Something Different (Part Three)

NOTES FROM A SERMON PRESENTED BY DR. GREG SLOOP AT THE KANNAPOLIS CHURCH OF GOD. FOR VIDEO OF SERVICES, GO TO THE CHURCH WEBSITE, HTTP://WWW.KCOG.ORG, AND CLICK ON THE LIVESTREAM LINK TO VIEW LIVE OR FOR A REPLAY OF THE SERVICES. YOU MAY ALSO WATCH LIVE OR A REPLAY ON the DR. Greg SLOOP FACEBOOK PAGE. FOR AUDIO OF THE SERVICES, GO To THE WEBSITE, kcog.org, AND CLICK ON THE MEDIA PAGE.

February 26, 2023

July 17, 2022

1 When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Acts 2:1–4 (NKJV)

• REVIEW
• When the fullness of time came, God fulfilled the promise of the Holy Spirit in Joel 2:28-29 and in Acts 1:8. What did the people of God do to invite the Holy Spirit?
  • They were in unity
  • They were together
  • They were listening for God
  • They anticipated and welcomed the Presence of God
  • They were purified by the Fire of the Spirit

• They were filled with the Holy Spirit
• They spoke with tongues
• The Spirit gave the utterance

•5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language. 7 Then they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Look, are not all these who speak Galileans?

8 And how is it that we hear, each in our own language in which we were born? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites, those dwelling in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya adjoining Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, 11 Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own tongues the wonderful works of God.”

12 So they were all amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “Whatever could this mean?”

13 Others mocking said, “They are full of new wine.”

Acts 2:5–13 (NKJV)

• A Universal Message
• Reaching Everyone
• Astonishing Happenings
• Awe at the Work of God
• Questions
• Mocking
• Speculation

•14 But Peter, standing up with the eleven, raised his voice and said to them, “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words. 15 For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.•16 ut of My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. 18 And on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days; and they shall prophesy.

Acts 2:14–18 (NKJV)

• Remember the prophets (From Dr. Ricky Moore):
• A. Messenger. “Thus saith so and so” is the same formula that is used in statecraft. As a messenger the prophet is one who speaks for someone else.
• B. Poet. We think of “prose discourse” which is not the language of politics yet the prophets used as their primary feature of speech such forms as imagery, puns, symbols, poetic speech, and the language of the imagination. See The Prophetic Imagination, by Brueggeman. The poetry of the prophets is provocative. It is geared not so much to give information, but to provoke transformation.
• C. Madman. There are many references that relate (Hosea 9:7; 2 kings 9:11; Jeremiah 23:9; 29 allusion to every madman who prophesies; Saul in Samuel). The prophet got a vision of another world. All of a sudden in an instant Isaiah recognized that the world the he thought just moments before was alright was now crazy. After a vision like that you are ruined (woe is me). Tradition says that you cannot see God and live. What looked crazy is now sane. The prophet was lifted up into God’s sanity. Hosea was told to marry a prostitute and Isaiah was told to take his clothes off. How did they look to family and to self?
• D. A Martyr. Abraham Heshel, author of The Prophets, has a relentless focus that you will not understand the prophets without pathos (grief). Jeremiah’s grief was against people and God. With anger it is us against them, but grief gets to the point where everything got poured out like wine. It is like the prophet is raised up to be the sacrifice. The prophet’s died because they said exile is coming. They were written off as madmen because the people did not want to listen. Their killing them was a sign of how serious they took the prophets. The prophet does not have the privilege of telling everyone they are going to be judged because the prophet went into exile first.

• (From Dr. Leroy Martin)
• 1. Ex. 7 points out the essence of being a messenger. God said to Moses that I’m going to give you a message and Aaron will speak for you.
• 2. Three thoughts on the work of the prophet:
  • A. Patriots, but protestors. YHWH was the national God of Israel. The prophets had a message to speak to the nation. They were protestors in that they would denounce the king when necessary. They were certainly social critics and reformers attacking the aristocracy abuses of their day.
  • B. Watchmen, but weepers (Ez. 3:17; Isa 62:6; Jeremiah 6:17). As watchmen nothing could pass by their gaze. They pointed out error seeing the sin everywhere, but they were weepers. They were not unfeeling people (Jeremiah 9:1-2; Isaiah 22 “I will weep bitterly,” in Psalms).
  • C. Timely, but timeless. Timely in that they were preachers and teachers to their own generations for their day, time, and people. They had a valid message for practical guidance for the day they lived. They were current, but visionaries and heralds of a future idea (utopia or messianic age). They went beyond where we are today in their visions. See Isa 7:14 which met a need at that time that was totally unrelated to Jesus, but there was also a message for another generation later.