How Are You Trusting God’s Plan? | Acts 13:1-12 | Daran Hodges

Wow, wow, wow, I'm gonna try one more time cross point. How we feeling this morning? Okay, hey listen, man, my name is Dezi and I am Grateful that y'all came in to the house of the Lord to worship today. Hey, everybody online Welcome in God behind bars welcome in it's good to see y'all man, and we are ready to worship check this out, man we Have access as believers to a joy that is deep a deep joy that sustains us through whatever is happening So no even in our hardest times the Lord is giving us exactly what we need through his joy to supply a Strength for the day ahead. So can we praise the Lord that gives us strength? Can we praise the Lord that gives us everything we need to make it through the day? Come on, everybody hands high Let's clap clap clap. Let's get Come on here we go Yeah, yeah, we don't wake it up this morning, I need it more than you, you know, I mean let's get it come on We say it like this This is The day you made Yeah, so I'll rejoice and be glad rejoice and be glad in it Come on. Come on. Let's get it. Yeah, say this is We're happy to leave Yeah, then you are more than enough more than enough for me Yeah, say you are faithful to your promise you are strong when I am When I'm standing in your presence, I have everything I need Let's sing this out. The joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is my strength It's more than a feeling. The joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is my strength Well, my soul blesses me all that is within me say the joy of the Lord the joy of the Lord is my strength So jesus Come what a man So you are worthy of all worthy of all my praise So you are faithful to your promise you are strong when I am we say When I'm standing in your presence, I have everything I need Say the joy of the Lord. The joy of the Lord is my strength

It's more than a feeling. The joy of the Lord is my strength Say you are my soul. Oh, my soul blesses me all that is within me say the joy of the Lord We got the joy, we got the joy, we got the joy of the Lord So let it rise up like a river Overflowing Holy Spirit Let it pull around with no limit Overflowing Holy Spirit Say let it rise up like a river Oh, my soul blesses me all that is within me say the joy of the Lord Come on Holy Spirit, let it pull around with no limit Overflowing Holy Spirit Hey, everybody, come on. Let's go, come on. Hey, give me your knees still work. Let me get a little talk, talk. Let's go. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And with that joy we say the joy of the Lord, say the joy of the Lord, say the joy of the Lord. He's a man that will heal Him, the joy of the Lord is His name, all my soul, bless His name, all that is. Say all my soul, bless His name, all this would be. For the joy of the Lord is our strength, we say the joy of the Lord, the joy of the Lord is our strength. We've got the joy, we've got the joy of the Lord, the joy of the Lord, the joy of the Lord. Oh, let all that is within me, bless His holy name for His love endures forever. In His mercies new today, we will enter with thanksgiving, and fill His courts with praise. Come on church, lift your voice and sing. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, praise the Lord forever. And bless His name, let all within me sing. Praise the Lord forever. If your life's been resurrected by the war that Jesus won, if you wait in expectation for a kingdom yet to come, all you see, disease of heaven, sons and daughters of the King, come on church, lift your voice and sing. We will praise the Lord, praise the Lord forever. We will bless His name, let all within me sing. Praise the Lord forever.

Oh, we bless your name. And for the one who's broken hearted, and it's hard to sing this song, 'cause you've been walking through the valley, and your faith is feeling small. I pray peace and love surrounds you from the God who understands as the family all around you, lift your arms up when you can. Join the choir of creation with the song of the Redeem, say come on church, hold it your voice and sing. We will praise the Lord, praise the Lord forever. Oh, come on, bless His name, let all within me sing. We will praise the Lord forever. Come me sing it again, family, take praise the Lord, praise the Lord, praise the Lord, praise the Lord forever. Oh, we will bless His name, let all within me sing, we will praise the Lord forever. ♪ Say we will praise the Lord forever ♪ ♪ We will praise the Lord forever ♪ - Yes, Jesus, we bless your name this morning. God, you are worthy of all the worship that we can give. And so we laid out your feet this morning. We give you the song that we have on our lips today. We love you. Come on, church, let's sing. ♪ Who else would rocks cry out to worship ♪ ♪ Who's glory taught the stars to shine ♪ ♪ Perhaps creation longs to have the words to sing ♪ ♪ But this joy ♪ ♪ But this joy is mine ♪ ♪ Across the room we sing ♪ ♪ With a thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ We magnify your name ♪ ♪ You alone deserve the glory ♪ ♪ The honor and the grace ♪

♪ Lord, Jesus, this song is forever yours ♪ ♪ A thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ And God loves him more ♪ ♪ Who else would die for our redemption ♪ ♪ Whose resurrection means our rise ♪ ♪ Oh ♪ ♪ There isn't time enough to sing of all you do ♪ ♪ But I have eternity to try ♪ ♪ Come on, we sing ♪ ♪ With a thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ We magnify your name ♪ ♪ You alone deserve the glory ♪ ♪ The honor and the grace ♪ ♪ Lord, Jesus, this song is forever yours ♪ ♪ A thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ A thousand more ♪ ♪ Jesus, we give you the glory, Lord ♪ ♪ Praise to the Lord, to the Lamb ♪ ♪ To the King of heaven, praise ♪ ♪ For he rose, for he rose ♪ ♪ And now he reigns ♪ ♪ We will sing forever, praise ♪ ♪ To the Lord, to the Lamb, to the Lamb ♪ ♪ To the King of the glory, to the King of heaven ♪ ♪ We sing praise ♪ ♪ For he rose, now he reigns ♪ ♪ We will sing forever ♪ ♪ So long we sing ♪ ♪ With a thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ We magnify your name, Jesus ♪

♪ To deserve the glory ♪ ♪ The honor and the grace ♪ ♪ Lord, Jesus, this song is forever yours ♪ ♪ A thousand hallelujahs ♪ ♪ A thousand more ♪ ♪ Of the glory and honor and praise ♪ ♪ The love to Jesus, oh ♪ ♪ We sing praise to the Lord, to the Lord ♪ ♪ To the Lamb, to the Lamb, to the King of heaven ♪ ♪ To the King of heaven ♪ ♪ He reigns ♪ ♪ For he rose, now he reigns ♪ ♪ We will sing forever ♪ (upbeat music) You're the only circle for me, we honor and love, baby Lord Jesus, this song is forever yours A thousand Hallelujahs, a thousand more [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] I want to thank you for joining us today as we launch a new series called "Stay the Course" And it's the perfect series, I'm really honored and excited to get the point of Jesus in the word today In kicking off this series, really in light of the last week and a half or two weeks That our family has had. We had some plans And because of the hurricane that swept through the southeast part of the country We had to pivot our plans, we had plans and then we had plans changed And some plans canceled and some new plans And I'm sure that some of you experienced something like that as well

We did get to have some fun though, we got to go down to the beach And so I want to introduce you to my daughter once again In case we're just meeting, my name is Darren, I serve as campus pastor here And that is a baby kid, she's five months old I forgot to talk because she's just so cute right now But she's such a gift, she ate a lot of sand and she's learning to crawl And maybe it's such a special time Our plans did change that we had to pivot And it leads me to a question as we get to spend some time together today You ever had a moment in life where your plans had to shift Where you couldn't see what was coming up or your plans had to change Or you lost your plan, maybe you didn't have a plan at all If you know me, you'll know that I can nerd out on a plan I love the process of getting to learn information and put together a plan And so we had this plan initially that we were going to road trip down to the beach And I had the perfect plan And here's why, if you've ever road tripped with a four month old baby You know that any time in the car, over about three and a half minutes Where my family's at, it is an experience road tripping with some kids It's an experience to drive to church on a Sunday morning If I can remind those of you that are in the empty nester season of life It is a challenge And so I put together this perfect road trip and it was all planned out We were going to stop every hour and this is how it was really going to go We'd feed the baby and then we'd get back on the road and then we'd stop again And then we'd change the baby and then we'd go again And then we'd stop again and again we'd fix another blowout And for the parents in the room you know about the vehicle blowouts And then we'd stop again and at this point it'd be afternoon Somebody would be crying and the person's probably me

And we'd still have a lot of hours and a lot of exits But I had every exit mapped I had snacks planned I mean I was really running like a small trucking company Just to get my family to Florida But I had a plan, I had a perfect plan And campus I want to get to know you a little bit I want to see who in this room Who are my road trip people in here today? Who just prefers a road trip? You throw the bags in the car That's us, not just you, I love a road trip Turn the music on, maybe if you're feeling crazy Roll the windows down a little bit It's a good experience, it's just pretty calm Glad you like a road trip This is the Nashville campus, so who in here would prefer a flight Would just jump on the flight See we're so fancy here in Nashville See we're just so efficient We're so fast with everything You know truthfully as a family in this season We can't always afford to fly And that's what happens next In light of my plans was a major gift So you have some family that was really generous And gave us the opportunity to fly down to the beach Shep forgot the window seat And absolutely loved it Now I want to remind you

The airport has a plan too Like, I have- access. But the airport also has a plan and you you roll in with your one or 11 suitcases if you're in my season of of life, but you get those bags checked and you swing by Shake Shack if you're BNA. And then you just you just sit there. You're just along for the ride. And somebody else plans is somebody else schedules it, somebody else built it. You don't have to come up with a plan. You just get to be along for the ride. This was like the first time in four or five months that I just got to sit back with the family and enjoy somebody else's plan. See, I had a plan, but somebody else was generous and offered us a better plan. And here's where I'm going with this. I want you to understand there's there's nothing wrong with a road trip. In fact, I think a lot of times more memories can be made that way. But what I observed over this past week and a half was that our destination never changed. And we were going the same we were going the same place. But one way of getting there was was my plan. And I had control of it. I thought it was the best plan. There was another plan on the table. And it was a better plan. Somebody else had planned it. And all I had to do was relinquish control and sit back, trust and enjoy the ride. And it's got me thinking about our our faith in light of this series. Stay the course. How many of us may struggle like me to be white knuckling the steering wheel of our life, wanting to put together the perfect plan of our life based on our expectations and hopes and dreams and aspirations for life. None of those being inherently bad things but to put together this plan for our life. And then sometimes the struggle to think that faith wouldn't be just inviting God into our

plans for our life and our story and go God would you bless the things that I've put together. And I believe what God wants to show us in Acts 13 really through this series is that God is saying I have a plan that I have a plan for the world. I have a plan for the city of Nashville and I want to invite you into my plan. When you relinquish control will you trust me and I've got a big story that I want to invite you to be a part of see Acts 13 isn't about having a whole plan. It's about trusting the planner. And it's going to show us what it looks like to trust the planner and get in on his plan. If you remember from last week we were looking at a church, the church at Antioch and there's a pretty incredible but really diverse kind of unique leadership team that that is here and this is what they are doing. They're trusting the the planner and as a recap over this journey through through acts we've seen we've seen Jesus say the gospel will go to the ends of the earth. And then we've watched persecution, opposition, scatter the church and its leaders really advancing the mission. Recently we've seen Saul, Paul go from one of the gospel's fierce this opponents to one of its greatest messengers and carriers and we'll see God use Saul or Paul today. We've seen God continue to advance this mission. We just watched Herod try and stop the movement. It was Acts 12, 24 that said the word of God increased and multiplied that God has a plan in the world. The God's plan is advancing in the world and Acts 13 starts an offensive move. It starts an offensive movement that God invites them into his plan. And so the church doesn't have to manufacture a plan but the church in Antioch is busy ministering to God. Remember from last week seeking the face of God ministering to him and gets invited by God through the

person of the Holy Spirit into his mission for the world. We're going to see more of that today, what it looks like to trust God with the plan. And we've got some ground to cover. We're going to go Acts 13 1 through 12. I want to read us the whole story today so we get the scope of what it is that we're looking at. If you're ready for God's word, say I'm ready. Let me hear you. Let's go. Me too. This is the word of God. Acts 13 1 through 12. Now, there were in the church at Antioch prophets and teachers. Barnabas, Simeon, who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaean, a lifelong friend of Herod the Tetrarch and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart from me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work to which I have called them." Then after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and sent them off. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Solusia and from there they sailed to Cyprus. When they arrived at Salamence, they proclaimed the word of God. the whole island as far as Paphos. They came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar of Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Alemis, the magician for that is the meaning of his name, opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, "You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy. Will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you'll be blind and unable to see for a time. Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul believed when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord. Want us to pray for this text together when we need God's help on it. Let's pray together. Lord, we thank you for your word. Thank you for the whole counsel of Scripture. And thank you for this missional moment, this offensive movement that we get

to cover in your word today. And I pray you would illuminate your word to us. You would help us, even today, have eyes to see and ears to hear how you are still at work in our world and in our community, in our neighborhoods, in our families, in our workplaces, and how you still are in the business of sending people. And so I pray that you would help us to see what you're doing here in town and to join you in your work. Jesus' name, we pray. Amen. Amen. All right, let's jump in. So the first thing I want us to see from this text today really is our job as followers of Christ, what it looks like to follow Jesus in the posture of our hearts. First thing is this, it's our job to seek the planner, not the plan. It's our job to seek the planner, to minister to God, but not to inherently seek the plan. That's what we see the church at Antioch doing in this moment. This diverse team of leaders in this church as we learned last week. I mean, they're from different places and different backgrounds, they have differing histories and from all over the place, differing socioeconomic status. Here's what I'm saying. If you and I were putting together a team, I don't know that it would have been this team of people and what we can gather from these verses even as we looked them last week is that the gospel is big enough to unify us with people whom we may have no other similarities to. I mean, nothing else in common with, but the gospel, the message of Jesus is big enough to bring us together. That's what we see in the leaders of this church at Antioch and they're busy seeking the planner, they're busy ministering to God, busy practicing the Antioch rule. If you were here with us last week, Pastor Kevin shared his Antioch rules, giving glory to God and making Jesus the famous one. See, they were ministering to God. It says they were worshiping the Lord and fasting. What I want us to see today is that Jesus was the prize for that church, that seeking Him that praising Him was the gold, no strings attached, ministering to Him. That was the prize for them. And while they were lost in worship, while they were lost in praise to God, it says the Holy Spirit said, so the person of the Holy Spirit speaks and says this, says set apart for me, Barnabas and Saul, for the work to which I have called them. And so they're already leading the church, but then the person of the Holy Spirit calls them to something, calls them to something new. And they've got to make a decision on how to respond to this moment. See, Barnabas and Saul didn't have to manufacture a plan. And the story we're going to watch unfold, Barnabas and Saul and that team didn't have to manufacture this

story, but instead they got to worship their God and God invites them into this moment. They sought the planner and the planner gave them the plan. And I want to encourage you, there may be moments in your life where you do seek the planner, where you do seek God and you do minister to God, spend time with Him and don't feel like you receive immediate clarity of the plans of your life. I encourage you today that time spent with Jesus is never wasted time. That even silence isn't an absence. And that's what this church is doing, seeking Him. And then we saw last week this church at Antioch had the faith to respond in obedience to what God had just invited them into to call, to set apart, to send out Barnabas and, and it's all two of the best leaders, maybe two of their favorite leaders, maybe two of their best friends. Maybe this was outside of the comfort zone, but they trusted the planner. Says this, says, then after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and they sent them off. And I love how, how obedient they were, not that this would have been inherently easy, but here's what I love is that this church didn't turn inward and protect and, and keep all the friends and the people that they love, but that they joined God in His mission for the world and, and sent off Barnabas and Saul, two people that might have been holding this thing together, they sent them out on mission to make Jesus famous, to share Jesus, it takes faith. And that's what it cost to trust the planner. I mean, sometimes this plan send away the people that you think you need. Sometimes it can feel inconvenient.

Maybe you can feel at the wrong time. Maybe it wants to send you. But the plan wants to send you somewhere you don't want to go. It's not the dream. Maybe give up something good for something better that you can't see yet. See, they sought the planner and they trusted this plan. That's faith. And I want us to see today what God does with people who are, who are willing to join Him, picking up in verse four. Says this, so being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to solution. And from there, they sell the cypress. And I want us to see who's doing the sending. See in verse three, the church releases the leaders. The church fasts and prays, lays hands and releases the leaders. But in verse two, it is, it is God, the spirit of, of God. That's doing the, the sending in this text that we cover today. See, this plan was never theirs to, to start with. Here's what I want you to see is that the mission of God belongs to God before it belongs to you and me. That this is His initiation, that He's inviting us to be a part of in serving, reaching our city with the love of Christ. This is His heart that we're invited to be a part of. And that's great news in a city that's constantly telling you, young person, to climb a ladder, to build a brand, to establish a platform, or to have a perfect five-year plan, or to find your purpose, or find your calling.

And it's not bad to have a plan, or goals, or a personal mission statement. But I just want us to see who's doing the initiating in this text. The one with the plan is our, is our God. Inviting His sons and daughters to be a part of that. Which leads us to the second thing I want us to see today, which is, which is this. You and I, we too can, can join God in what He's already doing. That we can join God in what He's already doing. That's what Barnabas and Saul do. We'll see in verse 5 through 7. It says this, "When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the Word of God in the synagogues of the Jews, and they have John to assist them. When they had gone through the whole island, as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the Word of God. They joined what God was already doing. This is how we're going to see this unfold in the text. See, Barnabas and Saul get, get sin. And they arrive on the island, they arrive in Salamis, and they begin to, to share Jesus. They begin to take every opportunity, every next step to live out their faith, and share Jesus throughout this island. And they travel across this island,

and then they get to what might have been the reason that God sent them to this island, as they begin to meet Sergius Paulus. The governor, a leader appointed, a Roman official appointed to govern this area, whom had requested to speak to them, to hear the message of Jesus. And again, I want us to see Barnabas and Saul couldn't have manufactured that spiritual hunger that's in Sergius, but they walk into this amazing gospel opportunity to share their faith. They joined what God was, was already doing. and then walked into what felt like the perfect opportunity to share their faith. Really like the dream set up for a follower of Christ is that another leader would go, "Will you tell me about Jesus? Will you tell me about the gospel message?" And we don't know from the text today how a surges spiritual hunger to hear God's words started. And I'll tell you what my spiritual imagination wonders is who had been praying for surges. And maybe there was somebody praying for him or maybe it was God at work in his heart as a result of the prayers being prayed at the church at Antioch. But God was already stirring in surges hard even before Barnabas and Saul get there. This is how big our God is. In this moment in the text that we cover today,

we've got a church in Antioch, one side of the Mediterranean Sea praying and fasting and seeking God, ministering to God, giving God glory, giving him the famous one. And over 250 miles across the Mediterranean Sea, we've got a leader with a desire to hear the gospel message and we serve and we trust, we follow the lead of an anything's possible God. And God big enough to take these people and to put them in the same room. I got to join something God was already doing. And there's a freedom with that because that means you and I, we don't have to manufacture the next big thing. That means we don't have to manufacture the next big move or we don't have to build the next big thing. We don't have to fund the next big thing. We don't have to make the next big thing run in our own power, come up with an amazing plan. But what we're seeing is our job is to seek the planner and to join him in his plan, to take steps of faith, the right next step at a time and watch anything's possible stories like this unfold in our lives. And listen, you might be sent where you already are. And God might have sent you to the Middle Tennessee area, might have sent you around some people for you to reach, for you to share Jesus with. A lot of times it takes us asking God God, would you give me the eyes to see

what you're doing all around me? I love to quote Pastor Kevin shared with us last week from John Piper and it says this, God is always doing 10,000 things in your life and you may be aware of three of them. And it's such a good reminder to ask God God, would you help me see what you're doing all around me? Would you help me write down through the day where I see you? Be able to see him in other people, in situations or in circumstances to have the eyes to see that he is at work all around us, inviting us to partner with him and his work in the world. 'Cause you can join his plan. What we'll see in the text, we round this corner, is that it doesn't mean that we won't face opposition. In fact, we might should expect it. That's what we're gonna see in verse eight, pick back up with me. Verse eight says this, but Alimis, the magician, for that is the meaning of his name, opposed to them seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. And so here's what's going on. One of us, the Saul, have found Sergis there. They're there to share Jesus. Sergis, the leader, is requesting that. And Alimis, the magician, this character is there to oppose, not to distract her, but to actively oppose the gospel from going forth.

The text will say, making crooked the straight paths of God. And I wanna unpack who this person is just a little bit. See, Alimis was a magician, is what the text would say, really a false prophet, an advisor to the proconsul. One of his names, Bar of Jesus, literally means son of Jesus. And this wasn't that uncommon. That's really ironic for someone who's gonna oppose the message of Jesus. But it was common for leaders in this day to hire sort of a spiritual advisor, somebody that could maybe speak to the gods, the little G gods, maybe see into the future to help this leader make decisions. That's the role that Alimis is supposed to be playing in this situation. The text that Sergis was an intelligent man who desired to hear the word of God. And so why would Alimis oppose Barnabas and Saul? Not that we inherently have it in the text, but we can see what's at stake, is that Alimis had used some things in the world, some broken things in the world to create a little kingdom, some power and some influence and some access. And that was through Sergis. And so if Sergis in this moment accepts Jesus, believes the message of Jesus, this is gonna remove Alimis' little kingdom.

Gonna remove a seat at the top. Alimis had built. And so he opposes them. It's really important for us to see that Barnabas and Saul are facing this moment of resistance, this moment of opposition, even in the middle of being obedient to what God had called them to do. Again, not that they were disobedient. He had gotten off of the path, but it's in the middle of where God had sent them that this moment of opposition, this person seems to be in their way, which brings us to the third thing I want you to see today, which is this. As follows the Jesus, don't mistake opposition for God's absence. See, I think it's easy to assume in our lives that when things get hard or rough or we do experience some opposition that we've lost the plan of God or the purposes of God. What we're seeing in the text today is that that isn't true. The Barnabas and Saul are in the middle of God's plan. And it's in the middle of obedience that opposition comes. Think about this on the flight back and for all of the cool Nashville flyers that are in the room. It's like turbulence on a flight. We had a really windy flight and there was a lot of turbulence. And nobody on the flight in a moment of turbulence looked out the window and thought, man, I guess this pilot just doesn't know where we're going anymore. It's just a part of the experience. It's a part of the flight. Something to be expected and in the same way, following Jesus, feeling a lot like that as well, that opposition is going to come.

It's a part of living in obedience on mission to Jesus. But I've got good news for you and for me is that Jesus wins. That Jesus wins in this story, that Jesus wins in all of the story that we know how the end of this story goes. And Barnabas and Saul knew that and they stayed faithful in this moment. And that's not to say that everything hard in your life is proof that you're in the center of God's will. Sometimes there's just hard things in life. But what we can learn today is that opposition can't by itself show us that we're outside of God's plan for our life. Look at Barnabas and Saul. They did everything right. They sought God. They were sent by God. It took the next step and opposition showed up anyway. And so how did they respond? Verse 9. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him. So Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, says this. Verse 10. "You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time. Immediately, mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about, Salimis, seeking people to lead him by the hand." See, I love this.

Saul calls bar Jesus, son of Jesus. He calls him son of the devil. The Saul, full of the Holy Spirit, has a moment of righteous confrontation with this moment to proclaim the message of Jesus, which would win at the end. And we're almost there. We're about to see that here in a minute, but it's amazing to see the beautifully redemptive irony that God in this moment is using Paul, who, if you know Saul's to Paul's story, who's experienced blindness himself, is watching God have a moment like that with Alimis striking blindness onto Alimis. Let's think about what this moment would have been like for Paul to stand in himself. I mean, this is a miracle. This is a miracle moment. And I wish we had time. We don't have time to go into how this happened or even why this was the method or the sign or the wonder given. Though certainly this is a sign and a wonder. When we come across signs and wonders and in the scriptures, or maybe even in life as we're praying and seeking Him, signs and wonders are signs and wonders. And so they're meant to point, they're meant to point to a greater reality for our eyes to land on, which today is verse 12, where we'll conclude our time together today. It says this. It says, "Then the proconsul believed when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord." See, Sergis Paulus believed. And in the midst of the church at Antioch seeking

Leader who wanted to hear Jesus and they begin to share Jesus and they expect and and then and then experience opposition The story ends today with surges finding Christ Stepping into a relationship with with Jesus in a moment a lot like this someone sharing Jesus and stepping into To faith Opposition doesn't mean God is absent And so don't mistake opposition for God's absence See Barnabas assault we're in the middle of of God's plan and God accomplishes his work through his people through you and me Willing vessels willing to trust willing to relinquish control and say I want to join you in your plan and I'm gonna trust you Seeing anything's possible stories on fault see we say we exist to help people find and follow Jesus Listen, we didn't have to make that up As a church what we're doing is we're joining God and in his heart for our community things that that he's already doing We're saying God would you use us? to tell our town to tell our friends and and those that we work with and those that we cross pass with that there is a God that loves them Some of them are asking Takes the faith to step out and to share Jesus, and that's where we get the story today Joining in on what God is is doing, you know, I began today telling you about a about a perfect road trip But I thought I had the perfect plan. Here's here's what I here's what I learned. So I wasn't wrong to plan I think it's good to plan. I was just might have been wrong to think that my plan was the best plan See we were invited into a Into a better plan You know, I believe God wouldn't be asking today Like would you give me a report of your plans? Can you show me all of your plans so that maybe I can bless them I think I would would be asking would you have the faith to join me in in my plans to relinquish control and To live on mission with with me I want to give us a moment to

reflect and respond and Really take a moment to to seek God just like the church in Antioch did really just a moment of stillness for the next few moments even just to still our own our own hearts and I'm always wondering what people around me are doing and so in a moment like this I want to invite you to close your eyes. Maybe bow your heads is just to steal your own heart So that maybe Maybe you could get still enough to hear from him I feel his love So maybe Maybe you're hearing you need rest. Maybe just a deep breath From the manufacturing of your own plans Let's want you to take that Maybe the timing of your plans hasn't gone like you'd hoped Maybe today you can ask I got what you helped me see your plans for my life Tell me see more of the 10,000 things you're doing all around me Maybe I'm a seeking God and you feel like you can't hear him Maybe today you could ask God for the eyes to see the ears to hear All that he's doing Maybe it's a gratitude list or the God is is doing list To have eyes to see his goodness all around you Maybe you're in a season of opposition Uncertainty Maybe a difficult diagnosis Broken relationship Season that doesn't make sense I'm not here to tell you every hard thing Means you're exactly where you're supposed to be but I am here to tell you The opposition doesn't mean God isn't there Maybe today you can respond to

brother or sister in Christ on a prayer team and love to pray for you and encourage you Maybe there's somebody here who's never trusted Jesus Maybe you're a little like Sergius Paul. if somebody's been praying for you. A friend, a parent, a grandma, a co-worker. Maybe that's part of how God brought you here today. And here's the good news of the gospels. You don't have to find your way to Jesus on your own. See, Jesus came to seek and save that which is lost. He lived a life we couldn't live and died of death or sin deserved and rose again so that we could be forgiven, brought into a relationship with God. Today can be the day that you put your trust in Jesus. If that's you, I want to take a moment and pray with you, pray for you even now. Father, I thank you that there was a moment for all of us that are followers of Jesus that we said yes to your grace and your mercy by grace through faith in Jesus. I thank you those mercies that are new every morning. I thank you. You are sure of your plans for this world and you are calling and inviting us to be a part of them. I pray for the person in this place that doesn't know the plan for their life. Thank you. You have a plan for their life. For those pursuing you with a willing heart or desire in their heart, a heart soften to begin a personal relationship with you. You could right now, you could pray something like this. Father, thank you for loving me. Thank you for having a plan for my life. I confess that I need you. You saved me. Would you use my life for your plans? I want to live for you here on earth. I want to spend forever with you in heaven. And Father, I pray that you would give that person the faith, the courage to come tell another believer so that we can celebrate and equip what it looks like to follow Jesus together on mission to help a community find and follow Jesus. And so would you call us to that as we respond and worship. We pray Jesus name. Amen. Amen. I want to invite you to stand to your feet. Maybe you just take a still moment before the Lord or maybe you respond and singing. Whatever your heart needs, I want you to take and we'll worship together. Oh, my, that the highest King would welcome you. I was lost but he brought me and all his love for me. Oh, his love for me. Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, it's free and deep.

Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, the sun sets free. Oh, it's free and deep. I'm a child of God. Yes, I am. In my father's house, there's a place for me. I'm a child of God. Yes, I am. Oh, you are a child of God. He sees you. ♪ Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh ♪ Come on declare it You are for me not against me I am who you say I am I am chosen not forsaken I am who you say I am You are for me not against me I am who you say To clear it right now I am chosen not forsaken I am who you say I am You are for me not against me I am who you say I am chosen I am chosen not forsaken I am who you say I am You are for me not against me I am who you say I am Oh I am who you say I am Yes I am who the sun sets free Oh it's free I am a child of God Yes I am in my father's house There's a place for you There's a place for me I am a child of God Yes I am how much I am in my father's house I am a child of God You