“A Surrendered Team”
Part 4 of series
STRONGER TOGETHER
Acts 11-15
INTRODUCTION:
A. In recent years we have seen an ever-escalating war for talent. Case in point: Ever hear of Face Book? Of course, nearly ever body has, unless… Let me ask you, ever hear of Friend Feed? Not too many…unless you remember back in 2009 when billionaire and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg paid about $50 million to purchase Friend Feed, a technology site for social media much like Face Book. The high price that Zuckerberg was willing to pay equated to $4 million per employee. Zuckerberg wasn’t buying the technology of Friend Feed, but their talent. By buying out the company the gifted employees of Friend Feed would be working for him.
B. There is an ever-escalating war for talent. It’s true in the field of technology, and we see it in field of professional sports.
1. Example of 2016 Kansas City Royals winning the World Series.
Teams are a huge part of our culture. We have our favorite sports teams, from professionally-ranked teams, to the teams on which our children and grandchildren play. Management teams and finance teams are a part of a workplace. There are special-ops teams in the military and advisory teams to the President. There are teams all around us, and frankly, there needs to be a team—a surrendered team—in the local church. To be a part of a surrendered church, we need a surrendered team within the church—a surrendered team of leaders.
D. Jesus led such a team. They were his disciples, a bunch of young guys who laid their lives down for Christ. When Jesus called His disciples, He probably formed a team of consisting primarily of young guys. Have you ever thought about how old the original disciples may have been? Though the New Testament doesn’t tell us their ages, a number of scholars speculate that His disciples were younger than Him. Luke tells us that Jesus was around thirty years old when He began His public ministry (Luke 3:23). James and John worked with their father, Zebedee, in the family fishing business. Formal education for most boys ended at age fifteen, when they went to work, typically doing vocationally what they learned from their fathers. It’s possible that James and John were in their late teens, some believe they were 18-21, when they became followers of Jesus. As well, Jesus referred to His 12 disciples as “little children” three times, perhaps referring to their young age (see Matthew 11:25, Luke 10:21, John 13:33). Certainly their behavior throughout the Gospels reflected youthful thinking at times.
Yet, it wasn’t long before His team of younger guys became a team of surrendered leaders. Those young men sacrificed what was safe and sure for that which was uncertain and deadly. Instead of being in their family fishing businesses in Bethsaida (i.e., house of fish), they opted to lead their nation into a new belief that Jesus was the Messiah. The Apostle Paul gave up a promising career as a rising star in the scholastic world of Judaism. The disciples of Jesus surrendered themselves even to the extent of putting their lives on the line. Some of them were put in prison, while others were put to death. It looks like they took seriously the words of Jesus: “If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow after Me” (Luke 9:23). Jesus formed a team of leaders; leaders who surrendered their lives to what mattered most – and that was making Jesus Christ known. They took seriously the mandate to go and make disciples of all nations! Because of their surrendered lives, we ourselves have come to know Christ! The local church will never be a surrendered church, as we talked about the last two Sundays, unless it is led by surrendered leaders!
So, what does it take to form and to develop a surrendered team? What does a surrendered team of leaders in the church look like? We find answers to those questions by taking a look at such a team in Acts 15.
I . The Context
A. Now, to understand what is going on in our text in Acts 15, we need to see the background, the context, and remember, when reading and studying the Bible, it’s always CONTEXT before CONTENT! Earlier, in Acts 11, the leaders of the church in Jerusalem sent Barnabas to Antioch—who in turn recruited the Apostle Paul—and the two of them spent a year in Antioch, where Acts 11:21 says “great numbers” of people became disciples of Jesus. Barnabas and Paul poured their lives into this new community of believers. It wasn’t long before the two of them left there, being sent by the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:2).
B. After some time had passed, Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch (Acts 14:26-28) and while they were there, some “teachers” went to Antioch from Judea and told the believers that unless they were circumcised, they could not become proselyte Jews before they could become followers of Christ. There were two opposing ideologies at work in the early church, and there were leaders (i.e., teachers) lining up on both side of the theological divide. There were Messianic Jews who were conservative in their beliefs, teaching that Gentiles had to first become Jews before they could become Christians, and they did that by being circumcised and by following the Law of Moses. Opposing them were the Messianic Jews who were less conservative in their beliefs, teaching that Gentiles had to believe and be immersed to become followers of Christ. This conflict was reaching the state of a crisis when Paul and Barnabas were sent to Jerusalem to get a ruling on this divisive issue from the apostles and elders of the mother church, the original church. Let’s take a look at how they handled the situation, and see if we can catch a glimpse of what it looks like to be a surrendered team of leaders.
II. The Content
Acts 15:4-12
4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.” 6 The apostles and elders met to consider this question. (Referring to the events of Acts 10) 7 After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.” (these new Gentile converts) 12 The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.
A. Notice in the text that leaders of the “circumcision is a must” belief was first presented. Acts 15:5 “Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses." The “party of the Pharisees” refers to the ultra-conservative Messianic Jews. These were the most rigid of the Jews who believed Jesus was Messiah.
B. After they presented their position, Peter presented his position by telling of how Gentile believers received the Holy Spirit, just as they had. Peter was followed by Barnabas and Paul telling the leadership about all of the miracles, signs and wonders that God had performed in the lives of the Gentile believers.
This passage reveals four
III. Core Values Essential To Have a Surrendered Team.
Here is the first key core value absolutely essential to having a surrendered team:
A. It’s pretty obvious that communication was important in solving this impasse and bringing the leadership team together. A surrendered leadership team communicates. We have to talk with one another. Yet, effective communication is one of the most common skills lacking among church leadership teams. Rather than talk with one another, we talk about one another, particularly to other leaders on the team or, God-forbid, even talking about other members of the team in public, in the hearing of unbelievers we’re trying to serve and win to Jesus! Rather than talk with one another, we have make-believe conversations going on in the mind of what we would like to say to another leader in the church.
ILLUSTRATION: POWs during the Vietnam War helped one another survive their captivity in a unique way. Though they were in solitary confinement in what was called “the Hanoi Hilton”, the men encouraged and strengthened one another by tapping on the walls. The North Vietnamese never broke the code, and the code flowed so fluently that the men told one another jokes, with kicks on the wall meaning the guys were laughing. The better the joke, the louder the kicks! And every Sunday, at a coded signal, the men stood and recited the Lord's Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. [Source: Time 7-19-99]
Nothing destroys a team like isolation. When we are cut off and failing to communicate with one another, we are not going to be healthy as a team, let alone be a surrendered team. Like the POWs, we need to be both intentional and creative, making certain that we are communicating with one another as leaders. I would strongly encourage our leaders here to study Ephesians 4:25-27, 29-32 and what Paul teaches about our speech. I don’t have time to read and dissect that passage today, perhaps at another time.
Now, in our text, as they communicated with one another, notice who spoke up.
Acts 15:13
When they finished, James spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me.”
This is pretty significant. James spoke up; James, the half-brother of Jesus. He was also known as James, the Just—“just” because he was very Jewish in his Christianity. Becoming a Messianic Jew, James maintained much of his Jewish beliefs and values. He was very Jewish in his Christianity. James was a godly man, and was described by an historian in the 2nd century as being so devoted to prayer that “his knees were as hard as those of a camel.” History goes on to say that, years later, after this event in Acts 15, James refused to renounce his Christianity, and as a result he was thrown from the top of the temple. The fall did not kill him, and though his injuries were massive, he attempted to verbalize his forgiveness of his assailants when one of them took a club and crushed his skull, ending his earthly life. Because of his unwavering zeal and commitment to Christ, James had became the lead elder of the Church in Jerusalem and he led the church for about 30 years, before his persecution and death. It was during that time that this gathering of leaders took place, here in Acts 15, and to the leaders James said: “Brothers, listen to me.”
The phrase, “listen to me,” is an imperative (i.e., command), and this particular word occurs no where else in the New Testament. It’s an aorist imperative, and James wants the leaders on both sides of the issue to—once and for all—listen to him. They did just that, respecting James as the leader of their team.
B. So then, not only did the leaders in the early church talk with one another, they respected one another—something that absolutely cannot be missing from a team of leaders if they are to be surrendered to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and if the church is to ever be a surrendered church!
ILLUSTRATION – Hajnal Ban is an attorney, living and practicing law in Australia. The five-foot-one Aussie had been made fun of most of her life, and she was convinced her height was the primary reason she wasn't being taken seriously in the professional world. But what do you do about something as seemingly set-in-stone as your height? Attorney Ban found a solution in Russia—albeit a painful one. According to an article in the July 8, 2009 edition of the Times of London, Russian doctors agreed to "break both her legs in four places and stretch them slowly for 1mm every day for nine months." After all the breaking and stretching, Ban then wore plaster casts for three additional months to make the changes permanent. The whole process cost her $40,000 out of her own pocket, and in the end, Ban gained three inches in height, going from 5’1” to 5’ 4”. But more importantly, Ban said she gained respect, quickly pointing out that she was elected as a city councilwoman in Australia. [Source: William Saletan, "Broken Is Beautiful," Slate.com (7-8-09) and Sophie Tedmanson, "Australian councilor, Hajnal Ban, has legs broken to become taller," TimesOnline.co.uk (5-1-09)]
That’s going pretty extreme to be given some respect, and I would hope that we can respect one another without going to such extremes. Leaders then—and now—talk with one another, respect one another, and…James demonstrates a key reason he was respected! Don’t miss this!
Acts 15:15-18
15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written: 16 “‘After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild,and I will restore it, 17 that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things’18 that have been known for ages.
Notice that James, the Just recited a passage from the Old Testament Prophet Amos. James did not pull out the scroll of the Minor Prophets and go searching for some passage that he thought was there, but could not remember it specifically. He didn’t say, “There’s a passage of scripture my grandma used to read to me…” This recitation of Amos 9:11-12 was from his memory, and he used the Scripture to frame his response in resolving the volatile issue at hand. He simply knew the Word well enough to not only quote it, but to challenge the leaders to resolve their conflict according to it.