Acts: Patterns of Response

Well, good morning. Turn your bibles with me to Acts

Chapter fourteen. Acts Chapter fourteen title my sermon as the

patterns of response. Now, you know we as individuals, we

watched patterns. We watched patterns of weather or last week

as we've been watching the hurricane and as it came through,

you know, retailers they watched patterns. It came out many

years ago that Target, a you know retailer here was

tracking what has the ability to track spending and they

would track individuals spending and they were so precise and

watching what people spend. They can detect when there was

someone in the family that was pregnant because they were

tracking what people were spending, and they used that to

help send coupons and different things to the families that

try to get them to buy their new baby supplies

at their stores. We not only is Target and Walmart

and all the other ones are doing that. They're watching.

You're probably going to get an ad on your phone

later on the day because that heard be say Target,

and you'll probably pop up on your phone later on.

But not only as retailers doing this, our cell phones

are doing this, but we do this. We track patterns

in my for us. At my house, we have a basement,

and and one things that I've seen over the last

few years is my basement. When it rains really hard,

it floods. And so I knew tropic storm coming hard

rains that means probably the basement's going to flood. So

as a result, because I knew the pattern, I knew

it's going to flood. Guess what I did. I went

to the store. I went to Low's or actually went

to ACE, and I got two bags of sand bags,

and I tried to set out some stuff behind the house,

just to prepare for the rain, for the pattern of

flooding that I would see in my basement and try

to stop it, prevent it. So it didn't work, but

I tried. I say that to say, we do track patterns,

and what does patterns teach us? Patterns teach us what

we can expect will happen? Right, Not only what will that?

What can we expect to happen? But how can we

prepare before we experience something? And as we come to

acts this morning, what Luke wants us to see is

he wants us to see a pattern that is emerging.

As Paul and Barnabas are continued to live on mission,

living to fulfill the mission. What patterns emerged as they

lived out in the mission? What was the mission? If

you just remind you, you may ask me this morning, what

is the mission? Pastor where the mission was? But you

receive power when the Holy spirits come upon you, and

you'll be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judea and

Sameria and to the ends of the earth. That was

the mission. The mission for Paul and Barnabas was taking

the Gospel from antiox Syria to the ends of the earth.

And so as they went city to city, there was

patterns that emerged, things that happens, pattern of how cities

and individuals responded to the witness of the gospel. So

this morning, as we as individuals and we as a

church live on mission, as we as church continue to

take the Gospel out of but that's done to the

ends of the earth. As you as individuals continue to

live on mission and take the Gospel and be a

witness in your community and your workplaces, what are patterns

of things that we can look in this passage and

learn from to be better prepared for So this is

what we want to see what is going to happen?

And how can we prepare for it? So Acts fourteen,

let's look at the patterns of a response that Lukes

wants us to see that we stand with me unless

reverence reading God's word. I hope you have God's word today.

I hope you've been only have it, but this week

you've been in it and reading it. It's very important

for us and only have God's word. But we read

God's word. So Acts fourteen, starting in verse one, it says,

now at Iconium, they entered into the Jewish Synigod, and

e spoke in such a way that a great number

of both Jews and Greeks believed. But the unbelieving Jews

stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against their brothers.

So there remained for a long time, speaking boldly for

the Lord who bore witness to the word of his grace,

granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.

But the people of the city were divided. Some sided

with the Jews and some sided with the Apostles. And

when attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the

Jews with their rulers to mistreat them and to stone them.

They learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derby

and Laconia and the surrounding countries, and there they continue

to preach the Gospel. Let's pray together. Father, we thank

you Lord for this morning. I pray today as we

study your word, as we see the patterns of response,

as Paula Bonovius continue to take the Gospel to different regions,

different cities, and how people responded to the Gospel as

they witness they were witnesses, or I pray today as

we think about us being a witness and taking the

Gospel to our schools and to our communities, to our neighborhoods,

to workplaces, to the nations. Lord, may we see the

patterns of response here, and may it we see from

scripture what can we expect and how can we prepare for?

So use your word to day to lead us, to

equip us, to prepare us, Lord to live on mission

for you. Lord, we love you. I pray today, Father,

May you give us Lord your Holy Spirit today. May

you feel us feel me that I might speak your

word and God today I pray that people will respond

to the working of the Holy Spirit in their hearts.

Today in your name, we pray Amen, you may be

seated patterns of response. The first pattern that we see

in this passage of scripture is a pattern of witnessing.

It is the very first thing you see in this

passage scripture is what Barnaba, Paul and Barnabas are doing.

They are continuing to witness. They again, as Acts thirteen says,

they were sent out by the Church of Antioch, Syria

to take the Gospel to the end of the earth.

And we see that pattern emerging. They are continue to

take the Gospel to different cities time after time. They

went to the island of Cyprus. We looked at that

and Acts thirteen. And from there they left and went

to Perga, and from Perga to Antioch Pasidia, and they

began every city they went to, they begin sharing the Gospel. Now,

as you see, and one thing that's very important for

Luke in this passage of scripture, and Luke wants you

to see that the very same pattern of what happened

in Antioch Pasidia was the very same things happened in Antioch,

I mean in Iconium. Now, if you just if you're

new here, if you've knew in our study of Acts.

We've been preaching through the Book of Acts for a while,

and over the last few weeks we were looking at

Paul's sermon and Antioch Pasidia. But if you remember when

they go into the city, what did they first do? Well,

the very first thing the scripture tells us in Acts thirteen,

when Paul and Barnabus went into any act Pasidia is

they went to the synagogue. Synagogue's where the Jews were.

That was where people. They were Jews. So they went

to basically their folk, the people who knew the Judaism,

and they went to share the gospel there. And as

we see, there's there's a pattern that emerges as of

how people responded once they went into take to the

gospel into that city and shared the gospel. There's a

pattern of how people responded. And won't you see that

if you'll go back to it with me. The Acts

thirteen scripture says, and when the gentiles heard this, heard

the witnessing the message of Paul, they began rejoicing and

glorifying the word of the Lord. And as many was

appointed to enter, I mean to appointed to eternal life, believed,

and the word of God was spreading throughout the whole region.

So the first thing here they are they take the

gospel the cypress the island, and the gospel spreads their

faithful witness and God blesses it. As it go into Antiopsidia,

they go into the sin of God and they share

the Gospel there. And the Bible says that as we

just read that there are gentiles who heard it, there's

Jews who hear it. They believe and they rejoice and

God people get saved. But the Scripture says, not only

were there's people who got saved. The result and the

response was there are people who believed. There are also

people who didn't believe. Scripture says, keep reading with me

in verse forty nine, and verse forty nine says, the

word of the Lord were spread, spreading throughout the whole region.

But the Jews incited about women of high standing and

leading men of the city, and they stirred up persecution

against Paul and Barnabas, and they drove them out of

their district. So what happens every time Paul and Barnabas

live on mission and they take the gospel to a

new city, they always find that people believe and we're

going to look at that a little bit. But in

every situation they meet opposition. In Cyprus, if you remember,

there was a there's an evil magician, and the Bible

says this evil magician actually brought spoke against Paul and

Barnabas as they're sharing the gospel with this governor named

Sergius there, So that happens, and you can imagine they're

living on mission. They sent out by the Church and Antioch.

They're excited about being missionaries, fair first missionaries. They go

the very first place to share the gospel. People believe.

But there's real evil opposition that they face. And they said, okay,

well there's a one time deal. I get it. Some

things happen. So they said, we'll go to the next city.

And they travel one hundred miles to the next city.

They get in any Pasiitia. We'll go, we'll go into

the Jewish syner goods. We'll go to other Jews, brothers

of Judaism, and surely they'll be open to the gospel.

And they share the gospel, and sure enough people get saved,

and Gentito's gets saved. But the very Jews that they

share the gospel within the syn of good are the

very ones who then go to the city leaders and

stir up a persecution and drive them out of the city.

Now you imagine, okay, okay, one time, it kind of

hurts it, kind of I get a little opposition. That's

that's that's kind of hard. But you know, maybe it

won't happen every time. But then to go into the

very next city and literally be rent out of the city,

there comes to a place they may say, you know what, yes,

there's a lot of people getting saved and God's you know,

God's changing hearts. But this is not easy. Maybe this

is not worth it. Maybe you know, after one time

of a little opposition, it's a little tough. But I

don't know if I can continue every city that I

go to that I'm going to face opposition. Luke wants

you and I to see that in every place they go,

they take the gospel into the city. The very first

place they go to is a syin of God, and

time after time, city after city, they face opposition, and

they first are a faithful witness no matter what opposition

they face. Heard a story of someone who was a

few years ago that were going down Capitol Boulevard It

was kind of midday and they had someone rear into

them and they had accident, had some injuries, went to

the hospital, went to wait Mad spent most of the day,

as you imagine in the weight Mad that night later on,

it was late at night. After getting out of the yard,

gets back on catl Boulevard, starts heading back down the

road to his house. On the same road he just

had the accident. Someone crosses the center line hits him

head on. Police officer actually comes up to him and

looks at his ideas he's filling out the fleet report,

and he says, I remember your name. How do I

remember your name? And he says, well, actually I was

in an accident previous this morning on this and he said,

and it was the same road. And the man said

this is what he says, Yes, And when I get home,

I am never going to travel Capitliver Boulevard again. Now

I tell you that, because if that was you, you

would be like him. Right, I'm never doing that again. Okay,

I suffered a little bit, but I'm not going to

continue to live suffering. Right. But Paul and Barnabas, listen,

we're faithful in the midst of suffering. Scripture says in

verse fourteen, in chapter fourteen, now Iconium, they entered together

in Jewish Semigod and spoken in such a way that

great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. But i'mbelieving

Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poison their mind against them.

But look at what verse three says. They remained for

a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord. Listen. One

pattern that lou wants you to see is faithful witnessing,

a pattern of witnessing, a pattern of faithful witnessing, a

faithful witness to new regions. They didn't stop in Cyprus,

they didn't stop when it got tough, and Antioch they

continued to go to the next town and was a

faithful witness in new regions. They believed that God had

called them to take the Gospel to the ends of

the earth, and no matter what opposition may come their way,

they were or they were not going to stop. Can

I encourage you that we are to be a faithful

witness and no matter what opposition that we are going

to face, guarantee the Scripture is very clear to us

that if you take the Gospel to different places in

your community and your workplaces, in your home, in your schools.

You will faithful. You will face opposition scriptures calling you

and I to be faithful, to be a faithful witness,

continue to take the Gospel. Not only sees a faithful

witness to new regions, but also they were a faithful

witness to the religious and the non religious. Every week,

a scripture says in this pastor of scripture, every city

and now at Iconium, very clear for Luke, he wants

you to see the very first place, where was the

opposition come from in Antioposidia. It came from the Jews

in the Synagod. You kind of think, well, that didn't work.

Maybe we'll start out with the gentiles. The gentiles, the

one who so receptive and rejoicing and excited about hearing

the Gospel. Maybe we just start with them instead. But no,

that's not what did Paul and one of us do.

The very ones who ran them out of the city

and Antipoposiity were the Jews from the synagod. But that

didn't stop them when when Iconium that they also went

right back to the Synagod. Verse one says the Jewish

Syni good and spoken in such a way that great

number of the Jews and Greeks believed there was a

faithful witness to the religious. They wanted to see people

who were who were religious to have religious backgrounds, to

come to faith the Jesus, but those who were far

also away from the Gospel. I want just to challenge

you when you think about you being a faithful witness

and you living on mission. There's people in your family

that are religious and you will want to see them

come to know the Lord. So how are you pursuing

How are you being a faithful witness to those who

are religious? But how about the people in your workplace

they're agnostic? Do you want to see them come to

be saved too? How are you being a faithful witness

to them? Are you maybe even building relationships with people

who are unbelievers? Heard a great testimony of one of

our dear church members the other day. He said he

went to share the gospel. I don't know if he

wants me to share his name and want to share

the gospel with someone in Starbucks, And he told him

about how he had faith and his wife had passed

and that he had hoped today because she was in

heaven and he looked at her and says, do you

have that do you know Jesus to you you have

that same hope? And she said to him, no, I

don't believe in God. And he says, well, I'm sorry.

And he continued to try to share to her, and

she was very friendly. And he went back to his

seat later on to finish, and she was with some friends.

And he said later on, after she was done and

she was leaving Starbucks, she went by to him and

told him and thank them for sharing. You see, we

are to be a faithful witness, even when there's rejection

and says, hey, I don't believe what you believe. We

to be a faithful witness to those in different regions,

taking the Gospel to different places in our community, to

different places in this world, but also taking to different

people groups, those who are religious and those who are

not religious. But understand, in the midst of all of this,

when I only see a pattern of witnessing, faithful witness

to different regions, faithful witness to religious and non religious,

but also we see a faithful God. You see when

Paul and barnabas and in verse two it says, but

unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poison their minds

against the brothers. They get this opposition in the midst

of them being faithful. There's a book that I was

reading this week. It's called Christians Get Depressed Too. I

encourage you if you know someone who maybe if you

struggle with depression, or if you know someone to struggles

with depression, I encourage you to get the book. It's

a great books by David Murray. In the book, and

he was talking about how if God told you to

go witness, just think about this theory that he has.

If God told you to go witness, and he told

you that everybody you witnessed to was going to be

nice to you. Everybody you witnessed to would listen to you.

Everybody who listened to listen to you witness would hear

and believe. He said, you would not hesitate, would you?

You wouldn't. You wouldn't hesitate sharing the gospel. If you

knew everybody to share in the gospel, what's gonna be nice?

Everybody would listen. Everybody would believe. You would not hesitate.

But we hesitate because we're feared the what rejection? But

and let's be honest. God does not promise you. God

commands you to go right, but he doesn't promise you

that everyone's going to be nice. He doesn't promise that

everyone's going to listen. The very opposite of this passage

is telling us, if we're a witness, we are going

to face opposition. But what does God promise you. He

doesn't promise it's going to be not everyone's nice. Everyone's

gonna believe. God promises you, if you're faithful to be

a witness, he will be with you. That's what Matthew

eighteen says. Right, Matthew twenty eight eighteen says, and Jesus

came and said to them, all authority in heaven on

earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make

disciples of all nations, baptizing them of the Father's son

the Holy Spirit, teaching them, reserve all that I've commanded you,

and behold, I am with you always to the end

of the age you see. For Paul and Barnaby, a

scripture says in this passage in verse two, the opposition

came against them. Verse three tells us read it with me.

So they remain for a long time, speaking boldly for

the Lord. This is what says. They spoke boldly for

the Lord, and the Lord bore witness to the word

of His grace, granting signs and wonders to be done

by their hands. You see, when they were a faithful witness,

God was faithful to be with them. God was faithful

to be a witness of his word in and through them.

Can I tell you today, listen, if you will be

a faithful witness and you continue to be a witness

that live on mission for God and taking the Gospel

to your family members, to the religious, to the non religious,

can I tell you I cannot promise you today that

you won't face opposition. I actually can probably promise you

that you will face opposition. But what I can promise

you today if you're be faithful, that God will be

faithful to his word to you. I think you bring

the about this Eli story and about how God's faithful.

I remember her telling me when we went to Wahawka

just this summer. She was we sple up in teens

were doing door to door evangelism and prayer walking, and

Brady shared the Gospel and Miss Gloria Unss she heard

that testimony. But one thing that she I'm not sure

she shared in her shared time was that when she

came back to me, she said, Jonathan, she said, I

messed it all up, she said me witnessing to her,

she said, I'm actually ashamed of how I witnessed. I

feel like I just messed it all up. But you

know what, as much as she thought she made a

mess of it, God was faithful, and God used his

word that she shared to change the life of Gloria.

It wasn't how good we can can be about articulating

the gospel. It's not our skill. Listen, you and I

can't save anybody. Do you know that you can't save anybody.

It is God who is the one who brings someone.

God who's the author of salvation. Right, He's the one

that does the work of salvation, not you or I.

So we just be faithful and know that when we're faithful,

God will be faithful to his word. God will be

a faithful witness of his word. And that's what we

see here in this passage Scripture. God gave signs and

wonders here that when they spoke, they did. Scripture says

that in verse four, I mean verse three, he bore

A witnesses grace, granting signs and wonders. That tells us

that Paul and Barnabas did signs and wonders and God

gave them that ability that he might authenticate his message

and he might authenticate the messagers. So no, we see

a pattern of faithful witnessing, but we also see a

pattern of belief. You know, what you think about today

as we was just thinking about witnessing, if you ever

shared in the gospel, just think about that was the

last time you witnesses someone. I want to ask you

if you've ever witnesses someone, but I want you to

think two. When you witness how successful was it? Did

someone come to be? Did someone get saved? If you

ever led someone and someone that was actually saved or

maybe you're saying today, no, Pastor, I shared the gospel,

but I've never actually seen a conversion or been a

part of that. David Murray says in his book that

many times if we share the gospel, and studies would

tell us that when we shared the gospels, you know

we're we're going to face opposition, We're going to face rejection. Right. Well,

imagine if the times that you share the gospel. You've

not seen the convert, you may David Les David Murray says,

if it's not at the first time you shared the gospel,

if someone rejected or didn't accept the gospel, you may think, well,

I'm terrible at this, Like I don't have the skill

to do this. I'm not effective and so and if

and if someone it was ugly to you when you

shared the gospel, or you felt like you did a

terrible job with it, you may say, you know, I

just don't have a skill for this. I don't have

the ability for this. I'm not good at it. They said. Therefore,

I'm not gonna do it again, because what that experience

showed me either, the pattern of that experience is this

will not be any better if I keep doing it. Right,

But think about that for a minute. That's what our

minds tell us, Right, you're terrible at this, You're terrible

at sharing the gospel. Last time you shared the gospel,

they didn't accept it, they rejected that, they didn't come

to Christ. So you shouldn't do this again. And that's

what he's talking about in this book. That's what our

minds tell us. But when you drove the car for

the very first time. How good it was? How good

were you at driving the very first time? When you

got on the bicycle the very first time? Hood of you?

How good were you at riding a bicycle? Not very good?

When you swung a bat for the very first time?

How good were you at hitting a baseball, shooting a back,

playing tennis, whatever? Cooking the very first time you cook biscuits?

How well did that happen? Right? It didn't stop you? Right,

some of you? You continue to work at it until

you got effective at it. Understand today, listen, there will

be those who reject, but Scripture wants you to see

there is a pattern of faithful witnessing or witnessing. But

if you continue to be a witness, listen to this,

there will be those who believe. Listen, have hope in

that Scripture shows us a pattern that every time Paul

and Barnabus took the Gospel to a new area, there

was opposition and there was rejection, but there were those

who believed. And may that give us hope today, that Father,

if I'm faithful to take the Gospel, you will be

faithful witness. It may not be every time, It maybe

take a few years. William Carey shared the Gospel for

seven years as a missionary. Before you, sir, as first convert.

But God, you will be faithful, and there will be

those of belief if I'm faithful. And we see that

in this passage of Scripture, there were those who believed

in Iconium. Verse one says, and they entered the city

and Jewish sen of God and spoke in such a way.

And a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed

in Antioch. In chapter thirteen, verse thirty eight, let it

be known you, therefore, brothers, that through this Man, forgiveness

of senders proclaimed to you. And Scripture says in verse

that was thirty eight. I read their own verse and

thirty eight. When they heard this, they begin rejoicing and

glorifying the Word. And as many were appointed to inter

eternal life, believed there will be a pattern of witnessing.

There is a pattern of belief when we live on mission.

And lastly, there is a pattern of humblief. Mentioned this

a little bit, but I think they want to dig

a little bit deeper in this because I think it

put you to understand. Paul and Luke wants you to

see there is a pattern of opposition. There's a pattern

of belief. One of that patterns of unbelief is opposition.

Look at the verse in verse two, it's says, but

unbelieving Jews or they're in the send of God's cheering

the Gospel and the send of God. And there's unbelieving

Jews in the send of God, of antioco pacitia that

bring up and stir up trouble against Paul and barnabas

in this the prior city. Now in an iconium, there's

the same unbelieving Jews that stir up trouble. Scripture says,

he use his strong terms here, but unbelieving Jews stirred

up gentiles and poison their minds against their brothers. There

are those that were in and understand this are religious people.

These are not unbelievers. There's gentiles who don't have any

knowledge or agnostics. Now these are Jews us. They were

in the synagod that Scripture says stirred up and poison

the minds. Not only stirred up, but look who they

stirred up. They stirred up those in the synagog but

also gentiles. Do you know Jews and gentiles they hated

each other. There was great animosity between the Jews and Gentiles.

Paul talks about that in other places of his writing,

but here the Jews united with their enemy to come

against Paul and Barnabas. Unbelief leads to opposition. You know,

when you share the Gospel, there are people who will

not believe the message or witness, and as a result,

they'll oppose you, and they'll try to bring other opposition

against you. I'll never get When I was a young

pastor of very first church I was serving in. You've

heard me talk a lot about him. His name for precher,

Jerry Pretgeria, was trying to had been in the ministry

for I don't know twenty thirty years, and he was

trying to mentor me a young pastor, and he'd seen

patterns in ministry and he was trying to tell me

about those prepare me for that. And one of the

things he told me I'll ever forget. He said, he said,

Johnathy pulled me aside one day and he says, I

want you to be prepared for opposition. And he said,

they are going to be those in the church that

are going to try to bring opposition against me. The pastor,

and they're going to do that by coming to you

and trying to turn you against me. He says, I

want you to be prepared for that that's going to happen.

And I remember him young and naive right out. I

said in there, I said, no, Pretchey Gerry, people will

not do that, especially people in the church. They will

not do that. No, no, no, no no. And how

soon did I find out that he was wrong? I mean,

he was not wrong, he was right. I had a

deacon in the church at the time that one day

there was there was some a situation happened, and he

called me by on the phone and he told me

something that Preacher Gerry did and that was against me

and trying to pit me against Pritigery. I remember calling

Prechergery is only one time it ever got mad at him,

and I called him and confronted him. I said, I

can't believe you said that about me, and he said

he just was cool and calm, and he said, Jonathan,

I never said that about you. And in that moment

I realized that deacon had lied to me to try

to get me to turn against Prechergery. I tell you

that because you have to understand there are those who

religious people and who may show spiritual signs and may

seem religious, and those people, those very people will be

people who oppose you trying to be a witness for Jesus.

Can I just be very clear today that's going to happen.

It's going to come, and they will try to get

people to try to turn you against each other, try

to turn you against sharing. The Gospel Scripture says they

poisoned the mind. Now, if you think about it just

for a minute, if you would say, what is a

faithful pastor? Would you say a faithful pastor if he

was leading the church and there were people in the

church that were stealing, if there were people in the

church that had committed murder, if there are people in

the church who were living in adultery. Maybe, if there's

people in the church that were lying. If maybe it's

some people in the church that were worshiping maybe Christianity,

but also were worshiping other gods like Islam, and they

were back and forth. And imagine even if there were

people in the church that were worshiping other gods. And

we see this in Uganda and other countries that they

get involved in voodoo, and they'll actually sacrifice their children

to other gods like voodoo. Now, imagine you would say,

if all those things are happening in the church, you

would consider it to be a faithful pastor who would

stand up to his church members and say, these sins

are wrong. Your adultery that's in the church is wrong.

You stealing, it's wrong. If you killed somebody, it's wrong.

If you're lying, it's wrong. If you're committing, if you're

worshiping voodoo, it's wrong. If you sacrifice your child to

uh Voodoo, it's wrong. And you would say a faithful

preacher would be one who would do that right. One

scripture that is Jeremiah Scripture says in Jeremiah, he literally

stood at the doors of the church and this was

happening in Jerusalem. He stood on the altar of the

doors of the gate of the Temple, and he told

the Jews who were doing these things, this is wrong.

And can I tell you listen to this. I want

you to. I'm telling you this because and Jeremiah day

says that there were a priest listen, who were priests

that were in Jerusalem who says what Jeremiah is saying

is not right. Oh, you're fine, you can continue to

do these things. He was faithfully proclaiming and witness, a

witness of God's word. And there were Jewish priests that

looked religious that says, don't listen to Jeremiah's message. He's wrong.

Can I say it's happening in the Old Testament, that

happened in the New Testament, and listen today, church people,

it's still happening today. There are false teachers. There's people

within our community, within our church, even within your family,

within your friends, who will say everything that you're trying

to do for God is wrong. And so know that

opposition will come. Know that there will be those Listen,

I want to be clear today. There will be those

that will try to get you to not to believe

what I say, not to believe the word of God,

who tried to turn you against me as the pastor here.

You say that won't happen, Yes it will. There will

be those who will try to bring opposition against me

as the pastor of this church. That will happen. But

just says it will happen to me, so it will

happen to you. So see the pattern and be prepared

for it. Not only is a pattern of opposition, there

was a pattern of division. What's the goal, right, The

goal for this is to divide. Right, have a group

here that believes this way. Have a group here that

believes this way. Boy, we can really spend a lot

of time on that. But that is what Satan wants

to do. He wants to divide and conquer. That's what's

happening in this passage scripture. Look what happens. But when

the people verse four says, because of the poison in

the mind of verse two, Luke goes back to it.

The people of the city were divided. Listen to opposition

from the Jews in the synagod was so strong. Religious

people were so strong it divided the entire city. Scripture says.

Some sided with the Jews and some sided with apostles.

The entire city was divided because of the opposition. Listen,

there will be those who seek to bring opposition against you.

There will be those who try to divide you against others.

There'll be those who attack, Scripture says in verse five.

Here when the attempt was made by both the Gentiles

and the Jews with their rulers to mistreat them and

to stone them. It God so far that they wanted

to stone Paul and Barnabas. Can I tell you listen

to me today. God's called you to live on mission

to be a witness right here in Bethesda, in North Carolina,

to the United States, to the ends of the earth.

God called you to be a mission, to live on mission,

to be a witness for Him. You're going to face opposition.

Will you be a faithful witness? Says Lord. No matter

what comes my way, God, I'll be a faithful witness

to you. Lord. I know in the midst of me

being faithful, God, you'll be a faithful God. You will

be a faithful to affirm your word. If I'm faithful, God,

help me know that. Lord, help me look for knowing that. God.

If I'm faithful, God, you will bring those to salvation.

People will be people will come to know You as

a result of me living on mission. I know there

will also be those who won't believe, and there may

be those who oppose me. But God, I want to

be a witness. I'm gonna close with this tender in

the band. If you want to make your way up.

There was a lady in the town. Her name was

Old Alice. Old Alice was a terror. She was known

in the neighborhood for being kind of a little bit

hard to deal with. She was a terror to all

the stray dogs, all the delivery boys. She always had

a scrowl on her face. She used her gardening tools

and hedge clippers as on weapons to wave in the

face of visitors. The Maynards. The mate hers I'm sorry,

was a family that moved me in right beside miss Alice.

And there were two little children that were in that home,

James and Jean, And they mustered up the courage to

speak to Alice. And one day and they talked to

her about they want to talk to her about the Lord,

and she cut them off and she said, I've been

a member of the church my whole life. I don't

need the Bible to tell me what to do. And

so they tried to look for ways to be friends

with Alice, but it just really it grew cold. But

they still wanted to do something to share the Gospel

with Alice. One day their church was doing a campaign

about sharing the Gospel, and it was based upon John

one four. It's called Operation Andrew and John one four,

Andrew introduced his brother Simon to Christ and they asked

every church member to list up ten names of people

that they would pray for or to invite them to

come to be a part of the church. And they

listed their ten and they prayed for those ten. And

Alice's name was on the list, and so they went

to her and asked her to come to church, and

she said no, but they continued to pray for her,

looking for chances. One day they went on vacation and

when they came home, they noticed that Alice's home was abandoned.

Come to find out, Alice's home helped to turn bad

and she went into the nursing home. Jane and James

continued to go or Jim and continue to go and

visit with her and share with her, and she got

to where she couldn't speak anymore, and James would read

scripture with her. Jim would read scripture with her regular

He always noticed that she would every time she'd read scripture,

she would look at him. She'd look away, she didn't

really want to hear it. One day he read Psalm

twenty three with her, and he noticed that day she

wasn't looking away. She was looking at him. Jim looked

at her and said, Alice, do you want the Lord

Jesus to forgive you of your sins? You want peace

with God? Alice indicated yes. Alice bowed her head and

Jim led her to pray receive Christ. When she raised

her head, her eyes were full of tears. It had

taken twelve years, twelve years a faithful witnessing in the

midst of opposition. She know what for Jim, He was

faithful and God was faithful to his word. Would Jesus

say today, Lord, I know you want me to be

a witness by the Lord, I'm worried if I'm not opposition.

God help me know today Lord, if I'm faithful, God,

you'll be faithful to be with me and God that

people will be getting people will be saved as a result. Yes, Lord,

There'll be those who won't believe that, there will be

those who will believe just like this allus. Lord, help

me be on mission for you. Would you pray with me? Lord?

We love you, We thank you Lord for this morning.

I pray Lord for your word. Lord. You know Lord

what you've spoken. Lord, you know how you've moved in

our hearts. Lord, you know you You've burdened us today

to be a witness for you to live on mission. Lord.

You know our anxieties. Lord, you know our fears that

hinder us from being that witness, maybe the fear of

opposition that we might face. Lord, I pray to day

that today would be a day that we would say, Lord,

I want to be a faithful witness for you. I

want to be bold for you. God. God, help me

take the steps of faith and know God, you will

be faithful. You will be with me, and God you'll

be faithful to your word. So Lord, I pray today

there would be those who maybe you'd lead to come

to this altar and pray. Lord, I pray, Lord, pray

for maybe someone that they're praying for, like they're Alice. Lord,

how are you to lead us today? Lord, I pray

this would be a time Lord, we surrender, Lord to you,

and you're calling to us. Lord. We love you. We

thank you Lord for today and your name. We pray

Jesus pain to