February 11, 2002
Refreshed or Rejected
And now, brethren, I know that in ignorance you did it, as did also your rulers. But the things which God foreshowed by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled. Repent ye therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that so there may come seasons of refreshing from the presence of the Lord; and that he may send the Christ who hath been appointed for you, even Jesus: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, whereof God spake by the mouth of His holy prophets that have been from of old. Moses indeed said, A prophet shall the Lord God raise up unto you from among your brethren, like unto me. To him shall ye hearken in all things whatsoever he shall speak unto you. And it shall be, that every soul that shall not hearken to that prophet, shall be utterly destroyed from among the people. Yea and all the prophets from Samuel and them that followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days. Ye are the sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Unto you first God, having raised up his Servant, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your iniquities. Acts 3:17-26
Jesus Christ suffered all the things that the prophets of old had foretold. There is no other name in all of heaven or on earth by which man must be saved (Acts 4:12). When a person repents (literally to turn and go the other way), there are seasons of refreshing that come when one enters the presence of the Lord. This Lord is Jesus, the Christ, from Nazareth. We must listen to his word. We must obey his precepts. There is no middle ground. Either we serve the Lord Jesus or we serve satan. To not obey the word of God is to be rejected from the Kingdom forever and ever. The choice is ours! We are drawn by the Holy Spirit, called by him. We must choose to follow him or turn and walk away. We are called to follow Christ, not those who teach us or those we look up to, but Christ alone. Those who walk away from Christ are cut off and shall be utterly destroyed. This day what do you choose? Do you choose to walk away? Do you choose the refreshing of the Lord? I choose that the Lord come unto me, according to his word and refresh me.
Looking at the final verse in this passage, I see something I have never seen before. What is the blessing of Jesus? His blessing, according to this passage, is to turn us from our ways of sin! There is nothing in this world that is worth me giving up my time with the Lord. I have tried most of the things this world says are fun. I am here to tell you, the fun is the freedom to serve the Lord Jesus. Those seasons of refreshing are what keeps me going.
What are those seasons of refreshing? To truly come to know and understand that your sins are blotted out is one of those seasons of refreshing. I know that some of you think this is a one time deal. However, this is an ongoing thing. Every time the evil one reminds you of what you have done, there is a chance for a season of refreshing. Every time sin creeps up and tries to claim you, this is a season of refreshing. Every time we answer the call to enter into his presence we come into a season of refreshing. Are you truly willing to let go of the old behaviors and ideas? Here is a season of refreshing. Are you willing to let go of all control over your life and trust it in the hands of Jesus? This is a season of refreshing. Are you willing to let loose of doctrine and let the Lord lead you? This is a season of refreshing. Are you willing to accept what the Lord has in store for you even when you don’t know what it is or where it is going? This is a season of refreshing. The refreshing comes when we totally and completely are willing to turn loose of all those preconceived ideas as to what serving him should be like. The refreshing comes when we admit we don’t know what is best for us, but Jesus does. The refreshing comes when we let go and let him take control of all one’s life. Every one bought with the blood of Jesus is a child of a much greater promise. This is a season of refreshing.
Father, in Jesus name show us of the refreshing of the Lord Jesus! Lord, we do not understand all that we endure and suffer in this world, yet you have suffered it all before us. Father, in Jesus name let us experience the refreshing that comes when we are willing to turn around and follow Jesus, no matter where he leads. Lord, in Jesus name you help each one of us to let go of all those notions and ideas of what it should be like and feel like to serve you. Lord, in Jesus name, let us turn loose of those ideas of what it means to serve you. Lord, In Jesus name, let each of us realize we are in the greatest mission field of all, the world. Make us sensitive to you. Make us realize your love for those around us and put within us a hunger to please you and to snatch those around us from the jaws of death. Lord, in Jesus name, let each one come into that season of refreshing that is awaiting them. In Jesus name, guide each step, each word, each thing we do, amen.
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