Genuine Worship

Reading from Acts 14, starting at verse 8. Now at Lystra, there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was crippled from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul speaking, and Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to be made well, said in a loud voice, "Stand upright on your feet." And he sprang up and began walking.

And when the crowd saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices saying in Lycaonian, "The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men." Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd crying out, "Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men of like nature with you."

"And we bring you good news that you should turn from these vain things to a living God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations, He allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. Yet He did not leave Himself without witness, for He did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness." Even with these words, they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifice to them. But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, they stoned Peter and, sorry, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.

This is the word of the Lord. Something that you guys probably do not know about me is that I really enjoy geeking out about technology. I love it when there's a new gizmo, a new phone, a new laptop that utilises cool new technology. And this was especially true with smartphones in the early years for me. I still remember the giddy amazement that I had when I had an old flip phone with a four megapixel camera.

And then in the 2010 era, I got a new phone with 12 megapixels. And you actually had to zoom in to see the pixels. They weren't all there like the four megapixel camera of old. And the 2010 era was a good era for smartphones. They had newer and better screens that were brighter, bigger.

All these things were very, very exciting. And I was really excited when I came across a new Chinese phone, and this brand claimed that they would rival both Apple and Samsung. They claimed to have a great camera, a sleek design, a fingerprint scanner, which was brand new at that stage in time. And best of all, which made my Dutch heart so happy, was a third of the price compared to these other brands. And long story short, I ordered it very quickly.

It was being shipped internationally, and I was like a little kid on December 24. Just couldn't wait for my package to arrive. And it did. It came. It looked great.

I opened it up. And by the end of the first week, our friends, I was devastated. Absolutely devastated. The fingerprint scanner, it worked about every fourth or fifth time that I tried to use it. The camera over-processed all the photos and none of them looked natural or nice.

And the battery life, it was nothing to write home about. Because it was an international phone, even calls would just drop out at random stages. Friends, I was taken in. The company had completely pulled the wool over my eyes. They had caught me with their beautiful website, with their overhyped claims, and with their fake five star reviews.

You see, instead of getting this state of the art high-tech phone, I was left with a dud, a complete fake. You see, my time, my energy, and my affections were misplaced, and I paid the price for it. And we see something very similar happening here in this passage this morning. We see the city of Lystra misdirect their time, their energy, and their affections, ultimately misdirecting their worship towards false gods instead of the one true God. Let's see how the story unfolds here in Acts.

First up, we see God's power is on display. Please read verses 8 to 10 with me. It says, "In Lystra, there sat a man who was lame. He had been that way from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul as long as he was speaking.

Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed, and called out, 'Stand up on your feet.' At that, the man jumped up and began to walk." What an amazing miracle. A lame man was healed and restored to full health. And it's amazing.

We know it's amazing because we see that the whole city erupts in excitement. All of Lystra is so excited that this man, lame from birth, is walking around. But why? Why did Paul heal this lame man? Did he simply have pity on him?

Did he want to display his healing powers before he started his clinic down the road so people would come and give him lots of money? Did he want fame and fortune by this miracle, or is there something deeper happening here? We find our answer five verses earlier in verse 3. It says that Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there speaking boldly for the Lord who confirmed the message of His grace by enabling them to perform signs and miracles. You see, it was to confirm the message that they brought.

Paul and Barnabas, they were on a missionary journey going from city to city, and we see a very interesting pattern that they have. They would go into a city, they would preach the gospel to the people of that city, and then they'd have two responses. Some would believe and be added to their numbers, and then others would turn against them and try to kill them. And at that stage, Paul and Barnabas would go to the next city. And this was the pattern that we keep seeing here in Acts on their missionary journey.

Thankfully, our missionaries don't follow this structure anymore. They tend to not be, well, sometimes not be killed. But Paul and Barnabas here has a message, a message that Jesus saves sinners, and that is what they are taking into the city of Lystra. And the miracles they perform are there to confirm the message. It was always and should always be about God's message of salvation.

Now I don't want to go too far off track, but since this passage talks about miracles, it does beg the question, should we still expect miracles today? And let's just do a quick tangent on this. As Christians, we believe that God is all powerful and that He is the creator of both heavens and earth. And therefore, yes, we can expect that God is still able to step into our world and do the supernatural, to do miracles. Some of you here would know Clinton Barron, who used to be the pastor at Redlands, who was diagnosed with cancer, and the doctor said there was nothing that they could do for him.

And yet, God intervened, and he is still serving in ministry decades after that diagnosis. Our heavenly Father is able to step in and do the supernatural, and we should still pray to our heavenly Father and bring all things before Him even when we need a miracle. That being said, I believe that when we look at scripture and our lived experience, that the awesome power of God and the supernatural miracles are primarily reserved for the frontiers of mission where God's word is going out, breaking new ground. You just have to go talk to missionaries, and I'm sure that you'll hear that they see miracles and supernatural occurrences much more regularly than we do. And it's because they're at the front line where the kingdom of God is breaking into the kingdom of darkness.

In countries where there is no knowledge of God and His salvation and where the signs and miracles still affirm the message that is brought to the people. And as we think and talk about miracles, this is the most important thing for us to remember. It's the crux of the matter. It's the reality that the miracle here where this lame man is healed and where he can walk and jump and go around doing all these marvellous things, this is but a temporary solution. This lame man will still grow old.

This man will still suffer the consequences of sin and death. His body will eventually wither away again. The true miracle here is that there is a message that allows people to pass from spiritual death to spiritual life, from darkness to light, from standing condemned before a holy, holy, holy God, and to be brought and bought and reconciled to Him, to be adopted as one of His children. Brothers and sisters, let's not forget that the biggest miracle here is where hearts of stone are turned into hearts of flesh. Friends, may God's gospel message dwell richly in our hearts today, tomorrow, and for the rest of our lives.

The miracle of salvation with us each and every day as we see God at work in our lives. You see, in the first few verses, we see God's power on display through the healing of the lame man. Next, we see a city that responds with misdirected worship in verses 11 to 13. The miracle is very effective. We read again if you look in verse 11 that it says, "When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, 'The gods have come down in human form.'"

They thought that Paul and Barnabas were Zeus and Hermes. This is a very unique response. We don't see any of the other Greek cities respond like this at all. And I will admit, I was puzzled to think why here in Lystra do we have this very unique response where they assume that the Greek gods have come down to be amongst them. And the commentaries have been really helpful in providing some historical background that I think helps explain their response here.

There is an ancient Greek poet named Ovid who wrote poems and published them about fifty years before Paul and Barnabas had arrived in Lystra. And here, Ovid recounts many of the Greek and Roman myths. And one of these poems was about Zeus and Hermes coming disguised as normal mere mortal men around or near to the city of Lystra. And they would go around from house to house asking for hospitality, and then again and again and again, the people would turn them away until finally, an elderly couple welcomed them into their humble home and provided them the best that they had with food and drink and hospitality. And then after a while of entertaining their guests, Zeus and Hermes dropped their disguises, and they revealed who they really were.

And they blessed the elderly couple. Instead of a humble home, that was turned into a grand and beautiful temple. And so there's a strong likelihood that this being a story that originated here around Lystra, that two strange random men coming, speaking about God and His kingdom, would remind them of this poem that they knew. And straight away, they would have thought, this must be it. The gods have returned. Look, it's Zeus.

It's Hermes. They're here again. We're not going to make the same mistake the others did. We're going to invite them in. We're going to show them great hospitality.

And friends, just place yourself in their shoes. They have this story, this poem of the gods who came. They know this cripple, let's call him Achilles. They've known him for years. They know his parents.

And in front of their very eyes, this lame man is fully restored. And the stories of this poem are running through their head. And they know no mere mortal could do this miracle. This is a sign of divine power at work. And so the city responds with great zeal, and I believe with genuine worship.

They genuinely worshipped, but it was misdirected. It was misdirected worship. They worshipped the wrong party. It was not Zeus and Hermes who healed this lame man. They praised and worshipped their own gods instead of the one true God who performed the miracle.

They attributed credit to Paul and Barnabas, mere messengers. This can happen to us, church. We too can worship with enthusiasm, with fervour, even with genuine worship. But it means nothing if it is misdirected. We must know and worship God as He has revealed Himself to us.

Otherwise, we will make God fit our understanding. We will make Him fit into our world. And in doing so, we end up worshipping a fake God that we have created in our own image. Friends, God is the eternal, all knowing, all powerful God that we can so easily put into a box and define by our own definitions and use and place on the shelf until we need Him again. Have you worshipped Him based merely on your feelings and emotions?

Have you worshipped Him merely on your limitations of how you can think and place God? Have you worshipped Him based on the movies that you watch, on the conversations that you have with your friends? Or have you come to know Him as He has revealed Himself through His word? And are you willing to worship Him as Himself? We need to be careful not to make God fit into our understanding of who He is.

And then we see Paul and Barnabas in the midst of all of this happening. It could have been so easy for them to step up to the plate and take that fame and glory for themselves. All the people, the whole city were already worshipping them, and yet they would not compromise themselves to that level, and neither should we. In the final verses, they respond and call out to the city of Lystra. Firstly, we see that they're grievously shocked at the situation.

Just look at verse 14. It says that when they realised what happened, they tore their clothes, rushed into the crowd yelling, "Friends, why are you doing this?" It's a clear plea for them to stop, to stop doing what they are doing. Stop the procession. Stop the madness that is unfolding.

Immediately, they tried to redirect them in the right direction. This is what they said in verse 15. "We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God." Their message of good news is very short and succinct in this passage. It can be condensed to a single word, and that single word is turn.

Turn. There we go. Turn. Turn from the dead and worthless idols and turn back to the living God. Back then, it was common for them to worship gods made out of stone and wood, and it's easy for us to think that we've moved on from these simple worship routines, and to a degree we have.

We're not worshipping things made out of wood and stone, but we are nonetheless still worshippers. If we define worship to be what we give our time, our energy, and our affections towards, then we are still worshippers. What do you treasure? What does your heart desire more than anything else? I want you to think for a second.

What is this for you personally? What do you worship? Is it success? Is it your relationship? Is it a new car or a new home?

Is it to have control over your circumstances? Just take a second and think what is it that you give your time, money, and attention to? What is it that you treasure? Friends, these are the gods and the idols that we worship. Whatever came to mind for you, that is what you are worshipping.

And Paul's message here is clear in a single word: turn. Turn. Turn from these idols that are dead and turn back to the living God. Why should we turn from these? Just think about the thing that you had in mind that you worship with your time, your energy, and your money.

Can it save you from your sin? Can it save you from spiritual death and damnation? Can it truly give you everlasting life and joy and peace? It might satisfy for a while, but can it keep satisfying you for the rest of your life? Friends, we need to turn from these because they're false.

They're knockoffs. They're ripoffs of the one true God, the only one who can take our sin away, the only one who can turn us from death to life, the only one who can give us life forevermore. Now Paul knew that the people of Lystra had never heard this message before. They'd never heard the gospel before. And so he starts to explain to them that they can know that this message is true, not just because of the words that they have preached, not just because of the miracles, but because God has revealed Himself in part already through His creation.

It says in verse 17, Paul says, "He has not left Himself without testimony. He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven for the crops in its season. He provides you with plenty of food and fills your heart with joy." You see, not only does Paul give the specific revelation of God's word and the message of Christ, he also turns and points to the general revelation all around them. He points to the good gifts that they have received from God even without them knowing who the gift giver is.

And just as it was true to them, it's true for us today, friends. When was the last time you looked around at creation? Looking at the rain as it washed down from heaven, bringing growth and new life, and thanked God for that gift. Or looked at the greenery all around, the leaves, the grass, the trees, and realised that God sustains all things, and He's sustaining you. What a beautiful gift.

Or even just look at the clouds and the sun as the sun's setting, and the beautiful portrait is painted in the sky that God has given. Just a little gift of beauty and glory and majesty for us to enjoy. When was the last time we stopped and looked at creation and with the stars just worshipped our God and King? This is Paul's message and reasoning here. He's going, look at the beautiful gifts, but don't stop at the gifts.

Look at the good gift giver who stands behind it all. Friends, we have the beautiful privilege where we have both the specific revelation of God's word that we read this morning and the general revelation as we look out to God's beautiful creation and see and know that there is a true God. And because there is a true God, He's also exposed the false idols that we so easily hold on to. He's exposed that they can't do what they claim to do. They can't give us joy, fulfilment, and peace.

They can't save us from sin, from eternal death. Paul's message to us this morning is know and worship the one true God. Will you treasure Him and worship Him as He has revealed Himself today? Friends, He is worthy of our worship. He is the one true God that we serve with our lives.

Let's pray. Dear heavenly Father, thank You for this passage, and, Lord, for it to be a reminder to us that even if we respond to Your words, even if we respond to Your miracles, Lord, it can be misguided because of the limitations we place on You. Help us, Lord, to truly seek You and to desire to know You as You truly are. And, Lord, thank You that by inviting us into a relationship with You, Lord, You expose the idols of our hearts, and You reveal them for what they are, cheap and fake knockoffs that cannot do anything near what You can do. Father, help us.

Our hearts are so easy to wander, so easy to minimise who You are, and so easy to turn to the things of this world. Father, we just pray and ask that through Your Spirit, Your word would become rich and dear to us. We pray that as we walk through life and we see creation all around us, that with it, we will worship Your holy name. Lord, would You please fill us with zeal and passion to love and serve and worship You as You are? We pray this in Your precious name. Amen.