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Acts 17:1-10 “Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews:”

(2) And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, (3) Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.”

(4) And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. (5) But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.”

(6) And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; (7) Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus.”

(8) And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. (9) And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go. (10) And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.”

Turning The World Upside Down It was meant to be a derogatory statement! The Jews did not want to be told to change. Their whole world was being shaken up. People today are the same way!

Turning The World Upside Down Another interpretation: In a very positive way! They WERE turning the world upside down. They were trying to make changes that would influence the whole world!

Turning The World Upside Down This Lesson Will Examine… What kind of attitude it takes. What kind of action it takes. Are we doing our part?

Turning The World Upside Down What Kind Of Attitude It Takes Not done for prestige. Not because it was easy. II Corinthians 11:22-28

What Kind Of Attitude It Takes They believed in what they had, i.e., the gospel of Christ! It was valuable, and they knew it! Acts 3:1-10 They believed everyone needed to hear it - Mark 16:15-16 They took this command seriously! Colossians 1:23

What Kind Of Attitude It Takes They believed that what they had was worth dying for! Stephen-Acts 7:54-60 Stephen had other options: He could have not taught the gospel at all He could have stopped when the crowd got angry He could have changed the message But the truth was too important to him!

What Kind Of Attitude It Takes? It was valuable. It was important for all the people. It was worth dying for. But, they had to go beyond attitude!

Right Attitude Must Lead To… The results in the first century came because Christians were active! They taught. They believed they held the responsibility to spread the gospel I Corinthians 9:16 Jeremiah 20:9

Correct Attitude + Correct Activity They were active enough to draw the attention of other religious leaders They were… Forceful Not trying to spare feelings Trying to convince people to change They were blunt - Acts 2:22-24

Correct Attitude + Correct Activity Their teaching drew attention! The Jews knew exactly what was going on. The Christians did not try to hide their activities from them. Being a Christian was dangerous in the first century!

Is the gospel valuable to us? Are We That Church? Is the gospel valuable to us? Proverbs 23:23 Just how valuable? Shown by how we treat the gospel. Do we teach it, or is bound up in our Bibles, gathering dust on the shelves? Is it important enough that every person on earth should hear it? If so, have our neighbors and friends heard it from us?

Is The Gospel Worth Dying For? Serious question! Is the gospel worth… losing a job over? losing friends over? losing family over? Matthew 10:37-39

Turn The World Upside Down? These men did indeed turn the world upside down. We can only be successful in doing the exact same thing.

The Simple Plan HEAR – Rom.10:17; Jno.20:30,31 BELIEVE – John 8:24; Hebrews 11:6 REPENT – Luke 13:3; Acts 17:30,31 CONFESS – Romans 10:10; Acts 8:37 BE BAPTIZED – Mk.16:16; Acts 22:16 ADDED TO CHURCH (Acts 2:41,47)