The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number believed, and turned unto the Lord.And the hand of the Lord was with them: and a great number that believed turned unto the Lord.
3 sermons cite this verse
… all peoples, regardless of race, regardless of where they are. And that unleashes the early church in Acts chapter 11 through 28 to go to the ends of the earth. Acts chapter 11, verse 19 through 21 gives us a picture of the church at Antioch as they began to take the gospel to the Gentiles, to the people who were not like them. And when they did that, the Bible says the Lord's hand was with them and used them throughout the rest of this book to take the gospel to the ends of the earth. From Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, to the ends of the earth, both and. they didn't separate either we're going to share the gospel here or there. Jesus was serious about the church's responsibility to affect the entire world with the gospel. And I'm convinced we have lost sight of this today. And we've missed the picture that's being unfolded here. And we have distinguished between the two. And I'm convinced it's one of the main reasons our churches today don't look like the church in the book of Acts. And I'm convinced also the church in Acts would not stand for the lack of gospel penetration to the world that's going on through the churches today. I don't know of any church, I'm not saying there's not one out there, but I don't know of a church that has a strategy to impact the world with the gospel and is carrying that out. And what I want us to do is I want us to look at two different facets. Number one, …
… Circle every time you see a mentioned number. Look in Acts chapter 11, verse 21. The Lord's hand was with them, and a great what? A great number of people believed and turned to the Lord. Look down in verse 24, talking about Barnabas. It says Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord. Verse 25 says Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him, he brought him back to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. So Luke's pretty intentional here, but it doesn't stop there. Turn over to Acts chapter 14. Look at Acts chapter 14, verse 1. Paul and Barnabas come to a place called Iconium. They preach the gospel there. Listen to what happens. Acts chapter 14, verse 1 says, at Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue, and there they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed. Same chapter, look at verse 21. …
… I can't save anybody. But look at Acts 11, verse 21. and the hand of the Lord was with them. And a great number believed and turned to the Lord. So I'm encouraged that the impossible thing God has called us to do is possible, but only through the mighty outstretched arm of the Lord our God. And I sort of just, I just sort of pictured Jabez in the mirror looking at his puny arm and going, with this that you've done for me, God, I can't. How can I? There's no way, right? It reminds me of this quote from J. Hudson Taylor, the great missionary to China. He said, unless there is an element of risk in our exploits for God, there is no need for faith. If God called you to do something that is within your power, and you have the resources, and you have the skill, and you have the gift, guess what? You don't need faith, so you don't even need him. So just go on and do your little thing. …