Engaging the Holy Spirit Uncontrollable Acts 5:17-39

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1 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 1 of 8 Engaging the Holy Spirit Uncontrollable Acts 5:17-39 INTRODUCTION TO THE SERIES I m just going to admit it up front. I like to be in control. If you don t believe that, ask my family ask the staff truth is, you can ask just about anyone who knows me. It s not a new thing. I ve always been that way. When I was in college, a member of my dad s church met the chaplain from my school, at a conference Oh, he said, maybe you know our pastor s daughter, Jan Brittain. She goes to Pfeiffer and she absolutely loves it. She ought to, chaplain Rick replied, she runs the place. I ve always liked being in control. And I ll bet a lot of you are just like me. So, it is not surprising that Uncontrollable is the characteristic of the Holy Spirit I find the most difficult to accept and live into, but it s there Where the Cross Meets the Flame. When the Holy Spirit engages God s people it s surprising, inclusive, amazing AND uncontrollable. Like it or not, if I want the power of the Holy Spirit to be at work in my life and in my church, the way it was at work in the lives of the early believers, then I m just going to have to come to terms with uncontrollable. I m hoping this sermon can help us all do that. INTRO TO SERMON First a few examples of how this characteristic showed up in the early church when God s people began to engage the Holy Spirit. There was, of course, the first Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came upon all the believers. They began to proclaim God s good deeds in languages that visitors from all parts of the known world could understand. Their behavior was so uncontrollable that those watching accused them of being drunk, even though it was just 9 o clock in the morning. And from that point on this uncontrollable nature of the Holy Spirit just kept appearing. One of my favorite examples is the way the Spirit moved in the life and work of Philip the evangelist. We focused on him last week. And we read things like: 1) an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, Get up and go south. So he got up and went. 2) Philip opened his mouth and beginning from this Scripture, he preached Jesus. 3) the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; 4) Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel. (All taken from Acts 8.) When you read those kinds of phrases, it s as though Philip no longer controls himself; the Holy Spirit controls him. When we begin to engage the Holy Spirit, the same thing happens. We can t control it, Beloved; the Holy Spirit controls us.

2 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 2 of 8 And there are a couple of other examples. There s a marvelous story in Acts 10 about two men who also liked being in control: Peter, the Jewish apostle who had traveled with Jesus, and Cornelius, the Gentile Roman soldier. Both of these men act in ways that are absolutely contrary to their nature all in response to messages from God. And they do so without any understanding at all about what is going to happen. Peter and Cornelius wind up together and they each look at the other wondering okay, now what? But neither of them has the agenda. Why? Because the Holy Spirit is uncontrollable. We can t control it; the Holy Spirit controls us. And the result of Peter s and Cornelius willingness to live in obedience and without control? Well, that s when the second Pentecost happens. The Holy Spirit comes upon the Gentiles in Caesarea. They speak in tongues and declare God s great deeds of power. One more example. We talked about this man three weeks ago, Ananias. He s the one God asked to go and pray over the persecutor Saul also known as Paul. God was using Ananias to deliver Saul from his blindness and open him to the Holy Spirit. Knowing Saul s reputation for violence and persecution, Ananias resisted at first. But eventually, Ananias, like all faithful Christians, realizes that when the Spirit engages us, it s uncontrollable. We can t control it; The Holy Spirit controls us. So he obeys, makes his way to Straight Street and prays for Brother Saul. In other words, over and over again, people behave in ways that are inconsistent with their personalities, that are risky, that don t make sense given the circumstances and the social mores of the day. It s difficult to understand such behavior. It s as though some uncontrollable force is at work in and through them. And it is. It s called the Holy Spirit. When told by the authorities that they must stop preaching in the name of Jesus, these early believers do their best to describe this force at work in them with these simple words. Acts 4: Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God s sight to obey you rather than God. 20 For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard. In other words, we couldn t stop if we wanted too. It s beyond our control. When God s people engage the Holy Spirit, Beloved, it s uncontrollable. We don t control it; the Holy Spirit controls us. OTHERS TRY TO CONTROL THE SPIRIT The Holy Spirit is uncontrollable, but that does not stop people from trying to control it both those inside the community of faith and those outside the community of faith. In Acts 5, we read a very disturbing story about a couple named Ananias

3 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 3 of 8 (different from the Ananias who prayed with Saul/Paul) and Sapphira. They sold a piece of property, and then gave money from the sale to the community of faith. The problem is along the way, they attempted to deceive God and the community. They said they were giving all the proceeds to the community, but in fact, they were holding back some money for themselves. Now, this was completely their choice. They did not have to sell the property and they did not have to give the full amount. The problem was they were lying about it. Basically, they wanted to have the recognition and honor that comes from such generosity but without actually being generous. Don t you see? That was an attempt to control the Spirit? I ll pretend to be a good Christian. I ll get my family to Sunday School, we will go to church most Sundays, I ll be sure that I put something in the offering plate but we won t really let the Gospel go down deep no real changes in the way we live, the way we use our time, our money, our values, our use of language and resources. I ll be a surface Christian and get all the blessings of being part of the church. It didn t work for Ananias and Sapphira and it hasn t worked for anyone since. And what did happen to that couple? Well, they both dropped dead on the spot. An old preacher friend of mine, Duke Ison, says he thinks they just died of embarrassment when their secret was uncovered. Now, folks, I don t think our surface Christians are dropping dead literally but I do know that they won t ever find their way to the abundant life Jesus so longs to give them. No one manipulates the Holy Spirit, no matter how they try. When the God s people engage the Holy Spirit, it s uncontrollable. We don t control it; the Holy Spirit controls us. Another man in the Book of Acts was so impressed with the Holy Spirit that he tried to buy it. His name was Simon. We find his story in Acts 8. He had been a magician of some renown and when Simon saw Peter and John lay hands upon people and pray for them to receive the Holy Spirit well he was just blown away. He wanted to have that power for himself. He offered to pay them, Give me also this ability so that everyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 8:19. Simon wants to control the Holy Spirit. The apostles are horrified. And Peter responds with a rebuke that churches, TV evangelists and all ministries that attempt to raise money should probably revisit and meditate upon more often than we do. Acts 8:20 May your money perish with you, because you thought you could buy the gift of God with money.

4 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 4 of 8 Of course, you can kind of forgive Simon, and by the way, he does immediately ask for forgiveness. After all, he was a new Christian. He didn t understand. But by now, we should understand. Of course, we can t buy anything from God. God doesn t need our money. Everything in the universe belongs to God. God simply offers us the chance to use the money He has entrusted to us to partner with Him in the ministries of the church. Our chance to give to the Kingdom work is not for God s sake, it s for ours. Remember, giving God s way opens a channel of blessing in our lives. We make another space for God to work in and through us. But we don t control the Holy Spirit; the Holy Spirit controls us. The Holy Spirit was uncontrollable but that didn t stop people from trying to control it by their actions and with their money. And people inside the church have been trying to do the same thing ever since. But in the book of Acts we see that people outside the community of faith tried to control the Spirit too. THE AUTHORITIES The believers are really growing in favor with the people. God is doing great things through them. Many people are being healed. ACTS 5: Then the high priest took action; he and all who were with him (that is, the sect of the Sadducees), being filled with jealousy, 18 arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors, brought them out, and said, 20 Go, stand in the temple and tell the people the whole message about this life. 21 When they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and went on with their teaching Even the public jail can t contain the spirit filled believers. And the threats of the authorities can t stop them from preaching. ACTS 5: When the high priest and those with him arrived, they called together the council and the whole body of the elders of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. 22 But when the temple police went there, they did not find them in the prison; so they returned and reported, 23 We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside. 24 Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were perplexed about them, wondering what might be going on. 25 Then someone arrived and announced, Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people! 26 Then the captain went with the temple police and brought them, but without violence, for they were afraid of being

5 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 5 of 8 stoned by the people. 27 When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, 28 saying, We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man s blood on us. 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, We must obey God rather than any human authority. And there we encounter the same basic explanation. We must obey God rather than men. What we are doing doesn t make sense, it s risky, it s not the nature of ordinary law-abiding men, but we can t help it. We are not in control; the Holy Spirit controls us. Then Peter does what all the early believers do every chance they get: he tells the story of Jesus. He witnesses to what God has done through Jesus. Because, when the Spirit engages God s people, someone becomes a witness for Jesus. You shall be my witnesses. And Peter s witness absolutely infuriates the council. They want to kill them and probably would have if not for the Pharisee, Gamaliel. I m picking up at verse 34. ACTS 5: But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, respected by all the people, stood up and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time. 35 Then he said to them, Fellow Israelites, [e] consider carefully what you propose to do to these men. 36 For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him; but he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and disappeared. 37 After him Judas the Galilean rose up at the time of the census and got people to follow him; he also perished, and all who followed him were scattered. 38 So in the present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone; because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; 39 but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them in that case you may even be found fighting against God! That was good advice. In essence this wise man was saying if this is truly of God, we, with all our authority and power, will not be able to control it. Well, they follow his advice. They flog the witnesses and release them. And of course, the believers keep right on teaching and preaching Jesus they can t help but do so. For when God s people engage the Holy Spirit, it s uncontrollable. We don t control it; the Holy Spirit controls us. TO WHAT END But to what end? What is the result of this uncontrollable behavior? Well, let s take a look.

6 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 6 of 8 First. Lots of unexplainable things happen. Next week, we will look more closely at this when we consider the characteristic amazing but let s just look at today s text. There are great healings. An angel shows up to free them from jail. Ordinary men are extraordinarily brave. When we yield control to the Holy Spirit, unexplainable things happen. Second, the Christians become bold witnesses. This is what Jesus said would happen just before He ascended into heaven. And when the Spirit takes control, it does happen. This is what they prayed for in Acts 4:29. They knew what they were up against. They knew they could not manage this on their own and so they pray. Listen to their prayer. Acts 4:29 Now Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. They prayed for it and when the Spirit takes control, it happens. Third, the witness of the believers expands across great distances and across every barrier. Jews are witnessing to Gentiles. Women are leading churches. The Apostle John, who once asked Jesus if they could pray for destruction to come upon the Samaritans (Luke 9:51-55), is now praying for the Holy Spirit to come upon the Samaritans. This is what the risen Lord said would happen you shall be my witness to Samaria and to the ends of the earth. And when the Spirit takes control, it happens. And you know what I believe? I believe these things still happen when the uncontrollable Spirit is engaged by a group of believers. I believe unexplainable things happen. Believers become bold witnesses. They can t help but talk about what God is doing in and through their church and, as a result, they just keep bringing their friends into the church. Their witness begins to leap over barriers. They look for programs that will enable them to serve people they don t currently serve ministries that will enable them to reach people they do not currently reach they expand facilities and offer new programs so that they can reach more and more people with the Good News of Jesus Christ. They start ignoring the world s barriers and they just can t stop. That s what happens when God s people engage the Holy Spirit. It happened in the early church and I believe it still happens today. CONCLUSION/PERSECUTION But it wouldn t be right to stop there, because the Book of Acts is very clear and honest. And we preachers today should be the same. All those wonderful things

7 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 7 of 8 did happen when the Spirit engaged the early church and took control. But something else happened too. Persecution. Those believers were arrested, flogged (that probably means those 40 lashes minus one that all but kill a man), and in time, many Christians would be tortured and killed. And across the world there are still Christian martyrs even today. Probably no one here will risk death if they stand up and speak for Jesus this week but you might risk a relationship, a promotion, popularity, some kind of embarrassment. Persecution takes many different forms. But here s the miracle that I don t want you to miss in the Book of Acts. Persecution was the worst the world had to offer, but it didn t stand a chance when it came up against the power heaven had already set loose in this world. And that, Beloved, was the power of Resurrection. That is the miracle we encounter over and over again in the Book of Acts. With the power of Resurrection at work, the persecution itself became an instrument God used for good. First, it became the reason that their witness expanded so quickly. Persecution caused them to leave Jerusalem and they took the Good News with them. But then, something even more remarkable happened. It was right there at the end of our text for today. The believers were flogged beaten, probably to within inches of death itself but verse 41 says, they left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing... Rejoicing how could that be? How could persecution, which is intended to bring despair, bring joy? There s only one answer, friends, and it s found in Resurrection Power. Listen to the end of that verse. The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. And there s your Resurrection miracle. That which was meant to break the movement, strengthens it. God takes the persecution, which is intended to cause pain and destruction and despair and uses it to bring joy and blessing and growth. That s Resurrection power on this side of the grave. Yes Christian, it is true. When God s people faithfully engage the Holy Spirit, the power of persecution will still be set loose in this world. And the power of resurrection will be still be ready and waiting. Those early Christians discovered that the scars of persecution were well worth the joys of resurrection. And we will discover that truth too if and when we quit trying to control the Spirit and simply let the Holy Spirit control us. In other words, when we find our place Where the Flame Meets the Cross. In the name of the Father the Son and the Uncontrollable Spirit. AMEN.

8 Engaging the Holy Spirit Holy Spirit Acts in Uncontrollable Ways Page 8 of 8 Life Application Questions: 1. Are you or a person in your family one of those people who likes to be in control? Can you share some funny/interesting stories that illustrate this need to be in control? 2. When we consider the behavior of the early believers, it is as though something else was controlling them. Have you ever felt like something else was controlling your behavior? Pushing you to do or say something that might have been out of character for you? Could that have been the Holy Spirit? 3. People tried to control the Holy Spirit from the very beginning and have tried to control it ever since. Can you think of ways/times that people try/have tried to control the Holy Spirit? 4. The authorities in the New Testament tried to control the Holy Spirit through force but there are other ways that people outside the community of faith attempt to control the Holy Spirit. Ridicule. Criticism. Dismissal. Can you think of examples of these and others? 5. The sermon suggests three specific results that occur when the Holy Spirit acts out in uncontrollable ways. Can you name examples of each in today s church? 1. Unexplainable things happen. 2. Believers become bold witnesses. 3. The witness covers great distance and travels over barriers.