in regards to the powers of darkness. And so my theme this morning will be along the lines of church and the gates of Hades. I would like first to give an overview of the relationship between the kingdom of heaven, kingdom of God and the church. And then secondly, I'd like to speak on or give an overview on the gates of Hades. What does that really mean? And then lastly, just give four examples from the book of Acts of how the enemy had the powers of darkness, gates of Hades, attacked the early church and how they responded. So this is more, if it would be a sermon, it would be more of how are we to, I'm gonna Sprinkle that in there, but I want us to see how the early church reacted want to see how they were attacked during this study We tend to think that in the book of Acts, maybe we don't see it as prevalent we see the early church and it's it's growing but it's growing and in the midst of attacks in the midst of spiritual warfare, which I will call a cosmic conflict happening in its midst. And the reason why we tend to think that is because we don't hear too much of Satan being mentioned in the book of Acts. We do hear him being mentioned in chapter 5 with Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie? And we'll get to that, but I want us to see this and hopefully walk away from this seeing that the reality of what's happening In this world the spiritual warfare that's happening and for us to be aware of that as as the church So the kingdom in the church, you know, there is a glorious kingdom and This kingdom is a development not by earthly relationships or human efforts It's not that it's really by divine intervention this kingdom is a is a reign more than a realm of and it's a power rather than a place. This reign of the kingdom, it cannot be forfeited, and its power will never cease. The kingdom has come and the kingdom will come. This kingdom is the kingdom of God manifested both in the present and future realm in which Jesus Christ exercises full authority. full authority, and through which he does triumph over all opposition. We tend to think that the enemy is winning and prevailing. No, that's not the case. And I hope when we leave the study this morning, we see how the kingdom is continuously and very powerfully advancing. It came with power, manifested in and through Jesus Christ, the King of the Kingdom. You'll hear me say that quite a bit, and then there's also a message of the Kingdom. He came filled with the Spirit of God and anointed with the Gospel. He brought hope to the poor. He brought release to the captive, sight to the blind, and freedom to the oppressed. More specifically, Christ came not to destroy but to fulfill. He came and he announced the kingdom to seek and to save the lost, to serve others and to give his life as a ransom. This is our king. And you know, the secret of belonging to this kingdom lies in belonging to him. Those who belong to Christ are those who are called of God into His own kingdom and glory. 1 Thessalonians 2, for unless one is born again, he cannot what? See the kingdom. There has been a kingdom transfer for you and for me. From darkness to His beloved Son. The kingdom of His beloved Son. The kingdom is given by the Father who has chosen gladly and which he promised to those who love him." These are the ones who make up the ekklesia, the called out. But the called out that Christ claims, even in Matthew 16, verse 18, which can be our text for this morning, where Jesus says to Peter, Peter, I say to you that you are Peter and upon this rock, I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. There's a new community, a community of God inaugurated by Jesus Christ and it's called the church. This is a called out community to be congregated. So it's a call out in order to be congregated with the purpose of establishing the reign of Christ throughout the world. In a book, Christian Dogmatics, it says this, there's a conquest of Christ in this present age for having accomplished his exodus, he has looted Satan's empire. He now pursues his conquest by his spirit, giving the keys of his kingdom to his ambassadors to set the prisoners free. The church holds the keys. It's the first fruits and instrument of the kingdom. It's the in-breaking of the new humanity, and it's moving towards consummation, where what was wrong will be made right. That which was lost will be recovered. And rightly understood, the church did not come as a replacement of the kingdom. So the church, it is the kingdom, yet the kingdom is not the church. So it didn't come as a replacement of the kingdom, it is part of the kingdom, but the kingdom is not the church. The church is the chief sphere, or the picture, what we see, where the kingdom becomes visible. That's the church. It's a salt that hasn't lost its saltiness. It's a city on a hill. It's really a light which cannot be quenched. It's a creation which cannot be recreated. nor duplicated. And as the church advances, expanding the reign and message of the kingdom through the power of Christ and the Holy Spirit, the same spirit which was in the Lord Jesus Christ, it's waging war. It's waging war against the power and domain of darkness with clear demonstration and reality of occupying enemy territory. Again, from the same book, this battle can be waged only in the power of the Spirit through the Word, especially the gospel. The church proclaims the gospel and ministers the sacraments, cares for the flock, and in this way, the true and final conquest unfolds. Christ has given His church the power of the keys to bind and loose, promising that He will build the church. And the gates of hell will not be able to hold back its advance. You see, Jesus makes a declarative statement, a promise there in Matthew 16, 18. He says, I will build my church. And the gates of Hades will not overtake it, overcome it. Christ will build his church. You know, the one who says these words is the one that is true and faithful. We can believe him for that. And his word to this day still stands. The gates of Hades has not and will not overtake, overpower the body of Christ, the church. We ought to rejoice in that. But it's in this context, right, that a cosmic conflict, a spiritual warfare, can be seen between the church and the gates of Hades. So what is this gates of Hades? Well, this gates of Hades can be briefly described as the aggressor. It's the enemy. Something that is looking to overcome, to overwhelm, to prevail against the church. Makenna. Several passages from the Old Testament will shed some light. pun intended, some light on the meaning of the gates of Hades. So, as both passages incorporate what is called parallelism, there's a synthetic parallelism and antithetical parallelism. So we'll go through that for a more definite understanding. Job 38.17, that's written more as a synthetic parallelism, where the second line, it actually that I may tell of all your praises, that in the gates of the daughter of Zion I may rejoice in your salvation. So in the first line, there's affliction associated with the gates of death. However, over against the gates of death, there are the gates of the daughter of Zion where one is lifted up and recounts praises. So there's the difference there between the two. And in addition to what I just mentioned, there's also this understanding in the Old Testament, in the biblical world, the gates of the city and of the community would equate to the power center of a respective location. Kind of like your city hall nowadays. It's the power structure. It's the power center. You can think of In Ruth with Boaz, you can think of Proverbs 31, the husband at the gates. But pertaining to Matthew 16, 18, we are to understand that Jesus is not simply saying that death cannot stop his ministry. It's more than that. It's rather the context in which he builds his church. The powers of darkness will attempt to prevail, but will not be able to. In other words, and I'll quote Herman Ritterboss here, the kingdom of heaven breaks into the domain of evil. into the domain of the evil one. The power of Satan is broken. Jesus sees him fall like lightning from heaven. He possesses and bestows power to trample on the dominion of the enemy. Nothing can be impossible for those who go forth into the world and vested with Jesus' power as witnesses of the kingdom. So what does this cosmic conflict look like after the death and resurrection and ascension of Christ? I think it's pretty evident, quite evident, that when Christ entered the scene and he began his ministry, that there was an onslaught of powers of darkness against our Lord. You just think for a moment, how many demons does it take to possess a man and overtake a man, and overpower a man? One? Surely enough. Eight thousand? A legion? It's because of who Christ was on this earth and who He is. He will recover that which was and is lost. It was His mission to come and to redeem. and to die. And the enemy even trying to avoid that, Peter, right? Coming against our Lord and saying, the cross is not necessary. He says, get behind me, Satan. Peter's theology, Peter's motive was completely wrong. And it was Produced by or spoken on behalf of right Satan it was the powers of darkness So the church is found in the midst of this cosmic conflict context where it's continuing to build on this enemy territory So within this context there are though also spiritual blessings poured out marks and yet the marks of conflict are quite obvious and in this great narrative of the church and the organized forces of the world of darkness and death. It's to this attention that, it's to this that I want us to pay attention in the beginning chapters of the book of Acts. There are a lot of examples. If you would just read through the book of Acts, you'll see how there's this conflict back and forth. as it relates more to the early church, the early church in Jerusalem. But how does it present itself? How does it present itself against the church, which the church, through the power of the Spirit, is manifesting and confronting at the same time the powers of darkness, but they're manifesting the king of the kingdom. They're speaking and preaching the message to repent and believe the gospel for the kingdom of God has come and will come. Well, I'll take in four different groups here, four different sections. Acts 1-2 will be the first, and I entitled this one, The Message. because it's the message of the kingdom that they're upholding, that they're standing firm on. So Luke demonstrates in the book of Acts, as he begins, that it's quite evident that Christ spoke of the kingdom of God. Now, in Acts chapter 1, verse 3 and 6, It's quite evident that Jesus spoke to them about the kingdom. And that was centered in Christ's teaching after the resurrection as well as during his ministry on the earth, his earthly ministry. So, however, knowing that he will ascend to be with the Father and together with the Father, Jesus will pour out the Holy Spirit and guide the church corporately and individually. On the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came and filled the place, and the Christians resulting in them receiving a power to be Christ's witnesses. Those gathered were devout men from every nation under heaven that heard the sound and the different languages." And we know what happened, but it's at that moment that we discover the first recorded opposition in the book of Acts, in chapter 2, verse 12 and 13. It says, they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, what does this mean? Luke inserts in there one thing. And you'll begin to see as Luke, when he writes, he'll give a whole summary and then insert a statement there to let us know what is happening here in the book of Acts, what's happening to the early church. And he does that with that conjunctive, but, right? He says, but others were mocking and saying they are full of sweet wine. There it is, they were mocking. And though they were mocking, it's really, in the original language, a laughing at someone in scorn. You see, the powers of darkness were attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to someone that was intoxicated and not in the correct frame of mind. And so they were attributing that, what God had sent forth, the gift of Christ, the Holy Spirit, to that which is just messed up. It just doesn't look right. This is abnormal. You don't want to pay attention to that. And so they were mocking them and scorning them. But Peter doesn't begin a debate. He doesn't begin a long dialogue with the mockers. He doesn't flee or pretend he doesn't know what is going on. The once fearful and denying Peter preaches the gospel boldly. And he gets to the greatest news ever delivered. The message of the kingdom was preached through the power of the Spirit in Peter's sermon, and it resulted, and we have that recorded for us in verse 37, repentant hearts. 38, forgiveness of sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Verse 42, devotion with desire. 43 through 47, it demonstrates the unity which it surpasses normality. It's a unity that's unheard of, unseen. The powers of darkness tended to derail by mocking and scorn. The church prevails, so much so that there were added about 3,000 souls. Now, let's not lose sight that in the midst of what's happening, Luke, inspired by the Holy Spirit, is encouraging us and helping us see that the church is moving forward, that the church is growing. And so the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved. The message of the kingdom presses on while the population of the kingdom increases all to the glory of God. But what about us? In our day and age, what do we do? How do we react to the mocking, to the scorning, to the ridicule? Those people are just abnormal. You don't want to have anything to do with the church. Look how just tangled up the church is. They don't even know where they stand. And the enemy will come, and the powers of darkness will try to attribute that which is just abnormal to the world, to the church. But we are to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We are to preach the message of the kingdom, the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The powers of darkness hate the message, but yet we continue to proclaim the message. Undefiled and pure gospel. Not watered down, not a message that is made acceptable by the lost, or in some way agreeable to the world we live in. We preach the gospel. It is contrary, and it will produce opposition, ridicule, mocking, and so on. But it is the only hope and deliverance for a lost world. The apostles didn't cave in. Peter didn't cave in. We are not to cave in either. We are to preach the message of the kingdom. Acts chapter 3 and 4, moving on, and forgive me for rushing through this, but y'all can go back and see more on that. I'm trying to give a good overview on this, but in Acts chapter 3 and 4, I entitled this more of the king of the kingdom. The king of the kingdom. You know, the first sermon was preached right after the filling of the Holy Spirit in Acts chapter 2. one which was quite poignantly and clearly presenting the message of the gospel. Repent for the forgiveness of your sins. Be baptized and receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. All of that being spoken in the context of what Christ had accomplished through the power of the Holy Spirit. As the message of the kingdom was proclaimed through the early church, its power was also being manifested through the apostles and the miracles they performed. You know, Peter and John encounter that lame beggar, right, as they're walking, and was asking for alms. Yet Peter, prompted by the Spirit, asked for that man's attention. The lame man, thinking that he was just about to receive something, gave attention to Peter and to John. And to his amazement, he heard words which gave him more than silver or gold could ever purchase. Peter had something to give. Healing in and through the name of Jesus Christ. Go through these chapters and count how many times Luke mentions the name. He says the name or the name Jesus Christ. It's through that. Calvin says this, he, Peter, Sayeth that this is the work and benefit of Christ, that it's Christ that restores to the cripple the use of his feet. For name is taken for power and empire or government. There's the authority. There's the king of the kingdom. Jesus Christ is the name of the ruler of the kingdom. We know that. He's the head of his church. It is in the name and the power and the authority of Jesus Christ which is being manifested that this miracle was performed and thus brought praises to God, a wonder and amazement to those around. People gathered and Peter began his second sermon where he attributed the healing while directing their amazement and inquiry to the person, but he attributed the healing specifically to the name Jesus and I'll read Acts chapter 3 verse 16 here he says and on the basis of faith in his name it is the name of Jesus which has strengthened this man whom you see and know and the faith which comes through him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all the name of the name of Jesus. And as Peter and John were speaking with clarity the message of the kingdom, the powers of darkness organized. Using the priests, captain of the temple guard, and Sadducees as its instruments. They seized Peter and John and they put them in jail. Now look in verse 4 of chapter 4. It's as if Luke interrupts himself just to let us know what's happening. In verse three, chapter four, read that first. And they laid hands on them and put them in jail until the next day for it was already evening. Verse four, but many of those who had heard the message believed. And the number of the men came to be about 5,000. And then he continues on. On the next day, you see, he's letting us know that although these men were arrested, taken away, God is at work. He's still working. And so this is demonstrating the power of the message and the ruler of the kingdom through the instrument of the kingdom, which is his church. Calvin says this, and here we see that Satan and the wicked have liberty granted them to rage against the children of God, yet they cannot prevail. But God promotes the kingdom of his son. And I love this part. Christ gathered together his sheep. And that a few men, unarmed, furnished with no garrisons, do show forth more power in their voice alone. than all the world by raging against them." That's beautiful. And that's the reality of it. Peter and John were brought before their accusers and questioned by what power or name, authority, right? What authority are you performing the miracles of healing? The miracle of healing. Peter's response flows with the whole theme of the whole Acts yet more specifically in in Acts chapter 3 and 4 and it is by the name of Jesus Christ That's how we're doing. This is the name of Jesus Christ that the lame man stands and salvation is found That's what he says in verse 10 and 12 the powers of darkness the work of the wicked Had issued threats against the Apostles and Commanded them to no longer speak in the name of Jesus Finding no reason to punish them, they released them and the apostles went to their own and reported all that had taken place. But their response was one of prayer and of praise. That's what it was. The recorded prayer actually lets us in on what the apostles knew and saw what was unseen. Meaning the cosmic conflict occurring between the church and the powers of darkness. When speaking of the opposition against Christ and His earthly ministry, they prayed this. This is regarding Christ's earthly ministry. The kings of the earth took their stand and the rulers were gathered together against the Lord and against His Christ. Verse 26. And truly in the city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus. Verse 27. But in connection with that, they continue in their prayer they said this in verse 30 and now Lord take note of their threats and Grant that your bond servants may speak your word with all confidence While you extend your hand to heal and signs and wonders take place through the name of your holy servant Jesus you see in light of the opposition with threats and appeals made to the ruler of the kingdom to come and to help and for the message and the power of the kingdom to be manifested through the church and That's what they did. They realized their need of Christ and that they will continue on in speaking in the name of Christ. You know, the response to the prayer was the shaking and the filling of the place, with the spirit and boldness in speaking the word of God, as Luke mentions in verse 31. But what about us? Well, we are to proclaim not only the message of the kingdom, a full allegiance to the King of the kingdom, to the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot separate the message from the person. As if there is a message at all without Christ. Nowadays we are told that we can speak about love, we can speak about peace, we can speak about all these great virtues and things, but just leave Christ out of it. No, we cannot. You cannot leave Christ out of it. We respond like the apostles. We speak of no other name. We speak of the name that gave us life, and we are to uphold the truth in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. All we do is in the power of Christ and to the glory of Christ. And so the enemy in all of his tactics will attempt to destroy the name, but he cannot. His name is forever and ever. Moving on in Acts chapter 5, the unity is what I entitled that. We know in chapter 5 there was quite some Happenings in the church churches growing church continued and and rather than being dismantled in the midst of opposition They were with in verse 32 in the end It says they were one heart and soul having great power and abundant grace was upon them all That's how Luke ends chapter 4, but what followed was a shift, if I would say, in strategy. A shift in strategy, but nothing original by the powers of darkness, by Satan. As he intended to destroy the church from the inside, similar to what he did with Judas from the inside. If I can't get them from the outside, we'll get them from the inside. And as the church was growing in grace and number, many were bringing the money from the sale of their land and with it blessing the church. It's within this context that the dishonest and deceitful incident with Ananias and Sapphira happened. They conspired to bring to the church only some of what the prophet was of the land keeping back the difference and we know the story but in doing so they were deceiving and they were lying as they were presenting only a portion of it. Ananias was questioned first and then followed by his wife but the interrogation revealed really that they worked wretchedly and lied to God resulting in their death. So certainly this was an opposition which Peter inspired by the Holy Spirit brought to relevance when identifying Satan as the one who filled the heart of Ananias to lie to the Holy Spirit. You see, this sin was primarily against God, against the Holy Spirit. However, it was also against the community of God, the church. It was seen, it must be seen, as something that will destroy the church if not dealt with. Hence, the immediate death which God administered. There is, quoting Daryl Bach, there is a spiritual element to life in the community alongside the human dimension. Satan is trying to undermine what the community represents. I would say that's right. Ananias is accused of being unfaithful in very direct terms. He is to be honest before and to God, but his integrity is severely compromised. And Peter and God know it. Such lying is dangerous to the community and dishonors God. Therefore, in this particular incident, though, it wouldn't be incorrect to state that the powers of darkness were attempting to destroy the ethics or morality of the kingdom as represented by the church. What does the church look like? Are they a bunch of people that are withholding, cheating? Is there hypocrisy? Is there something that is not true? Is there lying going on? What is happening here? What's the morality? What's the integrity of the church? Satan wants to destroy that. A little bit of hypocrisy destroys the whole church. Referencing Galatians 5, 9, right? A little 11. But on the heels of the devastation within Ananias and Sapphira, Luke states that there were many signs and wonders. Right after this, many signs and wonders, all in one accord, with more believers in the Lord, multitudes, they were constantly adding to the number. You hear that statement quite often. moving forward in the book of Acts. But following those statements, he records for us another opposition of the powers of darkness against the church through the high priest and his minions. They again laid hold of the apostles and imprisoned them. However, it was short-lived. And the enemy would not have the victory for the power of the Holy Spirit came through an angel and opened up the gates and freed them. And as they were told, they went to the temple and preached the message of the kingdom of this life. And in the meantime, their aggressors found out that the prison cells are locked, but empty. And they send the captain to bring them again before the consul. It's really stated that their enemies were cut to the quick and intended to kill them. And then we know of the man, Gamaliel, who stood up and gave orders for the apostles to be placed outside for a short period of time, And one of the statements he said was, if this is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. Or else, you may be found fighting against God. That's a clear picture of what's really happening here. They are fighting against God. That is the truth. And unbeknownst to him, he stated it in such a true way. It was the truth of what was happening. And as instruments of the evil kingdom, they were fighting against God, against his church. So they called the apostles back in. They flogged them and ordered them to not speak in the name of Jesus again. However, the reaction of the apostles is to be exemplary as they rejoice because they had been considered worthy to suffer for Christ and to suffer shame for his name. They continued, though, teaching and preaching Jesus as Christ. You see, the enemy Attempted to prevail against the church through division and through loss division from the inside with an Ananias and Sapphira and then taking away the Apostles and Saying well if we're gonna take them away, then we'll be able to have some kind of victory church, but Every attempt by the powers of darkness against the church unity enjoy increase and as written in 5.41. The gospel spreads 5.42 and the people are added to the church 6.1. But what about us? What about us in regards to unity as part of the kingdom of God? We are to remain faithful and true. The church does represent the body of Christ. We are a people called out and set apart for His purpose. The church is Christ's. It is the work of Christ. And members of the body of Christ, as written in Ephesians, fitted and held together by what every joint supplies. Every single one of us have a purpose. We are to supply, every joint supplies according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. We are to avoid any hint of divisive tactic of the enemy in our midst. be it political, social, personal conviction, positionalism in the church, whatever it may be, we are to be made aware of these things and to pray for the Lord to keep us away from these things, from the powers of darkness working from the inside. Well, lastly, and I best speed up, but Acts chapter six and seven, And I entitled this, Persecution Against the Kingdom. Persecution Against the Kingdom. As the members of the local church increased, quite naturally the demand for leaders to shepherd and to teach the flock didn't lessen. They needed more workers. And so we know that they selected seven men who were of good reputation, full of the spirit and of wisdom to help out. Upon the selection of the seven, Luke makes a statement which he seems to insert as a summary statement about the health of the church in Jerusalem as a whole, as found in Acts 6, verse 7. He says that the word of God kept on spreading and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem. And a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith. The priests were becoming obedient to the faith. See how God's just working? What a wonderful verse that really depicts the advancement of the kingdom of God in Jerusalem through the church. Well, among the seven is Stephen, who's mentioned in the following chapters, full of grace and power, performing great wonders and signs. God uses his life as one of the catalytic agents to push forth to progress, to move forward, to spread the message of the kingdom. And so as Stephen was ministering, we know that there were men who made some allegations against him, stating that he was speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God, and the powers of darkness stirred up the people along with the elders, the scribes, and dragged them away and took them before the council. It was there that his face shone like that of an angel, and he spoke to his accusers about Israel's entire history. and really a story full of disobedience and hard-heartedness against the Spirit's testimony. He said, this is you. This is who you are. You are the betrayers and murderers of Jesus Christ. And he charges them. And the reaction of his accusers was one of abhorrence and anger, which only continued to rise to the point where they were not wanting, they could not hear the words that Stephen was speaking. And they were godly words indeed. So they in turn lifted their voices above his. There was a competition of who can speak the loudest. They couldn't. They stopped their ears, covered their ears. They attacked him and they dragged him out of the city to be stoned. Well, upon the death of Stephen, a great persecution broke out. against the church. Certainly this is a move by the powers of darkness in an attempt to stop the spread of the message of the kingdom, but not a move where God is not involved or not seeing. God is aware of this, presuming by the powers of darkness that to destroy one of the seven, which were just established, it would show itself profitable, and therefore the persecution to bring the church to its end. Profitable it was, but not as the enemy had thought. It was as God had planned. It wasn't the end of the church era. Rather, it was the beginning of the spreading of the gospel throughout other regions. You see, the scattering of the members within the body of Christ would be considered by some as the dismantling of the church, as they're being persecuted and scattered. However, Christ as the head of the church holds all things together, especially His own body. And so the powers of darkness attempted to overcome the church. However, the deep-rooted gospel message of the kingdom in the hearts of its members, although being scattered abroad in the midst of persecution, would be yielding much fruit by the power of the Holy Spirit of the living God. Calvin says, like as it was a manifest miracle that the scattering abroad, mentioned by Luke, gathered many unto the unity of faith who were estranged from God before. It was a multifaceted purpose. So what about us? Understand, we are to understand, that persecution resulting in scattering or even death is very possible. We need to understand that. We need to come to grips with that. We can't be naive, living in this land, thinking that persecution, scattering, death, cannot happen. We need to be aware of that. Understand, though, at the same time, that Christ holds all things together, even though we may be apart. We belong to the body of Christ. Something that is indestructible and indivisible Christ is our head and there is no other ruler No other ruler that has ever existed nor ever will that rules and reigns as he does and He continues to rule and reign as he does he never lost the battle Loses any of his own The church is not powerless, brothers and sisters. It's Christ's church. And so, we are to keep preaching the message of the kingdom in the name of the king of the kingdom. Be the church of Christ in 2021. Well, in conclusion, I just want to briefly mention some things. As we see throughout the first seven chapters within the book of Acts, We see the kingdom of God is, in one aspect, a new humanity. That's what it is. The church which is occupying enemy territory. And that we see that the kingdom of God has a message and it has a king, both finding fulfillment in the person and work of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. It is to this kingdom, it's to this new order of reality that we are caught up with. in and with Christ when we become united to him. You're a part of this. You're not outside of this. You're very much a part of this kingdom if you belong to Christ. Although we find our citizenship in heaven and rescued from this present evil age, we are not taken away from the reality of the here and now. So the reality is that there is a cosmic conflict, there is a warfare between the gates of Hades and the kingdom, which includes the message, the ruler, and the people of God. And we find ourselves in between the cosmic conflict of the two kingdoms, knowing that we are of God and yet that the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. However, in light of what has been the theme up to this point, I want us to be reminded of this one thing, the church of Christ, as overcoming the powers of darkness, and not vice versa. The church of Christ is overcoming the powers of darkness, and not vice versa. And that should be leading us to rejoice, to find confidence and hope in the truth that we are, as John says, from God, as little children, and have overcome them. Because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. Christ came, as it's written in Hebrews 2, to render powerless him who had the power of death. And yes, we have been rescued from the domain of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of His beloved Son. We have been enlisted in our partakers with Christ in the power of His Spirit to proclaim the good news of the kingdom, because the King is and will always be victorious. The whole narrative of scripture really ends with the destruction of the enemy and the great wedding feast with the king and his bride, the church. This is how it ends. We know how it ends. We ought to rejoice and have great hope and encouragement in these times. And our hope lies in what? In the faithfulness of the king. In fulfilling that which he promised, that one day We will be with Him. And see Him as He is. We have that hope. We have that promise. So, Maranatha, come Lord Jesus. Amen. Well, let me pray. Father, how great You are. Lord, more than the words that I could impart, Lord, would You speak truth, Lord, into each one of our hearts. By Your power, Holy Spirit, would You make these things real to us and know that we are on the conquering side, and that we are to go forth in full boldness and faith, filled with the Holy Spirit, to not back down, Lord, to speak the message of the kingdom, to speak of our great Savior, our great King of the Kingdom. Lord, for us to remain united in love, built up, Lord, by You, encouraging one another. And Father, we do pray that if so would be, Lord, that You would have us go through any form of persecution, Lord, that would involve scattering, that would involve death, Lord, that we would be bold to face it. Lord, that we would trust in you who hold our very breath and the hope that we have that one day we will be with you, O Lord. Thank you so much for your word and for the book of Acts that demonstrates clearly that you are the one that is victorious. It is in Christ's name we pray. Amen. Yeah.