Awakened Truth Initiative (ati)
Boldness, Community, and Power
Welcome back to our series on the Book of Acts! In previous episodes, we’ve seen the early church’s formation and its growth through the Holy Spirit’s power. Today, we’re diving into Acts Chapter 4, a powerful chapter that shows us how the apostles faced opposition for preaching the Gospel, how they remained bold in the Spirit, and how the early church lived in community. We’ll look at what the church did then and what it means for us as the church today.
- Broadcast on:
- 12 Oct 2024
- Audio Format:
- other
Welcome back as we get into chapter four, kind of how the early church was bold, how they were in community, and the power that they had that we still could have today. So we'll get into it and you know what time it is. It's time for that fantastic intro music. So let's go get into it. Welcome to the Awaken Truth Initiative. I'm Dr. Steve and we're here Awaken to what's going on in the world. We are seeking the truth in all things, you saying God's word as our lens and we're initiative meaning we're just going to keep going, we're going to keep moving. We hope you join us. We hope you add in comment and let's go seek some truth. All right, let's go so chapter four, before this we've talked about, you know, the early church formation, we've talked about the Holy Spirit coming and the power he has brought. And now we're going to talk about a powerful chapter that shows us how the apostles faced opposition for preaching the gospel, how they remain bold in the spirit and how the early church lived in community. We'll look at what the church did then and what means for us today. And I think you could see examples today of the same things that are happening back then. So we're going to jump right into it. We're going to go to Acts chapter four versus one through three. And as they were speaking to the people, the priest and the captain of the temple and the sodasies came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead and they arrested them and put them in custody until the next day for it was already evening. Look, Peter and John are here, they're arrested for preaching the gospel for proclaiming the resurrection through Jesus. Back then the religious leaders were threatened by the power of their message and sought to silence them. It marks the beginning of the persecution against the church, which I will say has not ended. Right? I want you to think about this. Think about you walking into a public space right now wherever you live and deciding that you were going to preach the gospel. What do we see in the news about that today? Right? We see people being arrested in other countries for praying outside of abortion clinics. We see that you need to permit to even get on public ground and do what they would call a protest or gathering, so I need to permit to get a bunch of people together to speak about Christ. I say these things to tell you, this isn't far from what it is today. This hasn't stopped. It's not like Peter and John were arrested. They got punished and then persecution of the church ended. No, it just got quieter, right? So back then it was loud, so they get, you know, the leaders of the church, the leaders, you could say the leaders of the church, but in reality, what were they powerful figures in government positions? Now back then, yes, I get it. Church versus government and all that. But think of who led the people back in those days. It was the religious organizations, right? So these people made laws, they made laws outside with the Bible, what have called laws, and they governed people according to what they called religion. So if you're governing, you're part of the government. So this is the government of that day, and there's different layers of government. This is the government of that day that is quieting people down, talking about Jesus. Man does that sound familiar, right? Just pull up a non-biased newsfeed wherever you choose to get it and look around it and you'll see this still happening. So this right here, they're preaching and they get pulled in. This is it. This is their bold. They're doing it, right? So in today's world, Christians may not always face physical arrest, but there are many places where sharing the gospel is restricted and believers face social, political, and professional backlash. This passage reminds us that opposition to the gospel is nothing new. We're all called to be courageous in our witness. Listen, what is social backlash? It's your family saying, get out of here, right? It's people not including you in things. I mean, when I came to know Christ, I was drinking probably four days a week, if not more, if I had a week off, but I was definitely drinking alcohol, hanging out with people, partying in garages, playing games, like doing all this stuff that you could think. All the college frat stuff that you could think. I was doing it. I was in the Marine, so it was normal. And when I came to know Jesus and that stuff became not important to me anymore, I wanted to give it up. I faced social backlash like our friends left me in Laura. We were sitting in her house like, Holy cow, what do we do now? There's nothing to do this weekend because we don't take part in those things anymore. So you have to be aware that there is social backlash and it's okay. Political backlash, man, just look at what's going on today in politics. Political backlash, when you take God out of anything, just becomes hateful and it doesn't matter what side you're on without the Lord, it's just hateful. You're just talking smack about one person who's talking smack about the other person. Like, look, where's the new ideas, right? Where are the new ideas? Where are the people saying I just want to help? I just want to do this. There's some out there. Don't get me wrong. There's definitely some out there, right? But there's so many people that are just worried about getting reelected that they'll say anything and they'll do anything to keep that re-election, to keep that job, to keep that power. And next thing you know, you're getting arrested for praying outside of an abortion clinic or something like that. And then what's professional backlash? Listen, I worked for a big company, big company. If I walked on their floor sort of preaching the gospel, I would no longer have a job, right? Anybody that knows this, listens and knows what I do, you can bet your bottom dollar that that would be wild. My men's group has talked about working in the facility, working in where we go so we could meet and it'd be easier on us. But there's such a stigma there of what would happen to us if we did. So I don't even know that we can do that. I don't even know if it's an option to have a group of guys meet there and talk about the Bible. This is modern day, right? But what is the Bible say, Matthew 511 says, "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account." He said, "Blessed, you are blessed." Jesus warned us that we would face opposition for His name. The early church's example encourages us to be bold regardless of the consequences. Now listen, I'm not telling y'all to go be street pastors, preachers, I'm not telling you to walk in your work and just say the heck with it, right? Our ministries include our family. The Bible says we take care of ourselves. The Bible also says that authorities are put in place by God. So there's a reason for everything. And listen, if I go in and get kicked out of my business, what I know before I came to this job that I prayed and I prayed so long that there was no denying that what I was doing was from God and I was thinking, "God, you want me to go to this company? You want me to do this thing and move to this place like this doesn't make sense? I'm preaching your gospel. I'm teaching your gospel and you're pulling me out of it, putting me here." And then I found this group of people that's just amazing in there and we're working together and the Lord is working. So I say, "Be bold and be smart." Be bold, right? Don't deny Christ. Don't deny your religion, but be smart about it because if we get kicked out of everywhere, how are we supposed to be the light in that area, right? So me and my group of guys and the group of ladies that currently work where we work, like we're the light in that place, right? We're doing something above and beyond which people can't fathom and more and more interest generates when they go, "Why are you doing that?" Well, why don't you come see and I'll show you a piece of my testimony. So listen, we're going to get backlash for preaching the gospel because guess what? The gospel's against the world, right? The gospel's heavenly. The gospel is extreme. The gospel is different and makes you different and be proud of that difference that you have because that is what we're supposed to be doing. We are supposed to be being different for the Lord and if I'm going to get backlash for that, so be it because when I go up and I'm standing at the foot of the cross and I'm crying because I know what the Lord has done for me, it's going to be completely worth it and I'm perfectly okay with that and you know what? If that backlash gets extreme and I get moved out of a place, I know God's got another one waiting for me. So with that being said, let's go to the next X4 versus 5 through 12, really. We're going to really going to read X4, 8 through 10, but then Peter filled with the Holy Spirit said to them, rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed? Let it be known to all of you that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead. By him, this man is standing before you well. Here's a great example of the apostles giving glory what glory is due to like, whoa, whoa, this wasn't us, right? This isn't us. Peter's courage and clarity came from being filled with the Holy Spirit. This is a recurring theme in the Acts. The apostles do not rely on their own strength or wisdom, but on the spiritual power to proclaim the gospel. They are resting on the Lord, they are saying, hey, it wasn't me, right? I'm just a vessel. I'm just lucky enough and blessed enough to be a part of this, but this is God. And that's how we should go through our whole life as being bold, knowing the Lord is working through us. As soon as we start taking credit for that, we start turning to sin. We start becoming selfish, and all of those fruit of sin start coming out of us. But once we know we're empty, right, filthy rags is what the Bible says. Once we know where we were and what Jesus saved us from, then we can empty ourselves and say, Lord, use me, use me and he'll put us in situations where the Holy Spirit will bring you power, your mouth will open, you'll say things, you'll do things and you'll come out of that. And six months later, you'll be like, how did we get here? What did we do? What happened? Why did I make that decision? And you realize, ah, that was God. So listen, the Holy Spirit empowers believers to be bold, to speak the truth and to stand firm. When we rely on the Holy Spirit, we are able to confront challenges with confidence, just as Peter did. Let me tell you a quick story. So I'm in a business, um, and I'm, uh, I don't know what you would call it. Almost an executive. I'm pretty up there in the chain. And we're having this big brown table and there's an icebreaker. And in this icebreaker, they start, there's probably 25 people around this U-shaped table and they started the opposite side of me and they say, what were you doing between the ages of 20 and 23? And that's the icebreaker, right? People are standing up like, ah, it's in college. Oh, I played college football. Oh, I was doing this. I was around the world and I was like, Lord, not right now. Don't do it to me right now. Like there's got to be something else that can't be this. And it got up to me and I stood up and I said, well, unlike all of you who were fantastic, I was an alcoholic. I drank. I just moved from party to party and through Jesus Christ and being saved, like I've given that life up. And that's where I was. And I sat down and it was a little bit more like Holy Spiritish, I guess you could say. Um, when it happened, but I'm telling you I was sweating all the way up to that point and it just, it just came out and got to use that moment. So many people in that meeting of high level leaders came up to me and said, thank you for that. That's fantastic that I knew it was the Lord because I don't have the strength or the guts to do that. So that is what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit. You're doing things. You're like, why? Why in the world did I do that? All right. So then we talk about Acts four, 12 and we get, and there is salvation in no one else for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. So you got Peter talking here, right? Look how bold he is. Before Peter, before the resurrection, was he bold? I mean, he was bold, but kind of in the wrong way, right? Like he was always going out in the limb. He was always putting his foot in his mouth. He just, he was just that guy denied Jesus. And now look at him. The Holy Spirit is in him. The Holy Spirit's power is there and he is proclaiming the foundational truth for Christianity. That salvation is found only in Jesus Christ. This message remains at the heart of the gospel today. As Christians, we're called to share this message even in a world that might reject it or might reject you or me, even then we are. But here's something that I learned a long time ago and it really helped me. And it was this nice man in the church, didn't really hold the leadership position just to you know, one of those old guys in there that kind of grabbed you by the wing. And I was in my first door knocking event, right? Where he was just like, hey, anything we can do, clean up your yard, like would you like to hear about Jesus? And he taught me a lot of lessons that day, but one lesson he taught me was, when you go up there and you share the gospel and they say, no, thank you. They're not saying, no, thank you to you. They're saying, no, thank you to God because it's his gospel and he has it open to everybody. So Peter is just proclaiming that message and he knows that they're going to reject her or might, just like we should know that people are going to reject it, but it's not us. It's God they're rejecting. So Ephesians 2 verse 8 through 9 says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith." And that is not your own doing, it is a gift to God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. Salvation is a gift. Okay? Now let's think about that, a gift. What do you do with a gift? You open it, you accept it and it's given to you freely, it's a gift. And this gift is only found in Jesus, right? In Jesus. He's the one offering the gift. You can accept the gift, but when you do, it's his gift to give. There's nothing you've done to get it. This was the message of the early church and it's the same message we proclaim today. It's a free gift that you choose to accept. And guess what? If I was holding on to my gift, if I was the one that had to hold on to my salvation, I would have fell a million times and I'd probably have. But because it's not me and it's Christ, it is God holding on to my salvation because he gave it to me freely. He's God, he's not letting go. I may mess up, I may do this, but I'm saved and I'll tell you that people that say they're saved and continue in sin and never change or get worse, they may say they're saved. But what's the fruit say, right? But other people who say they're saved and they make mistakes and they do things that they probably shouldn't have, but you see them and they're repenting and they're praying and they're doing what they're supposed to be doing. Now that's salvation, right? That's the fruit because we're going to make mistakes, but the fruit is love, joy, peace. Repentance is key. So let's go on to Acts 4, verses 13 through 22. So verse 13 says, "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John and perceived that they were uneducated common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus." Listen, Peter and John were ordinary dudes. They weren't religious scholars or leaders, they didn't have a doctorate like I do, yet they're courage and knowledge amazed the authorities. The religious leaders could see that these men had been transformed by their relationship with Jesus. Guys, I could tell you a long story about how I ended up getting a master's in Christian ministry and a doctorate in ministry, and that'd be great, but I will tell you that it was never my plan, never planned on doing it. I told my wife, there was no way I was ever going to get a doctorate, but the Lord lines things up for a reason, and I know there's a reason that I have one. But I tell you that to tell you this, you don't need it. You don't need a pulpit. You don't need a microphone. You don't need a band. You don't need a building. You don't need anything. All you need is God. You need Jesus, the power of the Holy Spirit, and you are a man of God. You can be bold. You can teach. You can share your testimony. Nobody knows your testimony as well as you do, and just that alone is enough for you to go out and show people through actions, what Christ is about. So don't, don't think, listen, there's people, I think I mentioned this in the last podcast, Austin Russell Brand's Chops, because, oh, he just came to faith six months ago, and he's out there baptizing people. He's talking about Jesus. Meanwhile, I'm a cheerleader like, go dude, do it, okay? Go for it. People are hearing about Jesus because of you, and God's got a plan for that. You can't, you can't know if people are sincere. You can't. You can see the fruits of sincerity and authenticity, but you can't know. But why would we ever want to stop somebody who is on fire for Christ right after they've been baptized? Why would we want to stop them from using a platform to bring others to Christ? We don't. So don't get wrapped up in, oh, I need four more years to study the Bible before I can be educated enough to go out and actually talk about it. That is not a truth. Nowhere in the Bible does this say, hey, come to know Jesus, sit in a pew for three years, then you'll be able to teach people. No, it says, welcome to Christ. Here is your orders. It is to go forth to the ends of the earth and spread the gospel. So go do it. You have your own testimony, your own strengths, your own knowledge. And listen, if you're in your Bible every day, it's coming, okay? It's coming. God won't let it just rest. He's going to give you something so, but you know, here's the key phrase I wrote down. God doesn't need highly educated or influential people to spread the gospel. He uses those who are willing and faithful, regardless of their background or qualifications. This is an encouragement for all believers. God can use each of us in powerful ways. So go forth. I think I've told you guys that I had a church that I wanted to go and I just wanted to be however helpful I could be. And yeah, I kind of wanted to get like in a position of leadership in the church, right? To help. And I was told because I was divorced that you can't do that. Now you show me in the Bible where it actually says that, show me where there's a limitation on what you can do because I'm pretty sure it says, when you come to know, Jesus Christ, you're a new creation, right, a new creation and all things are forgiven. So who is man to tell you that you can't go out and do the problem we have in this world right now is there's too many men who say you can't because they want to or they want their badge or they want their church name on it or they want whatever glory, but the glory belongs to God. And I'll walk around and filthy rags and speak about Jesus, right? Because that's where the glory belongs. My treasures are in heaven. And I believe those treasures are the souls of people who I've been in contact with that God has called to be in heaven. Listen, what greater thing would that be? What greater treasure would it be to go in heaven? Look around and have people say, thank you. You showed me this, right? Now don't take credit. Don't get me wrong there. Like I'm not saying God calls people, God's in charge of salvation. I'm just a vessel, but how cool to be like you were the vessel to do this. That's your treasures in heaven. So now we talk about the miracle, right? So they made this guy who was a cripple walk just as you've seen Jesus do. It's fantastic. And now we're like acts for first 14 through 16. We're seeing what the leaders are saying, but seeing the man who was healed, standing beside them, they had nothing to say in opposition. What shall we do with these men for a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. We cannot deny it. Okay. So you got outside sources saying, dang, that happened. Can't deny it. The healing of the lame man was undeniable even to those who oppose the apostles. This reminds us that our actions, our love, our service, our compassion can speak powerfully to others and can testify to God's presence and power. Look, what changes happen in your life? People cannot deny. And when they can't deny something, they either want to be a part of it or they don't want anything to do with it at all. When I quit drinking, my family for the last, for the first three years of that, when I would go home would say, would you like a beer? Would you like? Why did you? Oh, it must be Laura made you quit. You know, may, may must be your wife made you quit, must be equipped for this. And I was like, no, I quit because Jesus, that's why friends took off on me, shunned me because they couldn't deny that I changed and I don't claim that change. That change is from Christ because I tried to change for 30 something years and I couldn't do it myself. But when I came to know Jesus, I changed. People cannot deny that. It's an undeniable proof and people want to ignore it. Take science, right? If you've listened to me, you've heard me talk about what is it called? Others in Genesis, that group and Ken Ham, fantastic, listen, take that group. People but denying God exists using science, but they're using the same proof that God does exist to say that he doesn't. Is that crazy? So think about fossils. I mean, you see clam fossils, literally everywhere scattered across the earth and what do they say? Well, 2 billion years ago, there was probably water here and there was a clam or you could say man, there was probably a giant flood that covered the earth, swept away all the sea creatures and creatures swept away all the sand and dirt and sentiment, place it somewhere. The thing didn't have a chance to decompose. So it gets encrusted in what we now call fossils and there you go. But they'll use the same proof that God has to try to explain it without God. Where we, we just explain it with God and it's much easier. So people will deny things that are undeniable. They'll just try to re-explain them. All right, so choosing obedience to God acts for 19 through 20, but Peter and John answered them whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God. You must judge for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard. So they're saying, yo, you can try to tell me to say it wasn't God, but it was. You go ahead and judge for yourselves, but I can't. I can't. Peter and John refuse to be silenced boldly declaring their commitment to obey God above all else. This is a powerful example of prioritizing obedience to God, no matter the cost. Obedience to God. I left a job because it was great area and there were things happening that I just couldn't take. Like God was calling me like, what are you doing? Don't do that. And I kept trying to be called into these situations by people who said they were Christians. And I left. They said, I'm going to be, you know, control my own fate. I'm not going to do that. And through prayer, a lot of prayer and a lot of re-eating of God's word it has worked out, but just know, you know, Tucker Carlson will call it instincts, believe your instincts. When you come to know Jesus, those instincts are the Holy Spirit and he's telling you something. So let's go on to the next part, which is, you know, praise the power of praise and prayer. So acts for 24. And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, sovereign Lord, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, when the apostles returned to their community, they shared what had happened, right? So this is, they heard it like the people. And then the entire church responded by lifting their voices and unified prayer. They praise God's sovereignty, acknowledging that he was in control of every situation. Man, praise and prayer, we're praying, right? There's some song out there, I think it's secular and I can't remember somebody coming up. Anyway, it says that I only pray when I need something. Well, is that us? Are we praying when we only need something? And then when we get the blessings, we're not praising. Like once the last time you said, "Holy cow, Lord, thank you. Thank you, Lord. Thank you for the money you just sent me, for the job you gave me, for the wife that's in my house, for the kids that I'm able to raise, for the education that I have, for all the opportunities you put before me. Thank you." Once the last time we did that, once the last time we had a check just appear in the mailbox, right? Like insurance just decides they're going to pay you back. They're just like, "Oh, man, we overpaid you. Here's a thousand bucks." Once the last time we thought, "Not oh good on the insurance company, but we thought, oh Lord, you made this happen." There's no such thing as a coincidence. Let me say it again, there's no such thing as a coincidence. There is God's plan. God's plan. "Oh, it's a coincidence that I met this staff sergeant at work who decided to start talking to me about the Bible and then took me to a church and it's a coincidence that that church pastor decided to talk about a topic that was specifically on mine and my wife's heart, and that is how I became a Christian." No. Absolutely not. It was not a coincidence. It was God's plan to get my attention, to drive me in the dirt, to say, "Steve, look up at me and quit looking at yourself." That's not a coincidence. It's a plan. And then Acts 4, 29-31, "And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness and when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continue to speak the word of God with boldness." Look, they did not pray for safety or comfort. Man, so often I want to pray for safety and comfort. They didn't pray for that. They prayed for boldness. And then in response, God filled them with the Holy Spirit right through that energy. I know that feeling. I've been there. It is addictive because it is so good. And they continued to preach even with great courage. This right here, it emphasizes the power of the prayer, the power of prayer, and the importance of asking God for boldness in our lives. Once the last time you said, "Lord, make me strong enough to talk about you, to give you glory, to give you credit," why don't we start praying like that and maybe it'll start happening. Pray for opportunity and pray for boldness. Next, okay? What do they do next? The last paragraph we're talking about, Acts 4, verse 32, "Now, the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. The early church was characterized by unity and generosity. They saw their possessions as tools for serving others. They met one another's needs with open hearts and hands. This kind of community reflects God's love and its powerful witness to the world. I am not telling you right now to go through every dollar you have in a church. What I am telling you is to make everything you have, everything you have, including your time, your mouth, your children, your wife, your job, whatever it may be, make everything you have available to the Lord. Don't tell him you can't have this. Don't tell him that, right? Let's use just kind of a way out there example. Let's say God calls me to Africa on a mud hut and it's crazy time and it's like, "Okay." Well, let's say my wife and kids want to go, but I'm like, "No, no, I need to keep you safe. So therefore you stay there, stay here, and I'm going to go do that. Or I don't do it at all because I don't want to keep my, or I don't want to put my wife and kids in that position." What am I doing there? Am I making everything available to the Lord? No, I'm keeping them back, right? I'm saying, "Lord, yes for me, no for them," right? Same could be said with your money. Yes for me, no for my money. Same thing could be said for your time. Yes for my money, but I don't have time for you. So think about all these examples and the early church, everything was available to God to be used by Him. So make your stuff available. Have you prayed lately, "Hey Lord, my time, my money, my most prized possessions," which might be my kids are available for you, for your word to do what you need to do. And if you haven't, let's start there. Let's put that one on the list of prayers to do. Acts 4, 34 to 35, "There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of land or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the Apostles' feet and it was distributed to each as any had need." This is wild, right? I can just look at me, tell them my wife, we're selling everything, we're starting a Christian community and we're going to have to support a bunch of people. She would give me such an eye roll. It would be ridiculous. And anybody listening to this and knows my wife knows it's true. She would be like, "Wait a minute, wait a minute, wait a minute." But guess what, if everything in my household is available to God and I'm praying with my wife, praying for my wife and she's doing the same for me, then when that time comes, it's there. You're both in agreement. Looks, me and my wife have had times where opportunities have came up and we haven't even talked about it. And then when we turn and look at each other like, "We're going to do something about this?" Yes. What's the number you have? And we say the number and we're both either right on or very close to the amount of money or whatever it might be that we're willing to give and right then and there, I know that me and my wife are in sync with the Lord and we're putting Jesus between us. So don't go out and sell all your possessions right now and try to like start a community. But make it available so the Lord call you to do it. So Acts 4, 36 to 37, that's Joseph who was also called by the apostles Barnabas, which means son of encouragement, a Levite, a native disciples, sold the field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet. Barnabas serves as an example of encouragement and generosity. His actions demonstrate the spirit of the early church, a community committed to sacrificial giving and supporting one another. Look, you have a spiritual gift, maybe multiple. Do you know what it is? Do you know why you have it? And have you used it for the Lord? Something you should pray about. Put that down on the list. Let's pray about that. Let's talk about what God wants you to do. What does He want you to make available and what have you shut the door on and said this is not available? That is what I'm talking about. Listen, maybe it is a church. Maybe it's a facility. Maybe it's a great pastor, but I'm telling you, if a guy on TV saying, send him $10,000 and you're going to have a blessed life, I haven't read that in any of the verses. I haven't read that anywhere, but I have read that being in my bubble, my community, my people, I should make everything available so that Jesus Christ may be known and all may share in glorifying God. So look, we've saw the boldness of Peter and John. We saw the power of prayer and praise and we saw the beautiful community that was marked by the early church. They weren't defined by building structures, but their commitment to Jesus to each other, to living out the gospel. Find people where you can share in your commitment to Jesus and each other. And if you're going to build a building or be in a building, that's fantastic. The most important part is commitment to Jesus, commitment to each other through Jesus. Let's be inspired by the other church. May we seek boldness to the Holy Spirit, live generously and remember that the church is not a building, but a community called to serve and love. If you have thoughts, reflections on today's episodes or any of them, just reach out. I'd love to hear what people are experiencing. I'd love to hear your thoughts. I'd love to answer questions. And next time we'll hit up chapter five, we'll see what's going on there, but listen, I appreciate you listening, appreciate you going through this. This is as much for me as it is for you by getting back and studying, by having a place to talk about it has been a blessing to me and has really brought me closer to Christ. So I really appreciate you joining me in this. This is a spiritual journey for me, and I hope it is one for you. So be generous, friends, be cool, be bold. And if nothing else, pray and love Jesus. Have a great rest of the day. (clicking)