HOW THEN SHOULD WE LIVE?

HOW THEN SHOULD WE LIVE?

ME Over the past few weeks I have become increasingly convinced that Jesus is coming back to earth soon, maybe very soon, perhaps within my lifetime. I had always thought that, but now I sense it more and more.

WE I believe these cross all our minds at times. If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, He will come again, as He promised.

1 Thessalonians 4:14 (NKJV) For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.

It definitely was on the disciples’ mind.

Matthew 24:1–3 (NKJV) Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?”

Jesus gave them some answers. He spoke about the future destruction of Jerusalem, and He also addressed His Second Coming, His physical, visible and eminent return.

GOD So what signs did He reveal? I’ll go over some and you can determine for yourself if He is coming soon.

Matthew 24:36 (NKJV) But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only. But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

1.     No one knows when Jesus will come again.

Matthew 24:42–44 (NKJV) Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. But know this, that if the master of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched and not allowed his house to be broken into. Therefore, you also be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

I have to ask myself the question: “Am I ready?” If Jesus comes tomorrow, “Am I ready?” What does that mean?

A. Am I saved?

B. Are my sins confessed up to date?

C. Am I storing up treasure in heaven?

D. Is my family ready to go?

2.  Jesus said it would like the days of Noah before He returned. What were the days of Noah like?

Genesis 6:5 (NKJV) Then the LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

Sin had taken over mankind. All they could think about was evil. Sometimes I think we see that today. Things that were unthinkable 50 years ago are commonplace today. What was once immoral and illegal is celebrated as normal and given protected status as to civil rights. I am not here to make a Constitutional argument. I am simply pointing out that what many would call progress, the Bible calls as sin and evil. What some would call progressive thinking, God calls a reprobate mind.

Matthew 24:38–39 (NKJV) For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.

People were living their lives as if God didn’t exist. All that mattered was today. No thought about tomorrow. There was an increasing belief that God did not exist, and man was the measure of all things. Today we hear the same ideas. The most persecuted group in the world today are evangelical Christians. Not in America, but throughout the rest of the world. I believe that the day will come when evangelical Christians will be persecuted in America, as well.

2 Peter 3:3 (NKJV) knowing this first: that scoffers will come in the last days, walking according to their own lusts,

What are they scoffing? What Jesus said will happen. The devil started that theme in the Garden of Eden: “Yea, has God said?” There it is. The enemy has always tried to bring doubt on the Word of God.

God has commanded us as believers to:

2 Timothy 4:2–4 (NKJV) Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth and be turned aside to fables.

There are many great pastors and preachers today. We are blessed to live in a time when the Word is going out in abundance through the earth. But sometimes the message is mixed with worldly philosophies and world views.

Colossians 2:8 (NKJV) Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

God hates mixture. He wants things pure. Notice what things men mix with the Gospel: philosophy, deceit, traditions, and worldly principles.

Now I’m finally getting down to the message. Things are coming to an end! How then should we live?

YOU 2 Peter 3:10–12 (NKJV) But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

WE Peter lists four things we should concentrate on:

1. Holy living

2. Godliness

3. Looking for His coming

4. Hastening His coming

I don’t know about you, but when I stand before God, I want to hear these words, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

PRAYER

BUILD AN ARK

BUILD AN ARK

ME I love Father’s Day. I love talking to men about men. I enjoy giving hope to men in the Good News of Jesus. We are in this together and all learning together.

WE Men want to be good fathers. They love their kids and want the best for them. Sometimes we don’t know how to do it. That’s why I like to look for heroes!

We love heroes. They do things we want to do. Think about your heroes. What are things they have that you wish you could have?

I grew up on comic books: Adventure Comics and the Justice League of America! I wish I still had them; they are worth a lot of money.

Movie heroes… Sports heroes… National heroes… Family heroes…

God has heroes too. They are the great men in Scripture. One of them is Noah.

The world was drowning in wickedness, so God decided to destroy the world by a flood. God saw that Noah was a righteous man and called him to build a huge boat to save a few people and a collection of animals to re-populate the earth. Noah did that; he gathered his family in the boat with a collection of animals. They survived the flood and became the ancestors of the entire world.

You may have heard his name, heard he built a big boat, but don’t know much about him. He is a great hero and he can teach up some things today about being a good father.

GOD Let’s read one verse about Noah. This is our text for this morning.

Hebrews 11:7 (NKJV) By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.

The simple sentence is Noah prepared an ark for the saving of his family. The purpose Noah had was the salvation of his family! Can you imagine a greater purpose in life than that? Everything Noah did was for the salvation of his family. What a great epitaph for your tombstone: Here lies Gary Wilcox, who lived his life for the salvation of his family. That would do!

YOU What steps went into that purpose? What steps can you apply to build your ark for your family.

1. Faith “By faith, Noah…”

The just shall live by faith! Without faith it is impossible to please God!

How does faith enter into this? God has plans for our family. He wants them to be saved and live a good life. I know you want that too. We can believe God and agree with in prayer for His plans to come true.

Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV) Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

God loves our families more than we do and wants to bless them and prosper them. We can hold on to these promises even when we may not see it happening.

God warned Noah of things not yet seen. In fact, they had never been seen and would not become a reality for another 100 years! Yet, Noah believed God; he trusted God.

2. Vision “being divinely warned of things not yet seen…”

Romans 10:17 (NKJV) So, then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

God spoke to Noah what He wanted done with great precision: build a boat in the middle of a desert to prepare for rain that had never come before. Noah believed what God said and built the ark to the exact dimensions God showed him.

There was no Bible in those days. God spoke to Noah in great detail about how the ark was to be built. He can speak to you, He wants to speak to you, about how to build your house to prepare for the things that are coming.

In 1966, the Lord began to speak to my dad about quitting farming and moving to Albuquerque, NM. Dad did not want to move. For several weeks he wrestled with God about it. One evening after church, he knelt weeping in the front yard of our farmhouse and surrendered to God. That started a chain of events that led to my salvation, my brother’s salvation, my vocation, and ultimately, this church. Not only that, God rescued my dad from the farm collapse of the 1960s and prospered him and mom tremendously! God will speak and He will lead. He already knows what He wants to do!

It also led to my marriage to a young lady from Cuba whose parents had heard God to immigrate to America and then settle in Albuquerque. Our union came about because two families heard God and built an ark!

3. Reverence “moved with godly fear…”

Hebrews 12:28 (NKJV) Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.

Noah lived his life for God. He knew how to serve God acceptably. God desires obedience not sacrifice. He didn’t have to sacrifice his family to live for God. In fact, his family was his ministry, his purpose. The ark was the means; his family was the goal.

We often think that to live for God our family has to take second place. The truth is that if we sacrifice our kids for God, we lose both. If we see that we please God by ministry to our family, the we can keep everything in perspective. Our family is the only thing we get to take to heaven with us.

4. Action “prepared an ark for the saving of his household…”

James 2:20 (NKJV) But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?

Faith always expresses itself in obedient action. Noah worked on the ark for over 100 years! That’s obedience. Not only that, he was preaching the entire time, warning others of what was to come. He was ridiculed, laughed at, called crazy. He just kept on building. He believed that “what God has promised, He was able to or perform!”

What action is God calling for in your life? It will be bigger than you can do because it has to be by faith. If you could do it, it wouldn’t take faith.

Matthew 21:21–22 (NKJV) So Jesus answered and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith and do not doubt, you will not only do what was done to the fig tree, but also if you say to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.”

Oral Roberts… “Dream no small dreams here!”

WE

How can we men all apply these things in our lives?

1.     What does God want for your family? What do you want for your family? This is vision.

2.     Make the main thing in your life be the fulfillment of that vision.

3.     Work to provide the opportunity for the vision to come true.

How will this work out?

Noah built the ark. His family entered in and was saved. Not only that, the entire human race was saved. The Hebrew nation would come from his linage and from the Hebrew nation would come Jesus, the Messiah, who would give his life as a ransom for many. In fact, Peter writes that the ark is a type of the salvation from sin that Jesus provides.

God made an everlasting covenant with Noah and all his descendants. What was it? God promised Hw would never again destroy the earth by a flood. What is the sign of that covenant! The rainbow. When we see the rainbow, it is a reminder that God is in covenant with man. He made a promise and all of us benefit from that promise.

They also became an heir of righteousnes, right standing with God, that comes by faith. Noah passed along a legacy of faith, a demonstration of faith, not just for his family but for all who would come after him.

Deuteronomy 7:9 (NKJV) Therefore know that the LORD your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments;

Who knows what God can do through your family? It doesn’t have to be a huge act like building an ark. It can be a simple life lived by serving Jesus in everything we do. Your children see your life and they get saved. Their children see their lives and they get saved. And on it goes for a thousand generations. In heaven you will have a crown filled with the jewels of your children’s children who are with you for all eternity. Just think of that! Dream about that!

Peter and Silas were in prison in Philippi for preaching. God sent an earthquake to free them.  The jailer was going to kill himself but Peter intervened.

Acts 16:30–31 (NKJV) And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” So, they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

My and Alba’s youth pastor began to serve God at an early age. His parents gave him to God for service. When he was traveling all over the country preaching and singing, his family never worried. I asked them why? They said, “We gave him to God years ago. God can take care of His property!” Countless full-time ministers grew out of his life. His family built an ark that literally touched the entire world.

God can do the same thing with you and your family. Let believe it!

PRAYER

CASTING YOUR CARES

CASTING YOUR CARES.

 

My heart has been torn up in recent days. Whenever I am in conflict or pain or anger, I am driven to the Psalms. I move away from Twitter, Facebook, and media and let the Word of God do what it says it will do.

 

2 Timothy 3:16 (NKJV) All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness.

The Word shows me the right path, tells me when I get off the path, tells me how to get back on the path, and tells me how to stay on the path.

 

Hebrews 4:12-13 (NKJV) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

 

The Word separates my emotions from my spirit so I can hear God. I was in a meeting this week with area pastors and the African American pastors all stressed that we need to hear what God is saying before we listen to what the world is saying!

 

So, I settled in the Psalms this week and let them comfort my soul. I read Psalm 73.

 

Psalm 73:2-28 (NKJV) A Psalm of Asaph. 1 Truly God is good to Israel, To such as are pure in heart.

 

2 But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled; My steps had nearly slipped. 3 For I was envious of the boastful, When I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

4 For there are no pangs in their death, But their strength is firm.

 

5 They are not in trouble as other men, Nor are they plagued like other men.

6 Therefore pride serves as their necklace; Violence covers them like a garment. 7 Their eyes bulged with abundance; They have more than heart could wish. 8 They scoff and speak wickedly concerning oppression; They speak loftily. 9 They set their mouth against the heavens, And their tongue walks through the earth.

 

10 Therefore his people return here, And waters of a full cup are drained by them.

11 And they say, "How does God know? And is there knowledge in the Most High?" 12 Behold, these are the ungodly, Who are always at ease; They increase in riches. 13 Surely I have cleansed my heart in vain, And washed my hands in innocence. 14 For all day long I have been plagued, And chastened every morning.

 

15 If I had said, "I will speak thus," Behold, I would have been untrue to the generation of Your children. 16 When I thought how to understand this, It was too painful for me-- 17 Until I went into the sanctuary of God; Then I understood their end.

 

There is something about getting into God’s presence that brings understanding and release.

 

Don’t you feel better already? Take the time to read the rest of this Psalm later in the day.

 

It’s good to be washed by the Word and filter out all the emotions in your soul that make you angry and troubles your sleep. Our hope is not in the things men will do but in God Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth. Men will always disappoint us but God never disappoints. Men will fail is but ours is a God who cannot fail.

 

After my heart was at rest, I could hear God’s voice speaking. Here are some things He spoke to me. I’m not saying these are for you also, but maybe they can bring some comfort and guidance to you also.

 

1.    Don’t focus on what is happening in the temporary, but on what is happening in the eternal.

 

2 Corinthians 4:18 (NKJV) while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal.

 

Colossians 3:1-4 (NKJV) If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

 

Matthew 6:19-21 (NKJV) Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

 

Karl Marx wrote that “religion is the opium of the people.” Religion allows people to endure unbelievable suffering because of their hope in heaven, a place where all suffering will end. Marxists tried to do away with religion on the premise that if all people had was the nasty now and now, and no hope of a sweet by and by, they would revolt and overthrow the rich and powerful.

 

The devil is still doing that today. He gets us to focus on this present world that only exists for a few years. God says to focus on eternity that never ends. It all come down to where your heart is. What drives you? Today or eternity? Hope in an eternity in heaven gives us courage to persevere in the face of all injustice.

 

Romans 8:18 (NKJV) For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

 

1 Corinthians 2:9 (NKJV) But as it is written: “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.”

 

Life is not about here. We are in training for reigning. These years here below are but a preparatory school for heaven!

 

Then I meandered over to Psalm 37. I’m not gonna read it all; you can do that on your own.

 

¹ Do not fret because of evildoers, nor be envious of the workers of iniquity. ² For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

 

2.    I’ve got this.

 

This is where Psalm 37 nailed me: “Do not fret”. I’ve been fretting a lot lately. Fretting about the virus. Fretting about my family. Fretting about my black son in law and my black grand children. Will they end up like others we have heard about? They are driving now. Oldest going off to college. Is someone going to mistreat them?

 

God asked, “Why are you worried? I’ve got this. Don’t you trust me?” Wow, a hammer to the heart.

 

John 10:28-30 (NKJV) And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. I and My Father are one.

 

For somebody to touch my grand babies, they have to get through God’s hands and Jesus’ hands. They are in good hands with Almighty God! Why should I worry or fret?

 

Craig Groeschel wrote in his book, The Christian Atheist, that we say we believe in God, yet still worry like He doesn’t exist. Guilty? I am! Folks, if God can’t take care of them, we can’t take care of them. We can’t even take care of our selves! The Psalmist said to trust God. Let’s do that.

 

3.    We are right on time.

 

Things that are happening are part of the prophetic calendar that heralds the return of Christ. If you have not heard, Jesus is coming again! Listen to this prophecy spoken at the Ascension of Jesus into heaven after His Resurrection.

 

Acts 1:9-11 (NKJV) Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”

 

Jesus had given some hints, some signs, about what would happen on the way to His return.

 

Matthew 24:3-12 (NKJV) Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.”

 

Lawlessness will increase exponentially before Jesus comes. The the lawless one, the antichrist, the man of sin will be revealed.

 

2 Thessalonians 2:7-8 (NKJV) For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming.

 

Lawlessness is the word antinomianism. Now that’s a big word, but it has a simple meaning: no law. Before Jesus comes there will be more unrest and more people who will want to live without law. We have seen this as cries have gone out for the abolishment and defunding of certain law enforcement entities. Right now, portions of a large American city have been taken over and declared to be an independent country.

 

Don’t worry it; don’t be upset about it. Jesus said it was coming. And it will only get worse. The good news is that it is a sign of the soon return of Jesus Christ.

 

So, what do I do with these God has spoken to me? Let look at Psalm 37 again for some suggestions.

 

³ Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

 

Trust in God and do good things. We don’t just forget about what’s going on. We work to correct inequities but trust the Lord to make it change.

 

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord, trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass. ⁶ He shall bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

 

Commit your life to God and work openly for justice. Micah 6:8 – Do justly, love mercy, walk humbly…

 

⁷ Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.

 

Rest in the Lord. This is the hardest! We do all we can do but rest that God is working where we can’t see. We can’t start worrying when it seems things are going the wrong way.

 

⁸ Cease from anger and forsake wrath; do not fret—it only causes harm.

 

Don’t get angry; don’t retaliate. This only causes harm.

 

Ephesians 4:26 (NKJV) Be angry, and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your wrath,

 

MINISTRY I want to pray for you this morning. I sense many have heavy burdens this morning, weighed down with cares and worries. Let me encourage you with these words.

 

1 Peter 5:7 (NKJV) Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.

 

 

 

 

THE CHURCH IS THE ANSWER

THE CHURCH IS THE ANSWER

ME My heart is troubled today, troubled over the events of the past few weeks. I am appalled by the very public deaths of multiple African Americans at the hands of law enforcement and neighborhood vigilantes. I also hurt for my friends and members of this church who are in law enforcement. They are being unfairly blamed for what is wrong in this country and their very lives are in danger, not only from criminals, but from self appointed revenge seekers. I would not blame anyone for not wanting to go into law enforcement these days.

I do have a reluctance to speak out when I do not have all the evidence. I prefer to let the judicial system do its work and let the guilty be punished to the full extent of the law. This make me complicit in the eyes of some, but so be it. We are encouraged in Scripture to:

James 1:19–20 (NLT) Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

WE Our nation is divided, fighting battles within and without. While dealing with the health and economic struggle that is COVID 19, the deaths, demonstrations, riots and looting add to the turmoil. It appears as if a fire is burning among us and no one knows how to put it out.

I want to be very clear this morning. Man, left to himself, will never solve these problems. From the days of Cain and Abel until now, sin has infected the human heart so deeply that, as Jesus said,

Matthew 10:36 (NLT) Your enemies will be right in your own household!

The Apostle Paul made this declaration:

Galatians 5:14–15 (NLT) For the whole law can be summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you are always biting and devouring one another, watch out! Beware of destroying one another.

GOD God can heal our nation, if, we will let Him. There is not going to be a political resolution; there is not going to be a philosophical resolution; there is not going to be a sociological resolution. We need a divine resolution, a revival that will sweep over us and bring all of us to our knees and to the end of ourselves. When revival comes, we will love God and love each other. There is no other way!

The Church, the Body of Christ, the Bride of Christ, is called to demonstrate the power of agape love to change the heart and the actions. Right actions flow from a humble, right heart.

God intended the Church to be for all peoples and all nations. This is demonstrated clearly in the book of Acts. Allow me to make several points, then illustrate these points by a Biblical case study.

The NT Church is multi: multi-national, multi-cultural, multi-racial.

Acts 1:8 (NLT) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

The NT church was birthed at Pentecost with people from every nation.

Acts 2:1–11 ((NLT) 1 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability. 5 At that time there were devout Jews from every nation living in Jerusalem. 6 When they heard the loud noise, everyone came running, and they were bewildered to hear their own languages being spoken by the believers. 7 They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee, 8 and yet we hear them speaking in our own native languages! 9 Here we are—Parthians, Medes, Elamites, people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, and the areas of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome (both Jews and converts to Judaism), 11 Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!”

The NT church includes hated people, the Samaritans.

Acts 8:4–8 (NLT) 4 But the believers who were scattered preached the Good News about Jesus wherever they went. 5 Philip, for example, went to the city of Samaria and told the people there about the Messiah. 6 Crowds listened intently to Philip because they were eager to hear his message and see the miraculous signs he did. 7 Many evil spirits were cast out, screaming as they left their victims. And many who had been paralyzed or lame were healed. 8 So there was great joy in that city.

The NT church includes all races and all people.

Acts 8:26–27 (NLT) 26 As for Philip, an angel of the Lord said to him, “Go south down the desert road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27 So he started out, and he met the treasurer of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under the Kandake, the queen of Ethiopia. The eunuch had gone to Jerusalem to worship,

Not only was he black, he was also a eunuch.

The NT church includes outcast nations, the Gentiles.

Acts 10:9–16 (NLT) 9 The next day as Cornelius’s messengers were nearing the town, Peter went up on the flat roof to pray. It was about noon, 10 and he was hungry. But while a meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. 11 He saw the sky open, and something like a large sheet was let down by its four corners. 12 In the sheet were all sorts of animals, reptiles, and birds. 13 Then a voice said to him, “Get up, Peter; kill and eat them.” 14 “No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean.” 15 But the voice spoke again: “Do not call something unclean if God has made it clean.” 16 The same vision was repeated three times. Then the sheet was suddenly pulled up to heaven.

Acts 10:28 (NLT) Peter told them, “You know it is against our laws for a Jewish man to enter a Gentile home like this or to associate with you. But God has shown me that I should no longer think of anyone as impure or unclean.

Acts 10:34–35 (NLT) Then Peter replied, “I see very clearly that God shows no favoritism. 35 In every nation he accepts those who fear him and do what is right.

Peter speaks to this in his letters.

1 Peter 2:10 (NLT) Once you had no identity as a people; now you are God’s people. Once you received no mercy; now you have received God’s mercy.

In spite of all this, the early church still had problems with racism and discrimination.

Acts 6:1 (NLT) But as the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food.

How did they deal with it?

Acts 6:2–6 (NLT) 2 So the Twelve called a meeting of all the believers. They said, “We apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program. 3 And so, brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility. 4 Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word.” 5 Everyone liked this idea, and they chose the following: Stephen (a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit), Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas of Antioch (an earlier convert to the Jewish faith). 6 These seven were presented to the apostles, who prayed for them as they laid their hands on them.

1.     They admitted there was a problem.

2.     They involved the entire church.

3.     The apostles did not try to solve it themselves. They continued to preach and teach.

4.     The church raised up leaders to deal with it. The deacons happened to be Greek speakers.

5.     Prayer sealed the deal.

What was the result?

Acts 6:7 (NLT) So God’s message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased in Jerusalem, and many of the Jewish priests were converted, too.

This was not the only incident in Acts and the rest of the NT. Racism and discrimination raised its ugly head many times. Why? Men are sinners; racism and discrimination are sins. Only the church can deal with it effectively. Only the grace of God can heal the sinful heart. That is why the apostles kept preaching. They knew that only the Good News of Jesus could make the difference in individuals and ultimately society and culture.

We know the church will get it right.

Revelation 5:9–10 (NLT) And they sang a new song with these words: “You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.”

Revelation 7:9–12 (NLT) After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes and held palm branches in their hands. And they were shouting with a great roar, “Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living beings. And they fell before the throne with their faces to the ground and worshiped God. They sang, “Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength belong to our God forever and ever! Amen.”

Brothers and Sisters: Let us work together to make this prayer of Jesus a reality in our lifetime. Let us be of one heart and one mind. Let us all come to You as the only one who can make us one.

John 17:21 (NLT) I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.

PRAYER