Missions Change Things | Acts

Guest speaker Dale Riddle walks through the book of Acts to show that missions changes three things every time it is taken seriously. Missions changes us, missions changes others, and missions changes the world. Drawing from the story of the early church, the conversion of Saul, the believers in Ephesus, and the spread of the gospel into Europe, he reminds us that ordinary men and women filled with the Holy Spirit can turn entire communities upside down for Christ.

Luke and Acts connection

• • In Luke we see
    • What Jesus said
    • What Jesus did
    • Who Jesus is
  • Luke records Jesus’ power and authority
    • Over temptation in the wilderness
    • Over nature as He calms the winds and waves
    • Over sickness as He heals the blind, deaf, and lame
  • Jesus willingly gave His life, died, was buries, and rose again so that we could have peace with the Father and a home in heaven

In Acts, Luke writes “the rest of the story.”

• • Jesus ascends
  • Promises the Holy Spirit
  • The Spirit is poured out on the church (Acts 2)
  • 5,000 souls received the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:4)

1. Missions Change Us

• • The conversion of Saul (Acts 9:1-5; v.20)
  • He is blinded (Acts 9:8)
  • The Lord uses Ananias to restore Saul’s vision (Acts 9:17)
  • Saul immediately proclaims Jesus in the synagogues (Acts 9:20)

2. Missions Change Others

• • The church at Ephesus (Acts 19)
  • Paul spoke to the disciples about the Holy Spirit  and they received (Acts 19:1-7)
  • Many unbelievers became believers (Acts 19:18)

3. Missions Change the World

• • Paul was traveling through Asia Minor and wanted to go further east, deeper into Asia
  • The Spirit of Jesus did not allow Paul, Timothy, and Silas to go east and enter into Bithynia (Acts 16:6-10)
  • Paul had a vision of a man asking them to come over to Macedonia and help them (Acts 16:9-10)
  • Macedonia is in Europe, which was a different direction- west
  • The Gospel spread through Greece then wider into Europe
  • Centuries later, European believers carried the Gospel into the New World (The America’s today)

What the church needs today

• • Holy Spirit empowered men and women to share the gospel with others
  • Missions is not always “over there” but it is also here locally such as work, school, our neighborhood
  • Obey the Holy Spirit
    • Surrender to the flesh
    • Tell God that you’re all in

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