Pray as Jesus Taught (Matthew 6:9-13)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, March 30, 2025

I heard about this man that was walking on the beach. God said, “Son, you’ve been so faithful, I’m going to grant you one special wish.” He was so excited, he said “God, I’ve always wanted to go to Hawaii but I’m afraid to fly, so my wish is that you would build me a bridge across the ocean”. God said, “Son, that’s totally impossible! Think of the logistics of that. Now, take some time and wish again!”.

He said, “Okay God, I’ve been married four times. All my ex-wives say I’m so insensitive. So, my wish is that I’d be able to understand a woman. I wanna know why they think like they think, why they feel like they feel.” There was a long pause, God said, “Do you want two lanes or four lanes on that bridge?”

“Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep; if I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul to take.” That may be the prayer that you learned when you were a child. When I was in preschool, I learned: “God is great, God is good, God we thank you for this food, Amen.” We might have learned these prayers because we grew up in homes or had extended family to teach us to pray. Others may not have had that privilege:

In the passage we will examine, Jesus teaches the disciples to pray. For the last several weeks, we have been discussing the letters to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation. Why? We have been in the season of Lent. Lent is a period of preparation for Easter, and Easter is about Jesus’ death and resurrection. Typically, during Lent, Christians focus on repentance. What is the theme of those letters? Repentance. A theme is staying close to Jesus. Today, we will shift to prayer. For the next two Sundays, I want to focus on praying like Jesus. Today, we use the memorable, Lord’s Prayer. Next Sunday, we will use John 17 and Jesus’s High Priestly prayer.

Jesus teaches the disciples a meaningful order for prayer.

Turn in your Bibles to Matthew 6:9-13 and read this passage with me.

Matthew 6:9–13 (ESV)

⁹ Pray then like this:

                  “Our Father in heaven,

                  hallowed be your name.

         ¹⁰       Your kingdom come,

                  your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

         ¹¹       Give us this day our daily bread,

         ¹²       and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

         ¹³       And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

My theme today is: Pray like Jesus.

1. Context:
   • This passage is also found in Luke 11.
   • In Luke 11:1, it says that Jesus was praying in a certain place and then the disciples asked Him to teach them to pray.
   • Actions speak louder than words. The disciples saw Jesus’ actions. They saw Jesus praying often, and they saw the miracles that He did. In Luke 9:28ff, they saw the transfiguration. In Luke 9:12ff, they saw Jesus feed 5000. In Luke 8:40ff and 49-56, they saw Jesus heal Jairus’ daughter. In Luke 8:43ff, they saw Jesus heal a woman with an issue of blood simply because she touched His garment. In Luke 8:22ff, they saw Jesus still the sea. In Luke 4:31ff, they saw or heard about Jesus casting out demons in Capernaum. They had also seen Jesus praying a lot: in Mark 1:35, after Jesus had healed many people He retreated to a secluded place to pray. The disciples likely connected prayer with the miracles. So, they ask Jesus to teach them to pray.
   • The question is: In the context of Jesus’ life, is the passage in Luke the same as the passage in Matthew? That is possible. It is also possible that Jesus taught this more than once. This was important to Jesus.
2. Let’s look at the passage.
   1. Notice in verse 9 that Jesus says, “Pray then in this way.” This is important. Jesus didn’t say, “Pray these words.” No, Jesus was giving a pattern, an order for our prayers.
   2. For us to grasp the significance of this we must look at the verses preceding this passage.
   3. Jesus started teaching about prayer in verse 5. Notice in verse 7 Jesus said do not use “meaningless repetition as the gentiles do.” The key word is “meaningless.”
   4. There is nothing wrong with occasionally reciting this prayer in corporate worship, but we must be careful of meaningless repetition. That is exactly what Jesus was going against. He taught them this order of prayer.
   5. Greek prayers piled up as many titles of the deity addressed as possible, hoping to secure his or her attention. Pagan prayers typically reminded the deity of favors done or sacrifices offered, attempting to get a response from the god on contractual grounds.^[1]
   6. Jesus doesn’t condemn long prayers but wants meaningful verbiage.[2]
   7. What I want to communicate is that Jesus taught the disciples a meaningful order for prayer.
3. Jesus teaches His disciples to start prayer with a worshipful petition.
   1. In the Greek “be Holy” is the same word.
   2. When we are praying as Jesus taught us to pray, we are not simply saying “Lord, Your name is Holy.” We are saying, “Let Your name be holy.” There is a simple difference. The difference is that we are asking God’s name to be revered as holy. The name of the Lord is who He is.
   3. We are asking God’s name to be set apart, sanctified, sacred. This is worship as we are ascribing to God what He is. He is holy.
   4. This is also a petition.
   5. In verse 10, we are praying for God’s Kingdom to come. In verse 10, I see the focus on God. I notice a repeated personal pronoun “you,” or “your” in the English.
   6. Do we realize what we are saying when we use this prayer. This is a powerful line. God’s Kingdom= submission.
   7. “Your Kingdom come.”
   8. “Your will be done.” (second person)
   9. This means that our prayers must not be about us but about God. It starts with God.
   10. Later, forgiveness, daily bread, deliverance from evil, lead us not into temptation, are about us, but still under God.
   11. In this prayer, we are praying for God’s Kingdom to come about. This is a strong prayer. We are praying for His Reign.
   12. This means that we must submit to His rule!
   13. Thomas Watson, a seventeenth century writer, put it in a frightening way, but it’s obviously true. He said when you pray, “Thy will be done,” Jesus is telling you to pray two things. You are praying that you might do diligently all he commands and that you also might submit patiently to all he inflicts. Two things. You’re not only saying, “Oh Lord, may I do diligently all you command.” You’re also saying, “Oh Lord, may I submit patiently to all you inflict.”^[3]
   14. Are we ready for the Kingdom to come? Do we mean this request?
   15. God reigns in Heaven; we are asking for God’s reign and will to come about on earth (Heb 1:3; 8:1; 1 Peter 3:22).
   16. So, meaningful prayer starts with a worshipful petition. Meaningful prayer ascribes to God the attributes that He has and we request that He maintains His holiness. Meaningful prayer asks for the Lord’s will not my own. Meaningful prayer asks for His kingdom to come about. Meaningful prayer implies submission to His will and kingdom.
4. Meaningful prayer includes daily needs.

1. 1. Verse 11 shows us the second category of meaningful prayer. Meaningful prayer includes requests for our daily needs. Give us this day our daily bread.
   2. Richard Foster, who wrote Celebration of Disciplines, says that this shows that we are allowed to make personal requests in our prayers. If we need a babysitter today, pray for that. If we need help shoveling snow, pray for that. But we pray for what we need, not what we want.
   3. We may have many needs. We could also request for other people’s needs.
   4. A mentor of mine was laid off from work back in the 1970’s. One Sunday they were on their way to church, and it was their day to tithe. His wife asked him if they should tithe their last few dollars. He (Dave) said, “yes, that is the Lord’s money.” They went to church and gave that money in the offering plate. They didn’t tell anyone about their needs. The next day was their daughter’s birthday. That night the wife, Sharon, made a list of what they could use to make a birthday cake. The next day all the items on the list were at their front door.
   5. It is good to ask for our daily needs. God could have dropped those items from Heaven, or He might have led someone to drop them off during the night. God answers prayer.
   6. This may also be able to be translated: “Give us this day our bread for tomorrow.” According to Dr. Stamps, a professor of worship Theology, this had the idea of a servant during the New Testament times receiving bread for the following day from the master. The master would leave this under his bed early in the morning. This was not discovered until the 19^th
   7. So, meaningful prayer includes the request for needs.

Request for forgiveness:

1. 1. • Verse 12 shows us that a meaningful order of prayer includes a request for forgiveness. Notice that this request implies that we have forgiven others.
      • Richard Foster says that we always must give in order to be able to receive. He says, “It is simply that by the very nature of the created order we must give in order to receive. I cannot, for instance, receive love if I do not give love. People may try to offer me love, but if resentment and vindictiveness fill my heart, their offers will roll off me like water off a duck’s back. If my fists are clenched and my arms folded tightly around myself, I cannot hold anything.”[4]
      • So, we forgive others, and we receive God’s forgiveness.

Deliverance:

1. 1. 1. 1. In verse 13, Jesus shows that a meaningful order for prayer includes a request not to be led into temptation and deliverance from evil.
         2. God does not tempt (James 1:13).
         3. But God will test us. Richard Foster says: “In praying this we are saying: ‘Lord, may there be nothing in me that will force you to put me to the test in order to reveal what is in my heart.’”[5] The Lord can also intervene so that satan doesn’t tempt us.
         4. But God can strengthen us through tests:
         5. Tim Keller shares: When coal goes under pressure, it turns into a diamond. When your tests come upon you, if you respond with honesty, if you respond with compassion, if you respond with unselfishness, if you respond with faithfulness, it’ll just turn you into a diamond. It’s not the circumstance, it’s not the difficulties that are your trouble. If you respond to your situation with impatience, with faithlessness, with bitterness, with selfishness, it’ll ruin you. Don’t you see? You won’t be a diamond; you’ll be powde^[6]
         6. Deliver us from evil is deliverance from the devil.

So, that is it. That is a meaningful pattern of prayer as opposed to the meaningless repetitions that the others were praying.

• We must start prayer with worshipful petitions.
• We must move on to requests for our needs.
• We must then request forgiveness.
• We then request deliverance from evil and that the Lord keeps us from the test or temptation.

This meaningful order of prayer implies that prayer is very important. Remember, Jesus taught the disciples to pray and Jesus modeled a prayer life.

As we continue this Lenten season, I exhort you to pray like Jesus taught us to pray.

^[1]Keener, C. S., & InterVarsity Press. (1993). The IVP Bible background commentary : New Testament (Mt 6:7). Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press.

[2] ver•biage \ˈvər-bē-ij also -bij\ noun

[French, from Middle French verbier to chatter, from verbe speech, from Latin verbum word]

(circa 1721)

1 : a profusion of words usually of little or obscure content 〈such a tangled maze of evasive verbiage as a typical party platform —Marcia Davenport〉

2 : manner of expressing oneself in words : diction 〈sportswriters guarded their verbiage so jealously —Raymond Sokolov〉

Merriam-Webster, I. (1996, c1993). Merriam-Webster’s collegiate dictionary. (10th ed.). Springfield, Mass., U.S.A.: Merriam-Webster.

^[3] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

[4] Richard Foster’s book on Prayer page 186-187

[5] Richard Foster on prayer page 189

^[6] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

The Letter to the Church at Pergamum (Rev. 2:12–17)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, March 23, 2025

I recently saw an article which stated that bad doctrine is what led to the apartheid in West Africa. This made me think it is wrong beliefs that have always plagued the church and caused much of our problems. We used Scripture, though wrongly, to justify slavery. On the other hand, many don’t even care about Scriptures; therefore, we have our own problems for lack of study. Most of the Bible is fairly easy to understand. When we make the Bible part of us, the Holy Spirit will guide our lives by His Own Words. Then there is the problem that happened with slavery, this occurs when we read the Scriptures trying to make them say what we want them to say. That is called Eisegesis. We can make the Bible say the wrong things instead of letting the Bible speak.

But generally, the problems arise because we don’t know better. We don’t know any better than the wrong beliefs, the wrong doctrine that is taught.

Looking at the church in Pergamum, we see they held true to the faith, even in persecution, but they tolerated false teaching. They tolerated false doctrine.

Let’s look at the good and the bad of Pergamum and apply this to our lives.

Theme: Pergamum stuck with Christ, but they tolerated false teaching.

Application: Stick with Christ, watch out for false teaching, and know correct teaching.

Please turn to Revelation 2:12-17 and we will look at the verses as we talk about them:

1. Learn: Let’s learn about this church, and then we will be encouraged to apply.
   1. The church at Pergamum was an important city: The Life Application Study Bible says it very well:
   2. The city of Pergamum was built on a hill 1,000 feet above the surrounding countryside, creating a natural fortress. It was a sophisticated city, a center of Greek culture and education, with a 200,000-volume library. But it was also the center of four cults, and it rivaled Ephesus in its worship of idols. The city’s chief god was Asclepius, whose symbol was a serpent and who was considered the god of healing. People came to Pergamum from all over the world to seek healing from this god.[1]
   3. We get our word parchment from Pergamum.
   4. Just as a note, back then libraries were not for lending. You went to the library, and you would read the scroll there, and books, called “Codex,” were not yet invented. The book form, codex, was likely invented by Christians.
   5. In verse 12, we, once again, see the idea of the two edged sword. It reads:
   6. 2:12: “And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: ‘The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword.
   7. Then we come to verse 13: “ ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.
   8. Notice that Jesus knows, we’ll come back to that.
   9. The church in Pergamum is kissed before they are hit, isn’t that nice? In other words, they are encouraged before they are rebuked. They are commended because despite the area where they live, they have not renounced their faith. They stayed true to Jesus’s name. May we stay true to Jesus’s name.
   10. Pergamum was called the city where Satan had his throne.
   11. They were in heavy persecution, but still did not renounce the faith. We don’t know much about Antipas, but there are thoughts about him:
   12. “Antipas is said to have been a dentist and a physician, but the Aesculapiades suspected that he was propagating Christianity secretly and they accused him of disloyalty to Caesar. He was condemned to death and was shut up in a brazen (or copper) bull, which was then heated until it was red-hot.”^[2]
   13. This idea of satan’s throne. It is thought that there was all this pagan worship, but there was also imperial worship, and in Revelation, satan’s throne, or the ways of satan, are the ways of the Roman culture. So, to give into Satan’s ways means to surrender to the dominant ways of the culture.
   14. James 4:4 says that friendship with the world is enmity against God.
   15. Verses 14-15 show that there are a few things against them:
   16. But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans.
   17. This is where we come to teaching. Teaching matters. Doctrine matters. I don’t know if this is a literal teaching of Balaam or not. You can read about Balaam and Balak in Numbers chapters 22-25 and 31. Balaam was told to curse Israel by the local king Balak, but God would not let him and he only blessed them.
   18. However, in Numbers 25 we see that the Israelites intermarried with the Moabite women, which was forbidden, and we see that Balaam realized if you get them to intermarry, then you can take down Israel internally (Deut. 7:3; Joshua 23:12; 2 Cor. 6:14). We receive some of this information from the Jewish Historian Josephus.
   19. This could be a metaphor for what is going on here. In this case, some Christians are participating in worldly practices.
   20. The passage says that they are eating food sacrificed to idols and participating in sexual immorality. Paul dealt with this in Romans 14 and 1 Cor. 8-10, but the problem is not the food.
   21. The problem is what goes on with the food. When the food was sacrificed, there were pornographic sexual activities, temple prostitution, and pagan, idol worship. It was not just the eating; it was the festival.
   22. The problem was that the trade guilds or business unions often would have their own idol, and having a job meant participating in these trade guilds. For the Christian, participation in these guilds meant idolatry and sexual immorality.
   23. This means that part of the persecution meant that Christians could not work.
   24. This may be a definition of the Nicolaitans in verse 15.
   25. Verse 16: Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth.
   26. We once again see the idea of the Word of God. The Word of God is Truth, and it exposes and takes down the falsehood of the imperial and satanic systems.
   27. Verse 17: He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that no one knows except the one who receives it.’
   28. We are not dumb, fake idols. We have ears, listen. The Holy Spirit is speaking.
   29. Mulholland from Asbury Seminary shares:
   30. In the midst of the problems at Pergamum, Jesus gave a call for the believers to rise up and be “victorious” (2:17). The promise to those who become “victorious” relates directly to the situation of the church in Pergamum. In contrast to “food offered to idols,” Jesus promised “the manna that has been hidden away” (there is no mention of “in heaven” in the Greek text of 2:17). This promise would resonate with John’s audience, shaped by Jewish understanding. One of the Jewish expectations associated with the restoration of the kingdom was the full restoration of the Temple in Jerusalem. This meant the return of the manna that had been in the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies until Jeremiah took it out and hid it just before the destruction of the Temple by the Babylonians. (See Heb 9:4 for the tradition of manna in the Ark of the Covenant, 2 Macc 2:4–8 for Jeremiah hiding the sacred objects from the Temple [although the manna is not explicitly mentioned], and 2 Baruch 29:8 for the restoration of the manna in the consummation.) By promising this manna, Jesus was giving the church another intimation that the restoration of the kingdom had come.^[3]
   31. In Roman times they would vote with stones. A white stone was a positive ballot and black was negative. So, a white stone means that we overcome and we have entrance into Heaven.
   32. Again from Dr. Mulholland:
   33. Jesus also promised the victorious ones a “white stone” with “a new name” (2:17). This may refer to the ballot that was used by citizens of a Roman city to cast their votes during meetings. To have such a stone, one’s name had to be on the citizenship rolls of the city. Jesus seems to be indicating that God’s faithful people are citizens of God’s kingdom. This would appear to be confirmed by the presence of the new name on the white stone. Since a person’s “name” is representative of their nature (see note on 2:13), faithful believers have a new nature as citizens of God’s New Jerusalem. Jesus’ final remark that “no one understands” the new name “except the one who receives it,” points to the experiential reality of citizenship in the New Jerusalem. Citizenship is not a legal formality conferred from without, but an existential reality of life in intimate union with Christ.^[4]
2. Be encouraged.
   1. As I look at this passage, I am greatly encouraged that Jesus knows.
   2. I see that Jesus knows that though they are in a city of satan, they are holding fast to their faith (verse 13).
   3. Jesus knows about their persecution and the death of Antipas (verse 13).
   4. Jesus knows what we go through as well. Jesus knows if we are persecuted. He knows if we are making stands for our faith and how difficult it is to stand firm. He knows.
   5. I am also encouraged that Jesus gives us the opportunity to repent. Jesus gives second chances in this life.
   6. This opportunity to repent is for us as well. This instruction is for us. Be encouraged that Jesus has given us this instruction (verse 16).
   7. Overcoming means eternal life (verse 17).
3. Apply: Let’s make some final applications.
   1. Stay true to Jesus’ name (verse 13). I see they are commended for holding fast to the faith. This is an application for us.
   2. If you are with your family, your friends, or your co-workers, stay true to Jesus.
   3. Staying true to Jesus means that you don’t deny the faith.
   4. Staying true to Jesus means you don’t fail to say anything about the faith. Sometimes we deny the faith by omitting to share when we need to.
   5. Sometimes we deny the faith by not living as a Christian. In their case, they would have denied the faith by going into the idol’s temple and participating. Are we participating in things like that? What about pornography? What about the sexually explicit and crude conversations? What about how we are entertained? Ask God to Create in you a clean heart… (Psalm 51:10). Don’t deny Christ in commission or omission.
   6. Teaching matters, doctrine matters (verses 14-15). Learn the Gospel, the true Gospel. Learn doctrine, read the Bible. They are essentially rebuked because of false doctrine. We can know false doctrine by learning true doctrine. Just read the Bible.
   7. Twice we have a reference to the Word of God, the Sword of the Spirit. This is in verses 12 and 16 (Eph. 6:17; Heb. 4:12).
   8. Repent: if we are involved in these false beliefs or lacking the faith, repent. Jesus has given us a second chance right here.

I stand by my belief that false Doctrine, which means incorrect and improper beliefs, hurts the church and people. When we have wrong beliefs, we harm many in the name of a supposed religion, we harm ourselves. So, don’t be afraid to get into the Bible and know the Truth.

Right now, we are coming up on the most important holy day of Christianity, Resurrection Sunday. It is a true, and major part of Christianity that Jesus lived, died, and rose again. That doctrine is the correct teaching of the Bible about Jesus. But people have tried to thwart it (1 John 4:2). This is why we must stand on the strong foundation of the Word of God. We must stand for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 1:2, 9).

Stand strong in your beliefs and in not denying Christ.

Prayer                               

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

[1] Tyndale House Publishers (2011-08-01). Life Application Study Bible NLT (LASB: Full Size) (Kindle Locations 161746-161749). Tyndale House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

^[2] Tom Constable, Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible (Galaxie Software, 2003), Re 2:13.

^[3] M. Robert Mulholland Jr., “Revelation,” in Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: James, 1–2 Peter, Jude, Revelation, ed. Philip W. Comfort, Cornerstone Biblical Commentary (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2011), 440–441.

^[4] M. Robert Mulholland Jr., “Revelation,” in Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: James, 1–2 Peter, Jude, Revelation, ed. Philip W. Comfort, Cornerstone Biblical Commentary (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2011), 441.

Lent message: The Letter to the Church at Smyrna, No Rebuke, only Encouragement (2:8–11)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, March 16, 2025

Psalm 23 is probably the most memorable and memorized:

Let’s say it together:

Psalm 23:title–6 (ESV)

23 A Psalm of David.

¹    The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²       He makes me lie down in green pastures.

     He leads me beside still waters.

³       He restores my soul.

     He leads me in paths of righteousness

for his name’s sake.

⁴    Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil,

     for you are with me;

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me.

⁵    You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

     you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

⁶    Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

     and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord

forever.

I invited all of us to read it together because those words must have been so crucial to the church in Smyrna.

Today’s Theme:

In pulling back the veil, Jesus encourages the church in Smyrna. Jesus tells them they will have trouble but receive a crown of life.  

Let’s read

Revelation 2:8–11 (ESV)

To the Church in Smyrna

⁸ “And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: ‘The words of the first and the last, who died and came to life.

⁹ “ ‘I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. ¹⁰ Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. The one who conquers will not be hurt by the second death.’

1. Come! Take Your Crown. That is the main point.
   1. As we look at these verses, we see a Goal—A Crown of Life Won by Jesus Awaits Us.
   2. I believe that is to be encouraging. Who here does not want to receive a Crown?
   3. Don’t you want to receive a crown from King Jesus?
   4. Do we want to hear Jesus say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21 and 23).
   5. I once heard of a son who may not have said it, but he wanted his father to be proud of him. No matter what, he wanted his father to be proud of him. His father always expressed his pride in his other son, but not the younger one.
   6. Isn’t it encouraging that we can receive a Crown from King Jesus. However, receiving this crown may not be easy. I dare say that it isn’t easy.
   7. Let’s pause a moment. Is this Christian life easy?
   8. Is the Christian life supposed to be easy?
   9. 2 Timothy 3:12: In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…
   10. The Christian life is not the easiest life. We will face hardships.
   11. So, let’s look at what Jesus says regarding this.
2. Persecution: many frightening things stand between us and the Crown of Life.
   1. This is what Jesus says. There will be difficult times. However, we are to stand firm. We are to stay the course. We are to persevere.
   2. This instruction is first and foremost to the church at Smyrna, but I believe it is also to us. I think these letters represent all the churches as well as specific churches. Let’s consider Smyrna.
   3. Smyrna was a beautiful and important seaport boasting a population of about 200,000, quite large for its time. It was a center for science and medicine, and the birthplace of the noted author Homer. It was also a regional center for emperor worship in the first century, whose citizens were expected to burn incense to Zeus once a year.[1]
   4. Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, was born in A.D. 69 and could have known the Apostle John whose writing he quotes. A defender of orthodoxy, Polycarp was martyred about A.D. 155 because he refused to deny his faith in Christ.
   5. Marcion will later deny that the God who created the world is the Lord, Jesus Christ. He will claim that there is nothing to God but love, then an evil, false god was responsible for the suffering and death of Jesus. Valentinus will convince many that everything physical is evil, that the spiritual world alone is good, that heaven is made up of “aeons”— angel-like, almost divine beings, one of which fell into sin and created the world. To Valentinus, even Christ is an aeon that adopted a human body.
   6. Many will consider this nonsense to be wisdom, but Polycarp will know better. He will defend the truth of the Trinity, the truth of the Divine and human natures of Christ, the truth of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection for sinners.
   7. The year was A.D. 155, and the persecution against Christians swept across the Roman Empire and came to the city of Smyrna. The proconsul of Symrna, swept up in this persecution, put out an order that the Bishop of Symrna, Polycarp, was to be found, arrested, and brought to the public arena for execution. They found Polycarp and brought him before thousands of spectators screaming for blood. But the proconsul had compassion on this man who was almost a hundred years old. He signaled the crowd to silence. To Polycarp he said, “Curse the Christ and live.”
   8. The crowd waited for the old man to answer. In an amazingly strong voice, he said, “Eighty and six years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong. How dare I blaspheme the name of my king and Lord!” With that Polycarp became a martyr.[2]
   9. So, Jesus calls these people a “Synagogue of Satan.” That is strong. What does that mean? Citizens of fallen Babylon worship the beast.
   10. A Synagogue of Satan may mean that they are aligning themselves with the Roman culture.
   11. Consider Paul’s ministry. He would go to the synagogue first and declare Jesus the Messiah. Sometimes he would be there one week or three weeks or months. He eventually gets kicked out and goes to the Gentiles and evangelizes Gentiles.
   12. In the Roman world, the Jews were a legal religion.
   13. In 48 B.C. Julius Caesar passed a law prohibiting all new religions except those of ancient standing. From 125 B.C. until that time (48 B.C.) Rome had been in civil war and the new religions were the hot beds of the war. So, he got rid of all new religions. Judaism predates the Roman Empire. Romans could trace their history to about 700 B.C., but Jews could trace themselves back to the second millennium. There were many court cases where Gentiles would drag Jews into court saying that they were illegal, but every time the Jews won as an ancient religion. They were allowed to govern themselves from their Torah. They could not be drafted into the army. They had to be able to have stalls to buy their food at the market. There were limits: If the Jews are proselytizing or getting into the Roman government, then Rome put their foot down. In 17 A.D. The Jews were expelled from Rome: The Roman Historians and Josephus say this is because a high-level Roman official becomes a proselyte. Later in Acts, the Jews are expelled from Rome again by Claudius. Historians suggest this was due to a disturbance caused by Christus. In Acts, when Paul and Silas are in Philippi, they are arrested and accused of being Jews and causing a disturbance to the status quo. The worst thing to do in Rome was to disturb the status quo.
   14. Paul would go to the synagogue and then be kicked out.
   15. He then proselytizes Gentiles. To the Romans, this makes it look like the Jews are proselytizing. This puts the Jewish community in threat from Rome. So, in several places in Acts, the Jews align themselves with the political leaders.
   16. In Revelation: The Jewish community aligning themselves with Rome against the Christians makes them a Synagogue of Satan.
   17. This only appears in two places: Smyrna and Philadelphia: the two good churches.
   18. The source of the persecution of these churches is the Jewish actions.
   19. Lastly, regarding this, Jesus says that they will be persecuted 10 days. In their time, 10 was a number of completion much like the number 7. This is from the Jewish pool of imagery. They will be persecuted until the time is complete.
   20. Means: Because Jesus died and lives again, our crown of life awaits us.
   21. If we persevere to the end, stay strong, and overcome, we will receive the crown. Now, if we notice this crown of life means we will not receive the second death.
   22. Let’s go a step further, what is the second death? I notice that John does not tell us what the second death is.
   23. John wants to leave us hanging. This was common in their culture. In literature, they would introduce an idea and let it wait. In Rev. 20:14, we find the second death is the Lake of Fire.
   24. Notice that in persevering, you will receive a crown from Jesus.

• Some applications:
  1. I find it encouraging to know that Jesus knows what we go through.
  2. In verse 9, Jesus tells them that He knows. He knows what they are facing.
  3. Jesus knows when we are facing troubles having to do with our faith.
  4. We are now in a post-Christian society and when we have to stand up for our faith, Jesus knows.
  5. If you need to stand up and have integrity at the workplace and face negative ramifications, have no fear, Jesus knows.
  6. If you lose friends because you are not involved in the behavior of the world, Jesus knows.
  7. If you witness for Christ and you lose friends for that or face ridicule, have no fear, Jesus knows.
  8. If your business is threatened because of your Christian integrity, have no fear.
  9. If you, your family, your morals, are in danger because you stand for life and marriage, have no fear, Jesus knows.
  10. This post-Christian culture has been a surprise to us, but not to King Jesus, He knows.
  11. It is going to be okay.
  12. When we overcome, there will be a crown of life eternal.

Closing:

Psalm 23:4: Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, the Lord is with me.

How can you fear the valley if your Savior has trod its path ahead of you and returns to carry you safely through it.

The American missionary Adoniram Judson arrived in Burma, or Myanmar, in 1812, and died there thirty-eight years later in 1850. During that time, he suffered much for the cause of the gospel. He was imprisoned, tortured, and kept in shackles. After the death of his first wife, Ann, to whom he was devoted, for several months he was so depressed that he sat daily beside her tomb. Three years later, he wrote: God is to me the Great Unknown. I believe in him, but I cannot find him.

But Adoniram’s faith sustained him, and he threw himself into the tasks to which he believed God had called him. He worked feverishly on his translation of the Bible. The New Testament had now been printed, and he finished the Old Testament in early 1834.

Statistics are unclear, but there were only somewhere between twelve and twenty-five professing Christians in the country when he died, and there were not churches to speak of.

At the 150th anniversary of the translation of the Bible into the Burmese language, Paul Borthwick was addressing a group that was celebrating Judson’s work. Just before he got up to speak, he noticed in small print on the first page the words: “Translated by Rev. A. Judson.” So Borthwick turned to his interpreter, a Burmese man named Matthew Hia Win, and asked him, “Matthew, what do you know of this man?” Matthew began to weep as he said,

We know him—we know how he loved the Burmese people, how he suffered for the gospel because of us, out of love for us. He died a pauper, but left the Bible for us. When he died, there were few believers, but today there are over 600,000 of us, and every single one of us traces our spiritual heritage to one man: the Rev. Adoniram Judson.

But Adoniram Judson never saw it!

And that will be the case for some of us. We may be called to invest our lives in ministries for which we do not see much immediate fruit, trusting that the God of all grace who oversees our work will ensure that our labor is not in vain.[3]

Do you know Jesus?

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

Pray

[1]   (2014-03-15). The Moody Bible Commentary (Kindle Locations 82566-82570). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

[2] Leith Anderson, “Can Jesus Trust Us?” Preaching Today, Tape No. 126.

[3] Adapted from Julia Cameron, editor, Christ Our Reconciler (InterVarsity Press, 2012), pp. 200-201

Lent series intro: The Letter to the Church at Ephesus, Stick with our First Love (2:1–7)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, March 9, 2025

Think with me for a moment about when you first fell in love with your spouse, your children, or someone else. Think with me about love. It can be a love for a friend or sibling as well, but it cannot be a love for an object. Studies will show that when you first fall in love your whole mentality changes. The brain literally changes. When you are new in love you have more energy, and this is why you can stay up late at night to go on dates and spend time together. Employers will complain about employees that were once good employees until they met that someone. Love changes us, and to an extent that needs to happen. Pastors will often not officiate a wedding for a couple that hasn’t been together longer than six months because they have yet to realize each other’s idiosyncrasies. Many of you have raised children and maybe you have had to have that conversation with your daughter. She is saying, “I love him.” But you are saying don’t you realize that he is wanted in six states for something…” She doesn’t get it, because love is like a drug.

Then things change. You stay together and get married. Maybe you have children. Eventually, maybe you think, “Do we love each other?” This is because we associate love with that euphoria we once had. The euphoria changes but that does not mean the love isn’t there. Everything we do for each other is because of the love that is there. This is also true of our commitment to Jesus. Let’s talk about that.

In Rev. 2:1-7 The Church at Ephesus is exhorted to not forget their first love.

My burning theme today is that we love Jesus.

My burning application is that all we do stems from our love for Jesus.

Let’s read Rev. 2:1-7:

Revelation 2:1–7 (ESV)

“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.

² “ ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. ³ I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. ⁵ Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

1. All that we do must stem from our love for God.
   2. The church at Ephesus persevered (verse 2), we see this in verse 2. There was a real church at Ephesus, but I do believe these letters are to apply to all the churches. In fact, if you look at verse 7 it says for us to hear what the Spirit says to the “churches,” plural.
   3. This likely included persecution.
   4. We must persevere. But we must not forget about why we are in this. We must remember that it is all about Jesus.
   5. We will face hardship and maybe persecution, but we must persevere as well.
   6. The church at Ephesus did not tolerate evil (verse 2), we see this in verse 2. It actually says “evil people.” I would refer you to 1 Cor. 5:9-13:
   7. 1 Corinthians 5:9–13 (ESV)
   8. ⁹ I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people— ¹⁰ not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. ¹¹ But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. ¹² For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? ¹³ God judges those outside. “Purge the evil person from among you.”
   9. The issue is when we condone evil within the church.
   10. The church at Ephesus would test the apostles and would not tolerate false apostles (verse 2).
   11. Testing church leaders is critical.
   12. 1 John 4:1–3 (ESV)
   13. Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. ² By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, ³ and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.
   14. 2 Cor. 11:13: For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ.
   15. The church at Ephesus endured for Jesus and did not grow weary (verse 3).
   16. The church at Ephesus hates the Nicolaitans as does Jesus (verse 6).
   17. It is difficult to say who the Nicolaitans were, but they were some form of cult that may have denied moral values during that time, or it could be metaphorical of something else. We could get into that at another time or give me a call or an email if you want more answers to who they were.
2. The church at Ephesus neglected their first love (verse 4).
   1. This is the key application for us. Let’s break it down.
      1. We can be very good about a routine of studying the Word and prayer, but we must do these because of our intense love for God.
      2. Our Christian life must not be simply about blind orthodoxy. Orthodoxy means correct beliefs.
      3. We must be careful about always learning but never coming to a knowledge of the Truth (2 Timothy 3:7).
      4. We must love Jesus.
      5. We must desire Jesus.
      6. We must be satisfied in Jesus.
      7. Loving Jesus means that we do love His Word because we want to be close to Him and being in His Word means that we are listening to Him.
      8. Loving Jesus means that we love prayer because this is communicating with Him.
      9. Loving Jesus means that we love the church because He loves the church (Eph. 5:25-26).
      10. Timothy Keller shares:

          We had a set of trees at our house in Virginia. They were odd trees. They were some kind of oak trees. (Maybe Kathy remembers them.)

          The leaves would die in the fall, but they wouldn’t fall off. They’d stay on the tree, and they didn’t fall off until the spring when the new leaves came out of the buds and pushed the old leaves off. You see, there’s a way of trying to change that simply relies on willpower. It says, “I’m going to stop this. I’m not going to do this anymore.” But the Christian approach is so different. Christianity says you have to be continually in worship and in prayer and in study of the Word.

          Through the sacraments and through a personal encounter with God you have to be constantly meeting him so you’re changing and growing, and as Christ’s character begins to grow in you, it comes out and pushes off the old leaves. It pushes off the anger. It’s not something that happens overnight. It comes gradually. It comes bit by bit. For example, some of you know … I guess you can be too personal in a sermon. Some of you know if you were here earlier today at any of those other services, I was talking about how the gospel came to Korea.

          I went back into an old history book I had in order to tell this story. In the story, as many of you know, there was a man who came to Korea back when it was illegal in the 1860s for a foreigner to come to Korea. When his boat was sinking, he came out of the boat and waded out of the river with his arms full of Bibles, and as the people on the shore killed him, clubbing him, and knifing him, he thrust the Bibles into their hands as they were killing him. That’s how the gospel came to Korea.

          Today, at the place where he died, there’s a big, beautiful Thomas Memorial Chapel for Robert J. Thomas, the first missionary to Korea. I read about him, and I got so tremendously convicted, and I realized I had an opportunity to worship. This was happening on Friday. I was typing the thing into the computer for my sermon. I was reading the book, and I suddenly found as I was reading it, I started to cry. I realized, “Here’s a guy who was just so faithful,” and I began to feel like a baby.

          I began to say, “I think my problems are so great. I think the things God’s called me to do are so important and so hard,” and I got convicted of self-pity. I had an opportunity to worship. You stop every thing. You know, when the Spirit of God is preaching to you, is bringing something home, you say, “Here’s a chance.” So you stop everything. You sit down and say, “I see what you’re telling me,” and you begin to worship. You repent. You praise him. You receive forgiveness, and you sense yourself being renewed in the attitude of your mind. That’s the little leaf coming in and pushing off the old leaf. Christianity is an organic thing, it’s a process.[1]

          [1] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

   2. This means that we must be a part of the church. In connecting with the church, we are connecting with Jesus indirectly and directly (Romans 12:4-8; 1 Corinthians 12:14-31 and chapter 13).
   3. We must remember our first love, we must remember the Gospel which saved us (verse 5).
   4. The church at Ephesus is called to repent.
   5. Repent is listed twice (verse 5). Jesus is giving them a chance to repent. This is showing that there are second chances.
   6. If they don’t repent the Lampstand is removed. Remember the Jewish pool of imagery. I like what the Life Application Study Bible says: For Jesus to “remove your lampstand from its place” would mean the church would cease to be an effective church. Just as the seven-branched candlestick in the Temple gave light for the priests to see, the churches were to give light to their surrounding communities. But Jesus warned them that their lights could go out. In fact, Jesus himself would extinguish any light that did not fulfill its purpose. The church needed to repent of its sins.[1]
   7. Kierkegaard wrote: There are, in the end, only two ways open to us: to honestly and honorably make an admission of how far we are from the Christianity of the New Testament, or to perform skillful tricks to conceal the true situation.[2]

All that we do must stem from our love for Jesus. How do you know whether you really love Jesus? I think in your daily walk with Him examine yourself, think about it. 2 Cor. 13:5 says to examine yourself and see if you are in the faith.

When we think about love I notice that with my children there was instant love.

Once I heard a message from a well-known Christian writer. He was speaking at Moody’s Founder’s week. He referenced how one of Winston Churchill’s generals said, “Winston, I never told you about my grandkids.” Winston said, “Yes, thank you!” The speaker said, “I am going to tell you about my grandkids. He proceeded to talk about how how his daughter was looking for her keys. At that point she said, “I’m losing my mind.” The four year old, said, “Don’t lose your heart mom, I’m in there.”

We are in the heart of God, He loves us. Don’t forget your first love.

I struggle with the question of my true love for Jesus. I struggle thinking to be sure that I am satisfied in Him. Reflect and pray.

Do you know Jesus?

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

Pray

[1] Tyndale House Publishers (2011-08-01). Life Application Study Bible NLT (Kindle Locations 161702-161705). Tyndale House Publishers. Kindle Edition.

[2] Soren Kierkegaard, “What Madness,” in Provocations: The Spiritual Writings of Kierkegaard (Plough, 1999), p. 180; submitted by Mark Galli, Glen Ellyn, Illinois

Special Topic: Revelation Introduction: intro the series

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, March 2, 2025

In the eighties, there was a show called Quantum Leap. In this series, the main character leaps between different time periods. One thought to consider is that God exists outside of time and can leap to any moment He wishes. God is the keeper of the timeline; He is in charge.

I’ve used this illustration before, but I think it is worth repeating:

I have a rope up here, and I have plenty of it. I’m going to pull it out and just watch it fall to the floor. Now, imagine that this first end of the rope represents Genesis 1:1. This signifies creation. As I move, observe this rope and envision it representing all of time. We would place Abraham somewhere near this end, followed by Moses, then David, Ezekiel, Isaiah, and eventually Ezra—that’s about 3,500 years of history. Then we go another 400 years to the birth of Jesus, followed by 2,000 years until now. From there, we continue until Jesus returns and sets everything right. Now, as we examine this rope-like timeline, we find ourselves here [pointing toward the opposite end of the beginning]. We are limited to our small segment of time. We are caught in the rope. But God, He created the rope. God created time, and He is powerful and in control. Take this thought a bit further and realize that God placed you in your position for a reason. Wow!

Be encouraged, truly be encouraged. We can quickly glance at this rope and feel discouraged by all the time and existence, but no, be encouraged because God, who is not bound by time, chose to place you on this earth during this time. God can go wherever He wishes along our rope timeline. God can “quantum leap.” But let’s take it a step further: God is to time as we are to this rope. He sees all of time at once. He is not limited by it, for He created it.

As we look at Revelation 1:1, we will “Quantum Leap” back to around 96 A.D.

Today, I want to introduce Revelation. Then, for the next seven weeks, we will study the letters to the churches in Revelation chapters two and three.

My theme today is:

The Revelation of Jesus Christ, God Tells Us The Rest of the Story, An Intro to Revelation (Revelation 1:1-3)

Our Two Applications:

1. Be encouraged; God is in control of everything [everyone say everything], even time.
2. Take this book seriously.

Revelation 1:1–3 (ESV)

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, ² who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. ³ Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.

1. This letter is a revelation from Jesus Christ. This is all in verse 1.
   1. It is from the Father to the Son.
   2. It is from the Son, Jesus, to the angel.
   3. It is from the angel to John.
   4. It is from John to us.
   5. The verse says that God gave this to His servants to show His servants what soon must take place.
   6. Be encouraged that God is not limited. Nothing is limiting God. God wanted to show us and all Christians through the ages things that must take place.
   7. I must pause here because you are likely looking at this and thinking, “But it says must ‘soon take place.’” Let’s handle some of the background to this letter.
   8. First, notice that it is titled the ‘“Revelation’ to John.” It is not “Revelation’s.’” This work, a letter in the New Testament format, is one ginormous Revelation of Jesus Christ given to John.
   9. Remember that God is outside of time. The Bible says in:
   10. 2 Peter 3:8–9 (ESV)
   11. ⁸ But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. ⁹ The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
   12. There are four primary ways of interpreting Revelation.
   13. One of these is the Historicism method:
   14. This method interprets chapters 1-3 as taking place in the first century, chapters 4-20:6 taking place between the second century and the end times, and then chapters 20:7-22 as when Jesus makes things right.
   15. Second is Futurism: With this method, most of Revelation is in the future, chapter 4 and throughout chapter 22.
   16. Then there is the Preterist. The preterist is a past fulfillment or contemporary to John’s readers. Those would believe that it had to do with the Roman Empire and the fall of the Roman Empire. Fulfillment is entirely in the past by the fall of Constantine and Rome in 476 AD. Some see it as the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, but this view is very narrow. This seemed to start in the late 1500s or early 1600s. This would be the earliest understanding of Revelation in the period following its dissemination
   17. Then there is the idealist: They see Revelation operating at two levels.
   18. General spiritual principles operating at all ages.
   19. There was an immediate meaning for John and his readers, but there is also a profound spiritual reality for all ages.
   20. There is the idea that there is a clash between good and evil.
   21. There are variations on each of those interpretations, especially when we get to the Millennial reign and the tribulation period, and we are not getting into that today.
   22. Next, let’s look at dating. It appears that John is exiled to the island of Patmos, and this was under persecution. He might have been there forced to work the mines. This could have been the great persecution under Caesar Nero in the 60’s AD or in the 90’s AD under Domitian, which many believe.
2. John witnessed for the Word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ with all he saw. This is verse 2.
   1. We may wonder what he saw. This gets into the type of literature of Revelation. It is a letter with apocalyptic literature and prophesy. Think of the idea of pulling back a curtain and revealing something. That is the idea of apocalyptic literature. It means that God is showing us the spiritual realm. God is pulling back the curtain and showing us the end.
   2. John uses a pool of images that are familiar to him and his readers but not familiar to us.
   3. John uses a Jewish pool of images.
   4. He uses a few from Hellenistic culture.
   5. Most of the imagery is from the Old Testament and intertestamental period. They are plain to his audience.
   6. We must understand this. If we divorce Revelation from its original context and meaning we can have multiple understandings and make it say whatever we want.
   7. In an early 80s Reader’s Digest article titled “The Motel of the Mysteries,” the writer presents it as an archaeological report. The article discusses late twentieth-century America, now buried under dirt. An archaeologist discovers a motel, but the description suggests it was actually a late-twentieth-century burial site. The toilet seat is described as something worn on the head, the bathtub as a sacred tower, and the shower as a musical instrument. The article continues in detail, but we understand it better. If we don’t, it surprisingly makes perfect sense.
   8. Time Magazine in 1992, when the Republicans took over Congress, shows a Donkey under the Republican Elephant. We understand the image because it is part of our time, but in hundreds of years, they may not know that.
   9. John’s audience understands the image.
   10. Isaiah, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah are primary examples of John’s Old Testament imagery.
   11. Also, imagery from Baruch, Song of Songs, and other intertestamental imagery.
   12. There is no single quotation in Revelation. John is steeped in his Jewish context, and these images flow out of him.
   13. John was a witness to what God was showing him.

• Verse 3 tells us we are blessed when we read this letter.
  1. This is the only Bible book that says this.
  2. But we may not feel blessed. We may feel cursed as we try to get through.
  3. I remember sitting with my older brother on his bed, and I was probably in grade school, as he read the whole book of Revelation to me. I was confused. Yet, we are interested, aren’t we?
  4. The great Martin Luther mistrusted Revelation because of its obscurity. “A revelation should be revealing,” he said.
  5. One wrote (Dr. Constable): “The symbolism is drawn from many previous Bible books. Revelation is similar to an airport, or a railway terminal, where materials from many other sources come together.” I like that description.
  6. We must read the letter. We must study the letter.
  7. Revelation 22:10: And he said to me, “Do not seal up the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is near.

Close:

1. Be encouraged, God is in control of everything [everyone say everything], even time.

Speaking of encouragement, it is not directly related, but I want to exhort all of us to be encouragers. I recently heard the following in a Chuck Swindoll message:

In a message such as this, because it illustrates to me that even the President of the United States at times needs a word of encouragement. Another of those golden moments turned up on television the other day, only a small minority must have seen it because not only was it on PBS, but it was a documentary on that most staid of subjects, a library.

His was an agony that reflected the suffering and turmoil of his country. And there is something touchingly pathetic in the picture of this great leader seeking solace and self-assurance from the comfort of a few old newspaper clippings. Who would have thought the night of his tragic death that earlier that evening in the Oval Office under candlelight, the man was reading the words of somebody who believed in him?[1]

[1] From Insight for Living Daily Broadcast: Strengthening Your Grip on Encouragement, Part 3, Feb 27, 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/insight-for-living-daily-broadcast/id89603501?i=1000696323884&r=1115
This material may be protected by copyright.

2. Take this book seriously.

I don’t know about you, but I can get discouraged when I hear the news. But isn’t it encouraging to know that God is in control? Look at this rope. [Have someone in the back row pick up the other end.] God is in control of time. God placed each of us here for a reason. God entered John’s time and told him of the things to come.

Revelation is part of the Bible, the Word of God.

Do you know Jesus?

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

Pray

Paul and Barnabas Witness on Cyprus (Acts 13:4–12)

Prepared and preached for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, February 23, 2025

Tony Evans writes:

The reason why we don’t do more evangelism is that we’ve lost our concern for the lost. Most people are not concerned that they are lost. They’re like the little boy at Disneyland who was enjoying Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. He was enjoying the Ferris wheel and the roller coasters. He was having a marvelous time and in the midst of the crowd got separated from his parents. When he got separated from his parents, he didn’t know that he was lost because he was having so much fun on the rides.

Satan has so constructed this world order to give you enough distractions so that you don’t know you’ve gotten lost in your spiritual Disneyland. We’ve got a world full of people who don’t know that the fun in this world and all this world is offering them—the movies, the parties, the clubs, the social relationships, the money, and the job—is all a satanic camouflage to keep them from realizing that they have been separated from God. Mankind spends so much time having fun that they don’t know that they are lost.

However, the parents of this particular child were looking for him. They knew he was lost at Disneyland. They went to an officer and told security that they couldn’t find their child. The security man led the parents to the lost child, who didn’t even know he was lost.

God wants to find lost people. We are the security guards to bring lost people into contact with the God who wants to regain fellowship with them. That’s our task in evangelism. We are the ones God has chosen to deliver this message.^260,[1]

My theme today is:

Paul and Barnabas Witness on Cyprus

1. Context-
   1. In the previous verses, the Holy Spirit told them to set apart Paul and Barnabas for the work the Lord called them to.
   2. They prayed over them and sent them out.
2. We see the openness to God’s Word (Acts 13:4–7):
   1. Their message is well received throughout the island, especially by the governor, Sergius Paulus.^[2]
   2. Acts 13:4–7 (ESV) ⁴ So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. ⁵ When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John to assist them. ⁶ When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. ⁷ He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God.
   3. Now, we are getting into the geography of the book of Acts.
   4. They leave the city of Antioch and sail to Cyprus.
   5. Cyprus is an island.
   6. They go to the city of Salamis.
   7. They begin proclaiming God’s Word in the synagogues of the Jews.
   8. Notice that they always go to the Jews first.
   9. Verse 5, Acts 13:5, says that they had John to assist them. 
   10. Look at Acts 13:6: they had gone through the whole island, as far as Paphos. Paphos is the other side of the island.
   11. Now, they see this Jewish magician. There are some extra details about him.
   12. He was a Jewish false prophet named, Bar-Jesus.
   13. The NET Bible reads: Named Bar-Jesus. “Jesus” is the Latin form of the name “Joshua.” The Aramaic “bar” means “son of,” so this man was surnamed “son of Joshua.” The scene depicts the conflict between Judaism and the emerging new faith at a cosmic level, much like the Simon Magus incident in Acts 8:9–24. Paul’s ministry looks like Philip’s and Peter’s here.^[4]
   14. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence.
   15. This man summoned Barnabas with Saul (That is Paul) to hear the Word of God.
   16. Proconsuls in Acts governed a Roman province.
   17. Archaeology has turned up evidence for many of the proconsuls of Cyprus. At least one inscription bears the name “Paulus,” but he is too late to be Sergius Paulus.^[5]
   18. We will see more about this man in the next few verses.

• The opposition to God’s Word (13:8–11)
  1. 1. Elymas’s blasphemy (13:8): This false prophet and sorcerer (also called Bar-Jesus) attempts to prevent the governor from accepting Christ.
     2. Acts 13:8 (ESV)
     3. ⁸ But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
     4. Now, he is called Elymas.
     5. One source reads: Possibly Elymas is a Semitic word, as is Bar-Jesus, and “sorcerer” is its translation. In any case, true to his demonic influence, Elymas tried to keep Sergius Paulus from embracing the gospel.^[6]
     6. So, now they face opposition.
     7. Acts 13:9-11 (ESV)
     8. Elymas’s blindness (13:9–11): He is blinded by the judgment of God at the hand of Paul.
     9. ⁹ But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him ¹⁰ and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? ¹¹ And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand.
     10. Notice verse 9 now calls “Saul” “Paul.”
  
  
  1. 1. Paul is filled with the Holy Spirit.
     2. Paul looked intently at him and spoke to him.
     3. “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? ¹¹ And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.”
     4. The NET Bible points out: This rebuke is like ones from the OT prophets: Jer 5:27; Gen 32:11; Prov 10:7; Hos 14:9.^[9]
     5. Verse 11, Acts 13:11, reads that this happened just as Paul said.
     6. Again, from the NET Bible: The term translated mistiness [mist] here appears in the writings of the physician Galen as a medical technical description of a person who is blind. The picture of judgment to darkness is symbolic as well. Whatever power Elymas had, it represented darkness. Magic will again be an issue in Acts 19:18–19. This judgment is like that of Ananias and his wife in Acts 5:1–11.^[10]
     7. Wow!
     8. Take note, this punishment as only “for a time.” He could repent later on.
     9. Rydelnic (Moody Bible Institute) believes that Luke shows that Paul can do the same miracles with Gentiles as Peter did with Jewish people.[11]
  
  
  1. The obedience to God’s Word (13:12): The governor becomes a believer.^[13]
  2. Acts 13:12 (ESV)
  3. ¹² Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
  4. The “proconsul” believed. This would be Sergius believing.
  5. One source adds:

• The signs normally associated with conversion in Acts (baptism, reception of the Spirit) do not appear in this account of Sergius Paulus’s conversion. Possibly Luke just abbreviated his account, but it is also possible that Paulus’s belief amounted to nothing more than his being astonished at the teaching and the blindness that befell Elymas.^[14]

1. Applications:
   1. In verse 4, we see Paul and Barnabas go to work sharing the gospel. They were on mission. We must also be on mission.
   2. Do we follow through with commitments in a timely way? In Acts 13:1-3 they are commissioned, and the next verse records their departure.
   3. Do we care about taking the Gospel to those who have never heard?
   4. Do we care about evangelism?
   5. Do we have a burden for those lost?
   6. Paul and Barnabas did. They were on mission to share the gospel.
   7. In verse 5, they proclaim the gospel to the Jews first. There are several applications, but one of which is, do we care to take the gospel to our culture and people? Many times, we will go serve on mission trips far away, but missions begins at home. Yes, they traveled, but they began with their ethnicity. In Romans 10:1, Paul writes about his heart’s desire and prayer to God is for the Jewish people to be saved. He started with the Jewish people.
   8. In verse 5, we see John Mark is there to assist them. Are we comfortable to be an assistant? Are we comfortable to be an understudy?
   9. In verse 6, we see they took the gospel to the whole island. They were not satisfied with “good.” The book “Good to Great” begins with “Good is the enemy of great.”
   10. In verse 7, we see a man, Serius Paulus who wanted to hear the Word of God and they shared with him. Are we sensitive to those who want to hear the gospel?
   11. In verse 8, we see Paul confronts the magician.
   12. It says that Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit. Do we seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit? Do we seek to be Spirit-led?
   13. Paul boldly confronted the magician. Do we follow the Spirit’s lead?

Tony Evans writes:

About four or five years ago in Texas, a pilot left the motor running on a plane and somehow this plane engaged itself. It was without a pilot and took off. It was flying on its own. It stayed in the air for over ninety minutes. Then, the inevitable happened: it ran out of gas, crashed, and was totally destroyed.

For a while, you can fly on your own. For a while, you can take off and be somebody. For a while, you can act like God does not exist. For a while, you can play a little religion, but not be serious about subordinating yourself. And for a while, you can fly.

I know there are atheists, and they look like they’re flying. I know, sometimes you look at evil people and you say, How come they can be so evil and can fly so high? I know sometimes you are jealous when you look at folk who have no respect for deity and seem to be flying high. Keep watching, because sooner or later, they will run out of gas, crash, and be destroyed. When you fly your life without God in the pilot’s seat of your life, that’s what happens. That’s why the Bible says don’t be envious of the evildoers. Just because they are making money and getting ahead by doing wrong, don’t get jealous of them. One can only fly high on their own for a while, but there will come a point where they will run out of gas and will discover in an abrupt way there is a God who is Lord over the universe.^264,[15]

^[1] Tony Evans, Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2009), 93.

^[2] H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), Ac 13:4–7.

^[3] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:5.

^[4] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:6.

^[5] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

^[6] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

^[7] Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2109.

^[8] Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993), Ac 13:9.

^[9] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:10.

^[10] Biblical Studies Press, The NET Bible First Edition Notes (Biblical Studies Press, 2006), Ac 13:11.

[11] Open Line, Moody Radio, 02.18.2023)

chaps. chapters

^[12] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

^[13] H. L. Willmington, The Outline Bible (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999), Ac 13:8–12.

^[14] Stanley E. Porter, “Acts,” in CSB Study Bible: Notes, ed. Edwin A. Blum and Trevin Wax (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), 1741.

^[15] Tony Evans, Tony Evans’ Book of Illustrations: Stories, Quotes, and Anecdotes from More than 30 Years of Preaching and Public Speaking (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2009), 94.

The Antioch Church Commissions Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:1–3)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, February 16, 2025

Do you have a calling? How do you know if God has called you to something specific? How do you facilitate an atmosphere to hear God speak?

How do you know God’s will? Are you seeking God’s will?

Do you treat God like He is the owner of the universe and the creator? I was at the store when Mercedes was almost three years old. Meagan said to grab some potatoes. I went to grab some potatoes. Mercedes said, “Those aren’t the right potatoes.” I said, “Yes, they are.” She said, “No, they are not.” I said, “Yes, they are.” She said, “They are not the right potatoes, Daddy!” I said, “Mercedes, you have been alive for three years; how do you know?” Is that how we act with God? We act like Mercedes. We act like we know it all to the Supreme Creator, and maybe we do not seek His will when He knows it all.   

In Acts 13:1-3, the church in Antioch hears God’s call to set aside Paul and Barnabas for God’s mission. They follow through with that. I want to talk about this passage for a few minutes and show you that the call to missions was heard because they were worshipping and fasting. They were seeking Him. They were putting God on the throne.  

Acts 13:1–3 (ESV)

13 Now there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers, Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. ² While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” ³ Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

This is a pivotal point in the Book of Acts. Paul the apostle was just introduced in chapter 7. At that time, he was a young Jewish man persecuting the church.

Then, in Acts chapter 9, Saul became a Christian. Jesus confronted him.

Now, between Acts chapter 9 and Acts chapter 13, around 12 or 13 years have passed. Paul was converted in about A.D. 33; now it is around A.D. 46 or 47. In Acts chapter 13, the focus changes from Peter to Paul. The rest of the book of Acts is predominantly about Paul. Look how it happens.

1. The setting:
   1. Verse 1: they are in Antioch. Antioch would be north of Jerusalem in Syria. In Acts 11:19ff, we read about how they got to Antioch.
   2. Verse 1 tells us there are prophets and teachers in Antioch. Verse 1 lists four of these specific prophets and teachers. Now, prophesy was a spiritual gift. The Holy Spirit would speak through a prophet to proclaim God’s truth. This might be a conviction about sin or some future event.
   3. Barnabas and Saul (Paul) were listed among these prophets. There is also Simeon called Niger. Niger is Latin for black, so it is likely he was from Africa. Lucius of Cyrene is also a Latin name, and he is likely from an area in Northern Africa, too.
   4. Then there is an interesting note about this man, Manaen. He was brought up with Herod. This is the same Herod who had James killed and brought Jesus to trial and others. Manaen was brought up with him. The Greek wording suggests having the same wet nurse. It is possible that Manaen was the child of one of their slaves. Herod grew up in Rome, and it was common for the children of slaves to grow up with the master’s children. The children grow close, and the slave is freed when he or she is an adult. Either way, Manaen is now serving the Lord with the gift of prophecy or teaching.
2. Verse 1 showed us “who” and verses 2 and 3 show us “what.”
   1. Verse 2 says they were worshipping the Lord and fasting. Isn’t that an interesting intro? What is about to happen, happens while they are coming into the presence of the Lord in worship and fasting.
   2. There are other examples of significant things happening during worship. In Isaiah 6, Isaiah was called while in the temple performing a priestly duty.
   3. Fasting means abstaining from food and possibly other pleasures to seek God. The people of Antioch were worshipping the Lord and fasting. They were seeking God for input. God is about to give them His guidance.
   4. They were worshipping and fasting, and the Holy Spirit spoke to them. The Holy Spirit likely spoke through one of the prophets. The Lord wanted Paul and Barnabas set aside for His work. This idea of setting aside means to set apart for a special purpose. The Lord wanted Paul and Barnabas set apart for His purposes.  Back when Paul became a Christian, the Lord said that He would use Paul to reach the Gentiles. That is about to happen.

• The response:
  1. Verse 3 is about the church’s response. The church obeys. At this point, the Lord hadn’t told Paul or Barnabas where they were going. It doesn’t matter. Paul and Barnabas made themselves available. The church gathered together, and they laid hands on them. This is comparable to ordination. They were sent out.
  2. From Acts 13:4- 14:26, we can read about the missionary journey that resulted from this. Many people heard the Gospel because the church in Antioch was in an atmosphere to hear God.
  3. They were worshipping and fasting. Then Paul and Barnabas obeyed. Paul had taken the Gospel to the known world by the end of Acts. He might have taken it as far as Spain. He took the Gospel to Rome. Things happen when you intentionally create an atmosphere to hear God.
  4. This happened to Meagan several years ago. She was working at McDonalds at the time. She was spending some time in prayer before work when she heard the phone ring. We usually don’t need to interrupt our time with God by answering the phone. But in this instance, she received a job offer. This happened during prayer time.

This Scripture passage shows us a few things. One is that foreign missions are essential. This is Paul’s call, and they go far away. Secondly, this text shows how to hear God’s call by being involved in the spiritual disciplines. These are prayer, worship, fasting, Scripture reading.  

People need the Lord everywhere. While Paul was going around the known world with the Gospel, James was pastoring the Jerusalem church. James, the half-brother of Jesus, stayed home to pastor the church. Missions are important, local and foreign.

Missions is about ministering to temporary felt needs and eternal spiritual needs.

You need to know that you will not hear God if you are not in the spiritual disciplines. Prayer, reading Scripture, worship, and sometimes fasting are imperative to hearing God. Maybe God will call you to a short-term mission trip. Maybe God will call you to full-time missions. Maybe God will be calling you to a new ministry around here. Maybe God will call you to do something else. Will you hear God’s call?

Chuck Swindoll shares the following (this is a copy of the transcript, I apologize for anything that doesn’t read correctly):
“Several years ago, I was asked by an organization that I have loved for many years, the Navigators, to come to their reunion at Estes Park, Colorado, and to be one of the speakers. I was thrilled to be able to do that.
And I traveled there and I found out after I was there that they hadn’t all gotten together for 17 years. So it was a great reunion of this fine Christian organization. The camp was just full of people with stories and hugs and embraces and wonderful moments together.
And it was kind of a sort of reliving the past for that whole week. Well, we finished our time there and a man was to drive me back to Denver to catch a plane back home. On the way back, he said, can I tell you my story?
And I said, sure. He said, actually, it’s a story of closed doors. Great, I said, I’ve had a few of those.”

“So tell me what yours was. He said, we could not find peace in any manner staying in the States. And while at a conference with a number of the leadership of the Navigators, it fell my opportunity to be the man who would open the work in Uganda.
Uganda. He said, I could hardly spell it. When they pointed to me and said, perhaps that’s where the Lord would have you go.
He said, I went home, I told my wife and told our children, I think they had three at the time. Their oldest son was just about to go into school. Not quite.
So there are three little kiddos. And he said to his wife, honey, are you ready to take on the challenge of Uganda and all the holes? She said, if that’s where God wants us, I want to do that.
So they flew to Nairobi, Kenya. Now, couples, for a moment, picture it. You got three kids, one of them still in diapers, one of them should be, they’re all little.”

“You got them flying over to Nairobi, you land, you put your family up in a hotel, you’ve got limited amount of money, you rent a car, a land rover, and you drive from Nairobi into the country of Uganda. Remember, this was just after Idi Amin’s terror reign. He said, one of the first things that caught my eye when I came into the little town, the village, where I was going to spend my first night, and it was dark, were eight, nine-year-old kids with automatic weapons.
Boom, boom, boom, boom, boom, shooting them off in the sky. And I’d drive by, it was like, they’d stare at me and point at me. I thought, no, no, no, no, no, not now.
You know, it took me enough to get here. But it was that kind of context. It was that kind of volatile setting.”

“And he thought, Lord, are you there? He pulled up at a little place, a dimly lit hotel, and he thought, well, I’ll spend the night, lonely, unable to connect with his wife at the hotel back in Nairobi. And he goes up to the counter, and the man that’s taking care of the registration is asleep.
So he wakes him up, speaks a little bit of English, and he registers, there’s one room left, one bed available. So he goes up two flights of stairs, and he gets to the room, opens the door, turns on this little naked light bulb hanging over a table, and one bed is unmade, and his bed is still made up. And he realized, I am sharing this room with somebody.
He said, I dropped to my knees, and I said, Lord, look, I’m afraid. I’m in a country I don’t know, in a culture that’s totally unfamiliar. I have no idea who sleeps in that bed.”

“And he said, just as I was finishing my prayer, boom, the door opens, and here’s this 6 foot 5 inch African saying, what are you doing in my room? Beautiful British English. And he stood up, and he said, I stood there, because this fellow is kind of short, and he said, believe me, I got this bed, and I won’t be here but just one night.
And the fellow said, what are you doing in my country? He said, well, I’m with a little organization called the Navigators. And he broke into this enormous grin, put his arms around this guy, and hugged him.
He said, he lifted me up off the floor and just danced around with me, is hugging me. Praise God, praise God, says this African. And he’s thinking, praise God, let me down.”

“You know, and they sit down at the table, and this brother in Christ, this fellow Christian, this African said, for two years, I had prayed that God would send someone to me from this organization. And he pulls out a little verse pack, and at the bottom of each of the verses, it says, the navigators, Colorado Springs, Colorado. He said, are you from Colorado Springs, Colorado?
He said, I was, but I’m coming to Uganda to begin a work for the navigator. That man became his best friend, a member of his board, helped him find a place to live, helped him rebuild a section of his home, taught him about the culture, helped him with a little bit of the language needs that he had, and he became his best friend for those 14 years they were there.

After 12, 14 years—I forget the exact number of years—they finished their work there. It was established.
Others from the staff of the Navigators came and picked up the work, and this dear little family came back. He had not been back quite a year. His son was finishing his high school, and the high school class was to go to Washington, DC for one of those field trips.
You know what they often do with high school kids? They take them there to look at the monuments and let them see the White House and these great scenes across the nation’s capital. He said to his boy before he left, put his arms around him, and he said, Son, here’s $40.
I want you to buy something that will be a great memory for you so that you can put it in your room and just call it all your own. This is your money. Do with it as you please.
So the kid goes to Washington, DC. They stay almost a week and he comes back with his package. He says, I want to surprise you, Dad”

“So he doesn’t let him come in his room until he finishes. And they walk in his room and the kid had bought a huge Ugandan flag that he put over his bed. He said, those are the best years of my life, Dad.
Talk about perspective. He feared that by going to Uganda, he would destroy or hurt or cripple his family when in fact, his son has a passion now for God’s work outside the borders of these United States. He would have never had that if he had not obeyed and walked through the open door.
God is full of surprises. And if you have come to a closed door, be very, very sensitive.”[1]

[1] From Insight for Living Daily Broadcast: Closed Doors, Open Doors, Part 2, Feb 13, 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/insight-for-living-daily-broadcast/id89603501?i=1000691549656&r=838
This material may be protected by copyright.

First, Do you know Jesus yourself?

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

Pray

The Death of James, Peter’s Deliverance From Prison (Acts 12:6–19)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, February 9, 2025

Maybe you have seen the 1960’s television show Hogan’s Heroes? Colonel Hogan was the leader of a group of POWs in a German prison of war camp during World War II. The show is comic and reveals how many times the POWs can spy on the Germans to get information to the American and Allied forces. As all of you know, being a prisoner is never that comic.

In my research, I read of a US Army Air Core pilot flying back to England and hitting some flack. He crashed in Germany and was placed in a Stalag. He was eventually released (probably after the war); however, he could never see the men he was on the bomber with again.

In the Bible, there is one comic story about Peter, the Apostle, being miraculously released from prison. Let’s read Acts 12:5-19, and then I will show you that God answers prayer and we serve an amazing God who is not limited.

Acts 12:5–19 (ESV)

⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

⁶ Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. ⁷ And behold, an angel of the Lord stood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his hands. ⁸ And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and put on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” ⁹ And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. ¹⁰ When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him. ¹¹ When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

¹² When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying. ¹³ And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. ¹⁴ Recognizing Peter’s voice, in her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. ¹⁵ They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is his angel!” ¹⁶ But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. ¹⁷ But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to James and to the brothers.” Then he departed and went to another place.

¹⁸ Now when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. ¹⁹ And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent time there.

Let’s talk about this passage:

1. God hears our prayers (verses 6-10):
   1. In verse 5, we heard the people were praying.
   2. In verse 6, we see that Peter was asleep.
   3. Would you be asleep in a prison?
   4. He is asleep between two soldiers. More soldiers were guarding the doors, and he was sleeping. The prisons were probably not that comfortable.
   5. It was customary back then to have your right hand chained to a soldier’s left hand; however, it appears Peter was chained on both sides to a soldier.
   6. Peter could be content because he knew and followed the Scriptures: Peter was content with the situation. He had faith and knew everything was going to be okay. This could be because he knew he would die an old man (John 21:18-19), or he was just not anxious (Phil. 4:11).
   7. Peter knew other principles: “I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep; for Thou, Lord, only makest me to dwell in safety” (Ps. 4:8). Or, “Fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of My righteousness” (Isa. 41:10).
   8. Peter wouldn’t be asleep for long.
   9. In verse 7, a light shines in; Peter is still asleep; however, now the guards are asleep too. Note, these are Roman guards. These are the best of the best, and they are sleeping!
   10. An Angel comes in and knocks him to wake him.
   11. The chains just fell off. Imagine that. How neat is that? Imagine being in a dark, dirty prison, and now it is all lit up by an angel, and your chains fall off.
   12. The angel tells him to put on his sandals and cloak.
   13. One of my sources suggested that Peter may have thought of this every time he laced his sandals and put on his cloak.
   14. Wow! What a thought, but think about this: this is a life-altering, life-changing experience. Would you forget it? An angel wakes him up.
   15. In the following few verses, Peter thinks this is a dream. He didn’t think it was real. They got up and went through some gates, including the one in the city. The gate opened by itself, and then the angel departed. The gate opened by itself. Realize that garage door and gate openers were not sold at Lowe’s in their day. This was God’s doing, and this is amazing. The angel just disappeared. Puff, gone.
   16. In verse 11, Peter realizes this is real. Peter had been thinking this was a dream the whole time. Peter did not think that this was real.
   17. I find that somewhat interesting. Peter witnessed the resurrection. He witnessed all the miracles of the resurrection. Remember Acts chapter 10, he witnessed that vision, but he did not think this was real. He could have thought this was simply another vision of what God wanted him to do. But he did not think it was real.
2. Peter at the house (Acts 12:11-17).
   1. Peter knocks on the door.
   2. A servant girl named Rhoda comes to answer; she hears Peter’s voice, and before she lets him in, she goes and tells the people he is there. They don’t believe her. However, she insists. They then say it is his angel. Peter keeps knocking, and eventually, they let him in.
   3. Peter tells them what happened and to tell James and the rest.
   4. They were praying for his release, and when he showed up, they did not believe it was him.
   5. Do we ever pray for something and not believe God will follow through?
   6. The story ends with Peter going to another place and Herod killing the guards.

Close:

Unfortunately, all prisoners of war do not get an escape like that. But wait, was Peter a prisoner of war? Yes! He was. We are all in a spiritual battle with the devil. They prayed, and God answered that prayer. We need to always pray about all things. We need not be surprised when God answers. Pray for God’s will and expect God’s will to come through. Also, remember there are many Christians right now being martyred for their faith. Pray for them.

Remember who you are in Christ.

Swindoll shares

Reading, in a little book called Jesus Makes Me Laugh, clever work, good humor, but underneath it is a real message, writes toward the end of the book, I remember going home from the Navy during World War II.

Because he is faithful.[1]

[1] From Insight for Living Daily Broadcast: God’s Mysterious Immutability, Part 2, Feb 5, 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/insight-for-living-daily-broadcast/id89603501?i=1000688999795&r=1216
This material may be protected by copyright.

Let’s pray

God is Holy (Isa. 6:1-7)

Prepared and preached by Pastor Steve Rhodes for and at Bethel Friends Church in Poland, OH on Sunday, February 2, 2025

Once upon a time, there were two brothers, eight and ten years old, who were exceedingly mischievous. Whatever went wrong in the neighborhood, it turned out they had had a hand in it. Their parents were at their wits’ end trying to control them. Hearing about a priest nearby who worked with delinquent boys, the mother suggested to the father that they ask the priest to talk with the boys. The father replied, “Sure, do that before I kill them!”

The mother went to the priest and made her request. He agreed, but said he wanted to see the younger boy first and alone. So the mother sent him to the priest. The priest sat the boy down across a huge, impressive desk he sat behind. For about five minutes they just sat and stared at each other. Finally, the priest pointed his forefinger at the boy and asked, “Where is God?” The boy looked under the desk, in the corners of the room, all around, but said nothing. Again, louder, the priest pointed at the boy and asked, “Where is God?” Again the boy looked all around but said nothing. A third time, in a louder, firmer voice, the priest leaned far across the desk and put his forefinger almost to the boy’s nose, and asked, “WHERE IS GOD?” The boy panicked and ran all the way home.

Finding his older brother, he dragged him upstairs to their room and into the closet, where they usually plotted their mischief. He finally said, “We are in BIG trouble.” The older boy asked, “What do you mean, BIG trouble?” His brother replied, “God is missing, and they think we did it.”[1]

I don’t remember the date. I think it was a Sunday afternoon. A group of us went to a mall outside of Cincinnati. The group included Meagan and I, my brother, and my now sister-in-law. None of us were married at the time. I was twenty-one years old. While at the mall, we entered a jewelry store and looked at rings. It was not in our plans to look at engagement rings, but I could tell the one Meagan liked. It was a “princess cut” diamond ring. It was under the light and absolutely beautiful. The light made the diamond sparkle. It was the ring I knew I had to purchase for Meagan. I gave her that style ring a few months later as I proposed marriage to Meagan.

Do you ever notice that the jewelry looks more beautiful at the store? Why? The jewelry is clean and displayed in a way that shows its beauty. The light shows how gorgeous the diamonds are.

One could argue that the jewelry in the store is holy. That is a generic sense of the word. It means set apart for a purpose. That is very generic. It does not compare to the subject today, but I did want to use it to explore the holiness of God.

God is holy.

God is set apart. God is completely other than who we are.

My theme today:

God is holy; understand and take seriously the holiness of God.

Application:

Respond like Isaiah- woe is me…

Receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. The only way we can come into His presence is through Jesus.

1. Isaiah in the temple.
   1. Look at Isaiah 6:1 (ESV) In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled the temple.
   2. This gives us some context.
   3. Understand that Isaiah was already a prophet of the Lord. We can read about that in Isaiah 1.
   4. Now, King Uzziah had died which was 740 B.C. This marks the end of a lengthy reign of prosperity (2 Chron. 26).
   5. Uzziah ascended to the throne when he was sixteen years old. He reigned in Jerusalem for fifty-two years. Think of it, fifty-two years!^[2]
   6. How many presidents have we seen in the last fifty-two years?
   7. Biden, Trump, Obama, Bush, Clinton, Bush, Reagan, Carter, and Nixon.
   8. I like how R. C. Sproul shares: But when Isaiah entered the temple he saw another king, the Ultimate King, the One who sat forever on the throne of Judah. He saw the Lord.^[3]
   9. C. Sproul shares that the village of Rome was founded the same year Uzziah died. Also:
   10. He points out that most scholars think Isaiah is not seeing this in the temple but seeing into the Lord’s heavenly temple. Further, God created everything with what they need. He created fish with fins. God created Seraphim with the ability to cover themselves from the holiness of God.[4]
   11. So, Isaiah sees the Lord seated upon the throne.
   12. Did he see this? Yes.
   13. Was God literally there, or was this a vision?
   14. It was a vision, but we know it affected the temple Isaiah was in (verse 4).
2. The Holiness of God.
   1. Look at this. Isaiah sees the Lord upon a throne, high and lifted up.
   2. The train of His robe filled the temple.
   3. Isaiah is seeing the Lord in majesty.
   4. Once upon a time, I was in the sanctuary. I started with “once upon a time,” but this did happen. I was walking through and spending time in prayer. It was a Saturday evening, and it was dark outside. Then I thought I heard voices. Eventually, I did hear voices. After some phone calls, I realized that a radio station was coming through the speakers in the narthex. Now, that was quiet. However, what Isaiah sees is not quiet.
   5. Isaiah sees the greatness of God.
   6. How big is your view of God?
   7. I believe if we would only begin to recognize the awesomeness of God we would not trifle with Him.
   8. You are thinking, “I do not trifle with God.”
   9. Yes, you do.
   10. How seriously do you take worship?
   11. How seriously do you take sin? Do you realize that our sin is high treason against the creator of the universe?
   12. What if I told you that this facility had been exposed to a deadly virus and that anything you touched would contaminate you? What would you do? Would you hurry to wash your hands, clothes, and everything else? Would you wash them extra well? Would you try not to touch anything before you leave?
   13. Of course.
   14. Why don’t we think of sin that way?
   15. We are exposed, we are contaminated, and we do not care.
   16. God redeems us through Jesus, but we are not eager to seek Him to get help from our sins.
   17. God is holy.
   18. Isaiah 6:2–3 (ESV)
   19. ² Above him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. ³ And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;  the whole earth is full of his glory!”
   20. This is more detail.
   21. There are angels.
   22. What do the angels do? They cover their faces, possibly because no one can see the Lord.
   23. They cry, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts…”
   24. Do you know this is the only attribute of God repeated like that?
   25. In Hebrew, we cannot use the term “holiest.” No, they must repeat something three times to express that God is the most holy.
   26. Sproul shares: Nowhere else in scripture is an attribute of God repeated three times.
   27. Nowhere do we hear that He is “love, love, love.”
   28. Many scholars think that holiness is not a single attribute but one that captures all the others. Holiness makes Him unique. Holiness points to the transcendent majesty, the superlative greatness, the otherness that characterizes God and makes Him unique and worthy of our worship.[5]
   29. Isaiah 6:4 (ESV) ⁴ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called, and the house was filled with smoke.
   30. What Isaiah saw affected creation.
   31. There was an earthquake.
   32. There was smoke.
   33. This was Isaiah experiencing the holiness of God.
   34. Timothy Keller shares:
   35. One of the more hilarious examples of the presence of the holy is in Mark 4 where Jesus is in the boat with his disciples. There is a storm that comes up, and they’re all afraid. He calms the storm, and they’re terrified, because the rescue is more terrifying to them than the peril from which they were rescued.
   36. The storm isn’t anywhere near as terrifying as to realize you’re in the presence of God Almighty. They were terrified. They said, “Who is this?” I don’t know what Ludwig Feuerbach and Freud thought about Mark 4. Those are the guys who tried to explain religion. They said, “Religion grew up because when human beings were primitive we were scared of nature. We were scared of the storms, so we had to invent a God we could go to and get help from. We were afraid of impersonal nature, so we had to invent a God who would enable us to deal with the frightening world we lived in.”^[6]
3. Isaiah’s response.
   1. Isaiah 6:5 (ESV)
   2. ⁵ And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!”
   3. How do we respond to the holiness of God?
   4. If we read Scripture and something convicts us, do we repent? Do we ask God for help so that we can do better? Do we get help? Do we repent to those we sinned against?
   5. How do we respond if we are convicted in a sermon like this?
   6. Isaiah 6:6–7 (ESV) ⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.”
   7. Sproul shares: A recent survey of ex-church members revealed that the main reason they stopped going to church was that they found it boring. It is difficult for many people to find worship a thrilling and moving experience. We note here, when God appeared in the temple, the doors and the thresholds were moved. The inert matter of doorposts, the inanimate thresholds, the wood and metal that could neither hear nor speak had the good sense to be moved by the presence of God. The literal meaning of the text is that they were shaken. They began to quake where they stood.^[7]
   8. How is God boring?
   9. I think too often, we try to entertain people because they find God boring.
   10. Again, Sproul: The doors of the temple were not the only things that were shaking. The thing that quaked the most in the building was the body of Isaiah. When he saw the living God, the reigning monarch of the universe displayed before his eyes in all of His holiness, Isaiah cried out, “Woe is me!”^[8]
   11. Do we know that we need forgiven?
   12. I saw in a video of a man getting pulled over by a police officer. The man quickly said, “I think I know why you pulled me over. Can I step out of the truck?” The officer said, “Yes.” The man said, “Can I step to the back of the truck?” The officer said, “Yes.” The man said, You see, the woman in the front seat is my wife. The woman in the back seat is my mother-in-law. My mother-in-law came to visit, and she and my wife started arguing. Eventually, my mother-in-law said to take her home right away. Officer, I am trying to get her home as quickly as possible. They may start talking if I take too long, and my mother-in-law may want to stay longer. Do you understand my problem?” The officer said, “Yes, I understand. I am going to give you a police escort. We will use the lights and everything.” They then left.
   13. That man will need to be forgiven for that one. Obviously, that is just for humor.
   14. Ha ha!
   15. Martyn Lloyd-Jones gave the illustration for this in one of his sermons I’ve never forgotten, and some of you have certainly heard it. He says if somebody comes to you and says, “I’ve paid one of your bills,” you have no idea how excited to be. It could be they’ve paid postage due, paid a couple of dollars so a package that had postage due could be received. On the other hand, maybe they paid $40,000 of your back IRS taxes. Until you know the actual amount of the debt, you don’t know how joyful to be. The size of the debt actually determines the magnitude of the joy.^[9]
   16. Do we recognize the holiness of God?
4. How do we respond to God?
   1. In Genesis 15:9-17 we see the account of the covenant ceremony between God and Abraham.
   2. God is making a covenant with Abraham.
   3. Abraham brings God a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old female goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon.
   4. The goat and the heifer are cut in two.
   5. A deep sleep falls upon Abram.
   6. God walks between the animals.
   7. That is an ancient covenant ceremony in which God was saying, “If I do not keep my covenant with you, may I be like these animals.
   8. Two thousand years later, Jesus was stricken for us.
   9. The Israelites and we did not keep the covenant with God. Yet, our holy God was stricken for us.
   10. Romans 5:8 (ESV) …but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
   11. Jesus went to the cross, and He was stricken.
   12. Jesus went to the cross, and He was cursed.
   13. Jesus was slain for us.
   14. Why?
   15. Because God is holy, and we needed a holy sacrifice for our sins.
   16. Receive Jesus as Lord and Savior. The only way we can come into His presence is through Jesus.
   17. How can we come into a relationship with a holy God? Only by receiving Him as Lord and Savior can we know Him. Jesus went to the cross for us.
   18. God is holy. That is why we need a Savior.

[1] https://www.ling.upenn.edu/~beatrice/humor/where-is-god.html

^[2] R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1993), 27.

^[3] R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1993), 29.

[4] Renewing Your Mind. 03.10.2021

[5] Sproul, Renewing Your Mind; 03.11.2021

^[6] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

^[7] R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1993), 39–40.

^[8] R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1993), 40.

^[9] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).

In College, I wrote a group paper titled Modern Martyrdom:

Here is a quote from a source we used:

“The grounds for hostility to the Christians were not always the same, and often opposition and persecution were localized. The loyalty of Christians to “Jesus as Lord,” however, was irreconcilable with the worship of the Roman emperor as “Lord,” and those emperors, such as Trajan and Marcus Aurelius, who were the most deeply committed to unity and reform were also the ones who recognized the Christians as a threat to those goals and who therefore undertook to eliminate the threat. As in the history of other religions, especially Islam, opposition produced the exact contrary of its intended purpose, and, in the epigram of the North African church father Tertullian, the “blood of the martyrs” became the “seed of the church.”

Is it over? Is persecution over?

The birth of a healthy baby girl is usually a joyous occasion. But when Meriam Ibrahim gave birth to her daughter, Maya, on Tuesday, May 27, it triggered a two-year countdown to her execution.

On May 15, 2014, the 27-year-old Sudanese doctor was sentenced to death for apostasy by a Sudanese court. In addition, she was to endure 100 lashes for the crime of committing adultery—with her Christian husband. The judge ruled that the lashing would be carried out after she had recovered from delivering her baby and that her death by hanging would occur when her baby reached age two so she would have time to nurse the infant.

During her trial, the judge asked the young woman three times to recant her Christian faith, but she refused each time.[1] [I think she was released after some time]

That was recent. I read that over 100 million people are persecuted right now. A few years ago, I read that the Bible is illegal in 52 countries.

But Christianity is growing in these persecuted countries. Figure that out.

Jesus said in:

Matthew 5:10–12 (ESV)

¹⁰ “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

¹¹ “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹² Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.

Paul the Apostle wrote in:

2 Timothy 3:12 (ESV)

¹² Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted…

So, today, we come to a passage where the Jerusalem church is persecuted. We will look at that passage. I wish to teach that passage, and I also want to talk about persecution today. Goals today:

1. Learn about Acts 12:1-5
2. Learn about persecution in the world
3. Be ready for your Christian faith to be challenged, maybe even violently, especially if you are young.

Acts 12:1–5 (ESV)

About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. ² He killed James the brother of John with the sword, ³ and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. ⁴ And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. ⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

1. Let’s look at the passage: the apostles are persecuted.
   1. We have seen this before, but not so brutally.
   2. Now, it says, “about that time…”
   3. Take note: We are going back a few years before some of the previous events. This Herod—he died in A.D. 44. We know this.
   4. Things were going on, and it was political. So, what is going on? He wants to win points with his constituents and harm the apostles.
   5. Verse 2: He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.
   6. There is a church history legend that James was witnessing until his death.
   7. He was trying to convert the person who was to behead him until his death. However, we do not know if some of those stories are factual. I like to believe they are true.
   8. Now, get this: James is killed, and that pleased the Jews. Can you believe it? It made the Jews feel good that someone was dead. So, Herod brings Peter in. Peter is locked up with 16 guards. Can you believe it? 16 guards.
   9. Peter, he is a dangerous man, right?
   10. We will find out that 16 guards were not enough. Yes, they will have one job, just one job!
   11. BUT— verse 5, there was a church praying, and they were praying for him fervently or earnestly. We’ll come back to that. But let me make a note right now. The American Church cannot handle persecution. Correction: Some American churches cannot handle persecution without changing to put the Word of God and the Gospel at the forefront. Additionally, We need holistic, communal prayer. However, we all have some waking up to do.
   12. Before we move on, James died. He died. Remember that death is not the end as a follower of Christ. Death is not the end. We have an eternal hope. In 1 Cor. 15:50, Paul writes: Where O death is the sting? As we talk about persecution, remember that James was saved. We have eternal life and eternal hope.
2.  Now, let’s talk about persecution.
   1. I know that this is a very depressing subject for some. For some, it is not for some of you. You are like, “Yes, a challenge. I’ll go, send me…”
   2. Sometimes, we often send people on a mission with the wrong expectations.
   3. Jesus did not do this. But we often glance over these verses, at least in America. We have John 15:20, in which Jesus said we will be persecuted. If they persecuted Him, they would persecute us. Now, we can look at this passage in three ways.
      1. We could say. Well, maybe not always, or perhaps we are verbally attacked or something like that. This may be true because I bet most of us have not been actually persecuted.
      2. Or, we may not be persecuted because we are not doing our job as witnesses.
         1. If I am being the witness of Jesus Christ, then the devil will kick back with persecution.
         2. Ephesians 6:12 says there is a real spiritual battle.
      3. There is a third option: maybe you are not persecuted because you do not know Jesus.
   4. What about hope for persecution? I will talk about some things that may give hope in a minute. But let me give a few other thoughts:
      1. Let me say that I have read books about Christians persecuted through the ages, and their testimonies seem to talk of Spirit-filled peace with them, though not always.
      2. Rev. 6:9-11: these are saints who died as martyrs:

Revelation 6:9–11 (ESV)

⁹ When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness they had borne. ¹⁰ They cried out with a loud voice, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” ¹¹ Then they were each given a white robe and told to rest a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers should be complete, who were to be killed as they themselves had been.

• Pray to be ready-
  • Several years ago, a church member asked me about being ready for persecution; here are some personal applications that I pray for myself and my children:
    1. I will be a faithful witness in persecution as these disciples/apostles were.
    2. I must be a man of prayer, seeking the Lord, and in relationship with Him so that I am ready to be a witness in persecution. In verse 5, we see the church praying for him.
    3. I must be in the Word, always being ready to give an answer with gentleness and respect (1 Peter 3:15).
    4. I will know that persecution will come. Jesus said that we will be persecuted: Matthew 5:10-12; John 15:20: Jesus says that they persecuted me, they will persecute you.
    5. I will remember those in Acts 5:41 who rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for Christ’s name.
    6. I will remember Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 3:12, that all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
    7. I will remember Jesus’ words, not to worry about what to say (Matthew 10:19).
    8. I will pray for my brothers and sisters in need, as we see in verse 5, earnest prayer.

Close:

Jim Elliot wrote, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” We must be prepared to do this.

Jim Elliot wrote that and then he was martyred for Christ.

I am not going to ask you about commitment; that is implied.

I am going to ask you about prayer. Pray for the persecuted church.

Pray for the church in America, yourself, your children, and this church that we can be strong witnesses.

Others, do you know Jesus? Why would people go through this for Jesus?

For life everlasting, that is the answer. We always try to live longer, but we never will, not on our own.

God created us to be with him. (Genesis 1-2)

Our sin separated us from God. (Genesis 3)

Sins cannot be removed by good deeds (Gen 4-Mal 4)

Paying the price for sin, Jesus died and rose again. (Matthew – Luke)

Everyone who trusts in him alone has eternal life. (John – Jude)

Life that’s eternal means we will be with Jesus forever. (Revelation 22:5)

Pray

[1] CNN and other articles on May, 16, 2014

https://www.cnn.com/2014/05/15/world/africa/sudan-christian-woman-apostasy/index.html