CULDEE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH DR. JOSEPH WASHBURN JUNE 25, 2017 ACTS 9:1-6, 19b-22 MEN OF THE BIBLE: PAUL

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1 CULDEE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH DR. JOSEPH WASHBURN JUNE 25, 2017 ACTS 9:1-6, 19b-22 MEN OF THE BIBLE: PAUL SO WHAT: Paul has an amazing conversion story that highlights the depths of God s grace. But in this story we see more than God turning Paul from an enemy into a disciple, we see the nature of God He is the pursuer and initiator of our relationship with Him. Today we bring to a close the sermon series we have been in over the past two months an exploration of some of the great people of faith in the Bible. In May we looked at some of the great women of faith and in June we have been exploring some of the great men of faith. We have explored some of the more common people of faith Hannah, Mary the mother of Jesus, Abraham, and Peter; we have also looked at some folks that may not be the ones we usually think of first Lois and Eunice, the unnamed sinner who washed Jesus feet with her tears, and Jacob. Certainly we are only touching the tip of the iceberg and I would encourage you to spend some time on your own looking at some of the other great people of faith in the Bible. Allow their stories to help shape and form your own journey of faith. Today, to wind this series up, we will be looking at one of the people of the Bible that gets a lot of attention in part because his story is so dramatic and powerful. Today, we will be looking at Paul. 1

2 We know him as Paul but in our text he is still known as Saul. Who was this Saul? Well, Saul was born a Jew in the Roman city of Tarsus. He was proud of his Jewish heritage as is evident in Philippians 3:5, circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless. Saul whom we know better as Paul was not only proud of his Jewish heritage, but he excelled in his studies of the Jewish law as well as in his obedience to it. If anyone could be saved by observance to the law it should have been Saul. Saul was so zealous and devout to his Jewish traditions that persecuting Christians, in an effort to protect and purify the Jewish faith, was a natural thing for him. And just as Saul was head and shoulders above other students of the Jewish law, he was head and shoulders above everyone who was persecuting the church. He was, without a big stretch of the imagination, the number one threat to the Christian movement. So, let me answer a couple of questions that often get asked. First, when and why does Saul become Paul? Well, we often associate it with his conversion experience, but that s not really it. We read in Acts 13:9, But Saul, also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit You see, the custom of dual names was not really uncommon in those days. So basically, remember that Saul is his Jewish name and Paul was his Roman name. As a zealous Jew, he 2

3 obviously used his Jewish name. But as he begins his ministry with the Gentiles and pushes deeper and deeper into Gentile territory he begins going by his Roman name which would allow him to approach the Gentiles better. The second question is why did Paul need letters from the High Priest to go to Damascus and arrest followers of Jesus. Damascus was not part of the Roman empire, but under the control of the Parthians who were no real friends of the Romans. So, with a large Jewish population and a desire to court the friendship of the Jews in Jerusalem, who also did not care for the Romans, the Parthians delegated all matters pertaining to the Jews in their empire to the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. Therefore, Saul needed to receive letters from the Sanhedrin authorizing him to take action on their behalf against those who were seen as corrupting the Jewish faith. Now, most of us are familiar with the story: as Saul whom we will now refer to as Paul just to make things easier was traveling to Damascus to arrest followers of Jesus he is suddenly blinded by a bright light from heaven; he fell to his knees and heard a voice, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? When he asks who is speaking, the voice says, I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. After making his way into Damascus, and spending some time with the disciples, or believers, of Jesus who are there, Paul begins to proclaim Jesus and all who heard him were amazed! 3

4 So, what all can we learn from Paul s experience? First, and this sounds so simple but is so important Jesus is alive! He is not dead, but living. And although the disciples watched Jesus ascend into heaven, Jesus is very much present with his people on earth. In fact, he is so close to his people that when the followers of Jesus are persecuted, Jesus himself is persecuted. We may live some 2,000 years on this side of the empty tomb but Jesus is very much alive and he is very much present with us. Second, Jesus is the initiator ALWAYS! Now, you have heard me say that before it is a foundational belief within Reformed Theology, but we see it played out right in front of us in the story of Paul. Paul was headed to Damascus to arrest believers when Jesus moves in a mighty way in his life and changes him forever. But notice what God says to Ananias when he is resisting being sent to Paul, Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen You see, God chooses us. Any movement we make towards God is in response to His already moving in our lives. We search for God only because He has already found us. The third thing we see is that we are set apart for something. On that road to Damascus, Jesus chose Paul and set him apart for a life of service. We are 4

5 not chosen by God to simply enjoy knowing that we have been saved by Jesus Christ knowing our sins are forgiven and that we have new life in him is not the goal of God choosing us. No, we are called to be His servants. We aren t all called to be or do the same thing, but every single one of us, when we were chosen by God, were set apart to be an instrument in His Kingdom; and every single one of us needs to discover our gifts and offer them to Jesus to be used in the Church and for the Kingdom of God even when they don t look like what we expected. Friends, all Christians have a Damascus Road experience it may not be as dramatic or memorable as Paul s but we all have one and they are meant to have the same effect: to break our independence and arrogance about our own abilities to save ourselves, and bring us humbly before Christ so we may receive Him as our Lord and Savior, and get busy fulfilling our call. So, know that Jesus is alive and that you have been chosen by him not because of who you are, but because of who HE is! And know that He has called you to be His servant within His Kingdom. Amen. 5