Jesus Training the Twelve (Full Service) — Bill McLeod

Good morning everyone. It's good to see you here on this Lord's Day and Today, we'll celebrate Pentecost. It's not Pentecost Sunday. That's the last Sunday in May, but I've asked pastor McLeod to Speak on that subject and This morning we greet you with that verse from Acts 1 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and he has come and You shall be witnesses to me in you in Winnipeg and in all Manitoba and Canada and to the end of the world.

That's a revised version. But that is what he meant We are to be witnesses the Holy Spirit has come and We are his witnesses in the world. We want to turn to number 28 in our hymn book and sing that old familiar song Revive us again.

We praise thee Oh God for your son for your spirit for the Lamb and ask you to fill our heart with your love.

Today number 28. Shall we stand? May be seated and would ask the ushers to come forward to receive the morning offering.

Let us just Just look to the Lord in prayer. Our great God and Heavenly Father All things are known to you. You have created the world. You've made each one of us. And only God knows our hearts and our minds.

And so we come to you the light and Open up ourselves to you. Lord, may the Spirit of God just shine into our darkened minds and hearts and renew us and Restore to us in us the image of Jesus Christ. Lord, if only we knew what God Could do in each of us and in our church and throughout the world We would fall down before you in humble Repentance and faith to seek from God all That you have for us.

And so Lord do a new thing in our lives today. May your power and glory be revealed and may Jesus Christ be glorified. We pray for Each one who has come. We pray also for those who are Sick and cannot be here.

For George and Kathy Dick. For Anita in the hospital. For Sylvia at home during this treatment. We pray for others who are away and cannot be here. But Lord meet the needs of each one and as we come to you in prayer.

And as we give unto the Lord as he has prospered us. Would you bless this service and bless our brother Bill as he ministers to us this morning in Jesus name.

Amen, just a few announcements.

Anyone needing a bulletin just raise your hand if you've been missed. Anyone I see. No one. Good. On the first page you notice that we do not have an evening service tonight. At the bottom of the page though is a reminder the government of Manitoba is Reviewing whether to extend the Sunday shopping to all day.

Yes, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Fellowship hour tonight at 6 30 p .m. Come enjoy a time of singing testimonies prayer and refreshments and maybe it be a continuation of this morning service What God is doing to us and Then the Sunday shopping issue if you want to share your views on Sunday shopping contact on internet.

That website may 11 before May 11th. Don't be a passive Christian. Take a stand for righteousness. I Turned to that thing, but I couldn't find out how to give my message. Somebody can help me they can tell me.

Maybe you know better and then the next page I've listed first Tuesday. The ladies always meet on the second Tuesday of the month and They have changed for this month to the third Tuesday, which is May 15th.

So it's not this week, but please take note. It's the following week and Wednesday a regular Bible study and prayer and Next Sunday May 13th Mother's Day and then June 3rd looking Almost a month ahead church picnic and usually the Lord gives us a good day, but pray for good weather.

Nursery supervisor today is Linda Boychuk and You might watch for the May issue of the MB Herald. There's an article three pastors tell all includes an interview that they had with me and two other pastors.

Concerning the ministry and then praise and prayer items this week pray for Ernesto Pinto. He's teaching God's Word this coming weekend in Honduras. He's a powerful ministry by radio by television and then about once a week in different countries of the world God's using him greatly.

Mariette Merton Had a surgery and received a clean bill of health of after surgery. Sylvia has to stay home for about six weeks or a month two months, that's a long time and Pray for her. George and Kathy had an accident a bad whiplash for her.

She still has a lot of pain. I Might mention that Anita Jewick was admitted Thursday morning to emergency. She has bad infection in both lungs this time and Pray for Walter and Anita. And I see Nick Hildebrandt here our brother.

We've been praying for you at prayer meeting and We just wish you to his Treatment for cancer as well and then an item from Kingdom Ventures 21 years ago They started a ministry to the people in Russia using the Communist camps which were no longer in use and God has Really blessed our brother and sister loan as they ministered there and right from beginning.

They started to train leaders so that the churches in Russia could take over the work and now there are over 1 ,000 camps and thousands of Christian families and hundreds of thousands of new believers.

Influencing the next generation in Russia. Pray for them as well. And now we'd like to just sing one more chorus and then we'll call on Andy for the scripture and prayer and Then a group of singers from the church blessed quietness Speaks of the coming of the Holy Spirit.

I like this course. It's a real challenge. That's what God is doing through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Let's stand as we sing. This part is a promise and then it's a prayer.

To some this may be new. Let's sing it once more the promise of Christ and then our prayer.

Joel’s Promise of Restoration and the Outpouring of the Spirit

I'd like to invite you this morning to turn with me to the book of Joel. If you don't know where that is, it's in the 12 books of the Bible. Categoried the minor prophets which are right before the New Testament.

Hosea Joel Amos. The book of Joel. It's a short book only four chapters long, but it packs a very powerful punch. Sorry, only three chapters long. We'll read Joel chapter 2 verses 23 to 32. Joel 2 verse 23.

Be glad then you children of Zion and rejoice in the Lord your God. For he has given you the former rain faithfully and he will cause the rain to come down for you the former rain and the latter rain in the first month.

The threshing floor shall be full of wheat and the vats shall overflow with new wine. So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten. The crawling locust the consuming locust and the chewing locust my great army which I sent among you you shall eat in plenty and be satisfied and praise the name of the Lord your God who is dealt wondrously with you and My people shall never be put to shame.

Then you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel. I am the Lord your God and there is no other my people shall never be put to shame. And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out my spirit on all flesh.

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy your old men shall dream dreams. Your young men shall see visions and also on my men servants and on my maid servants. I will pour out my spirit in those days.

Now we'll show wonders in the heavens and in the earth blood and fire and pillars of smoke. The Sun shall be turned into darkness and the moon into blood. Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord and it shall come to pass that whoever calls in the name of the Lord Shall be saved for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem.

There shall be deliverance as the Lord has said among the remnant whom the Lord calls. May the Lord bless the reading of his word to your hearts and may we bow in a word of prayer. Lord, I thank you for these great and precious promises.

And as it says in the book of Peter that you've begotten us to exceedingly great and precious Promises that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature. Lord, I thank you that we can stand upon your word that we can read it and hear the Word of God spoken.

Thank you that it says right here that whoever calls in the name of the Lord shall be saved. Lord, you poured out your spirit in Pentecost, but Moody has said many times that the day of Pentecost was merely a specimen day.

Lord, you poured out your spirit then and you desire to do it today. I pray that you would be with our brothers. He speaks. I pray that you would guide him and lead him by your spirit. That you'd give him the words to share and that your power would flow through him that you'd give us a tent of hearts.

We pray these things in Jesus name Amen.

Pastor Bill McLeod to give us the message now. There are copies of his message available after the service if you wish to have one. Thank you. That was a lovely song. You just sang one of my favorites.

I haven't heard it for a long while and I really enjoyed it and joined in a little bit I didn't remember it all but part of it. So I want to talk today With the power of God about Jesus and the training of the twelve, you know when God Created the world in Isaiah 45 18.

It says he did not do this in vain. He formed it to be inhabited. And there's no other planet like it in the whole universe. The scientists say they're looking for one they're positive they'll find many but these powerful telescopes they have while they look at thousands of Stars and stuff they couldn't see before they haven't found one and they never will.

Somebody said that the earth is the theater of the universe. It's where it's all happening. It's where Jesus came. I Must keep this clearly in mind. Now he had to train people he had to well, first of all, he had to pick twelve men and He didn't pick the kind of men we think He should have perhaps.

I don't know fishermen farmers tax collectors nobody's. There are probably many people he could have chosen that would have been better in some ways. But there were not the kind of people he wanted. He hasn't chosen the mighty and the great or the rich but the poor and the lowly and Obviously he picked the right men.

Jesus Trains the Twelve Through Miracles and Practical Obedience

Then he had to train them. And he did it in a number of ways. I suppose the healing miracles. Which they watched for three years. They must have seen literally thousands of people healed because wherever Jesus went There were great crowds following him.

Because they knew he'd be working miracles and healing others and they wanted to see this. But Jesus rebuked him one day he said you seek me not because you saw the miracles but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.

They didn't have a good motive and Following him around but when he reached the village and word would spread. That Jesus of Nazareth was in town all the sick people in the area were carried by the relatives and Friends out to where Jesus was and laid down at his feet and he healed them.

It mentions a kind every kind of sickness and disease that was brought to Jesus. He healed and the twelve saw this. Then at one point he gave them the power to heal and to cast out demons by the way. Casting out demons three times in the New Testament is called healing.

So when he healed them when he cast out demons that was a form of healing also. Well feeding the thousands stilling storms walking on water casting out demons feeding thousands. Did you know that he and the disciples in a boat on the Sea of Galilee?

About six miles from land. When Jesus came on board the boat it moved from where it was to the shore in a second. It says immediately. Now that's a great miracle to move a boat. I may have. I don't know what the weight would be.

But to move with that distance in a second was one of the mighty miracles Jesus did. That we don't hear much about. He was aware of things going on all around him. He told the disciples one day when you go into the village, you'll meet a man with a picture on his shoulder.

Follow him Into the house and that's where you'll make a Passover. Now, how did he know there was a man walking down the street with a picture on his shoulder? He knew somehow. He sometimes read people's minds.

When one man began to think certain things were told in John 7. But Jesus answered him. Well, he hadn't said anything. How did Jesus answer him. Because he read his mind he knew. He was able to do that.

He was different from us in many ways. Then he raised the dead Lazarus a widow named son, but there are others besides. Because when the men came from John the Baptist. Wondering if Jesus was really the one they were looking for.

They were told to go back and tell him that he was healing the sick. He was raising the dead. So there were probably numbers of people raised from the dead through his training so part of the training was healing people helping others.

Using your power to relieve other people's sufferings. This was all part of the training. Then there was his teaching. Which was in some cases Amazing. For example, he taught that if you loan somebody some money don't expect to get anything back.

Do we operate that way. Not really. Not really we'd like to get back what we loaned at least and maybe a little more if possible. But that's what he said. Then he said, you know in those days a Roman soldier walking down the highway he could call on any person he saw and Asked them to walk a mile with him and carry his pack and they had to do that.

So Jesus said if you ask to carry a pack for a mile. Carry it two miles. Does that sound right. It's certainly different but it was right that's what he one of the things he said. So if they smite you on one cheek you to offer them the other.

You're not to run away and be mad you offer the other cheek and. Then he told him to rejoice when you're persecuted. Leap for joy. He said in one place Leap for joy when people are maybe throwing stones at me.

Well, you know Wesley in Whitsfield had a lot of that. Not only stone but rotten eggs and dead cats and stuff were thrown at them while they were preaching. And they just wiped off the blood and kept on it going.

They knew what Jesus had said. So we're to rejoice When we are persecuted. Then he told his disciples your light and your salt. You're to be both the light of the world as long as I'm in the world I am the light of the world, but he said to them you are the light of the world.

He was going back to heaven and He left 12 lights burning. Now these are things that Jesus taught him. He said when you're fasting or when you're giving. You do it very secretly. You're not to parade it.

You're not to want to have people watch what you do so you can brag over it. You're not to do that or be that. You to do it very secretly and your father in heaven your father who sees you in secret Will reward you openly.

So there are things right? Well, he told him to build on rock not on sand. I mean he gave them a lot of good practical Thoughts to work on as well. It was a great help and it's a help to us, of course or should be today.

Repentance as the Foundation of Gospel Preaching

Then he they found out very quickly That if you're going to preach you've got to preach repentance. John the Baptist began it Jesus in Mark 1 when he began to preach he said repent. I believe the gospel and Then the disciples when they were sent out in the gospel of Mark it says they preached that men should repent.

I'm sure that wasn't all they said but were the writers wanted us to understand. This was a major part of their preaching. Everything else was based on this. It's not going to help you unless you have repented of your sin and Turn with your whole heart unto God.

So they learned many things through his miracles the healing miracles and the other miracles and Then they learned Just being ready with him day by day Watching him Hearing him Asking him questions. I'm sure that all of the apostles apart from Judas at times would have serious Internal questions than to bring to Jesus and have them answered.

That was something else part of the training. Then we noticed another thing he did which is very unpopular today with preachers. He strongly publicly condemned Those who are teaching false doctrine. Now we're been told and taught you can't do that.

Because you'd be guilty of hurting somebody's feelings but read Matthew 23 and Other not Christians who read this say this was not right. He should never have said those things about the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

But he did it and they heard it and He knew it had to be part of their ministry to Wesley and Whitfield those two great preachers if they saw an unconverted preacher in the audience and they knew his name they'd call out his name and Rebuke him publicly for not preaching the gospel and both Whitfield did that a lot more even in Wesley, but both of them did it and they felt constrained to publicly rebuke Men who are not preaching the truth and the minute they found out they did something about it.

Nobody's doing that today. You don't want to hurt anybody's feelings. Did it never occur to the authorities? That when they preach false doctrine, they're hurting my feelings. Though my feelings count to of course they do and so we shouldn't be publicly Rebuking where we can where we have the facts not be guessing but sure part of their the training.

The Disciples Needed the Holy Spirit’s Empowerment

But you know after of those three years of watching Jesus night and day. They were still not ready. You'd think well man the training they've had is amazing. Nobody else in the history of the world has ever had this kind of training that they have.

But he told them not to go he didn't send them out. He sent them out on little journeys at one but was not the big thing that happened after Pentecost. So they were not ready. He knew that they didn't know it probably they probably thought they're ready to go.

But he wouldn't let them go now in John 2022 after his resurrection. He breathed on them and said Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Now this puzzles. Some Bible scholars they don't understand what happened there because that was quite a bit before Pentecost.

I Think perhaps what happened then? We might say they received the indwelling spirit. Not the baptism of the spirit, but the indwelling of the spirit and others agree with that idea as well. But that still did not make him ready because he did not send them then.

We have to remember that when Jesus came well, Isaiah, for example said that darkness would cover the earth and Gross darkness would cover the people the gross darkness. He was talking about was the darkness that was on Israel.

Because of the light is in you is darkness. How great is that darkness? They thought they had it. They didn't have it. They'd lost it. It wasn't there they were operating as if they had it, but they never really had it and so he rebuked him the way that he did and Then gross darkness.

Yes, there's a verse in Ephesians 6. That's a very shocking verse to me. It speaks about our enemies Satan and the hosts that follow him the fallen angels and. They're called the rulers of the darkness of this world.

Don't be Wondering why it's so dark spiritually out there. There are people keeping it dark. They're the rulers of the darkness of this age. That's why Isaiah called it gross darkness it is they're leading people in thousands of wicked ways evil ways and sometimes in religious ways that are just as evil as the other and.

So they are our enemies and if they're the rulers of the darkness and you're a light for God. Watch out. They won't like you things will happen. Sometimes as you can't explain. But don't be alarmed. God is with us.

He's given us all the wisdom we need to have and if you happen to lack wisdom in James It says if you lack wisdom ask of God that gives to all men liberally. Greatly you mean? But he said let him ask in faith.

Nothing wavering. Because if you waver you'll be like a wave of the sea wind and toss. You have to believe when you pray and ask for wisdom from God. You may pray and then walk away and say I wonder if he did anything.

I'll forget about it. He didn't do anything. He couldn't because you never believe. So whatever situation you happen to be in Believe God. When you're asking for some help for guidance or power or whatever believe.

All right gross darkness the rulers of the darkness well, they'll be all over when Jesus returns and The hosts that serve him will be thrown into the fire and the devil himself will end up in that lake of fire by the grace and power of our God.

Pentecost and the Power to Witness

But then one day something happened and has put this way in acts that Jesus Christ, he's at the right hand of God and Having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit He has shed forth this.

Which you now see in here. So Pentecost was something that Jesus did. He was the one that authored that. Remember it says now he received the promise of the Father the Holy Spirit. Jesus did and Having received this promise then he shed forth the Holy Spirit on the twelve.

That's how it happened. Christ did it. He sent the Spirit in power. There have been many known in Christian work down through the years that have experienced this kind of a baptism. That he experienced on the day of Pentecost.

You know in one day after they were baptized in the Spirit 3 ,000 Jews were converted. Think of it in one day. 3 ,000 more were converted in one day than have been converted in the three years when they were traveling around and preaching and Then later a week or two later Peter preached and 5 ,000 were converted at the end of the sermon.

Nothing like that had happened before. There were happy men like Dwight L Moody in Chicago. He had a large Sunday school. But it wasn't getting anywhere like in preaching. He wasn't really a preacher.

He got very few Invitations to preach he did some preaching. But nothing seemed to happen and it spent six months Crying to God for the power of the Spirit in his life and it happened one day while I was walking down the street in Chicago.

He suddenly felt the power of God and he ran to a friend's house and asked for a room where he could be alone for a couple of days and they found him. He found a place and went in and he spent hours just Talking to God and was filled mightily with the Holy Spirit.

Now when he went out of there, he began to preach the same sermons. He said that he preached before. But before when he preached nothing happened. Now when he preached hundreds were being converted and in some cases thousands.

Now Charles Finney a lawyer converted suddenly. He was he received this baptism of the Spirit whatever you want to call it an Indulgent of God's Spirit in power and everybody he talked to the following day was converted.

Everybody he walked around the village Talking to different people everybody found Christ and he had that great power. And was probably used of God. And two and a half a million people to Christ back when the population in the States was much smaller.

Torrey helper of Moody's had the same experience. Jb Earl a great evangelist so fruitless in his ministry and he got serious about it and spent one night with God and He was trying to find out who to blame.

And God said well, I'm blaming you. You're the fault. You're your own trouble. You have to deal with it and Jb Earl says he did. He honestly just let God search his heart show him every sin make restitution and everything else.

He was ready for it all and he said at two o 'clock in the morning. He was filled with the love of God by the Holy Spirit. And before he died there were two hundred thousand people found Christ as their personal Savior.

Before this happened that night in that room He preached ten times in a crusade not one soul was saved. But that changed drastically. And they called it a personal Pentecost. We have to be very careful here as to what we're thinking about because It's not something that comes easily.

Not to everyone. But if we're serious about our Christian life and want to count for God and be something Useful to God in his kingdom if we want to glorify God We have a right to go to God in prayer now.

Prevailing Prayer and Jacob’s Perseverance

We have some godly examples like Jacob and Genesis 32. Remember he had wronged his brother Esau and Esau was coming to meet him and had 400 men with him and Jacob knew his brother intended to kill him.

That's why he had 400 men with him. So he had to get this thing straightened out. He tried three or four plans and none of them worked. There's a little phrase there. It says. And Jacob was left alone.

It's good to be left alone you have no more plans. You got nothing left but God and That's what happened to him. And he began wrestling with this angel and when the Sun came up in the morning The angel said let me go for the Sun the day is breaking and he said I will not let you go unless you bless me and That's when he was touched by the angel and his name was changed from supplant er to Jacob.

And his ministry his whole ministry. Became powerful much different than it had been before and when Esau met him the following day Esau ran to him fell on his neck and kissed him and they rejoiced together.

And this happened because he persevered now in Hosea. There's a verse that refers to that and gives us some insight. It says therefore after describing what happened to Jacob. He says therefore Wait on your God continually.

He's saying do the same thing copy Jacob. He didn't give up. He didn't pray a pretty little prayer. He saw God he got the point. He was willing to die even I've heard of men getting to that point where they tell God give me power or I'll die.

You know what John Knox prayed that great Scotch preacher. He said give me Scotland. He prayed give me Scotland or I'll die and God gave him Scotland. He was a great great preacher. And wicked people were very much afraid of him of him because of the power and the ministry he had.

So there has to be humility. There has to be perseverance. That's mentioned in Ephesians 6 18 with all perseverance. It says Hanging in there believe in God trust in God crying to God for power. So that we don't just sit around being a nice Christian and having our picture taken whatnot.

That's not it. It's standing up and being counted. It's sharing Christ in difficult places. It's doing things with our money that others would think that were really crazy if they knew. One of the men in my church in Transcona years ago He was his brothers there were three of them there were potato farmers and He became a Christian his brothers didn't and then he one day He was a heavy giver, you know and he had the receipt from the church in his Bible and one of his brothers found it and They gave him an awful time.

They yacked at him for days on end you crazy fool giving all this money away. What are you doing? Are you going crazy or something, you know? Well, he didn't. He didn't quit giving he just made sure they never saw our receipt again.

That was a little easier. But he was changed dramatically his brothers couldn't understand it and I don't know. But as far as I've heard his brothers never did become believers in Christ. I Don't. I can't say that definitely but I believe that's how it was.

So I was told All right humility and Honesty with God and with others and then persevere and Remember, whatever it is. You're seeking it must be for the glory of God. It must be for the glory of God. Do you remember that group?

In Europe, I'm trying to think of their name now, but they They did more for missions. They did more for missions in one year that most of all the churches in the world in those days put together did.

They started a prayer meeting. That never quit day or night for a hundred years. I met one of the workers in South America Years ago and he still had the fire but he admitted that most of their people had lost the fire.

It wasn't the way it at once be. It's God willing. They the weight and the Lord shall renew their strength. You'll get new power by waiting on God and he'll give each of us what we need to know and have.

By way of spiritual enable Enablements and so on he'll do it, right? But we need to seek his face. We need to get before God and confess that what he said about you is true. He said you're but of nothing, you know, nothing you're but of yesterday and know nothing.

You're less than nothing. He said have you ever confessed that to God? Well, it's time you did that, you know, say God you said I'm less than nothing. I believe it. I accept that. Thank you for being so kind as to tell me the truth.

And we have to start from there. That's where we start. We're nothing. We're less than nothing. We're not even a hole in the ground. That's how God sees us. And of course, he's speaking of us in comparison to himself.

God is not as we are. Or anything like that the inhabitants of the earth. He said our grass in Isaiah 40 and later on in Isaiah 40. He said we're grasshoppers. That's not very flattering. He just wants his people to understand we don't have it.

We don't have and we have an intelligent a mind. But we have to see God. To get the best in life. I say the best in life for the glory of God. And it comes through prevailing prayer. Don't give up. Remember when the disciples said they asked Jesus teach us to pray as John taught his disciples and He taught them to pray.

He gave them part of the Lord's Prayer and then he went into that parable. But the fellow who needed some help. He went to a friend at night apparently. Asking for help because somebody come in a journey and he had no food in the house.

Can you please give us some bread and His friend hollered back. Shut up. The kids are with me in bed, which I can't do this but then it says this I Jesus said I say unto you though. He will not rise and give him because he is his friend.

But because of his Importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needs. So God is our friend. We are friends to God. It's got to be a little more than that in a sense his Importunity. It's been called shameless asking or asking that could not be denied.

It's that kind of praying asking God persevering. But you know you have to make sure to outset it's for the glory of God and For other people's good as you're crying to God for a power or whatever it is you have in mind.

He's willing he gives liberally to all men. He's a giver. When you think of God you think of his gifts. He's a giver and He's not a slow giver. You know, he's he's uh, there were two things that caused Jesus to be amazed.

One was he was amazed at their unbelief. Another case. He was amazed at a certain Gentiles faith. He said I haven't found faith like this in the whole of Israel. And he said and he warned his disciples and others.

That there was a time coming When people would come from the east the west the north and the south and sit down in the kingdom of God. He was referring to the conversion of thousands of Gentiles. That was a new thought also something of course that Jesus taught them.

Tarrying Until the Spirit Comes in Power

Well, I don't have one particular text to leave. If I did have I suppose it wouldn't be Ephesians 6 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the spirit and watching thereunto. With all perseverance and it says and for all saints praying for one another praying for the loss.

Crying in the Spirit's power. It says remember. We're to pray in the Spirit. We're told that twice in the New Testament, and I'm sure Jesus taught them. But you know when you look at the contrast. All the training of three years a little more than three years.

All they had seen all they had heard. All that they had done. They too had raised it. I don't know about raising the dead, but it certainly healed the sick and cast out demons and all of that. But none of it was sufficient and we have to keep this in mind because it's something we've lost in the church.

We figure three or four years in a Bible school or seminary. That'll be all they need. It isn't all they need. It wasn't all they know. They had more than anybody in seminary or Bible college would ever see or ever hear.