After God healed a crippled, 40 year-old man through His Son’s Name spoken through Peter & John…
What are we going to do with these men…everybody living in Jerusalem knows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn these men to speak no longer to anyone in this name. Acts 4:16-17
The Pharisees and Sadducees thought that they were right. They truly thought that they were following God’s way and that everything else was wrong.
What they didn’t see was that maybe God was going to work in a new way. A different way. Maybe God could work in more than one way. The Pharisees believed that anything different from what they did was not God.
And that’s what many churches believe.
Look at them. They have lights on stage…electric guitars – they’re so wrong – WE’RE for GOD!
Look at them. They don’t have lights on stage…electric guitars – they’re wrong – WE’RE for GOD!
Do you know what’s interesting? Since the Pharisees didn’t believe God could work in a new, or different, way than what they had been doing, they tried to stop the new movement of God.
…we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people… Acts 4:17
See this is the thing: We find it hard to believe God can work in a different way that what we are doing. But that’s where we are all wrong – that’s where we can often be full of pride and self-righteousness.
Did you ever think that maybe your church’s traditions are your idol?
Because if we praise what we do and condemn what others do, although God may be working through both, then we are not worshiping God, but tradition.
This is where the Holy Spirit comes in.
Are you allowing yourself to perceive life, to live life, with the Holy Spirit’s guidance and direction?
We must recognize that if we deny something that could possibly be God, we are possibly denying God. That’s not being led by the Spirit. The Spirit recognizes where the Spirit moves, because it is the Spirit.
Is the Spirit in you?
If deep down you can’t deny that God is working somewhere, yet keep finding yourself talking badly about that church or that person…then it’s time to get closer to God.
Because if the grass looks greener on the other side then it is time to water your own lawn. Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:8
Let us not hold unswervingly to our traditions, but “…let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:22-25
Break the habit.
Meet together. And hold unswervingly to what? THE HOPE. Not our traditions. But meet together and hold unswervingly to the Hope.
Unready for change? Well maybe God is ready – and that’s all that matters.
What are we going to do with these men…everybody living in Jerusalem knows they have done an outstanding miracle, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn these men to speak no longer to anyone in this name. Acts 4:16-17
The Pharisees and Sadducees thought that they were right. They truly thought that they were following God’s way and that everything else was wrong.
What they didn’t see was that maybe God was going to work in a new way. A different way. Maybe God could work in more than one way. The Pharisees believed that anything different from what they did was not God.
And that’s what many churches believe.
Look at them. They have lights on stage…electric guitars – they’re so wrong – WE’RE for GOD!
Look at them. They don’t have lights on stage…electric guitars – they’re wrong – WE’RE for GOD!
Do you know what’s interesting? Since the Pharisees didn’t believe God could work in a new, or different, way than what they had been doing, they tried to stop the new movement of God.
…we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people… Acts 4:17
See this is the thing: We find it hard to believe God can work in a different way that what we are doing. But that’s where we are all wrong – that’s where we can often be full of pride and self-righteousness.
Did you ever think that maybe your church’s traditions are your idol?
Because if we praise what we do and condemn what others do, although God may be working through both, then we are not worshiping God, but tradition.
This is where the Holy Spirit comes in.
Are you allowing yourself to perceive life, to live life, with the Holy Spirit’s guidance and direction?
We must recognize that if we deny something that could possibly be God, we are possibly denying God. That’s not being led by the Spirit. The Spirit recognizes where the Spirit moves, because it is the Spirit.
Is the Spirit in you?
If deep down you can’t deny that God is working somewhere, yet keep finding yourself talking badly about that church or that person…then it’s time to get closer to God.
Because if the grass looks greener on the other side then it is time to water your own lawn. Come near to God and he will come near to you. James 4:8
Let us not hold unswervingly to our traditions, but “…let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Hebrews 10:22-25
Break the habit.
Meet together. And hold unswervingly to what? THE HOPE. Not our traditions. But meet together and hold unswervingly to the Hope.
Unready for change? Well maybe God is ready – and that’s all that matters.
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