 Acts chapter 11 by reading verses 1 through 3. Luke writes the apostles and brethren who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God and when Peter came up to Jerusalem those of the circumcision contended with him saying you went in to uncircumcised men and you ate with them. Now as we were looking in chapter 10 let me remind you so we can move into chapter 11 together. Peter had been told to go to the home of a man by the name of Cornelius. He was a Roman centurion and so when he went to the home of Cornelius Cornelius and his household were prepared and came to a saving faith in Jesus Christ. Now word is traveled from this place Caesarea which is on the northwest coast of Israel. It's traveled south and it's come to the region in the south that is called Judea. Now by this time many churches had already been birthed. You see the apostles, many of the apostles were still residing in Jerusalem and there were believers that were growing in numbers in that region. Through the evangelistic efforts of the believers churches had been planted so we saw that in chapter 9 verse 31 when it says the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit it increased in numbers. Now they would have already heard that the Samaritans had received the Word of God. As it says in chapter 8 of Acts verse 14 it says the apostles in Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted the Word of God and they sent Peter and John to Samaria. So these people in the south have already heard word that the Samaritans had come to faith in Christ. Now the Samaritans being saved would have been very difficult for them as Jews to accept but they did it. You see in general Samaritans were regarded as Jews who had a corrupted religious faith. Their conversion would have been somewhat easier for Jews to accept but now they're hearing that the Gentiles are also receiving the Word of God and that would have been much more difficult for them. You see Gentiles would not have been easily accepted because they were regarded as pagans. They had no part of God's promises. They were actually called without God and without hope in the world. You see that in Ephesians 2 12 but Word has come that Gentiles are also receiving the Word of God and that's a stumbling block to Jews because they're being saved without following the Jewish faith. They aren't receiving circumcision. They're not being immersed in a baptism, a sort of baptism. They're not committing to follow the Law of Moses. Instead all they're doing is receiving the Word of God. Now when he speaks about the fact that the Gentiles had received that word received means to welcome to associate with. So when it says that Gentiles had received the Word of God it speaks of the fact that they were welcoming by faith God's Word and as a result they were being saved. That helps us to realize that salvation is not automatic. It actually takes personal faith to possess. It's something you by faith receive. Many years ago I was part of a fellowship. It was a church that was in Downing. It was not Calvary Chapel of Downing. It was a different church and I used to go to the young adult studies there so that tells you how long ago that would have been. So I used to go to their young adult studies and I hosted, my family hosted a young adult's gathering at the house and I was in the front room and I was talking to one of the young ladies who was attending that particular church and had done so since she was around 12 years of age and so she was now around 18 or 19. I forget how old she was but she was part of the choir and she went on trips with the church. She did a lot of things and all and she'd been there for many years. Her friends were there in the church and I remember I was in the front room speaking to her and I asked her a simple question. I said to her, when did you get saved? When were you saved? And she says, I'm not. I said, you're not saved? I said, but you sing in the choir. You go on ministry trips. I said, and you're not saved? And she goes, no, I don't regard myself as being saved. I said, oh, and so I spoke to her a little bit and shared the gospel with her. I said, why haven't you come to faith in Christ? And she said, well, in all these years, nobody's ever shared the gospel with me. So I did. I shared the gospel with her. I said, look at this is the basis of what Jesus says and these are the things he's done on your behalf and at the end of sharing with her, I said, would you like to get saved? Would you like to receive Christ? And she said, yes, I would. And I remember very well, just bowing our heads together and her praying and receiving Christ. I asked her afterwards. I said, why hasn't any of your friends, haven't any of your friends ever shared with you? She said, they all assumed that I was a Christian because I came to church. They all assumed I was a believer because I went on these trips. They all believed that I was a believer because I hung out with them. And I said, and yet nobody ever really asked you whether you were saved. And she said, no. So you cannot assume that just because somebody goes to a church or is even involved that they're actually Christians, they had to receive the word of God. They had to believe and trust in Christ. So the word received the word is using connection to salvation. Now remember on the day of Pentecost, the apostle Peter had preached and he preached what is called an evangelistic message. An evangelistic message is a message with the intent of drawing people to a decision to receive Christ. And he preached an evangelistic message. Acts 241 says those who gladly received his word were baptized and that day about 3,000 souls were added to them. So he preached in order that they would hear and receive later on. The apostle Paul was writing to the church in Thessalonica. And in 1st Thessalonians 2 verse 13, this is what he said. He said, we also thank God continually because when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it. Not as the word of men, but as it actually is the word of God, which is at work in you who believe. So there's the receiving. It's the word of God. It works in you because you believe. And so what's happening is they're hearing that Gentiles are being saved and people are speaking concern in it. You know, in the church world, word travels fast. We have telephone and we have television and we have telechristian. It travels fast. Now we have examples how the word travels just by reading our Bibles. Romans 1.8 says Paul as Paul was writing to the Romans, Paul said to them, your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. In Colossians in chapter 1, verse 4, Paul said, we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love you have for all God's people. When he wrote to Philemon in verse 4, he said, I hear about your love for all his holy people and your faith in the Lord Jesus. Word travels fast. So Paul speaking to the Romans Colossians and to Philemon is saying, I'm hearing good things. But other kinds of things are also heard because in 1 Corinthians 111, he said this. He said, some members of Chloe's household have told me about your quarrels, my dear brothers and sisters. So word travels fast, whether for good or for ill. Well, in this case, the work of grace has not gone unnoticed. Word has traveled. It's gone south to Jerusalem. And there are those who are hearing this and they're concerned about it because it's countering their traditional religious approach. You see, normally converts would have been circumcised. They'd have been immersed. They would then make a vow to observe the law of Moses. And what we're having here are Gentiles who are uncircumcised. They're regarded as unclean and other without God in the world. Now, normally many Jews would have nothing to do with Gentiles. Even Peter had felt this way about them and was very open about it. We saw it in chapter 10, verse 28, when he was speaking to Cornelius, this Roman, this Gentile, Peter had said to him, you know how unlawful it is for a Jewish man to keep company with or go to one of another nation. We don't have relationships with you. You see, Peter has been in Samaria. He's been in places called Joppa and Lidda up in Caesarea. God is moving mightily through him. And what is happening is word is beginning to travel and God is using him and the word is traveling. God had used him to heal a paralyzed man named Aeneas. God had used him to raise Tabitha from the dead and in Acts 942 it became known throughout all Joppa and many believed on the Lord. Now word is spread. A Gentile and his household have come to faith in Christ. And the fact that Peter ministered to Gentiles is creating a real problem. And word of what has been happening is traveling south and now he's coming back. He's returning to Jerusalem. Notice verse two. It says when Peter came up to Jerusalem, those of the circumcision contended with him saying you went in to uncircumcise men and eight with them. They're very upset. Now notice it speaks of those of the circumcision. Those of the circumcision speaks of Jews who had been saved. And these people weren't with Peter in Caesarea when he had preached to Cornelius. So these people were continuing to believe that the law of Moses was supposed to be followed. There are also Pharisees who've been converted to faith in Christ and they continued holding to various laws. In Acts 15 in verse five it says some of the believers who belong to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said the Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses. So they're being stumbled by what appears to be a lack of respect for the law and in a galact. Now again, up until this time Jewish customs were normally followed. Believers were still meeting in synagogues. They were still worshiping at the temple. There were many Jews who had believed but they didn't break from the religious traditions. You see it says in verse three when it says you went to went into uncircumcised men and eight with them. To them salvation for Gentiles it would it would include observing the law of Moses. It's an outrage that you're actually eating with Gentiles. You see to eat with them was to fellowship with them and be identified with them. In Mark's Gospel chapter two verse 16 it says when the scribes and Pharisees saw him saw Jesus eat with publicans and sinners they said to his disciples. How is it that he eats and drinks with publicans and sinners? You see what that is is that's a picture of more than simply having a meal. For them there was the chance of him having become religiously unclean because he's with unclean people and the Jews wouldn't do that. They wouldn't they wouldn't have that relationship because eating with somebody was much more than simply something you did. It was something that spoke of you as a person. Eating was something that is more like a communion. It's a community kind of because you're sharing bread. You're sharing food and and some of you know this in the Jewish culture they have they have what we would regard to what I would regard to and many of us would regard as you know like our salsa and our chips. They have hummus and they have bread and they dip the bread in hummus. It's good. It's all right but when you're dipping your bread with somebody you think about it for a minute. You take in the bread and you're dipping it eating it. What if you double dip? Well your saliva is being mixed in with the hummus. That'll gross you out before lunch and but that's what's happening. You know when Marie and I go and we go to a Mexican restaurant she says don't double dip. I don't listen. Why would I? Why? Because we're very careful who we share saliva with to say it in a nice way. Have you ever gone to the table next to yours and they have salsa there? You don't know them but they still have salsa and you say oh I notice you didn't finish your salsa. Do you mind if I could have it? You don't. Why not? Why not? Why don't we reach off and get other people while you're leaving your chips? Do you mind it? Why don't we do that? It's interesting but it shows something about us because we're very aware of who we share our meals with. It's the same thing except on a religious basis. The Jews would not share in that way because it made them unclean. They would not eat with the Gentile because Gentiles were richly unclean. So for them to say your master is eating with Gentiles is a great break with religious custom and faith and for Cornelius and the Apostle share a meal while it caused them to be greatly upset and that's what they're saying in verse three when they say you went in to uncircumcised men and ate with them. How gross is that? And so verse 14 I'm going to read to verse four. I'm going to read to verse 14. Peter explained it to them in order from the beginning saying I was in the city of Joppa Prane and in a trance I saw a vision an object descending like a great sheet let down from heaven by four corners and it came to me and I observed it intently and considered. I saw four-footed animals of the earth wild beasts creeping things and birds of the air and I heard a voice saying to me rise Peter kill and eat but I said not so Lord for nothing common or unclean has at any time entered my mouth but the voice answered me again from heaven what God is cleansed you must not call common now this was done three times and all were drawn up again into heaven at that very moment three men stood before the house where I was having been sent to me from Caesarea then the spirit told me to go with them doubting nothing moreover these six brethren accompanied me and we entered the man's house and he told us how he had seen an angel standing in his house who said to him send men to Joppa and call for Simon whose surname is Peter notice verse 14 who will tell you words by which you and all your household will be saved now how did he deal with their cultural and religious opinions concerning Gentiles notice with me he gave an orderly explanation of how it all came about he didn't react in pride he didn't say who are you to question me I'm an apostle he didn't tell them to be quiet settled down he didn't belittle them for asking and he didn't rebuke them for doing so what he did is he gave an account of how it all came about now in chapter 10 verse 6 the angel had told Cornelius Peter would tell them what they must do and we saw that when when Peter arrived at the house of Cornelius that he was waiting they were all waiting in chapter 10 verse 33 they said to him we are all present before God to hear all the things commanded you by God and so what we see here is when they're saying we're here to hear all the things commanded you and he gives us more insight when it says in verse 14 of chapter 11 who will tell you words by which you and your all your household will be saved all things commanded them by God was how they could be saved and so he answers the question of what they must do as well as what was commanded he had given them the gospel and the gospel is intended for both Jew and Gentile that's the point that's being made here in Romans 116 it says I'm not ashamed of the gospel because it's the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes first to the Jew and then to the Gentile so the gospel message is not intended just for the Jewish people alone but it's intended for the world and so notice at verse 15 how he continues he says I as I began to speak the Holy Spirit fell upon them as upon us at the beginning so as he was preaching they were listening and they were receiving his message they were applying faith to it and we had seen in chapter 10 when he was sharing he had given the gospel he had declared that Jesus is anointed by the spirit with power he emphasized that Jesus went about doing good he said that Jesus delivered and healed people he went on to say that Jesus was put to death but he was resurrected and then he concluded by promising forgiveness of sins to anyone who trusts in Christ now as he was preaching God had convicted them and as he was teaching them and they were hearing all things that were commanded by God and how to be saved they received Christ they had assembled to hear all the words of God and that's how they got saved in Romans 10 17 faith comes by hearing hearing by the word of God so here's an emphasis for us it's the preaching of and receiving of the gospel that results in salvation God's word brings salvation I think that the church needs to be reminded of that today the church in general throughout the United States perhaps even into the world it's it's not the great music it's not the persuasive speech it's not the great personality it's not the insights into what's going on right here and right now it's the preaching of the gospel in 1st Corinthians 2 1 through 5 Paul said it like this he said and so it was with me brothers and sisters when I came to you I didn't come with eloquence or human wisdom as I proclaimed to you the testimony about God I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified I came to you in weakness with great fear and trembling my message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words but with the demonstration of the Spirit's power so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom but on God's power I didn't come speaking well I didn't come intellectually I didn't come in any way other than proclaiming to you the simple faith of Christ because we've learned and he knew that if somebody can argue me using logic and all argue me into a kind of belief in what they're saying then somebody else can come and argue me out of it but if the Holy Spirit convicts me of sin righteousness and judgment if the Holy Spirit speaks to my heart and I receive that no man is going to argue me out of that because God is the one who convicted me and that's what's taking place he said then even as he was speaking notice verse 15 they were baptized by the Spirit now remember on Pentecost the Jews had been baptized by the Holy Spirit and that's how the church was born but he's saying Gentiles have received the same gift of grace and it astonished all those who are with Peter and again the work of the Spirit was explained by the word of God remember to understand what happened on Pentecost he needed to quote from the prophet Joel and so in verse 16 he goes on to say I remembered the word of the Lord how he said John indeed baptized with water you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit and so it's the Holy Spirit who brought to his memory that which Jesus had said now Jesus had said the Spirit would bring to our remembrance his words in in John 14 26 he said the helper the Holy Spirit whom the father will send in my name he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you one of the most amazing and wonderful things that happens in my life and I'm certain that it happens in all of ours is that there are times when I'm asked a question or something and my mind a scripture is brought to mind at that moment something will be said and I'll remember a scripture I was speaking to somebody not that long ago and he had asked a question and and I and as we're speaking I said well in the book of Acts chapter 17 it says this and he looks at me and he says you always answered the questions with the scripture and it's the Holy Spirit who reminds me of it it's the Spirit who brings to your remembrance it's not like I was reading Acts 17 that day but the question related to something you find in scripture and that's what happens guys and I hope you've discovered that sometimes you don't open your mouth because you're afraid to look stupid you won't open your mouth because you think it's the job of somebody else to do that but in fact you've become a treasury of the word of God and as you read the word of God God places his word in you and then gives you opportunity to express it and so as the apostle Peter is speaking about I remembered well that's the work of the Holy Spirit so it goes on in verse 17 and he says if therefore God gave them the same gift as he gave us when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ who was I that I could withstand God that's very reasonable isn't it God has revealed his intent to save Gentiles and who am I to argue with him so if you have an argument your your argument is really with God now Peter had already argued with God remember God had said rise up Peter slay and eat and he said not so Lord he already had his argument and God already want him over so he's simply saying you need to do basically what I've done and notice again God gave them verse 17 the same gift the gift of the Spirit so the Spirit is given as a gift of grace it isn't received through human effort in Acts 238 Peter said to them repent be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit I can still remember when I prayed that the Lord would baptize me in the Holy Spirit it wasn't at work of effort on my part it was a request in faith where I said God fill me and empower me with your Holy Spirit why because it's the gift of the Spirit it's not something you bargain for it's not something you work for it's something that he freely gives when you desire to receive it somebody once said God promised it Christ purchased it the word reveals it thousands have experienced it now this gift is for those who would by faith receive what God has given them so we need to receive this empowering of the Holy Spirit and I've had people ask me what is it that has caused you to be able to walk with the Lord as long as you have and my immediate answer is very simple it's the same thing as it is for you what is it it's a power of the Holy Spirit it's a power of the Holy Spirit as a new believer I was told I was encouraged to seek God to do it daily was I always very good at that no was a real disciplined not necessarily did I become disciplined yes did I continue serving the Lord and seeking him yes and that's what contributes to the years you can walk with the Lord and be faithful to him and so you seek the Lord in Acts 532 Peter said the Holy Spirit is given to those who obey him and one way to obey him is to ask that the Spirit might work in you now as they're listening notice verse 18 when they heard these things they became silent and they glorified God saying then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life I like the way that's presented to us notice again they became silent it hit them hard as he's speaking to them and notice they're they're contending they're angry excuse me angry it says in verse 2 when Peter came up to Jerusalem those of the circumcision contended with him and said you went into uncircumcised men and ate with him they were contentious they were angry over it they were arguing with them and yet they're hearing these things now and they become silent so it hits them like a ton of bricks we used to say and after a moment of silence just taking it in the result was a they glorified the praise God verse 18 God has granted repentance to the Gentiles now that's us overwhelmingly in this church we do have Jewish believers who come to faith in Christ but the majority of us overwhelmingly would be called the Gentiles so I thank God that we were granted the grace to enter in also so what happens here is the believers living in Jerusalem came to the same conclusion as did Peter the door of heaven has been opened up to the Gentiles through Jesus Christ so in Galatians 3 28 there is neither Jew nor Greek slave nor free male nor female for you are all one in Christ Jesus you have this this this wall of separation has been done away with and now we as a believer in Christ whether we came up as a Jew or whether we've always been a Gentile doesn't really matter we are now one in Jesus Christ and that's what Peter had taught in Acts 10 34 and 35 it reads Peter opened his mouth and said in truth I perceive that God shows no partiality but in every nation whoever fears him and works righteousness is accepted by him which gives to us a memory of John 3 16 God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life Jesus Christ died on the cross not just for the Jew but for the Jew and the Gentile he died so that we might be set free and and Peter came to an understanding of that I perceive this in truth God has done this we're one in Christ and so what has happened here is they have repented and then they've received life you see you don't have eternal life if you haven't first repented so they heard this gospel they believed in what it was saying they repented and they received the life that was given to them through faith in Jesus Christ God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life now verse 19 those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Tunisia Cyprus and Antioch preaching the word to no one but the Jews only but some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene who when they had come to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists preaching the Lord Jesus and and the hand of the Lord was with them and a great number believed and turned to the Lord and so notice in verses 19 through 21 it starts by saying those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen remember in chapter 8 verse 1 after Stephen had been martyred we're told that a great persecution arose against the church of Jerusalem now at that time with this great persecution and and they were also being forbidden by religious authorities to speak in the name of Christ the question is at this point did the Christian stop speaking out of fear of being persecuted did Christians become quiet because they're being told not to talk the answer to that question is obviously no what they did is they took the message out of Jerusalem and into the world you see the Lord had already said you shall preach this gospel throughout the whole world he had already said you're going to receive power after the Spirit has come upon you and you will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem but he said Judea he's Samaria out of most parts of the earth so God's plan all along was for them to take the gospel out and as we already saw chapter 8 what had happened is the church had become settling in Jerusalem and so it was through the persecution that prompted them to follow through with what they were supposed to do in the first place it was like their timing you cannot sit here safely so as we saw the the apostles remained in Jerusalem but others had gotten up and began to take the word of God out and the word was going out and the way that that Jesus had commanded in mark 16 verse 15 he had said go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature so it's not to remain here so as mentioned before persecution arose they had to remain in Jerusalem but when persecution began they left they they took with them the word of God and the gospel began to be spread from Jerusalem it went into Judea there was an Ethiopian eunuch we saw him how that he was on his way back to Ethiopia after worshiping in Jerusalem Philip the evangelist had spent time with him brought him to faith in Christ and the Ethiopian who was a Jewish convert went back and brought the gospel to the people of Ethiopia but the apostle Peter had also gone into Samaria after Philip had had preached the gospel and many had gotten saved and so Cornelius now and the Gentiles are being touched by this gospel and so instead of stifling the message they were more intent on sharing it and once again they began first by speaking to the Jews now many times when you see or hear of or perhaps you were part of the the Jesus movement that that occurred in the late 60s early 70s that really made quite an impact and all of that you may think that that it was all fun and all good and easy and it wasn't uh not everybody was interested in what happened to these hippie kids people did even church people even at that time were opposed to us preaching the gospel who are you you're unqualified would you know you know and and literally I can say the truth when I say we really didn't know much I was lost now I'm found I was blind now I see I was deaf now I hear I was dead now I'm alive that's pretty much all you know how do you how much do you know when you're first saved other than those basic things I was lost now I'm found I have the joy of the spirit God is working in my life yeah yeah but did you go to seminary no I haven't gone there then what gives you the right we heard that not only were they saying that to us but they also said cut your hair and put on shoes and and you know they told the women shave your armpits I mean it was really legalistic the hippie women used to braid their armpit here but that's that's another story I'm just teasing I should have said should not have said that but I did forgive me but sometimes we might fantasize and think that that was yeah just every no not everybody was listening there was resistance there were people who were opposed and all we knew was we were supposed to tell people that's what we knew how are we going to be equipped to give out the word we were taught so you go to bible studies and what we did is we're nest we I didn't necessarily take notes I would simply listen and memorize what's being said and the things that that stuck to my heart were the things that I would go out and share and I did that for some time I would receive teaching and I would absorb it and then I would share what I was taught and we would see people who were interested but not everybody was and after I went in the military I had a chance to share on on many occasions when I got out of the military and I started going to school and all to to grow in my understanding I started going to colleges where they weren't Christian colleges and I was taught open your mouth and the lord will will fill it and so when given opportunity I would share did I did I have as much understanding of the word you know 50 years ago as I do now no but what I had I gave because we were we were taught that Christians are kind of like somebody who was starving who found a place to eat and we're telling our friends where they can get a good meal and that's what it was so we would say I really can't tell you all I just know these things but it's kind of like the woman of the well when she said to the men come in and hear a man who has told me all that I've ever done can can this be Messiah that's how we were we were young believers see many people only see the the raw Reese's we'll see in the Calvaries or or the Macintoshes or whomever and you think of well they they always had large works that's not true they were just men who were on fire for God and God was giving them opportunity to share the same was true with me and people like me we were just people who wanted others to know we were beggars who found a meal that we could share with other people that's what it was we didn't think I didn't think I had to have a doctrine in theology I just knew that if I am true to the word and leave it like that that God has a way of doing what he does because his word is true and his spirit is alive and if I'm obedient he honors his word that makes sense to me and that's how it worked and so during that day the persecution arises they were supposed to have gone out anyway and now they're going out and the word is traveling even as Jesus commanded that it should it's going through Jerusalem from Jerusalem into Judea into Samaria it's now reaching up and hitting in Ethiopia and it's going up the coast and and a Gentile is hearing it and God's word is beginning to expand and that's happening because these people had been persecuted and they scattered now again verse 19 says at first they spoke only to Jews well in verse 20 but some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene who when they had come to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists preaching the Lord Jesus now this is a natural direction that that they would take these men of Cyprus and Cyrene were Greek speaking Jews so they began preaching the gospel to those who were referred to as Hellenists in this place called Antioch Syria now often the Hellenist the word Hellenist speaks of Jews who were culturally Greek and spoke the Greek language in this case it appears that some of the Jews felt called to speak to Greeks so God has made it clear that the message is going to include the Gentiles it shows us that Gentiles in other places are also coming to Jesus and what's happening we'll close with verse 21 the hand of the Lord was with them and a great number believed and turned to the Lord again they were listening and they're turning to Christ and receiving him as Lord sometimes we may be afraid to speak in the name of Jesus and this is where faith in God and belief in his message comes in I've shared this before I was in a secular class it was a literature class my instructor a lady had a master's and two phd's and me high school graduate barely I think they released me just to get me out of the school I graduated with and I'm not lying with the d-minus average I didn't go to class the last half of the year I only went on occasion I was busy doing other things at lunchtime and then I wouldn't come back and I barely graduated I had I believe a d-minus average close to close to f so I'm no intellectual that's the point I'm making so I'm there in a class and my teacher has these graduate degrees and I'm I'm really intimidated and so I speak to a friend of mine his name is Nicky and I said Nick I'm really intimidated by this literature professor it's secular college and she's so brilliant and he says I'll bet you she's never read the bible I said she's a literature professor he goes ask her I said okay again I'm two and a half years old three years old in the lord so after class I wait around and approach her and I said you know when you've read the book of Job and she looks at me now this is again a professor of literature a couple of doctorates she says I've never read that book I said really gotcha and I started sharing with her out of the book of Job and you will be surprised and again I'm three years old what do I know I've just given her what I know I had another professor at Cal Poly when I went to Cal Poly he was a professor over marriage and family I took a marriage and family class and I wrote a paper on the place of a husband in the home there were no books back in the early 70s that I could find that had any kind of spiritual role for the husband so I wrote on the spiritual role of the husband and I took it out of Ephesians five and then he wrote I got an A on the paper which I was really happy with but he wrote in red pencil I have never heard this before it was the gospel and how the word of God works in a family so after class I walked him to his car and I shared with him the gospel see it is it's not that hard a lot of times people think oh I can't do that yes you can it's the enemy who's whispering in your ear you're too stupid well guess what God isn't and his word is true and there's a famine in the land for the word of God and you you will be surprised in Luke 21 15 I will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist share the word you will be blessed to see that now remember when you're faithful to him the Lord is with you notice verse 21 the hand of the Lord was with them a great number believed the gospel was being preached effectively white because God was with them in Psalm 98 verse 1 oh sing to the Lord a new song for he has done wonderful things his right hand and his holy arm have gained the victory for him again the Jesus movement was not centered on one person Chuck Smith or anybody like that God used many people to take the gospel to the unsafe world and many both young and old were turned on to the living Christ because we would share about him you see one of the things that will stifle the work is when we begin to give credit to the man and not the message we honor people being faithful but we give glory to the God who brings the fruit because real ministry is never based on externals if you want to be used by Jesus then the hand of the Lord needs to be with you remember these words and we'll close with these last thoughts in Exodus 33 13 through 15 the Moses was saying this he said I pray if I have found grace in your sight show me now your way that I may know you and that I might I may find grace in your sight and consider that this nation is your people and God said my presence will go with you and I will give you rest and then he said to him if your presence does not go with us do not bring us up from here many times in this door right here and in other doors that I've pastored churches in this church in different locations I've stood at the door before I go out and I've said this is a natural prayer it's this quick if you don't go with me I don't want to go if you don't go with me I don't want to go I don't want to preach in my own power I don't want to preach in my own wisdom and I don't want to preach in my own experience I want to preach in your power and when you have that kind of attitude God will use you why because you don't take glory from him you give it to him and that's the key God's hand was with them a great number believed and they turned to the Lord many were drawn to Jesus because he was being lifted up and a great number believed in him and they were converted to faith in him that is the heart of proper ministry that Jesus Christ gets all the glory and when he is lifted up he will draw all men unto himself keep that in mind because you're going to be given opportunities even when you just leave perhaps today sometime throughout this week you're going to be given opportunities to take what you've learned and to put it into practice don't be afraid to do so you will be blessed when you see God show up when you honor him just make sure you honor him