Tracing History (Pastor Jeff Shipley)

Now I want you to pay attention. It wasn't anything in Israel. It wasn't their military size.

It wasn't the type of people. I hate organized religion.

I mean like with a flaming intense passion wider than the hottest sun.

I can't stand it. And I'm going to tell you why. If I ever write a paper on this, this will be my thesis statement.

Because it paraphrases God's word and memorizes man's word.

That is why it is so destructive. Because in an attempt to water down for the idea of understanding you remove the reality of the changing power of the word of the living

God. I'm going to give you an example. What is Pentecost? Mercedes, what is

Pentecost? Yeah. Zoe, what is

Pentecost? You ain't got no idea. Alright. Mikey, what is

Pentecost? A dinner? Okay. Jesus' harvest festival.

Jewish harvest festival. Holy Spirit came down.

Okay. So Holy Spirit didn't come down prior to that. Who said something back there?

What'd you say, baby? What'd she say? That was 10 days earlier.

Okay. Who said 50 days? Of course. Guys, when we hear the word

Pentecost now or Pentecostal, most church people think of a denomination. Just like the name

Baptist. I mean, we started 400 years ago. I know some of you old

Baptists think we were named after John the Baptist. Stop smoking crack and learn some history. The Baptist church started in 1609.

It's only been around for 400 years. And the whole idea was whether an infant should be baptized or wait till that person makes a profession of faith.

That's how the whole thing got started. Religion is so silly. And we miss the reality of God's Word.

If you look with me in Acts chapter 2, we're going to talk about what Pentecost is.

First of all, it's a celebration. That's what it was and that's what it is. It is also a challenge.

It should be a challenge in our life every day. And then lastly, it should have been a change.

And if you have not had that change, you ain't got the Holy Spirit. In other words, I don't care how many times you prayed

Jesus in your heart, you ain't a Christian, and you need to deal with that today. First of all, let's talk about as a celebration.

In Leviticus 23, if you look on the back of your wonderfully worded and wonderfully laid out notes, you'll see on the back there,

I drew three graphs for you. Actually, I stole them, but they're on the graph there, and it gives you the feasts of Leviticus.

All of these are found in Leviticus 23. Well, Pentecost was a time to celebrate 50 days after the

Passover. It was to celebrate the harvest. Think of it as, yeah, the harvest festival.

I mean, there was another one in there like it too, but that was the idea. So when Jesus, now you've got to remember, for 2 ,000 years, for 2 ,000, well, 1 ,400 years, for 1 ,400 years, the

Jews had been celebrating this feast. And every year in Jerusalem, everybody would show up.

It's like New York City during the what's the big apple drop thing called?

New Year's Eve, everybody and their mama shows up to New York to celebrate the

New Year, get drunk, roll doobies, whatever they do. Well, this was in Jerusalem.

Jews from all over the known world came to Jerusalem to celebrate

Passover and this feast of Pentecostal. It was also known as a celebration when

God gave Israel the law. Now, in our modern times, what we celebrate is the falling of the

Holy Spirit. Now, we're going to read about it here in a second, but let me give you the cliff notes. Number one,

Jesus died, he rose again, and for 40 days, he went around and proved himself to people by walking up and going sup.

And people were like, ah! And freaking out and they worshipped and went and changed the world, right?

Jesus, after 40 days, ascended back into heaven. And then 10 days later, he told the disciples to gather in this room and in a little while,

I'm going to send the Holy Spirit to you. So all these guys were up in the room and 10 days after Jesus' ascension, and it just happened to fall on Pentecost, 50 days, almost like there was an author to that.

Yeah, things that make you go. Right. The Holy Spirit of God fell. And the difference between the

Holy Spirit in the Old Testament is the Holy Spirit would come down, he would manifest himself on David or Samson.

And as soon as the job God asked him to do was done, Holy Spirit was on up out of there.

Now in the New Testament, 2 Corinthians 3, 16, and other places, we have the indwelling of the

Holy Spirit. He set up tabernacle. We're going to get to that in a second.

That is what Pentecost was as a celebration. Moving forward, let's look at what it is as a challenge.

Read with me in Acts chapter 1, starting in verse 4 and 5.

And while staying with them, Jesus, he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the

Father, which he said, you heard from me. For John baptized you with water, but you will be baptized with the

Holy Spirit not many days from now. Now you have to understand one of the challenges of the indwelling of the

Holy Spirit is obedience. Who struggles in their Christian life with obedience?

Who in here just lied? You know what I'm saying? If you are a Christian, it is the hardest thing to do.

I feel like I'm two years old sometime. I feel the Holy Spirit of God telling me, don't say that, don't say that, don't say it, and out it comes.

God says, go right, I will look at God and go and then

I get a spanking, or I get in time out, or I get in trouble, right? It is so hard to obey.

It was very hard for these people to obey. Remember, these guys were being hunted by the

Roman government and the Jewish religious government. They were being hunted down.

They wanted them dead because they could bear eyewitness testimony to the death and resurrection of Jesus.

They wanted them shut down. Jesus said, go right back into that hot bed.

If you were a pilot bombing Baghdad during the Iraqi war and you jumped out of that plane, you're going to try to get out of that country as quick as you can.

God told them, go right back to Baghdad. Stay right there and we're going to hook you up, right?

Even in fear, we have to be obedient. I'm going to tell you why. Let me tell you why obedience is so important.

You know what obedience does in the face of fear? Yes, it establishes faith, but here's what it does.

It empties you. Guys, some of us, the reason our spiritual lives are so weak is because we're so filled up with self -gratification, there's no room for anything else.

But being in a place of hurt, being in a place of fear, it empties us.

And what we can do is we can gather together with your church family.

And in that emptiness, and listen to me, some of you Christians that walk up in here and you're arguing with your wife or husband, or you're living a double standard life, you walk in the church, oh

God bless you, let me tell you something that's going to help you. Start being vulnerable. Start being afraid.

It's okay to be weak. It's okay to say I'm struggling. Because what that does, it empties you of the masks and the hypocrisy and the self so that God can deposit the

Holy Spirit that's going to heal you. And being emptied in front of your brothers and sisters in Christ, being that vulnerable, man, it's a beautiful thing.

I'm struggling for the last month with depression. I mean it's, this year it's just hit me harder than it has before.

For those of you that don't know, my name's Jeff and I struggle with depression. Yeah. Thank you.

And pizza. But it's been a struggle. It's been a struggle.

I got up here. We are praising God and my mind is on 27 other things.

Pastor Josiah's hand came up, prayed for me. A few seconds later

Pastor Jeremiah came up, laid his hand. I hadn't told him anything, but they know. They know.

I've been very transparent with there she is, my wife. I'm hurting.

I'm hurting. That weakness. That emptiness. That vacuum.

That longs to be filled. Not with a codependent relationship that comes and goes, but with the peace of God that passes on.

Pastor, I've never had that before. That's what I'm talking to you about today. You accepted

Jesus Christ in your brain, but you ain't never been filled with the Holy Spirit by submitting to Him in your heart.

It is a challenge. Chapter 2, verse 1. When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place, and suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.

That line right there is a challenge for churches today. Let me just point it out to you.

When they were all together. I really think we at Witten Baptist Church need to reassess our demographics.

You know what I'm saying? Guys, I'm just saying, you know, we need to get a little wider.

You know what I'm saying? Come on, y 'all. Y 'all know y 'all really want it. You know?

We have a contract with that grass company. We don't need any more Mexicans up in here.

You know what I'm saying? We definitely don't need the Hondurans, freaking MS -13.

Last week, see, here's the problem. That right there is half the problem.

Some of you visitors and some of you church members just got up and felt all awkward. Stop buying into the bull crap.

Stop it. Last week, Pastor Josiah read a passage from one of Charles Darwin's books.

Can you do it from memory? Stand up and do it. Turn around and do it loud.

Hey, and say exactly what it says. I perceive that in the not near distant future, the white civilized races will terminate the savage races.

...amongst people will become wider as now it's relatively small. ...the Negro and the ...

Well, of course. That was back then.

We've progressed now. You arrogant, self -righteous, uneducated idiot.

That's the guy they're teaching in high schools today. And your tax dollars are paying for it.

And you know why? Because you keep electing godless heathens into the government because they're liberals or because they got a doctor before their name.

You see, we paraphrased God's word. They were all together as one.

...nation. They're race. ...a job application and it says what?

Race? I want you to start writing human. For the love of God. You sit there and go, well,

I don't have that. The word racism doesn't even make sense.

You see, what's happened is the church now follows the culture instead of the church guiding the culture.

And that's why we are so jacked up. Because we have surrendered our place of truth and leadership to a cultural identity that is not based in reality.

I mock it. I absolutely mock it. Like I mock evolution. That we as God's people who hold the living truth in our hands and the

Holy Spirit in our hearts are afraid to stand up and speak the truth. Because they have a

DR in front of their name. Because they've been to college 30 years. I don't need a college degree to tell you horse crap is horse crap.

I don't. People always say, well, if you don't like it, try it once. You'll never know. Okay. See if it has a nice twang after dinner condiment.

Sorry. If you want to do that, do that. The reality here ladies and gentlemen, is the challenge of Pentecost.

The challenge of the Holy Spirit of God is that we've got to start being together and saying what we're for more than what we're against.

If your church is known to be against everything, then you're going to fail.

What we've got to be known for is what we're for. Sorry, I got off on a little tangent there.

Kind of stuff. Chaps my butt. Here's the second thing. You know who was up in that room?

Yeah, Jews and Gentiles. Yeah. The whole, you know, they were serving bagels and eating bacon.

But you know who else was up in there? Men and sandwich makers.

Yeah, I'm a queen of the kitchen now. Cap period. Yeah, I just wish you were this fresh.

Let me let you on a secret. Women are not to be pastors. You know how I know that?

Because the Bible says it. It ain't hard dummy. Just follow along. But at the same time women are not called to teach.

Right? Let older women, what? Teach. Right? To younger women, right?

How to cook, how to clean, how to use a mop. When you get to be mother -in -laws, how to ride a broom.

You know? The daughters of Philip were what?

Say it again, pastor. Prophetess. What's that mean? They spoke the word of God.

We especially in the Baptist faith have relegated half the spiritual gifts of our entire congregation for five, six, seven generations to either be in the kitchen or the nursery.

And we have suffered for it. Fat suffered for it. I tell you what.

If I want something done around here you know what I do? Find me a chick.

Because I know it'll get done right. I always say I got a Michelle for that. I got a Char for that.

Money? I got a Rebecca for that. Right? You see my timeline? I'm re -putting the time.

I'm so psyched about this timeline. Oh my God I'm fired up about this timeline. I'm creating a timeline.

I'm about to do the military history of Israel. And I'm about to do tracing the beginnings of the church.

And we're going to have this timeline. It's going to stay up there. And it's going to have the boxes. What are they called? QR codes.

It's going to have QR codes on them. And it's going to have different historical stuff on them. And I needed a black straight line.

So I said Pastor Josiah stay away.

Right? I found me a chick. Now she a Yankee but she did alright. Paint that up there.

Then I want the little vinyl words. You know the birth of Christ and all that stuff. Where are you going to find that?

Call a chick. Guys the idea that we in the church the challenge of the Holy Spirit is to see the different roles but the same value and worth.

My wife is one of the wisest people I've ever met in my life.

You can rest assured I am consulting with her before I make any decision.

100 % guaranteed. Because you know why? I don't want to screw up.

She's a smart chick. Are women in this church? Guys think about it for a second.

The women in Witten could out work, out fight, out shoot, out chew, out whatever.

Probably most dudes in any other church. Guys we need to be of one accord.

It's a challenge sometimes. Especially you insecure males. Guys, stop dudes.

Quick second here man. Chillax. Let them run. Because usually in their wake you're going to find success.

Alright I'm moving on. It says right here. Let's do verse 3.

And divided tongues of the fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.

Ekathison. Let me say that to you again. Ekathison. Now I'm sure

Pastor Josiah will connect the pronunciation. I speak red neck Greek. Ekathison.

Let me tell you the difference. The word ekathison, some of your Bibles will say sat, some of you will say rested.

Those are English translations of that word ekathison. And it means this. To rest upon with permanency.

With permanency. Once saved, always saved. You dumb red neck

Baptists. Say ekathison please. Or tell them you're from Bellevue. One of the two. Guys, one of the challenges of the resting of the

Holy Spirit on us also comes with just a little bit of joy. In the fact that God has permanently chosen me to be

His Son. I love Revelation where it says He gave without expectation.

Where He calls, I will be your God and you will be My servant. Oh no, that wasn't the word?

Son. I'm a child of God. And I love that because the

Holy Spirit sealed me with the setting on. Now I want to do a little side note here. Y 'all stay with me.

I'm not going too far. A little side note here. Verse 3 -6. Let's read it together. It sounds like an acid trip.

But this really happened. Watch this. And divided tongues as fire appeared on them and rested on each one of them.

And when they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, filled, they began to speak in other tongues as the

Spirit gave them utterance. Two more verses. Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven.

You see they were devout, but they weren't saved. Let me say that to you again. They were devout, but they weren't saved.

And at this sound the multitude came together and they were bewildered because each one was hearing them speak in his own language.

Somebody stole my Honda. I stole him. God just told me to tell you to give me money in the name of Jesus.

For $49 .99 God right now just said, you can have a copy of this sermon.

And this sermon is blessed and anointed by God. Horse crap.

You know what's amazing? The Holy Spirit came down and this Glossia right here is nothing magical.

People say, see it's a heavenly language. Crackhead.

Learn good hermeneutics. Listen to what it says. We don't have to guess. It literally says in context there were people from all other nations who heard different languages and when tongues began to speak these guys understood them in their own language.

Right? It's not a magical oh my God what is this? Read! Stop reading religiously or want your theology to be right.

Just read the scripture. Now if you want homework on the other type of Glossia it's written on your paper.

You do that this week and we'll talk about it. But anyways these people came and were speaking yet there was a unity in understanding.

Don't you love the fact that at Babel 4000 years before this

God divided them through their languages, different languages. And then the Holy Spirit comes and even though they have different languages now you divide it again.

Isn't that awesome? I think that's so awesome. But anyways the Holy Spirit of God in verse 6 it says at the sound the multitude came together.

Church let me just talk to you about this real quick. Listen to me. Guys I am not interested in having what's it called?

A mega church. I can't be a pastor of that. My ADD, my little 3 horsepower brain.

I can't handle that. I can't handle this right now. That's why I have to have other peoples. I can't.

I can't do it. But people in churches you know they have businesses.

You want to raise money for your church? Pay us $50 ,000 we'll help you get $100 ,000.

Man crack heads. This church did it 25 years ago. They had this whole program.

Jimmy remembers From Thy Hand. From Thy Hand to My Thine Hand.

Please dude churches have bigger shows.

We need a smoke machine. You know what I mean? Get one of them smoke things going. A little glitter disco ball.

Be up in here praising the Lord. Yeah. What's it say right here?

What's it say right here? When the non -believers heard the Holy Spirit or the effects of the

Holy Spirit that's when they came. Do you know how the Bible says the world will know that we are

Christians? By our love. Not by us telling how everybody is stupid or wrong or fags or bad or whatever the bad thing.

No man just be genuine. Be transparent. Love people where they're at.

And they will show up to you. I don't need no smoke machines. I just need a house filled with God's people who are filled with the

Holy Spirit and loving people as they show up. That's it. That's all we need to do. That's the big secret.

Look at this other thing right here. Look at what it says right here. It says let me skip this part.

Let me go to verse 12. Let me go to verse 12. And all were amazed and perplexed saying to one another, what does this mean?

But others mockingly said they were filled with new wine. Let me tell you two things when the Holy Spirit the challenge of the

Holy Spirit. Some people will go wow this is cool. Other people will go that is so stupid.

What we got to do is not take offense of this and not get a big head in this, but redirect it to the praise where it really needs to go and back to God.

Pastor Jeff you are the greatest pastor ever to live. I know that. You don't have to tell me that.

You are the greatest preacher since John the Baptist. I know. I get it.

I got it. Right? And that's why I keep hiring lesser pastors so that I'll still be superior.

Right? I can't hire a real one. Man, our our associate pastors would smoke anybody else.

But anyways Guys, realize you're going to take crap. Realize that you're going to take glory, but give it all back to God and dismiss the crap and give that to Him too and move on down the road.

Revival. Let me just go to this. Verse 14 But Peter, now remember this cat. He was the guy who was such a lily -livered chicken that while Jesus was on trial for His life, a 12 year old little girl came up and goes hey, weren't you with Jesus?

He goes, heck no. She goes, no, no you were with Jesus. He goes, never knew the dude. Turn and come up you are one of Jesus' disciples and he went,

MF that son of a... I mean I swear to God I don't know this man.

Right? That was probably a really queer cock -a -doodle -doo, but y 'all get it. Yeah?

Now 50 days later, He stands up in the middle of everybody who's looking for Him.

Because now He's filled with the Holy Spirit. He ain't relying on His power, His knowledge His theology,

His church His pastor, His religion He's now filled with the Holy Spirit and He no longer cares what people think.

He no longer cares if they're going to take His life He, with His last dying breath, is going to share the life -changing message of Jesus Christ And He stands up Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up His voice and addressed them.

Make no mistake, this wasn't a will you come to church with me sometime? This was, hey world, you are on the road to hell you are believing in the lies of this world your eyes have been covered by Satan and culture wake of the

Jesus and He is coming back and it ain't church and religion that's going to save you, it's the atoning blood of Jesus Christ and you reject it at your own eternal damnation something like that look what happens, verse 37

I ain't doing Peter's sermon you can read it on your own verse 37, He gets finished in a lot shorter time than I do now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart sorry 80's and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, brothers, what shall we do?

you know what it was? invitation time we're going to have that in just a second invitation time brothers, what shall we do?

now watch what Peter says and Peter said to them did this, watch Peter said to them there's nothing you can do if God saves you, you're saved if God doesn't save you, you'll never be saved

Bill blessed be his name that's what

God said it ain't up to you, you ain't got no part in this, God is sovereign and He will elect or double predestinate,

He has got this, God consulted Augustine and Calvin when all this was going on when he was writing his word down is that what it says?

oh wait a minute and Peter said to them, repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins and you might oh no, you will receive the gift of the

Holy Spirit, for the promise is for you and for your children and for all all white

Anglo -Saxon people, no, for all who are far off everyone whom the

Lord our God calls to Himself guys Calvin's read that last four words and that gives you a little bit too, but guys listen, watch this you know who that's talking to?

Us for all who are far off all who are far off, two thousand years later, this is not an antiquated message it's here for you today now

I know some of you you got burned by church put some butter on it put some dirt, rub it in shake it off, grow up a little bit and get right with God do not let religion send you to hell ok?

number two, some of you are just lazy and you're so apathetic because you weren't raised right and the height of your experience in life was playing video games and satisfying self that's it, that's why women are so frustrated today because twenty year old men are really twenty year old boys, and you have no self -discipline whatsoever none and so your idea of God is, dear

Jesus come into my heart and save me, amen, God bless Omnio Deus Spiritus Sancti and you're just going to go do your own thing that was for you,

Hannah you're going to go do your own thing right? guys, no man, you see it says, what's the first word?

the first word of the gospel is this, repent now,

I'm just going to give you one, y 'all hang with me I see rolling eyes, just hang with me just one more second, do a bump, whatever you got to do just stay with, don't do a bump don't, don't do a bump by the way, this sermon is brought to you by war, war,

Thursday nights come to war guys, here's what people don't get they think repentance is what you've got to do to come to God I don't know how many times

I've explained this in thirty -five years of preaching repentance is not what you do to come to God, it's what you do when you come to God see, this is what you've been doing your whole life, screw you

God, I'm out repentance literally means, the word means to change your mind my life sucks hmm, let's try something else, shall we?

and you turn away from this, well when you turn away from self guess what you turn towards God see, self, and that's what your culture teaches you

I am special I, no you're not you're not special that's why you can't make it in life because you were taught lies all roads lead to heaven no

Oprah, that is not what all world religion leads to, only

Jesus Christ, Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father but by me

I can say it to you in Greek and Latin and it ain't gonna change nothing okay, repentance is turning away from me and what

I want to do and submitting myself by turning to God, so the first thing you need to do if you're one of the people that this word is talking to you're one of the ones way far off, the first word you need to hear is repent for the kingdom of God is at hand repentance is that beautiful thing, last two things and y 'all just hang with me, one more second am

I going too long? okay verse 41, there's some people in here that just went shut up man verse 41 so those who received his word were baptized and there were added that day about 3 ,000 souls whoo dang 3 ,000 people needing counseling appointments

I could do that, no problem mm baptized y 'all know

I'm married yeah you know why? y 'all are my family y 'all know that but y 'all have to understand a struggle

I have I go out in public and I try to dress slovenly and I try to stick my gut out and I try, you know, not to do my hair because dang, the women be all up on me man it is so hard being a trophy husband it is so difficult and nowadays it just ain't women coming at me man but you know they don't have to ask because they see the ring they see the ring that ring has been on my finger for 33 years now in all fairness it did come off for a little while because it shrunk over the years and it had to get expanded gold does that by the way 33 years that ring's been on my finger 33 years as a sign of a covenant that I made that's a sign baptism is putting on that ring, the water that we baptize people it ain't, it ain't magic,

I remember we had a guy used to come in here and he'd have this little thing of water and he had some mental issues and there were demons coming to his house so he came in here and he'd say pastor bless the water and I spent like an hour explaining to him that doesn't work and he's like oh yes it does and I was like okay and I went somebody stole my

Honda and I spoke and he was like oh thank you so much and he'd come back every once in a while and ask me to bless more water for him and I was like cool whatever but the water in here baptism does not wash away sin, never has never will, you know why?

It's water, okay but it is when you get baptized, y 'all just got scared didn't you, so did

I when y 'all got, when you get baptized see, what it is is you sitting and telling the whole world

I'm taken, don't bother Satan, don't bother the world I'm already married my heart and gave my heart to somebody else you can no longer have my heart, drugs you can't have my heart, codependent relationship you can't have my heart, world you can't have me no more because I have now repented and the word of God has taken root and the

Holy Spirit now dwells inside of me, you're married man, now I know like me, you know the world still wants you the world still wants you but that's why you give them up one more thing one more thing look at verse 42

I'm gonna do 5 more verses, okay if you gotta go, go no, no, no, just 5 just 5 somebody gonna shoot you, verse 42 so these people didn't know

Jesus Holy Spirit preached, right they came to know Jesus they got saved and then they got baptized if you gotta go potty, go potty

I understand, no one will think you're rude, watch so now we see a picture of them 2 or 3 weeks later right, right, here we go they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship and the breaking of the bread and the prayers, watch this you become a

Christian and you go off on your own you are gonna be the little zebra with the broken leg in the pack behind when the alligator goes you're gonna be that guy you're gonna be the one who leaves the safety of the herd and gets gobbled up and you're gonna be on National Geographic with your one leg twitching out of the lion's mouth and everybody's gonna go that was probably a little too graphic wasn't it, sorry yeah, truth hurts, man you see these new

Christians they devoted themselves to the apostles teaching that's me

I'm not an apostle okay, there are no more apostles I know some of y 'all freaked out about that but read the

Bible, it's cool but you have to devote yourself to learning you've got to because some of y 'all have been saved 40 years and you couldn't put a doctrinal thought together if your life depended on it okay, guys be with your family and learn, and look at this it says right this and all came upon every soul and many wonders and signs were being done to the apostles and all who believed were together and had all things in common and they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need, right now

I'm gonna ask the, what are the people called, the collection offering plate people,

I'd like everyone to please pull out your house deed and sign it over to me in the name of Jesus and then we're gonna give you a cup of Kool -Aid and it's so refreshing and nice listen to what it says they were selling what they had you know why?

lead the last four words because some people had needs there ain't no communism in Christianity, they weren't all just selling and smoking weed, living on a commune going peace men that's not what it says, it says they were doing what they had to do amongst themselves to take care of their brothers and sisters who didn't have

Jack that's what it means dude if you're in this place and you ain't got no food

I promise you, you will be fat stuffed and happy before you leave this house today, if you ain't got no food, we gonna hook you up and also if you have a drug issue

I got people for you to talk to if you don't know about it, I got people you can talk to, if you need a place to sleep,