Sermon Tone Analysis
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This week we are continuing our study on being an Inside Out church.
Week 1 we looked at Jesus sending the 12 in Matthew 10.
The 12 answered their own prayer for workers in the harvest.
Last week we looked at Acts 17 and Paul’s presentation of the Gospel to the philosophers in Athens.
Remember he used their culture in order to present the Gospel.
Paul didn’t quote Scripture, he quoted their great thinkers.
He didn’t point to the Bible, he pointed to a pagan altar in order to preach the good news about Jesus to the lost.
This morning we’ll also be in Acts, Acts 15 and Acts 16 this morning.
But first we have to understand what is being discussed in Acts 15.
Genesis 17:9-14
Circumcision was the way male descendents of Abraham participated in the covenant God made with Abraham.
It started with Abraham and was for Abraham, his descendants, every male among his family, any male born or bought into his household from a foreigner.
So were non-Jews circumcised?
YES!
Genesis 17:23, 26-27 - EVERY MALE in his household...however he got there, was part of the promise of Abraham.
Exodus 12:48
A foreigner who wants to eat the LORD’s Passover must have all the males in his household circumcised; then he may take part like one born in the land.
No uncircumcised male may eat it.
IF YOU WEREN’T A CIRCUMCISED MALE IN THAT COMMUNITY, YOU WERE CUT OFF FROM YOUR PEOPLE.——YOU
ARE AN OUTSIDER THAT WE WON’T ASSOCIATE WITH!
Deuteronomy 10:14-22
THEY ARE TO CIRCUMCISE THEIR HEARTS...God is after the condition of their hearts, MOSES REPEATS THIS IN CHAPTER 30 OF DEUTERONOMY!
External circumcision was always supposed to be a means of producing internal commitment.
Notice also that they have been called to love the foreigner... that would be the uncircumcised, unless they had decided to convert to Judaism.
God makes no distinction.
Israel is to circumcise their hearts and to love the foreigners among them.
ACTS 15
Here’s the problem...Jews were VERY diverse in their beliefs surrounding the salvation of Gentiles.
Some thought they needed to simply follow the 7 laws of Noah (look at Noah post flood and what God commands him to do).
Others believed that the Gentiles had to convert to Judaism by being circumcised, and baptized (in the case of Christian Jews).
Others felt they just needed to be baptized.
You can see the problem, right?
There are already Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians.
Paul & Barnabas have made a missionary trip.
And now there is a debate about how these people need to live...do they need to be circumcised and follow the law of Moses in order to be saved?
WE LOOKED AT THIS WHEN WE LOOKED AT ELDERS AND THEIR ROLE IN THE CHURCH.
There are three approaches here!
The issue wasn’t “Can Gentiles be saved?”
The issue was “Must Gentiles be circumcised to be saved?”
Do they have to go through Moses to get to Jesus?
Peter argues from recent history - you remember Cornelius!
The Holy Spirit poured out! (God moved then...Recent history)
Paul argues from ministry - If I was preaching a false gospel, why was the Holy Spirit be doing miracles to endorse it?
(God is moving now!)
James argues from Scripture! - (God’s Word told us he would move!)
THEREFORE!
Now that we see how God has moved, and is moving, WE TOO MUST MOVE!
Acts 15:19 - It is my judgement, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God.
They make a list of a few things that mirrored pagan worship and prevented table fellowship with the Jews.
That’s it!
Gentiles DO NOT have to be circumcised.
AND THE APPEAL TO WHAT MAKES THIS EASIEST FOR THE GENTILES...THAT’S CONTEXTUALIZATION...MISSIONARY MINDSET!
“We should not make it difficult” for people to come to God!
Notice that they never said it is wrong to be circumcised.
They never said it was right to be uncircumcised.
They simply said we aren’t going to make this a test of fellowship.
It’s too difficult, and Scripture gives us leeway to make it easy.
This shaped their mission moving forward!
So let’s see it in action!
Acts 16:1-5
They are traveling to deliver the decision that Gentiles don’t have to be circumcised, and Paul starts this trip by circumcising a Gentile!
WHY?
Because Paul knew his audience!
“Because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.”
You’re only saying this because Timothy doesn’t want to be circumcised!
This is motivated by personal reasons!
Paul doesn’t want that kind of distraction.
Paul knows what is missionally strategic in this situation.
In this situation, it’s circumcision.
In others, it is not.
The comfort of “rules.”
We really like rules.
We want them to clearly state that this is wrong and that this is right, thus sayeth the Lord.
But he doesn’t!
And Paul tells us about how he goes about his mission work:
1 Cor.
9:19-23
This is Paul’s mission!
Everything he does is "to win” the lost, and he changes what he does depending on who he is trying to reach!
Everything Paul does is “to win” the lost.
Without being sinful, Paul is willing to do anything he can to reach the lost...to become like them in order to reach them.
WHAT ARE WE WILLING TO DO TO “BECOME LIKE” THE LOST PEOPLE WE NEED “TO WIN” FOR JESUS?
Acts 15 shows these Jewish Christians giving up their very identity...the defining characteristic of who they are!
Their circumcision, and finding their identity in Christ alone.
Would we be willing to be so bold?
IF NOT, WHY NOT?
Why would we be willing to let anything get in the way of accomplishing our mission?
Unless our mission isn’t the most important thing to us.
Would we be willing to combine multiple approaches to reach the lost?
Gordon MacDonald - Who Stole My Church?
“You need to think about the fact that any church that has not turned its face toward the younger generation and the new challenges of reaching unchurched people in this world will simply cease to exist.
We’re not talking decades—we’re talking just a few years.”
“Christians have no effect in the world as long as they refuse to engage the world.”
- Lesslie Newbigin
I’m never worried about the survival of the Church.
God’s Word will never fail, and God’s people will always exist in this world until he brings us home.
But individual congregations will come and go if they are not willing to engage the community around them, to execute the mission that Christ has set before us.
And I honestly don’t believe that God is finished with East Side yet!
And if that’s the case, we sure better be acting like we’re not finished with his mission for us!
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