June 13, 2010 Sermon Notes, The Church Without Walls, Houston: “Kicked by an Angel”
Guest preacher: Pastor Joel Gregory
Scripture: Acts 12:1
“Kicked by an Angel”
- In the midst of impossible circumstances, God may intervene suddenly to get you out.
- Herod came from a family of evil. Evil lasts until good pushes it back.
- wherever power exists where there is evil, and that was Herod.
- Folks who have a lust for power don’t give it up easily.
- Herod ruled Rome and the Jews in a balance. He tried to curry favor by killing James, the brother of John. This simple line doesn’t make plain how major the killing of James was.
- What is the real face of evil? When it sees goodness, it hates the good.
- Jesus went about doing good and they killed them.
- The apostles went about healing, and they sought to kill them.
- Flee from evil and cling to what is Godly.
- They were so afraid of the Jesus Movement and they put 16 soldiers on Peter.
- Evil did what evil could do and God does what God can do.
- There are some Christians living today who are experiencing a life like that in the day of Acts. There are multiple stories this week of Christians being persecuted and killed worldwide.
- But the church flourishes when it is facing adversity.
- The New Testament says whem they were persecuted they rejoiced because they felt they were worthy.
- At the time churches didn’t have buildings; they were in homes for 300 years.
- The faithful prayed to God fervently. Have you ever prayed with a sense or urgency?
- We don’t pray like New Testament people because we don’t live under the conditions of those in the New Testament. They were under so much intense pressure that it elicited that kind of prayer from them. They NEEDED God to intervene immediately.
- When we use spiritual weapons, spiritual things happen.
- Peter wasn’t freaking out and pacing in prison. He was in a peaceful sleep. Before Jesus was sleep and Peter was freaking out on the sea. Now Peter was sleep because he knows Jesus is awake.
- When you’re kicked by an angel you can only see what God can do.
- God can show up suddenly and is never in a hurry. He then talks to Peter like he was a baby. (V8)
- Jesus was the same way. He was never in a hurry because God was God.
- God also showed up at the very last minute. (V6)
- God tends to show in the last watch of the night. He shows up at the last moment so every one knows that it was no one else but God could do it.
