Living Life with the Holy Spirit - Part 5: The Compelling Presence | Pastor Pablo Morales

Welcome to ECB's weekly sermon podcast. ECB is

an international church in Bangkok, Thailand,

with dozens of nationalities worshipping together.

We invite you to connect with us from wherever

you are through our website ecb .asia or our

mobile app. And now we pray that you are blessed

by this week's sermon. Living life with the Holy

Spirit. It's at the core of following Jesus because

the Bible says that the moment you gave your

life to Christ, you heard the gospel and you

believed in Christ, at that moment the Holy Spirit

came to live in you. And now that the Holy Spirit

is in you, it's going to stay there until the

end. He's not going to get tired of you. No,

he loves you too much. He wants you to experience

the love of God in you. And therefore, when the

Holy Spirit comes to live in you, we learn the

last time that is the love of God being poured

into your heart. And this reality now of experiencing

the love of God through the Holy Spirit in our

lives has an effect that is captured in the words

of the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians. And he's

going to start describing this experience as

the compelling presence of God in our lives.

So I'm going to ask you to read 2 Corinthians

with me together. We will read verse 14 and 15.

Christ's love compels us because we are convinced

that one died for all and therefore all died.

And he died for all. That those who live. Should

no longer live for themselves. But for him who

died for them. And was raised again. These people

that have encountered the love of God. Now feel

compelled. To now live. For the one. Who actually

saved us. And these were to be compelled. means

that now there is this internal motivation, this

internal desire that propels you to engage in

certain things and to do certain things that

otherwise you wouldn't have done. But this love

of God is now in you and the Holy Spirit is going

to guide you throughout your life in certain

situations in which you will realize that He

is propelling you. To act. And that in itself.

Means that following Jesus. Resembles not so

much a power bank. But a power grid. Because

with the power bank. It's all about me getting

all the power. So I can accumulate all the power.

And have it when I need it. And many Christians

live like that. Especially if you have been shaped

by prosperity theology mindset. It's all about

God. Give me, give me, give me, give me, give

me, give me, give me, so I can have more and

more and more and more. And when you don't give

me, I get upset and I quit. That's a power bank

Christian. The power of a great Christian is

very different. I receive God's love so that

His love will flow through me. And impact the

lives of others. That is the compelling nature

of the Holy Spirit in our lives. He wants to

flow through you into the lives of others. And

that's why Paul says the love of Christ compels

us now not to live for ourselves. But to live

for Him who died and resurrected for us. And

that. of being compelled by the Holy Spirit is

going to happen in the book of Acts. And there's

going to be three experiences that they are all

linked to the same location, the same city. And

I want us to take a look at those three experiences

in that location because it reveals something

about how is it for us Christians to follow Jesus.

And as we look at those experiences, I want you

to ask yourself, is there something that is holding

you back from pursuing God wholeheartedly? Because

chances are that as we look at these three experiences,

they may turn into a mirror that you're looking

at yourself. What are these experiences? And

where do they begin? Let me start by giving you

a little bit of the background. Remember that

during Pentecost Sunday, we studied how the gospel

was preached by the apostle Peter for the first

time in what city? Jerusalem. And how many people

came to know Christ? 3 ,000. And it was the first

time the gospel was preached ever in human history.

And God had given Peter, The responsibility as

he told him, I'm giving you the keys of the kingdom.

He was the first one to preach the gospel. But

that audience was very unique. These were the

Jews that had come to Jerusalem. But what about

the Gentiles? They haven't heard the gospel yet.

Well, God knows that. And he's going to use Peter

to preach the gospel for the first time to Gentiles.

Well, Peter was in Jerusalem for all the events

that happened, the death of Christ, the resurrection,

then the 3 ,000 people that came to know Christ.

He was tired. He needed a break. So he is going

to move just a short break to Joppa, a small

town in the beach. It's like when you are tired

of... The traffic in Bangkok and all the tourists

and all the crowds. And you say, I'm just going

to go to Cham or Hua Hin or something. I just

want a few days in the beach. And that's what

Peter is doing. He's taking a break. And he's

at a friend's house. He's waiting for lunch.

And the Holy Spirit is going to encounter him

in that place. To reveal something that he wants

to do in a city called Caesarea Maritima. which

is in the north. And that city is the focus of

our study today. Let me tell you about it. If

you hear the word Caesarea, what does it sound

like? Caesar, right? Because it was a city that

was established, created by Herod the Great to

honor the Roman emperor, Caesar Augustus. And

not only to honor the emperor, but to worship

the emperor. And this city was in the coast.

It was a port. They had built a special harbor

with special technology to be able to facilitate

economic transport in that area. If you have

traveled internationally, and you have visited

different Chinatowns, You know how they look

alike? It's a little bit of China in these different

places. But the same thing with this city. This

was Roma town. This was the architecture of Rome,

the worship of Rome, all of these different things.

And there was a military base for Rome to the

entire Judea area. It also had the temple of

the king. And in that place, you can go today

to Caesarea and you will see all the ruins of

this place. All of this is rich in archaeology.

And we are told that at the very opening of the

harbor, there was a big temple with a big statue

of the worship of... Emperor Caesar Augustus.

And not only that, we also know by this pilot

stone that there was another temple dedicated

to Emperor Tiberius. So you can start picturing

that this city is a little piece of Rome surrounded

by all this pagan worship, military presence.

And it's in this place that now God is going

to send Peter And there's a military man who

is a guy who is in authority over like a hundred

soldiers or so. And in this position, he has

authority, he's very well connected, and now

God is going to do something in his life, being

the first Roman now to come to know Christ. So

that takes us to Acts chapter 10, and this is

Acts 10 · chapter mention

how it starts. At Caesarea, now you can picture

the city, there was a man named Cornelius, a

centurion in what was known as the Italian Regiment.

He and all his family were devout and got fearing.

He gave generously to those in need and prayed

to God regularly. In the Jewish doctrines and

teachings. And he was trying to follow this God.

Even though he himself was not a Jew. One day.

At about three in the afternoon. He had a vision.

He distinctly saw an angel of God. Who came to

him and said. Cornelius. Cornelius stared at

him in fear. What is it Lord? He asked. And the

angel answered. Your prayers and gifts to the

poor have come up. As a memorial offering before

God. Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man

named Simon who is called Peter. He is staying

with Simon the Tanner whose house is by the sea.

And now you can picture right there Peter in

Joppa. So Cornelius sends this guy to Joppa.

And they arrive right at the moment when Peter

has been waiting for lunch. And we are told that

Peter is there getting hungry, and he has an

experience with the Holy Spirit. Peter went up

on the roof to pray, and he became hungry and

wanted something to eat. And while the meal was

being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw

a vision, and it was the most awkward vision.

It was these animals that were coming down, and

a voice was saying, kill and eat. And all these

animals were animals that in the Jewish teaching

were animals that were considered unclean. You

could not eat those. So I was like, what? And

the thing happened one time, and then a second

time, and then a third time. And the voice in

the vision said to him, do not call anything

impure that God has made clean. I was like, what

is that supposed to mean? So the vision ended,

and he's there thinking, what in the world just

happened? And at that moment, while Peter was

still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said

to him, Simon, three men are looking for you,

so get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate

to go with them, for I have sent them. The Holy

Spirit knew Peter very well. You see, Peter grew

up as a Jew being told, avoid Gentiles at all

costs. You never go into their cities. Never

befriend them. God forbids that you ever enter

their homes. Don't do any business with them.

Avoid those people because those people are pagan.

They worship idols. They are unclean. And if

you associate with them, you become ceremonially

unclean. So avoid those people. And now, God

is sending these Gentiles from Caesarea, the

very city with all these temples that worship

Roman emperors, to meet a Roman soldier that

is in charge of all these soldiers. It's like

the worst place for Peter to ever go. So the

Holy Spirit has to tell him, hey, these guys

are going to appear. Go with them. Don't resist.

I'm doing something here. So Peter goes with

them. It's like about a month, I mean a day and

a half or so of traveling distance. He gets there

to Caesarea. He goes into the house of these

Cornelius and he tells them, hey guys, I'm a

Jew. You know that it's against my law to enter

into your home. He's feeling so uncomfortable

all throughout the whole experience. Until finally

he realizes, oh, they want to hear the gospel.

So he starts sharing the gospel with the Gentiles.

And this is the first time that the gospel is

shared. So let's read what Peter said. Then Peter

began to speak. I now realize how true it is

that God does not show favoritism. But accepts

from every nation the one who fears him. And

does what he writes. It never crossed my mind

before. You know the message God sent to the

people of Israel. Announcing the good news of

peace. Through Jesus Christ who is Lord of all.

Wait, wait, wait. Can you say that a little bit

more quietly? Because in this city we believe

that Caesar Augustus is Lord of all. So you are

telling me that this Jesus is actually Lord of

all? You can get killed for that. Yes. This Jesus

is Lord of all. And you know what has happened

throughout the province of Judea beginning in

Galilee after the baptism of John that John preached.

How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy

Spirit and power. And how he went around doing

good and healing all who were under the power

of the devil. Because God was with him. We are

witnesses of everything he did in the country

of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They killed him

by hanging him on a cross. But God raised him

from the dead on the third day and cast him to

be seen. He was not seen by all the people. but

by witnesses whom God had already chosen by us,

who ate and drank with him after he rose from

the dead. Which, by the way, this is one of those

hints again, that Jesus' resurrection was physical.

He ate and drank with the apostles. He commanded

us to preach to the people and to testify that

he is the one whom God appointed as judge of

the living and the dead. All the prophets testify

about him. That everyone who believes in him

receives forgiveness of sins through his name.

And now he gets to the core of the message. He's

telling them, look, Jesus was the promised Messiah.

He died, he resurrected to pay for our sins.

And now he can forgive anyone that comes to him.

And as this audience of Romans are listening

to Peter. This message rings true to their hearts.

They start believing every word Peter is saying.

And as that is happening, while Peter was still

speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on

all who heard the message. And not only came

to them because they believed in Christ, but

something else happened. The circumcised believers

who had come with Peter, meaning the other Jews

that were with Peter, that were also followers

of Jesus, were astonished that the gift of the

Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles.

How did they know? Oh, for they heard them speaking

in tongues and praising God, just like it had

happened a few days before at Pentecost. Same

experience, not the same people. That means that

you are one of us. Then Peter said, surely no

one can stand in the way of their being baptized

with water. They have received the Holy Spirit

just as we have. So imagine these guys. They

are going through all of these things that God

is doing. And everything that God is doing is

completely against everything that they had assumed.

That Jesus was just for the Jews. And that these

Gentiles could not ever. Really follow Jesus.

And now they're experiencing the same salvation.

And now they get baptized. So he ordered that

they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.

And then they asked Peter to stay with them for

a few days. The story begins Peter being very

uncomfortable. I'm not sure I should be here.

It's against my law to enter your home. To now.

Hey, we're going to spend three days together.

We know that the regiment in this area was in

a very specific location close to the palace

of Herod. And in church tradition, what happened

is that in the late 300s, 400s, many of these

important places became places where churches

were built. And according to one of the church

fathers, his name is Jerome, he tells us that

right there in the house of Cornelius, the first

Christians in that city, a church, Christian

church was built. And we have the ruins of that

church today. So if the archaeology is right,

And that church was built on Cornelius' house.

That means that you can go there and stand on

the very same place where the first Gentiles

heard the gospel. A city that had been designed

with the purpose of telling the world that Caesar

is Lord. It's the city that now God is encountering

the Romans to tell them actually Jesus is Lord.

And even though they are surrounded by all these

temples built by human hand, now God is starting

this temple of the Holy Spirit in the lives of

these people. And he's starting something completely

new, powerful, that will help. for generations

to come. But Peter does not know that. He did

not know that. The only thing that he knew is

that the Holy Spirit was calling him and compelling

him to go beyond his comfort zone. And the Holy

Spirit is not going to just ask Peter to go beyond

his comfort zone. He's going to ask you to go

beyond your comfort zone. Time after time. And

every time the Holy Spirit wants you to move

beyond your comfort zone, you are going to feel

the resistance of saying, well, me? But no, I'm

not sure. And then all that thinking will start

taking place. Are you willing to live life with

the Holy Spirit? Then you have to be willing.

To follow beyond your comfort zone. And as you

do, you have no idea what God can do with you.

I remembered the first time I started pastoring

the church in Dallas and the first time I had

to preach. That was the first time ever for me

to preach a sermon in English. Because I was

born in Santiago in Chile, South America, Spanish

was my native language. And I studied English,

you know, since I was in kinder all the way through

high school, but you don't study it to actually

speak. And then when I went to the U .S., I was

18. And when I was doing my master's degree,

that's the first time I started functioning in

English. I remember all those papers I had to

write were so hard because everything was in

English, you know, and reading, no problem, but

writing and speaking, that was really hard. And

I remember that I had some friends that would

correct my papers, you know, all these notes,

everything. I learned so much at the beginning.

I was fearful to say certain words. There was

a word I always avoid saying, cheat. I would

say the word piece of paper instead. Because

I was afraid of saying the wrong word, if you

understand what I mean. Talking about comfort

zone. And here I am. Never imagine. What can

God do through us? If instead of saying, no,

God, me, no, no, please, no, I don't like that.

What if instead we were to say, God, is this

you? I'm not sure I like this idea, but as long

as this is you, I'm okay. But please, let it

be you. Don't let your comfort zone hold you

back from experiencing life with the Holy Spirit.

There's another thing that's happening at Caesarea.

And it's going to involve Herod, the king. Now

Herod is a very interesting family because you

find the name Herod all throughout the New Testament.

And we say, oh Herod, Herod, but it's not the

same person. It was a family. Herod the Great.

He's the one that tried to kill Jesus. Then Herod

Antipas, the son. He's the one that decapitates

John the Baptist. And now we're going to encounter

the son of that guy who is Herod Agrippa I. And

you will see that the family line has something

in common. Look at what the Bible says. About

that time, King Herod Agrippa began to persecute

some believers in the church. Also antagonizing

what God was doing. He killed the first apostle,

James, the brother of John. And he sent Peter

to prison. This Herod. But Peter escapes because

of the miraculous intervention of the angel.

And now after that, Herod decides to leave Jerusalem

and he's going to go to another city. You want

to guess which city did he go to? Caesarea. Because

that's where the palace was. Afterward, Herod

left Judea to stay in Caesarea for a while. So

now he's in Caesarea. This was a family that

wanted to have the favor of Rome. They wanted

the allegiance of people. They wanted to be on

top at all costs. And now that Herod arrives,

he's in Caesarea. all these things going on with

some of the cities in the surrounding area, they

send a delegation to have a meeting with him

because they need his help with certain things.

So they set a meeting, and now we are told that

when the day arrived, Herod put on his royal

robes, sat on his throne, and then he made a

speech. To this audience of people that are seeking

his help. And something happens. The people gave

him a great ovation. Herod. Herod. It's the voice

of a God. Not a man. Great ovation. All of them.

And Herod is there like. And he believed it.

I'm not just a man. I'm God. In this city, we

worship the Roman emperors. It is time you start

worshiping me. But it didn't last long. Instantly,

an angel of the Lord struck Herod with a sickness

because he accepted the people's worship instead

of giving the glory to God. So he was consumed

with worms and died. Abruptly. It's like, Herod,

you're not a Roman, even though you would like

to be. You're a Jew. And there's only one Jew

that is Lord of all, that deserves the worship,

and that is Jesus, not you. And this guy that

has been persecuting Christians, killing these

Christians, now gets judged by God. And actually,

the Bible is not the only place that mentions

this. There's a Jewish historian that wrote the

early history of the Jews. His name is Flavius

Josephus. And in one of his books called The

Antiquities of the Jews, he mentions what happened

to Herod. A severe pain also arose in his belly

and he began in a most violent manner. Sudden.

And he also shares how he died. And this persecution

against Christians in Caesarea continued throughout

the Roman emperors. There's a time in the 200s

where one of these Roman emperors, his name was

Valerian, I think I remember. And we are told,

In another book written by Eusebius, who was

a Christian that writes about the history of

the church. And he mentions some of these Christians

that died. Three of these friends, Priscus, Malchus,

and Alexander. All these three guys, they were

killed by the beasts in this Roman. Spectacle.

Right there in Caesarea. Next to Herod's palace.

And also we have Marians. Let me see how is that.

Marians. And he is decapitated. And his story

was very sad. Because this was a Roman guy. Just

like Cornelius. Cornelius was a centurion. A

very high rank. This guy was supposed to become

a centurion. And he's applying for the job. He

gets qualified for it. And before he can get

the job, there's another guy that wants a job.

Another Roman. And he says, hey, but that guy

is a Christian. So they start the investigation.

And it's like, yeah, this guy is a Christian.

So you have to declare that Caesar is Lord. And

he can't. He says, no, Jesus is Lord. So they

kill him. By decapitation. This is what these

guys had to suffer in order to follow Jesus.

So imagine, there's a king that is trying to

oppose Christianity and killing Christians. There's

an emperor that is killing Christians. And on

top of that, you are in a city that is trying

to proclaim the worship of the Roman emperors.

What do you think will happen with the church

in that place? It will die? Actually, you don't

even have to imagine what would happen because

the text tells us. Meanwhile, the word of God

continued to spread and there were many believers.

Why did the church in Caesarea remain alive,

didn't die? It's because there was a group of

Christians indwelled by the Holy Spirit, learning

to live life with the Holy Spirit, who were being

compelled by the love of God to have a power

grid type of Christianity. And they kept impacting

the lives of others, even if it cost their lives.

And that is how the Holy Spirit leads. is going

to compel you beyond safety. And there are times

in which your allegiance to safety is going to

be higher than your allegiance to the Holy Spirit.

And that is going to be a problem. Because when

the Holy Spirit compels, you go. And if safety

holds you back from pursuing what the Holy Spirit

is telling you to do, then you have to decide

what you're going to do. And I know the answer

is not easy. Because there's nothing wrong in

wanting to have safety. But the problem is that

God did not save you to be safe. He saved you

to be impactful. And sometimes that will require

that you risk it for the Lord. When I was a teenager,

I went to Paraguay. And it was a special program,

a special event that the youth had organized,

and there was a couple of Christians that were

serving in an area of the country that was known

to be very dangerous. So at the end of the presentation,

we had a time of Q &A, and one of the guys asked,

how do you reconcile serving God and putting

your family at risk, going to a place that is

dangerous, because they had children? And I remember

the guy passing and reflecting. He says, we've

wrestled with that. But what we have concluded

is that our lives are in God's hands. He has

control over our lives. And he knows when he's

going to call us into his presence. If he wants

me to die here, I'll die here right now. So safety

is not a place. Safety is a person. And therefore,

God. It's my safety. If he wants me to die, he

calls me to his presence. He will do it anytime.

So if we go to work in this place that is dangerous,

if God doesn't want us to go to his presence

yet, we won't. But if he wants to call us to

his presence, he will. So they submitted that

fear to the Lord and that desire for safety as

if that is what we are living for. To the Lord.

And in that process they discovered. That their

safety was in Christ. All along. And any other

form of safety. Is but a mirage. Is safety. And

your desire for safety. Holding you back. from

pursuing what God is calling you to do. You will

have to make a choice. And I'm here to tell you,

there's no better choice than to be compelled

by the love of Christ and act on it. And that's

what happened with Herod. But now the story continues

and there's a third experience that the Holy

Spirit is going to do right there in Caesarea.

And this one involves the Apostle Paul. Paul,

as you know, he persecuted Christians. Jesus

appears to him. He becomes a follower of Jesus.

And now he's called by Jesus to be an apostle

to the Gentiles. He goes and travels throughout

many years, preaching Christ throughout the Roman

Empire. Churches are... Christian communities

are established. It cost him so much. But at

the end of his third missionary journey, Paul

goes back to Judea. He arrives there to the coast

town. He stays in the house of Philip, the evangelist,

for a day or so. And then he goes finally to

Jerusalem. And as he is in Jerusalem, He's going

to be worshiping the Lord there, and there's

this commotion that happens. He's opposed by

the Jewish authorities. He's sent to prison.

There's a plot to kill him because he's a Roman

citizen himself. When the Romans learn that there's

a plot to kill him, they have to take him out

of Jerusalem, and they're going to take him to

another city. You want to guess what that city

was? Caesarea. And now Paul is going to arrive

with the cavalry and all his soldiers to Caesarea.

And it tells us when the cavalry arrived, when

the cavalry arrived in Caesarea, they delivered

the letter to the governor and handed Paul over

to him. Then he ordered that Paul be kept under

guard. Where? In Herod's palace. Wow. This was

the palace built by the herd that tried to kill

Jesus. And that guy is dead. And Jesus is alive.

And now Paul is there because of Jesus. So it

happens that he is there. waiting for trial,

you know, the justice system all go through,

but there's corruption. So the governor that

is there, his name is Felix, he keeps Paul there.

He's talking about things here and there. He

calls him another day, and Paul shares the gospel

with him, but he's not interested. What he's

interested in is money. By the way, we say money

like this in Mexico. They say money like this.

That's a cultural difference I learned. I don't

know how they do it in your country. Money. Money.

He was waiting for Paul to pay him a bribe to

let him go. But Paul never did. Two years passed.

And Paul is there still at Herod's palace. And

now there's a new governor that comes. His name

is Festus. And now that Festus is the new governor,

he hears this guy and he's curious about this

pole, you know. He learns about it. And one day,

Festus, the governor, hears that King Herod and

his wife are coming to congratulate him for his

new position. So they're going to come and visit

him at the palace. So they arrived. And they

are talking and in the conversation, Phistos

says to King Herod Agrippa II, hey, you know,

I have this guy here. He's been here, you know,

like more than two years or so. He has a very

interesting story. Maybe you might enjoy listening

to him. And the guy says, yeah, that sounds interesting.

I think I would like to listen to that guy. So

we are told that they are meeting right there

in Herod's palace. By the way, As you see this

picture, we have the ruins of that palace, which

means that you can go to Caesarea Maritima today,

and you can stand in the very place where Paul

is having this conversation that we are about

to read. The next day, Agrippa and Bernice came

with great pomp, entered the audience room with

the high -ranking military officers, And the

prominent men of the city, and at the command

of Festus, Paul was brought in. So I want you

to picture the room. The king, the wife, all

the officials, everybody there. And Paul shows

up. What? King Herod? your father is the one

that killed James and sent Peter to prison. Your

grandfather is the one that killed John the Baptist.

Your great -grandfather is the one that tried

to kill Jesus. And now I'm before this guy and

all these Romans that worship the emperors. And

now I'm here. How would you feel? They can kill

you just like this. Watch out what you say. And

then Agrippa said to Paul, you have permission

to speak for yourself. So Paul motioned with

his hand and began his defense. King Agrippa,

I consider myself fortunate to stand before you

today as I make my defense against all the accusations

of the Jews. And especially so because you are

well acquainted with all the Jewish customs and

controversies. Therefore, I beg you to listen

to me patiently. And he's going to start telling

him this whole testimony. I persecuted the church.

Jesus appeared to me. I started preaching the

gospel. This Jesus is real. He wants to say he

forgives sins. He's telling him the whole thing.

And he has the captive audience right there listening

to him. And he says, but God has held me to this

very day. So I stand here and testify to small

and great alike. I'm saying nothing beyond what

the prophets of Moses said would happen. That

the Messiah would suffer. And as the first to

rise from the dead. Would bring the message of

light to his own people. And to the Gentiles.

He preaches the gospel like. The only thing that

remains is. Who wants to accept Christ? Raise

your hand. You know. It's like he shared the

gospel in detail. And at that moment. Festus

interrupts Paul. And says, Paul, enough. You're

out of your mind. Your great learning is driving

you insane. What would you do? Would you go like,

oh, sorry. Not when the Holy Spirit is compelling

you. I'm not insane. Most excellent festus. Paul

replied. What I'm saying is actually true and

also reasonable. And no offense, but let me turn

back to the king. The king is familiar with these

things and I can speak freely to him. I'm convinced

that none of this has escaped his notice because

it was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, do

you believe the prophets? I know you do. And

then Agrippa said to Paul, okay, do you really

think? That in such a short time, you can persuade

me to be a Christian? Oops, what will you do?

Sorry. Not when the Holy Spirit is compelling

you. King, short time or long time? I pray to

God that not only you, But all of you who are

listening here may become what I am except for

this change. I can't believe you just said that

to the king. You know that he can kill you. Yes.

The king rose and with him the governor and Bernice

and those sitting with them and they left the

room saying, This guy didn't sound crazy. He

didn't have to stay in prison. He can be set

free. And Paul will end up going to Rome and

eventually he dies at the hands of the Romans.

And here we see the Holy Spirit placing him in

a platform and an audience that only the Holy

Spirit could have arranged. The great grandson

Of Herod who tried to kill Jesus. Has a captive.

Now. Place to hear the gospel fully. We do not

know what the gospel did in his heart. But he

heard it. By God's grace. He's going to compel

you. To go beyond all fear. And when you are

in that place of fear. You have to remember what

Jesus told the apostles. The Holy Spirit will

teach you what to say. So do not worry because

it's not going to be you speaking. It's going

to be the Holy Spirit speaking through you. And

sometimes God is going to position you in a place

to have a conversation that you know God is prompting

you. And you're going to be afraid. God is going

to give you platforms of people that are very

influential and the very fact that they are so

influential is going to make you feel intimidated

whether you should say something or not. But

in all of those moments, remember that if you

are following Jesus, it is the Holy Spirit that

has placed you in that moment, in that conversation,

in that platform. And rather than being afraid

and letting fear hold you back, you need to pray

at that moment and say, Holy Spirit, you better

walk. hear with me and speak through me because

I have no idea how to approach this but I'm going

to trust in you and you go in Jesus name would

you let fear hold you back or would you let the

Holy Spirit propel you forward and these are

the experiences that we see in Caesarea now you

will never read the Bible and see that city The

same way again. The city created to exalt the

emperor as Lord became the city that exalted

Jesus as Lord of all. By the power of the Spirit.

That's why Paul writes later, the love of God

in us compels us. It calls us not to be living

a Christian life Like a power bank. But it's

a power grid. And what God can do. And places

he can reach through you. Are unimaginable. You

have no idea. Just trust him. Because. Read with

me one more time. He died for all. That those

who live. Should no longer live for themselves.

But for him who died for them. And was raised

again. That is what we live for. Not for comfort.

Or safety. We live for Jesus. And his plan. His

time. His purpose. So let me conclude the study

with this question. What is holding you back.

From following Jesus wholeheartedly. And serving

him. Well. Is it the comfort zone that you're

attached to? Is it the safety that you're attached

to? Is it fear that you're attached to? Whatever

it is, may you accept the invitation to come

to the Lord today and say, Lord, I'm going to

follow you no matter what. Because you are Lord

of all. Victorious Jesus will live for you. Lord,

it's easy to forget. That there are generations

of Christians before us that overcame so much

so that the gospel will be proclaimed and it

reached us this far. Thank you for their faithfulness,

for their willingness to go beyond all of these

things and risk so much. Would you help us be

that kind of Christian? Let your power and your

grace and your love flow through us to accomplish

the things that you have. And I ask in Jesus'

name and by the power of the Spirit that any

chain that is holding us back be broken right

now in Jesus' name and that you will unleash

us for greater kingdom impact because that is

what you envision. In the name of Jesus, we pray.

Amen. you will find giving options on our website.

And remember to join us next week. God bless

you.