Unashamed with the Robertson Family - Ep 876 | Jase Puffs Up with Missy’s Praise of His Manliness & Bravery During a Storm

Episode Date: April 25, 2024

Jase performs a dangerous task when his house is nearly flooded, and Missy was so impressed she couldn’t help but brag about him. Phil examines the changes in the church during the first century, and Zach compares many of those themes to what our modern church is going through. Al uncovers a flattering article about the Robertson family and how their love for Jesus is sorely needed at this moment in time. And the guys use a biblical example to explain why the “us versus them” mindset can always come back to haunt you. In this episode: Acts 13; Ezekiel 18, verse 32; 2 Peter 3, verse 9; Hebrews 8, verse 8; Hebrews 12, verse 22; Isaiah 55, verse 5; Isaiah 60, verse 3; Jeremiah 16, verses 19-21  -- Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I am unashamed. What about you? Welcome back to Unashame. We're in the middle of April showers. I was wondering if you were going to bring that. Man, I mean, of course, you know, the last time we were here in the last podcast, then the power goes out. Actually, I guess it was two podcasts ago. And so we had to move to town. Was that the weather that caused the power? Well, we were having bad weather, but we're not sure because it wasn't widespread.

It was just right in this area. But, you know, we're way out here. There's a lot of trees between us. When you go almost a year in drier conditions than normal, like what most people get to participate in. Yeah. It gave us a delusion of how things used to be in Louisiana. It's back, baby. We are back.

I have seen rains, but this has been. Yesterday, I mean, it was sideways. It was raining so hard and so fast. We came five minutes and a quarter of an inch from having our house flooded because all my drains. I have quite the complicated system at my house. I had just cleaned them because I knew it was fixed to rain. They were calling for heavy rain. But the pollen, these little things that produce the pollen, I'm not a, what is that, a hoarder, horticulturist.

something like that but i've i've that that that pollen you know it makes you sneeze it messes with your head but then the little pods once they all fall and come washing together they become dams and so uh it it clogged all the drains around my area and so your house is surrounded by pine big bull pine trees well my wife you all should have elected that guy that ran for mayor about 10 years ago in Monroe. Do you remember his campaign slogan? It was, clean out the drains. That was his big deal.

You all don't remember that? No, I heard a guy one time say, drain the swamp. Yeah. Pretty good line. Clean out the drains. So I cleaned them out, and then Missy, when she pulled in,

she said, I closed the garage door because our house is fixed in a flood. So I looked out in the garage and it was about a foot deep. just right up to so i thought i just cleaned the drains how is this possible so i went out in the pouring now rain but the water had washed new ones into new ones it was so much and then the pressure had formed yeah so i when i finally got a crease it was an explosion of the water leaving it was it was pretty incredible so i saved the house you know missy was bragging on me you know

I got a man who goes out lightning. There he was. A tree fell in our backyard, you know, risking life and limb. Life and limb. It was the modern day movies, Zach. It's good. Good stuff.

Save it out of down. Write it down. We'll turn it into something. I just told you with it. That's all I get. That's all I get is just the, yeah, I need a, I need a treatment or something. You have to build on that, Zach. You're a writer.

y'all were asking about that those three chapters oh phil he came ready i love i just when i'm studying and all that i mean you know and sharing with people not i don't deal in this particular area too much but yeah i don't either but the but the bottom line on it is now he's talking about acts 13 14 and 15 that's right which is where we are in the last the last statement or two but the the word of the Lord when the one when oh what's the name for what was his name they got herod when he went down and maggots are on him and in him or or or he lost he lost out on what was going on it doesn't specifically say how that kind of went down i think this was i'm entertaining the idea that it was he was struck down and then some he got some condition and then worms got

involved and it was a pleasure. Up until now it's a rising and a falling and a rising and a falling and Cyprus about Herod's church at Antioch is just coming out of that. Barnumas, just different ones. It's just about a group of individuals who were outnumbered unbelievably so. And in my mind, just looking at it, big people. picture, it just shows ups and downs of preaching the gospel and the response that you get. Most of the time in America, 2,000 years later, or you go back and look at that,

it's the same naysayers, the same trouble. They were just a little more adept just to kill you 2,000 years ago. But now they're just bad Matthew. Right. So really, we're on the, I don't know what end we're on, but all I can say is we're winning. Yeah. We're winning.

Well, we win because God won. But to your point, I would say the two underlying things. All these people are at each other's throats, and they'll kill you on the spot. I mean, escaping death, you know, that's part of it. You know. But Phil, think about why. Think about why. Because we got marchers with boards on top of it, cardboard.

You know, get out of town, you know, there's no God, no Jesus, no anything. There's usually a few four-letter words sprinkled in between those messages. Yeah. It just shows you that the culture has deviated some, but the naysayers are still there in this day. And this group you're talking about, well, they're searching for something to believe in. And so what they come up with are very temporary things, world events of war in Israel, this, that, and the other. But they go in like it's everything, right? Because they don't have anything.

I mean, I think it really shows more than anything how valuable your belief system is and something bigger than yourself. Because that's what these people are clamoring for. I mean, I think it's the prime time for the gospel and exactly what we see here in the first century because of that. It seems to be. I mean, what you're described, when you say so, is that? I'm pretty bullish on it. I mean, I think it's, I don't look at things. I think it's a mistake for kingdom people to look at what's going on in the world and think of it as those people.

Because I actually am seeing that people are the same people that would be hostile to Christ are now, I mean, at least in what we're seeing in our local community is that's the very people that are coming to Christ. Us too. Because they've gotten to the end of the- It's the same thing. Yeah, it's not, it's just powerful. I mean, I haven't seen quite like this pronounced in my lifetime. I mean, it's typically, I would say, if you were to like, most of my ministry up until probably the last five, six years has been people who are at least churched. Now, what we're seeing is people who have been on the far extreme.

of new age, secular, you know, whatever the label is, they've gotten to the end of that because it is religious in nature. And they're like, whoa, this is not delivering what it promised to deliver. Who's the old guy that changed a lot of the scientists, mainly upper echelon universities, had these people running around saying this and that. What was the old guy's name, 1800 late? He come up with the... He's talking about Darwin, Darwin?

Darwin. Charles Darwin. Darwin. But Darwin now, they've shelved him. They pretty well said, no, he's got that wrong. I mean, it's proven now. They look at it. But wasn't it even Darwin who said that you took faith to believe in science?

Yeah. I mean, even he acknowledged. Oh, yeah. Not the belief in God, but faith. It takes faith to believe in whatever you believe in. I've always looked at it like, what's the harm? What's the harm in it? Believing there's a God.

Even that Jesus was who he said he was. The harm is you got to, that means you change your life. Yeah. Well, yeah. If God is real, you lose your, yeah, you, and I think people think, well, I lose my autonomy. Yeah, we have to recover words like submission, obedience, authority. And these are words that have, in Western culture that has a high influence.

emphasis on radical individualism, you know, we have to recover these biblical words that are actually good. If you read, then God has our best interest at heart in his revelation of life of himself. And so to reject him is to reject life. But I think for whatever reason, we think that, just like Adam and Eve, we think, oh, he's holding out on us. You know, don't eat that, don't eat that one tree. Don't eat the fruit from the one tree. And they're like, yeah, I think God's holding out on us. He wasn't holding out.

He was actually giving them a revelation of life. But it's the same thing today. but to Al's point, I mean, yeah, I think the Holy Spirit is very active and moving, and I'm seeing the kingdom everywhere, and I'm seeing people come into the kingdom. We get a lot of mail that people are saying, basically, we're turning to God. Yeah, I love that. I mean, older people. I mean, last week, I baptized about three or four of them, but some of them, but some of them

in their 80s. I mean, they were, they were, they're not all young. They're older people who say, I finally understand this. And they,

which tells you something, because we've made the point before, Jason's made it. You've made it too, Dad, that, you know, once you get older, you get set in your ways.

A lot of times it's harder to make those sort of life changes. So for, to be open later into life shows you there's a lack of something. I've seen more lately. springing off of this podcast. I've seen more elderly people come to Jesus ever.

Well, you would think, Phil, the closer you get to death, you get some clarity. Well, you know. That's anybody. We've made this simple argument, which non-believers cannot stand. But it's true. If you're right, if there is no God, well, we're just all doomed. I mean, at least looking at it from an argumentative standpoint, we have a shot here. It's something.

It's got a shot at something. Of course, what they miss is the deeper you get into God's word in the Bible, the more you're convinced, oh, well, this is the truth. But, you know, unless you have an open mind and get into the weeds of it, I mean, even what I was going to say a while ago when we were talking about this. argument about cultures and all and whether there's a God. I think one of the biggest arguments of people who don't believe in God is they look at all the things that have been done in the name of God, which has been atrocities. The list is so long, and they confuse that with God himself. And so they say, well, this can't be true, because look at all the bad things people have

done in the name of God, which is, their point, but we're, you know, saying the same thing. Well, that's terrible, but don't get that confused with who God is. Yeah. I mean, it's also, I think it's the same God who, who actually, I think he exposes that to when the church, when the church does things. I mean, I'm looking at, I think we're in kind of weird cultural moment now where kind of the whole celebrity pastor thing is kind of cracking, you know, but I think that's, God is drawing people back into local communities. local church, doing life together, New Testament Christianity, which has always been led by the spirit and not, you know, cult of personality, so to speak. It's been led by the Holy Spirit.

And so I just think there's something really pure happening right now that transcends even a lot of the reason why people may not want to come to faith in Christ. Maybe they do see, you know, brokenness in the church. And I'll be the first tell you, you know, what do people say? You've heard the line, I'm looking for the perfect church. But as soon as you show up, you know, obviously it's not perfect anymore because no church is perfect. Nobody's perfect. There's going to be sin even in God's kingdom. That's a parable of the weeds coming up around it.

And, you know, it's mixed. It is, it is this mixture in the church, at least, of believers. And even people that are not believers. You know, that Acts 13, he goes out. goes out by saying, he said, therefore, my brothers, if you want to know that through Jesus, the forgiveness of sin is proclaimed to you. Through him, everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses. Take care what the prophets have said does not happen to you. Look, you scoffers. I mean, the verse is from way down.

and it's a I've got what Old Testament verse it is he alludes to but as Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue the people invited them to speak further about these things so

it was just to wrestle between getting off them under the law of Moses and proclaiming I'm a Christian following Jesus and he's the king that I mean it's it's right in there

right in their wheel, but they don't see it. It's way easier to believe in Jesus than to keep the law of Moses. That's right. If you're honest. And or to believe in nothing. Let's take her first one. Now, I was trying to find a piece that I read, which was interesting in talking about culture, that Billy Hollowell, who's a Christian, a believer, he's a journalist, and he writes a lot of stuff for the Washington Times.

And he just wrote a piece, or I just came across it on X, which used to be. Twitter and it said something along the title of it was what our culture need is more of the Robertson and it was interesting because he went back and talked a little bit about the show which now has been many years since it was even on the air and but he he talked about what we're all doing now which I thought was really interesting because he made the point that once people are known and have success from a worldly standard most of the time bad things come out of their life. You know, they struggle.

They, you know, they fight with each other. And he made some references and examples of other people that have been on reality television. But he talked about what we're all doing to reach people. And so, I mean, he had a good insight into what's going on. And he even talked about the movie, Dad, who talked about the idea of forgiveness and living, you know, through situation. But it was just really interesting.

And I sent him and I said, man, you get what we're trying to do. But so there are people. that notice that this is a time if you're willing to be bold and share what Jesus has done and share the Bible, you can impact a lot of people, but you just have to be consistent in what you're doing. So I think that's exactly what was on in the first century, but I think the opportunities are here. I see a group of people, a lot of people just shake your head. Faith in Jesus is a lot better road to travel than depend on the law. Yeah.

And the animal sacrifices. It's just, it just, all this is true when you look at it. You said, no, that's not enough. Right. It's prepared them. So for everyone to turn. And I think back to our text, I think when you get to Acts 13, the last time we got into this text, we were, Paul was in Cyprus.

This is the first missionary journey. And I think there's a kind of an arching thought here. Because the first thing that happens is he finds this guy who's, in local government, which at the time, you know, these people would have had a huge influence. So you had a guy that was seeking this pro council in verses 4 through 12. And but immediately there's a, there's the evil one has a blocker there. There's this guy. I remember he's the false, you know, Jewish.

He's a sorcerer. And immediately he starts causing problems. And what's interesting, when you follow through Paul's missionary journeys, you're going to see that everywhere he goes, there's like a pathway to try to get the gospel out, but then there's these people rise up. There's this enemy. And I just see that as that back and forth spiritual warfare

that we still see it today. I mean, every time you have a pathway to good, something's going to try to block your path. Well, and I think... Well, John the Baptist, you know, Jesus, I see, from this man's descendants, looking back in the Old Testament, has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus Christ,

as he promised. Before the coming of Jesus, John preached, John the Baptist, before they killed him, preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel. He got the message out. He laid the groundwork.

John the Baptist did. I mean, a lot of them heard him. Well, that's kind of in the mix in there. Because without that, it'd still be wrestling, but he says, yeah, I'm under a whole different system now. Yeah, but that system did produce people like John the Baptist. And in essence, there was a remnant of Israel that got it. Hebrews 11 has a whole chapter of faith. And I think that's what's hard for us to realize as Americans is that this is a Jewish book.

I think the only writer that wasn't Jewish is actually Luke. And there's, to get that you, Paul seems to list all the people that was with him who helped him in Colossians 4. And he says, among the circumcision group, and he named all those guys, this is Colossians 4, like 10 through 16 maybe. But he didn't mention Luke. So that's why people get the idea. Well, he must not have been.

a Jew, which I think it's a safe assumption. But my point is, you know, we got to remember, especially when you get to 13, 14, and 15, there's a lot of these scriptural references that go back from Israel's history that they're putting all the pieces together. So like when you go to chapter, where's the one about the Gentiles, chapter 13 and verse 47 when paul and barnumas are speaking boldly it's like for this is what the lord

has commanded us i have made you a light for the gentiles well that's a quote from where's that isaiah yeah Isaiah 49 so they all knew that but then when you get to chapter 15 a group of what you would call the hardline jews from the Pharisees they're like okay they can be in jesus but they got to be circumcised. I mean, so it'd be like, well, wait a minute. That would be like us sharing the sharing Jesus. But they knew these scriptures. It was just hard to break that cycle of how normal day-to-day operating procedure of reading the law and the synagogues.

You're going to see all this in the next few chapters. But what I find fascinating is when what you just said about, encountering this opposition, most of the opposition is man-made. So I told you, I listened to McGuigan a lot. He said, it's God against the gods, which is a theme in the Bible, which is true. But when you read Romans 1,

you see this picture of serving created things rather than the creator. And we come up with these gods. Even when you get to, when they thought they were Zeus and Hermes, where's that, chapter 14? That's the next chapter. Yeah, that's when they get to the mystery. Well, if you look that up, guess what, who gods they are? They're mythical gods.

Yeah. They thought, oh, these, Paul and Barnet, they're, this is Zeus and Hermit. Yeah, they've showed up. This is all a made-up fantasy. There's no actual gods. they believe they're there and then they see two guys and they say oh well here they are

because they can do miracles and so just like this guy was sorcery well you say well what was this deal with Herod in chapter 13 well the statement that got him was when he said he refused to give glory to God they viewed him as a God

who the people that heard him they're like they elevated him they were worshipping him as a God but what's what's crazy to me is while all this is going on, I think there's two underlying currents, is that there's one God, which that's what causes all the problems when you say that. But no matter what religion you are, they all agree on that. Yeah.

I mean, even the Islam, they say, there's one God. The Jews are saying, there's one God. But when you say that, it's going to make people mad. But all the rest, people make up their own God. And so then you have this clash. that's one current. The other current is that God wants to dwell with people forever. So that's really the two narratives you're seeing played out. Yeah.

Well, and it's, let's take another break. It's ironic because what Paul does in this situation, and this is, you know, I guess maybe you could say the same thing, maybe back in the Acts 5, the Aninae, Sapphire, a caper. you know, when they just fell dead because of dishonesty and where they were. And it seems like there's a little more to the story there than, I mean, people would say, well, that's what it says. But when you think about, we've all lied in our life. And I'm sure we've done something with money that wasn't God approved.

And we didn't get struck down. I mean, I think there was something that they were doing that was thwarting the kingdom of of heaven. And so, and the reason I bring that up back up is because it was that same thing. There was something, there was something about this early steps of the church where you see these, you know, pretty draconian responses. I mean, like this guy, you know, he's trying to block the way here. So Paul just calls him a child of the devil and an enemy of all that's right. And then it just strikes him blind, which, and then it's a darkness and mist. overtook him and he's stumbling around the Darwa.

Obviously, he thought he was really something, and he found out in about five seconds that he wasn't. Yeah. And, you know, so, I mean, it was just, again, it was one of those weird thing because Paul, you know, he's kind of like that. Paul's a little bit temperamental, you know. I mean, the girls walking along behind him, calling him, saying they're a God, and he just, you know, calls the spirit out of it.

He seems to react a little stronger. Well, that's my point. In this case, it was your getting power. supernatural powers from some place, in this case, sorcery other than God. Herod was getting power from his political position and the people praising him, which is a God. In Acts 5, it's about money, which you think, can money be a God? It is powerful.

Whoever's got the most money. So that's what I'm saying. In each instance, there's another force. mostly made by a man that is taking the place of the living God. And whenever that has happened, there's been something, would you call it, draconian? I wanted to push the cricket butt on that. The crowd. I'm not even sure what that means.

The crowd saw what Paul had done when he, last year he, there was a cripple of, he healed him. The gods have come down to us in human form. Well, here's another one. Now we got the Greek gods, which we'll get into. Did they ever miss the part on that one? What I find fascinating is you see in one verse, Herod dying, a terrible death. And then in chapter 13, one of the leaders at the church was a guy who had been brought up with Herod the Tetard. So just think in that, you would think, well, that guy can't be good because you would.

you go, we went through the Herods and what all they did. Well, here's one who they think was like the foster child of Herod the Tetchar, and he's one of the leaders in the church. Yeah, I think that's a good point. Yeah, because you got, that's why I like to stay away from the us versus them language, because them could become us very quickly. Well, I think that's why that's in here. I do too.

It's not a coincidence. because you're like, ooh, Herod's bad. Oh, except that one guy that came to the Lord. Yeah. You know, well, everybody is a potential disciple of Jesus. I was going to read this earlier, and I feel like now I've validated this by having this conversation. But I was in our next chapter, I was looking up of some of the Old Testament passages that link the fulfillment of the Jesus.

Jewish nation in Jesus because they were using those references. And of course, when you do that, you get into some of these Old Testament stories and writings that are difficult. And but to my point about the world confusing what godly people do that's not good, Just think how many wars that have happened in the name of Christ. Yeah. People killing other people. I read Ezekiel 18, and there's this conversation going on.

I'm not going to read the whole thing. I mean, one day when you have a cup of coffee brewed and you want to read Ezekiel, but my grandpa spent a lot of time in Ezekiel. He loved Ezekiel. And it's some of what we're talking about. and this is going to come up also in Habakkuk. It is quoted, I think, in the next chapter of Acts, and we're going to get into that.

But it's basically Ezekiel wrapping his head around why people die. The heading of Ezekiel 18 is the soul who sins will die. And he's wrestling with that and all the violence that happens. Well, what about the innocent who get killed? And, you know, he's crying out to God. But I'm only bringing all this up to read the very last. verse and it's something that I was kind of shocked by when I read it, even though I knew it was true. But it's my point about confusing the mistakes of God's people versus who God is.

Because he gets down to the last verse in Ezekiel 1832 and says, For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the sovereign Lord. Repent and live. So I get it. We preach repentance. and you need to change your life and bad things happening. Why did God create a world where all this is going on? And then you just read a verse like that and says,

God takes no pleasure in anyone dying. I just thought it was a profound statement, you know? He wants people to live. I'm glad he does. He's for you, not against you. And you say, well, that's echoed in the New Testament. Second Peter three nine. Second Peter, he's the Lord is not.

slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. I think this speaks to the heart of God, that God wants all people to repent. He wants people to come to him. It's not, God doesn't want you to reject him. That's not what he wants. That's not what he wants. That's my point. If you're sitting there angry at God about things that have happened in your life, are terrible. Look, there's a lot of pain. There's a lot of curious things that happen to the innocent that really angers us and makes us mad. There's been people in the name of Jesus do the most horrific things imaginable. But if you're angry and you read something like that, you should say,

look, am I angry at what God's people have done? Or could it be that I've misunderstood God, that it really wasn't God all along, that his character is amazing. And people have screwed that up. And that's what I should be angry about. But in the meantime, don't miss God because his character comes out in the word of God despite the most terrible things imaginable that have happened. Well, and that's why, I mean, I'm pro-life because God is pro-life. because he's about living.

He's not about dying. He's about the best life we can possibly have, and that's in him. That's why he says repentance is part of that. Let's take another break. I think that's where you're hearing a lot of debate about that now in our country because all of a sudden abortion is back a central issue, you know, because one side thinks they can win with this issue. But it's not a political issue.

It's a moral issue. That's why they don't understand people like us because they're like, well, why can't you get off of that? Because that's people, you know, the majority of people don't think like you do. And you're like, the majority of people is not relevant to what's true and what's not true. This is where democracy doesn't solve all your problems. We're pro-life because God is life. And so there's no bargaining on that. It's not like, okay, tomorrow we'll say, okay, we'll just punt on abortion. We're never going to be that way. But see, then people come and they, because they argue, they'll hear you say that.

They'll say, well, are you for the death penalty? Of course, they run up on somebody like me, and they don't know what to do. Because I'm one of the few probably Christians, and I don't mind saying this, you can get mad at me if you want to. I'm not for the death penalty, because I'm thinking maybe this person

will find Jesus somewhere. What I'm saying is as a believer, I'm like, I believe God can rescue anybody. And, you know, I'm all for the person, punishment and having Romans 13 you're having laws of the land. I've got we've got we've got here so I'm going to have to you know say what I say but all I'm saying is that I believe there's no place you can go there's too far for God's grace. So if there was a way to keep you alive even though you were the worst criminal on the planet I would be for that. However when you live in a society where you have to have

laws and there has to be consequences and punishment, I'm all for that as well, even way more drastic than what we have now. That's why I told the prisoner, you can be under lock and key and still be free. Well, exactly. Yeah, and I would add to that, just that, because I consider, I mean, I have no problem with a death penalty. But if you told me, if you were saying, you know, using that as a reason why that you're a pro-abortion. And so I would say, okay, look, if I'm willing to give room on one of those issues or the other, I'll agree with you. Let's take death penalty off the table.

If you want to incarcerate people for their lives and feed them, that's fine. Now you'll join me in being pro-life. Is that what you're saying? Because if you're really that concerned about it, I'll punt on the death penalty if we can protect innocent children. Well, that's me. I mean, I was bringing up devil's advocate because that's what they do, though. Right. They try to find...

But to be fair, I do think that it has become a quote-unquote issue, a political issue that really the discussion, in my opinion, should transcend that. I think when you talk about the character of God, yeah, I think most people that I've talked to that are pro-life, when I've had a real conversation with them, like, outside of like an argument or a gotcha or, you know, where you're, you know, that's the back and forth, gotcha stuff. I think it's a misunderstanding of the design and the intent of who we are. And that's why I've always said that you have to begin. I think the discussion has to begin with the character of God, who is God, what is his character? By the way, he happens to be absolutely beautiful and wonderful. And then out of there, we can talk about God's intent, God's design, and the creation of life itself. I mean, just think about this, that the creation of life itself, of human life, only happens to the consummation of making love, like literally two people coming together in sexual union, and then the climax of that union results in the creation of life itself.

I mean, you start to see God's intent and God's purpose even in sexuality and how that flows into the creation of life. itself. And I think that it's hard for us to win this debate because we're going at it strictly from a political perspective. And I do think we need to be involved in it politically, but we also have to be involved in telling the story of who God is and how we relate to God and how all things reflect his glory, including our sexuality, including the creation of life itself, reflects the very nature of God. And when we can show that, and when people understand that there is actually beauty in sexuality, there's beauty in the creation of life, then it's a whole lot more difficult to destroy it when you see how amazing, when you're in awe of what God has created. So I do think

that looking back to a verse like that you read in Ezekiel, was that 33, by the way? Where was that at 18? 18. It's the last verse in 18. Yeah, the last 13, 13, 13. too, I think. And that's exactly my point, that. My point is that life is consistent. That's why you can't, there's no, there's no change in my mind on it because that's who God is. And so, you know, that is the larger picture. But look, the way you win the argument is you have to get people introduced to God. If they don't know him and they don't know exactly anything about him, then of course they're going to take some, you know, positions that are not what he wants. wants for their lives. And so I see everything as an opportunity. And that's what we have to do.

Every conversation is an opportunity. So Paul, back tox 13, he first starts with this Roman pro-council. And this guy tries to block him. He strikes him blind. He goes to the next city. And it's interesting because he shows you kind of what his pattern is going to be. He goes immediately to a synagogue, which is what he did on most of the cities because I think he's looking for common ground. But he'll talk to anybody because he just had talked to the guy in Cyprus who was a Roman. Now the next city, he goes to the synagogue on the Sabbath. They read the law. They read the prophets, which is what they typically do. And then the leaders say, brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak, which is in verse 15. And I love it because when you ask a guy who's,

you know, committed to teaching and preaching. If he has a word, he has a word. Be careful what you ask for. That's right. So what he does is he gives his first recorded sermon to these guys. And it's really interesting because I've noticed like in verse 16 when he says men of Israel, but he says, and you Gentiles who worship God. And then later on he says in verse 26, children of Abraham.

And you God-fearing Gentiles. So now he's in this Jewish setting, but you see he's expanding the mindset here. Well, and take our last part. Some of the, some of what you read in the Old Testament, I don't know how to say this quickly. It's like when God chose Israel and they decided not to put their faith and trust in him, bad things happen. They were raided by other countries. they were, and you're going to get into this as this sermon goes. You know, when it gets down to the end of his sermon in verse 41.

And we can read the rest of it before, but I just want to make a point that when you read that, because it's very confusing when you read that, and it says, well, he's going to the synagogues, who are these God-fearing Gentiles who are here. And when you read this little verse that he quotes from Habakkuk, I mean, have you read Habakkuk lately? It's been a while. I read that and I thought, wow, that's interesting. Habakkuk basically has a conversation with God saying, what are you going to do about all this evil in the world? Which is a question that I hear many times. from people on why they don't come to Jesus.

Well, if you have that question, read the book of Habakkuk. You're going to have to read it a few times because it's just a hard thing to understand, but it's basically a conversation about that. And then God gives an answer. He's like, well, I'm going to take these Babylonians, and they're going to bring justice to my chosen people. And that's what's going to happen. And so Habakkuk's like, well, they're more evil than your people.

Your people. So that doesn't make sense. And basically, you start seeing what we have to realize as children of God. There's a God and we're not him. And he is fully aware of what's going on in our world today and then. And he has a plan. But one of the things I want to say here, the reason that, there are God-fearing Gentiles here is because when those in-time judgments happen,

the Jews were dispersed. They were scattered, which is where this all started. Remember when he said scatter and fill the whole earth? Well, they got scattered, and some of the Gentile people that they would be scattered too, because they just got slammed by some other nation. And it happened over and over and over. I just picked up the one in Habakkari. because he quotes a baccate.

So you fast forward to now, and you have some of these Gentiles who have been influenced through the God of the Jews, and the reason they were influenced is because they were scattered so much throughout their history and influenced them,

which was all part of God's plan to bring the Gentiles in. So the story is bigger, which is why I'm taking a time out and saying, once you start reading all these Old Testament passages, And the reason I'm not going to Habakkuk and giving you a thorough view, because it would take me hours to study that. I mean, there was a lot going on.

But the point remains, though, that when you read the Old Testament in the light of what's happening here, it all starts to make a lot more sense. Yeah, that is the point. I then realize why they're there at the synagogue. I'm like, well, this is happening too quick for, well, then when you go back and you start putting all the pieces together, you're like, oh, because there was always a remnant of Jewish people that God loved. And it's all these heroes. That's why I keep going to Hebrews, because when you go to the book of Hebrews, you're like, oh, I get it. God, the whole time you read the book of Isaiah, he was going to redeem Israel. It just doesn't look like it, because most of them turn their back

on him. But there were a few, and it was only a few, that had faith and put their faith and trust in God, and even in Abraham's case, reason that God could raise the dead. That's how much faith he had before Jesus was even resurrected. Just try to come up with that on your own. You've never heard of Jesus. There's no resurrection, and then you're asked to do something by God that you have to conclude, oh, he must can raise the dead. How much faith that Abraham had? Yeah. Have a lot more than us.

So that's why he's in this chapter 11. So if I just went through and read, because I think it applies to what we're reading now, when you read part of Hebrews that no one reads, because it's about Israel's history, this is Hebrews 8 in verse 8. It says, but God found fault with the people, talking of Israel, people under the first covenant,

and it says, the time is coming. Now this is a quote from, where is this a quote from? Jeremiah, I think of it. Jeremiah, listen to this, when I will make a new covenant, now look what it says, with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I may with their forefathers. when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt because they did not remain faithful to my covenant. And I turned away from them.

This is the covenant I will make with the House of Israel. There it is again, after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and I will write them on their hearts. And here's the fundamental theme, and I will be their God and they will be my people. And so then when you go to chapter 11 and see all these people of Israel's day, he gets down to the last verse and he says, God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect. And you get to 12. We focus on Jesus.

And then you get to 1222. What we all share, we've come to the Mount Zion, which we'll talk about all the quotes of David and the promise to David and his covenant. but it's still the same thing. Jesus did come from the House of David. Then you see the city, the heavenly Jerusalem. Well, what does that imply? Jerusalem being the hub of the old law, Judaism. So God has in his wisdom and in his time brought all of this together through the Jewish nation.

And that's why when you get down and he quotes something like Habakkuk, you say what was happening in Habakkuk's time well the Jewish nation was being judged by the Babylonians and then what would eventually happen what would eventually happen was Babylon would fall fast forward to this today and now what's fixing to happen to Jerusalem here and I think that's why Paul's bringing that up this old Jewish system and the temple it's fixed to be destroyed and you it becomes clear that Paul knew that. Which is why he's in their centers of worship. That's why Paul is going to the synagogues and he's going,

and he's focusing on the center, the place of where worship goes down. And then he's establishing, well, we're not establishing. He's interpreting for them. This is the whole, this is kind of a climax that's happening here in Acts because everything that's going to be accomplished about the inclusion of the Gentiles, which, by the way, as we mentioned earlier, is prophesied throughout the Old Testament. It's happening here, and he's going into their centers of worship to establish it. You think about verses like Isaiah 55.

This is Old Testament. It says, behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know. A nation that did not know you shall run to you because of the Lord your God and the Holy One of Israel. for he is glorified you. I mean, that's in the Old Testament. You have verses like that over and over again about some nation that's not Israel coming in to worship the ones you're God. Isaiah too, about the nations coming up the mountain to worship him. Isaiah 60, all nations shall come to your light, the kings to the brightness of your rising. Jeremiah 16, O Lord, my strength and my stronghold, my refuge, and my day of trouble. To you shall the nation.

come from the ends of the earth and say our fathers have inherited nothing but lies, worthless things in which there is no profit. Can man make for himself gods? Such are not gods. Therefore, behold, I will make them know this once. I will make them know my power and my might, that they shall know that my name is the Lord. I mean, it says, it's kind of like you read all these verses in the Old Testament about all these nations come into worship God.

And then now you're hearing this inclusion of the Gentiles, and they're using a lot of the Old Testament prophecies to make the point. And I can just imagine that there are probably Jews in this setting that were like, oh. Yeah, I think that's why all those verses were in there. That's the point I was making. And the point I was going to get to is I think the reason Paul used that is because God is fixing to use the Romans who are more evil at this time than the Jews who have

turn their back on God, and the same thing that happened in the Bacchus day is fixed to happen again. And you say, well, what eventually happened? 300 years later, Rome embraced Christianity. So I'm saying if you go back, which I know this has been very historical, but if you go back and put all these pieces together and then read something like Ephesians 2.11, we don't have time to read it, but now to the end, you start seeing God's fully a whole. aware of what's going on. And he has a plan and he's going to work it out.

And if you're open to God and what he did in Jesus, he's going to make a way for you to hear that. He's for bringing as many people in for every eternal life with him as possible. The reason he mentioned Habakkuk, Jais, was the verse he said before in verse 40, take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you. So in other words, you don't want to miss this, which was his main point. All right, we're out of time. We'll pick this up in the next Unashamed.

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