Getting God's Attention

Well, how many of you know the series that we are in right now?

What's the title?

There is more.

Anybody tired of it?

I hope you're not tired of it yet.

Because hold on, we're going for about a year long.

That's okay.

It's a journey through the book of Acts.

It's 28 chapters long.

We're going verse by verse, chapter by chapter.

And Acts chapter 10 is where we find ourselves today.

It is one of the most significant chapters.

chapters in the entire book of Acts, not simply because of what happens, but because of what God reveals.

What happens over these next two chapters, spoiler alert, I'm just going to let you in on it.

We're only going to cover eight verses today, but this is the longest narrative of one event that is happening in the book of Acts.

It is a significant event where non-Jewish people are welcomed into the faith.

Most of us would not be in this room today without Acts chapter 10 and 11.

So praise God that we're at Acts chapter 10 and Acts didn't end in Acts chapter 9.

Because we wouldn't be doing theirs more and we wouldn't be here.

If there's ever a chapter.

In the book of Acts, where heaven leans over the balcony of eternity and shouts, there's more.

This is it.

So far, what we've experienced in the book of Acts, there's 120 people gathered in an upper room.

And all of a sudden, the sound of a mighty rushing wind sweeps into that place and tongues of fire appear over the heads of all 120 of them.

They begin to speak in languages of which they have never studied.

They are baptized in the Holy Spirit.

The church is born.

Peter begins to preach on the day of Pentecost.

Thousands come to Christ.

Lame people are beginning to walk.

Sick people are being healed.

The church is multiplying from city to city.

And dare I say,

the believers in the book of acts up to this point have already experienced more than most of us collectively have experienced in our lifetime so at acts chapter 10 we are six to ten years according to church uh biblical scholars into the birth of the church peter has become a veteran for revival

He's preached Pentecost.

He's seen thousands of people be born again.

He's watched miracles happen.

Dead people be raised.

Lame people walk.

He's seen cities transformed.

If anyone could say, I've seen it all, it would be Peter.

But God says, hey, Peter, Acts chapter 10, there's more.

Peter's like, there is?

How could there be more?

And the same is true for a man we're about to meet in the beginning of Acts chapter 10 by the name of Cornelius.

From the outside, it looks like he has everything.

He has influence.

He has power.

He has wealth.

He has respect.

He has morality.

He has religion.

But God looks at Cornelius and says, hey, Cornelius,

There's more.

Now, can I encourage somebody this morning?

None of us in this room will ever exhaust everything God wants to do or reveal in our life.

If there was more for Peter, more for Cornelius, how many of you say, hey, there's more for us.

There's more for Life.Church in Walla Walla, Washington.

Acts chapter 10, let's look at the first eight verses together.

Physically able, come on, let's stand up for the reading of God's word.

In Caesarea, there lived a Roman army officer named Cornelius, who was a captain of the Italian regiment, another translation, a centurion.

We'll talk about that in a minute, what that meant.

He was a devout, God-fearing man, as was everyone in his household.

He gave generously to the poor, prayed regularly to God.

One afternoon, about three o'clock, he had a vision in which he saw an angel of God coming toward him.

"'Cornelius,' the angel said.

"'Cornelius stared at him in terror.'"

Listen, Cornelius is a man's man.

He is a centurion, Roman, captain of a Roman Italian regiment.

This is a dude.

He sees this angel walking toward him, and he is in terror.

Here's what I'm convinced.

This angel is jacked.

He is not like one of those little baby, you know, pot-bellied angels with a harp.

He's not that at all.

He's walking towards Cornelius and Cornelius is afraid.

What is it, sir?

He asked the angel very respectfully.

And the angel replied, and I highlighted it because this is what stood out to me of what I want to talk about today.

Your prayers and gifts to the poor have been received by God.

I love it.

When you give...

On behalf of someone else, on you give to help someone else, you're giving to God.

It's been received by God as an offering.

Now send some men to Joppa and summon a man named Simon Peter.

He's staying with Simon, a tanner who lives near the seashore.

I'm not even gonna unpack that, but someone should study it.

It's quite interesting that Peter is even here with a tanner.

You should study what that means.

He's not like got tanning beds.

Anyway, he's like, he's...

skins of animals and stuff, and it's interesting that he's there.

As soon, it goes with the context that we're gonna learn today.

Well, next week.

As soon as the angel was gone, Cornelius called two of his household servants, couple household servants, a devout soldier, by the way, as soon as the angel was gone.

This dude was in the military, he understood submission, he understood authority, and he understood obedience.

You were in God's army, when God says something, you immediately obey.

called two of his household servants and a devout soldier, one of his personal attendants.

He told them what had happened and sent them off to Joppa.

I want to talk about that.

I didn't know I was going to say it that fast.

There it is.

I want to talk about getting God's attention because Cornelius somehow, his prayers and his gifts were received by God.

How many of you want your prayers answered?

I mean, you want God's attention, right?

All right, high five somebody, and then you may be seated.

We're gonna talk on the subject getting God's attention today out of Acts chapter 10.

Let's talk about Cornelius.

Have you ever seen one of those emergency locator beacons that hikers carry into the wilderness?

If you haven't, you've probably heard of it.

Imagine yourself out on a hike.

You're seven, eight, nine miles out in the middle of nowhere.

You lose the trail.

You get wounded, you're hurt.

It's the middle of the night, it gets dark on you.

It starts getting cold.

You don't know what to do.

You figure, I'll scream at the top of my voice and try to get someone's attention.

You realize, I'm nine miles in the middle of nowhere.

No one's gonna hear me, but then you remember.

In your backpack, you have this emergency beacon.

So you pull it out.

You press the button.

When you press that button, the signal goes through the darkness, through the trees, above the trees, into the sky, hits a satellite.

That satellite relays the message to a rescue team.

That rescue team knows exactly where you are and they are on their way to your rescue because you had the right connection.

This is what Cornelius reminds me of.

Somehow,

He had the right connection.

Somehow, Cornelius' prayers got through to God.

Somehow, his gifts were received by God.

This is what I see happening with Cornelius.

Now, God sees everybody, but throughout Scripture, there are certain people whose lives provoke a unique response from heaven.

Their prayers are answered.

Their faith is noticed and their hunger is met.

This is what I see happening in Cornelius.

So this is the question that I have today that I want to answer for you because if you walk with God for longer than a week, you are going to have this question.

You're going to wonder, how do I get in touch with God?

Where's my emergency beacon?

How do I get God's attention?

Because there's times when the devil will lie to you and say, God's not listening.

Now, we're not trying about trying to convince God to notice this like a toddler who's going, dad, dad, dad, dad, dad, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom, mom.

And then you go, what?

And they go, just wanted to see if you were listening.

It's not that at all.

God sees everything.

We're talking about a heart that God responds to.

We're talking about the kind of heart God draws near to and seemingly it seems as if gets God's attention.

What do I learn from Cornelius?

Here's what I want us to learn today is Cornelius had a heart that knew it needed Jesus.

Luke introduces Cornelius with an impressive resume.

He was a God-fearing man who leveraged his leadership for good, and his entire household was God-fearing.

Let me just talk to the men just for a minute.

Studies have been conducted that when a man

comes to God, becomes God-fearing, that his influence, his life, has a much greater percentage of opportunity for the entire rest of his family to come to Christ.

Because the man came to Christ.

The husband came to Christ.

The dad came to Christ.

Then the wife did.

Then the mom did.

Then the kids did.

And all because, this is what I see in Cornelius, Cornelius was a God-fearing man.

And his entire household became God-fearing.

Let me talk to the men for a moment.

You want to be a man's man?

Then be a God-fearing man.

The toughest men on the planet are not those who could necessarily box out and knock out some other dude.

The toughest men on the planet are God-fearing men who then leverage their leadership in such a way that their entire household for generations will become God-fearing.

That is the call on every man in this church.

Lead your family.

There you go.

I said it.

I'm done.

Let's move on.

Cornelius, the Bible says, was a captain of an Italian regiment.

Another translation states it this way.

He was a Roman centurion.

What does that mean?

That means that he led...

Elite troops of between 80 and 100 elite soldiers.

Centurions were not ordinary soldiers.

They were not ordinary officers.

They led from the front.

They led from the front of the battle.

They did not lead from some private quarter somewhere without ever touching the heat of the battle.

They earned their position through battles.

They earned their position through courage and discipline.

They were respected by Rome because they were willing to run towards the battle while everyone else ran away.

Roman centurions would literally be the ones who would hold the line.

It was their position that the rest of the elite soldiers would look forward to in the heat of the battle.

They were the first ones to be in combat.

If they held their position, it told the rest of the soldiers, keep moving forward.

If they retreated, the rest of the soldiers retreated.

This man by the name of Cornelius,

didn't run away from trouble.

He was successful.

He was influential.

He was wealthy.

Historians estimate that a centurion earned 15 to 20 times the wages of an average Roman soldier.

So he was wealthy.

Now they could pay them that because their lifespan was typically short.

But this is what it says.

Devout

God-fearing man.

Now, if you attended, imagine attending Cornelius' memorial service.

You would hear things like this.

Oh, my.

If anybody made it to heaven, Cornelius is there.

He was a praying man.

He was a God-fearing man.

He gave to the poor.

He had integrity.

He used his wealth to help those who needed help.

By every human standard, Cornelius was a good man.

This is what would be said about him.

But here's the tension of Acts chapter 10.

Cornelius had everything that money could afford, everything character could produce, everything religion could offer, but he still needed what only Jesus could give.

If Cornelius had everything he needed, why did God send Peter?

Peter gives the answer in the next chapter when he's telling what the angel said to Cornelius.

He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, send a Joppa for Simon who's called Peter.

He'll bring you a message through which you and your household will be saved.

Check this out.

Cornelius was not rejected by God, but he wasn't saved yet either.

He still needed Jesus.

That's an important reminder for our generation.

Good people still need Jesus.

Moral people still need Jesus.

Religious people still need Jesus.

Church people still need Jesus.

Everybody needs Jesus.

Can I hear an amen?

Because salvation is not found in being good enough.

Salvation is found in Jesus Christ alone.

And I want to say something to another group of people that I've had some of you, I've had the privilege, my wife and I have had the privilege of pastoring you since you were born.

And some people in the church say,

have honestly gave their lives to Christ before they even remember.

Their parents or one of our kids' church leaders led them to the Lord like our kids got saved about 20 times before they were four.

And at four years old, you were giving your life to Christ.

You don't even really remember never serving God.

And you've grown up in a church like ours where we celebrate and we should when the addicts get delivered.

And we celebrate and we should when those who are far from God living destructive lifestyles awaken to their need for Jesus and we celebrate their testimony.

But today...

I want you to know we celebrate somebody's testimony that never lived in the pigpens of life.

They can't even remember a day in their life where they didn't know God.

They've served him all the days of their life.

We want you to know something.

Your testimony is the greatest of them all.

You can do better.

Come on, church.

Yes.

But you still needed Jesus.

Yes.

Growing up in church, I need Jesus.

So we're answering the question, what gets God's attention?

What is it?

Well, I see this in Cornelius, a heart that seeks God faithfully.

The angel said he prayed regularly.

He said, your prayers, not just this one prayer, your prayers, your gifts, not just this one gift, have been received by God as an offering.

When the angel shows up, I want you to see something.

The angel didn't mention his military accomplishments or his rank.

The angel didn't mention his wealth, all the servants and soldiers at his disposal.

He didn't mention all of that.

The two things that heaven mentions are your prayers and your generosity.

Your prayers and your gifts to the poor have been received by God as an offering.

And I want to say something.

Things that impress people don't always impress God.

Things that impress people don't always move heaven.

People notice titles.

God notices faithfulness.

God notices what nobody else sees.

People notice platforms.

God notices prayer closets.

People notice success.

But God notices sacrifice.

People notice what you do in public.

But God notices when nobody else is watching.

And Luke tells us Cornelius prayed regularly.

That wasn't just one prayer, one emotional prayer meeting.

Wasn't because his life was falling apart.

Prayer had become the rhythm of his life.

He also gave generously to the poor again and again.

This wasn't one spontaneous act of kindness or generosity.

This was who he was day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year.

He quietly sought God and quietly loved people.

Nobody

was applauding.

Nobody was posting it on social media.

Nobody was writing books about Cornelius, but heaven was paying attention.

Oh, I hope somebody hears this today.

The angel said, your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial, have come up as a memorial offering.

This is rich with Old Testament imagery.

In the temple, portions of the sacrifice were burned on the altar and the smoke would arise before God as a pleasing aroma.

The picture is beautiful.

Every prayer Cornelius prayed rose before God.

Every prayer you pray rises before God.

Every gift he gave rose before God.

Every unseen act of devotion rose before God.

I love this about this story.

Heaven had been keeping a record.

all along.

Maybe someone needs to hear this today.

You wonder if your prayers matter.

You wonder if your prayers are heard at all.

You wonder if your quiet obedience makes any difference.

You wonder if anyone notices, especially God.

God does.

God notices.

He sees everything.

Every prayer whispered through tears.

He sees every act of obedience.

He sees every time you choose integrity when compromise would be easier.

He sees every quiet act of service that nobody thanks you for.

Never confuse God's silence with God's absence.

Never confuse God's delay with God's indifference.

That's right.

Just because God hasn't answered yet doesn't mean God hasn't noticed.

Can I hear an amen?

Some of you have been praying for a son.

You've been praying for a daughter.

You've been praying for a coworker.

You've been praying for a spouse.

You've been praying for healing or direction.

Or you've been praying for freedom.

You wonder, are my prayers, have they just disappeared into thin air?

Acts 10 tells us that your prayers have not disappeared into thin air.

Every sincere prayer reaches the heart of God as a memorial offering.

God honors faithful, consistent prayers.

Let me say it again.

God honors faithful, consistent prayers.

And let me remind you, everything that we are witnessing God do in the Pacific Northwest through our church is because somebody has been praying faithful, consistent prayers.

But I want you to notice the progression in Acts chapter 10.

Before there is a vision that Cornelius has, there's a lifestyle.

Before there's an angel, there's years of ordinary faithfulness.

Before there's a supernatural encounter, there are ordinary spiritual habits.

I love this because so many of us want verse 3 where an angel shows up and skip verse 2 where there's years of just faithful praying and giving.

We want the breakthrough.

We want the miracle.

We want the angel.

We want the dramatic story.

We want something supernatural, but we don't always want the years of quietly seeking God when no one else knows.

Now hear me carefully.

I'm not saying that Cornelius earned God's favor because grace can never be earned and salvation can never be earned.

But the vision was not payment for some good behavior.

It was God's gracious response to a heart that genuinely sought after God.

God isn't looking for perfection.

He's looking for someone who won't stop praying, who won't stop giving, who just quietly keeps doing the things that Jesus said to do.

People who keep obeying.

Jesus taught us this very same principle.

Look at this.

When you pray, go into your room.

Close the door.

Pray to your Father who is unseen.

And watch this.

Your Father who sees.

I won't preach myself happy.

God sees.

Every time you knelt, every time you gave, every time you prayed, he sees.

Nobody else may see.

Your family may not see.

Your boss may not see.

Your co-workers may not see.

Your pastor may not see.

But your father sees.

Nothing done for God is ever wasted.

Nothing offered to God is ever forgotten.

Nothing surrendered to God is ever overlooked.

Your father sees.

Can I encourage somebody today who feels unnoticed?

Keep praying.

Keep serving.

Keep giving.

Keep showing up.

Keep worshiping.

Keep forgiving.

Keep loving your family.

Keep loving your spouse.

Keep serving.

Keep training your children.

Keep leading your home.

Don't quit because nobody applauded your faithfulness.

Heaven has been watching the entire time.

Here's a principle I want you to get.

Public breakthroughs are usually built on private rhythms.

Public breakthroughs, they're built on private rhythms.

Tell your neighbor, don't quit.

Tell them, don't quit.

Don't quit.

God notices.

God sees every prayer.

He's storing it up.

Very soon, he's pouring out a blessing.

We're answering the question.

What gets God's attention?

Faithful, consistent prayers.

A consistent heart that just seeks after God.

What else gets his attention?

A heart that refuses to settle.

Here's why I say that about Cornelius and why I say it for us.

Cornelius was hungry for God and refused to settle for what this world can offer.

Here's why I say it.

Cornelius wasn't hungry because his life was empty.

Cornelius was hungry even though his life was full, and this is a rare hunger.

I've been pastoring for decades, and almost all of you showed up because your life was falling apart.

Y'all showed up because dear God, our family needs some help.

Our bodies are broken.

Our marriage is destroyed.

My kids, well, they're going to hell in a handbasket.

They're one years old, hold on.

You show up because of problems, and problems are sometimes God's best friend because they awaken us to our need for God, but that's not Cornelius.

Cornelius' life had not fallen apart.

He teaches us a different kind of hunger.

A hunger that exists when things are going well.

A hunger that says, God, everything you've given me is good.

And I do not take for granted your blessings on my life.

But none of it can replace you.

I need you.

Some people only seek God when they're desperate.

Cornelius sought God when he was blessed.

The angel says he prayed regularly, wasn't just an event.

This was his lifestyle.

He had become a long pursuit of God.

And I don't even think, honestly, I don't even think Cornelius knew what he was looking for.

Because he wasn't born again yet.

He simply knew, lean in, there has to be more.

There has to be more.

He had climbed the ladder of success.

He had influence.

He had respect.

He had moral authority.

He had money.

He had authority.

He had a family and an entire household that followed his leadership and was God-fearing.

Yet something inside of him kept saying, there has to be more.

There has to be more church.

One of the greatest gifts God can give you is a holy dissatisfaction.

A holy dissatisfaction that says, I refuse to settle for just religion.

I refuse to settle.

I want to be what Jesus said the blessed people are.

Blessed are those who...

Hunger!

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will, they shall be filled.

He doesn't say, blessed are those who know the most.

He doesn't say, blessed are those who have all the answers.

Blessed are those who have the biggest King James Bible.

Blessed are those who have the biggest Bible in the world, the most Bible knowledge.

He doesn't say that.

He said, blessed are the hungry, for they...

We'll be filled.

Hungry people keep asking.

God, there has to be more.

I wanna know you.

Hungry people keep praying.

Hungry people keep seeking.

Hungry people never become satisfied with yesterday's experience of God.

Now, can I ask you a question?

This is gonna be a little penetrating.

I'm sorry, a little bit, but I just kinda gotta ask it.

What do you really want from God?

What do you want from him?

Because so many people just want what his hands can provide.

But there's a few rare people that say, I've touched the things of blessing, but I want the blesser.

I've experienced miracles, but I want the miracle worker.

Some people are like Cornelius that say, I've got all the stuff the world can give me, but I'm not satisfied.

I need God.

I need him, and not only do I need him, I want him.

I want him.

Jesus, I want you more than answers.

I want your presence more than blessings.

I want the blesser more than the miracle.

I want the miracle worker.

And Jeremiah talked about it.

Look at this.

You'll seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

Do you see it?

All our heart.

This is the definition of hunger, by the way.

This is not casual interest.

Oh, I'd kind of like to know more about Jesus.

That'd be interesting.

Tell me about him.

Well, I am, but I'd rather you meet him.

I'd rather you encounter him because if you'll encounter him, you'll never be the same again.

Anybody grateful for an encounter with Jesus?

Wholehearted pursuit.

I love that Cornelius wasn't content with what he already knew.

He wasn't content with what he already possessed.

Hunger is the birthplace of revival.

It is.

I pray for revival in the Pacific Northwest.

But hunger is the birthplace of revival.

Every great move of God in history began because someone refused to settle.

They began to fast.

They began to leave the desires of this life behind.

And they said, God, I want you.

Someone has to become dissatisfied with business as usual, not complaining, not grumbling, grateful.

Thank you for your blessings.

Honestly, listen.

I think our hearts are tested when God blesses us more than when we lack.

When we lack, when we're in trouble, it feels as if all I want is God.

And it may be true, but we don't know until your needs are met.

And you get married.

You meet the spouse.

Do you lead your family back to love the one who answered your greatest heart's desire?

You got pregnant, you had the children.

But do the blessings become idols?

We find out when you're blessed.

We find out if you actually wanted God or you only wanted what God could provide.

I know that sounded harsh.

I don't mean it to sound harsh.

I do mean it to be a heart check, because I talked about things that get God's attention and they were always about a heart.

A heart.

Do I want God?

Someone has to believe there has to be more.

That's why I love the title of this series, There Is More, not because we're chasing experiences.

not because we're trying to manufacture emotional moments, but because we believe there's always more of Jesus to know.

There's always more of his character to reflect.

There's always more of his presence to experience.

Are you hungry?

I guess kind of what I'm laying at your doorstep today is can you add this to your regular prayer life?

God, I want to know you.

Not just God save my kids, heal my kids, heal my body.

God, I want to know you.

What are you like?

I'd love to become your friend.

And I want to give hope one more thing.

Because I think some of us feel like, well, we're going to talk about Peter and that's amazing.

I mean, he's amazing.

Cornelius, I mean, he was a pretty good dude before he got saved.

Well, a wretch.

There's something else that Cornelius teaches us.

God pursues the unlikely.

Because as good as Cornelius was, I just want you to know this.

He was a Roman.

He was a Gentile.

He was a military officer.

He represented the very empire occupying Israel.

To the average Jewish believer,

Cornelius was exactly the kind of man God would overlook.

But God pursues the unlikely.

Angel shows up.

Heaven initiates.

Cornelius, I'm coming after you.

Simultaneously, God's working on Peter.

We'll learn about him next week.

God makes this first move.

What's happening?

God's pursuing.

And this is the gospel.

If you ever thought that you found God, you didn't.

God wasn't lost.

You didn't find him.

We were lost.

And God pursued us.

And he loves pursuing the most unlikely people to ever encounter him.

Long before you ever spoke your first prayer, God knew your name.

And he's never forgotten about you.

You've never went unnoticed by God.

I want to pray for us.

I want to pray somebody's heart is going to be awakened today that God sees them.

God sees you.

And then I just want to give our church just an opportunity to take one minute, maybe two, and just sing a song of desperation and let God know

God, I just really, I want to know you.

I want you.

So will you do me a favor?

Will you stand to your feet for just a moment?

If you're in the sound of my voice and you would say, Bob, or maybe you would say, I feel like I live a pretty good life.

Don't really matter.

Good and bad people both need Jesus.

But I feel like there's someone here

in this service that feels like you're the most unlikely for God to ever pursue.

I just need you to know, you're exactly the person that God loves pursuing.

He loves those who are far from him.

And you're one sincere prayer away from getting your life right with him.

And I want to pray with you.

Right where you're standing, your life could change for eternity.

Right here.

If you just mean it from your heart, God, I'm a sinner.

I want you to be my savior.

That's what I'm going to pray.

Will you bow your heads, close your eyes.

If you're in the sound of my voice and you say, Bob, I'm going to pray that prayer with you.

Would you look right back up at me and wave your hand so I can catch eyes so I know who's going to pray that prayer with me right now.

Thank you so very much.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Just leave them up until I can point your direction.

Thank you all over here.

Thank you, all of you.

Thank you all over here.

Thank you.

Now, if I miss you, again, the Father who sees.

Church, you know what to do.

Come on, let's help out our friends.

Everybody repeat after me.

Dear Lord Jesus, I come today as a sinner.

I want you to be my Savior.

I want to be born again.

Thank you for pursuing me.

I want to be saved.

And I want to know you.

Fill me with your spirit and I'll live for you all the days of my life.

I pray this right now in Jesus' name.

Everybody shout amen.

Can you give God praise for the gospel?

Thank you, Lord.