God’s
Definition of Normal
Steve W. Reeves
stevereevesoutlines.blogspot.com
INTRODUCTION:
A. A recent article in FORBES magazine suggested that it may take seven years to
return to “normal,” following the current pandemic. The article considered the
impacts on such things as financial markets, travel and business. Some analysts
suggest that “normal” as the world has known it, has been lost forever. (FORBES,
November 15, 2020).
B. The article suggests a question the church needs to consider. “What does: “normal”
look like for the church?”
1. For many of us it means a return to the way things were before the pandemic. It
means sitting together, no masks, visiting in the foyer, potlucks, worship on
Sunday morning and evening, returning to our usual Bible classes and all of the
other activities in which we were previously engaged.
2. Without questioning the validity of these things, I believe we should ask the
question, “Are these things the real standard for ‘normal’?”
3. I believe there is a much better standard of “normal” for the church. It is found in
the New Testament book of Acts.
C. Acts is the second of two volumes written by Luke to a man named Theophilus (lover
of God). The first was the Gospel of Luke which contained “all that Jesus began to do
and teach” (Compare Acts 1:1 with Luke 1:1). Now, in this second volume, Luke
records the continued work of Jesus through His church.
1. There are some in the religious world who do not like Acts because they reject
“pattern theology.” They say that Acts is merely a picture of how the church looked
at that particular time and situation and should not be considered as a pattern
for the church today.
2. Obviously we must take historical and cultural considerations into account while
studying Acts or any other book of the Bible.
3. There are, however, many commands, examples, principles and precepts in the
book of Acts that are just as valid today as they were in the first century. If we
really want to understand God’s definition of “normal” for His church we must
return to the book of Acts.
D. In this message I want us to see three characteristics of a normal church.
I. IT IS ANTICIPATIVE
A. The very first thing Luke records is how the early disciples were filled with hope
and expectation.
1. For forty days after the resurrection Jesus had appeared to the disciples no
fewer than ten times. In Acts 1 Jesus appeared to them one final time before
ascending into the clouds. Anticipation characterized what He commanded and
what He did.
2. He told them to wait in Jerusalem. These men were ready to go home to Galilee.
Jesus said to wait because the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which He had
promised to them just eight weeks earlier in the upper room, would come upon
them. Jesus had told them that this “comforter” would guide them into the truth
(John 16:5-15).
3. The apostles asked Jesus if this was the time He was going to restore the
Kingdom to Israel (Acts 1:6). Jesus replied that it was not for them to know.
God has an appointed time. Their responsibility was to be vigilant and
anticipate.
4. Then, according to verses 9-11, as they stood with Him, He was taken up onto
the clouds before them. Why the clouds? Throughout the Bible, clouds play a
key role in denoting the presence of God (See Daniel 7:13, also consider the
baptism and transfiguration of Jesus) Then, two men adorned in white apparel
stood beside them and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the
sky? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the
same way as you have watched Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).
5. Where did Jesus go? According to Hebrews 1:3, “When He had made
purification for sin, He sat down at the right hand of Majesty on High.”
B. The ascension of Jesus and the promise that He will return in the clouds was a
radical, life changing event for the disciples. The focus for the rest of Acts and the
remainder of the New Testament is the promise that Jesus is coming again. This
was “normal” for them. Unfortunately, it is no longer normal for us.
1. We have too many things we want to do for Jesus to come again.
a. We want to finish school, start a career, get married, have children, watch
them grow and live to a ripe old age. Then, just before we die, Jesus can
come again. Of course, by that time there will be others wanting to do the
same things.
b. Would it surprise you to know that God is not going to consult your personal
calendar to determine when Jesus will come again?
2. Sir Earnest Shackleton, a famous British explorer in the Antarctic, was
preparing a trans-Antarctic journey when his ship, Endurance, became lodged
in ice. The crew disembarked before the ice eventually crushed the ship.
Shackleton went for help while the crew camped on the sea ice. Every day the
commanding officer would tell the crew, “Get up and stow your gear men.
Today may be the day Sir Ernest returns. We must be ready. They waited for
weeks and weeks but eventually Shackleton returned just as he said.
3. A normal church is one that anticipates the coming of our Lord. We work, pray
and live with anticipative hearts and spirits.
II. IT IS DECLARATIVE
A. For ten days, the disciples waited for the power of God to come upon them. In
Acts 2 as they were gathered in the upper room (perhaps the same upper room
where Jesus had met with them) the Holy Spirit came upon them with the sound of
a rushing wind and the sight of tongues of fire. These men were filled with the
Holy Spirit just as Jesus had promised them in John 16 and prior to His ascension
in Acts 1. Peter said this was the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy in Joel 2:28-29.
What did they do?
1. Immediately they began to preach the Gospel. They were given miraculous
power so that everyone heard in their own language.
2. Peter preached. The book of Acts is declarative. It contains 19 sermons (eight
by Peter, nine by Paul, one by Stephen and one by James (the brother of
Jesus).
3. They did this because Jesus commanded it. In Acts 1:8 He told them that after
the Spirit had come upon them they were to be His witnesses in Jerusalem,
Samaria and into the remotest parts of the earth. Earlier, Jesus had told the
disciples to “Go teach the Gospel to every nation” (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark
16:15-16; Luke 24:47).
B. According to the book of Acts this was normal for the church. Everywhere these
people went, they taught about Jesus. They taught publicly and privately. They
taught in good times and difficult times. They taught when it was inconvenient,
when they were persecuted, when they encountered opposition. Within a short
period of time they had carried the Gospel to all Judea, Samaria, Asia Minor and
had plans to go as far as Spain. They understood that “normal” for the church was
being declarative with the Gospel.
1. Using this criteria as a standard of “normal,” how are we doing? How are we
doing in our own community? How are we doing in our own families?
2. We do not measure up to God’s definition of normal. What preaching and
teaching we do is primarily to our own dwindling numbers. We have become an
introverted church taking care of ourselves but neglecting the salvation of souls
in the world. We give money to pay others thinking it releases us from the
responsibility of declaring Jesus to others. This is not normal regardless of how
many times we come together each week and how many classes and activities
we have. This is not normal.
III. IT IS TRANSFORMATIVE
A. Peter concluded the first Gospel sermon He passionately proclaimed that this
Jesus, whom they had crucified, God had made Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36). They
were pricked in their hearts (vs. 37). It wasn’t the messenger who convinced them
but the message. Jesus had died for them. They were guilty of crucifying Him.
1. When the crowd cried out, “what shall we do” (vs. 37) Peter and the apostles,
inspired by the Holy Spirit, answered, “Repent and be baptized in the name of
Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you shall receive the gift of the Holy
Spirit” (vs. 38). In every account of conversion in the book of Acts either
explicitly or implicitly, this was the normal response to the Gospel.
2. Picking up with verse 41, “So then, those who had received his word were
baptized; and that day there were added about three thousand souls. 42 They
were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching, fellowship, the
breaking of bread and to prayer.”
B. These people were transformed. Their lives were changed. Their priorities were
changed. Their families were changed. This was the normal response of
people in the first century church.
1. Is God pleased with weak, anemic churches that think they are normal
just because the doors are open three days a week while multi-million
dollar buildings sit vacant the majority of the time?
2. Is God pleased with churches where members invest more time complaining
about one another than teaching lost souls?
3. Is God pleased with churches that cater to convenience rather than conviction?
4. Is God pleased with churches that pander to pleasure rather than preaching
Gospel truth?
C. May God have mercy on all of us who have failed to live transformative lives.
CONCLUSION:
A. In my home ttown of Memphis, Tennessee, is the University of Memphis. Prior jo its
current name it was known as Memphis State University. When it began in 1912 it
was called West Tennessee State Normal School.. The entire community around the
college was called the “Normal” community. There was even a congregation knows
as the :”Normal” Church of Christ (npw the Highland Church of Christ)…..
1. I want to be a part of the “normal” chur
2. In making this statement, however, I must add that I am not interested in a human
definition of “normal,” but in God’s definition of “normal.”
B. Will you join me in the quest to discover and fulfill God’s definition of “normal” for His
church?
