The Holy Spirit Acts In Sudden and Surprising Ways Acts 9:1-20

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1 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 1 of 8 The Holy Spirit Acts In Sudden and Surprising Ways Acts 9:1-20 INTRODUCTION TO THE SERIES Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That s the way we describe our God. Those three persons actually describe the ways we relate to God or as we would say around here --- the ways we can engage with or be engaged by God. God the Father, Creator of all. God the Son, our Savior. And God the Holy Spirit Who gives us power to be the Church. Three yet one. We are at week three in this sermon series on the Holy Spirit. We began by taking a look at the Trinity so that we might understand a bit better the role of the Holy Spirit. Last week, Joe helped us learn about one of the primary ways that the Holy Spirit empowers God s people through Spiritual Gifts. We all and by all, I mean every single person who is part of this family of faith who claims his/her spiritual gift and puts it to work in and through this church then and only then can be the church we are called to be. The story of how the Holy Spirit comes upon the followers of Jesus and forms them into the Church is told in the 2 nd chapter of Acts. And the Holy Spirit has been doing that to believers ever since forming us into the Church. Without the Holy Spirit, we are just a collection of pretty decent folks. But with the Holy Spirit, we are the hope of the world today, the body of Christ. We are the Church. So, it seems to me that we would be wise to try and understand how the Holy Spirit does work. In that Acts 2 account, the Holy Spirit was revealed to be 1) sudden and surprising, 2) radically inclusive, 3) uncontrollable and 4) absolutely amazing. Over the next few Sundays we will take a closer look at each of those characteristics and how they were consistently part of the Holy Spirit s activity in the lives of the early church and the early believers. It s important because, well, character doesn t really change. If the Holy Spirit goes to work here at Williamson s Chapel or in your life or mine, chances are good that these same characteristics will show up. So if we really do want to locate when and where the Holy Spirit is at work, maybe this is what we ought to be looking for surprising, inclusive, uncontrollable and amazing. For today, at least, we re going to narrow that focus to sudden and surprising. INTRO TO SERMON Here s how Luke describes it in Acts 2:2 Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. No one expected the Holy Spirit to show up that day in Jerusalem. Its appearance was sudden and surprising. And, as it continued to show up in the book of Acts coming

2 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 2 of 8 upon Samaritans, Gentiles, men and women, the work of the Holy Spirit would bring one surprise after another. I could have chosen from a variety of those texts to talk about the surprising work of the Holy Spirit in Acts. But I ve selected something quite different. I ve selected as today s text the biggest surprise of Acts. You see, the absolutely biggest surprise in the whole book of Acts is the person God chooses to be the great missionary of the early church. Everyone is surprised by that choice. Everyone living then and everyone who has heard about it since. And no one was more surprised than the chosen one himself. Of course, I m talking about Saul of Tarsus. Eventually we know him better as Paul. Saul/Paul same person. Don t let that confuse you. But at this point, Saul is the name he was using. Now we first meet Saul in what is certainly not an admirable role. He is present when the first Christian martyr, Stephen, is stoned. Now, he doesn t throw a single rock but he holds the coats of those who do (Acts 7:58). Then come these ominous words in chapter 8 verse 1. And Saul was there, giving approval to his death. Thus, begins Saul s effort to destroy the church. Going from house to house (Acts 8:3) he dragged off men and women and put them in prison. Saul was a selfappointed vigilante. The religious leaders did not seek him out to do this dirty work. Saul himself went to the high priest for the authority to imprison and persecute the Christians. I don t know how there could have been a less likely candidate for the post of first and greatest missionary. Any way you look at it, Paul was a surprising choice. And according to Luke s description of the way he was called the Holy Spirit was once again acting out in sudden and surprising ways. Let s look first at the account of Saul s conversion: Acts 9:1-9 1 Meanwhile Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest 2 and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. 3 Now as he was going along and approaching Damascus, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4 He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? 5 He asked, Who are you, Lord? The reply came, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 6 But get up and enter the city, and you will be told what you are to do. 7 The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. 8 Saul got up from the ground, and though his eyes were open, he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 For three days he was without sight, and neither ate nor drank. Note the use of one of our key words there in verse 3 SUDDENLY a light from heaven flashed around him. When the Holy Spirit acts out, it is surprising and sudden. That is certainly the case here. In fact, this action of the Spirit is so sudden and so surprising that

3 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 3 of 8 it knocks Saul right off his feet. I had an experience kind of like that one time. Well, it didn t knock me off my feet literally but it did emotionally and spiritually. I was in seminary the first time, pursuing a degree called a Master s in Theology with plans to head on for a PhD with the goal of teaching Bible. I had no plans what so ever for ordination. And no matter how many people confronted me about that raised the issue that perhaps God might actually want to use me as a pastor in a local church I resisted. Absolutely not, I explained. I m not called to sacrament. Word and order yes, but not sacrament and I can honor the call to word and order without ordination. Well, on this particular day I was actually in the very thick of the sacrament. I had agreed to serve communion at the seminary chapel service. I had done so in a weak moment. One of the deans that I had worked for was preaching and he had asked me to assist him. I just didn t feel like I could say no. But I wished I had. I didn t have time for chapel normally I didn t even attend. I was too busy with the academics of school. I needed to be in the library that morning but instead I was there, in the off-white robe all servers wore, seated at the front of the chapel. I had listened to his less than exciting sermon and was just going through the motions. Students, staff, and faculty began to form the lines to the front. I took the hunk of bread given to me, turned to face the first person in line, broke off a small piece, I mumbled the words the body of Christ broken for you; I placed the bread in her hands and when my hands touched hers, something unexpected and surprising happened. Suddenly, a light from heaven flashed all around me. I didn t fall to my feet, but I was shaken to the core. I honestly thought the whole place was shaken and lifted my head to see how everyone else was responding to the shockwave that had pulsed through the building but apparently no one else felt anything at all. So, I just kept going, putting bread into the hands of those who came and saying the words again and again and attempting to breathe: The body of Christ broken for you. It was over a year before I even told anyone else what had happened. But that was the moment I began to be open to a new call one that would include the sacrament and would in time lead me here. When the Spirit went to work that way in Saul s life and called him, it came as a complete surprise to Saul. Now, God s call in my life was nowhere near so dramatic and nothing like the complete reversal we see here but it was still a big surprise to me. One of the things we learn in the book of Acts is that when the Spirit is at work, those who are chosen to lead or to serve or to do this or that task in the work of the kingdom are often the most surprised of all. You know that old Yiddish proverb? We plan; God laughs. Well in my life it s proven to be true quite a number of times. Maybe it s been true for you too. But Saul, soon to be called Paul, wasn t the only one who was surprised by what God had planned.

4 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 4 of 8 OTHER NON-BELIEVERS In chapter 9 verse 7, we read about the reaction of those who had been traveling with Saul on his mission of persecution and destruction. The men who were traveling with him stood speechless because they heard the voice but saw no one. I guess you could say theirs was a partial revelation. They experienced just enough to be able to confirm that something quite remarkable had happened on the road to Damascus. Later on, if Saul had attempted to explain away the whole experience as a case of bad indigestion or if others had doubted the authenticity of his experience, these co-travelers would have been able to corroborate his story. Something unusual, unexpected and surprising had definitely happened. They had not seen what Saul claimed to have seen but they heard the voice question Saul and his motives. They could bear witness to the directions Jesus Himself gave to the blinded Saul. No, later on Saul could not discount the experience as some kind of hallucination and people would not be able to dismiss him as a raving lunatic. These others in the story, speechless in their surprise, are really important. They give validity to Saul s experience. People like that are important in our experiences of the Holy Spirit too. The people who know us before AND after the Spirit works in and through our lives are the people who understand the real difference God can make in a person s life. His five-year-old daughter Allison was this other person in Lee Strobel s life. Do you recognize that name? Lee Strobel was a journalist, an outspoken atheist who eventually became a Christian, a teaching pastor, and wrote the book The Case for Christ. Listen to what Lee says about how his daughter experienced the surprising work the Spirit accomplished in his life. My daughter Allison was 5 years old when I became a follower of Jesus, and all she had known in those five years was a dad who was profane and angry. I remember I came home one night and kicked a hole in the living room wall just out of anger with life. I am ashamed to think of the times Allison hid in her room to get away from me. Five months after I gave my life to Jesus Christ, that little girl went to my wife and said, "Mommy, I want God to do for me what he's done for Daddy." At age 5! (Lee Strobel, author and teaching pastor at Saddleback Church, Lake Forest, California, from sermon "The Case for Christ". Preachingtoday.com) If there was ever a time when Lee Strobel wavered a bit in his confidence, questioned whether God was at work in his life, his daughter Allison could reassure him. She was there. Just like the men traveling with Saul. She knew the change that came across the man when the Spirit acted out in his life. We need people like that in our lives. And we need to be people like that for others, reminding them of how we know God has been at work in and through them. Of course, we don t know what happened to those who had been traveling with Saul after they reached Damascus. But we do know the power that one changed life can have on the lives of others around it. A few verses later, after Saul begins his preaching

5 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 5 of 8 we read about the reaction of other non-believers. All who heard him were amazed (Acts 9:21). The rest of Saul s, soon called Paul s, life would give testimony to this as he surprised himself and all who knew him, by becoming God s first and greatest witness to the world beyond Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria he was the Holy Spirit s shocking choice to be the first great witness to the ends of the earth. Remember that promise? Made by the risen Christ and revealing the real work of the Holy Spirit? Acts 1:8 You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you will be my witnesses to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the ends of the earth. Well, God got Saul s attention on the road to Damascus but that coming of the Holy Spirit with its power happens to Saul through a reluctant believer named Ananias. Let s read that section of the story. It introduces us to yet another set of folks surprised by the way the Spirit is at work here the believers, themselves. THE BELIEVERS Acts 9: Now there was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, Ananias. He answered, Here I am, Lord. 11 The Lord said to him, Get up and go to the street called Straight, and at the house of Judas look for a man of Tarsus named Saul. At this moment he is praying, 12 and he has seen in a vision [a] a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him so that he might regain his sight. 13 But Ananias answered, Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; 14 and here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who invoke your name. 15 But the Lord said to him, Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; 16 I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name. 17 So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul [b] and said, Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your way here, has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit. 18 And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptized, 19 and after taking some food, he regained his strength. We can t really blame Ananias for being so reluctant. Saul s reputation precedes him. Of course, Ananias is surprised by what the Holy Spirit is doing. In a million years he could not have expected it. It took great courage to do what God asked him to do to seek out this man of destruction and violence and deliver a message from God. And I believe we get a real glimpse into the heart of this man, Ananias, when we stop and focus upon the

6 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 6 of 8 very first word he said to the person he had only known as an enemy to himself, his community and his God. Look at verse 17. So Ananias went and entered the house. He laid his hands on Saul and said Brother Saul. Isn t that amazing? The first word he used to address Saul was the word Brother. You know what I think? I think the Holy Spirit was doing some real work in old Ananias too. I think that s the only thing that could explain his ability to not only receive a former enemy, but be an instrument of his empowerment. And he is. Through the laying on of Ananias hands, Saul receives the Holy Spirit and immediately begins to proclaim Jesus as the Son of God. As promised, the Holy Spirit shows up and what happens? Someone becomes a witness for Jesus. But not all of the believers were so willing to accept Saul into their ranks. Acts 9:26 When he came to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples but they were all afraid of him; for they did not believe that he was a disciple. Welcoming a former enemy we can understand how difficult that might be. You see, we just don t expect God to act in such surprising ways. In fact, the writer of Acts gives us a clear understanding of exactly what these disciples did expect from God. Unfortunately (that understanding which is so often the case with us), the disciples just didn t leave any room for a surprising, sudden, unexpected Holy Spirit. We get these details back in the first chapter of Acts. After watching Jesus ascend into heaven, the disciples head back to Jerusalem as they were told to do. And they begin to organize themselves as best they can for carrying on the ministry. They do this by selecting a replacement for Judas. Now there is nothing wrong with this but the interesting thing for us to consider is the difference between the person they were selecting and the person God was selecting. They were very careful and cautious about who could be included in their group. Listen to their requirements. The replacement must be one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken from us. Acts 1:21. There was to be no new blood allowed in that inner circle. No new understandings. No new ideas. No new approaches. Status quo. Status quo. Status quo. And so, they chose a man named Matthias whose name we never hear again. Meanwhile, God chose the Pharisee and persecutor Saul, introduced him to Jesus on the road to Damascus and the whole world still knows his name. And you know what? God still makes these surprising choices that upset all our carefully laid out but restrictive plans. (Remember inclusive is one of the characteristics

7 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 7 of 8 of the Holy Spirit, too.) Don t you see? God forgive us. Too often the Church, like those disciples in Jerusalem is working against God rather than partnering with God to bring the former enemy onto the team. A few years ago, I was fortunate to travel to South Korea and learn from the powerful witness of the church there. One of the most compelling things I experienced in Korea is how the people still feel such great pain over the brokenness of their nation and pray continually for its healing. And so, I was particularly moved when I came across this story a modern-day Saul of Tarsus story. Only this time, the disciples understood their role right from the beginning. A beloved pastor in South Korea, Kim Shin Jo is also a trained killer. He first came to the country as part of a team of assassins in January of 1968 with the assignment of killing South Korea s president. They made it to within a few hundred meters of the president s home before a fierce battle erupted leaving 30 South Koreans dead. Kim Shin Jo was captured. One North Korean escaped. The others were all killed. Kim was subjected to months of interrogation and a surprising friendship developed with a South Korean army general. In time, his heart began to soften. Here s how he describes it. I tried to kill the president. I was the enemy. But the South Korean people showed me sympathy and forgiveness. I was touched and moved. In time, he was released, worked for the military, became a South Korean citizen, married and became a protestant minister. Today, he is known throughout South Korea as a symbol of redemption. But his experience of Christ was made possible because God s people were able to offer him unexpected and surprising love. Only the Spirit could make that happen. Matt Woodly on the CNN Religion blog says it well. At one time he was the enemy of the South Korean people, but in the spirit of Jesus Christ, they surprised him with the startling gifts of belonging, forgiveness, and even citizenship. (Matt Woodley, East Setauket, New York; source: "South Korean pastor is also a trained killer," CNN Religion blog ( ) preachingtoday.com) In other words, while the Holy Spirit was at work in surprising ways in Kim Shin Jo, it was also at work in surprising ways in the people of Christ. It took awhile for those early disciples to understand what God was doing in Saul, but finally they accepted the surprising work of the Spirit and offered him the second chance that so many still come to the community of the faith hoping to find. And when they do the power of the Holy Spirit is still set loose in remarkable and life changing ways. And everyone is surprised. CONCLUSION So, Saul himself was surprised. The non-believers were surprised. The believers were surprised. The Holy Spirit caught everyone off guard when it chose Saul of Tarsus to be the first great missionary of the Church. And that s all understandable. After all, the Holy Spirit was just beginning its work. But here s what I find most disturbing years later, we are still surprised when the Holy Spirit does things like this. I don t know, seems

8 Engaging the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit Acts in Surprising Ways Page 8 of 8 like we would have caught on by now and just gotten used to it. Seems like the church would quit looking for Matthiases and start looking for Sauls to raise up as leaders. Seems like we would give up on status quo and actually seek to be radical. But sadly, we don t. And when we do make even the slightest effort in that direction to attempt something radical, risky and new the battle we have is not with the world, it s with each other. That s not just disturbing that s sad. When was the last time Williamson s Chapel really surprised you with anything? Something as little as a sermon series or maybe a new program or ministry, something a preacher or staff member said, the particular person in this or that leadership role I hope you don t have to think too hard to remember when you ve been surprised by something that happened here. I d like to think surprises are pretty common because well, I d like to think the Holy Spirit shows up and goes to work around here on a regular basis but if there are no surprises, well. I read once about a church that had this sign out front. I d like to think we could honestly put it out on our sign. But I ll have to think about it some anyway this is what it said, Anything can happen here. That should be true of all Churches. And it is true of every church where the Spirit is at work on a regular basis. You see, in a church like that the people just know to be expecting the next great surprise. In fact, they ve gotten so used to surprises, they really do believe anything could happen here (wave arms about the church) and even here (circle hand about the heart). Do you? Life Application Questions: 1. Have you had an experience of the Holy Spirit which was so strong that you perceived it in a physical/tangible way like the one Saul experienced or the one described by the preacher? Have you heard of other similar experiences from friends or family members? Can you share these with the group? 2. Have there been times when you have been tapped or chosen by the Spirit to do something and you were the one most surprised of all by that choice? Why was the choice so surprising to you? Have there been other times when you personally understood the quote from Woody Allen to apply to you, If you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans. 3. When has God surprised you by choosing other people for certain leadership roles or tasks? 4. Has the Spirit acted in surprising ways in your church recently? How? 5. Do you believe that anything can happen in your church? In your life? If you do believe this (or if you did), how does (would) that impact the way you live (the way the church functions)?