Acts 9:32-10:48

Our Communion this morning was offered up by Tyler (via FaceTime while he is serving in Army Texas Bootcamp)

His introduction to the communion so well dovetailed into our main topic today that I thought it best to include it in these notes:

HUA communion Message (- Tyler Hemingway)

The Army has a phrase called HUA

Normally we say Yes, Drill Sgt as a sign of acknowledgement

HUA that sounds like “Hoo-Ahh” is spelled like H-U-A

Heard Understood Acknowledged

Matthew 11:15

“He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

• First we have to be willing to listen.
• The Holy Spirit helps us interpret the word of God so we can have an understanding of the truth.
• If it wasn’t for Jesus’s Sacrifice on the Cross. We wouldn’t have the indwelling Holy Spirit. 
• We have to be willing to listen (and you have to know what you are listening for)

John 10:27

“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”

• What is more intimate someone yelling at you or whispering something to you. Sometimes we won’t get a yes or no but a wait and we have to exercise patience. but we have to be in the word we have to remember all that was done for our behalf
• we don’t deserve it but that is God’s grace and mercy.
• Once we know the father then the sound of His voice gets more and more familiar as time goes on.
• Luke 8:15

“As for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.”

• Last week we talked about protecting our hearts once we hear the word and hear the truth of everything Jesus has done and especially His sacrifice
• and realizing he knew what would happen the whole time and still spreading the Gospel.
• We have to hear the word and truly listen to it so we can start the next step of understanding. 
• We have to put the truth into our hearts and we do that by living it out.
• We have to understand the price and that it was an expensive price …

John 15:13

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.“

• …all we have to do is ask for it ask for forgiveness and give Glory to God Like come on in my book that’s a pretty good deal. The price of a life. 
• Why can we do this? Why can we experience God’s grace and mercy

a popular verse you may know

John 3:16

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

How about one more?

Mark 10:45

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

• He came to serve us, that is why, that is love.
• To have power and serve others to want to serve us to make that your mission knowing the outcome knowing people will spit in your face knowing you will be refused neglected walked over and stepped on, laughed at, criticized for, mocked,
• That is enough to emotional destroy us. We don’t like when our loved ones do that to us. Yet he loves us SOOOO much He did that anyways knowing we will still sin and fall short.  Once we realize that we can start acknowledging.
• This is our acting step we have heard it and have stored and protect it in our hearts what’s next

Luke 9:24

“For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”

• We can not do any of this alone. We need God guiding us and leading us. 
• We have to be entangled in His love.
• We can’t just try to do it our way we must do it His way. We have to lose our lives give our lives just like Jesus gave his both His body to serve and the Blood of His sacrifice. 

I mentioned earlier that that we still fall short and sin which will bring me to my closing. 

Hebrew 9:14

“How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

• His sacrifice was for us so that we can serve Him. Acknowledging His sacrifice means living it out and serving just how Christ did. It means loving one another just as Christ did. It means leading by example. Allowing others to get a glimpse of Christ through us. And when they do we point them to the cross. The sacrifice the pain of knowing you will be rejected but showing grace and mercy and only wanting love in return.
• We have to know who we are listening to
• We have to Hear Him
• We have to protect it in our hearts
• We have to Understand Him
• We have to live it out
• We have to Acknowledge Him

HUA!

Luke 19:20

“And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”  In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”

 

Here, we started the main topic (spring boarding from the “HUA”)

The spotlight now moves from Saul back to Peter who has decided to “walk around a little” and see what kind of ministry he can get into outside of Jerusalem. (Maybe he was one of the disciples who accompanied Saul to Caesaria to put him on a boat back to Tarsus and decided “since I’m already out here, let’s see what’s going on around here in Lyyda”)

He is about to experience a conversion as well. He is already a believer. He is however, somewhat tied up in the “Old School” traditions of what Jesus offered to free him from. Peter is about to step into a freedom of ministry by seeing a wall torn down between the Jew and Gentile.

Acts 9:32 Now as Peter was traveling through all those regions, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda.

known as Lod in O.T. Ezra 2:33, Neh 7:37, 11:35

Acts 9:33 There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years, for he was paralyzed.

Acts 9:34 Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; get up and make your bed.” Immediately he got up.

Acts 9:35 And all who lived at Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

Acts 9:36 ¶ Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which translated in Greek is called Dorcas); this woman was abounding with deeds of kindness and charity which she continually did.

Acts 9:37 And it happened 1at that time that she fell sick and died; and when they had washed her body, they laid it in an upper room.

Acts 9:38 Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, having heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him, imploring him, “Do not delay in coming to us.”

what’s the rush ? (she is already dead)

• they expect the possibility of a miracle 
• tradition held that the soul of an individual stayed around for a couple of days but departed on the third day

Acts 9:39 So Peter arose and went with them. When he arrived, they brought him into the upper room; and all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing all the 1unics and garments that Dorcas used to make while she was with them.

Acts 9:40 But Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed, and turning to the body, he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up.

why put everyone out ? (maybe because this is what he saw Jesus do in Mark 5:40  …41 “Talitha cumi”)

Acts 9:41 And he gave her his hand and raised her up; and calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive.

Acts 9:42 It became known all over Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.

Acts 9:43 And Peter stayed many days in Joppa with a tanner named Simon.

what’s up with a “tanner” ? 

• they are unclean, handling skins of dead animals Leviticus 11  
• a tannery is in the same category as a bathhouse and public urinal
• Because of the stench of the tanner’s shop, most towns required that the tanner had to live on the outskirts of town, downwind! The Mishnah (oral traditions written by rabbis) states “They put carrion, graves, and tanneries at least fifty cubits away from a town.

why is Peter staying with a tanner ?

That Peter shares hospitality with Simon is significant. Just like Jesus, he is eating and drinking with the outcast, people who are Jewish but on the fringe of society from the perspective of Temple purity and Pharisaical tradition. While tanners are never included in the list of outsiders with whom Jesus eats, they might very well be in the same category as tax collectors and prostitutes.

Peter is doing the WWJD !

Peter is putting aside the equivalent of cultural uncleanness in order to experience spiritual “cleanness”.

If Peter had acted the way most of us, if not all of us, act today, the book of Acts would have come to slow death right about now

(since up to now, it’s been mostly what happens to the disciples in Jerusalem, including being driven out into the surrounding areas whether they liked it or not; here, Peter is invited into a new world of participation through obedience)

Acts 10:1 ¶ Now there was a man at ^aCaesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was ^bcalled the Italian ¹cohort,

Acts 10:2 a devout man and ^aone who feared God with all his household, and ^bgave many ¹alms to the Jewish people and prayed to God continually.

Acts 10:3 About ^athe ¹ninth hour of the day he clearly saw ^bin a vision ^can angel of God who had just come in and said to him, “Cornelius!”

Acts 10:4 And ^afixing his gaze on him and being much alarmed, he said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and ¹alms ^bhave ascended ^cas a memorial before God.

Acts 10:5 “Now dispatch some men to ^aJoppa and send for a man named Simon, who is also called Peter;

Acts 10:6 he is staying with a tanner named ^aSimon, whose house is by the sea.”

Acts 10:7 When the angel who was speaking to him had left, he summoned two of his ¹servants and a devout soldier of those who were his personal attendants,

Acts 10:8 and after he had explained everything to them, he sent them to ^aJoppa.

Acts 10:9 ¶ On the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, ^aPeter went up on ^bthe housetop about ^cthe ¹sixth hour to pray.

Acts 10:10 But he became hungry and was desiring to eat; but while they were making preparations, he ^afell into a trance;

Acts 10:11 and he *saw ^athe ¹sky opened up, and an ²object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground,

Acts 10:12 and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and ¹crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the ²air.

Acts 10:13 A voice came to him, “Get up, Peter, ¹kill and eat!”

Acts 10:14 But Peter said, “By no means, ^aLord, for ^bI have never eaten anything ¹unholy and unclean.”

Acts 10:15 Again a voice came to him a second time, “^aWhat God has cleansed, no longer consider ¹unholy.”

Acts 10:16 This happened three times, and immediately the ¹object was taken up into the ²sky.

Acts 10:17 ¶ Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in ¹mind as to what ^athe vision which he had seen might be, behold, ^bthe men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for Simon’s house, appeared at the gate;

Acts 10:18 and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was staying there.

Acts 10:19 While Peter was reflecting on ^athe vision, ^bthe Spirit said to him, “Behold, ¹three men are looking for you.

Acts 10:20 “But get up, go downstairs and ^aaccompany them ¹without misgivings, for I have sent them Myself.”

Acts 10:21 Peter went down to the men and said, “Behold, I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for which you have come?”

Acts 10:22 They said, “Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and ^aGod-fearing man well spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, ^bwas divinely directed by a ^choly angel to send for you to come to his house and hear ^1da message from you.”

Acts 10:23 So he invited them in and gave them lodging. ¶ And on the next day he got up and went away with them, and ^asome of ^bthe brethren from ^cJoppa accompanied him.

Acts 10:24 On the following day he entered ^aCaesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them and had called together his relatives and close friends.

Acts 10:25 When Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and ^1aworshiped him.

Acts 10:26 But Peter raised him up, saying, “^aStand up; I too am just a man.”

Acts 10:27 As he talked with him, he entered and *found ^amany people assembled.

Acts 10:28 And he said to them, “You yourselves know how ^aunlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet ^bGod has shown me that I should not call any man ¹unholy or unclean.

Acts 10:29 “That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask for what reason you have sent for me.”

Acts 10:30 ¶ Cornelius said, “^aFour days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during ^bthe ¹ninth hour; and behold, ^ca man stood before me in shining garments,

Acts 10:31 and he *said, ‘Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your ¹alms have been remembered before God.

Acts 10:32 ‘Therefore send to ^aJoppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you; he is staying at the house of Simon the tanner by the sea.’

Acts 10:33 “So I sent for you immediately, and you have ¹been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to hear all that you have been commanded by the Lord.”

Acts 10:34 ¶ ^aOpening his mouth, Peter said: ¶ “I most certainly understand now that ^bGod is not one to show partiality,

Acts 10:35 but ^ain every nation the man who ^1bfears Him and ²does what is right is welcome to Him.

Acts 10:36 “The word which He sent to the sons of Israel, ^apreaching ^1bpeace through Jesus Christ (He is ^cLord of all) —

Acts 10:37 you yourselves know the thing which took place throughout all Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed.

Acts 10:38 “¹You know of ^aJesus of Nazareth, how God ^banointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, ^2cand how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for ^dGod was with Him.

Acts 10:39 “We are ^awitnesses of all the things He did both in the ¹land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also ^bput Him to death by hanging Him on a ²cross.

Acts 10:40 “^aGod raised Him up on the third day and granted that He become visible,

Acts 10:41 ^anot to all the people, but to ^bwitnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us ^cwho ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead.

Acts 10:42 “And He ^aordered us to ¹preach to the people, and solemnly to ^btestify that this is the One who has been ^cappointed by God as ^dJudge of the living and the dead.

Acts 10:43 “Of Him ^aall the prophets bear witness that through ^bHis name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.”

Acts 10:44 ¶ While Peter was still speaking these words, ^athe Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the ¹message.

Acts 10:45 ^aAll the ¹circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been ^bpoured out on the Gentiles also.

Acts 10:46 For they were hearing them ^aspeaking with tongues and exalting God. Then Peter answered,

Acts 10:47 “^aSurely no one can refuse the water for these to be baptized who ^bhave received the Holy Spirit just as we did, can he?”

Acts 10:48 And he ^aordered them to be baptized ^bin the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.

what elements do we have in our cultural christianity that Jesus would disagree with ? (here are some)

• Jesus, not the Bible, is God’s living and active Word that brings life.
  • “You don’t have His word living in you, because you don’t believe the One He sent. You study the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, yet they testify about Me. And you are not willing to come to Me so that you may have life.”- John 5:39-40
  • yes, the Word is how we discover who He said He was, but christianity is not an exercise of mere academia …
  • it’s opening a door to enter a different room (life in Christ)
• The only way to enter the Kingdom of Heaven is through DOING the will of God. 
  • “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 7:21 ESV
  • “An expert in the law stood up to test Him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?””What is written in the law?” He asked him. “How do you read it?”He answered: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”You’ve answered correctly,” He told him. “Do this and you will live.”- Luke 10: 25-28 HCSB
  • “We are saved by faith alone, apart from works!” This is a very popular Protestant catch phrase. but “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” James 2:24
• Condemnation isn’t Jesus’ style. (later, second coming, He deals with opposition, but this dispensation, we are called to represent His current ministry)
  • “I have not come to condemn the world, but to save it.” John 3:17 ESV
  • “Neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more.”- John 8:11 ESV
  • as one examines the teachings and life of Jesus, we find him not only befriending, loving, and affirming some of societies most despised people, but chastising the very religious leaders who condemned them for their sin. It seems that he spends very little time telling sinners why they’re wrong or speaking words of condemnation over them, but rather practically loving and extending grace to the most screwed up of individuals.
• You’re supposed to sacrifice yourself and speak words of blessings for those you disagree with the most. 
  • “Love Your Enemies and Bless Those Who Persecute You” Matthew 5:44 ESV
  • when Christians chose to ignore these clear teachings, our hypocrisy is glaringly obvious to the watching world.

 

‎“Those who aren’t following Jesus aren’t his followers. It’s that simple. Followers follow, and those who don’t follow aren’t followers. To follow Jesus means to follow Jesus into a society where justice rules, where love shapes everything. To follow Jesus means to take up his dream and work for it.”

― Scot McKnight 

 

God provides ample opportunities to respond with HUA !!