Becoming a Non-Anxious Church
Acts 4-7
Power vs Influence [Acts 7]
April 28, 2024 • Caleb Martinez • Acts 7
In https://biblia.com/bible/csb/acts%207, a pivotal moment occurs in the story of the church. Stephen faces false accusations from the Jewish high priests and is forced to defend himself in court. But rather than responding with anxiety, he delivers a speech, tracing Jewish history from Abraham to Moses, and emphasizing God’s presence with His people. It’s a brilliant display of his wisdom and knowledge, but more importantly, it’s a lesson to the church today. By highlighting the rejection experienced by Joseph and Moses, Stephen shows us that we are God’s new temple, and we will face the same rejection for our commitment to Jesus. But just like the people mentioned in his speech, we must remain committed to stewarding our influence rather than seeking more power. When we commit to loving and serving our enemies, practicing the way of Jesus together in community, facing persecution with hope and endurance, and seeking influence rather than power, we serve as God’s new temple, representing his true character to the world around us.
The Myth of Comfort
April 21, 2024 • Trey Van Camp • Acts 6
Many of us fall into the trap of believing the myth of comfort: if something goes wrong, we must be doing something wrong. We falsely assume that if we’re doing the right things, we won’t face suffering, opposition, or conflict of any kind. But in https://biblia.com/bible/we/acts%206 see why this is a myth. As it grows, the early church faces conflict. There’s complaining within the church and persecution outside the church. But rather than giving up on those around them or giving in to those around them, the church endures internal resistance and external persecution. By learning to abandon the myth of comfort, we too can become non-anxious in the face of resistance.
Failure of Heart or Failure of Nerve
April 14, 2024 • Caleb Martinez • Acts 5
To follow the way of Jesus in today’s age will often put us at odds with those around us. Our convictions and beliefs are seen as archaic at best, and dangerous at worst. Like the early church, the world around us will pressure us to cave to its own ideals, and then blame us when things go wrong. And more often than not, when faced with this blame, we react poorly. Most of us will fall into two temptations; some of us will give into a failure of heart. We’ll lose our connectedness and love for those around us, especially those who resist us. Or we’ll give in to a failure of nerve. We’ll cave to the pressure and anxiety around us, and bypass the calling God has for us. To counter these temptations, we can learn from Peter and the apostles in https://biblia.com/bible/csb/acts%205. After being miraculously freed from prison for preaching and demonstrating the gospel, the apostles resist a failure of heart and nerve by moving in proximity to those they’re called to serve, staying true to their message, and relying on God to continue saving them.
Sharing Christ in a Post-Christian Culture
April 7, 2024 • Trey Van Camp • Acts 4:1–22
Until Acts 4, the beginning of the church experienced miraculous success. People joined the church daily, shared what they had with one another, and gained more and more favor with outsiders. But in Acts 4, all of that changes. Suddenly confronted with the gospel truth, Jewish leaders give in to their anxiety and start harassing the disciples. Peter and John are forced into court, interrogated, and threatened. But instead of toning down their message, they get bolder. Peter remains a stable non-anxious presence amidst the fear of the culture around him. Our culture is much the same today. And like Peter we also have a choice; we can either tone down our message, or get bolder in proclaiming it. By reminding ourselves that Christ is our cornerstone, we too can remain non-anxious and continue spreading the good news with those around us.