Acts 10_ 1-15      Barriers or Bridges?

Rev. David Holwick   I                    The Church You've Longed For, #3

First Baptist Church

Ledgewood, New Jersey

March 4, 2007

Acts 10:1-15


BARRIERS OR BRIDGES?



  I. Churches can be the worst.

      A. Musical pews.

          1) (Have everyone switch pews after shaking hands)

          2) Do you feel uncomfortable now?


      B. We stick to our own.

          1) We are most comfortable sitting by family and friends.

              a) I notice that some families are still sitting together

                    in spite of my command!

              b) Sometimes it reflects something more sinister:

                 Billy Graham notes that 11 a.m. Sunday morning is the

                    most segregated hour in America.

          2) Human nature is to want to hang around people just like us.

              a) Church growth principle: homogeneity.

                  1> Churches with people from the same background will

                        grow the most easily.

              b) Jesus principle: love everybody - even if I have to make

                    you.


      C. Every church sends out unconscious signals.

          1) What we really believe and stand for.

              a) Who we want to be here.

              b) According to Thomas Hammond, one reason churches fail

                    to make a good impression on first-timers is because

                       they focus on the wrong things.

                 Pastors devote considerable time to preparing Sunday

                    morning sermons.

                 But research shows most visitors decide whether to

                    return to the church in the first 10 to 12 minutes,

                       long before the sermon's delivery.

                 The decision is based on such factors as building

                    appearance and the friendliness of greeters.

                 The truth is most Christians aren't prepared to be

                    welcoming.

                 Hammond says, "We tend to stop brotherly love within

                    the four walls of the church," he said.

                                                                   #30615

          2) Do we believe in Jesus?

              a) Do we want HIM to be here?

              b) If so, we should be open to all his children.


      D. Reflection or transformation.

          1) We are not to mirror society, but transform it.

          2) The church down here must look like the church up there.

          3) We have to decide if we are going to be barriers or bridges.


II. How the early church broke down barriers.

      A. Divine intervention.   (Peter and Cornelius)             10:1-35

          1) Excellent example of how God molded the early church.

              a) Whether they liked it or not!

          2) Background: Jewish exclusivism.

              a) Jews had strict rules, and only associated with Jews.

              b) Gentiles, like the Romans, were unclean.

                  1> It didn't help that Romans were an occupying

                        force too.

              c) Christians were mostly former Jews.

                  1> They still followed the Jewish system, but believed

                        in Jesus as the Messiah.

                  2> They also knew they had a mission to reach the

                        world.

                      A> But they were avoiding this for the time being.

              d) Peter's dilemma.

                  1> He was a Jewish Christian.

                  2> But he was liberated enough to live with a tanner

                        (an unclean profession, to a Jew).

                  3> Would he be able to stretch himself more?

          3) God makes some calls.

              a) First he gives a vision to Cornelius, who responds

                    quickly and positively: "What is it, Lord?"     10:4

              b) Then God gives a vision to Peter, who responds

                    quickly and negatively: "Surely not, Lord!"     10:14

          4) God does not show favorites, and neither should we.

              a) Cornelius and his friends get saved before Peter

                    even finishes his sermon!                       10:44

              b) Be open to God's leading in reaching out to new

                    people.


      B. Reasoning from the Bible.  (James & Jerusalem council)  15:13-15

          1) Successful outreach to Gentiles caused dissension.

          2) The church called a council in Jerusalem.

              a) They heard the complaints.

              b) They heard Paul describe his results.

              c) James, the brother of Jesus, appealed to the Bible.

          3) Results - there would be no barriers to Gentiles.


      C. Affirmative action.   (Greek helpers for Greek widows)   6:1-5

          1) Even among Jewish Christians there were tensions.

              a) Different ethnic groups in church felt neglected.

          2) Their solution - let the neglected group make it right.

              a) (All the deacons had Greek names, not Hebrew ones)

          3) To break down some barriers, we need to be creative.

              a) Hear legitimate complaints.

              b) Do something to make it right.


      D. Positive outreach.   (Philip and Ethiopian eunuch)       8:27-38

          1) On a chance encounter, Deacon Philip witnessed to a royal

                official from Ethiopia.

          2) The man had a Bible question, and Philip used it to lead

                him to Christ.

          3) Don't squander the opportunities God sends us!


          A church newsletter mentioned a man who visited 18 different

              churches on successive Sundays.

          He was trying to find out what the churches were really like.


          He sat near the front.

          After the service, he walked slowly to the rear, then returned

             to the front and went back to the foyer using another aisle.

          He smiled and was neatly dressed.

          He asked one person to direct him to a specific place: a

             fellowship hall, the pastor's study, etc.

          He remained for coffee if served.


          The man used a scale to rate the reception he received.

             He awarded points on the following basis:


                  10 for a smile from a worshiper

                  10 for a greeting from someone sitting nearby

                 100 for an exchange of names

                 200 for an invitation to have coffee

                 200 for an invitation to return

                1000 for an introduction to another worshiper

                2000 for an invitation to meet the pastor


          On this scale, 11 of the 18 churches earned fewer than 100

             points.

          Five actually received less than 20.  (less than one smile and

             a greeting!)


          The conclusion: The doctrine may be biblical, the singing

             inspirational, the sermon uplifting --

          But when a visitor finds nobody who cares whether he's here,

             he is not likely to come back.

                                                                   #34114


III. Are you a barrier or a bridge?

      A. Barriers thwart people.

          1) Unfriendliness communicates rejection.


      B. Bridges connect people.

          1) Alaska's $200 million "Bridge to Nowhere".


                Not as dumb as it seems.


                There is very little on the other side, but it is the

                   only area where the city can expand.

                But there has to be a bridge.

          2) People can be bridges.


             Chuck Colson will always be remembered for being the

                convicted Watergate criminal who found Jesus.

             Shortly after his conversion, a friend took him to a Bible

                study of Christian leaders in Washington, D.C.


             One in the group, former Democratic Senator Harold Hughes,

                came from a liberal background and would have nothing

                   to do with Colson because he remembered him as

                      "Nixon's hatchet man."

             A Christian leader who had spent some time with Colson

                knew that he had made a genuine commitment to Christ.

             But some in this group were not as ready to buy his story.


             A meeting was arranged, and when Colson and his Christian

                friend arrived he was given quite a grilling.

             He wasn't sure at first if he would be accepted.

             Finally, they became convinced, much like Peter and his

                Jewish friends were persuaded about Cornelius and his

                   guests.


             As the acceptance developed into friendship, their

                relationships deepened.

             Seeing that one of Colson's children was struggling with

                him being in prison, one of these men, a former governor,

                   offered to serve some of Colson's prison term so he

                      could be released to spend time with his child.

             That's the kind of love that was a distinguishing mark of

                first-century Christians.

             And it should be evident in our churches as well.

                                                                   #34257


IV. Jesus is the ultimate bridge.                          1 Timothy 2:5


         "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men,

             the man Christ Jesus."


      A. He is the bridge to connect us with our Heavenly Father.


      B. He is the bridge who can connect us with each other.



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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:


#30615  "Too Many Church Guests Are Ignored Or Treated As Outsiders,"

           by Ken Walker, Baptist Press, http://www.baptistpress.org,

           February 16, 2006.


#34114  "Rating Churches," Wit And Wisdom at http://www.witandwisdom.org

           by Richard G. Wimer, January 22, 2007.  Original source:

           Laugh & Lift.


#34257  "Nixon's Hatchet Man Finds Fellowship," by Lud Gotz (augmented

           with material from Internet sources).  50-Day Adventure:

           The Church You've Always Longed For (pastor's manual).

           Sermon: Welcoming All People.  Mainstay Church Ministries.


These and 30,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be

downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html

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