Departure and recovery

Nice to be here. Brings back lots of memories. I'm sure brother Jim Fraser and Greg Smith are thrilled when they see a company gathered like this as they go back to the early days when they drove a hundred and some miles every night of the week from Blue River to have meetings here and we appreciate being here with the Lord's people.

I'd like you to turn to the book of the Acts please. What we know as the Acts of the Apostles could better be termed the Acts of the Holy Spirit. Verse 1 of chapter 1 of the Acts.

The former treatise of I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach. Notice that there's the doing before there's the teaching. Just as in Ezra's day, you remember when they stood up to read the Word of God and the effect that it had upon the people.

Verse 2, until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the Apostles whom he had chosen, to whom also he showed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs. That's a medical term by the way. Luke the physician wrote the book of the Acts.

I was thinking when I was looking at this recently that a man's background never leaves what you were before you were saved. It comes out in your life afterward. Luke the physician uses the word infallible.

It's the idea of a physician observing perhaps a surgical procedure that he's about to perform. Down in verse 10 he uses another one. When he says they look steadfastly toward heaven.

That's like a physician that's looking at a wound. He's about to operate. There's a man called William Law, a divine a century and a half or more ago, if you ever find any of his books, buy them regardless of the cost.

He said on one occasion, as in care, gentle care, the physician deeply probes the wound. So our God makes earth hard that we may long for heaven's holy rest. There's many times in my life when I have resorted to that statement.

As in anxious care, the physician deeply probes the wound. So our God makes earth hard that we may long for heaven's holy rest. You wonder why there are difficulties in your life? Well, it's to make us long for heaven.

Now look at verse 9. You shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost has come upon you. You shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, in all Judea and in Samaria and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and in all Judea and unto the uttermost part of the earth. And while he had spoken these things, while he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.

And behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, which also said, Ye men of Galilee, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven. Now look please at chapter 2. Verse 1, When the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place, and suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And in verse 8 it says, Ye hear, we hear every man in our own tongue that were speaking in our own tongue wherein we were born.

So there were at least fourteen or fifteen different languages that were spoken on the day of Pentecost. Now look down toward the end of chapter 2 to verse 41. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized, and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

It doesn't say three thousand, it's about three thousand. Again, when Luke writes a little later on, he says there was about five thousand. They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine, and fellowship, breaking of bread and prayers, and great fear came upon every soul.

Verse 46, And they continuing daily with one accord in the temple, breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily, such as are those that were being saved. Now another verse in chapter 4. Verse 31, And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together, and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul. Now chapter 5. A certain man named Ananias with Sapphira his wife sold a possession, kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, Why has Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Ghost? Do Christians tell lies? That's what it says here.

Why has Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Ghost? Verse 5. Ananias, hearing these words, fell down, gave up the ghost, and great fear came on all them. And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him. And the same thing happened to his wife.

Verse 11 says, Great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. Now look down to verse 14. And believers were the more added to the Lord multitudes, both of men and women.

Now we know God blesses His word and we trust He'll give a little help. So I want to speak a little word this morning on departure and recovery that I feel is most needed in our day. I've been associated with the assemblies for over 60 years and I've seen lots of changes.

And there are many changes going on in our day that are not for the blessing of the people of God, but rather it's detrimental. There's a drifting, a slipping. We have to acknowledge that.

Some are thinking what we have practiced all of these years in assemblies gathered to the name of the Lord Jesus is not good enough. And they're introducing other methods, other gatherings. But the word of God still stands in spite of the drift that we see all around us.

And if you want a little synopsis of the book of the Acts, you'll find it in verse 8 of chapter 1. He says you shall be witnesses unto me in Jerusalem. Now that's chapter 1 to chapter 7 that I want to look at for a little bit. When the church was established, a period covering about seven years, and Peter was to the forefront associated with Jewish believers.

Then he says not only Jerusalem but in all Judea and Samaria. So the church is expanding. And that takes you from chapter 8 through chapter 12.

And now instead of Peter, it's the Apostle Paul. You remember he was saved on the Damascus road and God raised him up as the preacher of the gospel to the Gentiles. And then he says not only Jerusalem and Judea but unto the uttermost part of the earth.

And that takes us through the rest of the book right through to chapter 28. So the work began. And the book of the Acts covers a period of about 23 years.

And someone has suggested that if later generations had propagated this gospel message the way the early believers did, there would be no pagan world. But they failed to do that. And every one of us must examine ourselves.

We're happy to hear a blessing in various parts. Wisconsin. I told Murray that I was in Wisconsin and Ontario.

In fact we helped build that hall. But the first series I had over almost 60 years ago now up there, we went on for 13 weeks. So you might be there a while brethren.

That's where I got my spurs. Nearly froze together, froze to death, 20 below zero, sleeping upstairs in an old farmhouse with no heat up there. Anyway, that was a training ground.

But we're thankful that God is still working. I want you to think that here in Jerusalem one of the features of this assembly was the fear of God. We read in chapter 5 that there was a big cost associated with it.

A man and his wife had heard of other believers that were disposing of their possessions and bringing the money and laying it at the apostles' feet. Well, Ananias and Sapphira, they made a vow to God that they would do the same thing. But they didn't do it.

Ananias and Sapphira, it says, sold the possession but they kept back part of the price. You know, I was thinking if you and I ever make a vow to God, make sure we keep it because there's a tremendous cost if we don't. There can be blessing if we keep that vow.

I remember one time when I was back in Ireland preaching with a late Mr. McKelvey. I noticed a light on in a bedroom in the home where I was staying, upstairs in a farm home. And I said to Mr. McKelvey, is somebody sick? There's a light burning there every night.

He said, that woman has made a vow to God and she's spending hours in prayer for an unsaved son about 35 or 36 years of age. And she has promised God, whatever it was, that if he would save her son, she would fulfill her promise. And God did save him.

You see, we have a God, brethren, that hears and answers prayer. Don't ever give up on anyone. Most of us could tell of individuals that were prayed for for years.

But here's the fear of God now coming into this assembly because of a stroke of judgment. It was costly. Both the man and his wife died.

Young men carried them out and buried them. You know, sometimes the fear of God is brought about by not a stroke of judgment, but a sense of his presence. You remember Moses way back there in Exodus chapter 3 and 4? When God called him, remember the excuses he made? He lost his confidence in God.

He says, who am I that you would send me? And then he was characterized by a fearful attitude. He said, what shall I say? They won't listen. They won't believe me.

He was marked by unbelief. Then again, he says to God, I'm not very fluent. I can't speak well.

And God told him he would send Aaron to be a spokesman. And finally, Moses says to God in his act of rebellion, whoever you send, don't send me. But you know, it resulted in the fear of God overcoming that man.

God said to him as he stood by that burning bush, put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground. I was thinking too of John in the Revelation. It wasn't a stroke of judgment or a sense of his presence, but a sight of his glory.

You remember he saw the Lord with his eyes as a flame of fire, his hair white as wool, and he fell at his feet as dead. The fear of God governed that man. And we need to recognize something of this awesome, reverential fear.

It's leaving. Some areas, it has almost departed. The fear of God is what God wants you and I to experience.

An awesome, reverential fear and respect for him. But then I want you to know too that in this early church in Jerusalem, they were characterized by devotion. We read at the end of chapter 2 that they did eat their meat, and I take that to be their ordinary meals, with gladness and singleness of heart.

They were of one heart, single-eyed. You see, you and I have diversified interests in life. The devil knows how to bring them into our life, every kind of influence to turn us away from God's things.

But God wants us to be marked by a single eye to him, devoted to the Master. You remember Peter? The Lord said, Before the cock crow twice, thou shalt demy me thrice. Peter said, Not me.

Maybe somebody else, but it'll never be my experience. But you remember poor Peter? That night, as he stood there in the garden, there was a maid who said, He's one of them. And there were others that recognized him by his speech, and it says, The Lord turned and looked upon Peter.

And Peter wept. But I have thought, brethren, that if Peter hadn't been looking toward the Lord, he wouldn't have seen that look. The Lord turned and looked on Peter, and Peter saw him.

And Peter now, crushed, all of his self-confidence is gone. And Peter says in chapter 21 of John's Gospel, When the Lord questions his fidelity, he says, Thou knowest all things. Thou knowest that I love thee.

What about me this morning? What about you? Do you love him? Does he mean more to you than the nearest and dearest of this life? Can you say with the wise man so long ago, He is altogether lovely? As he described him, you remember, in the song, From the head to the feet. And then as if language failed, he says, He is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend.

There's none like him. Brethren, he wants our devotion. I was thinking, too, that in this assembly in Jerusalem, there was unity.

That word unity is used about ten times in these early chapters. An accord of one accord. You remember Ezra's day when they were again building the temple? And Zerubbabel and Jeshua, they began to build, and the work of God went on.

There never was a day when there was a need for unity, as there is in the day in which we live. Remember, the psalmist says that. Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity.

Psalm 133. Good and pleasant. You know, there's some things that are good, they're not very pleasant.

When I was a kid, my mother used to give us that horrible stuff called scotch emulsion every morning. It's supposed to keep you from getting sick. It was horrid, the taste of it.

It wasn't good. It wasn't pleasant, but it was good for you. And God tells us that unity is both pleasant and good.

And we're to foster unity, not division. That's what the devil likes. The devil has two great focuses in this world.

One is to destroy the assemblies, and the other is to break up marriages. That's one of his best efforts in the day in which we live. He allows little frictions to multiply until there's estrangement, and then there's separations, and even divorce, which is absolutely contrary to what God says.

But the devil enjoys that. But God wants unity. The truth of God is being assailed in our day.

No matter where we go. What about so-and-so? Oh, they don't come anymore. What about her? Oh, she's gone somewhere else.

Some little offense. And they think where they go, they'll find perfection. But you know, where there's human nature, there is never perfection.

But God wants us to foster the unity among assemblies. The Lord help us to be exercised about that in the day in which we live. I note, too, that in the church in Jerusalem, they were respected by the outside world.

We read in verse 13 of chapter 5, Of the rest, darest no man join himself to them. They respected them. I wonder what the world thinks of you and me, those that are neighbors of ours.

You know, they watch us. They know when it's the prayer meeting night. They know whether you go or not.

Where I live, there's a lot of, they call it a retirement village, but I'm not quite retired yet. Tired, but not retired. And more than one of the executives have said to me, Eric, we're going to make a Lutheran out of you yet.

And I tell them, well, you just keep trying. If you had what Martin Luther had, you'll be in heaven. But they know.

They watch us. One of them talked to me the other day. He says, what are you doing this week? I said, well, I'm hoping to be at a conference in Waukesha.

How are you going to get there? So, I told him I had two chauffeurs, Bill Lavery and his wife. Anyhow, they watch us. But it's wonderful when there's respect.

And they acknowledge that we're seeking to honor God in our lives. So, the Lord help us. Then in verse 31 of chapter 4, it says, When they had prayed, the place was shaken when they were assembled together.

Now, this is something that I fear is lacking in my life, maybe in your life. Prayer. Mr. David Craig, the man that was preaching when I was saved many years ago in Ireland, he told an occasion, there was an old preacher who said to him, Mr. David, he was active in gospel work and he said to him, See that you spend more time in prayer than you do in preaching.

You see, we need to pray. That's the powerhouse. We have sisters that I would love to hear pray audibly.

There are sisters that I know when they're in the gathering, it seems easier to preach the gospel. They seem to be able to bring the presence of God into the gathering. And when they're not there, they're missed.

Godly sisters that know how to pray. And so it says, when they prayed, the place was shaken. Remember the Lord himself in Luke chapter 6? He prayed all night before he chose the disciples.

Now, I have never done that. Maybe you have. There used to be a brother over in Iowa that I knew so well that could get up and give a very acceptable word of ministry to the Lord's people.

And he told me that on more than one occasion, after working in the field all day on his big John Deere, my son says that's the only color, green, because he works for John Deere. After working all day, he would come home and have a supper and then take his Bible and spend time in the word of God and prayer. And he said, sometimes I saw the sun starting to rise in the east all night long.

No wonder he had something for the people of God when he got up to speak. Now, as I say, I've never done that. I don't think I could.

Maybe you have. But it says that the Lord prayed all night. The first recorded prayer in the scripture is Jacob.

When he's coming home, you remember, after working for his uncle for all those years, he wanted one of his daughters, but he got the other one. And he had to serve seven more years for the other daughter, the younger one. Well, Jacob is going home to his father and he says, all these things are against me.

And he falls on his face in a time of crisis and he cries to God. Isn't that when you and I pray when there's some crisis in our life? But God wants us to live in a prayerful attitude. To keep short accounts with heaven.

It's always open. My wife used to tease me because I don't like calling someone and hearing a call waiting, or hold the line, there's another phone. I like to get right through.

Don't you? Well, when it comes to talking to our Heavenly Father, there's no delay. We have access on the ground of precious blood into his immediate presence at all times. We come to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Now, I want to finish quickly, very quickly in verse 14 of chapter 5. It says, believers were the more added to the church. There was fruit there. I'm glad to hear the brethren here are going to have gospel meetings.

And we're trusting God to bless in the salvation of souls. That's what life is all about. That's what we're here for.

Blessing. Wonderful when God answers prayer and souls are saved. This assembly was blessed.

And then they were marked by liberality. They gave unto God. I referred to verse 37 of chapter 4. They brought their money and they laid it at the apostles' feet.

You see, God always blesses liberality. It was John Bunyan who penned the words many years ago. There was a man, the people called him mad.

The more he gave away, the more he had. Now, you try it and you'll find that that's true. God has promised to reward 100-fold.

Some of you mathematicians. How much is 100-fold? Ten thousand percent. There's no CDs or investments of the day that will pay 100-fold.

But that's what God promises. Whatever you or I give to him, he will more than amply reward. Above and beyond all that we ask or think.

So there was liberality. And there was blessing. Then in chapter 2 we read that they were steadfast.

They continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine for teaching and in fellowship and in prayers. They continued. You could depend on them.

Nice to come back to an assembly and see the same believers are still there. They're continuing. Continuing steadfastly.

And then finally I want you to notice what we read in chapter 1. They were expecting the Lord from heaven. They look heavenward. They were watching.

Excuse me. They were watching. They were waiting for the Lord to come.

And you and I are doing the same thing. At any moment, the heavens may burst asunder. And we'll hear that shout, rise up my love, my fair one, and come away.

And all of the circumstances of life, the toils of the road, will seem nothing when we get to the end of the way. The Lord encourage us and help us to seek to live to honor Him in view of that day when we shall be in His presence. God bless His Word.