Fear And Healing In Jerusalem - [Acts 5:12-16]

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how's your week? I've been called some names this week that I just thought one of them
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I had to look up in the dictionary and then I thought you know what if they really knew me they'd say worse so I'm thankful for that I think one of the by the way open your
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Bibles if you have one to Acts chapter 5 Bob just about gave me a heart attack he said you know aren't you just up to like 4 verse 30 or something and I'm going did
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I skip a bunch of verses scary we're in Acts chapter 5 will be in verses 12 to 16 and as I thought about this passage
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I thought you know what one of the most misunderstood doctrines in all of Scripture is the doctrine of the
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Holy Spirit and specifically healing casting out demons and a lot of people sadly use that as a sort of an entryway as as a little bit of a wedge to then steal from people and I looked up you know
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I like to find historical lists you know I was like what are the worst you know fake healings of all time and I didn't find that list but I did come up with the worst televangelist products of all time just five of them here number one the faith seed the faith seed is simple
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I mean just think about these things in and you know run them through your biblical prism try to figure out where these come from you know the faith of a mustard seed
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I guess you give a televangelist your money now think about the context is that anything to do with it no and then you miraculously have more money you give to get this is true because quote when you let go of what is in your hand listen to this
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God let's go of what is in his head mmm so it appears that God likes to sit around the house with Benjamins in his hands that's what this guy said like well wrong on a multitude of levels but we don't need to go into that but here's the promise you will be blessed financially your debt will disappear and it will be blessed in 58 different ways
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I won't go through all of them thankfully number four worst televangelist product scams of all time prayer packages the prayer package is one of the greatest scams ever the product is simple you pay someone and they pray for you
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I'll pray for you for free just tell me what the issue is I'll do it for free here are the promises you will be healed can anybody promise you that no you will receive an anointing from God you should know automatically that's false and third you will have financial success third scam prayer cloths this is yet another scam claiming to provide a touch point which is the same as a point of contact the unique thing is that they're sent out as free products that's awesome except then you are harassed endlessly until you give money the prayer cloth has been advertised to do anything from heal people to make them rich and he says personally
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I'm not buying one until it can make me taller and have the tone of a bodybuilder number two miracle spring water it promises this miracle spring water will allow you to have all of God's riches and blessings bestowed upon you he owns the cattle on a thousand hills people if he gives you everything then what it will heal your body you will receive checks for no reason in large amounts the
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IRS will subsequently show up at your door number one this is it's called miracle manna miracle manna and it's right up there in route 12 no no every bite of this heavenly cake you'll feel you'll feel empowered and encouraged to move into all
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God has for you based on the claims from this video miracle manna is cake from heaven that empowers you to do
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God's will according to the testimony from fake people in the video it also causes people to write large checks to you for reasons unknown then all your dreams will come true now just think about that that quick list there what do they all have in common first of all they promise physical needs or desires you know you're going to be healed you're going to have lots of money and that's an exchange of course for money but what do they also do they provide money to false teachers these are you know the worst pyramid schemes in the history of pyramid schemes but what's missing the gospel
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Jesus biblical teaching miracle manna sure it was a miracle but it appeared to you know it arrived for the
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Jews out in the wilderness I don't want to be out in the wilderness I don't want to be wondering for 40 years no thanks
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I'll pass on the miracle manna this morning as we turn to Acts chapter 5 we're going to see what actual signs and wonders what they're for what they accomplish why the
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Holy Spirit does them and as we look at this I want us to just you know in the back of your mind just be thinking about these false teachings that really are very popular and they're popular because they appeal to our kind of more base instincts these are things that we want
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Acts chapter 5 verse 12 now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the
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Apostles and they were all together in Solomon's portico none of the rest dare join them but the people held them in high esteem and more than ever believers were added to the
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Lord multitudes of both men and women so they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on the cots and mats that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them the people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits and they were all healed now the last time we were in Acts we were in chapter 4 verse 31 all the way to Acts chapter 5 verse 11 and we broke it down this way talking about the power and the person of the
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Holy Spirit number one that the Holy Spirit brings unity and holiness to the church number two the
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Holy Spirit sanctifies believers and number three the Holy Spirit purifies the church and we had the case of Ananias and Sapphira the
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Jerusalem Church was unified in a way that believers were habitually joyfully and without compulsion giving to meet the needs of other believers in the church contrary to what some unbelievers say this wasn't socialism it wasn't everything given to the church and everybody sharing everything all the time and we could debunk that but it's not true we could study further in Acts we would see that people still had houses they still had other things more importantly it wasn't compelled in any way nobody was forcing
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Christians to give all that they had the church was growing it was learning it was being sanctified growing in Christ likeness but that wasn't happening to everybody and Ananias and Sapphira they acted as if they were doing what others had done they they sold a piece of property they brought it to Peter well and Ananias did anyway he acted as if he was giving all the proceeds of this property to the church but he wasn't because the two of them had conspired that is to say they'd made an agreement beforehand that they would hold some of it back but they would make it look like they'd done that sadly for Ananias and Sapphira the
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Holy Spirit was not fooled and informed Peter of their plot back to verse 3 but Peter said
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Ananias why is Satan filled your heart to lie to the
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Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land now just quickly just to point out you can't lie to a force you know the way some people talk the way some people deal with the
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Holy Spirit is it's as if he's a force they whip him around with their coats they throw him around they do different they command him to do things as if he is a mere force but he's a person you need to be a person to be lied to need to be a person to know that somebody's lying to you but Ananias and Sapphira are struck instantly dramatically by the power of God the
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Holy Spirit and we concluded with Luke's summary of the situation it's understandable verse 11 and great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard these things imagine the buzz going around you know
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West Boylston if one or two people just you know pastor Mike's up here and says oh you've lied to the
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Holy Spirit boom we're gonna get around there'd be great fear upon the whole church we'd be like okay let's not lie anymore this morning the
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Apostles in our text the Apostles are the subjects of the actions of the Triune God he established them as his representatives so that they could carry out his
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Commission if you remember Acts 1 8 but you Jesus speaking he says but you will receive power when the
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Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth what better proof could
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God provide the gospel that by working through the power of the
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Holy Spirit through these men these simple mostly fishermen these
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Apostles these men traveled with Jesus during his ministry they were there at his arrest then they saw
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Jesus after the resurrection and they saw him ascend into heaven and by the way because of the conditions the requirements for being an
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Apostle they can't be an Apostle today if somebody says I'm an Apostle move on because that person is a liar so we have three
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C's you know pastor Mike has pretty much set the bar if I don't have some kind of alliteration I can't preach so we have three
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C's this morning the Apostles confirmed see secondly the
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Apostles caused rifts I had to use you know some a little stretch there and number three the
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Apostles cured not meaning they were cured but that they cured others so first the
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Apostles confirmed God's power is on display in verse 12 look it says now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people now they had already been arrested and tried for doing one wonder when they arrested the man who had been lame since birth let's look back at Acts chapter 3 because this it's just one case but it's instructive it helps us to understand what it means to see
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God's power on display Acts chapter 3 verses 4 through 9 and Peter directed his gaze at him at this man who had been born lame who was sitting out there at the beautiful gates
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Peter directed his gaze at him as did John the two men looking at him and said look at us and he fixed his attention on them expecting to receive something from them but Peter said
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I have no silver and gold but what I do have I give to you in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk and he took him by the right hand and raised him up and immediately his feet and his ankles were made strong and leaping up he stood and began to walk and entered the temple with them walking and leaping and praising
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God and all the people saw him walking and praising God now
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I say this is instructive old how so first of all this miracle this wonder is done in the name of Jesus Christ in other words it's by the power of the risen
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Savior the second person of the Trinity that this man is made whole not because of Peter Peter in and of himself is not the source of the healing secondly the healing happens as our text said immediately he immediately begins walking and leaping and notice also that he praises
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God and remains with Peter and John why because the purpose isn't simply to heal the man it's to indicate that Peter and John are truly
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Apostles messengers of Jesus Christ that they're truly ordained by God and that they have the power of the
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Holy Spirit and that this man is evidence that these two men
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Peter and John can be believed what they say signs and wonders are done by God for his glory not for the glory of some guy on television and to affirm the message and the messengers in other words the gospel message in this case and the
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Apostles you want to show that or God wants to show that the
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Apostles are commissioned by Jesus and that Jesus is God that he does miracles through these men and again just think about your your first century
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Jew you're at the temple for a prayer service this man who's been lame since birth gets up and starts leaping around because of the actions of Peter and John and they say that it's by the power of this man that you know was put to death he died on the cross and now they're telling you that this man not only died on that cross but he was raised on the third day do they have credibility
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I think they do I think they do now in Scripture there are basically you know to get away from this idea of the normality
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I mean here here's the idea or here's kind of a conundrum normal miracles you know if miracles are kind of God intervening in the space time continuum and doing only things that God could do that is interrupting the natural processes or doing something extraordinary then you know the idea of a normal miracle you know show up on Friday night for the miracle service wrong but if we look throughout
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Scripture there are basically 100 years in which most of the miracles of signs and wonders the acts of God that the wonderful acts the acts of God that defy natural explanation are concentrated in about 100 years that would be the era of Moses and Joshua the era of Elijah and Elisha and then the era of Jesus and the
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Apostles and it's always the miracles are always done to give confirmation that God was working in and through these men listen to Peter familiar from Acts 2 22 as he's preaching on the day of Pentecost men of Israel hear these words
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Jesus of Nazareth a man what attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst in other words you want to know who
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Jesus is you want to know why he's the Son of God you want to know why he's the second person of the Trinity or you want proof you've seen proof the miracles that Jesus did while he was on earth our text says the
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Apostles were regularly doing them this is a way of expressing the the tent the tone of the verb
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God was giving ample testimony that these men disciples of the crucified
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Jesus were his post resurrection messengers and all of Jerusalem would have known their works and thus it says among the people that's the idea that they were doing these things throughout
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Jerusalem everywhere they went they were doing these wonders and miracles God's power was on display through the
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Apostles and it says our text says continuing in verse 12 by the hands of the
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Apostles and I wanted to just make two quick points here first of all hands is it mean it doesn't mean necessarily that it was by touching their hands or that they necessarily had to lay hands on you what he's stressing is that it was not just by it was it was through them that God was doing these things not necessarily just by the hands but through their persons but secondly he's stressing that it was not just Peter who is performing these wonders all the
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Apostles were engaged in this work or the text would say by the hands of Peter it says it says instead it says by the
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Apostles also notice that God's people gathered together again in verse 12 and they were all together in Solomon's portico now there are a number of commentators who date take different positions on this but it seems wisest in light of the boldness of the church here to conclude that there were regular gatherings of roughly 5 ,000 believers on the temple grounds that Solomon's portico so that's our first see the
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Apostles confirmed that they were indeed the messengers of the Lord Jesus Christ and that their message should be believed because of those signs and wonders now secondly the
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Apostles caused rifts the Apostles cause rifts we see that some of the people were afraid look at verse 13 none of the rest dare join them none of the rest dare join them so you have these church people gathering together at Solomon's portico for instruction and for worship it's just impossible to imagine that this has to do with believers that there were believers that wouldn't get together with other believers because they were afraid
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I think this is unbelievers and again just think about the reputation of the church Jerusalem is by no means
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I mean it's a large city for those times but it's not a big city area wise words going to get around and what else what else would you talk about other than did you hear about the church service where two people wound up dead
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I mean that would be pretty dramatic I mean just imagine there's a couple there are unbelievers they hear about this meeting at Solomon's portico and the husband says the wife hey you want to go check out that new church in town and she says you mean the one where Ananias and Sapphira died the husband goes yeah you know me we'll just wait a little while slow our roll you know just kind of see how it goes maybe wait till they get some plays going or something
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I I don't know I'd probably want to wait a little while but unbelievers are staying away but notice even though they stayed away the church and the
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Apostles were held in great respect the text tells us but the people held them in high esteem they were afraid they didn't fully understand the power of God but nobody was out to get the
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Christians nobody was out to persecute them they didn't try to break up the meetings at Solomon's portico nobody was concerned about the except really the
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Christian leaders or I'm sorry the Jewish leaders and does that sound familiar this is exactly like Jesus it was not the people who were out to get
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Jesus it was the leadership so some were respectful some believed some ended up believing look at verse 14 and more than ever believers were added to the
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Lord multitudes of both men and women I love a commentator
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Simon Kistemacher he says here Luke has lost count of the number of Christians in Jerusalem after Pentecost he tells us there were 5 ,000 here he just says you know what there were multitudes
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I mean there were a lot I I don't know exactly how and I imagine I don't think Luke was frustrated but I mean
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I you could just imagine because of the precision if you recall even what Pastor Mike said and the intro to Luke and the intro to acts just the nature of Luke being a physician he probably sat down and tried to figure it out and then just thought
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I can't it's just a lot when these people heard the gospel they joined the church even though they'd heard about Ananias and Sapphira I mean
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I'm sure you know going back to that same conversation between the couple I'm sure there were some couples that said well okay we'll go but let's make a deal if we decide we're going to give something let's just give it all you know none of this half step and stuff but notice also that Luke contra the culture of the day kind of going against the grain make sure to include the fact that women were also being added to the church now you know
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I could say something like I'm sure that was a relief to the men of the church but you know I mean it would be a real bummer if there were no women in the church but in that day you didn't women were kind of an afterthought they were assumed to just follow their husbands so it's it's good to see even here that Luke makes a point out of it he says yes men and women were joining the church now when we talk about rifts the
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Apostles causing rifts yes there were believers there were unbelievers who respected the church and then there were new converts so there are separate groups so we've seen the
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Apostles confirmed the Apostles caused rifts and now the Apostles cured the
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Apostles cured there were definitely sick people look at verse 15 talking about people who joined the church so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats
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I mean what does that give you a picture of they're taking these sick people who obviously can't walk on their own they're very sick and they're bringing them out into the streets and laying them on cots and mats makes you think that there's both hope that they might be healed and desperation because these people can't move on their own hope because of what these men have been doing and desperation because there has to be a little bit of a fear of missing out what if they stop healing people what if the
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Apostles leave Jerusalem what if they get arrested these are all possibilities what if they're put to death by the
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Romans but these are people these Jews in Jerusalem who know their
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Old Testaments they know the Creator can do anything and they trust that he will through these men so look at this a verse 15 second half of it that as Peter came by at least his shadow might fall on some of them get if you recall just even the the woman believing that by grasping the garment of Jesus what did she say that she she thought she would be made whole and Jesus said what your faith has made you whole he healed her certainly
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God is not limited in how he healed someone he does not need to work through the hands of the
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Apostles he does not need to work through you know these points of contact that these frauds sell but the idea that even his shadow might fall on somebody and might heal them the idea is just this that if we even think about Mary being overshadowed by the power of the
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Holy Spirit and Luke you know sent kind of the same idea this idea that the shadow of Peter might in fact contain some of the power of God that he might be able to work through that they were very hopeful that God would heal and this hope spread throughout the surrounding area well what does that mean look at verse 16 the people also gathered from towns around Jerusalem bringing the sick so the word goes out that these men are able to heal what happens people from outside of the city start bringing people in now if we think back to what the
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Lord commanded the disciples the Apostles to do they were to take the gospel to what
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Jerusalem and then in all of Judea and Samaria then beyond so here's the point the point is the gospel is starting to spread even if it's just the word of the miracles the miracles are starting to draw people to the truth now what do we know we know that one day disease will be no more but for today we still have it we read
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Isaiah 53 verse 5 we'd read this but he
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Jesus was pierced for our transgressions he was crushed for our iniquities for our sins upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace and listen and with his wounds we are healed now some take that and say well that's a physical healing so we can claim physically well let's suppose it's a spiritual healing meaning simply that all of our sins are forgiven how does that give us hope well ultimately we understand that are all of our sins being forgiven means that in heaven no more sickness no more illness no more death revelation 21 verses 2 to 4 and I saw the holy city
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New Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband and I heard a loud voice from the throne saying behold the dwelling place of God is with man he will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their
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God listen he will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain anymore for the former things have passed away no death no pain no illness why because illness itself every illness comes to us by virtue of the fall our corrupted bodies are corrupted world ultimately leading to our death and it's not just physical death that we have to contend with there are also spirits look at this is so interesting
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I said the spirit infested but I I want to make clear it's a lower s not a bigger s 16 the second half it and those afflicted with unclean spirits and they were all healed in other words of bringing not just the people that are sick the people who are afflicted with unclean spirits as one commentator he noted he said listen if we look at the times where scripture speaks about people being tormented by demons by unclean spirits it seems to rise when what when the miracles are on the rise to so there's this kind of spiritual warfare in which people are people are involved but it says here by the power of the
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Holy Spirit even those who were demon possessed that is to say afflicted with unclean spirits were made whole let me get a real practical here for a few minutes there are no healing ministries today
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I'm not saying that God cannot heal I'm saying that nobody has the gift of healing
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God can he certainly able I believe that he can do that at any moment as many times as he pleases he's
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God however there are no apostles today no one no one can meet the conditions of an apostle you can go back to acts 1 and read for yourself therefore there is no message and no messenger to confirm right there's no new message we don't have new revelation from God the canon of scripture is fixed so we don't have signs and wonders we don't have miraculous healings done on a regular basis and the idea of deliverance ministries which is to say deliverance ministries are typically now which
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I find very odd casting demons out of believers casting demons out of believers and I'm just going to say to you that is 100 % bogus fake fraudulent turn for a moment to 2nd
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Corinthians chapter 6 and this is a passage that we use most often to talk about why you shouldn't date or marry unbelievers interestingly enough that has nothing to do with the context but that's what we use it for not really sure why well because it's easy 2nd
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Corinthians chapter 6 verses 14 to 18 again talking about how the Holy Spirit works casting out demons all these kind of things we can't do a exhaustive study of that but I thought this was helpful for us to just think through a few principles here and 2nd
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Corinthians 6 do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers there's the principle that people use and that's true right has to do with marriage and almost any kind of relationship business for what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness or what fellowship has light with darkness or what accord has
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Christ with Belial and now we're really getting into the nitty -gritty as it were how can the second person of the
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Trinity sort of have a deal with the prince of demons or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever what agreement has the temple of God with idols
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I mean we're reading through Isaiah we read through Hosea over and over again
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God condemns idolatry this is one of the initial commandments for we are the temple of the living
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God as believers as God said I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them and I will be their
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God and they shall be my people therefore go out from their midst and be separate from them says the
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Lord and touch no unclean thing then I will welcome you and listen verse 18 and I will be a father to you and you shall be sons and daughters to me says the
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Lord Almighty now if Christ and Satan have nothing in common and they don't and they're not at peace and they're not they don't share they don't share us all people are either in the kingdom of darkness or they're in the kingdom of Christ they are either ruled by Satan or they're ruled by Jesus they're either inhabited by the
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Holy Spirit or they are not so you know in in light of that just think about these deliverance ministries where you go to a church and they say well you have the demon of pornography you have the demon of drinking too much you have the demon of no those are sins you need to repent you don't need to have that demon cast out of you if you're a believer can you have demons and the answer is no the
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Holy Spirit doesn't you know kind of scoot over a little bit and let a demon in there's no warrant anywhere in Scripture to see that those whom the
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Spirit is brought to life can be possessed by demons you say well what about Ananias doesn't say why is
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Satan in your heart you know why did you let that happen two things one is it could be simply this that Ananias was deceived by Satan doesn't mean he was possessed by Satan the other possibility is he wasn't a believer but again think about this idea of demons entering
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Christians does that sound something that a father would do in light of 2nd
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Corinthians 618 does that sound like something Jesus would permit in light of the fact that he is your king if you belong to him does that sound like something the
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Spirit would permit as he is your seal I think the answer is no so back to Acts as we read verse 16 again the people also gathered from towns around Jerusalem bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits and they were all healed all the sick all those afflicted with spirits they came seeking the power of God not the power of men but the power of God and we have every reason to believe that these people came to faith why because our text tells us what they're all healed the point was to deliver the children of God from their afflictions from the domain of darkness and into the kingdom of his dear son not to just put a temporary band -aid on their physical condition or their temporal condition in this world but to seal them for all time and all eternity to the
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Lord Jesus Christ that's why the you know Luke was unable to count the multitudes that now we're in the church this morning
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I read something on Facebook I found you know extremely distressing and I thought I'll just mention my friend
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Terry I've known him for 30 plus years and his wife posted today as far as I know
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Terry's not a believer he's dying he's at home on hospice and he's dying both from cancer and from dementia and I thought you know if we could heal
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Terry would we and I and I thought well sure of course but if we heal
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Terry and we leave Terry in his sin what have we done temporarily we saved his life but eternally we've done nothing in this case in this text
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I think it's clear that the goal here was to build the church and was to build the church not on the basis of picking the best you know let's the
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Apostles didn't go hey let's go raid the seminary and see if we can get some you know some of these wonderful learned
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Jews to join the cause these were kind of the the people on that social outcast you stayed away from demon -possessed people you stayed away from the sick and finally just by way of caution
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I also want to say just a word about just some horrific churches so -called churches
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Bethel Church in Reading Hillsong these churches where they profess to be
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Christian they write all these songs that fill the airwaves of Caleb and they filled churches but when you read what they actually do what they believe what they practice they teach doctrines of demons they teach falsehoods we need to run from those kind of things part of the problem with the church say writ large is that we want the spectacular we joke before I came out here you know
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Spencer said would you like the you know the fog and stuff and I said no I'd like that actually
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I'd like the lightning effect if you could do that you know so little Moses action here this morning healings casting out demons can we see that be so great we're too focused on the problems of this world we all have a problem that's the issue we come here every week why because we're sinners who are saved by the grace of God and we rejoice in that but it's our sin that initially separates us from God our sin keeps us from being heaven -bound we need a
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Savior a sin -bearer somebody to take away our sin because no imperfect thing can enter into the presence of perfection
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Jesus eternally the second person of the
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Trinity took to himself human nature lived the perfect life died a substitutionary death he is our representative he is the lamb who takes away the sins of the world
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Jesus fulfilled the law like we never could and we get that perfection imputed to us counted to us when we believe our sin was placed on him
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God raised him on the third day to vindicate his sacrifice that's what we should be about in the church not worried about the spectacular not worried about healings casting out demons or even lightning effects well let's pray father we thank you for your word we thank you for the examples we have in the