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This podcast is a production of Watermark Community Church in Dallas, Texas, USA. Watermark exists to be and make more fully devoted followers of Christ, looking to God's Word as our only authority, conscience and guide.
Do you remember, right when COVID hit, when it was that you first had the thought, "How am I going to get a haircut?" Do you remember that? Everyone had that moment of crisis where you were like, "I don't know what…" Some of you were winning because you just happened to get a haircut recently, and you were like, "Good. I bought myself some time." Others of you had been dragging your feet. Everything shut down, and you were like, "This is a disaster." You found yourself in a hard moment.
I remember, for me, it was a moment where I was like, "What do I do about this? I need a haircut." So, I started watching YouTube videos online, like many of you did, and I decided, "I think I can cut my own hair." So, I bought some clippers, I bought some scissors, and I first tried my skills out on my kids. I cut all three of my boys' hair. I was like, "That turned out all right," so then I cut my own hair. We called the family barbershop _Tim's Trims_. That's what it was. If you got your hair cut at my house… I ended up cutting both of my parents' hair as well. They came to Tim's Trims, and I did what I could.
But here's what happened. I was so proud of myself for cutting my own hair that when I looked at myself in the mirror… You know when you're so proud of something and surprised it doesn't look awful that you begin to think it looks good? Do you know what I'm talking about? It's like you don't see clearly. You're so amazed you didn't ruin your hair that you're like, "I think it actually looks kind of good." To the point where I was like, "You know what? I'm always going to cut my kids' hair. I'm always going to cut _my_ hair, because what I did was amazing."
What's interesting is I found pride in it. I started telling people, "I cut my own hair," and they never looked at me and were like, "Dude, that looks good." I would look for it. I would fish for it. I wanted the affirmation, like, "You, TA, Tim's Trims…you are crushing it." No one was like, "Really? That looks so good." I bought the lie that because it didn't look awful it looked good, which it didn't. Then, finally… Like, it would take two hours to cut my hair, and I was like, "I don't have two hours to give."
So, I went and got a real haircut for the first time after a year. I cut my own hair for a year. Then I went and got a haircut, and I looked in the mirror. I was like, "Now _that's_ a haircut." It was in that moment I realized there is a difference between not looking awful and looking good. Those are two different things. It's like I began to see clearly again, and I realized I had actually been settling. I had gotten to a place where I was like, "I think this looks amazing. I think this is my new norm." In reality, what was happening was I was just settling for a lesser ideal.
I tell you that just to say the message today is a "Look in the mirror" message. This is a message where we are going to look in the mirror as a church and ask the question…_Are we settling as a church?_ Have we gotten to a point where some reality has become a new normal for us and, because we don't look awful as a church, we've begun to conclude we are the most beautiful version of Christ's church? This is a sermon where we're just going to evaluate…_Is Christ's church being expressed through the people of Watermark?_ Is it the church God has called us to be?
Let me say it this way: Does what matters to Jesus matter to us or does there need to be a realignment? Have we been settling? So, I want to invite you to turn with me to Acts, chapter 10. For a year, I settled for mediocrity, and my hope and prayer is we won't do the same as a church. Today, we're looking at a story that covers 66 verses. Some of you are like, "We're going to be here for forever." Yes, we are. (No, we're not. I'm just joking.)
The story covers 66 verses, and in it you see a guy named Cornelius has a vision and Peter has a vision. Cornelius' vision is retold four times. Peter's vision is told twice. People repeat what they want emphasized. The fact that this is 66 verses makes it the longest single narrative in the book of Acts. All of those things are pointing to the fact that this story and this circumstance is of utmost importance to the author Luke. That's why he's emphasizing it. And if it's of utmost importance to Luke, that means it's of utmost importance to God.
What that means is through this story, God is communicating to his people what matters to him. So, we need to ask the question…_Does what matters to Jesus matter to us or have we begun to settle as a church?_ That's what we're evaluating together. Now, here's the way this message is going to flow for the people who are notetakers. It's 66 verses. We're not going to read all of them, but we're going to read several of them.
What we're going to do is we're going to observe the story just to understand what's happening, and then we'll come back around after we've observed the story and draw conclusions to evaluate "Are we settling or are we synced up with God?" So, turn with me. We're looking at Acts, chapter 10. We're starting in verse 1.
For those who like to geek out on in-depth Bible study, I'll tell you that for this message, John Stott's and John Polhill's commentaries have been so incredibly beneficial for me. We're going to observe four movements in this story. The first movement is simply _Cornelius' vision_. It starts in verse 1 of chapter 10. Here's what it says.
**"At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. About the ninth hour of the day he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, 'Cornelius.' And he stared at him in terror and said, 'What is it, Lord?'**
**And he said to him, 'Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter. He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.' When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him, and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa."**
So, let's make sure we're all on the same page. The story starts with a Gentile man named Cornelius getting a vision from God which involves him sending Gentile men to a Jewish man, Peter. The reason I highlight Gentile and Jew is because it's important to understand how devout Jews viewed Gentiles. Some devout Jews viewed Gentiles as dogs.
Devout Jews wanted no interaction with Gentiles because they believed interaction with Gentiles could make them unclean. So, Jews wouldn't enter a Gentile's home. They would never sit down at a table to share a meal with them. If you think about it, sharing a meal with someone is one of the greatest forms of showing fellowship or acceptance. What we find out is Jews did not have that type of interaction with Gentiles. That's essential to the story. Now, the next movement is _Peter's vision_. Here's what it says, starting in verse 9:
**"The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. And he became hungry and wanted something to eat, but while they were preparing it, he fell into a trance and saw the heavens opened and something like a great sheet descending, being let down by its four corners upon the earth. In it were all kinds of animals and reptiles and birds of the air.**
**And there came a voice to him: 'Rise, Peter; kill and eat.' But Peter said, 'By no means, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean.' And the voice came to him again a second time, 'What God has made clean, do not call common.' This happened three times, and the thing was taken up at once to heaven."**
This is interesting. The first vision is to the Gentile man. Now, completely separately, the Jewish man, Peter, has his own vision where God shows up to him, and what he sees is a sheet. It mentions the four corners of the sheet. The reason that's important is in the book of Revelation, _four corners_ refer to the ends of the earth.
So, this vision has worldwide implications for Peter. The sheet contains representatives of all of the animals of the earth. It symbolizes the entire animal world, including clean as well as unclean animals, and the voice commands Peter to eat even the animals that would be considered unclean, which would be strictly against Jewish law.
What is God doing with Peter? God is revealing to Peter what Jesus had revealed during his earthly ministry. It isn't what is external that actually makes someone clean or unclean; it's the state of a person's heart. God is beginning to show Peter what matters to him, and what matters to God is that he is purifying the hearts of people from every tribe, tongue, people group, and nation. Verse 17:
**"Now while Peter was inwardly perplexed as to what the vision that he had seen might mean, behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood at the gate and called out to ask whether Simon who was called Peter was lodging there. And while Peter was pondering the vision, the Spirit said to him, 'Behold, three men are looking for you. Rise and go down and accompany them without hesitation, for I have sent them.'"**
So, I just want you to observe. How amazing is that? At the exact same time Peter is contemplating his vision, these Gentile men show up wanting him to come with them. Look at what verse 23 says: **"So he invited them in to be his guests."** Isn't that interesting? Remember, Jews don't share a home with Gentiles. They don't share meals. And what does Peter do? He invites them to actually stay the night with him, and then he goes with them. Peter is beginning to understand what matters to Jesus.
Now, remember, Peter is in Joppa. He's going to leave Joppa to then go to Cornelius' house. So, I just want you to think. This is for the Bible nerds in the room. What happened in Joppa in the Old Testament? Joppa is the place where Jonah jumped on a ship and sailed away to avoid fulfilling God's will. Here we have Peter doing the opposite. Peter is in Joppa. He is now leaving to obey God's will fully.
This leads us to the third movement, which is _Gentile conversion_. Remember, we're just observing the story right now. Verse 34: **"So Peter opened his mouth and said: 'Truly I understand that God shows no partiality, but in every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable to him.'"** This is so important.
Peter is understanding that God is not just the God of Israel. God is not just the God of the Jews. God is the God of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. Now Peter is beginning to fully understand that all the way back in Genesis, chapter 12, God had told Abraham, "Through you, all the families of the earth shall be blessed." Peter is like, "_This_ is what you meant." In this next section, I want you to notice how Peter unpacks the gospel for him. Verse 36:
**"As for the word that he sent to Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of all), you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him."**
So, when Peter unpacks the gospel, he actually starts with the perfect life of Jesus. He doesn't jump straight to his death; he starts with his perfect life. That's important, because Jesus lived the perfect life that we could not live. Verse 39: **"And we are witnesses of all that he did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree…"** Not only does he unpack his life; he unpacks Jesus' death. Then he moves on to the resurrection.
Verse 40: **"…but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead."** Now watch the implications. He says, **"And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."** Verse 44:
**"While Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word. And the believers from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out even on the Gentiles. For they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. Then Peter declared, 'Can anyone withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?' And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for some days."**
Scholars refer to this moment as the _Gentile Pentecost_ because it looks just like Acts 2. What happens in Acts 2? Peter is giving a message. The Holy Spirit descends. The Holy Spirit comes. People are speaking in tongues. Peter gives a sermon. People trust Christ. That's what happened with the Jews. We said Pentecost is an unrepeatable event. Well, it kind of _is_ repeated. It's repeated right here to the Gentiles. This is God's way of saying, "Look. I'm not just for the Jews; I am for people from every tribe, tongue, and nation."
So, what happened with the Jews in Acts 2 now happens with the Gentiles. The Holy Spirit has come. They've received him in the exact same way. Jews believed Christianity was still a movement within Judaism, that in order to become a Christian you would have to go through the process of converting to Judaism, which would require the males to be circumcised and for them to observe all of the Jewish food laws. This is God's way of saying, "No. To be a Christian is to receive Christ. You receive the Holy Spirit, and you are saved by grace through faith solely in the person of Jesus Christ."
Now we get to the last movement of the story, which is _Jewish celebration_. This is where Peter and the Jews realize they had been settling, that what mattered to Jesus hadn't yet mattered to them. Watch this. Chapter 11, verse 1: **"Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him, saying, 'You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.'"**
Do you see it? They're like, "No, no, no. Christianity is just for the Jews. It's just for us." God is about to blow them up in the kindest way, saying, "Look. You're settling. You have believed that my movement is just _here_, and my movement is for the world." Verse 15. From verse 4 to verse 14, Peter is just retelling the story of what happened. We pick it up in verse 15. Peter says:
**"'As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them just as on us at the beginning. And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, "John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit." If then God gave the same gift to them as he gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I that I could stand in God's way?' When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, 'Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.'"**
This is one of the most important passages in the book of Acts, because in this story, the kingdom is unlocked for the Gentiles, which sets the rest of the book up for the gospel, which started in Jerusalem and spread to Judea and Samaria, to now go to the ends of the earth. So, that's the story, the longest narrative in Acts, emphasizing just how important it is.
This is where we need to have a "Look in the mirror" moment where we evaluate…_Does what matters to Jesus matter to us or are we settling as a church?_ Are we the most beautiful version of Christ's church as possible or have we settled for some mediocre existence where we're looking in the mirror, like I did with my hair, and thinking, "Well, we don't look awful. That must mean we look good"? Is there more beauty to be had? Let me draw multiple conclusions from this story that will help us evaluate if we're settling.
1\. _God wants to use us in the spread of the gospel_. Let's just be clear on that. Every point I say, I'm going to state it plainly and simply, and then I'll unpack it. _God wants to use us in the spread of the gospel_. Here's why I highlight that. Did you notice that Cornelius was already seeking God? God was stirring in his heart, and an angel of God appeared to him. When the angel of God appeared to him, he was shook. He was terrified.
So, God has his attention. An angel is talking to him. Yet, the only thing the angel of God gets to do is give Cornelius directions. The angel, right then and there, could have shared the gospel with him. Cornelius could have trusted Christ in this amazing moment where he is shocked that an angel is appearing to him, but all the angel gets to do is give directions, because it's God's intention for Cornelius to hear the gospel through the mouth of Peter, which is a reminder that God's plan is to save the world through his people.
God could get his message out however he wants. He could split the sky today. He could write it in the clouds: "I'm real. Trust me." He could do it however he wants, and he has chosen to get his message out through you and me. It's not a question of _if_ God wants to use you; it's a question of…_Do you want to be used by him?_ That's the real question. Do you actually want to be used by him?
Let's just look in the mirror for a moment. Here's what a study that came out not too long ago found. Don't miss this. About 80 percent of non-churchgoers would say yes if invited to church, but only 60 percent of Christians have invited someone to church in the past six months. Isn't that interesting? So think of that.
We're talking in the last six months. I would imagine that statistic goes down even more when you're talking about just in the past month. In the past six months, only 60 percent of us. That means 40 percent of us have not invited someone to join us here on a Sunday morning in six months. I don't say that to shame you; I say that to say, "Hey, beautiful news: 80 percent of people would say yes. You have an amazing shot of someone saying yes."
Imagine if everyone who comes to Watermark today were to invite one person to church. Then next Sunday, we would have somewhere between 6,000 and 7,000 more people worshiping with us, hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ. But this isn't just about getting people to come to church. I hope we're always giving people an invite. Watermark is not just a holy huddle for Christians to kind of group up and pat each other on the back. We are a mission. We are a hospital for the sick to come and find healing. Please invite people to come. They will most likely say yes.
But even more than that, imagine if you shared Jesus with just one person this week. If every person here shared Jesus with one person this week, that means somewhere between 8,000 and 10,000 people would hear the gospel this week. If everyone shared the gospel twice this week, that means 16,000 to 20,000 people in our city would know that Jesus Christ loves them and wants them. The question isn't if God want to use you; the question is…_Do you want to be used?_ Because he wants to use you.
We've talked about this multiple times, but here's my encouragement to you. This is my encouragement to all of us, including myself. Let's just stop right now. I want to give every Christian in the room an opportunity. I'm going to give you 10 seconds. Would you just ask God… Say, "God, I believe you want to use me this week. Would you use me in the life of an unbeliever?" Just pray that really quickly for yourself. Say, "God, use me this week."
Then, here's what I want you to do if there's any fear: preach the gospel to yourself. Remember what 2 Timothy 1:7 tells us. **"…for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control."** The answer isn't to suck it up; the answer is to preach Christ to yourself. So, take your fear to God just for a moment. Say, "Lord Jesus, you haven't given me a spirit of fear; you've given me a spirit of power."
Lord, would you use us for your glory this week? In Jesus' name, amen.
Let me encourage you with a few things that might help you have a little bit more success this week. Tomorrow… Mondays are great days to talk to people about Jesus, because everyone is asking the question, "What did you do this weekend?" I was talking with my friend Ben Stuart this week, and we were talking about this. What he tells his people is "Don't stop at Saturday." I want to pass that message on to you. If someone asks you, "What did you do this weekend?" don't stop at Saturday. Sunday is part of the weekend too.
If you came to church (and you _did_ because you're hearing this), you should tell someone, "You know, my family goes to church every Sunday. Is that something that's important to you? Do you go to church?" If you go to lunch today and you process the message, if someone asks you what you did this weekend… "Well, here's what we did on Saturday, and Sunday morning we got up and went to church. We went to lunch afterward, and we just processed what Jesus is doing in our lives. Is faith something that's important to you?" There you are. You're in the conversation.
"Is faith something that's important to you?"
"Well, you know what? Sort of, but I don't know."
"Hey, look. Just so you know, for me, there was a time in my life…"
There's your 15-second testimony. You're in the conversation. Don't stop at Saturday tomorrow. Then, let me encourage you to be careful with "probablys." "They're probably too busy. They probably are going to be annoyed. They probably don't want to hear this. They probably hate Jesus. They probably… They probably…" I wonder if God is like, "How do you know?"
One of the things I love about this story is God is just showing off he is sovereign in salvation. At the exact same time that Peter is getting a vision, Gentile people are showing up, knocking on the door. Cornelius has a vision. Peter has a vision. People come. It's like God is like, "Okay. And now you. Cue the Gentile men there. Okay, Peter. Cue the vision." He's orchestrating all of it. He's pulling levers constantly.
You go back a chapter to Saul's conversion. God is just like, "Lever. Lever. Lever." You go back to chapter 8. Philip gets sent and finds the Ethiopian eunuch. The eunuch trusts Christ. That's God just like, "Lever. Lever. Lever. Okay, let's get Philip out of there. We'll send him someplace else." God is sovereign in salvation. You have no clue what levers he's pulling.
I mean, this week, I heard a story about a young man who grew up in a Muslim community in the Philippines. His dad was an imam. He had a dream that he was falling in an abyss, and then a man dressed in white caught him by the arm, suspending him above the abyss. Looking up, the young man said, "Don't let me go."
He woke up sweating, and he went and found a friend who he knew was a Christian. In talking with that Christian, he realized that man dressed in white was Jesus Christ. This guy gave his life to Jesus. His father ended up coming to Christ before he died. Why? Lever. Lever. God is constantly spinning dials, pulling levers we can't even see. And it's not just happening in the Philippines; it's happening right here in Dallas.
Don't rule anyone out. You don't know if the people with the toughest exteriors were up all night and couldn't sleep because of how torn up their souls are. You just don't know. A mentor of mine used to say, "The bigger the tree, the harder the fall." His point was the people who seem most averse to Christ fall hard. That's what we saw with Paul. The greatest persecutor of the faith became the greatest proclaimer of Christ.
But it's important to remember this. Did you see what both Peter and Cornelius were doing when they had their vision? They both were praying. Why? Because prayer is essential to the mission. Prayer is the pathway to greater intimacy with God, and prayer is the pathway to greater encounters with God's power. E.M. Bounds essentially says, "No man can do a true spiritual work without prayer."
Just think about that. _No_ man. I don't care how high-capacity you are. I don't care how big of a business you've built. If you do it in your own strength, it is nothing. Jesus says in John 15, "Apart from me you can do nothing." David Platt says it something like this: "Prayer is the divine strategy by which God gives the church a starring role in the drama of redemption." Hit your knees this week and pray.
2\. _It is the gospel that transforms_. Here's what I mean. Remember what we find out about Cornelius at the beginning. It says he was **"…a devout man who feared God with all his household, gave alms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God."** So, let's put all that together.
Cornelius was a guy who feared God. So, he believed in God, he respected God, he wanted to please God, he gave generously, and he prayed, yet he wasn't saved. When was he saved? After he responded in faith to the message of Jesus Christ's perfect life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection, and all of that was due to the illuminating and regenerating work of the Holy Spirit.
Here is why I'm bringing this up. I do want to have a clarifying conversation with a few people in this room. Maybe your life looks a lot like Cornelius' life, where you believe in God, you respect God, you give generously, and you pray a lot, yet you're not saved. The question is not if you are a _good_ person; the question is if you are a _saved_ person. Cornelius was saved, his eternity in heaven with God was secured, his sins were completely forgiven, and he was made new by God when he received Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.
If you've never trusted in Christ and thrown your life at the feet of Jesus, asking him to save you, then let today be that day. If you're a Christian…don't miss this…it's still the gospel that transforms. So, if you're a Christian, this is where I need you locked in. Please don't miss what I'm telling you, because here is our tendency. Our tendency is to be saved by grace, and then we slide into moralism. What's moralism? Don't miss it. Here's my definition of _moralism_: trying to become like Jesus and please God in your own strength.
Let me get really practical for you on what moralism looks like. For the parents in the room, we teach our kids moralism all the time. Instead of biblical Christianity, we teach them moralism. We teach our kids things like, "The Bible says to obey your father and mother. You need to obey all the way right away." That's actually moralism. That's not biblical Christianity; that's moralism.
We tell our kids, "Let no unwholesome word come out of your mouth. In this house, we don't use that kind of language." "Is the way you're treating your siblings how Jesus would treat them?" "You're being selfish. God wants you to be selfless." "Just be confident. Don't worry about what others think. Just worry about what God thinks." All of that is us teaching our kids to try to become like Jesus and please God in their own strength. "You need to do _this_. You should do _this_. Try harder. Jump higher. Run faster."
We do this in our Community Groups. "Don't do anything stupid when you're traveling this week." "God calls you and your girlfriend to purity and holiness. Be pure." "It sounds like you need to work on selflessly serving your spouse more." "Let's all try to share our faith at least once this week." It's all moralism. It is trying to please God and become like Jesus in your own strength.
There's a reason I consistently point back to doing things by the power of the Spirit. There's a reason why, when I was encouraging us to go out and share our faith, I told you to preach the gospel to yourself, that God has not given you a spirit of fear but of power, because it's not in your own strength that you need to go out and share your faith; it is solely by the empowerment of God.
So, let's be clear. What it looks like to preach the gospel to yourself, whatever is going on in your life, is to figure out how the perfect life, sacrificial death, victorious resurrection, triumphant ascension, and sending of the Holy Spirit impact your day-to-day life. How does all of that speak to your marriage issues or your battle with addiction or fear of man or people-pleasing or unforgiveness?
Think about it this way. Jesus' life is the life that is pleasing to God, Jesus' death is the payment for our inability to be like Jesus and please God, Jesus' resurrection is what gives us a new freedom and capacity to be like Jesus and please God, and Jesus' ascension and sending of the Spirit is what gives us the actual ability to be like Jesus and please God.
So, with my kids, I want them to know, "God has never asked you to do anything in your own strength. He has never asked you to do anything he won't give you the power to do." So, instead of, "Hey, go out; just be confident," it's, "Hey, ask Jesus to give you strength, because God hasn't given you a spirit of fear but of power. Remember who you are. You're a child of God. Remember, Jesus was rejected, so _you_ can be rejected. You don't have to be accepted by everyone, because you've already been accepted by God." That is preaching the gospel. It is the gospel that transforms.
3\. _The gospel confronts our prejudices_. Think about it. When the Jews hear that Peter went to the Gentiles, they criticize him. Why? Because ethnic lines had been drawn. They had certain prejudices that were informing their responses. They didn't share God's heart yet. When Peter gets that vision, God has to basically ask him three times to eat. Peter says no to God three different times.
So, I just want to ask you some questions. Who would Jesus have to tell you three times to go to lunch with? Think about that. Who would he have to be like, "Please go to lunch with him"? "No, I don't want to do that. I don't like him. I have nothing in common with him. I can't stand him." Who would he have to ask you three times because there are three noes?
Think about this. Who doesn't belong here at Watermark? Who could you see in the Town Center and think, "What are _they_ doing here?" Is there anyone who you could see walk through those hallways and think, "What are _they_ doing here?" What we have to realize is everyone has their _us's_ and _thems_. Who are your _us's_, and who are your _thems_?
And I'm not talking playfully, like we've got Aggies and Longhorns. We've got public school and you private schoolers. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about real _us's_ and real _thems_. Who are the people you can't stand, the people you stay away from, the people you look down upon and would struggle to even have a cordial conversation with? Is it those from a different political party? Is it those who hold vastly different beliefs than you? I have to at least ask… Is it people of a different race or ethnicity?
Then think about _this_: Who or what is telling you they're unclean? Is it news outlets that consistently vilify someone else? Is it your favorite social media influencers who consistently cultivate in your heart and mind, "They are a villain"? Then answer _this_ question: What do you want to happen to your _thems_? What you need to know is God wants to save them. So, do you pray for your _thems_? Instead of spending your energy villainizing people, spend your energy praying for them and evangelizing them.
I think about the story of Saint Patrick. You think about Saint Patrick's Day. I don't know how it turned into just the celebration of wearing green and getting drunk. Saint Patrick's Day is actually the remembrance of Saint Patrick taking Christianity to Ireland. I love Saint Patrick's story. This story doesn't get told enough.
Saint Patrick wasn't born in Ireland; he was born in Britain. Around the age of 16, he was actually captured by some Irish raiders, and he was stuck in slavery for about six years under harsh conditions. Then Saint Patrick escaped, and he made his way back to Britain where he was finally free. Yet, on returning home, he had a dream or a vision in which a man came from Ireland carrying letters. One of the letters he read in his vision was called the _Voice of the Irish_.
As he read this letter in his vision, he heard the people of Ireland calling to him, saying, "We beg you, holy youth, to come and walk among us once more." So, do you know what Saint Patrick did? He trained to be a priest, and he went back to Ireland as a missionary. He took Christianity to those who had held him captive in slavery. Why? Because his heart was synced up with God's heart. Is _yours_? Is _mine_? The gospel confronts our prejudices. The gospel begs us to want to see our _thems_ become _us's_.
4\. _God's heart is a global heart_. The Lord says, "Rise, kill, and eat." Peter says, "No." The Jews criticize Peter, and then the story ends with them sharing and celebrating God's global heart. We've talked about this a lot, but I just want to ask you…_Where are you at?_ Do you share God's global heart or are you still in a place where you're like, "You know what? I just want to focus on reaching people _here_, and someone else will focus on reaching them out _there_. I don't feel called to reach people _there_"?
Well, then read your Bible. If you want to be called to reach people _there_, just read your Bible. That's all the calling you need. You don't need to wait for a special feeling. All you need to do is read, "Go and make disciples of all nations." There's your call. Are you obedient or disobedient to the call upon your life to share God's global heart and to see the gospel go to the ends of the earth?
There are about 4,700 people groups in the world that are considered frontier people groups. Meaning, their population is 0.1 percent Christian or less. Here's what that means. Let me just spell it out for you. About two billion people in the world have little to no exposure to Christianity. That means two billion people don't have a church to visit. There _is_ no church. There is no Christian church they could walk into to explore. They've literally never seen a Bible. They've literally never even heard the name of Jesus. That's the reality for two billion people in the world. The gospel must go out.
You have to remember we were once the unreached people group right here in Dallas, Texas. The gospel didn't start here. Heaven is not full of a bunch of white people from Dallas. The gospel came _to_ us. Why? Because of Acts 10 and 11. It's because the gospel wasn't just for the Jews; it was for the Gentiles, and people have faithfully left their homes to come and bring the gospel to where we are. We were once the unreached.
So, do you share God's global heart? If not, maybe you need to repent of indifference, maybe you need to educate yourself, or maybe you and your Community Group need to ask this week, "How are we going to pray? How are we going to give? How are we going to go?" This is just a "Look in the mirror" message. We don't want to settle. We want to be the most beautiful expression of Christ's church as possible. Let's pray together.
Lord, would you have your way in our hearts? Lord, if there's anyone here today who doesn't know you, I pray that even right now they would sense you knocking on the door of their hearts, so kindly inviting them to come. For the Christians in the room, Lord, would you help us to preach the gospel to ourselves? Would you free us from moralism, trying to please you in our own strength? Thank you that you've given us your Spirit. I pray that we would walk in power this week.
Would you use us? I pray we would see people come to Christ this very week, that light bulbs would go in the display, that more baptisms would happen this week because people trust Christ. Lord, would you use us to send the gospel to the nations? Would you identify any prejudices in our hearts? We want to be your church. We love you. In Jesus' name, amen.