"The God of the Outcast" Acts 8:26-40 | No Other Name

In the book of Acts, Luke is reinforcing for us what he repeatedly emphasized in the gospel of Luke: Our God has come to rescue and to restore the outcast and the sinner. It is one of the most beautiful truths of the Christian faith that God loved us while we were yet sinners. God seeks to restore those who have rebelled against him and those who have been really far from Him. God saves the least likely.

Over the next few Sundays, we are going to see in the book of Acts how God saves individuals who are outsiders and/or really deep sinners (ie.,Saul of Tarsus). Up until now, the stories of conversion to the Christian faith have been groups of people turning to Christ from Jerusalem to Judea to Samaria. Now, God goes after individuals who would be seen as far outside the circle of His people or far from any hope of coming to faith in Jesus Christ. It is meant to be a gamechanger for the church. God loves to save the outsider, the outcast, the sinner. It’s a gamechanger for those who feel that their sin and brokenness make the thought of full acceptance hard for them to imagine. Yet, that’s the gospel. God seeks and saves the lost and the least likely. He loves to do that. As Peter writes in 1 Peter 2:10 “Once you were not a people, but now you are God’s people.”

Come this Sunday, as we study Acts 8:26-40. Our message is called, “The God of the Outcast.” Come if you feel alone and isolated and forsaken. It will encourage you. Come if you feel safe and at home with God. It will change the way that you see the world and I pray that it will put strong hope in your hearts for the mission of God in the world where you live and serve everyday. We will be taking communion together as a family. Come and be encouraged and invite a friend.

In Christ,
Kevin Dibbley, Senior Pastor