Sermon Manuscript

[Video:  “Made for Mission - Bumper” - 0:30]

On April Fool’s day of this year an event took place which might have been considered a joke but it was certainly not.  Because on that day or Wednesday, April 1, 2026 NASA launched a 10-day mission called the Artemis II in which four Astronauts would travel to the moon, then circle it, and come back.  It was kind of like a “dress rehearsal” for future missions because the goal was to eventually land on the moon.  But before they did that they needed to know if their Orion spacecraft systems were ready for deep-space exploration.  They needed to test out the onboard life support, navigation, and safety systems.  And so for those reasons the Artemis II was a very, very, important mission for NASA.  It was also the first time that human beings would travel that far into space since 1972.  Before I was even born!  Or 54 years.

And if you’ve been following their story over the past week or so you’ve probably seen some of the pictures that have been sent back.  They are stunning, beautiful, and breathtaking.  Pictures from the dark side of the moon are also the first time human beings have ever taken them.  This is because while there have been other spacecraft to travel around the moon and take pictures there has never been a spacecraft to travel around the moon with humans onboard to take pictures.  So in that sense it’s a mission that is truly the first of its kind.

And there is something deep down inside all of us that longs to explore.  We explore physically when we go hiking, camping, or travel to new cities and countries.  We explore scientifically when we study plants and animals or the human body.  We explore intellectually when we read books or listen to podcasts or watch documentaries.  We explore creatively when we make art, compose music, or write stories.  We explore digitally when we research on the Internet or use tools like Google Earth that help us to examine remote places virtually.  We explore through the use of technology or technologically when we build new machines or design robots or use AI.  We even explore socially and personally when we meet new people or experience new cultures or reflect upon our own lives and what is important to us.  There is something that deep down inside of all of us longs to explore.  To “go on a mission”.

You could even say that we are “made for mission”.  And over the next six weeks we’re going to begin a brand new series of messages called Made for Mission where we “explore” this idea.  Because you were made for mission.  And so was I.  We were made for mission.  And God has a mission He has called us to participate within.  It’s His mission but we are created to be part of it.  And He wants us to understand what it is, why it’s important to Him, and how we can be part of it.  It also helps to answer some of those questions we so often ask ourselves.  Questions like “Why was I created?” and “What is my purpose in life?”  Those are often difficult but important questions to ask.  And while we might come up with different answers as individuals when it comes to the Church and what God has called us to do as Christians the answer is clear.  We were made to be part of God’s mission on this earth.  We were made for mission.

And there are six tasks which are part of God’s mission and today we’re going to examine the first one.  So let’s get started.  If you have your Bibles, turn with me now to the book of Acts.  Acts chapter 13, verses 44-52.  If you would like to follow along with us online you can do so by using our app.  It’s called Church Center and we use it each week.   So if you open it up and click on Sunday Services followed by Message Notes you will find everything you need for our time together on that page.  You will also find a second page called Current Series which will give you information about this series and all of the passages for each week.  And I’d like to encourage you to read ahead.  Reading the passage before we meet together on a Sunday morning will help prepare you for our time in God’s Word.  You will get even more out of it.

As you turn there and get prepared I want to also quickly remind you of our yearlong theme and set the stage for where we are in Acts chapter 13.  So with regard to our theme you might recall how at the beginning of 2026 we began a yearlong theme called Be My Witness where we’re learning about how we can be better witnesses for Jesus and really make a difference for Him.  And we examined some passages within the book of Acts which each used the word “witness” to learn how the early church lived out Jesus’ command to be His witnesses within their world.

We saw how Peter was a witness for Jesus on the Day of Pentecost in Acts 2 and how Peter and John were witnesses for Him in Acts 3-5 when they healed a lame man and stood in front of the religious leaders in a series called Chase the Podium.  We also saw in Acts 6 and 7 how when we are witnesses sometimes we will suffer in different ways through a series called Faith Under Fire.  And throughout this year we will continue to study the book of Acts but within this series we will be taking a look at passages found throughout the Bible.

But today we’re in Acts chapter 13.  So as the church began to expand and to witness for Jesus in different parts of the world eventually they eventually began to send out missionaries.  And we see this taking place first in Acts chapter 13 when a group of believers which included Paul and Barabas are sent out on behalf of a church in Antioch.  And in verse 13 they arrive in a place called Antioch in Pisidia which if you look at it on a map was in modern day Turkey.  

And when they arrived at various places they always followed a particular pattern.  They would go to Jewish synagogues, participate in worship on the Sabbath or Saturday, and then when they were given an opportunity to speak they would do so.  So that’s what they do in Acts 13.  They go into the synagogue, listen to a reading from the Law and Prophets, and then wait.  And eventually they were asked, “Brothers, do you have any words of encouragement for us?  If so, please say it.”  And you don’t give Paul an opportunity like that!  Because he will jump on it!

So Paul stood up and basically said this.  He said, “Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen.  The God of our people Israel chose us by delivering us from the hands of the Egyptians and led us out into the wilderness where He made us into a people for Himself.  He then conquered the land of Canaan for us and gave us judges to rule over our people.  Eventually when our people asked for a king God gave us Saul for forty years.  But then He removed Saul because Saul had turned against Him and chose David to become king because David was a man after His own heart.  And now through David’s bloodline God has given to us a Savior whose name is Jesus just as He had promised.  And He also prepared the way for Jesus through John the Baptist who told us that after him would come Someone who would be greater.  Someone whose sandals he was not even worthy to untie.  And that Person was Jesus.  It is this Jesus”, Paul explained, “who was sent to bring us the message of salvation and who has fulfilled the very Scriptures which are read in local synagogues each Sabbath everywhere.  He is the One who was convicted, condemned, and crucified.  He is also the One who was laid in a tomb but God has now raised Him from the dead.  And He appeared to many who are now His ‘witnesses’” Paul said in verse 31.  “We are His witnesses.  And we have been given the mission to share with you the Good News that He is now alive”.  Then Paul quoted from Psalm 2 and Psalm 16 which each spoke of how God’s Son and His Holy One would be raised from the dead.  Paul then wrapped up by explaining that David is dead and that it is only in Jesus that people can now receive the forgiveness of their sins and be freed from the Law of Moses.  He then finished with a warning from Habakkuk 1:5 in which God’s people were told that God would do a new work and one that many would not believe in.

And after Paul said all of these things the people begged that they might hear from Paul and Barnabas again on the next Sabbath.  And even many Jews began to believe in their message but on the next Sabbath everything would change.  Let’s pick up the story in verse 44.  We read:

44 The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, reviling him. 46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken first to you. Since you thrust it aside and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, behold, we are turning to the Gentiles. 47 For so the Lord has commanded us, saying, “ ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ” 48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region. 50 But the Jews incited the devout women of high standing and the leading men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their district. 51 But they shook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Alright.  So on the next Sabbath we’re told that the entire city came to hear the word of the Lord.  And while this must have pleased Paul and Barnabas it did not please the Jews.  They became upset and were filled with jealousy.  As a result they began to “revile” them.  The Greek word is BLASPHEMO and is used 34 times in the New Testament.  And it means “to revile, blaspheme, curse, or slander”.  So they weren’t disagreeing with them.  They weren’t criticizing them.  They were actually speaking in a way in which they were trying to cause a riot which would hurt them and possibly kill them.  That’s how upset they were. 

But notice that Paul and Barnabas weren’t phased by it.  That’s the power of the Holy Spirit working within their lives.  They’re willing to speak boldly even in the face of their enemies.  And they have now become enemies to Paul and Barnabas and to God Himself.  Because now they are persecuting God’s messengers who are speaking God’s plan of salvation.  And so in verse 46 they say, “It was necessary to speak to you first, as Jews, because you were God’s people.  But now you have turned against God and now you have considered yourselves to be unworthy of Eternal Life and unworthy of God’s salvation.  As a result, we are now turning to the Gentiles.  For God has commanded us to do so when He spoke these words.”  And then in verse 47 they quote the end of Isaiah 49:6.  Let me re-read it to you again.  It says, “I have made you a light for the Gentiles that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”  And when the Gentiles heard this they began rejoicing and glorifying God.  And many of them began to believe and received Eternal Life through Jesus.  This event then caused many within the surrounding area to also hear of this Good News.  But the Jews became upset.  And they continued to stir up trouble eventually driving Paul and Barnabas away.  And so they shook off the dust from their feet which Jesus had told His disciples to do when a town rejected them and their message.  So they did the same and the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

Now let me point out something important that would be easy to overlook.  When Paul quotes from Isaiah 49:6 he’s quoting a verse that is known as the Old Testament Great Commission text.  Isaiah 49:6 is the Old Testament Great Commission text.  Because Paul doesn’t quote from Jesus.  Paul doesn’t say, “The reason that I’m sharing this missional message is because the Lord commanded us by saying , ‘Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and teaching them everything that I have taught you and lo, I will be with you wherever you go.”  Paul doesn’t say that.  In fact, no New Testament author quotes that famous verse in Matthew 28:18-20 which we call the Great Commission.  Nobody quotes that verse.  Not Mathew, Mark, Luke, John, Paul, Peter, or Jude.  Nobody.  Nobody quotes it because nobody needs to.  The Great Commission was not a new idea that Jesus simply gave to His disciples before leaving this world.  When Jesus said those words He wasn’t saying something “new” but rather something “old”.  Something God had been saying to His people from the beginning.  Throughout the Old Testament.  Because when God first spoke to Abraham He said in Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you and in you all the nations will be blessed.”  All the nations.  Other verses in both the psalms and prophets spoke of this too.  Including Isaiah 49:6.  You see God’s plan was always, always, always to reach all people.  And the mission of God’s people has always been to reach the whole world. 

Christopher Wright in his book called The Mission of God’s People describes why Paul used this key verse within this moment.  And he writes on page 37, “Paul points to the Scriptures and the story they tell - the story that leads inevitably to the gospel going to the nations.  And he took that “story-yet-to-come” aspect of the words of the prophet and heard in them a command from the Lord himself.”  I love that.  He took the words of the prophet and he heard within them a command for himself.  A command from the Lord to bring His salvation to the ends of the earth.  

Paul knew the story.  And Christopher Wright goes on to describe how even for Jesus Himself the Old Testament was the foundation for the Great Commission.  Because according to Luke 24 on the day in which He was raised from the dead He spent the afternoon teaching the Old Testament Scriptures to two of His disciples on the road to Emmaus.  Why?  Because they needed to know God’s story and how the prophecies in the Scripture pointed to Him.

Paul knew the story of the Scriptures.  He knew how God created a world for Himself that was perfect but how sin destroyed that perfection.  He knew how God created a people for Himself in Israel who would often turn away from Him but would ultimately be used to bring about Jesus.  And he knew how throughout the Scriptures God spoke of His desire to reach the nations.  His plan was never just to reach the Jews.  It was always to bring the world back to Him.  To use a man named Abraham to produce the Messiah or Jesus and to enable all who would have faith like Abraham to be called “children of Abraham” and to be saved through Jesus.  

Paul knew that was always the goal.  Paul knew that was always the plan.  Paul knew that was always the mission.  In the Old Testament God creates a people called Israel who becomes a “light to the Gentiles” so that He might “bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”  And in the New Testament God creates a people for Himself through the Church so that they can be “a light unto the world” and a “city on a hill” and “bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”  

You see, Paul knew that we are made for mission.  We are made for the mission of God.  We are made to become part of God’s mission to reach this world.  But in order to do that we have got to know the story.  We’ve got to know His story.  So let me ask you a question:  How well do you know the story of God?  How well can you tell the story?  How well can you tell the story to different types of people?  People who are far away from God and people who are close?

This morning I want to give you four very quick questions that you can ask yourself when given an opportunity to share God’s story with someone else.  These will help you to share God’s story with someone who is exploring Christianity and Jesus.  No matter where they are on the spectrum of people who are far away from God or close.  

They will help you share God’s story well.  And the first one is this.  Ask yourself:  Who is my audience?  Who is my audience?  Because different people come from different places.  For Paul, he knew he was speaking to Jews and Gentiles but initially he was speaking only to Jews.  And Jews have a certain knowledge of Scripture.  They had been raised learning certain truths.  So when Paul speaks to them here he doesn’t need to explain everything.  He doesn’t start with the fact that there is a God in heaven.  They already know that.  He starts with the fact that God created a people for Himself and goes from there.  

And the same is true for us.  We need to access our audience when we talk to people about God’s story.  We need to be able to share differently to different people.  If we’re speaking to a person who is young we will probably share different details than if we speak to a person who is older.  If they grew up in the church we might share different details than if they have not.  This is a question that can help us.  So ask yourself, “Who is my audience?”

Second, ask yourself:  Where are they now?  Where are they now?  Paul knew that he was not only speaking to Jews but that they were all in different places.  Some were clearly opposed to the Gospel and to Jesus.  But others were not.  Because after speaking to them the first time there were many who believed Paul and began to follow Jesus.  But there were also many who were upset by Paul and who “reviled” him.  So there were Jews and Gentiles.  Some were close and seeking God.  Others were not.

And the same is true for us.  When we share God’s story we need to stop and consider not only who we are speaking to but where they are in their walk with the Lord.  Some are close.  Others are not.  But in the end we need to know where they are so ask yourself, “Where are they now?”

Third, ask yourself:  What steps do they need to take?  What steps do they need to take?  Paul knew that some were ready.  They believed.  They just needed to be given steps in order to receive Christ and to enter into a relationship with Him.  They needed to believe, be baptized, and then be discipled.  But others needed many more steps.  They would need to go back to the Scriptures and study them again.  They would need to believe that the promises God had made have now been fulfilled.  They would need to believe that Jesus was truly the Promised One and the Messiah.  And they would need to accept the fact that the Messiah had come and that He had fulfilled what God had foretold He would do and that through His death and resurrection was forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation.  Every person would need to take different steps.

And the same is true for people we know.  When we share God’s story we need to realize that because people are in different places they will need to take different steps.  We cannot simply give the same steps to every single person.  Some are ready.  Others are not.  So when you share God’s story with someone else ask yourself, “What steps do they need to take?”

Fourth and finally, ask yourself:  Why does it matter?  Why does it matter?  Paul knew that he was bringing the Good News of the Gospel to others.  He knew he was fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 49:6.  That he was a “light for the Gentiles” and was going to “bring salvation to the ends of the earth.”  That’s a heavy burden.  That’s a heavy weight.  Paul felt the weight and the burden of the Gospel and he knew that salvation was on the line.  What he shared mattered.

We have to be reminded of the same.  We have to remember that we carry the weight of the Gospel and the burden of bringing salvation to the people we know.  What we say matters.  But we also have to be willing to share that with others when they ask us, “Why all of this matters?  Why is it so important that I become a Christian and follow Jesus?  We need to be ready for that question and be able to answer it clearly.  So ask yourself, “Why does it matter?”

You see, these four questions can help us.  They can help us as we share the Good News of Jesus and the story of God to others.  So when given an opportunity to share with others ask yourself these four questions:  Who is my audience?, Where are they now?, What steps do they need to take?, and Why does it matter?  Use these four questions to customize your message.  They will help.  But they can only help if you have taken the time to really get to know the story.

When the Artemis II Astronauts checked in for the first time after landing in the Pacific Ocean on Friday they did so with three words:  “What a journey”.  They had traveled to the moon and back.  They had seen and experienced things as part of their mission to Mars that could never fully be put into words.  The feeling of sitting in that Orion spaceship.  The feeling of those large thrusters taking off and launching them out of the atmosphere.  The feeling of weightlessness as you navigate the spaceship in space.  And, of course, the feeling of looking through the window and seeing the entire planet against a sea of darkness.  Then the feeling of “riding a fireball” as the pilot called it before splashing into the Pacific Ocean.  They were overwhelmed at what had happened and they could only say, ‘Wow.  What a journey.”

What a journey.  It was a trip which lasted 9 days, 1 hour, 31 minutes, and 35 seconds.  A journey which took them over 252,000 miles from earth.  A journey which they would never ever forget.  And neither would NASA.  Because the NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman was in awe after the splashdown and said, “We are back.  We are back in the business of sending astronauts to the moon and bringing them back safely.  This is just the beginning.”

And throughout your life and mine God wants to take you on an adventure and a mission.  His people have always been called to go and to make disciples.  To share the Good News of Jesus with others.  And our journey will take us to places we never thought we’d go and meet people we never thought we’d ever meet.  But it’s in those moments that we need to be prepared to share the story.  To share God’s story.  Because we are in the business of sending believers into our world who know the story of God and are capable of sharing it to anyone and everyone.

So we’ve got to know it well.  And that’s our challenge.  The bottom line this morning is this…

Deepen your knowledge of God’s story and diversify your presentation of it.

Because when you do God will take you on a mission for Him.  And you will say, “Wow.  What a journey.”  Let’s pray.

[Prayer:  For God to help us grow in the knowledge of His story and to share it wisely.]

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