Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text:  Acts 20:17-38

Theme: The Leader’s Message

Notes:

Last week: The Leader’s Manner–consistent character & Christ-like humility

The Leader’s Message

1. We teach all of God’s word
   • The leader’s message ought to be Scripture’s message
   • “the whole counsel of God”
   • declaring God’s message with God’s intent
   • Repentance is both a command and a gift
   • Exercising repentance & faith are not a one-time event in the life of the Christian
     • The Christian life is a continuous cycle of repentance & faith
2. To all people
3. All of the time
4. With all of our heart

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text:  Acts 20:17-38

Theme:  Five ways  a leader can love the church well

Notes:

1. The Leader’s Manner
   1. We Lead with consistent character. (v17-18)
   2. We lead with Christ-like humility. (v19-21)
2. The Leader’s Message
3. The Leader’s Motives
4. The Leader’s Mentoring
5. The Leader’s Means

Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 20:1-16

Theme: Love the church the way Christ did by investing time, truth, and relationship into people.

Notes:

1. Discipleship takes time
2. Discipleship takes truth

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: 1 Peter 5

Theme: Submission

Thesis: God has called us to willingly yield our will and desires for God’s glory and for other’s good

Notes:

1. The resistance to submission
2. The rules of submission
3. The reasons for submission

Despite being in the midst of a hostile environment, Peter exhorts his audience to submit to God-given authorities.

We can submit to flawed authorities because we trust in God, the ultimate authority

God ordains authority in our–lives for our good, the good of others, and His glory

• Civil
• Ecclesial
• Familial
• Vocational

Resistance

• We cannot be rebellious to our God-given authorities and claim to be in submission to God.

Reasons

1. Submission is for everyone
2. Submission is a vital part of discipleship
3. Submission teaches us humility
4. Submission reveals our heart

What Submission is Not

• Submission is not unquestioning, unqualified obedience and/or loyalty
  • All legitimate authority is derived from and delegated from God–not equal to God
  • Any authority who asks for that–civil, ecclesial, familial–is an authority who plans to abuse you
• Submission does not equal total agreement
  • Christ desires thoughtful, rational obedience

Application

• Spend time in prayer this week and ask the Holy Spirit to reveal areas of resistance to submission
• See Christ as your example
• See Christ as the power to submit

Note on 9/11

• Jeremiah 29:7, “seek the peace and prosperity” of where we live

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 19:23-41

Theme: God guards us through providence

Notes:

Romans 8:28-30

Providence includes God’s care and control

Isaiah 46:9-10

Nothing happens outside the will of God

Frederick Nolan, missionary to North Africa

Tim Challies, son recently passed away suddenly at age 20

God never promises to keep us from pain and difficulty–He promises to walk with us as we experience them

Ephesians 1:4-6

While God orders/ordains/orchestrates all things, He is not the author of sin

The pressure that God allows in our lives is meant to mold us, but not to break us.

Psalm 55:22

Because God is in control of all things, then our suffering is not meaningless or purposeless

1. God uses people providentially
   • God uses people who are for you in your life
   • God uses people who are for themselves in your life
     • Don’t underestimate the things that God can teach you through someone acting selfishly
     • There are sometimes sins we are blind to in our own lives until we see them in others
   • God uses people who are against us in our life
2. God uses governments providentially
   • God used the roads and infrastructure instituted by the Roman government to help spread the gospel
   • God worked through those in Babylon and Persia to return the Jews to Israel, to rebuild the temple, and rebuild the walls of Jerusalem
3. God uses circumstances providentially
   • Psalm 34:18
   • God hates sin
   • God cares for His children
4. God grieves with us when we hurt
   • Isaiah 53

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 19:23-41

Theme:

Notes:

Providence: God’s control of all things for His purposes and glory.

We must interpret our circumstances by our knowledge of God, and not interpret God by our circumstances

Each of us has fears that will tempt us to act inconsistent with our identity in Christ

Satan uses (and abuses) people to do his work

1. Satan uses fear to control people
2. Satan uses fanaticism to control people
3. Satan uses financial gain
   • Simon Magus, Acts 8
   • The slave girl’s owners, Acts 16
   • Demetrius, Acts 19
   • Spurgeon–was an English abolitionist, yet professing Christians (or “Christians”) in Alabama threatened violence if he were to come to America
4. Satan uses religious fanaticism
   • Buddhists in Myanmar
   • Muslims in Nigeria
   • Hindus in India
5. Satan uses political fanaticism
   • We must be very careful about mixing our Christianity with our patriotism
     • We should be thankful for how God in His providence has worked in our nation
     • Yet our true citizenship as Christians is in God’s kingdom–not in America
     • Examine church history and note that whenever you mix church and state it doesn’t make the state better, it makes the church worse
     • Forcing American and Judeo-Christian moral values will not change hearts or eternal destinies
     • We should proclaim the truth and vote
     • But we should have no illusions that marrying the church with political power will turn out well
6. Satan uses cultural fanaticism

Four Characteristics of Mob Mentality

1. Irrational fear
2. Uncontrolled anger
3. Informational confusion
4. Close-mindedness

Live It Out!

1. Instead of irrational fear, exercise faith in God
   • In His providence
   • In His goodness
   • In His ability
2. Instead of uncontrolled anger, exercise righteous anger
3. Instead of confusion, cling to the truth
4. Instead of close-mindedness, exercise gentle reasonableness

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 19:11-22

Theme: Marks of Real Ministry pt2

Notes:

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Preacher: Jeremy Herbert

Text: Acts 19:11-22

Theme: Marks of Real Ministry

Notes:

Real Ministry Attracts Frauds

1. Satan deceives through imitation
   • 2 Corinthians 11
   • 2 Timothy 3
   • 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10
2. Satan distracts through confusion
3. Satan destroys through perversion
   • Jude 4

Real Ministry Defeats Satan

• Daniel 4:7
• Psalm 33
• John 12:31
• John 14:30
• Ephesians 2
• Colossians 1:13
• 1 John 3:8
• Hebrews 2:14-15
• It was not just Christ’s death and resurrection that defeated Satan, but His life as well
• James 1:15
• 1 Corinthians 15
• Genesis 3
• Colossians 2:13
• Luke 10
• Romans 16:20
• Revelation 20:10
• 2 Peter 3:14-18

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