MISSIONS BEGIN
ACTS 13:1-12
ACTS OUTLINE
• But you will receive power when the Holy
Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my
witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and
Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8
• Acts 1-7: Jerusalem
• Acts 8-12: Judea & Samaria
• Acts 13-28: To the end of the earth
SERVANT LEADERS
• Now there were in the church at
Antioch prophets and teachers,
Barnabas, Simeon who was called
Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a
lifelong friend of Herod the tetrarch,
and Saul. Acts 13:1
A WORSHIPING PRAYING CHURCH
IS A MISSIONARY CHURCH
• While they were worshiping the Lord
and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set
apart for me Barnabas and Saul for
the work to which I have called
them.” Then after fasting and praying
they laid their hands on them and
sent them off. Acts 13:2-3
GOD’S WORD NOT OPINION
• So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit,
they went down to Seleucia, and
from there they sailed to Cyprus.
When they arrived at Salamis, they
proclaimed the word of God in the
synagogues of the Jews. And they
had John to assist them. Acts 13:4-5
GOD PREPARES PEOPLE TO HEAR
BUT ALWAYS OPPOSITION
• When they had gone through the whole island
as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain
magician, a Jewish false prophet named BarJesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius
Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned
Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the
word of God. But Elymas the magician (for
that is the meaning of his name) opposed
them, seeking to turn the proconsul away
from the faith. Acts 13:6-8
ONE PERSON IS THAT
IMPORTANT TO GOD
• But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the
Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You
son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness,
full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop
making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?
And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon
you, and you will be blind and unable to see the
sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness
fell upon him, and he went about seeking people
to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul
believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he
was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Acts 13:9-12
WHY EVANGELIZE?
• True for you but not true for me!
• Who are you to judge?
• You bigoted intolerant fundamentalists are
always forcing your religion on others!
• You should be more tolerant of others!
• Why don’t you just mind your own business!
CURRENT AMERICAN CULTURE
RELATIVE VS. ABSOLUTE
• Relative: Religion, morals, values
– Subjective preference: ice cream & sports
– Neither true nor false
• Absolute: Math, science, technology
– Objective truth: insulin, 2+2=4
– Either true or false
• The denial of truth does not remove it.
“ERAS OF TRUTH”
• The objective foundation for truth, morals,
meaning, purpose, and value:
– Premodernism – is found in God
– Modernism – is found in man, nature, reason, and
science
– Postmodernism – does not exist (relativism)
TRUTH VS. RELATIVISM
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Objective vs. Subjective
Absolute vs. Relative
Universal vs. Local
Knowable vs. Unknowable
Prescriptive vs. Descriptive
Discovered vs. Invented
From God vs. From man
TYPES OF RELATIVISM
• Subjective Cultural relativism
– Society/Culture says relativism
• Subjective Individual relativism
– I say relativism
SUBJECTIVE CULTURAL RELATIVISM
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Truth is reduced to power
No immoral societies/cultures
No immoral laws
No moral reform
Missionaries are unethical criminals
SUBJECTIVE INDIVIDUAL RELATIVISM
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Pleasure and personal preference = truth
No one and nothing is wrong
Evil doesn’t exist
Cannot place blame or accept praise
Cannot make charges of unfairness or injustice
Cannot make moral improvement
Cannot have moral discussions or disputes
Cannot obligate anything
WHY EVANGELIZE?
• The Bible is absolute, objective, universal
truth
• All people are equally important & valuable &
have an eternal destiny depending on their
relationship to Jesus Christ
• God commands it
• It honors and glorifies God
EVANGELISM METHOD
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Defend the Christian faith – your words and life
Pray for persuasion – HOLY SPIRIT
Care about people
And we impart this in words not taught by human
wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting
spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. 14 The
natural person does not accept the things of the
Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is
not able to understand them because they are
spiritually discerned. 1 Cor 2:13-14
EVANGELISM METHOD
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Demonstrate interest
Explain your faith
Furnish answers
Expose their presuppositions – worldview
– How do you know that?
– Why do you believe that?
– “Ask Them Why”, Jay Lucas
• Navigate through his errors: A – I – P
• Direct him to Christ
UNBELIEVER’S ERRORS
• Arbitrary – unjustified belief
– Opinion
– Unargued worldview bias
– Prejudicial conjecture
• Inconsistent – cannot live their worldview
– Behavioral
– Logical
• Preconditions for knowledge – no justification
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Uniformity of nature
Laws of logic
Reliability of our senses
Reliability of our memory
Universal moral standard
PRECONDITIONS FOR KNOWLEDGE
UNIVERSAL, ABSOLUTE, IMMATERIAL
• Justified only by the Christian worldview
– Uniformity of nature: operational science
– Laws of logic: rational reasoning
– Reliability of our senses: reliable observation
– Reliability of our memory: useable knowledge
– Universal moral standard: moral values and duties
• Impossibility of the contrary
– If the Christian worldview was not true, you could
not know anything.
DIRECT THEM TO CHRIST
• “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one
comes to the Father except through me”.
John 14:6
• For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is
eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23
• if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and
believe in your heart that God raised him from the
dead, you will be saved. Romans 10:9
• For by grace you have been saved through faith. And
this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a
result of works, so that no one may boast.
Ephesians 2:8-9
SUBJECTIVE OPINION OR
OBJECTIVE TRUTH?
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Temple, Texas is the best place to live
Nell’s bread pudding is the best
We should all cheer for the Texas Longhorns
Sex outside of marriage is immoral
Marriage is an unconditional lifetime commitment
Elective abortions are immoral
The One Triune God exists
Faith in Jesus Christ is the only way to God
All people will live forever in either heaven or hell
dependi