This recording is from Willow Creek Church in Winner Springs, Florida. We're Dr. Pete Owlinson as our senior pastor. Today's sermon is part one in a series called The Awesome Community. This is the introduction to the series and is taken from Acts 1-11. Now here's Pete with today's message. If you have your Bible's turned to Acts 2, we're starting a new series this morning. In title, The Awesome Community. We're going to be talking for the next five weeks about the Church of Jesus Christ. We're going to be looking together at some of the unique aspects of what it means to be a Christian. My hope is that you're going to get more out of this of the church. You'll find out what God wants for you out of the church and then in turn you'll be able to invest in the Church of Jesus Christ. You remember those commercials that Walgreens has put out about the town called Perfect? You remember that? Some of you remember those commercials, some of you don't. I don't remember all the details, but I do remember in those commercials that the lawns of all of the houses are perfectly green. Like all of your guys houses, men, right? The lawns are perfectly thick and green and perfectly painted, right? And the milk never runs out. And you've always got perfect meals, right? Ladies and the houses are completely clean all of the... And then the commercial says, we don't live anywhere near perfect. So because there's no perfect, there is Walgreens, a great marketing ploy. It's the largest run store chain in America. 3,000. 3,000 stores nationwide. Well, we're looking for perfect. And every time we build a new housing development here in Orlando, we are trying to develop perfect, a little bit of perfect. We did that down near Disney and it's called Celebration, right? Have you ever... do you know anybody that's bought down there? I'm a friend who bought down at Celebration and backed out of the deal because it wasn't perfect. Is there any perfect in this world? No, so we're going to have to settle for the awesome community of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. There's no perfect. Celebration isn't perfect. There's nothing perfect in this church. But we are going to... but the church of Jesus Christ is an awesome community. And for some of you who've been around since the Apostle Paul, you've had enough experience of the church to be disappointed in a big way, right? You've seen the failures in the church. And so you're here, but it's strictly out of obedience and faith because you're a little cynical about Christians and about the church and probably pastors. Who is the number one influencer of your kids today? Who do you think? Their coach. Their mom is like fourth or fifth on a list, dads. We're not even on the list. Something's wrong with that. Ticks me off. But the reality is pastors don't inflow, but you know the church can be an incredible influence in a community. If we understand the awesomeness of the community and not get cynical, John Mason once said, many people are saying that they're waiting for God, but in most cases God is waiting for us. I think that's true. To find out what he wants to do in the church and let him do it through us. We get it backwards because when it comes to faith in Christ, we tend to think that to become a Christian there is got to be something that I can do to contribute to my salvation in Christ. We inevitably want to do this, right? You ask somebody if they're a Christian and they say, I think so. And then they say, well, how do you know? And they say, well, I keep the 10 commandments. And then you smile, try not to laugh and say, you keep them all in spirit. They say, yeah, I do a pretty good job. I keep thinking I'm going to find somebody sometime who doesn't believe that, but we all do. We have this tendency to think we got to contribute to our salvation. But the Bible says, Jesus said salvation is a gift. It's a gift as many as received him to them he gave the right to become children of God. So, okay, so we've finally figured that out. Salvation is a gift. And then we get into the church and then we wait for something to happen. And God says, no, no, no, you were trying to contribute last time. That was the time to receive. Now, let me do something in and through you so we can get it right. God is just waiting for us to say, do something through us. Do something through me. Be, be powerful for me. Be powerful in the church. I love this, this piece that, that a man by the name of Don General wrote to the secretary of agriculture. This is not an urban legend. This is a real letter. Okay, so here it is. Dear sir, my friend Dan Hansen over at Honey Creek Iowa received a check for a thousand dollars from the government for not raising hogs. So I want to go into the not raising hogs business next year. What, what I want to know is in your opinion, what is the best kind of farm not to raise hogs on? And what is the best breed of hogs not to raise? I'm going to be sure that I approach this endeavor in keeping with all the government policies. As I see it, the hardest part of not raising hogs program is keeping an accurate inventory of how many hogs I haven't raised. My friend Hansen is very joyful about the future of his business. He's been raising hogs for 20 years or so and the best he's ever made on them was $422.90. Back in 1968, until this year when he got your check for a thousand dollars for not raising hogs. If I get a thousand dollars for not raising 50 hogs, then when I get 2,000 for not raising 100 hogs, I plan to operate on a small scale at first, holding myself to about 4,000 hogs not raise the first year, which would bring in about 80,000 dollars then I can afford an airplane. Now another thing, these hogs I will not raise will not eat 100,000 bushels of corn. I understand the government also pays people not to raise corn and wheat. What I qualify for payments for not raising these crops, not to feed my hogs, I will not be raising. I want to get started as soon as possible as this seems to be a good time of the year for the not raising hogs and not planning crops business. Also I'm giving serious consideration to the not milking cows business and any information you can have on that endeavor would be greatly appreciate. The fact that I will not be, I will be totally unemployed. I will be filling out an employment in food stamps and was wondering how long that process takes. And I love the way he ends it. Be assured, Mr. Secretary, you will have my vote in the upcoming elections. I love it. See, we don't know sometimes when to receive and when to give. When you come to faith in Christ, he says receive. And once we're in the family, he says are you ready? Are you ready because I want to do stuff for you. The church is an awesome community of people through whom God works and today I want to show you those of you who are and you've been in the church a long time and those of you who are new to the church, I want to show you why the church is such an awesome community. It's an awesome community because of our awesome beginnings and I only have one point for you today. That's it. Then we're going to celebrate the Lord's Supper. Now I have six sub points to my first point so we better get going. One point, the church is an awesome community and here's why it has an awesome beginning, Acts 1-11. In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach. Luke is writing the book of Acts. Originally Luke and Acts were together as one book as they circulated around the early church and so Luke is writing this follow-up book to the book of Luke. In my former book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach until the day he was taken up to heaven. After giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles, he had chosen. After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of 40 days and spoke about the kingdom of God. On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command, do not leave Jerusalem. But wait for the gift my father promised which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. And so when they met together, they asked him, Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, it is not for you to know the times or dates the father is set by his own authority, but you will receive power. When the Holy Spirit comes on you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the ends of the earth. And after he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside the men of Galilee, they said, why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken from you into heaven will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven. This is God's word to us. And it talks about the founding of the Church. The word awesome is used all the time. Right? You kids say this to you all the time. All the time. It was awesome. You say it all the time. I hear it all the time. It was such an awesome thing. It was an awesome movie. What does it mean? It is an interesting word. It comes from the same root word that is connected with the Greek word for fear. And so when you talk about awe, you're thinking about something that has a tinge of scariness to it, coupled with majesty. And so an awesome experience is something where you see something or you experience something. It's a sensation that you have that is got a little tinge of fear in it but has the sense of the majestic or the supernatural or the spirit. When was the last time you experienced awe? I bet we could. I bet we could even get some of you to come up here today and talk about an experience you had when you experienced awe. We're not going to do that. But I remember, I'll never forget the time I was back packing in the mountains in Southern California and a comet swooshed by. And it was like I couldn't believe it. I'm sure it was a comet. Maybe it was a planet just being absolutely destroyed. It's not on record. I haven't been able to find it anywhere. I'm sure I saw it though. It was awesome. When I saw the Columbia River Gorge the first time standing on a prominent point looking down there just absolutely amazed. Looking down from the cliffs into Bar Harbor main from the beautiful rugged coast of the main of Maine but looking down on those cold deep blue icy waters. I knew if I slipped it was over. I might land in the water but I'd be frozen and just a short period of time. It's beautiful. I remember experience of awe at my wedding thinking what am I doing up here? But then saying this even as my good friend who married us mispronounced our names and blew the ending. I now introduce to you Mr. and Mrs. I still remember him. I still remember feeling a sense of awe my children were born. Coming to church after my first born trying to explain about my first scene that whole thing. I just choked up in every child. My ordination. My ordination of the ministry kneeling before this congregation. Not this congregation but the Orangewood Presbyterian Church kneeling before that congregation with all those elders and pastors I don't know there must have been 30 of them. I was kneeling. They were leaning on me through the long ordination prayers and they got heavier and heavier and heavier and I was thinking some of those old elders needed just to use their legs and not me. But I remember the pain just going down through my back and into my lower back and kind of feeling this sensation on and I'm in pain right now and it's hurts but something awesome is taking place. I feel that way when I look at the church and when I read this text in Acts 1 and I've read it so many times and probably you have two we need to go back and we need to remember the beginnings of the church because the church of Jesus Christ had an awesome foundation had a majestic foundation in over 2000 years. The church has done incredible things in the world worldwide the influence it's had now you need to remember that the church did not begin in Acts 1 and 2. And some of you think it did it didn't the church began back in Genesis chapter 12. That's where it began way back in Genesis 12 when God said to Abraham I'm going to make you into a mighty nation. I'm going to make you into a mighty people and the world will be blessed through you and then Jesus comes and fulfills as the Messiah the promises and the Old Testament. And on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit is poured out and the church comes together in a unique way in the death burial resurrection of Jesus when the church now is seen not as just Israelite but it's Gentile as well. God's people are no longer just Jews they're Jews and Gentiles all who can who claim the name of the Messiah the church enters a new phase of grace and mercy and powerful, powerful ministry. So what I want to do is I want to just look look at look with you about what how the church came together it formed first of all these are my six sub points. The church of Jesus Christ was formed first of all around the teaching and around the acts of Jesus look at verse 1 in my former book Theophilus I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and to teach Jesus was the most incredible speaker in all of history. When he spoke when he preached I don't know how he did it without microphones and without now powerpoint presentations on how he did it but hundreds thousands gathered together to hear him outside. And every time he would speak people would go to other people said you got to go listen to him and then and then he would go and meet people and he would heal them like the little girl he raised from the dead or his friend Lazarus or the blind people heal. And every time he did something like that it drew more people and every time he spoke it drew more people so that he couldn't even go into a city anymore the church was formed around the teaching the works and the teaching of Jesus the church was formed around the death burial resurrection teaching of Jesus just before he ascended into heaven. Verses 2 through 3 and the church the church was formed around the resurrection and we forget that. I was I was in Atlanta not too long ago a couple of weeks ago and I was talking to a lady we had a break and I was talking to this lady she seemed so nice. I said and you know you're in Atlanta you're in the Bible belt there's a billion Christians up there and so I said are you by any chance a Christian and she said well I was raised in a very very conservative hard core Catholic church. And they they communicated me when I divorced my husband and so when I remarried I remarried a Jewish man and I converted the Judaism I said really and I said tell me about that and then we talked a little bit more she said you know you know how Christianity got started don't you and I said no tell me. She said well my rabbi taught me that when Peter went to Athens he started I started a new movement I said you think that might be wrong she said wrong when Peter went to Rome he founded a new with this new thing called Christianity Jesus was dead and buried Jesus Peter used Jesus to found a new religion. She flushed this whole thing out and I sat there and I said you know you never say something like that to a pastor we could eat your lunch you know I said I said Nancy and she was a sweet lady I said I thought she was a Christian not all she was nicer than some Christians I know I said Nancy we messed up a lot and I wish the church had an ex communicated you but everything you just told me about the foundation of Christianity. I said this I said I said it has no basis in fact and then we had to go it was like oh man but what I would have said had I had a little bit more time was this I would have said after the death of Jesus and when they put him in the ground when they put him in the cave they were scared to death. Every one of those Christians slunk away from the cross they went home they ran some of them went up to an upper room and they boarded themselves away why because they were guilty by association they were going to be they knew they were going to be hunted what they were worried about what they were excited about was not the death of Jesus what they were worried about was their own crucifixion that could happen the next day that's what they were worried about. What I wanted to say to Nancy was Christianity was formed by people like you and me who would have run had we been at the cross they were scared to death and what brought them together was when they saw Jesus they weren't expecting that they weren't planning on that and when Jesus showed up they didn't believe it at first that's why Thomas didn't believe it the church of Jesus Christ was formed two thousand years ago by very ordinary people who had seen the risen Christ heard him speak. They watched him and became absolutely committed to the reality of Jesus and that's why in the first few centuries of the church so many of them went into the gladiatorial games to die for their faith. You know when I was in college one of the because I was constantly told that Christianity wasn't true and Jesus couldn't have been and Christianity was a nice religion maybe but it wasn't true. One of the books I stumbled across was Fox's book of martyrs Fox John Fox was an Englishman who died 1538 something like that after doing an exhaustive study of every Christian he could find whoever was executed for his faith and I always wondered why so many why so many died for Jesus why they willingly went to die for him was because of the resurrection. You know that for the first 300 years of the church there were ten general persecutions of Christian in the Roman Empire ten that means anywhere they could find a Christian they'd kill him until until Constantine became the Emperor and was converted to Christ. Here's one that happened in 200s. I've been in thrall as I've read this book and kind of flipped through it again but just the calm dispassionate way Fox tells about the martyr and he says the names of three young men who were also martyred upon this occasion were saturnius and succundalus. When their turn came they were led to the amphitheater there all had the courage to call for God's judgment upon their persecutors after which they were made to run the gauntlet between the hunters who had the care of the wild beast these men were drawn up into two ranks and the prisoners ran between as they passed they were lashed and bruised and afterwards given to the tigers. You know what pastors had to do in the early church they had to say to their people do not go offer yourselves up at the Roman games. I mean you're a Christian but don't they had to sometimes say listen I need you to lead the committee meeting next week. So if you're going to go real public about the fact that your Christian do the meeting first all right I need you to lead worship stay here for until seriously was a problem why because the early church knew that to be absent from the body was to be present with the Lord they knew they knew because they'd seen the resurrected Lord. That there was more to this life than the life they were living here and it was better and they knew that if they died they would be united to Christ and that's where they wanted to be. Not a bunch of people who made up with a religion made up a religion it was a bunch of people who were overwhelmed with a resurrected Christ and and lived and died for him. Gladly churches you know one of the comments was was made that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church in other words the more died the more the church grew and because in that book we see many cases of Roman soldiers executing Christians and the way they died. With great hope converted many of these soldiers and then they too profess they and were executed guys it was a resurrection of Jesus Christ and this awesome community of God's people came together the church came together also around the teaching of Jesus because after the resurrection and we remember the 40 days of purpose right many good things happen after during 40 days and that was a good thing for us as a church. But Noah 40 days 49 you know many 40 day things happen in the Bible Jesus temptation the wilderness 40 days and now after his resurrection after they've seen him he stayed on earth 40 days and we tend to forget that we tend to miss just go right over this but for 40 days he sat and taught the disciples. It said it says over a period of 40 days he spoke about the kingdom of God and later it says he gave the disciples orders about the kingdom the church is the visible representation of the kingdom of God on earth there really is. And I like this it's not a democracy either Jesus gave orders about about his kingdom in these 40 days he taught his disciples how they were to lead and govern his church can you imagine being there you've been at the cross you followed into the tomb you'd seen him face to face and then for 40 days he shows up at dinner and he's teaching you they were all ears. The disciples were all ears as they heard about what Jesus wanted to happen for his church that's why every one of these early apostles and disciples gave themselves a hundred percent to him and all died tradition the church says they all died for Jesus because they were completely sold out to him the church of Jesus Christ yet now can we talk about your experience it's not going to a friend the other day told me about how they ran off a pastor that he was close to that's difficult. What decision was made in a church that you've been in not this church because we always make right decisions in this church but what church have you been in where a decision was made that hurts you where have you been hurt by Christians leaders pastors elders deacons we've all been hurt you can look at the church of Jesus Christ in one of two major ways one you can you can look at the church of Jesus when it comes to its people and all that you've experienced. You can look at it with unbridled cynicism or unbridled awe could you believe God has got done what he's got done with people like us 2000 years do you imagine that I'm amazed at this church is still here after all the mistakes I've made have made one in several years now but I it's I was thinking about this this morning if I were to add up the sum total of mimus and add them to your mistakes or not yours the people who used to be in this church are now gone and have moved on to other places. I mean it would be it would be like probability the probability of this church even being here would be ridiculous and so I look at the church of Jesus Christ and I look at some churches that I speak in and some churches that I'm at there they're huge or they're small and I go this is amazing you guys are even here. Because the church is a supernatural gathering of God's people you heard that that reporter who was talking to the young lady said so tell me why do you want to become a mortician she said because I like working with people those are the best kind of people to work with trust me they're easy to deal with or the young man who said the church is a whore she's my mother it's true. If you look at the institution we fail in so many ways but if you look back down through history how many of you were told you're going to hell if you smoked if you drank. We've been sheltered down with so much legalism yet we're still here grace prevails why because God is in his church and the reality is is that God continues to work in the church. It is a community that was founded on the awe of the resurrected Christ how he has brought us together is an absolutely amazing thing. Notice the church fourth was formed around the promise of power and if you're checking your watch I'm going to go a little quicker here. The church was formed around the promise of power verse four while he was eating with them he said said this command don't leave Jerusalem stay here until something this is my paraphrase until something happens that you can't ever imagine the Holy Spirit is going to come to you receive power from God stay here to get the power to change the world. The church was formed around the promise of his power fifth the church was formed around the ascension of Jesus he made the promise of spirit was going to come and then he took off verses six to eleven we already read it. And then the church was formed around the fulfillment of that power acts acts to one through thirteen you can read that later to when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the day of Pentecost and the charismatic wing of the Christian church was formed. They were all charismatic they all spoke in tongues they all who were there they all they all were able to speak forth the word of God and three thousand people came to faith in Christ in one sermon of Peter. I'm not sure Billy Graham ever did as good as that. X two shows what happens after that X two verse forty one through forty seven those who accepted the message were baptized at about three thousand were added to their number that day. Now look what they did because I'm going to talk about this next week because the awesome church is an awesome community because of its beginnings but the church is an awesome community because of our community. And this is what happened those who accepted his message were baptized about three thousand were added to their number that day they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and to fellowship to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with all and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles all the believers were together and had everything in common selling their possessions and goods. They gave to anyone as they had need every you guys are this kind of a community we we you've given so much to the hurricane relief we've had people come and say thank you somewhere here today in this service. And you amaze me at your sacrificial giving but that's what the spirit of God produces selling their possessions and good they gave to anyone as they had need. Every day they continue to meet together in temple courts they broke bread in their homes that's not just they ate together they celebrate the Lord's supper together we're going to do that right now. Praise the God and enjoying the favor of all the people and the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved as we take communion now what I want you to reflect upon is simply the awesome beginnings of our church. Some of you raised in the church and the church for you has has been a thing it's been a part of your life but it's not been awesome but some of you did have conversions that could only be said to be clearly supernatural all of our conversions are supernatural but some of you remember the process the majesty of how God got hold of you. Some of us know just about enough about the church to be disappointed in it and what I want you what I want you to reflect upon is that you are part of this historic body of God's people. It goes all the way back to Genesis 12 through your faith in Christ you are part of this awesome community that God has put together even though we mess up and we do and we will what I want you to focus on is not what has happened to you negatively in the church. But what God wants to do and what he has done positively to you in the church through his people I want you to love I want you to love the church but I want you first to love the Lord. And as you take the bread today remember that when he when he hung on the cross before the before the world began he had your name on his mind. Jesus did not die for a nameless mass of humanity he died for you by name and by face when he gave his body it was for you he wanted to build you into his community family forever. And when you take the cup remember that this cup speaks of your cleansing with him we're going to drink and eat this in the kingdom of God to come it's going to be great. Confess your sins when you take the bread but don't confess them in such a way that all you feel is shame remember you're forgiven and enjoy the father's blessing on you loves you more than you know and has great plans for you in his awesome people you take it to heart and as our elders come forward let's pray. Father give us your wisdom even now as we take of this of this sacrament enable us to remember that we are part of the mystical body of Christ with all of its failings failures but with all of its wonder and all of its glory and all of its majesty. Lord Jesus meet with us in a supernatural way as we take of the bread use this physical visible sign to remind us that we are sealed with you for eternity through faith in Christ as you will never let us go. May we be reminded that in your body you took all of our sins and we're forgiven. Meet us now in our prayers glorified and honor. We are the Greek churches associated with the Presbyterian Church in America our website is www.willocreetchurch.org and our phone number is 407-699-82-11.