Living Waters of Grace 10.27.25

This is Living Waters of Grace, the teaching ministry of Clark

Wofford, senior pastor of Calvary Chapel of Westmoreland,

County of Greensburg, PA. Now here's Pastor Clark as he

continues teaching through God's Word.

Verse 18 Now for a time of about 40 years, we know they wandered

for 40 years in the wilderness sort of listening and not

listening, thanking God and complaining about things that

sound familiar if you ever do that.

I've been on the planet 71 years and I got my years of

complaining and whatever and then thanking God.

But it says He put up with their ways in the wilderness.

Isn't that wonderful that God puts up with us?

He doesn't give up on us. Pastor Clark just gave us

another way of God extending His grace to us.

Putting up with us. The holiness of God is something

we can't even fathom, and sometimes it really does feel

that way. God is putting up with us.

Well, there certainly is some truth to that.

We need to pause and ask the question, why does God put up

with me? It's because He loves me.

God's great love for me is what motivates him in everything that

he does in my life. Today.

You'll learn more about how God works in your life now.

Here's Pastor Clark in Acts Chapter 13 with today's edition

Acts 13 · chapter mention

of Living Waters of Grace. Let's look at in the book of the

Acts, Acts chapter 13. And I'm really excited about

Acts 13 · chapter mention

this chapter because I don't know about you, but sometimes I,

I forget the awesomeness and the simplicity of the gospel of

Jesus Christ. I get caught up in life and

teachings and Bible study and all that.

And it seems like the gospel. We all hopefully know it by now

if we've been Christians for any length of time.

But it takes on different layers, doesn't it?

As you get to know Christ better, it becomes deeper and

more precious and more living and alive.

We have to think about the Apostle Paul briefly, because he

was against the gospel. He persecuted Christians.

He hated the movement of Christianity.

What didn't accept Christ, didn't believe, you know, tried

to do everything he could to destroy this movement that can't

be destroyed. Over the last 2000 years, it

keeps growing exponentially all around the world.

And many of us here today have been recipients.

We've received this gospel and it's it's changed our lives and

continually changes our lives. But the transformation of Paul's

life, we read about what he does and his exploits and the

suffering he goes through being an apostle, the rejection, the

stoning, the imprisonment. People would ask him, why, Why

do you do this? And he said, it's the love of

Christ that constrains me. He was so compelled to share

what it is that Lewis and I and other pastors are sharing with

the congregations the good news of the gospel.

And so when we read this and study this, keep in mind that

there is this compelling internal work of God in the

apostle to share this message, this story, over and over and

over again. And it's what compels Pastor

Lewis and myself. No matter what is going on in

life, in the world, in our own personal lives, we can't wait to

get here to tell you more about Jesus.

And that's what we're called to do.

And we're thankful that you embrace that or you wouldn't be

here today. So it starts in verse 13 of

chapter 13, when Paul and his party set sail from Paphos.

They came to Purga and Pamphylia and John departing from them,

returned to Jerusalem, period. What happened to John?

John Mark, the one who eventually wrote the Gospel of

Mark, he's cousin of Barnabas. He's learning how to do

ministry. Young, young guy, he's with Paul

and Barnabas and all of a sudden he turns around and goes the

other way. Why did he leave the calling?

Well, it's, it's beautiful how the Holy Spirit can get into the

detail right here about the conflict that occurred between

basically Paul and John. Maybe some people think that

John was a little bit overwhelmed with the pressures

of the ministry. He began to see the potential of

losing maybe his life and the persecution, being imprisoned,

stoned. Maybe he was sort of

disappointed. It used to say Barnabas and

Paul. Now it's Paul and company.

Paul's taking on the the influence of the leader, and

maybe he didn't like that and he wanted Barnabas to continually

sort of head these mission situations up.

Maybe he was as homesick and he wanted to get back home.

Some people believe because he was a devout Jew, that he didn't

like this idea of Gentiles getting into the Kingdom so

easily when they had to follow the law throughout the Old

Testament and do all the rituals and kosher foods and all that.

No longer is that important anymore.

It's just faith alone in Christ alone by grace alone.

Some people think that maybe he went back to Jerusalem and got

people stirred up to the Judaizers that Paul had to deal

with in the book of Galatians to tell the people that there's

only one gospel. It's not a gospel of works plus

grace. It's a gospel of grace alone

completely. And that's hard for religious

people to accept that we can be forgiven of every sin that we

possibly could commit yesterday, the day and forever and go to

heaven because of what Christ has done for us as we asked him

to forgive us. A lot of people can't be that

easy. I felt.

I asked you guys to pray about, pray for that.

I met in Lancaster, had dinner with him again, and started this

building upon the relationship. He's still not a customer, and

he's hard guy to be around because he's just so lost in the

darkness and the drinking and the tragedies of his own life.

And we went to a restaurant. So we began to talk about trials

and difficulties of life. And he was surprised that I have

them too. He just thought that he had.

And we all have them, right? And as we begin to talk, I

shared with him that the only way I can get through life every

day is by being close to Jesus. And he said, I need to start

wearing sunglasses to our dinner because he's sobbing as we're

talking, you know, And so when we were all done, I, I said, you

know, this is more important to me than business, seeing you

come to know Jesus. So I said, I got something for

you in the car. So I went out to the van and

gave him one of our Bibles that we have to give away to people

in the Bible promise handbook. And he gave me a big hug.

So please continually pray for Mark and, and the people I know

that you're burdened for you're trying to share the good news of

the gospel with. We just plant the seed and God

is the one that increases and gives the harvest, right?

And so I pray for Mark as well. So it it stops there and it

continues. But one thing to to think about

and we'll get there later on that in chapter 15, Barnabas and

Paul had a falling out. Be like Lewis and me having a

falling out. One week I'm here and he's not

here. And the next week or maybe after

that, he's here and I'm not here.

What happened to Clark? Well, we had a falling out.

I mean, boy, that that's doesn't sound good in the church, does

it? Doesn't sound good as brothers

and sisters in Christ. But it happens.

Relationships get rocky sometimes and the devil always

wants to sow discord or disagreement among the brothers

and sisters is to split the church or the, you know, scatter

the sheep. It just happens.

It's one of the more heart wrenching things.

And so Barnabas, you know, he, he takes off and he goes his own

way. Eventually, you know, he works

with John and others and, and Paul ends up working with Silas

and eventually he ends up with Timothy.

But the good news is, is in the book of Second Timothy, chapter

2 Timothy 4 · chapter mention

4, I'm just going to read that real quick because this will

segue into the rest of the place.

We're heading Second Timothy 4 verse 6.

2 Timothy 4:6

This is Paul. He's getting ready to pass from

this life. He's he's fought the good fight.

He he's finishing his his ministry.

He says in verse 6 from already being poured out as a drink

offering and the time of my departure is in hand.

I've fought the good fight, I've finished the race, I've kept the

faith. Finally there is laid up for me

the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous

judge will give to me on that day, and not to me only, but

also to all who loved disappearing.

And then he says be diligent to come to me quickly for Demas,

and this is someone else that was in the ministry had says

forsaken me having loved this present world and has departed

for Thessalonica Creations for Galatia, Titus for Dalmatia.

Only Luke is with me and Luke was a physician.

Mark had issues of illness and disease and other problems like

malaria, he said. But then he says get Mark and

bring him with you for he is useful to me for ministry.

Isn't that beautiful? The falling out is no longer a

falling out. There's reconciliation, they're

doing ministry again together, they're serving together again.

And that's the Lord's intention all the time.

Sometimes we have to give one another space and pray and wait

on the Lord for the reconciliations to occur,

whether it's in church or business or family or sons and

daughters or you know whatever right marriages.

We we have to trust God to do the work that only he can do and

so that that encourages me because if you just stop there

and think well, what in the deal is up with Mark and Paul.

The good news is it didn't stay that way and you always pray

that relationships can be re established and us personally

have responsibility to be humble and forgiving and not keep a

record of offenses are wrong. Like Corinthians tells us, First

Corinthians 13, love doesn't keep a record of wrong.

So when we have our hearts clear and we're not thinking about

things that have occurred to us from other people or whatever,

we're able to wait on the Lord and and let it go until God does

something. So they depart for Purga and

they come to Antioch and Pasidia and this is about 100 miles

north. It's quite a trek.

They go up about 3600 feet high elevation.

Paul was struggling at the time with his health and some people

believed he had malaria. So he had to get into more

comfortable climate conditions to continue the work and after.

So they they go into the synagogue.

And what's interesting, when Paul was doing the missionary

journeys, he was very strategic. He looked for cities of

influence to start with. And cities of influence would

always at least have 11 synagogue.

And so because he was a Pharisee, a member of the

Sanhedrin, he had academic credentials.

He was schooled by Gamaliel, and everybody respected his

background. And a lot of people didn't know

at this point his conversion. But he's in the synagogue with

Barnabas, who came from Cyprus, and also a very stellar

intellectual in regard to theology.

They're there and they're like celebrities in the synagogue

and, and so they, they normally have their readings and

writings, reading the prophets and all the history of, of the

Bible teaching in the Old Testament that Messiah would one

day come and save Israel. There they are visiting not to

be critical, but they're there to share the good news.

So because of their degrees and their knowledge and their

expertise and respect from Jerusalem, they're wow,

someone's here from Jerusalem. Let's let's see if they want to

tell us some stuff. So they give them the, the

platform to to begin to talk and little did they know what was

going to begin to be talked about.

And that's the, this is Paul's first sermon in the book of the

Acts. It's very similar to Peter's

first sermon. And also Stephen, the one who

was martyred that take the history of Israel.

And what happened is Israel moved through the process of

being delivered out of Egypt into eventually the promised

land and then the history of what they had to deal with in

their rebellion and their backsliding and their own

unbelief. And so Paul's going to review

some things with them. And so he says they're there on

the Sabbath day. And after the reading of the law

and the prophets, which was traditional in the synagogue,

verse 15, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them saying,

men and brethren, if you have any word of exhortation for the

people, say on. So they just didn't interrupt

the meeting. They were invited to talk about

what it is that they wanted to talk about.

Then Paul stood up and motioning with his hand.

Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen.

So the respect of the Jewish people and their religion, men

of Israel. And then there would be

gentiles. There are those that are fearing

God, haven't embraced Judaism fully, but they're interested.

They're there in the in the meeting because they're

interested. You're here today in this

meeting because obviously you're interested in learning more

about the Lord and following him or why would you be here, right?

So the God of this people, this is Paul's message.

Israel chose our fathers and exalted the people when they

dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and when with an

uplifted arm he brought them out of it.

And we know Moses raised his staff, the water separated and

and the sea, and they were able to escape the attack of the

wicked Pharaoh. And the Lord delivered him out

of that bondage in Egypt, that terrible place to be where they

were abused and taken advantage of and this terrible, terrible

existence. Verse 18.

Now for a time of about 40 years, we know they wandered for

40 years in the wilderness, sort of listening and not listening,

thanking God and complaining about things that sound familiar

if you ever do that. I've been on the planet 71 years

and I've got my years of complaining and whatever and

then thanking God. But it says He put up with their

ways in the wilderness. Isn't that wonderful that God

puts up with us? He doesn't give up on us.

And verse 19 and when he had destroyed seven nations in the

land of Canaan, he distributed their land to them by allotment.

So we know when Joshua went in to the, you know, promised land,

he was instructed because Moses had been taken off the scene

then. And they did battle and they had

wars and and they eventually conquered and they had all this

real estate that God promised prophetically that would be the

inheritance of the the 12 tribes of Israel.

And so this, the history and and these guys in the synagogue know

this stuff. This has never been anything

they never heard of before. After that, verse 20, he gave

them judges for about 450 years. So the judges were set up to

roll on issues of law and morality and justice and that

kind of stuff and never really worked out that well because

you'd have good judges. You have bad judges just like we

have good presidents, bad presidents.

I mean, you know it, it just happens, right?

So until Samuel the prophet came along and when Samuel the

prophet came along in verse 21 and afterward they asked for

king. So they're asking pray and

asking for king. We need to be have someone in

charge here instead of a group of these judges.

So God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of

Benjamin for 40 years. And when he removed him, now

Saul was not a good king. And you can read the history the

guys are teaching through the Old Testament on Wednesday

nights and they really cover it very, very detailed like we do

Sunday morning in the New Testament, that the history of

Saul was completely corrupt. So God eventually removed him.

Then he raised up for them David as king, King David.

Everybody knows about David, right?

You learn about David and Sunday school, David and Goliath.

What do you, what do you think about when you hear the word

David? I think more about David and

Bathsheba. What happened there?

Then David and Goliath and David and Bathsheba committed adultery

and they ended up having a tremendous heartache in the

nation of Israel because of that.

And eventually David admitted to his sin when Nathan came to him

and about a year after the event, but not only did David

commit adultery, he set up Uriah, her husband in battle to

be killed. So David is an adulterer and a

murderer. And the Lord says about him, he

gave testimony and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a

man after my own heart who will do my will.

David failed as many of us have failed in many different ways in

our life. But God knows our hearts.

None of us are perfect. He knows that we draw near to

Him and the times of difficulty. When we make mistakes, we don't

justify them and are proud and ignore the work of the Holy

Spirit. If we're really saved, the Holy

Spirit's in us. He begins to tell us why there's

problems or what needs to be addressed.

In Psalm 51 is written where you can see the desperation of David

crying out to God for his sin. Oh Lord, restore to me the joy

of my salvation. Take not thy Holy Spirit from

me, created me a clean heart of God, and renew a steadfast

spirit within me. Then I'll teach transgressors

your ways, and sinners shall be converted to you.

And farther on down than that Psalm, it says a broken and a

contrite heart God will not despise.

And so whenever we allow God to show us our issues every day,

this is something I want to deal with, or this is something that

needs to be corrected, or this is he, he, he's our God, the

Holy Spirit and he, he leads us if we were willing to listen to

what it is that God requires of us.

And it's always the challenge of changing our mind from one thing

to what it is that God wants. That's repentance.

It's not like groveling or beating ourselves up or woe is

me kind of thing. It's just like, Lord, I hear

you. I need to make this right.

I need to stop this thing. I need to forgive this person.

I need to worship you. I mean, whatever it might be, a

host of things that you and I hear every day.

And whenever we hear the voice of God, we have one or two

decisions to make. We either listen and yield, or

we just stuff it and blow it away.

And we've all been in either of those places.

We know the benefit of doing it God's way.

It really makes life a lot easier, right?

And we also know the challenge of not the one at God's way and

the consequences of what that creates in our lives and the

lives of our families and church body and and other

relationships. So whenever you see the Lord

through Paul use this verse, God wasn't saying well Dave is no

good because he did this or he wasn't able to be used by me

because he did this. David was able to continually

use be used by God even though there was consequences for his

sin in the nation to still accomplish his will through

David's life. And that should encourage you

and me. God uses imperfect people.

And if you study the Bible for any length of time, you know

that a lot of the people that are famous in the Bible didn't

have a perfect history, did they?

And so here we are today, and God wants to use our lives and

he wants to use your life in the life of someone who doesn't know

Jesus, who's broken. If you're sitting there

thinking, well, who am I to tell anybody about Jesus?

I had a terrible life and I committed terrible sins.

Well, if we are saved, we know the good news is that God

forgave us of our terrible sins, and he gave us a new heart and

he gave us a new life, right? To be able to present.

The good news of the gospel is that Christ died for sinners,

which we all are. And so it's just this beautiful.

So Paul's sermon is building on all these things.

And as David was the king, he then prophetically was the one

God used through the seed of David from this man.

See David verse 23. According to the promise God

raised up Israel up for Israel, a savior Jesus.

So Jesus is through the lineage of David through an adulterer

and a murderer. I mean you say God, why didn't

you pick someone perfect that never because well there is no

one perfect. I use people like you guys to do

my will so that when all this stuff comes through, we know

there's only one perfect 1 and that's Jesus Christ and God use

chooses to use us in this process.

After that verse 24, John had first preached John the Baptist

before his coming, the baptism of repentance that John was

challenging people to turn from their sin and turn toward

Messiah who is going to come. And many people came to that

baptism in the Jordan to be, you know, repenting, prepared for

the Lord who was to come repentance to all the people of

Israel. Verse 25 And as John was

finishing his course, he said, who do you think I am?

I am not he. Well, everybody thought John,

man, he's something else. He's out there in the

wilderness. He's not connected to this world

really. He's like a hermit.

He's just like very, very different and very godly and

very fiery in his eyes and just the passion he had for God and

nothing else. They might have thought he was

the one. Well, this guy, he's, he's

different. I mean, he's really challenging

me and my heart's convicted because of what he's saying.

He says I am not he. But behold, there comes one

after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to lose.

So you see humility in John. He didn't think he was anything.

He was just a voice in the wilderness, as the Bible says,

just like I'm a voice here today in the wilderness that we live

in today in this world, men and brethren.

Verse 26, Paul says, sons of the family of Abraham, Abraham,

Isaac, Jacob, the lineage of the nation of Israel through the

patriarchs. He's speaking to them and those

among you who fear God, the Gentiles who are sitting in the

synagogue seeking the truth. Thanks for joining us on this

journey through Acts. On today's edition of Living

Waters of Grace, Pastor Clark shares that one of the most

remarkable things about the book of Acts is how it shows the

disciples transformation. The followers of Jesus we meet

here are very different from the often confused and fearful

disciples in the Gospels. And after Jesus's death and

resurrection, and especially through the power of the Holy

Spirit, the apostles experienced a profound change in their

hearts and boldness. Their faith became unwavering,

and they move forward with courage to spread the gospel

despite opposition and hardship. Acts reminds us that the same

Spirit who empowered them is at work in US today, shaping our

hearts and giving us strength to live boldly for Christ.

Living Waters of Grace is a ministry of Calvary Chapel

Westmoreland. If you're in the Greensburg, PA

area, we invite you to join us this Sunday at 10:30 AM at 400 E

Pittsburgh St. Unit 6B.

Visit calvarychapelonline.com For more information where you

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again soon for another edition of Living Waters of Grace.