- Acts 23
- we need to experience unwavering comfort when counting all the costs
- life never goes the way we want and can be more chaotic when we choose to follow Jesus
- one of most motivating realities is that by grace of God we can know and rely on Him
I can know the unwavering comfort of God…
- Even when sin hounds me (1-5)
- “looking intently”: incredible amount of confidence and courage in God, not self-help mentality
- Paul had “conscience integrity”
- “…good conscience…” implies “I have lived according to God” and that the Sadducees didn’t
- your integrity matters in your witness and moral blamelessness
- not saying he’s lived sinless life, but that he has lived according to God’s plan and command
- everyone is given a conscience; the sense of morality is written into us, but does not mean we actually know true morality aside from Christ
- there is an awareness of what you believe is right or wrong
- can be damaged, dysfunctional, destroyed
- scar tissue from habitual sin can impede your conscience
- secular history records that Anonais was vicious high priest
- v3: Sadducees were being hypocrites of the Law, as Paul was accused but not condemned
- Paul had sinful response, contradicting how we should respond
- 1 Cor 4:12
- 1 Pet 2:23
- Paul had sinful response, contradicting how we should respond
- v5: Paul responds appropriately when his sin is exposed
- even most mature Christians can stumble and fall in a moment
- when you’re tripped up by sin, how do you respond?
- do you spiral out of control?
- spiralling is a sign of spiritual immaturity
- do you spiral out of control?
- Satan wants you to spiral and convince self you should live in shame of failure
- sin can strip the unwavering comfort and conscience from you
- greatest comfort is knowing God’s cleansing and freedom
- when you’re tripped up by sin, how do you respond?
- even most mature Christians can stumble and fall in a moment
- Heb 9:14; Gospel purifies our conscience
- we cannot bring about our salvation; it is only through submitting to God
- Heb 10:22
- forgiveness can’t be experienced without repentance
- when your sin is exposed, do you brush away or shrug it off, or do you admit/confess your failure and move to the other direction back to Christ?
- How Paul models your repentance:
- immediate: how fast do you repent or own up to it?
- blame your pride for slowness
- authentic: submitting to Word of God
- immediate: how fast do you repent or own up to it?
- “looking intently”: incredible amount of confidence and courage in God, not self-help mentality
- Even when chaos surrounds me (6-11)
- Sanhedrin was a group of 70 leaders, comprised of Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes.
- Pharisees and Scribes were the majority
- Pharisees believed all the OT scriptures (and therefore, signs, angels as well as prophecies of Messiah)
- Sadducees only believed in first 5 OT books (theologically different than Pharisees)
- Paul trying to highlight doctrinal truth of resurrection
- We need the right content
- content of Gospel matters greatly
- Paul bringing capstone of Gospel: resurrection of Christ and the defeat of sin and death
- We need the right heart: the humility of brokenness
- We need right way: faith
- v11; the Lord showed up; shows state of Paul physically, emotionally and spiritually
- the presence of Christ literally there (?)
- take heart/take courage: only Jesus used this phrase
- brought unwavering strength, courage and healing to those who heard it
- if Jesus is with you, it doesn’t matter who is against you
- chaos provides opportunity to experience God and His comfort
- 2 Cor 1:3-7; your hardship is not just for you
- it is also for those around you, or those who will soon be placed in your life, that you can comfort them with the truth of God
- Sanhedrin was a group of 70 leaders, comprised of Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes.
- Even when life confounds me (12-35)
- the hand of God doing exactly as He said (i.e. bring Paul to Rome)
- God’s form of protection was actually placing Paul in prison
- God’s ways always perfect and right
- God also commands all of the minutia and mundane
- Christ as “alpha and omega” should comfort us, as this shows He knows every detail and event between the beginning and end of life
- 2 Tim 4:16-17; “…the Lord stood by me, and strengthened me…”
- Britanny Price (Worship Through Seasons of Loss), “…it is a conscious choice to offer and yield to Christ our worship even through excruciating pain…”
- opportunity to trust Him, platform to praise, exalt and preach His truth and goodness
- when we take stand for Jesus, He will never let go of us
- the hand of God doing exactly as He said (i.e. bring Paul to Rome)