(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

The Holy Spirit was poured out on the church, and the gospel began spreading to both Jews and Gentiles.

And it didn’t take long for the question to arise: Are we saved by grace alone, or do our works have something to do with it?

And this was the central question of the “Jerusalem Council”, a gathering of the leaders of the church who came together to determine how (or if) Gentiles could be welcomed in as part of the Christian community.

Central verse: “But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.” (Acts 15:11)

I.  THE QUESTION: (15:1-11)

Posed to the Jerusalem Council: “Should Gentile Christians be required to be circumcised?”

-Judiazers / legalists: Yes. Gentiles must be circumcised in order to keep the Law of Moses.

-Peter: No, evidenced by the fact that God poured out the Holy Spirit on uncircumcised Gentiles already. “But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

-Paul and Barnabas: No, evidenced by the miracles and salvation that God has done among the Gentiles, showing He’s with them.

II.  THE RESOLUTION: (15:12-29)

-James doesn’t just lean toward the best argument, but he goes to Scripture, (Amos 9:11-12)

-James refers to Gentiles, not just as a “nation” (those apart from God), but as a “people” those who belong to God.

-James / the apostles and elders rule: “No circumcision required for Gentiles.” In order to help the Gentiles have a good witness with the Jews, they were advised to abstain from food dedicated to idols and from blood.

III.  THE RESULT: (15:30-35)

-It was established and made clear – salvation in Christ is by grace alone.

-The early church clearly defined that no works of the Law were required to follow Jesus.

-Gentile believers rejoiced and were encouraged.

-Was still an ongoing battle for the early church, as seen all through Paul’s letters. And it’s still an ongoing battle today.

-By grace, we are saved and sustained.

-By grace, we relate to other believers.

-By grace, we reach out to the lost.

Jesus is enough. The Gospel is enough. That’s why Jesus plus something equals nothing. But Jesus plus nothing equals everything.

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: Acts 14:1-28

Key verse: “So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for the Lord, who bore witness to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.” (Acts 14:3)

As the gospel is faithfully preached, there will be different responses. Believers are called to faithfully preach the gospel and trust God with the results.

At least four things that will happen when the Gospel is boldly and faithfully preached:

I. There will be division. (Acts 14:1-7)

-When Paul preached the gospel boldly, “the people of the city were divided…” (14:4)

-When the gospel is preached lines will be drawn. (Those who believe Christ, and those who reject Christ.)

-As Christians, we are to seek unity around the gospel, but to expect division between those being saved and those rejecting Jesus.

-That division often brings persecution.

-For us: Expect division – God first divides us from our agreement in sin before He unites us agreement with the Savior.

II. Idols will be exposed. (Acts 14:8-18)

-When the gospel is preached, what we worship is revealed:

a. Idols / false gods  – (Our own will, comfort, plans, the approval of others, envying others)

b. The One True God – (Creator, Savior)

-God’s care of unbelievers, even in their idolatry, is common grace. This shows His kindness and mercy to men.

-As the gospel exposes idols, we will either destroy them or defend them.

-For us: In sharing the gospel, walk in:

a. Humility. People will not always appreciate idols being exposed. But we all have idols that need exposing and removing. Show, see Christ as the treasure, and everything else will be seen as loss.

b. Courage. Exposing the idols we worship isn’t pleasant. Persecution may come. Trust God and speak the truth in love.

III. We will face persecution. (Acts 14:19-20)

-The people of Lystra were already embarrassed and their pride was hurt.

-Some unbelieving Jews came from Antioch – from 100 miles away – just to interfere with Paul preaching the gospel.

-they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. (v.19)

-Paul gets up and returns to the city. What courage!

-For us: There will be persecution. But have courage. Not in spite of persecution, but through the suffering and trials, God is growing us and maturing us and working in us His good and perfect will.

IV.  God will save sinners. (Acts 14:21-23)

-In every city, God saved some.

-Sometimes we will be persecuted for preaching the gospel and we’ll see God save. Other times we will simply see God save.

-In persecution or peace, trust that God is doing the saving.

-We are called to be faithful to the message and mission of the gospel.

-For us: Be encouraged – some plant, some water, but God gives the increase. Don’t judge your faithfulness to the gospel by the response of others. Love the lost. Boldly share the truth in love. Watch God change hearts.

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: Acts 13:13-52

The Jewish people were given God’s covenant, entrusted with God’s law. God gave them prophecies and shadows and symbols of the coming Messiah.

But when Jesus came, they didn’t recognize Him.

In the Apostle Paul’s very first sermon recorded in the Book of Acts, he preaches the gospel to the Jews. His encouragements to them were:

1.  Recognize Jesus as the promised Savior (v. 16-27)

-He is the fulfillment of God’s promise to rescue His people.

-He is the evidence of God’s faithfulness to that promise.

-The Jews knew the Old Testament, but still didn’t recognize Jesus.

-If it were not for God opening our eyes, we would still be blind to the gospel.

2.  Believe on Jesus, the Risen Son of God (v.28-37)

-Paul goes from Israel’s ancient history to their role in the crucifixion of Christ.

-But God raised Him from the dead. (v.30)

-The “Son of David”, the Messiah, is greater than David.

-The proof from Scripture (Psalm 2, Isaiah 55, Psalm 16).

-This proves Jesus is not just the Son of David, but the Son of God.

-To truly see Jesus as Savior is to submit to Him as Lord.

3. Rejoice in Jesus, our Righteousness (v. 38-39)

-Jesus fulfilled the Law of Moses.

-Therefore we are freed, justified (made righteous) in Him.

-In Christ, we are fully righteous, fully justified, fully accepted by God.

-“…as many as were appointed” believed the gospel. Not of man’s works, but of God’s grace.

-Rejoice that God is sovereign in salvation, and faithful to sustain us.

Text: Acts 13:1-12  (Paul’s 1st Missionary Journey)

The church that started with Jews in Jerusalem is now spreading to the Gentile world.

For the Apostles, a new reality has set in: The gospel is for all people. Jesus really does intend for His gospel to be carried into “all the world”, to the “uttermost parts”, to the “ends of the earth”. This is the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit intends to have an active role in our existence as a church, and in the mission we are called to in spreading the gospel.

I. The Spirit speaks to the Church

-the church was together – worshiping, praying and fasting

-the Spirit spoke and commanded that Paul and Barnabas be “set apart” for the work of the gospel

-the Spirit speaks today, mainly through the written Word of God

-We’re not waiting on the Spirit to speak. We’re commanded to have spiritual ears to hear what He is already saying.

II. The Spirit sends us into the world

-With the direction of the Spirit, the Church sent Paul and Barnabas on a missionary journey

-Paul and Barnabas first carried the gospel to the island of Cyprus

-All believers are called to carry the gospel – some to foreign lands, some right where we live.

-In this way, we are all missionaries to our world. The Holy Spirit has filled us and is sending us out with the message of the gospel.

III. The Spirit empowers us to confront the darkness

-The false prophet “Bar-Jesus” opposed Paul and Barnabas. Through Paul, the power of the Spirit blinded Bar-Jesus and ended his hindrance to the gospel.

-The Roman official, Sergius Paulus, is saved.

-God has brought us out of darkness into his marvelous light.

-The gospel will be opposed, but remember: It’s not about you. It’s about Jesus.

-Don’t fear – greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: Acts 11:19-30, Acts 12:1-25

Key verse: [11:21] And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord.

God hand was evident in the early church. And God is still at work in His Church today, guiding us in this life and empowering us to make disciples.

Because the hand of the Lord is present…

I. We can proclaim God’s Word (11:19-26)

-Peter’s vision is coming to pass with the gospel going to both Jews and Gentiles.

-The city of Antioch is experiencing great revival and the church is growing.

-Barnabas and Paul begin teaching / making disciples.

-When God’s hand moves and the gospel goes forth, a church is birthed.

II.  We can joyfully suffer under trial (12:1-19)

-Herod killed James, imprisoned Peter.

-The church prayed and God miraculously freed Peter from prison.

-Sometimes God’s hand rescues us from suffering. And sometimes God’s hand is with us through the suffering. In either case, we can have joy, knowing that God is in control.

III.  We can rest in God’s perfect justice (12:21-24)

-Herod set himself up to be worshiped as a god.

-But the One True God brought swift justice, and struck Herod down.

-God does the repaying, not us.

-We should be careful in wishing God’s judgment on anyone because we all deserve it.

Herod thought He could stop God’s word. But God stopped Herod. God brought an end to Herod, and God’s word just kept on going. Man’s sin could not stop God’s hand. The church of Jesus just kept growing

Just this morning, I’m struggling in my heart with irritability (read: sin). After my devotions, I read this blog post by Phil Ryken called “Do You Take Your Irritability Seriously?”

Here’s a snippet:

“We should take our irritability much more seriously, because it is the very opposite of love. We know this because 1 Corinthians 13:5 says that love ‘is not irritable.’ Irritability is the antithesis of charity. It is not merely a way of complaining, therefore, but actually a way of hating.”

Convicting words, yet they are the truth I needed to hear today. How about you?

Read the whole post here.

HT: Tim Challies (as usual)

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: Acts 10-11:18

I. Remember where we are going…

a. Peter/Paul are a focus in Acts. We see the progression of the gospel > Jesus moved toward Jerusalem, now Jesus (His mission and witnesses) is moving from there to the world. The Holy Spirit and Word are moving.

II. Conflict – What is the conflict here?

a. Earth shattering controversy regarding what is common/unclean

b. Gentile and Jew

c. Lev 11. “Be holy as I am holy”

III. Solution – “God” breaks through

a. God delivers visions, and Holy Spirit is directing

b. God affirms that no one is “unclean or common” and he is a God that shows “No partiality” – “all who fear are “accepted”

c. Vs43 “everyone who believes” will be saved

d. Gospel goes to and is received by the Gentile

IV. Connect -

a. “Withhold the gospel from no-one!” – “The gospel is for everyone, including YOU.”

b. “Circumcised Christians” in Jerusalem – asked, “you ate with who?”

c. We do the same. We forget the gospel, and who it’s for! Acts Ch 10, 11, 15 – all recount this same situation. What is Luke getting at?

d. I forget that I am NOT unlike everyone else, and need it

e. The gospel says I have broken more than I can count; yet it is not my record keeping that justifies me, but Jesus’ – therefore I am humbled and worship. This helps me love others as I have been loved and take the gospel to them.

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: 1 Corinthians 15:1-8, 16-22

The letter of 1 Corinthians is one of the earliest writings of the NT. It was written by the Apostle Paul, because the church at Corinth, to put it mildly, was messed up.

Paul, with the love and patience of a good father, brings some correction by reminding them of something they seemed to have forgotten – the importance of Jesus resurrecting from the dead.

I.  “If Christ has not been raised”  (1 Cor. 15:16-19)

-then we are still in our sins (v.17)

-then those who have died are gone forever (v.18)

-then we are to be pitied (v.19)

II.  “But Christ has been raised”  (I Cor. 15:20-22)

-evidenced by 500 eyewitnesses

-evidenced by the Old Testament (Ps. 22:18, Isa. 53:5, Zech. 12:10)

-evidenced by the empty tomb

Because Jesus has risen, those who trust in Him are forgiven of sin, reconciled with the Father, and promised eternity with Him.

Because Jesus has risen, He is God.

“You must make your choice. Either this man [Jesus] was, and is, the Son of God; or else a madman or something worse. You can shut him up for a fool, you can spit at him and kill him as a demon; or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God.” – C. S. Lewis

(This outline is provided so that those attending Oasis Church can read ahead, pray, and prepare their hearts for the upcoming sermon.)

Text: Acts 9:19-43

Main thought: Different people with different gifts preaching one gospel – that’s how Jesus builds His Church.

Other than our Lord Jesus Christ, there are two men that stand out as the most influential, the most important figures in the New Testament, and in all of Christianity. Two apostles that Jesus used mightily as pillars in His Church – Peter and Paul.

Two very different men. Yet God used them for the spread of the gospel and the building of the church.

This sermon will consider God’s ministry through these two men as Luke records it, how God takes two people as different as Peter and Paul, (one called to the Jews, the other to the Gentiles), yet uses them both for one purpose. That gives us a picture to be able to see how God does that with us, using us for His glory and in spreading His gospel today.

I.  Saul / Paul  (Acts 9:19-31)

-Jesus miraculously saved Saul and transformed him with the gospel.

-Saul began preaching in the Jewish synagogues. He preached Jesus as “the Son of God”.

-Saul had to flee for His life several times. The church experienced a time of peace, but Saul was persecuted.

-God humbled Saul, and God used Saul. God used him to spread the gospel and grow the church.

II.  Peter  (Acts 9:32-43)

-Peter went through the countryside, performing miracles and healings in the name of Jesus.

-Many of these miracles mirrored the miracles of Jesus. They pointed to the validity of the messenger and the message, to cause others to hear the gospel and trust in Christ.

-Peter, like Paul, centered his life and ministry around Jesus as “the Son of God” (Mt. 16:16).

III.  What does this mean for us?

-God used different men for His glory. We are all different, yet God will use us to spread the gospel and see Christ’s church grow.

-Peter and Paul had very different educations and backgrounds. Yet God used them. Our past does not define us. The transforming power of the gospel does.

-Peter and Paul were important, but they were just men – sinners in need of God’s grace – just like us. God humbled them, and then He used them. God wants to do the same with us today.

Recently at our “Man2Man” gathering, Pastor Rick Gamache preached a great message on husbands honoring their wives, based on 1 Peter 3:1-7.

It’s full of biblical truth spoken directly, yet with much grace. Every man should take some time to listen.

Click here to listen online.