Friday, October 7, 2022

Missing the Point [part two] ...

Fear of public speaking, fear of looking like an idiot in front of an audience, what could be worse?  So in those rare events when you are forced into the limelight to make some sort of speech, we tend to prepare, rehearse, and try to get ourselves ready however we can.  Some folks use cue cards.  Professionals use a teleprompter.  And children try to memorize what they are supposed to say.  We do our best, partly because we want whatever it is we have to say to come across well, be heard, and be understood by our listeners.  But in those even rarer impromptu situations when you have zero time to prep at all, your ability to “wing it” in front of a crowd may define whether you a “gift” for speaking in public, or whether you should never quit your day job.  Ideally you are never thrust into one of those impromptu situations throughout your life.  But they do happen.  And there is no way to prep for them, when they come up, they are just here, when nobody, least of all you, had time to imagine they would come.

Some might think pastors get impromptu situations all the time.  But really?  Oh sure, they face public speaking every weekend.  But those sermons are rarely done by winging-it.  Instead they are prepared well ahead of time.  And weddings, funerals, and child dedications are not events that occur without at least some foreknowledge they are coming.  These events generally have a lot in common, i.e. when you have done one baby dedication, you have done them all kind of thinking.  Being asked about your own personal testimony with Jesus may happen unexpectedly, but it tends to be the same story you have told a hundred times before, so that one is well rehearsed.  Even the questions that spiritual leaders are asked tend to follow similar lines of thinking, why me, why her, why does God permit evil to happen to good folks, when will it all end, how can I be saved, how do you know Jesus is real, etc. etc.  The answers to these questions for the speaker tend to be well rehearsed over a lifetime, if you have ever done any witnessing to anyone before.  So while it is not impossible for a pastor or spiritual leader to get caught with something impromptu that has not been well rehearsed, it is not as common as you might think.

But here is the kicker; when you are NOT a pastor, or well-rehearsed spiritual leader, and “then” you get asked to preach a sermon, or tell a story, in front of a crowd, with zero time to prep, no idea it was coming, and wham – the spotlight falls upon you – then what?  Can you imagine anything more nerve racking than that?  It does happen.  It did happen.  Let’s pick up with the study we began in our last post and continue looking at one of these type of impromptu situations.  It begins with Peter and John heading to the Temple to pray at about 3pm in the afternoon.  That’s all they intended to do.  But along the way they encounter a lame man, at the gate called “Beautiful” of the Temple, who then asked them for money.  They did not have any.  But instead, Peter looks the lame man in the eyes and says in the name of Jesus of Nazareth rise up and walk.  The man tries.  His legs and feet are restored and he winds up walking and leaping into the Temple praising God with all of his might.  If the story ended here and we printed the “and everyone lived happily for ever and ever” banner, we would all leave with the warm fuzzy in our tummy.  If we imagined ourselves as Peter in this story, we might wonder if that kind of miracle healing was still possible in our day, through our prayers.  But that is not where the story ends.  It continues.

Luke picks back up in the book of Acts, in the third chapter in verse 11 saying … “And as the lame man which was healed held Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon's, greatly wondering. The loud praise of this man, leaping for joy, just caused such a stir in an otherwise somber Temple gathering people were just amazed and spellbound at what had taken place.  This miracle was like a light in the darkness.  A light that could not, nor should not, be hidden.  It needed to be explained.  Later we will read, that more than 5000 men gathered to hear the explanation, so the size of the crown was no small thing.  Now I know you probably don’t imagine yourself as truly being like Peter in this story of old.  So you likely don’t pray prayers of miraculous healings, that result in someone leaping around praising God, particularly in such a crowded public place.  But that is us all, myself included, missing the whole point of this story.  We are all, meant for more.  This miracle was intended not to just be a light to the lame man changing his life, it was meant to be a catalyst light to every worshipper to point them back to the love Jesus Christ has for each of us.  Has the need for that kind of light ever been greater than now?

Luke continues in verse 12 saying … “And when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness we had made this man to walk?  The first thing Peter needs to do, is to center the credit for this healing back on God, not on anything to do with the “holiness” of Peter or John.  Human nature tends to look first at the person, instead of the God behind the person.  And so often we would relish the attention and praise we might get for being “the miracle worker”, even though it is always only the power of God that can do anything miraculous.  If the healer wants the credit, he serves a different master.  But now arises one of those dreaded impromptu situations.  One where there is zero time to prep, no rehearsed sermons to call on, and frankly Peter probably does not think of himself as any kind of preacher at all.  He has only given one sermon before.  It is not like he has made any kind of career out of this up to now.  He is young, uneducated, not qualified (by current standards), a known sinner, a guy who even denied Jesus when it counted.  This guy is not a preacher.  Neither are you?  Or, does God have a surprise for you coming soon, a situation just like this, a question, or a personal witness that right now you have no idea about.  But it is coming.  And Peter gives us the road map for how to handle it.

Luke continues in verse 13 saying … “The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go. [verse 14] But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; [verse 15] And killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses. [verse 16] And his name through faith in his name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.  Ouch.  Peter does not sugar coat his story.  He identifies that Jesus is the Son of God, and then quickly reminds this crowd that they recently killed Jesus when even Pilate wanted to let Him go.  He then tells the crowd that Jesus has risen from the dead and it is by faith in the name of Jesus that this lame man has been fully healed.  Perhaps not the most elegant way to start up a sermon, but keep in mind 5000 men were converted by the power of the Holy Spirit from the words Peter spoke.  Perhaps elegant, professional, and polished was NOT what God was looking for right then.  Perhaps the Holy Spirit was able to use the words of Peter such as they were to effect conviction and change.  Perhaps the Holy Spirit was feeding Peter what to say, right as he was saying it.

Luke continues in verse 17 saying … “And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers. [verse 18] But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. [verse 19] Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; [verse 20] And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: [verse 21] Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.  Then Peter says, even if you were ignorant before, it is time to repent now, to be converted, and ready for the refreshing and return of Jesus foretold by all the prophets of old.  Do you think Peter was concerned about looking like an idiot in front of this huge crowd?  Do you think Peter was even thinking about himself at all right about then?  I doubt it.  My guess is he was deep in the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, and fully content to open his own mouth with whatever words the Spirit put in them to say.  He did not need to prep.  He did not need to worry.  This sermon was to be preached whether he thought of himself as a preacher right then or not.  People needed to see the light cast back upon Jesus, both then and now.

Luke continues in verse 22 saying … “For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. [verse 23] And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. [verse 24] Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days. [verse 25] Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. [verse 26] Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.  And that last line is the essence of the Gospel and its power both then and now.  Jesus was sent to bless us, in that He will turn us away from our sins.  Moses foretold this.  Samuel and all the prophets foretold this.  This Jewish audience were the metaphorical sons of these prophets in that the blessing of Jesus coming was done in their lifetimes.  We are the same sons now; we have the same Bible to read and realize all this was done for us as well.  The Gospel is the same now.  Jesus is still turning hearts away from sin, and THAT is the biggest miracle He can perform for each one of us.  And frankly, it is the most needed one we have.

Jesus told us not to concern ourselves with what to say, when a time like this arose.  Don’t worry about it.  Let go, and let the Spirit put the words in your mouth to say.  Keep in mind the results of this sermon led to the conversion of 5000 men, who knows how many more were reached after the initial counting of this.  Who knows how many people were reached as these 5000 went home and told their families and friends what they saw and heard.  All because the most common of young person, allowed himself to be used in spreading the love of Jesus to those who needed it most.  All because a non-preacher became a preacher in the course of 2 sermons, he had no time to prepare for.  All because when a known sinner like Peter looked upon the lame man, he knew Jesus would heal that man, regardless of his own short comings, or the short comings of the lame man.  Jesus’ love is greater than our sin.  And the Power of Jesus is enough to turn our hearts away from our sins.  This is how Jesus saves us to the uttermost.

Isn’t it about time for us to start channeling the love and power of God, through that name of Jesus Christ back into the world as I know Jesus wants us to do?  It is not our power, it is His.  It is not our holiness, it is His.  It may not even be our love for another, but surely Jesus loves that precious soul more than we can imagine.  The time of miracles has come again.  Will you take your first step into the wider world?  Will you let go your sins (allowing Jesus to transform and save you), and focus on asking for Holy Spirit to be poured out on your life everyday?  In an age such as this, how will you be found?  The time is now, what will you do with it? …

 

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