The Church in a Hostile World

1.     God sovereignly uses adversity & hostility for His divine purpose to      and direct His Church and to advance the Gospel. (v. 21-22)
 
2.     The Church is not the Kingdom of God, but God’s primary instrument to preach &      the world with the Gospel & the powerful Word of God. (v. 23-29, 19:8-9)

3.     The Church is going to experience Satan’s opposition &      from the world when the truths of Bible cut across the materialistic aims of our society. (v. 23-29)

• The world opposes the Gospel because Satan       their minds to the glory of Christ & the truth of God’s Word. (2 Cor 4:4)
• The world opposes the Gospel because it       their sinful lifestyles.

4.     The Church must be      in the face of an angry world knowing that we are protected by God for His purposes. (v. 30-31, 35-41)

5.     The Church must remember that the truth of the Gospel is      while the so-called truth of the world will pass away. (v. 35-41)

G. Campbell Morgan – “The Church persecuted has always been the Church pure, and therefore the Church powerful. The Church patronized has always been the Church in peril, and very often the Church paralyzed.” (The Acts of the Apostles, pp 465)