Sunday Service - 2026-05-31

Sunday Service - 2026-05-31

Episode description

The Early Church Multiplies
Acts 5:12-16

Pastor Chris Bonner

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0:14

Welcome to the Lansdale Life Church podcast.

0:18

If you're seeking a closer relationship with Jesus Christ, this podcast is for you.

0:24

Thank you for joining us today.

0:35

And so, without further ado, we're going to dive in, of course, to Acts chapter 5.

0:41

If you haven't noticed, if you're kind of new to Calvary chapels or new to this church,

0:45

we go through the Bible, okay?

0:48

We take little chunk by little chunk.

0:50

We try to keep things to a theme within the scripture, you know, so we don't, you know,

0:57

go through too many things at once and it becomes convoluted and confusing.

1:02

And so today, we're only going through verses 12 to 16.

1:09

And I just want to, for you to prepare your hearts now,

1:14

because I really believe the Lord wants to do something great here this morning.

1:19

I think He wants to bring physical healing.

1:22

Anyone suffering today with some healing that you would like to receive from the Lord?

1:28

I know I am. I have several things, you know.

1:32

And so I believe there's going to be something coming your way from the Lord this morning

1:37

as we read His word and honor His word and believe what it says.

1:41

I believe we're going to receive that.

1:44

And if not for you, someone you know and love, you know,

1:46

perhaps the Lord is going to do that.

1:48

So we're really going to focus in on that as we dive into this.

1:53

And just to sort of set it up, we're going to give a little intro about where we've been very brief.

1:59

But let's pray and thank the Lord for His word.

2:03

Father God, I just thank You for this dear family of brothers and sisters.

2:07

Lord, I thank You that You are the same yesterday, today, and forever, Lord.

2:13

And You, You are, we can trust Your character.

2:16

And, Lord, we can trust who You are, Lord.

2:20

And we ask You to move in the same way You moved in the early church today,

2:26

in today's churches, specifically in Lansdale Life Church.

2:30

We're believing that You will do the same thing today as You've done in the past.

2:35

And You will do the same thing in the future as well.

2:39

So, Lord, we thank You, we trust You.

2:42

And, Lord, we ask You to open up our minds to Your scripture, Lord.

2:45

I just pray that You would block me from any distractions

2:49

so that I could just rest fully in what Your word says

2:53

and what You want to say here this morning.

2:55

I ask this in Jesus' name, amen.

2:59

So, we see we're up to chapter 5 of Acts.

3:03

And I just want to go over a few of the things that we've observed

3:06

that really made for the culture and the conditions

3:11

for the growth of the kingdom of God.

3:14

Tammy, if you have that first slide up,

3:17

the early church grew where five conditions were present.

3:21

Now, there's a lot of sub-conditions in there too, you know.

3:25

But really where there were five things active in the church.

3:31

And we've observed that right from Pentecost,

3:33

first and foremost was the Holy Spirit came upon the saints.

3:38

In fact, Jesus said, don't do a thing until you receive Him, okay?

3:43

Just stay put. You're going to do some damage otherwise.

3:46

Just stay put because apart from me, you can do nothing, okay?

3:50

So, He said, wait for the Holy Spirit to come.

3:55

So, without the Holy Spirit, we can do nothing, right?

3:58

So, the Holy Spirit fell at Pentecost.

4:01

And from that point on, really,

4:03

the church has to rely on the Holy Spirit to fuel us in everything we do.

4:09

Otherwise, we're moving in the flesh and the carnal man,

4:13

and it's not going according to God's will, right?

4:17

We're like, the Holy Spirit's like the fuel in the gasoline.

4:21

Fuel in the gas tank, okay?

4:24

And it's what propels us and our church by the Holy Spirit.

4:30

And so, first and foremost is the Holy Spirit.

4:33

And if you notice, the Holy Spirit has something to do with the rest of these things.

4:37

Because, of course, the next thing is the Word of God.

4:42

Because Peter, after the Pentecost came and the Holy Spirit came upon them

4:47

and filled them, Peter started preaching the Word, okay?

4:52

Of course, people were like, cut to the heart, you know?

4:55

Because the Holy Spirit, right, is active, sharper than a two-edged sword.

5:00

And what does it do?

5:01

It divides what?

5:03

Soul and spirit, right?

5:06

Joint and marrow, and we can peel that all part level, the metaphors for that, right?

5:12

And then finally, the thoughts and the intentions.

5:16

So, the Holy Spirit knows how to use the Word of God to do what it needs to do.

5:23

To just dig in there like surgery and remove what needs to be removed

5:27

and impute what needs to be put in there, right?

5:30

And so, the Word of God, it's the sword of the Spirit, right?

5:36

So, the Holy Spirit knows how to use the Word of God.

5:40

And then the next thing we saw is repentance, okay?

5:44

Because people heard this and they say, brothers, what must we do to be saved?

5:49

Like, what's next, right? What do we got to do?

5:51

He says, repent for the remission of sins, repent.

5:56

And so, repentance, it's turning from our old ways.

6:01

In fact, Isaiah's message yesterday was a lot about renewing your mind, that metamorphosis of the mind.

6:09

Like, realizing that I got to turn from the direction I'm going in.

6:13

And it really involves, well, in fact, Jesus said at his Last Supper Discourse,

6:19

which stretches over several chapters of John,

6:22

Jesus said, you know, you're sorry because I say that I'm leaving.

6:26

It's good for you that I'm leaving.

6:28

Because if I don't leave, the Holy Spirit would not come.

6:30

And when he comes, he will fill you,

6:33

but he will also convict the world of sin because they don't believe in me, right?

6:39

Righteousness, because I go to my Father, but you're still here.

6:43

You're the evidence of my righteousness. Think about that, right?

6:46

I'm paraphrasing someone here.

6:48

But you can read it for yourself in John chapter 16.

6:53

And then what else did he say?

6:55

And also to convict the world of judgment,

6:58

because the ruler of this world has been judged, right?

7:04

So the Holy Spirit brings that repentance

7:07

and even the fear or the righteous reverent fear of the Lord.

7:12

We looked into that last week, remember?

7:15

Ananias and Sapphira, how when they were, you know,

7:18

lying to the Holy Spirit and so forth,

7:21

and suddenly the Lord just took them out.

7:23

And we talked about that,

7:24

that the Lord needed for his purposes to do that,

7:28

to send a signal, okay,

7:30

and to really get ahead of more sin

7:35

that would compile because of that.

7:38

Because we knew it was the work of Satan,

7:40

and Ananias and Sapphira lie to the Holy Spirit

7:43

and they were there for themselves.

7:46

And really Peter knew that the Lord

7:49

was going to put a stop to this right now.

7:51

He needed to make an example out of Ananias

7:54

and Sapphira right there.

7:56

And fear broke out, like, whoa, like, you know,

7:59

that means God's real, you know?

8:02

And we talked a little bit last week about how,

8:04

I don't know if you've ever watched those, you know,

8:06

they mocked God and found out.

8:08

I don't know if any of you have looked that up

8:09

since I mentioned it, but it's pretty spooky

8:12

when you see people literally either just fall, drop, down,

8:16

you know, as they're mocking Jesus,

8:19

or things that happened shortly after that,

8:21

like the Olympics debacle either a year or two years ago

8:24

when the lights totally went out

8:27

after they did that ridiculous last supper of depravity.

8:34

And I don't know if you, well, anyway, let's move on.

8:36

But so you see what I'm saying?

8:38

The Holy Spirit brings fear, a healthy fear, right?

8:41

Because the beginning of understanding is the fear,

8:44

but perfect love casts out fear.

8:46

So once you fall in love with the Lord,

8:48

you don't necessarily, you still revere Him,

8:51

but you're not as fearful of, like, discipline and so forth,

8:55

and you're certainly not fearful of wrath.

8:57

You're more fearful of missing out on what He wants to bring.

9:02

Really, that Holy FOMO, you know, fear of missing out

9:07

on the Lord, what He wants to do.

9:09

And, you know, I fear that a lot of times.

9:11

I go, is there something God wants to be doing

9:13

that I'm missing out on, you know?

9:15

But it's that idea.

9:16

So the Holy Spirit brings all this.

9:20

And then next thing, of course, is the lifestyle

9:22

and community of God.

9:25

And we were talking about how when the Holy Spirit came

9:28

and grace was upon the early church,

9:31

that they were so benevolent.

9:33

They were so generous.

9:34

They were just pouring out.

9:36

No one had any need.

9:37

And they were just giving to one another

9:40

at the feet of the apostles because they knew

9:42

that there was need.

9:43

But they said, you know, I have more than enough.

9:45

I'll just, you know, I could sell this.

9:47

I could do this.

9:47

I could just give.

9:49

And doesn't the Lord do that when you realize

9:51

just what you've been saved from,

9:54

what you've been forgiven of, what you've been given?

9:56

You know, we have an eternity and inheritance

10:00

set before us that we can never spend.

10:03

I mean, we can tap into it, but we can never outspend it.

10:07

It's going to go on and on.

10:08

Like we have a glorious future in our inheritance with God.

10:13

When you have that kind of trust fund, right,

10:16

with the Lord, you don't have to worry too much

10:18

about what's going on down here.

10:19

You could spend it for others.

10:22

You know, in fact, the Lord even says to use filthy mammon

10:26

to win friends and influence enemies for the future.

10:29

Again, I'm paraphrasing.

10:30

But so anyway, so they were generous.

10:34

And we saw that, you know.

10:36

And then finally, the power of God is that fifth condition

10:42

or situation or environment that the kingdom of God grows, okay?

10:49

Because the power of God is exhibited.

10:52

It's manifested, okay?

10:54

That the word is dunamis, that holy power of God

10:58

where we get the word dynamite, that explosive power of God,

11:02

right?

11:03

And so the Lord is going to bring in this sexual reading

11:07

real power, real dunamis power in signs, wonders, healings,

11:13

and deliverance.

11:15

And so praise the Lord for that.

11:17

So let's dive in and read.

11:20

We're going to stop just a couple of times as we go.

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All right, verse 12.

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And through the hands of the apostles,

11:29

many signs and wonders were done among the people.

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So let's just stop there for a second

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at the hands of the apostles, laying hands.

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And let's just talk about that a little bit.

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You know, especially if you're newer to Christianity.

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I know when I first started going to,

11:51

I was not a believer yet,

11:52

and I started going to our old Baptist church

11:55

and even they laid hands on sometimes, I believe, didn't they?

11:58

I guess they're a little advanced

12:01

for what people used to classify as Baptists

12:05

because we believed in the gifts of the Spirit

12:08

in that Baptist church.

12:10

And I can remember laying hands

12:11

and somebody's like, touch me.

12:12

I'm like, what are you doing?

12:14

Are you weird?

12:16

Because it was strange.

12:18

And maybe to some of you, it's still kind of strange.

12:21

Like, why do they do that?

12:24

But it has a lot of symbolism

12:25

and a lot of authority and power.

12:29

In fact, it goes back really to the Old Testament.

12:34

I won't get too much into it,

12:36

but the priests were told

12:38

to lay their hands on the head of the sacrifice.

12:44

And in that way, it was like transmitting

12:46

the sins of the people upon the sacrifice.

12:50

So there's actually something happening here.

12:53

It's like a transference, right?

12:56

The sins of the people onto the animal,

12:58

then the animal was slain

13:01

because without the shedding of blood,

13:04

there's no remission of sins.

13:05

So by this animal dying for the people,

13:08

it was in a sense taking their place, right?

13:12

And so, of course, the scapegoat was a little different.

13:15

We don't have time to get in all that,

13:16

but they laid hands and that thing went off

13:17

and hopefully didn't come back to town.

13:20

Can you imagine that?

13:20

It's like, he's back, you know?

13:24

But so anyway, read into that.

13:25

Just put in your blue little Bible scapegoat

13:28

and you can read all about it.

13:29

And so that's the idea,

13:32

is laying hands caused something to happen, right?

13:36

But in the New Testament, we even see it more.

13:39

We see that they laid hands for signs and wonders.

13:44

They laid hands to bring the Holy Spirit upon people,

13:49

to impart the Holy Spirit.

13:51

In fact, in Acts chapter eight, we see that.

13:54

Remember, and then Simon the Sorcerer's watching like,

13:56

oh, that looks like something I could use for me.

14:00

Back to the old Ananias of Fire,

14:02

kind of spirit of Satan, right?

14:04

And saying, I kind of want that for me.

14:06

And then remember, you know, Peter said,

14:07

you are evil and wicked and kind of ended weird.

14:10

You don't know what happened to him after that,

14:11

but I guess we can't assume too many good things

14:14

unless he repented.

14:15

But anyway, I digress.

14:16

So we get the idea that it imparts the Holy Spirit, okay?

14:22

It also dispenses gifts of the Spirit.

14:25

Paul writes to Timothy and he said,

14:27

don't neglect the gift you receive

14:30

as I laid hands on you and prophesied over you.

14:35

And then he says it again in the second letter of Timothy

14:38

to Timothy saying, you know,

14:40

remember fan into flame that gift that you receive

14:43

from the laying on of my hands, right?

14:46

So there's a lot of importance to all this.

14:50

And then finally commissioning to say,

14:53

we're going to lay hands.

14:54

In fact, how many, you know, you guys have seen missionaries

14:57

being sent out, right?

14:58

And everyone lays hands on them

15:00

or point your hand towards them.

15:02

You know, like that beam,

15:04

that holy beam across the room.

15:06

And we all lay hands on people

15:08

and in a sense we're commissioning saying,

15:10

may the Holy Spirit be upon you as before you go out, right?

15:15

And so there's so much significance to this.

15:18

So when we see it happening, it's not a weird thing.

15:22

It's what God commands to do.

15:24

We're going to get into that in a minute

15:25

when we look at that verse.

15:27

And so let's move on from there.

15:29

So they're laying on of hands

15:31

and signs and wonders were happening

15:34

and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch.

15:39

Again, this is only the second

15:41

of a couple of stops we're going to make.

15:44

But Solomon's porch, if we could show that picture there

15:48

and I showed this a few weeks ago or a couple of weeks ago.

15:52

And so this is actually a model.

15:54

Again, up here if you see, it's actually a walkway.

15:57

This is in Israel, really cool.

16:00

And it's supposed to be a pretty accurate model

16:02

of the temple and the wall.

16:06

Okay, of course the temple Mount is,

16:08

there's no more temple there.

16:10

And so anyway, remember a couple of weeks back,

16:12

Peter saw the man who was lame since birth

16:16

and he prayed and he healed him.

16:20

And from that point they went over

16:21

to what's called the Solomon's porch

16:23

or Solomon's colonnade or portico, okay.

16:28

And it was here that Peter and John

16:30

were talking and preaching to people.

16:32

So could you imagine you're heading into the temple

16:35

and suddenly you see what's going on over there.

16:37

There's a lot of action happening over there.

16:39

So eventually curious people would start walking over

16:42

and checking it out before you know it.

16:44

They're here in the gospel, okay.

16:46

And so here's where they are now.

16:49

They're preaching in Solomon's portico or colonnade.

16:55

And it's interesting because that's exactly where Jesus

17:00

preached that amazing message in John chapter 10

17:06

when he revealed that he is the son of God.

17:11

And some people say he never said he was the son of God.

17:14

He did in John chapter 10.

17:16

And as he was preaching and he was saying,

17:19

you know, I and the father are one.

17:21

I'm like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

17:22

First they said, are you truly the Christ?

17:25

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

17:26

I and the father are one.

17:28

I mean, that would almost made their heads blow up.

17:31

Did you hear what he just said, right?

17:33

And he's like, you're compared.

17:35

And he's picked up stones ready to stone them, right?

17:38

And he says, for what good works

17:40

are you about to stone me for?

17:42

And he said, because you're claiming that you're God.

17:45

And then he goes on and he says, well, you know,

17:48

because I'm the son of God, not just like God,

17:52

I am the son of God.

17:54

I and the father are one.

17:56

Isn't that amazing?

17:58

So he preached that right in that location.

18:00

So Solomon's porch has some great relevance

18:04

even to this message.

18:07

And they were in all in one accord we just read.

18:11

So they're here.

18:12

Oh, that's right.

18:13

We don't need it.

18:14

So they're up in the in the portico

18:17

and they're, you know, and they're being preached to

18:20

and they're just like minded.

18:24

They're in fellowship, but they just love

18:27

like this is a euphoric feeling.

18:29

I mean, I feel so often when I'm with fellow believers,

18:32

I'm like, you know, it's so great just understanding you

18:38

because we have the same Holy Spirit.

18:42

We're connected.

18:42

We're eternally connected.

18:44

Think about that.

18:45

Any temporal issue we have, we are eternally connected.

18:52

In fact, you know, we just, Jill and I just did

18:55

premarital counseling with someone last week.

18:58

And there's a topic on divorce.

19:03

How do you feel about divorce?

19:04

And we just say, we say the same thing actually

19:07

that Jill's mom said to us.

19:10

Never use the word D in your arguments.

19:15

Like divorce is not part of your arguments vocabulary.

19:21

It's just not there.

19:22

Okay, because once you start to even suggest

19:25

that there could be an end to this,

19:27

if you do the wrong thing, it brings in doubt,

19:31

questions, and fear, right?

19:33

And so, you know, in the same way,

19:35

when we have a falling out with a true brother and sister,

19:38

and I say that because there are untrue ones, right?

19:41

But a true one, you say like, this is such a nothing.

19:44

Like, just like even when you think about it,

19:47

Paul and Barnabas.

19:48

Yeah, this isn't working out, okay?

19:50

Now, I'm sure it's a little harsher than that, okay?

19:52

But this isn't working out.

19:53

All right, you and your nephew, you go to Cyprus.

19:55

But I'm going, I'm taking Silas,

19:57

and we're heading back where we were before.

19:59

It's like, just work it out.

20:01

We're eternally connected.

20:03

Like, we have an eternal family in the States.

20:06

Do we really want to mess it up

20:08

with temporal arguments and discussions, right?

20:11

And so, but one accord, and that's so important.

20:15

This word, homophimodon, is like really means

20:18

with one accord is actually one word, okay?

20:20

Homophimodon.

20:21

And it's used 11 times in the book of Acts.

20:25

Because it's like-mindedness.

20:27

That's why so many amazing things happen.

20:30

Because it's a condition where the kingdom of God spreads.

20:33

When people are saying, you know what?

20:35

Whatever I have against you, it's unimportant.

20:37

Because you know what?

20:38

You probably rightfully have some things against me.

20:40

Let's just work it out.

20:41

You know, it's like-minded.

20:43

In fact, the word says again, again,

20:44

they had all things in common.

20:47

And that like-mindedness, it was so important.

20:51

That oneness.

20:52

You know, Paul wrote about this oneness in Ephesians 4,

20:56

verses 1 to 6.

20:58

He said, I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord

21:02

beseech you to walk worthy of the calling

21:06

with which you were called,

21:08

with all lowliness and gentleness,

21:11

with long suffering here with one another,

21:13

in love, endeavoring to keep the unity

21:16

of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

21:19

There is, watch this, one body, one Spirit,

21:24

just as you were called in one hope of your calling,

21:28

one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God.

21:33

And further all of you, I'm sorry,

21:36

and God and Father of all who is above all

21:41

and through all and in you all.

21:44

There's a lot of ones there, isn't it?

21:46

So we are one.

21:47

In fact, it's interesting, Jesus said,

21:49

may they be one with one another and with you and I, Father.

21:53

Just one, like that connection, that one accord.

21:56

It's so, so important.

21:58

In fact, John Wesley was one of the founders

22:02

of the Methodist movement, okay,

22:05

which became the Methodist Church.

22:08

And he wrote, though we cannot think alike,

22:11

may we not love alike.

22:13

We have so many disagreements about theology.

22:17

Your theology, theology.

22:20

It's not the Trinity, okay?

22:22

Theology is not one of the persons of the Trinity.

22:26

It's important to grasp Scripture.

22:29

In fact, Ray, what did we just talk about upstairs

22:31

a minute ago, right?

22:32

A few minutes ago, we were talking

22:34

and we were comparing what this other denomination thinks

22:38

or whatever and I said, I think we're all gonna get

22:40

to heaven someday and realize we had a little bit

22:43

of this or that wrong, okay?

22:45

I'm okay with that because you know what?

22:47

We got the one thing right.

22:49

Jesus Christ, okay?

22:51

If I didn't realize there was some form of this

22:54

and I just totally wrote it off, you know,

22:56

it's like we got a major in the majors, okay?

22:59

And not dissect theology and then judge someone

23:02

based on what they believe about that little thing.

23:05

I'm not talking about big things.

23:07

I'm talking about little things, okay?

23:09

It could bring true disunity.

23:11

And so they were with one accord, just loving one another.

23:16

And so let's move on from there.

23:22

Verse 13, yet none of the rest dare join them.

23:28

I wonder why.

23:29

You know, think about that.

23:30

Like they're walking, remember the portico

23:32

and they're walking by and they're like,

23:33

hey, there's some good people over there, okay?

23:36

They're really like, a lot of good things are happening.

23:39

They really love each other, you know?

23:40

And they're really, they're so, they just seem like people

23:45

I'd love to know.

23:47

But I don't want to go there.

23:49

I want to just go to what I'm used to.

23:51

You know, religion's like that, isn't it?

23:53

Religion really is a lot like that.

23:55

It's like kind of saying, you know,

23:58

I get the freedom and all, but that can't really be holy.

24:02

It's too much fun.

24:04

It can't be fun, okay?

24:05

I remember my beloved mother, she's with the Lord now,

24:08

and she would come and visit, okay?

24:13

Us, okay?

24:14

But then she had to go to her church, okay?

24:20

Her Catholic church, I'll just say.

24:22

She had to go to Catholic church, okay?

24:24

Because she had to.

24:26

It's part of who she was.

24:28

It's like, it's, you know, it's just,

24:32

her identity is being Catholic.

24:36

But she believed everything we were doing

24:38

here in this church.

24:39

She thought it was tremendous.

24:40

In fact, when she got saved,

24:42

she was praising God towards the end there.

24:44

I've never heard her speak like this.

24:46

And it's the thresholds of her departure to heaven

24:49

with the Lord.

24:50

And she's suddenly saying things like,

24:52

this is my mom?

24:54

Like, where did this come from?

24:55

80 years old, she's suddenly getting it.

24:58

Praise the Lord, right?

24:59

It's never too late, you know?

25:01

The criminal on the cross is evidence of that.

25:03

It's never too late.

25:05

But really, it's like, man,

25:06

she could have had so much, even more freedom.

25:09

But she just, this is what I know, you know?

25:13

And this is what people knew.

25:15

They passed by.

25:16

They wouldn't join them.

25:17

But finally, some just broke loose and say,

25:19

no, I got to go check this out.

25:21

I'm going to see what's happening up there on the portico.

25:26

And soon, it's not going to stay there either.

25:28

It's going to spread out through the streets

25:29

because you can't contain the Spirit of God.

25:33

When the Lord is moving, he's just going to take over, you know?

25:38

And the gates of Hades will not prevail against the kingdom of heaven.

25:42

Amen?

25:43

He's just going to boom, just blow the place up.

25:46

So let's move on.

25:47

And now we're going to finish.

25:49

So verse 14,

25:51

And believers were increasingly added to the Lord,

25:55

multitudes of both men and women,

25:58

and so that they brought the sick out into the streets

26:01

and laid them on beds and couches,

26:05

that at least the shadow of Peter passing by

26:08

might fall on some of them.

26:12

Also, a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem,

26:18

bringing the sick people and those who were tormented

26:21

by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.

26:27

That's not a throw-in word.

26:29

The word literally is all.

26:31

They were all healed.

26:34

I mean, wow, they were all healed.

26:36

I just want to mention the shadow of Peter,

26:39

because, you know, actually dating back to Egypt,

26:43

there were a lot of writings about people, you know,

26:47

mystically believed that the shadow was like an extension

26:51

of the person's soul or spirit,

26:54

and it had some embodiment in and of itself.

26:59

I guess, I hope I'm explaining that correctly.

27:02

And so the shadow had an importance, okay?

27:06

And, you know, and had a personality, in a sense,

27:09

or at least an identity of itself,

27:12

because it was an extension of someone else, the shadow, right?

27:17

And yet, it does not say the shadow healed anybody, okay?

27:22

But they wanted to get so close to Peter

27:25

that even if his shadow just touched,

27:28

but they're all healed regardless.

27:31

I mean, it's amazing how sometimes the Lord works,

27:34

even in spite of people's superstitions

27:37

and false beliefs, He just blesses them anyway.

27:42

Just because He wants to demonstrate His power.

27:45

I was talking to somebody recently.

27:46

They're talking about how they pray the rosary

27:49

and great things happen, and I'm like,

27:51

well, you know, there's a lot of things

27:54

that don't line up with that.

27:56

And I grew up Catholic, so I know, you know,

27:58

but like, you know, just take most of the prayers

28:01

on that chain, they're to the wrong person, right?

28:04

But anyway, but like, you know what?

28:08

If you're using this to stay, keep yourself in line,

28:12

I don't agree with it, but just keep following Jesus, okay?

28:16

Just follow Jesus.

28:17

Don't follow a shadow.

28:19

Don't follow a person who has the gimmicky ways

28:24

to do this, to do that, to get healed, to deliver.

28:28

You know, yeah, it's great if they have a method super,

28:30

but it's always Jesus Christ, okay?

28:33

Everything else is a shadow.

28:35

Everything else is not the real deal, you know?

28:39

And the Lord, for one reason or another, His graciousness,

28:42

He just says, yeah, yeah, they got that completely off,

28:44

but you know what?

28:45

I'm gonna heal them anyway, okay?

28:47

And they heal them anyway.

28:49

And it's just so amazing to see God be so benevolent like that.

28:54

You know, in fact, I love even the things

28:57

that were a picture in the Old Testament

29:00

weren't really the Messiah, right?

29:04

They were pointing to the Messiah.

29:06

I love this verse in Colossians 2, 16 and 17.

29:10

It says, let no one judge you in food or in drink

29:14

or regarding a festival or a new moon or Sabbath,

29:18

in other words, the law,

29:20

which are a shadow of things to come,

29:23

but the substance is of Christ.

29:27

It's always about Jesus Christ.

29:29

He's the power, and of course, His Holy Spirit,

29:31

because they're all one, right?

29:33

And so it's Jesus who always heals.

29:37

It wasn't Peter's shadow.

29:38

It wasn't anything else, and it wasn't Peter.

29:41

It was Jesus Christ who healed through His Holy Spirit.

29:45

And so, you know, so we read this, okay?

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And I don't know about you, but I read all were healed.

29:53

And I know some of you right now,

29:55

there might be someone saying,

29:56

well, I'm getting healed today.

29:58

Praise the Lord.

30:00

But there might be some that are saying,

30:01

oh, we're not gonna do this whole thing, are we?

30:04

And go like healing and going on and on about.

30:07

Today is the day you're gonna be healed right here,

30:09

right now.

30:11

You know, why not?

30:13

Why won't He heal the same way He did yesterday

30:15

as He does today?

30:17

I'll be honest, I got a situation in my shoulder

30:19

and you know about my heart.

30:21

Maybe the heart will be healed today.

30:23

I won't know for a while, anyway.

30:24

But my shoulder, you know, but like a part of me is saying,

30:27

yeah, but, you know, maybe for someone else.

30:33

But not necessarily for me, because, you know,

30:35

I got this thing.

30:37

That's wrong thinking.

30:38

It's wrong thinking.

30:40

I'll tell you what, like, when my nephew, Ian, okay,

30:44

he was born with so many issues, okay,

30:47

and we would pray, Jill and I,

30:49

we would be telling him the gospel,

30:51

but he couldn't communicate.

30:53

And he was in a wheelchair all of his life,

30:54

never ate a meal.

30:57

Always ate through a tube.

30:59

And I just, just like, Lord, why?

31:01

Why?

31:02

You know, and we would pray,

31:03

and I would pray and literally,

31:05

we'd be on vacation all together.

31:06

Let me say, Lord, when I get up tomorrow morning,

31:08

I'm going to go downstairs, and he's going to be walking.

31:12

I'm believing it.

31:13

I'm trusting it.

31:14

And I'm just, and I'm just like,

31:15

almost like I'd have to bang my head on the floor

31:17

just to believe this is going to happen in Jesus' name,

31:21

you know, and just committed, committed, committed.

31:25

And it didn't happen.

31:26

And then the Lord took him home.

31:28

And we were at his memorial,

31:31

and it was amazing, I don't have time to get in all of it,

31:33

but it was amazing how his nurses

31:34

probably experienced more of the grace of God

31:38

through this boy that never said a word,

31:41

who was trapped in a wheelchair,

31:44

but just smiled all the time,

31:46

even after 150 surgeries.

31:49

Just smiled.

31:50

Like, really?

31:52

They just loved, they talked about him

31:53

as if they had conversations with him.

31:56

And I'm like, wow, like,

31:58

did I miss out on something?

32:00

You know, I was seeing what he was lacking, okay,

32:03

and what he was missing out on, and we all loved him.

32:06

And, but like, they actually received something else

32:11

from the Lord through this boy who was trapped in a wheelchair,

32:15

who couldn't speak a word,

32:18

who was just held in captivity of this tent.

32:22

And, you know, so when that happened, I'll admit,

32:26

my faith in prayer kind of did this quirk screw.

32:31

It's like, God's gonna do what he's gonna do, isn't he?

32:34

Like, does it really matter?

32:36

I'm just being honest.

32:37

Don't tell anybody.

32:38

I'm confessing.

32:41

But I just really was like, what's it matter?

32:45

Right?

32:45

I mean, have you ever been there?

32:46

You don't have to raise your hand.

32:48

But have you ever been there?

32:49

Like, does it matter at all?

32:51

And I'm just like, oh, okay, you know, it's,

32:53

but I still, I love you and all that,

32:55

but maybe things aren't the same as, you know,

32:57

and all that, but I would keep reading,

32:59

like in 2 Peter chapter one,

33:02

we are new creations, divine nature,

33:04

you know, living in the divine power of God.

33:07

Like, what about all that?

33:08

What about we're new creations?

33:09

What about, I will do these things just like the Lord,

33:13

just like in Mark chapter 16 verse 17, 18,

33:16

these signs will follow those who believe, right?

33:19

Thank you, Tammy.

33:20

You know, that they will take up serpents

33:23

and drink anything deadly,

33:24

and they will by no means hurt them,

33:26

and they will lay hands on the sick,

33:28

and they will recover.

33:30

Like, what about all that, God?

33:32

You know, what about when he says greater things

33:34

you will do than these, you know?

33:37

Because when he says that in John chapter 14 and 16,

33:41

you will do greater things than even these things that I do.

33:45

What about all that?

33:47

And then I have Ian, you know?

33:49

I'm at it, you know.

33:51

And then all of a sudden, the Lord,

33:52

just like something came up.

33:57

And suddenly, this friend of mine,

34:00

he had asbestos-related sinusitis,

34:04

and he was on perpetual prednisone,

34:08

and he was having significant issues.

34:11

And I said, you know what?

34:13

Hey, you know, can I pray for you about that?

34:15

And he's like, yeah, sure.

34:16

And he's a funny guy.

34:18

He's, yeah, do it.

34:19

He's a believer, a strong believer.

34:21

And I prayed, and he tells me, like, a while later,

34:24

you know, I've never had another infection again,

34:28

and my sinus is after that.

34:29

Then I'm like, like, what?

34:32

Like, whoa, yeah, I'm like, wow, praise the Lord, you know?

34:36

And then all of a sudden, Jill and I went to the hospital,

34:38

and this girl and her teens had Guillain-Barre.

34:42

I don't know if you've ever heard of that,

34:43

but you go paralyzed, and it works its way up.

34:45

My mom had it at one point.

34:47

And this was traveling up, and it usually just takes over.

34:50

Sometimes the whole body, and then if you're feeding it enough antibiotics

34:54

and you're doing the blood phoresis and, like, siphoning it out,

35:00

it'll eventually creep back out of the body, okay?

35:03

But it takes weeks.

35:04

My mom was on a ventilator with this stuff.

35:07

And I remember just Jill and I literally crying,

35:10

kneeling on the floor at the side of her bed, just praying.

35:13

And it was working its way up her body,

35:15

and then finally got to about here.

35:18

And then suddenly we're heard from the parents

35:21

that it's going back down.

35:23

And they were, what?

35:26

Suddenly that happened.

35:28

Then suddenly this other guy that had something

35:30

like I had with this ventricular tachycardia,

35:34

and it was not going away, suddenly it's gone.

35:37

And it's not me.

35:38

I'm just saying, God was saying, just get up.

35:42

Stop this, like, boo-hoo, boo.

35:44

Like, what about Ian?

35:45

Well, what about everything else that I want you to be praying for?

35:49

What about everyone else that needs healing?

35:53

I have my own reasons for things, okay?

35:57

Perhaps I got somehow more glory out of what happened

35:59

at his memorial service than any other thing, you know?

36:03

What about that?

36:04

Like, who am I to judge God on one situation

36:08

and say, all right, that's my go-to example

36:12

of why God won't do it this time?

36:15

Or won't do it next time?

36:17

Like, you know, that is impoverished thinking.

36:21

That's wrong thinking.

36:22

We have to believe what God can and will do today

36:26

and expect that he wants to.

36:29

Why should we judge him and say,

36:31

oh, you probably don't want to do this, Lord?

36:34

You know, why not just trust that he will do it

36:38

and wants to do it and believe that he will?

36:42

There's been just so many examples.

36:43

You know, I was thinking, and I'm like, so many examples

36:46

aren't even healing, but I'm thinking, wow.

36:48

You know, it could just go on and on and on.

36:51

My own mother was a beautiful thing.

36:56

And so she was in the hospital.

36:58

She was always on her oxygen tank.

37:00

She was like blue.

37:02

And I'm like, you know, I'm just thinking,

37:04

she can't make it through this, you know?

37:06

And I said, Mom, can I pray for you?

37:08

And I prayed.

37:09

All of a sudden, she was off the tank the next day.

37:11

She still slept with it.

37:12

But she was off the tank.

37:15

And she's telling my whole family, Chris prayed for me

37:17

and my lungs haven't felt this good in 10 years.

37:20

And I'm like, what?

37:22

You know, because he still wants to do it today.

37:25

You know, Ken and Debbie gave such amazing examples,

37:29

like amazing examples on Friday night

37:32

that it can go on and on and on.

37:34

And giving examples of, I love the one you were sharing,

37:37

how you, you know, she had one issue.

37:40

You asked more questions.

37:42

And she revealed something that was going on in her life.

37:45

You prayed for that other situation in her life,

37:48

which was a relationship.

37:50

And suddenly she was healed from her physical issue.

37:53

Like what?

37:54

Like, you know, God knows.

37:56

God knows what he wants to do, even here today.

38:01

You know, can I just see a raise of hands?

38:03

How many people here have been healed?

38:07

Jerry Dover, you better, do you have five arms?

38:09

You better, right?

38:12

I mean, I know I have, you know?

38:14

I mean, Jerry Dover, five cancers healed from, right?

38:19

I mean, we've all been healed.

38:21

And you know what?

38:22

We also don't even know the things that we were healed from

38:24

that we didn't know we had.

38:25

He already took them away.

38:27

It's like, you know, he just removed them.

38:29

There's so many things.

38:30

All of you have been healed from things.

38:33

And I'm just going to invite, with the balance of our time,

38:37

Brie and Jake, if you guys would come up.

38:40

And, oh, and Josiah's going to bless us with,

38:44

he's joining the group.

38:47

All right, let's give Josiah a little.

38:51

Now a trio.

38:53

Wasn't that a great duo, though?

38:55

That was awesome.

38:56

But, you know, like, let's expect he wants to do something here today.

39:03

He wants to bring healing, you know?

39:06

And if you already say, yeah, but this is too complicated for God,

39:10

you know it isn't, okay?

39:12

He can do whatever he wants.

39:15

He has designed you.

39:16

He knows every hair on your head,

39:19

mine decreasing as each day goes by.

39:22

And he knows everything going on in your body.

39:25

He knows where it is.

39:26

He knows how to fix you.

39:29

You know, he made you.

39:30

He designed you.

39:31

He knows how to fix you.

39:33

And perhaps today he wants to do this

39:36

just to even boost your faith so that you will go out there

39:40

and pray for others for healing.

39:43

Because, you know, we're all his hands and feet.

39:45

We're all called to do this.

39:47

Just like he said before he left, he goes,

39:50

you know, you will do these things that I've done.

39:52

These signs and wonders will follow you.

39:55

You will lay hands on the sick, and they will be healed.

39:58

This is going to happen.

40:01

This is going to happen.

40:08

So let's worship for a moment,

40:10

and we're just going to prepare ourselves,

40:12

and we're going to invite you guys to receive healing.

40:19

And we're going to keep it right now

40:21

specifically to physical healing.

40:25

Deliverance can be a little more complicated in this setting, you know.

40:31

Perhaps, though, in your heart,

40:32

you want to be delivered from a spirit, an evil spirit,

40:36

you know, that keeps tormenting you.

40:38

You know, he can do that here and now as well.

40:41

He can cast it out.

40:42

Maybe that's part of the reason you're sick.

40:44

You know, we see that again and again in Scripture

40:46

that we actually get sick because of the spirit

40:49

that is tormenting us.

40:52

I've had a tormenting spirit, you know, not possessed.

40:55

I was a believer, but I still was tormented.

40:58

And I suddenly realized, this isn't me.

41:02

These aren't even my thoughts.

41:05

Something has latched on to me.

41:08

Something is telling me these things,

41:11

and this voice isn't coming from within.

41:14

It's coming from without.

41:15

It's out there, and I'm hearing it.

41:19

I don't know how it's getting here,

41:21

but I have to just identify what it is and label it.

41:24

This is a demonic attack from the enemy.

41:30

But I believe the Lord wants to heal us today,

41:33

right here, right now.

41:35

We're going to ask the Lord to do that.

41:38

Let's just sing a measure or two and prepare.

41:47

Thanks for joining us at Lansdale Life Church

41:50

as we praise God and discuss His Word.

41:53

Don't forget to join us for Worship Lives Sunday mornings

41:56

at 10 a.m. Eastern on YouTube.

42:00

Be blessed and have a great day!