Tough. But God is the one that comes and strengthens us. He gives us the grace and the help that we need to get through every day. Day by day, and with each passing moment, strength I find to meet my trials here trusting in my father's wise bestoment, I've no cause for worry or for fear. He whose heart is kind beyond all measure. Gives unto each day what he deems best–Lovingly, its part of pain and pleasure, Mingling toil with peace and rest. Ev'ry day the Lord himself is near me, With a special mercy for each hour; All my cares he fain would bear, and cheer me, He whose name is Counselor and Pow'r. The protection of his child and treasure Is a charge that on Himself He laid “As thy days, thy strength shall be in measure,” This the pledge to me He made. Help me then, in every tribulation, So to trust Thy promises, O Lord, That I lose not faith’s sweet consolation, Offered me within Thy holy Word. Help me, Lord, when toil and trouble meeting, E’er to take, as from a father’s hand,One by one, the days, the moments fleeting, Till I reach the promised land. And in order. For his work for his grace that he gives us day by day. So we do thank him for that. And I will dismiss Young to go to crush witnesses. Sure. I may just Aaron. Today. All right. Right after the crash, one on one. That's that's that's a good ratio. And so I don't that'll be good. Okay. All right. In our Bibles, please. Chapter five. Actually after five. And let me just share I kind of when I put this on my heart, I put this on my heart last Saturday night. Last night got back from men's camp, worn out, but having had a great time and at that camp out, by the way, there was good preaching and teaching there as well. I took in some of the fun things this morning, but we had four sessions in the Word of God and a lot of fellowship with other believers. And so the spiritual benefit was great. But got back that Saturday night, and when I was away, I'd heard that the press had contacted Midlothian Innovation Centre about our church because of a flyer that we put out called Open Letter to Government, just dealing with some of the tough issues of the day, but giving God's voice and saying, This is what God says about this things. Well, the press published in the National on Saturday, which is a newspaper here in Scotland, reading online, it's more of a tabloid type paper, but a very rough article for our church with some quotes in it that were hard and difficult and that sort of thing. Anyway, on Saturday night I said to Katie as we went to read our Bible together, which we do generally every night, I said, This will be interesting. I said, We just read Nice and Safire, I wonder what's coming, because I understand the context of the Book of Acts. I thought very likely God had some encouragement for us there. This is what God had us read, and I think you'll understand why it was such an encouragement as we get into it. And so Acts 512 342 you acts the book of Acts is the birth of the church. So it is the early church getting out with that gospel message and establishing churches. And and so it's a story of that. And it's also the story of God's people as they began to do that, take that stand for God of them being attacked physically and verbally for their faith. So as you read the story, the book, it acts again and again. You're going to read about things like God's people being mocked, imprisoned, whipped, beaten, stoned or put on trial. Premiere figure in the Book of Acts is the Apostle Paul and how God brings them to saving faith and what he does. But he has two names that they're in the Book of Acts. He has a name before he got saved. He's got a name after he gets saved. So as Saul of Tarsus, he was on one side of the persecution. He persecuted believers, committing them to prison and to death. He was there as Stephen was killed. I believe he was probably likely there. The story that we're going to read about as a member of the Sanhedrin and and a student of Gamaliel Camellia speaks, and this is likely that in his stories saw of Tarsus, is there not the apostle Paul as we know him later but as an apostle he he got on the other side he was greatly persecuted. Remember his calling? Chapter 916. I will show him how great things he must suffer for my namesake. And Paul highlights some of that as he writes to the church at Corinth, defending his apostle Shepherd. What he's doing for God, he says to them, and to Corinthians 1123, Are they ministers of Christ? I speak as a fool. I am more in labours, more abundant in stripes, being whipped above major in prisons, more frequent in deaths. Oft of the Jews five times received I 40 stripes save one that means 195 times the apostles. Paul's back was lashed with a cat of nine tails that would have several pieces of glass or sharp stone or bone or something. And that as that whip went around, the same whip, that type of whip that whipped Christ, they would dig into the flesh and literally rip off the flesh. So if you were to see the Apostle Paul getting ready in the morning, perhaps with his shirt off, you'd see a man whose back was well scarred for the cause of Christ. I bear my body the marks of the Lord Jesus Christ, he would say, thrice I was I beaten with rods. Once was I stone? And by the way, after they stone him, they left him for dead, believing that he was dead, God raised him up and praise God for that. Now fast forward to modern Christianity in a Christian nation. Now here we are in Scotland. I would say again, post-Christian, this is a new mission field that God has for us as believers, because the generation that we have in the generation before that and the generation before that, really you got to go back at least three generations to find consistently people that were in church and really to get back to this strong Christian nation, you got to go back to the late 1800s. But we think it's strange that believers are persecuted for their faith. We think that's that's different. That's odd. Why? Why is that? You must've done something wrong if the world is upset with the position that you're taking. But Peter said it's not strange. One Peter four verse 12 He said, Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial, which is to try you as though some strange thing happened unto you, but rejoice in as much as you are partakers of Christ sufferings that when His glory shall be revealed, you may be glad with exceeding joy. If you be reproach for the name of Christ, happy are you for the Spirit of glory and of God rested upon you on their part. He's evil. Spoken up, but on your part he is glorified. But let none of you suffer as a murderer or as a thief, or as an evil doer, as a busybody in other men's matters. And if our church had come out, we'd, you know, screamed at people because they don't believe, like we believe. Or if yesterday at the event, people had come in and we had people come in that would have categorised as what we've got in that document. And even young people that used to come to our church that would categorise that certain things in that document. We treated everybody the same. We treat them with love. But if we had not if we had excluded them or somehow mistreated them, then right. Put it in the paper and say, this is what this church has done. Our church has not done that. And so we're not suffering as a busybody or murderer as a thief or evildoer. But it says verse 16, Yet if any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God on this behalf. And so it's time to praise God that as a believer can stand up and be counted and identify with the Lord Jesus Christ. And I, just as I preach this, I want to remind us that it's becoming clear in Scotland, Britain, United States. Do you think of Canada? Although I don't know that I categorise categorise Canada as a Christian nation, but a modern nation, it's becoming clear that persecution is coming to the church. Now I trying to be an alarmist and I try to be somebody that is trying to, you know, get, you know, just conspiracy theory and really kind of feeling bad for ourselves as believers. But we're very quickly coming to the day that when we stand up for Bible truth, that there is going to be a strong response against that. In the Parable of the Sower. Mark 416 It speaks about those that were sown on stony ground, stony ground Christians, if you will, or professors of faith in God. It says who when they have heard the word. Immediately receive it with gladness and have no root in themselves, and so endure. But for a time afterwards, when affliction or persecution arises for the word sake. Immediately are offended. And there are Christians that are professed. Christians that in a day of persecution aren't going to be somebody that will stand up and be counted. It's going to happen, whether through a family member saying something or somebody taking a certain tack against them. They're gonna look at that and say, Right, I think I'll just leave. Instead of standing up for a god. And so as believers, I want to encourage us this morning as we look at this text. To be faithful in times of persecution. And so are we prepared to be faithful to God despite persecution, in other words, whatever on whatever level that is. And that could be so many levels. It could be us knocking on doors and somebody treating us meanly. It could be us trying to give a track to somebody. And they they just, you know, say say whatever or act in a certain way, whatever level of persecution to the point of newspapers or etc.. Are we going to be something that's going to stick and say, you know what, I'm just going to stand with God in God's word. Every word of God is pure. Therefore, it's all to be defended. And I and I'm going to be faithful despite despite persecution. So as we examine this text and it's a lengthy check and we're gonna do a lot of reading, as I said this morning. But I would, I would encourage us with three things to remember and days of persecution that will help us to be faithful for the Lord. So let's pray and ask the Spirit of God to help us to become to the Word of God this morning. Father, I praise you for our church wide testimony we had yesterday as we were at the gala. And God, thank you for your leading there. And, Father, we haven't. Our church has not suffered persecution at all like so many. And Father. There are believers in prison for their faith. We read it just not long ago about Pastor Rivers in their house church being broken into in Afghanistan or that region. If they took him in, they interrogated him. They were they mean mouth his congregation on Easter Sunday as they met to worship God. And Father. We're so far from that. It's kind of sad to speak in terms of persecution when we're speaking about somebody maybe said something mean about us in a newspaper or shouted something at us at Gallaudet as took place yesterday. And yet it is persecution. If, Father, I don't desire our church to be discouraged by that, but rather encouraged. And Father, I think there is an understanding that if we're going to stand for God in a post-Christian society, that the world has joined together to be a voice against God. Their father said persecution is coming and persecution will come. But why? They're rather making us fearful. I just pray that we'd remember the things that we need to remember so that we could be faithful in days of persecution. And so I pray. Father, would you give us your key here this morning? And just a tender heart. Thank you for your presence here this morning. You've already encouraged our hearts. Thank you, Lord, for your grace for us. And Father bless Aaron and Mrs. Shaw in their class. I pray God work in Aaron's heart, Father, for us in this time around, the Word of God, I mean the Spirit of God's strength in our hands and Father, pray for liberty, to proclaim the truth of the Word of God and confess that I have no ability whatsoever of myself to proclaim your truth. But, Father, that you're sole enabler. So gift, so gift giver. That. But, Father, I want to do what your word says. If any man speak, let him speak as the Oracles of God. If any man minister, let him do it as the ability that God give it, that God in all things may be glorified. And so, Father, lift up yourself through the truth of your word. It's in Christ. Then we pray. Amen. And then. All right, so three things to remember in times of persecution that can help you be faithful. And so here they are. I'll give them to you, and then we'll go through them. Remember the basics. Remember the basics. Remember your mission. Remember your mission. And then remember your God. Okay, so those three things are we're going to look at this morning. So we start with remember the basics. And again, we're going to read quite a bit this morning. So look in your Bibles at Chapter five and will read verses 12 down through verse 26. And so fast forward, actually, let's go down a little bit since we read some of that already. Let's go to verse 23. Or. I'm sorry. Verse 18, let's start there. And they lay their hands on the apostles and put them in the common prison. But the angel, the Lord, by night opened the prison doors and brought them forth and said, Go stand and speak in the temple to the people. All the words of this life. And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning and taught. But the high priest came and they that were with him and called the council together and all the Senate of the children of Israel and sent to the prison to have them brought. But when the officers came and found them not in the prison, they returned and told, saying the prison truly found reach shot with all safety and the keeper standing without before the doors. But when we had opened, we found no man within. Now when the high priest and the captains of the temple, the chief priests, heard these things, they doubted of them. We're in to you this way. Grow. Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the man whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people. Then went the captain with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people lest they should have been stoned so that the apostles are in persecution. They've been in prison. They've been put in prison for their faith. But the angel lawyer comes in there and he sets them free and he gives them the basics. Now I want to speak about as we get started here and the basics are are found there every 22, it says, go stand and speak in the temple to the people, all the words of this life. And so I want to summarise it with those three statements. Go, stand and speak. That's the basics. It's good for us, you know, or attempted to be afraid, you know, maybe with the persecution comes. But just to focus on the basics and say, you know, the basics are go stand and speak. And so let's think about that word. Go and look at what the apostles did. Verse 21, it says, and when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, I think most people that are in prison, as you know, if something happens, there's a prison break and they're able to get out. However they got out, they made their way out or whatever. When they get out, the last thing they want to do is go to a public place and identify themselves as for who they are and it go back to kind of ordinary life or anything like that. So it's kind of an unusual thing that the angel comes and he sets them free and that they end up back in the temple, but they end up back in the temple because the angel gave them the basics. They're under persecution, they've been in prison. And he says to them, Go in. The place that he was sending them was to the temple. Yes, we think about the word go and you hear the word go. Does it remind you of something in the Bible, something called the Great Commission that God has given to us and against the basic commands that that God has given March 1650 and he said in to them, Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Now, somebody may not be a vocational missionary. I am. God called me to preach. God call me church planting. As I answer the call to church planting, God led me to Scotland because I'm not in my home nation, but I'm in another nation. I am vocationally. I am a missionary church planting pastor. That's that's my calling. And somebody else here could be. Well, that's not my calling. And yet God has given all of us the great commission. God as God has given us the Gospel. He's going to salvation. We have the privilege of taking that to others. So I just want to ask you this morning, to whom have you gone? The persecution could stop us and end again. If I put it on a really low level, I could I could ask this morning, are you going to your neighbours to tell them about Christ? And if not, why not? Is it because of what they say or what they think or what they do? Perhaps if you identify yourself as a believer that believes the Word of God, are you going to your friends? Are you going to your co-workers? Are you going out in church evangelism and getting involved in participating in evangelism? That church has to tell others about Christ. And again, if not, why not? It's the command, the basics to remember a persecution if you're facing something. And it seems like Lance doesn't want me to go and I kind of feel like I don't want to go, but the basics help us. Because God says to go. And I imagine it took a lot of courage for those apostles to answer in response to that. They've just been in prison. But the angel that set them free said to go. So remember the basics. God says to go. Secondly, stand, stand. It says in verse 25. Then. And then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple. I think it's interesting that the angel said, Go stand and speak. Then when the witness of what they were doing comes back, he says, the the men who you set free are standing. Standing is to take a position. It's the it's a hold that position. You know, they weren't running. They weren't fleeing. They were standing. They they went to that place and they took their position for God. Yes. I think about standing, I think in the Bible about a man called Shama when a David's mighty men that was a bold man to stand for God said in Tuesday, April 23, verse 11, after him was Shama, the son of Aggie, the Harar, right? And the Philistines were gathered together into a troupe. There was a piece of ground full of lentils. And, you know, you might think it's just a it's just a piece of ground and it's just a lentil patch. It's not a big deal. All right. And yet, there he is. He's in those lentils. And that's God's people say that's God's people's provision. And the Bible says the people fled from the Philistines. But Shama stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines. And the Lord wrought a great victory. And you see Shama just getting into that position and saying, I may not be much, but it's God's. And so because it's God's, I'm going to fight. That's the enemy of God that's coming. Everybody else is fleeing. But Shama, he's if you want to apply it to that, it's what we're considering. He's doing the basics. He's standing. He's take a position that says, this is God's field and I'm going to fight for this field. No. I wonder this morning again, are we standing? Our Scriptures we're standing for somebody begins to stand where they say they stand in the gospel and say, I believe that Jesus Christ was crucified and risen again and that his he paid the complete price for my sin. And I stand upon that. Somebody follows you after that says I'm on a I'm a stand on the doctrine of baptism believers baptism after immersion. And I'm going to identify that I might have people that persecute me because of that, because, hey, you were a Christian when you're a child. And you know what? You've already had that done and you don't need to do that. But the Bible says to identify with that, that death, burial, resurrection of Christ. And so I'm going to stand there on baptism. Somebody. Here's the great commission again. And it's not just going, it's standing. It's holding that position before God and saying evangelism is important and I'm going to stand upon a separation from the world in being distinctly different from ungodly ness and worldliness. And I'm going to stand there. It doesn't matter what somebody says, inmate laugh at me. They may mock me or whatever, but I'm a stand there for God. And so the basic persecution is coming. What am I going to do? Well, go stand up for God and then speak. Speaker says, Go stand and speak. Verse 21. And they had heard that they entered into the temple. I'm sorry. When they heard that from the angel, they entered into the temple early in the morning and taught. They spoke first 25, then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the man whom he put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people. They had the words that were vital for this life and speak unto them. All the words of this light. Listen, the gospel doesn't matter in eternity now it's glorious. In eternity, it's marvellous in eternity. We'll adore Jesus Christ eternally for the work that He did on the cross to purchase our salvation. But the impact in the and the in the necessity of the Gospel is in this life. And they had a message that was so important that didn't matter if they were persecuted for it didn't matter whatever would happen because they they were imprisoned. Then they went, they stirred and and they they they spoke. It didn't matter what would happen. Because the impact of the Word of God was so vital for the people that heard it, that was worth whatever they suffered for it. And the basics were. Go stand and speak again to command the great commission that God given to us. It says, and he said unto Him unto them, Go Yay and to all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. Yeah. Everybody that's saved here this morning is saved because somebody told you the gospel. Somebody somebody obeyed that command. Somebody verbalised it and got out there for in my case, it was my dad. My dad preached a message and hell, my dad answered God's call to preach. My dad got up in the pulpit. He preached a message and held that impacted my heart. Afterwards, I went down again. It was my dad. They explained the gospel to me and showed me how I could get saved. And if we had testimony time right now, everybody could raise their hand and say, you know, this is who it was. It was a preacher preaching here. It was somebody personal, so on. It was maybe a parent or teacher that taught me the Bible as a kid and the Spirit of God used that worked in my heart. But there was somebody that communicated that to me. Now, let me ask a question. What if they hadn't? What if that person. What if my dad had been unfaithful to God, rejected God's call to preach, turned his back on, and God went off? Whatever I as a believer that knew the Gospel, or maybe just just was silent with the gospel. The truth is, I wouldn't be saved or God would have to use another means of bringing me the gospel. Because the gospel is perpetuated by people read again in the Book of Acts you read about Philip going to Ethiopian Eunuch. You read that for name and to get saved, the little servant girl had to say something. The flipping jailer in his family. It was Paul and Silas. I read last night in my Bible about Cornelius, and Cornelius is a good man. He's worshipping God, but he doesn't know the gospel. He cries out to God. God accepts Islam, states in his worship and says, Send for Peter that he could tell you a message. And Peter comes and says, Why did you send for me? Go stand and speak. Philip Glass. I wrote that him wonderful words of life. Seeing them over again to me. Wonderful words of life. Let me more of their beauty. See. Wonderful words of life. Words of life and beauty. Teach me faith and duty. Beautiful words, wonderful words, wonderful words of life. You know, if if this water, you know, I've got here, if I had on this side somebody that was totally dehydrated and dying. And. And here they are. They're thirsty. And I had a lot more water than that on my side over here. I've got an abundance of water, all the water they could possibly desire. And I look over there, you know, and they're. Yeah, dying, and I'm watching them die. I mean, you think I was incredibly incapacitated. Maybe you've heard stories about people that have been taken off life support and they've been allowed to die by not having the necessary things for their body. And sometimes we look at that. I say that is so and compassionate. They're so wrong that they would do that to somebody. But let's think about it with Christians. Guys, guys given to us the water of life. We know that they have to have the gospel. We know this today that every single person at that gala day that dies without Christ, the water of life, that they'll perish in the fires of hell, literal fires for all eternity. And you wonder to today how many people are taking that water and going to the people on their side and say, look, I don't care what you think about me. I don't care if you make fun of me. I don't care if you criticise me. Again, we've taken a strong position on the Bible, some controversial virtual truths, but I'm going to explain later why that's so vital to the gospel. To the gospel. There as a church, we are incredibly compassionate and inconsistent with what God given us to do. If we don't give them the gospel. And so this morning, are you remembering the basics as you think about persecution? And again, whatever level that's at, persecution is intended by the devil to stop us. Are you going, standing and speaking. So that's the basics. Remember the basics and then remember your mission. Remember your mission versus 27 332 Let's read that. It says and when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priests asked them, saying, Did not we straightly command you that you should not teach in this name? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. That Peter and the other apostles answered and said, we ought to obey God rather than then the God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom He slew and hanged on a tree, him as God exalted with His right hand to be a prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are his witnesses of these things. And so also is the Holy Ghost whom God has given to them that obey Him. Okay, so remember the basics, but now remember your mission. And let me give you point one of your mission. Your mission is to please God, your to please God. It says in verse 29, then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We are to obey God rather than then they've just been set free from the present. It's a very interesting story, you know, put yourself in their place. You've been set free and the angel says to you, Go stand and and tell and speak. So the person that they're seeking to please is not men. Men said go to prison. Men said, be quiet. God said, go stand in. Speak. Previously in the story of Acts, you can look back if you want to. Chapter four Peter and John are on trial for healing the layman. It says in verse 19, but Peter and John answered and said in to them, whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye. You know what really matters about my life is what does God think? Is God pleased? How do I. Please God. What would what would please him? Because all that matters is what God thinks, you know? When biblical persecution comes, it's going to be somebody that disagrees with what you believe or what you teach. It's going to be something that is attacking that faith that you haven't got, whether your position or faith that I am trusting God or your vocalised faith. I believe this about God and this is what God says. When Stephen was preaching, he was stoned because what he said hurt the ears of those that heard it. If you look at Chapter seven, if you like verse 54, when they heard these things, the Bible says, after we preach this message and the history of how God had worked, and it was by faith that men were saved and that Jesus Christ was Messiah, when they heard these things, they were cut to the heart and they gnashed on him with their teeth. And he was stoned to death. And there's going to be some people that see a result like that and think, you know what, let's change the message. Stephen That was a little harsh. You could have been a little nicer there. You could have been a bit more gracious. And there's plenty of churches that are doing that. They're changing the message, trying to make it a little softer, trying to make it a bit more agreeable. We could do that. And if we're to please man that would be the thing to do is to is to change that to please men because the Bible says in two Timothy four verse three four, the time will come when they will not endorse sound doctrine. But after their own loss, shall they on themselves, teachers having itching ears, and they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned into fables. There's plenty of people in our day that they don't want to hear the truth. They are strongly excuse my voice and they are strongly opposed to the truth. They want to cast that off. The last thing they want to hear is the truth. But the thing is this. And you shall know the truth. And the truth shall make you free. The only chance I have of saving somebody that's over there is if I care more about what God thinks than about what they think. So that that's not bothering me. That's not changing my message. That's not impacting what I will say or will not say. It's only what God thinks. That's what matters. And so we ought to remember, as as we face persecution, my mission is not to please men. My mission is to please God. And then secondly, let me give a verse with that as well. Galatians 110 four Do I now persuade men or God or do I seek to please men for if I yet please men, I should not be the servant of Christ. So a believer or a minister or a ministry that changes their message to please men. God says they're not a minister of God because they've done that. So let's keep with our mission, obey God rather than then. Secondly, you're to proclaim God's truth and so proclaiming the truth about sin. Verse 27 It says, When they had brought them, they set them before the council, and the high priest asked them, saying, Did not we straightly command you that you should not teach in this name? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine. By the way, whose doctrine was it? God's doctrine. It wasn't something that the apostles originated. It wasn't something that they thought, right, I'm going to take this position. It was what God said. It says and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answer and said, we ought to obey God rather than then the God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom Ye slew and hanged on a tree. You're the Pharisees, Satirises, the chief priest, and these others that were part of the Sanhedrin. They're upset because in their persona of what they put out before people is that they were really good people. And that they were religious people and that they believed in God. And so their persona was that we are we are really, really good. But what the doctrine was that the apostles was preaching. It attacked the very foundation of their pride and their arrogance and their conceit against God, exposed them for what they were, false teachers, and the ones that by their own hands had crucified. And their own authority had crucified the Lord Jesus Christ. And so as as Peter and the Apostles are dealing with these men, they are dealing with something that is very straightforward, and that is that though you push to portray yourself in the eyes of men as good, in fact, with the Word of God says about you, is that you're in sin and that you're against God. John the Baptist in exposing sin in the life of a powerful man was put in prison and then would be beheaded. Matthew 14 was three, but Harriet had laid hold on John and bound him, put him in prison for Herodias forsake his brother Philip's wife for John said unto him, It is not lawful for them to have her and what he would have put him to death. He feared the multitude because they counted him as a prophet. Again, somebody could say, John, you messed up. I mean, you are doing okay. They're out in the wilderness preaching against sin. And and that's one thing. But you went to somebody in authority and you confronted them with their sin. And and in doing that, you reap their wrath. But he was there as an obedient messenger of God. And he dealt with the sin that was there. Matthew Henry, very interestingly in his in his commentary. On this text, said the chief priests are told to their faces the indignities they did to this Jesus. You slew him and hanged him on a tree. Peoples being unwilling to hear of their faults is no good reason why they should not be faithfully told of them. It's a common excuse made for not reproving sin, that the times will not bear it. But those whose office it is to reprove must not be awed by this. The Times by Spirit and shall Barrett. It's interesting to me because Matthew Henry, I think of him as being in 1800s now. I don't know. I wanted to look it up and I forgot to look it up. When did he live? But I mean, that sounds so appropriate to our day that there would be some that he can't say this because our world will not bear it. But what better time? To lovingly and graciously stand up and say, look, that is sin. It's so important. We're going to see the importance of it in a second, but it's so important for us now. And God give us wisdom in this. We are not somebody that bashes on somebody's door and say, you're going to hell and and runs off laughing or something like that. We knock on somebody's door and share with them compassionately that Jesus Christ died for them to pay the price for their sin because the punishment for their sin is hell. But we don't edit the message about sin because sin is so vital that they know how they've transgressed against God proclaiming the truth about sin, but then proclaiming the truth about Jesus. It says in verse 30, The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom He slew and hanged on a tree. Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a prince and a saviour. He was crucified. Jesus Christ was crucified. He's risen from the dead. He is exalted. He is king and he is Saviour. I imagine this the Sanhedrin, the last person that they want to hear about is the Messiah. Jesus Christ. The last person that they want to think about is the Jesus that they took, that they crucified, that now Peter is standing in front of them saying not only, you know, you killed him, but God raised him from the dead and God exalted him and God glorified him and God magnified him. I suspect if you were to ask the Sanhedrin, do you want to, you know, would you like to hear this message preach that they would say absolutely not. I do not want to hear this. I had a phone call about a week and a half ago. And it's the only feedback that we've had on the flyer from a member of the public that's contacted me. I've had a lot more feedback from evolution of flyers and things like that. And it was recorded because I didn't feel my phone buzzed. And so I had it on my phone. And it's basically that's Pastor Shaw, you're welcome to preach whatever you want to preach in your church. But only preached to those that want to hear it. And basically I don't want to hear it. And you just think about that and you think biblically. Who does want to hear it? The answer to that is man's heart is against God. Man's heart is away from God. There are there are plenty of people that despise and do not absolutely do not want to hear the word of God. But our mission that God's given to us is to proclaim God's truth to it starts with sin and it goes to the Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ that died for them, that paid the price for them, that didn't stay in the grave, but rose from the dead and is exalted. So let me ask you again, with regard to our mission that God's given to us, are you proclaiming God's truth about sin, about the Gospel, the Lord Jesus Christ, and then proclaiming the truth about forgiveness? Verse 31 It says, Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a prince and a saviour for to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. You know, notice what it says. It says for to give. Why? Because salvation is a gift. It's not something we earn. It's not something that we merit favour in the eyes of God, you know, by by doing something that pleases God is something that God has offered to us that we so do not deserve, because God is a merciful God and God is a gracious God and He stands willing to look at a sinner in their sin with love. Because while we are yet sinners, Christ died for us. And so the message again is of God's forgiveness. Matthew 121 says, And she shall bring forth a sin and shall call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people from their sin. Now, I want to go back to what I've been speaking about, and that is it's not comfortable to deal with somebody sin. It's a tough day to stand up and say God says this is gross sin against him. But again, the point is not to shame them and to make them feel uncomfortable or make them, you know, anything like that except uncomfortable before a holy God. Why? Because Jesus Christ came to save them from their sin. He didn't come to save them in their sin. He didn't come to save them with their sin. Jesus Christ came to save sinners from their sin, the sin that is heaviness and the sin that is bondage to them. The sin that is leading them to an eternity away from God. Jesus Christ came to save them from that sin. You know, Paul, and this was interesting to me as I wrote what the article that we've been putting out. But as I went to that passage, you went crazy in 69. Something clicked in my mind that I'd never seen before. And that is this that those sins that are listed in that text that Paul is speaking about is that they are lifestyle sins. Drunkenness. Fornication. Homosexuality. Transgenderism. They're all in that text. And there's many more than that thievery. And it's an it's a lifestyle sin. But that God set him free from that one Corinthians six nine newly united and righteous United Church, the kingdom of God be not deceived, neither fornicators nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate. That's transgender in this sense, being a woman when your man nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor reviled, nor extorts sinners, shall inherit the Kingdom of God. It goes saying through Paul, there in his word, nobody with that lifestyle sin. That keeps it. Will be in heaven. But then it says these precious words. Such were some of you. But we are washed. But we are cleansed. But you are justified. What were they? Wash from their skin. What were they cleansed from their sin? What were their declared righteous from their sin? So again, the VI, the vital truth that we get our seen doesn't want us to get it out. He doesn't want the church to say this is sin. Why? Because if they stay in their parish. And so if we love them, we're going to we're going to deal with that sin and encourage and repent because God is a forgiving God. Notice what it says in Isaiah 55 or seven. Let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts. That's that lifestyle. That's against God. And let Him turn unto the Lord, return it to the Lord, and He will have mercy upon Him. And to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. And so you're to proclaim God's truth about sin, about Jesus, about forgiveness. Let me give a third point of the mission that God's given to us. You're to profess your faith. It says, and we are witnesses, his witnesses of these things. The Disciples mission was to be somebody that was a truth teller proclaiming the truth about God. I read a friend's prayer letter this past week, I think it was, and he's in Germany and they had a gospel bus that came into their village and they went there. They set up some tables and they would engage people in the gospel and for their church members. This was stepping out of their comfort zone for our church members. Yesterday was Galloway that might have been stepping out of your comfort zone a little bit to engage with people for our church, there was a lady that was with them, a church member, and she came to the bus and this is what he said. She came to the bus today ready to do whatever needed to be done. She was scared to do the questionnaire. I explained her how and prayed with her. She also prayed and in a prayer only said God allow the Spirit to speak through me. She went out. The first lady she ran into did the questionnaire, and she shared the entire gospel with her. 3 hours later, she told me that there's nothing more fun than sharing Christ with people. God took her fear away and replaced it with real joy. You know. Do you know the joy of that? All of us. At some point, no matter where we're at, our Christian life and experience, if we're doing evangelism. This was our past experience. But there is this fear. What are people going to say if I try to engage them with the gospel? You know, and some people let that keep them from ever telling people about Christ. But our mission is your witness. His witnesses of these things. And so, again, we've got to get out there and say, you know, I'm a step out and know the joy that this woman knew of obeying God and giving the gospel. How shall they preach? Except they be said as it is written, how beautiful are the faith, the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring glad tidings of good things. And then fourthly, as we remember our mission here, to do so with God's power. Okay, you might look and say, but I can't do that, Pastor. I can't get out there and engage people with the gospel. But we can, by the grace of God, because we have a person of power. The person is the Holy Spirit. And so verse 32. It says, and we are his witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Ghost, whom God has given to them that obey Him. The Holy Spirit is Heaven's Throne gift, Jesus said. It is expedient for you. It's important, is vital for you that I go away. For if I go not away, the comforter shall not come. And he said to them, But ye shall receive power. After that, the Holy Ghost is come upon you and ye shall be witnessed. You know, praise God today. I think I'd be overwhelmed at the responsibility that we have as a church to get the gospel out. If it wasn't for the person of power that God's given to us for the very purpose of sharing Christ. When the disciples were persecuted, they went to the Lord and they in chapter four over 29, they said, Now, Lord, behold, they're threatening us and grant into thy servants. That with all boldness, they may speak thy word. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost. And they spake the Word of God with boldness. Is there anything in you that can relate to that? Is there is there a time that you remember where you felt like, man, the spirit guy just encouraged me. He gave me wisdom, what to say? He gave me enablement. If as a church we don't recognise that and if we don't see that then it's really good for us to get on our knees like they did and begin to cry out to God's sake, say we don't have the boldness that we need to knock on doors. We don't have the boldness to fulfil the mission that you've given to us. Oh, God. Enable us by your spirit. And to begin to sense the power of God giving us grace to stand. Your God is so gracious in that Jesus knew the difficulty that we'd face as a church and the persecution that would come. He told his disciples, Terry, he and the city of Jerusalem, I tell you, be endured with powerful men high not because they were uneducated. They had spent three years in the School of Christ. They didn't need to learn more. They needed the power of God for what they had to do. And so for us, as we as we look at this mission, no, we can't do it. But we have guides enablement. So remember the basics. Go stand and tell. Remember the mission. Please, God, proclaim God's truth and profess your faith with God's power. And then our brief point here as we conclude, remember your God. Remember your God. Sometimes we think, if God leads me to do this. It's going to go great. People are going to shake my hand, say, hey, you know, thank you so much for coming and speaking to me. Hey, it happens. I'll tell you this. It happened to me twice this week. I gave me a deep appointment on Monday as we were out in Safari Park for our anniversary, as well as Benson's birthday. I sat for 25 minutes on a bench, my wife on one side, a lady on the other side and spoke to her about God. And she I don't know that she shook my hand, but she said thank you. And she asked, What can people be forgiven of? She had some sincere questions. It was a great conversation in Dublin on Tuesday. As I was over there, a young man, Brooklyn, said to me, he got off, he was on electric scooter, came over. I gave him a track and spoke to him and he said, Thank you for talking to me. People will. Thank you. But if somebody hard is hard against God in the same thing that we're talking about, if they are really against God, they aren't going to thank us. And so the persecution will come. The difficulty will come. At some point, Satan's going to make sure that somebody says something to try to offend you. But Jesus says that. John 15, verse 18 If the world hate you, you know that it hated me before it hated you. If you're of the world, the world would love its own because you are not of the world. But I have chosen you out of the world. Therefore the world hated you. Remember the word that I said unto you? The servant is not greater than His Lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they have kept my sayings, they will keep yours also. So what can I remember when that happens? Lord, I'm trying to obey you and me. And it's like I'm getting slapped around and it's uncomfortable, but I'm standing for the truth and I'm remembering the basics. And I'm fulfilling my mission. What can I remember at that point? Well, remember two things about God, and that is that God is overall, he's overall not going read the story. He can look back at it in second. A man, Gamaliel stands up. He defends the apostles and says, If this be a man, it's going to be it's going to crumble. But if it be of God, be careful that you don't withstand God because you can't withstand God. And so they they just beat them and they let them go. Now, a couple of things about that. God used Gamaliel. They didn't imprison them again. They didn't kill them. They were beaten, but providentially God was over, that God was working even through a man that's not a slave man. Some of the things they said were very humanistic. So God used that and in what He said, carry some authority. If God is in this, you can't overthrow this. That's true, because ultimately every needs going about every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. So I rush that point. But remember, God is over all that. Remember the high honour for those who suffer shame for God's name. It says verse 40, and when they had called the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus and let them go. And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name. They looked at it and they thought. We have identified with Christ. And because of our identification with Christ, we've suffered. Glory to God. The Believers Bible company commentary said, We must admire the courage and we must regain the capacity of the early church to suffer for our convictions at any cost. Jesus, said Matthew 511. Blessed are you when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall see all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake, rejoice and be exceeding Glad for great is your reward in heaven for soul persecuted? The Prophet's words were before you, and we could take that to God and say, Praise God. You know that those that suffer for Christ are so rewarded. But let us ask ourselves, in a day where there is growth and godliness against God, is the church standing up and being the voice that they need to be? Because if they are. Then what we see in the newspaper and I'm not trying to set our church up and say we have done something great. I tremble in fear before God in prayer, just saying God give us wisdom in our day to stand correctly. But shouldn't we see this all the time in a deeply ungodly day? That there are believers standing up in suffering for Christ and saying, That's all right, because I care more about you and I care more about my God than I care about myself. And I remember this God is overall and God is a great honour to suffer for God. Again, I say about the Book of Acts, it's a testimony to those who suffered and when on first 42 says in daily notice in the temple. And in every house they cease not to preach, teach and preach Jesus Christ. They're in prison. God said, go, stand, tell. They went and stood until they're put on trial. They were beaten. Where do they go? They go back to where God said to go. They were faithful. I want to point out one thing as by way of illustration as we conclude, and that is Paul and the Apostles actually Chapter 14. At Iconium as they went there. It says the Jews started the Gentiles made their minds evil, effected against the brethren in the assault in the House of Jesus. Jason Och and the disciples had to flee to Lystra, and there they preach the gospel at Lystra. There came certain Jews from Antioch and Iconium who persuaded the people having stoned Paul, drew them out of the city. Supposing he had been dead. How be it as a disciple stood round about him? He rose up and came into the city and the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derby and where they had preach the gospel to that city. And it taught many. They returned again right where they got beaten. Lystra Iconium, Antioch, confirming the souls of the disciples and exhorting them to continue in the faith and that we must, through much tribulation, enter into the Kingdom of God. And I say again, we don't begin to understand New Testament Christianity. Because the Bible, the way the Bible treats its subject is that it's to be expected if we're what we should be for God. Yeah. And all that will of God and Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. And I've got to ask myself if I'm not suffering. Am I remembering what God said? The basics. Go stand and tell the nation. Please, God, proclaim God's truth, Professor Faith with God's power and God, his overall is a high honour to suffer for his name. Let's go ahead in our heads, in prayer. I just want to ask you a couple of questions as you ball your head in prayer just now. And I you know. You know your heart before God. And so. Let me ask I guess first this question. Are you doing the basics? Are you going? Standing and telling him, I'm not going to ask for raising hands or anything at this time. I just want to introspection. I just desire the spirit of God to have opportunity to work specifically in our hearts this morning. And so if you're not going, standing and telling, are you letting persecution stop you? Is it because of what people will say? Is it because of what they think? Is it because of, you know, what somebody has said or somebody has done? Is that keeping you from that? If you are or maybe praise God you are going out. You remember the basics. You're going standing and telling, praise God. And then let me ask, are you remembering your mission? And again, examining our heart before God is your greatest desire to please God? Or is there anything that vows to the wolf man that says, I can't say that because of what mental think. I can't say that because what men will feel. I can't say that because our society won't bear it. Or is it simply if it pleases God, I'll say it. Are you proclaiming God's truth? Are you professing your faith with God's power? And then maybe if you're suffering persecution, maybe your heart's discouraged, maybe it's hurt you. Are you remembering that God is overall? Are you remembering that it's an honour to suffer for him? So may the Spirit of God help us to honestly answer those questions this morning and consider our hearts before the Lord, because we need to do this. We need to take a stand for God. Father, as we just filed before you this morning. My heart was deeply encouraged by this text. On a tough night where our church had been attacked. Because. We put out what God says about sin. Father in a day where the government and the schools and people can voice their opinion. Yes, they can amplify it. They could stand on the hillside and and chant their doctrine. The father. The world says you've got to hide and shame. As Christians, you can't answer the question and you can't stand up and say what the word of God says. Because if you do, you're a hate preacher. Whether you say it in love or say it in kindness, that doesn't matter if you just hold to these doctrines. If you just believe these doctrines, you're wicked and vile and. And fight this persecution. But that's okay. Because God your overall. And because it's an honour to suffer. Shame for your name. But I pray for our church. God help us to remember the basics. Go stand and tell. Remember, our mission is to please God is to testify about sin, Jesus. And forgiveness is to be a witness with the power of the Holy Spirit. And so far the ink of these trees in our minds, because it's obvious that we're taking a stand for God. And I pray that this world would see that it's an unashamed stand. It's in Christ, and we pray. Amen. Amen. Let's sing a hymn of invitation here at the end. Jesus, I can't.