## Hindering the Work of God

## Acts 2:1-2

(Acts 2:1-2) And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

Let me begin by saying that Pentecost is not a denomination, but an event. There is a denomination that is named after this event, but the origin of the Day of Pentecost was not the beginning of some religious group.

(Luke 24:49) And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

What took place in the upper room of Acts chapter two was simply a fulfillment of the Lord's statement to His disciples in Luke. Now the passage in Acts speaks to an important point that is often overlooked. Verse one tells us that they were all in 'one accord in one place'. They were all doing exactly what the Lord had told them to do…waiting for the promise of the Father. There is a pattern revealed here that I think deserves a closer look.

After they were endued with power…after the Holy Spirit came upon them in a mighty way; this small group of believers went out and turned the world upside down for Christ. (Acts 17:6)

Would it be safe to say that they had a profound impact on their city, country, and eventually the entire world? What about us? I believe that this church has made a difference in lives in our city, around our state, and across the world. But I don't think anyone has ever said that we were 'turning the world upside down'. So, there is room for growth…room for improvement…and reason to consider this passage tonight.

If we were to survey the members of Grace Baptist Temple on any given day, I do not believe that we would find one member who wanted to hinder the work of God through this church. Do you? Now I know that there are those who are following after the enemy who would love to see us fail as a church, but I am not interested in them right now. I want us to think about our own membership.

Understand this evening, that a person does not have to openly oppose the work, in order to hinder it. Jesus said, "He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad." What kind of picture does that verse conjure up for us? To me I see the Lord busy in the work, and there are two groups of folks in view. One group is actively involved in the 'gathering' and another group is involved in the 'scattering'. Like picking up toys with my grandkids. As fast as I put them away they are taking them out! Why? Our focus and purpose are different! We are working against one another.

That happens within the local church. There are those who are working together and those who are not. You see, the believers on the day of Pentecost were 'all with one accord in one place". Then they were empowered to do a mighty work for God. I want us to see three things about this verse.

I. They were ALL with one accord in one place.

A. I think that God says what He means and means what He says in the Bible.

B. In this verse He said, 'All'

1. It hadn't always been this way.

2. Remember the account of the resurrected Lord visiting the believers one Sunday evening.

3. That must have been one exciting service! 4. But they weren't all there, Thomas was home watching the NFL today.

5. But on the day of Pentecost, they were ALL assembled together.

C. Does it make a difference?

1. Of course it does…

2. On the first Sunday of September we had 140 in church, and on the first Sunday in November we had 99 here.

3. It makes a difference in every area of our service.

4. I am not just talking about numbers; I am talking about people!

5. Church members who forsake the assembling of themselves together. (Heb. 10:25)

6. How many times have we said to ourselves, if we could just get everyone here at one time we would have a nice crowd?

7. I believe we would have much more than that!

II. They were all with ONE ACCORD in one place.

A. "Homothumadon" = One mind.

1. They were all in agreement on why they were there (the Lord had commanded them to be).

2. They were all waiting for the promise of the Father.

3. They were all anticipating hearing from God.

B. What about us?

1. Are we in agreement as to why we come together?

2. I recently picked up a comment sheet in another church that listed why they should cancel their Sunday evening services.

3. Repeatedly it was mentioned that they came to church out of guilt…

4. Is that why we are here this evening, because we don't want to feel guilty?

5. If so, then we might as well pack up and go home…

6. If we do not come together with 'one accord'…one mind…one way of thinking then we are in trouble.

C. Double-mindedness is dangerous.

Jas 1:8 A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.

1. That is true for a man, but I believe it is equally true for a local church.

2. If we lose sight of why we assemble together.

3. If we come together for the wrong reasons.

4. I believe the church will become unstable.

5. We need to come together in our thinking.

a. We come to church because God commands us to do so.

b. We come to church anticipating hearing from God.

c. We come to church that we might go out empowered to be witnesses for Him.

III. They were all with one accord in ONE PLACE.

A. The 'one place' does not refer to the location.

1. Usually when we read this we are thinking that this is a reference to the upper room.

2. The Lord uses a different word here.

Ac 4:31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

3. In Acts 4:31, the reference is to the physical location.

4. But not in Acts 2, here there is one word used for the phrase 'one place' and it simply means that they were together.

B. When we come together it is not the place that is important…

1. It is the fact that we are together.

2. Jesus said that wherever two or three are gathered together… (Mt. 18:20)

3. It isn't likely that they were in a room…it makes more sense to the passage that they were in the temple area in preparation for the observance of Passover.

4. In our lives, the 'one place' could be here in the auditorium, it could be in the gym, it could a classroom, it could be the shelter house, or it could be someone's home.

5. Like the Lord said, "Wherever…"

C. The application for us today.

1. When we come together…we ALL need to come together, because we are a body, and every part of the body is necessary for maximum effectiveness.

1Co 12:14 For the body is not one member, but many.

1Co 12:20 But now are they many members, yet but one body.

1Co 12:26 And whether one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honoured, all the members rejoice with it.

2. When we come together we ALL need to come together with the same PURPOSE of MIND.

a. To praise and worship God in expectation of God's blessings.

b. To be empowered to witness to the world in which we live.

c. To edify and strengthen one another.

d. To bear one another's burdens.

3. We ALL need to come together with the same PURPOSE of MIND in ONE PLACE wherever that place might be.

What about us tonight? Are we all going to be in one accord and in one place? I wish it were so.

I don't want anything or anyone to hinder the power and the work of God through this church. Obviously the decision is a personal one. Will you commit yourselves to this principle? The Lord wants this church to grow - I know He does - but it won't grow until we are ALL IN ONE ACCORD IN ONE PLACE.