Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro me

What’s the hardest thing you’ve ever been asked to do? something that felt almost impossible?

Hop onto slido and tell me [slido] if you’re a teenager, going to bed, perhaps; if you’re a new parent, getting that baby into a car seat for the very first time?

[while people type: door-knocking around Charlotte’s new building]

[interaction] [deactivate poll]

Sometimes as a Christian it can feel like we’ve been asked to do something that’s really, really hard - nearly impossible: to share our faith with those around us.

Now this doesn’t feel hard for everyone - I once came across some research showing something like 4% of Christians self-identify as evangelists, that is, they love doing this, feel like they’re a natural at it: it’s right up their street.

But that leaves about 96% of us who range from thinking this mission is hard all the way across to thinking this is flat out impossible so someone else better take it on.

That’s what we’re going to be thinking about this morning: what to do with this really difficult-feeling mission we’ve been given - we’re going to get to spy on someone else who shares this same mission.

And we’ll learn along the way that it’s actually worse than we’d thought: this isn’t just a difficult mission, it’s an impossible one [mission: impossible intro] [title]

Lately we’ve been following the story of one of the key leaders in the very first churches, a story about a guy called Paul dating back about two thousand years.

He’s in big trouble and has powerful enemies among the Jewish people so he’s been locked up, stuck inside the Roman justice system waiting for a fair trial for two years.

We pick up the story this morning after a new Roman official has arrived and taken over his case.

We’re going to get to look in on his final “hearing” from the local authorities - one he only gets because he’s just played his Roman-citizen trump-card and appealed to Caesar - that means his case is going to go all the way to the Roman Emperor himself for a decision.

Come with me to Acts chapter 25 verse 23 and we’ll read together.

That’s on page 1123 of these blue bibles you should be able to find around you.

Acts chapter 25 - big 25, verse 23 - small 23.

Page 1123 - and Ruth’s reading for us this morning.

— READING —

It’s quite a setup that this story starts with: every single bigwig from the city is there, all in their fancy gowns - it’s showtime Acts 25:23

Paul’s in trouble: he’s in Roman custody, there are serious charges against him and he has powerful enemies wanting to take him down.

He’s been given this last chance to speak - so think for a moment about how he might use it.

What would you do?

Basically, I’d do everything I could to get out of trouble I reckon.

Try to look squeaky-clean, to make it sound like there’s no possible case, that I’m absolutely no cause for concern, there’s zero risk, nothing going on here at all.

But when he starts to talk, instead of defending himself against charges, or trying to look as ordinary and un-criminal as possible, he tells his life story.

How he was brought up, how he was given his mission, and how he tried to carry it out.

Mission

Let’s start by looking more closely at how he describes the mission he was given by Jesus in the middle of his story - come with me to v17; what’s his assignment from Jesus?

The mission is pretty clear: open their eyes; turn them from darkness to light.

The problem, though, is Paul himself knows this is not just hard, but impossible.

Writing to one of the church he started just a short time before these events, he says this:

So his mission is to open eyes - but these eyes are blind.

They’ve been blinded.

This isn’t as simple as just waking up someone who’s deeply asleep.

They simply cannot see the light.

When I feel like my arguments for my faith are so strong and my case so persuasive that I should just be able to lay it all out for people and have them go “oh, yeah, ok well that makes sense - sign me up” - when I think like that, this is where I’m going wrong.

We’re trying to open blind eyes - so this is going to take a miracle, not just a good presentation of the facts or a clear argument.

Only God can open blind eyes - and in that same letter, Paul goes on to celebrate how that is just exactly what God did for him: a miracle.

“he made his light shine in our hearts”

So it’s mission:impossible.

How do we go about pulling off an impossible mission?

If you’re 007, a martini, some tech gadgets and a fast car, right?

How does Paul go after this mission he knows requires a miracle?

Well, stick with me - we’ll come back to that in a minute - but first I want to talk about his motive.

If this mission is not just hard, but impossible, why did he ever accept it?

Motive

There’s a very simple reason, simple motive here: obedience.

Obedience to the one he calls “Lord” - which means “master”: one who should be obeyed.

Verse 19:

I want to bring this right down to you and me before we go any further, though.

You probably don’t have a vision from heaven to fall back on - I’d love to hear about it if you do!

But I don’t want you to be in any doubt that every follower of Jesus shares this same mission.

This is absolutely foundational to what we’re about at Hope City.

Jesus famously gives his first disciples their marching orders in something Christians call the “Great Commission” - Matthew 28:18-20

It’s pretty plain here that Jesus’ first disciples are to “go and make disciples” - more disciples.

A disciples is a person who follows the teachings of someone with an intent to become like them.

So disciples of Jesus are trying to follow Jesus’ teaching and become like Jesus.

That’s their mission, their marching orders.

But notice with me that Jesus tells them part of making these new disciples is to teach them to obey everything Jesus has commanded.

Well, it’s pretty clear that everything has to include the command he’s just given them to go and make disciples, right?!

Or think about this another way: Jesus is the pattern for the Christian life.

He shows us what we should be and how we should live.

He, let me tell you, was a man on a mission.

In today’s passage we read that the Messiah - that’s the promised rescuer or deliverer: Jesus, of course - the Messiah “would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”

Jesus was the first one to have this mission; the archetype, the original and best.

In John 20:21 Jesus passes that baton to his disciples, and in turn, on to us for our generation:

Amazingly, Jesus he has enough faith in us to entrust this absolutely critical mission to us - he more faith in us than we have in ourselves!

So make no mistake, have no doubt, Christians, we’re sent, we’re on a mission, like Jesus, like Paul.

Who’s seen the Blues Brothers?

Absolute classic comedy about some musicians desperately trying to make money on “a mission from God”.

Christian, get your sunglasses out - because you are literally on a mission from God - which I can tell you should be the most important thing in your life.

Accept your mission, don’t ignore it.

Paul’s motive - and it should our motive too - is obedience.

But I think there’s more for us here.

Look at the end of Jesus’ mission definition for Paul there in verse 18: open their eyes; turn them.

Why? “So they can receive forgiveness and a place among God’s people” Acts 26:18

Acts 26:18 (NIV)

so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

I think there’s another motive that should drive us: love.

Love for those we are trying to reach, trying to help meet Jesus.

Jesus himself tells us what it means to know him as saviour and lord in what we just read:

Forgiveness of sins - every wrong you’ve ever done, every good you’ve left undone, every thoughtless word, every evil thought truly and finally forgiven so you are perfectly right with God - “washed whiter than the snow” is how the bible puts it.

But not just that,

A place among God’s people - literally an inheritance or a share, reflecting the amazing offer Jesus makes to us of adoption into God’s own family as his child; it’s only the family that shares in the inheritance.

In a world filled with loneliness, with so many lives driven by a desperation to belong, to fit in, to be a part of something, Jesus offers an everlasting and profound belonging which starts right now: being a part of God’s family.

If you loved someone, if you even cared about them just a tiny little bit, wouldn’t you want this for them, want to share this with them?

Love and care for those around us - even just a little care - should be motive enough for us to desperately want them to share this hope.

So do you love, do you care?

There’s another motive.

And if you wouldn’t call yourself a Christian here today, does this help explain why we would like to try and share this hope with you?

A mission: to open eyes; powerful motives: obedience; love.

But it’s still mission:impossible.

So where do we go from here?

Last point from today’s passage - this morning at least: method.

Method

Paul shares our mission, shares our motive.

So what’s his method?

Does he just shrug?

“mission:impossible” so I’m stuck?