What happens when you preach the gospel? - Acts 10:44-48 Sermon | Prescott Anglican Church

Text: Acts 10:44-48

When the gospel is preached, things happen. Through Acts 10 and stories from his own life and ministry, Father Nathan reflects on how God pours out his Spirit, transforms unlikely lives, inspires gratitude, and draws people into an ever-expanding household of faith.

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There is good news for everybody who will hear the gospel. Why? Because when the gospel is preached, things happen. The prophet Isaiah testified to this: the word of God does not return void. Maybe you've heard that before from Isaiah chapter 55.

My own experience bears this out. As a preacher, I have seen that when the gospel is faithfully proclaimed, things happen. Not always immediately. Not always dramatically. But things happen when the gospel is preached.

My name is Father Nathan. I am the director at Desert Mission Anglican Church in Phoenix, Arizona. It is a blessing and an honor to bring a gospel word from Acts chapter 10.

What Is the Gospel?

But what is the gospel? And what is it that happens? The gospel is fundamentally the proclamation of Jesus as Lord of all. In Acts 10:36, Jesus is Lord of all—and that's not just a parenthetical. It is the proclamation of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and of the forgiveness of sins in his name.

This is the same gospel, by the way, that Jesus himself preached. He declared that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Everywhere he went, he himself was the embodiment of that kingdom of life, of that kingdom of forgiveness. The proclamation of Christ is the proclamation of the gospel. It is a powerful means by which God does things in people's lives—not just 2,000 years ago. He's doing things now through this gospel word.

My parents were Southern Baptist missionaries in West Africa, so I had a unique childhood. I'm so thankful for what I saw God do through the gospel there. Churches were planted, communities were transformed, and many people came to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. But one of the things that I remember us having to remind people of as missionaries overseas is that God is also doing things here.

The promise of the gospel is not only for those who are far off, but also for those who are near. There's a promise for you in this. There's a blessing for you in this—even you and me.

So what actually happens when the good news of Jesus is proclaimed? In these five verses in Acts chapter 10, I want to offer four observations: the Spirit is poured out, unlikely people are converted, lives are marked by praise, and the household of God is expanded.

1. The Spirit Is Poured Out

First, the Spirit is poured out. Peter has been telling these Gentiles about what Jesus did: how he went about doing good, healing, and teaching. In verse 43, he tells them that all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins in his name. That's what he's been saying. Then, in Acts 10:44, while Peter was still saying these things, the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard the word.

Notice: the Holy Spirit fell on all who heard. This is so important. It's not just an emotional response. We can have an emotional response, and that's okay. As I'm thinking about the gospel, I get excited. But the Holy Spirit fell on people. It is God the Holy Spirit, as we say in the creed, who is the Lord, the giver of life. Without the Holy Spirit, nobody gets new life.

With the Holy Spirit, things are different. The new life that God wants to give us makes us more like Jesus. It's something God wants to accomplish in us, bringing us to the fullness of life that we see in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He does that through the abiding presence of the Holy Spirit.

Through faithful gospel proclamation, this gift of the Holy Spirit is announced. Not only is it announced, but through that faithful proclamation, faith is ignited in people to believe it. That's what St. Paul says in Romans 10:17: faith comes by hearing. When the Holy Spirit falls, faith is ignited. People believe. Lives begin to be transformed.

2. Unlikely People Are Converted

Unlikely people are converted. That's the second observation. What do we mean by being converted? It means being changed from one state to another: from being caught in our own selfish and self-destructive attitudes, actions, and affections—our sins—to being forgiven and freed from all those things by God's love.

I want to be clear here: we have all sinned. We've all gotten caught up in our selfish and self-destructive actions, attitudes, and affections. We've all fallen short of the glory of God. We've all missed the mark. Therefore, not only are we unlikely to be converted; we are hopeless of conversion by our own efforts, by our own merits. That's how deeply caught in that web of death we are.

Nevertheless, it's easy for us to think that, in some sense, it's natural for us to turn to Christ. It makes sense that I would turn to Christ. Maybe I'm just one of the elect, while those other people are destined for destruction. These are easy assumptions that can sneak in.

We see how the Jewish believers here are amazed that the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the Gentiles—even people who were not previously considered God's chosen people. From the beginning, the promise to Abraham was that God would bless many nations through the people of Israel. This is all fulfilled in Jesus. Nevertheless, they're shocked. We can be the same way.

When the gospel is preached faithfully, we may be surprised not only at our own conversions, but also at the conversion of those we thought incapable of receiving God. If you're wondering, “Can I be converted? Can I turn to Christ?” Yes, absolutely. If you're wondering, “Can my boss turn to Christ?” Yes, they can. If you're wondering, “Can my enemy turn to Christ?” Yes, they can.

It is a beautifully scandalous thing that the gospel is proclaimed and offered to all who would receive it. There's no qualification. Do you exist? The gospel is proclaimed to you.

3. Lives Are Marked by Praise

The Spirit falls, unlikely and hopeless people are converted, and then lives are marked by praise. In verse 46, they were hearing them speaking in tongues and extolling God. What is the evidence of conversion? Here, we see people speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues sometimes accompanies conversions. It also occurs at other times. It does not appear in every New Testament account of conversion, so I don't want us to get too hung up on it.

The speaking in tongues is not, I think, the primary evidence here. Rather, it is serving the extolling of God—the praising of God. This is something I think always happens when somebody is converted. When they receive that freedom in Christ by believing the gospel, of course they're going to be moved to praise and thanksgiving for all that God has done in Christ.

This heart of gratitude is the foundation of the Christian life. Then it expands. It spills out into a community.

4. The Household of God Is Expanded

The Gentiles receive the gospel. They respond with praise. Then Peter asks whether anyone can withhold water for baptizing these people, who have received the Holy Spirit just as they have. Peter realizes that he cannot reject those whom God has called in himself. He commands that they be incorporated into the household of God by receiving the gift of baptism.

To this day, we continue to witness to the wideness of God's mercy, and the household of God continues to expand. What we see with Peter throughout this chapter—and as he continues talking about it in chapter 11—is that there is no people that God does not desire to be his people. There is no country that should not be God's country. There is no person, male or female, rich or poor, young or old, of any ethnicity, who is beyond the merciful call of God in Christ as the gospel is proclaimed.

This is why, from the beginning, the church has been a preaching and evangelizing church. When we proclaim the gospel in the Spirit of Christ, it is good news for all to hear. This good news of God coming to us as one of us to rescue us from death isn't just a beautiful story. It is a beautiful story, and it's a true story. But it's not just that.

God uses this true story as a means of grace. It brings with it truth, enlightenment, and healing. Things happen when the gospel is preached.

Glimpses of the Gospel at Work

I'm grateful that I've been able to catch a lot of glimpses of this in my own life and ministry. I can testify that when the Spirit is poured out as the gospel is preached, people's lives are marked by praise. It's not always super dramatic. But I've noticed in my own life—and maybe you've had a similar experience—that as you praise the Lord as a discipline, over and over, your heart is moved to gratitude and you begin to experience peace that passes understanding.

Week after week, we mark our lives by attending this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. We receive the Holy Spirit, and he moves us to praise. Sometimes it seems like just another Sunday morning. But it's never just another Sunday morning, because God is here. The Lord is here. The Spirit is with us.

At a Soup Kitchen in Phoenix

I've seen the converting work of God. I think especially of a season of ministry I spent in a Bible study every Monday at a soup kitchen in Phoenix. Every Monday, we would share the gospel with our friends and neighbors who were experiencing homelessness. They were there for a variety of reasons. Homelessness is complicated. Maybe they were struggling with substance abuse, maybe they were down on their luck, or maybe they had made some terrible decisions.

One thing they had in common was that these folks were rejected socially by the wider society. In my own prejudice, they seemed unlikely candidates to be converted people. What I found, to be honest, was that lots of them were Christian, and lots of them were more converted than me. They might have had a certain set of problems that were different from my problems. But so many times, I saw repentance and healing.

When we shared the gospel, sometimes it was a new thing: “Oh my gosh, I've never heard that,” or they were hearing it in a fresh way. Other times it was, “Oh yes, I know that story.” I would see people receive the good news of Jesus and the forgiveness of sins with gratitude, generosity, and faith that I still aspire to.

Worshiping Together Across Cultures

I'm also blessed to be part of an organization in Phoenix called Phoenix Refugee Connections. We connect local churches with people who have fled their home countries, mostly because of violence. We connect people with the body of Christ because we believe every person in that situation needs the body of Christ in their lives.

These people are coming from cultures and backgrounds vastly different from my own, with different languages. Yet once again, I have experienced firsthand the transforming power of the gospel in their lives as they trust their whole being to the Lord in ways that I can hardly imagine. I've also seen how the Lord draws diverse people together in common worship around the throne of Christ.

At Phoenix Refugee Connections, we do this thing called Worship Together. We bring a group from a majority-culture church to an immigrant-led church and worship together. You hear the testimonies and the joy of recognizing a little glimpse of God's vision of heaven on earth as people from all over the world gather around the throne of Christ. We get a taste of that expansive household God is creating. John's Gospel says grace upon grace has been poured out upon us in Jesus.

Christ Is Enough

When we hear and believe the gospel, we find that God is doing all this in our own lives. These aren't really four separate things. It's one thing God does: he pours out his Spirit, resulting in praise, recognition, conversion, and a new community. We receive the Holy Spirit when we believe the gospel—to guide and comfort us and make us holy. We find, perhaps surprised, that we ourselves are converted. This moves us to gratitude.

Eucharist means thanksgiving. We come in thanks and praise, and we find that we're drawn into an expansive community of people. Our diocese is made up of people from all over the world. We have African churches, churches all over the United States, and a special connection to Rwanda. We're also part of the larger global Anglican family.

To me, it's amazing that we get to be part of this household from every family, language, people, and nation. Maybe before, we felt like we had very little in common. Yet when we know and believe the gospel—that Christ has come because he loved the whole world—we find that Christ is enough. Christ is enough. He's enough to have in common.

I have a lot of friends I don't think I would be friends with if I were not a Christian. Sometimes it starts out as a little bit of a discipline, but then you realize the gift of recognizing that you have Christ in common. That is enough. He's enough to heal all our humanity and all its brokenness. Keeping Christ at the center—that's what he is up to here: the redemption of the world.

Keep Listening. Keep Sharing.

So what happens when the gospel is preached? We can sum it up this way: God accomplishes his good purposes in and for those hearing it. This is why we continue to preach the gospel. This is why we keep listening to the gospel. This is why we keep living in the light of the gospel day by day, even moment by moment.

I think we need to be evangelized too. We need to evangelize the world, for sure. But I know I need to be evangelized often. I need those reminders of what the gospel is. The world needs the gospel too, and so we share.

Not everybody is going to be a street evangelist. That's okay. Not everybody is going to be a pulpit preacher. That's okay. But each one of you will have opportunities in your life to share the gospel with people who need it: in your family, among your friends, where you work, and where you hang out. There will be opportunities.

You have such a gift to share. As you receive the gift of the gospel, I believe God wants you to share it out there in the world. He wants you to share it in love, the same way he shared it with us.

Because when the gospel is preached, things happen. Amen.