Starts In Us!
Acts 17
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
3 Oct, 2010 AM
I.
Introduction
(Acts 17:6)
A.
What a statement! “These that
have turned the world upside down are come hither also”
1.
It was an Extreme Accusation!
a.
That these TWO men, Paul and
Silas were changing the world they lived in
b.
Is anyone in here today GUILTY of
such a thing? Well, we should be!
2.
It was a Fearful Declaration –
that these trouble makers had now come to Thessalonica
3.
It was a Good Testimony –
Christianity meant something back then! Christians were doing something –
not “blending in” but moulding and shaping the world around them!
a.
Although they viewed Paul and the
others who preached the Gospel of the
b.
Since the world before them had
been darkened by sin, full of superstition, and the fear of death, and
hopelessly lost in error, then yes, they had indeed turned the world upside
down.
B.
What happened that made these
people so upset?
1.
How did the Christians in the
First Century turn their world upside down? Miracles? No! Easy life? No!
Every prayer answered? No! Freedom of religion? No!
2.
They didn’t threaten to bomb
buildings
3.
They didn’t riot and march in the
streets
4.
They did withhold their taxes and
burn effigies of their king or political leaders
C.
Just what did these two, unarmed,
unimposing men do that was turning their world upside down and inside out?
We are going to explore HOW, all this month!
D.
But let me say that no one can
affect this world for God until they themselves have been affected – turned
upside down themselves! THAT is what this message is all about
II.
Background
A.
As we open up and read Acts
Chapter 17, Paul, Silas and Luke have left
1.
Paul and Silas having been beaten
with rods, were bruised and bloodied, and been thrown in a dark inner
dungeon. They had gone through all kinds of pain in the stocks that
stretched their limbs and cramped their muscles.
2.
Through it all, Jesus Christ had
been glorified, souls had been saved, and a new church was born in that town
called
3.
And now, they have left
4.
You would assume that maybe they
would take a holiday and lay low for a while. Nope.
5.
As they left
6.
The idea of backing down, and
slowing down, and taking it easy never entered Paul’s mind.
B.
They have obviously affected more
than one town, but already affected the whole area!!!
1.
Now, in Thessalonica, Paul and
Silas were characterized by the people with the most interesting words. They
said, "These that have turned the world upside down have come hither also."
2.
Now, let me say that that's
amazing. It's amazing, that anyone could be someone who so affected the
world that people would say, "They're turning it upside down!" That's
tremendous! I mean, there are people who live their whole life and the world
doesn't even know they're alive. There are Christians who have absolutely no
effect on anything! Yet here were two people of whom the world said,
"They've turned us upside down.”
3.
But if you think that's amazing,
get this. They've only been to one town in Europe so far (
C.
There are reasons they did what
they did and why they had the effect that they had.
1.
Somebody said, "There are people
who watch things happen and there are people who make things happen. And
then there are people who don't know what's happening." Well, Paul and Silas
were people who MADE things happen. Every time they took a step, the world
shook. They had an effect. What they did every day of their lives, MATTERED.
2.
One writer said, "There are only
two people that count in the modern world, a committed communist and a
committed Christian. Everybody else is along for the ride."
3.
Some people never amount to
anything. They just go along. They float. They're in limbo.
4.
Then there are people who count.
There are people who make waves in this world. There are people who upset
the system. There are Christians who disturb the comfort of sinners.
5.
Paul and Silas were those kind of
people.
6.
You know, God's always had those
kind of people. God's always had people who made waves. God's always had
people who upset Satan's apple cart, who took a placid, sinful situation and
threw it into chaos:
a.
Elijah - He was always hassling
wicked king Ahab. He was bad, and he had a woman that was just as bad by the
name of Jezebel. But when Ahab saw Elijah one day during a major drought,
Ahab said on him, "Are you he who troubles
b.
Peter on the day of Pentecost –
turned the world upside down from that moment on
c.
And then there is Paul. Every
time he put his foot down, something rattled. In Acts, he didn't go into a
town and just gently leave an impression. He turned the towns into spiritual
chaos whenever he ministered there.
D.
What is it that makes a man
really shake the world? Well, I think the characteristics are worth
learning!
E.
There are six things that made
these men, men who shook the world, men who turned it upside down, who upset
the system. The five are these and they need definition and we're gonna
define them: By conversion, courage, conviction, conflict, consistency, and
by casting all their cares and worries on God
III.
Message
A.
Definition
- To turn something is to:
1.
To upset
2.
Break it, and soften it – like
the turning of hard soil, plowing (Isa 1:25)
3.
Change it, make it better (Job
42:10)
B.
We Christians
are “peculiar” by design!
1.
Light in the dark – showing the
way, and dangers (Mt 5:14-16)
a.
Ye are the light of the WHAT? The
WORLD! Not of the Church! Or of the Prayer Group!
b.
You CAN’T be hid – if you are
saved, it shows! It already affects the world around you!
c.
You weren’t saved to hide, or
blend, or to be like the world, but to SHINE in the darkness!!!
d.
SO! Let your light so shine! Good
works!
e.
It causes the world around you to
start glorifying God in heaven!
2.
We are SALT (5:13)
a.
What would a dinner be without
some salt?
b.
How bland the world tastes
without the Gospel!
c.
How same old same old life is
without Christians around!
d.
WE are real flavour for the world
1)
Not this MSG rubbish that is in
everything these days
2)
Not fake chemicals that have been
cheaply created to replace the natural flavours that used to be in
everything
3.
We are PECULIAR (1Peter 2:9) -
DIFFERENT than the world around us (1Thes 5:4-8)
4.
Yes, we are designed to upset the
world – we don’t agree with going with the flow – we don’t believe in the
evolution of society. We know that is the “norm” today is both WRONG and
DANGEROUS, and so we speak up and affect our world!
C.
The effects of
Biblical Christianity on the world
– Let’s Examine the record.
1.
There are no Sceptics’ hospitals,
welfare agencies, orphanages, charities, Disaster Relief Agencies, Aged-Care
Homes, or any of the other life-improving institutions such as those founded
and funded by Christians.
2.
Deacons and elders were appointed
by the early church in
3.
While Charles Darwin was
finalizing publication of his Origin of Species in 1859, Swiss humanitarian
and Bible-believer Henri Dunant was planning the Red Cross and negotiating
the Geneva convention for care and treatment of wounded soldiers. Dunant was
co-winner of the first Nobel Prize for Peace in 1901, and his inspiring Red
Cross committee later won the award three times.
4.
It was the Bible-believing
Christians in
a.
The illiteracy problem of
b.
Who focused on starting adult
education
c.
Abolition of slavery
d.
Prison Reform – where prisoners
were given help
e.
Treatment for alcoholics, and
drug addicts instead of just abandoning them
f.
World-wide Christian missions
spread out from
g.
The Young Men’s Christian
Association (YMCA) was formed in 1844
h.
The Young Women’s Christian
Association began a decade later
i.
And the Salvation Army launched
its multinational organization based on Christian ethics and precepts in
1865.
5.
Wives and mistresses were no
longer burned and buried alive with their dead husbands in
6.
Democracy took off throughout
7.
Common people were challenged to
be holy, and clean living (Acts 3:26)
8.
Blind justice, with the right to
remain silent, and the right to a solicitor, and the right of appeal are all
the result of people learning from the cruel treatment of Jesus Christ at
His crucifixion, and the torture of His followers throughout history!
9.
The freedoms and safety in our
European society today is because of CHRISTIANITY having an effect on wicked
men’s hearts
D.
How Does the
World Get Turned Upside Down Today?
Same way it ALWAYS has!
1.
By Conversion
(Acts 9:1-6, 19-21)!
a.
Oh yes, you can easily become
bitter, and angry, and affect the world like Osama bin Laden
b.
But if you want to really turn
this world around, you must be born again yourself!
c.
Conversion is the key word!
d.
Saul was a religious zealot,
torturing and killing people who did not agree with him
e.
He was actually hunting down this
new sect called Christians, and was getting them killed
f.
But then one day, He met Jesus!
The Man who Saul had seen crucified and dead on a cross, was both seen, and
heard, and proved to be very much alive now!
g.
And from that moment, Saul’s life
was turned upside down!
1)
Where once he hated Christians,
now he only hated the devil!
2)
Where once he hunted believers in
Jesus, he only hunted lost souls so he could tell them about the love of God
and the way back to Him
3)
Where once he so firmly believed
he was right about his religion, he now humbled himself and started
relearning everything from the start so that Jesus is right!
4)
Saul of Tarsus was truly
converted
5)
As was Peter, and Thomas, and the
demon possessed man of
h.
The Gospel “turns” people:
1)
Turns people back to God instead
of turning your back to God!
a)
That’s what REPENTANCE is –
“turn ye at my reproof” (Pr 1:23; Ps 22:27)
2)
Turns people’s hearts towards
HOME (Lk 1:16,17; Mal 4:6)
3)
Turns people inside out – makes
them REAL, honest, simple, no layers any more – no more lies, or deception
i.
Every man is turned upside down,
when he becomes a follower of Christ.
1)
A total change of all your hopes!
a)
Your hopes used to be all for
this world. If you could but get rich, if you could but be great and
honoured, you thought you would be happy! You looked forward to it. All you
were expecting was a paradise on this side of eternity. And now where are
your hopes?
b)
If you ARE born again, they are
not on earth. You are looking for a city not made with hands; your desires
are heavenly, whereas they were only material before.
c)
Oh! Can ye say that? Can ye say
that your hopes and your desires have changed? Are ye looking upward,
instead of downward? Are you looking to serve God on earth, and to enjoy him
for ever? Or are you still content with thinking "What ye shall eat, and
what ye shall drink, and wherewithal ye shall be clothed?"
2)
A complete upsetting of all your
pleasures.
a)
You loved the pub before - you
hate it now.
b)
You hated God's house before; it
is now where you spend hours every week learning how to live y God’s word.
c)
96FM, the Sunday newspaper, the
romance novels—all these were sweet to your taste before; but you have
burned the books that once enchanted you, and now the dusty Bible from the
back of the shelf is taken down, and there it lies wide open upon the
kitchen table, and it is read both morning and night, much loved, prized and
delighted in.
d)
Sunday was once the dullest day
of the week to you. But now you can’t wait for the prayer meeting, the
church meeting, the gathering of the believers, and meeting best of all with
the Lord God of heaven.
3)
A complete upsetting of all your
friends
a)
Not happy that you don’t do the
same old things anymore
b)
Not interested in hearing about
the love of God for lost sinners
c)
Not interested in coming to
church and hearing the Gospel
d)
Wanting nothing to do with you
now that you are following a different God instead of drink, or popularity,
or fun, or money
e)
It upsets people!
f)
But that is NOT a BAD thing! It
is how the world gets affected!
g)
We will never affect our world by
just talking like they talk, acting like they act, living like they live!
4)
It is marvellous how great a
change the gospel makes in a man's house too. It turns his house upside
down.
a)
Look at your TV! You find
yourself watching less and less of it!
b)
Where once there was only
fighting and arguing, there is the dominance of the Holy Spirit of God, and
peace, and sacrificial love
1.
Men obeying the word of God
2.
Wives submitting to their
husbands in the Lord
3.
Children honouring their parents
and obeying them
c)
Where once Dad would come home
drunk at night, and the children used to run up stairs and be in bed before
he came in – it is amazing when God takes out the heart of stone, and puts
in a heart of flesh, and that drunkard becomes a real man! A faithful,
caring, compassionate yet truly strong man for his home!
j.
Let GOD Turn YOU Upside Down –
the Effect of Jesus on your life!
1)
If any of you would be saved,
your hearts must be turned upside down
2)
I put the question to you: Have
you been turned upside down? I am a new man in Christ Jesus, “old things
have passed away, and behold all things have become new."
3)
Jesus said, "Except ye be born
again, ye cannot see the kingdom of heaven." Except ye be thoroughly
changed, turned upside down, ye cannot be saved. "Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ, and thou shalt be saved"
2.
In two weeks, we will look at
Five Other Things that God gives us to turn our world upside down
IV.
Application -
“WE” need such a change – to be TURNED (Ps 80:7, 19; 85:4)
A.
Turned into children again
(Matthew 18:1-4)!
B.
Turned into fools (1Cor 3:18-21)
C.
Turned away from idols to God
(1Thes 1:9,10; Acts 19:26)
D.
Turned from darkness to light
(Acts 26:18). Some of you are messing with fire on the internet, and with
your friends
E.
It is the essential part of
“conversion” (Isa 29:16-19)
F.
This month, let Him turn your
music, your entertainment, your friends, your thinking, your worship upside
down, and make your life COUNT! Mean something! have a spiritual legacy that
affects our world for good!
V.
Conclusion