Immanuel Fellowship Church

Pastor Jim teaches from Acts 27:1-44 and asks, "How can we find peace, rest, and joy through the knowledge of God’s sovereignty while in the midst of turbulent waters - and still stay focused on Christ’s mission?"

The gospel is so very very good that whoever experiences it will want that good for everyone.  Followers of Jesus want salvation for all peoples - period. The gospel is that good. Paul’s final words to Agrippa show the heart of the witness to Christ - we want everyone to have what we have - the gospel is so good it supercedes human lines in such a way that follower of Jesus desire the good of Jesus for literally everyone - enemies included.

God is in control. We can trust Him and seek Him and participate with Him in the work even when things are difficult. 

The big challenge of this text is that Paul had a clear understanding of his call and what his next steps of obedience were to be while still in Ephesus. (19:21) He was to go to Jerusalem and then go to Rome yet here he is in a prison in Caesarea - and the text tells us he’s trapped here for TWO years. Talk about God changing his plans. Yet, in this tragic situation, Paul gets the unique chance to preach the gospel to Felix and his wife for literal years, not his plan, but obviously God’s plan and Paul rolls with it.

God’s sovereign hand over our lives, our world and how his timing is always perfect. What we see is the continuous unfolding of God’s story of redemption of which our lives are a part.We are called to enter into the messy lives of others.  This is our mission.Two reassuring gifts from God as we live for his purposes.  One:  Confidence he gives us in the midst of trials.  Second:  Confidence we have in the resurrection - both His and ours.

James and the elders responded to Paul’s report and the gift from the churches by praising God. Yet they also urged Paul to join with four Jewish Christians who were fulfilling their Nazirite vows and to pay for their required offerings. In effect, they were saying to Paul, “We can accept this gift from the churches and so identify ourselves openly with your Gentile mission, if you will join with these men and identify yourself openly with the nation.

The offices of the church were given as a gift to the church to help it live in fellowship with Jesus and grow in holiness.

Pastor Jim preaches through Acts 20:17-38.

This text is really at its core about the community we find in the midst of the mission. Paul is on this urgent trip and its taking him through all these churches he’s helped plant and all these people whom he desperately loves and we see just this amazing sacrificial community that has built up around the kingdom work.

The gospel of Jesus opposes Idolatry.