The Tale of Three Cities

Tom Shrader walks through Acts 14, following Paul and Barnabas from Iconium to Lystra to Derbe as they preach the gospel, face violent opposition, and continue boldly in reliance on the Lord rather than their own strength. The healing of a lame man in Lystra triggers a crowd's attempt to worship the apostles as gods, giving Paul the opportunity to redirect pagan listeners toward the one true God revealed in creation. Shrader draws practical application throughout, urging believers to see themselves as missionaries in their own sphere of influence, to expect opposition when sharing their faith, and to remain humble by crediting God rather than themselves for any spiritual fruit.

“When I'm obedient, my life is filled with joy and my life is filled with the Holy Spirit — it does not mean that circumstantially my life is just smooth, but it means even as circumstances fluctuate, even as difficulties come, I'm filled with joy and filled with the Holy Spirit.”

— Tom Shrader

Series: Acts

Recorded: 2000 at East Valley Bible Church

Duration: 38 min

Themes: missions, opposition, humility, boldness, obedience, evangelism, perseverance, joy, feeling afraid to share faith, facing rejection, new believer, struggling with pride, everyday missionary, young adult, experiencing persecution, mentor

Scripture: Acts 13:51-52, Acts 14:1-28, Acts 7, 2 Corinthians 11:24-28, Romans 1, 1 Peter 5:10, Matthew 5

Theological Themes: missiology, general revelation, sanctification, spiritual fruit, holy spirit filling, pagan evangelism, apostolic witness, obedience to calling

Full Transcript

The Journey to Iconium

Acts chapter 14. Let me remind you where we are in the study. Paul and Barnabas are in the middle of their first missionary journey, and today we are going to close it out. In chapter 13, verse 51, they shook off the dust of their feet in protest against their opponents and went on to Iconium. That gesture — the shaking off of the dust — was saying to the Jews, "You are no better than the pagans. We are done with you." And they moved on to the next city.

As they moved, verse 52 says the disciples were filled with joy and filled with the Holy Spirit. They were continually filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. The reason is very simple. They were obedient. They were the right people doing exactly what God had called them to do, doing it exactly where He had called them to be. When I am obedient, my life is filled with joy and my life is filled with the Holy Spirit. It does not mean that circumstantially life is just smooth, but it means that even as circumstances fluctuate, even as difficulties come, I am filled with joy and filled with the Holy Spirit.

Mapping the First Missionary Journey

Now they are going to leave Antioch and head to Iconium. Here is a map — the same map that most of you have in the back of your Bibles. Paul started over in the right-hand area, on the mainland in Antioch in Syria. He moves to the west, out to the island in the Mediterranean, then back into Asia Minor and up into another part of Antioch — Antioch in Pisidia — at an elevation of about 3,600 feet.

Today what is going to happen is that he will move from Antioch to Iconium, a trip of about 80 miles, then from Iconium to Lystra, about 18 miles, and then from Lystra to Derbe, about 40 miles. As we close out the chapter, they retrace all of these steps. That is the mission he is on.

Approaching This Study

This is one of those harder lessons to prepare. We are going to cover the entire chapter, and when I look at a study, what I am typically doing is reading it through in two or three different translations, trying to see whether I understand generally what is happening and whether anything jumps off the page. There was not much that jumped off the page this week — that meant I had to dig. I go through the same process I ask you to go through when you listen to anyone speak: What did he say? Is it true? So what? That is what I want to know. What is the meat of this?

There is a tendency to read a passage like this in an almost voyeuristic way and simply cheer Paul and Barnabas on from the sidelines. But we know this record exists for a reason. What we can do is look at what Paul and Barnabas go through and begin to apply it to our own lives, particularly as we move in the area of evangelism.

The Recurring Pattern

Generally speaking, here is the pattern we see. Paul and Barnabas come and they preach the Word. They deliver the gospel — they do not change it, they do not alter it, they deliver it. Opposition arises against them, in this case Jewish opposition. There is then typically some suffering or persecution, but always God grows the believer. God does the work.

One of the things we pray about continually as leaders of this church is that God give us a heart for people who are lost. We pray: "Don't let us become so inward-focused that all we think about is ourselves. God, help us understand that You are still alive in this world, that You are reaching out and touching lost people, and give us a desire to be part of it." There are people around us who are lost, and we have the message of salvation. As you love lost people and begin to share with them, it is important to have a realistic understanding that what happens to Paul and Barnabas is going to happen to you — obviously different in circumstance, but substantially the same.

Preaching in Iconium

Acts chapter 14, beginning in verse 1: "It came about that in Iconium they entered the synagogue of the Jews together and spoke in such a manner that a great multitude believed, both of Jews and of Greeks."

They made that 80-mile journey to Iconium. It is subtle, but it is something we need to understand. As Paul and Barnabas move away from the main thoroughfare, they move to an area that is less civilized. They are no longer going to experience Pax Romana — the peace and protection of Rome. They are traveling in dangerous territory. When they arrive in Iconium, they proceed in the same system we have seen them use repeatedly: they go first to the synagogue. They go to the people they know, the people who are interested in the things of God, people with whom they feel some sense of kinship.

As you begin to evangelize, it is logical that it would take place in the same way. Most people are not going to feel called to go out cold to strangers. I was talking to a lady recently who goes down three or four times a week to Mill Street, and her whole focus is witnessing to teens there. That is

You Are Already the Missionary

Most of you aren't going to pack up and go overseas. Most of your evangelism and your evangelistic opportunities are going to take place in your sphere of influence — those people you come in contact with on a regular basis: family, friends, people at work, people with common interests, people you hang out with. It is important to understand that you are called to be a missionary. When we think of missionaries, we tend to think of someone who needs a passport, a visa, a new language, a new culture. That's what we picture. But you are missionaries. God has strategically placed you right where He has you right now, and He has you there for a reason.

That reason is for you to infiltrate the world with the message of the gospel. At East Valley Bible Church, we are not about to embark on some gigantic program to win the East Valley to Christ — we already have that program going. You are the soldier. We have already infiltrated the East Valley. You are there, in neighborhoods and businesses. What we need to do now is be salt and light right where we are.

Heads Filled, Hearts Empty

Paul and Barnabas go to Iconium and begin to share the gospel. It is interesting that they start with people who are religious — people whose heads were filled with knowledge, who knew the scriptures inside and out, who were following the law, some of them meticulously. These were not people who were merely playing at church. But their heads were filled while their hearts were empty.

They knew all of the scripture, yet this is the very thing Jesus said to them: you read the scriptures because you think that in them you find life. You don't find life in the teaching — you find life in the person of Christ. We don't evangelize by saying, "Here, do this, follow this." We evangelize by saying, "You need to embrace the living God and His Son, Jesus Christ." That is the message. They go to Iconium, they begin to deliver this message, and God blesses. They deliver it in the power of the Holy Spirit, and many believe.

Opposition Rises

Whenever that happens, opposition begins. Verse 2 tells us: "The Jews who disbelieved stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and embittered them against the brethren." Two words become important here. "The Jews who disbelieved" literally means those who disobeyed — they were unpersuadable, people who refused to yield to the truth. They didn't want to hear it, and they were not neutral about it. They were against it. They began to embitter the minds of the Gentile listeners, and the word "embitter" means to poison. They began to poison the minds of those who were hearing the gospel.

They probably did this in a variety of ways. Scripture shows us that Satan works in the world in one of three ways: as a roaring lion, as a subtle serpent, or as an angel of light. It makes sense, then, that the attacks that come against us would fall into those same three categories. Satan himself has probably never attacked any one of you — he has bigger fish to fry. But his demons have certainly unleashed their power against you, and they use those same three avenues.

The Roaring Lion, the Angel of Light, and the Subtle Serpent

The roaring lion is what you see when you visit a site like www.persecutedchurch.org — the savageness that has been unleashed against believers around the world. We don't see a great deal of that here in this country. What we are barraged with, I think, is the angel of light. Someone comes along and says, "You're telling me Jesus is the only way. I understand what you're saying, but there are many ways. God spoke in many times and in many ways. You have the Bible, the testimony of Christ — but now you need the Book of Mormon too, because God isn't just this, He is other things as well." That is the angel of light. Every cult comes at you in this way.

Most of us, by the way, when we are enticing people toward sin, seem to come at it this same way. "I love you. I love you so much I would never tell you not to do that. Is that what they tell you over at that church — not to do this? There are no rules here. We love you, and because we love you, we never say no. Love is never having to say no." And when God says no, the angel of light whispers, "Knock it off." That is the angel of light at work.

Then there is the subtle serpent. In my study this week I came across something historically interesting. One of the commentators mentions an account from the New Testament Apocrypha — certain books that circulated in the early church but were never embraced as part of Scripture. They were written in the style of Scripture, but they are not Scripture. Among them is a book called The Acts of Paul and Thecla, set in Iconium. According to that story, the Apostle Paul fell in love with a young woman named Thecla, their romance becomes torrid, it breaks up her family, and it turns the whole city against them. The entire story portrays Paul as someone who came in and stirred up trouble through this relationship. And none of it happened. That is malicious gossip. That is the subtle serpent at work — and that is exactly what was going on in Iconium.

Speaking Boldly in the Face of Opposition

The Jews who were disobedient stirred up the minds of the Gentiles and tried to poison them. They made up lies, half-truths, and all sorts of alternative stories. Yet look at what happens in verse 3: Paul and Barnabas spent a long time there — as many as six months, we believe. Because of the stirring up, they stayed, and they were speaking boldly.

Throughout the book of Acts, that phrase appears over and over again: they spoke boldly. It means speaking in a way that feels unrestrained, with nothing holding you back. There is a tendency to read this and say, "Isn't that incredible? Look at these guys. I want to be like that." The key is right there in the text — you don't even have to guess. They were speaking boldly with reliance on the Lord.

They were not thinking it had anything to do with them. If the outcome of a Sunday gathering depended entirely on the preacher, that would be an unbearable weight. A preacher does the best he can, but even when the effort falls short, God uses it. It is God doing it, not us.

This is how you can stand firm: it is up to God. God is the one who protects it. Consider the person who has an opportunity to give a testimony for Jesus Christ in a hostile environment — a workplace, a club, among people who will come after them for it. The ability to speak boldly in that moment has nothing to do with technique. It has everything to do with reliance on Him.

They were reliant on the Lord, who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, and He was granting that signs and wonders were done at their hands. Apparently miracles were taking place as affirmation that what Paul and Barnabas were saying was true and that the opposition was not.

Division and a Plot to Kill

In verse 4, the multitudes of the city were divided — some sided with the Jews, some with the apostles. Then in verse 5, an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and the Jews. The word "attempt" there means to rush, or an assault. There was an assault made to come and stone them. We know the Jews were involved because stoning was capital punishment — not simply throwing rocks as a warning, but throwing them to kill.

We saw this in Acts 7 at the martyring of Stephen: the witnesses would free themselves up, take large stones, and hurl them. They were going to mistreat Paul and Barnabas and stone them to death. Now, the apostles were bold — but they were never said to be foolish. Look at verse 6: they became aware of the plot and they got out of the city. That was the smart move.

They escaped to Lycaonia, to Lystra and Derbe, and there they continued to preach the gospel. In the midst of the opposition at Iconium, a plot to kill them formed, and they responded wisely by leaving. They then traveled eighteen miles down the road and arrived at Lystra.

A Different Kind of City: Lystra

When they arrived at Lystra, something was noticeably different. There is no record that they went to a synagogue, and the reason appears to be that there was not one. Lystra was a pagan city with virtually no Jewish population. Rather than go into a religious setting, Paul and Barnabas went into the public square — the common area where many people would gather. They had a marketplace ministry.

When they arrived, there was a particular man who becomes the focus of verses 9 and 10. He was crippled, with no strength in his legs, lame from birth. It appears that everyone in the area knew this man — they were familiar with him and understood that he had never walked. As you study the Scriptures, you begin to see that this kind of situation is one in which God is prepared to work in a powerful way.

The Healing at Lystra

This man was listening to Paul as he taught. They were not in a synagogue, so what was Paul teaching? That becomes clear in a moment. There is every reason to believe Paul had been there for several days already. As Paul spoke, this man fixed his gaze on him, and they met eye to eye. Somehow Paul understood that this man had the faith to receive healing, and in verse 10 he said, "Stand upright on your feet." The man leaped up and began to walk.

Imagine the scene in that crowded market square — a man who had been lame from birth, whom everyone knew had never walked, suddenly standing upright and leaping. Some who read this say they wish they could see something like that today. Personally, what appears to be happening in Lystra, and what happened earlier in Iconium with signs and wonders, follows the same pattern God uses in particular circumstances — which is about to become clear.

Paul and Barnabas in Lystra

We have the word of God as our validation. The miracles being described here are not minor things — men who never walked, walking. When the multitude saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have become like men and have come down with us." They began calling Barnabas Zeus — or Jupiter in the Roman language — and Paul Hermes in the Greek, or Mercury in Rome.

To understand the response, we need a little backdrop. There was a legend, a myth in that area, which went like this: the gods — Jupiter and Mercury, Zeus and Hermes — had once visited earth incognito. When they came to Lystra, the myth goes, they went from house to house and were rejected by person after person. Finally, two people took them in. Because of that inhospitality, a flood came and wiped out everything but those two houses. The story, if it's not strange enough already, takes an odd turn, because when the two men die, they turn into trees. But that was the myth, and it was a popular one in that area.

So these people had heard this story, and the lesson they took from it was: if the gods ever visit us again, we are going to be ready for them. Now see how it all comes together. They see what Paul and Barnabas do, and they say, "This is it. Zeus is back. Mercury is here." They begin to praise them and want to worship them.

By verse 14, Paul and Barnabas hear this and tear their clothes — a Jewish expression of repulsion against blasphemy. The crowd is crying out, saying, "You are our gods." Then finally Paul speaks. He says, "Men, why are you doing these things? We are men just like you. We are not gods." And the second thing he tells them is this: "We preach the gospel to you so that you should turn from these vain things — Zeus and Mercury and all of this — and turn to the living God." The word "turn," as you know, means repent.

Preaching to Those Without the Old Testament

Notice what Paul does here. When he went to the synagogue, he preached from the Old Testament. But the Old Testament meant nothing to these people in Lystra. So Paul does the same thing he later does when he gets to Athens. He says, "I know that you worship these gods, but what I am asking you to do is come and believe in the one living God, the one true God — the God who made the heavens and the earth and the sea and everything that is in it."

This is what Paul understood when he wrote Romans 1: that no person in this world is without excuse, that every person understands there is a God. Every person can look around and see creation. All they have to do is look at the stars and the moon and the sky. And the more we learn about the solar system and the way it all works together, the more clearly we see that there has to be a Creator. There is no way to believe that this just exploded into existence without one. This cannot be an accident.

Paul comes to people who know nothing of the Old Testament and says, "I am here to talk to you about the one true God." And this is the same approach we can take in the marketplace today. When we talk to people about what they are seeking and longing for, we can point them to the one true God. We do not think of ourselves as idolaters today, but we are — anytime we worship any God other than the one true God.

The Stoning of Paul

Even after saying all these things, by verse 18, the people still would not restrain themselves. But something does stop it — the Jews arrive. These are the Jews from Antioch and Iconium, and they have won over the multitudes. We do not know how. We have no record of their arguments. They are apparently following Paul and Barnabas. They were not going to let this continue. They had pursued them in Antioch, they had pursued them in Iconium, and now they are here. They drag Paul out and stone him — casting stones on him to such a degree that they supposed him to be dead.

We need to spend a moment on those words. This is Luke the physician, recording the firsthand testimony of Paul himself, and he is very precise. He uses the word "supposing" — meaning to suppose something that is not true. Paul was not dead. There are some who would say this is when he died and went to the third heaven. No. Paul was not dead. They thought he was dead, took him to the edge of the city, and left him there.

The disciples came and stood around him. We do not have a record of exactly what happened, but we can assume they were there weeping, lamenting, crying out to God. They had seen Paul emerge as the leader, and now here he lay. Some in the group were likely saying it was time to bury him. And it is right about then that Paul rose up and stood on his feet. He got up. Imagine that.

Paul Retraces His Steps

Imagine what God did as He restores Paul. Paul enters the city, and the next day he and Barnabas go to Derbe — a trip of about forty miles. After they had preached the gospel in that city for a while, God began to do the same work there. These men are persistent. We don't have the message or the method recorded here, but we can presume that what they were talking about is the gospel, and God begins to bless that.

We know they didn't go in and say, "Well, here's what I think." We live at a time when you hear people say "invitation" — "I invite you." Even in many crusade settings, there is a part at the end called the invitation. But Christ doesn't invite us. It is a command: "Follow me. Come and repent." It is in the imperative form. It is a command, and if I don't obey, I am disobedient. Remember what we said? They were disbelieving Jews — they were disobedient. If you are here today and you don't know Christ, you are disobedient to the command that He gives you to come.

Now Paul does something that is truly extraordinary. He is in Derbe for a period of time. He delivers this message. Disciples are made. Then look at what he does in the second part of verse 21 — he retraces his steps. He goes back to Lystra, where they stoned him. He goes back to Iconium, where they wanted to stone him but he got away. He goes back to Antioch, where the whole plot was hatched to drag him down and stone him.

How could he do that? How could he have that courage? Does he have amnesia — does he not remember what happened? We know he remembers. How could he overcome that fear? Because there is a force at work in Paul's life that is even greater than fear.

The Weight of Paul's Suffering

Turn with me to 2 Corinthians chapter 11. Work your way through Acts, through Romans, into 1 Corinthians, and slow down when you reach 2 Corinthians. This is a passage familiar to many of us because it is where Paul speaks autobiographically about the pain, the suffering, and the hurt he endured. Reading from the New Living Translation, here is what he says beginning at verse 24:

"Five different times the Jews gave me thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned." The only time that stoning is recorded is here in Lystra — that is what he is referring to. "Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea. I have traveled many weary miles. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities and in the deserts and on the stormy seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be Christians but are not. I have lived with weariness and pain and sleepless nights. Often I have been hungry and thirsty and have gone without food. Often I have shivered with cold, without enough clothing to keep me warm."

Typically when we talk about Paul's suffering, we stop right there. That is indeed his external suffering. But I would suggest that an even greater concern and source of suffering for him is found in verse 28: "Then, besides all this, I have the daily burden of my concern for all the churches." As someone involved in work not entirely unlike the Apostle Paul's, it is very hard for me to go through even a single day without wondering how the church is getting along, how things are going, what is happening in people's lives. And we can simply pick up the phone, send an email, or get a fax. Paul had none of those available to him.

So Paul is saying: I came through Iconium, I came to Lystra, I am here in Derbe, and I saw what God did there — but I wonder what is happening back in those churches. Rather than send a reconnaissance team, Paul said, "Come on, Barnabas, we are going to go find out ourselves. We are going to go see what is going on."

Strengthening the Souls of the Disciples

Here is what happens in verse 22: they strengthen the souls of the disciples. That is the goal, really, of every leader — to strengthen the soul of the believer, to encourage them to continue in the faith, and to say to them, "Through many tribulations we must enter into the kingdom of God." They want to strengthen these believers. They do that through the teaching of the Word and through prayer, passing on these truths.

But teaching alone is not enough. They also begin to encourage — to put courage into them. One commentator writes that this was often done by an appeal to example. They would go back over the Old Testament record and point out how men and women of God had been living by faith for years, how God had blessed and strengthened His people. They would say, "Remember what happened to Abraham? Remember what happened to Isaac? Remember how we saw God work over and over again?"

I read that and I have to smile, because I can't imagine Paul needing to say "remember Abraham" — not when all the people could simply look at Paul himself. When he walks back into Lystra, and the last time they saw him he was dragged to the edge of town and left for dead, and now here he stands — that puts courage right back into those believers. That is the strength, right there in the midst of suffering.

Suffering as God's Instrument

Peter writes in 1 Peter 5:10, "After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace who called us to eternal glory in Christ will perfect, confirm, strengthen, and establish you." Suffering is good. Suffering is our friend. Suffering is what God uses to sharpen us and to cause growth in our lives.

Staying Humble About What God Has Done

Growth in our life is a result of suffering. So when you go and say, "Father in heaven, I love you. I want to love you more. God, I want to be Your man, Your woman, Your student, Your child. God, I want to live for You" — here is what God hears: let me suffer, let me suffer, let me suffer. Because that is how it works best.

He encourages them, and He says He wants them to stand firm. Then in verse 23, one more thing happens — they go back and they appoint elders. They go back to the church and say, "Now we want to put some structure in here," and that structure is God-ordained leadership. It is elders. Then they commend them to the Lord, saying, "God, this is ultimately all up to You."

Finally, after retracing their steps, they land in Antioch. When they arrive there, they gather the church together, and they do not say, "Here is what I did." They say, "Here is what God did. God did this. God is the one who did the work. This is about God." Paul is not going to stand there and say, "Well, I did this, and I did this, and I did that." He is going to say, "Listen to what God did."

Mary Lamb and Stories That Begin With God

If you want something substantial in your life, try this: find somebody who has walked with the Lord for forty or fifty years, and go listen to them. There are a lot of people in my life who have modeled this, and obviously she has since passed away, but Mary Lamb used to do that. You would go and listen to Mary Lamb, and she would tell you these extraordinary stories — and they were never stories about, "Boy, David and I are something." Every story was, "God did this."

I remember saying to her, "Mary, tell me how you met David." She said, "Well, here is what God did." I was thinking, well, we saw each other and our eyes met — but no, it was, "Here is what God did." How did you get from China to India? "Well, God did this." How did the school get started? "Well, God started it here." Every story started that way, because she understood that this was all about God.

The So What: Evangelism and Staying on Message

Here is the application for us. As we begin to evangelize, the key is this: do not get off message. Trust in the Lord. Share the gospel. The power is not in what you think or what you believe — the power is in God. Trust Him. You can be bold, because you are relying on Him.

Expect that when you share the gospel, some people are going to brush it off. That is okay. And some people are going to say, "Tell me more." I got to meet a couple this morning after the 9:30 service who came to Christ two weeks ago today. It is so exciting — you can see them smile. That is what God is doing, and it is happening all throughout this church, not as the church moves in some organized program, but as you begin to evangelize in your own life. Trust God for the results, and stay humble.

The Temptation to Take God's Glory

Let me take a moment on something I moved past quickly. There was great persecution on this journey, but there was also a real and tough temptation right in the middle of it. Satan unleashes a great threat, and here is what he does: he challenges them, he flatters them, and he appeals to them. He comes and says, "You are gods." Can you imagine that temptation?

It is nice enough when you walk into the office and someone says, "Boy, you are quite a salesperson — can you show me some technique?" But imagine walking in tomorrow and someone says, "You are God." There is a dark side in me that might say, "Well, I know this is not right, but from this God platform, I could probably reach a lot of people." Paul says, "No, we are not gods."

There is a man who comes to one of our studies, and recently he was telling me how he won two souls for Christ. Here is what I thought: I do not believe he did. My Bible tells me nobody can do that. You might have evangelized, God might have blessed it, and there may be people in the kingdom today — but not because of you. Because of Him.

Some of you in this room, God is really beginning to work in your life and really beginning to use you. Do not fall into the trap of thinking that it is you. It is not you. You are just an instrument, a tool that God uses. It is Him that does the work. And if you forget that, He is going to take you to the woodshed on this, because He is not going to share His glory with you.

Salt, Light, and a Passion for Lost People

Jesus says in Matthew 5, be salt and light. Go be salty. Let everybody see your light so that people will see you and be drawn to Him — see you and give Him the glory. Is that the way we evangelize? I hope it is. That is our prayer for you: that you would have a passion for the lost.

I think most people do not share their faith not because they do not know enough, but because they do not care enough. They just really do not love lost people. In fact, they see them as a hindrance. This is amazing — we get mad at them because they start to act like pagans. They are pagans. They do not know any better. They are not going to act like you.

A Greater Challenge Than Persecution

Now, as Paul and Barnabas land back in Antioch, a challenge comes — and it is not just persecution. This is a far greater challenge than any external force. What comes now is a temptation and a challenge from within.

What we look at in Acts 15 is the whole discussion of what the gospel is as it goes out to the Gentiles. What is the gospel message? That is where we are headed next.

Closing

Let me encourage you to do two things. First, do not forget to pick up the information from your child's teacher regarding the upcoming changes. Second, consider joining us at six o'clock on Sunday night — we would love to see you there.

Father, please use us in a mighty way. We pray that our lives would be conformed and transformed.

Opening Prayer

We pray that You would intervene and that You would use us to bring honor and glory to You. God, we pray that as Your Holy Spirit sweeps through this valley, our obedience would be used by Him to bring honor to You as we deliver the message of the saving faith that we can have through Christ, in Christ alone. God, do that work. We ask it of You in Jesus' name. Amen.