THE TENT MAKER
April 26,
1998 am
MF Blume
Acts 18:1-8 After these things Paul
departed from Athens, and came to Corinth; And found a certain Jew named Aquila,
born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because
that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them.
And because
he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation
they were tentmakers. And he reasoned in the synagogue every
sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks. And when Silas and Timotheus
were come from Macedonia, Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to
the Jews [that] Jesus [was] Christ. And when they opposed themselves, and
blasphemed, he shook [his] raiment, and said unto them, Your blood [be] upon
your own heads; I [am] clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.
And he departed thence, and entered into a certain [man's] house, named Justus,
[one] that worshipped God, whose house joined hard to the synagogue. And Crispus,
the chief ruler of the synagogue, believed on the Lord with all his house;
and many of the Corinthians hearing believed, and were baptized.
PAUL'S TRADE WAS THAT OF A TENTMAKER
- Every Hebrew boy learned
a trade when he was young, and Paul likewise learned that of a tentmaker.
- 2 Thess 3:8 tell us that
he worked very hard at making tents.
- He toiled night and day
in the trade so as to keep himself fed and clothed, and so he did not have
to be chargeable to any man and have to say that if it was not for so and
so he could not preach.
- He dropped by Priscilla
and Aquila's home and worked with them, since they were Christians and were
tentmakers, too.
- He actually worked at that
craft.
- But there is a message
here that we can take from that factual picture that fits nicely with the
truth of salvation.
TENT DWELLERS
Hebr 11:8-10 By faith Abraham, when
he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an
inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. By faith
he sojourned in the land of promise, as [in] a strange country, dwelling in
tabernacles [tents -- ed.] with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with
him of the same promise: For he looked for a city which hath foundations,
whose builder and maker [is] God.
Abraham dwelt in tents by faith.
- This was a living testimony
to those who say him that he was not at home, nor would he feel comfortable
and at home in this present world.
- Dwelling in tents in the
land of promise was like saying he was in a strange land, that was not his
home, nor would he endeavour to make it his home.
- He made his mind up that
he would not become comfortable in a world and system that God called him
out of.
The tent dweller, in the Bible,
was a person who temporarily was set up where they were.
- Tents can be taken down.
- They are easily dismantled
for the purpose of going onward again.
- When one dwells in a land
in a tent, one is dwelling in a place that is not home.
God called Abraham out of his
homeland and told him He would take him to a city. And the builder and maker
of that City would be his God.
- By faith Abraham packed
up and went, not knowing where he was going.
- Isaac and Jacob also dwelt
in tents, Hebrews tells us.
Gene 12:1-4 Now the LORD had said
unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy
father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee
a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou
shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him
that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.
So Abram departed, as the LORD had spoken unto him; and Lot went with him:
and Abram [was] seventy and five years old when he departed out of Haran.
75 years old, and he is ready
to go into uncharted territories with God!
- 75 years old and he is willing
to leave all that he ever knew as home and live the life of an explorer and
stranger in this entire world.
The songwriter said:
This world is not my
home,
I'm just 'a passing through.
My treasures are laid
up,
Somewhere beyond the
blue.
The angel's beckon me,
From Heaven's open door,
And I can't feel at home
In this world anywhere.
Gene 12:7-8 And the LORD appeared
unto Abram, and said, Unto thy seed will I give this land: and there builded
he an altar unto the LORD, who appeared unto him. And he removed from thence
unto a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, [having] Bethel on
the west, and Hai on the east: and there he builded an altar unto the LORD,
and called upon the name of the LORD.
Gene 26:17 And Isaac departed thence, and
pitched
his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there.
Gene 25:27 And the boys grew: and
Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob [was] a plain man,
dwelling in tents.
So dwelling in tents was an indication
that you really believed what God said, like Abraham, and lived like it.
- It was a symbol of saying
"I am not at home down here in this world."
Paul preached the Gospel to people.
- He preached about Jesus
dying on the cross because of a world that was doomed to damnation because
sin entered humanity way back when Adam, the Headship of all mankind disobeyed
God and sinned.
- He preached how that one
man's sin made all the world that was yet unborn into sinners.
- He preached about a new
heaven and a new earth that would one day come after this present world would
pass away.
- He preached about the only
way to escape eternal loss is to repent and be baptized in Jesus' name and
receive the Holy Ghost.
- He preached, in a nut shell,
that one must come out from among the world and regard it forever onward as
a strange country.
He encouraged people that God's
will is for every single person to abandon the pleasures of sin in this world,
dedicating their lives to Jesus and being separated to God.
- It was a message to never
look at the world as home again.
- Walk away from lifestyles
that the Bible refers to as "worldly".
- We are to no longer consider
ourselves as "of" this world.
Jesus referred to His followers:
John 17:6 I have manifested thy
name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the
world: thine
they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
John 17:9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world,
but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
John 17:14 I have given them thy
word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of
the world.
John 17:16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of
the world.
He spoke to the followers:
John 15:19 If ye were of the world,
the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you
out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
The WORLD in the Bible refers
to the lifestyle and system of accepting sin and rejecting God.
You cannot even be a FRIEND of the world.
Jame 4:4 Ye adulterers and adulteresses,
know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever
therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
James said that laughing and
joining in with the world and joining in with the Church is similar to committing
adultery.
- God is a jealous God, and
considers you as good as an adulterer when you are supposed to be committed
to Him and you continue with the ways of the world.
2Cor 6:14-7:1 Be ye not unequally yoked
together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?
and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ
with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what
agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the
living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in [them]; and
I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from
among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean
[thing]; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and
ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. Having therefore
these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness
of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.
When Paul preached this kind
of Gospel, telling people to come out of the world, he was in effect, making
tents and offering them to the hearers and saying, "Come, walk away from your
home in this world and refuse to be at home here any longer. Come. Wait
with us as we look for a City whose builder and maker is God."
The Bible says that Jesus was
crucified outside of the City, in indication that we are outside the world's
systems.
Hebr 13:10-14 We have an altar, whereof
they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle. For the bodies of those
beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for
sin, are burned without [outside the camp -- ed.]
the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might
sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered without the gate. Let us go forth therefore
unto him without the camp, bearing his reproach. For here have we no continuing
city, but we seek one to come.
We have an altar that is only
there for those who are not involved in any religion or thinking that does
not accept Jesus Christ as Lord, and this world as a strange land.
- In a penalty for sin, the
Hebrews took their sacrifice outside the city and burned it there.
- The sacrifices were looked
upon as accursed -- "outside"
- Jesus was accursed in our
places by being a sacrifice for us so we would not have to be accursed.
- He sanctified us by taking
away our sin and the curse.
- He was willing to be taken
and suffer outside the City.
- Leave the unbelieving camp
and City of man, who sent Him to die, and let us accept the world's hatred
of Jesus and mockery, that to this day continues on.
- We have no continuing CITY
here... none here that will remain forever.
Let us MAKE SURE this world remains
STRANGE TO US.
- Don't let it become a comfortable
place.
- Christian... don't allow
fear of death haul you back into a comfortable attitude place down here.
- We are not home yet.
- Keep your eyes on the saviour.
Luke 17:31-33 In that day, he which
shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff in the house, let him not come
down to take it away: and he that is in the field, let him likewise not return
back. Remember
Lot's wife. Whosoever shall seek to save his life
shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.
LOT'S WIFE:
Gene 19:17 And it came to pass,
when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life;
look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the
mountain, lest thou be consumed.
Gene 19:23 The sun was risen upon
the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and
upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew
those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities,
and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind
him, and she became a pillar of salt.
Lot's wife did not take one step
back, but simply GLANCED BACK.
- (Talk about "if looks could
kill"!)
- That simple GLANCE revealed
much of her heart.
- Outwardly she appeared
to have forsaken the world.
- She left Sodom with Lot,
her husband.
- But inwardly her heart
was still there.
- To leave something, and
yet in your heart you still hold it and want it and love it.
- A soul that is worldly
will want things of the world.
- YOU MUST LET GO OF EVERYTHING
OF THE WORLD IN YOUR HEART.
- If Jesus came to take you
to Heaven today, WOULD YOU MISS THIS WORLD?
- Is there anything here
you would miss?
- It is more than simply
joining a church congregation.
- You have to let go of the
world INSIDE YOUR HEART.
The Hebrews suffered persecution
because they were christians, but their hearts were not down here.
Hebr 10:34 For ye had compassion
of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in
yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.
In those days, persecution was
heavy.
- In their grammar and vocabulary,
the word WITNESS actually implied a martyr mentality.
- Accepting Jesus and being
baptized in His Name meant accepting the risk that you would die because Rome's
Caesars, who ruled the region in that day, demanded worship to them since
they proclaimed they were gods. And to worship Jesus meant refusal to bow
to Caesar as a god.
- It was not, "Get saved
so you could go to Heaven with us one day."
- They might die the day
after they became christians.
- So it was more like, "Get
saved and you will go to Heaven tomorrow."
- They seen the reality of
being apart from this world, and being hated by the world for Jesus' sake
because of a lifestyle that was truly like Jesus! And they rejoiced!
They, as it were, lived in tents.
- Not the attitude, "That
preacher better not tell me about doing such and such! This certain verse
in the Bible bothers me."
But rather the attitude,
- "He or she better be a preacher
who doesn't cut any corners, but tells it like it is, and preaches exactly
what the book says and nothing less."
- Help me stay OUT OF THIS
WORLD, preacher!
- This world is going down!
- There is no continuing
city here.
- I can't feel at home down
here.
- Tell me more about Heaven!
- Tell me more about the
blessed hope, the appearing of Jesus.
- Help me keep my eyes off
this world and on the skies where He will return.
- Help me recognize attachments
I have to this world so that I may loose myself from them and be ready when
He comes.
- If I have much of this
world's wealth, help me to HAVE AS THOUGH NOT HAVING -- IOW, willing to let
it go when the Lord comes!
Hear my voice today! REMEMBER
LOT'S WIFE!!
ABRAM LEFT HIS TENT:
Abram pitched his tent between
Bethel and Ai, and then went DOWN to Egypt. (Gen 12:8-10).
- Told his wife to tell a
half-lie and say she is his sister in case they see how pretty she is and
kill him to have her seeing he was her husband.
- People begin lying and
doing little things that are wrong when they leave their TENT and go to the
world to be at home.
- Famine came and things
got a little tough.
- Believer, when hard times
come and you feel pressured, do not leave the church and go into the world.
- CHURCH means CALLED OUT
ONES.
- Do not leave the CALLED
OUT life.
- Poor Abram would rather
have his wife scared to death and taken into Pharaoh's bedroom rather than
to stand up for his woman as her husband!
- And he became self centred.
- When you leave the TENT
LIFE you begin to slip into sin and ungodliness.
- God moved in on the scene
and plagued Pharaoh when he took her and a sinner told Abram off for such
shameful behaviour and sent them away.
- And he went back to where
he went wrong.
Gene 13:3-4 And he went on his journeys
from the south even to Bethel, unto the place where his tent had been
at the beginning, between Bethel and Hai; Unto the place of the
altar, which
he had made there at the first: and there Abram called on the name of the
LORD.
He made another trip at the altar
that he made at first, where he dedicated himself to God, and later broke
that dedication by lying and not living right.
- He went back to the tent
life
- Back to saying this world
is not my home.
- Back to where the altar
of sacrifice was, for he was a living sacrifice.
- I am so glad God takes
us back.
- But do not wait to go back
to God, because one day it will be too late to go back, for He will be gone
with all His people.
1The 4:13-17 But I would not have
you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow
not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died
and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with
him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are
alive [and] remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which
are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout,
with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead
in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive [and] remain shall be
caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air:
and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
1Cor 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling
of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall
be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
As I preach this morning, like
Paul, I offer you a TENT.
- I offer you a life of living
as a stranger in this world.
- I offer you to come out
from the world and do not feel at home here any more.
- I offer to you the plan
of salvation that will make HEAVEN your home.
- I have prepared a tent
for you.
- Come and give your life
to Jesus Christ and LOOK FOR HIS RETURN
- He is coming to those WHO
LOOK FOR HIM.
- Are you looking for Him
today?
- Have you forgot about the
possibility that He may come today?
- Have you left your tent
behind and became comfortable in the world?
- Has some sort of little
trouble between you and your brother, or a trouble at work made you leave
your tent and not gather with the church and worship Him as you LOOK for HIs
return?
Hebr 9:28 So Christ was once offered
to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he
appear the second time without sin unto salvation.