecost, the apostles and the early early church were already beginning to face opposition
12:20 from the authorities. And all of this taking place in Jerusalem so far. Acts
12:25 chapter 4 is the first recorded opposition faced by the church.
12:32 Now we must understand that all this is happening amidst uh an explosion in the number of believers. In Acts 1:15 there
12:39 were only about 120. On the day of Pentecost these numbers swelled to about
12:45 3,000 as recorded in Acts 2:41. Then God added to their numbers daily
12:54 recorded in Acts 2:47. And by the time we go, we get to Acts
13:00 chapter 4 here, their number had grown to 5,000 men in verse four here. Now, if
13:07 you were to also include the women and the children, this would be a quite a sizable congregation of more than
13:15 10,000. If they were to have worship service like this, they will probably have many many rounds of services.
13:21 Now, one immediate question that may be floating in your mind is why were the Jewish authorities so against the
13:29 apostles? We are talking about the priests, the captain of the temple guard and the
13:35 seduces mentioned here in verse one. Why the intense opposition towards Peter and
13:41 John? Is it because of envy? Were they envious of the fact that the
13:47 number of Christians were growing so rapidly? Well, it's possible that envy drove them
13:54 to take action against Peter and John. But there were there actually three more
14:01 possible reasons that can well explain the intense opposition why they were so
14:07 upset with the apostles. Firstly, Peter and John were a threat to
14:13 the peace that they were trying to maintain. You see, earlier on, the
14:18 Jewish leadership had already made a deal with the Roman rulers. The Jews
14:24 could keep their religious system. They could worship in the temple as long as taxes are being paid. But they must not
14:31 allow any civil unrest or any mass movement that might threaten Roman rule.
14:39 any sign of rebellion, the ro the Roman legions would move in and the result
14:44 would be bloodbath and an end to their religious freedom. And that's why the
14:50 captain of the temple guard was so alarmed when he saw Peter and John speaking to the masses. Thousands were
14:57 following them. And to make matters worse, the region of Galilee was known
15:02 uh to be to be very a rebellious region. And so when the temp when the captain of
15:08 the guard saw two Galileans addressing the people in Acts chapter 3, he became
15:14 doubly alarmed. The Jewish leaders had to act because Peter and John were a threat to the
15:21 peace that they were desperately trying to maintain to keep the Romans at bay.
15:26 Secondly, they had to act because Peter and John were a threat to their positions in Judaism.
15:32 We are talking about the priests and the teachers of the law. They had a monopoly over all religious teachings especially
15:40 at the temple grounds. But here we have two symbolans from the north from Galilee teaching to thousands.
15:48 And that's why the priests became so alarmed because as we say here in
15:53 Malaysia their rise bowls were threatened so to speak.
15:59 And Peter and John were a threat to their positions. is something like I'm
16:04 preaching here and at the same time in the basketball court someone invited person began preaching and how will you
16:10 go and join them? So they were very worried over their jobs. Now I'm going
16:17 to explain the third reason and this is likely the most possible reason to explain the intense opposition against
16:23 the apostles. In verse one, we have the temple where they have the temple, the captain of the guard who got very
16:29 alarmed. And then the priests also got very alarmed. And there is a third group, the seduces.
16:36 Who were the seduces? In the gospel accounts, we often see Jesus in conflict with the Pharisees and
16:43 the and the seduces, right? You know about that. Now, we don't have time to discuss who the Pharisees were, but
16:50 briefly, the Seduces were the aristocrats. the the the people with normal
16:56 background, the privileged members of society like our tans and data,
17:03 they were powerful and wealthy people, powerful politically.
17:08 But they also subscribed to a strange school of theology in that they do not believe in the resurrection of the dead.
17:16 They do not believe in angels and demons and anything supernatural. and therefore
17:23 they do not believe in miracles. Now with this kind of thinking, with this kind of theology, you can imagine
17:28 how angry they were with Peter and John who was who were going around openly
17:34 performing miracles and preaching the resurrection of Jesus Christ
17:39 is mentioned here in verse two. The apostles were openly challenging and contradicting their theology. The
17:47 seduces will begin to look really bad in the eyes of the masses. In any power
17:52 structure, you must not be seen to be weak. Peter and John were a threat to
17:58 their power structure. And exactly the same thing happened in John 11 which recorded the raising of
18:05 Lazarus. If you remember after re Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, the seduces were furious and they plotted to
18:13 kill not only Jesus but also Lazarus because Lazarus was a walking proof that
18:18 their theology could not stand. They said there is no such thing as resurrection but Lazarus was walking
18:24 around very much alive. Lazarus was a living contradiction that threatened to
18:30 undermine the power structure that gave them so much privileges.
18:35 And so with these triple threats looming over their heads, the threat to the peace they were trying to maintain, the
18:42 threat to their positions in Judaism, and the thirdly, the threat to their
18:47 power structure, they were so disturbed that they move in to arrest Peter and John. And what followed is a trial that
18:55 is devoid of any natural justice. In the first place, the accused were not
19:00 charged. They started the trial with a question, not a charge. and you must spell out the charge clearly so that the
19:06 accused can properly defend himself. And furthermore, the trial was marked by a lot of intimidation and threats against
19:13 the accused as evident from 17 verse 17, verse 18 and verse 21. Peter and John
19:19 were also not given any legal assistance. They were not given the so-called one phone call to their
19:24 lawyers. And so what we have here is a lopsided case where two illiterate fishermen face
19:32 a whole group of the most highly educated, the most powerful men in the country.
19:38 To put this realistically, they didn't stand a chance. It is like the local
19:43 football team meeting the Brazilian national football team. Something like that.
19:50 It is mentioned very briefly in the middle of the passage that what Peter and John face in verse 7 was the
19:58 Sanhedrin or the grand council.
20:04 The Sanhedrin was the highest religious body in in the land. It functioned like
20:11 a supreme court in Israel at that time. You'll be surprised that there are 70
20:17 members in the Sanhedrin. No, most people are surprised that there are so many members in the Sanhedrin. Imagine
20:23 FBC's council consisting of 70 members. Your meeting will take a 3 4 days I
20:28 think. But why 70? It is actually based on a verse numbers
20:36 11:16 where the Lord said to Moses, "Bring me 70 of Israel's elders who are
20:41 known to you as leaders and officials among the people. Have they come have have them come to the tent of meeting
20:48 that they may stand there with you?" So based on this verse, they have 70
20:53 leaders in the sunny dream. And so it's actually two lowly un
20:58 uneducated fishermen against 70 learned powerful men. Although no one is sure if
21:06 all 70 turn up for the hearing. Some could be back in hometown or
21:11 something. You may also like to know that the seduces the one we mentioned earlier had
21:16 a majority in the sun. So the odds against Peter and John were
21:24 very high. But amazingly what happened next was totally beyond expectation. Peter
21:31 mounted such a strong defense so much so that the members of the Sanrin were
21:36 stunned as evident in verse 13. Basically Peter's defense was a
21:42 three-prong argument just as the apostles were attracted to them from three aspects as you saw earlier here
21:49 Peter presented their case from three angles. Now before I go through Peter's three
21:56 strong threeprong argument, it is relevant to point out that just three months ago the same Sanhedrin was
22:04 convened and the accuse at that time was none other than our Lord Jesus Christ
22:11 and those are well recorded for us in Matthew 26 and Mark 14. In that equally
22:16 lopsided case, the verdict was guilty and in accordance that was in accordance
22:24 to God's plan that the lamb of God to be slain for the salvation of mankind. But
22:29 in this trial, God had other plans for the growth of the church. And so the outcome was
22:36 different from three months ago. Essentially, Peter's first point is
22:42 this. Now I'm paraphrasing paraphrasing verses 8 to 11. He says something like this. Are we accused because we were
22:49 kind to someone in need. Is it a crime to help a lame man?
22:56 Are we charged because of our kindness? How do you answer that? As I mentioned
23:02 earlier, the accused was not charged in this trial. The proceeding started with a question in verse 7. They asked the
23:09 apostles by what power or what name did you do this?
23:14 Peter instead asked them what is the charge? Is this the charge? Is the
23:20 charge our kindness? Secondly, this is what Peter said in
23:26 effect. He said if healing is a crime, even if healing is a crime, let me tell
23:31 you this. We didn't heal this man. It was Jesus who healed this man.
23:37 In other words, you've got the wrong man in the dock. Jesus should be the one on trial if
23:44 healing was a crime. You ask me by whom, by whose name the lame man was healed.
23:50 If you want to know, he was healed in the name of Jesus. You should put Jesus on trial. If healing is a crime,
23:58 lastly, Peter's third point is this. This man Jesus when whom I'm talking
24:04 about was the same man whom you accused three months ago. Whom you pronounced
24:10 guilty and whom you crucified. But let me tell you this. This Jesus
24:17 whom you crucified God raised him from the dead.
24:22 I'm so sorry but you didn't get rid of him. He is still around alive active and
24:29 working. And that is why these lame men got healed.
24:34 Naturally, it would be very it would have been very simple for the Sanhedrin to respond to Peter's third point and to
24:41 refute that point to disprove the resurrection of Jesus. All they needed to do was to produce the body of Jesus
24:49 to prove that he was already dead. Produce the body of Jesus.
24:55 But they couldn't because the tomb was empty. The tomb was empty.
25:03 And the result of Peter's defense was stunning. In just about 100 words based on the NIV, he managed to turn the table
25:11 around. And in the end, the judge became the accused. By the time Peter finished,
25:16 it was as if the the Sanhedrin was the one on trial. They say that sometimes
25:22 the best way to defend is to attack. And Peter went on the attack from the beginning. And so the trial ended with
25:29 the acquitt and release of Peter and John after more threats from the members
25:35 of the Sanhedrin before they let him go. But not before Peter took the opportunity to preach to them in verse
25:40 12. Salvation is found in no one else referring to Jesus. For there is no other name under heaven given to mankind
25:47 by which he must be saved. Peter even found the time to share the gospel with his son.
25:54 Now if you were to consider the gross injustice metered out to Jesus three months ago by the same court, you would
25:60 be reasonable to expect a guilty verdict. But surprisingly
26:05 Peter and John were acquitted and there was much re rejoicing and worship when
26:10 they got back to the people. Now this is not unlike the the acquittle of someone
26:16 else recently on 9th of January if you follow the news. In that case the
26:24 the a guilty verdict was also expected and the acquittle was was was also much
26:31 euphoria. But it seems that two days ago on Friday afternoon the prosecution
26:37 file an appeal against the high court decision which is sad. But let's not digress into politics.
26:46 Now before I wrap up uh part one of the sermon, let me quickly point out one important thing about Acts chapter 4.
26:54 That is Acts chapter 4 happened the way it did. Not because the Sanhedrin
26:60 suddenly got cold feet nor because Peter suddenly acquired some debating skills.
27:07 Acts four happened the way it did because of one crucial factor and that
27:13 is the working of the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit the outcome
27:18 would have been very different. Verse 8 says then Peter filled with the Holy
27:24 Spirit and so on and so forth. Verse 31 further says and they were all filled
27:29 with the Holy Spirit. The working of the Holy Spirit has been evident in the works of the apostles
27:36 since the day of Pentecost in Acts chapter 2. Peter and John are described as full of courage in this chapter. The
27:44 early Christians are described as as as being bold in this chapter all because
27:49 of the Holy Spirit. Now earlier on I mentioned that Peter and John were not
27:55 given any legal assistance in this trial. Actually that wasn't so correct because actually they had the best
28:01 lawyer in the universe. They had the Holy Spirit. Earlier on I also said that Peter and
28:07 John didn't stand a chance before the Sanhedrin. Actually that also wasn't so correct because with the with the
28:15 apostles empowered by the Holy Spirit it was the Sanided that didn't stand a
28:20 chance. Now we shall now leave the text aside for a while and I would like to touch
28:26 now on Christian growth in part two of my sermon. Now along the way we will try to make the connection with the acts
28:33 chapter 4 here. From a broader perspective
28:38 I'm talking about Christian growth in general. From a broader perspective Christian growth happens between two
28:45 pivotal events in our earthly life. From the day we receive Jesus as our
28:52 savior on the left till the day we leave this earth on the right.
29:00 That's simple enough. Now technically these two points in time
29:05 are also known as justification and glorification.
29:11 And what happens between justification and glorification is also is also known as sanctification.
29:18 But let's leave aside these theological jarens and keep and keep things simple.
29:26 But the trouble is Christian growth even if you want to keep it simple is not a
29:32 simple thing. It is a torturous path
29:37 a winding road and a journey marked by ups and downs.
29:44 We want it to be like this. But in reality, Christian growth is more
29:51 like this. By the way, this is the Dow Jones
29:56 Industrial Average between August 20007 and July 08.
30:03 I thought this is more appropriate those of you who are more financially minded. Why is Christian growth usually
30:11 characterized by ups and downs? You take two steps forward, then you
30:16 fall back one step. You take five steps forward, you may fall back six steps.
30:22 Flexing and leather. Why can't it be up up all the way?
30:29 The truth is Christian growth takes place in a very dynamic environment.
30:36 There are always three forces at work all the time trying to pull you back.
30:43 You try to move forward but these three forces will try to set you back. The
30:48 three forces are number one your old self,
30:56 number two the world, number three
31:02 Satan. Christian growth is typified by constant
31:07 battles with these three forces. In battling with the old self, number
31:13 one, we are battling with sin because our old self prefers our old ways, our
31:22 old sinful ways. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "Therefore, if
31:29 anyone is in Christ, a new creation has come. The old has gone, the new is
31:35 here." But the trouble is even though the old is supposed to be gone, it sometimes
31:41 come back and catch out us. Secondly, in battling with the world or
31:49 more precisely in battling with the attractions of the world, we are we are battling with materialism.
31:56 We struggle with the question of who is supposed to sit on the throne of our life.
32:03 1 Timothy 6:10 warns us, "For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil."
32:10 Some people eager for money have wandered from the faith.
32:16 In the lives of many Christians I know, force number two is so much stronger
32:22 than force number one. Thirdly, in battling with Satan, number
32:28 three, we are battling with assurance because Satan is always trying to
32:34 deceive us, trying to plant doubts in our mind. Oh, you are you're not good
32:40 enough. Oh, I'm sure God doesn't mind a small indiscretion like that.
32:47 Things like that, he will say to us. 1 Peter 5 8-9 cautions us be alert and of
32:54 sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls like a roaring lion. Resist him standing
33:01 firm in the faith. Now here I must point out something important
33:08 because these forces are always at work. A Christian cannot remain in one place
33:15 spiritually. If you're not moving forward, you'll be moving backwards.
33:23 If you're not moving backwards, you'll be moving forward. You cannot say, "Oh, I like it where I
33:30 am. I have a great career, but I also go to church and I know how to balance
33:36 nicely the demands between these two." You cannot say, "Oh, I don't like I
33:43 don't need to grow anymore. I think I'm happy where I am. You see, there's no such thing as a
33:49 spiritual equilibrium. If you are not growing, then you are
33:55 backsliding. If you are not backsliding, then you are growing.
34:00 Now, with these three forces active on the left, now if I were to ask an average Christian, what should be on the
34:07 right? And these are the answers you might expect
34:13 to counter the forces of old self, world, and Satan. Perhaps we should be
34:19 more diligent in reading our Bibles, in praying, and in going to church. What do
34:26 you think? I'm sorry to disappoint you,
34:31 but reading the Bible, praying, and going to church are merely
34:37 activities. They will not help you in countering the forces on the left.
34:44 You must counter a force with a force. You cannot counter a force with a nonforce.
34:52 What then should we use to counter the forces on the left?
34:58 This is where Acts chapter 4 comes in. Earlier I mentioned in Acts 4 that this
35:05 is the first recorded opposition faced by the early church. I also want to tell
35:11 you that the opposition faced by the early church here in Acts chapter 4 is the precursor to severe persecution that they will
35:19 face in the years to come. The persecution of the early church may
35:26 not be as on the same scale as that of the Holocaust, but nevertheless,
35:32 it is similar in severity. Later in Acts chapter 6 and 7, we will see how Steven
35:39 was stoned to death after a guilty ver guilty verdict by the Sanhedrin and
35:45 during the reign of Emperor Nero, it was even worse.
35:50 But the curious thing is this. You can kill Christians. You can oppress Christians. You can even you can
35:57 intimidate Christians. But what happens?
36:02 They grow in number and they grow in strength. And that's what is happening
36:08 in this chapter. That's why in this chapter about the Sanhedrin threatening the apostles, you'll find this
36:14 interesting line in verse four. the number of men who believe grow to about
36:20 5,000. And this has been the history of the church. More persecution,
36:27 more growth. And someone commented why the church of
36:32 England is so weak because they they have not faced any persecution.
36:39 But you look at what happened in the Roman Empire. What happened behind the iron curtain? What happened behind the
36:45 bamboo curtain? The church grew in strength. Maybe not numerically.
36:52 Historically, persecution has never destroyed the church. In fact, the opposite takes place. And why is it so?
37:01 If you remember what I said earlier that Acts chapter 4 happened the way it did
37:06 because of one crucial factor and that is the working of the Holy Spirit.
37:12 What made Peter and John and the early Christians so courageous, so bold and so sure? It was the Holy Spirit working in
37:20 their lives. It made all the difference. Look at Peter's courage before the Sanhedrin here. Compared to three months
37:28 ago when Jesus stood before the same Sanhedrin and Peter and Jesus stood before the same and Peter was so afraid
37:33 for his life that he had to deny Jesus. Therefore, to counter the forces on the
37:40 left, you need a force. You need the Holy Spirit.
37:47 Now, I drew I purposely drew a big arrow because the Holy Spirit can help us to
37:52 more than overcome the combined forces of self, world, and Satan.
37:60 And coming back to our topic handling obstacles to growth. I wish to impress upon your hearts that the answer to
38:08 growth is not more activities. The answer is the infilling of the Holy
38:14 Spirit. The answer is to let the Holy Spirit empower you.
38:20 Christian growth is not caused by activities such as reading your Bible, praying, and going to church. These are
38:26 the effects of a growth caused by the spirit.
38:32 No wonder many Christians do not grow because they switch the cause and the effects the other way.
38:38 We must therefore reflect seriously on this question. What is the Holy Spirit in your life? How relevant is the Holy
38:45 Spirit in your life? Now, as God's children, we have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit granted, but not necessarily
38:53 the infilling of the Holy Spirit. As God's children, the Holy Spirit is a
38:58 resident in our hearts, but not necessarily the president.
39:04 As God's children, we have 100% of the of the spirit, but the Holy Spirit may
39:10 not have 100% of us. Think about this. Actually, there is a fitting label for
39:16 Christians who are not growing. A description for Christians who are not
39:22 under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. And the label is this. They are called
39:28 churchans from the word church.
39:34 Churchans are followers of a religion called churchity
39:40 in terms of numbers. Churchity is bigger than Christianity.
39:46 Seriously. And churchity looks like Christianity. At a glance, you cannot tell the
39:52 difference between the church and the Christian. The church goes to church. He also reads the Bible and he prays. He
39:59 may even preach and prophesy. But he does not live under the
40:06 empowerment of Holy Spirit. The Christian also reads the Bible and he prays and he goes to church. But he
40:12 grows even if he's at a slow pace because the Holy Spirit is at work in his life. that
40:20 because of this if you look closely you can actually tell the difference between a church and a Christian
40:28 because outwardly they may be they may look the same but inside because the Holy Spirit is working one not the other
40:34 you can tell them apart by their fruits Jesus says in Matthew 7:20
40:41 thus by their fruit you can recognize them you can be the best church there ever is
40:50 you can do all the good you want. You can even try to be the next Oscar Schindler. Now, I'm not trying to
40:55 diminish the good work of this great man who is known as the righteous among the nations. But from Wikipedia, I read that
41:02 Oscar Schindler was never more than an indifferent Christian.
41:08 You can be the best church and you can even be the next Oscar Schindler. But if you are not living under the empowerment
41:14 of the Holy Spirit, then you are missing out on the real meaning of being a
41:20 Christian. For the sake of FBC's growth from now, I
41:25 pray that there be many more Christians than church in this church.
41:32 To conclude my message, let me explain why I started by talking about our visit
41:37 to the Yadbashim. There are two reasons. The first is this. I believe that the persecution of
41:44 the Jews during World War II is the reminder that when the end time comes,
41:50 we as Christians will face similar or worse persecution.
41:56 During the end time, if we are still around, we will see the church falling
42:02 away like people fleeing a war zone. But the Christians will stand
42:09 just like the early church stood. If you don't have the spirit working in you,
42:14 you will not stand. The second reason why I started with is
42:19 because of the Ezekiel inscription.
42:26 I will put my breath into you and you shall live again and I will set you upon your soil.
42:33 Now I will not disagree with you if you insist that this is a end time prophecy
42:39 about the Jews embracing Jesus. I will also not agree with you.
42:46 To me I will not be caught up by in this end time debate. Personally
42:54 the first part of the verse is a fitting description of my walk with Jesus.
43:01 I will put my breath into you and you shall live again. The underline I added
43:06 myself not part of the the the inscription cuz after you go to Yashim is you say
43:13 how come no underline.
43:18 God has put his spirit into me and now I live again.
43:24 Earnestly I pray that it is the same with you that the Holy Spirit is quietly
43:30 and surely working in your life and you are that you are growing and alive in
43:36 Jesus. Shall we pray?
43:45 Father in heaven, humbly we come before you and we beseech
43:51 you that henceforth your spirit will move in this church
43:56 and in the life of each member of this congregation so that we will no longer succumb to the
44:03 forces against us but instead will start marching forward under the empowerment
44:09 of your spirit. May the redeemed people of this church start to enjoy solid growth
44:16 as you release your power to work in us and through us. For this we ask in the
44:22 name of your son Jesus. Amen.
