God's Instrument

Opening:

GOOD MORNING CHURCH! Lets begin with a word of prayer. Would you pray with me as we prepare our hearts for what God has for us this morning in His Word.

Prayer: Heavanly Father, we come before you with the knowledge that your Son Jesus is alive among us here in this place. We come with the expectation that you will work among us, in us and through us this day. Holy Spirit come, open our eyes and hearts to the ways that you are working this day. Holy Spirit anoint me this morning to share this message with passion and power. My prayer is that we would be transformed to live and love more like you Jesus as instruments of your Kingdom. Its in Jesus’ strong and powerful name that I pray, AMEN!

BEFORE WE START, I would like to thank Bishop Louis and Pastor Jean Bruno for inviting the Diller Church here this morning. Thank you ECR for your hospitality and desire to connect with the Larger body of Christ. I also want to thank the Diller Congregation for being flexible in traveling today. Today we are here to worship God as one body, one church, Amen?

Church did you know that God wants to use you to build his Kingdom? DID YOU KNOW, that from the moment you were born he wanted to use you? That you are part of His story for HIs Kingdom?

God’s Work in My story

Well I want to share a little about Gods work in my life starting from the moment I was born.

I was a 28 week premature twin birth. We were born early because our umbilical cords were wrapped around our neck. My twin brother did not survive, but God still chose to use me.

Despite the fact that I was diagnosed with Cerebral palsy, my one leg is longer than the other and Im blind in my left eye. God still wanted to use me and God had a plan for my life in his Kingdom.

LIKE Most of you I grew up in a Christian Home, I grew up going to church every sunday.

I grew up in the Anglican church, If youre not familiar think Episcopal or like Catholic without the Latin or the Pope.

In the Anglican church they use a liturgy basically its a order of service that revolves around communion. We would use the Same order of service every sunday, essentially say the same thing week after week. Well by the time I was 14 years old, I had this service memorized

In my teenage years I began serving as an acolyte or altar boy helping the pastor with serving communion.

Transition: I want to pause and take a look at the scripture text for Today.

A Portrait of Saul

Saul was a very religious man, a dedicated Jewish leader and teacher. Zealous for his young age. In Philippians we find a portrait of Paul

He was circumcised on the 8th day according to the Law, a member of the tribe of benjamin, a hebrew of hebrews! He studied under one of the greatest rabbis of his day. Paul says he was blameless under the Law. If we Pause there, I want to jump back to my story.

Church was Just words.

In my teenage years, I had already done alot in the church, I memorized the service, I was baptized, I served as an acolyte.

Yet, the problem was Church was just words to me. Going to church was like Brushing your teeth its just something you do.

It was like two different people: on sunday, I was a saying all the right words, doing all the right things, indistinguishable from another church member. , but the rest of the week I was completely different.

Eventually, I started down my own path and pursued what I wanted. Instead of what God wanted for me.

In doing so I turned to destructive behaviors including self-harm and alcohol. Unfortunately, along with those behaviors came powerful consequences, I began to fall into a dark place. I struggled with suicidal thoughts and depression for several years. My life was spiraling out of control and not even the most dangerous pleasures could comfort me. By the time, I reached the end of my senior year of high school, I was hedonistic, depressed alcoholic. I was headed down a dangerous road in life I had no clue where Id end up.

Transition: if we turn back to the story of Saul, He was headed down a dangerous path too.

Saul on the Road to Damascus

Scripture’s Presentation of Saul: that he was a pretty dangerous man, breathing murderous threats and full of hate. He worked for the high priest and received letters that allowed him to legally terrorize Christians. Saul was the man who went house to house looking for followers of the way to send to prison. Saul was the man who approved the stoning of Stephen. He considered the church to be his enemy and as we will find later on the Christians not only did not like him, but they were afraid of this man. Saul’s intention is to go into the city of Damascus and round up more Christians no matter what age they were man or woman and drag them in chains to Jerusalem. In many ways Saul was a modern day religious terrorist on a rampage against the Church. Do you have a good image of Saul yet?

Paul’s Radical Encounter with Jesus

Paul starts down the road with bloodthirsty passion and leaves that very same road a changed man.

Imagine you are Saul walking down the road – set on going into the city and accomplishing what you’ve set out to do. You have the papers, the guards, maybe you even brought extra chains and shackles. And BAM. A bright light shines, brighter than the sun. At this moment Saul sees the light. Quite literally. The text says that this flash of light from heaven was so bright that it knocked him to the ground. All of the sudden Saul hears a voice say to him “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

Now why does Jesus say Saul’s name twice? I don’t think it’s because he didn’t get his attention the first time. But God likes to do things in a certain manner sometimes. If you look back at the call of Abraham. God calls his name twice. This happens a second time with Abraham’s descendent Jacob where God says Jacob, Jacob. God also does this with Moses and many others. You see God seems to say people’s name in this fashion before he calls them to be part of his plan for his people. Later on we see that Saul is no different. Jesus also says, “Why do you persecute ME?” He doesn’t say why did you kill Stephen? Why do you persecute my disciples or my church? Jesus says why do you persecute me. Now, I want to pause and reflect on what Jesus is saying here. Here we see Jesus consider the church, God’s people, to be a part of himself. That means when we hurt God’s people we are actually hurting God.

I also love Saul’s response here because it is deeply ironic. He says, “Who are you lord?” Paul would be calling Him Lord for the rest of his life. Jesus responds, “I am Jesus the one you are persecuting”. Jesus then sends him into the city and says there you will be told what you must do. In this moment, the murderous bloodthirsty man has been transformed. Saul goes from powerful and ambitious with a clear line of sight on what he wants , to blind and helpless in need of assistance to continue his journey. Like a helpless child, Saul enters into the kingdom. He has been knocked down and yet, even at his weakest point God has a plan for him.

Yet, Paul’s dimascus road experience reminds me of my own encounter with Jesus almost 10 years ago.

My Radical Encounter with Jesus

As I shared earlier my destructive decisions led to destructive consequences, Fast Forward to just weeks before I would start college I was at my lowest point, barely alive, depressed and rarely sober. This moment reminds me of Isa 59:1 that says surely the Lord’s arm is not too short to save.

My family was on vacation in Main and as I sat on an empty beach God reached out to me. Where I did not love myself, God loved me and where I saw little value, God saw his child. A weeks later I started my first class at messiah college. Even though I was changed I still thought I could do what I wanted. At the time I wanted to be a politician or a lawyer so I could dress nice, talk a lot, and make good money. But, God had different plans for my life. He called me to be a pastor and called me to lead the Diller Church right out of college. God had a plan for my life church amen? AMEN.

transition: I want to make one last jump back to the scripture text

God’s plan for Ananias

Ananias is maybe under-appreciated character in this story. Ananias is the one that God uses in the simple moments of life. We don’t really think about this much, but we have no clue what Ananias was doing in the moment that God reached out to him. He could’ve been working at home or eating lunch. I imagine if this happened today, God could reach out while you’re at work, while you are writing an email, or even in the grocery stone. If God speaks in a still small voice why can’t He use the small moments to speak in powerful ways?

God tells Ananias to “go to this house and ask for a man named Saul of Tarsus, for he is praying”. And Saul had a vision that Ananias would be the one to restore his sight.

Imagine being Ananias. What? You want me to do what? For who? Saul of Tarsus? Are you sure Lord? Do you know who that is? Do you know what he has done? He is literally the terror of the people. Ananias says, “I’ve heard about what he has done to my brothers and sisters in Jerusalem and I know why he is here. He is supposed to arrest people like me. And you want me to heal him?”

Yet, Ananias listens to God and faithfully follows through. After God tells him something even more unbelievable. God says, Yea I know who he is in fact this man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel.

THE POWER OF AN INSTRUMENT

Now I want you to pause right here. If you have your bibles look at verse 15, circle it highlight it, whatever it takes to remember this verse.

God says this man is my chosen instrument. God identifies Saul as HIS INSTRUMENT. Now why do you think God said the word instrument. I think he picked this word for a reason because if you think about it, an instrument doesn’t play itself. A guitar won’t strum itself, someone has to play it. So, if Saul is God’s instrument, then God must be the musician.

Instruments don’t work on their own. think about about it no one goes to a concert to see an instrument, but to hear it be played by a musician. At the end of the concert we don’t clap for the instrument’s performance, but the musicians’ performance. Thus, Paul is the instrument, and God is the musician It’s the same way with us. We are God’s instruments.

I want to Unpack what it means that we are instruments. Scripture tells us that we are God’s masterpiece. That means we are valuable instruments. We are not some junky plastic guitar we are a martin, and taylor. We are not a cheap piano, like a donner but steinway and sons grand piano. An instrument receives its value from the person who makes it. God created us to be beautiful instruments to make beautiful music!

So What my story and Sauls story change for us today? Simply it shows us that God has a plan. He uses us right were you are. Despite your past, despite your circumstances. God will use you right where he finds you. I love that Saul’s conversion takes place on a road. It reminds us that the Christian life isn’t simply a change from one point to another. It’s not a flip of a switch but a journey. Each of us are at a different point in our journey. Yet, the truth is that God can use you

I also love how this story shows us that God can use us in small seemingly insignificant moments of life.

if you take one thing away this morning, I want you to remember that we are God’s instruments. This life, this world, it’s all His concert. We are just instruments in His big orchestra. No matter if you are the a pastor, church leader, or you take out the trash. You are important. No matter how small or large you feel, a triangle is just as important as the trumpet. We are all instruments in his kingdom! The only thing we have to do is let the master play.

Imagine:

I want to leave you with an image. Imagine in your mind right now if we lived life this way. Imagine if you woke up every morning saying, God I am yours today, use me how you will. Imagine if the small tasks that we complete every dayv,we saw them not as things simply to be done but as opportunities for God to speak. Imagine if every person we met was the next Paul, who would go out and change the world in the name of Christ. Imagine what God could do with each of us here to build his Kingdom, wether it be evangelism or serving the community or discipling the next generation. Imagine just for a moment what could change.

Imagine if all this started with one decision. Your decision to be an instrument. Brothers and Sisters, you are God’s instrument. Just let the Master play.

Let us close with the prayer of St. Francis:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; where there is sadness, joy. O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life. Amen.