The Harvest Needs a House! Join us as we look at the first revival in Acts two and the fruit that came from this incredible moment - the Church.
Gal 5:22-23
Acts 2:42-47
Prov 18:1
Heb 10:24-25
Ps 133:1-2
C3OC Church
The Harvest Needs A House - Ps Joseph Pringle
We're going to talk about the harvest needs a house. You know, there's a scripture, I mentioned this last week, it was John 4.35 it says, Jesus is saying lift up your eyes, can you not see that the harvest is ripe? And I believe that we need to lift up our eyes as the church to see that the harvest is ripe. You know, the Bible talks about this a lot, that in the days that are coming, and I'm not giving no end time prophecies right now, any person who does that goes against the Word of God as well, but just letting you know that as time wears on the world is going to get harder, but the house of the Lord will rise as the chief of the mountains. So in times where things get chaotic, where it's seemingly on the brink of world wars, we've got Olympics that I don't even know if you can call them Olympics, we've got different genders competing in different categories, we've got schools that are going strange, we've got politics that feel so stretched in the polar opposite directions. We have news and illnesses and pandemics and things like this, the Word of the Lord says the chief of the mountain will be the house of the Lord, that we would shine brightest in these days. I want to challenge you that in these days to lift up your eyes and see that the harvest is white, the harvest is ripe to bring into the house of the Lord. And the issue is, and that I want to talk through very briefly here today, is that the harvest needs a house. The harvest needs a storehouse because we read these scriptures, the harvest is ripe and let's go and do it and the labor is a few and we've got all these great verses, but what happens when the laborers go to work? What happens when the Holy Spirit moves? I believe that we can find that in the book of Acts and a lot of churches, there's thousands of messages about Acts 2.42 to 47, which is the birth of the early church and it's an incredible moment in history for these apostles who are beginning this early church. One of the interesting facts about Acts, that's funny, one of the interesting facts about Acts is, and actually the book of Luke, because Luke authored Acts is that he's writing it as an apology to someone, that someone's name is Theophilus, and he's writing it as a testimony. Some commentators, they argue that Theophilus wasn't a real person. I'm not too sure about that because he statutes him as an excellent person, meaning he held an honor. If Theophilus means "friend of God," I think you guys are friends of God, that this book is written for you so that you have a manual for today, so that you as a friend of God would understand what God wants to do and where he is heading and how we can be a part of it. Chapter 2 marks the beginning of a new move of God in Acts. Chapter 1 ends with the last time that the disciples or anyone in the Bible cast lots. In your reading of the Bible you ever read, they're making a decision, and they pull out, have you heard of Urim and Theorem? Yeah, two glowing stones. Did you ever hear about them? Two glowing stones, the old priest would use and one would glow, and that would help them with their decision. God's weird. It's awesome. He's crazy. He's out there. And they would take lots, drawing the short straw, and it would provide them with an answer. The last time they cast lots was in the decision of who's replacing Judas as the twelve disciples. What happens in chapter 2 is the Holy Spirit turns up. The gamble is over. You don't have to cast lots, you don't have to play Bible roulette, you don't have to be like, oh, what do I do here, and I'm going to cast lots, and there's no new age-ness that we need anymore within Christianity. You don't need to consult crystals, you don't need to live in a world of spiritual mysticism. No, we have the Holy Spirit to guide us, to discern, give us discernment in the decisions that we are making. So they wait for ten days, and in that room the Holy Spirit comes and marks what can be called the first revival, right? The first revival. And in that revival it was expressed in four different ways. You can see there was a physical phenomena. There was the sound, the wind, the fire, and the language. They began speaking tongues, and the guys from Mesopotamia were like, oh my gosh, you're speaking my language. That's straight. They were speaking actual languages, prophesying. So that physical phenomena. The second was a deep conviction, Peter preaches after the Spirit lands, and preaches a pretty strong message, very strong, very direct, and sorry, verse 37, it says the people were cut to their heart. There was a deep conviction that happened, followed by a large repentance, 3,000 conversions happened on that day. The last expression of that revival was that there was a widespread sense of awe and wonder and reverence in that place. What an amazing moment for the disciples to experience this mighty move of God, right? It's something that we have an expectation for in this house. But the incredible thing is, is that in this harvest of a great revival, they needed to be a house also. I'll say this, no revival of the Holy Spirit should follow with no fruit of the Spirit. A revival of the Holy Spirit is followed by the growth of the fruit of the Spirit, and the fruit of this revival was the church. That fruit is still multiplying today. Isn't that incredible that from this revival, the church was planted. Out of that church, Paul was sent, out of Paul's churches, here we stand today. The Gentiles worshiping God, but as one family, the fruit of that revival was the church, and that fruit of the Holy Spirit was so evident. Galatians 5, 22 displays what that fruit of the Spirit is. It is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. I like that self-control one. I don't like it, and I love it at the same time. You know what I mean? My wife says to me, "Get that fruit of self-control," and then I put the ice cream pint down. Sometimes I feel like we get into this place where the Holy Spirit, it's a takeover moment. In the Scriptures before this, it says that some people may jest at those who were filled with the Spirit as they began to prophesy and speak in tongues, saying they are drunk, and Peter refutes this, saying it's only nine in the morning. Of course, they're not drinking. I think that the people were just making it jest at the abnormal that was happening. There wasn't this uncontrollable outcome because the Holy Spirit, His fruit is self-control there afterwards. We see so clearly in the early days they were overflowing with the fruit of the Spirit. There was so much love, there was so much gentleness, there was so much boldness and faithfulness and self-control in the house of God. Revival establishes the fruit in the house of God. I'll never lose the desire to see a revival here in Orange County that would sweep through this nation out of this church. We never, ever lose the desire to see that happen, but we have to be careful to not shift the normal functions of the church because the abnormal isn't happening all the time. Nor try to delegate or to hype up the normal as though it's revival. The wind, the fire, the languages are all pretty abnormal, right? You can't say that's a normal experience, the rushing wind, the tongues of fire that were on top of their heads. You can't call that normal, right? Are we awake? Yes, we can't call that normal, but the new life, the joy, the fellowship, the worship, the freedom, the boldness and the power were however not. That is the functioning of the fruit of the Spirit. Here's the point, why we hold on to deep expectation and faith for a mighty move of God, we need to hold a reverence and awe for the fruit we are experiencing today. Converts need a teacher, they need fellowship, they need a table, they need unified worship and they need prayer as do we as believers who are advancing in our faith, amen. The harvest needs a house, so what does this house look like? In Acts 2, 42-47, we can read it here and then we're just going to go through this just a little bit here today because we had so much fun with the Holy Spirit. It says, "And they devoted themselves to the apostles, teaching and the fellowship to the breaking of bread and the prayers and awe came upon every soul and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles and all who believed were together and had all things in common and they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people." Isn't that awesome? You act as God's people and the others look on and they want to favor you, having favor with all the people and the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved. The point I want to make is they were devoted, in verse 42 it says they devoted themselves. They chose to elect God first. I find myself, that myself, my inner man campaigns for my vote every day. To live at a lesser bar than what God has called me to live. To live at a lesser character than what God has called me to live by. And so I have to devote myself. Does that make sense? I have to take the vote out of my, towards myself and say, "You know what? I'm going to humble myself and I'm going to put my vote in the hand of God that I would lay down the election of myself and I am electing God as the Lord and the Savior of my life." The DL Moody says there are many of us willing to do great things for the Lord, but few of us are willing to do the little things. There's a great story about Mother Teresa, a New York Times or a journalist from a large newspaper was out visiting her. And if you know who Mother Teresa was, she was one who wanted to provide a dignified death for those living in absolute poverty in India and she's on the street and she is cleaning out a very infected wound from a person who's living on the street. Not to get too graphic, there were maggots in there and it was very, you know, very gross. And she is down on her knees and she is pulling this out, cleaning the wounds before taking the man back and the New York Times journalist said I would never do that for a million bucks and she turned around and said neither would I. She was devoted to the call that God had within her life and these people, they devoted themselves to the task. They didn't wait for a forced moment, a lot of the times we run back passionately to God when we get cattle prodded by life. When we get tased by life, oh my gosh, this is a bad situation, I've got to run back to God, I'm going to get down on my knees, I'm going to fast for 72 days and I'm going to pray incessantly now. But they devoted themselves, meaning that they took the humble approach and said I'm not going to wait for a particular moment, I don't need to wait for inspiration or a call, but I will devote myself to the house of God. They didn't wander around, they didn't wait for when they messed up or lost something. No, they devoted themselves to the full house of God. They didn't become part-time thumbs in the body. They attached themselves to the body. They attached themselves into the body. Henry Ford went bankrupt two times before establishing Ford Motors. Abraham Lincoln went through eight elections where he failed to become an elected official. Some of those for the presidency, did he give up? No. He stood his ground, he had a purpose and followed through with it. We got to get that resilience of devotion and the humility to stay committed to it. How much more if these people like Henry Ford and Abraham Lincoln could access that kind of perseverance, then how much more can we, as the church, filled with the purpose of Jesus Christ, filled with the power of his spirit be devoted to the call that he has set before us? How much more are we able to live in that purpose, to see it unfold and to see the success of his kingdom expanding? Amen? So they were devoted. What were they devoted to? They were devoted to the teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers, the prayers meaning the services, the times that they got together to worship. They were also devoted to evangelism as well. It's interesting to note that after this spirit-filled, very mystical moment within God's presence, it did not make them disdain their mind nor despise theology. They wanted teachers. They wanted to be submitted within a house. They had a hunger for his word. Why? The Holy Spirit is truth and the Word of God is that truth that is living. I like that it links teaching and fellowship. Like I said before, we live in a teaching world, right? We have podcasts. We have sermons online. I'm guaranteed there's a 3D online church. I think I read about that somewhere where you're going to go in the metaverse and turn up to church. Okay, that's great. You know, it's great to have all of the teaching, but there was teaching and fellowship. There is a connection to that. It's in the terms of what I would say truth needs a place to be accountable for the growth within our lives. The luxury of a counselor that we see once a week, and I'm on forego and see someone to talk about particular issues, but you can lie your accountability pretty easy. Yeah, I did everything you said. It was a great week. Yeah, this, this and this, because they do not have eyes on your life. Now is the church just meant to be a hammer walking around, and everyone looks like a nail? No. Truth and love go hand in hand as Paul writes, if truth is presented without love, then it is not the gospel. If love is presented without truth, then it is not the gospel. They coexist together. Truth and love. You need the fellowship, not just the teaching. They devoted themselves to the teaching and to the fellowship. In Proverbs 18 one, oh gosh, this is a zinger of a verse. You ready for it? It says, whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire. He breaks out against all sound judgment, isolated from the body, isolated from church, isolated from accountability, isolated from the joy in the sacrifice that being within fellowship brings. Oh, I love it. I want to delegate that sound judgment comes from the house of God. I have a fellowship as well of people that keep me accountable as a pastor of a church. I have people that I draw upon that would pour into me and keep me accountable. Ask me questions to keep me on the straight and narrow. I want people in my life. I don't just need them, but I desire people in my life to ask me tough questions and to challenge me. I want to grow. I want to be pruned. That is found within fellowship. All the joy of what fellowship is too. The community and the body working in unison is beautiful. What is the bride of Christ that is called to be unified? And we as the unified body of believers, we are the church. I'll skip down. They were devoted to the breaking of bread and worship. Like I said, I just love the ants. I love that it's linking, not just teaching on its own, it was teaching and fellowship. The breaking of bread and the worship. People who are 10, 24 to 25, I don't think I sent this through, and let us consider how to stir one another to love and good works, not neglecting to what meet together, as is the habit of some. But encouraging one another and all the more as you see the day drawing near. There is something about sitting down at the table and breaking bread with people that will connect you at a deeper level. Starting life next to one another, that when you worship together, you are stirring up one another to good works in expanding the kingdom of God. Last thing I want to mention here today, are you guys getting something out of this? They were devoted to evangelism. In verse 47, so you got it, they were devoted to the teaching and fellowship. They were devoted to the breaking of bread and to worship. We got it? Run them with it? Awesome. Number four, they were devoted to evangelism. Verse 47 says, "And the Lord added to their number daily, day by day, those who were being saved." Incredible. Here's the first thing, the Lord Jesus did it. It's saying, "And the Lord added to their number." But no doubt, He did it through the apostles' teaching, through the Christians' fellowship, through the breaking of bread, and through the prayer and worship, that as they come through, they would live as the church's witness in the world. Second is, it says, "They were being saved." These people who were being saved were being added to the church. There was no solitary Christianity. There was no wandering Christianity. There was no thumb that was missing. Salvation in the church belonged together then, and it still belongs together today. Those who were being saved need a house of God who was committed to pursuing this kind of church. It was also daily. This was not a sporadic event or activity. Just as their worship was daily, it was their daily pursuit, so was their witness to display the glory of God through their good works, through the way that they speak, through the way that they treat one another, through the way that they speak about one another. Man, one of the significant difference, I believe, within a Christian's mouth is the way they praise the people around them. That those who are succeeding, maybe doing a little bit better, they're not tempted to tear them down. They're like, "Wow, what an amazing thing God is doing in your world." How incredible is it that you were going this far? Oh my gosh, have you heard, instead of saying, "Have you heard about Sally and what she did last Tuesday?" Did you hear about that? Oh my gosh, she was down at Javier's bar and she drank instead of gossiping, "Have you seen the purpose that is in Sally's life? Why don't you speak life into a situation? We don't need to speak gossip." Amen? Come on, let's stand up here today. I think we should take that this week, believing that the Lord Jesus added to the church, but He works through people like you and me to achieve it, that these people are being saved. They need to be attached to the house and that it was daily, it was not a sporadic event. It was a daily pursuit in their witness. The harvest needs a house, people. The harvest needs a house and we are in full pursuit of establishing and building a house that replicates this early church. The pursuit of being filled by the power of the Holy Spirit, displaying the fruit of the Spirit and igniting our community to follow Jesus. Amen? Thank you, Father, God, O God, we glorify you here today. I thank you, Father, that there would be unusual acts within this church. The God, there would be a marvelous outpouring that we would marvel in awe at the beauty and the wonder of who you are, Father. We believe in a big God who does big things. We believe in a good God who has a good purpose for the lives of those who are for Him. God, we call upon those who are in need of salvation in Orange County. God, O God, we break open the altar of salvation, that there would be a sounding horn calling those in to the house of God, receiving with humble hearts the gospel of Jesus Christ in the mighty name of Jesus. We all said, amen, amen.