Joy to the World?

Series: Joy to the World?

Summary

A Hopeless World Cries, “Come and Help Us!”

Series: Joy to the World?
Passage: Acts 16:1-10

Did you know? 3.4 Billion people don’t know the name of Jesus and have no access to the Gospel. There will be about 150,000 die today, and every other day. Of the 150,000 people, about 65,000 will die never hearing the Gospel.

I: Clarity spurs on faithfulness.

A. As Paul and Timothy traveled and delivered the apostles decisions, the Church flourished.

B. They brought clarity about how Christians should conduct themselves and as a result the Church grew.

C. We tend to complicate things and by doing so, we risk stunting the Churches growth. But Jesus was abundantly clear in what He expects from us. (The Great Commandment and the Great Commission)

F. You want clarity? Love God, love others and share the Gospel here, near and far.

But, how and where you do this requires you to stay in step with the leading of God’s Spirit… He doesn’t want you to go everywhere…

II: Sensitivity to the Spirit may cause you to change your plans.

A. Asia needed to hear the gospel – but it wasn’t part of God’s plan for Paul and Timothy in that moment.

B. Paul and Timothy must have been doing two very important things: praying and listening.

C. For us to hear the Holy Spirit, we need to regularly (daily) practice emptying ourselves and asking Him to fill us with His Spirit.

As we seek to obey Christ, we need to learn and discern the voice of His Spirit because...

III: Obedience to the Spirit leads to opportunity and fruitfulness.

A. Paul and Timothy waited on the Lord and He directed them.

B. The vision of the Macedonian man is one that is haunting to me – “help us”. There are over 3.4 billion people crying out right now, “help us”.

D. Paul and Timothy immediately made preparations to go.

E. Would you be willing to pray that God would give you a vision of who He would have you share the gospel with?

Pastor’s Challenge:
• Pray for the unreached – the people in harm’s way seeking to bring them the gospel – asking God to use YOU to share the good news.
• Give – of your time and your resources. You are only a steward of both.
• Go – be willing to go – but only go where the Spirit directs.

Speaker: Dan Krause

December 3, 2023

Acts 16:1-10

Dan Krause

Lead Pastor