Book of Acts Blueprint: The Foundation

Book of Acts Blueprint  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  1:48:10
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Vision 2018: Forward Book of Acts Blueprint Psalm 127:1 Psalm 127:1Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain. NKJV Introduction: I. Plans A. What are blueprints? a. Simply, a print of plans. It is the culmination of skilled, trained engineers mapping out for craftsmen the architectural, mechanical & technical drawings to construct a structure. It is the standard method of Communication to build. b. Drive through the city & every construction site has a set of blueprints & each craft is to follow them without variation. If one craft strays from the blueprint without consulting the person in charge, the entire project is at risk of failure & if serious enough, possible death. Jesus upholds “all things by the word of his power.” B. {BIBLE} What I have in my hand is the Blueprints for the Church of the Living God. a. For 3 ½ years of the life of Christ He served exemplary in detail how to live & minister to build the Kingdom of God. The Disciples walked with Him, watching, listening, doing as He said & did. b. When Jesus died & resurrected He handed the plans over to those who had followed Him. They then began to follow the architectural plans of the Master Builder, hence we have the Book of the Acts of the Apostles. c. Those plans did not die with the 1st Century Church! This Blueprint remains relevant, comprehensive & current nearly 2K years later. The craftsmen does NOT know better than the Master Builder! The craftsmen has NO right changing, adjusting, modifying or adapting the Blueprint written from heaven, sent by God Almighty! d. In order to build a 1st Century Church in the 21st Century will require reading, communicating & adhering to the printed plans known as the Book of Acts Blueprint. TRANSITION: Jesus said, He will build this Church. He is the General Contractor, Project Manager, Construction Superintendent & you & I are the craftsmen & laborers on site fulfilling the plans as designed by the Blueprints. Matthew 16:18 (BIBLE) Matthew 16:18And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. II. The Foundation Remember this with me: The Foundation of the Book of Acts Blueprint is "Prayer." A. Promises – Believe the promises of God {The Book of Acts begins with this enforced when Jesus instructed those who heard Him to wait for the Promise of the Father. Acts 1:8} Acts 1:8But 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. a. Jesus knew the Church needed the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, so He instructs, demands, requires them before He gave the mission to wait for the Promise from the Father. b. The Amplified Bible says you shall receive power (ability, efficiency, and might) when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. c. We would be foolish to attempt to build the Church recorded in the Book of Acts without the empowerment of the Holy Ghost. It is a Promise from Abba, Father. Promises B. Obedient Prayer {Acts is filled with seasons of prayers by the First Century Church.} Acts 1:14They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus. a. You will find the "Thread of Prayer" running throughout the 1st Century Church. The prayers of these Saints resound through the eternal heavens. The voice of the martyrs thunder & cry under the witness of a prayer-less church-age. - "Oh God, give us at Calvary Family Worship Center vision for prayer to continue that 'Thread' of supplication." aac b. If that is the model they pursued & followed after the example of Christ, should we not build upon the same foundation? Obedient Prayer C. Receiving the Promise Acts 2:1-4 Quote a. What gets the Church in the correct posture to receive His Promise? - Prayer - b. Receiving the Promise is by prayer. III. Conclusion A. Results a. Baptism in the Spirit & Salvation {Chapter 2, 3K saved} b. Miracles & Salvation {Chapter 3, 5K saved} c. Faith on Trial {Chapter 4, Acts 4:12} B. We find the Church praying again! Their Prayer: “O Sovereign Lord, Creator of heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them— 25you spoke long ago by the Holy Spirit through our ancestor David, your servant, saying, ‘Why were the nations so angry? Why did they waste their time with futile plans? 26The kings of the earth prepared for battle; the rulers gathered together against the Lord and against his Messiah.’ 27“In fact, this has happened here in this very city! For Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate the governor, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed. 28But everything they did was determined beforehand according to your will. 29And now, O Lord, hear their threats, and give us, your servants, great boldness in preaching your word. 30Stretch out your hand with healing power; may miraculous signs and wonders be done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” Conclusion: I have heard & know of churches who paid for a set of blueprint plans to build. Often, these churches purchase blueprints with every intent to build with them. However, for various reasons the plans will be stored away in a closet & forgotten. Pastors will come & go. A generation or two will die. Then, the plans are found again & when studied say, "Oh, these blueprints are no longer relevant or helpful for where we are or where we want to go." Such is the attitude of much of the 21st Century Church, the religious. But you have Pastors who have picked up the Book of Acts Blueprint & find them worthy, relevant, effective, empowered & useful to build. Anything less is described by the hand of the Apostle Paul, "2 Timothy 3:5Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof." Jesus, speaking to some Sadducees & religious leaders about the resurrection which they did not believe in, said "Isn’t this the reason that you go astray? because you are ignorant both of the Scriptures and of the power of God?" CJB C. The reason we can do this is because of the resurrection of Christ. - He asks us to: * Repent * Live by Faith * Be Baptized * Be Filled with His Spirit Conclusion: PRESENT THE GOSPEL FOR SALVATION – EVERY WEEK – AND THE NEED TO COME FORWARD IN PUBLIC ACCEPTANCE OF CHRIST
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