Do We Understand the Gospel’s Power?
Acts 6:7, “And the word of God continued to increase…”
Acts 12:24, “But the word of God increased and multiplied.”
Acts 13:49, “And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region.”
Acts 19:20, “So the word of the Lord continued to increase and prevail mightily.”
In these verses from the Book of Acts, Luke is talking about the gospel and he is describing its power. It’s like Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:9, although he’s in prison, although he’s bound in chains, he says, “The word of God is not bound.” Or like Paul says to the Thessalonians, “Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored” (2 Thessalonians 3:1).
In the New Testament, the gospel of Jesus Christ is described almost like a force. It’s a power all its own that is wildly untamable and yet deliberately targeted and purposely irresistible. It makes hearts to burn; it changes entire families; it turns the world upside down — and when we read about it, it makes us ask two questions of ourselves:
Do we know and embrace this same gospel that’s described in the Bible?
If so, our concern shouldn’t be how we might share the gospel, but how can we not?
The worry shouldn’t be over how we could do better at telling this news, but how could we ever do anything else but tell this news — if we understand its power?
The exhortation this morning is simple: let us understand the power of the gospel we have in Scripture, and then tell it.
And this reminds us our need to confess our sins.
Prayer of Confession
Father in heaven, have mercy on us, for we are a people barely shaped by your Word and we are mostly okay with that. We are content to carry on our lives and our activities and our busyness only remotely impacted by the death and resurrection of Jesus and its life-changing power. We embrace the best news in all the universe yet we never speak it to the dying among us, and we all think that we have good reasons for why not. We all figure that we have better things to do, or in those times when we could offer the hope of Jesus we are hindered by fears that in the grand scheme of things are so small and silly that we must confess we are ashamed. It’s bad. And Father, you know we don’t like to admit that. You know we are a people of excuses, which is why we come to you in the discipline of confession. We come not to make excuses, but to seek your forgiveness. Forgive us, O God, and have mercy on us, and by your Spirit, please bring to my mind our other sins and failures. Lead us now to confess those to you in silence. …
Father, now, I pray, raise us up. Let your Spirit convict us, and now, comfort us. Remind us that you love us, and that you love us not because of anything we have done or not done, but because you are merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. You love us because you are pleased to love us, and you have demonstrated your love so clearly in the cross of Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending Jesus to die for us, and to be raised for us, and to now reign for us and one day come again for us. Thank you, Father, that in Jesus we are forgiven and free forever. We praise you in his name, amen.
