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Bro. Otis Fisher
Man's goings and coming is all ordained by the Lord. Is that a true statement? Turn to Proverbs 20, 24. Read it, Greg. How can a man understand his self? Since there is only one God and he controls everything, then David, is everything worship of God or worship of the devil?
Since there is only one God and he controls everything, is everything then the worship of God or the worship of the devil? Does everything bring praise to God or the devil? That's what I'm asking. What do you say, Russell?
Or the devil, which one? Well, maybe I should have added. I should have added one thing from God's viewpoint. From God's viewpoint, is everything, well, you think about it this week. I'm not gonna tell you.
Yes. Yes. Does it bring praise to him or the devil? All right, Acts 2, 5. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation and under heaven. Of every nation under heaven. Now, when this was noised abroad, what was noised, Greg?
What had just happened? All right. The multitude came together and were confounded because that every man heard them speak in his own language. You hear about this. It spreads through the town like wildfire.
You want to experience it. Why did God bring this about by this method of having the men speak in the language of everybody that was there? Greg, you're gonna have to speak up. One of my hearing aids went out.
All right, that's a good thought. Russell, why do you think God brought this about by this method? Well, let me ask this. What if God had had the disciples do this, but it was here and here and here and across town as Peter talking and somebody else someplace else?
They're speaking, but in a language you understand, but it was separated. It was different places all over town. What I'm after is why did he bring them all together to do it at one place and one time?
All right, let's go a little deeper with it. David, all right, I'd hate for you to wake up and answer. That's right. Now, there's one more reason, when you think of it. There's another one. He brought all these men together.
He brought the town together and they were talking in the tongues or the language of everybody there. We have a list, the Parthians, Medes, Elamites, dwellers in Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Assyria, Asia, Pergia, Pamphylia, in Egypt, in the parts of Libya, Mount Cyrene, strangers of Rome, Jews, and proselytes.
Now, we have this great conglomeration of people and they all spoke different languages. I think that it was done for the reasons you say, plus these men were known by a few people to have not traveled outside of their country, to be common, ordinary, learned men, not the doctors, and hear their speaking so that I can understand all of these different countries.
The miracle would not have been as great if it had been any other way, the common man talking in my language. So I think for the reason of the impossibility of it, the reason of an explosion of it, the reason that unlearned men, known people, were talking in languages, all of that added together, and there's many others, I suppose, but this is the way God chose to do it, and he did it, and they were all amazed and marveled, saying one to another, behold, are not all of these which speak Galileans?
So they knew they were from Galilee, and yet he's speaking in the language of a foreign country. That's right, it was done superbly. The only method that would accomplish what God intended for it to. Now, what was that?
Yes, yes, that's right. The wind didn't build up, it was all of a sudden. The fire didn't start small and build up, it was all of a sudden. The Holy Spirit came all of a sudden and ate, and how here we every man in his own tongue, wherein we were born.
So it was not just one heavenly language, as so many people like to claim today. Last week, no, a week before last, it's amazing the excuses they give or the reasons they give for that. But something I want to refer to in verse 10, we've gone through this list and we come down to, and strangers of Rome.
Who are the strangers or what is a stranger of Rome, Greg? All right, what about proselytes? Strangers and proselytes. David, what's a proselyte? All right, but there were two different kinds. The proselyte, one who has come over from a Gentile religion to Judaism.
The rabbins distinguished two classes of the proselytes. Those who receive circumcision and those who do not. So my ink cartridge run out right there. By the way, I've put in that one you brought, so I'll need another on standby.
All right, so it was not one heavenly language, as some claim. At least 18 different languages are known at that time or were there. Remember, this was at the beginning of the church age. It's another reason that it needed to happen together and all of a sudden.
Well, don't try to read 1900 years of history into it because it wasn't. We're now seeing the church moving. In the Old Testament, they spoke of what in regard to Jerusalem? Moving right along. The way of talking about Jerusalem changed.
It had been looking forward to Jerusalem. The cross, the birth, everything. Now it's looking back at Jerusalem. And they were all amazed and were in doubt, saying one to another, what meaneth all of this?
Others, mocking, said these men are full of new wine. We know what's the matter. Isn't it amazing that the devil always has somebody to inject the thought of doubt? So it wasn't a day old yet. And there were those that were doubting it.
14, but Peter, standing with the 11, lifted up his voice and said unto them, ye men of Galilee. What? I can't hear. Oh, Judea. Okay. He stood with the 11, he lifted up his voice and he said, ye men of Judea and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you and hearken to my words.
Now this is what he's talking in everybody's language. For these are not drunk, as you suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. What's the third hour, Greg? Nine o 'clock in the morning. They wouldn't be drunk yet.
But this is that. Now what a good topic for a sermon. This is that. Which was spoken of by the prophet Joel and it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy and your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams.
Peter said this is that. This word prophesy. What does that mean, David? That's right. That there shall be no difference of any difference from heaven upon you. I will pour out my spirit. He intended to prove that the church can be repaired by no other means, saving only by the giving of the Holy Spirit so it follows that we can obtain no good thing until we have the spirit given to us.
You cannot serve God without the Holy Spirit. The key which opens the door to us that we may enter into the treasures of spirit, good things, we may also have endurance unto the kingdom of God. Now verse eight, and on my servants and on my handmaids I will pour out in those days of my spirit and they shall prophesy.
Greg, are we living in the day of the Holy Spirit? Do you believe that the things that have just taken place, I'm back there now, that it applies to that time? All right, David, does it apply to the time yet to come?
No. I believe we're now living in the days of his Holy Spirit upon our servants, upon his servants. In other words, the promise is restrained unto the worshipers of God for God will not blaspheme his own spirit.
That becomes rather dangerous, to act like you have the Holy Spirit when you don't. 19, and I will show wonders in heaven above and signs in the earth beneath. Blood and fire and vapor of smoke. The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon unto blood before that great and notable day of the Lord come.
And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. What kind of a call is this, Russell? Is it a call that you call to somebody? All right, it's a call that would be made by a drowning man.
I'm reminded of a story actually happened at home where the community in which I lived, Agner Hanson, a farmer, lived in an old two-story house. And in 1930, a scream of the nearest neighbor woke him from a sound sleep.
She had just found her husband hanging in the barn. And you might say, well, that's not unusual. Not until you know that they lived a mile and a half away and it woke him out of a sound sleep. That's the kind of call we're talking about, call of desperation.
This is not just a nodding acquaintance. It's not you just nodding your head and saying yes to the Lord. You men of Israel, hear these words. Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as you yourselves also know, you can't dispute it, you know it, him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain.
And him being delivered, now he was delivered by Judas to the officers, that's on the human level. But what about this determinate counsel? Being delivered by the determinate counsel. Enlighten me, Russell.
All right. Greg? Well, that's all true, but what was the determinate counsel? Joy, can you have a counsel with just yourself? David, what happened in the determinate counsel? By wicked hands have crucified and slain him.
Russell, did this surprise God? Did he know it was coming? Joy, had he ordained for it to happen? Now, from man's viewpoint, they had killed Jesus. That's not technically true. But we know they did not according to John 10, 17.
Therefore, doth my father love me because I laid down my life that I might take it again? Isaiah 53, nine. And he made his grave with the wicked and with the rich in his death because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief, which thou shalt make when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. He shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand.
Now, this was prophesied that Jesus would lay down his life himself and he would come back to life by the power of God. Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death because it was not possible that he should be holden of it.
It was impossible for him to stay. He had to raise our Lord. The first subject of the first sermon preached on the first day of the first church was the resurrection. Talked about the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
For David speaketh concerning him. I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand that I should not be moved. Therefore did my heart rejoice and my tongue was glad. Moreover, also my flesh shall rest in hope.
Now he says, my flesh shall rest in hope. What kind of hope, Russell? All right, all right. And my tongue was glad. Moreover, also my flesh shall rest in hope. What's that mean, David? That's what it's teaching, the physical resurrection.
Now, David says my flesh rests in this. He did not say my flesh will be in this, but my flesh rests in this. To rest by, to rest now means what, Greg? All right, you can rest even while you work if you rest in the Lord.
My rest I give to you, he said. How many of you are glad you're here today? All right, are you happy? Do you have things gnawing at you? Are you worried about something? What did you say? You'll only worship God being restful in his spirit.
You cannot be in a tormented about something in your life. It has to be at rest in the Lord. Because thou will not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thy holy one to see corruption. Now, what did that mean, Joy?
The holy one to see corruption. Well, all right, he promised the resurrection way back when the world first began. We're gonna stop here, and I've lost my pen. Corruption in the New Testament, that distinction, destruction, which is affected by the decay of the body after death, Hades later was used of this word, the grave or the death.
We think of physical death. We'll start with verse 28. Is there anything that you would like to add? Or like to take note of? Speak up a little. Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. If you knew what tomorrow held, and you were assured of it, and you're gonna live through it and be happy, would that ease your burden for today?
Yes. To rest in the Lord means that. It has nothing to do with the flesh. Is flesh rested in the Lord? That is what David did. That's what you do. You shall rest in the Lord. Means that he was not in a turmoil.
His body didn't jump and run and everything in relation to God. You rested in God. Whatever comes, whatever he has for me, how many believe that right now, God has you right where you should be? Then why worry about tomorrow?
We'll start with 28 next week. Greg, dismiss us please.