Abounding Grace

Guest (Male): As we continue our introduction to Acts here on Abounding Grace, Pastor Ed explains what this book is really all about.

Pastor Ed Taylor: The Book of Acts can be defined this: it is the Spirit of God working through the Word of God through the people of God. That is the Book of Acts.

And so that’s our commitment. We’re going to teach you the Bible verse by verse. We’re going to go through from beginning to end. We’re going to speak about every topic. We’re going to apply it into your lives. We’re going to submit ourselves. We’re going to pray together. We’re going to fast together. We’re going to be men and women that are seeking the heart of God as imperfect as we are, living real, true, authentic lives in the power of the Holy Spirit.

Guest (Male): We're getting back to the basics here on Abounding Grace through a new study in Acts. Today, you'll hear Pastor Ed Taylor's introduction, setting the table for what's to come. We hope it's your desire, as it is ours, to live an authentic, Jesus-loving life. And this Book of Acts really shows us what that entails. The Lord also reveals to us in this wonderful Book how to be the church here in the 21st century. As you'll soon see, it involves the power and presence of the Spirit of God in your life. Here's Pastor Ed with part two of his message, "Authentic Jesus Loving Life."

Pastor Ed Taylor: Our study in the Book of Acts will be a call to simplicity. It will be a reminder of the source of our strength. It’s good to study the simple Book of Acts because Acts is the original template laid down for us from God himself, filled with principles and practicalities for the church, for us.

When you’re reading through the Book of Acts and we’re studying it, it is not like an owner’s manual. Actually, it comes to us from a form of writing in the Bible known as narrative. It’s a narrative account. It’s much easier to read than, say, the Book of Romans or the Book of Hebrews because it’s following the true story of the early believers, how they were able to turn their world upside down in a matter of years without technology, without all of the accoutrements we have today. It was just them and the Holy Spirit trusting in him.

And you have to understand when you launch into the Book of Acts where they were exactly. This is a group of people who, three years prior, encountered Jesus personally and made a conscious decision to turn their back on everyone and everything because of their faith that this was promised Savior, promised Messiah. They lost everything willingly, gave it up for the sake of following him and spent every day with him, morning, noon, and night.

They ate with him, hung out with him, went on the Sea of Galilee with him, they walked the roads, they joked, they saw him perform miracles. Can you imagine how they felt? Just imagine for a second. You know how there are people around that just encourage you? You can just feel the encouragement. When they show up, it’s like, oh, this is great. It’s palpable. Can you imagine the feeling when he was crying, they started crying. They felt his pain. They wondered about him. When he was happy, they rode that wave of happiness.

And then they abandoned him at his time of greatest need. They abandoned him. They turned their back on their best friend. I mean, they left everything, they lost. We can’t even relate. We may have lost some things or a few things or we may have family issues because we’re saved. We can share in some intersections of these things, but everything? Everything?

And then when they’re right down to it, they don’t have the physical fortitude to endure this with Jesus, and they abandon him and watch from a distance. And all the emotion that goes with that, all the shame, all the guilt. And then they watch him die. And then they decided it’s over. It was all a mistake. Let’s go back to work. Let’s go back to what it was before.

Only to be met by the Risen Lord. To have him show up and cook for you and encourage you and say, "No, no, you here, here. It was real. You are forgiven. You are restored." And listen, "Just wait in Jerusalem. Something special’s going to happen. Just wait in Jerusalem and your whole life’s going to be rocked. It’s going to be awesome."

And those of you that read in the Book of Acts, you know the day of Pentecost is that day that Jesus promised, the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Peter preaching a message. I mean, I’ve never personally seen this, I guess with the exception of being at a crusade-type event with Pastor Greg Laurie or Franklin Graham. I’ve seen a proclamation of the gospel and many, many people respond, but not like Peter, where there was this spiritual phenomena. And just in a heartbeat, from memory, he gives a message that you can read in two minutes, and 3,000 people respond to the gospel. 3,000 people.

And God knows my heart. I’ve been praying that I would like to see that before I see him in heaven. I would love to see that with my own eyes, the supernatural working of God that the appointment for those three. They didn’t even know when they woke up that day life would change for them. It’s unbelievable. That’s where we are in the Book of Acts. The story, the true story in the Book of Acts, this narrative of those people. How is it that they changed the world? I mean, how is it? How was it that they were used of God to transform a world? They were so successful, if we want to use the word success, they were so successful that you’re saved today.

You’re saved because of the faithfulness of the Book of Acts. You are a part of the Book of Acts. You are the outgrowth of seeds that they planted in the first century. You are an outgrowth of the persecution they experienced. You are an outgrowth of the government oppression in their lives. You are the result of their faithfulness unto the Lord. Unbelievable, the Book of Acts.

It’s going to stir us up, stir up in us hope and encouragement. And it’s going to remind us what does God want from his church. It’s not going to be an owner’s manual, so you’re not going to be able to open up and go, "This is exactly how to do church." You won’t. That’s not what the Book of Acts is. Instead, it has principles. It has practicalities. It has insights. The main insight of the Book of Acts is the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.

Because you know as well as I do that the church, the church doesn’t exist without the Holy Spirit. You can gather. I mean, if church was just simply gathering people, I could fill this room multiple times a weekend, standing room only, a lot of different ways. If that’s all it took is to answer God, "Well, how did you fill up the room? Well, let me tell you how I filled up the room." It would be very easy in this culture to fill this room up.

For example, next week, to fill this room up, we could put out right now, we could say, "We are giving a brand-new car away." Not a cheap one with three wheels, the best of the best. And all you need to do is buy a ticket and you must be in here in person to win. Boom, man. As many tickets were sold, this room will be packed. Free car. Next week, free house.

Next week, we could easily grab people’s attention. It would be easy. People do it all the time, unfortunately. They prick different parts of humanity to manipulate and to take. But that’s not the church. You could fill a room with 1,000 people. If the Spirit’s not here, it’s not the church. As a matter of fact, this building’s not the church. I mean, the kids are back from school, but during summer, when the kids aren’t here, this is such a cavernous room. Empty, dark, cold. Why? Because it’s just a building.

It doesn’t become the church until the church shows up. Then it’s the church. After our service today, we’ll have Su Gracia here, and then they’ll head off, and there’ll be a short amount of time before our high schoolers come back. But that short amount of time, the building will be empty and it’s just a building on the corner. You’re the church. I’m the church. So as you look ahead to the Book of Acts, you’ve got the broader application to all churches. You’re going to have the application to our little church family, but you’re also going to have the application to you because you are the church.

You are the church. And while I’m troubled and I’ve got concerns about the broader church, I’m only responsible for me and our church family. And I pray that the Word of God would influence people that have gotten off. Let me show you a few verses before we leave. Go over to Zechariah Chapter 4 with me, would you? Zechariah Chapter 4. We’re getting back to basics, simplicity.

I’m so grieved where the church is going, but I do know that the Lord is going to lead us and guide us. And it’s our dependence upon the Spirit, not our dependence on the human ingenuity or human smarts. I can’t, as you’re turning to Zechariah, I can’t tell you there’s a whole different world when it comes to church and leadership and, man, I’m always getting stuff of somebody telling me that they know how to run our church and we should do it this way, and buy this book and buy this program. I mean, just this week, I got an email that said, "Hey, you know what, Pastor, come to this free seminar," which is technically saying, "Come to this free seminar so we can sell you a bunch of stuff."

"So come to this free seminar, Pastor, and we will teach you how to increase your giving by 35%." Whoo. How do they know? They don’t know you. They don’t know what you’re going through. They don’t know what kind of financial hardship you might be in that you’re not giving. They don’t know what trial you might be facing. Who are they to tell me that the church even needs to increase giving 35%?

Maybe it’s God’s will that giving go down. How about that? How about this free seminar: your tithes and offerings are down, you should pray more. Yeah, not many people are going to come to that because they got nothing to sell. Why don’t you just seek the Lord? Why don’t you learn to live on what you have and not what you don’t have? How about those seminars? But that doesn’t happen in the church world because people, this is the essence of, "Hey, grow your church, fill your chairs, increase your offerings." Again, I’m letting you in on my world of the stuff that I get as a pastor, but that the whole purpose is this: they want access to you.

They cannot have access to you because you belong to the Lord. And whatever God has for us, he has for us. If the chairs are filled, fantastic. We’ll love you unto the Lord. If they’re empty, I can’t say fantastic, but if they’re empty, we’ll serve the people that are here because there has never been a time in the history of our church that I’ve ever showed up and the church was completely empty. Never.

You know why? I was there. But even so, I think the least amount of people, if I recollect, the least amount of people that ever showed up to a service was four. And you know what God was doing? He was testing my heart. "Are you going to love the four and back then maybe there were 50 people coming on a Thursday, are you going to love the four like if there were 50 here?" Yes, Lord. Yes, I will. Because four are important as 40 as 400 as 4,000. That doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. We’re not going to trust in the arm of man.

You know people, people create these packages to sell to churches. If you’re observant as you drive around town, you’ll see what I’m talking about. Because you’ll be on the other side of town, maybe doing shopping or working, and you’ll see a church with a banner and some series and some title. And then you’re on this side of town and you see another church, same banner, same title, same series. You want to know what happened? They bought the same program. There was a time when there was a popular book where every church in town was studying through that book.

Let me just tell you, when every church chooses to study through a book, we will study the Bible. We’re committed to it. I’m not saying books are bad or good. I love reading. But, man, we are not going to study someone else’s book about the Bible. You need the Bible. You need it to wash your mind. You need it to conform your heart. You need it to convict you. You need it to instruct you. You need it to correct you. You need it to encourage you. But that’s the church world today. Come on. That’s what’s happening among us.

And we need to keep our eyes firmly fixed on the Lord. Here, notice this. Zechariah Chapter 4, verse 6. Zechariah 4, verse 6. Zerubbabel’s got this massive situation before him, rebuilding the temple. It’s overwhelming. Doesn’t know what he’s going to do. The tide feels against him. Listen to how God answers him. This, this is verse 6, Zechariah 4. This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel.

And mark these words, church. This is one of the foundational scriptures of Calvary Church here in Aurora, Colorado. "Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit," says the Lord of hosts. "Who are you, oh great mountain? Before Zerubbabel, you shall become a plain, and he shall bring forth the capstone with shouts of 'Grace, grace to it!'" This verse is the Old Testament summary of the Book of Acts. This is the Book of Acts. How did they transform their world? Not by might, not by power, not by packages, not by sermon series, not by prepackaged "This is how you can do it," but a simple dependence upon the Holy Spirit and prayer.

The Book of Acts can be defined this: it is the Spirit of God working through the Word of God through the people of God. That is the Book of Acts. And I know it’s not exciting and I know it’s not flashy and I know it doesn’t get all the attention, but it’s the long game, church. Jesus is involved in the long game. And you need to be patient with all the seeds that you’ve planted and all the seeds that you’ve watered, because it’s only God that gives the increase.

And so that’s our commitment. We’re going to teach you the Bible verse by verse. We’re going to go through from beginning to end. We’re going to speak about every topic. We’re going to apply it into your lives. We’re going to submit ourselves. We’re going to pray together. We’re going to fast together. We’re going to be men and women that are seeking the heart of God as imperfect as we are, living real, true, authentic lives in the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Book of Acts is the true story of a small group of men and women who, in the power of the Holy Spirit, did not leave their world the same way they found it. They transformed it. Ordinary people that were enabled to do extraordinary things. The beginning of a Jesus movement that continues to this day. And there is a tremendous emphasis upon the Spirit of God. As in Proverbs Chapter 3, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not on your own understanding. Acknowledge him in all your ways and he’ll direct your path." That’s our heart as pastors and elders.

I know we’ve been doing this a long time. And we’ve had a blast. It’s been a great joy. A lot of warfare, a lot of fruit, a lot of wonderful lives of, if you think of all the people that have come through and we’ve had the privilege of serving in the 20 years we’ve been here. But we can’t lean on our own understanding. I don’t know what the future’s going to hold. I know sometimes you’ll call and ask questions. "Ed, Pastor Ed, Pastor so-and-so, what’s going to happen? What’s going to happen?" And our answer is, "I don’t know."

You’re like, "What do you mean you don’t know?" I don’t know. "Well, Pastor, if you don’t know, then we’re really in trouble." Probably not as much as you think. Because I have the privilege, just like you, when I don’t know something, I can ask God. I can trust in him. When I don’t understand a situation, when something’s so heavy and so difficult, when something’s so overwhelming where I don’t know the future, I can ask the Lord. I can trust that unknown future to a God who I know very well.

He’s been faithful in the past. He’s going to be faithful again. None of the things we’re experiencing, none of the stuff I’ve just mentioned, it’s not knocking God off his thrones. Like, "Oh, man, didn’t know this would happen. Fill me in, Ed. I didn’t know." But rather, he says, "Come to me, son, and come to me, daughter. I love the fellowship. I love the intimacy. Let me give you wisdom and direction for your life. Let me comfort you and encourage you. Let me strengthen you. Let me enable you. Let me empower you so that not only can you have the kind of strength and stamina that you need, but you can be a light, lighting the candle in the midst of a very dark world."

Some of the things you’re going to read in the Book of Acts, let me just warn you, they’re just going to seem foolish. They’re going to seem so simple. And that’s where you’re going to have this response of, "No, it has to be more complicated." It’s actually not that complicated. Living your life for Jesus isn’t as complicated as it feels sometimes. I know even when decisions, I was sharing with somebody recently, like during this last couple years, I think myself, the pastors, Pastor Everett, like we’re just in decision fatigue. We’ve had to make so many decisions.

And I just know when my phone rings and it says Everett, five more decisions. But you know, he’s made five before he called me. It’s like one, I know. And you know, even that’s my role. Like I know, it’s why I’ve been put on the planet to submit to God and to lead and to have. But, man, it’s just been fatiguing. And I’m sure you guys have your own stories of fatigue in this season. But you know how I can answer that phone call one more time? The power of the Holy Spirit. You know how I can make 10 more decisions? By the power of the Holy Spirit.

You know how I even know what to do or what to say or when to say nothing? By the power of the Holy Spirit. God is so good to us. Jesus said he wouldn’t leave us orphans, that he would send the Spirit, he would bring things to our remembrance, he would teach us all things. We want to be submitted to the Spirit of God. And even though some things are going to sound super, super, super simple, we can’t get more simple. We need to continue to simplify our walk with the Lord so we can get to the root of how God will use us as a church.

Again, we’re not responsible for every church in town. And I’m grateful for that. But we are responsible for this fellowship family and my care somehow. I don’t know how God’s going to sort it out, but I am going to answer to God for my pastoral care and leadership of your families. Whether you’ve been here a week or 20 years. And it seems as I get older that I only take that more seriously. It only brings a greater shaking, if you will, of answering to God to make sure that, man, I’m leading your family, serving your family to the capacity that God has made me. And maybe even more so, self-sacrificially.

But I’m concerned. And I’m concerned that we’ll all get off track and not be used of God in these last days. I don’t want you to get off track. And maybe Book of Acts will sound simple or foolish or radical to you. Maybe just consider that maybe the Book of Acts will sound so simple and so radical to you because I think in some areas we’ve settled for an Americanized version of Christianity. Oh yes. Where Christianity now somehow is tied to the American Dream, and God never intended that.

He intended our dreams to be focused on him. He intended to speak to us through visions and dreams. He intended for all that we have to be used for his glory and his honor. He created us for his purpose. He didn’t create us so that he can then somehow adapt himself to make us happier. He’s using circumstances in our lives to make us holier. And I do know this: as you live a holy, separated life, you will be happier. You will experience the joy of the Lord because you’re living according to his purposes.

Guest (Male): Next time on Abounding Grace, we'll be encouraged to make disciples, not consumers, as we return to the first chapter of Acts. See you then. You can hear this message again online at aboundinggraceradio.com or listen through our app. Search for Ed Taylor in the App Store or Google Play.

Well, maybe you're looking for a good book to go through. Here in the month of March, we picked out an excellent one written by Tim LaHaye and Bob Phillips. It's titled "Anger is a Choice," and it provides counsel and exercises to help us better understand the causes of anger, how to control it, and how lack of control affects us physically and spiritually. We'll send you a copy when you support Abounding Grace with a gift of $25 or more. Just call, ask for "Anger is a Choice." Our number is 877-30-GRACE. That's 877-30-GRACE. You can also order online at calvaryco.store.

Abounding Grace is made possible through the generous support of our listeners. And as we continue to deliver God's Word one verse at a time, we're looking to our listeners for help. Together, we can reach people with the love and truth of Christ and make a difference in these last days. To make a secure donation, drop by aboundinggraceradio.com or call 877-30-GRACE. All right, as promised, here's Pastor Ed once again.

Pastor Ed Taylor: So you wonder, Ed, the whole message you never even read Acts. Okay. Chapter 1, verse 1. We’ll get to this verse by verse, word by word next time, but just consider when you launch into the Book of Acts, Acts is a companion to the Book of Luke, the Gospel of Luke, same author. We’ll explain that in future studies. But here’s what Luke says when he opens up. He says, "The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and to teach until the day in which he was taken up after he through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom he had chosen, to whom he also presented himself alive after his suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God."

So Theophilus, this man receives this bombshell beautiful letter that’s a companion to the Book of Luke. And it’s all about what Jesus started to do and teach. Which even continues to this day. You are a part of the Book of Acts. I am a part of the Book of Acts. Oh no, not in writing new scripture or new chapters, but because of everything in the Book of Acts, you and I are walking with Jesus today.

And I pray the Lord totally sweeps us off our feet. Whatever your preconceived ideas are, whatever my predispositions are, let’s lay them at the feet of the cross and be instructed in a fresh new way of how God wants to use us in this latter season of our lives, in this latter season of our church so that we can have a, make a difference in our community that will last all around Colorado, the United States, and around the world.

And I pray that you choose to listen, to pray, and to obey what God has shown you. And it’ll radically change your life. And what will happen? You’ll walk into this new, brand-new, fresh revelation of an authentic, Jesus-loving life. Not church, not religion, not Americanized Christianity, not following a man, a pastor, a YouTube video, but an authentic, Jesus-loving life. It’s available to you. It’s available to us. And what will happen in our community when we’re overwhelmed by the agape love of Jesus? I can’t help but think it will be transformed in ways that it hasn’t thus far.

Guest (Male): Abounding Grace is brought to you by Calvary Church Colorado here in Aurora.