Songs:
Welcome
Good morning… I am so happy to share God’s Word with you today so thank you for joining us.
Reading
"They devoted themselves to the Apostles doctrine and fellowship, in breaking of bread and to prayer" Acts 2:42
Introduction
Over the next few weeks, we are going to undertake a series which we have called the “Devoted to” series. We will use Acts 2:42 as our platform and be discussing subjects such as:
Devoted to the Apostles doctrine
Devoted to Christ
Devoted to our calling, fellowship, breaking of bread, and others.
I suppose that most of us think that this Cov19 lockdown experienced is the worst ever experienced…
It sure is not the norm, or pleasant in many ways…
It is creating hardship, and hunger, for many
Unemployment and sequestrations
Suffering and death… Despair and fear
And it seems never ending
But greater suffering and inconvenience has been experienced before.
But for those of us born post 1945… we have had it too easy
But at the same time we must not comply and cannot play down the threat that corona virus is
My problem is that in this day and age people are saying we do not have the time for religion anymore.
They are even saying that words written over 2000 years ago are irrelevant today
And our interpretation thereof must be revised
It is for this reason that, as we start our journey through Acts, I want to begin with a fairly lengthy introduction to the times and conditions that existed in Judea from the birth of Jesus to the writing of Acts by Luke … Up to A.D. 70
Because it is important to understand the context in which the growth of the church took place.
Consumer driven society
Post WW2 society has changed radically
There has been a massive shift in morals post war and post 1960
There has been a massive shift in the standard of living at the same time
I can only remember 3 family holidays as a boy
My grandchildren all know overseas holidays
Our wedding reception was an afternoon tea
These days R100 000 is considered fair
Our honeymoon was in a caravan
Many honeymoons now involve overseas destinations
My father was considered fortunate because we had new cars every 4 years
Today 2 cars per family is a norm
The second one is often an expensive SUV
But under our consumer driven economy things have improved
These are now the new norms… essentials
Until 2020 … Cov19
Melanie Verwoerd … ex ambassador to Ireland
Lockdown has taught us a new meaning to “Essential”
She believes we will outlive cov19
But things will not be the same again
The consumer driven economy is not sustainable
The consumer driven economy
Has driven a wedge in our relationships
It has caused employers to demand far more from employees
Taking up more time… causing more stress…
Leaving less time for our most important responsibilities
Church and family
Then came the lockdown
Time to think
Time to spend with wives and family
Time to go for a walk together in beautiful Cape Town autumn
It was wonderful
Life in Judea in antiquity
The days of the Lord Jesus and the Apostles were not easy days
Rome ruled…
It was a pyramid structure
Caesar at the top and widows and slaves at the bottom
There was no health system
Poverty was rife
No support systems
Corruption was a norm
Rome… proved to be a very hard task master who demanded crippling taxes and loyalty from all peoples.
Caesar Tiberius (A.D. 14-37) was an evil pervert without any moral goodness in him
The next Claudius (A.D. 41-54) followed by the infamous Nero (A.D. 54-68) who organized the persecution of Christians… to deflect blame for the fire that destroyed 75% of Rome
There followed a 2 year period of civil conflict… 3 Caesars
Next up was Vespasian (A.D. 69-79) who was followed by Titus (A.D. 79-81)
Of all the Caesars Caligula and Nero were the very worst.
By A.D. 60 zealots were banding together in the hope of driving Rome out.
In A.D 66 the resistance developed into full scale war
Under Vespasian, Galilee was defeated and he returns to Rome and is made Caesar in 68 after Nero’s death
His son Titus is put in charge of the Roman forces and he turns his attention to a 2 year lockdown siege of Jerusalem
Jerusalem is overrun in 70 A.D. and the place is decimated… burned to the ground. Herod’s temple is destroyed.
Josephus claim 1.1 million lives lost…
He says Titus took 97000 prisoners to Rome where they were….
Fed to the lions
Forced to become Gladiators and fight to the death
All as entertainment for the blood thirsty Roman citizens
The Jewish hierarchy… was a legalist burden also demanding its cut and giving nothing in return
Being totally opposed to Jesus and His claim to be Messiah
They start an attempted purge of anything resembling Christianity
As we go through Acts we find Paul experiencing massive opposition
In 2 Cor 11:23-26 he sums up his sufferings:
Jews … 5 x 39 lashes
Rods 3x
Stoning 1x
Perils wherever he went
Eventually beheaded in Rome… by Nero… 64 A.D.
Tradition tells us that
John was the only apostle to die of natural causes
The others were stabbed, stoned, martyred, clubbed, burned to death
Most of these happened between A.D. 44 and A.D. 72
The Book of Acts
Extra biblical evidence and clues from the book of Acts itself lead us to believe that the book was written by Luke between A.D. 63-70
Christians living in those days saw persecution from Rome, the Jewish authorities and the general population as seen in Acts
Corona 19 that we are experiencing at present cannot be compared with what went on from A.D. 37-66 under Caligula and Nero and later Vespasian.
But it is in these difficult times that the church was born and grew exponentially.
Small wonder Jesus said “Take up your cross and follow Me”
He knew what they would have to face.
Devotion to...
It is quite obvious that becoming a follower of Jesus carried with it a huge price
Christianity was not something that one tried out to see if it worked
It was all or nothing
The persecution was not just against the Apostles and leaders
The objective was to wipe out Christianity altogether
Death and fear were their weapons
Luke tell us … Acts 8:1-3
The Jews started a great persecution against the church
Saul made havoc of the church… (began to destroy he church)
He forced his way into homes
And dragged mothers and fathers off to prison
This was all going on at the same time that Caligula and Nero in particular were carrying out their vendettas
Why am I taking the time to tell you all this history?
Because…
Our materialistic society claims that in this day and age you don’t have time for the things of Jesus… too busy
We who have had it so easy in our post WW2 lives haven’t got time to dedicate ourselves to the spreading of the Gospel
Our consumer driven society won’t allow it
Materialism drives us on. We demand more and more essentials
Things we accumulate dictate our position in society
The bigger the car the better you are
Even the Gospel preached is watered down …
We don’t hear hell fire and brimstone anymore
It’s offensive
We are reluctant to say Jesus is the only way to God
Popular opinion says that it is a very narrow world view
We preach love and forgiveness only… not sin and judgement
But scripture gives equal prominence to both topics
That was not the Gospel that they preached in those days…
Why is Peter now so different… He was crucified
Why is Paul so fearless
Why did so many of the Apostles die for the cause
Just 4 words…
They devoted themselves to… Acts 2:42 NIV
Apostles doctrine, fellowship, breaking bread and prayer
The Hope of the Gospel
In the face of such opposition why were so many turning to a Message that could cost you your life
One word… HOPE
As I painted the historical picture I paint a picture of hopelessness
Bullied by…
Rome
Jewish authorities
By a society bowing to Rome
No support structures
Surrounded by disease and poverty
As a slave or a widow… what sort of future did you have
Now the Apostles come with a message of HOPE…
Hope for an eternal future through forgiveness of sin
Reserved in heaven… guaranteed
But much more than that
Here was a new way of life
Where there was equality
Wherein there were support structure
Where they shared all things with the widows, poor, sick
Here were men and women who were devoted to the Lord Jesus despite persecution
Who lived for and loved the people
Theirs was not just a religion but a way of life
They had lived with Jesus…
Seen first-hand His miracles
They in turn were full of His Spirit
Performing miracles
And all noted that they had been with Jesus… Acts 4:13
This was real
And so, even if it meant they had to suffer persecution
They turned to Jesus for salvation
In their thousands
Challenge
So where does all of this leave me… as a believer
Jesus said
Let him deny himself and take up your cross daily and follow me… Luke 9:23
Whoever does not bear his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple… Luke 14:27
What is he saying
He is demanding devotion to himself from all those who would follow him
The cross they bore then is the same cross we must bear now
So the question we must answer is…
Does my life show that I am devoted?
It was plain for all to see in the Apostles
That is one reason why the church grew
Do people want to follow Jesus Christ because of what they SEE in me
For the unbeliever
Being a Christian means massive day to day and eternal blessings
It comes as a free gift directly from the hand of God in and through the Lord Jesus Christ
Jesus had three encounters with men who loved this materialistic world
To each He said count the cost
The money or the cross
The rich young man … Mark 10:25
Chose the money not the cross
And went away sad
Judas Iscariot … John 12:5-6
Was with Jesus for three years
He helped himself from the communal box
Sold his soul for 30 pieces = R10,000
The money that was supposed to bring happiness brought regret = suicide
Zacchaeus … Luke 19:2
Lord… Yahweh…
I give the money away
I choose the cross not the money
It is a choice
The money or the cross
There must be devotion to Him… denial to self
What will you do with Jesus ...
He calls us to take up his cross
But He also says my burden is light
How can this be
David has the answer for us in Psalm 23
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil for you are with me. Your rod and staff they comfort me
Prayer
Lord Jesus we acknowledge our waywardness and ask that you make us your devoted disciples. We apologise for our sin and ask you to forgive us and help us to be devoted to you. Help us to be kingdom builders by your power and through your holy spirit. In Jesus name we pray this. Amen.
